Prayer in the Laundry Room

April 23rd, 2012 dsisler

Last year, my dryer went on the fritz. Mason worked on it several times and we thought that perhaps it was repaired, but finally, it quit.
I made multiple trips to the Laundromat, and then we decided it was time to begin the search for a newer washer and dryer.
We found the perfect set. On sale. In red. So it was purchased and delivered, with the old washer and dryer to be taken out at that point.
They were beautiful! My laundry room is quite small and these heavy duty machines take up most of the floor space, but they are beautiful.
We didn’t purchase the bases (they were a little costly) so I practically have to sit on the floor to move clothes from the washer to the dryer, but they are beautiful.
There is no room to turn around in the laundry room now, but my washer and dryer are beautiful.
The owner’s manual was a delight to read. Pages and pages filled with the functions each machine will perform. Many of which I have yet to use. They did send the CliffsNotes version for each manual to hang on the side of the pair, in case I’m in too much of a hurry to read the entire manual to determine which setting to use.
But the greatest feature of these machines is that if something goes wrong; like if they quit working, or if the lights stay on for no reason, or if the door won’t shut, or any number of issues, I simply call customer service.
After reaching a person in customer service, they will ask to speak to the washer or the dryer. Yes, they will.
I am to hold the phone up to the malfunctioning machine and then I am to move a knob to a specific location. The machine will then speak to the customer service representative.
The machine will tell the customer service representative exactly what the issue is and why it has refused to work. I hope the issue won’t include the pile of towels sitting on top of the machine, or that the door is slammed just a touch to harshly on occasion, or that this family simply does too much laundry.
Oh the perils in the laundry room!
Isn’t it wonderful that our heavenly Father is waiting for us to communicate with Him? He can’t wait for me to say, “Hi” or “Good Morning!”

Unfortunately, we take God for granted, believing that He will always be there, even if we don’t speak to Him. And we sometimes wait until something has gone wrong before opening the line of communication with Him.

If we only pray to God when there are tough situations in our lives, we will never know the joy of praying to Him when life is good.
Psalm 100:4 tells us to “Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name.” Praising God through prayer is such a freeing expression. Why wouldn’t you want to praise Him? Don’t hesitate to praise Him daily.
Psalm 34:1 says that we are to continually praise Him. “I will extol the Lord at all times; his praise will always be on my lips.” Praise through prayer is to be continual. Always. Non-stop.
I love Ephesians 3:20. It is at the end of Paul’s prayer to the Ephesian church. He says, “Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.” When we know God will do more than we could ever imagine, it is much easier to drop to our knees in prayer. On any occasion.
Yes there will be trials. Yes there will be suffering, but with God on our side, why wouldn’t we seek Him? Why wouldn’t we run to Him in every situation? To be honest, that is a hard question to answer. Or maybe it isn’t hard, it’s just complicated.
For me, I sometimes fail and don’t pray to Him on a regular basis because I’m too busy. Sometimes I forget to praise Him. On occasion it takes a painful situation to bring me to Him. I don’t want to be that kind of person. I want to be in communication with God from the moment I wake up until the time my eyes close in sleep. Praising Him all the day long.
Won’t you join me? Spend a moment right now giving praise to your heavenly Father. Thank Him for His blessings and His grace. Let Him know how much you love Him. How you adore Him. How without Him, your life would have no meaning. Tell Him how sorry you are for not praying as often as you should or for taking Him for granted.
With great patience, God is waiting. Waiting for you to talk to Him. To tell Him all about your day. The good and the bad.
Fortunately, we haven’t had to call customer service for our washer or dryer. Yet. I know the day will come, but until then, I will continue to use this pair as I usually do. But, I will be praying in the process.
Grace and peace be yours in abundance,
Donna
Share

One More Time

April 22nd, 2012 dsisler

I returned from our ladies getaway at church late yesterday afternoon. The theme was Extreme Takeover…allowing God to take over every bit of my life. To clean out my spiritual closet and totally make me over. Giving Him control of each and every aspect.

Our speaker, Cindy Dagnan, was so good. I really cannot say enough about her. The Holy Spirit is so alive within this woman of God. Her message is clear. Trust God. Allow Him to fill you with His presence. Push Satan away and do not allow him to get a hold of any part of your life.
It was yet another spiritual high.
But. My flesh is weak. My flesh fails. Oh, how it fails.
In the midst of this glorious weekend in Estes Park, I found myself being ugly. Words flowed from my lips that were not pleasing to God. I know, because as soon as they were out, my heart sank. I had gossiped. And I was miserable.
I spoke with my husband a couple of times while I was away and each time he was a little cranky. Understandably cranky. He had a long day at work, he had to get up early on his day off, he wasn’t feeling well, and he needed to get some yard work done. He was tired.
 But I so quickly jumped into the role of being a critical wife. My attitude took a nose dive. I chose to be a little cranky right back at him. Once again, my heart sank. I was miserable.
Satan had undone all of God’s work in just a matter of minutes.
I placed my head in my hands and cried out to God. “Please forgive me for not following You…yet again. I do not want to be this way. Please help me to change. Please pull me closer to You.”
My mind quickly went to Ephesians chapter 4. It follows the section of putting off the old self and putting on the new self.“Created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.” (Ephesians 4:24) It’s a long passage, but it needs to be right in the middle of this post.
“Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Get rid of all bitterness, rage, and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.”
My mouth and my attitude will get me into trouble every time. It is only with the aid of the Holy Spirit that I am a new creature, an imitator of God, with the right words and attitude.
Before I left for the getaway, this was my post on Facebook:
“Headed to women’s retreat today…so looking forward to it. It’s been several years since I’ve been able to enjoy a retreat. Awesome speaker returning as well. My prayer: Lord, fill me with You. If I am filled with You, everything else that I need or desire will be satisfied. Amen.
‘Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love, that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days.’ (Psalm 90:14)”
This is still my prayer. Satisfy me.
Grace and peace be yours in abundance,
Donna
Share

My Desire

April 21st, 2012 dsisler

Winter came. The leaves fell off the branches of trees. It was looking pretty bleak.
Until.
Until I saw something special in a tree in my neighbor’s front yard. It was beautiful. It was what I had always wanted (okay, maybe that’s an exaggeration). Still, it was something I never dreamed of being within my grasp.
My Grandfather on my Dad’s side had a hornet’s nest in his dining room. I believe my sister was with Grandpa when he spotted it. She stopped and asked if she could have it. There it sat in the dining room. Very much out of place in this formal setting.
The memories of that nest brought such a longing to my heart. I wanted that hornet’s nest!
My neighbor was out in the yard, so I ventured over and asked about the hornet’s nest in their tree. I wanted to know if I could have it!
It was given to me, so I started the research. I figured I’d be able to get it at some point, but how long would be a safe amount of time before cutting it out of the tree?
A Google search was all it took. I would just need to wait until I was certain there was no activity within the nest and cut it down.
So we waited.
We waited until it was a cold, cold day, pulled out the ladder and up my husband went to cut the branch out. With hornet’s nest in hand, I headed back to the house with my newest treasure.
I desired this nest. I would have done whatever was necessary to get it. But I didn’t know I desired it until I saw it. Until I knew it was there. Then, I wanted it more than anything!
Sometimes we know our hearts desire. For a young woman, finding the perfect mate is her desire. For a college student, a decent grade on a test is their desire. For an aging saint, heaven becomes a deep desire.
But then there are the times we really don’t know what our desire is until we see it. Like the hornet’s nest. Or a certain blouse. Or that large fish that just jumped in the lake. Then, that desire becomes important.
God has quite a bit to say about our hearts desires. Let’s see what His Word says.
First of all, Paul states, “I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out,” in Romans 7:18. We know what we want to do, but it doesn’t always come out the way we desired.
Fortunately for us, God forgives and He heals and He redeems and He satisfies. He satisfies our desires. “Praise the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits—who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.” (Psalm 103:2-5)
David praised God for the abundance his nation had experienced. He also asked that God would help them keep their desire and loyalty. “O Lord our God, as for all this abundance that we have provided for building you a temple for your Holy Name, it comes from your hand, and all of it belongs to you. I know, my God, that you test the heart and are pleased with integrity. All these things have I given willingly and with honest intent. And now I have seen with joy how willingly your people who are here have given to you. O Lord, God of our fathers Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, keep this desire in the hearts of your people forever, and keep their hearts loyal to you.” (1 Chronicles 29:16-18)
The next few verses tell us that along with desire comes obedience and love.
“Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart.” (Psalm 37:4)
“I desire to do your will, O my God; your law is within my heart.” (Psalm 40:8)
“May he give you the desire of your heart and make all your plans succeed.” (Psalm 20:4)
“Yes, Lord, walking in the way of your laws, we wait for you; your name and renown are the desires of our hearts.” (Isaiah 26:8)
I believe God also wants us to desire salvation of others. Paul states in Romans 10:1, “Brothers, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for the Israelites is that they may be saved.” This verse specifically says the Israelites, but we can believe that God’s desire is for all to come to Him.
When it is all said and done, my desire is to be like Jesus. My desire is to see all come to know God and Jesus as their personal Savior. My desire is to know, love, and understand God’s Word so that I might live my life to honor and praise Him.
My hornet’s nest is not in my dining room…it is in a tree in a little nature scene I have designed above my front door. I can see this hornet’s nest each day and it reminds me of my Grandfather and what he meant to me.
Grace and peace be yours in abundance,
Donna
Share

A Painted Picture

April 20th, 2012 dsisler

Have I mentioned lately how beautiful our Colorado Rocky Mountains are? Well, they have been simply gorgeous this past week. We had some snow in the mountains and it makes for a picture perfect moment when you see them.
And then there are the mornings when the sun is just rising in the east. Upon looking to the west, a pinkish, orange glow covers the snow-capped mountains and it is breath taking!
One morning this week, I was out and about quite early and as I was heading west, the mountains went through their transformation. What was unusual on this particular day was that they looked as if they had been painted.
Brush strokes of each color filled my view as if God had painted it specifically for me.
It was truly an inspiring moment.
I enjoy reading descriptions of how God created this world. David was especially good at this in the Psalms. Let’s look at a few of them.
“O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory above the heavens…When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place…” (Psalm 8: 1-2a, 3a)
“The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.” (Psalm 19:1)
“The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world and all who live in it; for he founded it upon the seas and established it upon the waters.” (Psalm 24:1-2)
“By the word of the Lord were the heavens made, their starry host by the breath of his mouth. He gathers the waters of the sea into jars, he puts the deep into storehouses.” (Psalm 33:6-7)
“It was you who opened up springs and streams; you dried up the ever flowing rivers. The day is yours, and yours also the night; you established the sun and moon. It was you who set all the boundaries of the earth; you made both summer and winter.” (Psalm 74:15-17)
“In his hand are the depths of the earth, and the mountain peaks belong to him. The sea is his, for he made it, and his hands formed the dry land. Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the Lord our Maker.” (Psalm 95:4-6)
“Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. His love endures forever. To him who alone does great wonders who by his understanding made the heavens, who spread out the earth upon the waters, who made the great lights—the sun to govern the day, the moon and stars to govern the night…with a mighty hand and outstretched arm; His love endures forever.” (Psalm 136:1, 4-9, 12)
“Praise the Lord from the heavens, praise him in the heights above. Praise him, all his angels, praise him, all his heavenly hosts. Praise him, sun and moon, praise him, all you shining stars. Praise him, you highest heavens and waters above the skies. Let them praise the name of the Lord for he commanded and they were created. Praise the Lord from the earth, you great sea creatures and all ocean depths, lightning and hail, snow and clouds, stormy winds that do his bidding, you mountains and all hills, fruit trees and all cedars, wild animals and all cattle, small creatures and flying birds.”(Psalm 148:1-10)
With all the beauty we have here on earth, it’s never difficult to praise God for His creation. Everything on earth, everything God created, praises Him. Even the glorious Rocky Mountains bring praise to God. They are a reminder to lift our hands and voices to worship Him for what He has done.
Thank you God for Your creativity, for Your thoughtfulness, for Your desire to give mankind a beautiful earth. Thank you for the beautifully painted picture You designed just for me.
“Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the Lord our Maker.” (Psalm 95:6)
Grace and peace be yours in abundance,
Donna
Share

Change

April 19th, 2012 dsisler

You’ve probably noticed yet another change in the style of my blog. There is a good reason for the change. After the initial modification, I heard comments like, “I liked the red…I felt like I was sitting in your family room.” “Where is the red?” “It felt warm the way it was before.” “It was you!”
So after trying a different look (for quite a while I might add), I’ve decided to combine the two. A red background with black lettering on white. It should fulfill all of our desires and needs.
To be honest, I liked it the way it was originally. I’m a red person. But I’m also a red and white person, so I think I will like this template in the long run.
Sometimes it is easy to get caught up in the “what’s new” arena. You know what I’m talking about. Pinterest, LinkedIn, Tumblr, and that old friend, Facebook. I thought by changing my blog to the “new” style, I would be doing something “right.”
I was wrong.
Sometimes it is okay to keep things the way it’s always been. Change just because you can is a poor reason to change.
So I’m back to red.
While I believe we are to change for our spiritual maturity, I also know that God doesn’t change. He is the same today as He was in the beginning.
There are numerous verses of Scripture to lead us in that direction.
The last book of the Old Testament shares the message with the Hebrew nation. Malachi 3:6 “I the Lord do not change.” God does not change, nor does His commitment or His purpose.
Hebrews 7:21 assures us that God will not change His mind either. “The Lord has sworn and will not change his mind; You are a priest forever.”
We also see that Jesus remains the same in Hebrews 13:8 “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.”
“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.” (James 1:17) Gifts come from a Father who doesn’t change. Unlike other people in our lives or even the circumstances of our lives, God will not change.
And in the last book of the Bible, we see more evidence of this unchanging God. “’I am the Alpha and the Omega,’ says the Lord God, ‘who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.’” (Revelation 1:8) Yes, the First and Last, who is, was, and is to come is unchanging.
Everything changes in our lives. From what my hair looks like each day to favorite restaurants closing to lanes on the expressway being moved for construction to the design of a blog post.
The one thing we can count on to never change is God. God, His purpose, His commitment, His Word. Never has changed. And never, ever will change.
Praise the Lord, He never changes!
Grace and peace be yours in abundance,
Donna
Share
« Older Entries
Newer Entries »

  • Subscribe by Email

  • About Me

  • "I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which He has called you, the riches of His glorious inheritance in the saints, and His incomparably great power for us who believe." Ephesians 1:18-19

  • I am a devoted wife, mother, and grandmother. I lived in the beautiful state of Colorado for 20 years where I found great inspiration for my novels and devotional writings. Currently living in Jacksonville, Florida.

  • I am passionate about helping women find their way to Jesus through Bible study, teaching, speaking, inspirational writing and creative Bible journaling.

  • Bible Studies & Other Happenings

    Bible studies I’m currently leading:

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    In September 2012 I went to SE Asia on a service trip. For more information, check out preachitclearly.blogspot.com.

  • Categories

  • Recent Posts

Visit Us On TwitterVisit Us On FacebookVisit Us On PinterestVisit Us On Linkedin