The Finish Line

21 Days of Prayer and Fasting

Once again, I cross another finish line. I think I need more seasons like this. Not necessarily prayer and fasting seasons. But intentional seasons. Something that has a beginning and an end that has some thought put into it. I could have special decorations for these seasons. I could have special meals. I don't really know what all yet. But, as I think back on the last 21 days, it makes me so happy to have measurable experiences that have made an impact on my life.

With the upcoming Valentines Day holiday, perhaps I could have a season of celebrating love. Both God's Love and my love for others. I have a week left in January. I could spend the next week thinking about how I could celebrate love this year. For today, though, I'm ready to cross this season's finish line...hehehe

On this final day of the season of prayer and fasting for 2025, I take a look back on this past week. Jesus' longest prayer comes from John 17. It has been a good week of prayer focus. But it also came with some struggles. These aren't easy prayers to pray. I'm asking God to help me and guide me through the greatest mission of my life. Sharing my faith and leading others to Him isn't the easiest thing for anyone to do. I even started off the week not really being ready for all of this. A week later, I'm still not ready. But that's just from my own human understanding. So, I'll continue to pray these prayers this year. God will prepare me for all that He wants me to do.

A recap:

1. Place me to glorify Him by sharing my faith
2. Give me the words
3. Let them hear
4. Protection over those who hear and believe
5. All future believers
6. Unite us with the One and in Love

I'll spend some time today reflecting on the meaning of these 6 prayers. They are probably the most important of all the prayers I'll ever pray. They are about the path that leads us all to God.

It has been good to specifically journal about these prayers in this season. This has been a sort of blueprint for one aspect of Jesus' prayers by one author of one devotional...hehehe I hope to explore His prayers more this year.

I noticed from my journal last year, I didn't specifically write about my prayer focuses. I just journaled in general and I could see how last year's season made an impact over the 21 days. This year, I get to see both the focuses and the impact...hehehe

Of course, I haven't written about the specifics of what I have been praying and fasting over outside of the prayer focuses. I've only written about the extra focus as I learned some new things about prayer itself. I have specific things I pray over outside of this devotional. The devotional was just a guide to learn something new about praying in general...hehehe

That's why I get spiritual fatigue in these seasons. It isn't just what I write about. There is so much more to it. For the things I don't say here, I can with confidence tell you that I have grown once again. God is guiding me through all of the other things I've been praying about. And my heart continues to transform.

I encourage anyone who has a relationship with God to practice prayer and fasting seasons. It doesn't have to always be just at the beginning of the year. In fact, last year, I had several of these seasons. This one that starts off the year is just sort of an annual refocus that I like to do specifically. But there are so many other reasons to dedicate focus to praying and fasting. Especially with big decisions or changes that happen in life.

I know these seasons have changed my life. I'm different now. I'll remain different. God is good ❤️

My Day

I went to bed later last night. I'm glad I did. I had forgotten how much more I like those late nights and late mornings...LOL Which is a little funny because a year ago, I was doing the opposite. In my journal from last year, I wrote about how I was trying to get to bed early and wake up early everyday. It wasn't until June when I started to adjust to a later sleep schedule. I did that for my July trip to California. I was preparing myself to avoid jet lag. And it worked! What I didn't expect was how much more I'd like that later schedule. Well, last night, I ended up doing that even though I hadn't planned to.

Maybe my mind and heart really do want to be on that later schedule after all...hehehe I've been trying to gradually work my way back to a more common schedule for my timezone. It hasn't worked so well...LOL That's okay. I am starting to believe I should listen to my body, soul, and mind when it comes to such things. Everything else should work around that, right?!? jk It isn't out of self-centeredness. It's out of a desire to be at my best so that everything I impact gets the best of me...hehehe

Well, I've broken my fast. For the first time since New Year's Eve, I had a cup full of that black bitter nectar...hehehe That's how my fictional character, George, describes it. Yep, I had coffee this morning...HAHAHA It feels weird, honestly. I missed it so much. I loved opening a new bag of my Joffrey's Sumatra origin beans and smelling the aroma. Brewing it is art to me since I do a slow pour over freshly ground coffee through a stainless steel filter into a coffee decanter...hehehe It's therapeutic and calming. I love the taste. My first sip was during breakfast communion. I avoided trying to taste it in that moment because that is when I acknowledge what Jesus did for us. But that second sip after my prayer...ooh boy! It was so good...hehehe As for the caffeine...well, that has been a jolt...HAHAHA I haven't had any caffeine since that night before the new year began...LOL 24 straight days without any caffeine whatsoever? Yeah, it feels weird today...hehehe

I had my coffee in my grateful mug. My parents gave me that mug this past Christmas. I think they found it at Cracker Barrel...hehehe I love that little general store they have in the entrance of the restaurant. It still looks the same as it did back in the 80s when I first stepped foot into one. The items they carry have changed over the years. But some of it is still the same.

They sell vinyl records. I think I'd like to get a player this year and start a vinyl collection. I've been thinking about that for a few years now. I should finally do that this year. I love the analog crackle of the needle following along in the grooves of the vinyl. It takes me back. I grew up with vinyl. My dad had his professional grade player and we kids had one of those kid players with the lights on the front that changed as the music played.

I enjoy my Apple Music streaming service. I get to listen to all kinds of music. But those digital sounds aren't quite the same as that analog. Each time I play a record, it's a slightly different sound. The grooves and needle change over time. Digital is the exact same every time. The only thing that changes over time is me, in that case. But with vinyl, the music changes with me. It grows as I grow. No one else can hear the exact same sounds I hear each time I play that record. It's a beautiful thought ❤️

I'm enjoying some time at Zen today. I haven't been here since November 2nd last year. In the slightly more than 2 and half months since I've been here, very little has changed...LOL I sure did miss it. I think they missed me too...hehehe Everyone I know here that is here today seems excited to see me ❤️ I am equally excited to see them ❤️

I'm working on this site while here today. I'm adding the Bible section at the moment. Now that my 21 days of prayer and fasting are officially over, I'm working on how to present that in the Bible section. It will actually be 24 prayer journal entries because of the break and reflection/recap days. The season is over, but there will still be some reflection over the next few days.

Since this new site replaced my original ByGregMarine.com site, my old attempt at my Vitamin G book is no longer online. I plan to get it back up on this site somewhere. I'll keep the original content of those chapters I previous wrote. But that book has evolved to something entirely new now. I just want to keep the original alive since it still has value.

The new version of that original work is more like this So, I was thinking... blog. In fact, a lot of it's content is coming from last year's blog entries. I'll be sprinkling in my Vitamin G between chapters. I'll likely title it So, I was thinking... LOL It might become a series with subsequent books being title such things as So, I was thinking...again..., So, I keep thinking..., and So, I am still thinking... HAHAHA

I'm also working on some works of fiction. I have stories to tell based on my life. But I want to tell them in a more creative way than how things really happened...LOL Plus, it allows me to explore parts of myself that wouldn't otherwise be expressed. I mentioned my fictitious character, George, above. He's the storyteller part of my soul. He's uneducated in the traditional sense. But has so much to share about life in a small, yet to be named, Missouri town.

My non-fiction works will get published on this site as I write. They evolve and change over time and I'll mention those updates here on my blog as I do that. But the fictional, creative works will get published in the traditional sense. But I don't do any of this for a living. I do it for a loving...hehehe I just love to write!

I was debating with myself on whether or not I'd go to the grocery today. I typically do go on Saturdays. But I had enough food through tomorrow. I used to go on Sundays. So, I thought about throwing it back to the past and do a Sunday trip this week...LOL After my time at Zen, I decided I'd just do it today since I was already out and about...hehehe

They were out of eggs! Apparently there is a shortage? I didn't know. I noticed the shelves were a little less crowded last weekend. Today, all they had were those white bleached eggs...no thank you! LOL

They were low on some other things I normally get each week. So I doubled up a bit this time. I'm thinking about changing my grocery trip to Wednesday or Thursday night to hit closer to restocking day. I wish I lived closer so I could just go whenever...hehehe The main reason I choose weekends is because of traffic. Weeknight traffic is horrible around here. Especially this time of year. The population booms in the winter because of snowbirds...hehehe

The first few snowbird seasons, I was annoyed. I was like, come on...I live here year round...why do you have to come up in my business acting like you own this place!?! Well, after the year I had in 2024, I've changed and view it differently now. Although I don't feel they deserve any privilege to act like they own the place, I don't deserve that privilege either. Besides the fact that I relocated here and wasn't FloGrown, this world belongs to God. None of us are entitled to anything we have or where we live. We assign ownership to things that actually belong to God. So, instead of being bothered by the extra traffic, I can just be thankful that they made it down here safely again this season and that we all have a place to live. We are all exactly where we are supposed to be, always.

I didn't eat dinner tonight. I had plenty of food at Zen. Honestly, it had been so long since I ate out that I had forgotten how much food they give you. I could have saved half to have for dinner tonight. And I did think about that. But I was there for about 3 hours and 45 minutes working on my website...LOL If I hadn't eaten it all, half would have gone to waste. I only take meals home when I'm able to go straight there to get it in the fridge...hehehe

I managed to get the Bible section started. It is still a work in progress. I started off with the first week of this years 21 day prayer and fasting journal. I'll tackle the second week of content in the next few days. This year, it is a little wonky due to it actually being a 24 day process. The prayer focuses actually only cover 19 of the days. There are 3 break days and 2 reflection days. The book I based this on has a title that is a little misleading. It's 21 Days That Can Change the Way You Pray...but it is 24 days long...hehehe There are 21 chapters with 3 breaks. But those last 2 chapters aren't prayer focuses.

I'm not complaining...this is just an observation. I ended my prayer focus and fasting today at the 21 day mark as planned. And now that I think about it, today's didn't have a prayer focus either. It was a recap of this past week...so I guess that makes it 18 prayers, 3 breaks, and 3 reflection/recap days? Ooh wait! Day 14, which is day 12 in the book, was a precursor to the 6 days that follow it...hmm...so...17 prayer focuses, 3 breaks, 1 precursor, and 3 reflection/recaps? But not quite...LOL The very last chapter is the author's prayer for the reader...hmm...Okay...sooo...what we have here is...17 prayer focuses, 3 breaks, 2 refection/recaps, 1 precursor, and 1 author prayer...HAHAHA

Why did I take us on this thought journey? Well, the title of this blog is So, I was thinking... Yeah, I actually thought and wrote that all out as I was thinking it...hehehe I hope it was fun and not annoying...hehehe

I took my remaining desks and 3D printer out to storage today. I included my 3D printer in this purge because I haven't used it in a few years...LOL But I'm not quite ready to get rid of it yet. I loved that hobby so much. So, I may yet go back to it. For now, though, I want it out of sight.

I'm finally able to start parting my hair. I had been shaving my head from April 2020 until October 2024. I got my first haircut in years back on Christmas Day at Magic Kingdom. Well, this weekend, it finally started to allow parting again...hehehe That top part of my scalp kept sticking up like a fuzzy little baby head...HAHAHA I'm happy it is finally all grown up now...HAHAHA

As you can see, I did a lot of thinking and a lot of tasks today...LOL I'm grateful ❤️

Photo of the Day

As today was the end of my fast from coffee, I decided to choose my grateful coffee mug. As it sat there with my Bible and cross, I captured the moment. That moment became today's photo.

I bought that Bible sometime last year. All of my previous Bibles were lost in a flood years ago. I had been using the Bible app exclusively since that happened. But last year, I decided to get physical Bibles again. This was the third one I got and is now my primary source for study.

The cross you see in the photo was a Christmas present from my deerest friend. I love that cross. I have it with me when I am sitting at my desk studying and praying. I sometimes take it to my bedroom while I sleep. It has been a faithful companion this past month ❤️

The mug was a Christmas present from my parents. So, I have also had it for a month. It has become my favorite mug. It best represents the condition of my heart lately.

I am grateful and Blessed ❤️

Wrapping Up

Well, that's it for today. I've crossed the finish line of another marathon of prayer and fasting. I'm glad I'm still doing this to start off my years. I've grown each time. Just like training for a foot race, it's good to push myself to my limits. It makes it easier next time...well, sometimes...hehehe There are certainly times when it feels like 1 step forward, 2 steps back. But like I usually say, sometimes it can also be 20 steps forward...hehehe It's a process. God's process is far greater than my progress. I'll remain a work in progress...making progress...in His process.

I'm going to keep journaling through the next few days as I reflect on this year's season of prayer and fasting. That part isn't quite finished yet. It's kind of like that walk you have to make from the finish line of the race so you can get to where they give you that little snack pack...LOL Why do they make you walk so far for that?!? At least, that was my experience at that runDisney 5k I did...LOL