Dear Ones,
This has been quite a weekend with the assassination attempt on Trump’s life and we need to pray for our nation as never before. Today I plan to go to my exercise class and pack, and you can read where we are going tomorrow in the following devotion.
Devotions from Judy’s heart
Recently, I was reading about Poustinia which is an unstructured time we go apart to be with the Lord. It is any quiet place alone and we are free to pray, rest, walk, breathe in the Spirit and just be free with the Lord. Its time spent just loving the Lord for He loved us first and we are loving Him back. There is no need to be uptight and have a schedule, but it is a time to relax, think about the Lord and His words and spend some enjoying His presence in silence. Poustinia can be just in a room of a house, but the fact is we are alone with God and letting him love us.

Not long ago we got a call from dear friends who we have known for many years and pray for them and their family daily. In fact, they are like family to us. They wanted both Al and I to be on the phone together as they had something to ask us. Not many times people call and say they have a gift for us, and will we accept, and this was the gift of a retreat option. They had rented a lovely home about an hour away for 2 days and nights in July and wanted us to join them for a time of retreat.  The house overlooks the lake and has 4 bedrooms and 3 baths and is inviting but that isn’t all… They are going to plan how the time is spent and provide the food, and all we have to do is come join them. What a gift! When I was reading about Poustinia, I thought this will be not only time with the 4 of us sharing the Lord together, but we also will have time alone in a room by ourselves, or by the water etc. where we can just be with the Lord. All we need is our Bibles and the rest of the time is up to the Lord. We are excited already and anticipating that special time.

I will write after our experience to let you know what it is like, but it is something everyone can do. If you desire to have your own Poustinia you may want to have a room by yourself, even if it is a closet, where you can be alone with the Lord. There may be times you simply sleep because rest is needed and like it says in Song of Solomon 5:2, “I went to sleep but my heart stayed awake.” Let it be a time to enjoy the Lord, think about Him, think about His words, and just enjoy Him.
Challenge for today: Take time today to be alone with the Lord and express your love to Him.
Blessings on your week and prayers and love, Judy