✝️Spiritual Inventory: Halfway through 2023 & End of Month: Remember, Review, Reflect
😺 Passages: James 1: 25 & The Parable of the Lost Son (Luke 15:11-32), Matthew 11: 28-29, Proverbs 20:24
📖Throughout June, my ponderings revolved around the trials, temptations, & the challenges we face in truly knowing the Lord & living our lives based on His Word. But what happens when we make selfish choices? Despite our shortcomings, God still makes a way for us. We must “come to our senses” & acknowledge our need for His guidance. By studying His Word, seeking His wisdom through prayer, & continuously moving forward, we prepare ourselves to do better. We ask God to carry our burdens & grant us rest, & in doing so, we experience the rewards of being followers of Christ.
💭Do I believe that God planned for me to become an expat before I was born? To be honest, I don’t have a definitive answer. It’s beyond my understanding. What I do know is that during a period of personal desperation, I turned to God & He led me to leave my home. We tested His direction by returning to Lubbock, & everything seemed to be going well. Then, without much thought, we made the selfish decision to move to the Netherlands. There was no prayer involved in that decision. However, God took that selfish choice & worked it for my good. He placed His hand on me & directed me back to Him while I was in Amsterdam.
✝️After a year there, on my birthday, all by myself, I attended The English Reformed Church in Amsterdam (How I found it is another God wink!). It was there that my faith grew & I discovered my own identity in Christ. This time, my faith was built solely on my personal relationship with God. While my Christian roots are deep, my previous experience had largely been influenced by the faith instilled in me by my family. But now, I came back to God purely from my heart. In Amsterdam, I found myself in the minority among my circle of friends, but God used that experience to mature me & draw me closer to Him.
🔔When my mom visited me & I took her to “my church,” I was no longer just “my mom’s daughter,” but “the Texan.” Although the choice to move to the Netherlands may not have seemed like God’s plan for me, He used it to prepare me for the biggest trials that would come next in my life. I regained a genuine desire for God, not out of pressure or expectations, but from a deep longing within me.
📆 Time to check in on how your month went? Whatever you are doing today, stop & look at where you have come in 1 month.
💭Ponder these questions:
❓How did you face any challenges/struggles this month?
❓How did you celebrate your victories?
❓Did you move forward in your spiritual journey/goals, stay stagnant or backslide?
❓Did you doubt/question God this month?
❓Did you try to love others as Jesus loves them & you?
❓Did you let worldly/earthly views influence your mood, decisions, paths?
❓Did you share your relationship with Christ with anyone this month?
📣Now take everything you have thought about for June & PRAY on it. Let it go!
👏Thank you for joining me & Puko all of June studying James 1 & The Parable of the Lost Son (Luke 15: 11-32) Join us in July for Philippians 4 & Psalm 16.
🚨Be sure to check our new Website: pukosporch.com for all my monthly ponderings in case you missed anything. I encourage you to always study on your time as the posts are always available. 😉
💬 What do you need to let go of from June? Health, Work, School, Job, Family Struggles, Financial Struggles? I am praying for you & believe good things are coming!
🎹Song Choice: “Carry Me” by Ryan Stevenson (Link & Lyrics Below)
🙏🏻🐈⬛ Oh Heavenly Father we thank you for helping us through another month on this Earth. We want to praise you for amazing victories. Lord we know we have not been perfect & forgive us for when we make choices based on the World & not guided by your Word. Lord help us & hear our cries for help when we do not have words. With our faith in you, our hearts are cleansed and purified from our past. And all God’s children said, Amen!
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Lyrics
“Carry Me”
Heavy heart inside my chest
I try so hard I give my best
These tired legs are shaking
Don’t know how much longer I can take it
One step forward and two steps back
This narrow road ain’t an easy path
Feeling so defeated
More than anything I’ve ever needed
I need You to carry me
Lord, won’t You carry me
All my weary is weighing down
Without You I won’t make it out
So won’t You, carry me
Jesus please, carry me
‘Cause all the fight in me is gone
I need Your strength to carry on
So won’t You, carry me
I’m feeling lost but I’m not lost hope
Cause I find peace when I let go
Even in this season, when it’s hard for me to see it
So take this burden and make it light
Take this weight it was never mine
In Your arms there is healing, more than anything I’ve ever needed
I need You to carry me
Lord, won’t You carry me
All my weary is weighing down
Without You I won’t make it out
So won’t You, carry me
Jesus please, carry me
‘Cause all the fight in me is gone
I need Your strength to carry on
So won’t You, carry me
Through this valley I’m facing
All this weight I can’t take it
It’s more than I can do, Oh
I need You to, carry me
So close to Your heart Lord
Wanna fall in Your arms Lord
There’s nothing left to do but run to You so
Carry me
Lord, carry me
I need You
Carry me
Lord, won’t You carry me
All my weary is weighing down
Without You I won’t make it out
So won’t You, carry me
Jesus please, carry me
‘Cause all the fight in me is gone
I need Your strength to carry on
So won’t You, carry me
Carry me
Carry me
I won’t make it alone
Through this valley I’m facing
All this weight I can’t take it
It’s more than I can do, Oh
I need You to
Carry me
Carry me
Carry me