“Summing it all up, friends, I’d say you’ll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious—the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse.” ~ Philippians 4:8, MSG
Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, Who was and is and is to come! Praise flows my heart and lips for You, O Lord. You are so incredibly wonderful to Your children — so faithful and kind.
I depend on You Lord. You are my anchor. My sure place. You are the ruler of my heart. Thank You for the price You paid that I may know You. Father, thank You for the sacrifice You gave for us — for a world that didn’t deserve it. I can only imagine how difficult it was for You to watch Jesus suffer and die. But I thank You from the bottom of my heart because I am a life that was changed by Your love.
Help each of us find joy in the midst of difficult circumstances.
You’re teaching me that we do this by thinking on those things that are lovely and pure and worthy of praise, for it is in these thoughts that the renewing of the mind in Christ Jesus occurs. When our thoughts are yielded to You — brought captive to the things of Christ — our focus stays on You.
And when our focus stays on You, our minds are stayed in peace.
And when our minds are stayed in peace, joy abounds.
Not happiness, necessarily.
Joy.
It is in that place of joy that we find our strength to move forward, press through, and keep on carrying on. Thank You for that revelation Lord. I knew it before, but now I have it in my knower.
I ask that You do the same for others.
Remind them who You are to them. Remind them that You are for them, with them and that You love them with an everlasting love.
Thank You Father. Help us to be holy as You are holy.
We love You.
In Jesus’ name I pray,
Amen
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Thank you so much for stopping by. I would love for you to share what’s on your heart in the comments below. Scroll a little farther down and you’ll see where you can leave your comments. Together, we can find the nearness of God in our darkest moments.
Sweet blessings to you,
NAN
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Please don’t carry your burdens alone. I would be honored to pray with you.
You may contact me directly at nan@nanjones.com
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Have you had a chance to read Faith Notes ~ Nan Jones: How Do I Find the Secret Place of God? yet?
From time to time I will be sharing parts of my story with you on Faith Notes. God truly is amazing, isn’t He? He astounds me often.
Today I’m sharing an excerpt from my book, The Perils of a Pastor’s Wife where I help my reader understand the concept of the secret place of the Most High. Have you ever thought about it? Ever wondered where it is and how to get there? I have!
HOW ABOUT YOU? DO YOU HAVE A STORY TO SHARE?
If you would like to share your testimony of finding the nearness of God in your darkest moments, please contact me at nan@nanjones.com. I want to feature folks from all walks of life. You don’t have to be a writer. I can edit your story for you. God is glorified when we use our pain to help others find comfort in Him.
Hey Nan! Thanks for this beautiful prayer. I’m speaking on “Where to Find Joy” at the ladies’ meeting tomorrow night. Going to use this as my closing prayer.
Awesome! Let me know how it goes. You will be a blessing to them 🙂