Dear Ones,

Happy weekend to you! We are packed and ready to go to WI and prayers are appreciated. Taylor runs a coffee shop and we want to eat where she works and get a feel of their Christian community. Yesterday we went next door to Assisted Living  to pray for our former neighbor who will soon be home with the Lord. What a great day for her!

Devotions from Judy’s heart
How do we live our lives each day? Would that we all would be like the Psalmist who prayed, “Teach us, dear Lord, to number our days that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.” (Psalm 90:12) Al and I are becoming more aware as we age that our time in this world is going to run out. We don’t have a lot of time left and we realize more and more that time is a gift, and we need to make good choices as to how to live in the present.

Haven’t we all thought at one time or other of what people will say about us at our funeral? What would they remember about us that stood out to them?  Would they say that we loved well or that we served with compassion or that we worked hard? What things really matter? It is something we all need to think about lest we live lives devoid of purpose, becoming apathetic, distracted or even bored. How much better if we focus on what is important: putting down roots of faith, nourishing our souls, prayer and time with the Lord, work, loving relationships, etc. In other words, really living, not just going through the motions of empty routines.

We were meant to live each day with the awareness of the Lord’s presence, listening to what He has to say to us, letting Him love us and direct our lives. In prayer we give the Lord our focused attention and even our minds become renewed. At the end of the day, it’s good to think back to the times we experienced God’s grace, and also the low times where we failed, asking for His forgiveness and then for His help living well tomorrow. We all need to have a day of rest, a Sabbath rest, and choose to even put aside our phone and breathe in fresh air to our souls. We will find we are actually more productive and creative after taking day of rest. Life is not a treadmill and we need times for restoration.

Let us think of how we want our lives to be formed, giving time and attention to what is most important and how we would like to be remembered.

Challenge for today: Ask yourself if you are spending the majority of your time in line with your priorities.
Blessings on your weekend and prayers and love, Judy
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