MY JOURNEY "EMBRACED"

Having traveled (read) this EMBRACED journey now for 7 days, I think I have come up with a plan (at least for this 2nd Week). If something in particular strikes me, or inspires me, I will post a blog, (of course, all of what Lysa TerKeurst writes seems to strike me or 'hit the nail on the head'-my head), but I'll try not to rewrite what she writes since you can read it for yourself and she does a much better job than I can, yet if there is a personal application that I'm compelled to share, you can be sure I will and I hope you won't mind. I really want to keep you abreast with all God does in this journey of being EMBRACED and all I EMBRACE while carefully moving forward and remaining somewhat accountable. This is my way to do that ... while reading, journaling, pondering ...

EMBRACED

in June of

2019

Part 1: EMBRACING

the Pursuit of Him and His Direction

my 2nd week

... Knowing God is Holding Me (You) Close

Before I begin, let me just go back to #7 "Preparing for Adventure" long enough to mention it was such a delightful day with Jesus (even without much sleep) ... abiding in Him with so many "wonderful things" in nature Friday that I can never take for granted, the sounds and sights, arranged by God, in our adventure ...and I pray He continues to dwell with me as the day, weekend and rest of this summer journey opens my eyes to ALL He has for me. And although the very first devotion and the third, more or less, encouraged us not to make our time with God a mere checklist, as this appears, I hope God uses this to spark a deep desire for you, in your own special way with Him, or maybe by acquiring this book too, to EMBRACE the Pursuit of God and His Direction for you uniquely so HE can hold you so close and prepare you for a beautiful, wonderful, powerful lifelong journey to know, love and serve God with all you are, and all you do (but mostly that you EMBRACE who you are because of who He is and all Jesus EMBRACED for us lovingly, obediently and willingly) so we can share an eternity with God. May we grow, be nurtured, planted firm and mature as we flourish in each step and moment toward our eternal life by His Holy Spirit through His Beloved Son, Jesus Christ. If Friday was a only a glimpse into this, I can only imagine what is to come and how aMazing this Adventure is, and will be, but we must prepare and pray for others to prepare to meet Jesus!

I'm ready to be ...

8. "Interrupted by Jesus " Matthew 5:8; 1 Corinthians 2:9-10

My Interruption {Not today, but on Friday, midway through enjoying and delighting in my date day with Jesus, I was 'Interrupted' but not by Jesus ... I was interrupted by the enemy of our souls who wanted to rob me of my peaceful time with Jesus, unbeknown to me at the time, of course ... everyone gone in the household, and the house phone rings, so I answer ... and there began an afternoon of complete interruption by what I think may have been 2 scam calls. That's still to be determined. (Yes, it was scam! Sickening!I've now spoken with my grandson. He's OK  (that's what counts)} 
The first one by what seemed to be my oldest grandson, because he called me 'gramma' and other things said, then he was interrupted with someone telling him that his time was up for the call and he had to end it - I supposedly was his only call. Tragic circumstances in his story, but believeable to me for him. Then another call by someone supposedly his lawyer. And not in this state or from here
So I begin to investigate and wait for the call back to update me on everyone involved. I verified as much of the information as I could and checked with 3 other people, and a text/voicemail to our daughter, his mother (no response). Of course, before any of my other contacts, I asked God for His direction (perhaps I did not hear Him clearly), so I pursued the first person and what they suggested. All in all, I would have preferred being "Interrupted by Jesus" so I can't wait to see what Lysa's devotion is all about and still prayed for all involved, in case my 'interruption' was true and not a scam. [My advice: be aware of all avenues of scam and don't give out anyone else's names, numbers, etc. and pray at all times, even for the desperate people that do scams.] We'll see what happens-meanwhile
On to Lysa's devotion for today!

..."It is possible for God's Spirit to reveal to us the deep things of God"...(p.25) Embraced... Lysa TerKeurst

9. "If You're Feeling Overlooked and Unappreciated..." {always} 1 Samuel 16:7; Matthew 6:6-8

...“Overlooked by everyone else. Hand picked by God.” Lysa TerKeurst, Embraced

10. "I'm Scared to Pray Boldly" James 5:16

..."Prayer opens my spiritual eyes to see things I can't see on my own"... (p.31)

11. "Follow Me" Proverbs 3:5-6

..."The more we follow Jesus the more we fall in love with Him"... (p.33)

12. "Hearing God's Invitations" Isaiah 30:21

..."The one who obeys God's instruction for today will develop a keen awareness of His direction for tomorrow." ... (p.36)

13. "A Life with Extraordinary Impact"  Judges 3:31

..."If we are obedient to God in the midst of our ordinary lives, extraordinary impact is always possible."... (p. 39)

14. "Your Unique Calling" Ephesians 2:10

..."You were created to participate in God's divine activity"... (p.42-43)

15. "Rest and Reassurance" Matthew 28:11

..."I must do all I can do. Then trust God will do what only He can."...(p.44&46)

[I may ADD more scriptures throughout the week from the readings]

*words in this color are Lysa's from in her book

One of my favorite EMBRACED quote from these readings above

(very hard to choose only one)
 but I will, after I've read each devotion)

..."The more we follow Jesus the more we fall in love with Him" ... #11

 I inserted one highlighted quote for each devotion.
I included #15 because #16 is the last one back in the YouVersion plan.
quite possibly I will add what I EMBRACE(D) this week too

... I'm EMBRACING following His heart and I hope I am getting better at Following His *Instructions and His Example daily.

*B.I.B.L.E. = Basic Instructions Before Living Eternally or Believer's Instruction Before Leaving Earth I think those two are mixed up and it should be: Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth Believer's Instructions Before Living Eternally But I'm sure what I need most to EMBRACE is REST and REASSURANCE (esp.!) {I'll add these after the week is over and I prepare the next summary post}
Hopefully Embraced and Embracing, Peggy

A very special Happy and Blessed Birthday wish to Sue!

(in case her regular mailed card doesn't arrive by today)

I'm still not accustomed to regular mail delivery and the length of time it takes