4/29/2026
"You are my hiding place and my shield;
I hope in Your word."
Psalm 119:114
Feeling a little vulnerable today, but I'm not sure why?! I started praying this morning right off when I got up. I was talking to Abba about some new friends I've been praying for in North Carolina. What a story they have, and God so amazingly took a terrible illness and transformed the tragic circumstances into something so beautiful. The couple experienced great loss and endured great pain, and the road to rehabilitation has been long and arduous, but it is a testimony to the power of our miracle-working Father who is our healer, the God of the impossible. But for Him, nothing is impossible.
I have another friend whose husband has been healing from head trauma from an accident, then, more recently, she had an accident and is dealing with a concussion from head trauma, and injury was sustained to the neck causing great nerve damage and severe pain. She's been trying to continue to work and be her husband's caregiver, but now she has been slowed down, and she is unable to do as much. Having gone through similar circumstances, I can understand very well what each is enduring, and it is not easy. I am so glad that they have each other, and she knows that there's someone who truly understands and is praying.
In thinking over my life and situations I've encountered and the roads I've had to travel alone, the spirit of heaviness attempted to bring me down, but I have become more aware of his tactics, so I put on my praise and worship music and began to worship our Creator of Heaven and Earth. When the grief becomes too much to bear, put on a garment of praise.
I happened to come across a message by Billy Graham "Why You Must be Careful in Old Age." I mentioned this in a previous post, but, now, I remember Billy saying that we need to set boundaries, even with family members. As I was looking through my notes in my journal, I saw the words "help me know I'm not alone in this." I believe it was part of a message I received from my friend I mentioned above, and I understand what it means when someone does understand and can really put themselves in that person's shoes, because she's been there and can empathize. It makes the prayers more real, because you know the person praying for you can actually feel your physical pain and emotional trauma. I have felt very alone many times, because I don't really have Christian friends who can understand where I stand. I am blessed to have a few friends in a small prayer group, and although we may not always understand, we can feel comfortable sharing. We can laugh and cry together, and there's no shame. I am grateful for that.
During the global prayer call for Israel this morning, our host for the day was the national director from Denmark. He was sharing with us about the restoration of Israel in the last days, when he changed his direction and said that he felt as if there may be someone in the group, in the livestream, who may be going through a difficult time feeling that they had failed in their life and ministry. As I was listening to Nick speak, I noticed that the conversation in the chat had stopped, and there was a message at the bottom and to the side saying the chat had been disabled. I thought that was strange, but with Zoom calls things happen. Besides, I was listening as I always do and seldom write in the chat. Then Nick began to speak saying he felt that someone on the chat needed to hear what he had to say. And when he spoke, I knew the message from God was for me. I do not believe in coincidence, and I had already spoken to God about things, written about it, received confirming scriptures, plus music, plus after the meeting was over, when I picked up my Daily Devotional for Spiritual Warfare which I do not read daily, when I turned to today's devotional it read "I Will Not Allow the Proud to Oppress You." WOW!!
As Nick continued he said that there was someone who was sitting in shame and brokenness feeling that their life and ministry felt broken. Then he said "Your blessing will come to the righteous today." How could he know that I have been struggling with broken dreams again?! How could he know I was being oppressed by the devil?! Only God knows these things, and I had been crying out to God in prayer. Suddenly, the chat was moving again, and it was as if only I had been affected by what was happening. I quickly wrote a message thanking Nick, and I said that I needed to hear that message and word today. The message seemed to go unnoticed by anyone in the chat. Somehow I knew this moment was mine.
Prior to the meeting I had been finishing up the blog for 4/27 that I had started but fell asleep on the 27th and last night, so I needed to post it. The words Nick spoke regarding broken dreams were very similar to the words I had spoken to my son about him not giving up on his dreams. Coincidence? As I said before, my son doesn't believe in them either! I can tell that my son has been confused about God's ability to forgive and turn back to a person. So I pray for his eyes to be opened and the crooked places to be made straight. Surrender is difficult for some, but I can sense the deep need in a person's life when they cannot forgive, when they cannot go on, when they cannot dare to hope or trust.
So many people are seeking peace in this world today, surrounded by evil that is of the vilest sort imaginable. It is my fervent prayer that when our nation is rededicated to God as One Nation Under God, that something will break, and victory can be won. The battle has been long, and the casualties many, but our hope is not in man, our hope is built on nothing else but Jesus' blood and righteousness. To God be the glory!
