NATIONAL FRIENDSHIP DAY!

National Friendship Day* (popular in the U.S.) is celebrated annually on the first Sunday of August, falling this year on August 2, 2026. 

What a great day to honor friends who are valued and loved.

Think supporters of love and joy in one's life.

Providers of gifts that keep on giving.

Think prayers and prayer reminders! 

Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity. (Psalm 133:1)

True Friendship = Fellowship of Friends in the LORD!

*A big thanks to Betsy M. from my FEC PRAYER for REVIVAL GROUP who sent me my quilt heart which I will be wearing again today. As the card says....

Friends are like old quilts--

Pieced together with time and love and

made stronger and more enduring with 

every stitch and piece.

Each one is a unique 

patchwork of memories,

backed with trust,

filled with shared experiences

and quilted with Joys and sorrows.

All are comforting, versatile and made more

Precious and beautiful with time.

(Romans 12:19-20)

BE STILL.....

How does one come to "know" the LORD? 

To truly know the Lord.....not just know about Him?

Seek Him we often say! Others say steer clear of chaos.

Yet, even in outward chaos one can find inward calm if he/she is seeking the LORD in stillness of heart.

Be Still and Know......How else does one truly come to know the LORD⁉️

GOD'S WORD FRONT AND CENTER!

Today I was asked to "be prepared" to share my favorite Bible verse along with other members of our "Prayer for Revival" group. For me, that's a tough assignment! I esteem, treasure, hold close to my heart and love every word of Scripture.

But God soon had Jeremiah 15:16 begin to flood my mind, .....

Your words were found, and I ate them, and your words became to me a joy and the delight of my heart, for I am called by your name, O LORD, God of hosts. (ESV)

.......I decided to meditate on it in many scripture versions.

Marginalia results: What a feast!!!

"THY" words found, I ate them, I devoured them, they became a delight; happiness of my heart, gave me joy; jubilation, rejoicing in my heart; with gladness in my heart.

I listened tp every word: swallowed them whole, & they sustained me.

I am called by your name;Yahweh Adonai-Tzva’ot, you had me bear your name., Yahweh Elohim Tsebaoth, O God, God-of-the-Angel-Lord, God of Heavenly Armies!, Lord God All-Powerful, Lord God ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; Commander  of hosts, O Yahweh God of hosts, O Jehovah, God of Hosts.

Lord God who rules over all. I belong to you. (NRV)

CHOICE TO REJOICE!

Sometimes it's in the depth of our suffering that we can truly find the light of the One who is the light. Lately, it's been seeing the deep suffering of dear ones that has stolen my joy. Severe mercy can be difficult to witness. 

SNIPPETS of joy that have come to mind..........

• Create in me a clean heart and renew a right spirit within me.
• Surrender and trust.
• Use fertilizer on my joyful heart, NOT round up.
• Give up performance-based living and people pleasing.
• After repentance comes refreshment.
• Refresh my spirit O Lord & renew my joy as I serve others!

Click here Hum along with Zach Williams.

"There ain't nothing gonna still my joy."

Rejoice.....it's the right choice.

MONDAY = PRAYERS FOR REVIVAL

Revival begins in the prayer room.

Prayer is a transformative divine privilege of the saints!  (Pace McKee)

Revival is truly when God's people return to God and humble themselves and pray allowing others to see Jesus in daily life.....yours. (2 Chronicles 7:14) May the Lord continue to revive saints again and again! (Psalm 71:20)

This week may others see Christ in you, the hope of glory. (Colossians 1:27) ... in the family of Christ at First Evan and throughout the world!

I BELIEVE!!!!!!

"Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief."

The desperate man cried out in Mark 9:24.....knowing that Jesus said, all things are possible to him that believeth.(Mark 9:23)

This morning's reading from Henry Blackaby's, Experiencing God p.171 had me with the first sentence. 

You can say prayers in your mind but doubt in your heart.

Is it possible to be a "person of prayer" and yet not have faith?

May it never be in my life!

As I align my will with His in prayer, I can wait expectantly to see how God will answer.

Today I am meeting with other prayer warriors at FEC to pray for revival. But....am I preparing for its coming? A reflective life of absolute trust?

I need to look for His hand at every turn. A God wink. A God sighting.

May I not miss His response to my requests..........or I'll miss the joy of praying faith!!

HEART OF PRAYER!

3 Ps of Prayer

Praise. Pardon. Petition.

Isn't prayer at the heart of of a Christian's life?

The high and lofty one who lives in eternity, the Holy One, says this: 'I live in the high and holy place with those whose spirits are contrite and humble. I restore the crushed spirit of the humble and revive the courage of those with repentant hearts. (Isaiah 57:15, NLT, emphasis mine) 

Intimate, personal communication with God through prayer deepens and strengthens one's relationship with Him. You can pray out loud or in your thoughts, where ever you are alone or in fellowship with a trusted group of fellow believers.

God hears the prayers of those who put their trust in Him.

In essence, the heart of prayer is to communicate with God! 

entrea-TEAs

If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land. (2 Chronicles 7:14, KJV)

The first Monday of the month is the day I meet with a small group of like-minded pray-ers in the prayer room at our church. Prayer for Revival is the official name of our cadre. Much of the prayer focus is for our church, our city and our nation. These prayers of people, called by His name, are more than just petitions. These earnest and humble prayers are for the healing of all the aforementioned communities.
Scripture passages are chosen for meditation. Psalm 9:1-10 was the morning's selection. Appropriately chosen because all of us wanted to "enter into His gates with praise," as "God inhabits the praises of His people." (Psalm 22:3) The first verse of Psalm 9 does just that.

Our heart felt prayers easily segue into prayers for each other and our families because this is a "safe place" to share the desires of our hearts.

What a privilege to continue in prayer throughout the day with entreaties for those with whom we have knelt (in our hearts) before His throne of grace.

A cuppa entrea-TEA that lasts throughout the day.

Friendly Farewell

7/2/13

How does a group say good-by to a leader? To one who has been such an inspiration and mentor? Whose life is a “living out” of the truths she believes? Betty Ferrell, a faithful leader of our small “Prayer for Revival” group is such a woman. Beginning a new season as a widow has Betty moving to North Carolina to be near family. It’s bittersweet.  

Excited for all that is ahead for her, we talk, laugh, reminisce and hug because she will be sorely missed. Yet, we don’t really say farewell to such a friend. It’s sort of a substitute for farewell---more of an au revoir---implying hopes of seeing again. 

Besides she’s taking all of our prayers right along with her. That’s what prayerful friends do; they send you off with prayerful farewells. 

"Don’tcha" just love ___________?

11/16/11 "Don’tcha" just love___________?
A rainy day. If you thought I had a spiritual answer for the "fill in the blank" you would be somewhat correct---though at first thought, my answer didn't seem very spiritual. You see, I do love a rainy day. I love to hear the rain---especially on a tin roof---like at 2211, my childhood home. I even like to hear it whooshing out the downspout of our gutters. I love to feel the rain. As a child I would lean my head back with mouth wide open to catch the drops as I played in the rain. To this day I love to walk in the rain and more often than not, I don't "fiddle" with an umbrella---which I'd probably lose anyway. I love the smell of rain soaked leaves and sometimes I feel like I can even smell rain coming.

Rain doesn't sound spiritual and many folks would see it as one of life's interruptions as it hampers their errands or other endeavors on their "list." The reason I love a rainy day isn't spiritual in and of itself---it's mostly self serving---a good excuse to take a break with a "cuppa" and a daily crossword and to hunker down. But even that enjoyment can be spiritual---another manifestation of the truth that "God has given us all things to richly enjoy."

Instruct those who are rich in this present world not to be conceited or to fix their hope on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly supplies us with all things to enjoy. (I Timothy 6:17)

Our Prayer for Revival group meditated on Psalm 147 yesterday, reminding us to praise and then providing the reasons for that praise---

Sing to the LORD with grateful praise; make music to our God on the harp. He covers the sky with clouds; he supplies the earth with rain.....(Psalm 147:7-8a)

Today I'm praising Him for that rain just because I like it. Thankful, too, that my recently transplanted snowball bushes are drinking it in.

As the "Preacher" in Ecclesiastes, I see more and more aspects of life as gifts from Him---even a chilly, rainy day. "This too, I see, is from the hand of God."

The rain has somewhat diminished and the wind has blown wet leaves all over the patio. This could be a signal that I need to rake up the wet mess---but, I don't "do" leaves, especially wet ones. I just like to smell them, not clean them up. Don'tcha just love the way I pick and choose the elements of rain that are "useful" to me?
Don'tcha just love the way God loves us (me) regardless of our (my) propensity toward spiritual rationalization?

Revival

6/14/10 I know it’s summertime when I am able to go to the Monday morning prayer for revival time at 9:30 am. What a privilege. The idea for this prayer time originated with Jeanne Greenlee many years ago and though she died just as it was taking off, others have kept her vision going.

This faithful, albeit small group, models prayer in a way that so-o-o fits my Monday meditation mode. Most enter the prayer room with their own Bible in hand. The scripture citation for the morning’s meditation is displayed on the table and blank cards are available for writing personal prayer requests.

The first 20 minutes are dedicated to meditating on the same scripture though versions of our Bible’s often differ. This time is followed by 20 minutes of corporate prayer that usually focuses on praise, thanksgiving and confession, followed by praying for revival in our own hearts. We pray for our local church our neighboring churches, and move to our community, state and nation. The final 20 minutes is prayer for each other and is based on, but not limited to, our personal requests.

It is so exciting to share through prayer how the scripture passage has touched our heart. It nearly always speaks to each of us differently, depending on our circumstances or where we are in our spiritual walk. Believe me, there’s always an applicable life lesson just for me. Others say the same thing.

This morning’s selection was Ephesians 6:10-20.

Read it and chew on it awhile. Maybe your heart will be revived. You might be prompted to pray as well---a personal prayer revival.