You desire joy? It’s already there inside you.

If you’re generous with other people, they will be generous with you, and that alone will bring you unspeakable joy. Joy starts inside yourself. You can’t expect to get it from somebody else first.

~~Luci Swindoll

This morning’s prayer and meditation for Sally’s healing comes from Take Heart, Oh God: Riches from the Greatest Christian Women Writers of All Time.

Walking down the street, you encounter a child who is obviously hungry and thirsty. Do you wait for the child to pluck a daisy from a nearby garden or offer you some other token of affection before you extend a helping hand? Of course not. This child’s need compels you toward generosity. The reward comes in the form of a relieved and grateful smile beaming up at you. At that moment, a feeling of delight and satisfaction envelops you.

There are times when a feeling of joy eludes us and the reality is that we’d be stuck in joylessness if we waited for someone else to deliver it. On these difficult days our best guarantee of recapturing joy is to first bring it to someone else.

You desire joy? It’s already there inside you—a gift from the Holy Spirit. Go spread it around. You’ll discover that joy was there all along.

Prayer for Meditation

Fill me with your joy, Lord, and help me share it with others.  

Scripture for Meditation

And Nehemiah continued, “Go and celebrate with a feast of rich foods and sweet drinks, and share gifts of food with people who have nothing prepared. This is a sacred day before our Lord. Don’t be dejected and sad, for the joy of the LORD is your strength!”Nehemiah 8:10

Music for Meditation

Beautiful Terrible Cross 

If you feel led to do so, please post a note of encouragement in the comment section below, or send your note by email to PrayersForSally@gmail.com

When one really cares, the self is forgotten, and the sacrifice becomes only a part of the activity

When one really cares, the self is forgotten, and the sacrifice becomes only a part of the activity.

~~Dorothy Sayers

This morning’s prayer and meditation for Sally’s healing comes from Take Heart, Oh God: Riches from the Greatest Christian Women Writers of All Time.

Sometimes we care—and want to help—but it’s too inconvenient. We’d take that meal, but the family lives too far away. We’d contribute to the offering, but our finances are tight. We’d volunteer, but our schedule is filled to capacity.

Dorothy Sayers explains that, when we really care, we don’t focus on ourselves and the sacrifice we must make. The sacrifice becomes only a part of the activity; the rest is wrapped up in love for God, love for others, and desire to serve.

We just need to learn to forget about ourselves. Not easy, but possible.

Today, tune your heart to the Holy Spirit’s gentle voice. Is he asking you to really care? Don’t do something because you feel manipulated, pressured, or guilty. Do it out of willing obedience to him.

When you forget about yourself, your acts of service overflow with joy and love. And God in heaven smiles.

Prayer for Meditation

Even through sacrifice, Jesus, help me forget myself and do as you ask.  

Scripture for Meditation

And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect. Romans 12:1

Music for Meditation

All The Way My Savior Leads Me 

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God knows all our secrets, all our hurts, and all our concerns

The capacity to discern and do the will of God arises out of friendship with God,

cultivated through prayer, times of quiet listening and alert awareness.

~~Ruth Haley Barton

This morning’s prayer and meditation for Sally’s healing comes from Take Heart, Oh God: Riches from the Greatest Christian Women Writers of All Time.

Close friends know each other’s secrets. They know what brings laughter. They can anticipate one another’s reactions and “read” each others’ hearts. Spending time together bonds the friendship. If one person doesn’t take time to nurture the friendship, the pair drift apart.

God knows all our secrets, all our hurts, and all our concerns. He knows when we will laugh and cry. He always waits for us to meet with him. God tells us if we seek him, we’ll find him. When we search to know him from Scripture and spend “friendship time” with God, we discover his ways. Our prayers are our side of the many conversations. His leadings and promptings become clearer as we spend more time with him.

As with any dear friendship, choose to set aside time to be with God, your best friend. He’s waiting. He has so much he wants to share with you!

Prayer for Meditation

Dear Friend, I’m here. I want to spend time with you.  

Scripture for Meditation

Inside the Tent of Meeting, the LORD would speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. Afterwards Moses would return to the camp, but the young man who assisted him, Joshua son of Nun, stayed behind in the Tent of Meeting. Exodus 33:11

Music for Meditation

My Jesus I Love Thee 

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“Wherever you are, God is there,” Mama always said, “He’ll meet you wherever you are.”

~~Ronda Rich

This morning’s prayer and meditation for Sally’s healing comes from Take Heart, Oh God: Riches from the Greatest Christian Women Writers of All Time.

What did your mama always say? Or your grandmother? Or that teacher who inspired you? If you’re lucky, someone along your journey took the time to impart his or her wisdom to you.

Rhonda Rich’s mom wanted her to remember that wherever she went, God was there. It sounds almost mundane until we think about it.

In the days of joy and thankfulness, God is here. In the time of sorrow and grief, God is there. When worry assails us, God is there. When temptation entices us, God is there. When uncertainty tears us apart, God is there.

The Great I Am is rejoicing, sorrowing, comforting, guiding, strengthening. He is walking with you. He is willing to carry the burden when it gets too heavy.

Do you need him today, but feel you need to “get in a better place” first? No matter what your circumstances, he’ll meet you wherever you are.

Prayer for Meditation

Thank you that wherever I am, Lord, you are there.  

Scripture for Meditation

The LORD directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives. Though they stumble, they will never fall, for the LORD holds them by the hand. Psalm 37:23-24

Music for Meditation

Jesus Will Meet You There

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Set Aside Your Fear and Step Out

God will bring us to a place in which we must step out of hiding

 and take a chance on being hurt again.

~~Joyce Meyer

This morning’s prayer and meditation for Sally’s healing comes from Take Heart, Oh God: Riches from the Greatest Christian Women Writers of All Time.

If you’ve ever been injured in an accident, whether it was swooshing down a ski slope standing on a ladder for a home improvement project, or driving along an icy road, you know the memory of that trauma can persist for a long time. The torn ligament, bruises, or damaged vehicle will heal or be repaired, but the lingering fear remains. We don’t ski again. We don’t use a ladder. We don’t drive in bad weather.

God knows our fear. He understands our hurt. He also knows, however, that when we let ourselves be paralyzed, we lose the opportunity to live the full life he intends for us.

As Joyce Meyer says, he may bring you to a place where you need to set aside your fear and step out. Will you be hurt again? Maybe. Will you be able to handle whatever comes?

Yes, because he goes with you.

Prayer for Meditation

Take my hand, Lord, and pull me from my hiding place of fear.

Scripture for Meditation

Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord is the one who goes before you. He will be with you; he will neither fail you nor forsake you. Deuteronomy 31:8

Music for Meditation

Don’t Give Up

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Progress has a price; and becoming a person who never gives up will cost you

Progress has a price; and becoming a person who never gives up will cost you.

~~Joyce Meyer

This morning’s prayer and meditation for Sally’s healing comes from Take Heart, Oh God: Riches from the Greatest Christian Women Writers of All Time.

What might it cost us to walk closer with Jesus, to move forward and deeper in our relationship with him? Might we have to lose a friend who is holding us back? Might we have to set aside some habits that we know are detrimental to our spiritual growth? Lose a few extra minutes of sleep in order to have a daily quiet time? Risk annoying a family member who thinks we’ve jumped overboard?

Moving forward always has a price. Risks are involved. Often we enter into unchartered territory. Dangers may come our way. Like Pilgrim in the classic book Pilgrim’s Progress, our journeys to the Celestial City take us through all manner of sloughs and valleys.

But the only way to get where we’re going is to never give up. To walk closer with Jesus is priceless. The cost isn’t worth counting.

Prayer for Meditation

Jesus, I want to never give up as I draw closer to you.  

Scripture for Meditation

Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross, and follow me. If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it. And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul? Is anything worth more than your soul? For the Son of Man will come with his angels in the glory of his Father and will judge all people according to their deeds. And I tell you the truth, some standing here right now will not die before they see the Son of Man coming in his Kingdom.” Matthew 16:24-28

Music for Meditation

Depth of Mercy 

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At times we are frustrated at God, angry at his refusal to give us what we want . . .

I am his child; but in his great wisdom, he let me realize that nowhere else in the whole wide world, nowhere in all creation, can I go from his presence. He wouldn’t let me go.

~~Jan Dravecky

This morning’s prayer and meditation for Sally’s healing comes from Take Heart, Oh God: Riches from the Greatest Christian Women Writers of All Time.

The six year old, angry that mom won’t give her ice cream for lunch, packs up her belongings in a plastic bag and declares that she is running away. Mom keeps an eye out, watches her head to the neighbor’s home, and makes a quick phone call. Then she watches and waits. Her daughter will return. In short order, she discovers that she needs her mom, that no other place offers the comforts of home, and that mom loves her and wants the very best for her—which doesn’t include ice cream for lunch!

At times we are frustrated at God, angry at his refusal to give us what we want. We figuratively pack our bags to run away—only to discover that we cannot get away from his presence. He is watching, waiting, loving.

He loves you too much to let you go. So unpack your bags. You’re home.

Prayer for Meditation

Father, thank you for your loving pursuit of me in my willful wandering.  

Scripture for Meditation Psalm 139:7-10

I can never escape from your Spirit!

     I can never get away from your presence!

If I go up to heaven, you are there;

    if I go down to the grave, you are there.

If I ride the wings of the morning,

   if I dwell by the farthest oceans,

even there your hand will guide me,

   and your strength will support me.

Music for Meditation

Wonderful Merciful Savior 

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Help me to trust You while I’m in life’s waiting room

At its best, our age is an age of searchers and discoverers, and at its worst,

an age that has domesticated despair and learned to live with it happily.

~~Flannery O’Connor

This morning’s prayer and meditation for Sally’s healing comes from Take Heart, Oh God: Riches from the Greatest Christian Women Writers of All Time.

Waiting. Filling time while we wait for the phone to ring and deliver the good news or get the bad news over with. Standing in line. Preparing for an event. Or simply waiting “until things get better.”

But what if the good news we wait for never comes? What if things just don’t get better? What if the waiting is meaningless? Too many people abandon hope, abandon trust, and decide, despite the contradiction, to live happily with their despair.

Christ has something far better in mind. In him, we find meaning in the waiting. While we watch our hopes fade, he is turning our eyes toward a truer hope.

While he makes us wait, we learn to trust our future dreams to him. Waiting is hard, but waiting on God means the wait will be worth it.

Prayer for Meditation

Father, help me to trust you while I’m in life’s waiting room.  

Scripture for Meditation

“For I know the plans I have for you,” says the LORD. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.” Jeremiah 29:11

Music for Meditation

The Lord’s Prayer (Deliver Us)

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No matter what life holds for us, He will be there to celebrate or to comfort.

There’s wealth enough; I need no more. Farewell, my pelf; farewell, my store.

The world no longer lets me love; My hope and Treasure lies above.

~~Anne Bradstreet

This morning’s prayer and meditation for Sally’s healing comes from Take Heart, Oh God: Riches from the Greatest Christian Women Writers of All Time.

What if everything you owned was suddenly taken from you? Anne Bradstreet wrote these words after her home burned, destroying all her family’s belongings and leaving her, her husband and their eight children homeless. She understood that even though everything she owned was gone, her hope and treasure were safe in heaven.

We have no guarantees in this life. No written contract with God states that we will have earthly riches if we work hard. Nothing anywhere says we are assured a house, a car, and good health. In fact, God doesn’t even promise we will live to see tomorrow.

However, there is one guarantee in which we can trust; Jesus will be with us and never let us go. No matter what life holds for us, he will be there to celebrate or to comfort.

Love not the world. If your hope and treasure lie above, you have all you will ever need.

Prayer for Meditation

Let me not love the world, Lord. My hope and treasure lie with you.   

Scripture for Meditation

Don’t store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal. Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal. Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be. Matthew 6:19-21

Music for Meditation

My Jesus I Love Thee 

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The destitute place. It looks different for each of us, but we’ve all been there

As we walked through the destitute place, our souls cried out to God for help.

~~Mary McLeod Bethune

This morning’s prayer and meditation for Sally’s healing comes from Take Heart, Oh God: Riches from the Greatest Christian Women Writers of All Time.

The destitute place. It looks different for each of us, but we’ve all been there.

It’s a place where nothing makes sense. It’s a place where what we thought we understood is turned upside-down, where what we thought we had is taken away. It may be the loss of a job or a home, a wandering child, an unexpected attack, the loss of a friendship, a divorce, a death. It’s a place where darkness descends, envelops, overwhelms. Where do you go? Who do you turn to? Who can possibly bring sense back to a world of confusion?

Mary Bethune knew. In that destitute place, our souls cry out to God for help.

Only he can turn your world right-side-up again. Only he can give you the wisdom to move forward from the destitute place and back into life.

He’s there. Just call out to him.

Prayer for Meditation

Father, in these times of hardship and trouble, my soul cries out to you. 

Scripture for Meditation

I waited patiently for the LORD to help me, and he turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the pit of despair, out of the mud and the mire. He set my feet on solid ground and steadied me as I walked along. He has given me a new song to sing, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see what he has done and be amazed. They will put their trust in the LORD. Oh, the joys of those who trust the LORD, who have no confidence in the proud or in those who worship idols. Psalm 40:1-4

Music for Meditation

Glory 

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Our joy should simply be in our relationship with God, not in what he does for us

God allows us to have disappointments, frustrations, or even worse because He wants us to see that our joy is not in such worldly pleasures . . . our joy is in the fact that we have a relationship with God.

~~Catherine Marshall

This morning’s prayer and meditation for Sally’s healing comes from Take Heart, Oh God: Riches from the Greatest Christian Women Writers of All Time.

God alone holds the “big picture” of our existence. He alone can lift us up to transcend anxieties and problems. Ah! What a gift to have such help!

Many people wonder why, if they stay close to God, they will experience disappointments, frustrations, or worse. They want God to insulate them from the realities of life. They think, if God love me, then these things shouldn’t happen.  

But God allows those bad things in life. As Catherine Marshall explains, “He wants us to see that our joy is not in such worldly pleasures.” Instead, our joy should simply be in our relationship with God, not in what he does for us.

Step out of your difficulties for a moment. Look into the face of your heavenly Father who loves you so much. His love for you is all that really matters.

Prayer for Meditation

Thank you for loving me, Lord. My joy is in you alone. 

Scripture for Meditation

Even though the fig trees have no blossoms, and there are no grapes on the vines; even though the olive crop fails, and the fields lie empty and barren; even though the flocks die in the fields, and the cattle barns are empty, yet I will rejoice in the Lord! I will be joyful in the God of my salvation! The Sovereign LORD is my strength. He makes me as surefooted as a deer, able to tread upon the heights. Habakkuk 3:17-19

Music for Meditation

The Lord’s Prayer (Deliver Us) 

If you feel led to do so, please post a note of encouragement in the comment section below, or send your note by email to PrayersForSally@gmail.com

What if we had to put a puzzle together without knowing what the picture is?

For wisdom is more than just seeing our problems through  God’s eyes—It’s also trusting Him even when the pieces don’t seem to fit.

~~Joni Eareckson

This morning’s prayer and meditation for Sally’s healing comes from Take Heart, Oh God: Riches from the Greatest Christian Women Writers of All Time.

When we scatter the pieces of a puzzle across a table, nothing makes sense. We start with the edge pieces and then work from the photo to help guide us. But what if we have to put together the pieces without knowing what the picture is?

Our lives are exactly like that. Pieces of problems are scattered across life’s table and nothing makes sense. Nothing fits. And we don’t even know what the final picture is supposed to look like.

That’s when we trust. If the puzzle manufacturers can deliver exactly the right pieces that will all fit in the end, then all the more, our Creator God knows how to form our puzzle—problems together into a beautiful picture.

When the scattered pieces don’t make sense, know that the puzzle of your life has already been solved by God. Look through his eyes and trust him.  

Prayer for Meditation

Through my puzzle pieces don’t seem to fit, Lord, I will trust you. 

Scripture for Meditation

Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end.

Music for Meditation

Gratitude

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Soak in the wonder of God's love

Our worship is based on truth, not emotion; it is based not on the fervency of our words, but on the faithfulness of our God. Emotion follows truth! 

~~Kay Arthur

This morning’s prayer and meditation for Sally’s healing comes from Take Heart, Oh God: Riches from the Greatest Christian Women Writers of All Time.

Through the truth-flowing words of our songs, we worship our Lord. We center on him and open our hearts. We read Scripture and reflect on his attributes and faithfulness through the generations. Tears flow; we fall on our knees in humility. Words may come easily or not at all.

Our worship is based on the truth of who God is. He is worthy of every word of praise, every tear of thanks, every smile of joy. It is not the fervency of our words or emotions that make for truth, the truth already exists. Worship is simply our way of responding to God’s love and faithfulness.

Emotions are evidence of your deep devotion to God. Listen for his still, small voice, or his gentle touch on your heart. Soak in the wonder of God’s love. Linger in worship until you are full to overflowing. Praise him. Thank him. He deserves it.  

Prayer for Meditation

Lord, I worship you because of who you are.  

Scripture for Meditation

For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth. John 4:24

Music for Meditation

Precious Lord/Just A Closer Walk 

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God does some of his best work when there is no money, no time, no hope, no way out

Sometimes the greatest answers to prayer happen when you have no place to go but God.

~~Carol Cymbala

This morning’s prayer and meditation for Sally’s healing comes from Take Heart, Oh God: Riches from the Greatest Christian Women Writers of All Time.

Bad report. Dreams crushed. Hope lost. The perfect time for God to do his work.

The impossibility of our situation means nothing to God. He delights in bringing answers when all we see are obstacles. He does some of his best work when there is no money, no time, no hope, no way out.

Are you at the point of giving up? Have you done everything humanly possible to solve the problem but you feel there’s no answer? It’s too big for you to fix, too overwhelming to handle, too much to bear.

Fall on your knees before God. You have nowhere else to turn. And that’s just the time when God says to you, “Relax, my daughter. It isn’t over until I say it’s over.” Big problems require big answers. And that’s God’s specialty.  

Prayer for Meditation

My problem is too big for me, Lord. I need a big answer.  

Scripture for Meditation

Jesus looked at them intently and said, “Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But not with God. Everything is possible with God.” March 10:27

Music for Meditation

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Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus