All Day Nourishment

My burning first question... Is there anyone who still has their envelope sealed? One friend opened hers in front of me today and I had a time of sweet thanks that the things so in the forefront two weeks ago were no longer. With me, my envelope was full of schedules and 'worries of the day'. I am sorry to admit that my 'To Do' list rules my life! Sealed away with God is where it needs to stay a lot more than I let it. Lesson #1 for me.

One of you wrote this... Haven't opened up my envelope. I can't really even remember each thing I put down. Maybe that's good! But I do know that I'm not pretending that those issues aren't there. They are. But I don't have to think about them 24/7. Especially if I will in faith believe that He can actually carry my envelope and carry my burdens at least for a little while before I "force" Him to give them back to me to carry! Ha! How foolish of me. I would much rather He be the one to carry the "envelope" for me. I'm weary of carrying it.

Isn't that so true. If we learned anything two weeks ago, it surely is that we're tired of carrying around all our own stuff!

Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Matthew 11: 28

Next question... Where in Hosea have you camped out? Or maybe another Scripture. Where has God kept you in His Word and what have you learned?

Hosea 6:1-3 really spoke to me about being torn into many pieces but put back with His refreshing and restoring and the REWARD of forgiveness. That part of the retreat spoke to my heart that the hard work of confession was ultimately the completeness I can enjoy in Him and was/is so worth it.

Jeremiah 15:19: Serving Him with a repentant heart and He will bring fruit. Rewards of confession/repentance/forgiveness. That's truly what my heart desires to do. Confession, repentance and forgiveness. Such a fruitful cycle!

I've been pondering Hosea 12:6 for the last 2 weeks:"But you must return to your God; maintain love and justice, and wait for your God always." I'm a list person so I'm drawn to the simplicity of this verse. I love the instruction and encouragement found here. The part of this verse that I have trouble embracing is the waiting. I strive to live my life to the fullest, but I've always been waiting for something...a better job, a sign from God, a raise, a husband, a vacation, the next tragedy...waiting for both the mundane and the miraculous. I am grateful I'm aware of the Lord's presence in every area of my life, but the waiting is draining me. I guess my question for the ladies who've been on this journey longer than I have is, how do I balance contentment with waiting on the Lord?

Ladies, we are going to stop here for a bit. This is a profound question. Would you care to comment and encourage this sweet seeker?

See you in a bit... more comments and emails please!

10:00 am
Where are you, friends?

Another question for you... What sins have been revealed to you?
One of the key points in asking God to develop in us a repentant heart, is asking Him to reveal our sins to us. Here's a partial list of mine. Mind you, this is not my full list - some things are just between God and me.
self sufficiency - thinking I can handle it
hating interruptions - loving my 'list'
love of money
wanting to be well thought of
stubborness
favoritism
judging
envy and jealousy
a shallow love and
a shallow view of sin
hard heartedness

Yours?

2:00 pm

I told you I was stuck in Daniel 9. Here's a good recap of what Daniel confessed as sin:
rebellion
scorn for the prophets and God's Word
refusal to listen
disloyalty
disobedience
turning away from God
refusing to listen to His voice (Daniel mentions this several times)
refusal to seek mercy
not recognizing His truth

In Lesson 3 Digging: Weeping Over our Sin the last thing we are asked to do is pray over each of our family members and ask God to give each one a heart of repentance. Can you imagine the fruit in your family and in your life when God answers this one prayer?

I went on praying and confessing my sin and the sin of my people, pleading with the Lord my God... Daniel 9: 20

4:00 pm

Another comment... No- I didn't open my envelope. The Lord can handle it better than I can!

And one more... LOVED the Daniel 9 passage in session three. Well, loved might be too strong since I'm weeping over my sin! Or realizing that I do NOT weep enough. I certainly have prayed for family members and their relationship with the Lord. But never have I thought I should/could be in the role of asking God to forgive, confessing THEIR sins, and asking Him to turn their hearts to repentance. If I weep over my sin, then it will be a natural overflow to weep over the sin of others--especially those that I love.

last thought for the day...

One of you wrote this... My extended family situation is in shambles. The cycle of unconfessed sin and actions are beginning to catch up with this generation. It's almost as if the sins have come from generations before us. That may sound a little farfetched but I sense that maybe there are some sins that we are experiencing the consequences of generations later. The cycle has to be broken. Possibly I am part of breaking this cycle as I stand in the gap for extended family members and ask God to have mercy of them and turn their hearts back to Him in repentance.

This is articulated so well, and I wholeheartedly agree. At times in the past, when my family has experienced an outpouring of unexpected blessing and favor, it has crossed my mind that we may be the recipients of prayers from the faithful in our family that have gone to Glory ahead of us, like my mother and Ben's grandfather. Not that they are praying now, but that God is still honoring their prayers from then. I also believe the opposite is true. Sometimes in those seasons of hard hits, we may be the recipients of generational sin. Friends, let's not just pray for our own repentant hearts; let's pray for our children, grandchildren, and generations ahead of us!