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After graduating college, my husband Tim and I served as missionaries in Africa for a few years. Many times throughout my life I have reflected back to the experiences I had and the lessons that I learned during the time we were there.

In our youthful enthusiasm, Tim and I set out on a trip to visit our missionary friends. We followed what we had been taught as new missionaries in Zaire in 1974. We had our directions since there were no street signs or traffic lights on these dirt roads. There weren’t even any gas stations or other stores where we could stop to ask for help.

We had everything we needed in the car before we left – food, things to take to our friends, and plenty of gas to make the trip there and back. Not long after we left home, less than an hour into our trip, our car started having problems running properly.

Tim tinkered with the engine but it didn’t help. We prayed and asked the Lord for wisdom to know how to fix it so we could make it to our destination. We had really been looking forward to this trip. It became obvious that we couldn’t make it another hundred miles since the car would go no more than 25 miles per hour, so we turned around and limped home. I was confused and disappointed. Why God hadn’t answered our prayer?

When we returned home we had a mechanic at the missionary station who looked at the car for us. He was stunned by what he saw. He told us that the gas line was leaking directly onto the engine and that he had no idea how the engine kept from exploding. If we had continued the trip as we wanted, the engine certainly would have exploded and we probably would not have survived.

We were stunned! God knew what our need was even though we didn’t. He answered our prayer by making it impossible for us to continue our trip successfully, and by giving us the wisdom to turn around and head home. How thankful we were for His goodness!

Thank you God for protecting us, even when it is from our own desires. It blows me away that you know all of our needs and that you care enough to guide and protect us.

Following several years as a missionary, Dr. Ann Shorb began a career in counseling and is the founder of Christian Counseling & Educational Services in Hanover, PA. She provides a variety of services including pre-marital counseling and help with overcoming sexual addiction.

Keeping a consistent daily quiet time with God is one of the hardest things we face in our Christian life. Why? Because our adversary the devil, knows that therein lays the secret of our strength and victory as believers. If he can get us off track, our power and wisdom are diminished, therefore, it’s essential to develop the habit of regularly meeting with God.

To start with, choose a time that you will use each day for prayer and reading the Bible. Make this part of your schedule a priority each day and don’t blow it off because of other things that need to be done. We’re used to scheduling our important activities and appointments, but we usually only give God the extra time that isn’t needed for other things.

Designate a place where you can be uninterrupted. (I can hear young mothers saying now, “And where would that be?”) For some it’s a favorite chair or room in the house. Others find tranquility in the early hours at the office or shop. Whatever spot you choose, keep your Bible, devotional and study books, prayer journal, pen and any other materials you need close by.

The third and final step is to come up with a plan for what you will be doing with your quiet time. You may choose to study a specific book of the Bible (or group of books), read through the entire Bible, or follow along through a devotional book or workbook.

Looking ahead to the next year, make an effort to find quality materials that will help you in your studies of Scripture. Pray that God would help you to determine what you should study and what resources you should be using.

A daily time of meditation, study and prayer are as essential to your spiritual health as nutritious food is to your physical well-being. Make an appointment with God and make it a priority to be there!

Father, I know how important it is that I have time alone with you each day. Help me to put aside the distractions and to prioritize this time. Show me what you would have me to study and how I can apply it to my daily life.

Ann Shorb is the founder of Christian Counseling & Educational Services in Hanover, PA. Through CCES she provides clients with premarital counseling, marriage counseling, help with depression, AD/HD, grief, anxiety, and many other issues.

Eternity is written on our hearts. That’s why we like stories like this one…

“Aslan turned to them and said: “You do not look so happy as I mean you to be… the dream is ended: this is the morning” – As He spoke He no longer looked to them like a lion; but the things that began to happen after that were so great and beautiful that I cannot write them… and for us this is the end of all the stories, and we can most truly say that they all lived happily ever after. But for them it was only the beginning of the real story. All their life in this world and all their adventures in Narnia had only been the cover and the title page: now at last they were beginning Chapter One of the Great Story which no one on earth has read: which goes on forever: in which every chapter is better than the one before…” C.S. Lewis – The Last Battle

Truly, we were made for God, designed to love and be loved by Him. The awareness of His person is our inheritance. We were born to be fascinated by Him and allured by His Love. You may know it or not, but the presence of God is the environment you were created for.

Yet… most of us live disconnected from this heavenly atmosphere. We go through life ignoring that, we’re “incarnate thirst” as someone said. Our journey is filled with struggle and pain, our minds often overheat with the cares of this life, and our emotions… well… picture a roller coaster and get a preview…

As if this weren’t enough, every single day we face an ocean of distractions. There are multitudes of voices calling for our attention. The Media and some intelligent sectors of society have identified our deep hunger and thirst… they know… and ferociously compete with each other to capture the affections of our heart.

Ironically, they are not alone in this pursuit. The God of heaven and the prince of darkness are after the same thing- your burning heart.

The battle at the end of the age rages around this…

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The Fire Within Your Soul
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Make no mistake about it, your affections will burn for something or someone. Your heart is not neutral. There are deep and strong passions within you. They’re like strong rivers of longing that search for an outlet until it’s found (the power of addiction is based on this reality).

We may like or not, but we’re dealing with deep affections and the charm of many lovers… in a sense, we’re being aggressively hunted…

What do we do? How do we live? How do we spend our time and our days? What or Who is worthy to be the object of our desire?

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Heavens Call
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There is a Higher Calling. This calling is not new. Actually is quite old. John the apostle heard it, so did Mary of Bethany. You have probably heard it more than once… that voice above and inside that says: Come Up Here. Come Up Here and I will show you… I’m real… give me Your heart…

We are called to go deeper into the knowledge of God and his Ways. We are invited to join the fellowship of His Son (1Cor. 1:9) and journey into union with the Ultimate Lover of our Souls.

The fact you’re reading this far shows that this Calling is for you. If you were to hate God as so many today, the first paragraph of this article would have scared you away, but here you are…

Now is time to listen and encounter… your Creator is calling… He knows why your heart burns…

Pablo Perez is the Creator of EncounterGodWorship.com (where He offers 7 Worship Songs and Instrumental Music for FREE). He is also the CEO of Jasper Stone Music and the founder of Encounter God University.