Posted on 01/01/2024 3:15:48 PM PST by luvie
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Hi there! Got the driveway plowed. 😄 Will need to do that again in the morning. Got about 5” of very heavy wet snow. Still snowing through tonight.
❄️❄️❄️
It’s pouring here. Thank God it isn’t snow!
We’re in for some arctic cold in a few days.
-10 on Sunday night and 2 degree high on Monday.
🥶
Brrrrrrr
Awwww....
Bible in a Year :
I sat down and wept. . . . I mourned and fasted and prayed before the God of heaven.
Abraham Lincoln confided to a friend, “I have been driven many times upon my knees by the overwhelming conviction that I had nowhere else to go.” In the horrific years of the American Civil War, President Lincoln not only spent time in fervent prayer but also called the country to join him. In 1861, he proclaimed a “day of humiliation, prayer and fasting.” And he did so again in 1863, stating, “It is the duty of nations as well as of men to own their dependence upon the overruling power of God: to confess their sins and transgressions in humble sorrow, yet with assured hope that genuine repentance will lead to mercy and pardon.”
After the Israelites had been captives in Babylon for seventy years, King Cyrus decreed that any Israelite who wanted to return to Jerusalem could return. When Nehemiah, an Israelite (Nehemiah 1:6) and cupbearer to the king of Babylon (v. 11), learned that those who had returned were “in great trouble and disgrace” (v. 3), he “sat down and wept” and spent days mourning, fasting and praying (v. 4). He wrestled in prayer for his nation (vv. 5–11). And later, he too called his people to fast and pray (9:1–37).
Centuries later, in the days of the Roman Empire, the apostle Paul similarly urged his readers to pray for those in authority (1 Timothy 2:1–2). Our God still hears our prayers about matters that affect the lives of others. .
Reflect & Pray
Why do you think God calls His people to pray for everyone? Who beyond your own circle can you pray for?
Dear Father, we’re in trouble. Please help and heal us.
I just saw that our low for this Sunday night is 13. I was SHOCKED! Shocked, I tell ya! Right now it’s 59 and sunny. What a strange winter this has been so far!
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Love Garfield!
🐱❤️
Me, too!
Bible in a Year :
If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you? You must follow me.
Such mild resistance was frequent in our home when our girls were young. My response was always the same: “Don’t worry about your sisters; I asked you.”
In John 21, we see this human tendency illustrated among the disciples. Jesus had just restored Peter after he’d denied Him three times (see John 18:15–18, 25–27). Now Jesus said to Peter, “Follow me!” (21:19)—a simple but painful command. Jesus explained that Peter would follow Him to the death (vv. 18–19).
Peter barely had time to comprehend Jesus’ words before he asked about the disciple behind them: “What about him?” (v. 21). Jesus replied, “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you?” Then He said, “You must follow me” (v. 22).
How often we’re like Peter! We wonder about the faith journeys of others and not what God is doing with us. Late in his life, when the death Jesus foretold in John 21 was much closer, Peter elaborated on Christ’s simple command: “As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do” (1 Peter 1:14–15). That’s enough to keep each of us focused on Jesus and not on those around us. .
Reflect & Pray
How are you tempted to compare your faith walk with others? How will you keep your focus on Jesus today?
Heavenly Father, please continue to conform me into the image of Your Son.
...and having sooo much fun!
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Happy Thankful Thursday!
We had sunshine this morning. Enjoyed it while I plowed snow today.
More snow tonight and Friday. Some 40-50mph wind expected too, which is concerning since up to 12” of snow is on the way.
What a snowy week. Ugh.
😅
We’ve had a little bit of snow, but it has melted. I’m glad about that, but the winter is still young.
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