Praying for a New School Year! (E)

WOW!!! 5 days of school are in the books! 
Over, done, finished!

Mark those babies off the calendar! Only 173 more to go...who is counting...all of the senior class and I'm guessing some others may be too...I am! 

(Why did the students eat their homework?...

because the teacher said it was a piece of cake!) 😋 

Now, are you enjoying the beginning of this blessed day?!? Let’s pray for some ENTHUSIASM! Dictionary.com's definition is: "intense and eager enjoyment, interest, or approval." I can't help but think about how excited my husband and sons get watching the Dallas Cowboys and the Lakers play ball....or maybe my sweet sister-in-Christ watching her beloved PHS Redskins...we really get into things we enjoy in this world.

We need to pray that we each can take that same enthusiasm and level of intensity and put it to work 
for our Lord and Savior. As adults, we need to model this to our children.  The Bible uses several different words for this idea of being filled with enthusiasm like zeal, eager, and wholeheartedness. 
God's Word tells us:

• be “eager to serve” (1 Peter 5:2)
• be “eager for the gifts of the Spirit” (1 Corinthians 14:12)
• have an “eager willingness” to finish the work of faith we’ve begun (2 Corinthians 8:11)
• wait in “eager expectation” for God (Romans 8:9)
• be “eager to do what is good” (Titus 2:14)         ...(paraphrase from guideposts.org 3/22/2013)

God helps us to have and maintain enthusiasm, if we ask Him.  God loves us. He helps us with all of our trials, tribulations, and difficulties. He knows all our pains, sorrows, temptations, and what is going on in our mind even before we think it. He will deliver us when we lean on Him. It is through His strength that we can enthusiastically overcome the heartaches and trials of this world, so that they may bring honor and glory to Him and fulfill His purposes. Christ died for us so we can have a personal relationship with Him. That is enough for us to have a reason to be EXCITED! Pray for your children to have intense enjoyment that only comes from Christ living in them. When this enthusiasm is flowing out of them and us then others will be drawn to us like a magnet and it will open doors for us to share the Good News of Christ's redeeming blood. 

Father God, help us to be a community on fire for you. Help us to have more excitement about You and Your Word than we do in the football stadium each week this season. Ignite flames in each of us and our children so bright and so hot that it cannot be snuffed out by the fiery darts of the evil one. Help us to remember to put on Your full armor every day so that we may be able to withstand the schemes of the devil and keep our enthusiasm.  Help us to teach our children to always draw near to You. Be with our children in school today. 

In the Redeeming Name of Jesus I Pray,  Amen.