Painting and Prayer

Painting and Prayer

 in Painting and Prayer  tagged advent / Christmas / Jesus / painting / prayer by

The people who walked in darkness
have seen a great light.
For those who lived in a land of deep shadows—
light! sunbursts of light!
You repopulated the nation,
you expanded its joy.
Oh, they’re so glad in your presence!
Festival joy!
The joy of a great celebration,
sharing rich gifts and warm greetings.
The abuse of oppressors and cruelty of tyrants—
all their whips and cudgels and curses—
Is gone, done away with, a deliverance
as surprising and sudden as Gideon’s old victory over Midian.
The boots of all those invading troops,
along with their shirts soaked with innocent blood,
Will be piled in a heap and burned,
a fire that will burn for days!
For a child has been born—for us!
the gift of a son—for us!
He’ll take over
the running of the world.
His names will be: Amazing Counselor,
Strong God,
Eternal Father,
Prince of Wholeness.
His ruling authority will grow,
and there’ll be no limits to the wholeness he brings.
He’ll rule from the historic David throne
over that promised kingdom.
He’ll put that kingdom on a firm footing
and keep it going
With fair dealing and right living,
beginning now and lasting always.
The zeal of God-of-the-Angel-Armies
will do all this.

Isaiah 9:2-7 (The Message)


O come, Thou Dayspring, come and cheer our spirits by Thine advent here. Disperse the gloomy clouds of night, and death’s dark shadows put to flight. O come, Desire of Nations, bind in one the hearts of all mankind. Bid Thou our sad divisions cease, and be Thyself our King of Peace. Amen.

Painting and Prayer

 in Abuse / Hope / Painting and Prayer  tagged children / God / memory / painting / prayer by

Listen, daughter, and pay careful attention:
Forget your people and your father’s house.
Let the king be enthralled by your beauty;
honor him, for he is your lord.

Psalm 45:10-11

We pray today for renewal of our young people and their memories of the past. Help the children in our mission to heal from trauma by remembering only Your love for them. Please prove to them that you come to make Your blessings flow as far as the curse is found. Amen.

Painting and Prayer

 in God / Hope / Painting and Prayer  tagged God / painting / prayer by

We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, about the troubles we experienced in the province of Asia. We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt we had received the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead.

2 Corinthians 1:8-9


God, as much as we like to say that you don’t give us anything we can’t handle, it feels like you do that all the time. In fact, what we know is that you don’t give us anything you can’t handle. We pray that you will remind Mia of that, especially as the days get shorter and busier with the coming of Christmas. On nights when she gets almost no sleep, give her your strength. On days when she doesn’t know what to do, give her your wisdom. You are the one who can handle anything, and we’d best not forget it. Amen.

Painting and Prayer

 in Painting and Prayer  tagged gratitude / painting / prayer / thanks / Thanksgiving by

Then Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen. He named it Ebenezer (“stone of help”), saying, “Thus far the LORD has helped us.”

1 Samuel 7:12

We thank you Lord for each day’s reminders of your provision for us. At Mia’s Children, our ebenezers are the academic, emotional and spiritual successes that encourage us all the time to keep going. We remember them to remember you. As we enter the Thanksgiving season, make us ever more grateful for what we have. Amen.

Painting and Prayer

 in Economy / Painting and Prayer / poverty  tagged generosity / greed / painting / prayer / provision / trust by

Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment.
1 Timothy 6:17

Lord, provider of all things: as we observe the financial woes in Europe and experience our own struggles with unemployment, debt and uncertainty, we ask that you will give us generosity of spirit. Teach us to be people who love others in prosperity and in suffering. Help us to look to things eternal. Please heal any greediness in our hearts or lack of trust we may have in your provision. Make us givers in response to your gifts. Amen.

Painting and Prayer

 in Painting and Prayer  tagged children / painting / prayer / Romania by

Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves.
Romans 12:10

God we are so grateful for every child you’ve brought into Mia’s Children. We know that you have the power to heal them of even the most terrible past experiences. At the same time, we pray for all of the children influenced by new arrivals who need special care. Make the general tone of the house one of love and light. Give Mia and the staff and volunteers wisdom in guiding the children even in the midst of dark personal histories. Amen.

Painting and Prayer

 in Painting and Prayer / Romania  tagged children / prayer / Romania / statelessness by

Your eyes saw my unformed body;
all the days ordained for me were written in your book
before one of them came to be.

Psalm 139:16


Lord we praise you for allowing some of our children to receive their ID cards this week! Thank you for an answer to many years of prayer. Please continue to protect the children who do not have IDs, who are stateless. Only you can give us true identity – please do so for them. Amen.