I have been poor. I have been homeless. It was not fun. I thought at that time that God was mad at me and I had earned my poverty. I was wrong. I believed the lies of the Enemy for a long time – and stayed broke. It was not fun, not one bit.
God does not give us a spirit of poverty. We were made to be blessed. We are the most blessed poeple on the Earth. God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and love and a sound mind. I had to reject the lies that I had believed and embrace the Truth. God did not make his kids to be broke and wanting. God is a good, good Father and desires to bless us.
“For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.” – 1 Timothy 1:7 KJV
Jesus has already paid the price to destroy the works and lies of the Devil. It is finished. Reject the lies. God does not want you to live in want. He desires to give you the desires of your heart. God is for you, not against you.
“He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil.” – 1 John 3:8 KJV
God made you to have life, and life more abundantly. He made you to bless you and to prosper you. Our Daddy is not broke and He does not withold any good thing for his kids!
“Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers.” – 3 John 1:2 KJV
Don’t abuse the blessing. Don’t start asking people for money and airplanes. Stand on the Word and watch what God will do. One thing I have learned is that you don’t have to chase the blessings. They will come to you – because God desires to bless you!
“Now it shall come to pass, if you diligently obey the voice of the Lord your God, to observe carefully all His commandments which I command you today, that the Lord your God will set you high above all nations of the earth. And all these blessings shall come upon you and overtake you, because you obey the voice of the Lord your God:
“Blessed shall you be in the city, and blessed shall you be in the country.
“Blessed shall be the fruit of your body, the produce of your ground and the increase of your herds, the increase of your cattle and the offspring of your flocks.
“Blessed shall be your basket and your kneading bowl.
“Blessed shall you be when you come in, and blessed shall you bewhen you go out.
“The Lord will cause your enemies who rise against you to be defeated before your face; they shall come out against you one way and flee before you seven ways.
“The Lord will command the blessing on you in your storehouses and in all to which you set your hand, and He will bless you in the land which the Lord your God is giving you.
“The Lord will establish you as a holy people to Himself, just as He has sworn to you, if you keep the commandments of the Lord your God and walk in His ways. Then all peoples of the earth shall see that you are called by the name of the Lord, and they shall be afraid of you. And the Lord will grant you plenty of goods, in the fruit of your body, in the increase of your livestock, and in the produce of your ground, in the land of which the Lord swore to your fathers to give you. The Lord will open to you His good treasure, the heavens, to give the rain to your land in its season, and to bless all the work of your hand. You shall lend to many nations, but you shall not borrow. And the Lord will make you the head and not the tail; you shall be above only, and not be beneath, if you heed the commandments of the Lord your God, which I command you today, and are careful to observe them. So you shall not turn aside from any of the words which I command you this day, to the right or the left, to go after other gods to serve them.” – Deuteronomy 28: 1-14 KJV
Who was St. Patrick anyway? Truthfully I really didn’t know. I had to look it up. I didn’t really go to Catholic school or anything. He doesn’t have his own chapter in the Bible, but it looks like he was a pretty amazing guy. Who knew? I always thought St. Patrick’s was just a day to eat corned beef and drink green beer, lol!
Saint Patrick was a fifth-century Romano-British Christian missionary and bishop in Ireland. Known as the “Apostle of Ireland”, he is the primary patron saint of Ireland, along with saints Brigit of Kildare and Columba. He is also venerated in the Anglican Communion, the Old Catholic Church and in the Eastern Orthodox Church as equal-to-apostles and the Enlightener of Ireland.
Saint Patrick’s Day is observed on 17 March, the supposed date of his death. It is celebrated inside and outside Ireland as a religious and cultural holiday. In the dioceses of Ireland, it is both a solemnity and a holy day of obligation; it is also a celebration of Ireland itself.
Look at this great info-graphic I found about him:
In the spirit of this holiday – here is a great Celtic song I made for you!
Contrary to what the Bankers and Brokers and Stock Market would tell you, God Owns All the Wealth. The Earth is the Lord’s and everything in it.
I am tired of “Broke Christians”. That is not what God intended. I would give to my brother, but… Enough already! And I am speaking to myself here first. I have lived with a Desert Mentality about money for too long.
No this is not a prosperity “name it and claim it” message. I really don’t think God likes to be bossed around like that. But instead of us focusing on what we have, what we don’t have, and what we want – let’s focus on who God is and what He has and what He wants.
“For thus says the Lord of hosts: ‘Once more (it is a little while) I will shake heaven and earth, the sea and dry land; and I will shake all nations, and they shall come to the Desire of All Nations, and I will fill this temple with glory,’ says the Lord of hosts. ‘The silver is Mine, and the gold is Mine,’ says the Lord of hosts.‘The glory of this latter temple shall be greater than the former,’ says the Lord of hosts. ‘And in this place I will give peace,’ says the Lord of hosts.” _Haggai 2:6-9 NKJV
I read an amazing FaceBook Post yesterday by Jennifer LeClaire and it really got me thinking. I had to repent of thinking of the money in my account as my money. I had to stop thinking of my possessions as mine. I have been holding onto things too tightly and wondering why money is slipping through my hands like sand.
Money is not ours – it belongs to God. He owns the storehouse in Heaven. And He gives to each man or woman what He will. We are merely stewards. When the money belongs to God He protects it and gives us wisdom to multiply it. If I am trying to hold on to money as if it is mine – that opens the door for the Enemy to mess with it. The Spirit of Sabotage can put holes in my sack and try to distract us from God’s call of abundance.
Jennifer talks about the Spirit of Sabotage in the following article.
Do you notice that when you set out to execute a God-given assignment for His glory, all hell breaks loose against you? Check this out.
Merriam-Webster defines “sabotage” as “destruction of an employer’s property (as tools or materials) or the hindering of manufacturing by discontented workers.” Everything we own belongs to God, so when the enemy comes against what God has given us to steward, he’s coming against God’s property. I believe hindering spirits work under the authority of the spirit of sabotage, the strongman.
The enemy has no hold on us. He is a master deceiver and the father of lies. Remember when he tempted Jesus:
Again, the devil took Him up on an exceedingly high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. And he said to Him, “All these things I will give You if You will fall down and worship me.”
Then Jesus said to him, “Away with you, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.’”
Then the devil left Him, and behold, angels came and ministered to Him.
– Matthew 4:8-11
Guess what – Satan lied!!! He doesn’t own it – God owns it!
The Spirit of the Living God lives within us. We are part of the Royal Family now – we have been adopted by the King of Kings who owns it all. Today I refuse to believe that the enemy can touch what God has given us. The enemy does not have the legal right to take what God has entrusted to us. It belongs to our Father – the God of All!
That’s who He is, the King of Glory. He owns the Heaves and the Earth. Everything that was ever made is by Him and through Him and for Him.
We’ve been adopted into the Royal Family just because – He loves us!
Ephesians 3:20-21
Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.
Today I would like to share some things I learned about breaking the generational curses over our lives. There are times that we find ourselves in a situation merely because it has followed us there. Kind of like genetics. If you mom had brown hair, and your dad had brown air, odds are you will have brown hair. The same is true in the spiritual. There may be curses like poverty, divorce, illness, or other things that may be lingering around from the past. Only the Blood of Jesus can break these curses. He is the One who became the curse so that we could obtain the blessing. You can read all about the curses and blessings in Deuteronomy 28. But as a believer, I had to learn how to APPLY the Blood of Jesus in my life so that these curses would be broken.
And as a Believer I did know that I had the authority to break the curses over my own life. I always thought I needed to go to someone to do that. You know, some super-spiritual Pastor or something. Not so. We have the authority – God gave it to us. And we can redeem the past for good – no matter what our Ancestors did. This study was very eye-opening for me. And I did it! I pray that you take the authority God gave you and break the curses over your life and your family’s lives. God bless you as you do!
Here is one of the most powerful sermons I have found on this subject along with my sermon notes.
The Nature of Curses and Blessings by Derek Prince
Through the redemption of Christ we should be released from the curses and enjoy the blessings. But the body of Christ enduring curses when they should be enduring blessings. One of the reasons is we do not recognize what is a curse and what is a blessing. We many not know how to be released from the curse and enter into the blessings.
CURSES AND BLESSINGS BOTH ARE VEHICLES OF SUPERNATURAL POWER FOR GOOD (Blessings) , OR FOR EVIL (Curses).
One characteristic feature of them is they will continue from generation to generation until someone knows how to cut them off (curses). The result is that many people are bearing consequences in their life that took place long ago. We many need to trace where the problem came from and take the appropriate action to be released.
These Vehicles may be:
1. Words – spoken, written, or pronounced inwardly by you or someone else.
2. Can be transmitted by physical objects
When the curse is broken there is no more reason for sickness.
In Deuteronomy 28 there are 14 verses of blessings and 54 verses of curses. Here is Derek’s summation on that chapter:
7 Blessings:
Exaltation – no longer living under things
Reproductiveness – fruitful in every area of your life
Health
Prosperity or Success
Victory
Authority (Head)
Above (Strength)
7 Curses (the opposite)
Humiliation
Barrenness – failure to reproduce
Sickness of all kinds
Poverty or failure
Defeat
Helplessness (tail)
Beneath (weakness)
“The difference between the head and the tail is the head makes the decisions, the tail just gets dragged around.” -Derek Prince
Ask the Holy Spirit to give you the application for these areas. The Holy Spirit is the teacher. We should be above our circumstances.
7 Indications That We Are Dealing With A Curse:
Mental/Emotional Breakdown – people fall apart, emotional or mentally or both
Repeated/Chronic Sickness – hereditary things, or if Dr’s cant find any normal cause
Breakdown of marriage/family alienation – families fall apart, marriage break up, children are separted from each other
Continued Financial Insufficiency – a history, not a season, of being short
Being accident-prone – not natural to always be that person
History of Suicide/Unnatural Deaths – frequency of those things in a family.
A curse is like a long evil arm from the past and every time you are just about to succeed this evil arm trips you up and you have to get up and try again. A curse is like a dark shadow from the past shutting out the sunlight of God’s blessings.
Causes of Curses and Blessings
Blessing = Listen to God’s voice and do what He says
Curses = Don’t listen to God’s voice and don’t do what He says
The greatest sources of curses in people’s lives are breaking the first two commandments. We must not acknowledge any other God. Or bow down or serve idols. See Exodus 20:3-5. Whenever we go to another source for something we should go to God for, we are actually making that other thing our God. For example, if we go to a Fortune Teller for information for the future where God has said not to use that channel, you are making the power behind that Fortune Teller your God. Same with cults, ouiji boards, occults – you are making a God that is not the true God.
Sources of Curses:
False Gods – Exodus 20:3-6
Idolotry (occult) – Deut. 27:15
Disrespect parents – Pr. 30:17
Treachery – neighbor – Pr. 17:13
Injustice to weak, poor – Pr. 28:27
Unnatural sex/incest – Lev. 20:10-16
Anti-Semitism – Gen 12:3; 27:29
Depending on flesh – Jer. 17:5-7
Stealing/perjury – Zech. 5:1-4
Stinginess toward God – Mal. 3:8-10
Men who speak as God’s Mouthpiece against someone – Joshua 6:26, I Kings 16:34
Other Sources of Curses
Persons with Relational Authority – A husband, Parents, Teachers, Pastors, etc. Words spoken by those people have special power whether they are blessings or are curses. In the Bible, the best blessing someone can have is a blessing from their Father. And sometimes the worst things are said by a father to his child.
For example if a Father says to his son, “You will never make it. You will always struggle.” 20 years later his son doesn’t do well. Or if a Father says to his daughter, “You will always have pimples on your face.” 15 years later she still does. Or what if a Teacher says, “You’re shallow, You’re stupid.” That was a curse spoken over a child. And that child was still reacting to those words in their 60’s.There is authority behind those statements. There is a demonic element behind those words. James 3:14-15.
Self-Imposed Curses – Curses spoken by us. Gen. 27:11-13. It’s a self-imposed curse. Rebekkah begins to use negative lanuage about herself in verse 46 of that chapter. She curses herself.
Sometimes we are the ones cursing ourselves. For example if you have said, “I’m tired of living, or what’s the good of living, or I’ll never be able to do this, or I’m a failure, or I’m no use, or I wish I were dead” – you have cursed yourself. And you are inviting the spirit of death into your life! Many people need to be delivered from the spirit of death because they invited it in themselves. Here is the Word to defeat that spirit – If you have made a negative remark on yourself or about yourself, you need to revoke it and replace it with the positive.
Psalm 118:17 I SHALL NOT DIE BUT LIVE, AND PROCLAIM WHAT THE LORD HAS DONE!
Curses from Unscriptural Covenants – Exodus 23:32 No covenant with people with those who worship other Gods, if you do then you make a covenant with their God. In the Western World, there are Free Masons – that is a covenant that brings a self imposed curse. It is idol based. The true God is joined together with 2 idol deities that God has condemned.
Curses by Practices of Tribal Societies – new babies or a young person is initiated into the tribe by cuts in their skin.
Curses from Servants of Satan from the Evil Side – Witchdoctors, Cutting, Elders in Tribes, Witchcraft. Satan’s servants have the power to curse.
Curses from false gods, and forbidden objects – Deut. 7:26 Burn the carved images of their gods, nor bring it into your house. When you bring anything that is associated with idolatry or the occult into your home you are opening the way for a curse to come into your house.
If you believe you need deliverance, go home and check what you have in your home. See if there is anything there that advertises another god except Jesus Christ. Children are very sensitive to this. They may not sleep at night as they feel it. Somewhere in that house is something that gives Satan access. For example, horseshoes are superstition – they don’t protect you they open the door to Satan.
HOW TO BE RELEASED FROM A CURSE
Establish a scriptural basis for your release – Gal 3:13-14, Eph 1:7, Col 1:12-141 John 3:8,Luke 10:19
Confess your faith in Christ. Jesus is the High Priest.
Commit yourself to obedience – hear God’s voice and do what He says
Confess any know sins by yourself or by your ancestors. Confess the sins of your ancestors too, you are not guilty of their sins, but you are affected by them. Be released from it
Forgive all other persons
Renounce all contact with the occult by yourself and your ancestors
Get rid of all forbidden objects
Release yourself in the Name of Jesus. Whatever you bind on Earth will be bound in Heaven, whatever you release on Earth will be released in Heaven
Confess and Expect the Blessing of Abraham! We are released from the curse to receive the blessing. The Holy Spirit administers the blessing. He has the Key to God’s Storehouse.
Expect the blessing in ALL things. It won’t happen overnight. Go the right direction, you are on the way. Keep walking, keep listening, and doing what God says.
A PRAYER OF RELEASE
Lord Jesus Christ, I believe that you are the Son of God and the only way to God, that you died on the Cross for my sins, and rose again from the dead. That on the Cross you were made a curse with every curse that is due to me, that I might be redeemed from the curse and enter into the blessing. Lord I confess any sins committed by me or by my ancestors. I ask your forgiveness. I also forgive every other person who ever harmed me or wronged me.I forgive them as God forgives me. I also forgive myself. I renounce all contact with the occult in any form. And I commit myself to get rid of any contact objects. And now Lord, having received by faith, your forgiveness, with the authority I have as a child of God, I now release myself and those under my authority from any curse over our lives. Right now in the name of Jesus I declare release, I claim it, I receive it by faith in the Name of Jesus! Thank you Lord!
Spent today in a conversation
In the mirror face to face with
somebody less than perfect
I wouldn’t choose me first if
I was looking for a champion
In fact I’d understand if
You picked everyone before me
But that’s just not my story
True to who You are
You saw my heart
and made
Something out of nothing
[Chorus:]
I don’t need my name in lights
I’m famous in my Father’s eyes
Make no mistake
He knows my name
I’m not living for applause
I’m already so adored
It’s all His stage
He knows my name oh, oh,
He knows my name oh, oh
I’m not meant to just stay quiet
I’m meant to be a lion
I’ll roar beyond a song
With every moment that I’ve got
True to who You are
You saw my heart
and made
Something out of nothing
[Chorus]
He calls me chosen, free forgiven, wanted, child of the King,
His forever, held in treasure…
I am loved
I don’t need my name in lights…
I’m famous in my Father’s eyes…
Another Life Lesson for Ms. D on the farm. Just sitting on the porch one morning and a whole flock of blackbirds just flew in and landed right in front of me. They came from the trees, the sky, the ground. They were literally everywhere! I sat in awe watching. More and more, the grass kept filling up with more birds. And I’m thinking, “OK, this is kinda creepy, should I be freaked out right now?” But no, I didn’t freak out. It was like watching nature unfold before your very eyes. I wondered what it meant. I had no idea.
Here we are a day later. Finally Holy Spirit answered. I am so impatient. I am so used to our “instant” society and “fast” food that sometimes I forget to wait and pray and listen. My message?
You do not need to chase the blessings –
they will come to you!
Hallelujah, thank you Jesus!
Deuteronomy 28: 1-14 The Message (MSG)
If you listen obediently to the Voice of God, your God, and heartily obey all his commandments that I command you today, God, your God, will place you on high, high above all the nations of the world. All these blessings will come down on you and spread out beyond you because you have responded to the Voice of God, your God:
God’s blessing inside the city, God’s blessing in the country; God’s blessing on your children, the crops of your land, the young of your livestock, the calves of your herds, the lambs of your flocks. God’s blessing on your basket and bread bowl; God’s blessing in your coming in, God’s blessing in your going out. God will defeat your enemies who attack you. They’ll come at you on one road and run away on seven roads.
God will order a blessing on your barns and workplaces; he’ll bless you in the land that God, your God, is giving you.
God will form you as a people holy to him, just as he promised you, if you keep the commandments of God, your God, and live the way he has shown you.
All the peoples on Earth will see you living under the Name of God and hold you in respectful awe.
God will lavish you with good things: children from your womb, offspring from your animals, and crops from your land, the land that God promised your ancestors that he would give you. God will throw open the doors of his sky vaults and pour rain on your land on schedule and bless the work you take in hand. You will lend to many nations but you yourself won’t have to take out a loan. God will make you the head, not the tail; you’ll always be the top dog, never the bottom dog, as you obediently listen to and diligently keep the commands of God, your God, that I am commanding you today. Don’t swerve an inch to the right or left from the words that I command you today by going off following and worshiping other gods.
Irish Marriage Blessing
May God be with you and bless you.
May you see your children’s children.
May you be poor in misfortunes
and rich in blessings.
May you know nothing but happiness
from this day forward.
♣
From Saint Patrick’s Breastplate
Christ be with me
Christ before me
Christ behind me
Christ in me
Christ beneath me
Christ above me
Christ on my right
Christ on my left
Christ where I lie
Christ where I sit
Christ where I arise
Christ in the heart of every man
who thinks of me
Christ in the mouth of every man
who speaks of me
Christ in every eye that sees me
Christ in every ear that hears me
Salvation is of the Lord.
Said in the morning when rising…
Christ be with me,
be after me,
be before me,
and be at my right and left hand.
May everything I do be for Christ.
♣
An Old Irish Blessing
May the road rise up to meet you.
May the wind always be at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face,
and rains fall soft upon your fields.
And until we meet again,
May God hold you in the palm of His hand.
♣
A Gaelic Christening Blessing
Dearest Father in Heaven,
Bless this child and bless this day
Of new beginnings.
Smile upon this child
And surround this child, Lord,
With the soft mantle of your love.
Teach this child to follow in your footsteps,
And to live life in the ways of
Love, faith, hope and charity.
♣
A Wish for a Friend
Wishing you a rainbow
For sunlight after showers—
Miles and miles of Irish smiles
For golden happy hours—
Shamrocks at your doorway
For luck and laughter too,
And a host of friends that never ends
Each day your whole life through!
♣
An Irish Prayer
May God give you…
For every storm, a rainbow,
For every tear, a smile,
For every care, a promise,
And a blessing in each trial.
For every problem life sends,
A faithful friend to share,
For every sigh, a sweet song,
And an answer for each prayer.
♣
An Old Cradle Song
Sleep, my babe, lie still and slumber,
All through the night
Guardian angels God will lend thee,
All through the night
Soft and drowsy hours are creeping,
Hill and vale in slumber sleeping,
Mother dear her watch is keeping,
All through the night
God is here, you’ll not be lonely,
All through the night
‘Tis not I who guards thee only,
All through the night
Night’s dark shades will soon be over,
Still my watchful care shall hover,
God with me His watch is keeping,
All through the night
♣
Remembered Joy
Don’t grieve for me, for now I’m free!
I follow the plan God laid for me.
I saw His face, I heard His call,
I took His hand and left it all…
I could not stay another day,
To love, to laugh, to work or play;
Tasks left undone must stay that way.
And if my parting has left a void,
Then fill it with remembered joy.
A friendship shared, a laugh, a kiss…
Ah yes, these things I, too, shall miss.
My life’s been full, I’ve savoured much:
Good times, good friends, a loved-one’s touch.
Perhaps my time seemed all too brief—
Don’t shorten yours with undue grief.
Be not burdened with tears of sorrow,
Enjoy the sunshine of the morrow.
♣
An Old Celtic Blessing
May the blessing of light be on you—
light without and light within.
May the blessed sunlight shine on you
and warm your heart
till it glows like a great peat fire.
Do Not Stand at My Grave and Weep
Do not stand at my grave and weep,
I am not there… I do not sleep.
I am the thousand winds that blow…
I am the diamond glints on snow…
I am the sunlight on ripened grain…
I am the gentle autumn rain.
When you waken in the morning’s hush,
I am the swift uplifting rush
Of gentle birds in circling flight…
I am the soft star that shines at night.
Do not stand at my grave and cry—
I am not there… I did not die…
♣
Bless This House
Bless this house, o Lord, we pray.
Make it safe by night and day.
Bless these walls so firm and stout,
Keeping want and trouble out.
Bless the roof and chimney tall,
Let thy peace lie over all.
Bless the doors that they may prove
Ever open to joy and love.
Bless the windows shining bright,
Letting in God’s heavenly light.
Bless the hearth a-blazing there,
With smoke ascending like a prayer.
Bless the people here within…
Keep them pure and free from sin.
Bless us all, that one day, we
May be fit, O lord, to dwell with Thee.
♣
In Time of Sorrow…
May you see God’s light on the path ahead
When the road you walk is dark.
May you always hear,
Even in your hour of sorrow,
The gentle singing of the lark.
When times are hard may hardness
Never turn your heart to stone,
May you always remember
when the shadows fall—
You do not walk alone.
♣
A Blessing for Fair Day
God be with them now, and bring them home with their fair share of stock or money.
♣
Said when dressing…
Lord, clothe me with the robes of innocence.
Said during thunder and lightning…
O Lord, be between us and harm and protect us from the harm of the world.
♣
An Old Irish Blessing
May love and laughter light your days,
and warm your heart and home.
May good and faithful friends be yours,
wherever you may roam.
May peace and plenty bless your world
with joy that long endures.
May all life’s passing seasons
bring the best to you and yours!
♣
(Blessing Source: http://www.islandireland.com and Image Sources: google)
Do you ever wonder what happens when God smiles at you? I have been learning more about Abba Father these days and that thought crossed my mind. I mean he’s our Daddy right? Daddy’s always smile at their kiddos. I picture a little kid climbing right up in God’s lap. Looking up into His eyes. Now, let that kid be you! Just try it, give Him those big eyes and watch Him smile at you!
Numbers 6:24-26
God bless you and keep you,
God smile on you and gift you,
God look you full in the face
and make you prosper.
Psalm 67:1-7
God, mark us with grace and blessing! Smile! The whole country will see how you work, all the godless nations see how you save. God! Let people thank and enjoy you. Let all people thank and enjoy you. Let all far-flung people become happy and shout their happiness because You judge them fair and square, you tend the far-flung peoples. God! Let people thank and enjoy you. Let all people thank and enjoy you. Earth, display your exuberance! You mark us with blessing, O God, our God. You mark us with blessing, O God. Earth’s four corners—honor him!
Psalm 80:7
God-of-the-Angel-Armies, come back! Smile your blessing smile: That will be our salvation.
Job 33:26-28
“Or, you may fall on your knees and pray—to God’s delight! You’ll see God’s smile and celebrate, finding yourself set right with God. You’ll sing God’s praises to everyone you meet, testifying, ‘I messed up my life— and let me tell you, it wasn’t worth it. But God stepped in and saved me from certain death. I’m alive again! Once more I see the light!’
Psalm 119:57-64
Because you have satisfied me, God, I promise to do everything you say. I beg you from the bottom of my heart: smile, be gracious to me just as you promised. When I took a long, careful look at your ways, I got my feet back on the trail you blazed. I was up at once, didn’t drag my feet, was quick to follow your orders. The wicked hemmed me in—there was no way out— but not for a minute did I forget your plan for me. I get up in the middle of the night to thank you; your decisions are so right, so true—I can’t wait till morning! I’m a friend and companion of all who fear you, of those committed to living by your rules. Your love, God, fills the earth! Train me to live by your counsel.
I Smile
Artist: Kirk Franklin
Album: Hello Fear
Today is a new day but there is no sunshine
Nothing but clouds and it’s dark in my heart
And it feels like a cold night
Today is a new day, but where are my blue skies?
Where is the love and the joy that you promised me?
Tell me it’s all right
(I’ll be honest with you)
I almost gave up, but a power that I can’t explain
Fell from Heaven like a shower now
(When I think I’m much better I’m gon’ be when this is over)
I smile, even though I’m hurt, I smile
I know God is working so I smile
Even though I’ve been here for a while
I smile, smile
It’s so hard to look up when you’ve been down
Sure would hate to see you give up now
You look so much better when you smile, so smile
I ask you to bless Jenny and Dameon’s marriage. Let the two become one like You said. Bless their coming and their going, bless the work of their hands, let them be fruitful and multiply. Let them posses the land and have dominion. Clothe them with Your grace, mercy, righteousness, and love. Let them love each other more every day. Lord, let them enjoy a double portion of your goodness in the land of the living. And let them come to know You, as You really are, in Jesus Name.
Love and Harmony
Love and harmony combine,
And round our souls entwine
While thy branches mix with mine,
And our roots together join.
Joys upon our branches sit,
Chirping loud and singing sweet;
Like gentle streams beneath our feet
Innocence and virtue meet.
Thou the golden fruit dost bear,
I am clad in flowers fair;
Thy sweet boughs perfume the air,
And the turtle buildeth there.
There she sits and feeds her young,
Sweet I hear her mournful song;
And thy lovely leaves among,
There is love, I hear his tongue.
There his charming nest doth lay,
There he sleeps the night away;
There he sports along the day,
And doth among our branches play.
