Tag: Psalms

Offering of Praise

- JaclynPalmer Leave a comment

Good Morning,

O Lord our God, how we smile at the benefits we receive from You day after day. Lord, how greatly You fill us with the love of God, life abundant, and Fruit beyond measure.

Father, may I take this time to simply say Thank You for all You give to us? May I pause in appreciation for this moment in History? May I offer up a sacrifice of praise to Your Name for being true to who You are, the Alpha and Omega?

Creator God, I sit here staring out my window beholding the buds popping up on Your creation. And I smile. Yet, this is something You designed once upon a time. This is a natural occurrence You created to repeat every single spring. This is nothing new. Yet these buds are powerful and brilliant each and every year.

Your Scripture declares how much more You created us and love us and care for us more than this most precious buds!

Yes, I sit here wanting to simply offer to You an offering of praise!

I pray, Lord, You will make evident to me and to my Sisters throughout this day and the week that sits before us what our offering of praise looks like. Again, I smile. What a sweet and precious goal.

“Accept my freewill offerings of praise, O Lord, and teach me your rules.” -Psalm 119:108

How individual our offering of praise is in Your eyes, O God!

  • I pray that we will use this time of solitude to work out our individual offering of praise.
  • I pray specifically for the woman praying with me this very moment.
  • I pray you will guide her hands, her feet, her home, her talents, her strength, her weakness, and her personality to put forth a purposed effort to lay an offering of praise at Your feet.
  • Fill her with a verse from Your Word that will lead her way.
  • Purify her, allowing her to see the fruit of her heart as her freewill offering of praise.

Thank you for this sweet thought in prayer today. Guide my day in this mentality as You guide my sweet Friends in their day.

This day we live for You,

Amen

 

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I was Paralyzed by Fear

- JaclynPalmer Leave a comment

Sitting there alone as my tears washed over the kitchen floor, I knew something had to change. I was paralyzed by fear. I was overcome by left-over emotions of past realities. Realities of my dad’s death at 33; I was eight. Realities of this same dad leaving 7 years earlier; my 8-year-old self wondering if it were her fault. I was broken and bound by fear. And in this reality, I sat in my corner all alone. Wrapped in the body of my 32-year-old self, I wept the tears of fear that washed over me after my husband and son walked out the door. This was when I knew something had to change.

My husband of ten years was a good man. My four-year-old son was my favorite gift from God. Together they were a unified front of laughter and silliness. They walked out the door around 4 pm for an overnight camping trip. I knew I would never see them again. That’s the thing with fear, it cripples you in your softest place and causes you to succumb to its truth. And I was dining at its table.

Seeing myself paralyzed in this manner overwhelmed me even more. There was a part of me that didn’t want to be this person anymore. This little girl inside me, who grieved truth and lies equally, wanted to break out, to be free. Something had to change for her, for me.  

I had a friend who knew fear. Hers was a different fruit of fear but of the same root. Hers equally fresh in her mind, a mess of truths and lies. I’m struggling. I need your help. Can you meet for coffee? A simple text message, short and to the point. A message void of emotions and details. She knew.

She parked her vehicle beside mine. I could hear her classical music filling her soul as I sat in my empty silence. Her shining smile met my broken expression. There was no need to attempt a falsehood; she understood.  

That coffee date is a slight blur in my memory. This makes me sad. But the process in which this coffee date began and the path in which it led was a game changer for us both. She, in her moment of strength, spoke words of truth over me. I, in my weakness, let her. Our friendship grew that day. Our strength bonded together. Lies were verbally expressed, seen for what they were and thrown into the fire.

Fear did not die that day, but it knew where it was heading. For the first time in my adult life, fear was the one trembling. My husband of 18 years and my 13 year old have left and returned from multiple camping trips since that day. No longer does fear succumb me to its table. Something had changed; I changed.

Fear lost its power within me; unleashed truth reigns in its place.

Friend, if fear is a battle, remember its Victor. Speak His truth over the lies that overtake your thoughts. Listen to the voice of Truth. It is a choice we get to make. And when we do, powerful changes will occur. Little by little, day by day. Fear has already lost. Stand on that foundation and choose truth.

Xoxo,

Jaclyn

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Smile. There is power in such an easy thing

- JaclynPalmer Leave a comment

It’s amazing what happens when a person shares a smile. Who would have guessed the power behind such an easy thing to offer? It’s not always easy. Yesterday, at Albertsons, I couldn’t get one person to return a smile. It was so strange. Even my produce guy was deep in concentration over stacking those onions just so.

I hate when a place has an “unsmiley” vibe. It shouldn’t be this way. It’s unsettling when a mundane task, a fun adventure, or even a church visit is accompanied by an unfriendly vibe. We are mankind. We are Alive. We can Smile. We can Shine – even when we shop! I love shopping! Obviously. But more than my “Just Buy It!” mantra, I love chatting with employees. I love complimenting a woman on her hair, shoes, bag, smile. I love winking at “Littles” sitting in their carts staring at me from behind their moms. I love making small talk with women who (actually) know what to do with something called a Leek.

You know what I love most? I love watching a woman walk away with a smile, a head held high, and a sweet skip to her step. There is power in a shared smile, in a simple statement of praise, and in an unexpected, little one-liner.

In the end, it’s not always hard.

  • God created us with the ability to smile. To share one is free and physically easy.
  • Simple compliments make us float in the midst of a trying day, to pass on that balloon ride simply requires us to look past ourselves.
  • As for the little quips, well, not all of us can be funny on a dime. But I’m sure we could figure out something to say, like, “Hey, it’s not snowing. That’s a good thing!” Or something else that all humans like to talk about like politics or religion… I joke. See? That was my quip.  

Here’s what I’m thinking. If a smile creates a friendship and a simple word uplifts a soul, then what would happen if we practiced sharing these two gifts wherever we go? I’m thinking masks would slip. Perfection may dive off a cliff. Tears might shed. Laughter could most certainly ensue. Deep, sincere, #IcantbelieveIjustadmittedthatoutloud laughter might just about explode. And friendships, ah, friendships are bound to deepen to a most treasured level of love.

I love that we can Smile. I love that we can Shine. Don’t pass another human without acknowledging their existence, whether you know that person or not. What an empty, “Unsmiley” world that would be. Let’s share our God-created ability with someone today. 

Thank you for sharing your smile with me. Deeper still, your simple words gave me access into your heart. I value your smile, and I treasure your heart!

~ Psalm 96

~ Scripture verses regarding your smile

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