wait, watch, pray

But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord, I wait for God my Savior; my God will hear me.

- Micah 7:7 (NIV)

 

There are days that we feel we can’t go on, we don’t even have the energy to pray, life has us that down.

Sometimes we feel like we are praying for the wrong thing, or that our prayers sound more like a child whining than a real prayer.

God is listening, even when we think He is not.

He hears our cries, He sees our pain.

Sometimes, we just need to pray that He fills us with peace, because He knows what is on our heart, we don’t have to beg and plead.

He hears us.  

 

#dailybreadbykitty

trust again

The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.

- Deuteronomy 31:8 (NIV)

 

Trust is hard to believe in, hard to earn and harder to give.

As far back as the Old Testament, God has been telling us to trust Him.

Song reference!

Letting go of every single dream

I lay each one down at Your feet

Every moment of my wandering

Never changes what You see

I've tried to win this war, I confess

My hands are weary, I need Your rest

Mighty warrior, King of the fight

No matter what I face, You're by my side

When You don't move the mountains

I'm needing You to move

When You don't part the waters

I wish I could walk through

When You don't give the answers

As I cry out to You

I will trust, I will trust

I will trust in You

Truth is, You know what tomorrow brings

There's not a day ahead You have not seen

So in all things be my life and breath

I want what You want, Lord, and nothing less

When You don't move the mountains

I'm needing You to move

When You don't part the waters

I wish I could walk through

When You don't give the answers

As I cry out to You

I will trust, I will trust

I will trust in You

I will trust in You

You are my strength and comfort

You are my steady hand

You are my firm foundation

The rock on which I stand

Your ways are always higher

Your plans are always good

There's not a place where I'll go

You've not already stood

When You don't move the mountains

I'm needing You to move

When You don't part the waters

I wish I could walk through

When You don't give the answers

As I cry out to You

I will trust, I will trust

I will trust in You

We can’t always trust our human companions, many times they will hurt us. 
It is hard to trust Him, but what have we got to lose really? 

Trust Him.

 

#dailybreadbykitty

fight

The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.

- Exodus 14:14 (NIV)

 

We all get to that point where we are at the end of our rope.

The world keeps spinning around us, the craziness just never stops and we just can’t fight anymore.

We can stop fighting, God is on our side.

Song reference

You are not hidden

There's never been a moment

You were forgotten

You are not hopeless

Though you have been broken

Your innocence stolen

I hear you whisper underneath your breath

I hear your SOS, your SOS

I will send out an army to find you

In the middle of the darkest night

It's true, I will rescue you

There is no distance

That cannot be covered

Over and over

You're not defenseless

I'll be your shelter

I'll be your armor

I hear you whisper underneath your breath

I hear your SOS, your SOS

I will send out an army to find you

In the middle of the darkest night

It's true, I will rescue you

I will never stop marching to reach you

In the middle of the hardest fight

It's true, I will rescue you

I hear the whisper underneath your breath

I hear you whisper, you have nothing left

I will send out an army to find you

In the middle of the darkest night

It's true, I will rescue you

I will never stop marching to reach you

In the middle of the hardest fight

It's true, I will rescue you

Oh, I will rescue you

Take a breath, let His love surround you.

Be still.

 

#dailybreadbykitty

hope to grow on

For there is hope for a tree, if it be cut down, that it will sprout again, and that its shoots will not cease.

- Job 14:7 (ESV)

 

We can never lose hope, it is the beginning of so many wonderful things.

Even through all of his suffering Job never lost hope.

Sometimes, hope is all we have to cling to during rough times, and that hope we are clinging to should be the hope that lives in our God.

If you Google “what is hope” you will come up with many images and sayings, “hope is passion for what is possible”, “hope begins when we see with our heart that the life and death of Jesus Christ changed everything”.

And so many Bible verses: Hebrews 6:18, Numbers 23:19, Proverbs 23:18; Romans 15:13 . . . I have often said in my daily bread that if it is in the Bible a lot, that it must be something that God want’s us to notice. 

The image that got me most though was an acrostic poem (An acrostic poem is a poem where certain letters in each line spell out a word or phrase.)

Hold

On

Pain

Ends

Hope . . . if Job had it, we should too.

 

#dailybreadbykitty

reconciling people

And all of this is a gift from God, who brought us back to Himself through Christ. And God has given us this task of reconciling people to Him.

- 2 Corinthians 5:18 (NLT)

 

Every day I talk to people that surprise me when I learn that they have lost their faith or they never really had faith at all.

This breaks my heart and it breaks God’s heart too.

I can’t explain everything that happens, bad things happen to me and people I love all the time.

What I can explain is that no matter how badly I hurt, no matter how devastating the blow that came, I always have to lean on God.

I don’t have a degree in Biblical studies, I don’t have all the answers.

All I know is that God is good and He wants us to know Him and love Him.

It is ok to ask questions, it is ok to be unsure as long as you are seeking the answers.

Around Christmas time I saw a coffee cup that said “Wise men still seek Him”.

We should always seek Him and we should bring our friends and loved ones with us.

 

#dailybreadbykitty

blessings

From His abundance we have all received one gracious blessing after another.

- John 1:16 (NLT)

 

We don’t always recognize the blessings that we receive.

When we are running late to get somewhere and we are held up by traffic, we don’t think that is a blessing, but we need to think that perhaps God is blessing us, the fact that we are late may mean that He prevented us from a tragedy had we been on time. 

When we lose someone dear to us, we don’t always see that loss as a blessing, but we need to remember the blessing we had with them in our life.

Blessings can be disguised.

Song reference!

We pray for blessings

We pray for peace

Comfort for family, protection while we sleep

We pray for healing, for prosperity

We pray for Your mighty hand to ease our suffering

All the while, You hear each spoken need

Yet love is way too much to give us lesser things

'Cause what if your blessings come through raindrops

What if Your healing comes through tears

What if a thousand sleepless nights are what it takes to know You're near

What if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise

We pray for wisdom

Your voice to hear

We cry in anger when we cannot feel You near

We doubt your goodness, we doubt your love

As if every promise from Your Word is not enough

All the while, You hear each desperate plea

And long that we'd have faith to believe

When friends betray us

When darkness seems to win

We know that pain reminds this heart

That this is not our home

What if my greatest disappointments

Or the aching of this life

Is the revealing of a greater thirst this world can't satisfy

What if trials of this life

The rain, the storms, the hardest nights

Are your mercies in disguise

We can be upset about things that happen, but then we need to look for the blessings.

We may not see the blessings right at the moment, but someday looking back we will.  

 

#dailybreadbykitty

suffering

Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that is taking place among you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. Therefore, let those suffering in accordance with God’s will entrust themselves to a faithful Creator, while continuing to do good.

- 1 Peter 4:12, 19 (NRSV)

 

Sometimes it is hard to see the good that God is doing, especially if we are in the middle of a struggle.

I have a friend who recently lost her little nephew to a brain tumor after a long, horrible and painful struggle.

The little boy’s mommy, she never lost faith, she never once doubted that her son’s life would have meaning, purpose and that he would make a difference in the lives of others.

She wrote a blog detailing their path, every step that they took on the path that eventually ended with the loss of her son.

Her little boy did not understand why he was suffering, I am sure that they (mom and dad) did not understand it either, but she trusted God to put the right people in their lives, and when they came to understand that there would not be healing, she made sure that good would come from the short life of her son.

We all struggle, we all suffer, some trials are much harder to walk through than others, but understand that God will never leave your side, trust yourself to Him, continue to pray and continue to glorify Him. 

God does know what He is doing in your life.

 

#dailybreadbykitty

 

even if

For truly I tell you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.

- Matthew 17:20

 

There comes a time in every person’s life when they just can’t get over the mountain that is in the way.

We all have mountains, some are really big to us, but small to others, and some don’t even seem like mountains at all but the are there.

And sometimes when we are stuck trying to decide if we want to go over the mountain or around it, it is hard to see that God is still in our lives.

And sometimes when I am stuck trying to get over a mountain, it’s hard to write daily inspiring messages.

Song reference:

They say sometimes you win some

Sometimes you lose some

And right now, right now I'm losing bad

I've stood on this stage night after night

Reminding the broken it'll be alright

But right now, oh right now I just can't

It's easy to sing

When there's nothing to bring me down

But what will I say

When I'm held to the flame

Like I am right now

I know You're able and I know You can

Save through the fire with Your mighty hand

But even if You don't

My hope is You alone

They say it only takes a little faith

To move a mountain

Well good thing

A little faith is all I have, right now

But God, when You choose

To leave mountains unmovable

Oh give me the strength to be able to sing

It is well with my soul

I know You're able and I know You can

Save through the fire with Your mighty hand

But even if You don't

My hope is You alone

I know the sorrow, and I know the hurt

Would all go away if You'd just say the word

But even if You don't

My hope is You alone

You've been faithful, You've been good

All of my days

Jesus, I will cling to You

Come what may

'Cause I know You're able

I know You can

I know You're able and I know You can

Save through the fire with Your mighty hand

But even if You don't

My hope is You alone

I know the sorrow, I know the hurt

Would all go away if You'd just say the word

But even if You don't

My hope is You alone

It is well with my soul

It is well, it is well with my soul

We have to remember that God is on our side, no matter what hurt and pain we have, He hears our cry and He wants us to run to His arms.

We may want a certain outcome and we don’t understand why God is not providing that outcome, but He knows what He is doing.

Have faith in Him, He will move those mountains for you in time.

 

#dailybreadbykitty

spring

The wilderness and the dry land shall be glad; the desert shall rejoice and blossom like the crocus; it shall blossom abundantly and rejoice with joy and singing.

- Isaiah 35:1-2 (NRSV)

 

Tomorrow is the first day of spring!

I am not sure which I love more, the beauty of new life everywhere I look, or the sunny days of summer, but those two seasons are definitely my favorite.

When you give your life to Jesus, you are at the spring of your life, God has made you new.

New things are amazing and beautiful, and God continually makes us new, every moment of every day brings a fresh beginning, a chance to live the way He wants you to live - in Him. 

Find something beautiful every day and thank Him, each day can be spring in your heart.

 

#dailybreadbykitty

then sings my soul

Let the morning bring me word of Your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in You. Show me the way I should go, for to You I lift up my soul.

- Psalm 143:8

 

Mornings are tough, especially if you are not a morning person!

Some people can pop out of bed and be ready to face the day in fifteen minutes flat.

That someone is not me.

I need time in the morning, time to pray, to listen for God, time to hear Him speak, time to pour out my soul to Him.

Here is a new song reference!

Behold the Father's heart

The mystery He lavishes on us

As deep cries out to deep

Oh, how desperately He wants us

The things of earth stand next to Him

Like a candle to the sun

Unfailing Father

What compares to His great love

Then sings my soul

Then sings my soul

How great Your love is

How great Your love is

Behold His holy Son

The Lion and the Lamb given to us

The Word became a man

That my soul should know its Saviour

Forsaken for the sake of all mankind

Salvation is in His blood

Jеsus Messiah

The righteous diеd for love

It wasn't over

For He is the risen One

Then sings my soul

Then sings my soul

How great Your love is

How great Your love is

Then sings my soul

Behold I have a friend

The Spirit breathing holy fire within

My ever present help

Speaking truth when I can't find it, oh-oh-oh

Light up this broken heart and light my way

Until my time on earth is done

Oh, Holy Spirit

Breathe in me like kingdom come

Oh, Holy Spirit

Let Your work in me be done

Oh, Holy Spirit

Let Your work in me be done

Then sings my soul

Then sings my soul

How great Your love is

How great Your love is

Then sings my soul

Then sings my soul

How great your love is

How great Your love is

Then sings my soul

Then sings my soul

How great Your love is

How great Your love is

Then sings my soul, my God

He who was and is to come

Prepare the way until the work on earth is done

Watch as the clouds He rides swing low

Lift up the sound as He makes our praise His throne

Behold the Lord our God will lead us home

The first time I heard that song, my friend Becky was singing it in church with our praise team.

I encourage you to find it on the internet and give it a listen, and I hope you get the same feeling that I did the first time I heard it.

Things in this life will make us hurt, feel anger and despair and sometimes at the end of the day we just feel like giving up.

Then every morning we are refreshed by His love.

That should make your soul sing for sure.

 

#dailybreadbykitty

St. Patrick

And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.”

- Mark 16:15

 

Top O' the mornin' to ya, and happy St. Patrick's Day!

Are you wearing green and did you seen any leprechauns hanging out at the coffee shop this morning?

OK all silliness aside, St. Patrick's day began as a celebration of Saint Patrick bringing the gospel to Ireland.

It is said that he uses a shamrock to explain the Holy Trinity to the native Irishmen.

I think that is pretty cool, using one of God's creations to teach people about Him.

St Patrick was living out the Great Commission when he returned to Ireland to spread God's word.

Maybe we could use that as a talking point today, among the corned beef and cabbage and rivers tinted green, and use those things to find a way to teach someone about our Amazing Father. 

 

#dailybreadbykitty

 

everything

His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and goodness. Through these He has given us His very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.

- 2 Peter 1:3-4

 

Everything.

That is pretty open ended, isn't it?

He has given us everything we need.

Sometimes, it is hard to understand because we think that we "need" a new car, or the latest fashion trend, or the most recent iPhone.

God knows what we need, and He gives us everything we need.

Sometimes we might feel like we are not getting what we need, when we think of the children that go to bed hungry, are they getting what they need, is God providing for them?

Believe it or not, the answer is yes, people just need to listen.

God will provide a way to feed families, but sometimes the families need to meet Him halfway.

I have had my “everything” completely ripped away from me, and for a moment I thought there was no hope.

God knows what we need, and He gives us everything we need.

With His help, I am working my way past the evil, knowing that God will give me what I need, and my hope is restored.

We just need to listen.

 

#dailybreadbykitty

obstacles

But the Lord is faithful, and He will strengthen and protect you from the evil one.

- 2 Thessalonians 3:3

 

I’m not going to lie, I am facing some difficult times right now.

My world is upside-down, my faith is being shaken.

I know my God is a God of love, mercy and forgiveness, and that He wants me to lean in and press on.

Here I am Lord, I am leaning. I am pressing. I am asking for Your strength for fight this enemy.

Even in my pain, I can see that God is good, and even while I hurt, I know He is there.

I will continue to praise Him, because He is faithful.

I will continue to seek His peace which surpasses my understanding.

He will give me the confidence to face the obstacles in my path.

 

#dailybreadbykitty

gray hair!

Gray hair is a crown of splendor; it is attained in the way of righteousness. Better a patient person than a warrior, one with self-control than one who takes a city.

-  Proverbs 16:31-32

 

There is a joke about a little girl who asked her mom why some of her hairs were gray, to which the mom seriously responded  “every time you are naughty, one of my hairs turns gray.”  The little girl pondered this for a moment and replied, “wow mommy, you must have been a really naughty little girl because Grandma’s whole hair Is gray!”

Most women and even some men spend a lot of money covering their gray when it starts to show up, I get it, I used to do it too.

Then Covid hit, and all the hair salons had to close, and even after they re-opened some people were still not comfortable enough to go back.

I noticed the other day just how gray I am getting, and I have no little girls to blame!

I heard this verse, and I decided, I am not going to cover my gray anymore, I earned these gray hairs!

Maybe I’d be a little less gray if I had more patience.

Maybe if I had a little more self-control, my locks would be more sable than silver.

Or maybe, God is telling me that I am perfect just the way He made me, and my gray hair is the crown He has given me.  

 

#dailybreadbykitty