#prayer for restoration of relationship

[merchantservices444]

Advantages of Merchant Processing over Direct Carrier Billing in Mobile Commerce

[northwoodsfan]

What Will You Do With Jesus?

Then he asked them, “But who do you say I am?” Matthew‬ ‭16‬:‭15‬The atheist doubts His existence. The skeptic doubts his deity and judges Him according to those who claim to follow him. Some see him as a man of love. Who do YOU say he is? What will you do with Jesus? Our response determines our outlook on life. Our response determines how we respond to issues of race, gender and sexual…

[soolaleye]

How To Get Your Ex Wife or Husband Back | Couples Relationship Counseling

Click m.samuelola.com for details. How To Get Your Ex Wife or Husband Back | Couples Relationship Counseling To try to get your ex-wife or ex-husband back, consider couples relationship counseling. Give each other space to reflect on the relationship and use the time apart to focus on self-improvement. This can help you both gain clarity and perspective, and become better partners in the…

[sonsofthesealove]

HARVESTING HOPE: That Your Joy Maybe Fulfilled.

HARVESTING HOPE: That Your Joy Maybe Fulfilled.

Elda Othello-Wrightington There is time and a season for everything. The most challenging seasons bring a lot of weight, pain, and questions. Yet they also bring unforgettable moments of God’s Faithfulness. Psalm 126:5-6 reminds us, “Those who sow with tears will reap with songs of joy. Those who go out weeping, carrying seed to sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with…

[camilleonne]

Trying to work out Gale age+ timeline, plus analysis

BG3 is my first introduction to the DnD lore, so this is really just me trying to work out where the BG3 story fits into the broader timeline of DnD. All of this information I got from the Forgotten Realms wiki, so if I'm misunderstanding anything I'd love input!

My goal with this is to guess how Gale's personal story fits into the timeline of the Forgotten Realms, mainly to estimate how old he might be and how long his relationship with Mystra was. According to the Wiki, Mystra was only recently resurrected, which means her relationship with Gale is very restricted in how long it could have been.

Here's Mystra's timeline:

1385 - Mystra dies, the Weave becomes unstable, magic changes, and the Spellplague begins

1395 - the Spellplague mostly ends, but the Weave is still unstable and Mystra is still dead

1479/1480 - Mystra returns with help from Elminster, magic starts to go back to normal

1482 - the Second Sundering begins, which aims to reorder the hierarchy of gods

1484 - gods begin acquiring Chosen mortals in order to cement their power

1487 - Mystra returns to her full power, the Weave is finally restored, and the Second Sundering ends

1488 - prayers to deities are ignored, and instead divine missives are directed through deities' Chosen

1489 - prayers begin to be answered again, while Chosen's powers and gifts are revoked by their patron gods, since they no longer serve a use to their gods. Only a few Chosen retain their powers.

1490 - nothing of note happens, according to the Wiki

1491 - Mystra restricts mind-reading magic. Otherwise, nothing of note happens pertaining to Mystra

1492 - the plot of Baldur's Gate 3 happens

If I understand this timeline correctly, the earliest Mystra could have begun interacting with Gale is the year 1480. But because this is when she had only just been resurrected, this is likely when she began to "mentor" him, and not when their romantic relationship began.

It was probably sometime between 1482-84 that Gale became Chosen and his romance with Mystra began. And if Gale was also one of the many Chosen who were cast aside by their gods in 1489, simply because he was no longer useful, then their romantic relationship would have lasted 9-10 years at most, but more likely was 7-8 years. But still! Nearly a decade of having a close relationship with your patron deity is hugely influential on someone's personality and outlook on life, and definitely explains where a lot of Gale's arrogance and hubris come from.

1480-82 - earliest possible time frame Mystra could have begun interacting with Gale

1482-84 - likely when Gale is Chosen, and the earliest their romance could have started

1489 - Gale likely loses his status as Chosen, and with it his extra powers gifted to him by Mystra. He would have been cast aside for no reason other than he was no longer useful to Mystra. This likely happened with little to no explanation from Mystra, forcing Gale to guess as to why he had been cast aside by his god and lover

1490 - this is likely the year that Gale searches for the "missing Weave" and takes the orb into himself, destroying his innate magical gifts and leaving him weakened and dying

1491 - Gale isolates himself in his tower for a year, depressed and heartbroken

1492 - BG3 plot occurs. One way or another, Gale comes to terms with his relationship with Mystra and manages to remove the Karsite Weave from himself

Gale mentions something about being called "delusional" by his professors when he graduated from wizard college (or whatever it's called). My guess/headcanon is that Gale would have graduated wizard school before Mystra began to mentor him. So he'd be, at the youngest, 21 when she initiates contact with Gale. Gale mentions that he'd been in relationships before Mystra, but that she was his longest partner, and 21 fits that backstory pretty well. This means that Gale is either 30 or 31, at the youngest, when Mystra casts him aside. This puts Gale at approximately 33-35 years old when BG3 occurs.

Another important thing is that, at least from Gale's perspective, he was cast aside by Mystra suddenly and without explanation. This left him having to guess why he was no longer one of her Chosen, which is what motivated him to win back her favor. Unfortunately, by trying to win her back, Gale took in the Karsite Weave, which ate away at his innate magical abilities and left him even weaker than he had ever been before.

Something that sticks out to me about this timeline is what Mystra says to Gale when he's finally able to confront her. She says to him something to the effect of "I would have made you my Chosen again, you just needed to be patient. But because you were impatient, you will never be my Chosen again". Likely the key difference between Elminster and Gale as both being powerful wizards devoted to Mystra is that Elminster understands that Mystra is a goddess, and should be treated with a sort of awe. If she does something that he doesn't understand, he just defers to her judgement as a goddess. But since Gale was in love with her, he treated their relationship like one between mortals, not that between a deity and their faithful. Gale's main folly is that he was in love with Mystra, while she was just using him as a pawn to consolidate her power. She probably wasn't lying to him about him being gifted, and probably would have made him Chosen again when it suited her, but Gale wanted more and couldn't stand the lack of communication, and so those powers were revoked from him.

It's really sad because Gale wanted real love, and wanted to be treated as an equal to Mystra. In a normal, human relationship, begin treated equally by your partner is a normal expectation. But because Mystra is a god and would never acquiesce her power, especially after only very recently regaining full control of it, Gale was doomed to be heartbroken. Also, the fact that Mystra cast Gale aside without telling him why, then didn't warn him that the Weave he found was deadly and would kill him, and then didn't tell him how to fix it, and then told him to kill himself to apologize, then ONLY tells him the truth of the situation after he starts to threaten her power, is super shitty. Can you blame him for any of it when he was literally ghosted by his goddess/girlfriend of 10 years?

The fact that Mystra is one of the "good" gods and can't even be bothered to treat one of her Chosen with decent respect, after manipulating him for his entire adult life, is super messed up. It really ties into the subthemes of BG3 about gods and how they just... really don't give a shit about their followers. Even the "good" ones still only really care about their power and protecting their interests. Like obviously Shar and Vlaakith are evil and treat their followers like shit, but the fact that Mystra does essentially the same thing with zero remorse, and then also blames Gale for all of it and forces him to beg her for forgiveness, is... sad.

And that's why Gale is a sweetheart and deserves all the love. Thank you for coming to my Ted Talk.

[butterpony100]

Ok ok listen

I love sidlink

But I also love Yona

The solution: Poly.

AU TIME BABYYY

It’s mentioned that Link and his father visited zoras domain previously when he was younger. The gist of this au is that around that time, Yona was also visiting the domain and meeting sidon for the first time, and the two would be told about how they would get married one day. Well I think the two of them absolutely clashed on their first meeting, with Sidon being reckless and a bit slow witted while Yona being a lot more careful and forward thinking. Then they both individually meet a tiny link in their own circumstances and, like kids do, both declared that they wanted to marry link instead. All of the adults were like “ehhhhh age difference makes this hella weird” so they convince the kids to instead make promises bracelets to signify “friendship”. The lil bracelets are styled like normal zora jewelry with a scale from both sidon and Yona, along with a sapphire to signify link. They keep in touch and get along well over the years until the calamity and Yona and Sidon never actually find out what happened to link. After a while, they both forget his face and name, with only the gem on their bracelets to show that they had another part of them. When link wakes up, Zelda was forward thinking enough to leave the bracelet with his belongings in the shrine of resurrection since ya gurl knew how important it was to him (zelda is aroace fight me on this if you dare) when he wakes up he knows the bracelet is important but just can’t remember what for. He wears it anyway. Eventually he arrived at zoras domain on his quest for the divine beasts. Sidon vaugly recognized him, but didn’t mention anything until his father confirmed it. He was originally excited until learning of links amnesia. Obvi he’s disappointed, but he hopes that links journey across hyrule and meeting with the champions would help restore him memories. He leave link with a kiss on the forehead as a promise and a prayer for the three of them to be together again. After link leaves, Sidon obviously sends for Yona who had about the same reaction. Link continues his journey slowly regaining his memories until ganon is finally defeated. There, meeting with zelda again and the darkness over hyrule finally being cleaned, a lot of his memories return to him. Ofc he spends time helping zelda get adjusted but the moment he has some free time, zelda turns around and is like “look, I know for a fact your dying not go see your boyfriend and girlfriend, I survived in that castle alone for a hundred years, I can last like a week.” (Zelda is the goat). And then link giddyly hops on a horse and heads to the domain where he reunited with Yona and sidon. From there they re-establish their relationship and over the 7ish time skip between BOTW and TOTK, they all get engaged. (And then TOTK happens uhoh) AND THATS ALL I GOT RN SORRY FOR THE ESSAY OF G A Y

[thecatundertheladder]

FSM during march of the oni, how they feelin'?

Eeeeeee I'm so glad you asked because the thoughts I have had about this.

First of all some (potentially unnecessary) background info.

1. So Mystake is one of The Oni Warlords. This is canon. What isn’t canon is which one. While I haven’t fully decided on which one she’s going to be I’m leaning towards Venge because of a whole backstory and character arc that I haven’t written yet. But it’s not overly important right now.

2. Mystake and the Fsm have a parent-child relationship in this au. Mystake is also one of the people he learnt to fight properly from.

3. In this au the Oni Warlords are gods. But unlike Fsm, who simply can't die, they can be killed. However their deaths aren't permanent, and they always find a way to return, whether its by healing their own bodies, or by simply constructing new ones. Though depending on who kills them it might take longer to come back.

4. Because Mystake is a Warlord herself, it the other two they took around a thousand [the time may change] or so years for them to come back after she killed them. As a result, there was enough time between the Warlords leaving to chase the Fsm across The Sixteen Realms, and all three returning to the First Realm, that The Omega had time to rise to power. However, they were no where near as as powerful or beloved as the three Warlords were, so it didn't take long for them to be overthrown again, and The Warlords restored to power. The Warlords, along with the Fsm, ended the war between the Dragon and the Oni.

But The Omega had already gained a following of Oni who either did not want the war to end, or were outraged at The Omega being overthrown. So they bided their time, waiting for the perfect moment to get revenge on The warlords beloved half-breed. This revenge, of course, involved invading Ninjago. The reason there is such a large gap in-between the ending of the war [while I haven't got an exact timeline yet, I'm thinking it ended a few thousand years before Garmadon was born] is because they were waiting for a) the Fsm to be out of Ninjago and/or distracted (the Overlord's return fits this category nicely) and b) for a natural pathway to open between the First Realm and Ninjago (like the one in the Wailing Alps.)

5. Garmadon never died, and Mystake never died either (not that is would have been permanent if she had).

6. Wu and Garmadon lost their powers when Garmadon got banished to the underworld (this is also what caused the rapid aging). Since the Overlord's second defeat, they've slowly been coming back. But during March of the Oni they are on the same power level as a regular elemental master, otherwise the probably could've have taken out The Omega's army themselves.

So as of March of the Oni, the ninja are all fully aware of both Fsm being alive, and Mystake being an Oni Warlord. However, when the Oni attack, both of them are taking a vacation in another realm, so Ninjago City is still covered in darkness.

At this point Wu and Garmadon have switched to their true forms but with their powers being weakened, it only helps a bit. They are also trying desperately to contact either their father or Mystake through either prayer or magic. However, they don't succeed until they've already been barricaded in the monastery.

When the Fsm hears his children screaming in his head for help, he is understandably worried, it's not often that their kids are in true peril after all. When they finally manage to get the story out of their kids, they are furious in a way they haven't been in thousands of years. They quickly explain the situation to Mystake, who is (almost) as livid as Fsm, before teleporting them them to the monastery.

(They cause a lot of commotion once they get to the monastery. The civilians who had sheltered had not expected two massive beings to randomly appear in there midst. Especially since one looks similar to the beings they just escaped, and the other resembles the children of God. So it's up to the ninja to calm them down. Unfortunately telling them that the First Spinjitzu Master himself has arrived has the opposite effect, but at least they're less scared now.)

Upon arrival Fsm is momentarily thrown off by the civilians in the monastery, but they have spent their entire life being noticed and stared at, so the awe and fear that the civilians express doesn't bother him.

Fsm quickly transforms their clothes into proper armour (think crystalized style) and launches themself over the monastery walls and into the battle (Mystake doesn't follow him, she knows better than to get in the way of her child when he is on a warpath). Fsm proceeds to absolutely thrash The Omega and their army; burning them, freezing them, and throwing them off of the mountain. He makes the Oni regret ever conceiving this idea. The Fsm pays special attention to The Omega, and rips out their heart with their bare claws, because how dare The Omega think that they can just take his home, his family from him. They will pay for this in the life and blood, and no being in the sixteen realms can help them now. He will wipe them from the face of Ninjago.

And for the first time, The omega truly realises that just because the First Spinjitzu Master put an end to the war, it does not mean that they are a pacifist. It does not mean that they cannot rage with all the fury and savageness of a full-blooded Oni. They are balance incarnate, this does not make them good, and it's The Omegas fault for assuming that they were.

And so the Oni are banished and destroyed by the god of the land they sought to conquer. When the fighting stops, Garmadon creaks open the monastery gates to look outside. Fsm is covered in the Oni's blood, looking (and feeling) like one wrong move from someone is going to send them into a fit of madness. But they relax a bit at the sight of their eldest child safe. After making sure Garmadon is all right, the Fsm stalks back to monastery to find the rest of his family. And also to change out of their armour and clean up because there is blood in the seams and on his face and it's gross.

Once he enters the monastery he herds Garmadon, Wu, Lloyd, and even Mystake into the monastery, and they are wise enough not to argue with him. The First Spinjitzu Master is understandably agitated, and Mystake, Garmadon, and Wu know him, and their general Oni instincts well enough, to understand that they will barely be let out of his sight for the next few days (Lloyd, at this point, hasn't really experienced the full might of an Oni's possessiveness, but he will just have to get use to it).

Eventually the rest of the ninja sort out the civilians, and set them up in a nearby village while Ninjago City is still covered in darkness (the monastery has enough room for all of them, but the ninja aren't willing to find out what the First Spinjitzu Master will do to any "intruders"). At some point, Mystake sends for the other two warlords, who clear Ninjago City of the dark fog.

So yeah, Fsm is absolutely enraged that The Omega is attacking their home, and ends up reverting to the base instincts of 'defend your territory', 'defend your pack', and 'destroy anyone who harms them'. After he calms down he ends up a bit embarrassed about how he handled it, but before he can dwell on it too much he collapses from exhaustion.

But what a way to re-introduce themself to the wider population of Ninjago.

And in case you’re wondering where Morro is in all this, he's busy vibing with Nyad, who has all her memories because this au is incredibly self-indulgent.

[rucbarthatbowtiesarecooldw]

Saturday Morning Session

Come Ye That Love the Lord

Conducting: Dallin H Oaks

The Morning Breaks

Sustaining vote – in the morning session? Normally afternoon

Church audit report – in the morning session? Normally afternoon

Did You Think to Pray

Jeffrey R. Holland

Awwwww the most fortunate of men!

More concentration, focus on the Savior, hope on His word, etc.

“Thanks are the highest form of thought. Gratitude is Happiness doubled by Wonder.” – Chesterton?

God hears every prayer we offer.

- Prayers are often answered differently than we expect

Our prayers are our sweetest hour, our most sincere desire, our most purest form of worship

Hesitation to pray doesn’t come from God.

Prayers should be spoken out loud. -It is a conversation with God

Listen to the spirit to know how to pray

If you don’t know what to pray for, just pray anyway!

Even the Savior had to pray to be closer to His Father – even He could pray “more earnestly.”

J Anette Dennis

You can look for a deeper meaning in all the things you read – how does this bring you closer to the Savior?

Jesus Christ is the center of ALL covenants we make.

Covenant relationships bless us, but it is out choice as to how,

Everything done in the Temple points to Gods plan for us. -Prayerfully seek the further meanings

Our symbolic outer clothing is only worn in the temple. Other than the garments, although those show that Jesus covers us.

Armor of Light – which is Christ

Choose to have a relationship with God by making and keeping covenants with Him

Alexander Dushku

Restoration began with a boys desperate prayer and a pillar of light

Rather than a pillar of light, the Lord sends us a ray of light – and then another, and then another

How do you experience the rays of light from the Lord? -Peace, impressions, desires, testimonies, hopefulness, prayer, feeling the love of God as you serve others

If we’re believing and repenting, we ARE living in revelation, even if we don’t recognize it or think we are experiencing it.

You cannot always expect big miracles and pillars of light – the Light comes line upon line, precept upon precept, here a ray and there a ray

Experiencing depression and anxiety make it difficult (sometimes impossible) to recognize the Spirit - Sometimes we don’t even know we are feeling the Spirit at all until after the fact!

Perhaps one ray is not enough for a Testimony, but together they can become a Light that will scare away the darkness.

D&C 93:36 “The glory of God is intelligence, or, in other words, light and truth.”

D&C 50:24 “That which is of God is light; and he that receiveth light, and continueth in God, receiveth more light; and that light groweth brighter and brighter until the perfect day.”

Press Forward Saints

Ulisses Soares

Covenant confidence through Christ

When we enter the Lords house, we embark on a sacred journey to become like Christ

What happens IN the temples is important

Remain Confident in Christ

Confidence in the covenants made with Jesus Christ is something you should pass on to your children

“My disciples shall stand in holy places and not be moved.”

Go to the temple with confidence and humility - Make preparations to go – not just for those going for the first time. We should be perpetually preparing - Will help with anxiety about worthiness

Home centered, Church supported, Temple Bound - Being Temple bound connects us to the Savior

Cast not away your confidence, instead let your confidence wax strong.

Jack N Gerard

Jesus Christ is our exemplar. - Integrity means being true to God, to each other, and to our identity.

Do what is right, let the consequence follow.

Exercise integrity in your choices

Would others see God through my conduct?

A life of integrity is not a life of perfection - Due to the fact that during this life you literally cannot be perfect - Perfection exists but not in me

Christian kindness is not a substitute for integrity - Meaning don’t be fake in your kindness? - Don’t be hypocrites?

I Know that My Savior Loves Me

Henry B Eyring

Story about going to the temple and finding out after the sealing that people have lost houses (teton dam break) and they left their kids at home and had to spend the night in a hotel and couldn’t make it home

“How can you sleep at a time like this?” - Whatever the outcome, all will be well because of the temple. We have made covenants - Apostles at gethsemane

John 14:27 “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.”

God will not abandon His relationship to all those who have covenanted with Him - He will never tire in His efforts to help us, and we will never exhaust His willingness to support us

Light and hope can come from keeping covenants, and they are opportunities to draw closer to God

We Thank Thee O God for a Prophet

[hopethroughscriptureministries]

Daily Scripture Text: "The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake." - Psalm 23:1-3

Commentary: Psalm 23 is a timeless reminder of God's tender care and provision for His people. In these verses, we see God depicted as a loving shepherd who guides, protects, and sustains us. The imagery of green pastures and still waters conveys a sense of peace and contentment that comes from resting in God's presence. As our shepherd, God not only meets our physical needs but also restores and nourishes our souls, leading us in paths of righteousness for His glory.

Questions:

How does the image of God as a shepherd bring comfort and assurance to your life?

In what ways do you experience God's provision and guidance in your daily life?

How can you cultivate a deeper relationship with God as your shepherd and follow Him more closely?

Prayer: Dear Lord, thank you for being our shepherd and for caring for us with such tenderness and love. Help us to trust in your provision and guidance, knowing that you lead us in paths of righteousness. Restore our souls and grant us the wisdom to follow you faithfully each day. In Jesus' name, amen.

[drippingmoon]

Aquiver, Aglow: Beta Call Post

After being one of the biggest parts of my life for some years now, I'm very very happy to announce 'quiv is ready for its beta stage. I'm gonna echo my previous post: writing this story has been a soothing experience for me, and I'd love for this to apply to everyone. Never heard of 'quiv? No problem, new eyes are often wise. Old acquaintance? No pressure on you. Take a cup of steaming tea, or maybe not since it's summer, lean back and just tell me whatever crosses your mind. Believe me, it will help me enormously. And the stress is all with me, not you. So while I'm asking for help, I truly wish whoever gives me a hand to have a pleasant experience🥰

Sign-up period: till July? I might be more flexible, depending on the applicants, and there won't be any selection (a maximum of 7 people), which means you can start on the day you sign up

Deadline: October (SOFT deadline, since ideally I want to do another round of line edits then proofreading in November), with the possibility of extending until December (and don't sweat it if you need more)

Long story short: a human child restores faith to an angel, who in turn restores faith to Heaven.

Long story long: There's a place beneath Heaven where, in a shoddy little cottage, a mother and her child live. They are to wait for her promised day, when angels shall descend and devour their souls. For faith has been broken. Memories of kindness and warmth remain mere whispers, cracked under two centuries of prayers answered with bloodied chapels and trails of corpses, and callous wings plucking souls out of their once faithfuls' chests.

Tyrone knows his Mother is just waiting for the day the angels will come. She wishes to sacrifice herself to see her child out of the Promised Lands, so she fills his childhood with horrible stories meant to make him afraid and get him used to the inevitable. She succeeds. Tyrone is afraid, but of everything. Most of all, of the loneliness that keeps him company, and disperses only at night. Because, under the stars, he sees an angel on the rims of Heaven, taking care of her field of clouds, a mirror to how he toils over his wheatfield. That’s when he first feels they are the same. So when she falls one day, he asks not that she spare him, but that she stay.    And, slowly, the nights turn so very warm.

It’s been two centuries since the angels knew where they wished to go. They live suspended in time, caught between memory and hatred. Anne, their Angel of Lies, has only ever cared for Heaven. For them, she’d draw their anger onto herself, if only they acknowledged they were still hung up on humanity. She’s tired. She’s old. Even the stars have closed their path off to the angels, and she doesn’t know what to do. So when she is met with sincerity for the first time in centuries, she wonders if she’s found a way. If nothing else, anger would reanimate Heaven, and for a little while stop the angels’ slow fall towards death. She listens to a child’s quiet wish, and agrees.    Curiosity, she calls it.

They begin by using each other. With time, this no longer holds true, and they learn something. It was a thin line between that and caring about one another. And warmth, as it were, comes with sorrows shared.

GENRE: character-driven dark fantasy with humans, angels and stars interspersed with peaceful moments

WORD COUNT: 195k (standalone)

STATUS: sixth draft

WARNINGS: violence, gore, suicidal thoughts, abusive relationships, terminal illness

What I'm looking for

Content criticism, as in character arcs, plot development, your fav and least fav parts, and mainly if you think there are too many feathers in the story

The sky's your limit actually. Every thought counts 🙌

Typically you can ignore typos, but if any of them really pisses you off, feel free to shout at me

Same with line edits. The style is meant to be experimental at times, but not at the cost of intelligibility. So if I went overboard somewhere, please do shout but otherwise it's due a line edit

You get

Return betas! No time limit; and of course no word count limit

To save Private Jan (my penname lol) because there's no way I can afford editing prices, so we're pulling off an Atlas here no matter how many drafts I'll have to go through

Hopefully a great time?

You can just contact me in the DMs, but I'll put up a Google Forms as well for whoever would prefer that. Also, you can request a sample (the first/first few chapters) to see if it's your thing.

And that's it! Hope to see volunteers, and thanks so much for your interest! Have a lovely day🥰

[thegreenleavesofspring]

How do you tear yourself away once you created a hole of sin for yourself? I'm trying to stop sinning- especially with what I ship (I won't go into details but it's bad) I want to go back to christ and I don't know what to do

Me personally? Usually several weeks to a month of combination beating myself up and sulking before I break and end up ugly crying on my bathroom floor or under my couch or somewhere else weird while sobbing out prayers. It's not a process I actually recommend, however.

More seriously, though. There are a few things to keep in mind:

He actually really, really wants you to talk to Him again. He wants to restore that broken relationship. He is not standing ready with a rod - those stripes already fell on another back. He is standing ready with a hug and immeasurable love.

No matter how filthy you feel (and I speak here from experience) His blood is sufficient to wash it all gone. Say the word and repent, and it'll be gone. One of Satan's favorite tactics is tricking us into beating ourselves up over something that the very God of the Universe has obliterated from His memory.

(This is a lesson that I'm still learning.)

That part is, once you can screw yourself up to it, easy enough. It's easy enough to repent. It's breaking the habit of the sin that is oh so hard. Not backsliding right back into it all. And I'm sorry, there is no quick and easy fix for that. (I really wish there were.) It's a teeth-gritted drawn out process. I do some of the usual recommendations - a bit of Bible reading every morning, forcefully turning my thoughts into other directions, thinking of what He suffered for our sin - this can make you lose your taste for it, at least right then, very abruptly; to think of yourself pounding in the nails - any sort of distraction to pull one's mind away from the immediate temptation and back to God.

That said, I'm going to be presumptuous and make some guesses and assertions based on you saying the problem is your shipping specifically. And I'm going to guess that maybe you've got some unhealthy relationships with relationships in general, or will. Or maybe not! But maybe look into that.

That aside, it might be useful to look into what, exactly, about the ship or ships draws you in. If it's just straight-up perversion, yeah scrap that for good. If there are other elements, however, deconstruct it and pick out what exactly it is that you like. Is it the characters' personalities? Backgrounds? Chemistry? Something else? If you can take the elements that aren't sinful and apply them elsewhere, you can start realigning your own preferences into something healthier.

That's the thing; all relational and sexual perversion is Satan's twisting of something very, very good - something designed specifically to mirror Christ's relationship with His Church. There's nothing inherently wrong with shipping as long as it's done right, or liking two compatible characters. I've seen a lot of people do genderbenders to make M/M or F/F ships M/F; I've got no personal opinion on that either way.

But ultimately: pray. Pray pray pray pray pray pray pray. You can't do this. Straight up? You can't do it. Not by your own power. You have to want to. You have to be willing to strive to. But you'll never, ever do it alone. You can't. He's got to do His work in you. And you have to ask Him to.

You can't tear out of that hole. The only way to get out of that hole is to just suck it up and go "Hey. God. I really messed up, I messed up so much, and I need You to do something about it." Pride is a big fat horsechoker pill going down (speaking from experience) and it can make a body squirm to go crawling back feeling absolutely filthy (speaking from experience) especially if it's instance 3,257 of the exact same sin you've been trying to kick for years (speaking from experience) but it is, in the end, the only way out. You've gotta ask Him to throw you a rope, and the only way to do that is to start praying. Some denominations have you Confess it to either a priest or a member of a congregation, but ultimately you're going to have to pray about it anyway. (Speaking from experience.) No matter how much your flesh really, really, really doesn't want to.

I know the guilt looks like an impassable brick wall. I promise it's not. It's an illusion. He's got a wrecking ball that can shatter those bricks into nothing and He's waiting for you to ask Him. Doesn't matter how many bricks, how high, how thick. That Blood can wash it all away.

TL/DR: Pray. Especially if you don't feel like you can or should.

I'm praying for you, Anon. ❤

[elliottkay]

Paladin Subclass: The Oath of Love

It bothers me that this doesn’t exist, so I home-brewed it. (Almost all the abilities are lifted straight from Oath of Devotion and other official oath rules, but there are a couple tweaks... and yes, picking song titles was the hardest part.)

The Oath of Love commits the paladin to upholding the ideals, expression, and the freedom of romantic love. Where love is forbidden by bigotry or cold calculations, when partners are separated by dangerous circumstance, these paladins aid lovers in need.

Contrary to popular assumption, the Oath of Love prioritizes respect and honesty over the simple start of relationships or their preservation. Love must be mutual and sincere. These paladins may advise and aid a suitor in pursuit of love, but their ideals reject coercion and pressure; the Oath of Love respects rejection. A paladin may rescue a villager’s kidnapped lover from bandits on one day and then free their neighbor from a forced marriage on the next. The use of magic to compel false love is especially detested; many of these paladins joke that their oath hasn’t been cemented until they’ve punched out an enchanter.

TENETS OF LOVE

I’ll Be Your Shelter: Paladins of love protect and aid lovers in need. Rescues, healing, errands, even messages in preservation of love and lovers are the paladin’s duty.

You Can’t Hurry Love: Most challenges to romance can’t be resolved with a sword. The paladin of love stands for those times when a sword is needed, but strives to keep it sheathed.

Truth Hurts: Lies and deception are not the way to love. Charm and enchantments do not win love. Abuse of such magic must be thwarted and punished. Stalking, forced marriage, and abuse are anathema.

Love Stinks: Love cannot be expected of another; rejection must be respected. Possession and obligation are not love. A suitor who will not take “no” for an answer may someday have to answer to a paladin.

CHANNEL DIVINITY (3rd level)

Love Is a Battlefield: As a bonus action, you imbue your weapon with positive energy for one minute. Add your Charisma modifier to attack and damage, minimum +1. Weapon counts as magical for the duration.

No Scrubs:  The Oath of Love has no time for haters. As an action, you present your holy symbol and speak a prayer censuring fiends and undead, using your Channel Divinity. Each fiend or undead that can see or hear you within 30 feet of you must make a Wisdom saving throw. If the creature fails its saving throw, it is turned for 1 minute or until it takes damage.

A turned creature must spend its turns trying to move as far away from you as it can, and it can’t willingly move to a space within 30 feet of you. It also can’t take reactions. For its action, it can use only the Dash action or try to escape from an effect that prevents it from moving. If there’s nowhere to move, the creature can use the Dodge action.

OATH SPELLS:

3rd level: Sanctuary, Healing Word

5th level: Enhance Ability, Lesser Restoration

9th level: Beacon of Hope, Remove Curse

13th level: Aura of Purity, Locate Creature

17th level: Circle of Power, Greater Restoration

Take a Bow: Nothing reveals a false love like this Oath. At 7th level, you and friendly creatures within 10 feet of you can’t be charmed while you are conscious. Anyone currently charmed gains a new saving throw at the end of your turn.

At 18th level, the range of this aura increases to 30 feet.

You Oughta Know: Sooner or later, the rage comes out. At 15th level, whenever you or a creature you can see within 30 feet of you succeeds on an Intelligence, a Wisdom, or a Charisma saving throw, you can use your reaction to deal 2d8 + your Charisma modifier force damage to the creature that forced the saving throw.

All You Need Is Love: At 20th level, your presence on the field of battle is an inspiration to those dedicated to your cause. You can use your action to gain the following benefits for 1 hour:

You have resistance to bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage from nonmagical weapons.

Your allies have advantage on death saving throws while within 30 feet of you.

You have advantage on Wisdom saving throws, as do your allies within 30 feet of you.

This effect ends early if you are incapacitated or die. Once you use this feature, you can’t use it again until you finish a long rest.

[northwoodsfan]

Influence Jesus’ Way — Part 3: Step out of Your Comfort Zone

Be careful to live properly among your unbelieving neighbors. Then even if they accuse you of doing wrong, they will see your honorable behavior, and they will give honor to God when he judges the world. 1 Peter‬ ‭2‬:‭12‬ Years ago I had two girls that attended the youth group I led. One of the girls came from a great Christian home and the other came from a home was full of hate and anger. The…

[childofflamesandmoonlight]

I would really appreciate some help with interpretation on this deity identification reading! I didn't use a specific spread, but pulled one card from every deck I own - usually this works really well for me, but this time I can't quite put my finger on who this deity is. I have some vague ideas, but I would love to hear your interpretations.

Thank you in advance!

Here are the cards I drew (plus some notes from the imagery and the guidebooks):

Demon of the Day - Camio:

"Be mindful of arguments and disputes. It can feel good to win but not at the cost of a relationship."

Birds, blackbird, trush

Gaelic, Irish or Welsh origin

Dispute, eloquent verbal debate, persuasive argument

Understanding the language of animals and the noise of the water

Angels Among Us - Jesus:

Forgiveness, compassion, love, peace, kindness

Spiritual teacher, spiritual activist, healer

Christian origin

Higher wisdom

Without judgement

Goddesses Among Us - Atargatis:

Mermaids, mer-magic

Transformation, change

Deep diving

Assyrian or Mediterranean origin

Fertility

Protection

Heartbreak, challenge, powerful emotions

Ocean, water, depth

Grieving

Healing

Shadow work

Legendary Ladies - Estsanatlehi:

Transformation

Native American origin

Sky and earth

Linestrider Tarot - Five of Swords:

Conflict

Tension

Disagreements

Inflexibility black-and-white thinking

Compromise

Isolation

Defeat, failure

Interpersonal difficulties

Hollow victory

Selfishness, hurtful behavior

Resentment

Trust issues

Numbers: 5, 59, 14

Associated birthdays: January 20 to January 30

Associated plants: mistletoe, capsicum, calamus root

Pastel Mini Magic Tarot - Ace of Pentacles:

New beginnings

Opportunities

Potential

New financial or career opportunity

Manifestation

Abundance

Wealth

Business

Cat Tarot - Ten of Cups:

Happiness

Togetherness

Home

Family

Divine love

Blissful relationships

Harmony

Alignment

Star Spinner Tarot - The Hermit:

Seeking the truth

Introspection

Retreat

Assessment

Soul-searching

Being alone

Inner guidance

Mondays Tarot - Death:

Change

Ending

Rebirth

Renewal

Transformation

Under the Roses Lenormand - The Snake:

Snake

Deception, lies, tricks

Betrayal

Seduction, temptation

Jealousy

Manipulation

Disappointment

Difficulties

Distraction

Loss

Falseness

Hypocrisy

Indecision

“The other women”

Arcana Lenormand - Lily:

Bees and butterflies

Flowers

Sensuality

Sex

Virtue

Morality

Ethics

Wisdom

Thera-pets - “You don't have to be perfect to be lovable”:

Red panda

Mushroom Spirit - Rosy Bonnet:

Mycena rosea

Poisonous

Pink

Similarities

Details

Looking closely

Not making assumptions

Research

Don't be fooled by appearances

Looks can be deceiving

The Citadel - The Walker:

The Unknown

Journey

Birds

New experiences

Transition, transformation

Finding answers

Moving on

Voice of the Souls - Learning:

Palm reading hand

Evolution

Learning new things, new abilities and skills

Number 13

SOTW Imbolc - Consecrate tools:

"I will claim what is mine, what I see beyond the hidden. Gifted spirit, by tongue my words spill with purpose."

Establishment

Displaying spirit

Claiming ownership

Conscious decisions

Taking what is meant to be yours

Embracing what is before you

No doubts

Fully invested

Permanent fixture

SOTW Beltane - Maiden:

"Demand what is yours and take back what was taken. Reclaim until you've gathered all of you."

Bees and butterflies

Reclaim

Divine manifestation on earth

Powerful, sacred beings

Direct channels to the gods

Embracing your freedom

Power

Inner warrior

Divine feminine

Primal force of creativity

SOTW Litha - Sunbathing:

"The dance of stillness is calling for you to live in its embrace."

Flowers

Spiritual strength

Restoration

Rest

Self-care

Healing

Relaxation

Meditation

Prayer

Spiritual nourishment

SOTW Mabon - Crow:

"Pay close attention to the winds; there's a message making its way."

Crows

Something's coming

Messages

Pay attention

Important signs and clues

Warning

Trust your intuition

SOTW Samhain - Elders:

"Birthed from seed within the belly of the moon, they are the wise felt touches over our hearts and felt deep within the marrow of our spirit."

Wisdom

Experience

Storytellers

Keepers of knowledge

Compassion

Sage advice

Slowing down

SOTW Yule - Father Christmas:

"How did thy get here? Lost perhaps? No worries at all! Gather yourself and clear the frost for the good still lives in you dear."

Naughty or nice?

Kindness

Mindfulness

[shamandrummer]

The Power of Ritual and Ceremony

A ceremony is a unified ritualistic event with a purpose, usually consisting of a number of artistic components, performed on a special occasion. Ritual and ceremony are an essential and basic means for human beings to convey to themselves and to others the necessary messages which enable them to maintain their humanity. They communicate acceptance, love, esteem, a sense of identity and purpose, shared values and beliefs, and shared memorable events. Every ritual contains tender and numinous moments. And in those moments of transcendence we are taken out of the normal flow of life, and out of our routines. We are then in an event that is unique, irreplaceable and sacred. In ritual we participate in something deep and significant. They are moments which move our heart and touch our soul.

Ritual and ceremony are essential for a healthy and balanced personal and communal life. Many persistent personal and social problems can be linked to the lack of ritual and ceremony. The late Joseph Campbell, one of the great mythologists of the twentieth century, asserted that the level of civilized behavior in a society is directly linked to the practice of ceremonies and rites of passage. Rituals and ceremonies reduce tension, anxiety and stress, produce deeper self-awareness, and connect us to our community. They are a vehicle for belonging--to a family, to a people, and to the land. Both reconnect us with our deepest core values and our highest vision of who we are and why we are here.

Ritual and ceremony nourish our spirits and our psyches. They heal the deep wounds in us that are unseen and unspoken. Ceremonials offer us a deeper healing solution to complex dilemmas that plague modern life, those problems that lie beneath the surface, waiting to erupt. When the soul is in a state of discontent, conflict and discord, these conditions manifest in our daily life's events as dissonance, confusion, ill health and misfortune. Conversely, when our soul is in a state of peace and harmony, these qualities manifest in our life as ease and acceptance, caring and accord with the world around us. From an shamanic perspective, the restoration of one's soul contributes to the restoration of the collective soul of humanity.

Ritual vs Ceremony

Ritual and ceremony are two distinct practices used to engage the powers of the unseen world to effect specific changes in the visible world. Ceremony is a formal act or set of acts designed to celebrate, honor or acknowledge what is. Ceremony is used to strengthen or restore the status quo, grounding people in the natural order of things and/or deepening communal relationships. Ritual is a formal act or set of acts designed to cause a change in what is--to change or transform the status quo.

Ritual and ceremony are a universal way to address the spirit world and provide some kind of fundamental change in an individual's consciousness or in the ambience of a gathering. They may involve prayers, chanting, drumming, dancing, anointing, as well as rites of passage. Both are designed to engage the spirit world in helping us to do what we are unable to do for ourselves. The power of ritual and ceremony is they marry the mundane to the sacred. Without the connection to the powers of the spirit world, neither is an effective tool for initiating change. By creating effective ritual and ceremony, we can skillfully engage Spirit in the processes we are involved in like healing, therapy or actualizing our goals.

[childofchrist1983]

The first thing Andrew did after meeting Jesus Christ was to tell his brother Simon Peter the good news. Were you as excited as Andrew to tell others when you first came to know Jesus? How about now? Sometimes, we lose that excitement over time. But with every answered prayer, every new beginning, God gives us an opportunity to reclaim - and proclaim - our excitement all over again. It is a joy to know Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ. When we look back on our first meeting, we remember how we were so amazed and overwhelmed with joy by Him. Thank Him for continuing to show up in our hearts and our lives. May He use these moments to give us fresh eyes and a restored spirit, so that we may continue to be amazed by Him and His Holy Word and Spirit, and continue to share His Gospel Truth with others without hesitation.

May He empower us by His Holy Word and Spirit to live in the light of His Truth, love grace. May our healing and transformation glorify His name and Kingdom of Heaven and reveal who He truly is to others. May He help us to keep close to Him, so that we may endure until He fully sets us free and brings us to our true home in His Kingdom of Heaven. Thank Him for His Holy Word and Spirit. Thank Him for revealing the Truth of Him and His holiness. May He help us to hold close to Him just as He holds close to us, so that we may live in humble and faithful obedience. If we stray from Him and His path, may He use His Holy Word and Spirit to bring us close to Him once again. May He help us daily to trust fully in Him and His love, provision and care. Thank Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ for making us anew! May He complete His renewing work in us, ridding us of the sinful words, thoughts and actions that aren’t from Him, so that we may reflect only His love and light and presence in us to this dark and fallen world and the lost souls within it.

God is our Heavenly Father, our Creator and our guide. And Jesus Christ is our LORD and Savior and King. As Christians, we trust Him wholeheartedly and we submit our heart and our lives into His skilled hands. May He shape us according to His design and plan for us, so that we may stand strong in the firing furnace and emerge revealing His craftsmanship as He prepares us serve Him on Earth and in His Kingdom of Heaven according to His Holy Word and will. May He give us the peace and endurance we need each day, and may He use this time to help us grow in His wisdom and strength and to grow in our walk and relationship with Him. May He make us more into the person that He not only created us to us to be, but called us to be from the very beginning.

Thank Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ for securing a place for all true Christian believers as followers of Christ and spiritually reborn children of God in His eternal Kingdom. Each day, the sun rises and its light and warmth, and the Holy Bible gives us a glimpse of the promised eternity to come. May we continue to walk in the love and light of Christ with our heads held high and our eyes on the finish line. May we lead others to His Gospel Truth and to His light as well throughout this journey with Him. Let us all humble ourselves before God daily, asking Him to forgive us and to strength and teach us to view life through the lens of God and His promises. May He guard our hearts against Satan and the temptations of this world and our flesh. May He give us the peace to find full satisfaction in God and His peace and promises, so that we may live our lives daily in ways that honor and pleases Him. As we seek Him daily, may He reveal Himself to us through the words He has provided and use it to conform the desires of our heart to Him and His love and compassion and grace.

As true and spiritually reborn Christians, we love, trust and believe in Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ. We choose to keep Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ first in our hearts and lives and all other worldly desires behind us. He extends salvation to everyone, and we want to show the world the freedom, hope and peace they can have in accepting and following Him. We must ask Him to help us grow spiritually in our relationship with Him and strengthen us and the bonds of love that He has given us, so that our unity may glorify and testify to His power and goodness. Thank Him for calling us to faith and imparting us with salvation and righteousness. May He empower us to live in His will and righteousness, so that we may testify to His soul-saving power as our faith carries us past all doubt, fear, and failure. May He grant us the grace to forgive others who have wronged us, and the humility to seek forgiveness where we have caused strife. May we follow and serve God daily with love, trust, awe and wonder. May Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ strengthen our faith, lift our spirits, protect our hearts, and show us opportunities to help bring others to Him and His Gospel Truth daily. May we do this duty boldly, humbly and faithfully. Seek, follow and trust in the LORD God Almighty always! To God be all the honor and praise and glory!

We must come to Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ with sincere hearts to ask forgiveness and follow Him and His Holy Word and Spirit always. We praise Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ for the mercy He bestows upon us and we are grateful for His grace and mercy and infinite blessings. By surrendering our hearts and our lives to His will, we see all the blessings He has bestowed upon us. God our refuge and our salvation and our constant provider. We lift our voices to Him in praise for His steadfast love, mercy and understanding. May Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ open our minds and hearts more and more to perceive and embrace Him and His truths. May He help us to find time to pray and read and study the Holy Bible daily and to find power in prayer, praying according to His Holy Word and will. May He help us to come to Him in true repentance and with faith in Him and His grace and merciful nature. May He give us the grace, courage and strength we need to walk with Him and do His will daily. May He teach us to watch our words when we pray to Him and to speak reverently and rightly. May we continually ask God to transform our hearts and make us faithful and humble as we walk with Him daily. We must come to Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ with honest, humble and repentant hearts. We must seek Him and His will and choose to follow Him all the days of our lives. May He help transform our hearts, help us to seek and live for Him above all else and to grow spiritually and build our faith and relationship with Him with each passing day. May He forgive our sinful nature and help us always make Him and our relationship with Him top priority.

As true and born-again Christians, we choose to walk in His righteous path and lead a life that is pleasing to Him. We desire Him and His will above anything else. We desire to walk in accordance with the love and light He has shown to us through His Holy Word and Spirit. We long for a deeper relationship with Him and a deeper fellowship with our brothers and sisters in Christ as well. When we fall into temptation and sin, we must turn to Him for forgiveness, strength and guidance. When believers learn to walk in accordance with God's Holy Word and Spirit, they have deeper fellowship with both God and one another. And the sin that could threaten to destroy that fellowship, if confessed (1 John 1:9), is covered in the blood of Jesus Christ and no longer a barrier between us and God. May we ask Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ to forgive us for any sins we have sinned this day or in days past. May we be faithful to Him and His Holy Word always. May He help us to walk more consistently in the light and to not neglect long to confess and forsake any sins that hinder our walk with Him. May He lead us in the direction He wants us to go so that we may seek and serve Him faithfully. God is holy and almighty and deserving of all praise honor and glory. We rejoice in Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ, knowing He is the same yesterday, today, and forever (Hebrews 13:8). He is the Alpha and the Omega (Revelation 1:8). May our hearts always be filled with thanksgiving and rejoicing. May He help us to praise Him freely and honestly like all believers who came before us. May we live a life that showcases our love and trust in Him and His Holy Word and Spirit as He uses us draw others to Him and His soul-saving Gospel Truth daily. May He continue guide, correct and protect us, so that we continue to grow in Him and not weaken and stray. May we all remain faithful to Him and to this duty and purpose He has called us to. Seek and put your faith and trust in Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ and let Him do the rest. May He humble our hearts and help us focus on following and serving Him daily and helping others with joy and happiness. We lift our voices in praise to Him for His love, mercy, peace, faithfulness and grace - For EVERYTHING!

It is vital that we remain rooted in Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ through prayer and His Holy Word and Spirit and that we live and walk as a beacon of His light and love and share and spread the Gospel Truth daily, so that the lost souls in this world can come to know Him and be saved. The more we focus on Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ, growing spiritually by building our relationship with Him, leaning on Him and His Holy Word and Spirit, the better off we will be. Thanks to this and our faith in Him, we know that everything will be alright. And we will forever be grateful to Him. As true and born-again Christians, we believe in Him and His Holy Word and we strive daily to walk in His Holy Spirit. We know though our mortal bodies should die, He will raise us up and into new and glorious bodies (The Rapture). We who are truly His and alive at His second coming will never die, and our bodies will be changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, and so shall we ever be with Him in His Kingdom of Heaven forevermore (1 Corinthians 15:51-52, 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17). This is one of many promises given to us by God Himself. Thank God for His strength and guidance when we are faced with sin and temptation. Thank Him for His mercy and grace. Through Bible study and prayer, God reveals His wisdom and guides us to see opportunities to grow closer to Him and grow spiritually. He gives us direction to live our lives daily according to His will.

Jesus Christ is the ONLY way to Heaven (John 3:5, 14:6), the ONLY way to salvation (Acts 4:12, Ephesians 2:8-9) and He is the resurrection and the life (John 11:25-26). Jesus Christ the LORD of lords, the KING of kings, the GOD of gods (Deuteronomy 10:17, 1 Timothy 6:15, Revelation 17:14, Revelation 19:16) - He is the Living, Almighty and Everlasting God (Isaiah 9:6, Revelation 1:8, John 3:16, John 3:36, Jeremiah 10:10). There is no other God besides Him (Isaiah 45:5). We MUST humble ourselves before Him, turning our backs on false teachers, false gods and idols and our sinful ways. We MUST repent and turn back to God and recognize who He is and love Him in return for His great love for us. We MUST make God top priority everyday! May we be motivated to spread God's Holy Word and Gospel Truth to all the Earth, knowing that it is the only hope of all those lost in their sins. Let us not hold out a false hope for men to be saved without the Gospel, but instead, strive to do our part to get the Gospel out to a lost and dying world.

Leaning on Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ through prayer and His Holy Word and Spirit strengthens us and our knowledge and wisdom about God and His Gospel Truth, exposing these imposters. May God help us to seek and lean on Him daily to gain the strength, wisdom and spiritual discernment needed to expose Satan and his imposters who seek to destroy us and God's ultimate Truth. Everyday, we must remember to share Jesus Christ's Gospel Truth with the world and to thank Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ for the grace that He poured out for us on the cross at Calvary. He has freed us from the burdens of sin and from the eternal damnation of Hell. In all we say and do, may all praise, honor and glory always be given to Him and His Kingdom of Heaven.

With renewed minds, hearts and wills, let us serve Him humbly and faithfully out of pure love and grateful rejoicing. May He remind us of His presence and to remain at peace, fully knowing that all will be well because He is always with us. Let us seek Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ today and everyday with all our heart and being, looking for His love, light and will for our lives with each step we take. Let us seek to please Him with our thoughts, words, and deeds and seek to advance His Kingdom of Heaven and His glory with our lives. Let us seek Him from a pure and humble heart, and when we so seek, we believe Him and His promise that we will find. May He help us all to be more sensitive to the teaching ministry of His Holy Word and Spirit, relying on Him and allowing Him to speak to us and guide us every step of our Christian journey.

God gave us the Holy Bible - His living and Holy Word - to let us know of Him and His abiding love and care as well as guide and prepare us for all our lives. May He help us encourage one another as we continue our walk with Him and our duty to Him daily. Thank Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ for being present for all our new beginnings and all our lives. May He redirect any anxiety we feel as He provides countless opportunities for growth and change. May we humble ourselves before God always, asking Him to forgive our sins and make our hearts and lives anew through His Holy Word and Spirit. May He help us make Him and His Holy Word top priority, so we can grow spiritually and grow in our relationship with Him as we apply it to our daily lives. Thank God that we can focus on Him and everything about Him, for that is what keeps us sane and at peace. May our words and actions always be a reflection of Him and His Holy Word and Spirit and will.

May He help us to always walk in His grace and Holy Spirit, not by our own measure. May He give us the humble humility to know that our freedom and eternal salvation is found only in Him, so that His grace may sustain us, and we may never lose sight of His love and light and mercy. Thank Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ for calling us to Him and to serve Him. May He equip us to do all that He has called us to do so that as He works through us, He may use us to produce fruit, to reach others, and to encourage all brothers and sisters in Christ. May He work all of these things in us and through us for His Kingdom and His glory. Thank Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ for all His creation, for His miraculous ways and for everything He does and has done for us! Keep the faith and keep moving forward in your walk with Jesus! He loves us and He knows what is best for us. Seek, follow and trust in Him - Always!

Thank Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ for His Holy Word and for sending His Holy Spirit so that we might have His grace, not only to awaken us and transform our hearts in our spiritual rebirth and guarantee our eternity with Him, but to also call upon Him whenever we are in need. Thank Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ for all the reminders of His love and mercy and faithfulness within His Holy Word. He is bigger than any challenge or circumstance in our lives. Knowing this within our minds and our hearts, nothing can deter our faith in Him and His Truth. May we all accept Him and His eternal gift of salvation and ask that He would transform our hearts and lives according to His will and ways. Thank Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ for His Holy Spirit who saves, seals and leads us. May we always thank Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ for His almighty power and saving grace. For He is our strength, and He alone is able to save us, forgive our sins and gift us eternal salvation and entry into His Kingdom of Heaven.

May we make sure that we give our hearts and lives to God and take time to seek and praise Him and share His Truth with the world daily. May the LORD our God and Father in Heaven help us to stay diligent and obedient and help us to guard our hearts in Him and His Holy Word daily. May He help us to remain faithful and full of excitement to do our duty to Him and for His glorious return and our reunion in Heaven as well as all that awaits us there. May we never forget to thank the LORD our God and our Creator and Father in Heaven for all this and everything He does and has done for us! May we never forget who He is, nor forget who we are in Christ and that God is always with us! What a mighty God we serve! What a Savior this is! What a wonderful LORD, God, Savior and King we have in Jesus Christ! What a loving Father we have found in Almighty God! What a wonderful God we serve! His will be done!

Thanks and glory be to God! Blessed be the name of the LORD! Hallelujah and Amen!