Praying and Fasting Together

Several of my friends and I pray each year for a word from God. It's been an interesting journey to see how God unfolds the year according to his early revelation.

And that's what 2009 was for me. My word for last year was REVELATION. I think I'm still in this state as God shows me more and more what's deep inside of my heart and what needs to change.

So, again I've prayed for my word for 2010. I clearly heard SUBMISSION. And again I am in awe of God's ways. He spent a year revealing what needs to change, and now the work will come, to clean out these areas, to break strongholds, to submit to his direction.

Part of this will be fasting next week. This will probably be the most difficult area for me—to overcome my resistance to this area of discipline and the enemy who inevitably slams me each time I try. He's succeeded in deterring me from fasting for a long time, and I know some of the breakthroughs I need can only come through submission to this discipline.

It won't be easy. In fact, I think this will be one of the most difficult things I've ever had to do. Ever. But I'm standing before you with a commitment to do this according to how God is leading me specifically to fast. And I'm standing under his shadow of protection and against the enemy to say, I will not shy away from this anymore. I will not accept the enemy's attempts to defeat me. God is stronger and God lives in me. I will persevere through Jesus.

So I humbly ask, will you join me in confronting those areas of your life that keep us from experience God's full blessing in our lives? Will you join me in this fight for freedom? I will pray for you, please pray for me. I'm so very weak, but I know God's grace is sufficient for us. He keeps reminding me of that! And I believe together we can succeed.

Praying and believing,
Dineen

Thankful Thursday - Can I be thankful for THAT?

Let us give thanks. It is Thankful Thursday.

December we are meeting at Women Taking A Stand. In January we will be giving thanks in the new year, right here at Spiritually Unequal Marriage. I can't wait.

_____

Wow, the last day of 2009. What a year it has been. Many of you have shared the fantastic and divinely appointed journey of the Donovan Clan. We experienced many extreme challenges and struggles. We faced some deep fears and financial setbacks. 

 But! 

 ~Don’t you always love that there is a but in the story? 

God proved His faithfulness. Mostly He showed this broken and messed up bunch of people just how mighty and awesome He really is. God astounded us with answers to prayer and miraculous provisions. 

Yet, as I sat with Him this morning instead of feeling joy, I felt pain. I felt the sting of rejection and unworthiness. 

Why is it after all these years walking with Jesus the actions of people still can hurt so deeply? 

You see, I wasn’t included. I wasn’t asked to the party. The party was discussed around me but I was left out. And I was left out by the very people who are suppose to love and care about me. 

I think the Lord showed me this pain to remind me of how many of you feel pain. You feel pain because you weren’t invited to the party. You were left out. You were talked about, disrespected, and then left by the wayside. 

If you read my story over the past year and felt anger or hurt because your marriage has not changed. If you are wounded because your husband remains distant and hostile to Christ, I know you. 

I see you. I feel your pain. I will never forget all the years of crying for my marriage and the pleading for salvation of my husband. 

The LORD will never allow me to forget. Do you know why? 

Because I know how you feel and the Lord knows I will never stop praying for you. 

My journey is certainly not finished. As I talked to the Lord this morning about my pain, He reminded me of the vast amount of work still to be done in my heart and character. This pain was necessary to keep my mind on all of you and my focus on Jesus Christ.

I am thankful. 

Happy New Year! I love you. Lynn 

PS. Please join us for the week of fasting that begins Sunday. Stop back tomorrow for more information. This week will make a difference in your life for the entire year of 2010. That’s a promise! 

Don't forget, join me next Thursday as I will host Thankful Thursday for the month of January! Hugs.

*Update: It's funny. Just as I hit the publish button, an email arrived with a party invitation. God is too cool and it's nice to be asked!  

2010: A New Year - A New Hope - A New Beginning

Every year, during the first full week in January, our church holds a corporate fast. It is our week of Solemn Assembly, based on Joel 2:15: "Blow a trumpet in Zion, consecrate a fast, proclaim a solemn assembly..." 

We do this as a way to begin our year in the presence of God, seeking Him for directions, breakthroughs, revelation, whatever we may be in need of. This is a time for us to really draw close to the heart of God and to really experience Him in the most intimate of ways. 

In His Word, the Lord speaks of fasting on many occasions, even giving instructions as to how we are to present ourselves as we go through the fasting process. He says that fasting and praying should be a regular part of the Believer's life and that some things only come by fasting and prayer. As a matter of fact, even when Christ lived among man, scripture says he fasted 40 days and 40 nights before he faced his adversary, the devil. 

Fasting is an act of humility and total dependence on God. It shows our deep yearning to see Him work in our lives, in whatever way we need at any given time. When we deny our bodies the very food they need in order to function, we say to God that He is so important in our lives, that we want His will so completely, that EVERYTHING else is secondary to being more intimately connected with Him. We are putting aside our need, in order to honor His desire that we abide in Him and allow Him to be our everything. 

Won't you join us this year? 

Our fast will begin Sunday, January3rd, 2010 and will end at Midnight, Friday January 8, 2010. We are asked to fast at least one meal per day - typically the evening meal, and to forgo entertainment television (news, weather, etc, would be considered exempt from this). The time we would normally spend engaged in these activities should be spent in prayer/meditation/study of God's word, the goal is that the time we spend doing these things is focused totally on drawing closer to God. Don't worry that it has to be done exactly as our body does it. This is between you and God. Do as He leads you. For some, He will require more. Some less. Some different times, some not at all. And that's ok. What matters is that you seek Him in earnest, with a sincere heart. 

Each day there will be a different area of focus. I will do a short post detailing the days focus and anything the Holy Spirit leads me to share. You are encouraged to journal and to comment. Share your experiences and the things the Lord might share that would be beneficial to those on the journey with us. 

Happy New Year and I will meet you here in a day or two. Get ready! 

Rosheeda Lee

   

Christmas 2011?

Last week I wrote a post about daring to dream. This past week I and my family have taken a step in this direction, to take a desire and dare to dream it.

We have talked for years about spending Christmas in New York City. My mother is from there and has many fond memories of Christmas in the city. She came all the way from Florida to spend Christmas with us, and the idea came up again. This year I decided to push for a date. Why not dare to make a dream a reality?

So, God willing, I and my family will spend Christmas 2011 in New York. We've set the date and will now work toward this goal, to make a dream a reality. And my first step is to commit this to prayer and put it in God's hands, because you would not believe how God loves to make your dreams come true.

I've seen him do it in my life many times, even with dreams I'd forgotten about. But he didn't. As a teenager I had many dreams, small and large. And over the last ten years I've watched God bring almost all of them to reality. Some were small things like visiting a city in Europe that had the same name as my maiden name. And just this year, to design bookcovers. That one I'd totally forgotten about until my mother reminded me. And just this month, another dream came true. That one I'll share with you soon.

God loves to delight and wow us. He knows our hearts, he knows our dreams, he knows not only what we need but what we long for. When he is the center of our lives, our dreams become possible because they are centered in him with potential. They are opportunities to live in his grace and proclaim his glory.

And in the revelation of our dreams we see they are only possible because God is the One who brought them to reality. He not only created us, he created these dreams deep in our hearts so that one day he could show us just how precious we are to him.

So, I'm daring to dream and trust God with the outcome of a dream to spend Christmas in NYC. And if I can dare to dream for something like this, I realized I can dare to dream of a future with my sweet hubby walking in faith, and knowing God intimately. I will dare to dream this too.

How about you? What are you dreaming of?

Praying and believing,
Dineen

I Have a Serious Question for You.

Are you ready for healing?

Do you think as Christians most of the time we think of heavenly healing as a cure of a physical ailment? I believe we do and I know God miraculously heals people of physical sickness and disease. I also know God heals us from their emotional and mental injuries.

What I am discovering right now is the Lord is calling me to a year of healing. Healing specific to my physical condition(s). But, it is actually healing of my emotional issues as well.

I was talking with Dineen on the phone today. We were discussing how our weight gain is attributed to stress. Mine; unemployment. Hers; her daughter’s cancer and resulting heath issues.

How many of us medicate ourselves with food. I will own up and admit, I DO. Now let me tell you something that is hard to share. My bad habits began many years ago. I have thought long and hard about why I find myself with the struggles I face today.

I will admit that when I moved to California ten years ago, I found myself in a deep loneliness. My husband was far away from God and he was also on the road five days a week. I moved to a new town, leaving my career, family, and friends behind. I became a stay-at-home mother without any idea what to do with my high-energy self. I found myself eating too much and drinking a glass of wine at night to mask my loneliness. You can see how easily and seemingly harmless our bad habits begin.

I don’t want to skip over this point… Every spouse I have ever talked with who lives in a spiritually mismatched marriage, has battled with loneliness. It’s an odd paradox to be lonely and married.

I must caution you to recognize your stage of a spiritually mismatched marriage. You will likely experience loneliness. Now please don’t do what I did. I ate and drank to mask the hurt in my heart. Please turn to Christ.

But how do we really do this?

Why Don’t Diets Work?

Diet’s don’t work because we don’t cure the spiritual maladies of our soul.

Let me be specific. I needed healing of bad habits from years ago. Although I am no longer lonely, I still struggle with the years of reinforced bad habits and cravings.

After praying for several months now, I have heard the Lord calling me to healing. He has helped me to see that the emotional and spiritual part of this healing is completely up to Him and Him alone. The scripture verse, 2 Corinthians 12:9 But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness."

I don’t think I really understood this verse until now. His grace is sufficient. Nothing else is going to help me~ only His grace. Not only that, His power will be displayed through my healing. I will, without question, be healed through His power.

Whoa! Doesn’t that just blow your mind? Blows mine every time I think and pray about it.

I began praying 1 Peter 2:24 He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed, as inspired by e-Mom. (read her post here)

Now get this: by whose stripes ye were healed. KJV.

We WERE healed. It has already been done. Past tense. Already healed!

I began praying every night as I lay in the quiet of my room. Lord, by your stripes I am healed of my eating cravings. I would also count each lash, repeating the sentence of healing over my cravings. For the first time I felt the pain Christ endured for my healing. How dare I not pray for my healing when the Lord suffered to give it to me?

So here is my challenge.

Do you need healing? What is it in your life will you lift up to God in 2010 and ask for healing?

Now remember your heart and relationship with Christ must be in the right place. If you are far away from God right now, the first prayers and efforts must be focused on time spent alone with Him. You can know God through His Word and in worship. God lives in the praises of His people.

Then begin to pray these scriptures nightly over your body, soul, and emotions.

My healing will also require some further steps. I will share more with you in my next post.

Please tell me your need. I promise you I will take your healing before the throne. As you write the words in the comments, make this your 2010 commitment. Remember your healing is declared and it can be accomplished because the power of God is made perfect in weakness.

Praying the scriptures over your life, Hugs, Lynn

A Bible Verses 2010 Calendar for You?

Wow!

Do you see this beautiful Calendar? Iris of Grace Alone, has an amazing photography gift. She made these calendars for 2010 and I have one to give away.

I want to give one away to our SUM friends on Facebook. To enter just join us over on our Facebook page and leave a comment to enter. I will pick a winner on Wednesday.

Also on Wednesday, we will launch our plans for the new year. You will want to participate in this. Last year changed my life and my husband's. I am convinced it was partly due to how I started the year.

Also, I have much more to add tomorrow about our weight discussion. I have a challenge and I have some helpful ideas. Are you in?

Pop over to Facebook. Leave a comment. Come back tomorrow for an update on the "Fat Cat" series. I love you. I pray for you, your husband and your kids. Hugs, Lynn

Also, visit us on our Facebook page.

Spiritually Unequal Marriage on Facebook

Am I Fat or Is That Ring Around my Stomach a Child's Floaty?

So, ummm, yep, I think a diet life style adjustment is in order.

I like turkey. I like stuffing. Oh for goodness sakes.... If it has carbs, I love it... Just keepin' it real.

What a great photo -------->

Can anyone, besides me, relate?

I will tell you something else, eleven months of my husband's unemployment translated into 10+ pounds on the hips. Okay, okay and also into the floaty ring around my tummy. Guess I won't need to worry about staying boyant in the bathtub. Sheesh!

I find it interesting that I gained weight over the last year. I don't think it was because I ate out of worry or stress. I think I just prepared more meals and larger portions because my husband was home.

Morning, noon and night. He was home.... We both ate.... a lot.....

Perhaps I did a bit of stress eating as well. Keepin' it real.... *again.* *grin*

So, now that my man is heading back into the work force and because January is around the corner, it's a good time to start to take off the pounds.

With all this in mind, I think we should tackle this delicate or heavy (as the case may be) subject of our weight.

Should our weight, size, proportions be an issue in our marriage?

Can weight gain create LARGE issues in a marriage relationship?

What does the Word have to say about all this?

I believe we need an honest and realistic discussion. Millions of men and especially women stress EVERY SINGLE DAY about what they eat, what they weigh, and how they look.

What is your take on the matter. Does your weight matter to your spouse? Does your weight matter to you? Why?

I can't wait to talk with you more about this. Leave me your thoughts. I will be checking in and adding to our conversation.

Hugs, Lynn

Merry CHRISTmas and get ready for 2010!

Dineen and I are signing off for a few days. Dineen's mom is in town and my son arrived at my house this morning.

We will be returning on December 30th to share our New Year Kick off plans. 2009 was an incredibly scary year. Yet it was the most amazing road I have traveled with the Lord, EVER. And it all started out with the first week of January last year. We plan to repeat that experience. You don't want to miss the first week nor the series we have planned that follows.

So check back here on December 30th.

Today, we earnestly pray that each of you encounter that divine moment where you stand with the Lord in awe over His amazing plan to bring forth a child that would save the world.

Jesus is our hope

Jesus is our help.

Jesus is our encouragement.

Because of Jesus our marriages can be renewed. Our lives can be filled with peace, love, joy and contentment. 

Now that is a Merry Christmas indeed.

We love each of you. We are so very thankful you choose to spend time with us here at Spiritually Unequal Marriage. God bless, Lynn and Dineen.

 

 

Charlie Brown? Hope of the World.

I grew up waiting each Christmas season for two special TV shows to appear on our old television set. Yes, I grew up in the “Dark Ages”, according to my teenager. There weren’t video recordings nor hundreds of channels with millions of re-runs. You had one chance, once a year. That was it.

I anxiously awaited, A Charlie Brown Christmas which was followed by The Grinch That Stole Christmas. I would sit in the basement, next to the aluminum Christmas tree with the weird color wheel turning. Mom, would bring down the freshly popped corn which was coated with the most divine candy coating and we would make popcorn balls. With popcorn ball in hand, I sat criss-cross apple sauce on the floor and watch as Charlie Brown and the gang lit up our small television.  

I was always partial to this particular seasonal show over all the others, including Rudolph and the Grinch, because Linus always told the Christmas story. The real story from the Bible.

Luke 2: KJV

And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.

And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.

And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.

For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.

And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.

And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.

------

Even as a child of eight this story filled my heart and life with a smile. I knew the truth. I knew who Jesus was and even at that young age He had a grip on my soul. And at that tender age He knew I would turn run away from Him.

Yet, He never let go of me. He watched over me during the dark and dangerous years of clubbing in Las Vegas. He commanded angles to walk with me even when I was arrogant, vulgar, mean and completely self-absorbed.

He looked down on this girl of eight and delighted with me as I smiled at Charlie Brown, knowing full well the many hurting and broken people I would leave in my wake of selfishness. Oh but, He never let go.

He relentlessly pursued me to return home. I found my way home, gently guided by the love of Jesus.

I returned ashamed and broken. Knowing full well I deserved to die for the pain I caused in so many lives including my own.

The enemy worked my shame.

I am not worthy to be forgiven.

I’m so broken, I could never tell anyone else about God.

I’m utterly so messed up, I can’t possibly be loved by anyone.

I can never make up for the havoc I have wreaked.

Worthless, insignificant, useless empty.

 But that story of the babe in the manger is THE story. That child wrapped in swaddling clothes became my Redeemer. I was made free.

From shame.

From failure.

From the lies.

So on this Christmas, with all that has been redeemed in my past, with all that the Lord has done in my life in the past year alone, I will acclaim the King, born of a peasant. Born in humility. I will honor Him with my life.

To Him I will give my worship, adoration, praise and thanksgiving. I will celebrate this Holy day, Christmas like a girl of eight. With delight in my eyes and happiness in my heart.

Merry Christmas, Love Lynn

Weekend Devo — Dare to Dream

People seem to be having more difficulties these days than usual. This time last year I was shuttling my daughter back and forth to radiation treatments. And not too long after Christmas, Lynn's husband lost his job like so many have since the economy tanked. I'm sure as you read this, your own trials are playing out either in memory or in reality. None of us is immune.

But profound things happened in the midst of those trials. I'll be the first to say there have been some pretty deep valley's this year. One ongoing for me and my family, but even in this time of frustration and one morning's rant at God, I knew I loved my Jesus more than ever. I knew that I had grown and changed.

Such sweet adoration in the middle of my tirade—couldn't be from me but the working of the Holy Spirit. So what could I do but thank God for the trials that brought me to the place that ease of life never could?

Perhaps this is one of our constant tests of faith, to see our trials as God's tools forming us closer to the image of Christ and to praise God in the suffering and seek the fruit our pains. I know my current journey isn't over, but in submission I've found peace, understanding, and new purpose in prayer for my daughter.

We are the family of God, bonded together by the death of God's Son and united in our struggles. Again, I'm in awe of the way God works our life experiences and sufferings with a synchronicity, joining one to another. In the trenches we find true meaning.

Together.

And in perseverance in the presence of God's faithfulness, we can dare to dream. Dream of what can be, what could be, what will be. Dream of our lives with God, when all our tears are wiped away and joy is complete. Dream of a place where those we love and pray for know Jesus as we do.

This next year, let's allow God to show us what's beyond our imaginings. Let's pray like warriors determined to win. Let's dare to believe like we never have before. 

As Christmas comes full of promise, let's dare to dream. 

Praying and believing,
Dineen