A Prayer for Finishing Strong

May 7, 2024 by Leave a Comment

Do you know someone trying to finish a project or reach a goal? Maybe a family member just about to graduate from high school or college or trying to complete an advanced degree? Or perhaps some of your teacher friends are trying to hang in there the last few weeks of the school year.

You may even be in the trying-to-finish category yourself right now. I know I am. The manuscript for my Christmas devotional book is due to the publisher on August 1 so I’m in the last stages of writing, editing, and polishing it. I’ve had several challenges to overcome in getting this far, and I need to keep pressing on until the job is complete and I’ve done the best I can do.

Those who are trying to finish a race right now probably need some encouragement and moral support, don’t they?

Join me, won’t you, in a prayer for all who are trying to finish strong:

Dear Lord, you are a finisher. You came to earth with a task to do and you completed it. You are also busy completing the good works you began in each of us. Help us, Lord, as we push on to finish the tasks you’ve set before us.

Help us to not grow weary or distracted or discouraged. Please grant us the energy, the drive, and the skill needed to finish strong. And help us remember, Lord, to offer thanks and give you glory as we cross our finish lines. We need you, Lord, and can’t do it without you. Thank you for your help!

“As the time approached for him to be taken up to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem.” Luke 9:51 NIV

*Are you trying to finish strong right now? May our prayers encourage you today!

*The current issue of Life Notes, my quarterly inspirational newsletter with a giveaway in every regularly scheduled issue, came out last week. It’s not too late to receive it. Sign-up is FREE. *Temporary problem with Life Notes sign-up. To sign up, just contact me.

*For info about my book Mother of the Bride and also my Wedding Inspiration cards, check out my Books/My Work page.

*Flickr photo by Loco Races, Creative Commons License

Filed Under: Above and Beyond, challenge, determination, encouragement, fighter, finish, focus, goal, life, perseverance, prayer, strength, success, victory Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , ,

7 Sentence-Prayers Inviting God’s Power—For Living a Life of Perseverance

August 6, 2019 by Leave a Comment

My year-long blog series of sentence prayers inviting God’s power comes to an end today with our focus turning to perseverance. A fitting conclusion to help us all face the future and whatever challenges may come our way, right?

Perseverance is that quality, that determination we need to press on to achieve goals or to not give up in the midst of difficult life situations. And we will need it time and again throughout our lives. Some of us, depending on our situations, need it on an on-going basis.

May the following sentence prayers help you stand strong as you call on God to help you persevere. Be encouraged today, friends, and I pray that this blog series has been a help to you. May it bless you now and in the future as well!

7 Sentence-Prayers Inviting God’s Power—For Living a Life of Perseverance

  1. Father, when I’m tempted to give up, remind me of all that Jesus endured and how he pressed on until his mission was completed. (Romans 12:3; Mark 8:31; Luke 9:51; John 19:30)
  2. Lord, empower me to follow your persevering example of love and forgiveness extended to all. (Psalm 89:28; Psalm 136; Lamentations 3:22-23; Matthew 18:21-22; Luke 6:36; Romans 8:38-39; Ephesians 1:7; 1 John 1:9)
  3. Father, encourage me in perseverance with powerful verses from your Word and give me the wisdom and the self-discipline to hide them in my heart. (Deuteronomy 32:47; Psalm 119:11, 28; Jeremiah 15:16; 2 Timothy 3:16)
  4. Lord, bring people into my life at just the right time to give the encouragement and help I need to not give up. (Exodus 17:8-13; Judges 20:22; Acts 15:32; 28:15; 1 Thessalonians 3;2; 5:11)
  5. Lord, help me keep my eyes on you and on the prize—the goal achieved, the finish line. (Hebrews 12:1-3; Luke 13:32; 1 Corinthians 9:24; Philippians 3:13-14)
  6. Father, protect me from Satan and help me stand firm against him when he tries to discourage and defeat me. (Psalm 31:8; 108;12; Ephesians 6:11, 13-18; 1 Peter 5:8)
  7. Lord, be my source of strength as I persevere in faith, in challenges, and in my life circumstances. (2 Chronicles 16:9; Psalm 18:1-2; 89:21; Isaiah 41:10; Ephesians 3:16; Colossians 2:6-7)

May God strengthen us all to live lives of perseverance for his glory!

“In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.” Matthew 5:16 NIV

*Which of these prayers speak most powerfully to your needs today?

*The current issue of Life Notes, my quarterly inspirational newsletter with a giveaway in every regularly scheduled issue, came out last week. It’s not too late to receive it. Sign-up is FREE and to the right! (If you’re on a mobile device, scroll to the bottom of the screen and click View Full Site to find it.)

*For info about my book Mother of the Bride and also my Wedding Inspiration cards, check out my Books/My Work page.

*Flickr photo by pocketwiley, Creative Commons License

Filed Under: challenge, determination, encouragement, faith, fighter, finish, help, life, perseverance, prayer, victory, Word of God Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , ,

Wedding Planning Tip: Post-Wedding Inventory

April 17, 2018 by Leave a Comment

Mother of the Bride, one of the smartest things you can do in the days following your daughter’s wedding is to take inventory of all the décor and supplies you have left. If you are planning to save items for another daughter’s wedding or for friends or family members’ use, a list of available items will be a lifesaver.

If you make a detailed list, you won’t have to waste time looking for things and unpacking them in order to get a count. When it comes time for your next daughter’s wedding or when a friend asks to borrow something, you’ll know exactly what you have left and how many of each item. What a huge help and timesaver.

To take inventory, simply make your list as you go through the leftover supplies when you’re preparing to store them after the wedding. When you and your helpers packed up everything as you left the reception, things most likely got disorganized. Instead of storing them like that, group like items together and take a count as you go.

Make note of how many white rose garlands you have left. Jot down the number of crystal candle bases you have available. Write down everything. You never know what might be useful to someone later.

Yes, MOB, there are a few duties to attend to after the wedding and taking inventory is one of them. Give yourself a few days reprieve and then dive in. Don’t neglect it. It will end up being a blessing to you and to others as well.

*You might also like to read After the Wedding: Thank Top-Notch Vendors and Prediction: A Special Memento for the Couple.

*For info about my book Mother of the Bride check out my Books/My Work page.

*The next issue of Life Notes, my quarterly inspirational newsletter, comes out in early May. One lucky subscriber will receive a $15 gift card to Barnes & Noble and a signed copy of my book to use personally, give as a gift, or donate to a library. Sign-up is free and to the right! (If you’re on a mobile device, scroll to the bottom of the screen and click View Full Site to find it.)

*Hope this slightly revised encore post from February 2014 was helpful to you today!

*Flickr photo by DoNotLick, Creative Commons License

Filed Under: Above and Beyond, advice, cleaning, finish, help, inventory, Mother of the Bride, organize, preparation, simplify Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Table Décor Finishing Touch: Fresh Rose Petals

October 17, 2017 by Leave a Comment

Mother of the Bride, here’s a quick decorating tip for your daughter’s big day—ask your florist to sprinkle fresh rose petals on all the tables at the reception. Guest tables, cake tables, photo tables, buffet tables. They look beautiful everywhere. All it takes is a few scattered here and there.

Fresh rose petals add the perfect finishing touch—a splash of color and oh so delicate. They might even provide a whiff of fragrance. Plus the lush look of fresh rose petals just can’t be duplicated with the silk variety.

At our daughter Kristin’s wedding, it was actually our cake baker and not our florist who added the final cake decoration of fresh roses and then surprised us by scattering petals from some of the same roses on all the tables. Not only was it gorgeous, but it helped tie all the décor together by incorporating the flowers from the cake. Thanks so much to Emeline from Grandeur Affaires: Nibbles Café in Tulsa, OK for adding so much to the overall beauty of the reception.

So check with your daughter, MOB, and see if she might want to add this delicate final touch to the tables at her wedding. Tell her I highly recommend it! :)

*You might also like to read Wedding Table Décor: Add Pizzazz with Confetti, Table Décor for Rustic Weddings, and Bride’s and Bridesmaids’ Bouquets as Cake Table Décor.

The next issue of Life Notes, my quarterly inspirational newsletter, comes out in early November. One lucky subscriber (new or current) will receive $15 gift card to Barnes & Noble and a signed copy of my book to use personally, give as a gift, or donate to a library. Sign-up is free and to the right! (If you’re on a mobile device, scroll to the bottom of the screen and click View Full Site to find it.)

*Since the readership here on my blog is ever-changing, I hope this encore post from October 2013 helped you today!

*Photo by Chris Humphrey

Filed Under: beauty, bride, finish, flowers, Mother of the Bride, table Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Revisiting and Refreshing Our 2014 Theme Words

May 5, 2014 by 7 Comments

DSC05212Remember the theme words many of us adopted at the beginning of the year? Now that a third of 2014 has come and gone, maybe we should each revisit our words and the focus we adopted for the year and see how we’re doing. Anyone game for a little evaluation and renewal of good intentions?

My theme word for 2014 is guard. I admit I don’t think of it as often as I should, but the Lord has brought it to mind several times to help steer me in the right direction when I’ve needed wisdom for certain decisions or situations. Since one of the purposes of a theme word is to help guide us through the year, my word guard is fulfilling that role.

I’ve done fairly well applying the word guard to some areas of my life so far this year, but in other areas, I haven’t let it play much of a role. And that’s not because of a refusal to let it impact those areas, but instead because of a lack of awareness. I forget to apply my theme word. And even in the areas where I’m doing pretty well, I could benefit from an even deeper ongoing remembrance of it. How about you? Are you thinking of specific areas of strength and weakness in regard to your theme word the way I am?

Also, at the beginning of the year, I predicted that areas I hadn’t yet thought of where being on guard would be needed would come to light as the year went on, and that’s proven to be true. Recently, as I read the “My Identity” chapter in Prayers for a Woman’s Soul by Julie Gillies, I saw that Satan, the enemy of our souls, is ready and waiting for opportunities to steal our identities in Christ from us. That old deceiver wants to snatch the truth of who we are as children of God and replace it with his lies. And oh how often I’ve let him do that! I need to not only be on guard against his tactics, but I also need to proactively guard my identity by planting the Word firmly in my mind and heart and by recalling it often.

As we’ve revisited our theme words today, I hope each of us has been encouraged by our successes, prodded to action in areas of weakness, and made aware of new areas of application. Refresher courses are a good thing, aren’t they? What do you say—let’s renew our focus. Let’s allow our theme words to do their jobs!

“Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize.” 1 Corinthians 9:24

*Do you have a theme word for 2014? Have you seen benefits yet?

*My photo

*The new issue of Life Notes, my quarterly inspirational newsletter, comes out today. It’s not too late to receive it. Sign-up is free and to the right!

*Don’t miss out on the Going Natural Giveaway! Deadline to enter is 6 p.m. Wednesday. See post for details.

Filed Under: encouragement, finish, focus, goal, judgement, refresh, victory
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