Powerful Prayer

OPENING PRAYER BY RETIRED NAVY CHAPLAIN JOHN P. SAUNDERS AT THE ABA 2009 MEETING Eternal God, our Father, thou hast been our strength and help for the past 234 years, and You are our hope as a nation for years to come. Thank you Lord for the privilege of living in America. Thy divine providence led our forefathers in building a nation upon the principles or righteousness, justice, liberty and individual responsibility. Your goodness and blessing through the years made us the greatest nation on earth, a nation of free people who delighted in the law of God, believed in the sanctity of human life, and the sacred vows of marriage. From our humble beginning we were known as a Christian Nation because we believed in the teachings of Jesus and worked to insure that Godly men were elected to high positions of government. You continued to bless us and we became the wealthiest nation on earth. As years passed we gradually became apathetic, independent and self-serving, forgetting that faith in God had made us great. We took a wrong turn, and followed the ways of evil men. We allowed ungodly leaders to take prayer out of our schools, God out of government, legalize killing our unborn children, and to legitimize homosexuality and same sex marriage. We cast off moral restraint and replaced it with permissivism. We have replaced individual responsibility with a growing dependence on government welfare. We have traded spiritual faith and courage for complacency and appeasement. We call evil good and have jettisoned the values of our forefathers. We are losing our reputation as a Christian nation, and are undeserving of your blessing and favor. Help us to turn back in repentance and seek your face again. O Lord, we pray for our President and our nation’s leaders. Open their eyes to truth and the ways of God before judgment falls. May they learn the simple truth that “the same principles that made our nation great, will also guarantee our future.” Bless and protect the men and women in uniform that fight for our freedom and way of life against our enemies. Bless our Chaplains as they minister to the troops and their families. We pray that the Prince of Peace and the day of peace may soon come to earth. Lord, we thank you for the privilege to assemble here as members of the Churches of Jesus Christ. Help us exalt You above all and to pursue your kingdoms work of spreading the Gospel to the lost world. Bless our Moderators and officers, our missionaries and your churches. May all we do give honor and glory to You. We pray in the great and mighty name of Jesus. Amen

Life and such

I checked out my own blog today and couldn't believe how long it had been since I had posted! Time is really moving fast these days. It seems that the weekdays just fly and then it is the weekend again. Dylan and I have been enjoying our neighborhood pool since it opened Memorial Day weekend. Tim is making his presence known amongst the troops and has been busy with his Chaplain duties. We are narrowing down our decision on which Chapel to attend for worship. There is a Chapel being held at a community located 20 minutes from here but it is an on-post community. We have to drive off-post and then back on-post again to get there. It is just starting but God is definitely working there.

I have been trying to be a visible presence along side Tim as well as I attend different meetings and functions with the Army. I want to be an example for Christ whenever I can and I also want to be known amongst the troops and spouses as someone who is approachable in case they need to talk or are searching for Christ. I want to be more than just a supportive spouse. I don't know what kind of experience these ladies (and men) have had with Chaplain spouses in the past, but I pray that I will be different in a good way in order that they see Christ more clearly. Lord, I pray you will use me in this way!

Dylan had his first "teeth tickling" at the dentist last week and he did great! Even sat still for x-rays! I was so proud of him...and his teeth got a stellar report :) This pregnancy is really progressing...and so is my belly :) We have settled on an official name: Jordan Nataleigh Raburn. Tim has been busy pink-ifying her room! We are resuing alot of Dylan's things but trying to make them a bit more feminine. Pics will follow when the room is complete.