Good morning, Dear Friends and Prayer Partners! This is the day that the Lord has made and we will rejoice and be glad in it! The sun is highlighting the hedge outside my window in streaks of brightness, as it rises higher and higher. Very much like spotlights.
Last night as I left the Faith Group meeting I looked up to see the full moon shining in and out of the clouds and immediately thought of the poem I learned in school..."the moon was a ghostly galleon riding on cloudy seas" from the Highwayman. That's about all I remember of that.
I forgot to mention that I saw a juvenile gator, (one of the babies) at the first shelter, but the shape of the head looked like a caiman. I know Mike showed me one once that he was carrying, (he's the retired naturalist) but I didn't know they inhabited the canal.
And as I drove around Lynch Lake I was amused to see six woodstorks all in a row, and one lying down on the grass. They looked very somber and glum. I don't know why the woodstorks never seem happy..guess it's not their nature. But God is good!
From the devotional book Quiet Moments with God
In all your ways acknowledge him. Proverbs 3:6 NJKV
Many people are quick to pray before a meal, before they begin a new project, before they attempt something for the first time, or before embarking on a long journey. They desire to start on the right foot, asking for God's help, protection, creativity, and blessing; but what about prayer at the end of a work day, journey, or task?
Such a prayer is like a second bookend on a shelf of freestanding books,--it brackets our work and brings us to full recognition that we have received from the Lord the very things we requested. Rather than being a prayer of petition, such a prayer is an expression of praise and thanksgiving.
Simeon had lived his entire life waiting to see the Messiah-a promise the Lord had made to him. (Luke 2:26 KJV). Upon seeing the infant Jesus in the Temple, Simeon took Him in his arms, blessed God, and said, "Lord, now You are letting Your servant depart in peace, according to Your word, for my eyes have seen Your salvation". (Luke 2:29-30 NKJV). Simeon recognized that God had been faithful to His Word, and his heart was encouraged and filled with joy.
Simeon is a wonderful example of how we need to begin and end the events of our lives with prayer. When we reach the end of a day, haggard and weary, we can remember Simeon's prayer, "Lord, let Your servant depart in peace, according to your Word."
Knowing God was with us today and He will be with us tomorrow, we can move on to the evening hours with freedom and a sense of satisfaction.
Let a man go away or
come back. God never
leaves. He is always at hand and
if he cannot get into your
life, still he is never farther away
than the door.
Meister Eckhart
I always give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers with thanksgiving, joy and love!
Love and hugs,
Amaryllis
