Relationship vs. dependency...

My prayer:

I am not sure if this still qualifies for "What you said tonight" since it is nearly 4 in the morning but I was just too worn out from the long day when I got home to talk much and fell asleep. But, I am up now and I am craving your voice.

Thank you for the opportunities. I am grateful for this life that you have given me. 

What God Said Tonight:

I don't really care when we talk, I only care that you take the time to talk and listen. Without the open communication it is very hard for me to help you the way that I want to help you.

I literally sacrificed my life so we could have open communication but so often, my children only talk to me when there is a great crisis. Don't misunderstand, I want to help you in crisis and I want you to bring me your troubles, But, if that is the only time we are talking, it makes it very hard to build our relationship

Think about it in your relationships with other people. Think about those friends that only come to you when they are in trouble and need your help. You still help them because they are a friend and you love them but it does not take long for that one sided and one directional friendship to wear thin. If all they do is take from you in their need and crises, you aren't really building a relationship, you are building a dependency.

I want a relationship with you. I will take a dependency if I have to but I want a relationship. I want you to know me so you know that you can trust me in every aspect of your life. I want you to know me so when we spend an eternity together, you are not doing it with a stranger.

I love you, now and forever. Let's keep talking, no matter what time.

Walking on waves...

My prayer:

You are magnificent God. I love your presence. I love all you do for me but more than anything, I love your constant presence in my life. There is nothing better.

What God Said Tonight:

Walking on the waves takes more than courage. It takes a trust in something greater and more powerful than what you see and know. It takes a moment to disbelieve what life has shown you as truth and to believe that I have a higher truth. 

It is a great testament of your faith when you step out onto the waves. Take a chance to follow me despite what the world tells you. Take a chance to walk on the water with me, despite your fear. 

I love you.

The wrong voice...

My prayer:

I don't feel like I added much value to this day God. I kind of just got through it. I am grateful for you getting me through it, but I feel a bit useless. I also feel a bit ridiculous complaining when there are so many people who had to deal with so much more than I did today. 

Ugh, I don't even want to listen to myself tonight, let alone ask you to. How about I stop and listen instead.

What God Said Tonight:

You have been listening to the wrong voice today. 

When did I tell you that you were not adding value? When did I tell you that more was expected of you? I didn't. So, you were not listening to me. Who were you listening to?

The voice that made you feel this way is born from hurts not yet healed. It had very little to do with what actually happened today. If you will let me, I will heal that hurt so that voice is silenced. 

Do you trust me to heal you? One word fro you and I will heal you. I will make you whole. 

War...

My prayer:

A beautiful day. A joy in your presence.

What God Said Tonight:

The armies are in place and waiting in their tents. The field is quiet but expectant.

The war is coming. 

It is a matter of time. Everything is in place. 

I love you and we will win this war. You can count on it.

Always...

My prayer:

Tomorrow we celebrate you resurrection. Now, there is something I can celebrate with no reservation or confusion. That is the day when it all made sense. That is the day when you made a way for us to know you personally. That is the day that changed everything!

Thank you for being the Way Jesus!

What God Said Tonight:

Each experience in life is like a pebble or a grain of sand. Get enough of them and you get a beautiful beach. Get even more and you get a mountain. Each moment of your life is meant to add to the others. It is not meant to be kept in isolation. You are a culmination of everything in our life so far. 

One of the key turning points in your life was when you accepted me into your life. But, I have always been with you. Before you knew I existed, I was already with you and loving you. 

My sacrifice and my resurrection was the natural result of my love for you. 

Love and sacrifice...

My prayer: 

Good Friday is always bitter sweet for me God. On the one hand, I am SO GRATEFUL for what you did for us. Without your sacrifice, I would be so lost. I can't even imagine how I would survive a day. You deserve a day where we remember and celebrate what you did for us. 

On the other hand, I HATE that you had to do it. I am pretty sure, had I been there with you, I would have cut off more than the guy's ear. I likely would have fought with everything I could think of to keep them from taking you. And that would have been a great tragedy. Maybe the biggest tragedy ever. 

It is hard when your will and love seem to be against each other. I say "seem to be' because in truth, there was so much more love in your sacrifice than in any other thought, act, or deed ever done. But, in my heart, it hurts to see someone I love make decisions that will end up causing them great pain. 

Maybe I am overthinking it all. In the end, I know that you had to do it and I know that without it we wouldn't be able to talk like we do. So, let me just say a very passionate but wholly inadequate "thank you." Your choice and your sacrifice truly has saved the world. 

What God Said Tonight:

If you had to pick between your best friends happiness and you mother's happiness, what would you do? Sometimes the choice is not as simple as following the love. 

My love for you is boundless and the best way for me to show you was to find a way that we could know each other and be together for all eternity. This is the price I paid and I would do it a million times over, if I had to, just to know you and to have you know me. 

My love brought you into being and my love will make room for you forever. Go and rest now. I will go with you. Now and forever my love.

 

Transportable plant...

My prayer:

What a great night God! Thank you for amazing friends who know you. Thank you for amazing opportunities that literally blow my mind. Thank you for the confirmation that all of this is your plan for our lives!!! You are wonderful and I can't wait to live each day with you in charge.

What God Said Tonight:

You are planted but I have planted you in a transportable pot for a reason. 

I have you firmly rooted in my love and you will grow in that love. But, I need to take you to different places with all of your roots and soil around you. I have no intention of transplanting you. I will not dig you up and move you to a different place. I am simply going to take you, and all that you are are planted in, and take you around the world to bless and be blessed. 

Your soil and your roots will not change. You will have them and the pot you all sit in with you wherever we go. But I will take you around the world. 

There is much to see and many to bless. Be ready to move but be assured, your roots and I go with you, always.