The Truth about Your Pastor

I don't know if you know this or not, but your pastor is a lot like you. Some days are harder than others. Some days it's harder to rejoice in The Lord. Some days, even though we know the joy of The Lord is our strength, we are just too tired to find the joy.

Pastors need encouraging words. My pastor happens to also be my husband. I am praying for the gift of encouragement and words that would speak life. I am asking that you would pray for your pastor, whoever he is. He takes the burdens of this world and although he is free in Christ, he sometimes needs encouragement to get off of his knees and walk freely!  Anyone might need uplifting after a year of too many funerals.  Anyone might need an encouraging word after years of encouraging others. He is just human after all. 

I think he might need help finding a little joy, a little faith, a little hope but the greatest of these...is love.

Show your pastor some love. He just might really really need it. 

VALENTINES DAY....Praying for Our Marriage

Lord, I pray You would protect our marriage from anything that would harm or destroy it.  Shield it from our own selfishness and neglect, from the evil plans and desires of others, and from unhealthy or dangerous situations.  May there be no thoughts of divorce or infidelity in our hearts, and none in our future.  Set us free from past hurts, memories, and ties from previous relationships, and unrealistic expectations of one another.  I pray that there be no jealousy in either of us, or the low self-esteem that precedes that.  Let nothing come into our hearts and habits that would threaten the marriage in any way, especially influences like alcohol, drugs, gambling, pornography, lust or obsessions.  Unite us in a bond of friendship, commitment, generosity, and understanding.  Eliminate our immaturity, hostility, or feelings of inadequacy.  Help us to make time for one another alone, to nurture and renew the marriage and remind ourselves of the reasons we were married in the first place.  I  pray that [my husband] will be so committed to You, Lord, that his commitment to me will not waiver, no matters what storms come.  I pray that our love for each other will grow stronger every day, so that we will never leave a legacy of divorce to our children.

Amen and Happy Valentines Day.

For more wonderful prayers to pray over your husband and your marriage, check out The Power of a Praying Wife by Stormie Omartian.

Day 13....Praying for His Future

Taken from The Power of a Praying Wife by Stormie Omartian....


None of us can live without a vision for our future.  If we don't have one, we flounder aimlessly.  Without it, life seems pointless and we die a little every day.  "Where there is no vision, the people perish." (Proverbs 29:18)


Lord, I pray that You would give [my husband] a vision for his future.  Help him to understand that Your plans for him are for good and not evil- to give him a future and a hope (Jeremiah 29:11).  Fill him with the knowledge of Your will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; that he may have a walk worthy of You, fully pleasing You, being fruitful in every good work and increasing the knowledge of You (Colossians 1:9-10).  May he live with leading from the Holy Spirit and not walk in doubt and fear of what may happen.  Help him to mature and grow in You daily, submitting to You all his dreams and desires.  Give him God-ordained goals and show him how to conduct himself in a way that always invests in his future. I pray that he would be active in service for You all the days of his life.  Keep him from losing his sense of purpose and fill him with hope for his future as an "anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast." (Hebrews 6:19).  

Day 12...Praying for His Faith

Lord, I pray that you will give [my husband] an added measure of faith today.  Enlarge his ability to believe in You, Your word, Your promises, Your ways, and Your power.  Put a longing in His heart to talk with You and hear Your voice.  Give him an understanding of what it means to bask in Your presence.  May he seek You, rely totally upon You, be led by You, put You first, and acknowledge You in everything he does.  
Lord, you've said that "faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God" (Romans 10:17).  Feed his soul with Your Word so that his faith grows big enough to believe that with You all things are possible (Matthew 19:26).  Make his faith a shield of protection.  Put it into action to move mountains in his life. Your Word says, "the just shall live by faith" (Romans 1:17); I pray that he will live the kind of faith-filled life You've called us all to experience.

Amen.

Taken from The Power of a Praying Wife by Stormie Omartian

Day 11...Praying for His Obedience

Today's prayer was posted before the 14 Days of Valentines came about....it's one of my favorites!

I think women often forget the power of prayer and resort to the "power of nagging".  Am I right, guys?  I know I've had to remind myself in the past that I am NOT Brad's Holy Spirit!  ;)

Here is a great word from this particular chapter on "His Obedience" from Stormie Omartian...

If you clearly observe your husband walking down a wrong path, should you say something?  If so, how much should you say and when is the right time to say it?  The best way I've found to proceed is to take it to God first and weigh it on His scales.  He may instruct you to just be quiet and pray... But if He does direct you to speak to your husband about the matter, there will be a far greater chance of him hearing God's voice somewhere in Your words if you've prayed before you speak.  Anything perceived as nagging will be counterproductive and better left unsaid.  Praying that his eyes be opened to the truth and his heart convicted will be far more effective than you telling him what to do.  You can encourage him to do what's right and pray for him to do what's right, but ultimately it's God's voice that will have the greatest impact.

My son, do not forget my law, but let your heart keep my commands; for length of days and long life and peace they will add to you.  Let not mercy and truth forsake you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart.  Proverbs 3:1-3

Day 10.... Praying for His Self-Image

Lord, I pray that [my husband] will find his identity in You.  Help him to understand his worth through Your eyes and by Your standards.  May he recognize the unique qualities You've placed in him and be able to appreciate them.  Enable him to see himself the way You see him... Quiet the voices that tell him otherwise and give him ears to hear Your voice telling him that it will not be his perfection that gets him through life successfully, it will be Yours.  Reveal to him that "he is the image and glory of God" (1 Cor. 11:7), and he is "complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power" (Col.2:10).  Give him the peace and security of knowing that he is accepted, not rejected by You.  Free him from the self-focus and self-consciousness that can imprison his soul.  Help him to see who You really are so he'll know who he really is.  May his true self-image be the image of Christ stamped on his soul.

We all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.  2 Corinthians 3:18

Taken from The Power of a Praying Wife by Stormie Omartian

Day 9... Praying for His Mind

Lord, I pray for Your protection on my husband's mind.  Shield him from the lies of the enemy.  Help him to clearly discern between Your voice and any other, and show him how to take every thought captive as You have instructed us to do.  May he thirst for Your Word and hunger for Your truth so that he can recognize wrong thinking.  Give him strength to resist lying thoughts.  Remind him that he has the mind of Christ.  Where the enemy's lies have already invaded his thoughts, I push them back by inviting the power of the Holy Spirit to cleanse his mind.  Lord, You have given me authority "over all the power of the enemy" (Luke 10:19).  By that authority given to me in Jesus Christ, I command all lying spirits away from my husband's mind.  I proclaim that God has given [my husband] a sound mind.  Whatever things are true, noble, just, pure, lovely, of good report, having virtue, or anything praiseworthy, let him think on these things (Philippians 4:8).

Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind and with all your strength.  Mark 12:30

Taken from The Power of a Praying Wife by Stormie Omartian

Day 8....Praying for His Trials

Lord, You alone know the depth of the burden my husband carries.  I may understand the specifics, but You have measured the weight of it on his shoulders.  I've not come to minimize what You are doing in his life, for I know You work great things in the midst of trials.  Nor am I trying to protect him from what he must face.  I only want to support him so that he will get through this battle as the winner.  God, You are our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble (Psalm 46:1).  You have invited us to "come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need." (Hebrews 4:16).  I come before Your throne and ask for grace for my husband.  Strengthen his heart for this battle and give him patience to wait on You (Psalm 27:1-4).  Build him up so that no matter what happens he will be able to stand strong through it.  May he learn to wait on You because "those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint." (Isaiah 40:31).  I pray that he will find strength in You as he cries out to You, You will hear him and save him out of all his troubles. (Psalm 34:6)

Cast your burden on the Lord, and He shall sustain you; He shall never permit the righteous to be moved.  Psalm 55:22

Taken from The Power of a Praying Wife by Stormie Omartian

Day 7....Praying for His Talk

Lord, I pray Your Holy Spirit would guard my husband's mouth so that he will speak only words that edify and bring life.  Fill him with Your love so that out of the overflow of his heart will come words that build up and not tear down.  Work that in my heart as well.  May Your Spirit of love reign in the words we speak so that we don't miscommunicate or wound one another.  Help us to show each other respect, speak words that encourage, share our feelings openly, and come to mutual agreements without strife.  Lord, You've said in Your Word that when two agree, You are in their midst.  I pray that the reverse be true as well--that You will be in our midst so that we two can agree.  Let the words of our mouths and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, our strength and our Redeemer (Psalm 19:14)

Taken from The Power of a Praying Wife by Stormie Omartian

Day 6...Praying for His Walk

O Lord, I know the way of man is not in himself; it is not in man who walks to direct his own steps" (Jeremiah 10:23).  Therefore, Lord, I pray that You would direct my husband's steps.  Lead him in Your light, teach him Your way, so he will walk in Your truth.  I pray he would have a deeper walk with You and an ever progressing hunger for Your Word.  May Your presence be like a delicacy he never ceases to crave.  Lead him on Your path and make him quick to confess when he strays from it.  Reveal to him any hidden sin that would hinder him from walking rightly before You.   May he experience deep repentance when he doesn't live in obedience to Your laws.  Create in him a clean heart and renew a steadfast spirit within him. (Psalm 51:10)  I pray that You will enable [my husband] to walk in the Spirit and not in the flesh and thereby keep himself "from the paths of the destroyer" (Psalm 17:4).  As he walks in the Spirit, may he bear the fruit of the Spirit, which is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Galatians 5:22,23).


Taken from The Power of a Praying Wife by Stormie Omartian

Day 4... Praying for His Priorities

God, I proclaim You Lord over my life.  Help me to seek You first every day and set my priorities in perfect order.  Reveal to me how to properly put my husband before children, work, family, friends, activities, and interests.  Show me what I can do right now to demonstrate to him that he has this position in my heart.  Mend the times I've caused him to doubt that.  Tell me how to prioritize everything so that whatever steals life away, or has no lasting purpose will not occupy my time.  I pray for my husband's priorities to be in perfect order as well.  Be Lord and Ruler over his heart.  Help him to choose a simplicity of life that will allow him to have time alone with You, Lord, a place to be quiet in Your presence every day.  Speak to him about making You Word, prayer, and praise a priority.  Enable him to place me and our children in greater prominence in his heart than career, friends, and activities. I pray he will seek You first and submit his all to You, for when he does I know the other pieces of his life will fit together perfectly.

Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.  Matthew 6:33

Taken from The Power of a Praying Wife by Stormie Omartian

Day 3...Praying for His Finances

Since this is one of the top reasons that couples fight, I think this prayer is of vital importance....

Lord, I commit our finances to You.  Be in charge of them and use them for Your purposes.  May we both be good stewards of all that You give us, and walk in total agreement as to how it is to be dispersed.  I pray that we will learn to live free of burdensome debt.  Where we have not been wise, bring restoration and give us guidance.  Show me how I can help increase our finances and not decrease them unwisely.  Help us to remember that all we have belongs to You, and to be grateful for it.  I pray that [my husband] will not be anxious about finances, but will seek Your kingdom first, knowing that as he does, we will have all we need. (Luke 12:31)

Amen.

Brad & I recently changed some things financially after the Lord's leading, and have been so blessed.  I look to my husband now with more respect than ever.  He takes care of our finances so well and I'm so grateful that he does.

My God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:19

Taken from The Power of a Praying Wife by Stormie Omartian

My Week

I've learned over the years that it's in my nature to choose my projects/priorities wisely because when I do something, I'm going to do it at 100%....all the way or not at all.

Even when it comes to getting STREP.

I mean it was ugly.  Increasingly throughout the day last Monday my ear & throat began to hurt....and then hurt badly!  I'll spare you the gory details, but give God the glory by saying remember rack, shack & benny....in the fire?  He was there.  Yep, and he sent an angel several times who remembered what time it was and when I needed to take meds, who took care of my children, the house, took me to the dr. (twice! and btw, the shots hurted.) and let me sleep alone in my big king sized bed.... ok, in this instance I think the germaphobe angel was more afraid to sleep with me than anything, but nevertheless...I was thankful.  I finally awoke from my mucinex/nyquil-induced coma yesterday afternoon.

Coincidence that Brad is teaching right now on the temple of the Holy Spirit...our bodies....keeping them clean and healthy....fasting....eating healthier....hmmm?

Oh yes, and I had just finished reading "Reshaping It All" by Candace Cameron Bure all about cleaning out body, mind and spirit.  Or that I'm speaking in a few weeks on setting Godly goals and making big changes in your life, one little step at a time...while not having 1 iota of the ability, strength, or energy to take even one step.  Coincidence?  I think not.

Spiritual warfare stinks and it hit our house, namely me, BIGtime.  Thankfully, because of the snow, we didn't miss a whole lot because most everything shut down.  I'm even more appreciative and thankful for my husband/angel who worked so hard to keep everything going here, and me alive! :)  We are praising God even in the storms, and please pray that no one else in this family gets this nastiness...so far, so good.  God is so good.

Now, where's my list...and also, where's the Lysol?

My favorite prayer for Brad

from The Power of a Praying Wife by Stormie Omartian

Lord, I pray that You would give my husband a heart to obey You.  Reward him according to his righteousness and according to the cleanness of his hands (Psalm 18:20).  Show him Your ways, O Lord; teach him Your paths.  Lead him in Your truth, for You are the God of his salvation (Psalm 25:4,5).  Make him a praising person, for I know that when we worship You we gain clear understanding, our lives are transformed, and we receive power to live Your way.  Help him to hear Your specific instructions to him and enable him to obey them.  Give him a longing to do Your will and may he enjoy the peace that can only come from living in total obedience to Your commands.

Obey My voice, and I will be your God, and you shall be My people.  And walk in all the ways that I have commanded you, that it may be well with you. 

Jeremiah 7:23

Resting

Today was the first time in 14 years of being married to a minister, that I actually "rested" on the Sabbath Day. I mean really rested. I've taken naps after church before. I don't mean that kind of rest. I didn't even nap today. I just....rested.

Brad has been off this week, taking a bit of a rest from work. Planting a church is hard work. My husband is a hard worker, no matter what he does. He can't put just half of his heart into anything, but even more so when it comes to His passion for leading people to Jesus. He still did a wedding, led a couple of prayer meetings and had quite a few "phone meetings", so it wasn't complete rest, but I'm really proud of him for seeing the need to stop and stay home more. He's done things around our house that I've had on a list since we moved here in September. For instance, I now once again have my beloved porch swing. Ahhhh....bring on the sweet tea! I also have a new mailbox and lovely flowers planted around it. (I did the flowers...part of my restful Sunday.)

The other day he sent me a document via email. It was simple. It just said....

Fills Drains

....Followed by a series of lines below. He has been reading "Leading on Empty", and explained to me that he wanted to know what fills me and what drains me. Once we have it figured out, he said we'll go out on a date and discuss it.

Can I just stop here and say....Wow! I love that man! I love that he reads books like this and thinks of me and wants to work on our marriage and wants to spend time with me....*pause for daydreamy love montage set to Air Supply's "Even the Nights Are Better"*

Okay, I'm back.

So then I read a blogger friend's post about this book and it inspired me to list these things right here on this here blog! Susanne's post will also explain the book mores since she has read it, and I have not.

Fills Me:

• Time with God
• Reading
• Singing
• Exercising
• Being Outdoors
• Free time
• One-on-One Time w/loved ones
• Blogging/Writing
• Creativity
• Shopping
• Intellectual/Spiritual Conversations
• Being Inspired
• Giving Advice
• Laughter, serious belly laughter
• Sleep

Drains Me:

• Being a Leader
• Trying to stay organized
• Housework/Unending tasks
• Things that don't seem to ever get checked off the list
• Nagging people/Nagging thoughts
• Crowds
• Expectations
• People who Judge
• Money Frustrations
• Schedules
• Manipulators
• Ignorance
• Deadlines
• Trying to have a conversation with people who mumble
• Negativity or "Debbie Downers"

So what fills you? I hope to rest more often with the things that fill me. Mostly, I hope to continue to be filled with and rest in the love of Christ, so that this list of things that fill me become the icing on the cake, and make dealing with the things that drain me....like buttah.

Eph.3:17-19

I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

For my Valentines

❤God, the Father: Thank you for being LOVE. Thank you for creating me and the love of my life. Thank you for loving me before I ever came to be.

❤Jesus, the Son: Thank you for the ultimate gift of giving Your life for me. I love you for knowing me and thinking of me while you were on the cross. Your grace sustains me daily and I can't wait to hug and kiss you in one day in heaven.

❤Brad: Thank you for filling my cup every day, making me laugh and for knowing me fully and loving me anyway. I'm blessed to share life with you and I still look forward to growing old with you.

❤My Blanket❤

On this the first day of my favorite month of the year, when ❤HEARTS❤ are everywhere and ❤Love❤ abounds, I want you to know....

I ❤LOVE❤ this blanket.

I could post a link to my husband's sermon every week, but this last series NO PERFECT PEOPLE ALLOWED has been especially good. God has been tugging at Brad's heart and pulling out the passion in him that I first fell in love with. If you have been struggling to hear from God or haven't felt LOVED in a while.... please take the time to listen. If not to all of them in this series, then this one for sure! God's love is like my wonderfully soft and warm blanket.... AND it covers a multitude of sins.

❤ God LOVES you because God IS Love. Pray that God will show you His great big LOVE today. I promise He's just been waiting for you to ask. ❤

Autumn Romance

Reasons we think that fall is a very romantic season:

• We first started dating in the fall....each year of college. :)
• We love the movie "When Harry Met Sally".
• We both like to wear warm clothes.
• We like to snuggle when it's cold.
• We love the smells of fall...apples, cinnamon, pumpkin, coffee.
• We have colognes just for fall, that make each other melt.
• The colors of fall are peaceful and warm.
• We start Christmas shopping for each other.
• We have spontaneous Starbucks dates.
• We look back over the year, thankful for all that God's done.

God has given us to each other as husband and wife.

We want our love to be a deep and lasting reflection of His love for us.

We believe that genuine love is not a feeling; it is a commitment.

We have committed our lives to Him and to each other.

We realize that apart from the indwelling, controlling Spirit of God,

it is impossible for us to fulfill this commitment.

Our confidence is in His ability to produce in our lives that which is pleasing to Him.

We are utterly dependent on His grace to enable us to live out this commitment for the rest of our lives.

30-Day Encouragement Wrap-Up

How has this challenge changed your heart and life? I am more in love with my husband now than ever. When I didn't have words to encourage him, I used what I had....serving him, little gifts, hugs, kisses, support as he disciplined the children (whether I agreed with him or not) and I even wrote him a letter....because sometimes it's just easier to write down my thoughts. (I know!! Shocker.) He is stronger, therefore more attractive to me than ever, because I've lifted him up and not brought him down. I want to be his greatest support and speak blessings and wisdom into his life, because as a pastor who has to do that for others; he needs someone to do that for him. I want to be his encourager, his cheerleader, his side-kick, his fan. The cool, unexpected result was....the more I encouraged him, the more he encouraged me, or wanted to serve me, or bless me in sweet little ways.

Did God encourage you as you planned ways to encourage your husband? God let me see my husband through His eyes many times and in many ways. My husband is a good man. He has a huge heart, and loves me with the full capacity of it, no matter what kind of mood I'm in. No one on earth could love me like he does. Even more sexy to me is that fact that he loves God with that huge heart even more than he loves me. When he's relying fully on the Lord, I'm resting secure because I know that our marriage is firm and grounded in the solid promises of God's Word. And since my biggest need is security and my needs are being met, then I feel safe enough and strong enough to meet his needs, the greatest being.... respect. It's a cycle that has to be started somewhere... and a result that ends in a happily ever after....literally.

Were there difficult days where you simply needed to trust that God was working? I think this 30 days was perfectly planned (ordained) because we moved into a new house; and if you've ever moved, you know there is added stress. Through that stress came confirmation after confirmation that God has His master plan in place. (well duh I know...but sometimes don't we need to be smacked over the head with stuff!?!) Honestly, over the past 2 years since we've been in church-planting, I've "encouraged" my husband to quit. Yes quit. More than once. Ministry isn't fun most of the time. It's hard. People can be mean and I'm very protective of those that I love. This move and the unity that has developed in our marriage has taught me several things, but the most important is to keep on trusting that God IS working. He works for the good of those who love him. There will be days when it's difficult, but that's when God is encouraging me in the words of my grandpa to "keep on, keepin' on" ...the best is yet to come.

September Challenge

30 days hath September....so let's do something of significance together. Let's encourage our husbands and therefore, make our marriages stronger. Sign up here to receive the daily challenge email and make an eternal difference in your marriage. I got this idea and am participating with Suzanne over at Truly Captivating so join us and we'll encourage each other in this adventure. Won't our men just LOVE this!?!!!!

Click on this link and then this one:

"The heart of her husband safely trusts her; so he will have no lack of gain. She does him good and not evil all the days of her life." (Proverbs 31:11-12)