DEVOTIONS

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Oct 24

Do You Really Expect God to Answer Your Prayers?

by Sharon Jaynes | | 5 comments

Today’s Truth

In the morning, LORD, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly.

(Psalm 5:3 NIV)

Friend to Friend

Have you ever prayed about something, but didn’t really expect God to answer…I mean really expect it? That happened to a bunch of Peter’s friends.

In the early years of the church, King Herod had many Christians murdered and many more put in prison. James, the brother of John, was put to death with the sword, and Peter was thrown into prison.

The night before Peter was to be taken to trial, a group gathered at Mary’s (John’s mother’s) house to pray for him. While they were praying, there was a knock at the door. A servant girl named Rhoda answered it.

“Who is there?” she asked.

“It is Peter,” the freed apostle answered.

She knew it was Peter—she recognized his voice! God

Oct 23

When Days Are Dark

by Gwen Smith | | no comments

Today’s Truth

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.

(Ephesians 1:18, NLT)

Friend to Friend

I was in Illinois. My husband was in North Carolina. I am usually the video girl, but Brad stepped up to film our daughter’s volleyball tournament since I couldn’t be there.

I had shown him how to operate the camera and how to set up the tripod. He had filmed several matches before and had done a great job, so I was surprised when I got his phone call.

HIM: Honey! The match is about to start, but the camera is telling me that it is too dark to record. I’m not sure what to do. Got any ideas?

ME: This is just a guess, but I think you might need to take the lens cap off.

HIM: {Laughing} Oh my. Okay.

Oct 22

The Unexpected Beauty of a Winter Storm

by Michele Cushatt | | 8 comments

Today’s Truth

As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.

(Isaiah 55:10-11, NIV)

Friend to Friend

The view took my breath away. For two hours, I’d been hiking one of Colorado’s many hiking trails, backpack-laden, sweat dripping, calves burning. In the span of two miles, I’d climbed nearly a thousand vertical feet, not a small accomplishment considering the rocky terrain and incline. Each step required intentionality, each move complete focus.

Not to mention breathing. High-altitude breathing. Trust me when I say it’s hard to get oxygen that high in the sky.

But the view at the top made all the sweat and struggle of the two hours before worth the effort. Spread out in front of me sat the entire Breckenridge Valley, the ski slopes carving up one side, the tops of various other mountain

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EVENTS

Oct 22

October 22-24, 2021

Girlfriends in God Conference

North East, MD

With: Mary Southerland, Sharon Jaynes, Gwen Smith

Feb 19

February 19, 2022

Outrageous & Contagious 10th Ladies Conference

Tifton, GA

With: Mary Southerland, Sharon Jaynes, and Gwen Smith

Apr 22

April 22-24, 2022

Girlfriends in God Women’s Conference

Asheville, NC

With: Mary Southerland, Sharon Jaynes and Gwen Smith

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GirlfriendsInGod

19 hours ago

My husband woke one morning with a nostalgic urge to revisit the small North Carolina town where he spent the first eight years of his childhood. At family gatherings, he and his twin brother recounted endless stories of playing kick-the-can and baseball in their front yard, which was “at least the size of a football field.” They recalled long hardwood hallways where they slid sock-footed, that were “at least as long as a bowling alley.” And they itched talking about rolling down grassy hills in the front yard that spilled onto the sidewalk. So, the little boy in Steve decided to take a trip to his boyhood home and revisit the days of his youth. With map in hand, he drove the three hours, and pulled up to the address on his scratch piece of paper.He blinked. Checked the address. And sat slack jawed. The yard he remembered to be “the size of a football field,” was in reality the size of a baseball infield with the small bungalow sitting on the pitcher’s mound. His hallways “as long as a bowling alley” couldn’t have been any longer than the two boys lying head-to-head. And the “rolling hills” were no more than two humps in the front yard.Steve spent the day driving from one landmark to another, and each time reality clashed with memory. “Everything is so small,” he said time and time again.I think back to the problems I’ve had in my life over the past half century plus. At the time, so many of them seemed so big. Football field wide, mountain-high, bowling alley-long. However, looking back, many of those mountainous struggles were really just bumps in the road. I think those problems will seem even smaller when I cross over to the other side.Paul said this about his own life: “For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us” (Romans 8:18 KJV). I hear my country grandmother in those words, “I reckon.” I always thought of “reckon” to mean, “I guess so.” But the word “reckon” in the New Testament Greek, logizomai, actually means to count, reason, decide, conclude. It’s to properly compute or come to a logical conclusion. That’s a lot more than grandma’s “I reckon.”Paul added up all the evidence and came to the logical conclusion: the struggles we’re going through now are small beans compared to what we’ll be enjoying in heaven. Listen, I know this world can have hardships that seem to suck the life right out of us. I don’t want us to ever think that Paul was glossing over the enormous physical and emotional pain that comes with living on this side of heaven. He wasn’t minimalizing his. He wasn’t minimalizing ours.One look at 2 Corinthians 11:23-29 shows us that he had been through more than you or I will probably ever experience. He was shipwrecked, snake bitten, man-beaten multiple times, imprisoned, robbed, and left naked on the side of the road. And yet, he says that all his and our suffering will be small compared to the glories that are yet to come for those who know Jesus as Lord.Maybe you’re thinking, that all sounds well and good, but it doesn’t really help me get through my struggles right now. I get it. Maybe it’s because we don’t think about heaven enough. Let’s think about this place where we’ll live a lot longer than we will live here. No pain. No crying. No suffering. No questions. Beauty everywhere you look. Praise in every sound you hear.So, what do we do in the here and now when what seems so big will one day seem very small? We keep our eyes fixed on Jesus. Paul wrote, "So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal" (2 Corinthians 4:18, NIV). Steve didn’t regret his visit to his boyhood home, but it did make him chuckle at the enormity of the memories. I think we might chuckle a time or two when we leave our earthly home and compare our past struggles with our eternal celebration.buff.ly/2Eline4 ... See MoreSee Less

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GirlfriendsInGod

24 hours ago

Jesus, I can’t wait to be in heaven and spend eternity with You. Until then, help me to keep my worldly struggles in perspective. This life is short. Eternity is long. In Your Name I pray, Amen.buff.ly/2Eline4 ... See MoreSee Less

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GirlfriendsInGod

2 days ago

I pulled up to the curb at the terminal, gave my husband a quick kiss, and watched him hustle out the door for yet another business trip. Later that night I was too exhausted from chores, motherhood, and my part-time job to notice I slept alone. The next Sunday, I eased myself into a comfy chair to talk and pray with my church small group. An ordinary question of, “How are you doing with Rob away?” sent me into a sudden outburst of tears. “I’m fine,” I cried, “and that’s the problem! He’s gone so much that it feels normal now. We’re so used to managing our lives apart, it’s like we don’t even need each other anymore.”Gone were the love notes and tender phone calls each night. Now, a few texts were the only connection we shared while apart. We had become independent, distant, and lonely. Without taking significant steps to move toward each other, our marriage was in trouble.If I’m honest, I’ve experienced that same detachment from God. Perhaps you, too, know what it’s like to feel spiritually “flat.” Our problems feel overwhelming and hopeless. We lose interest in the Bible. Instead of praying, our needs and praises go unspoken. Weekend trips to the farmer’s market hold more appeal than a worship service. We lose our battles with temptation and grow self-absorbed instead of servant hearted. The signs are clear: we need to rekindle our love for Jesus.How do we move from apathy to heartfelt devotion? First, we put facts over feelings. God’s love is constant, and He never leaves our side. He calls us to abide with Him whether we feel passionate or bored, confident or uncertain. “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love” (John 15:9). Next, we follow the paths God created to lead us to himself. We can pray to Him every hour of the day and night, knowing that “You, Lord, hear the desire of the afflicted; you encourage them, and you listen to their cry,” (Psalm 10:17 NIV). By the intentional habit of giving Him our thanks, needs and fears, and confessions, we experience the moment-by-moment closeness we’re longing for.Just as we desire to be known and loved, God wants us to know Him too. He reveals Himself vividly through His Word. As we read its pages, He shares comfort and power to heal our hurts. The Bible gives wise, bravery-boosting guidance for our plans and decisions. We find strength for today and hope for the future. As we feast daily on the scriptures, our appetite for His words will grow and grow.God also knows that worshiping with others will keep the fires of faith burning bright. Together, we experience His presence in a powerful way: “For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them” (Matthew 18:20 NIV). In community we find encouragement to trust God and follow Him faithfully side by side. We grow in awe and love by taking a front-row seat to His work in the lives of His people.Yet even as we build these habits, it’s possible to go through the motions and still feel distant from God. We need more than spiritual disciplines—we need new hearts! Today, let’s examine our attitudes and choices so we can uproot any sin taking hold in our lives. Are we stuck in bitterness or shame? Has painful suffering worn away our faith in His love? Does pride make us go it alone? God stands ready to create a pure heart and give us a willing spirit right now (Psalm 51:10,12).buff.ly/2Eline4 ... See MoreSee Less

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