It's Okay to Express Your Heart to God!

One thing I love about the book of Psalms is that the writers were very honest with God. They expressed their true hearts and feelings to God. Whether they were joyful, confident, distressed, depressed, angry, upset, or afraid, they wrote about it.

So.... it's okay to express our hearts to God as well. Every emotion you or I could ever experience seems to be mentioned in the Psalms. No matter what we are going through, I believe God wants to hear our inner most thoughts. A intimate relationship with God gets everything out in the open so we can be helped.

In my devotion this morning I came across Psalms 77; 2-10. A perfect example of expressing our heart to God. I am going to share with you the Message Bible version because for me, it is so read-able.

I found myself in trouble and went looking for my Lord;

my life was an open wound that would not heal.

When friends said, "everything will be alright," 

I did not believe a word they said.

I remember God - shake my head.

I bow my head - then wring my hands.

I'm awake all night - not a wink of sleep;

I can't even say what's bothering me.

I go over the days one by one,

I ponder the years gone by.

I strum my lute all through the night,

wondering how to get my life together.

Will the Lord walk off and leave us for good?

Will he never smile again/

Is his love worn threadbare?

Has His salvation promise burned out?

Has God forgotten His manners?

Has He angrily walked off and left us?

"Just my luck", I said. God goes out of business

just  the moment I need Him! 

Ever had those thoughts?

It's okay to express your heart to God,

in your conversation with Him. 

That is, if we finish this conversation like the writer does!

Once again I will go over what God has done in the past,

lay out on the table the ancient wonders;

I will ponder all the things He's accomplished,

and give a long, loving look at His acts.

Oh God! Your way is holy!

No god is great like You!

You are the God who makes things happen;

You showed everyone what You can do -

You pulled your people out of the worst kind of trouble,

You rescued the children of Jacob and Joseph.

v. 20 Hidden in the hands of Moses and Aaron,

You led your people like a flock of sheep! 

A true, close, intimate relationship with God gets everything out in the open so we can be helped. Try it and you will see!

After our true confession we must always remember and ponder the great things He has accomplished in the past! Try it and you will be encouraged!

Enjoy your journey,

Blessings,

Joan

PREPAREDNESS: Physically

There are so many areas to cover in preparing physically. I must say your physical preparedness is dependent on your spiritual and mental preparedness. Because... learning to handle stress NOW, before a crisis, is so important. We need to learn to TRUST The Lord more and OBEY His leading NOW.
Amen? Amen!

Physical preparedness represents becoming self-sustaining, food preservation and storage, financial investing, and seeking God NOW for the completion of your healing (girding yourself with physical strength as the Virtuous Woman in Prov. 31) and learning natural remedies through foods and herbs.

For help in this area refer back to the websites I listed in my previous post. God will lead you and help you answer your specific "what if" questions. I will share with you some simple steps which helped me in food storage:

Preparedness is just a matter of deciding to do it,

and then taking small frequent steps.

• Store up 20%. Example: If you buy $100.00 worth of groceries us $20.00 for your food or supply storage. 
• Set a food storage goal of 3 months. The tool called the LDS Food Storage Calculator can help in understanding what this looks like. See http//lds.about.com.
• List 5 breakfasts, lunches and dinners. Plan meals around staples. Our reason for this is they are building blocks for hundreds of foods. A handful of dried beans, along with some broth and a few vegetables make a good filling soup. Also, with flour and oil you have biscuits, pancakes, tortillas, etc. For storage information goggle Shelf Life Studies. You will find the shelf life of food is a lot longer than you thought. Go to Food and Drug Administration articles, also http://www.whatcom.wsu.edu/family/facts/shelflif.htm
• Before buying, know that the price is right. For most of us food storage will be accomplished on a tight budget. Speaking of that, I learned to put a bag of chips back on the shelf and buy a pound of beans for storage. Sometimes, for the cost of chips and I can buy several pounds when on sale.

To be self-sustaining there are many "what if" questions to be answered. Just like it says above: decide to begin your preparation and take small frequent steps. 

I am giving you just a few thoughts on preparedness. There is so much more. REMEMBER, you must make sure your trust is in the Lord and not your own preparedness. Pattern your preparedness according to His guidance. Listen to what He puts in your heart for you and your family and do not use only your own reasoning power. Prov. 16:3

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Enjoy your journey,

Blessings,

Joan

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PREPAREDNESS: Socially

Are we (Americans) prepared socially in the event of a crisis? The Congressman I spoke of in the beginning post says no. I agree with him. One thing for sure we will need family and friends working together to survive a major crisis.

Our preparedness should involve our immediate family, extended family and friends. It means, identifying gifts, talents and resources within each of them.

To accomplish this one exercise I did was gathering my two daughters and nieces around my dining table.The 12 places were full. All precious, talented, strong young women. ALL Christians I might add. PTL! We identified teachers, (special ed., children adult and Bible teachers), a nurse, mission minds and supporters, home and office organizers, a bus driver, cooks, hunters, cowgirls, dancer/body builder, and hairdresser,  I was amazed what resources we had around my table! Their assignment was to begin thinking about how they would respond and function in their gifts and talents in the event of a crisis to help others. For example, my daughter, the nurse is collecting first aid supplies, medications, and general medical supplies. My second daughter, the outdoors lady is learning from her dad hunting skills, horse training and the benefits of wild herbs. She is also collecting tools she will need to do so.
Their scripture is Prov. 22:3 A prudent man or woman sees danger and takes refuge, but the simple keep going and suffer for it.

Keep in mind preparedness can be fun-filled activities for the whole family!
Don't worry, Trust in the Lord and let Him help you begin to plan, prepare and stay informed!

Enjoy your journey,
Blessings,
Joan