Strengthen Me to Strengthen Others

21 Days of Prayer and Fasting

Today concludes the first week of this season. I am now a third of the way through. It is good to track progress. It helps encourage me along the process and journey that the process brings. It helps strengthen me.

Asking God to help us strengthening others is today's prayer focus. It is the second part of Luke 22:31-32. Having unfailing faith in the One whose faithfulness is far greater than my own can bring me strength. And when my faith brings me back from my personal failures, namely sin, perhaps my testimony will strengthen others. Not that I should fail just so I can come back...LOL I simply know I'll fail. But my faith tells me we have a God who is merciful and gracious. He is kind and gentle. He is faithful and provides the joy. His loving kindness endures forever. If that doesn't strengthen me, I don't know what else can!

Father in Heaven, thank You for Your faithfulness. It renews my strength every day. The rest I find in You restores my soul. Lord, please strengthen my faith. Not just for my sake. But also for the sake of those impacted by my presence in this world. Help me shine Your light in this world. Help me to strengthen my sisters and brothers in Christ.

As I continue to wait on and hope in You for my future church home, I lift up that church to You today. I pray that You also strengthen their faith in Your faithfulness. Empower the congregation to strengthen each other as they complete the mission You have called them to in the community. May their unity in faith be a beacon to encourage the community. And as that faithful beacon shines and draws more people to You, may the process further strengthen those who come.

Finally, I pray for the pastor. Renew his faith today as he prepares for tomorrow's teaching. Strengthen his faith with Your spirit and truth. May the words You speak through his sermon strengthen all of the people who hear. Open their ears to hear and their hearts to listen. May the faith of the pastor be an inspiration to the congregation always. And please strengthen the faith of the pastor's family. Bless them to be a blessing to others.

Thank You for Your faithfulness, oh Lord! With gratitude, and in Your Name, I pray. AMEN!

I'll have to study John 7 a little more in the future...well the whole Bible in general for that matter...LOL But I wouldn't say I connected with John 7 in the same level as I have the first 6 chapters. In this chapter, Jesus is teaching at the Feast of Tabernacles. In this week's episode of The Chosen, we see that the Feast is about to begin. I wonder if next week's episode will be based on this chapter of John? I honestly don't recall. I've seen it once, last year. I just don't remember it well...LOL Some folks in this chapter begin to wonder if Jesus is the Christ and there is further division happening among the people.

This is day 7 of this year's prayer and fasting season.

My Day

My day started off much like it has all week. I started with my morning prayer. I got dressed. I did my 21 days of prayer devotional and then read John 7. After that, I went for my first 1 mile prayer walk. Normally I would wait to have my breakfast until just before my 9am daily meeting. Since today isn't a work day, I went ahead and had my breakfast about 20 minutes early. I knew I wanted to get some routine maintenance done on my car. So I didn't want to wait...hehehe

I'm at the dealership now for that routine maintenance. It's a nice place full of a diverse set of people with one thing in common...we all have a vehicle...LOL When I arrived, there was a large line to get to the Service Center. I guess a lot of folks needed some work done today. I don't recall how long I waited in that line. But I imagine it was about 30 minutes. I wonder if that is an indication of how long I'll be waiting for the work to actually get done. I don't mind really. I look at it as an opportunity to continue growing in patience.

I've been here a few times since I bought my car. I think this might be the third or forth? I bought it at the end of September in 2023. My old car had broken down about a month before that, I think. So, I've had this car a little over a year now. I love it and it has been a pleasant experience.

I call having a vehicle a necessary evil...LOL There are only two types of places I can think of where I wouldn't need a car. A large city with plenty of public transportation options. Or a small town where I can literally walk everywhere. There are various other options in a place like where I live. They are very expensive, though. I could have groceries and other supplies delivered. And I could use ride shares like Uber or Lyft. Again, that cost could add up more than owning a car...which is also expensive.

In my Bible study notes this week, I briefly admit that I love where I live now. I lamented quite often last year how I felt it was time to move on. But my heart has changed. I stopped looking at the things I hate about it and focus on what I love about it. I still see the things I hate. But it just doesn't bother me so much now.

I mention that now because of my next thought. I still want to live in a small town where I can walk everywhere. I see a time when I no longer need a car. I don't live in such a place now. But perhaps I'll be able to find that when I do end up moving. It brings me joy to think about that and I have hope. Funny thing is, though, I'm not sure that is in the near future...LOL I still see myself living in places like where I am now or even in a city for a little while longer. I have this feeling God isn't finished with the process a place like this is helping transform my heart. If I were comfortable, I might stop growing...LOL

I'm still at the dealership. It is full of temptation...LOL They have a little café here that serves really good food. Good as in that it tastes good. I highly doubt it is actually good for my body. I have always gotten a meal here. Not today...LOL I brought some The Only Bar food bars if I'm here through lunch. I'm also smelling coffee...LOL It is free as far as I know. And we all know how much I love coffee. It's what I'm fasting...HAHAHA It was clearly a great choice to fast this month. I'm reminded of it often...hehehe

I received the text that my car was finished. They include an amazing video rundown of all they did and explain everything in great detail. They do the video from the shop itself. So, it's like they take me on a tour of my vehicle's time in the shop as if I were back there...hehehe It's pretty neat!

Then I received the text that I was to go see the service account manager that is taking care of me. I went up to his desk and he wasn't there...hehehe I waited for several minutes and then gave up. I'm back to sitting and waiting...LOL I wonder if he is at lunch as it is was just before noon when the car was complete and it's now a little after noon...hehehe

Well, it's night time now...LOL Yes, the service guy was on lunch break. I had to wait over an hour for his return...hehehe I wasn't sure about the timing, so I didn't do anything further on my computer. My day has been full since; which is why I'm just now getting back to journaling...hehehe

While I waited, I ate the food bars I brought. I'm so glad I brought them! My car did a good job at the shop...HAHAHA I say that like it is a pet at the vet or groomers...HAHAHA All looked good to the service technician. Through the video walkthrough, he complimented me on keeping it well maintained. I've never been complimented for that on a vehicle before...LOL It felt very good...HAHAHA

I did my grocery shopping next. I got a lot of the things I wanted for food for the week. But I also got some other necessities that I don't get every grocery trip. I loved the laundry soap I got last year so much, I went with the double size bottle this time. It was only a few dollars more than the one that is half the size...LOL And this will last me quite a while. I also got more body soap. I seem to need that once a month. I could buy extra bars. But once a month works fine for my brain organization...LOL

I stocked up on fish with 5 different kinds. I'll be good with fish for quite some time! One of the fish is a Chilean sea bass. It was expensive and only has 2 servings. But it will be a nice treat the couple of times I have it. I'll be sure to save it for a few special occasions...LOL

I've somehow found myself back on the pescatarian diet again. I didn't plan it. But I stopped craving chicken, pork, and beef. I'll not avoid it if I eat out. I may still get fish when out. But I'm not exactly against those meats. For some reason, I just don't feel like cooking with them at home for now. I've also gone back to tofu. I do both the soy-free and the traditional. It depends on my mood...hehehe

With my day being a little wonky with the car maintenance, I didn't do my usual lunch walk. So, once I got home from the grocery, I ended up walking 3 miles! I had already done my usual 1 mile walk this morning. As a result of both walks, I ended up doing 4 miles for prayer walks.

When I mention how far I've walked, I'm typically just referring to the prayer/exercise walks I do. I actually walk further each day when you include all the other walking I do just by being alive and mobile in general.

After my long walk, I did my Bible in a Year reading. I had a little trouble connecting with it today like I did with John 7. But the recap video really brought it around for me. It explained some things I didn't quite understand when I was reading. I'm grateful to have those recap videos this year!

I wasn't quite ready for dinner yet, so I went to my pet store. Yeah, I have a pet store now...LOL Mr. Long Legs' adoption day anniversary is coming up...hehehe My deer pal needs a new toy from his Florida pal, you know! HAHAHA This one is a throwback to my childhood...LOL Seeing his reactions to the toy I got him for Christmas tells me he is going to really love this new one...LOL

Next was dinner. I had fried rice again...LOL This was the last of my batch of rice for the week. I'll not have rice again until at least Wednesday. I have chow mein and tacos planned for the next few nights. Although, tomorrow I'll probably just heat up some soup.

I caught up on some TV tonight. There is a show on Apple TV, Severance, who's next season is about to begin streaming. I wanted to familiarize myself with the show again. I watched it a few nights this week. I'm all caught up now...hehehe

I checked out First United Methodist Church of New Port Richey online tonight. They only have a traditional service. This church very much reminds me of how things were at my church in the 80's. The only real difference was the additional UMC specific traditions. I love it ❤️ I may watch a few more of their services this coming week.

My search will continue next weekend with another UMC in Hudson. Just like New Port Richey, it isn't far from me. I may also check out a fourth church the week after that before deciding between the one I checked out last week, the one this weekend, and those for the next 2 weekends. And I'll prayerfully consider if any of the four are the church I'm drawn to.

Which leads me to this moment. I'm writing in this journal...HAHAHA

Photo of the Day

As my day was significantly impacted by a trip to the service center for my vehicle, it is only fitting that today's photo comes from the dealership...LOL I took several videos while there. I ended up with 21 photos for the entire day, though. I had other video candidates after my time at the shop. But this is the one that won over all...hehehe

I love how this one turned out. I don't know if they were celebrating or if balloons are typically a part of the decor. But I loved how they were cheery...hehehe They made my heart happy ❤️

Wrapping Up

Although I didn't get to all of the tasks I hoped to get to today, it was a very blessed day. Yes, TV was part of why I didn't get everything in...LOL But I also did a lot more praying. The one task I really wanted to get to is something I can either do tomorrow, or I can try to tackle later in the week. I basically have a couple of desks I want to clear and prepare for the next phase of my simplification process. Not a big deal...LOL

This morning's prayer walk was the best walk I have ever taken. I do not say this lightly.

Something I haven't talked about yet is that I have been partaking in communion at all meals and some snacks this entire week. In the past, I felt that communion was too special to make it a frequent thing. Then on Christmas Eve, I did it 4 times the same day. That changed my whole perspective on how often I do it. It connected me to how Jesus said as often as you...do this in remembrance. As I began this 21 day season, I thought I would like to experience communion more and keep it holy each time. It has been an amazing experience, to say the least. A life changing experience, to be more precise ❤️

I've had a lot to write about this week...and this whole month so far. I hope it hasn't been exhausting to read. It's good to write about all of this. I won't keep silent. And I can't keep this all inside. I have to share it. Thank you for reading it all ❤️