She Thinks She's Witty

Scripture : Hosea 6:1-3 Start Over The potter gets frustrated and smashes the clay. He starts all over on his project but still uses the same clay. Thank you for never giving up on us  even when we don't  do what you've told  us to do. Thank you for starting over again and again and believing in us each and every time. Amen, Rachel

Scripture : Isaiah 41:10 (NIV) So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. You're in the dark too It's not the dark I'm scared of but what might be in it. The things I cannot see, cannot prepare for, those are the things that frighten me. But I can't see you either. And, though you have had your share of frightening moments, you are not to be feared completely. Then the darkness is good and full of promise. "Goodnight," I whisper to you and the things that go bump in the night. "Goodnight and sleep tight. My guardian angels will protect you too." For even the scary things need protecting from something scarier. Trust & Rest, Rachel

Scripture : Psalm 78:1-4, 52-55 Unworthy Soul Bless the Lord, O my soul I sing your praises I write your stories I live the life you have given me I do what I can But it will never be  enough to fully magnify your glory Make me worthy of you, Lord Make me an instrument  And bless my unworthy soul, O my Lord. Peace & Hope, Rachel

Scripture : Mark 4:26-32 Glimpses "It's this big," she said, her little arms stretched so far apart they were behind her. The object she was talking about was flat and would not have bent like that. Therefore, I could only get an idea of how big it actually was. To her mind, it was bigger than she could even stretch. That's God's love and existence. "This big!" We'll never be able to see the whole expanse of it, but we can show off pieces of it, glimpses of it to others. Hope & Love, Rachel

Scripture : Isaiah 9:6 Like Mother Like Daughter Father, I adore you. Papa, I love you. Mother, I adore you. Mama, I love you. My Father, Mother, Papa, Mama, I am your child by whatever  name we call you. And I love you as only a child can. By loving and fearing you at the same time. Obeying you and rebelling equally. Not realizing that what you're  doing is really for my own good until I get older. And you've loved me as only a parent loves. From a distance,  letting me make mistakes and then picking me up  and holding me tight when I fall down. Hugs & Adoration, Rachel

Scripture : Jeremiah 6:14 Warm Hearts Dreamers are hard to find these days They used to be a dime-a-dozen Now we see the world through a smokey haze And our hearts all seem frozen. We need you, God, to warm our hearts Start up our icy muscles For you have given us each special parts And we have to shake this world up, give her a good tussle! Love & Hope, Rachel

Scripture : Psalm 147 Sun Shines/Wind Blows "He heals the brokenhearted." "He determines the number of the stars" "Praise the Lord, oh my soul!" He is amazing beyond words. The sun shines because he says so. The wind lows and he tells it to hush. --------------------------------- God, thank you for the miracles of our world. Thank you for the miracle of us. For the beauty and the wonder around us. Even when we're freezing, thank you for the ability to feel it! Love & Hugs, Rachel

Scripture : Psalm 36:5-9 Deep Love Your Love is so deep it can transcend any language or lack there of. At the same time it's so deep it can't be fully interpreted into our feeble brains. The love of a lover. The love of a father. The love of a brother. The love of a neighbor. The love of a mother. The love of a sister. All our attempts to understand a love that we never will. But we keep trying and keep trying to somehow love you back. Lots of love, Rachel

Scripture : James 5:7-11 If the Prophets Could I've never been much good at waiting. It's not an easy thing to do, But I guess I can do it if the prophets could. Through the sad And through the heartache. I've never been much good at waiting. Hard to have grace Hard to just sit, But I guess I can do it if the prophets could. Have faith. Know things will change. I've never been much good at waiting. Waiting for Godot When Harry Met Sally But I guess I can do it if the prophets could. Hard to keep dreaming Hard to keep going. I've never been much good at waiting. But I guess I can do it if the prophets could. Hope & Faith, Rachel

Scripture:  Habakkuk 2:1-3 Limited Vision I want to be a visionary, O' God, but my vision is so limited, so tiny. I dream of great things and then always bring the conversation back to me, I, my... Lord, please help me get away from me. Help me to broaden my vision to us, we, together. May we all see the bigger picture and fill in the pieces together. Peace & Light, Rachel

Scripture : John 1:1-5, 14a What About Bob Lord, you were made flesh. You were made like us  for a short time. We hear mostly, though, of the miracles you performed and the tragedies you went through. We don't hear much about your best friend Bob or the girl you had a crush on in second grade. We don't usually hear that side of any hero's life. And though it may be slightly blasphemic or unconventional, I like to think you, Jesus, went  through a bit of that while here with us. That you got a taste of a normal,  mortal life somewhere in between miracles. Thank you for giving us these mortal lives and for being with us on Earth and in heaven. Amen. Hugs & Love, Rachel

Scripture: Ecclesiastes 3:1-20 Positively Depressing This is such a pessimistic passage, God,  just as I was having such a good day. Not your fault of course,  but is this ever a Debbie Downer chapter... There is more to life than dust to dust. You made it vibrant and beautiful and ugly and depressing all at once. I have no aches today, but I will tomorrow. Thanks for putting up with my mood swings and  loving me through it all. XOXO, Rachel

Scripture : Psalm 46 Listen, will you! I know how to be still, God,  it's just that my brain doesn't. Physically I can be still for a while. I won't like it, but I can do it. But mentally, now that's  training I need to undergo. Peace, be still... The peace part is the difficulty. When I pray, it's almost always a one-sided conversation. Not because you don't talk back,  but because I don't leave room for you to even if you wanted to. Sorry, Papa God. Please teach me to shut-up and listen once in a while. Love, Rachel

Scripture : Isaiah 40 You Still Love Us God, I watch these TV shows with men who seem to live forever. But they are still mortal  in the end. We dream of what the life of God is like-- what it's like to be a "god"-- but it's not in our meager brain capacity to understand. You are wonderful and terrifying at once, a "being" so big we don't have a word big enough. And yet you still love us. The stern parent who seems angry but deep down just wants us to be more careful. The God of war and the God of peace. We mess up  time and again but yet you still love us. Thoughts and Love, Rachel

Scripture: Ephesians 6:10-18 My Papa and Me Clothe me in love today, Lord. Let all who see me see not only a girl who has no Valentine but  a girl who's Valentine is her Papa God. Let them see the love of  You shinning through me and help me to spread love "All over this land!" This might be a lofty and naive goal but with my Papa at my side, anything is possible! Hearts and Hugs, Rachel

I was going to write a disclaimer and then I realized the whole point of this is to pray without judging myself or worrying about the judgement of others. This prayer is my honest prayer. Not spell-checked or edited, just from the heart in the moment. Simple as that. :-) Scripture : Ezekiel 37:1-3 Weary for You Energize me, God. Lift my spirit up and guide my weary bones. They grown and ache  for no reason at all. Who am I to be weary when I see what others have done...are doing in your name? Let me work for you till I'm truly weary and never feel it fully. For doing your works would be the least wearisome task of all. Peace and Hugs, Rachel

I've never had much success in the give something up for Lent  department. In college I did try fasting during daylight hours. It was a suggestion from my dad based on a religion that, I'm sorry to say, I can't remember anymore. It seemed like an interesting way to work through Lent and I think I made it through a week and then gave up. This year, I stumbled upon a book called Writing to God  by Rachel Hackenberg (who I found  out is from Lancaster, PA!) and thought it looked like a really interesting devotional. I ordered it with a Christmas gift card and, only after I had it in my hands, did I notice the subtitle to the book: 40 Days of Praying with my Pen . I thought, 40 days? That's an odd number for a devotional. Then I thought, There are 40 days in Lent...  and I read the intro. That's when it clicked. The devotional I had ordered was specifically designed to follow you through Lent. Doesn't have to be 40 days of Lent, but that was the original thought...