Dear Ones,
Happy Weekend to you! We had a big Birthday party yesterday and welcomed some of the new residents also. Our retreatant came afterwards, and we spent time eating, sharing and praying.  Today he will have some alone time with the Lord, maybe a walk on the Paul Bunyan and wants to take us out for supper tonight. Praying he goes home rested and refreshed and renewed!
Devotions from Judy’s heart
We have probably all seen strong willed children throwing temper tantrums to get their way and it tries the patience of not only the parents but all those within hearing distance. But I wonder how many of us are like them, only not so obvious, but yet determined to get our way. I was reading a devotion from Joyce Meyers and she asks the question, “What is the first thing you turn to when you need to overcome a problem?” She goes on to say that whatever “that” is, that is where we are placing our trust.

We all have a choice of where we will choose to put our trust. Do we turn to the Lord first or are we determined to get our own way by our own power? If we try to solve things by our own will power, we may go on for a while, but it will give out, I promise you, and often about midway. The Lord, however, can save us all the energy spent and time wasted for He asks us to come to Him. He desires that we turn to Him first and He will release His mighty power into the situations of our lives to accomplish that which we were never meant to on our own. John says in I John 4:4, “Greater is He that is in you, than He that is in the world.” Apart from the Lord we can do nothing!

There is great power in the name of Jesus, and often I just sing the song, especially when I know my need for Him is great. “In the name of Jesus, in the name of Jesus, we have the victory! In the name of Jesus, in the name of Jesus, demons will have to flee. Who can tell what God can do. Who can tell of His love for you. In the name of Jesus, Jesus, we have the victory.” I also find it really helps to just start praising Him when I feel attacked by the enemy. If I am in the car, I praise Him at the top of my lungs! Often the songs are scripture set to music and what can be better than to sing back scripture to the Lord and personalize it.

Let us always remember that the Lord is for us, and when we turn to Him when attacked by the enemy, His power is far greater than any power of ours or of the world. Let us put our trust in Him, not ourselves or any other power.

Challenge for today: Put a scripture to memory that speaks of the great power of the Lord and speak boldly when you feel attacked.
Blessings on your weekend and prayers and love, Judy