Walk Boldly With Jesus

God Made You On Purpose

Psalm 139:13 “For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb.”

God created everything about us.  I like this verse, though, because it reminds us that He created even our inmost being.  I like the visual of God knitting me together.  One stitch at a time.  I am not someone who knits, but I have family and friends that do.  When you are knitting something you can make it look however you want to.  If you are the person doing it, you get to pick the colors; you get to pick the pattern, and you even get to pick which stitch or combination of stitches you are going to use.  You are the creator of whatever you are knitting.  

Now, imagine that God is knitting you together.  He chose all the specifics about you.  He got to choose what color hair you have and what color eyes you have.  Do you ever take time to think about this, to think about the fact that God created everything about you?  I was at a personal development conference this week, so that may be why it is on my mind more than usual.  I love attending these conferences because it is so great to be gathered in a room with like-minded people.  I don’t mean that we all think the same way or even believe the same things, but in this instance, we were all there because we knew God had a bigger plan for our lives, and we wanted to figure out what that plan was.  

It was an amazing weekend, and I learned so much.  This happened to be a women’s conference, and there were so many women gathered together, all wanting to improve themselves in some way or another.  This is a beautiful thing.  One of the things that usually comes up when you have so many women gathered together is the idea of insecurities.  Insecurities are something that I believe everyone has.  We don’t all have them about the same things or to the same extent, but I do think we are all insecure about something.  We all have that one thing, or some of us have more than one thing that we wish we could change about ourselves.  That thing that we really don’t like about ourselves.  Some of these things affect our lives in a big way, and some do not.

When you look at yourself and your life, what are your insecurities?  What are the things about you that you don’t like that may be getting in your way of living your best life?  Maybe you are struggling because you are living the life that everyone around you wants you to live, but inside, you feel like it's not right for you.  For instance, you have a really good job, and you are making good money, but in your heart, you really want to be doing something else.  Maybe you have insecurities based on your appearance.  This is a big one with women.  We feel too tall, too short, too thin, too fat.  Or we feel our hair is too long, too short, too light, too dark.  It seems like no one is happy in their own skin these days.  

I wonder why this is.  I wonder if people throughout the ages have always felt like this, or if this is new.  I don’t think it is new that people don’t like something about themselves.  I am sure that has always probably been a thing.  However, I wonder if it was as widespread and commonplace as it is today.  I am not sure if I know a single woman who is so happy with her appearance that she wouldn’t change anything if you asked.  I wonder if all this unhappiness has to do with social media and marketing.  Once upon a time, before TV, magazines, movies, etc., you didn’t have so much access to everything.  You could compare yourself to those who lived around you, and maybe those in paintings or in books.  However, you didn’t have the kind of access you have today.  

Today, you could spend five minutes online and you could scroll through hundreds of images of whatever you want to look at.  Also, if you have social media, you can just scroll down your feed, and you will see plenty of posts from people.  The internet can be a very dangerous place for those who have insecurities and are looking for proof that those insecurities are real.  If you think you are too heavy and then you search for proof of that online, you will find it.  That is how the internet works.  You ask a question and it searches all the data and gives you an answer to the question that you just asked it.  Your brain is the same.  If you have an insecurity and you ask your brain to find proof of it, your brain will.  The awesome thing about your brain is that the opposite is also true.  If you ask your brain to prove to you that your insecurity is not true, it will do that as well.  For instance, if you ask your brain why no one at work likes you, it will search all your memories and come up with reasons why your co-workers don’t like you.  However, if you ask your brain to prove to you that people at your work do like you, your brain will come up with an answer to that question as well.  If you do not like the answers you are coming up with then you need only ask better questions.  

The main speaker at the conference said something this weekend, and I think it would be great if everyone in the world heard it.  She said that when she was sitting in the audience at her first personal development conference, she had a realization wash over her.  She felt it was divine intervention.  The realization was, “What if I was on purpose?  What if God made me exactly like I am for a reason?”  I think this is so important because I think so many of us feel like there is some part of us that is wrong.  We feel like we would be better if that part of us didn’t exist.  I always wished that I wasn’t so emotional.  I have thought this more times than I can count.  I cry at happy things, I cry at sad things, I cry at spiritual things, I cry for someone else’s happy times and someone else’s pain.  I am just a mess sometimes.  I always thought this was a character flaw.  However, now I know that God gave me that ability.  I don’t know why He made me that way, but God doesn’t make mistakes.  So, there must be a reason.  

The same goes for you.  You were made on purpose.  God knew what he was doing.  He designed each part of you for a reason.  He pays attention to detail.  How would your life be different if you could hear this and really take it in?  How would you feel about yourself if the next time you started to feel insecure about something, you reminded yourself that God made you this way on purpose?  You are perfect, just as you are.  You are loved just as you are.  Your are enough just as you are.

Dear Heavenly Father I ask that you bless all those listening to this episode today. Lord help us to see ourselves through your eyes. Help us to see everyone through your eyes. Lord help remind us when we feel insecure that you made us on purpose.  Remind us Lord that you created our inmost being. You knit us together perfectly and completely. And if you made us on purpose Lord then that means we can't be a mistake. That means our hopes and desires aren't a mistake. That means our character isn't a mistake.  We love you Lord Jesus and we thank you for making us who we are and we ask that you help us learn to love who we are. We thank you for making us in your likeness and image. You are amazing and we ask all of this in accordance with your will and in Jesus holy name amen.

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Because Somebody Prayed

1 John 5:14–15 “And this is the boldness we have in him, that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have obtained the requests made of him.”

I love this verse because God is reminding us that we can trust Him. He reminds us that if we ask anything according to his will, He hears us, and if we know that he hears us, then we know we have obtained the request made of him. I don’t know about you, but I can get caught up in the part that says, according to his will. I have asked the Lord for many things, and I don’t think that he has given them to me. I get frustrated when I am praying for someone, and I remember that God said if we ask in Jesus’ name, then anything we ask for will be given to us.

I know that God’s ways are higher than our ways and his thoughts greater than our thoughts, and yet it is still frustrating when we can’t understand what is going on. It is frustrating when we think we know exactly what we need or what we want and we ask the Lord, we beg the Lord and it just seems like He is not listening. If you have struggled with this, let me share with you what has helped me understand it a little better.

Have your kids, your nieces/nephews, or your friends' kids ever asked for something that seemed really important to them? They asked for something that they really want, and to them, it is something that they have to have. They have given it thought, and they know it is the best thing for them. Yet, you know it is not good for them at all. You only know this because you have been where they are and things didn’t end well. You have seen where this thing will take them, and it isn’t anywhere good.

For instance, your child, or a child you are close to, wants to drop out of school. They have given it thought, and they will get a job at the local grocery store or fast food restaurant. They are tired of all the work they need to do at school and don’t want to do it anymore. However, you can see that it is not the best choice for them. You can see how that one choice will limit so many other choices about their future. They are begging you to let them drop out, and yet you know it is not really best for them.

This is what I think of when I think of God answering our prayers. Good thing He doesn’t give us everything we ask for because sometimes, just like our kids, we ask for some things that are not good for us. We ask for things that we think we want, but God knows we don’t really want them. For instance, we might think we want a new job, but then we find out the new job has a lot of travel, or the boss isn’t a nice person. God shields us from so many things that we aren’t even aware of because he is shielding us from them. He does this because He is a good Father.

I heard a song on the way to adoration his morning, and you know how much I love songs. I wanted to share the lyrics of this one with you today because it talks about how important prayer is. The song is titled “Somebody Prayed,” and it is sung by Crowder. The song begins:

Every night there by your bed

You fold your hands and bow your head

Throwing out another prayer in faith

When you're wondering if He's hearing you

Look at me, I'm living proof

I'm only right where I am today

Because somebody prayed

These lyrics remind us that when we pray and do not see results, we can look at those around us and be confident that if God answers their prayers, He will answer ours, too. I think it is vital to remember that the answers to our prayers may not look like we want them to and may not come in the timing we want them to. I like how Crowder can realize that the reason he is where he is today is because his mom prayed for him a lot.

So I hit my knees 'cause I've

Seen all Heaven move (don't matter if you hit rock bottom

My God pick you up when you call Him.)

I pray, "Father, please" 'cause I've

Seen what He can do (don't matter if the storm cloud coming

My God come through when you call Him)

I love this verse too because it says that it doesn’t matter if you hit rock bottom because God will pick you up when you call Him. This reminds us that we are never too far down for God to pick us back up again. It also says it doesn’t matter if the storm cloud is coming because God will come through when we call Him. Crowder says he has seen all heaven move, and he has seen what our heavenly Father can do.

You might be in a storm right now, or you might be at your lowest point yet. Either way, you can rest assured that when you call on the Lord, He is going to answer that call. He is going to lift you up out of that pit or get you safely through that storm. That is just who He is. If you wonder if this is true, look around you at all the people you know who are struggling, or the ones who were struggling and have made it through to the other side.  They were not alone. God helped them, and if he helped them, he can help you too!

These hands have no power

There ain't an hour He don't come through

That's why when mountains move, I say

"Looks like somebody prayed”

This verse is reminding us that we can do nothing without God. He is our source of power. He is our Savior. This is why, when something amazing happens in our lives, we should automatically know that someone was praying for us. Our default should be to thank God and to thank whoever was praying for us. Sometimes we think that because we didn't pray, then it wasn’t God who helped us. However, there are so many people praying all the time. There were many saints who would send up prayers for anyone who needed them. Or they would pray for those who had no one else to pray for them. You might have a whole army of people praying for you, and yet you might not even know it.

For instance, when someone asks me for prayer I usually ask my parents to also pray for them because I know my parents are mighty prayer warriors. I also ask my prayer group to pray, my Encounter Ministry fellow students, and the prayer line at my church. Then sometimes I would also add their request to these three online prayer requests websites, one of which is the Lourdes website. Do you see how someone could have a whole army of people praying for them and not even know it?

For the child of God that's far from home

The one who thinks they're too far gone

I'm throwing out another prayer in faith (prayer in faith)

Worn-out altars, tear-stained pews

Still I won't give up on you

I believe that anything can change

When somebody prays

I love this verse because he is talking to anyone who feels like they are far from home. Anyone who feels like they are too far gone. Then he tells them that he is praying for them. We all need to be praying for those who are far from home and think they are too far gone. There is no too far gone with the Lord. He is always willing to take us back. He is always waiting for us to realize that and to come home. I love it when he says he won’t give up on us because he believes that anything can change when somebody prays.

This is an important thing for us all to believe. It is so true. Anything can change when somebody prays. The enemy often tries to make us believe that our situation is too bad and that there is no solution. He tries to convince us that we don’t need to pray because there isn’t anything God can do for anyone. There isn’t anything anyone can do. This is ridiculous! God can do anything! We might not see a way out, we might not think things can get better, but God can always make a way, even when we can’t see how. It is always worth it to say a prayer. It can make all the difference in the world. Sometimes God is just waiting for you to ask. He is waiting for you to invite Him into it all. Why wouldn’t we want God to be in all of it?

I've seen miracles come from feeble words

I've seen hospital rooms turned into cathedrals

I've seen freedom come to the prisoner

You can't tell me that prayer don't work

The first line says, “I’ve seen miracles come from feeble words.” Do you know why I love this? I love it because it reminds us that we don’t have to know what to say. We don’t have to pray these long, eloquent prayers. We don’t have to ask for the exact thing or say the exact right words in order for our prayers to be answered. It’s not like in all those movies about making a wish on a genie in a bottle. If you don’t get the wording perfectly, then something bad happens. God is not like that. We don’t have to know the perfect thing to say. We just have to call upon his name and ask him for what we want.

It goes on to say, “I’ve seen hospital rooms turned into cathedrals.” I think what he means by this is that hospital rooms can be a powerful place for prayer. Sitting by a loved one's bedside can prompt people to pray more. It can also help us to be bold and ask for more from the Lord. Desperation to save our loved ones can be a powerful motivator. He also says, I’ve seen freedom come to the prisoner.  This is another great result of prayer. You might know someone who is stuck in their past. They may be an actual prisoner in jail, or they may be a prisoner to guilt, shame, and unforgiveness. Either way, prayers can free them from their prison. I have seen it happen many times!!

The song ends with:

So every night there by your bed

When you fold your hands and bow your head

Not a single word you've ever said in vain

'Cause He hears everything

I like this verse too because it reminds us that not a single word you’ve ever said is in vain. When we pray to God, He hears us. We can be confident in this, just as the scripture verse for today reminds us. God hears it all, whether you are in church praying or you are crying out to him in your car. Wherever you are, no matter how far gone you think you are, He always hears every word of it, and none of it was said in vain. He hears you and He will answer your prayers according to his will and according to His timing.

Dear Heavenly Father, I ask you to bless all those listening today. Lord, we love you, and we want to bring all of our requests to you now. Lord, we ask that you give us some understanding of your ways and why our prayers appear not to have been answered for so long.  Help us be patient, Lord. Help us to keep coming back and asking the Lord. Help us to see where in our lives you have answered prayers. We love you Lord and we are so grateful for all you do for us. We are sorry if we take you for granted. We ask all of this in accordance with your will and in Jesus’s holy name, Amen!

Thank you so much for joining me on this journey to walk boldly with Jesus. I look forward to meeting you here again tomorrow. Remember, Jesus loves you just as you are, and so do I. Have a blessed day!

Today’s Word from the Lord was received in October 2024 by a member of my Catholic Charismatic Prayer Group. If you have any questions about the prayer group, these words, or how to join us for a meeting, please email [email protected]. Today’s Word from the Lord is, “Be the one that spreads my love and my joy. Be the one who brings comfort and is a source of peace for all. If you but listen carefully to my voice that calls you each and every day.”

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Today’s witnesses come to you from the Global Awakening Website. If you are not aware of Randy Clark or Global Awakening, let me read you the description from their website. For all believers everywhere, we present an opportunity to receive power from God. We offer ourselves as evidence that God uses the unqualified when we’re willing to take a risk. We strengthen each other through community & theology, and we call out to all those who feel ill-equipped, isolated, and hungry, saying: you belong. To the sick, we offer a community of faith that will believe in your healing.  To the skeptic, we offer our stories and our lives as fruit of Jesus’ work. Come receive from God what you need, come learn how to take risks in your faith, and come join us as we each fulfill God’s dream for us. We are a global community of believers empowered to awaken the world. On their website, they have various types of testimonials. Today, I chose to bring to you the physical healing testimonies. They also have Impartation, Emotional Healing, Activation, and Prophecy. I will share the others with you another day. Today, you will get to hear about physical healing. I pray that when you hear these testimonies, it builds your faith to know that you can be healed, too!

First we have – Gineff | Woodbridge, VA – “I took a step of faith and came to the conference being released from the Hospital on the previous Friday. I was radically healed at VOA. My tribe(VOA attendees) were encouraging me and praying over me. I received multiple healings. The first was the ability to walk(Bookstore Bob was there), inner healing with the Agape Freedom Fighter team, and the word of knowledge from Dr. Clark about lower left abdominal pain(this specifically was for me, as I had left the hospital with a drain tube in my lower left abdomen). I will tell you that I was in shock when He said my condition. My niece and those around me were like That’s you. When Dr. Clark called up those to share their testimonies, I ran up to the stage. While I was on stage, something amazing happened. I felt like I was being straightened and felt this rod on the right side of my body, it was amazing!!! I left there healed and I write this looking forward to my appointment tomorrow when I get to see the doctor's face!!” 

Next is – Michael | Richmond, VA “I stood after Randy had a word of knowledge that God was healing hearts. I had been treated for afib for over 14 years and on medication. I believe God has healed my heart. I am 72 years old and am no longer on any heart medication. My heart rate is normal, I go to the gym regularly and have no problems doing yard work or any other activity. God is Good!

Next is – Beverly | Birmingham, AL “I was healed of a voice infirmity known as spasmodic dysphonia (SD), identified by a Word of Knowledge as a sharp twisting of the muscles around the larynx. I knew the Word was for me because the disorder is very rare. I actually experienced a creative miracle. The nerve from the brain to my larynx was regenerated. It grew back!!!! SD is a neurological condition in which the nerves affecting the muscles around the larynx deteriorate and stop working. Loss of the nerve stops the muscle flexibility of the laryngeal muscles, thereby preventing ordinary identifiable speech/language sounds. The voice quivers and has spasms. I had reached a point in my life where I was ashamed to even talk. People could not understand my speech. I happen to be a preacher and trainer… so, needless to say, I became so discouraged that I stopped preaching and became afraid to teach. SO PRAISE BE TO GOD for the healing. I had been experiencing progressive deterioration for 14 years!”

Last, but not least, we have – Darenda | Harrisburg, PA “I sat next to a blind man on the plane on the way over who was also going to the conference. He was called out by Bob Hazlett and prophesied over in his main session. Then on the way back, I was again seated next to the same man, still blind. Have you ever been seated next to the same person twice on two different airplane trips? Well, I never have. So I prayed for him to receive his sight, and progressively over the two hours, he did. He has been completely blind for 4 years (diabetic retinopathy) in his right eye and has some light shadows in his left. Before deboarding, he could see his hands, some things in front of him, my eyes, and my hair. He mostly wants to see his 4-year-old grandson’s face, whom he’s never been able to see. In a follow-up text this week, he said his grandson’s face is getting clearer and clearer. Praise God for this wonderful, creative miracle, so amazing to witness.”

Weren’t those testimonies amazing! Thank you to all who have been brave enough to share your testimony. It is because of people like you that other people’s faith is built up. It is not always easy to be vulnerable and share your testimony. It is not always easy to put into words what the Lord has done for you. Yet, when you can, it helps so many people trust God all the more.

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John 17:11-12 “And now I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them in your name that you have given me, so that they may be one, as we are one. While I was with them, I protected them in your name that you have given me. I guarded them, and not one of them was lost except the one destined to be lost, so that the scripture might be fulfilled.”

I love this passage because it is Jesus talking to God. It is Jesus talking to His Father and our heavenly Father. I love how Jesus is asking God to protect us. He is also letting His dad know that things went well while He was here on earth. At the beginning of this chapter in the Gospel of John, Jesus told his Dad how we heard what He was telling us, and we believed Him. He is telling God about how we believe where He came from and the messages He gave us.

Jesus also lets His Dad know that He did a good job protecting His disciples and that He didn’t lose a single one, except for Judas, who was destined to be lost, so that scripture may be fulfilled. I love that Jesus is talking to His dad just like we might talk to our dad. He is letting Him know He did what He was supposed to and did a good job with all He was supposed to do.

Jesus was going to be with God up in heaven, but we needed to stay here on earth. The disciples couldn’t join Jesus in heaven; they had a mission here on earth, and so do we. Their mission was to take the Gospel to the ends of the earth, to make sure that the whole world knew about Jesus and his love and forgiveness. Our mission is the same, and yet we don’t have to travel to the ends of the earth. We can start here in our own families with our siblings, spouses, and children. We can start with our friends, neighbors, and those around us.

You would think that in the day and age we live in, everyone would already know about Jesus. With the access to technology that people have in this country, we might think that everyone has already heard all we have to say about Jesus. However, this is not the case. Many people have been hurt or offended by the church, and so they no longer go. Many times, instead of just quitting the Church, they walk away from Jesus and God, too. This often means they don’t pass down anything they know about God to their children. My friend was raised by two parents who both went to Catholic School. They didn’t like it, so they decided not to teach their children anything about God.

This is more common than you think. In this day and age, we can not assume that anyone knows about God or Jesus. Even if they know something about them, we can’t be sure that what they know is true. My kids tell me all the time they are not Catholic because they don’t believe this or that. However, what they say they don’t believe isn’t something I believe either. There is a lot of confusion as to what the Catholic Church actually teaches. I think a lot of people who have a problem with the Catholic Church aren’t actually upset with something we do; they are upset with something they think we do. For instance, many are upset that Catholics worship Mary. However, we don’t worship Mary; we only worship the one true God.

What we really need to share with everyone we know and everyone we meet is that God loves them. Jesus loves them too! God is love. He loves each one of us so much, and I don’t think people realize this. I don’t think people believe this. There is such a lack of love in this world, and if people knew how unconditionally God loved them, I truly think this world would start changing. I think people feel a void in their lives and try to fill it with all the wrong things. The only thing that can fill that hole is God.

We cannot show people how much God loves them just with our words, though. We will have to be an example of that love to them. We will have to love like Jesus loved, and then they will feel that love. They will see that love and know it is possible to be loved in our messiness. It is possible for someone to love us even when we feel unlovable. This is not the kind of love that we are used to finding in the world. The world is full of broken people, so we love in broken ways because that is all we know. However, if we pray for God to give us the ability to love others with His love, we can begin to change the world one person at a time.

Back to today’s verse. Jesus is asking God to protect us. If we look at all the apostles had to go through to spread the word of God, we could see why Jesus would be praying for their protection. Most of the apostles of that time were killed in some way for their beliefs and for passing on the Word of God. They needed God’s protection. However, we still need God’s protection today as well.

We are fortunate in our country that it is not illegal to talk about God, at least not yet. However, it is illegal in many parts of the world. According to Asia News, a Vatican-affiliated news agency that reports on Christian communities, more than 800 people, including women, children, and priests, were slaughtered in their homes solely because they were Christian. On February 13, 2025, militants rounded up 70 Christians in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), took them to a church, and then killed all 70 of them. People are still being persecuted, and we need God to protect us.

We don’t know why these things happen. Why would God allow these things to happen? His ways are not our ways, and His thoughts are not ours. We do know that God is in control and that Jesus asked God to protect us, so He is doing that. We can be sure of it because God always keeps his promises. Those who have died are in a much better place right now. It is tough for us who are left here on earth. It is hard for any loved ones they may have left behind, but it is not hard for those who have died. Their dream has come true. They get to be with their heavenly Father and all those who have come before them.  God did protect them by bringing them home to Him.

Dear Heavenly Father, I ask you to bless all those listening. Lord, we want you to protect us. We want to help others know your love. We want to be a witness to that love. We want to be an example of that love. Please help us. Help us to see others through your eyes, help us to be your love to them. We love you Lord and we ask all of this in accordance with your will and in Jesus’s holy name, Amen!!

Thank you so much for joining me on this journey to walk boldly with Jesus. I look forward to meeting you all here again tomorrow. Remember, Jesus loves you just as you are, and so do I! Have a blessed day.

Today’s Word from the Lord was received in October 2024 by a member of my Catholic Charismatic Prayer Group. If you have any questions about the prayer group, these words, or how to join us for a meeting, please email [email protected]. Today’s Word from the Lord is, “In the silence of your heart, my children, I speak to you. Listen carefully to my voice. It is meant to guide you, to instruct you, to lead you to where I want you to be. Only if you listen will you profit fully of what I tell you."

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Fearless Confidence

Acts 4:29-31 “And now they’re at it again! Take care of their threats and give your servants fearless confidence in preaching your Message, as you stretch out your hand to us in healings and miracles and wonders done in the name of your holy servant Jesus.” While they were praying, the place where they were meeting trembled and shook. They were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak God’s Word with fearless confidence.”

I love how this verse ends, “They were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak God’s Word with fearless confidence. How great would it be to speak God’s work with fearless confidence?  How great would it be to just say what you wanted to say without feeling like you had to censor it for the world?  How many times have you thought something and then not said it because you weren’t sure what others would think?  How many times have you not mentioned God because you didn’t want to be different or because you didn’t want to be ridiculed?  I love how the disciples weren’t afraid.  The stakes were high for them, and yet they couldn’t be silenced.  For them, it wasn’t a case of worrying if someone would be angry.  They were threatened and told they could not speak about Jesus to anyone.  They were thrown in jail, and they were beaten. One of Jesus’ disciples, Stephen, was stoned to death for his preaching.  

I was drawn to this passage for two main reasons.  The first is because I love that they prayed for fearless confidence.  I pray for a holy boldness a lot, and now I can pray for this too!  The second reason is because of something Father Mike pointed out that I didn’t really notice.  Does that ever happen to you?  Something is right there in front of you, and yet you don’t realize it until someone points it out?  Father Mike was talking about how remarkable it was that these disciples asked God for fearless confidence instead of asking God to take away the danger.  As I mentioned earlier, at this time in the early church, it was really difficult to preach about God.  There were rules and laws against it.  People were told that if they talked about Christ Jesus, they would go to jail.  They were beaten, they were put in jail, they were stoned to death.  They did not have the religious freedoms many of us have today.  

They could have prayed for the threat to their safety to be removed.  They could have asked God to protect them from all dangers.  They could have asked him to change the situation they were in.  They could have asked God for anything, and instead, they asked God for fearless confidence in preaching His message.  Wouldn’t it be awesome if we could all make this our prayer?  Wouldn’t it be great if instead of praying that God changes our circumstances, we ask God to change us?  We can ask God to give us more strength, more courage, more love, more patience, more whatever it is we need to make it through our current circumstance, instead of asking God to change that circumstance.  Tony was talking to his friend once when I was pregnant with one of our boys.  We didn’t find out the gender of our baby until they were born.  We wanted to be surprised.  Tony was telling his friend that he didn’t care if it was a boy or girl, he just prayed our baby was healthy.  Tony said he will never forget what his friend replied, “I used to pray for a healthy baby, now I pray for the strength to take care of whatever baby God gives me.”

Tony was moved by this statement.  He thought it was great that his friend was bold enough to pray a prayer like that.  When we are able to pray something like Tony’s friend prayed, or like the apostles prayed, we are truly trusting in the will of God.  We are trusting in the sovereign power of God.  We are asking God to equip us for whatever circumstances He has laid out before us.  A lot of times, we want to take the easy way out.  Sometimes everything in life is so overwhelming that we can’t help but ask God to take it away, and that is ok.  It’s not bad to ask God to remove your heavy burdens.  Turning your worries and cares over to God should be the first thing we all do.  I think asking God to take away your struggles is a good thing.  I think praying for God to change you, instead of asking Him to change your circumstances, is a deeper level in your relationship with the Lord.  I long for that close of a relationship with my heavenly dad.  I long for the type of relationship where I have complete trust in God and His plans.  I long for a relationship with Him where my will and His will line up perfectly.  How awesome would that be?

Dear Heavenly Father, I ask you to bless all those listening to this episode today.  Lord, you are amazing.  Please help us desire for you to transform us instead of us asking you to take away our circumstances.  Help us to be open to your will, Lord.  Please give us the words to say when we pray.  We love you, Lord, you are the almighty one and the Lord of all.  We are so grateful, and we ask all of this in accordance with your will and in Jesus’ holy name, Amen!

Thank you so much for joining me on this journey to walk boldly with Jesus.  It is so great to know I am not on this journey by myself!  Thank you also to all of you who have purchased my book, Total Trust in God’s Safe Embrace!  I truly appreciate it. I look forward to spending time with you again tomorrow. Remember, Jesus loves you, and so do I! Have a blessed day!

Today’s Word from the Lord was received in October 2024 by a member of my Catholic Charismatic Prayer Group. If you have any questions about the prayer group, these words, or how to join us for a meeting, please email [email protected]. Today’s Word from the Lord is, “When you are overwhelmed by my love, when you feel it flowing through you, asking you to do something, then you will know that you have heard my voice, because my voice is always rooted in love.”

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Live Unoffended By God

Matthew 11:6 “And blessed is he who takes no offense at me.”  

This is a tiny sentence in a great big bible.  You may have heard it many times before and not even noticed it because it is so small.  Also, you may have heard and it not understood what it meant.  This had definitely happened to me before.  I have read something and for one reason or another I did not understand what it meant.  Sometimes I will look at the footnotes and will get a better understanding of what the statement meant.  To be honest, I am not sure if I heard this verse before or not.  I know that I definitely did not understand what it meant or take any notice of it.  

That is, until I read about it in that book I keep talking about The Circle Maker by Mark Batterson.  You really must read that book, it is so good!  Anyway, as soon as I heard about what this verse meant, I knew I wanted to share it with people because I had never thought of it before and I know it is something that we can all do.  In the book Mark talks about this couple he knows that are prayer warriors or prayer giants.  You know the kind of people I am talking about, right?  The people who seem to have a direct line to God.  All of their prayers seem to get answered.  My mom and dad are prayer warriors.  They have had so many answered prayers and witnessed numerous miracles.  If you know my parents, they are the first people you call when you are in need of prayers.  

Mark talked about how the couple’s prayers for others were often answered, however, prayers for their own lives went unanswered.  He said they took a leap of faith and went into the world of filmmaking and they lost their life savings because the financial backing promised to them never came through.  They lost their home in a fire.  The lost three out of four parents in four years.  And a rare genetic condition has taken a toll physically, emotionally and financially.  It seemed like God was answering everyone else’s prayers, except their own.  Have you ever felt this way?  Have you ever felt like God was answering the prayers of everyone around you, but yours were going unheard for some reason?  This couple said there had been moments when they have been tempted to throw in the towel, but the promise above has kept them going.  “And Blessed is he who takes no offense to me.  

Here is the context of that promises as Mark Batterson explains it in his book The Circle Maker:

Jesus is doing miracles right and left. He is healing diseases driving out demons and restoring sight to the blind, but John the Baptist misses the miracle train. It seems like Jesus is rescuing everybody except His most faithful follower, who is in prison. And John is his cousin, nonetheless. It seems like Jesus could have, and maybe should have, organized a rescue operation and busted him out before he was beheaded. Instead He sent a message via John's disciples. He tells them to tell John about all the miracles He is doing, and then He asks them to relay this promise: "Blessed is the one who is not offended by me.”

I had never thought of this before.  I had never thought about how John the Baptist might have felt seeing his cousin performing miracles all around him and yet he was stuck in jail.  I wonder if he did feel offended?  My first instinct is to say that he didn’t because he seemed like he was so close to God and I think we tend to put anyone who we think is that close to God on a pedestal.  We think that because they were devoted to God that they have it all together and that that following God and His ways comes easy to them.  When I start to think like this, I need to remind myself that they are human and we all struggle with our thoughts and actions.  I don’t know if John the Baptist felt offended by Christ or not.  I do know that this is a completely normal human response.

If you are feeling offended because God is answering the prayers of all those around you and not yours please know that this is completely normal and understandable.  We can be happy for others and sad for ourselves at the same time.  I know I may keep mentioning that you can feel two things at the same time, but that is because I keep talking to so many people that are feeling guilty for being upset about something because they should be feeling grateful.  Or, they feel guilty because they should be feeling happy that their friend just got pregnant, but they feel sad that they have not gotten pregnant yet.  You don’t have to feel guilty about your feelings.  It is ok to have two competing emotions at the same time.  It is not just ok, it is completely normal.  

I wanted to share this verse because I know some people that have been feeling offended by God lately.  They are wondering why everyone else seems to be more favored or more deserving.  If this is you, I hope you take comfort in this passage.  “Blessed is the one who is not offended by me.”  

God does not favor others more than you.  God is a mystery.  We don’t know why He does what He does.  We know He has a plan for our lives and we also know He is not super forthcoming with what that plan is.  He is more of a “reveal one step at a time” God.  One thing we know for sure is that He keeps His promises.  So, if God is not answering your prayers it doesn’t mean that He doesn’t care for you as much as others.  You know Jesus had to have cared for His cousin.  You know God had to have been proud of His faithful servant John who lived in the woods and baptized people and preached repentance.  And yet, John the Baptist was beheaded.  

God loves you!  He loves each one of His children equally and more than we could ever imagine.    If your prayers aren’t being answered, I know it is hard.  I know it is hard to see others receive their miracles while you are still waiting.  I know it may feel like you are never going to receive your answers.  Please don’t give up asking.  Please don’t give up expecting them to be answered.  Try to rely on this promise that you are Blessed.  My hope is this shift in perspective will help you not throw the towel in.  Instead of thinking God must not like you or favor you because your prayers aren’t being answered, you can know that you are blessed.  You can know that you are in good company.  

Dear Heavenly Father I ask that you bless everyone listening to this episode today. Lord we ask that you help us be an offended by you. We thank you for all the miracles you're doing in the world today and all the prayers that you have answered. Lord we don't know why our prayers may be going unanswered and that is really difficult for us. Lord we ask that you help us with this. If our prayers haven't been answered yet we pray that you give us the perseverance to keep asking and to not give up. We ask that you give us wisdom and clarity if you want us to stop asking for something. As with Paul when he asked for you to heal the thorn in his side and you told him your grace was sufficient for him. If we are asking for something that we don't need or you don't want us to have please take that desire from us. Lord we are so thankful for all you were doing in the world today.  Please help us to be happy for others when you answer their prayers. Please help us to not be offended by this and to know in the depths of our hearts that you love us and you have a wonderful plan for our life. Lord we ask all of this in accordance with your will and in Jesus’ holy name, Amen!

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With God All Things Are Possible! (Replay)

Revelations 7:17 “For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of the water of life, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”

Jesus is our guide.  He came down to earth to show us how we should be acting.  He came down to teach us that the Lord our God is love.  He is trying to guide us to the springs of the water of life, but we keep wanting to do our own thing.  We don’t want to follow in his footsteps.  Why don’t we?  Because it is hard.  Jesus said to love everyone, even our enemies.  Is this even possible?  Jesus wants us to forgive, but aren’t there some people who just can’t be forgiven?  Shouldn’t be forgiven?  I wonder if we all realize what forgiveness is? Forgiveness is not telling the other person what they did was right, or ok.  Forgiveness is telling yourself that this terrible thing did happen, that you can’t change it, so you are releasing any hold that it has over you.  I know forgiveness is hard.

In some cases, it is impossible.  However, it is so necessary.  God tells us right in the Our Father Prayer, Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.  God will forgive us to the same extent that we forgive others.  Think about the things or the people that you are unable to forgive.  Do you really want the inability to forgive them to get in the way of God forgiving you?  There are some things that no matter how hard we try, we cannot forgive.  This is okay; we don’t have to do it on our own.  God can step in and help us forgive.  The only thing we must do is to ask him.  To give Him permission to work in your heart to forgive.  We had a word or prophecy given at our prayer group last October that I feel is so important to share.

“I ask you to forgive my children.  I know that is a difficult command, and at times may seem very impossible for you to do.  But I remind you that I am with you always, and with me, nothing is impossible.  Bring your inability to me.  Allow me to work with my grace through you, so that you can be my forgiving heart for all the world.”

In this word, the Lord is asking us to forgive.  He reminds us that even though we feel it is impossible, nothing is impossible in HIm.  In Matthew 19:26, Jesus said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”  It also says in Philippians 4:13, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”  We are not in this alone.  We have God on our side, and with that, we can do anything.  I love how God always shows up to remind us of things when we forget.  I like how God is reminding us that He is always with us and then asking us to bring our inability to him.  He is asking us to allow Him to work with His grace through us, so that we can bring His forgiving heart to the whole world.  How beautiful is that?  How great is it that God not only wants to use his grace to heal our hearts, but he wants us to be His forgiving heart for all the world.  

God gave us free will.  Can you imagine how frustrating it must be for Him to sit by and watch us squander all he has provided us?  He would love nothing more than to rain down graces on us, and yet we can’t be bothered to let him.  God is not going to step in if we do not ask Him.  He does not want to force us to love Him.  The only way to ensure it is true love is to give us the choice to love him or not.  Every day we have a choice to make.  Are we going to choose God, or are we going to choose something else?  God has so much grace and so much mercy to give.  He does not leave us alone to make these decisions.  He is there for us every step of the way.

But we do need to make that choice.  Once we do make that choice, He will be there to help us overcome all of the obstacles.  And there will be obstacles.  The life that God is asking us to live is not an easy life.   Especially in this world right now.  Forgiveness and love are two things that we are being called to do that are not the norm in society today.  We live in a culture that does not want to forgive.  We want to stay angry, blame others, and not even talk to someone who doesn’t think as we think.   This is not what Jesus wants for us.  

Jesus did not come to earth to be with people just like Him.  He did not just hang around with those who believed as he believed.  He didn’t find all the people who were getting it right in life.  He came for those who were struggling.  He came for those who needed Him.  When he met these people, he did not meet them with judgment and unforgiveness.  He met them with love and forgiveness.  He accepted them as they were, encouraged them, and helped them to become better.  

How great would it be if we could do the same?  If we could greet everyone we meet with the same love and acceptance that Jesus had.  You may be thinking that you are different.  Jesus could do that because he was man and God, so he had the Holy Spirit inside him to help him make the right choice.  Guess what?  So do you.  You have the Holy Spirit inside of you, and if you let Him, He will guide you to make the right choices as well.  Just remember what Jesus said in Matthew 19:26, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

You can do this!  It is possible!  Just take a moment and ask God for help.

Dear Heavenly Father, I ask that you come into our hearts and soften them.  I invite you in, and I turn over my inabilities to you.  I want to forgive, and I want to let go of all unforgiveness.  I want to forgive completely so that you are able to forgive me completely.  Lord Jesus, some people and some things are so difficult to forgive. We live in a broken world, and some pretty awful things happen here.  We are so very grateful that you are here to help us. We are grateful that we don’t have to do this on our own.  Lord, we ask that you help us.  Even though it seems impossible, we believe you when you say that all things are possible with you.  Lord, you are truly amazing, and we love you so very much.  Father, we ask all these things in accordance with your will and in Jesus’ holy name, Amen.

Thank you so much for joining me on this journey to walk boldly with Jesus. I am attending the Northeast regional retreat for the Military Council of Catholic Women this weekend. I decided to replay one of my first episodes of this podcast today. Many of you listening now were not listening back then. I encourage you to review old episodes and see if any titles speak to you. I look forward to meeting you here again tomorrow. Remember, Jesus loves you just as you are, and so do I! Have a blessed day!

Today’s Word from the Lord was received in October 2024 by a member of my Catholic Charismatic Prayer Group. If you have any questions about the prayer group, these words, or how to join us for a meeting, please email [email protected]. Today’s Word from the Lord is, “Be not afraid, my children. I fortify you. I encourage you. I know you can do it, so just act upon whatever I tell you, and you will have an inner joy that no one can take from you.”

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Today’s witnesses are from Matthew West’s website, called popwe.org. If you don’t know who Matthew West is, he is a singer, songwriter, and storyteller. This website is for the non-profit that he has with his father, a pastor. Matthew and his father encourage people to share their stories. They have various categories of stories. Today, I chose two testimonies from the Marriage/Family Category. Satan is attacking our families, and I think it can help us to see that God is looking out for us. Satan wants to destroy families, but God wants to preserve them. Often, we can hear our own story in someone else’s story. When we listen to others tell their story, it helps us see that we are not alone. When we hear how God worked in their situation, it gives us hope that He will work in ours, too! I pray that when you hear these testimonies, you get the faith and hope to believe that miracles can happen in your situation, too. I pray you know that God wants to be there with you, and if you invite Him into your family issues, He can help.

My name is Becky, and I want those struggling to know there is hope where there is faith, even if it’s a small flicker of faith. I always believed in God, but didn’t go to church. When my son was in his teens, he was in an accident and injured his back. Fast forward to his late 20s, he was given pain medication and eventually progressed to stronger pain medications, leading him to addiction. His addiction became my addiction in the fact that I kept trying to help, but was only enabling him. He went through several treatment programs only to relapse, but I was always there for him, good or bad, and there was a lot of bad. He was my son, and I loved him unconditionally, just as God loves us unconditionally.

I remember picking him up one time, and I was afraid to be in the car with him, so when we stopped for gas and he was done pumping, I drove off and left him there. I will never forget the look on his face when I looked in the rearview mirror and drove away. What kind of mother does this? I drove straight to the church by our house and just went to sit inside and talk with God. A pastor came up to me, and I broke down. He sat with me and prayed. I was a complete wreck. On the way home, I heard Matthew West’s “Truth Be Told,” and I couldn’t stop crying. This was me, saying I was fine and I wasn’t. Things were definitely out of control. I believe God spoke to me through this song. I played the song for my husband, then I spilled my faults and all the things I had done to try to get our son sober to my husband. Later, even though God heard me with my husband, I confessed the same to God privately, and then some.

I was broken and ashamed. I read scriptures, started going to church, and created a Christian playlist. My son got to a point where he did get sober, went to church, and Bible study with his daughter. He was baptized as a baby, but chose to be baptized as an adult, making a conscious effort to follow God’s plan in April 2021. On June 7, 2021, I left for work, hugged him, told him I loved him, and was glad he was my son, not realizing this would be the last time. He relapsed that day with an accidental overdose that turned out to be 100% fentanyl. We had to make the decision to remove him from life support on June 12, 2021. In the beginning, I questioned why God would allow this, but I know in my heart God knew that if my son had survived, he would have been back suffering again, and that was not His plan. My son always said if anything ever happened, not to blame myself, that everything I had done, both good and bad, had kept him alive longer than he had anticipated. I was planning his 40th birthday, but he never made it. I gained some comfort that he was able to donate his kidneys- one to a 70-year-old grandmother and one to an 18-year-old named Luke, who wrote the most beautiful letter explaining his gratitude and sympathy for our loss. My depression spiraled the remainder of 2021, and the only thing that kept me going was the songs from Matthew West and my fumbled prayers with God. I am not perfect, I make mistakes, I fall down, but I get back up. I tell God I am not perfect, I neglect to pray some days, but I try to be sincere and get back on track. I recognize when God puts people in my life to share my story and experience. To this day, the words of “Truth Be Told” remind me of where I started and how far I have come on my journey. I am forever grateful.

I just listened to your song “Untold” and was greatly moved by emotion. As a young girl, I was raped at 18 by the boy I was dating (whom I met at church). I was so naive, I didn’t even know what was happening to me at the time. It took me four months and a few trips to the library to figure out I was pregnant. My greatest fear was having to tell my parents. When I did, my father refused to speak to me for weeks. I never told anyone the circumstances of the pregnancy, and my father never let me forget how I shamed the family.

Since my mother made it clear that I could not stay at the house if I chose to keep the baby, I thought I would give it up for adoption, but by that far in the pregnancy, I began to feel the baby move. I had always wanted to be a mother, just not so soon. So, I decided to marry the person who did this to me so I could keep my baby and save embarrassment. Abortion was not an option. I had always supported the pro-life movement and never wavered from my stance, even in my current condition.

After five years and a second child, we split. Shortly after, I remarried and had two more children, but marriage to an abusive alcoholic proved impossible. At 29, I was single with four children, but I was committed to raising the best children possible. That one decision to keep my baby laid the path for a life of struggle, but with blessings along the way. I have never regretted that decision. I gave birth to a strong-willed, independent baby girl who became a teacher, principal, and leader who has affected the lives of so many people, particularly children. She says she wouldn’t change our life of financial struggles and other challenges, as it has made her the person she is today. She has greater compassion for other children experiencing similar challenges in their lives. I often think of what life would be like for the many if she hadn’t been born. She is a strong Christian continuing to affect lives all around her.

This decision was so much better to live with than if I had terminated the pregnancy.  Life IS sacred, from the moment of conception. Creating and bearing a child is one of the greatest gifts God has given women. And for a female friend of mine who couldn’t carry a child, I did it for her.

Thank you both so much for sharing your stories. Thank you also to Matthew West and his Father for creating a website where people can share their stories with others. It is always so nice to hear other people’s stories because we know we aren’t alone. No matter what it is you are going through, I guarantee someone else has been through it and they have made it to the other side. Once we know we are not alone, it somehow makes it easier for us to get through it. So, thank you both again!

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God Has A Watering Can (Flowers)

Psalm 5:1-3 “Give ear to my words, O Lord; give heed to my sighing. Listen to the sound of my cry, my King and my God, for to you I pray. O Lord, in the morning you hear my voice; in the morning I plead my case to you, and watch.

This was another verse from my prayer group. I picked it today because I know so many who are struggling with what feels like unanswered prayers. Although they trust God will answer those prayers, they find it harder and harder to trust. They want to believe that God has a good plan for them. They want to believe God is going to put an end to this suffering on this side of heaven. Yet they haven’t seen it yet. They still have to suffer with the pain every day, or the heartache every day.

Last night, I went to an Encounter Ministries Alumni event at the Boston Campus, and my friend Hugh and I were praying over another friend of ours. She has been struggling with something for over 30 years, and it has been daily for over 10 years. I was telling them that I don’t understand this. I don’t understand why someone would have to go through something like that for so long. She has prayed for God to take it away. She has had lots of people pray over her for God to take it away, and although he has made the problem less severe, He has not taken it away from her.

She is coming to Him each day with expectant faith also. I feel like she has checked all the boxes of what God has told us to do, and if we do, He will answer our prayer, yet they seem to go unanswered. Why is that? Do you feel like this, too? Like you have done all you can do, and yet your prayers still haven’t been answered? You aren’t alone. I wish I could say that I had the answer for you. I talked to the Lord about it this morning, and He put this song on my heart. I believe He is trying to help me understand His ways more with this song. I pray that this song and the words He gives me today to share with you will give you the strength you need to keep asking God for whatever answer you have been waiting for. He hears you, keep asking!!

"Flowers" by Samantha Ebert was written during a period of intense physical and emotional pain caused by Lyme disease. Ebert, bedridden and feeling like her hope was fading, found inspiration in the "get well soon" flowers on her nightstand, realizing that beautiful things can grow in the darkest places. The song became a reflection on faith, gratitude, and the idea that God can turn even the hardest parts of life into something beautiful. Here are the words to the song:

Well, blue skies and hillsides feel so far away

And I wrote in my notebook that I've seen better days

Than the ones as of late

I can't bear the weight

The rain won't stop pouring out my windowpane

And I haven't left my bedroom in 76 days

I wish something would change

'Cause I'm losing faith

I think many of us have been in a situation where it went on for a lot longer than we wanted it to. I think we all have had a time when we felt like things would never change, never get better, never go away. We have felt like we would never be healed, we would never get out of that relationship, we would never find a job. Whatever you never were, we have all had one. It is easy to lose faith when it feels like God is ignoring your prayers. When we are tired and worn out, it is harder and harder to resist listening to the lies of the enemy. He is a liar, and yet he uses half-truths, so that they seem to make sense to us when we are tired and feel like we can’t fight the darkness anymore. When we feel like the weight of our problem is too great for us to bear any longer.

Next, the song says:

So I brought it up in a desperate prayer

Lord, why are you keeping me here?

Then He said to me, "Child, I'm planting seeds

I'm a good God and I have a good plan

So trust that I'm holding a watering can

And someday you'll see that flowers grow in the valley”

I am sure we have all brought our situation up to the Lord in a desperate prayer. Probably many desperate prayers, however, this time she heard an answer from the Lord. I want to pause and reinforce this point. The Lord is talking to you. I know I say this all the time, and that is because I don’t think many of you believe me. You may believe He talks to people, but you don’t believe He is talking to you. I promise you, He is, you just have to listen. So, if you are in a desperate place, ask the Lord why. Ask the Lord what He wants you to do. Maybe he will just say Wait. But what if He tells you something you can do while you wait? God is talking to you, I promise you that!

In the song, the person struggling cries out to the Lord. She asks why He is keeping her there, and He tells her. He answers her question. He will do the same for you. God said, "Child, I'm planting seeds. I’m a good God and I have a good plan. So trust that I'm holding a watering can. And someday you'll see that flowers grow in the valley.” Isn’t that amazing? This is not only true for her, but it is true for you too. Our God is a good God, and He has a good plan. If you don’t believe me, look at Jeremiah 29:11, “For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope.”

God has good plans for you. You will get out of this situation. He will not leave you in suffering forever. He will save you. He is answering your prayers. What you are going through now is preparing you for where He is taking you. I know when you are in the thick of it, this might not be comforting to you. I know when I was in the middle of my situation, I didn’t want to hear this. I just wanted to hear when it would all be over and I could move on to the better times, the joy-filled and happy times.

If you are in that place, I want you to know you are not alone and that it is ok to feel that way. It is ok to be angry that it has been going on for this long. Take those feelings to God; He is the only one who can help you through them. God can handle your anger. He can handle your frustration! My friend said that the Lord told her that when she is hurting, He is also hurting. The same is true for you. God doesn’t want to see you hurting. And also, like any good dad, He knows sometimes we have to go through hard things to become the person we are meant to be. We shouldn’t shield our kids from every bad thing that will ever happen to them, because that is how they learn. We also have to learn from our mistakes and experience some of that pain.

But what is amazing is that there are flowers in the valley. It is so hard when we are going through hard times. However, every time we go through them, we can look back and see positive things about them. It doesn’t mean we are always glad they happened. If we lost a loved one, even though we might be able to see a few good things, like the fact that they get to be with Jesus now, or they are no longer suffering, it doesn’t mean we are happy they passed away. Our struggles change us and we can be grateful for the lessons we learned without being grateful for the situation.

Next the song says:

So whatever the reason, I'm barely getting by

I'll trust it's a season knowing that you're by my side

Every step of the way

And I'll be okay

'Cause I brought it up in a desperate prayer

Lord, why are you keeping me here?

Then He said to me, "Child, I'm planting seeds

I'm a good God and I have a good plan"

So trust that I'm holding a watering can

And someday you'll see that flowers grow in the valley

This is a hard step for most of us, and it is one that brings us the most relief. It is where we can finally get some peace. In this verse, she is surrendering. She is accepting that even though she doesn’t know the why, she knows the who. She knows that God is in control and that He will use all of this for her good. (Romans 8:28) Most of the time, when we are in a hard season, we won’t know the why. God’s ways are higher than our ways, and we don’t understand them. However, if we can keep reminding ourselves that this is just a season, and seasons don’t last forever. If we can remind ourselves that God is with us every step of the way and that we will be okay, then it can make the journey a bit better.

Next the song says:

When I'm on the mountain and looking down below

I'll see a valley of flowers that needed time to grow

And I'll thank you for the rain

The hurt and days of pain

And I'll bring it up in a grateful prayer

Thank you, Jesus, for keeping me there

You know just what I need, and you've planted seeds

'Cause you're a good God with a real good plan

And you hold my world in a watering can

So I can have peace 'cause flowers grow in the valley

Man, when we get to the other side, it is so good! We tend to see the flowers, maybe not right away. We see that all that lying around in bed gave us the chance to pray more, intercede more, and grow closer to God. Or we see that all that struggle gave us levels of patience, resilience, and perseverance that we would never have otherwise. We see that fighting to break that addiction gave us the strength we needed for the next chapter of life. We see that because we went through that hard time, we can now be a witness to others that they can make it through that hard time, too.

I love this song because it shows us that God is good and He really does have a good plan. Yes, it is hard waiting for that plan. I have a friend who really wanted to meet the man of her dreams and get married and have a family together. She did finally meet the man of her dreams a lot later than she wanted to. It was hard for her to wait that long. It was a lot of years of heartbreak, losing hope, and feeling like it may never happen. However, now that she is on the other side of it, she can see that if they had met earlier, it might not have worked out. They both needed to grow and become the people they are now.

If you are in a really hard season right now, I am so sorry. Trust me when I say I know how hard it is to wait for prayers to be answered. I know how hard it is to struggle for a very long time. I struggled for so very long with parenting and in my marriage. I cried out to the Lord over and over again. And although it was a very long road, I knew I wasn’t in it alone. I know God was there helping me along the way. I am now able to thank God for those hard times because they made me who I am today. They made it so I can help other struggling parents. I can empathize with kids who are struggling. I can help others grow closer to God. I can help others develop a deep trust in the Lord because I have a deep trust in the Lord, and a lot of that grew out of necessity because of the hard times I was in.

I’m sorry this episode is longer than usual, but I know many of you are struggling, and I felt like God wanted you to hear this today and wanted you to know that it won’t last forever. He is a good God and has a good plan for your life. Trust that in this difficult season, and just keep looking forward to the flowers you will see in the valley when you reach the top of the mountain. Just keep looking forward to the day when you will want to thank God for all you have been through. I love you and I am rooting for you and I am always here for you to reach out to if you need help keeping up your hope. Sometimes when we are in the middle of it, we need other people to hope for us because it is too hard and painful for us to keep hoping. If you are at that point, please reach out and I will keep the hope alive for you! Email [email protected] or go to the website walkboldlywithjesus.com and click on the contact me page. I would love to hear from you and pray with you!

Dear Heavenly Father, I ask you to bless all those listening. Lord, we know you are a good Father and you have good plans for us. However, sometimes it is hard to believe this with all the bad we see in our lives. Please help us. Help us to remember that you will bring good out of this. Help us to remember this is a season and won’t last forever. Help us to remember that you are with us in the hard season, that you never abandon us. You are there giving us all we need to make it though that day. Thank you Lord, you are amazing! We ask all of this in accordance with your will and in Jesus’s holy name, Amen!

Thank you so much for joining me on this journey to walk boldly with Jesus. I want to invite you all to click on the link below and check out my mentoring program. It is similar to the podcast, but you get to hang out with me on Tuesday nights and go a bit more in-depth on certain topics. It is also a great way to set aside some time to grow closer to the Lord each week. Tonight will be week four of our For Such A Time As This series.  I look forward to seeing you again tomorrow. Remember, Jesus loves you just as you are, and so do I! Have a blessed day!

Today’s Word from the Lord was received in October 2024 by a member of my Catholic Charismatic Prayer Group. If you have any questions about the prayer group, these words, or how to join us for a meeting, please email [email protected]. Today’s Word from the Lord is, “My children, I am yours and you are mine, and I direct the way each day. The more you come to me, the more you will experience my joy and mercy, so you, in turn, can share it with others.”

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In Parched Places

Isaiah 58:11-12 “The Lord will guide you continually, and satisfy your needs in parched places, and make your bones strong; and you shall be like a watered garden, like a spring of water, whose waters never fail. Your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt; you shall raise up the foundations of many generations; you shall be called the repairer of the breach, the restorer of streets to live in."

This scripture verse was given at a prayer group meeting recently. This morning, I was looking through my prayer group notes since we have finished the Be Bold Series, and I thought I would get back to using those verses for a bit. When I read today’s verse, I knew it was perfect because I know so many people who are struggling right now. I know so many people who have been praying for relief from physical ailments and feel as though their prayers have not been heard. Or maybe they have been heard, but they are not sure they have the strength to wait for God’s timing.

This scripture verse tells us that God is continually guiding us and that He will satisfy our needs in parched places. How many of us feel like we are in parched places? How many of us feel as though we are in a desert and relief is nowhere around? We look out as far as we can see in all directions, and there is nothing. We are all alone with no end in sight. Sometimes we feel as though there is no hope in sight either. We want to be hopeful, we want to believe that God is going to heal us, and yet each day that goes by, we struggle more and more to believe it might happen.

I have a friend who has a son who lost his job. We prayed for her son for a very long time. He struggled to pay his bills. He had to move out of his home. He had to give his dogs away because he had to move in with a friend and sleep on their couch. I am sure he struggled believing that a job was coming his way. I am sure he had moments when he doubted he would ever find a job again. I am sure he questioned where God was in all of this. He knows his mom was praying for him that whole time, so what was taking so long? Why wasn’t God answering the prayers that he knew people were praying for him?

He now has a job and things are going well. God did answer his prayers and those of all who were praying for him. The thing that is hard for us all to understand is why it took so long. I am sure you have your own version of this story, too. Maybe you have many versions of this story. Why did the adoption process take so long? Why did it take so long to get pregnant? Why did I have to struggle so long with cancer? Why did I have to suffer in pain for so many years? Why, Why, Why?

If you are asking God why for something right now, I want you to know that it is ok, and that you are not alone. None of us understands God’s ways. No one here on earth knows why He does what He does and why His timing is what it is. The one thing we do know is that he is all-knowing and all-powerful. We can be assured that He does have a plan. We don’t understand the plan because we don’t have all the facts. We don’t know what is to come. We know our story, but we don’t know anyone else’s story. We don’t know how God might use what we are going through to help someone else. We don’t know how God will use what we are going through to help us become the person we need to become.

When we are confused, when we feel lost, we can turn to Scripture to find answers, to find promises. If it is in scripture, then you know you can rely on it. You can stand on it as truth. Today’s verse says that, “The Lord will guide you continually, and satisfy your needs in parched places, and make your bones strong.” How many of us needed to hear that today? How many of us needed to hear that even though we feel like we are in a desert, God is actually there with us, and we are not alone. God is not only there with us, but He is forever guiding us, and He will satisfy our needs. I know this verse was meant for me to use today, too, because the next line is oddly specific. He will make your bones strong. How many of us feel like that is exactly what we need today? I know several of you listening are struggling with your bodies. You are struggling with physical ailments, and you definitely need God to make your bones strong. Some of you feel you are fading fast and can’t fight anymore. If that is you, I hope you hear God talking to you specifically today. I hope you hear Him telling you that He will give you the strength you need, the nutrients you need, the healing you need. He will make your bones strong so you can continue to stand and fight whatever it is you are fighting. HE IS THERE WITH YOU!!

Then it says, “you shall be like a watered garden, like a spring of water, whose waters never fail.” I feel as though this is God reassuring us that even though we feel as though we have nothing left to give, we will never run out. He will give us exactly what we need for that one day, that one hour, that one minute. When you feel like you have nothing left to give, remember this promise from the Lord: “You will be like a spring of water, whose waters never fail.” The enemy will tell you that you have nothing left to give. He will tell you that your water has dried up and you are failing fast. He is a liar. The Lord only speaks the truth. So when He says that you are a spring of water, whose water never fails,” then you can take that to the bank. You can stand on that promise. You may feel empty, but God is there giving you whatever you need to keep moving forward, even if it is at a really slow pace.

I almost didn’t include the last verse, as I usually try to just focus on one verse at a time and go deep. However, I thought this last verse was something we all needed to hear. It says, “Your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt; you shall raise up the foundations of many generations; you shall be called the repairer of the breach, the restorer of streets to live in.” I felt this was important to include because I didn’t want to leave you with the thought that God meant for your story to end where you are. He is saying that He will give you what you need to get through the parched place you are in right now, but He doesn’t leave you there. I feel as though if I ended with that last paragraph some of you might be thinking that although it is reassuring that God will give me what I need in this difficult time, I still don’t want to be stuck in this time forever. I still need relief.

This last verse shows us that God will not leave us here. He has a plan. Our ancient ruins will be rebuilt. The sense I got when I read this was that our lives would be rebuilt. We will not be the same person we were before we went through this. We will be stronger. We will be more resilient and persistent. We will be made new. This is how God always leaves us. He doesn’t leave us broken and weak. We may feel weak, but when we are weak, God is strong. God can work through us powerfully when we admit our weakness and ask Him to step in and help us. We look at all we have lost and think it is lost forever. God can restore anything we have lost. He can give us back lost time, He can give us back lost loved ones, He can give us back everything. We see this when we look back at the story of Job. We often think of Job as the suffering servant. We think of all he had to go through and how he remained faithful. However, I don’t think we spend enough time thinking about how God repaid him for his suffering. God restored all he had lost. He gave him back everything he had lost two times.

Maybe in the really hard times. The times when it feels like you will never get better, you can think about how God will reward you for your suffering as well. What might He give you back? What might he bless you with that you didn’t have before? How might God be using your suffering? My dad tends not to request prayers for himself because he knows that God is using his suffering to help others. He also knows God will give him what he needs to bear the suffering. I agree with both of these, although I do think we should always ask God to heal our suffering and have others pray over us. I am sure the thought of how God might be using his suffering brings comfort to my dad, and it can bring comfort to you, too.

The very last line says, “You shall be called the repairer of the breach, the restorer of streets to live in.” You can repair the breach. You can restore the streets. Your story, your testimony, can bring someone back to the Lord. Your story of how you made it through the hard time by the grace of God can let someone else know that they can make it through, too. It might be just what someone needs to hear to return to the Lord and ask Him for help. God was with you in your parched places; others may need to know He will be there for them, too!

Dear Heavenly Father, please bless everyone listening. Lord, we love you and we are sorry we get so frustrated waiting for your timing. We don’t understand it, Lord, which is hard for us. We want to believe your plan is better than our plan, and yet our plan seems so great to us. Please help us see your plan more and more. Please help our will align with your will. Please fill us with the strength and patience to wait for your timing. We love you, Lord, and we ask all of this in accordance with your will and in Jesus’s holy name, Amen!

Thank you so much for joining me on this journey to walk boldly with Jesus. I pray you all had a great Easter weekend and a wonderful Easter Season to come. This morning, Pope Francis passed away. He got to go be with our Heavenly Father, which is wonderful for him and yet sad for us. I pray for the repose of his soul, and also for the selection of the new Pope. May the Holy Spirit lead that selection process, and may the perfect person be selected! I look forward to meeting you here again tomorrow. I pray you remember how much Jesus loves you just as you are, and so do I! Have a blessed day!

Today’s Word from the Lord was received in October 2024 by a member of my Catholic Charismatic Prayer Group. If you have any questions about the prayer group, these words, or how to join us for a meeting, please email [email protected]. Today’s Word from the Lord is, “My children, sometimes I ask you to step forward. Sometimes, I ask you to step back. Sometimes I want you to run. Sometimes I want you to walk. Sometimes I want you to sleep. What I want most is for you to be docile to whatever I ask.”

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