I am amazed at how fast time flies and I can’t believe that it’s almost July. Summer is here and I look forward to traveling to North Carolina to visit my daughter Annika and her husband Gray and celebrating our precious granddaughter Isla’s 2nd birthday. Since Covid-19 began, I haven’t been able to see my daughter and her family so I am eagerly awaiting this long overdue visit. Waiting for this day has taken a lot of patience and I have been so thankful for virtual communication. To finally be there again, to give them all hugs and talk in person, is my greatest desire. In addition to Isla’s birthday, we will also be celebrating the arrival of a second granddaughter in November.
Me, my granddaughter Isla, and my daughter Annika
Me and my granddaughter, Isla
I took me a while to get used to the idea of my daughter moving across the country; it wasn’t in MY plan, especially as they started their own family. I’d always hoped my children would stay close so we could all be together to celebrate life’s big events as well as all the little things. But the Lord had different plans and I saw Him at work during my very first visit after they had moved.
Flying into North Carolina I was greeted by a giant billboard of Billy Graham advertising his home and museum. It had been a dream of mine since I was young to see where Billy Graham grew up and to learn more about his history and his ministry. During my stay, I was surprised and so inspired by my visit to the museum. I was mesmerized by all the memorabilia from his life and ministry and his many words of wisdom displayed on the walls throughout the building. One of my favorite verses on prayer was boldly printed in an exhibit:
"Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful." (Colossians 4:2)
Next to the verse were the words “PRAY, PRAY, PRAY!” This was an important motto and mission for his life and ministry and has been mine too.
DEVOTE TO PRAYER
I love how short and to the point that verse is. I looked up the definition of the word “DEVOTE” and it means to give a large part of your time to something. I have made prayer a priority in my life and I am confident He is at work in my life through that prayer. I was recently inspired by a 90-day challenge (and to be honest, I am very far behind) to read through all four Gospels of the Bible, a chapter a day. There are 89 chapters in total in the books of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John and I found the challenge to be enlightening and confirmed the importance of prayer. I found it remarkable to read how many times Jesus steals away to pray by himself. That reading reinforced for me that if prayer was important for Him, I know it should be for me as well.
BEING WATCHFUL
The second part of the verse –“Being watchful” has literally opened my eyes. “WATCHFUL” means to be on the lookout or eagle-eyed. I was fascinated with the term “eagle-eyed” as lately I have been watching a pair of eagles from my kitchen window as they have made themselves at home in a majestic tree overlooking the water. I come to find that this term “eagle-eyed” means to be keen on the details. I’ve done some research on eagles’ eyesight and learned their eyes are the size of a human’s and they can see two miles into the distance. When we start to pray, we can be on the watch with eagle eyes to see what The Lord will do as He is dying to love on us in the details of our lives. He knows our love language and will answer our prayers in special ways specific to each one of us. I have seen Him at work in my life in answer to prayer in the most detailed ways and I know He has heard me.
I am reminded of a time years ago when I was a new mother. My daughter Karina was nine months at the time and I so enjoyed her darling look when she had a little white bow in her hair! My husband and I had just arrived at Costco and had securely buckled Karina in a backpack my husband carried. His last words before heading into the building were: “She’s going to lose that hair bow.” I, of course, said she wouldn’t! She looked so cute as we began our shopping. Sure enough, at the checkout, we noticed the hair bow was gone. We looked the store over, a daunting task considering the size of Costco, of all places. After taking a look around the store once, I was determined to try a second time to find it. I knew it had to be there somewhere. So, trusting that the Lord truly wants to know the details, I asked Him to help me. I was confident that He is all knowing and I prayed He would give me the eyes to find it. Soon after I had prayed, I looked down and noticed what I thought was a white tissue or napkin wedged under some shelving…looking closer, I saw it was the hair bow! I really couldn’t believe God cared for such a little detail of my life. I had asked the Lord to help me find it and He led me right to it.
Karina’s little white bow
I often told this story of God hearing me and His faithfulness to my children as they were growing up. They loved to hear the details and see the actual hair bow I’ve kept as a reminder all these years. This was the beginning of anchoring my own children in the truths of Jesus and now I look forward to sharing these truths with my grandchildren. As we begin to spend more time in prayer, we can be watchful and thankful, confident that the Lord will love on us in the details.
BEING THANKFUL
The final part of the verse is to BE THANKFUL. Sometimes I get stuck on the things that aren’t going the way I want them to but when I turn my thoughts to what I am thankful for it changes my demeanor and fills me with joy and reminds me that His love is limitless and His faithfulness is unwavering.
I want to close with a quote from Billy Graham that I hope will encourage you to continue to pray and share the hope and truths of Jesus Christ with your family and friends.
“Our world today so desperately hungers for hope, yet uncounted people have almost given up. There is despair and hopelessness on every hand. Let us be faithful in proclaiming the HOPE that is in Jesus.”
With love and light,
Sharing Strength & Hope
Now that our blog has officially launched (wow!) we’ll be sharing more content with you each week. Check your inbox on Tuesday mornings for content that will inspire you and grow your hope in Jesus, such as:
- Articles from founder and director Katie Robertson
- Posts featuring the Anchor Truths (with free phone backgrounds and art prints!)
- Guest articles and videos from women anchored in their faith
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We can’t wait to make the vision of The Anchor Blog a reality!
