“Hear my cry, O God; attend unto my prayer…”
“When my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the Rock
That is higher than I.
For Thou hast been a shelter for me,
and a strong tower from the enemy.
I will abide in Thy tabernacle for ever:
I will trust in the covert of Thy wings…
Selah.”
Psalm 62:1-4
Many years ago, one Sunday morning, we were visiting a new church for the first time, when an elderly lady came up to us and invited us to her house for dinner. We gladly accepted, and followed her home after service.  As we sat in her living room, we had a very pleasant conversation, and got  to know a little more about each other. She was a long-standing member of her church,  and well-loved by the congregation.  Although she was elderly, she was vibrant and enthusiastic, and very happy to talk about how much she loved the Lord, and all that He had done for her. She enthusiastically shared some of her many testimonies, and I talked a little bit about my faith experience.  I mentioned how our two children, a son and a daughter, who were very small at the time, had been miracle babies, because I was told that I would never conceive, but I was still praying and believing God for another baby.
She looked at me, with a smile in her eyes, and said, âYou see that hat rack over there on the wall?â I answered, âYes.â she said, âWhenever the Lord does something for me, I imagine that Iâm hanging a hat on a hat rackâŚand every time he answers I just keep adding a new hat.  And the next time I find myself frustrated about something that Iâm praying for, I just take a look at that hat rack, and see all those hats hanging there, and Iâm reminded of all the prayers that God has answered, (some that I may have even forgotten), and I am encouraged that he did it before and heâll do it again.â
I really appreciated this example and made an effort to apply it in my own life. In fact the Lord did answer my prayer and blessed me miraculously with another sweet baby girl!
When I think back on this example, it reminds me of what young David said to King Saul, when he volunteered to fight GoliathâŚ
âDavid said⌠The LORD that delivered me out of the paw of the lion, and out of the paw of the bear, He will deliver me out of the hand of this PhilistineâŚâ I Samuel 17:37
The lion and the bear were hanging on Davidâs hat rack!!! He just took a look back, and was fully persuaded, that God would do it again. :)
“Has it been awhile since you took a look at your own hat rack?”
Surely God has blessed you and answered your prayers in the pastâŚ
Just take a look back and,  like David, be fully persuaded that God will do it again!
“…For behold, the winter is past….
The flowers appear on the earth,
the time of singing has come.”
Song of Solomon 2:11-12
The true story of St. Patrick’s Day, is about a simple man of prayer, perseverance, faith, and  a genuine concern for others. I  really like this story, and I hope that you will too! âŁ
Patrick, whose real name was Maewyn Succat, was not Irish, but English. He was born to a wealthy Christian family, Â and as an early teen, he was kidnapped and taken to Ireland to become a slave. His name was changed to Patrick. As a slave in Ireland, he witnessed the pagan practices of the Irish, but remained true to his Christian faith, and it is said that he prayed up to a 100 times a day.
One day Maewyn escaped and took the long journey back to his home in England. After many years, Â he developed a deep desire to return to Ireland as a missionary. He taught the people about God and advised them not trust in pagan superstitions. He used the three leafed clover, the shamrock, to explain the Trinity,â Three in Oneâ, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Patrick introduced Christianity to Ireland, and after 30 years of evangelism, he died on March 17, Â 461 AD. After his death he became known as St. Patrick and March 17th has been named a holiday in honor of him.
 St. Patrickâs Day is about the faith and sacrifice of a man who shared his faith, and the love of God, with a nation…
and for that we remember him today!
“The LORD hath appeared of old unto me, saying,
Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love…” Â Jeremiah 31:3
âMy deepest awareness of myself is that I am deeply loved by Jesus Christ
and I have done nothing to earn it or deserve it.â
Brennan Manning
“Faith says that no matter what lies ahead of me…God is already there.”
Author Unknown
“Weeping may endure for a night”
and I’ve learned that the night
can be very long...
but then, I remember
that even though it’s darkest before dawn,
“Joy comes in the morning”
And for that, I can hold on.”
 “…Be not anxious for tomorrow, for tomorrow shall be anxious for itself”
Matthew 6:34
“Anxiety does not empty tomorrow of its sorrows, it only empties today of its strength.”
Charles Spurgeon
“The word which came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying,
 Arise, and go down to the potter’s house,…
there I will cause thee to hear my words.
Then I went down to the potter’s house, and, behold, he wrought a work on the wheels. And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter: so he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it.
Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying, O house of Israel, cannot I do with you as this potter? saith the LORD.”
“Behold, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are ye in mine hand...”
Jeremiah 18:1-6
Faithrises 