Tiffany Harper

When someone hurts you...pray.

I am going to be very honest here.  I have had this on my heart for awhile now and yesterday, the reality of it all came to a sudden crashing halt as I realized just the kind of woman I tend to become when I am hurt. 

I don't pray for my enemies. Or really for those who I feel have wronged me or my family.

In fact, I seek to find revenge, list all the things that they do wrong when they dare to point out my indescretions and write them off as someone who is unworthy of prayer or encouragement.  I found myself thinking this way about someone in particular yesterday and it startled me.  I literally felt as if the Lord grabbed my heart out of my chest and thrust it in front of the mirror so that I could see the ugliness that was trapped and buried inside there.  It wasn't a pretty sight.  I was disgusted and abhorred by the fact that I, a pastor's wife, could be capable of feeling such animosity towards someone and not think twice of it. 

Praise Him that He revealed it to me. 

It all started when Dan called me this morning about an important duty that we had been neglecting.  Really, I am glad he called because it needed to be addressed but I felt bad for him since he was the one who had to deal with it and bear the brunt of the consequences.  I didn't like the fact that my husband felt irresponsible and like a failure in a certain area.  My husband works hard. He works very hard and I take it so personally when someone doesn't realize just how hard he works and yet he is criticized.  Of course criticism and correction come with the territory and that I should ready to accept it when it comes as long as it lines up with God's word. 

But for some reason that doesn't keep me from thinking ugly thoughts about the person who says them. 

So last night I had to submit those thoughts to the Lord in prayer and ask for His forgiveness.  And then I did something I hadn't done in a long time for this person.  I prayed for them. Even though I was hurt, even though I was angry and I didn't really feel like bringing this person to the Lord....I had to do it.  It was the Lord directing my words and my heart to pray for this person.

This isn't always the easy thing to do. Who am I kidding. This is the HARDEST thing a person can do sometimes. 

This verse really reminds me that in order to have peace with self and often with others...we must kneel before our Father and leave it all at His feet:

"Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God." (Phil 4:6)

This verse is often applied to the worries of our life and struggles and this is very true. But I feel that this verse can also apply to when we feel any anxiousness, weariness or animosity towards individuals.  Lay it all at His feet.

How can my mouth confess to know and love the Lord yet I harbor angry feelings towards someone in my heart and on my lips? 

James 3:9

"With it (the tongue) we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in the likeness of God."

Does that send shivers down your spine? How easily we can be influenced by our feelings towards an individual...we praise our heavenly Father one minute and yet speak evil about someone in another minute. 

As James says...This cannot be. 

So I am working on my tongue. And my heart.  It isn't an easy thing to do, but I know that God will be honored and I want to obey Him and enjoy fellowship with Him.  I do not want this sin in my life to keep me from a deep, loving and passionate relationship with the One who saved my soul from certain death.  I hope and pray that for those who struggle with the same thing, this is your prayer as well. 

Blessings,

Tiff~

Cyclone in Bangladesh

I am sure many of you have heard about the cyclone that ripped through Bangladesh, India on May 26th, 2009.  If you remember in April a team of bloggers from Compassion International visited the area to bring hope, love, encouragement and help to those in India.  It would appear as if hundreds of individuals are without food, water and shelter.

As of June 1st, it does appear that the situation is worsening and waterborne diseases are spreading at an alarming rate.  Please, please pray for these families! That help will become available to them and that Compassion is able to reach those in need.  Many of those hit are associated with Compassion International. They are providing updates as they become available regarding the situation. 

Please, please just pray and if you can donate to help.....please do so!

In Him,

Tiff~

The shower was fantastic

 

My friends threw me an amazing shower on Saturday and I was absolutely spoiled by those I loved.  BBH received a ton of clothes....plus some fun goodies to help keep him occupied.  I truly cannot wait for his arrival.

My friends Michelle and Sheena took a ton of pics (I did not...shame on me!) So hopefully soon I can see those and I will deliver a huge party post.  For now though I want to ask for your prayers as I am dealing with an awful head cold the last couple of weeks and it just won't go away.  I am thinking that I will need to go on leave a couple of weeks ahead of schedule just to get myself back up to par.  I cannot be sick for BBH's arrival.  Labor is a lot of work! 

Thank you to everyone who came and celebrated this journey with me.  I cannot wait til the day he is here. You can be sure we will have updates on this blog when I am at the hospital. 

Xoxo!

Tiff~

Praying for Your Spouse

One of my goals this year was to have a more fulfilling and constant prayer life.  I do pray, but I often find myself just praying for thing that I want or when it feels urgent, as opposed to making it a point to do so everyday and communicate with my Heavenly Father. 

One of the best ways to get on the right track in my prayer life is to begin praying for my husband.  I picked up a book by Stormie Omartian titled The Power of a Praying Wife.  While I do pray for my husband, often times I pray for him to change and for God to make him do what I say.  Often times it is pride that is keeping me from praying for my husband's energy, wisdom, strength, job, finances and leadership.  And it can get especially hard to pray for him after we have had an argument! (Can I get an amen ladies??!)

What I am loving about this book is that it really shows you how prayer can build up your husband but also how it completely changes you.  I truly believe that when you open yourself up to the Spirit of God, His love and grace fills you and you cannot help but cease having any resentment, hatred or anger towards the person you are praying for.  That does not mean that if a hurtful word was spoken that it won't still be painful. But the Lord's power is so amazing and so fulfilling that He is able to heal wounds and open your eyes to things that maybe you were not able to see before.  To look at your husband through the Lord's perspective and act appropriately.  It is hard to feel hate and resentment for a person you are praying for!  It is a submission of those emotions to Him and allowing His Holy Spirit to fill you.

I am also learning that I cannot expect my husband to pray for me as I pray for him.  Such expectations often lead to disappointment and resentment.  This particular lesson is hard for me to swallow because I expect fairness a lot of the time.  You do your part and I will do mine.  But the Lord never promised that life would be fair.  It is my responsibility as a wife to ensure that my husband is able to lead and that he leads according to God's will for his life and in God's word.  Should I ever see Dan straying from the truth, that is when I need to hit the floor and petition on his behalf. Can I offer gentle correction as his wife? Absolutely. But if he is off course, I should not be startled if he doesn't listen. This is where the power of a praying wife comes in.  She can  do far more for the man in her life by giving her husband over to God in prayer than nagging him to death about all he is doing wrong. 

Pray ladies, pray!  Our husbands are constantly under attack through the media, books and Satan.  If we truly love our men we should be on our knees in prayer for them.  I have so much to learn about being a praying wife, so if this is something you have felt lacking in your own marriage...join me! May God change and mold us into the women He intended us to be.  I guarantee we will be changed through this.

Have a blessed day friends!

Tiff~