Day 5 of Lent – Share with others
Today we should share with others what we are hoping to find, complish, restore and create during this season of Lent and Easter.
You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you. Isaiah 26:3 NLT
For other inspiration messages from Therese go to http://www.theresemarszalek.com/InspirationalMsgs.html
Day 4 of Lent- 1 Samuel 3:9
Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.
I am spending the day outside in nature. I write this in advance in the hopes that you to can get outside in this winter weather and see where you hear HIM while enjoying what HE created!
Day 3 of Lent Paul to the Philippians
Paul wrote to the Philippians, “I am certain that God, who began the good word within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns. Phil 1:6 NLT
I know that even when I am not working on me, HE is. The reminder, the touches, the hints. Why are they so hard to hear some days? What is in your way and mine?
Today, I will spend time with myself to listen and work on who HE wants me to be.
Day 2 of Lent- Reflection
While starting to use the 40 Days book, I realized I don’t reflect or mediate or just spend time with God each day. Do you?
Therese says, “Daily, I will respond when Jesus says, “Come.””
WOW, powerful! I think I usually say something like hold on a minute, I just need to finish XYZ. Today I will stop when He calls.
Lent – What will you do with those 40 Days?
How do you look at Lent? Do you look at it as a time to starve yourself- literally or figuratively? OR do you look at it as a time to reflect, course correct and spend time with God?
I try to come up with 1-something to give up 2-something to start new and 3-something to change.
My family loves that every other year I give up french fries OR diet coke. They would much prefer that I DON’T give anything up for Lent. They are sometimes the beneficiaries of the other two options. Sometimes it is writing a note in their lunch boxes or cleaning out the toy closet for them. Or spending some quality time with my husband each and every day. It is amazing how much time can go by where you and your hubby act as ground control in your home. “Off to take X here” or “You are needed for vocabulary testing in Y’s room”.
Well this year, I am going to do all three in one. I am going to give up some of my personal reading time to DEVOUR the book 40 Days. I assume working the assignment will help me change many of the things I do today and help me create new and better habits.
Would you consider joining me on this JOURNEY?
Therese Marszalek… 40 Day Devotional
What’s the Purpose? (click to see her book)
Do you know your purpose today? Is it just another day? Are you going through the motions of the same old routine? Maybe you, like me, have a bulging list of “to dos” and your appointment calendar is brimming over. You may know your schedule, but do you know your purpose?
If you’re a child of God, the King of Kings designed a divine purpose for your day today. Before you were born, God had already planned your schedule and prepared good works in advance for you to do (Ephesians 2:10). Your purpose lies in the midst of the tailor made plan God prepared for you.
Since I’m an organizer and thrive on a structured schedule, I sometimes lose focus of my purpose somewhere between my prayer time and checking off items on my to do list. While giving my full attention to my plans for the day, I sometimes forget that I’m on this earth to fulfill God’s purpose, not my self-designed, self-willed purpose.
Fulfilling your purpose doesn’t mean every item will get checked off your endless to do list and it doesn’t mean everything will be completed as planned. Why? Interruptions! Unplanned and often irritating interruptions arrive at the most inconvenient times, forcing you to put your much thought out plan aside to instead give attention to something you’d often rather not deal with.
If you submit yourself to God’s plan for the day, interruptions will still come, but they won’t induce stress or flustration (flustered and frustrated). As you make your way through God’s to-do list, you won’t sigh in discouragement when incomplete items on your to do list glare at you.
God’s plan for this day and for this hour may be different than your plan. It’s wise to create a plan and to set your course for the day, but surrender that plan to God and allow Him to have His way with it. Proverbs 16:9 says, “In his heart, a man plans his course but the Lord determines his steps.” As you orchestrate the course you’ve chosen to reach your destination, allow God the freedom to determine how you get there.
I remember times I’ve hesitated to answer the shrieking phone, frustrated because the unexpected call interrupted my precious schedule. I recall hearing the doorbell ring in the middle of my prayer time; I felt so put out that someone had the nerve to interrupt such a holy time. Yet, after listening to the heartache of a friend or offering a neighbor comfort and prayer, I realized that what I thought was a frustrating interruption wasn’t a frustration at all. It was a divine part of God’s ordained plan for my day.
What’s your purpose today? To fulfill God’s divine purpose for each moment. As you purpose to know Jesus, He’ll flow through your life to fulfill God’s purpose. Today, as you set your course, allow God to guide your steps and be willing to change your schedule to fit God’s heavenly schedule.
