I Wish I May, I Wish I Might...

Okay, first off, I have NEVER done this before, but Ruhiyyih did a post on her blog about her wishes, and it got me to thinkin'. So, I hope she won't mind but I am stealing her idea and doing the same. If you would, leave me a comment and let me know something you're wishing for and I'll pray for you too along with all my other wishes (which for me are really prayers).

I wish & pray for the world:

• that people would come to know Jesus' love- not just about Him or to think about all the bad things they know about Christians or the church or whatever their preconceived ideas are & associate that with HIM, but that somehow, someway they would just come to KNOW His unending love.
• that the horrors of war, genocides, famine, starvation, and tragedies would come to an end- I've been reading more about Rwanda most recently (been doing a lot of reading about war-torn African countries in the last couple years)- it breaks my heart. How it must sadden God.
• that no one would go to bed hungry.
• that orphans around the world would find love and forever homes like my nephew has.
• that the homeless would find shelter, food, friendships.
• that the world would learn to set aside their differences, their political views, their ideas about race, gender, likes and dislikes and learn to live peaceably with one another.

I wish & pray for my students ("my kids"):

• that God would somehow help me find ways to reach through the learning difficulties, past drug and alcohol damage, past hunger, past dysfunctional homes and hurting hearts and teach my children and help them grow and reach their full potential. I pray this a lot as I work throughout the day, when I hug the kids, when I sit down at the table to teach, when I see them struggling to understand something I am saying.
• that God would keep my kids safe from harm at home, in the world, wherever they go.
• that God would comfort A tonight whose heart is sad because of the death of his cat.
• that God would bring K safely back to us from his faraway trip.
• that God will bless & help my children grow up into happy, confident, responsible, and most important of all compassionate adults who bring up their families to be the same.
• and that God would be with kids whose names/initials I will not list but whose lives are not good. That somehow He would love my children through me and heal their hurts and mend their small, so young, but already broken hearts and lives.

I wish for my family:

• that my children would continue on the path God has chosen for them, that they would seek His will for their lives and continue to live for Him and serve Him. That they would make Him proud of them!
• that my momma and pop will continue to live healthy, active, long lives. I'm so, very, utterly thankful for the "extensions" on life God has recently granted them, and I would just like to have them as long as we can. (Okay, that's a selfish "me-wish" also.) :)
• that my sister and b-i-l would be blessed by God and granted the desires of their hearts!
• that God will allow our family to serve Him and please Him all the days of our lives.
• that our family will have "enough" of the things we need.

I wish for me:

• that Rob & I would see clearly God's path for our future and follow it.
• peace at work (either at the current place or a new one).
• to be acid/heartburn/ulcer free (which means a less stressful workplace I believe)
• to really have the stick-to-it-iveness to do what I need to do.
• that I would take care of me and live to be an old lady. (On that note, I am trying really hard to make some serious life changes, but don't want to say more until I prove it to myself).
• that I would be a more gracious, loving person.