You Thought You Weren't One

The most unexpected thing happened to me yesterday.

Seated next to my daughter and her best friend, I opened my Bible to the passage and listened as the pastor began to read Luke 15. While he was reading this familiar passage, powerful emotion rose up from some place deep within me. He arrived at verse 24 and it was as if the world around me went into slow motion. Every part of me was engaged and experiencing this sentence. He spoke slowly and with purpose, each word emphasized and as I listened, tears welled. I felt the full impact of my salvation all over again.

With eyes spilling, I struggled to control the tide washing over me. I teetered on the verge of becoming a blubbering idiot right there in the extremely quiet worship center. But I determined to spare my 16-year-old daughter the uncomfortable reality of her mother becoming a complete spectacle in front of 500 people.

The 15th chapter of Luke is one of the many stories told by Jesus. And if you read our book, Winning Him Without Words, my introduction begins with this very passage. You also know that I am the epitome of this wayward son. I am the prodigal daughter. It’s no wonder as I sat there in church and the words….

…. was dead and now is alive again. Was lost and now is found…..

My heart lurched, my spirit soared, my mind humbled, my throat constricted. For Lynn Donovan was once very lost in her selfish life, lonely, scared, and deceived.

But…..

God loves redemption stories. His Son, Jesus, refused to let me go. He waited for me on the road, looking, calling out to me, just like the father in this story in Luke. He never gave up on me. Never. Ever.

Hear me now.    Don’t make the mistake and believe this story is not about YOU.

We all squander our inheritance.

We have let fear replace faith.

We have traded exceptional living for mediocrity.

We have replaced God’s truth with lies.

We have exchanged freedom for captivity.

We have handed over our miracles for apathetic safety.

Today, I say, “No more. That is enough.”

I want to be reacquainted with the God of love, the God of mercy, the God of grace. I want to know Him this season in an intimate and personal relationship that I haven’t yet experienced. I want to encounter this Father who waits on the road, scanning the horizon, calling to me, to you, “Come home my child, come home.”

What is your pain? What is God asking you to surrender? Our great God has so much for all of us Prodigals. Every…. Single…. One.

God loves redemption stories. We are His redemption story.

Be blessed, Lynn

Share your praises this season with us here at SUM- Join us next Monday for a unique way to honor God and give thanks. (PS. Get a Twitter account….hint…hint)

Inspired by Keith Potter. Thanks Keith

The Picture-Story of the Foolish Son Who Spent All His Money

Luke 15: ¹¹ And Jesus said, “There was a man who had two sons. ¹² The younger son said to his father, ‘Father, let me have the part of the family riches that will be coming to me.’ Then the father divided all that he owned between his two sons. ¹³ Soon after that the younger son took all that had been given to him and went to another country far away. There he spent all he had on wild and foolish living. ¹⁴ When all his money was spent, he was hungry. There was no food in the land. ¹⁵ He went to work for a man in this far away country. His work was to feed pigs. ¹⁶ He was so hungry he was ready to eat the outside part of the ears of the corn the pigs ate because no one gave him anything.

   ¹⁷ “He began to think about what he had done. He said to himself, ‘My father pays many men who work for him. They have all the food they want and more than enough. I am about dead because I am so hungry. ¹⁸ I will get up and go to my father. I will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. ¹⁹ I am not good enough to be called your son. But may I be as one of the workmen you pay to work?”’

   ²⁰ “The son got up and went to his father. While he was yet a long way off, his father saw him. The father was full of loving-pity for him. He ran and threw his arms around him and kissed him. ²¹ The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am not good enough to be called your son.’ ²² But the father said to the workmen he owned, ‘Hurry! Get the best coat and put it on him. Put a ring on his hand and shoes on his feet. ²³ Bring the calf that is fat and kill it. Let us eat and be glad. ²⁴ For my son was dead and now he is alive again. He was lost and now he is found. Let us eat and have a good time.’

Bittersweet Blessings and Letting Go of Idols

Yesterday I said goodbye to my husband and daughter. They are at this very moment driving cross-country to reach my baby girl's new home. It's the start of a new chapter in her life.

This is the bittersweet part—letting her go. But in that mix of sadness and missing her is this amazing joy. God has been so faithful. He's brought her from a cancerous brain tumor to complete health. As she says, her life can now start. I am so excited for and proud of this blossoming young woman.

What God has also shown me in letting go of my precious girl is that I made an idol of her in my life. You're probably thinking that's understandable, considering all we've gone through together. Mere moments became precious.

Even though my love and care for my daughter is a good thing, there were times that I put her above everything, including God. Understandable but still, not good. God ever so gently showed me that I needed to let go and trust Him with her future. Completely.

I walked away from this time not only restored, but also with the first understandings of how God was helping me let go of my girl and reassuring me He has her future in his hands. As He always has and has proven Himself more than faithful.

I will miss her terribly but with that ache is an even bigger excitement about her future and watching her finally walk into it with her own faith and excitement. It is all that I prayed for her and more.

Needless to say, it’s an interesting time for us. A time of letting go, of readjusting to our lives as empty nesters, and watching our youngest finally get to spread her wings and soar. Makes me think of my own mother and how she had to let go of me way back when…

You know, we think of idols as being the obviously bad things in our lives but sometimes those idols can start with something good in our lives, like a loved one, a career goal, or even a spouse’s salvation.

These are good things but when they hold a higher place of importance in our lives than God, be assured He will deal with us out of His love and his desire for what’s best for us. And the very best will always be Him.

So with tears of joy with a touch of sadness, I'm letting go and I'm praising God for his mercy and grace, and this deep reassurance that all will be well. Yesterday was also my 24th wedding anniversary. God has blessed me richly indeed.

Praying and believing,
Dineen

My oldest daughter, Rachel, my mother, Donna, and my youngest, Leslie, who is on her way to Florida to live with her grandma and go to cosmotology school. Just wanted to show you some of my greatest blessings in life. Thank you, Lord. :-)

 

Prayer Is Where Our Power Lives

"We must begin to believe that God, in the mystery of prayer, has entrusted us with a force that can move the Heavenly world, and can bring its power down to earth." Andrew Murray

Today I'm sharing a post from a series I wrote about prayer that I originally shared back in 2008. It remains, still today, the same and just as powerful.

Breakthrough Praying:

This is the last post in this series.  I could probably write for the rest of my life and still not scratch the surface of all that we know and can practice in prayer. This series did not have time to look at spiritual warfare in prayer. But there are numerous post in the archives. To read one such encounter, visit: Spiritual Warfare and my Unbelieving Husband.

What I know about prayer is this:

• God hears every word.
• Pray with belief.
• Never give up. Never surrender. Persistent prayer is priceless.
• Pray with Jesus by your side. (Read this visual if you have not read it before. It will change your perception of how you pray before the throne of God.)
• Powerful prayers are those spoken within God’s will.
• Learn to listen to God. You can recognize His voice and answers to prayer.
• Interceding for others is powerful and productive.
• And finally, more of you Lord, less of me. 

Every Monday the Lord brings new people or at least new or repeated requests before me. I pray faithfully for each request each morning for seven days. May I pray for you?

I would be deeply honored to bring you before the throne of the Most High and ask for His hand to move in your life. Leave me your prayer request. I take each one very seriously and I promise you this, God will hear about your life.

Thank you for stopping in here today. I am humbled you would spend your valuable time with me. Be Blessed, Lynn To view this entire series, click here.

Thankful Thursday - The Miracles

Welcome to Thankful Thursday. Hosted here at Spiritually Unequal Marriage each Thursday in July. August- Laurie and September- Iris. Remember we are at Laurie's next month.

Wow, my month to host Thankful Thursday is over. My friends, time is rushing forward. Prepare yourselves as the days hasten when every knee will bow and every tongue confesses that....

JESUS IS LORD!!!

Earlier today I sat in my favorite Fresh-Mex restaurant with four of my Bible study gals. We caught up on life and as always, our conversation turns toward what God is working out in our lives. I love that. I hope you have friends who love to talk about the Lord.

I listened to one of the gals share that once again her husband is unemployed. We have prayed for their employment situation for over two years now. I felt moved by this unexpected turn in the employment situation in her life but as I listened and watched her face I saw something.

There were no tears. There was no mention of "poor me." She actually glowed. She looked better than I have ever seen her. You know why? Her spirit was soaring. She was still a little fearful of what their future holds and earnestly prays for full-time employment for her and her husband.

BUT, she sat at the table today and said this:

"I have watched all the tiny miracles of God all around me."

"I have seen His provision in crazy and the most unexpected ways."

"And my husband has even started to take interest in the things of God."

She went on to say that their budget is so tight she was wondering where she would find the money to get her son a hair cut. She said she even mentioned it to her mother. Then the next day, in the mail arrived a coupon for a free haircut.

You should have seen her face where she shared this story. Glowing, rejoicing and absolutely filled with belief in her God of provision.

Now, this may seem like a silly coincidence but I assure you, God KNOWS exactly what we need and He is faithful, if we are faithful, to give us exactly what we need. And if you ask anyone who is utterly dependant on God, He gives you just enough. Not too much, not too little. Just enough. She needed a $10 haricut. Not much to many but it was a lot to her and God sent her that coupon exactly when she needed it.

Many of you know that we, The Donovan Clan, were unemployed for nearly a year in 2009. I, too, have witnessed these tiny miracles. You can read about some of those miraculous accounts in the archives.

As the four of us sat around the table we rejoiced because we have discovered how to open our eyes and see the miracles all around us.

I pray that you also learn to see God's miracles all around you. Every. Single Day.

On this, my final day of hosting for July, share a miracle that the Lord revealed to you. I can't wait to read your posts on your blogs and if you don't blog, leave your story in the comments.

Happy TT. Be blessed, Lynn

Weekend Devo—Do You Believe in Miracles?

In the vein of Lynn's wonderful Donovan Chronicles, I have a funny story for you about the Miller Clan. The other night my family and I tried out a new Chinese restaurant—new to us. I'm always looking for good Chinese food, which I seem unable to find in my neck of the woods. Doesn't make sense since we live in Silicon Valley, but I think it's more about that I grew up on the East coast and Chinese food is different there. We called those soft fried noodles Lo Mein. Here they call them Chow Mein. And the best sauce for egg rolls—Duck Sauce—you rarely find it.

Anyway, we checked out this restaurant and enjoyed our meal. (Thumbs up!) With our bill we got our traditional fortune cookies. Always a good laugh to see what these silly pieces of paper say, but I will tell you God has used a couple of these in the past to show His sense of humor and give a small affirmation. God can use anything!

My husband opened his, then chuckling, holds it out for me to read. "You will soon witness a miracle."

I totally forgot I was in the middle of a restaurant and laughed out loud (a big guffaw!), snatching the fortune and declaring my plans to blog about it—about how my atheist husband got a fortune about miracles. I love God's sense of humor.

The story gets even better. Yesterday's Air 1 verse of the day was this:

"Come and see what our God has done, what awesome miracles he performs for people!" ~ Psalm 66:5, NLT.

God has this way of using stuff like this to let me know He's up to something, and it usually comes in threes so I'm waiting for the third one. (grin)

In the meantime, I know God is working in my hubby's life in ways I've yet to see. All I can say is, "Bring it on, Lord!"

Praying and believing,
Dineen

Do You Believe In Modern Day Miracles?

On Monday afternoon I went to my mail box. Waiting inside was a rather large envelope mailed from Canada. Puzzled, I took the package inside. I opened it up and out came a book.

Modern Day Miracles

I smiled and breathed a prayer of praise and thanksgiving to the Lord. Inside I found my story about a small miracle in my life. My story: It All Started With a Woman and a Cow. What a Christmas!

Many of you read this story last year over at Laced With Grace. This was my retelling of God's fantastic, crazy, and faithful provision during our eleven month-long unemployment. So, today I'm praising God for allowing me to share with many others how He lavishes His love into the lives of our ordinary family.

But, I'm not writing about that story today. I want to share with you a different story from this book. Let me set the stage:

Russell VerMulm was a young man who came from a very large family. He joined the military and several months into his service, he fell gravely ill. His complaints were ignored by the medical staff for a week until finally they ushered him into surgery to remove his ruptured appendix. 

For SIX months, this kid langished in pain and fighting for his life in a military hospital. He was unable to speak or basically even move. Now listen to this excerpt as he recalls this period of his life:

Why was I in the hospital? I wrestled with that for a long time and God spoke to me again and said, "Do you remember the nurses who read your cards to you while you were in the hospital?" 

I did.

He said "Do you remember when you were lying there unable to talk, they were reading those loving get well cards to you? You for all practical purposes were dying and through tear-filled eyes they said they wished they had what you had (A relationship with Me). 

Today they do."

Did you hear what I said? While I was dying they wanted what they saw from this dying young man. Even while standing by the fragrance of the dying, you can smell the victory of life. 

I had life eternal and they wanted that.

By the part I played just lying in that hospital, a good work was done. I give praise and glory to God. The time was well spent. That was my best witness to date; I couldn't talk or move, so God did what God needed to be done with no interference from me.

-----

Quite a story. But this is where the rubber meets the road for our own lives. The troubles in your life may appear to be overwhelming. They may feel like they are bringing you close to death, an emotional death, a spiritual death, a marriage death, and perhaps even a physical death. However, we are charged to persevere through it because someone's eternity is at stake.

Now hear me as I say this: ALL THAT MATTERS IN THIS LIFE is that we live for Christ and the salvation of souls.

So, step up to the plate. God is asking us to bear our diffuculties with dignity and with grace. He is asking us to reflect Him, especially through our hardships. In our challenges is when we shine the brightest in the spiritual realm and people are affected.

People are saved.

Our children, our neighbors, our family and even one day our spouse.

Praise the Lord, Jesus. He knows what He is doing. We must trust Him. Live every minute for Him and allow Him to shine in this dark world.

Be blessed, Lynn

To order a book, visit Allisson C. Restagno at Moderndaymiraclesbook.com