Today I am starting my day with Bible reading, prayer and devotion (and also coffee). My morning time with God is my favorite time of the day. During this time God gives me the strength, courage and insights I need to face the day ahead. It is also a time to guard my heart against the evil schemes of the devil. This Mindset Monday I encourage you to read the entire passage about the armor of God to prepare yourself for your day. Be bold in your prayers and ask God to surround you with all you will need today to “stand against the devil’s schemes.”

“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.”
‭‭Ephesians‬ ‭6:10-18‬ ‭NIV‬‬
https://bible.com/bible/111/eph.6.10-18.NIV

Last week was a humdinger of a week for me. How about you? It was one of those weeks that left me physically, mentally, and emotionally exhausted. Whether you are a college student, in the workforce (either working from home or in the workplace) or retired, I am sure you have had weeks that leave you feeling drained. What can we do when we feel depleted? Turn to the Holy Spirit. On this Spiritual Sunday, let’s all rest and be renewed. Let’s call on the Holy Spirit to fill us with the fruit of the Spirit.

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.”
‭‭Galatians‬ ‭5:22-23‬ ‭NIV‬‬

As we worship today, let’s ask the Holy Spirit to “Fall Afresh” as in this song by Jeremy Riddle.

https://youtu.be/617qQdMv5z8

Recently we were out shopping and saw this sign sitting outside a store. It reminded me of a Finish Friday post. I am sure we can apply this to a lot of areas in our lives. What about our prayer life?

Take a moment to really meditate on Matthew 7:7-8 NIV; ““Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.”

I am a huge Mark Batterson fan. He is a Pastor and Author of Circle Maker. In that book he encourages us to pray and dream big. God knows the desires of our hearts but He wants us to seek Him. He wants us to have a relationship with Him. He wants us to ask Him for what we desire. Obviously God is not a genie in a bottle. Sometimes there will be closed doors or not yets. Many times there will be doors. We must be intentional with our prayers and seek His will always.

On this Finish Friday I encourage you to follow through. Maybe you need to initiate a new prayer. Maybe God has opened a door and He is waiting for you to walk through. Maybe He has already closed a door. Maybe you need to keep circling that need. Stay faithful in prayer. God is always working behind the scenes.

I am sure we have all heard about a glass half full outlook verses a glass half empty outlook. What if we talked about pie instead. As Christians we are full of God because the Holy Spirit lives in us. Let’s think about our day as a piece of pie. Every time something happens that is difficult or makes us sad or mad, it is easy to let someone take a slice of our pie. What if we chose to react with praise verses grumbling. God-seekers are full of God. Let’s bless God on this Thankful Thursday with a heart of praise. Will you allow someone or something to take a slice of your pie today? Or will you choose to be full of God?

I encourage you to read ‭‭all of Psalm‬ ‭34:1-10‬ ‭MSG; “I bless God every chance I get; my lungs expand with his praise. I live and breathe God; if things aren’t going well, hear this and be happy: Join me in spreading the news; together let’s get the word out. God met me more than halfway, he freed me from my anxious fears. Look at him; give him your warmest smile. Never hide your feelings from him. When I was desperate, I called out, and God got me out of a tight spot. God’s angel sets up a circle of protection around us while we pray. Open your mouth and taste, open your eyes and see— how good God is. Blessed are you who run to him. Worship God if you want the best; worship opens doors to all his goodness. Young lions on the prowl get hungry, but God-seekers are full of God.”‬‬

There is a lot of anxiety, fear, emotions, and excitement built up on the first day of school. Parents, students, teachers, and administrators are all feeling different things. Yesterday I had a headache at work so I resorted to a pack of M & M’s, my favorite vending machine snack. In this picture we have a ruler, pen, and an empty pack of candy. Maybe this image will help you remember on Water Walking Wednesday to stay planted in God’s word.

Much Love, no matter what fears we are facing today we can stay planted in God’s love; “There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.” 1 John‬ ‭4:18‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Much Grace, no matter if we feel we don’t measure up we can stay planted in God’s Grace; “May the favor of the Lord our God rest on us; establish the work of our hands for us— yes, establish the work of our hands.” Psalms‬ ‭90:17‬ ‭NIV‬‬

God’s Promises, no matter what happens or doesn’t happen today we can rest assured that God holds the pen. We can stay planted in knowing that He is writing our stories; “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Jeremiah‬ ‭29:11‬ ‭NIV‬‬

I pray everyone has a great first day, first week, first month, and a great year! Go walk on water!!

If you followed Track in the 2020 Olympics, you heard several times about how USA medalists Sydney McLaughlin and Dalila Muhammad are a perfect example of iron sharpening iron. In Proverbs 27:17 NIV we read; “As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.”

On this Transformation Tips Tuesday are you surrounding yourself with others that lift you up and sharpen you? My husband Hollie and I have started riding bikes a few evenings a week. Neither of us plan on striving for the Olympics but we do strive to stay active and healthy all while enjoying each others company.

Will you get active today? Will you lift someone up by asking them to join you in a walk or run or bike ride? We also read in Ecc 4:9 NIV; “Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor:”

On this Mindset Monday, let’s pause and think about the power of our words. My mantra for the year is to be a fruit bearer. When I read Proverbs 18:21 in the message it tells me our words can either be poison or fruit; “Words kill, words give life; they’re either poison or fruit—you choose.”

Words can be spoken over ourselves and to others. Will you be a fruit bearer today and give life or will you cut yourself and others down. Like these vibrant green trees, let’s choose to be full of energy and enthusiasm with life giving words.

Take a moment to listen to this song; I Speak Jesus by Here be Lions & Darlene Zschech