Thankful Thursday ~ God's Calming Presence

"One thing I ask of the LORD, this is what I seek:

that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life,

to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and to seek him in his temple."

Psalm 27:4

 

There are mornings when the only thing I want to do is to pull the covers up over my head and not crawl out from under the warmth of the comforter that shelters me from the cool of the night. 

Those are mornings when I know the world will come rushing in fast & furious the minute my feet hit the carpet. I hit snooze on my alarm begging it to be wrong, to please give me a few more hours. Maybe then when I wake life won't be so crazy & hard.

But it's not wrong. It is morning and whether I like it or not the craziness of the day awaits. 

Then, just as I am beginning to grumble & complain in my mind, God pricks my heart and says, 

 

"Mary, won't you please start your day off with me? I'm here! Take these few moments in the dark, quiet of the morning ~ before kids start grumbling about breakfast, before your schedule gets thrown off before you walk out the door, before the hard moments of the day hit ~ give me your heart & mind & I will give you My Calming Presence. I will walk through the day with you. I will show you My Beauty in the good & bad moments. I will shelter you. Come near to Me and I will come near to you (James 4:8)"

Oh how I love it when God taps on my heart and reminds me of His Presence! When I start my day off with Him I will see the beauty in the day no matter what I face!

Have you given your day to Him? Are you seeking Him and dwelling in His house, in His Presence all the days of your life? Gaze upon His Beauty and He will come near to you.

 

 

Continuing the Joy Dare #876 - #900

• protection of health
• "In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express." Romans 8:26
• safe travels for Anne Graham Lotz, the AnGeL Ministries team, Babbie Mason, Sheila Bailey & Fernando Orgtega
• God's Calming Presence when the world is crashing down
• an arena turned into a sanctuary
• 1500 volunteers
• 180 lives laid before The Cross
• 43 countries & locations in every state in the union viewing the Just Give Me Jesus simlucast
• watching as thousands of lives are changed for Christ while God is meeting me right where I needed to be met
• divine appointments
• keeping my eyes focused on The Cross
• going into a weekend completely deflated - ending the weekend filled to overflowing with God's strength
• digging deep into God's Word
• listening & watching for God's Truth
• "When God has given you truth & you don't respond He doesn't give you anymore truth." Anne Graham Lotz
• renewal through quiet time with God
• God slowing me down with an illness in order to force me to rest
• fun times for Daddy & the kids
• restful nights in the midst of craziness
• foggy mornings
• calmly working through a school issue with my daughter
• the ugly-beautiful of kids bedrooms that are disasters
• mentoring from some amazing Godly women
• candlelit dinner date at home with my husband
• white roses on my rosebush

Taking the Joy Dare of counting 1000 gifts with Ann at A Holy Experience 

 

In His Calm,

Mary