Prayer and Praise

But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. 1 John 1: 7

…our church, where we are loved, welcomed and valued for who we are and what we have to contribute. The person who shared his testimony today said, “Your attitude determines your altitude”, and this is so true. Our attitude affects more than just our family and friends – it affects everyone who comes into contact with us.

…my husband who is continuing to soldier on, doing what he can, when he can. I think that God is using this time to strengthen our love for one another and our faith in Him, and He carries us through the difficult times.

…our children, who have stepped up to take on extra chores while my husband’s knee is painful. I suspect that he needs a total knee replacement, and that will mean lots more work for everyone, especially in regard to milking the goats – could be very interesting.

…friends – IRL friends, blogging friends and internet friends who help us to grow to be more like Jesus, mirroring His love and friendship to all.

…His provision over us - we seem to have just enough money to pay the bills, put petrol into the car and put food onto the table; and I’m content with that, for with more, there comes temptation. God supplies all of our needs!

…cooler nights, so that we can sleep well. Today’s temperature is absolutely blissful; 27C and a cool southerly blowing. It appears that summer is almost over, and soon winter will be upon our doorstep. I am standing upon God’s promises, praying and believing that our Heavenly Father will provide the warmth needed for winter, for He says that He will never leave us nor forsake us.

…homeschooling and the freedoms that we have, here in Australia. In other parts of the world it is much more difficult to homeschool openly and legally. Please pray for the governing powers in Germany, that the laws will be softened, so that people can homeschool openly, legally and without fear of reprisals. In Sweden, young Dominic Johannson is still separated from the love of his parents – please pray for the swift reuniting of Dominic, Annie and Christer.

…resources from Our Daily Bread. Last night we watched the first story called A Marriage Reborn, on a DVD called Love’s Lasting Call – it is a DVD explaining how to have a good marriage. Good marriages don’t just happen – they are built upon God’s blueprint for marriage. Ecclesiastes 4:12 says that a cord of three strands is not easily broken, and the three strands are God, the husband and wife. I am really looking forward to the second part, which is A Promise Kept.

Prayers for Our Children

At the moment I am reading this book:~

by Germaine Copeland

This prayer is included in the prayer book, Prayers that avail much for Mothers, and it is the most beautiful prayer that I have ever read, for our children, and it helped to remind me of my duty as a parent. I hope that you find it as enlightening as I did. God promises that His Word will never return to Him void.

Father, in the name of Jesus, I pray and confess Your Word over my children and surround them with my faith – faith in Your Word that You watch over it to perform it! I confess and believe that my children are disciples of Christ, taught of the Lord and obedient to Your will. Great is the peace and undisturbed composure of my children, because You, God, contend with that which contends with my children, and You give them safety and ease them. Father, You will perfect that which concerns me, I commit and cast the care of my children once and for all over on You, Father. They are in Your hands and I am positively persuaded that You are able to guard and keep that which I have committed to You. You are more than enough!

I confess that my children obey their parents in the Lord as His representatives, because this is just and right. My children __________ honour, esteem, and value as precious their parents; for this is the first commandment with a promise: that all may be well with my children and that they may live long on earth. I believe and confess that my children choose life and love you, Lord, obey Your voice, and cling to You; for You are their life and the length of their days. Therefore, my children are the head and not the tail, and shall be above only and not beneath. They are blessed when they come in and when they go out.

I believe and confess that You give Your angels charge over my children to accompany and defend and preserve them in all their ways. You, Lord, are their refuge and their fortress. You are their glory, and the lifter of their heads.

As parents, we will not provoke, irritate or fret our children. We will not be hard on them or harass them, or cause them to become discouraged , sullen or morose, or feel inferior and frustrated. We will not break or wound their spirits, but we will rear them tenderly in the training, discipline, counsel and admonition of the Lord. We will train them in the way they should go, and when they are old they will not depart from it.

O Lord, my Lord, how excellent (majestic and glorious) is Your name in all the earth! You have set Your glory on or above the heavens. Out of the mouths of babes and unweaned infants You have established strength because of Your foes, that You might silence the enemy and the avenger. I sing praise to Your name, O Most High. The enemy is turned back from my children in the name of Jesus! They increase in wisdom and in favour with God and man.

Scripture References

Jeremiah 1:12
Isaiah 54:13
Isaiah 49:25
1 Peter 5:7
2 Timothy 1:12
Ephesians 6: 1-3
Deuteronomy 28: 13
Deuteronomy 28: 3, 6

Psalm 91:11
Psalm 91:2
Psalm 3:3
Colossians 3:21
Ephesians 6:4
Proverbs 22:6
Psalm 8: 1,2
Psalm 9: 2,3
Luke 2: 52

Praise God for…

 The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in him, and I am helped: therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth; and with my song will I praise him. Psalm 28:7

• …God’s loving provision over us – for the granted travelling mercies, the safe removal of the grass seed from Moonlight’s eye, the food that He so generously puts on the table each day and for His Word, so that we can become more like Him with each passing day.

• God’s very own Son, the LORD Jesus Christ, who died to save us from our sins. May we always strive to be like Him and seeking His face.
  

•  … my husband – he works so tirelessly to keep our home, farm  and homeschool running smoothly and for his love and dedication to our family.

• … our children, who will learn whatever they need to learn when they need to learn it; for my son and his dedication to graphic design and for my daughter and her willingness to help whenever we need help.

• …friends – blogging friends, internet friends and IRL friends who make this world the most beautiful place in which to live. I have met some of the most delightful people through the blogging and internet world.
  

• …our goats, and the milk that they provide, so that we can make our own farm-fresh butter – our Toggenburg nannies are settling in well, now and are the friendliest of all.

•  answered prayer - my chest infection is finally beginning to clear – thank you to all of you who asked for prayer for me.

• I pray for relief from the fires still burning in New South Wales, and for the firefighters bravely battling the fires.

• I also praise our Almighty God for keeping the Dudek family out of jail – their “crime”, homeschooling their children. Please keep the German homeschoolers in your prayers, and also pray that Germany’s homeschooling laws will be repealed. At the moment, it is illegal to homeschool in Germany – Germany claiming that the education of the children is the state’s responsibility. There are about 400 homeschooling families in Germany and almost all are operating underground or are in court. Please pray for homeschooling freedom in Germany.

• Praise God for the cooler weather after the abundance of hot weather that we received, for it has surely been a welcome relief.

Would you like to see more praise posts, or perhaps you’d like to participate in praise yourself? Then head on over to Jennifer’s to see some more praises.

Pt. Pirie and the Doctor’s Visit Yesterday

Hymn we are Singing for the next Month