How is it suddenly 1:30 a.m., wasn’t it just midnight? I’ll tell you how. A precious friend, who couldn’t sleep, texted: Awake?
And in our sorting, even though we spoke of both good and painful things, I left our conversation feeling deeply encouraged. So that must be our word for this 34th day:
AWAKE
Do you remember when Jesus prayed in Gethsemane? He brought his disciples to watch and pray with him. I believe he wanted their encouragement, but three times they fell asleep. The second time he admonished them saying, “Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation.”
Does that declaration resonate with you? It does with me. In these difficult days, I want Jesus’ words to align me. Otherwise, I’m tempted to react in frustration, feel mortified at another’s different mindset or even plow forward with a preconceived idea of what they’re thinking, when I truly have no idea. To be AWAKE, is to engage first with a listening ear, then, before I answer, to be alert to a spirit of condemnation or accusation in me. The only way forward from here, beloved friends, is to think, speak, act and respond in love. It feels as if landmines are everywhere! Therefore, we must be AWAKE to the power and necessity of living as vigilant prayer warriors, for the fight is not against flesh and blood, but against every evil principality of darkness, as Ephesians reminds us. And as we do this, we stand against fear, united in love and abiding in hope.
Romans 8:37-39 proclaims this truth, “No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us form the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
God bless you!
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