Lauren Sparks

The Sparks Notes

First Friday Prayers: Psalm 107:2

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Yesterday was National Big Forehead Day.  God bless you if you fall into this category, but I don’t feel His call to pray in this direction.  However, tomorrow is Blogger Day.  And when I saw this day on the calendar, I immediately thought of my fellow bloggers in Christ who are putting out amazing content for the glory of the Lord.  I knew I wanted to pray for all of you.

 

“Let the redeemed of the Lord tell their story—those he redeemed from the hand of the foe,”  Psalm 107:2 NIV

 

God has done great things for us, and whether we have a website or not, we are each called to tell others about the love of God.  Jesus often used parables and stories to teach His followers.  Story is a wonderful medium to engage another while also getting a message across.  And I happen to believe that true stories are the best stories.  What better way to share what God has done than by sharing what God has done for you!  (More on this next week.)

 

So today I want to pray Psalm 107:2 – for God to grant wisdom, guidance and the right words to all believers to tell their story– in a coffee shop, on a website, over a meal, or from a pulpit.  Join with me.

I’m praying for you in this. Don’t forget to share on social media or with a friend who could benefit.  It would mean so much to me.  And if you don’t want to miss a First Friday Prayers post, subscribe over on the right hand side of this page.  And if I can pray for you in more specific ways as you minister with your story, drop me a message.  It would be an honor.

Lauren

And now for this week’s post from the link up!

 

The Link Up

1. Share 1 or 2 of your most recent CHRISTIAN LIVING posts. (No DIY, crafts, recipes, or inappropriate articles.) All links are randomly sorted.

2. Comment on 1 or 2 other links. Grace & Truth linkup encourages community.

3. Every host features one entry from the previous week. To be featured, include this button or link back here on your post (mandatory to be featured, but not to participate).

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MAREE DEE – Embracing the Unexpected
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LAUREN SPARKS
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LISA BURGESS – Lisa notes
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TAMMY KENNINGTON – Restoring hope. Pursuing peace.
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The Cross

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“I am poured out like water,
    and all my bones are out of joint.
My heart has turned to wax;
    it has melted within me.
15 My mouth[a] is dried up like a potsherd,
    and my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth;
    you lay me in the dust of death.

16 Dogs surround me,
a pack of villains encircles me;
they pierce[b] my hands and my feet.
17 All my bones are on display;
people stare and gloat over me. ” Psalm 22:14-17 NIV

 

Do you wear a cross necklace?  Or earrings?  Do you own a t-shirt with a cross.  Or maybe you decorate your home with them.  Have you ever thought this custom odd?

Ancient Romans used the cross to torture, humiliate and kill people.  An instrument of cruelty, curses and shame.  And I have several hanging on my wall.

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The prophesy above from the book of Psalms describes someone (Jesus) hanging from a cross.  Bones out of joint.  Heart weak and useless.  Mouth a kind of dry we can’t even comprehend.  Spikes empaling the hands and feet with agony on display for gawkers to see.  Death and torture happened on crosses.  And yet we display them with respect.  Why would we clean up such an ugly thing for the world to see?

 

Why the Cross?

 

Because without the cross, we are ugly things.  And our clean up could not happen without the blood Jesus shed on the cross.  We are terrible sinners – every last one of us.  But Jesus.  He, who had never sinned, took on the death punishment for us so that we can be in relationship with God forever.  There is nothing more beautiful in all the world.

 

If you have questions about how Christ’s death brings us life with Him or how to accept this gift, please reach out to me by comment or send me a personal email at [email protected].  There is nothing I would rather talk about.  The cross is beautiful because of Jesus.

 

And now for this week’s featured post from the link up!

 

I’m thinking about friendship right now as I work on a post for next week and found Jennifer’s post on the art of friendship to be very interesting.

 

The Link Up

1. Share 1 or 2 of your most recent CHRISTIAN LIVING posts. (No DIY, crafts, recipes, or inappropriate articles.) All links are randomly sorted.

2. Comment on 1 or 2 other links. Grace & Truth linkup encourages community.

3. Every host features one entry from the previous week. To be featured, include this button or link back here on your post (mandatory to be featured, but not to participate).

Grace and Truth_Meet Hosts

We encourage you to follow our hosts on their blogs or social media.

MAREE DEE – Embracing the Unexpected
Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest

LAUREN SPARKS
Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest

LISA BURGESS – Lisa notes
Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest

TAMMY KENNINGTON – Restoring hope. Pursuing peace.
Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest

 Now Let’s Link Up!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

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