What day is it again?!?!?

Great and wonderful things are happening all around me. God is moving in people's lives...He's answering prayers, and providing as only He can! He's orchestrating things in order to help renew frienships, and to help me make new acquaintances. He's healing people, and comforting others. God is at work, and He is faithful!

I don't know what this means, but I've been praying for people that are on our county's 'most wanted' list for quite a while. Once in a while, our local paper puts people's pictures in that have been arrested, but are 'at large' offering rewards for anyone with informaiton about their whereabouts. Interesting, and seems a little 'old west' to me! However, looking at their faces makes me sad, and it challenges me to remember that Jesus died for the 'least of these'. One day, I found myself cutting up the most wanted page. I pasted them on a little flip chart and started praying over each person. I don't know why, but you know, when God places someone on your heart to pray for, they just remain there...join me in praying for 'the least of these'...if you feel so led. I'll tell you later, but I saw actual fruit from that prayer effort today...I can't wait to see what God does with this.

And, today--today has been Wednesday. One of my friends calls this Wordless Wednesday...One calls it WOW Wednesday. Another, 'Hump Day'!

This is the day I got to meet with some of 'my girls' for encouragement and prayer. This is the evening that our town offers a free band concert in the park...awesome to listen and relax to, and tonight was no different. And, it is the last 'regular season' softball game for the girls...we have one more 'make up game' next week, then start tournaments! enough about that...

This day, this Wednesday has been the day we begin reading Romans on our Journey through the New Testament! How exciting it is to consider! Just this week, I saw a young girl riding her bike with a 'Journey Flight Bag' on her back--I felt an instant connection with her, even though I don't know her-- just to know we're on the 'same page'!!!

Two things struck me as I considered the first chapter of this precious book, written by Paul.

• One is the fact that he calls out all the 'really bad sins' humans commit when they are 'given over to a wicked and depraved mind.' No wonder things are like they are in our culture--however, I'm convicted that there is truth to be shared from this very first chapter of Romans, but rather than me screaming about what's wrong with 'every one else', I realized his point about the things that we, as humans can do to keep sin from consuming and destroying us!

• Two, the second thing that screamed at me was the business that we're to be about as believers: Glorify Our God...and Give Thanks to HIM! The message to Glorify God and to be Thankful is so simple; yet in our 'intelligence' we complicate it. If I'm concerned about bringing glory to God, then I'm not going to be lined up to do the things that the rest of those verses in Romans 1 have listed. Bringing glory to God would become my full time job: I would consider it in my actions, my thoughts, the way I serve others, the way I interact with strangers...bringing Glory to God should be the reason I'm alive...and so I should be prompted, no, convicted to live like it! And then, Give Thanks to Him! I heard a wise speaker say once that you can tell whether a person spends much time in prayer by listening to the content of those prayers. If they spend more time thanking God for His blessings than asking Him for blessings, then they are more deeply acquainted with His character. Thankfulness is not overrated...it is vital in the way we integrate God and His provision in to our lives. Think what a different world it would be if, instead of praying for God to fix my __________(fill in the blank--think relationships or jobs or finances, what ever it is that concerns your heart!) we just spend time thanking Him for 'it', for how He uses 'it' in our lives, what 'it' means to us, etc....(this can be anything from the laundry to the person that is getting on our last nerve)

Ahhh, the book of Romans, studying and journeying through it, there's great truth contained there. I know there are wonderful secret things the Spirit is waiting to reveal to me in order to refine and form my character, through this Word!

There are priceless verses in Romans that I call on when talking with people who are wanting to know more about salvation. I do a little exercise and verse study called 'Romans Road'...amazing to me how it applies still today, after all these years! Ahhh, Wednesday, in deed...this is the day the LORD has made, I will rejoice and be glad in it!!!