Sorry that I have totally fallen off the bandwagon with the posting daily thing, but this week has been a looonnnnngg one. 

I posted a link in the

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What do faith and sex have in common? How is sex a weapon to be used against Satan? Listen to or read this sermon by John Piper to find out.

Day 26

Pray that your husband will discover and live his God-given purpose. Pray that he will offer all his dreams to the Lord, and pursue only those goals that will bring God glory and count for eternity. (Jer. 29:11; 1 Cor. 10:31)

Day 27

Pray that your husband will understand the importance of taking care of his body—the temple of the Holy Spirit—for the glory of God. Pray that he will practice self-control by making wise food choices, and get sufficient exercise to stay healthy. (Rom. 12:1-2; 1 Cor. 6:19-20, 9:27)

Jesus, lover of my soul, Let me to Thy bosom fly,
While the nearer waters roll, While the tempest still is high.
Hide me, O my Savior, hide, Till the storm of life is past;
Safe into the haven guide; Oh, receive my soul at last.

Other refuge have I none, Hangs my helpless soul on Thee;
Leave, ah! leave me not alone, Still support and comfort me.
All my trust on Thee is stayed, All my help from Thee I bring;
Cover my defenseless head With the shadow of Thy wing.

Wilt Thou not regard my call? Wilt Thou not accept my prayer?
Lo! I sink, I faint, I fall—Lo! on Thee I cast my care.
Reach me out Thy gracious hand! While I of Thy strength receive,
Hoping against hope I stand, Dying, and behold, I live.

Thou, O Christ, art all I want, More than all in Thee I find;
Raise the fallen, cheer the faint, Heal the sick, and lead the blind.
Just and holy is Thy Name, Source of all true righteousness;
Thou art evermore the same, Thou art full of truth and grace.

Plenteous grace with Thee is found, Grace to cover all my sin;
Let the healing streams abound; Make and keep me pure within.
Thou of life the fountain art, Freely let me take of Thee;
Spring Thou up within my heart; Rise to all eternity.

"The steadfast love of the lord never ceases. His mercies never end; they are new every morning.  Great is thy faithfulness!" --Lamentations 3:22-23

I believe in my Jehovah-Rophe. I do.

"I will sing of your mercy that leads me through valleys of sorrow to rivers of JOY"

Sorry that I'm several days behind. Here's the topics for the last couple of days...

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I've added lots of new things tonight that might be of interest to you....

First, I added the "Recent Finds" portion onto the nav bar... it will always stay automatically up to date with feeds from blogs that I read that are particularly interesting... all I have to do is make one little click on my feedreader, and

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I finally got around to updating "The Author" segment (click 'about' on the navigation panel, then 'the author').  I would like to say its because I decided to sit down and get some productive things done this afternoon, but I must confess that it's mainly because I'm procrastinating.  I have a paper to write, but playing on the website seemed much more appealing.

Even if it doesn't benefit ME by having spent a bunch of time on here this afternoon, maybe you'll enjoy the new pictures I posted on that page.

The church that I grew up in, Highlands PCA, is a church that holds a very special place in my heart.  I havent been an actual member since I was 18, when I left for Starkville, MS to go to Mississippi State.  Then I moved to Murfreesboro to finish at Middle Tennessee State.  When I moved back to Madison in August of 2005, Nate and I immediately became a part of Madison Heights, which was just starting and is a church plant (mission church) of Highlands as well as of 2 other "parent" churches in the area. 

During the time that I was in Murfreesboro, Highlands brought a new pastor on board named Joseph Wheat.  I'd heard alot about Joseph before I moved here, and my parents kept me updated on the great things that had been happening within the church since his arrival.  I'd met him once or twice during visits back home when I was house-hunting, and it's difficult not to immediately take to him.  You can't help but feel like you're suddenly his new best friend! He is one of the most genuinely warm and welcoming people I've had the pleasure to meet.  While Madison Heights was meeting in the evenings for the first several months, Nate and I were able to attend Highlands in the mornings and have the privelege of hearing Joseph preach (you can download his sermons here...they are worth listening to!).

I've gone through this little bit of history so that you would have some idea of who I'm talking about when I say that during the few months that we were able to attend Highlands on Sunday mornings, Joseph made a big impact on both my life and Nate's.  I could tell lots of stories about him and the assistant pastor, Bob Brunson, aka "Bobbuttons," but that's for a different post. 

Of all of the things I have learned from his sermons and just watching him life his life, the thing that has impacted me the most is probably the significance and passion he devotes to prayer.  Of course, prayer has always been an important part of the life of any pastor that I've become friends with, but with Joseph it has always seemed different. It's not a duty or a habit, it's something that he loves to do, and it's obvious!  I've never seen someone who is so passionate about talking to God about even the smallest things in life, and who is so excited to share that conversation with others.  He loves to pray with other people about anything and everything....even if it's something seemingly unimportant.

One of my favorite things to watch is what Nate calls Joseph's "Lightening Prayers..." (Nate says they happen before you know what hit you!)  It doesn't matter where you are or what kind of situation or environment you're in, if you happen to mention something that Joseph feels should be prayed about, you're both suddenly in the middle of a prayer without realizing how you got there.  For example, Nate mentioned at dinner one night that one of his houses was having trouble selling, and we prayed right then and there that God would sell that house.  Nate laughs about it now and has just come to expect that there's a good chance that a prayer is going to enter its way into conversation when he's with Joseph.  Nate still leads a Bible study for the youth on Wednesday nights at Highlands, and there's rarely a week when he doesnt come home telling me another "lightening prayer" story.  My dad joked about the time he was driving down the road while talking to him on his cell phone, when Joseph started praying about whatever they had been discussing on the phone. He told me later, "I didn't know what to do... I felt like I should close my eyes so that I could concentrate, but I was driving down the interstate! I couldnt!" 

Seeing Joseph and his "lightening prayers" has made me very aware of opportunities throughout the day or in the midst of a conversation that needs to be prayed for.  Since I know that there's a chance that I could forget to pray for it that night, I try to always stop, take a minute to myself, and pray about it right then and there.  On days when this happens alot, I end the day with an unexplainable feeling...it's comforting to feel that I was in constant conversation with God all day long. 

It's a difficult thing to stop mid-conversation and pray with someone you don't know well.  I actually have never done it with someone that I wasn't already really close to, which I guess says something about my unwillingness to step out of my comfort zone, though I hate to think of it that way.  I've thought alot about what it takes to jump into prayer with someone that you don't know, completely unashamed of your faith and your Savior.  I've prayed that God would give me both the opportunity and the courage to do so.

I don't know if this is something Nate has done before or not, but a few days ago for the first time, I had the opportunity to witness Nate jump into a "lightening prayer" with a man neither of us know very well.  As he unexpectedly told Nate and another man sitting with them about some very difficult situations in his life, I watched as Nate put his arm around him, bowed his head, and said "I'd like to pray about this right now."   I watched as Nate led the other two men in prayer in the middle of a crowded room, completely oblivious to the fact that several people had turned to watch with curious expressions.  I became so flooded with emotion (as I am now while I write this) that I had to get up and walk around the room for a minute so that I could keep my composure. 

I sat there thinking about how blessed I am that God would take something that I have been thinking about and trying to get the courage to do and let Nate be the one to guide me there.  As my husband and the head of our family, one of Nate's primary responsibilites in our family (even now, when it's only 2 of us) is to provide spiritual guidance and leadership.  He didn't even know that I had been thinking and praying about that issue, but God chose to guide me through Nate anyway.  In the midst of my reading and praying and thinking about the issue of spiritual headship and the concept of marriage roles, God gave me a practical example.

It's an amazing thing to watch your husband do something bold in order to show someone else the love of Christ.  I love to watch Nate, especially when he doesnt know that I'm paying attention, and see what God desires to teach me through this man that He has provided as my life-long protector, provider, guide, lover, and best friend.  Together, they teach me new things every day about what it means to be truly loved and what it means to truly love others.

*Nate, if you're reading this (and I know you don't read it often) I hope that I didn't embarrass you.   The things you teach me are lessons worth sharing. I love you!

Day 20:

Pray that your husband will yield his mind and thoughts to the Lord. Pray that he will not entertain immoral or impure thoughts, and that he will resist the temptation to indulge in pornography.

Scripture for Prayer and Meditation:

Prov. 27:12

The prudent sees danger and hides himself,
   but the simple go on and suffer for it.

2 Cor. 10:5

We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ,