Wednesday, June 18, 2014
My Spiritual Memoir: My Prayer for the United States
"My Prayer for the United States:
A Prayer Journalkeeper’s Reflection on History From Historic
Jamestowne to Today
(And What It Means to Faith and Life Today)"
Are you a
Christian? Do you pray? Do you prayer journal? Are you an American? Do you like
history or want to learn more about it? Do you pay attention to current events?
Do you like to read spiritual memoirs and/or want to write your own? Do you
like to read about the stories of families and learn about family trees? If you
answered yes to any of the previous questions, this book is for you.
This book is
my prayer journaling about current events and is a reflection on the history of
the United States from Historic Jamestowne to today. I reflect on what the
current events and history mean to my faith and life today.
My prayer
for the U.S. is a very personal one because I had family members come here
through Historic Jamestowne in 1607 and I can trace my family back to Nero,
Emperor Charlemagne, and Joseph of Arimathea, never mind the Plantagenet and
Tudor families or several Presidents of the USA, along with founding fathers,
and writers and signers of the Declaration of Independence and the U.S.
Constitution. Moreover, several were of the House of Burgess and some even signed and wrote the Magna Carta.
I’ve had men
in my family tree serve in every single war of the United States of America. This
includes a father and his twelve sons who served in the American Revolutionary
War or War of Independence.
The current
events happening as I write this, and the history of my nation, along with
faith, make me quite passionate about this topic and book. This is a spiritual
memoir because as I prayer journal, I’m growing in faith and patriotism as I
learn and reflect more on history. It’s how all of this shapes who I am today.
What is
happening today in current events in our nation, through the lens of history, is
something every citizen and every Christian needs to be aware of, think about,
and pray about. There is too much at stake and it impacts each of us right now—where
we are. We can keep burying our heads in the sand or we can help make this nation
a Christian one again—and it all starts with you (and me, of course). It starts
through awareness, thinking, and praying. This book is my spiritual memoir about
how I do precisely that and how it impacts me and my life.
Bible Verse to Prayer Journal and Ponder
Bible Verse to Prayer Journal and Ponder
HOW I GET THE MOST OUT OF THE WORD OF GOD EACH DAY
The first thing I do in the morning, is put dog outside and feed Beagle and Maine Coin and grab a cup of coffee. Then, I sit and have time with God. I make Him the precedent of each day. I give Him reverence and put Him first. I turn to the Bible, His love letter to us, His Word.
I am reading the Bible through in a year and am using this program, which you can start at any time:
http://www.biblegateway.com/reading-plans/old-new-testament/today?version=HCSB
I find at least one verse that speaks to me and try to keep prayer journaling it and pondering it all day long. With every verse that jumps out at me, I try to look it up at least three translations or versions of the Bible of it and get as much meaning out of it as possible. Often I look up five to seven.
Why do I look up more than one translation? As I said, I get a great deal more meaning out of it and I also read it more. The more I read it and ponder it, the verse will take root deep inside of me and become a way of live and living. It becomes part of me. Every time I read it, it grows and changes me.
Then, I read this program, which you can start at any time. I read a chapter of Psalms and Proverbs. Today, it's Psalms 10 and Proverbs 10. I find a verse of several from this reading as well.
I write these verses down and carry them with me. I also keep the tabs open of the internet links that lead to these daily verses and a document on my computer so I can look them up all day. I also pull them.up on my cell and tablet when I am not at my computer.
Some people are anal about checking texts and emails on their cell. I use that as my cue to pull up my daily verses on my cell. I also do this when stopped at a light. I use the light as a reminder to think of my daily verses.
Another cue I use is every time I take a sip of a liquid or a bite of food. I'm hypoglycemic so I eat and drink all dynamic long, so I stretch out my daily verses as much as possible.
This is how I get as much out of the Bible as I can and is how I try to include and remember God and His Word every moment.
I won't lie. Some days, I do all of this. Other days, once and that's it. I am constantly trying to do this more--and in doing so, just being with Him more each day.
Read the following verse and prayer journal about how this applies to you, your marriage, your house and family, your larger family, your city, your county, your state, your nation, and the world:
Proverbs 10:17 / Expanded Bible (EXB)
17 Whoever ·accepts correction [guards instruction/discipline] is on the way to life,
but whoever ·ignores [abandons] correction ·will lead others away from life [wanders aimlessly].
-- Scripture taken from The Expanded Bible. Copyright © 2011 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Proverbs 10:17 / GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)
17 Whoever practices discipline is on the way to life,
but whoever ignores a warning strays.
-- Scripture is taken from GOD’S WORD®, © 1995 God’s Word to the Nations. Used by permission of Baker Publishing Group.
(Image credit: Stacy Duplease June 2014)
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