This Child

This Child by James H Cagle

This Child

Inside your womb there is a miracle;
There is a soul within its frame

That lives for the heartbeat of his Mother

And will bear dear Daddy’s name.

He has hands that you’ve never held,

A head you’ve never caressed;

A smile you’ve yet to see

As he’s resting quietly on your breast.

You have longings that cannot be uttered;

This is a life you pray to enfold;

There is pain you are willing to face,

Trusting God that this child you’ll hold.

There are eyes you’ve yet to see twinkle,

With a laugh that thrills you with its grace;

Little fingers that will entwine your heart

And caress with love his parent’s face.

There are arms that have yet to hug you,

And feet that have never ran a race;

A will that has yet to offend you,

Bringing you often before the Lord’s face.

There’s a body, a soul, and a spirit,

A little fellow that fears no harm;

Who will soon be the joy of Daddy,

And discover the warmth in Mother’s loving arms.

He is a jewel yet to be polished,

A treasure hidden beneath Mother’s heart;

A vessel to be used by the Lord,

Though yet unknowing how important his part.

Oh, the blessing of being a parent-

To look in your child’s adoring face,

Then look beyond, knowing that his dear soul

Must be made ready by God’s saving grace.

How often has been your disappointment,

How many the times you’ve asked, "Why?"

When the rose that you had faded

And your heart broke with every goodbye.

Your prayer, it seems, is never-ending:

"Dear God, please this child let me hold,

Give me the gift above every gift

That I to your likeness may help to mold."

It is our heart’s sincere prayer

That God sees fit to grant your request,

Knowing that He, in grace and love,

Will only do that which He thinks is best.

Here is a poem that God used in a special way in the life of some friends of mine. The mother had become pregnant several times but each time lost the baby before it was born. She became pregnant again and I found out about what they had been through and wrote this poem to hopefully encourage them. When I gave them the poem the mother cried all the way home. She did give birth to the child (a boy). But before he was a year old she got cancer and died. Talk about heartache, they've had their share. The daddy married again a couple of years later. They have this poem framed and hanging in their living room. The boy they named Nathan.

     Father, thank You that we can be 
assured of Your great love for us.
     My trust is in You to help me walk through the challenges ahead.
     May my faith be steadfast in You, and may whatever comes my way prove to be do-able with the grace You'll provide.
     I may not be giving birth to a physical baby, but I'll be in the process of "birthing" possibilities that only You're aware of.
     Take my life and let it be consecrated to You without resolve. I ask this in the Name of Jesus, my Savior. Amen.

Today’s Bible verse: Is. 41:13 "For I the LORD thy God will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee, fear not: I will help thee."

Today’s quote: Lenn L. Latham in his book Let God In (out of print, pg 16)- "No matter how profound the discouragement, the moment we turn to God, something wonderful happens."

Some thoughts today: Before you can have faith for big things, you need to believe for small matters.

- Have you poured out your heart and time into others, and then be disappointed? Take heart, God uses broken people to show His glory in and through by His Holy Spirit.

- Stay true to the vision God has given, and don't give up in waiting for His timing and plan.

7:47

"I Bowed On My Knees.." By Michael English/David 

This is so good! There are many other songs by the Gaither Vocal band to enjoy, too!

5th- Sunday evening’s post:  His Choice

Joe Stowell

7th- Tuesday's post:  #55 The Principalities and Powers

C. Peter Wagner

9th- Thursday's post:  #56 Artemis of the Ephesians

C. Peter Wagner 

11th- Saturday's post:  Bear One Another's Burden
Unknown

A popular post:   When God Wispers Your Name Max Lucado: “When I see a flock of sheep I see exactly that, a flock.  A rabble of wool. 

 A herd of hooves.  I don't see a sheep. I see sheep.  All alike.  None different. That's what I see.

            But not so with the shepherd..." 

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Granny's Guide to Marriage in Verse

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 A great gift for someone who
needs help in their marriage

Bridal Shower Devotional

Bridal Wisdom for Women

My book in paperback $7.95

Granny's Guide to Marriage in Verse

 AuthorsDen.com
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#41 The Underlying Issue

C. Peter Wagner shares with us,
"A hypothesis I am attempting to
defend in this book has been stated 
as follows:

   'Satan delegates high raking members
of the hierarchy of evil spirits to control
nations, regions, cities, tribes, people groups, neighborhoods and other significant social networks of human beings throughout the world. Their major assignment is to prevent God from being glorified in their territory, which they do through directing the activity of lower ranking demons.' (This was stated by Wagner in his book, Wrestling with Dark Angels p.77)

It can immediately be seen that this hypothesis will stand or fall on the issue of whether spirits or demonic beings can legitimately be perceived as occupying territories. 

I will discuss that in detail in the next chapter, but first a preliminary question needs to be addressed:

    Do demons attach themselves to specific things such as idols,
    animals, houses or natural features such as trees or mountains?

My answer? Yes!

Matthew, Mark and Luke all tell the story of Jesus casting out the demon named Legion in the country of the Gadarenes.

The demons went from the man into pigs (Matt. 8:28-34; Mark 5:1-20; Luke 8:26-39). There is no biblical question, then, that demons can attach themselves to animals.

Parenthetically, it is apropos to point out here that when they realized Jesus was going to cast them out of the man, the demons 

    'begged Him earnestly that He would not send them out 
     of the country' (Mark 5:10).

Why did they do this? Obviously, remaining in the same geographical territory had some value to the demons, and Jesus acceded to their request, sending them into the pigs.

Argentine pastor Eduardo Lorenzo, whose congregation was 
successful in evicting the territorial spirit over Adrogue (see
#7 Evicting the Ruler of Adrogue'), reports their perception that 
principalities who are cast out of assigned territories fear cruel 
punishment will be inflicted by their spiritual superiors for their 
failure to remain.

In Revelation 2:13, Satan is associated with a city and its cult-center. In the passage, the city of Pergamos in Asia Minor is said to be 'where Satan dwells.' "

(Google image and emphasis added)

Warfare Prayer #41 The Underlying Issue By C. Peter Wagner (pgs. 76-77) Regal Books Mark I. Bubeck shares with us from his book  The Satanic Revival  "Hope for world evangelization and revolutionary revival demands that believers recognize the truth of fierce opposition continuing to come from the world of darkness. Evil supernaturalism hates revival. If we ignore Satan's work, we will never overcome his schemes against a revival awakening. Our only hope is to aggressively apply Christ's victorious work over Satan. That's a truth we must not ignore." Pray with me:              Father, guide us in our learning of what the real need is in our community.     Help us recognize the truth of fierce opposition coming from Satan, and that we have a very definite part in combating his effectiveness in our churches.     Make me be aware of opportunities to pray with others for victories and healings of those I come in touch with daily, and at church. I ask this in Jesus' name. Amen. Today’s Bible verse: 1 Kings 8:42a "For they shall hear of thy great name, and of thy strong hand, and of thy stretched out arm." Today’s quote: Sarah Lynn Phillips – “Contemplating  Christ’s death has a way of increasing our desire to kneel at the foot of the cross, to see in His brokenness a sacred beauty and what it represents to us personally: forgiveness, a standing invitation to the throne of grace, the anticipation of spending eternity with Him. To share with Him our hearts. To listen to His.” Some thoughts today: Hope is the soil we put our faith in. Do you curse yourself with lies? Don't let fear and disappointment stop your faith from believing God's promises for you in the Bible. He impresses us personally what they are, when reading it. - Are you praying for someone, or a situation to change? Keep believing and praying. Everything may very well depend on it. Unceasing Prayer  by Max Lucado- "Unceasing prayer may sound complicated, but it needn't be that way. Do this. Think of prayer less as an activity for God and more as an awareness of God.  Seek to live in uninterrupted awareness. As you stand in line to register your car, think, 'Thank you, Lord, for being here.' In the grocery store as you shop, think, 'Your presence, my King, I welcome.' As you wash the dishes, worship your Maker. Brother Lawrence called himself the 'lord of all pots and pans."  He wrote, "The time of busy-ness does not with me differ from the time of prayer; and in the clatter of my kitchen, while several persons are calling for different things, I possess God in as great tranquility as if I were upon knees at the blessed sacrament.'  So talk to God, always. Besides, it makes more sense to talk to God than mumble to yourself!" (Emphasis added) From Max on Life Listen to UpWords with Max Lucado at OnePlace 19th- Thursday's post:  #42 Demons and Idols   C. Peter Wagner 21st- Saturday's post:  Habits of a Healthy Mind   David McCasland 22nd- Sunday evening's post:  When I Go to Heaven  Debbie McEwen 24th- Tuesday's post:  #43 Does this Happen in the United States? C. Peter Wagner Absolute beautiful! The atmosphere has to be just right to create these. Samples of Jean's crafts http://twitter.com/jeanoathout http://facebook.com/jean.oathout Granny's Guide to Marriage in Verse   Kindle $3.29  A great gift for someone who needs help in their marriage Bridal Shower Devotional Bridal Wisdom for Women My book in paperback $7.96 Granny's Guide to Marriage in Verse

#32 Conquering a City

C. Peter Wagner asks this question:
"What did Jesus have to say to His
followers about strategic-level spiritual 
warfare?

Some of His most direct instructions are found not in the Gospels, but rather in the book of Revelation.

It is not unusual to forget that more than two full chapters in Revelation are the literal words of Jesus. My Bible reminds me because they are printed in red ink.

The content of the letters to the seven churches in Asia is one of the few parts of the Bible that apparently were literally dictated by God to the human author.

The seven different churches receive seven different messages. Nevertheless, they have some things in common.

For example, each letter begins with some descriptive phrases about the author, Jesus Christ. Each letter affirms that its contents are 'what the Spirit says to the churches.'

And, most importantly for us here, only one command-type verb is used in each of the seven letters; overcome.

In fact, some rather extravagant promises are attached to overcoming in each of the letters.

If we overcome, as Jesus desires us to, we will (1) eat from the tree of life, (2) not be hurt by the second death, (3) eat of the hidden manna, (4) have power over the nations, (5) be clothed in white garments, (6) be a pillar in the temple in the New Jerusalem, and (7) sit with Jesus on His throne.

Big-time rewards await those who comply!

But what does it mean to 'overcome'?

Since this seems to be such a crucial item on Jesus' agenda for the ongoing church, a word study is in order.

The Greek word for overcome is nikao, the root of the common Greek name, Nicholas or Nick. It means 'to conquer' and is a prominent warfare term.

When Jesus calls us to overcome, He calls us to spiritual warfare. The Dictionary of New Testament Theology says that in the New Testament, nikao 'almost always presupposes the conflict between God or Christ and opposing demonic powers.' (W. Gunther, 'Fight,' Vol. 1, p.650)

Other parts of the New Testament record Jesus using nikao only to other occasions. One is in John 16:33 where Jesus affirms 'I have overcome [nikao] the world.'

This is a tremendously reassuring passage because it reminds us that the war itself is over and the winner and the loser have already been determined.

It is not our job to win the war, Jesus did that on the cross. Ours is the mop-up operation.

But Jesus still expects us to overcome."

Warfare Prayer

#32 Conquering a City
By C. Peter Wagner

(pgs. 58, 60) Regal Books

Today’s Bible verse: Daniel 5:21b "The most high God ruled in the kingdom of men, and that he appointeth over it whomsoever he will."

Prayer for your pastor's wife: "Pray that God will protect your
pastor's wife from bitterness when her husband is criticized. Pray 
that her prayer and devotional life will be consistent, and that she 
will guard her mind and heart. (Heb. 12:15; Prov.4:23) 
www.lifeaction.org

Our quotes today: Max Lucado - "It’s time to let His (Christ's) love cover all things in your life. Every promise broken, every cross word, and harsh word. His love covers all things. Let it! Do it for His sake. For the peace of your heart. And do it for their sake. For the people in your life. Let His love fall on you so yours can fall on them."

"The only place to hide sin is under the blood of Christ." 
     Our Daily Bread (1/2/15

Dave Brandon - "Not everyone feels comfortable talking to strangers, and there is no one-size-fits-all method. But God will use our personalities and His light in us to spread His love."

My Prayer for Peace

Sometimes, my life is in turmoil.

When I turn to You, Lord, I find peace

You know me so well

You know exactly what I need

And You always provide

I am learning about the seasons of my life

 Some are easy

Some are so difficult

I am learning that I need to wait on You

To expect things to happen

in Your time

Not mine

That can be so hard to remember

I have so much to learn

So far to travel

To become Your child

As I was meant to be

But I trust in You

And I know You will be there for me at all times

Just please give me more patience, Lord

Debbie McEwen

10th- Saturday’s post:  A Live-Saving Drop in

Sue Carloni

11th- Sunday evening's post:  Dancing Over Me

Rhett Wilson

13th- Tuesday's post:  #33 Overcoming the Strongman

C. Peter Wagner

15th- Thursday's post:  #34 Satan's Strategy

C. Peter Wagner


A popular post: Taking Cities and 
Nations for God: Prayer Note #125 
Dutch Sheets shares his thoughts: “I 
have focused most of my attention in 
this book, (Intercessory Prayer, to intercession for individuals. 

I would now like to comment briefly on intercession for cities and nations..." 
jowildflowers@gmail.com
Samples of Jean's crafts
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Granny's Guide to Marriage in Verse
Kindle $3.49



A great gift for someone who needs
help in their marriage

Bridal Shower Devotional
Bridal Wisdom for Women

My book in paperback $7.95
Granny's Guide to Marriage in Verse

AuthorsDen.com
Where authors and readers come together!

God's Intended Purposes

April Estes shares with us: Two
months ago I cheated.

I had jumped back on the Eat Right bandwagon after Thanksgiving, but just 
two weeks in I couldn’t take it anymore. 

Despite the fact I was eating "right", my flesh still wanted sugar. 

A few days later I was driving when I heard a preacher on the 
radio say,

  "Good things sometimes cross over into sin when we 
   begin using them for purposes God never intended."

The question rang in my head, What is God’s purpose for food?

The answer was instant: To sustain and promote growth and good health. 

My next thought was convicting: The things I WANT to eat do not promote good health. 

Having an occasional dessert is not a sin, but eating a diet of fatty foods definitely is not using food for God’s original purpose. 

I realized my lack of joy was not what was going into my mouth, but what my mind was thinking. I needed a new mindset.

"Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. THEN you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – his good, pleasing and perfect will." Romans 12:2 NIV.

Romans reminds us not to conform to what the world insists of us, but to be different. Strong in what God wants for us. 

Applicably speaking, I was being called to put down the ho-hos and grab a salad (April Estes version). 

The way I was thinking had to change. I had to renew the way I was looking at food . . . not through fleshly eyes, but through godly eyes.

So now, before every meal, I say to myself: This is a chance for 
me to get foods in my system that are going to make me strong, 
smarter, fight cancer, etc.

I started focusing on the BENEFITS of the healthy eating, instead of the NEGATIVES. 

My new mindset made eating the healthy foods seem like a blessing. It made me focus on the joys of healthy eating. 

Over time, I was even able to not only not miss the bad foods, but also see that eating healthy was reaping good things in my life.

Look at the things in your life and ask if you are using them for the purposes God intended? It might open your eyes, as well as shrink your waistline.

(Google images and emphasis added)

God’s Intended Purposes - April Estes

April Estes lives in Knoxville, TN, with her hubby and four children. When not running the kids around, she enjoys writing, scrapbooking, and paddle boarding.

Read April's devotions.

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Let’s pray: 

   Father, am I taking time to consider what Your take is on my eating habits?

   Help me consider the reasons why I should be concerned as to what is best for me to eat.

   I can see that I'll need to re-think why I eat what I do, and to allow You to show me a better way of addressing my thinking about it.
   I want to have a healthy body that speaks of good habits. It won't be easy to adjust my thinking, but when I do think Your thoughts, I know I'll be happier with myself.
   I ask for Your enablement in this matter. In Jesus' name, amen.

Today’s Bible verse:  Ps. 17:5 "Hold up my goings in thy paths, that my footsteps slip not."

Today’s quote:  Max Lucado - “I choose gentleness… Nothing is won by force. I choose to be gentle. If I raise my voice may it be only in praise. If I clench my fist, may it be only in prayer. If I make a demand, may it be only of myself.”

Some thoughts today: The very thing that has hindered you, God wants to use that to make you a "new" person. He is with you.

- If you have been called out of darkness, you have a call on your life.

- God has given you the mind of Christ so you can be used by Him to help folks accept His love.

28th- Thursday's post:  Visibility Zero

Andrea Merrell

30th- Saturday's post:  What's in it For You?

Jean Oathout

31st- Sunday's post:  Christian Benefits
Jean Oathout

9/2 Tuesday's post:  Longing For Thee

James Cagle

A popular post: How to Stay Young   Mary Southerland shares these suggestions with us today: "1. Throw out non-essential numbers such as your age, weight and height. 2. Keep only cheerful friends..."

Samples of Jean's crafts

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AuthorsDen.com
Where authors and readers come together!

Granny's Guide to Marriage in Verse  

Bridal Shower Devotional: Bridal

Wisdom for Women Kindle $2.99

Granny's Guide to Marriage in Verse 

My book in paperback $7.96

Wisdom for Brides (Christian Marriage,

Counseling, & Help)