Peace With the Psalms: Week Twenty-Four

 

Happy Friday!  I for one am happy that it's Friday because that means no workmen will be in our home over the weekend except for the electrician tomorrow.  Thankfully the bathroom reno has gone much more smoothly than the kitchen one!  

How has your week been?  Has it been hot in your neighborhood?  We've had some hot temps, but not as hot as other areas of the country. 

What did you think about this week's lesson?  I truly needed the reminder that God is sovereign, and that he is our fortress who equips us with the Sword of the Spirit, which is His Word.  

Here is this week's Psalm:

Yes, my soul, find rest in God;

    my hope comes from him.

Truly he is my rock and my salvation;

    he is my fortress, I will not be shaken.

~Psalm 62:5-6

I read this poem by Steve Garnaas-Holmes during the week, and I thought I would share it with you.  It really doesn't have much to do with the lesson, but I thought it was sweet.  There is a good lesson in it about noticing.

Dandelion

You grow in a crack in the sidewalk,

neither asking nor receiving hospitality.

Spreading your arms out

to what the city will give you of the sun,

reaching your roots down unseen, 

patient among slabs and pipes and gravel,

you find a way to nourish yourself. 

You gather yourself into this one simple blossom, 

not a big one, but yellow in a desert of gray.

And what is it worth? 

A guy comes along, distracted, 

maybe troubled even, looking down.

He stops, sits on a cement block,

and stares at you. He tilts his head

as if reading something. After a long time

gazing at you he makes a single sound,

"mm," and something that could be 

a smile comes to his face.

He looks at the sky, takes a breath, gets up, 

and walks off, somehow different.

You never know. 

Prayer Requests

• Carla would like for us to pray for the military build up at the door of Iran. Pray for our leaders to seek wisdom.  Continue to pray for our military, our young men and women who are at that door waiting what orders might be coming. May God protect them.
• Pray for Kris and Terry as they decide where to live when they retire.
• Pray for Kris's son-in-law Tim.  UPDATE:  Tim was fired for his job after 17 years on at the fire department.  Please say a prayer for Tim that he can get another job quickly.  He is devastated by all of this.  
• Carla has an extended family member stationed in Kuwait named Haley. She is her cousin Steve's daughter.  Please pray for her safety!
• Carla's Sam has several Wisconsin Guard friends stationed in Kuwait and Iraq.  Sam had an update for us from his teammates who are currently deployed in the war zone. Please be in prayer, they have been bombed several times. Continue to pray for safety.
• Continue praying for Kitty's son Mike as he continues on his journey of no pain meds.  Mike is off of pain meds for several weeks and is weaning off several other prescriptions.  Mike is requesting that we pray for his mental health.  
• Kitty would like for you to pray that her daughter sells her barndominium and can find a home closer so that she’s not driving two hours a day.
• Pray for my health as my Mast Cell Activation Syndrome has come back in full force.  UPDATE:  I've had extensive testing done, but I have not heard any of the results yet. 
• PRAISE:  My Little Starling is doing well, and so are mom and dad.  She's wee (wearing premie clothes), but she is thriving.
• URGENT:  Please pray for the Higginbotham family as Weston's wake and funeral will be next week.
• Please pray for Kitty's brother who has not been doing well, and her sister who's been his caregiver.  
• Please pray travel mercies for Trip and me as we travel this week to Ann Arbor.  
• Kris requests that we pray for her MIL as they navigate what time she has left.  She and Terry continue to ask God to take her and have her be at peace.  Please read more in the comments below.
• Please pray for Carla's son Sam:  He is currently at drill at Fort McCoy and is training young soldiers joining the Wisconsin National Guard.  Thank-you, Sam, for your service.  
• Rita requests we pray for her brother who had a stroke last June.  Pray that he remains strong and stable as he and her SIL navigate changes of selling their home in WV and building a new home near their daughter in TX.
• Pray for Kitty's brother who as at the end of his life, and also pray for her sister who has been his caregiver.  

For details about some of these requests, please refer to the comments below.

Trip wants me to learn how to make meringues. 

Do any of y'all have experience making them or a recipe you can share?

Until next time...

Blessings!
Ricki Jill