I would love to
by Cathy Baker
There we were, the three of us, playing on the aqua blue eyelash rug in the library. Piper, Gabe, and me. On the shelf nearby, sat a freshly framed picture of Judah, our newly adopted son from Uganda.
It was a poignant moment as we sat on a butter-soft rug knowing that my son and daughter-in-law were battling unseen forces for Judah’s freedom flight back to the US. Crucial decisions were taking place that day. I picked up Judah’s picture asking Piper, who will be 4 in November, and Gabe, who’ll soon be 2, if they wanted to pray together for him. I laid Judah’s picture on the rug. One by one, we gently placed our hand on the picture of the one we call our own and did just that.
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| The one we call our own. |
I am learning that when prayers collide, regardless of place or age, there is a powerful force at work. His name is Jesus.
One last thing I’m learning as we close out this month’s series: Based on the elaborate displays in Barnes and Noble we are never too old to color! If you would like to enter the random drawing for this “adult” coloring book on Joy by Valentina Harper, simply fill in the blank via the comment section! Winner will be announced on Wednesday, September 9th.
One thing I’m currently learning is _________________________________________.
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| Purchased at Barnes and Noble |
by Cathy Baker
Is there anything more refreshing than a an ice cold slushy or a splash in the pool on a sweltering summer day?
R–E–F-R-E–S–H–M–E–N–T
Turns out, there is.
If you’ve attended the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writer’s Conference there’s one particular room where dreams have the potential to either take flight, or deflate as quickly as Tom Brady’s fleet of footballs. On one side of the table sit the agents, editors, publishers, etc. On the other, attendees waiting to pitch ideas or ask questions within their fifteen minute appointment. If an attendee arrives for their appointment and finds the person ahead of them still pitching past their allotted time, we’re told to quietly go stand behind the other conferee, signaling their time is up.
This year, while sharing my appointment time with Ginger Harrington, friend and fellow blogger, she noticed that her time immediately followed mine.
I smiled and told her to feel free to sneak up on me if my time ran over. Without hesitation she said, “I won’t be sneaking up on you, I’ll be standing there praying for you.”
Our exchange that morning left me feeling refreshed—physically, emotionally, and especially spiritually. New perspectives have a way of doing that, don’t they?
So, how has God brought refreshment to your soul via another person lately?
(Congratulations to Ginger! She won 1st place in Blogging this year. Visit her site and you’ll see why.)
by Cathy Baker
I’ve been a proponent of morning quiet times since becoming a Christ-follower years ago. Here’s why:
But what happens when we heap guilt emphasize the time of the day we meet with God more than the “date” itself?
Laura J. Boggess touches on this in the sixth chapter of Playdates with God…Having a Childlike Faith in a Grown-up World, entitled Super Soaker: When Life Feels Dry:
“When did we decide that the morning quiet time was the gold standard? Yes, Jesus rose early in the morning to meet with God, but he prayed at night, too (Luke 6:12). And Paul tells us to pray without ceasing. Do we get so hung up on the way our quiet time should look that we don’t meet with God at all? I wonder what would happen if we stopped trying to look like everyone else—if we embraced our own unique personalities in our spiritual lives.
Some people love to pray as they walk their neighborhood, some as they climb mountains, some as they create paintings. Some might quilt—every stitch a prayer.
Invite him in. He wants to be with you. Yes, you. You with the freckles and the spare tire. You with a quick temper who loves to sleep in. You, the one who learns in pictures and struggles to sit down and read. He wants to be with you. He knows the number of hairs on your head. (No matter what color they are.) And he probably counts the freckles for fun.” – Laura J. Boggess
Save the Date:
Morning, noon, or night…it matters not. What matters, as you know, is making the time to meet with the living God who loves us with such an extravagant kind of love.
You’re Invited:
Whether you’re stitching your prayers away, or walking them off, what’s one new way you might try spending time with God this week? No other date will rival this one.
So, are you an early riser/pray-er or do you prefer another time of day?
