Get Through It...

'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the LORD, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.'"

(Jeremiah 29:11, NIV)

No matter what may be happening today, God has good things in store for your future! 

It may not be easy to see now, but God has already lined up a new beginning, new friendships and new opportunities for you.

Maybe you've experienced some setbacks, but don't make the mistake of expecting the same for your future. 

Instead, accept God's good plan for your life by declaring His truth. 

As believers, our attitude should be:

"Even though the economy is down, I'm not worried. I know God is going before me, and He has promised He will make rivers in the desert." 

Or, 

"The medical report may not look good, but I have another report that says God is restoring health unto me. I believe God has already released healing, health and victory in my future." 

Or, you may have a child who is not on the right course. 

In the natural, it seems impossible. 

But our report should be:

"I know God can do the impossible!"

Today, be encouraged and don't give up on your tomorrows. 

Accept the good plan God has for you—a plan filled with hope, purpose, blessing and increase in every area of your life!

A Prayer for Today

"Father, thank You for giving me hope and a future. Thank You for loving me. Thank You for choosing me. Thank You for delighting in me. I invite You to renew my heart and mind to the good plans You have for me in Jesus' name. 

Amen."

From Today's Word 

Stay STRONG!!!

Turn

"God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble"

—PSALM 46:1 

"THIS IS WHAT I SAY—I who made you, who formed you in the womb, and who will help you: 

Do not be afraid. 

I have always been involved in your life, even before you were born. 

Because you are Mine, purchased with My own blood, you can count on My PROMISE to help you as you journey through this world. 

This is how you gain victory over fear: through TRUSTING in My ever-present help. 

The problem arises when you gaze too long into the future, trying to visualize and take control of those not-yet events. 

A future-focus can easily deteriorate into a problem-focus. 

Weeds of worry and fear spring up quickly in this sort of "soil." 

When you realize this has happened, turn away from your worries and back to the One who is lovingly present with you. 

Rejoice that I will still be with you when you arrive at each coming stage of your journey. 

Lean hard on My Presence, TRUSTING Me to help you today—and all the days of your life."

From "Jesus Always" by Sarah Young

Stay Strong!!!

"This is what the LORD says—he who made you, who formed you in the womb, and who will help you: Do not be afraid, O Jacob, my servant, Jeshurun, whom I have chosen."

—ISAIAH 44:2 

"Surely or only goodness, mercy, and unfailing love shall follow me all the days of my life, and through the length of my days the house of the Lord [and His presence] shall be my dwelling place."

—PSALM 23:6 AMP

Rosary Struggles....

"This is many people's real experience in praying the rosary. 

So if you have ever felt this way, know that you are in good company. 

Thousands of devout Catholics—young and old, men and women, lay people, priests, and religious—have told me how they love the rosary but struggle from time to time in praying it.

I've had numerous bishops, men with the great gift of apostolic succession, tell me that they don't pray the rosary as well as they'd like! 

As one bishop in the Midwest told me many years ago, "Oh, the rosary! It's hard. I struggle all the time!"

Even the esteemed Cardinal Ratzinger, later Pope Benedict XVI, admitted that praying a whole rosary is often too much for him to do in a single sitting: 

'I am too much of a restless spirit; I would wander too much. I take just one [set of mysteries], and then often only two or three mysteries out of the five, because I can then fit in a certain interval when I want to get away from work and free myself a bit, when I want to be quiet and to clear my head. A whole one would actually be too much for me then.'

1. Here's one crucial thing to keep in mind: 

Whatever struggles you may face with the rosary, never walk away feeling discouraged. 

If your mind wanders, if you don't feel the fervor, or if you're very sleepy while praying, remember that the words you are reciting are biblical and holy. 

Simply pulling out your beads and saying the sacred words is giving something beautiful to God, even if your heart or mind is not as into it as you'd like. 

Moreover, as St. Thomas Aquinas taught, the intention to pray is itself the beginning of prayer. 

In fact, he wrote in his Summa Theologiae, "It is not necessary that prayer should be attentive throughout; because the force of the original intention with which one sets about praying renders the whole prayer meritorious."

2 If we sincerely desire to give God our best in the rosary, but we lose attention and fervor, that foundational good intention is still a beautiful gift to God. 

So even if our performance of the rosary is not as great as we'd like it to be, that doesn't wipe out the foundation of a good intention."

Keep at it!!  :)  Stay STRONG!!

Forward in Hope

Becky Eldredge

I found my friend on his knees praying in the hospital chapel. 

We had received word that a family member of our friend was extremely sick and might not make it through the next day. 

As I embraced my friend and his tears fell on my shoulder, he told me, "I feel I am having a crisis of faith, because I am in here begging God to save my loved one."

My tears joined his as I said, "The fact that you are in this chapel crying out to God in this time of darkness shows me the depth of your faith. You are turning to God in your time of need, and God is meeting you in this right now."

My friend's prayers reminded me of our need to hope in God, to feel heard by God, and to know that God can answer our prayers. 

"Prayer leads us forward in hope," as Pope Francis reminds us in On Hope.

In our times of darkness, when we face our human limitations, we realize our need for God. 

We cry out in these moments to the source of our hope, which is God. 

God is with us. 

We are never alone. 

God responds to our prayers, not always with the answer we want, but with graces and gifts to get us through the journey. 

Prayer opens us to God, and God shines light into our darkness, enabling us to take a step forward, and then another, and then another.

The witness of my friend's ability to hope that day is one I will never forget. 

I pull from his ability to cry out to God when I face my own darkness and the darkness I encounter in the world. 

God meets me in my prayers, increases my ability to hope, and inspires actions for me to take."

Stay STRONG!!!!

The Promise......

'"For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his sacred tent and set me high upon a rock."

(Psalm 27:5, NIV)

What a wonderful promise found in today's Scripture that when you seek God, when you serve Him with your whole heart, He will hide you in His shelter. 

You can be so connected to Father God that you are untouchable and invisible to the enemy! 

You are hidden in Him! 

That means no matter what is happening around you, you will have STRENGTH, confidence and rest greater than ever before knowing that you are safe in Him. 

Challenges may come your way, but you won't be worried about them. 

You KNOW that, ultimately, things are going to work out for your good. 

You KNOW that no weapon formed against you shall prosper. 

People may be talking, trying to make you look bad, but you don't even give it a second thought. 

You KNOW that your future is too bright to be distracted. 

You KNOW they don't control your destiny. 

You just keep on being your best, walking in integrity, meditating on the Word, worshiping throughout the day, and stay hidden in Him!

A Prayer for Today 

"Father God, I come to You with an open and humble heart. I surrender every area of my life to You. Mold me into Your image and keep me hidden in You. I bless You and praise You today and always in Jesus' name. 

Amen.

From Today's Word 

Stay Strong!!!