1 Tim. 4-6

Lord, I got in a discussion (almost argument) w/ Dave Poletti today about white privilege (which started with Obama and LGBT convo). Lord, I pray You’ll give me wisdom in this area. I like to act like I have so much empathy (I know You have gifted me with a level of empathy), but really, that is super arrogant to tout. Lord, I pray that You’ll continue to give me ever-increasing empathy and wisdom. Lord, I pray that You’ll give me wisdom around this race issue as well as LGBT issues. Lord, I know how you feel about all races and sexual identities.. You love us all equally and sent your son to die for us all. And You called us to love others as ourself. Lord, I pray that my love for You and my love for others is what I will be known for. You said we would be known by our love.

Lord, thank you for my kids. They are so incredibly special and gifted and You have blessed them with so many talents. I pray that we and they would not squander those talents, but take them and multiply them. Lord, I pray for you supernatural help in that area. I pray that you will gift Mia with musical ability, I pray that You will gift Jewel with artistic creativity, and I pray You will bless Joseph with the gift of leadership, humility, and help him to excel in all that he does. I pray that he would take after his namesake, excelling in all he does, gaining favor in the eyes of those around him in power, but most importantly, that he would honor and trust You no matter what.

Lord, I love You, and thank You for the ridiculous number of blessings You have showered on me!

1 Tim. 1-3

Lord, as I review the requirements for elders and deacons, I’m reminded of the prayers MANY years ago while I was a painter, that I would be qualified for these positions. Lord, I’m both humbled and proud to say that I fit these qualifications, thanks to your grace and mercy on my life, and thanks to Your answered prayers! Lord, i may or may not ever be an elder/deacon, but what matters to me is that I am qualified to be. Lord, You have blessed me with wisdom over the years, but Lord, please don’t let me become like Solomon in his later years, where all of his wisdom caused him to lose site of what mattered, and as a result, he became a fool in many ways.

Lord, I pray that You will continue to give me increased wisdom, and continue to improve my qualifications for being an elder/deacon. Lord, I want to be ready if/when You call me to fulfill one of those roles.

Lord, I pray for this week. I have a lot of work lined up, and it’s intimidating. Please make me super productive and successful. And Lord, I pray for this situation with “The Good” client.. that You’ll help me to make things right. I love you!

Hebrews 5:7-10, 7:1-3

Lord, thank you for this “Daily Inspiration” book. It’s pretty cool (note to self: I’ve had it for a long time, but just saw it on the bookshelf the other day and pulled it down to get into something consistent).

Thank you again for being our High Priest, and thank You that you are so much better than any human high priest could be. You are not prejudiced, are not biased, are not vindictive, are unconditionally loving. If we could ask, we could not ask for a better High Priest.

Lord, thank you for being my High Priest, and for intervening for me as I am a sinner saved by grace.

Lord, thank you so much for showing me this Baby Taylor guitar that I got for Mia ($100). Lord, I pray that you will use music, and this guitar specifically, to connect with Mia. Lord, i pray that she would use it bring You glory and that she would become amazing at it. Lord, I know she wants to write music, so I pray that you will bless her with supernatural creativity in her lyrics and her playing. Lord You can use her to do amazing things! I love you so much!

Tags: Daily Inspiration from the NIV

Hebrews 7:24-27

Lord, thank you for being the High Priest who will live forever, forever interceding for us, without need for atonement. Because of your selfless death on the cross, I have eternal life, and I cannot describe my thankfulness for that! Lord, I love you so much.

Also, thank you for all the work that has come my way. Lord, please give me the wisdom to approach the work correctly, and to get it done in a timely manner. Lord, You know my tendency to procrastinate or lose focus, so i pray that You will bless me and give me supernatural ability to get the work done and for the clients to be happy. Lord, I know you absolutely can do that, and I know you already do. Lord, I also pray that You’ll help me to keep doing my list. thank you for how it works, and please help me to keep it up! I love you!

Tags: Daily Inspiration from the NIV

So that is what I read today:

The Transgender Person In The Stall Next To You

God, You know I want to follow/espouse/hold-to the truth, but that blog post has me admittedly wondering about my/our (most Christians) position. I’ve grabbed a list of verses for reference:

1 Corinthians 6:9-11

9 Or do you not know that the unrighteous[a] will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality,[b] 10 nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. 11 And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.

Footnotes:

• [a] Or wrongdoers
• [b] The two Greek terms translated by this phrase refer to the passive and active partners in consensual homosexual acts

Romans 1:26-28

26 For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; 27 and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error.

28 And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done.

Mark 10:6-9

6 But from the beginning of creation, ‘God made them male and female.’ 7 ‘Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife,[a] 8 and the two shall become one flesh.’ So they are no longer two but one flesh. 9 What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.”

Footnotes:

• [a] Some manuscripts omit and hold fast to his wife

1 Timothy 1:10-11

10 the sexually immoral, men who practice homosexuality, enslavers,[a] liars, perjurers, and whatever else is contrary to sound[b] doctrine, 11 in accordance with the gospel of the glory of the blessed God with which I have been entrusted.

Footnotes:

• [a] That is, those who take someone captive in order to sell him into slavery
• [b] Or healthy

Leviticus 20:13

13 If a man lies with a male as with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination; they shall surely be put to death; their blood is upon them.

Leviticus 18:22

22 You shall not lie with a male as with a woman; it is an abomination.

Genesis 19:1-5

God Rescues Lot
19 The two angels came to Sodom in the evening, and Lot was sitting in the gate of Sodom. When Lot saw them, he rose to meet them and bowed himself with his face to the earth 2 and said, “My lords, please turn aside to your servant’s house and spend the night and wash your feet. Then you may rise up early and go on your way.” They said, “No; we will spend the night in the town square.” 3 But he pressed them strongly; so they turned aside to him and entered his house. And he made them a feast and baked unleavened bread, and they ate.

4 But before they lay down, the men of the city, the men of Sodom, both young and old, all the people to the last man, surrounded the house. 5 And they called to Lot, “Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us, that we may know them.”

So yes, you have made it clear that homosexual acts are wrong. But how do I reconcile the ‘intersex’ people, those who are born w/ both male/female parts?  How should they identify? Who chooses? it’s all so confusing. Lord, I pray that You will enlighten me to the truth, that you will open my eyes, and Lord, I pray that You will use me to bring/demonstrate truth. Lord, I love you so much!

Paul’s Prayer for Spiritual Wisdom

15 Ever since I first heard of your strong faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for God’s people everywhere, * 16 I have not stopped thanking God for you. I pray for you constantly, 17 asking God, the glorious Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, to give you spiritual wisdom * and insight so that you might grow in your knowledge of God. 18 I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the confident hope he has given to those he called—his holy people who are his rich and glorious inheritance. * 19 I also pray that you will understand the incredible greatness of God’s power for us who believe him. This is the same mighty power 20 that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in the place of honor at God’s right hand in the heavenly realms. 21 Now he is far above any ruler or authority or power or leader or anything else—not only in this world but also in the world to come. 22 God has put all things under the authority of Christ and has made him head over all things for the benefit of the church. 23 And the church is his body; it is made full and complete by Christ, who fills all things everywhere with himself.

My prayer for my kiddos ^.  “asking God, the glorious Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, to give you spiritual wisdom and insight so that you might grow in your knowledge of God” — I do pray that for them Lord, and I pray that I would be the primary source of encouragement and learning for them.

Lord, thank You for Your bountiful grace and how beautiful it is in NC right now. This is the time of year that I absolutely love living here.

Lord, I pray You’ll give me wisdom wth my freelancing opportunities and that I will be able to balance them with my Zao responsibilities.

Mane Lord, I pray You I’ll rain blessings on Zao, because Justin and I are so committed to doing business the right way. I pray You’ll make me an invaluable asset there. You brought his opportunity for a purpose and You put the seedlings of an idea in my head years ago. Lord, I beg You to make Your purpose for me known in this venture!

I love You!

Galatians

Lord, it’s another stressful morning for me. I don’t regret leaving WDS, but I do want more peace about being on my own, freelancing. I could have guessed that I would not be good at certain aspects of freelancing.. it’s clear that many have tried and failed or given up at it, so it’s ok that I don’t super-love it. But Lord, I pray that You’ll grant me favor in the eyes of those seeking my help. That they would see my deficiencies and want me to work with them anyway. Lord, i pray that You’ll give me wisdom to do the right thing, the next right step. I pray that You would keep me from  burning bridges, and that I wouldn’t get lost down the code hole, and neglect to keep the business coming in. Lord, I just pray for your supernatural wisdom and guidance! I love you so much!

Lord, thank You for Paul’s words in Galatians, a strong reminder that we do not live under the law. I also thank you for his continual call to empathy, and Lord, thank You so much for the empathy that You have given me. I think that my struggle with sexual addiction may have been the biggest reason for the empathy, and its purpose in my life is not lost on me. Thank you for weaving a beautiful tapestry out of my life!

I love you.

Tags: freelance, work

2 Cor. 10-13

Paul mayst have felt weary writing 2 Corinthians as he was reeling from the pain of betrayal. It is amazing to think of all that Paul did and to see that there were still many who doubted/undermined him. Lord, I pray that You would help me to ever undermine Your servants. That You would help me to supplement and encourage them.

Lord, I also pray with concern right now as I struggle with the tipping scale of depression. I’m having a super hard time being motivated, and feeling like the future is bright. Lord, I know some of that is a result of my struggles with procrastination and doing the next hard thing. Please help me! Please!

2 Cor. 6-9

8 And God will generously provide all you need. Then you will always have everything you need and plenty left over to share with others. 9 As the Scriptures say, “They share freely and give generously to the poor. Their good deeds will be remembered forever.” * 10 For God is the one who provides seed for the farmer and then bread to eat. In the same way, he will provide and increase your resources and then produce a great harvest of generosity * in you.

Paul said You would generously provide for all our needs, and you have not disappointed! We’re so thankful for the abundant gifts you’ve given us, especially through our friends Jenny and Wyatt. It’s such a huge blessing to have them, and Lord I pray that You will shower blessings on them for their generosity!

Lord, I pray You’ll give me a productive week, and help me to get some productive work done, and not just busy work. Lord, thank for all the potential work leads, and I pray You’ll give me wisdom to sort them out!

Lord, I also pray for Meagan, that she would see Your shower of blessings on us, and for Mia, that she would be encouraged and excited to finish out her school year.

Thank You for all You do!

1 Cor. 15-16

Lord, here we are again. :) I love you for all the things you do for me, and Lord, thank you soooo much for the peace You have given me the last 2 days. Thank you for awesome friends like Jenny who will drop by with coffee/breakfast to try and make us feel better. You truly do love and care for us, and know exactly what we need. I just thank You so much for Your tender care.

Lord, I also pray that You’ll bless my work this week, and the things I do to try and get work. Please cover my blog post about not working at WDS in grace and favor, and that alone will garner work leads. Thank you for the leads You have given me already.

I love you so much!