So it seems like prayer really is all its cracked up to be. God must know what He is talking about. And I'm pretty much extremely thankful for that.
I have been slowly reading a book on prayer(perhaps wayyy too slowly!) and one thing I remember from the beginning part of it was a discussion on how Jesus prayed. Its so weird to think about Jesus praying. I mean, we all know he did it and we have examples of some of his prayers. But I feel like our prayers MUST be so different than what Jesus prayed.
Since Jesus is Jesus, that is probably so. But without any doubt in my mind, Jesus prayed with purpose. He prayed as if praying would make a difference. He BELIEVED that devoting time (and energy and sacrificing sleep and sometimes even sacrificing fellowship and what we would call fun times) to prayer mattered. And if Jesus believed it- then it must be fact. Afterall, he did leave heaven to be on earth. So if anyone has a clue- its him! When we doubt the power of prayer or in any way neglect it- we are saying to Jesus- "that part of your life didn't teach me anything".
Our prayers don't need to be perfect- praying to God as if our lives are perfect and praying as if we even know what to ask for.
Let's remember some of the emotions and situations that Jesus had:
-feeling exasperated: "O unbelieving generation, how long shall I stay with you?"
-temptations: "Do not put the Lord your God to the test."
-feeling of doubt(?): "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"
When we read about the early church- it is hard to miss how much they prayed- constantly and without ceasing. But it is interesting that it always seemed to be difficult. When his disciples could not heal the afflicted boy- Jesus' explanation was that it was a simple lack of prayer.
OK! This might be a really bad time to bring this up, but when I said that Jesus prayed with a purpose- it reminded me of what I teach and reteach and scream out quite often to the hockey girls I coach...pass with a purpose. Don't just do it to check it off your list or so that you can tell your coach that you passed the ball- do it with purpose, properly, and well...only good results can come!
I'll pray that each of us can love God more today and have more purpose in our lives.
Hope you finally got to sleep last night... as well as got all the lesson plans done! :) thanks for riding with me -- this winter, when you have NOTHING (ha!) going on, we need to get together. Love you!
MEGAN! Jessica Gill and I just bought out tickets for Winter Camp, so if for whatever reason I can't make it up for the holidays I WILL SEE YOU THEN!!!! Yay!
You're fun. I like you a lot. You're an excellent friend. You make cartrips interesting, sleep-inducing, and GREAT. I can't wait to go on the road with you again... someday!!!
have you ever just sat back and thought about how good God is? He is SO good.
my prayers have changed so much over the years. looking back, it seems like my prayers had such little purpose. while, at the time, i'm sure they served their small purpose to my small spiritual life with small expecations and small concepts.
looking back, i can see some of the prayers that God has answered so specifically. my hope now is that i can realize these things as they are happening so i can give God at least some of the praise that He deserves for remembering me...like blessing me with strong friends who care about me and help me (yes, ive prayed that and yes, it has been answered with the people i know from washington, gettysburg, camp, and now some from florida)
Welllll.. I missed you at Washington cause thats where I was =( ohh man.. well we definitely need to hang out cause i miss you & love seeeing you. k soon (:
I was so glad we both got to go to the study last night. I feel badly that I have missed so much of it this summer. As it is, I hope we keep it up. See you tonight, Lord willing! =)
Megan! hey, I don't know if you got my email or not, I am sO sorry for the confusion! I feel bad. =( but it is totally okay if you still wanna come tonight!! of course, you're welcome to just come tomorrow also; it's totally up to YOU! =) hey, and if Jordan's with you and wants to come also, she's more than welcome!
Well, I got one of the NJ jobs and will be moving your way at the end of September, Lord willing. Can I come to church with you??? I'll be worshipping at Washington. I'm so excited...! Scared, too, but really thrilled!
Let me know whether those two weekends for visiting Gettysburg would work (either October 25-26 or Nov 1-2). Lord and schedule willing, I'll visit the saints in Providence RI whichever weekend we don't choose (you're more than welcome to come along for the ride!).
heard some news about you today... i'm so happy for you! :) And i'm so sorry i have not e-mailed you or anything for a very long time.. :( i must say i have been swamped with things but that's no excuse for someone as special as you! :) Have a blessed day!
it has been some time since i have been home for a long period of time. this summer i was so blessed by being able to spend my first full week of summer at new jersey camp, spend time in florida with some of my most favorite people, spend a week traveling with my aunt, and spend some time with some of the best christians i know from washington, nj.
i have only a few weeks left of summmer!! i am starting a new job- still teaching PE, but at warren hills high school. i will most likely be one of the soccer coaches (which if you know me- you know i dont do soccer), and possibly being able to start traces of a lacrosse program there. i am excited and also extremely nervous to start! luckily, i have a week of vacation bible school and a few days of house sitting for a friend to bide my time until i start a hectic new beginning!
lucky for me, i have started to pray about my transition since i new about it in the very beginning of the summer. i know that the lord's will is best and am prepared to seek him first as i am busy and distracted. please dont be afraid to encourage me or keep me accountable to this!
i hope that you have spent some time reading your bible!!! haha i KNOW you have time if you just spent all this time reading my boring blog! haha got ya! now go read or pray or something!
i probably love you if youre reading this!! and i'd probably love to hear from you!!
I love you Megan. I just gotta say. Hehe. Good luck with the new job. I'm sure that will keep you very busy! I'm glad you had fun this summer. I'm also glad you are back! ♥
I am so happy to have a friend who is so different from me. Example: Nobody, I mean NOBODY, would ever invite me to coach soccer or start a lacrosse program...
hey! stay strong in the lord. He will keep you strong through the tough times. good luck at WH! i probably will never see you again, so...it was nice knowing you! :-)
hey! thanks for the thank you letter. i was confused when i got it. i had no idea who it was from at first. good luck at the new school. they're lucky to have a new hoochie control monitor at their school
Congratulations on the new job. I am very happy for you. I helped the girls with soccer and took coaching clinics and stuff. Heather has been playing for 24 years. I'll bet she has been playing longer than Daniel.
how neat that you're in new jersey; i've wished to visit up some of the great people there but haven't made it up yet. wow; i bet you can really encourage and be encouraged by them! good luck with the new job!
well, friends, i have returned to pleonast. i guess i should say that i have legitimately actually and truly come on pleonast. i won't lie- i actually didnt even set up my own account- so that lovely photo and quote that were up were not even for me!
im hoping that all of the people from gettysburg who begged me to get on notice this! and who knows, maybe ill even come on from time to time as i slowly figure out how this all works!
pretty much right after camp i came to florida to visit with my #1 homegirl- ashlee! i have been having a blast. its a good thing teachers get summers off to do fun things like this! but i must admit i feel a little sad and guilty about not being with my friends from good old washington. im sure i miss them much more than they miss (or dont miss) me! it will be nice to be with them again!
so, welcome me back to pleonast! and dont set your expectations too high- im still getting used to this internet business!
I was so excited to see that you posted! I miss you! I hope that you'll visit Gettysburg again soon before you have to return to being a grown up (aka employee) :) Enjoy the rest of your time off!
I'm going to send you an email on the address I think is right that Tim gave me. If you don't get an email from me soon, let me know. Are you having fun way out west?
Megan, by not commenting on my blog or adding me to your friends list, or acknowledging that I exist on pleonast, you are saying "I HATE YOU" in pleonast language. but I LOVE YOU Anyway! because I'm a Christian. and because you're lovable. and because I can't help it. or you could just contact me any other way you want.
