A Cheerful Countenance

Proverbs 15:13a

King James Version (KJV)

A merry heart maketh a cheerful countenance

Oh, this past week has not been fun. Or is it two weeks now? My brain is so foggy. I’ve lost count of the nights that have passed since I’ve had a decent nights sleep. My husband’s coughing is now minimal, my son got antibiotics at the doctor so his coughing is virtually non-existent, but mine still randomly wakes me up a million times at night and none of my cough medicines have helped. And I don’t know about you, but no sleep makes me a cranky person. I try to hide it, but I’m not sure how good of a job I’m doing. I can’t hide out at home either. I still have obligations to uphold, errands to run, places to be. The last thing I want to do is hurt someone’s feelings unintentionally just because I’m in a sleep-deprivation fog or lack-of-sleep-cranky. To help combat this, I have a prayer that I try to start each day with - “Lord, guide my tongue, my expressions, and my thoughts today please. Let your light shine through me today.” Some days I have to say this prayer more than once.

My tongue tends to need a lot of guidance. Things tend to not always come out quite right, and my words aren’t always as positive as they should be. As for expressions – wow, that was a wake-up call for me. I have some friends who like to take photos often at various church functions, and friendly get-togethers. I THOUGHT I was successfully avoiding being in a lot of those photos, but the camera lens is a bit wider than I estimated. Seriously – the expressions on my face – I so often looked like I’d just eaten a rotten lemon! Sour faced, cranky, sleep-deprived, stressed, anxious, worried…I don’t even know what was going through my mind when those photos were taken, but I was definitely NOT radiating God’s peace, happiness, and love! No one is going to want to ask me about my love for Jesus if I don’t actually look in love with him – I need to show on the outside how I feel on the inside. He gives me peace, he loves me even if no one else in the world does, he answers prayer, he is my EVERYTHING, and I want the world to know.

I found this song on YouTube and it is so fitting – we so need God’s guidance every day.

Order my steps in Your word dear Lord, 

lead me, guide me everyday, 

send Your anointing, Father I pray…

Humbly, I ask Thee to teach me Your will, 

while You are working, help me be still…

Bridle my tongue let my words edify, 

let the words of my mouth be exceptable in Thysight, 

take charge of my thoughts both day and night… 

I want to walk worthy, 

my calling to fulfill. 

Please order my steps Lord, 

and I’ll do Your blessed will. 

The world is ever changing, 

but You are still the same; 

if You order my steps, I’ll praise Your name. 

Order my steps in Your word. 

Order my tongue in Your word. 

Guide my feet in Your word. 

Wash my heart in Your word. 

Show me how to walk in Your word. 

Show me how to talk in Your word. 

When I need a brand new song to sing, 

show me how to let Your praises ring.

~This Glorious Day~