From Anxiety, to PEACE....

Of all the promises God offers us in His Word, the one I have always prayed for and claimed for myself can be found in the book of Phillipians.

"Don't worry about anything; instead pray about everything.  Tell God what you need, and thank Him for all He has done.  If you do this, then the Peace of God that passes all human understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus (Phil.4:6,7  NLT, emphasis added.)

The Peace of God....
How on earth do I get that?

As a professional psychotherapist, I have seen many clients with a variety of complaints, but the problem I found to be almost universally common is anxiety.  Human beings seem to be wired to worry!  We worry about our finances, our health, our children, our relationships-- you name it, someone's worrying about it!
If we'd only get it into our heads that God is the only source of true peace, then we could stop worrying!  Whatever your concern,  God has it handled.  I'm sure you've heard the saying: Let Go, Let God!  But even though God has promised us this peace, If we do as He says above in Philippians, most of us don't claim this promise!  Don't you long for that peace?  Oh, how I longed to receive it!

The book of Psalms is a great source for verses related to the subject of peace.
"For you are my hiding place, you protect me from trouble.  You surround me with songs of victory!" (Psalm 32:7)
"The Lord gives His people strength.  The Lord blesses them with peace." (Psalm 29:11)
" I will lie down in peace and sleep, for you alone, O Lord, will keep me safe." (Psalm 4:8.)

As I said, I have treated many people with anxiety, or even panic, but I also have had a personal relationship with anxiety.  Before I had a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ, and before I finally experienced the peace that only He can provide, I worried about anything and everything!  I was scared to death of life, and scared to death of death!  "What am I doing here?"   Oh, I can't even tell you how many nights I tossed and turned, worrying about my future.  God addresses this worry of the future for us too.
"For I have  a plan for you, a plan to prosper you, and not to harm you.  A plan to give you a hope and a future (Jer. 29:11.)  I repeat this verse over and over again, when things aren't going my way, and I just praise His name that he is in control, that He does have a plan to prosper me, and that anything else I am told about my future is a total LIE of the enemy!  God's promises are for you!  And for me, too!  As a matter of fact, they are for anyone who believes!!!  STAND ON HIS PROMISES!

To be at peace with someone, be it a spouse, parent, friend, or God, is to be in a harmonious relationship with them.. When we ask Jesus Christ to come into our lives, to cleanse us of our sins, and make us brand new creations in Him, we are requesting. and should seek out, a harmonious relationship with God.  You may have accepted Jesus as your Savior, but do you really know Him?  What does a relationship with God look like, and what do you have to do to really be in relationship with God?

First of all, you must believe that not only does God exist, but that YOU MATTER to Him!  He created you in His image (Gen.1)!  You are His child, and He is your Father!   Knowing this, consider prayer.  And I don't mean the kind of repetitive prayer, that was written in some prayer book written by man, I mean REALLY TALKING TO GOD! Tell Him what you are thinking!  He already knows anyway, so you don't have to worry that He'll be shocked by whatever you tell Him.  Tell Him what your true desires are.  Tell Him that you are so grateful to Him for saving you, for making you whole!  Tell Him what you need!  He'll take care of it, if it is in accordance with His will!  But remember this:  if all you do is talk to God in the morning for a minute or two, and then get off of your knees, out to your job or to see to your children, without giving any thought to the fact that God may be TALKING BACK...then you are missing out on a giant part of the relationship!
I remember going out on a first date with a young man that my sister "fixed me up" with.  We went out to dinner together, and as soon as we sat down at the table, he began to tell me all about himself.  I was meeting him for the first time, so of course I wanted to know some things about him.  But because he was so busy talking, to the extent that I never got a word in edgewise, he left that dinner date, not knowing a single thing about me!   I figured he didn't care.  And so it is with God.  If you talk to God, without intently listening with anticipation at what He wants to say to you, you will not get to know what His will is for you, and you will not feel that you have a good relationship, and although I have no proof of this, I imagine that He might wonder why you don't listen.  Relationships go both ways!  Its all about conversation, meditation, communication~~ waiting on God to answer your prayers!  After a while, you'll start to be more sensitive to times when God is trying to show you something, and you WILL hear from Him more often!  And when you are in an ongoing dialogue with Jesus Christ, only then can you really feel that peace...the peace of God that passes all understanding.

GOD IS GOOD...ALL THE TIME!!!

...and all the time, GOD IS GOOD!!!

You'll probably notice that its been well over a week since I've posted anything here, which is highly unusual.
Due to a freaky car accident back in July, I have been in and out of the hospital, as many of you know, and was BACK in all this past week.

As listing all of my ailments does NOT glorify God--after all, He neither caused nor desired them to occur-- I am only writing to PRAISE HIM for all of the things that HAVE HAPPENED TO ME!!!!

WHY, CINDY?!?!  YOU'VE BEEN SO SICK SO MANY TIMES!  ALL THOSE BROKEN BONES!
WHY PRAISE GOD FOR THAT?!

Why praise God?  Well, besides the fact that He allowed me to survive a nearly-fatal car accident, HEALED me from ALL MY WOUNDS, and COMFORTED ME through it all, He also did so many other things, so may I share?

While lying in a hospital bed, He USED ME.  While I could barely moved, I was privileged to lead someone to the Lord and rejoice with them (and the angels!)  I met a Pastor whose church is in a large Jewish community, and when she found out that I, too, was raised Jewish, asked me to share about my conversion, and how she might reach out the the unbelievers in her area.   I had the opportunity to counsel, provide encouragement, witness to and PRAY for a woman who is in the last weeks of her life.  (She asked me, "How long is this prayer going to BE?!?!?!--there were a LOT of needs!)  I have had awesome conversations with my Pastor, who was faithful to visit me, no matter how far he had to drive, even the week his son and daughter-in-law brought a new life into the world!  (Many thanks, Pastor Steve-- I will never forget your kindness...)

I had time to read the New Testament cover-to-cover, all in one week, had 3 visits from a new, dear friend and AMAZING WOMAN OF GOD! (Thank you my sweet Anna!)  She listened to my every whine and groan, but mostly, we PRAISED GOD for providing us with deliverance from many past hurts, and for the wonderful work He has done in both our lives, and just for bringing us together...

...and the list goes on.

So, thank you, Father God, for bringing me to this wonderful place I call my temporary home.  For allowing me to be back with my family, stronger than ever before: Stronger in my body, but more important, stronger than ever in my knowledge of You!  Stronger in my Spirit, my witness, my testimony, and recovery!  Thank you for loving me, even when I wasn't even able to pray.  And thank you, as always, for sending us your Son Jesus.  In His precious name,
Amen. 

A bit about witnessing...

I don't generally care to be redundant, but when it comes to God showing up, breaking through and changing lives, how can I not?  How can I not say "THANK YOU JESUS" for saving my life, for healing my body and spirit, and restoring my marriage?  How can I possibly not repeat, over and over, all of the things that God has done in my life?  How He never, ever fails to amaze me with his love, that I did absolutely nothing to deserve, yet He continues to pour out so freely only because I believed?

Who wouldn't want to continuously boast about the glorious Son of God, without whom I can do nothing, but WITH WHOM I CAN DO ALL THINGS?

It is not just a matter of desire that I say these things tonight, but one of obedience.  God tells us over and over again in His Word, to tell others about Him.  Those of us who are familiar with the Scripture to some degree, have read this many times, yet so many are reluctant to talk to other people about what their Savior, Jesus Christ, has done in their lives! 

I was recently picking up a new pair of glasses at the local mall, and overheard a couple talking about the delicious dinner they had just finished.  They said they were completely stuffed, and really needed a nap!  Funny how good food universally makes us want to sleep!  So, being the "social butterfly" that I tend to be (which sometimes seems to embarrass my poor husband and son, who remember "not to talk to strangers...) I asked them where they had eaten.  They made the food sound SO GOOD, I was ready to run wherever they had been to ahve my own dinner there!  They were so happy to tell me about the place, the great service they had, the reasonable prices... As a matter of fact, they had no complaints!  And because of their strong recommendation, I'm likely to try this place out sometime soon!  Likewise, had I had a similar experience, I'd certainly tell my friends!

I have been given a story to tell, too.  Mine isn't about a restaurant, though.  Mine is about the Creator of the Universe!  The Savior of the world!  My Provider, The Wonderful Counselor, the Lamb of God, the
bright and Morning Star!!!!!
If you had just eaten the most tender of steaks, with yummy sweet potatoes smothered in creamy butter and cinnamon-sugar, with a side of freshly-picked snap peas from the garden at a new restaurant, and would tell a stranger in an eyglass store about it, then why woudn't you be even more anxious to tell a good friend, or even a stranger,  the story of Jesus, the Bread of Life?!?  (Can you tell I'm in the mood to go to Outback?!)

"Isn't witnessing a job for trained people, like Pastors or something?"
2 Corinthians 5:18-21 tells us "We are Christ's ambassadors...God uses us to speak to you."  Every believer is an 'ambassador' of Christ to a non-believing world.

"I wouldn't know what to say!  What if people think I'm too pushy?"
In the Bible, even those who knew Jesus best sometimes struggled and hesitated to witness.
"...but no one had the courage to speak favorably about him (Jesus) in public."  (John 7: 12-13)
But still, they did!  Your anxiety or nervousness is natural.  We all sometimes struggle with the possibility of being rejected or being seen as foolish.  The following verse helps me out when this lie creeps into my mind as I speak with someone. I think this is the 3rd time I am quoting this in the past week, so God must think its important, or He wouldn't keep putting it on my heart!
"Blessed are those who are persecuted because they do as God requires. (Matt. 5:10)  We should expect that non-believers may or will reject what we have to say.  But consider this:  what if they wouldn't have rejected you? What if they are open to hearing, are seeking God, and you fail to open your mouth that day?  And may I even go so far as to suggest that Jesus could return any day now, and what if He does, just as you are walking away from those expectant strangers, and you just made a decision not to do your job?  The answers to these questions have ETERNAL SIGNIFICANCE!  Understanding, of course, that we could not save ourselves, and we certainly can't save anyone else, and that nobody's blood is on your hands,  don't you think you would have kicked yourself, and said, "What if...?"
 
In Matthew 18:12-14, we read...."it is not my Father's will that even one of these little ones should perish."  He wants us to tell others how they can know Him! So,  tell them!
The Apostle Paul is a great example of a witness to Jesus through his actions as documented in the Book of Acts.  Here was a Jewish man, who had previously committed to persecuting as many Christians as he could.  But immediately after God met him on the road to Damascus,  he immediately began to testify that Jesus IS the Messiah!  And he never stopped witnessing.
"..a large number of people came to Paul's house.  He told them about the Kingdom of God and taught them about  Jesus from the Scriptures." (Acts 9:1-28; 28:20-31)
And the stories of his testimony go on and on...

Maybe you are thinking this: I've witnessed to friends before, but they don't seeem interested.
I will agree that most of my own friends really don't want to hear another word about my Jesus, and so maybe telling them isn't the answer!  For me, the answer is this:  My actions are, in themselves, a testimony to the world. 
Good or bad, once you tell people you are a Christian, all eyes are on you, and they are just waiting...waiting for you to make one big mistake!  They are waiting for you to be impolite, unforgiving, hypocritical, and just out and out sinful, so that they can call you on it!  What does this mean to me? It means I had better get out there, every single day of my life, after spending a good amount of time in prayer, and try to live out my life, one moment at a time, in a way that lines straight up with God's Word; in a way that allows for God to use me in any way He sees fit; in a way that is without reproach, being fully aware that I am still living in a world filled with temptation and evil.  And through it all, pray that the light of Jesus will shine through me. 

I started this by saying that I don't like redundancy, but I think this bears repeating: Your actions are, in themselves,  a testimony to the world!  If you want to reach the world for Christ, be sure that your actions are not making people think, "I wonder what's wrong with her?!?!"  But instead, let the world look on, maybe scratch their heads, and say, "I don't know what she's got, but whatever it is, I WANT IT TOO."

So, Father God, thank you so much for the words you have impressed upon me to share tonight.  I know I am not always the best example of terrific Christian living, but Lord, I do try.  And inasmuch as I know that I have not nearly arrived, I know that you have me on a wonderfully exciting journey.  I'm not certain of what you have in store for me, but I'll take whatever it is as it comes, and carry it out with all of my heart, soul, mind, and strength.  I know that I may stumble along the way, but Lord, I know that you are with me, and you will direct my path.  Let my daily actions be pleasing in your sight, and please, Father God, give me the courage to continue to speak out, to reach a lost and dying world for you.  Please forgive me where I have failed you, as I will work to correct those things you have so lovingly revealed to me, and let me be a light unto someone's way, that they might come to know the life-giving love that can only come from the acceptance of  Jesus Christ.  For there is no way to the Father but through your Son Jesus.  And it is in His name I pray.  Amen.

I

Grateful...!

It is SUCH a great day! Joshua is home from camp, I am not in the hosptial, and Lew doesn't have some big project planned for the day! Its a little gloomy and rainy, but I like it that way now and then! It somehow brings our family closer together, as we gather together, rather than look for actvities out in the world.

So, at this time of the morning, as my husband and I are getting ready to share in a cup of coffee together (well, we'll actually have or own cups, and we won't be in them!) I'll just update you, my friends, on some fun and exciting news!

Since 1998, I have had a calling on my heart to go back to Graduate School to gain more knowledge of the Bible, teaching biblical principles, and/or Christian Counseling. It must not have been in God's time, because roadblock after roadblock would come my way. I was accepted into one particular program, and one week before classes were to begin, I received a letter with "rules" about the school, whcih included something like, "any use or discussion of the so-called 'gifts of the Spirit,' particularly speaking in tongues, is not acceptable and will not be tolerated on our Campus." And so I called, and politely withdrew from the program. "So-called gifts?" Who the heck...? WHAT the heck?! Anyway, I figured that if God had wanted me to study at that time, he'd have made a path, and so it has gone a few times down the road.

UNTIL YESTERDAY!

S, I'll just backtrack for a second: while I was in the hopsital, I "happened" to see a program on the Discovery Health Network about "A Night in the Life of an Trauma Department Chaplain." Now, you DO know me well enough to know hat I do NOT believe in coincidences, and so, as a therapist, a Christian, and a recent patient in a Trauma Unit, I knew I was supposed to watch it, and I found it fascinating! I never thought much about Chaplaincy. I DO know that when I was in the secular world, and had to be in the hospital, I was always asked if I would like the Chaplain to come and visit me, and I replied with a resounding "NO!"

So, I watched this young man on TV. He was in Seminary, and worked night shift at a local hospital, and he'd spend then nights waiting for his beeper to go off, which looked like it happened at the precise second he was finishing counseling with family, back-to-back, evenly-spaced, throughout the night. Leave it to Cable TV! At times, he'd talk into the camera about how his night was going, and he'd comment that he had no idea what he was doing, but just prayed that God would see him through. He was meeting with families whose loved one(s) were either seriously ill or worse, or who may have just passed away in the Emergency Room, or were making decisions whether or not to continue Life Support. He also spoke with some patients, who we grateful to be alive.

What I found most interesting, were his remarks that people tend to seek out God, often for the very first time, and are finally ready when there is a crisis going on. They are desperate to find HOPE in someTHING or someONE, and, in the midst of tremendous fear and grief, they open their eyes, hoping against all hope that the Christian girl at work who has been telling them about Jesus and Heaven all of these years was wrong and that somehow his own son, who had perhaps not ever accepted Jesus, could possibly not have made it up there?! What a horror! And what if YOU were the person that this father was asking? "My son didn't believe in Jesus Christ as his Savior. Do you think he might have gone to Heaven anyway? He was a good kid...just had a few problems..."

Well, now I AM going to learn to minister to these families, perhaps all over the world!  Atttendign Seminary, having not only the time and good fortune, but the requirement to study God's Word, in-depth, every single day, no exceptions, sounds like my dreams come true!  Of course, my unbelieving parents, brothers and sisters, and friends are now attacking my Chirstian beliefs more than ever, and feel I must be brainwashed  to enroll for this program... (Yes, I've been brainWASHED in His Blood!)

"Blessed are those who are persecuted, beacause they do what God requires."
(Matthew 5:10)

So, Father God, I come again to thank you for yet another opportunity, another wonderful path you have set before me.  You have given us each a race-- our own particular race unique to each person, and, God I so love the race you have given me to run!  Thank you for the opportunity to serve you in such an amazing and unbelieveable way!  I pray and trust that you will continue to equip me for this mission, and give me good times of work along with good times of rest.
Thank you, Father, for the knowledge that you are all I need, and that you are always there. And regardless of my circumstances, you make all things wonderful and new.   Please search my heart as I go through this day, and point out anything that is not pleasing to you.  I give it all to you, in Jesus' name, Amen.

Giving Thanks.

Growing up, we had, and continue to have a family tradition on Thanksgiving Day, of going around the table, having each person state what they are thankful for that year. For some reason, this seems to make everyone uncomfortable, and turns into a sarcastic joke-session! I look around at my mother, brothers and sisters with their respective beautiful families, and wonder why it is that they can't express their appreciation for all that they have been given and blessed with! I'm not judging, please understand, just curious about WHY they don't feel grateful? They all have great jobs, terrific kids who don't give them any trouble (!) and enjoy excellent health and financial prosperity. Oh, well. I guess sometimes we take these things for granted, and I'm certain I am sometimes guilty of the very same thing.

"So, Cindy, why are you focusing on Thanksgiving when it is only the end of August?"

Because I have SO MUCH to be thankful for, that I am just busting at the seams to express my eternal gratitude to the only one who deserves it. The One who makes it all possible. The One I cannot do a thing without! My Father, Comfortor, Savior and friend.

So, as I sit here in a wheelchair, recovering from 17 broken bones and pneumonia, having just gotten out of the hospital this past Thursday evening, I would like to take the time to THANK HIM.

"Thank Him?! For WHAT?! For letting you suffer?"

Please allow me to explain: God didn't cause my accident, nor did He sit and watch uncaringly as my lungs filled with fluid. Why would I be angry or bitter toward Him? We are not promised a perfectly happy life here on earth, free of any strife, illness, sadness, or even hang-ups!
What He DOES promise, and I receive this promise only because of my BELIEF and FAITH, and NOT because of anything I've done to DESERVE it, is to always be there with me to see me through even the most difficult of situations.

I'm sure that many of you have heard or seen the little story, on a keychain or surrounded by a picture frame perhaps, called "Footprints" or "Footprints in the Sand." For those of you who haven't, basically, it is a poem of sorts, by someone who says that when she is going through easy times, which I call "Mountaintops," she can look down in the sand and see two sets of footprints, her's and God's. But, when tmes get tough, when she goes through the real trials (Valleys, to me) she only sees ONE set of footprints! She asks God, "Why is it that in the worst of times, when I needed you the most, that I only see one set of footprints, and you are no longer walking beside me."

She writes God's answer in this very poignant way: Oh my child, my precious child...at those most difficult times, the times when you see only ONE set of footprints, it is those times that I CARRIED YOU.
Please understand that this is not a scripture passage, but something that someone who chose to remain anonymous, wrote, to express that GOD IS FAITHFUL. Tht despite our circumstances, and no matter that we have done absolutely nothing to deserve this awesome measure of His grace, He does promise in His Word that He "will never leave us or forsake us!"
He loved me before I even knew Him. He saved me from myself and my misguided ways.


He carried me....

So, Father God, I am here today to meet with you, to sit humbly at your throne of mercy and grace, where I dont' deserve to be, but where you give me the privilege to come and speak to and WITH you any time I care to or need to, and you will meet with me and hear my prayers.
I am ever so grateful for the incredible love you have shown me, even during my times of disbelief! I thank you for the time you gave me in the hospital, that even though I lied in bed most of the time, feeling ill in my physical body, that you allowed me to rise above my circumstances and remember that YOU ARE GOD, and YOU ARE ALL I NEED. To remind me that 'God, I CAN'T," but 'God, YOU CAN.' For the constant reminder that your grace is sufficient for me in any and all my situations, and that you have not changed your plan for my life that I WILL PROSPER and I WILL RISE ABOVE my circumstances, no matter how hopeless they may look to me or to others.
I will sing of my love...."You're all I want...You're all I ever needed. You're all I want. Help me know you are near."
Finally, Father, thank you for so many answered prayers, but mostly for one that I have prayed over and over and over again, for the past 15 years. It is my prayer you answered, that the Light of Your Son Jesus would SHINE through me, that others would see His light through the example in my own life, and that perhaps just one other life might be changed, even a tiny bit because of my testimony of what you have done for me. For I know I could not save myself, and I cannot save anyone else, but I can continue to sing of your love, with joy in my heart, and continue on my mission to bring as many people to Heaven with me as I possibly can. Please make me a blessing to someone today. In Jesus' name. Amen.

Sittin' around, dreaming about Heaven!

Some of my fondest memories of conversations with my son Joshua, now 14, are those we've had about what Heaven will be like! In the Book of Revelation, God pulls back the curtain on the future, for the apostle John, including a glimpse of "a new heaven and a new earth (Rev. 21.)"  He writes of the holy city, Jerusalem, descending out of Heaven from God (Rev. 21:2)   But the images are so foreign, so unimaginable, so ....unbelievable!  Who, but God himself, could possibly conceive of such a place?  So, we always end up bringing it back to earthly terms, and inevitably wind up laughing out loud!

Josh wants to know, if we are at church in Heaven, and he gets a little bored during the Sermon, will he be allowed to go hang out in the lobby for a little while with his buddies? And will they have yummy $1.00 cappuccinos at the "Connections Cafe," like we do at our beloved church?  What if I can't get to sleep at night?  Will we be able to get on the Internet when we want to, or might I be able to do some scrapbooking, one of my little hobbies?  No?  Bummer!  Oh, how we laugh!  "Hey, Mom!  Are we going to have to turn off our cell phones when we go in and out of certain mansions?"  My son hopes there will be signs posted about this, so he doesn't violate any of the rules!  I advised him to put his phone on "vibrate" if he hears a loud trumpet sounding. 

Heaven...

We're told that we'll have "perfect bodies," which will really  be heaven to me, having packed on a few extra pounds over the years!  Will our "bodies" resemble humans in any way, or will be be little smokey spirit waves or something? And, on a more serious note, will I be with my husband and son, or will we even know we ever had those relationships at all?  Will we be in a giant Praise and Worship Service for eternity?  Continuously praising God in song?  Awesome!  That happens to be my favorite past time!  Oh, the conversations we have, just dreaming, pondering, wondering...

It was initially surprising that my dear son and I seem to share some strange fear of Heaven, as most people do about the unknown.  This is one subject that has always fascinated me.   But in my 15 years as a Christian, I have talked to many other Believers about their true feelings about going to Heaven, or their "readiness" to go to Heaven, should Jesus return today, as He very well might!  "Behold! I am coming soon! (Rev. 23:7)  But when?!?  What a cliffhanger ending to an awesome Book!   Most people I've spoken to say that they feel like they should want to go to Heaven right now, to a perfect place to be with our Father, but they almost all agree that they have at least some degree of fear of the unknown that the thought of Heaven presents.  Of all the things to be afraid of in life, I don't think that our Lord would want us to consider Heaven among them.

I have come to this conclusion: I am living out my life with the goal of spending Eternity with God! This is that we all run the race to get!  With God, its not how you start, its how you finish, and I want to finish by spending my eternity with Jesus!  I'm dedicating my life to this!  If God desired for us to know precisely what it would be like for us on a day to day basis, He would have given us that information in His Word, don't you think?   He has so much in store for us, things He can't wait for us to see!  So much time spent preparing...

In times of trouble, many people say that God won't give you more than you can handle,  and I think this applies to the fantastic as well!   What if God pulled that curtain all the way back for us today?  We'd likely be so dumbfounded at the glory of it all, that we'd all wind up crashing our cars into trees or falling down flights of stairs in our utter dismay!   Perhaps God simply wants us to continue to humble ourselves before Him daily until His return, and just be grateful for the provision He has made for our eternity; that tremendous sacrifice of His Son Jesus Christ,  without asking so many questions.

That said, I'll try to leave my silly fears and insecurities about the future at the Pearly Gates, and when my name is found in the Lamb's Book of Life, and Jesus says, "Well done, my good and faithful servant," I'll go running into His arms, into His Kingdom, and live happily ever after. Between now and then, however, I believe I'll be springing for that $1.00 cappuccino in our "Connections Cafe" every Sunday...because you never know...!

A Prayer, Just Because...

Dear Father God,
As I go to lay my head down to rest, following a difficult and wonderful week, temporarily sick in my physical body, but filled with your Holy Spirit, I come to meet with you. humbly, to give you thanks. As you watch from your throne in Heaven, where you have prepared a place for ME, may your name be glorified here on earth. There will come a time when Jesus will come to meet us in the clouds, and we will be caught up with Him and taken to live with you eternally. And all I had to do to win this wonderful prize, was to simply ask.. to come to you with my childlike faith, even as small as a mustard seed, in as much or as little as I knew of you, and say "Jesus, come into my heart. I can't do this life without you. I know I don't deserve your saving grace, for I have sinned so much. But today, I want to give my life to you. I pray that you will forgive me of my sins. I want to change. Please help me to change and to be more like you. Amen." And in that instant, you sent your Holy Spirit to live in my heart, to direct my path and be my Comforter. So, becasue of the Comforter who lives in me, I could get through this week in the hospital, and rejoice in the knowledge of your plan to prosper me, and in your promise that you will never leave me or forsake me, in a way that no human could ever promise. So many others have dissapointed me, but you could never disappoint. I pray that I will not dissappoint you too much when I awake and start a new day. Please search my heart, and point out anything that is displeasing to you as I go about my day, and I promise to correct it.
Please bless my friends as they go about the business of thier days, and help them and encourage them through their struggles. Use me, Father, in any way you will. I am here, and I will follow you wherever you will lead me, and go wherever you will send me. Please let me be a blessing to even one person in the new day, as I have been so blessed by others in your Kingdom.
In Jesus' precious name, Amen.