I Invite You to Pray With Me

With deep sincerity, I invite you to pray with me today:

Loving Lord, my Almighty Personal God:
For this new day, I am so totally thankful.
Though the world seems more confusing day-by-day,
You offer clarity to my mind and calm to my soul.
The ruler of this age has suffered defeat and will not prevail.
Surely, time on earth will soon run out...
And humanity will run head-long into eternity.
Intensify Your light in and through me, my Jesus;
Lest those around me, even my beloved ones are lost forever.
I want Your abiding presence to enlarge deep within my being,
Allowing Your glory to comfort me as it captures the hearts of others.
Please overcome all dread, despair, and discouragement inside me.
Replenish me with Your complete love, powerful grace, holy presence.
Let Your mercy renew my strength so I can serve you anew.
And when You return to earth, my Jesus,
Find full-blooming, up-to-date, faith in You... in my soul.
Amen and Amen.

...when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on earth?
-- Luke 18:8b (GWT)

Grateful

Can I Be Transparent?

Let me vulnerably share a few words from my own recent journey...

It seems to always happen, but it always takes me by surprise. After I speak encouraging words into the lives of others, without doubt, discouragement ultimately seems to catch up to me unawares a few days later.

For example, last week I preached two revivals in my homeland of North Carolina, yes my holy land. The Lord was so obviously near and dear as I passionately proclaimed The Good News of Jesus Christ. The listeners were hungry and many responded accordingly.

I received a card from one of the revival attendees in the mailbox just yesterday. Here's what she wrote:

God can touch the world through a word kindly spoken,
through a heartfelt prayer.
Thank you for allowing God to use your words, prayers,
and messages to share His message of love.
Every night was so appreciated.
May His Best always be upon you.
Go ye into all the world, and preach the Gospel.
Mark 16:15

The card of encouragement was signed, Ann.
She even added a colorful sticker announcing Our God Reigns.

I am humbled that I get to represent my Lord by going into all the world to preach and to pray His Word and His words. I love encouraging eternal souls to seek ever-increasing intimacy with the Lord. I am also touched deeply by compassion-filled cards like Ann's. No doubt God inspired her to take the time to send me these kind words of inspiration.

Still, can I be transparent, very transparent? Sometime last night, waves of disillusionment crashed in on me as I was sleeping, and I awoke this morning (a few days after encouraging others) with a layer or two of discouragement dampening my heart, mind, soul, and strength.

I remember testifying aloud many times that my spiritual gift must be encouragement, because it seems the adversary always follows up the seasons I especially deliver encouragement to others with large quantities of discouragement in my own life. Yet, I will, with the help of my God who reigns within me, not cease to carry Good News to others just because heaviness seems to be included in the price-tag.

In fact, as I am writing this very blog post, God just this minute, had one of the men who prays with me every Tuesday morning to send me this text message on my phone:

Life may be hard, but Jesus is stronger. I pray that you have a low stress day! I am praying for you, brother. I love you and Jesus, both. Lee

Can I be transparent? God's perfect timing puts everything into perspective -- seasons of encouraging others and seasons of being personally discouraged. I pray the title of this Blog Site, Beautiful Feet,  will continue to characterize my life to my very final breath.

How can people tell the Good News if no one sends them? As Scripture says, “How beautiful are the feet of the messengers who announce the Good News.”
-- Romans 10:15 (GWT)

Can I be transparent? For Ann's encouraging card, for Lee's uplifting text message, and for the prayers of those of you who faithfully or even occasionally follow this blog, please know that forever and today I am so humbled. I am also, so very...

...Grateful to God and Grateful for you.

Add Singing To Your Praying

Are you discouraged in darkness? Do you need prison doors to open in your life? Why not add singing to your praying? They go together. In fact, they work wonders together!

(25) About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing praises to God, while the other prisoners listened. (26) Suddenly a strong earthquake shook the jail to its foundations. The doors opened, and the chains fell from all the prisoners.
-- Acts 16:25-26 (CEV)

Satan's seeds of discouragement can never thrive in the heart of a grateful believer who will not quit praying and singing.

By Faith! In Faith! (Hebrews 11)
Grateful

The Cost of Encouraging Others

I have learned that the cost of encouraging others is the raw reality of being chased by discouragement shortly thereafter, yes, usually the next morning. Still, I embrace with my whole being the gift that God has entrusted to me, yes the gift of encouraging others on His behalf.

Lord, cause Your Joy to be my strength as I encourage others and when discouragement comes chasing after me, may it only serve to run me further into Your refreshing presence. In the name of Jesus. Amen.

If your gift is to encourage others, do it!
-- Romans 12:8 (NLT)

IF MY PEOPLE... WILL? I WILL! God's Promise in 2 Chron. 7:14.
Grateful