prayer

From Anxiety to Peace

In my recent newsletter, I told the story of our older cat, Paka, and how she’d stopped eating. She had gone for several days without food. She would use her scratching post and groom herself, but she had no interest in her paté or kibble.

After a thorough examination and Xray, our vet, Doctor Amy, and I came to the same conclusion. Our new kitty, Tatertot, had caused Paka a lot of anxiety.

Paka has always been a little skittish. She was a rescue cat that lived with a man who didn’t like her. He wasn’t too fond of his former girlfriend either, who had left the cat with him when she moved out. I assume Paka stayed hidden from him because she hides whenever someone comes to our house. When it’s my husband, our youngest daughter, and me, she’s the perfect cat. But she doesn’t like change. And our new kitten brought a lot of that!

Although our vet took great care of her and got her back to her old self, Paka was not out of danger. Doctor Amy told me that the treatment she used with Paka would last for thirty days. She hoped Paka would bond with Tatertot by then, solving the problem. Today is day thirty-five. So far, so good. I am certain the two of them have formed a stronger connection.

On multiple occasions, I’ve discovered them sharing a bed, either theirs or ours, with their bodies close together. And twice, I’ve observed them as they groomed each other. So sweet! Brings a smile and praise to my lips.

During our times of stress and anxiety, our circumstances may become so overwhelming that we forget to pray or lack the energy to do so. Often, these situations take a severe toll on our bodies, hearts, and minds. But the Lord encourages us to turn to Him. He opens His arms and waits for us to run into them. To hold us. To comfort us. To pour out His unfailing love and peace upon us.

Two of my favorite verses are Philippians 4:6-7.

Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. 

My hope for Paka is that she has found peace to deal with Tatertot and will continue to thrive. My hope for us is that we find peace in Christ whenever anxiety strikes. He desires us to come to Him in prayer, tell Him what we need, and thank Him for all He has done. He’s done much in my life. What about in yours? Please share below a recent blessing He’s poured out upon you.

The Greatest Mother's Day Gift

To those of you who still have your mother, I hope you find yourself blessed with a precious gift. I would love to call mine and chat with her about the many events that have taken place since she left us for heaven.

 Our conversations that last year of her life were difficult because of her dementia. A few times when I called her, she’d tell me about the wonderful vacation she and Dad had just taken to the lake. She enjoyed the peace and calm while sitting on the back deck there. Although I knew she hadn’t left the house, I found comfort knowing she experienced happy times in her mind.

 If she were here, I’d love to share the news that our oldest grandson is studying nuclear engineering and tell her all about our two grandchildren she never met. Our teenage granddaughter wishes to be an actress and our youngest grandson dreams of playing football. Mom would love to hear about our grandchildren and get updates about our adult children too.

 She wouldn’t expect me to be writing romance novels, but I think she’d remember how much I loved to read. If I could, I would share my storylines with her, and ask if I could model a character after her. She’d say no, but it would please her to learn that my books honor the Lord, which is what she did.

 I remember a time when my husband and I stayed with my parents for a few days. My mom and dad sat at their kitchen table one morning praying for their children and grandchildren and didn’t know I was in the next room. It deeply touched me when they prayed for our former foster daughter who had been a part of our family years before. What a beautiful commitment of prayer in honor of the Lord.

 Being a mother and grandmother myself, I hope my children and their families see Jesus in me and know that I love Him and them. I pray they will deepen their relationship with the Lord and serve Him faithfully.

 I’d like to be a gift to them as my mom was to me. And the greatest Mother’s Day gift each of them can give me in return is their surrendered life to Christ.

 I have no greater joy than to hear that my children
are walking in the truth.
3 John 1:4 (NIV)


Photo by Sooz - Unsplash

Sometimes It Hurts

Sometimes it hurts. We feel forgotten or ignored. I’m sure it happens to most of us. It happened to me last weekend.

I’d emailed a few former coworkers three weeks earlier to say hello and to tell them I missed them. None responded. Why? Were they too busy? Did they not miss me too? And the friend I texted? She didn’t respond either.

Although I didn’t know the reasons for their silence, Romans 12:14 instructed me on how to handle the hurt.

Speak blessing, not cursing, over those who reject
and persecute you.
(TPT)

No one persecuted me, but I felt rejected. I prayed for God to bless them, to help them in their struggles, and for His will to be done in and through their lives. I reasoned that maybe life was tough for them, and they didn’t want to share—too personal. Or perhaps they were busy but intended to respond later and then forgot. 

After spending time in my Bible and praying for them, I listened to worship music and lifted my hands to “House of the Lord” by Phil Wickham. I have a hard time staying in the mulligrubs while worshipping my Lord.  

I also put on my armor as stated in Ephesians 6:10-20 and prayed the “Warrior’s Prayer.” [Click link for a pdf copy warriors-prayer-printable.pdf (com.s3.amazonaws.com).]

None of my feelings were new to the Lord. Christ understood rejection. He recognized how I felt and offered me comfort and strength as I honored Him.

Sometimes it hurts. The evil one wanted me to spend my day in despair, but I had too much to do. Through Bible reading, prayer, worshipping, and putting on my armor, I found victory and peace in my Lord and Savior.


A special thank you to J.D. Wininger for introducing me to the “Warrior’s Prayer” in his blog post: Preparing for Battle - J.D. Wininger, Christian Author (jdwininger.com).

Photo by Kyle Glenn - Unsplash

Take The Time

Have you ever wanted to slap someone upside the head? I wanted to do that to myself earlier this week. We drove to one of my favorite places in Nashville—Radnor Lake—and met our son and his family there for a hike. I’d taken my camera with me two weeks earlier when we visited, but it rained before we’d walked far, and I didn’t get many good shots. This week, just before we pulled into the parking lot, I groaned. I’d forgotten to bring my camera. I didn’t take the time to plan well for our outing.

While we walked, we found many photo opportunities, but I needed to use my cell phone. I knew my pictures would not look good. We saw deer, squirrels, turtles, ducks, geese, a turkey, and a chipmunk. That’s not all. One of our favorite sightings was a bald eagle perched high in the branches across the lake. Without my zoom lens, I had no possibility of taking a quality photo.

 Toward the end of our hike, I mentioned that there were owls in the woods, although I’d never seen one. Within five minutes, my son spotted an owl in a tree about twenty feet away.

 Twenty feet! And me without a camera! Why didn’t I think about that before I left the house? How could I forget something so important to me?

 Do you ever do that? Do you forget things that are important to you too?

 As I get older, I forget things more often. On mornings when my routine changes, I sometimes forget to have my quiet time with God. I focus on getting out the door and later realize that I skipped my time with Him. Time missed for prayer, to read and study His Word, and to thank Him for His blessings. On those occasions, I make time later in the day, but I prefer to start my day in communion with Him.

I love those special moments of quietness in the morning when I lean upon Him and find comfort in His Word. As situations arise throughout my day or I read of someone’s difficulties on social media, I’m ready to go to prayer for them because I’ve already spent time with Him.

Remembering to take my camera when I go hiking is important to me. But remembering to spend time with the Lord brings greater benefits for myself and others. I hope I never make a habit of forgetting to take the time for those special moments with Him.

I will delight in your decrees and not forget your word.
Psalm 119:16, NLT

The best I could do with my cell phone.

The best I could do with my cell phone.