Prayer Focus - Personal Transformation
Day 6
Pray for:
One thing that you want to see improved in your relationship with God - (Love God)
One thing that you want to see improved in the way you relate to others - (with all your heart)
One past hurt that you want to see healed and overcome - (with all your soul)
One skill or topic you want to learn - (with all your mind)
One thing that you want to see improved about your health - (with all your strength)
One thing you want to do to help others around you - (Love your neighbor)
Dear Lord - Please open my ears to Your ever present voice and grant me the strength to obey.
Psalms 84
"My soul yearns, even faints, for the courts of the Lord; my heart and my flesh cry out for the living God." ( vs. 2)
It is so hard to live in this world sometimes. The never ending bad news and the ever present failure that we live with. My heart often longs for something better; that perfect world with no pain or sorrow. Where there is no yelling and people do what is right because that is their hearts desire. Where people long to be kind and loving and respect others. Where I am different; better. This is not to be found on this fallen earth though; this dream is reserved for that someday place, the courts of God.
"Blessed are those who dwell in Your house; they are ever praising You. Blessed are those whose strength is in You, who have set their hearts on pilgrimage. As they pass through the Valley of Baca, they make it a place of springs; the autumn rains also cover it with pools. They go from strength to strength till each appears before God in Zion." (vs. 4-7)
It is possible to have some peace here, though. God has commanded us to rejoice in Him always. So in spite of all that is wrong, we can be full of joy. We can have a place here as well; a refuge. Of course, we have our relationship with God, but sometimes we need God with flesh on Him. For this, God has given us His house, His kingdom. The church is not just a beautiful building with stained glass windows. It is the living and breathing body of Christ. It is the kingdom of God on earth that will continue on up in heaven where all the saints will rejoice someday. We can praise God that we have a home in the church. It is our piece of heaven here and our family. It helps us set our hearts on this pilgrimage called life. We cannot be solo Christians. I know, I have tried many times. We all get a little crazy when we isolate ourselves. We were meant for relationships, whether we want to admit it or not. This is where we will grow and become more like Christ as we deal with fulfilling our purpose together. I want to be like the person in the psalm. I want to go from strength to strength and turn the valley of sufferings in my life and the lives of others into beautiful places for peaceful respite. I know I am not there. I have to start small, say maybe making some phone calls to others once in awhile, but I can do it. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
"Better is one day in Your courts than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked. For the Lord God is a sun and shield; the Lord bestows favor and honor; no good thing does He withhold from those whose walk is blameless. O Lord Almighty, blessed is the man who trusts in You." (vs 10-12)
Someday we will be in paradise, whatever that is like. But for now, it is good to be a nothing and be with God. I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of God. It will be worth it someday. It is worth it now. We must not grow weary in doing good because we will reap a harvest if we do not give up (Gal 6:7-10). "No good thing does God withhold from him whose walk is blameless." (vs. 11b) Let us walk right so we will make it there.
Prayer for the Day
Dear Lord,
Better is one day with You than all the world can offer. We long for You. This old world gets us down. We can not make it on our own. We get so weary. But You are able. You do not slumber or sleep. You are in control. Everything will be alright. Everything will be alright. Help us to keep our priorities right and help us to cling to Your kingdom so that we will be strengthened for the path we must travel. We want to bring blessings to the world and let them know You. We want to turn the valleys of sorrows we encounter into valleys of joy. Make us into this type of person who can spread joy and the knowledge of You throughout the world. We long to make a difference.
In Jesus' Name,
Amen
QFT
1. Do I long to be with God? Why or why not? What keeps me from seeing my need for God? When do I long for Him the most? How can I increase my desire for spending time with Him?
2. Am I a part of the kingdom of God? What does that mean in my life? Do I have a church home? How can I find one? Am I tied in with those in my church home, if I have one? How can I get more involved?
3. Am I set on pilgrimage? Am I focused on my purpose as a Christian and member of the house of God or am I caught up running after what the world offers? What would those closest to me say? How can I get my self back on track if I am off? If I am set on pilgrimage, how can I help get others involved as well?
4. Am I making things better for those around me or do I cause more problems than I solve? Am I making the valleys of suffering in my life and others into valleys of joy? How can I do this? How will the world be better if I do this?
5 Am I going from strength to strength? Am I growing and getting better day by day? How can I change if I answered no to any of these questions? What areas do I need to work on? Am I finding my strength in God? Would I rather be with Him than anywhere else? Why or why not?
Showing posts with label healing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label healing. Show all posts
Thursday, September 24, 2015
Monday, September 21, 2015
Daily Devotional - 9/21/15 (1/21/10)
Prayer Focus - Personal Transformation
Day 3
Pray for:
One thing that you want to see improved in your relationship with God - (Love God)
One thing that you want to see improved in the way you relate to others - (with all your heart)
One past hurt that you want to see healed and overcome - (with all your soul)
Dear Lord - Please open my ears to Your ever present voice and grant me the strength to obey.
Psalms 81
"Sing for joy to God our strength; shout aloud to the God of Jacob!... He says, " I removed the burden from their shoulders; their hands were set free from the basket. In your distress you called and I rescued you,.." ( vs. 1, 6, 7a)
Sing for joy...
Be happy and excited about God and His strength...
No matter what is going on in our lives, we are to rejoice in the Lord. Circumstances will always let us down but God will not. We can always rejoice in Him for He removes our burdens. He frees up our hands from the slave labor of the world. He gives us a new perspective. He rescues us from all that would harm us including ourselves. God answers. God is worthy of our praise, always.
"Hear, O my people, and I will warn you - if you would but listen to me, O Israel! You shall have no foreign god among you; you shall not bow down to an alien god. I am the Lord your God, who brought you up out of Egypt. Open wide your mouth and I will fill it." (vs. 8-10)
Beyond rejoicing, we must listen and obey. There should be nothing that rivals God in our lives and in our hearts; nothing should get in the way to our obedience and worship. Work, schedules, exhaustion, ourselves - these things are not worth serving. Life will go on without us, but will we go on without God? Don't bow down to them. Remember it is God that has brought us here to this point in our lives and will continue to take care of us if we let Him. He brought us up out of our Egypts; our captivity. He is wanting to fill us up. We need to open wide our mouths. Give God the opportunity to work. There is no limit to God and how He works.
"But my people would not listen to me; Israel would not submit to me. So I gave them over to their stubborn hearts to follow their own devices." (vs. 11-12)
The problem though, is that we struggle to listen. We forget God is speaking to us all the time and the world is so noisy that it is hard for us to hear His voice unless we are focusing intently on it. We need to make a concerted effort to hear and when we ask for something, we need to pay attention so that we can hear the answer. I think we are often like children who ask questions of their parents and then get so sidetracked that they never hear the answers. We need to be still and listen and then we will hear God. Beyond hearing, though, we need to obey. We have to submit our will to His because He knows what is best for us. If we ignore Him, eventually He will let us go our own way. He will give us over to our rebellion and self will but it will break His heart. We will wander like the Israelites in the desert until we die or have a change of heart.
Day 3
Pray for:
One thing that you want to see improved in your relationship with God - (Love God)
One thing that you want to see improved in the way you relate to others - (with all your heart)
One past hurt that you want to see healed and overcome - (with all your soul)
Dear Lord - Please open my ears to Your ever present voice and grant me the strength to obey.
Psalms 81
"Sing for joy to God our strength; shout aloud to the God of Jacob!... He says, " I removed the burden from their shoulders; their hands were set free from the basket. In your distress you called and I rescued you,.." ( vs. 1, 6, 7a)
Sing for joy...
Be happy and excited about God and His strength...
No matter what is going on in our lives, we are to rejoice in the Lord. Circumstances will always let us down but God will not. We can always rejoice in Him for He removes our burdens. He frees up our hands from the slave labor of the world. He gives us a new perspective. He rescues us from all that would harm us including ourselves. God answers. God is worthy of our praise, always.
"Hear, O my people, and I will warn you - if you would but listen to me, O Israel! You shall have no foreign god among you; you shall not bow down to an alien god. I am the Lord your God, who brought you up out of Egypt. Open wide your mouth and I will fill it." (vs. 8-10)
Beyond rejoicing, we must listen and obey. There should be nothing that rivals God in our lives and in our hearts; nothing should get in the way to our obedience and worship. Work, schedules, exhaustion, ourselves - these things are not worth serving. Life will go on without us, but will we go on without God? Don't bow down to them. Remember it is God that has brought us here to this point in our lives and will continue to take care of us if we let Him. He brought us up out of our Egypts; our captivity. He is wanting to fill us up. We need to open wide our mouths. Give God the opportunity to work. There is no limit to God and how He works.
"But my people would not listen to me; Israel would not submit to me. So I gave them over to their stubborn hearts to follow their own devices." (vs. 11-12)
The problem though, is that we struggle to listen. We forget God is speaking to us all the time and the world is so noisy that it is hard for us to hear His voice unless we are focusing intently on it. We need to make a concerted effort to hear and when we ask for something, we need to pay attention so that we can hear the answer. I think we are often like children who ask questions of their parents and then get so sidetracked that they never hear the answers. We need to be still and listen and then we will hear God. Beyond hearing, though, we need to obey. We have to submit our will to His because He knows what is best for us. If we ignore Him, eventually He will let us go our own way. He will give us over to our rebellion and self will but it will break His heart. We will wander like the Israelites in the desert until we die or have a change of heart.
"If my people would but listen to me, if Israel would follow my ways, how quickly would I subdue their enemies and turn my hand against their foes! Those who hate the Lord would cringe before Him, and their punishment would last forever. But you would be fed with the finest of wheat; with honey from the rock I would satisfy you." (vs. 13-16)
When we decide to change our minds, however, and begin listening to God, then He can come to our rescue. If we start putting His words into practice, we will see miracles. God's love for us is so clear as He speaks of how quickly He will subdue our enemies if we take His messages to heart. He is speaking to us relentlessly and waiting to bless us and take care of us. If we will listen and obey, God can and will turn anything around in our lives - illness, debt, clutter, lack of organization, ineffectiveness, bad schedules, bad parenting, bad marriages. God can transform any of these things in a minute. God is waiting. It's up to us now.
Prayer for the Day
Dear Lord,
We long to be filled by You. Help us to rid ourselves of the idols in our lives and the things that we strive after instead of you. Help us to be still and hear Your voice. Help us to be still and know that you are God and we are not. Life will go on without us. We are not indispensable. Our relationship with You is all that really matter and You will take care of the rest. We want to obey. We want to rejoice. Help us. We are opening wide our mouths. We are waiting on You. We will let You lead us.
In Jesus' Name,
Amen
QFT
1. Am I praising God and focusing on all He has done for me? What did He set me free from? What was I in slave labor to and what burdens has He lifted from me?
2. Do I have idols in my life? What do I devote most of my time to? Is it worth it? How can I change my priorities to make sure God is in first place?
3. Am I listening to God's voice? What distracts me from hearing Him? Am I allowing myself quiet time in which I can meditate on His word? How can I incorporate more time for reflection into my life?
4. Am I obeying the voice of God in my life? Am I allowing Him to subdue my enemies? What enemies do I have that need subduing?
5. Am I remembering God's love for me in all of this? How has He shown His love in my life? How can I focus on this more?
Dear Lord,
We long to be filled by You. Help us to rid ourselves of the idols in our lives and the things that we strive after instead of you. Help us to be still and hear Your voice. Help us to be still and know that you are God and we are not. Life will go on without us. We are not indispensable. Our relationship with You is all that really matter and You will take care of the rest. We want to obey. We want to rejoice. Help us. We are opening wide our mouths. We are waiting on You. We will let You lead us.
In Jesus' Name,
Amen
QFT
1. Am I praising God and focusing on all He has done for me? What did He set me free from? What was I in slave labor to and what burdens has He lifted from me?
2. Do I have idols in my life? What do I devote most of my time to? Is it worth it? How can I change my priorities to make sure God is in first place?
3. Am I listening to God's voice? What distracts me from hearing Him? Am I allowing myself quiet time in which I can meditate on His word? How can I incorporate more time for reflection into my life?
4. Am I obeying the voice of God in my life? Am I allowing Him to subdue my enemies? What enemies do I have that need subduing?
5. Am I remembering God's love for me in all of this? How has He shown His love in my life? How can I focus on this more?
Sunday, September 20, 2015
Daily Devotional - 9/20/15 (1/20/2010)
Prayer Focus - Personal Transformation
Day 2
Pray for:
One thing that you want to see improved in your relationship with God - (Love God)
One thing that you want to see improved in the way you relate to others - (with all your heart)
Dear Lord - Please open my ears to Your ever present voice and grant me the strength to obey.
Psalms 80
"Restore us, O God; make Your face shine upon us, that we may be saved." ( vs. 3, 7, 19 )
As the psalmist recounts the struggles of Israel in Psalm 80, the phrase above is repeated three times. The Israelites were longing to be restored to their days of glory, but there is also a message of restoration for us in these short verses. There is a deep longing within each of us for something better than what we have right now. We want to be more. No child dreams about growing up to be something mediocre. They dream of being princesses and princes, heroes and heroines. God has set these dreams of greatness (Jeremiah 29:11) as well as eternity in our hearts (Ezekiel 3:11). He has also given us a desire for beauty and innocence. I think that is why we love art and nature.
We look wistfully at our young children (when they are behaving!) and often long for those carefree days when we were young. If our children are older, we miss the days when they were innocent babies. We treasure the joy of those days in our own lives because somewhere along the line, as we grow up, we get corrupted by our sins and the sins of others. Just like Adam and Eve, we fall from grace. The longing for what we were supposed to be remains, however. We want the innocence back and the purity of heart that came with it.
Thankfully, God wants this for us as well and He has provided a way for us to receive it. There is still beauty around us. There can still be beauty within us. There is still hope just as sure as there is still a sunrise and a sunset each day. We can be restored.
The key to restoration is in the second part of the verse. We have to let God's face shine upon us. As we look at Him and keep a steady gaze at what He is like, He will lead us and transform us. He created us to have life and life to the fullest (John 10:10). We are His works of art. Let us allow Him to transform us into what we were created to be and receive all He designed for us to have. If we can keep our eyes on Him, we can, like Peter walk on water (Matt 14:22-33). He is able and He will do it.
Prayer for the Day
Dear Lord,
We long for the days of innocence. Restore us to that childlike spirit. Grant us the faith and purity of heart to truly believe. You are able and You are willing. We are Your works of art. Help us to believe that and allow ourselves to be transformed. Help us to catch a hold of the vision You have for our lives and keep our eyes fixed on You. We want to radiate Your glory. We want to be saved.
In Jesus' Name,
Amen
QFT
1. What were my dreams as a child? When did I let go of them? Why? Can I in anyway revive them?
2. What things (my sin and the sins of others) corrupted me and took away my innocence? Have I let go/ repented of my sins so that I can be restored? Have I forgiven those that hurt me? Can I get help to work through any issues here?
3. How can I let God's face shine upon me? Am I keeping my eyes on Him? How can I do a better job at this?
4. How is God transforming me? What can I see Him doing with my life?
5. Do I have any dreams to serve Him in any way? What can I try to do? What steps of faith can I take?
Day 2
Pray for:
One thing that you want to see improved in your relationship with God - (Love God)
One thing that you want to see improved in the way you relate to others - (with all your heart)
Dear Lord - Please open my ears to Your ever present voice and grant me the strength to obey.
Psalms 80
"Restore us, O God; make Your face shine upon us, that we may be saved." ( vs. 3, 7, 19 )
As the psalmist recounts the struggles of Israel in Psalm 80, the phrase above is repeated three times. The Israelites were longing to be restored to their days of glory, but there is also a message of restoration for us in these short verses. There is a deep longing within each of us for something better than what we have right now. We want to be more. No child dreams about growing up to be something mediocre. They dream of being princesses and princes, heroes and heroines. God has set these dreams of greatness (Jeremiah 29:11) as well as eternity in our hearts (Ezekiel 3:11). He has also given us a desire for beauty and innocence. I think that is why we love art and nature.
We look wistfully at our young children (when they are behaving!) and often long for those carefree days when we were young. If our children are older, we miss the days when they were innocent babies. We treasure the joy of those days in our own lives because somewhere along the line, as we grow up, we get corrupted by our sins and the sins of others. Just like Adam and Eve, we fall from grace. The longing for what we were supposed to be remains, however. We want the innocence back and the purity of heart that came with it.
Thankfully, God wants this for us as well and He has provided a way for us to receive it. There is still beauty around us. There can still be beauty within us. There is still hope just as sure as there is still a sunrise and a sunset each day. We can be restored.
The key to restoration is in the second part of the verse. We have to let God's face shine upon us. As we look at Him and keep a steady gaze at what He is like, He will lead us and transform us. He created us to have life and life to the fullest (John 10:10). We are His works of art. Let us allow Him to transform us into what we were created to be and receive all He designed for us to have. If we can keep our eyes on Him, we can, like Peter walk on water (Matt 14:22-33). He is able and He will do it.
Prayer for the Day
Dear Lord,
We long for the days of innocence. Restore us to that childlike spirit. Grant us the faith and purity of heart to truly believe. You are able and You are willing. We are Your works of art. Help us to believe that and allow ourselves to be transformed. Help us to catch a hold of the vision You have for our lives and keep our eyes fixed on You. We want to radiate Your glory. We want to be saved.
In Jesus' Name,
Amen
QFT
1. What were my dreams as a child? When did I let go of them? Why? Can I in anyway revive them?
2. What things (my sin and the sins of others) corrupted me and took away my innocence? Have I let go/ repented of my sins so that I can be restored? Have I forgiven those that hurt me? Can I get help to work through any issues here?
3. How can I let God's face shine upon me? Am I keeping my eyes on Him? How can I do a better job at this?
4. How is God transforming me? What can I see Him doing with my life?
5. Do I have any dreams to serve Him in any way? What can I try to do? What steps of faith can I take?
Saturday, September 19, 2015
Daily Devotional - 9/19/15 (11/19/09)
Prayer Focus - Personal Transformation
Day 1
Pray for:
One thing that you would like to see improved in your relationship with God
Dear Lord - Please open my ears to Your ever present voice and grant me the strength to obey.
Psalms 79
"O God, the nations have invaded Your inheritance; they have defiled Your holy temple, they have reduced Jerusalem to rubble...How long, O Lord, will You be angry forever? How long will Your jealousy burn like fire?..Do not hold against us the sins of the fathers; may Your mercy come quickly to meet us, for we are in desperate need...Then we Your people, the sheep of Your pasture, will praise You forever; from generation to generation we will recount Your praise." ( vs. 1, 5, 8, & 13)
God allowed Jerusalem to be destroyed and His people taken into captivity. He allowed them to get into such a difficult situation that they were in desperate need. The Israelites were in captivity many times, often for such a long period of time that the original people that had sinned were long gone. This did not stop the latter generations from still reaping the consequences. This can be troubling to think about. In the Old Testament, there are long periods of silence from God when His people wondered where He was. In our lives, at times, we can feel the same. We face various trials from without and within. There can be issues with our health, our finances, our parenting, our marriage, our job or lack there of. Internal struggles can include grief, anger, bitterness, depression, guilt, obsessions, and worry. The list goes on and on. Struggles can endure for days, months, years. And we wonder, "God where are You? God, do You even exist at all?"
Why is this? Why does God allow this? What can we learn from these times? There are many lessons in this, but they often run contrary to our modern culture. This sometimes makes it hard for us to understand. We are people of sight. We are people of immediate gratification. We are people that deny there are consequences to our actions. Remember the slogan, "If it feels good, do it?" But reality doesn't base itself on our culture. There really are eternal truths that we will need to internalize if we are ever going to walk successfully through this life. The following are a few of them.
Day 1
Pray for:
One thing that you would like to see improved in your relationship with God
Dear Lord - Please open my ears to Your ever present voice and grant me the strength to obey.
Psalms 79
"O God, the nations have invaded Your inheritance; they have defiled Your holy temple, they have reduced Jerusalem to rubble...How long, O Lord, will You be angry forever? How long will Your jealousy burn like fire?..Do not hold against us the sins of the fathers; may Your mercy come quickly to meet us, for we are in desperate need...Then we Your people, the sheep of Your pasture, will praise You forever; from generation to generation we will recount Your praise." ( vs. 1, 5, 8, & 13)
God allowed Jerusalem to be destroyed and His people taken into captivity. He allowed them to get into such a difficult situation that they were in desperate need. The Israelites were in captivity many times, often for such a long period of time that the original people that had sinned were long gone. This did not stop the latter generations from still reaping the consequences. This can be troubling to think about. In the Old Testament, there are long periods of silence from God when His people wondered where He was. In our lives, at times, we can feel the same. We face various trials from without and within. There can be issues with our health, our finances, our parenting, our marriage, our job or lack there of. Internal struggles can include grief, anger, bitterness, depression, guilt, obsessions, and worry. The list goes on and on. Struggles can endure for days, months, years. And we wonder, "God where are You? God, do You even exist at all?"
Why is this? Why does God allow this? What can we learn from these times? There are many lessons in this, but they often run contrary to our modern culture. This sometimes makes it hard for us to understand. We are people of sight. We are people of immediate gratification. We are people that deny there are consequences to our actions. Remember the slogan, "If it feels good, do it?" But reality doesn't base itself on our culture. There really are eternal truths that we will need to internalize if we are ever going to walk successfully through this life. The following are a few of them.
First, we need to learn that there are consequences to every action. We don't want to believe this. We are so used to being rescued. I know I was. When I was growing up, I was rescued many times in big and small ways by my parents. Although I know it was done in love, I think I might have been better off I had faced some consequences for my actions in my youth. As a result of how I was raised, I had to learn the hard way that no one comes to rescue you anymore when you are an adult. If you don't pay your bills, bad things happen, such as the lights get shut off. If you overspend, you have to pay it off. Also, there are laws that have to be obeyed and there are deadlines that can not be denied. We can't always talk our way out of something. How many of us were shocked when we began to realize this? Often, we are still fighting this same issue. We argue the consequences of our actions with a policeman that stopped us even though we know we were speeding. We bail our children out when they procrastinate or get in trouble. We blame others for our problems rather than face what we really deserve. Thankfully, God is not like this. He sees the big picture. He knows the ultimate consequences of life and He is not afraid to let us face what we deserve to face or need to face. He is the ultimate loving parent who is willing to let us go through the hard lessons so that in the end we might live.
Secondly, we need to learn that sin has far reaching consequences, not just in our own lives, but in the lives of those around us as well. Many times the Bible talks about the sins of the fathers (Ezekiel 18). We are not held responsible in the sense that we will die spiritually for what someone else does, such as our parents, but their sins will still impact us. Children and spouses' of alcoholics know the truth in this. Sin leaves scars that are often difficult to heal. Even sins we might consider less dramatic such as impatience and selfishness damage others. When we say careless and mean things in our anger, those around us will have to deal with the depth of that wound. Even if they forgive us, the words have gone out and can never be taken back. We often hear the echoes of cruel things that were said to us years later, try as we might to forget. The Bible states that we will be called to account for every careless word we speak (Matt 12:36-37). This verse is sobering to me as I know I have said many careless things in my life. It reminds me that we have to take our lives seriously because we do impact others for eternity, whether we want to or not.
Finally, the last lesson I will mention here is that God is still there in the silence; working away at the plan He has for our lives. In the silence of the Old Testament, God was working out His plan of salvation for not only Israel but for the whole world. We do not know why it took so long but it was worth the wait. The behind the scenes work of the universe is a bit beyond us, but it is good enough for me to know that someone who is able is back there working it out. As a child, most of us did not have to worry about the bills or the more complicated issues about what had to be done to provide for us. We trusted our parents and lived life. Think about all that went on to get us to adulthood. Even if our childhoods were not that good, there was work done on our behalf by many people. We will never know the full extent, but as we become parents, we get a glimpse of what it takes to raise a child and hopefully we have more mercy on our parents for all of their failings. It is so hard and although we try our best, we fail so often. But God is the perfect parent and we can rest easy knowing that He is working to take care of what needs to be done to get us to our final destination. We need to be like that weaned child resting with its mother, confident in the safety she provides (Psalms 131). God is there. God does exist. He has a plan. The trials will eventually pass. All hard times do eventually come to an end, and that in itself is good.
Secondly, we need to learn that sin has far reaching consequences, not just in our own lives, but in the lives of those around us as well. Many times the Bible talks about the sins of the fathers (Ezekiel 18). We are not held responsible in the sense that we will die spiritually for what someone else does, such as our parents, but their sins will still impact us. Children and spouses' of alcoholics know the truth in this. Sin leaves scars that are often difficult to heal. Even sins we might consider less dramatic such as impatience and selfishness damage others. When we say careless and mean things in our anger, those around us will have to deal with the depth of that wound. Even if they forgive us, the words have gone out and can never be taken back. We often hear the echoes of cruel things that were said to us years later, try as we might to forget. The Bible states that we will be called to account for every careless word we speak (Matt 12:36-37). This verse is sobering to me as I know I have said many careless things in my life. It reminds me that we have to take our lives seriously because we do impact others for eternity, whether we want to or not.
Finally, the last lesson I will mention here is that God is still there in the silence; working away at the plan He has for our lives. In the silence of the Old Testament, God was working out His plan of salvation for not only Israel but for the whole world. We do not know why it took so long but it was worth the wait. The behind the scenes work of the universe is a bit beyond us, but it is good enough for me to know that someone who is able is back there working it out. As a child, most of us did not have to worry about the bills or the more complicated issues about what had to be done to provide for us. We trusted our parents and lived life. Think about all that went on to get us to adulthood. Even if our childhoods were not that good, there was work done on our behalf by many people. We will never know the full extent, but as we become parents, we get a glimpse of what it takes to raise a child and hopefully we have more mercy on our parents for all of their failings. It is so hard and although we try our best, we fail so often. But God is the perfect parent and we can rest easy knowing that He is working to take care of what needs to be done to get us to our final destination. We need to be like that weaned child resting with its mother, confident in the safety she provides (Psalms 131). God is there. God does exist. He has a plan. The trials will eventually pass. All hard times do eventually come to an end, and that in itself is good.
"My heart is not proud, O Lord, my eyes are not haughty; I do not concern myself with great matters or things too wonderful for me. But I have stilled and quieted my soul; like a weaned child with its mother, like a weaned child is my soul within me. O Israel, put your hope in the Lord both now and forevermore." (Psalm 131)
Prayer for the Day
Dear Lord,
It is so hard to be like the weaned child. We have so many fears and it is so hard for us to just rest in You. Yet, You are majestic and able. Forgive us for insulting Your power and goodness. We, as sinful humans, know how to give good gifts to our children. You are so much more. Thank You for thinking in the long term and for not always giving us what we want. Thank You for letting us go through the hard times so that we might in the end make it to be with You in eternity. Help us to keep our eyes on the eternal and in the times of silence know that You are there. Just as the sun shines behind the clouds though we see it not, You shine throughout the universe. We praise Your name.
In Jesus' Name,
Amen
QFT
1. Do I feel like God is moving and present in my life or do I feel like He is silent and absent? Why? When have I felt these two different ways? How do I deal with the times in my life when I feel that God is being silent? What can I do to get through these difficult times?
2. Am I willing to face the consequences of my actions? Am I helping my children to face the consequences of their actions? How can I teach them this concept? Do I blame others for anything in my life? In what areas do I see this? How can I stop blaming others for my problems and start dealing more with my actions?
3. Am I dealing with any scars from the sins of those around me? How can I work on being healed?
4. Am I creating any scars? Are my sins affecting my children, spouse, significant other, roommate, etc.? How? What do I need to change and how can I?
5. Am I trying to control everything in my life? Am I filled with worry about all of the issues I face? Am I like the weaned child or like an unhappy child? How can I change? What will I do today to start trusting God more?
Saturday, September 12, 2015
Daily Devotional - 9/12/15 (11/12/09)
Prayer Focus - Needs
Day 1
Pray for:
One thing that is needed in the world
Focus on how the fulfilled need will help impact people's
spiritual lives
physical lives
emotional lives
mental lives
Dear Lord - Please open my ears to hear and grant me the strength to obey.
Psalms 72
"He will be like rain falling on a mown field, like showers watering the earth. In his days the righteous will flourish; prosperity will abound till the moon is no more...For he will deliver the needy who cry out, the afflicted who have no one to help. He will take pity on the weak and the needy and save the needy from death." ( vs. 6-7, 12-13)
This psalm states at the beginning that it was written about Solomon. What a wonderful portrait of what a person could become. I would like this to be able to be said about me someday. I would like to be like rain on a mown field. That dewy freshness and revitalization that comes from a needed watering. I would like to be a protector of the weak and helpless. I would like to make a difference.
We often have great desires to do something. The problem is in our actions. God is able, but are we truly willing? Are we taking steps to do something? Perhaps we do not know what to do. I feel this way quite a bit and my problem is that when I don't know what to do, I don't do anything. I need to start doing something, anything, as long as it gets me moving in some direction. God can take care of the rest but if I do nothing, I receive nothing. I impact nothing. We must start and let God take care of the rest. Let tomorrow be the first day of the rest of our lives and let us dream of that beautiful field in the rain.
Prayer for the Day
Dear Lord,
We have dreams to make a difference, and You have dreams to save the world. Help us to see that our dreams are possible, if they are in line with Yours. Help us to start moving in some direction because it is easier to move or redirect an object once it is moving than when it is at a complete stop. Help us not to be frozen with insecurity and indecision. You know what You have planned for our lives and the good works that You have prepared in advance for us to do. You are able to complete them if we are willing to act. You have put things on our heart for a reason. There are people that only we can reach and help. Help us to stop focusing on ourselves and help us to start making a difference for You. With You we will be able. Grant us strength.
In Jesus' Name,
Amen
QFT
1. Am I refreshing to others or a burden to them? Why? How can I become someone who refreshing, or become more like this if I already am?
2. Are the righteous flourishing because of me? Who am I helping or inspiring to be more godly? How am I helping them? What more could I do or how could I start doing this if I am not now?
3. Am I helping the needy and afflicted? How am I doing this? What more could I do or what could I start doing?
4. What good works do I feel I am equipped to do? What are my talents and gifts? What has been on my heart lately? What can I start doing along this line?
5. What is my dream or vision for my life? How can I begin or continue to make this dream/vision happen? Am I praying about how my dream can be a part of God's dream is for my life?
Day 1
Pray for:
One thing that is needed in the world
Focus on how the fulfilled need will help impact people's
spiritual lives
physical lives
emotional lives
mental lives
Dear Lord - Please open my ears to hear and grant me the strength to obey.
Psalms 72
"He will be like rain falling on a mown field, like showers watering the earth. In his days the righteous will flourish; prosperity will abound till the moon is no more...For he will deliver the needy who cry out, the afflicted who have no one to help. He will take pity on the weak and the needy and save the needy from death." ( vs. 6-7, 12-13)
This psalm states at the beginning that it was written about Solomon. What a wonderful portrait of what a person could become. I would like this to be able to be said about me someday. I would like to be like rain on a mown field. That dewy freshness and revitalization that comes from a needed watering. I would like to be a protector of the weak and helpless. I would like to make a difference.
We often have great desires to do something. The problem is in our actions. God is able, but are we truly willing? Are we taking steps to do something? Perhaps we do not know what to do. I feel this way quite a bit and my problem is that when I don't know what to do, I don't do anything. I need to start doing something, anything, as long as it gets me moving in some direction. God can take care of the rest but if I do nothing, I receive nothing. I impact nothing. We must start and let God take care of the rest. Let tomorrow be the first day of the rest of our lives and let us dream of that beautiful field in the rain.
Prayer for the Day
Dear Lord,
We have dreams to make a difference, and You have dreams to save the world. Help us to see that our dreams are possible, if they are in line with Yours. Help us to start moving in some direction because it is easier to move or redirect an object once it is moving than when it is at a complete stop. Help us not to be frozen with insecurity and indecision. You know what You have planned for our lives and the good works that You have prepared in advance for us to do. You are able to complete them if we are willing to act. You have put things on our heart for a reason. There are people that only we can reach and help. Help us to stop focusing on ourselves and help us to start making a difference for You. With You we will be able. Grant us strength.
In Jesus' Name,
Amen
QFT
1. Am I refreshing to others or a burden to them? Why? How can I become someone who refreshing, or become more like this if I already am?
2. Are the righteous flourishing because of me? Who am I helping or inspiring to be more godly? How am I helping them? What more could I do or how could I start doing this if I am not now?
3. Am I helping the needy and afflicted? How am I doing this? What more could I do or what could I start doing?
4. What good works do I feel I am equipped to do? What are my talents and gifts? What has been on my heart lately? What can I start doing along this line?
5. What is my dream or vision for my life? How can I begin or continue to make this dream/vision happen? Am I praying about how my dream can be a part of God's dream is for my life?
Wednesday, September 9, 2015
Daily Devotional - 9/9/15 (11/9/09)
Prayer Focus - Gratitude
Day 5
Pray for:
One thing you are grateful for about the country that you live in
One thing you are grateful for about the state/region that you live in
One thing you are grateful for about the city that you live in
One thing you are grateful for about the home that you live in
One thing you are grateful for about your family
Thank God for the effect that what you are grateful for has on:
your spiritual life
your physical life
your emotional life
your mental life
Dear Lord - Please open my ears to hear and grant me the strength to obey.
Psalms 69
"My eyes fail, looking for my God...May those who hope in You not be disgraced because of me, ...But I pray to You, O Lord, in the time of Your favor; in Your great love, O God, answer me with Your sure salvation...Answer me, O Lord, out of the goodness of Your love; in Your great mercy turn to me. Do not hide Your face from Your servant; answer me quickly, for I am in trouble. Come near and rescue me; redeem me because of my foes...
The Lord hears the needy and does not despise His captive people. Let heaven and earth praise Him, the seas and all that move in them, for God will save Zion and rebuild the cities of Judah. Then people will settle there and possess it; the children of His servants will inherit it, and those who love His name will dwell there." ( vs. 3b, 6a, 13, 16, 33-36)
Sometime we are searching, and sometimes we are finding. There are many seasons in our lives. I love the scripture in Ecclesiastes that highlights this.
Psalm 69 contrasts two seasons - a season of struggle and a season of rebuilding. Both are written by the same person. I know I have been through both seasons and though I love the rebuilding, I do not regret the seasons of struggle. I would not want to go through some of the valleys I have been through again, but I would never want to take them back. They are why I am where I am at now and God has used them. He has used them to humble me and to show me what life is truly about.
I was very arrogant as a young person and I did not really understand struggle. Many things came easy to me and so I became very prideful and sure of myself. But we can not find God if there is no room for Him in our hearts; if we are too full of ourselves. That was me. I had been trained to be a student, not a person. I was taught to achieve, not love. I was taught that it was all about me. There was no room for God in my life, even though I professed to be a Christian. God had to allow me to face complete and utter moral failure so that I could truly see who I was.
All the things that I used to hide behind were stripped away in college. It was there that I truly began to understand that I was not a "good person". Whatever I had was not of my own doing. I did not make myself intelligent. That was a gift of God. I did not make myself athletically talented. That too was a gift of God. What I had made of myself, however, was a mess. I could finally see how I used people. I could see how I thought so many mean and impure thoughts. I could see how I thought I was better than others because of the gifts that God had given me. I could finally see clearly.
I did not want to bring shame and disgrace on those that hoped in God anymore. I claimed to be a Christian, but in my actions I was denying Him. I was as big of a hypocrite as the people I hated for being hypocritical. In God's great mercy, He had allowed me to see this. He did not show me this to destroy me, however. He showed me this so that I could change. He allowed me to start over. He came to my rescue. I had searched and searched for Him and He was found. At the right time, when I was most open to see the truth, God was there. God is here. I was crushed so that I could rise to a better life.
God saved me from myself and He continues to save me from myself. I can not believe how far I have come and I am so grateful that I can now understand life better and I know what it is to struggle. I know what it is to have to climb that long ladder back up to normal; to be a successfully functioning human being. God does restore and rebuild, even if everything right now lies in chaos around us and we struggle to get through each day. God will not despise us. The poor and needy will see and be glad. Our hearts will live. Our searching for God is not in vain. We will find Him and He will reward us if we are faithful. I praise God every day for this.
Prayer for the Day
Dear Lord,
We grow weary searching for You. We are looking. We are struggling but You are strong. You are waiting for us to come to You. You are not far from each one of us. Help us to clear all the fog from our vision and throw off the sin that so easily entangles us. Help us to run our race with perseverance and not lose sight of our goal to make it to be with You. Keep our sights eternal. We love You.
In Jesus' Name,
Amen
QFT
1. What season am I in right now? How do I know this? What seasons have I gone through? What have I learned from them?
2. Am I disgracing God and/or my brothers and sisters by the way I am living? What do I need to change to be living a life that pleases God?
3. Am I praying and pleading with God about my needs? How often am I praying? Can I make a schedule that would enable me to have more time to pray? When is the best time for me to pray? Where is most effective?
4. What do I need God to rebuild in my life? In what way am I like the cities of Judah that were torn down? How can God restore me? Do I believe God can and desires to do this?
5. How will I be able to help others better once I am rebuilt by God? What is my vision for what my life could be like and what is my vision for how God could use me?
Day 5
Pray for:
One thing you are grateful for about the country that you live in
One thing you are grateful for about the state/region that you live in
One thing you are grateful for about the city that you live in
One thing you are grateful for about the home that you live in
One thing you are grateful for about your family
Thank God for the effect that what you are grateful for has on:
your spiritual life
your physical life
your emotional life
your mental life
Dear Lord - Please open my ears to hear and grant me the strength to obey.
Psalms 69
"My eyes fail, looking for my God...May those who hope in You not be disgraced because of me, ...But I pray to You, O Lord, in the time of Your favor; in Your great love, O God, answer me with Your sure salvation...Answer me, O Lord, out of the goodness of Your love; in Your great mercy turn to me. Do not hide Your face from Your servant; answer me quickly, for I am in trouble. Come near and rescue me; redeem me because of my foes...
The Lord hears the needy and does not despise His captive people. Let heaven and earth praise Him, the seas and all that move in them, for God will save Zion and rebuild the cities of Judah. Then people will settle there and possess it; the children of His servants will inherit it, and those who love His name will dwell there." ( vs. 3b, 6a, 13, 16, 33-36)
Sometime we are searching, and sometimes we are finding. There are many seasons in our lives. I love the scripture in Ecclesiastes that highlights this.
"There is a time for everything and a season for every activity under heaven:
a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain,
a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,
a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,
a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace."
Ecclesiastes 3:1-8
Psalm 69 contrasts two seasons - a season of struggle and a season of rebuilding. Both are written by the same person. I know I have been through both seasons and though I love the rebuilding, I do not regret the seasons of struggle. I would not want to go through some of the valleys I have been through again, but I would never want to take them back. They are why I am where I am at now and God has used them. He has used them to humble me and to show me what life is truly about.
I was very arrogant as a young person and I did not really understand struggle. Many things came easy to me and so I became very prideful and sure of myself. But we can not find God if there is no room for Him in our hearts; if we are too full of ourselves. That was me. I had been trained to be a student, not a person. I was taught to achieve, not love. I was taught that it was all about me. There was no room for God in my life, even though I professed to be a Christian. God had to allow me to face complete and utter moral failure so that I could truly see who I was.
All the things that I used to hide behind were stripped away in college. It was there that I truly began to understand that I was not a "good person". Whatever I had was not of my own doing. I did not make myself intelligent. That was a gift of God. I did not make myself athletically talented. That too was a gift of God. What I had made of myself, however, was a mess. I could finally see how I used people. I could see how I thought so many mean and impure thoughts. I could see how I thought I was better than others because of the gifts that God had given me. I could finally see clearly.
I did not want to bring shame and disgrace on those that hoped in God anymore. I claimed to be a Christian, but in my actions I was denying Him. I was as big of a hypocrite as the people I hated for being hypocritical. In God's great mercy, He had allowed me to see this. He did not show me this to destroy me, however. He showed me this so that I could change. He allowed me to start over. He came to my rescue. I had searched and searched for Him and He was found. At the right time, when I was most open to see the truth, God was there. God is here. I was crushed so that I could rise to a better life.
God saved me from myself and He continues to save me from myself. I can not believe how far I have come and I am so grateful that I can now understand life better and I know what it is to struggle. I know what it is to have to climb that long ladder back up to normal; to be a successfully functioning human being. God does restore and rebuild, even if everything right now lies in chaos around us and we struggle to get through each day. God will not despise us. The poor and needy will see and be glad. Our hearts will live. Our searching for God is not in vain. We will find Him and He will reward us if we are faithful. I praise God every day for this.
Prayer for the Day
Dear Lord,
We grow weary searching for You. We are looking. We are struggling but You are strong. You are waiting for us to come to You. You are not far from each one of us. Help us to clear all the fog from our vision and throw off the sin that so easily entangles us. Help us to run our race with perseverance and not lose sight of our goal to make it to be with You. Keep our sights eternal. We love You.
In Jesus' Name,
Amen
QFT
1. What season am I in right now? How do I know this? What seasons have I gone through? What have I learned from them?
2. Am I disgracing God and/or my brothers and sisters by the way I am living? What do I need to change to be living a life that pleases God?
3. Am I praying and pleading with God about my needs? How often am I praying? Can I make a schedule that would enable me to have more time to pray? When is the best time for me to pray? Where is most effective?
4. What do I need God to rebuild in my life? In what way am I like the cities of Judah that were torn down? How can God restore me? Do I believe God can and desires to do this?
5. How will I be able to help others better once I am rebuilt by God? What is my vision for what my life could be like and what is my vision for how God could use me?
Thursday, September 3, 2015
Daily Devotional - 9/3/15 (11/3/09)
Prayer Focus - Strangers
Day 6
Pray for:
One person you admire or look up to
One person you met/meet today
One person that is in the entertainment industry
One person in politics
One person you always see but have never spoken to
One person that you have read about that is still alive
Pray about:
Their physical needs
Their mental needs
Their emotional needs
Their spiritual needs
Dear Lord - Please open my ears to hear and grant me the strength to obey.
Psalms 63
"O God, You are my God, earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for You, my body longs for You, in a dry and weary land where there is not water.
I have seen You in the sanctuary and beheld Your power and Your glory. Because Your love is better than life, my lips will glorify You. I will praise You as long as I live, and in Your name I will lift up my hands. My soul will be satisfied as with the richest of foods; with singing lips my mouth will praise You.
On my bed I remember You; I think of You through the watches of the night. Because You are my help, I sing in the shadow of Your wings. My soul clings to You; Your right hand upholds me." ( vs. 1 - 6 )
I have seen the power of God. I have seen Him change me. I have seen Him change others. I have also seen great victories. I know I would be nothing without Him and that He is all that I have that is good. I don't know how I knew this at 17 but I did. I had been wandering and I was thirsty and weary. I had great achievements - valedictorian, athlete, popular. I had been able to travel to Europe and Japan, among other places. Basically, I had done everything that I wanted had wanted to. I had accomplished all my goals up to that point, and yet I was dying. I was so empty. Life was meaningless to me. I went from one party to the next trying to fill the ache inside; using and being used. I made an ultimatum with God. Show me this is real! And He did. When I finally saw the Bible being lived out, then I knew. I had to respond. I clung to God because I knew that He was my only hope for a better life and that if I walked away from Him, I would be walking away from the best thing that I ever would have. I was right. I have had many wonderful things in my life and even now, life is good; but I still have never found anything like God.
I must always remember this. God's love is better than life. Life is a struggle, God's love is not. I will be satisfied. I will choose to be satisfied. Day in and day out. It is a choice and I will make it.
Prayer for the Day
Dear Lord,
We will be satisfied. We will turn our eyes to You and our hearts to remembering. We have beheld Your power and Your glory. We will remember. Help us when we are faltering and forgetting. Help us when we wander. We choose today to be satisfied. Your love is better than anything that we have. All our blessings have come from You. You are the great Giver. You are the perfect Father and Husband. We run to You and hide in the shelter of Your wings. Help us. We are damaged people longing to be healed. Help us to learn to sing again and to be mentally, emotionally, physically, and most important of all, spiritually healed so that we might be able to serve You. We desire to worship You completely and acceptably. We come before You in humble adoration. Please accept us today and always.
In Jesus' Name,
Amen
QFT
1. How am I feeling about life? Do I feel weary, thirsty, and parched or do I feel refreshed and rejuvenated? How is my relationship with God?
2. How has God's power been expressed in my life? Do I recognize God's glory? Am I praising Him daily?
3. Do I truly believe that God's love is better than life? How do I know this? How do I show it?
4. Am I satisfied with God alone? What tends to get me feeling dissatisfied? How can I stop allowing these things to distract me from God?
5. Am I clinging to God? Am I letting God heal me? What do I need to be healed from? How can running to the shelter of God's wings heal me?
Day 6
Pray for:
One person you admire or look up to
One person you met/meet today
One person that is in the entertainment industry
One person in politics
One person you always see but have never spoken to
One person that you have read about that is still alive
Pray about:
Their physical needs
Their mental needs
Their emotional needs
Their spiritual needs
Dear Lord - Please open my ears to hear and grant me the strength to obey.
Psalms 63
"O God, You are my God, earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for You, my body longs for You, in a dry and weary land where there is not water.
I have seen You in the sanctuary and beheld Your power and Your glory. Because Your love is better than life, my lips will glorify You. I will praise You as long as I live, and in Your name I will lift up my hands. My soul will be satisfied as with the richest of foods; with singing lips my mouth will praise You.
On my bed I remember You; I think of You through the watches of the night. Because You are my help, I sing in the shadow of Your wings. My soul clings to You; Your right hand upholds me." ( vs. 1 - 6 )
I have seen the power of God. I have seen Him change me. I have seen Him change others. I have also seen great victories. I know I would be nothing without Him and that He is all that I have that is good. I don't know how I knew this at 17 but I did. I had been wandering and I was thirsty and weary. I had great achievements - valedictorian, athlete, popular. I had been able to travel to Europe and Japan, among other places. Basically, I had done everything that I wanted had wanted to. I had accomplished all my goals up to that point, and yet I was dying. I was so empty. Life was meaningless to me. I went from one party to the next trying to fill the ache inside; using and being used. I made an ultimatum with God. Show me this is real! And He did. When I finally saw the Bible being lived out, then I knew. I had to respond. I clung to God because I knew that He was my only hope for a better life and that if I walked away from Him, I would be walking away from the best thing that I ever would have. I was right. I have had many wonderful things in my life and even now, life is good; but I still have never found anything like God.
I must always remember this. God's love is better than life. Life is a struggle, God's love is not. I will be satisfied. I will choose to be satisfied. Day in and day out. It is a choice and I will make it.
Prayer for the Day
Dear Lord,
We will be satisfied. We will turn our eyes to You and our hearts to remembering. We have beheld Your power and Your glory. We will remember. Help us when we are faltering and forgetting. Help us when we wander. We choose today to be satisfied. Your love is better than anything that we have. All our blessings have come from You. You are the great Giver. You are the perfect Father and Husband. We run to You and hide in the shelter of Your wings. Help us. We are damaged people longing to be healed. Help us to learn to sing again and to be mentally, emotionally, physically, and most important of all, spiritually healed so that we might be able to serve You. We desire to worship You completely and acceptably. We come before You in humble adoration. Please accept us today and always.
In Jesus' Name,
Amen
QFT
1. How am I feeling about life? Do I feel weary, thirsty, and parched or do I feel refreshed and rejuvenated? How is my relationship with God?
2. How has God's power been expressed in my life? Do I recognize God's glory? Am I praising Him daily?
3. Do I truly believe that God's love is better than life? How do I know this? How do I show it?
4. Am I satisfied with God alone? What tends to get me feeling dissatisfied? How can I stop allowing these things to distract me from God?
5. Am I clinging to God? Am I letting God heal me? What do I need to be healed from? How can running to the shelter of God's wings heal me?
Tuesday, September 1, 2015
Daily Devotional - 9/1/15 (11/1/09)
Prayer Focus - Strangers
Day 4
Pray for:
One person you admire or look up to
One person you met/meet today
One person that is in the entertainment industry
One person in politics
Pray about:
Their physical needs
Their mental needs
Their emotional needs
Their spiritual needs
Dear Lord - Please open my ears to hear and grant me the strength to obey.
Psalms 61
This devotional was originally written in November of 2009. I have left it as I wrote it then. The whole year of 2009 was extremely difficult for my family and I. In January of 2009, my husband was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer which we eventually learned, had spread to his liver. I struggled to hold our family together through the two surgeries and two rounds of chemotherapy that would consume the entire year. Writing these devotionals became a therapeutic outlet for me as I re-evaluated my relationship with God and clung to Him moment by moment. We made it through that year and many more after it. We have dealt with a reoccurrence of cancer last year and keep struggling on. God has always come through. Sometimes I do not see how the victory will come but it does come anyway. God has always been faithful and no matter what happens, I believe that He has used everything I have gone through to strengthen my faith, my family, and myself. He truly is the rock that is higher than I.
"Hear my cry, O God; listen to my prayer. From the ends of the earth I call to You, I call as my heart grows faint; lead me to the rock that is higher than I. For You have been my refuge, a strong tower against the foe. I long to dwell in Your tent forever and take refuge in the shelter of Your wings. For You have heard my vows, O God; You have given me the heritage of those who fear Your name. Increase the days of the king's life, his years for many generations. May he be enthroned in God's presence forever; appoint Your love and faithfulness to protect him. Then will I ever sing praise to Your name and fulfill my vows day after day." ( Psalms 61)
"Listen to my prayer Lord, because I am growing weaker." Haven't we all been there? We fight and fight and keep going and keep going and then it just feels like there is nothing left. There is a limit to us and what we can do. Praise God, however, there is no limit to Him. When life is overwhelming, we need to let Him lead us to that rock that we can climb up on and be safe from the waves that are battering us. He is our refuge.
I have to confess, I have been battered lately. I have been struggling with life. My Joelle has been sick since off and on since October 2 with her asthma and a cold/flu. Just when I think she is getting better, she gets worse again. I have been sick as well for about two weeks and then last night, my middle daughter develops a 102 fever. This would usually be not that big of a deal, but since she was exposed to H1N1 by at least two classmates, I was a bit stressed. I took both girls to the urgent care today and was told not to worry too much about Lorelei, and Joelle got a breathing treatment and some stronger medicine to try and get her asthma under control. Now tomorrow, my husband is supposed to start his second round of chemo and I am trying desperately to get my grades done in the midst of all this. I have missed so much work already and am debating if taking tomorrow off would be a good thing or not. My house is an utter disaster area and I am so tired. So these are my waves. This is what is battering me. Now I need to face them and then I need to get up and climb up on the rock that is higher than I.
I do long to dwell in God's tent. I want some shelter. I am tired of doing it all and being responsible for everything. God knows my vows. He has given me the heritage of those who fear His name. I am in good company. This is all just temporary and God has it all under control. I just need to climb out of the water I am sinking in and rest in Christ. Our health will get better and we will move on. I will get my grades done. I always do somehow or other. And God's love and faithfulness surround me and protects me. I will praise God. I will be positive in spite all of this. I will. I will fulfill my vows.
Prayer for the Day
Dear Lord,
Lift us to the rock that is higher than we are. We need You as our refuge. This world is too hard for us alone. We are fading away. Help us to run to You. Help us to get out of the rough water that surrounds us and lift up our arms to You, our Father and our Protector. We have made vows to You and we need You to help us fulfill them. You are able. We search for Your love and faithfulness. We know they are there. We look for You. We long for You. Hear our cry O Lord for without You, we are lost.
In Jesus' Name,
Amen
QFT
1. How is my prayer life? Am I crying out to God? Do I really pour out my heart to Him or do I just recite the same things over and over? How can I revitalize my prayer life?
2. Am I growing faint of working on something or dealing with some issue in my life? What are the waves that are battering me? Am I bringing them to God daily in prayer?
3. Is God my refuge? If He isn't, what do I take refuge in when I am struggling? How can I run to God and take refuge in Him? How can I do this more?
4. Do I recognize God's love and faithfulness? How can these qualities of God protect me? How can I be more aware of them in my life?
5. Am I praising God? Am I fulfilling my vows? Which am I better at doing, praising God, or fulfilling my vows? Why? How can I grow in these two areas?
Day 4
Pray for:
One person you admire or look up to
One person you met/meet today
One person that is in the entertainment industry
One person in politics
Pray about:
Their physical needs
Their mental needs
Their emotional needs
Their spiritual needs
Dear Lord - Please open my ears to hear and grant me the strength to obey.
Psalms 61
This devotional was originally written in November of 2009. I have left it as I wrote it then. The whole year of 2009 was extremely difficult for my family and I. In January of 2009, my husband was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer which we eventually learned, had spread to his liver. I struggled to hold our family together through the two surgeries and two rounds of chemotherapy that would consume the entire year. Writing these devotionals became a therapeutic outlet for me as I re-evaluated my relationship with God and clung to Him moment by moment. We made it through that year and many more after it. We have dealt with a reoccurrence of cancer last year and keep struggling on. God has always come through. Sometimes I do not see how the victory will come but it does come anyway. God has always been faithful and no matter what happens, I believe that He has used everything I have gone through to strengthen my faith, my family, and myself. He truly is the rock that is higher than I.
"Hear my cry, O God; listen to my prayer. From the ends of the earth I call to You, I call as my heart grows faint; lead me to the rock that is higher than I. For You have been my refuge, a strong tower against the foe. I long to dwell in Your tent forever and take refuge in the shelter of Your wings. For You have heard my vows, O God; You have given me the heritage of those who fear Your name. Increase the days of the king's life, his years for many generations. May he be enthroned in God's presence forever; appoint Your love and faithfulness to protect him. Then will I ever sing praise to Your name and fulfill my vows day after day." ( Psalms 61)
"Listen to my prayer Lord, because I am growing weaker." Haven't we all been there? We fight and fight and keep going and keep going and then it just feels like there is nothing left. There is a limit to us and what we can do. Praise God, however, there is no limit to Him. When life is overwhelming, we need to let Him lead us to that rock that we can climb up on and be safe from the waves that are battering us. He is our refuge.
I have to confess, I have been battered lately. I have been struggling with life. My Joelle has been sick since off and on since October 2 with her asthma and a cold/flu. Just when I think she is getting better, she gets worse again. I have been sick as well for about two weeks and then last night, my middle daughter develops a 102 fever. This would usually be not that big of a deal, but since she was exposed to H1N1 by at least two classmates, I was a bit stressed. I took both girls to the urgent care today and was told not to worry too much about Lorelei, and Joelle got a breathing treatment and some stronger medicine to try and get her asthma under control. Now tomorrow, my husband is supposed to start his second round of chemo and I am trying desperately to get my grades done in the midst of all this. I have missed so much work already and am debating if taking tomorrow off would be a good thing or not. My house is an utter disaster area and I am so tired. So these are my waves. This is what is battering me. Now I need to face them and then I need to get up and climb up on the rock that is higher than I.
I do long to dwell in God's tent. I want some shelter. I am tired of doing it all and being responsible for everything. God knows my vows. He has given me the heritage of those who fear His name. I am in good company. This is all just temporary and God has it all under control. I just need to climb out of the water I am sinking in and rest in Christ. Our health will get better and we will move on. I will get my grades done. I always do somehow or other. And God's love and faithfulness surround me and protects me. I will praise God. I will be positive in spite all of this. I will. I will fulfill my vows.
Prayer for the Day
Dear Lord,
Lift us to the rock that is higher than we are. We need You as our refuge. This world is too hard for us alone. We are fading away. Help us to run to You. Help us to get out of the rough water that surrounds us and lift up our arms to You, our Father and our Protector. We have made vows to You and we need You to help us fulfill them. You are able. We search for Your love and faithfulness. We know they are there. We look for You. We long for You. Hear our cry O Lord for without You, we are lost.
In Jesus' Name,
Amen
QFT
1. How is my prayer life? Am I crying out to God? Do I really pour out my heart to Him or do I just recite the same things over and over? How can I revitalize my prayer life?
2. Am I growing faint of working on something or dealing with some issue in my life? What are the waves that are battering me? Am I bringing them to God daily in prayer?
3. Is God my refuge? If He isn't, what do I take refuge in when I am struggling? How can I run to God and take refuge in Him? How can I do this more?
4. Do I recognize God's love and faithfulness? How can these qualities of God protect me? How can I be more aware of them in my life?
5. Am I praising God? Am I fulfilling my vows? Which am I better at doing, praising God, or fulfilling my vows? Why? How can I grow in these two areas?
Friday, August 21, 2015
Daily Devotional for 8/21/15 (10/21/09)
Prayer Focus - Friends
Day 7
Pray for:
One friend that you feel close to
One friend that has become distant and you would like to be closer to
One friend from long ago
One new friend
One friend that has hurt you
One friend that has always been there for you
One friend that you have lost touch with and have no idea where they are
Pray about:
Their physical needs
Their mental needs
Their emotional needs
Their spiritual needs
Dear Lord - Please open my ears to hear and grant me the strength to obey.
Psalms 51
"Have mercy on me, O God, according to Your unfailing love; according to Your great compassion blot out my transgressions." (vs. 1)
"Against You, You only, have I sinned and done what is evil in Your sight, so that You are proved right when You speak and justified when You judge." (vs. 4)
"Surely You desire truth in the inner parts; You teach me wisdom in the inmost place. Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow." (vs. 6 - 7)
"Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me from Your presence or take Your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of Your salvation and grant me a willing spirit to sustain me." (vs. 10 - 12)
"You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; You do not take pleasure in burnt offerings. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, You will not despise." (vs. 16 - 17)
In Your good pleasure make Zion prosper; Build up the walls of Jerusalem. Then there will be righteous sacrifices, whole burnt offerings to delight You; (vs. 18 -19a)
True religion is something totally different than what most of us think. Often we think of going to church and a bunch of dos and don'ts. Definitely there are things that should and shouldn't be done but it all seems to boil down to love. What is the greatest commandment? Love God with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength and love our neighbors as ourselves (Matt 22:37-39). This is what Jesus said summed it all up - Love.
God is love. Do we remember this?
I think we forget. We think - God is a taskmaster. God is far away. God does not care. God is not fair. God is mean. God hates. God just wants me to obey. But is this really true? Does God want our sacrifices? Will our hard work save us? Can we ever be good enough?
The answer to all these types of questions are no. No, no, no. God is love. God wants truth. God wants integrity. God wants us to come back and say, "Thank You. Do not cast me away from You." God wants us broken and contrite. Ready to be something different. Ready to turn away from all the secrets within us. Bottom line, God wants us to be with Him and He knows what that will take.
I think when we look deep into ourselves, we know this as well. There is an aching part in us that just wants to be known, loved, and changed. I think we long for transformation. We long to be clean - to be free from what ever it is that is binding us and keeping us from life.
But even though we know this, there is a barrier to us reaching the healing we seek. I believe this barrier is sin. Sometimes we think we are so clever. We do things we know are wrong and think it will never be found out. We think no one can really see what is going on within us. Well, that is not really true is it? God sees everything. God already knows, and sooner or later everyone else usually finds out too.
When I was a child, I used to think it would be a great parenting tool to have cameras in every room so that a parent could see what was going on at all times. Now of course, that is possible now but it wasn't back in the 70's. I was grateful back then that nothing like that existed because I did a lot of things in secret that I didn't what anyone seeing. It was quite a revelation to me when I finally realized that God saw everything and that He had seen every single thing I had ever done in secret. I was quite ashamed and embarrassed.
So in order to be transformed and healed, and since all the things we have done have been seen anyway, we need to deal with them. We need to seek repentance. We have to get these secrets out into the open and get help. We need to stop doing wrong and start doing right. That is what I had to do.
I had to come to grips with the fact that God wanted me. He wants us, all of us, and He wants us to be true believers. He wants our hearts, not just our outward acquiescence. But I didn't know how to get from where I was to where I needed to be? This is where Psalm 51 is essential. It is the cry for forgiveness and restoration that we all need to cry.
When I was finally trying to get my life right with God, I had a mentor who was working with me in my life. He knew just about everything about me and he gave me a key assignment. He challenged me to memorize this Psalm and repeat it as often as I could. He felt that when I could truly pray this Psalm from my heart, then I would probably be ready to become a Christian.
I would finally be ready to become a Christian, because I would finally be ready to deal with the sin in my life. My heart would be ready to change because it would have released the things that were at that time controlling it. Sin hardens us. Sin hardens and breaks us. This world is broken. I was broken. Sin breaks our communion with God, others, and even ourselves. It cuts us off from our heart and it sears our consciences. It destroys whatever good is in us and it destroys the good in this world. We can not be close to God and be in sin as well. It is impossible.
I was so hard at this point in my life from all the sin I had indulged in that I needed a transformation. I needed a new heart, and new spirit. I needed to come to God on His terms, not mine.
I took my friend's challenge and eventually I had a breakthrough. God did have mercy on me. He did restore to me the joy of my salvation and renew a steadfast spirit within me. God was faithful and created a pure heart within me. I had not been pure in a long time but now I was and I could be completely different. Instead of being religious, I could be righteous - right with God. I could have integrity. I could have truth. I could walk without fear of what I was hiding.
God was and is faithful. Thirty some years later, I am still walking this walk and striving to keep this prayer and all of God's word in my heart so that I will not sin against Him.
I praise God that He did restore and in His timing, He did make me prosper. He has given me so much and I would never have known all the good He had in store if I had not been willing to get on my knees and pray.
Prayer for the Day
Dear Lord,
Have mercy on us we pray. Forgive us our sins. Cleanse us. Only You can do this. We thank You for forgiving us. We thank You for Your mercy and grace. We thank you for even caring at all. We know that we are completely unworthy. Please grant us a willing spirit to sustain us. Grant us joy as well so that we may live and be the examples that You deserve. We know that in Your good pleasure, You can make us prosper. We look forward to that day.
In Jesus' Name,
Amen
QFT
1. What do I think God really wants from me? Why? Do I have a correct perspective of God? Why or why not? How can I get a more accurate view?
2. Do I realize how much I sin against God? Am I turning to Him for forgiveness? Do I realize that when I sin against others, I am sinning against God? Does this help me to stop sinning or could this help me? How can I remind myself of this fact?
3. Do I feel burdened by past sins? Have I been forgiven? How do I know? Do I need to discuss anything with another person to help deal with a habitual sin?
4. What does repentance mean to me? What do I do when I have done something wrong? How do I deal with it? Is this the best thing to do or could I do something differently?
5. Am I turning to God for a pure heart, a steadfast spirit, a willing spirit, and a joyful heart? Which of these is the hardest for me to maintain?
Day 7
Pray for:
One friend that you feel close to
One friend that has become distant and you would like to be closer to
One friend from long ago
One new friend
One friend that has hurt you
One friend that has always been there for you
One friend that you have lost touch with and have no idea where they are
Pray about:
Their physical needs
Their mental needs
Their emotional needs
Their spiritual needs
Dear Lord - Please open my ears to hear and grant me the strength to obey.
Psalms 51
"Have mercy on me, O God, according to Your unfailing love; according to Your great compassion blot out my transgressions." (vs. 1)
"Against You, You only, have I sinned and done what is evil in Your sight, so that You are proved right when You speak and justified when You judge." (vs. 4)
"Surely You desire truth in the inner parts; You teach me wisdom in the inmost place. Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow." (vs. 6 - 7)
"Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me from Your presence or take Your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of Your salvation and grant me a willing spirit to sustain me." (vs. 10 - 12)
"You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; You do not take pleasure in burnt offerings. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, You will not despise." (vs. 16 - 17)
In Your good pleasure make Zion prosper; Build up the walls of Jerusalem. Then there will be righteous sacrifices, whole burnt offerings to delight You; (vs. 18 -19a)
True religion is something totally different than what most of us think. Often we think of going to church and a bunch of dos and don'ts. Definitely there are things that should and shouldn't be done but it all seems to boil down to love. What is the greatest commandment? Love God with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength and love our neighbors as ourselves (Matt 22:37-39). This is what Jesus said summed it all up - Love.
God is love. Do we remember this?
I think we forget. We think - God is a taskmaster. God is far away. God does not care. God is not fair. God is mean. God hates. God just wants me to obey. But is this really true? Does God want our sacrifices? Will our hard work save us? Can we ever be good enough?
The answer to all these types of questions are no. No, no, no. God is love. God wants truth. God wants integrity. God wants us to come back and say, "Thank You. Do not cast me away from You." God wants us broken and contrite. Ready to be something different. Ready to turn away from all the secrets within us. Bottom line, God wants us to be with Him and He knows what that will take.
I think when we look deep into ourselves, we know this as well. There is an aching part in us that just wants to be known, loved, and changed. I think we long for transformation. We long to be clean - to be free from what ever it is that is binding us and keeping us from life.
But even though we know this, there is a barrier to us reaching the healing we seek. I believe this barrier is sin. Sometimes we think we are so clever. We do things we know are wrong and think it will never be found out. We think no one can really see what is going on within us. Well, that is not really true is it? God sees everything. God already knows, and sooner or later everyone else usually finds out too.
When I was a child, I used to think it would be a great parenting tool to have cameras in every room so that a parent could see what was going on at all times. Now of course, that is possible now but it wasn't back in the 70's. I was grateful back then that nothing like that existed because I did a lot of things in secret that I didn't what anyone seeing. It was quite a revelation to me when I finally realized that God saw everything and that He had seen every single thing I had ever done in secret. I was quite ashamed and embarrassed.
So in order to be transformed and healed, and since all the things we have done have been seen anyway, we need to deal with them. We need to seek repentance. We have to get these secrets out into the open and get help. We need to stop doing wrong and start doing right. That is what I had to do.
I had to come to grips with the fact that God wanted me. He wants us, all of us, and He wants us to be true believers. He wants our hearts, not just our outward acquiescence. But I didn't know how to get from where I was to where I needed to be? This is where Psalm 51 is essential. It is the cry for forgiveness and restoration that we all need to cry.
When I was finally trying to get my life right with God, I had a mentor who was working with me in my life. He knew just about everything about me and he gave me a key assignment. He challenged me to memorize this Psalm and repeat it as often as I could. He felt that when I could truly pray this Psalm from my heart, then I would probably be ready to become a Christian.
I would finally be ready to become a Christian, because I would finally be ready to deal with the sin in my life. My heart would be ready to change because it would have released the things that were at that time controlling it. Sin hardens us. Sin hardens and breaks us. This world is broken. I was broken. Sin breaks our communion with God, others, and even ourselves. It cuts us off from our heart and it sears our consciences. It destroys whatever good is in us and it destroys the good in this world. We can not be close to God and be in sin as well. It is impossible.
I was so hard at this point in my life from all the sin I had indulged in that I needed a transformation. I needed a new heart, and new spirit. I needed to come to God on His terms, not mine.
I took my friend's challenge and eventually I had a breakthrough. God did have mercy on me. He did restore to me the joy of my salvation and renew a steadfast spirit within me. God was faithful and created a pure heart within me. I had not been pure in a long time but now I was and I could be completely different. Instead of being religious, I could be righteous - right with God. I could have integrity. I could have truth. I could walk without fear of what I was hiding.
God was and is faithful. Thirty some years later, I am still walking this walk and striving to keep this prayer and all of God's word in my heart so that I will not sin against Him.
I praise God that He did restore and in His timing, He did make me prosper. He has given me so much and I would never have known all the good He had in store if I had not been willing to get on my knees and pray.
Prayer for the Day
Dear Lord,
Have mercy on us we pray. Forgive us our sins. Cleanse us. Only You can do this. We thank You for forgiving us. We thank You for Your mercy and grace. We thank you for even caring at all. We know that we are completely unworthy. Please grant us a willing spirit to sustain us. Grant us joy as well so that we may live and be the examples that You deserve. We know that in Your good pleasure, You can make us prosper. We look forward to that day.
In Jesus' Name,
Amen
QFT
1. What do I think God really wants from me? Why? Do I have a correct perspective of God? Why or why not? How can I get a more accurate view?
2. Do I realize how much I sin against God? Am I turning to Him for forgiveness? Do I realize that when I sin against others, I am sinning against God? Does this help me to stop sinning or could this help me? How can I remind myself of this fact?
3. Do I feel burdened by past sins? Have I been forgiven? How do I know? Do I need to discuss anything with another person to help deal with a habitual sin?
4. What does repentance mean to me? What do I do when I have done something wrong? How do I deal with it? Is this the best thing to do or could I do something differently?
5. Am I turning to God for a pure heart, a steadfast spirit, a willing spirit, and a joyful heart? Which of these is the hardest for me to maintain?
Monday, September 20, 2010
Daily Devotional - 9/18/10 (10/18/09)
Prayer Focus - Friends
Day 4
Pray for:
One friend that you feel close to
One friend that has become distant and you would like to be closer to
One friend from long ago
One new friend
Pray about:
Their physical needs
Their mental needs
Their emotional needs
Their spiritual needs
Dear Lord - Please open my ears to hear and grant me the strength to obey.
Psalms 48
"Within Your temple, O God, we meditate on Your unfailing love. Like Your name, O God, Your praise reaches to the ends of the earth; Your right hand is filled with righteousness." (vs. 9 - 10)
"For this God is our God for ever and ever; He will be our guide even to the end." (vs. 14)
God will never stop being our God. He will guide us till the end if we let Him. His love for us is unfailing and as high as the heavens are above the earth. His love never fails. Everything else will. I have experienced that. At the waterpolo reunion I went to last week end, the memories of failing to win the National Championship in my senior year of college haunted me. After playing my freshman year, I took two years off. My team won the championship one of the years I did not play and then won once again the year after I graduated. The elusive victory that was so important to me never came. I failed. I had a chance to win the game for us, as did many other of my teammates. All we had to do was tie the game and we would have been the champions but we could not do it. I missed a shot that I had taken many other times over the years, my easiest shot and I barred the ball.
I again asked myself the question I had asked off and on for the past twenty years - Why? Why couldn't I have made it? It haunts me still, if I let it, although everyone else seems to have moved on. It was a lifetime ago, but for me, if I allow myself to think about it, it seems like yesterday. I wanted to be the best. For once in my sporting life, I wanted to be a winner. I was always the next best, always on the losing teams. Always -almost, but not quite. I wanted to win this last time, this last chance for me. I was sure it was going to happen this time. So when the game was over, it was devastating to know that that victory would never come for me. It was over. My waterpolo career was over. Waterpolo had failed me. I had failed me.
As I walked around the campus of my Alma mater, the questions came back up for me - Why? I had prayed. I had always tried to put God first, even in my waterpolo. I had not missed church for a game. I did not party. I tried to be a good example. So why had God not answered my prayers that day when He knew how important it was for me. This thought of having missed the mark and having failed echoed in mind, but it echoed over more than just my waterpolo career. It seemed to loom large over my entire college experience. Mediocre grades, mediocre relationships, always on the outside looking in at what others were experiencing. Always - almost victorious, almost good friends, almost happy. Almost.
I missed out on so much being so "almost". I felt like such a failure most of the time I was there in college. So much sadness. I had done so well in high school and yet I had struggled so much in college just to make it. So I asked myself - Why?
As I walked through the Eucalyptus forests on campus, a thought came to me. Maybe it was because God wanted me to realize that I was a winner already. I was a Christian and I had a relationship with Him. I was willing to forgo the immediate gratification that the world offered for something that would be longer lasting. I was willing to walk a different path and I was willing to do the hard work of dealing with my character and striving to become like Christ. That is true victory, anyway, not a fleeting athletic victory that is remembered only by a handful of individuals and posted in old scrapbooks.
I had won the victory in Christ; an eternal victory, and I have still won that victory. God had not failed me at all. He was guiding me to a greater victory. The peace that I feel now with my life and the blessings I have in my husband and children were bought with the hard work that I began in college. I have won the victory, the one that really matters, because Christ has won the victory, and that should be enough.
Here are additional verses to consider on the victory we have already won if we are right with God and Christ:
“But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of Him." (2 Corinthians 2:14)
"But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain." (1 Corinthians 15:57 - 58)
"Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is Yours. Yours, O Lord, is the kingdom; You are exalted as head over all. Wealth and honor come from You; You are the ruler of all things. In Your hands are strength and power to exalt and give strength to all." (1 Chronicles 29:11-12)
"Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? ... No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present or the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 8:35 &37-39)
“This is the love for God: to obey His commands. And His commandments are not burdensome, for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world? Only he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?" ( 1John 5:3-5)
Prayer for the Day
Dear Lord,
We thank You for the victories You give. They are eternal victories and far outweigh anything we can win here on earth. Temporal victories can be so fulfilling and we enjoy Your blessing but often even better comes for us when You say no to something we desire. Help us to not be like spoiled children who sulk and pout over not receiving something we have asked for. You are looking at these moments of our lives from the perspective of eternity and we cannot even fathom the riches and depth of Your wisdom and knowledge. We are grateful that You give us each new day and we are grateful for what our momentary troubles are gaining us. Help us to be obedient and joyful despite failures because they are really not failures in the long run. Keep our perspectives right and help us to let go of any past regrets. We cannot go back and take anything over so let us truly forgive and forget. Let us live today and each day from now on like there is no other for us and then we will find we can look back with a happy heart. We are grateful for Your directive to forget the past and strain toward what is ahead. Grant us obedience in this so that we may truly live.
In Jesus' Name,
Amen
QFT
1. Am I letting God be my guide? How can I do that?
2. Do I have any past regrets or failures that are haunting me? Have I ever talked to anyone about them? How can I let them go?
3. How do I feel when God says no or wait to me regarding something that I am praying about? Do I lose faith? Do I pout or sulk?
4. Do I have God's perspective about who is a winner? Do I consider myself a winner because I have a relationship with God or am I looking at more worldly achievements for my feelings of success?
5. Do I feel that my work for the Lord is worthwhile or am I tempted to feel discouraged when results are not readily evident? How can I keep the proper perspective on eternity?
Day 4
Pray for:
One friend that you feel close to
One friend that has become distant and you would like to be closer to
One friend from long ago
One new friend
Pray about:
Their physical needs
Their mental needs
Their emotional needs
Their spiritual needs
Dear Lord - Please open my ears to hear and grant me the strength to obey.
Psalms 48
"Within Your temple, O God, we meditate on Your unfailing love. Like Your name, O God, Your praise reaches to the ends of the earth; Your right hand is filled with righteousness." (vs. 9 - 10)
"For this God is our God for ever and ever; He will be our guide even to the end." (vs. 14)
God will never stop being our God. He will guide us till the end if we let Him. His love for us is unfailing and as high as the heavens are above the earth. His love never fails. Everything else will. I have experienced that. At the waterpolo reunion I went to last week end, the memories of failing to win the National Championship in my senior year of college haunted me. After playing my freshman year, I took two years off. My team won the championship one of the years I did not play and then won once again the year after I graduated. The elusive victory that was so important to me never came. I failed. I had a chance to win the game for us, as did many other of my teammates. All we had to do was tie the game and we would have been the champions but we could not do it. I missed a shot that I had taken many other times over the years, my easiest shot and I barred the ball.
I again asked myself the question I had asked off and on for the past twenty years - Why? Why couldn't I have made it? It haunts me still, if I let it, although everyone else seems to have moved on. It was a lifetime ago, but for me, if I allow myself to think about it, it seems like yesterday. I wanted to be the best. For once in my sporting life, I wanted to be a winner. I was always the next best, always on the losing teams. Always -almost, but not quite. I wanted to win this last time, this last chance for me. I was sure it was going to happen this time. So when the game was over, it was devastating to know that that victory would never come for me. It was over. My waterpolo career was over. Waterpolo had failed me. I had failed me.
As I walked around the campus of my Alma mater, the questions came back up for me - Why? I had prayed. I had always tried to put God first, even in my waterpolo. I had not missed church for a game. I did not party. I tried to be a good example. So why had God not answered my prayers that day when He knew how important it was for me. This thought of having missed the mark and having failed echoed in mind, but it echoed over more than just my waterpolo career. It seemed to loom large over my entire college experience. Mediocre grades, mediocre relationships, always on the outside looking in at what others were experiencing. Always - almost victorious, almost good friends, almost happy. Almost.
I missed out on so much being so "almost". I felt like such a failure most of the time I was there in college. So much sadness. I had done so well in high school and yet I had struggled so much in college just to make it. So I asked myself - Why?
As I walked through the Eucalyptus forests on campus, a thought came to me. Maybe it was because God wanted me to realize that I was a winner already. I was a Christian and I had a relationship with Him. I was willing to forgo the immediate gratification that the world offered for something that would be longer lasting. I was willing to walk a different path and I was willing to do the hard work of dealing with my character and striving to become like Christ. That is true victory, anyway, not a fleeting athletic victory that is remembered only by a handful of individuals and posted in old scrapbooks.
I had won the victory in Christ; an eternal victory, and I have still won that victory. God had not failed me at all. He was guiding me to a greater victory. The peace that I feel now with my life and the blessings I have in my husband and children were bought with the hard work that I began in college. I have won the victory, the one that really matters, because Christ has won the victory, and that should be enough.
Here are additional verses to consider on the victory we have already won if we are right with God and Christ:
“But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of Him." (2 Corinthians 2:14)
"But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain." (1 Corinthians 15:57 - 58)
"Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is Yours. Yours, O Lord, is the kingdom; You are exalted as head over all. Wealth and honor come from You; You are the ruler of all things. In Your hands are strength and power to exalt and give strength to all." (1 Chronicles 29:11-12)
"Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? ... No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present or the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 8:35 &37-39)
“This is the love for God: to obey His commands. And His commandments are not burdensome, for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world? Only he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?" ( 1John 5:3-5)
Prayer for the Day
Dear Lord,
We thank You for the victories You give. They are eternal victories and far outweigh anything we can win here on earth. Temporal victories can be so fulfilling and we enjoy Your blessing but often even better comes for us when You say no to something we desire. Help us to not be like spoiled children who sulk and pout over not receiving something we have asked for. You are looking at these moments of our lives from the perspective of eternity and we cannot even fathom the riches and depth of Your wisdom and knowledge. We are grateful that You give us each new day and we are grateful for what our momentary troubles are gaining us. Help us to be obedient and joyful despite failures because they are really not failures in the long run. Keep our perspectives right and help us to let go of any past regrets. We cannot go back and take anything over so let us truly forgive and forget. Let us live today and each day from now on like there is no other for us and then we will find we can look back with a happy heart. We are grateful for Your directive to forget the past and strain toward what is ahead. Grant us obedience in this so that we may truly live.
In Jesus' Name,
Amen
QFT
1. Am I letting God be my guide? How can I do that?
2. Do I have any past regrets or failures that are haunting me? Have I ever talked to anyone about them? How can I let them go?
3. How do I feel when God says no or wait to me regarding something that I am praying about? Do I lose faith? Do I pout or sulk?
4. Do I have God's perspective about who is a winner? Do I consider myself a winner because I have a relationship with God or am I looking at more worldly achievements for my feelings of success?
5. Do I feel that my work for the Lord is worthwhile or am I tempted to feel discouraged when results are not readily evident? How can I keep the proper perspective on eternity?
Saturday, September 18, 2010
Daily Devotional - 9/16/10 (10/16/09)
Prayer Focus - Friends
Day 2
Pray for:
One friend that you feel close to
One friend that has become distant and you would like to be closer to
Pray about:
Their physical needs
Their mental needs
Their emotional needs
Their spiritual needs
Dear Lord - Help me to listen to You each and every day and please grant me the strength to obey.
Psalms 46
"God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging." (vs. 1-2)
Tomorrow I am going to a reunion in San Diego. As I was preparing to go, I became very sad and frustrated. I was afraid to go. Afraid to face my out of shape body and my inability to play a sport I once loved and still do. Afraid of what I have cut myself off from. Afraid of bad memories and feelings of failure that I left when I left that city. I haven't been back in many years. I haven't had any desire to return except perhaps to play waterpolo. That I have missed and longed for. That is why I am returning. But I know that my body will betray me. My life is so different now. But God is still my refuge. Even in these vague murmurings and sadness. I am still going. I am going to face my fears and my sadness. God is my help and this is my time to deal with my six years in San Diego. I cannot cut out so many years anymore. I must begin to synthesize my life and accept all of it.
"The Lord Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress." (vs. 7)
And God will be with me. He is my fortress as I deal with my soul. He is the healer of wounds we cannot see. No one else knows the aches in our hearts as He does and no one can be a fortress for us. No one else can save us from ourselves.
"Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth." (vs. 10)
I will be still and know that God is God. I will go to the bluffs and the ocean and all the old places and I will feel once again all the pain and I will let it go. I will let God be God and I will be still. I will listen to what those years have brought me to now. I had to go through the fires. I had to experience it. I would not go back or take it over and yet I would not wish it on anyone else either. But I will be still tomorrow, all day, and I will listen. I will laugh and do my best and reconnect and be someone that I was not in a place that I once was. God will be exalted, somehow, because God is always exalted whether we do the exalting or not. Hopefully, I will join in with the earth and exalt as well. It will be okay. I will be okay and when I return home, I will be better than I was. I will be more complete.
"The Lord Almighty is with us; the God of Jacobs is our fortress." (vs. 11)
Amen
Prayer for the Day
Dear Lord,
You know the sadness and the wounds of our hearts. It is so easy to put band aids on gaping holes and move on but You know and You arrange for us to meet the healing forces or face the pain again so that there may be closure. As we face our fears, help us to remember that You are our refuge and strength and that You are our ever present fortress. Help us to stop running from our painful pasts. Help us to embrace them and learn what You would have us learn.
We respect those that are able to face great tragedies and turn them into triumphs. Most of our pains are of the lesser type but in our souls they are festering and they are keeping us from fully living. Help us to come to grips with all our experiences, good and bad, and help us to use them to glorify you by strengthening others. You have great plans for us. You allow us to suffer so that in the end You may be lifted up through us and used, just as Jesus suffered and was used to save all those who would come to Him. We are grateful for all of our experience and we are grateful for Your saving grace. We will be still and know that You are God. Help us to do this. Help us to quiet our souls and hear Your voice. Help us to know now and always, that You are God.
In Jesus' Name,
Amen
QFT
1. Am I running from any past memories or experiences? Why am I doing this?
2. How can I face these experiences and work through them so that I can have closure and move on in my life? What help is available for me?
3. What am I afraid of? Am I giving these things over to God in prayer? Am I remembering God in these moments of fear?
4. Am I still before God? How can I be still before God?
5. What does it mean to me to know that God is God? How can I practically do this more and more in my life?
Day 2
Pray for:
One friend that you feel close to
One friend that has become distant and you would like to be closer to
Pray about:
Their physical needs
Their mental needs
Their emotional needs
Their spiritual needs
Dear Lord - Help me to listen to You each and every day and please grant me the strength to obey.
Psalms 46
"God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging." (vs. 1-2)
Tomorrow I am going to a reunion in San Diego. As I was preparing to go, I became very sad and frustrated. I was afraid to go. Afraid to face my out of shape body and my inability to play a sport I once loved and still do. Afraid of what I have cut myself off from. Afraid of bad memories and feelings of failure that I left when I left that city. I haven't been back in many years. I haven't had any desire to return except perhaps to play waterpolo. That I have missed and longed for. That is why I am returning. But I know that my body will betray me. My life is so different now. But God is still my refuge. Even in these vague murmurings and sadness. I am still going. I am going to face my fears and my sadness. God is my help and this is my time to deal with my six years in San Diego. I cannot cut out so many years anymore. I must begin to synthesize my life and accept all of it.
"The Lord Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress." (vs. 7)
And God will be with me. He is my fortress as I deal with my soul. He is the healer of wounds we cannot see. No one else knows the aches in our hearts as He does and no one can be a fortress for us. No one else can save us from ourselves.
"Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth." (vs. 10)
I will be still and know that God is God. I will go to the bluffs and the ocean and all the old places and I will feel once again all the pain and I will let it go. I will let God be God and I will be still. I will listen to what those years have brought me to now. I had to go through the fires. I had to experience it. I would not go back or take it over and yet I would not wish it on anyone else either. But I will be still tomorrow, all day, and I will listen. I will laugh and do my best and reconnect and be someone that I was not in a place that I once was. God will be exalted, somehow, because God is always exalted whether we do the exalting or not. Hopefully, I will join in with the earth and exalt as well. It will be okay. I will be okay and when I return home, I will be better than I was. I will be more complete.
"The Lord Almighty is with us; the God of Jacobs is our fortress." (vs. 11)
Amen
Prayer for the Day
Dear Lord,
You know the sadness and the wounds of our hearts. It is so easy to put band aids on gaping holes and move on but You know and You arrange for us to meet the healing forces or face the pain again so that there may be closure. As we face our fears, help us to remember that You are our refuge and strength and that You are our ever present fortress. Help us to stop running from our painful pasts. Help us to embrace them and learn what You would have us learn.
We respect those that are able to face great tragedies and turn them into triumphs. Most of our pains are of the lesser type but in our souls they are festering and they are keeping us from fully living. Help us to come to grips with all our experiences, good and bad, and help us to use them to glorify you by strengthening others. You have great plans for us. You allow us to suffer so that in the end You may be lifted up through us and used, just as Jesus suffered and was used to save all those who would come to Him. We are grateful for all of our experience and we are grateful for Your saving grace. We will be still and know that You are God. Help us to do this. Help us to quiet our souls and hear Your voice. Help us to know now and always, that You are God.
In Jesus' Name,
Amen
QFT
1. Am I running from any past memories or experiences? Why am I doing this?
2. How can I face these experiences and work through them so that I can have closure and move on in my life? What help is available for me?
3. What am I afraid of? Am I giving these things over to God in prayer? Am I remembering God in these moments of fear?
4. Am I still before God? How can I be still before God?
5. What does it mean to me to know that God is God? How can I practically do this more and more in my life?
Thursday, September 9, 2010
Daily Devotional - 9/9/10 (10/9/09)
Prayer Focus - Family
Day 2
Pray for:
One family member that you feel close to
One family member that you are not close to
Pray about:
Their physical needs
Their mental needs
Their emotional needs
Their spiritual needs
Dear Lord - Help me to listen to You each and every day and please grant me the strength to obey.
Psalms 39
"But when I was silent and still, not even saying anything good, my anguish increased." (vs. 2)
We were made to communicate. God is very communicative and we were made in His image. There is something very strong within us that wants to know and be known. But what about the quiet person one might ask? Do they have no desire? They say they do not. I do not know if that is really true. I would be considered a quiet, private person, and in fact, I am, but I do not think that is how I always was. There is also a large part of me that is troubled by this lack of deep communication in my life. I do want to be known. I do want to communicate, but I stop short every time. At some time in my life and in the lives of others like me, I believe there was some emotional, mental, spiritual, or physical damage that occurred and caused the person to shut off the world, perhaps because it was too painful. The decision was made that being alone was fine since it saved one a lot of trouble and hurt.
But this often creates festering individuals. I know because I was one. By the time I was 17, I was on the verge of a nervous breakdown. I appeared to have everything together but I was dying and going crazy inside. I was cut off from the world emotionally and I was warped because of this. Although I appeared to be a nice person superficially, I was not deep down and I knew that. I was failing everyone, especially myself and God. I truly believe in the saying to "watch out for the quiet ones" because often, (not always), there is a cauldron of anger and hatred inside that eventually erupts terribly. I know I was about ready to.
This damage occurs because we were made to communicate. Babies do not thrive with out love and caring which is a form of communication. If no one ever cares to listen to the real you, what message does one take away from that? They take away the message - "I am not worth listening to. My opinions are not worthwhile. Therefore I am not worthwhile. I am not special to anyone." This creates a low grade anger because we all want to be special. God made us that way. This bottling everything up inside is not good. We all have valuable lessons and resources to share. We need others and others need us. We are interconnected, whether we want to be or not. Plus, we need to be channels for the Lord's power to flow. Finally, we need to prevent the "crazies" caused by isolation from setting into our souls.
So, whether what we have to say is good or bad, we need to start communicating. If we don't, our anguish will increases as the psalmist states. When I finally started opening up to others while studying the Bible at 17, I really started to change and experience the freedom that I could have in Christ. I was able to let go of so many evil things and be transformed. I was able to have God restore sanity and stability to me. I am so grateful for this and although communication is still not my strength, I continually work on the process because I know it is vital to my survival. I still have difficulties but I know it is crucial to be open and communicate because I know how crazy I can become with isolation.
"Show me, O Lord, my life's end and the number of my days; let me know how fleeting is my life." (vs. 4)
Communicating also helps us to remember what life is really all about. It is about people, not money, or things. We must remember that life is short. It is flying by. We need to pray to have God help us to remember this so that we don't waste time. When I am under the pressure of a deadline, I work hard. Otherwise I am led to procrastinate. In life, I must remember that I am under a deadline that is very permanent. I need to let that motivate me to make the most of every opportunity. I need to love fully, and live fully. I need to be about God's purpose, not mine. I need to look at what I do every moment of every day in the light of eternity. If I do this, I will be able to look at the end of my life with joy and not fear. I will be able to say, I have finished the race. That is what I long to be able to do; to know that I did my best all along the way and that I made a difference for being here.
"But now, Lord, what do I look for? My hope is in you." (vs. 7)
My hope is in God for all of this. He will give me direction. He will help me to dig out the stones embedded in my life that are hindering me from communicating as I would like and experiencing the deep friendships I desire. He knows that I want to make a difference in the world and He wants that for me as well. The only way I can ever make a difference though is by communicating. It is too overwhelming for me but it is not for God. I need to just focus on Him. He has given me this format as a start. I am good at writing and sharing things I could never share if I were speaking. Someday perhaps I will be able to do that well also. It is up to God.
God gives and God takes away. Blessed be the name of the Lord.
Prayer for the Day
Dear Father,
Grant us the desire and the ability to speak freely what is on our hearts. You have made each one of us special to You and have placed thoughts and convictions on our hearts. We are made to love and be loved. Help us to give and receive this. Help us to clear out the obstacles that prevent us from glorifying You in this manner and help us to be able to forge deep relationships. We want to make a difference in the world and we want to please You. Help us to open our mouths in praise and in whatever else needs to come. We want to be channels for You to speak and love through us. We know You can do it.
In Jesus' Name,
Amen
QFT
1. Do I believe it is important to communicate? Why or why not? Am I good at communicating? How do I know?
2. Do I share what is on my heart? Do I clear up issues with others? Am I speaking the truth in love to others? Why or why not? How can I change?
3. Are my relationships close and do we communicate about what is really important to us? Why or why not? How can I change?
4. Am I living my life like each day was my last? If today was my last day here, what would I do differently? How can I keep life in better perspective and spend more time on what is really important?
5. Do I communicate well in a way other than speaking? How can I use this as a means to begin improving my verbal communication?
Day 2
Pray for:
One family member that you feel close to
One family member that you are not close to
Pray about:
Their physical needs
Their mental needs
Their emotional needs
Their spiritual needs
Dear Lord - Help me to listen to You each and every day and please grant me the strength to obey.
Psalms 39
"But when I was silent and still, not even saying anything good, my anguish increased." (vs. 2)
We were made to communicate. God is very communicative and we were made in His image. There is something very strong within us that wants to know and be known. But what about the quiet person one might ask? Do they have no desire? They say they do not. I do not know if that is really true. I would be considered a quiet, private person, and in fact, I am, but I do not think that is how I always was. There is also a large part of me that is troubled by this lack of deep communication in my life. I do want to be known. I do want to communicate, but I stop short every time. At some time in my life and in the lives of others like me, I believe there was some emotional, mental, spiritual, or physical damage that occurred and caused the person to shut off the world, perhaps because it was too painful. The decision was made that being alone was fine since it saved one a lot of trouble and hurt.
But this often creates festering individuals. I know because I was one. By the time I was 17, I was on the verge of a nervous breakdown. I appeared to have everything together but I was dying and going crazy inside. I was cut off from the world emotionally and I was warped because of this. Although I appeared to be a nice person superficially, I was not deep down and I knew that. I was failing everyone, especially myself and God. I truly believe in the saying to "watch out for the quiet ones" because often, (not always), there is a cauldron of anger and hatred inside that eventually erupts terribly. I know I was about ready to.
This damage occurs because we were made to communicate. Babies do not thrive with out love and caring which is a form of communication. If no one ever cares to listen to the real you, what message does one take away from that? They take away the message - "I am not worth listening to. My opinions are not worthwhile. Therefore I am not worthwhile. I am not special to anyone." This creates a low grade anger because we all want to be special. God made us that way. This bottling everything up inside is not good. We all have valuable lessons and resources to share. We need others and others need us. We are interconnected, whether we want to be or not. Plus, we need to be channels for the Lord's power to flow. Finally, we need to prevent the "crazies" caused by isolation from setting into our souls.
So, whether what we have to say is good or bad, we need to start communicating. If we don't, our anguish will increases as the psalmist states. When I finally started opening up to others while studying the Bible at 17, I really started to change and experience the freedom that I could have in Christ. I was able to let go of so many evil things and be transformed. I was able to have God restore sanity and stability to me. I am so grateful for this and although communication is still not my strength, I continually work on the process because I know it is vital to my survival. I still have difficulties but I know it is crucial to be open and communicate because I know how crazy I can become with isolation.
"Show me, O Lord, my life's end and the number of my days; let me know how fleeting is my life." (vs. 4)
Communicating also helps us to remember what life is really all about. It is about people, not money, or things. We must remember that life is short. It is flying by. We need to pray to have God help us to remember this so that we don't waste time. When I am under the pressure of a deadline, I work hard. Otherwise I am led to procrastinate. In life, I must remember that I am under a deadline that is very permanent. I need to let that motivate me to make the most of every opportunity. I need to love fully, and live fully. I need to be about God's purpose, not mine. I need to look at what I do every moment of every day in the light of eternity. If I do this, I will be able to look at the end of my life with joy and not fear. I will be able to say, I have finished the race. That is what I long to be able to do; to know that I did my best all along the way and that I made a difference for being here.
"But now, Lord, what do I look for? My hope is in you." (vs. 7)
My hope is in God for all of this. He will give me direction. He will help me to dig out the stones embedded in my life that are hindering me from communicating as I would like and experiencing the deep friendships I desire. He knows that I want to make a difference in the world and He wants that for me as well. The only way I can ever make a difference though is by communicating. It is too overwhelming for me but it is not for God. I need to just focus on Him. He has given me this format as a start. I am good at writing and sharing things I could never share if I were speaking. Someday perhaps I will be able to do that well also. It is up to God.
God gives and God takes away. Blessed be the name of the Lord.
Prayer for the Day
Dear Father,
Grant us the desire and the ability to speak freely what is on our hearts. You have made each one of us special to You and have placed thoughts and convictions on our hearts. We are made to love and be loved. Help us to give and receive this. Help us to clear out the obstacles that prevent us from glorifying You in this manner and help us to be able to forge deep relationships. We want to make a difference in the world and we want to please You. Help us to open our mouths in praise and in whatever else needs to come. We want to be channels for You to speak and love through us. We know You can do it.
In Jesus' Name,
Amen
QFT
1. Do I believe it is important to communicate? Why or why not? Am I good at communicating? How do I know?
2. Do I share what is on my heart? Do I clear up issues with others? Am I speaking the truth in love to others? Why or why not? How can I change?
3. Are my relationships close and do we communicate about what is really important to us? Why or why not? How can I change?
4. Am I living my life like each day was my last? If today was my last day here, what would I do differently? How can I keep life in better perspective and spend more time on what is really important?
5. Do I communicate well in a way other than speaking? How can I use this as a means to begin improving my verbal communication?
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Daily Devotional - 9/8/10 (10/8/09)
Prayer Focus - Family
Day 1
Pray for:
One family member that you feel close to
Pray about:
Their physical needs
Their mental needs
Their emotional needs
Their spiritual needs
Dear Lord - Help me to listen to You each and every day and please grant me the strength to obey.
Psalms 38
"My guilt has overwhelmed me like a burden too heavy to bear. My wounds fester and are loathsome because of my sinful folly. I am bowed down and brought very low; all day long I go about mourning...My heart pounds, my strength fails me; even the light has gone from my eyes. My friends avoid me because of my wounds; my neighbors stay far away...For I am about to fall, and my pain is ever with me. I confess my iniquity; I am troubled by my sin." (vs. 4-6, 10-11, 17 & 18)
Sin can damage us in more ways than one. Our sin can affect us physically, relationally, and emotionally. The psalmist points to this when he describes in detail how our bodies are impacted by our guilt and sinful folly. I know that when I have something that I have not dealt with in my life, I become very tired. I don't feel well. Some people get headaches and stomach aches. Many real illnesses have roots stemming from sin and wrongdoing that has been concealed. Some mental illnesses can arise from this as well.
Our friendships are also damaged by the things we cover up. The psalmist mentions that "my friends and companions avoid me because of my wounds; my neighbors stay far away (vs. 11)." First of all, when we have sin that we are distressed about, we can't be close to others, even if the sin have nothing to do with them. We are short tempered or else we tend to isolate ourselves so that no one will catch on to what is going on with us. Often we lie to keep from being found out. It is difficult to have good friendships when we are doing these things. Secondly, relationships are cut off by the things we do to hurt one another or often by the thoughts and attitudes we have towards others that they might not even aware of. Best friends drift apart because on some unresolved issue. Bitterness and jealousy also cause so much trouble in people's lives. If we let bitterness take any root in our hearts, it will take over.
Emotionally, the affects of undealt with sin are enormous as well. We lose our joy and can be driven to depression and isolation. We become afraid for anyone to see the real person inside of us because we think they will not be able to accept us for who we are and for all the bad things we have done in our life. We are truly walking in darkness. We don't even know what is causing the dark feeling sometimes. But sin festers and grows whether we realize it is there or not.
Since these are the affects of doing wrong, it is imperative that we strive to do right. We must long for righteousness because in it, there is true life. We can know others and be known ourselves. We can have clear consciences and walk with our head up. It is so refreshing to not have any nagging thoughts about something we did or didn't do. To live a life of no regrets would be truly amazing. It can be discouraging sometimes though because we are all so far from this and we fail daily. What are we to do? We must begin by doing as the psalmist recommends - by confessing our iniquity and by being troubled by it in a good way (vs. 18). We need to get everything that we are hiding out of our systems and get ourselves out into the light. Then we must repent or be truly sorry and troubled in a way that leads us to change. Repent means to turn 180 degrees and go in the other direction. It is a sorrow that leads to action and not just depression. Finally, we need to continue following this process so that we are staying in the light.
This seems so difficult and if we have never been open before, it may seem impossible. Without God it really is, but thankfully, He is there. He will answer us when we call and when we humble ourselves and ask for help. He will not be far from us and will come quickly to save us. He is waiting for us to take the first step back and then He will come running just like in the story of the prodigal son. (Luke 15:11-32).
" I wait for You, O Lord; You will answer, O Lord my God." (vs. 15)
God is amazing. Let us wait for God. He will answer.
Prayer for the Day
Dear Lord,
Come quickly to save us. We know we fail so often. We have such great intentions but such weak results. Help us to start anew tomorrow and strive to deal continuously with our sins. Help us to hate them and strive to live purely so that nothing hinders us from being close to You and others. We want to live in the light as You are in the light. We want to be pleasing to You. We are lifting our souls up to You and are confessing and repenting of everything we know that is displeasing to You. Forgive us as well for those things we have done that we do not even realize displeases You. We are waiting on You and we know that You will save us.
In Jesus' Name,
Amen
QFT
1. Is there any sin I am not dealing with at present that is making me feel guilty? Has sin damaged any of my relationships? How can I deal with these problems and make amends?
2. How do I feel when I finally confess or talk about something that has been bothering me? Why do I not do this more often?
3. Do I have someone who I can talk with on a daily basis to confess my sins to and get help from?
4. Am I striving for righteousness? Am I repenting or changing the things that I confess or am I struggling with the same sins over and over again?
5. Am I calling out to God for help or am I trying to deal with everything on my own? Am I waiting on the Lord for His answers? How can I start to do these two things?
Day 1
Pray for:
One family member that you feel close to
Pray about:
Their physical needs
Their mental needs
Their emotional needs
Their spiritual needs
Dear Lord - Help me to listen to You each and every day and please grant me the strength to obey.
Psalms 38
"My guilt has overwhelmed me like a burden too heavy to bear. My wounds fester and are loathsome because of my sinful folly. I am bowed down and brought very low; all day long I go about mourning...My heart pounds, my strength fails me; even the light has gone from my eyes. My friends avoid me because of my wounds; my neighbors stay far away...For I am about to fall, and my pain is ever with me. I confess my iniquity; I am troubled by my sin." (vs. 4-6, 10-11, 17 & 18)
Sin can damage us in more ways than one. Our sin can affect us physically, relationally, and emotionally. The psalmist points to this when he describes in detail how our bodies are impacted by our guilt and sinful folly. I know that when I have something that I have not dealt with in my life, I become very tired. I don't feel well. Some people get headaches and stomach aches. Many real illnesses have roots stemming from sin and wrongdoing that has been concealed. Some mental illnesses can arise from this as well.
Our friendships are also damaged by the things we cover up. The psalmist mentions that "my friends and companions avoid me because of my wounds; my neighbors stay far away (vs. 11)." First of all, when we have sin that we are distressed about, we can't be close to others, even if the sin have nothing to do with them. We are short tempered or else we tend to isolate ourselves so that no one will catch on to what is going on with us. Often we lie to keep from being found out. It is difficult to have good friendships when we are doing these things. Secondly, relationships are cut off by the things we do to hurt one another or often by the thoughts and attitudes we have towards others that they might not even aware of. Best friends drift apart because on some unresolved issue. Bitterness and jealousy also cause so much trouble in people's lives. If we let bitterness take any root in our hearts, it will take over.
Emotionally, the affects of undealt with sin are enormous as well. We lose our joy and can be driven to depression and isolation. We become afraid for anyone to see the real person inside of us because we think they will not be able to accept us for who we are and for all the bad things we have done in our life. We are truly walking in darkness. We don't even know what is causing the dark feeling sometimes. But sin festers and grows whether we realize it is there or not.
Since these are the affects of doing wrong, it is imperative that we strive to do right. We must long for righteousness because in it, there is true life. We can know others and be known ourselves. We can have clear consciences and walk with our head up. It is so refreshing to not have any nagging thoughts about something we did or didn't do. To live a life of no regrets would be truly amazing. It can be discouraging sometimes though because we are all so far from this and we fail daily. What are we to do? We must begin by doing as the psalmist recommends - by confessing our iniquity and by being troubled by it in a good way (vs. 18). We need to get everything that we are hiding out of our systems and get ourselves out into the light. Then we must repent or be truly sorry and troubled in a way that leads us to change. Repent means to turn 180 degrees and go in the other direction. It is a sorrow that leads to action and not just depression. Finally, we need to continue following this process so that we are staying in the light.
This seems so difficult and if we have never been open before, it may seem impossible. Without God it really is, but thankfully, He is there. He will answer us when we call and when we humble ourselves and ask for help. He will not be far from us and will come quickly to save us. He is waiting for us to take the first step back and then He will come running just like in the story of the prodigal son. (Luke 15:11-32).
" I wait for You, O Lord; You will answer, O Lord my God." (vs. 15)
God is amazing. Let us wait for God. He will answer.
Prayer for the Day
Dear Lord,
Come quickly to save us. We know we fail so often. We have such great intentions but such weak results. Help us to start anew tomorrow and strive to deal continuously with our sins. Help us to hate them and strive to live purely so that nothing hinders us from being close to You and others. We want to live in the light as You are in the light. We want to be pleasing to You. We are lifting our souls up to You and are confessing and repenting of everything we know that is displeasing to You. Forgive us as well for those things we have done that we do not even realize displeases You. We are waiting on You and we know that You will save us.
In Jesus' Name,
Amen
QFT
1. Is there any sin I am not dealing with at present that is making me feel guilty? Has sin damaged any of my relationships? How can I deal with these problems and make amends?
2. How do I feel when I finally confess or talk about something that has been bothering me? Why do I not do this more often?
3. Do I have someone who I can talk with on a daily basis to confess my sins to and get help from?
4. Am I striving for righteousness? Am I repenting or changing the things that I confess or am I struggling with the same sins over and over again?
5. Am I calling out to God for help or am I trying to deal with everything on my own? Am I waiting on the Lord for His answers? How can I start to do these two things?
Saturday, September 4, 2010
Daily Devotional - 9/4/10 (10/4/09)
Prayer Focus - Leaders (any type - World, State, Local, Church, Business, Work)
Day 4
Pray for:
One leader who inspires you
One leader who you know is struggling with something
One leader from another country
One local leader
Pray about:
Their physical needs
Their mental needs
Their emotional needs
Their spiritual needs
Dear Lord - Help me to hear You and grant me the strength to obey.
Psalms 34
"I will extol the lord at all times; His praise will always be on my lips. My soul will boast in the Lord; let the afflicted hear and rejoice. Glorify the Lord with me; let us exalt His name together." (vs. 1)
This is an amazing psalm and even more amazing if we consider who wrote it and when. This is one of David's psalms, written when he has to flee before his son who has overthrown him (II Sam 15). In the midst of all of this, David is praising God and calling others to do the same. He does not want anyone's sympathy. He only wants to praise and boast in the Lord. He does not feel forgotten by God. He explains that the Lord is with him and always will be; things will be alright with him and he will lack nothing. It is hard to fathom the depths of his relationship with God that allows him to feel as he does. It is surely something for all of us to strive after. Then we will be able to be men and women after God's own heart and will be able to help transform the lives of others as well.
David was not new to trouble. It seems that his life had more than one man's share. Some of it was brought about by his sin and some of it was used to train him to become the great man he eventually was. Because of this, he was able to impact others in incredible ways. In I Samuel 22:1-2, David flees from Saul who is trying to kill him. As he flees, he gathers quite a crowd of followers. "All those who were in distress or in debt or discontented gathered around him, and he became their leader. About four hundred men were with him. (I Sam 22: 2)" In the Message Bible, it calls them "all who were down on their luck - losers and vagrants and misfits of all sorts." This crowd is transformed by their time with David because in II Samuel 23:8-39, these men are now referred to as David's Mighty Men and their exploits are phenomenal. How did they become these mighty men? I am sure it is because David taught them how to take hold of their thoughts and turn them around; focusing them on God and His power.
I am completely convinced that most of our battles are in our minds. That is why the Bible, and especially the Psalms are filled with the advice and admonition for us to praise God, to think on what is good. My mind is the key to most of my days. This weekend was a very negative time for me, but nothing in my life was different. What was different was my thought life. I noticed that everything I thought and the words from my mouth were not positive. I walked around grumpy, looked at all of the problems, felt totally overwhelmed, and eventually lost my cool. I was not taking captive every thought (II Cor 10:5). I was giving in to self pity and I was losing sight of the many victories in my life and the great ways that God was working. David has the best advice for me and all of us when we begin to get down and negative. He encourages us as I am sure he did his men on a daily basis - "let the afflicted hear and rejoice. Glorify the Lord with me; let us exalt His name together." He calls us even today. Whether we are afflicted or not, at all times he tells us - extol, praise, rejoice. Tell of His greatness. Boast in the Lord. If you have problems? Rejoice! If I have problems? Rejoice! Glorify God and exalt His name. Get out of ourselves!! Get our eyes back on God. Seek God and He will deliver us. He has delivered us from all of our fears!! If we look to God, we will be radiant; our faces never covered with shame.
"The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them; He delivers them from all their troubles. The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. A righteous man may have many troubles, but the Lord delivers him from them all." (vs. 17-19)
God hears the righteous. God delivers. We don't have to start out being righteous. David's mighty men did not start out mighty, but we need to become what God wants us to be. God is close to the brokenhearted and crushed in spirit. Those men were surely crushed and defeated but they were transformed by David's continual effort to get them focused back on God and praise. He helped them become better by changing their thought life. We do not have to stay down and negative. We do not have to stay brokenhearted and crushed, even if the weight is overwhelming. Nothing is too big for God to solve. We just need to allow our minds to be transformed. As the scripture says, "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is - His good, pleasing and perfect will. (Romans 12:2)
I have felt God's comfort. I have seen the care He is giving us. He does save the crushed. If we want to hang onto our faith, we can. It is my choice because I am in control of my thoughts and what I dwell on. Negative thoughts may come in but I am to take them captive and get rid of them. I am to meditate on God's word, and I am to treasure it in my heart so I will not sin against Him (Psalm 119:11) In this world, I will have trouble. Perhaps even many troubles, but the Lord can deliver me from them all.
What great promises for me to dwell on. I will fear the Lord so that I will lack nothing (vs. 9). I will remember that the angel of "the Lord encamps around those who fear Him, and He delivers them (vs. 6b-7)." I will dwell on the fact the "The lions may grow weak and hungry but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing (vs. 10)" Finally, I will remember that "The Lord redeems His servants; no one will be condemned who takes refuge in Him." (vs. 22)
Come, let us praise God together, and let us be transformed.
Prayer for the Day
Dear Lord,
We long to be transformed like David's mighty men. Help us to change our thinking and our mindset. We want to focus on You and not the troubles around us. Keep our eyes focused upward. You are great and Your promises are comforting. We want to seek You and be found pleasing in Your sight. Strengthen us where we are weak and make us pleasing to You.
In Jesus' Name,
Amen
QFT
1. Would I consider myself a positive or negative person? Why? How can I work on my thought life to make it more pleasing to God?
2. What is my thought life like when I find myself struggling with sin? Is there a correlation between my thoughts and my actions? If yes, how can I change my thoughts to keep myself from sinning?
3. What is the pattern of this world? Am I conforming to it? How am I doing this? What can I change?
4. Am I allowing myself to be transformed into a mighty man/woman for God? How can I do this? Who can help me in this process?
5. Do I feel weak or strong? If I feel weak, am I relying on God? Am I truly seeking Him with all my heart? How can I change?
Day 4
Pray for:
One leader who inspires you
One leader who you know is struggling with something
One leader from another country
One local leader
Pray about:
Their physical needs
Their mental needs
Their emotional needs
Their spiritual needs
Dear Lord - Help me to hear You and grant me the strength to obey.
Psalms 34
"I will extol the lord at all times; His praise will always be on my lips. My soul will boast in the Lord; let the afflicted hear and rejoice. Glorify the Lord with me; let us exalt His name together." (vs. 1)
This is an amazing psalm and even more amazing if we consider who wrote it and when. This is one of David's psalms, written when he has to flee before his son who has overthrown him (II Sam 15). In the midst of all of this, David is praising God and calling others to do the same. He does not want anyone's sympathy. He only wants to praise and boast in the Lord. He does not feel forgotten by God. He explains that the Lord is with him and always will be; things will be alright with him and he will lack nothing. It is hard to fathom the depths of his relationship with God that allows him to feel as he does. It is surely something for all of us to strive after. Then we will be able to be men and women after God's own heart and will be able to help transform the lives of others as well.
David was not new to trouble. It seems that his life had more than one man's share. Some of it was brought about by his sin and some of it was used to train him to become the great man he eventually was. Because of this, he was able to impact others in incredible ways. In I Samuel 22:1-2, David flees from Saul who is trying to kill him. As he flees, he gathers quite a crowd of followers. "All those who were in distress or in debt or discontented gathered around him, and he became their leader. About four hundred men were with him. (I Sam 22: 2)" In the Message Bible, it calls them "all who were down on their luck - losers and vagrants and misfits of all sorts." This crowd is transformed by their time with David because in II Samuel 23:8-39, these men are now referred to as David's Mighty Men and their exploits are phenomenal. How did they become these mighty men? I am sure it is because David taught them how to take hold of their thoughts and turn them around; focusing them on God and His power.
I am completely convinced that most of our battles are in our minds. That is why the Bible, and especially the Psalms are filled with the advice and admonition for us to praise God, to think on what is good. My mind is the key to most of my days. This weekend was a very negative time for me, but nothing in my life was different. What was different was my thought life. I noticed that everything I thought and the words from my mouth were not positive. I walked around grumpy, looked at all of the problems, felt totally overwhelmed, and eventually lost my cool. I was not taking captive every thought (II Cor 10:5). I was giving in to self pity and I was losing sight of the many victories in my life and the great ways that God was working. David has the best advice for me and all of us when we begin to get down and negative. He encourages us as I am sure he did his men on a daily basis - "let the afflicted hear and rejoice. Glorify the Lord with me; let us exalt His name together." He calls us even today. Whether we are afflicted or not, at all times he tells us - extol, praise, rejoice. Tell of His greatness. Boast in the Lord. If you have problems? Rejoice! If I have problems? Rejoice! Glorify God and exalt His name. Get out of ourselves!! Get our eyes back on God. Seek God and He will deliver us. He has delivered us from all of our fears!! If we look to God, we will be radiant; our faces never covered with shame.
"The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them; He delivers them from all their troubles. The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. A righteous man may have many troubles, but the Lord delivers him from them all." (vs. 17-19)
God hears the righteous. God delivers. We don't have to start out being righteous. David's mighty men did not start out mighty, but we need to become what God wants us to be. God is close to the brokenhearted and crushed in spirit. Those men were surely crushed and defeated but they were transformed by David's continual effort to get them focused back on God and praise. He helped them become better by changing their thought life. We do not have to stay down and negative. We do not have to stay brokenhearted and crushed, even if the weight is overwhelming. Nothing is too big for God to solve. We just need to allow our minds to be transformed. As the scripture says, "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is - His good, pleasing and perfect will. (Romans 12:2)
I have felt God's comfort. I have seen the care He is giving us. He does save the crushed. If we want to hang onto our faith, we can. It is my choice because I am in control of my thoughts and what I dwell on. Negative thoughts may come in but I am to take them captive and get rid of them. I am to meditate on God's word, and I am to treasure it in my heart so I will not sin against Him (Psalm 119:11) In this world, I will have trouble. Perhaps even many troubles, but the Lord can deliver me from them all.
What great promises for me to dwell on. I will fear the Lord so that I will lack nothing (vs. 9). I will remember that the angel of "the Lord encamps around those who fear Him, and He delivers them (vs. 6b-7)." I will dwell on the fact the "The lions may grow weak and hungry but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing (vs. 10)" Finally, I will remember that "The Lord redeems His servants; no one will be condemned who takes refuge in Him." (vs. 22)
Come, let us praise God together, and let us be transformed.
Prayer for the Day
Dear Lord,
We long to be transformed like David's mighty men. Help us to change our thinking and our mindset. We want to focus on You and not the troubles around us. Keep our eyes focused upward. You are great and Your promises are comforting. We want to seek You and be found pleasing in Your sight. Strengthen us where we are weak and make us pleasing to You.
In Jesus' Name,
Amen
QFT
1. Would I consider myself a positive or negative person? Why? How can I work on my thought life to make it more pleasing to God?
2. What is my thought life like when I find myself struggling with sin? Is there a correlation between my thoughts and my actions? If yes, how can I change my thoughts to keep myself from sinning?
3. What is the pattern of this world? Am I conforming to it? How am I doing this? What can I change?
4. Am I allowing myself to be transformed into a mighty man/woman for God? How can I do this? Who can help me in this process?
5. Do I feel weak or strong? If I feel weak, am I relying on God? Am I truly seeking Him with all my heart? How can I change?
Thursday, September 2, 2010
Daily Devotional - 9/2/10 (10/2/09)
Prayer Focus - Leaders (any type - World, State, Local, Church, Business, Work)
Pray for:
One leader who inspires you
One leader who you know is struggling with something
Pray about:
Their physical needs
Their mental needs
Their emotional needs
Their spiritual needs
Dear Lord - Open my ears to hear You and grant me the strength to obey.
Psalms 32
"Blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord does not not count against him and in whose spirit is no deceit. When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was sapped as in the heat of summer. Then I acknowledged my sin to You and did not cover up my iniquity. I said,' I will confess my transgressions to the Lord' - and You forgave the guilt of my sin." (vs. 1-5)
We all want to be blessed. Here are some keys for us to consider. We are blessed if we are forgiven. We are blessed if we have no deceit. Why is this? First of all, we can be right with God and have a relationship with Him now and after death. But secondly, and quite relevant while we are here on earth, we can walk with out fear and guilt. It is a terrible state to be in when there is something we are hiding. The psalmist writes that when he was silent his bones wasted away and he groaned night and day. He was miserable. That is how undealt with sin affects us. We can think that eventually we will forget, but we are still haunted. Only when we get things out can we feel that light free feeling that comes with a transparent life. It is a truly blessed feeling. I have been in both places. I know. We need to be open channels for God's love to flow through us. There is so much that needs to be done in this world, that we just can't let sin, clutter, confusion, and disorder of any kind block us and stop us up. We will lose the strength and power that is available to us. We will miss the opportunities that God has in store for us. We need to just open up our lives and then call out to God to search us and heal us.
"Therefore let everyone who is godly pray to You while You may be found; surely when the mighty waters rise, they will not reach him. You are my hiding place; You will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance.
I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you and watch over you. Do not be like the horse or mule, which have no understanding but must be controlled by bit and bridle or they will not come to you. Many are the woes of the wicked, but the Lord's unfailing love surrounds the man who trusts in Him." (vs. 6-9)
We do this by confessing and then by going to God in prayer. We can't wait. We must pray while God can be found. There are opportunities when God is calling us and we can miss them. People miss out on God and eventually our hearts can get so hardened to everything that it will be almost impossible for us to change. Unfortunately, there are deadlines in life. Whether or not we want them to exist, they do. Thank God, however, that we can hide in Him. We don't have to run and hide somewhere when we are feeling guilty. We can go to Him because He is much better place to hide than any real physical place. God will protect us and restore us. He will make us into someone incredible if we let Him. He created us for great and glorious things and He will teach us and show us the way to go. He will counsel us and watch over us.
There is a catch to these incredible promises though. We have to receive His direction. We need to not be like an animal who has to be forced to go where its master wants it to go. God is longing for us to follow willingly. Our attitude should be, "I will do it!" Let's not force God anymore. The road is much easier for us when we are not rebellious. The way of the rebellious is hard the Bible states elsewhere, but unfailing love surrounds us if we trust in God.
"Rejoice in the Lord and be glad, you righteous; sing, all you who are upright in heart!" (vs. 11)
If I am righteous and upright in my heart, I will be able to do this. I will rejoice and be glad. I will be able to see beauty in everything. This is God's world. Despite the sadness and difficulties, it still is good, and there is always hope.
Prayer for the Day
Dear Lord,
We are grateful for Your forgiveness. Help us not to be deceitful. We are praying. Help us to pray more. We want to find You. You are our hiding place and it is good to be able to run to You. We do not want to run away any longer. Grant us the strength to face where we have gone wrong and turn to You. We need You and we long for Your unfailing love. We will rejoice in You for You are good.
In Jesus' Name,
Amen
QFT
1. How am I deceitful? How can I become honest in all my ways?
2. Is there anything blocking the flow of God's love and communication through me? If so, how can I get rid of it?
3. Am I praying about my needs and the needs of others regularly? Why or why not? How can I get in the practice of praying for others on a regular basis?
4. How am I doing at receiving God's instruction? Am I willing to learn or am I like an animal that needs a bit and bridle in my mouth to force me to obey? Why am I like this and what results am I gaining from my attitude towards instruction?
5. Am I rejoicing daily? What is my attitude about life? Have I let undealt with sin make me bitter? How can I change and start seeing the beauty that God intended for us in the world?
Pray for:
One leader who inspires you
One leader who you know is struggling with something
Pray about:
Their physical needs
Their mental needs
Their emotional needs
Their spiritual needs
Dear Lord - Open my ears to hear You and grant me the strength to obey.
Psalms 32
"Blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord does not not count against him and in whose spirit is no deceit. When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was sapped as in the heat of summer. Then I acknowledged my sin to You and did not cover up my iniquity. I said,' I will confess my transgressions to the Lord' - and You forgave the guilt of my sin." (vs. 1-5)
We all want to be blessed. Here are some keys for us to consider. We are blessed if we are forgiven. We are blessed if we have no deceit. Why is this? First of all, we can be right with God and have a relationship with Him now and after death. But secondly, and quite relevant while we are here on earth, we can walk with out fear and guilt. It is a terrible state to be in when there is something we are hiding. The psalmist writes that when he was silent his bones wasted away and he groaned night and day. He was miserable. That is how undealt with sin affects us. We can think that eventually we will forget, but we are still haunted. Only when we get things out can we feel that light free feeling that comes with a transparent life. It is a truly blessed feeling. I have been in both places. I know. We need to be open channels for God's love to flow through us. There is so much that needs to be done in this world, that we just can't let sin, clutter, confusion, and disorder of any kind block us and stop us up. We will lose the strength and power that is available to us. We will miss the opportunities that God has in store for us. We need to just open up our lives and then call out to God to search us and heal us.
"Therefore let everyone who is godly pray to You while You may be found; surely when the mighty waters rise, they will not reach him. You are my hiding place; You will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance.
I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you and watch over you. Do not be like the horse or mule, which have no understanding but must be controlled by bit and bridle or they will not come to you. Many are the woes of the wicked, but the Lord's unfailing love surrounds the man who trusts in Him." (vs. 6-9)
We do this by confessing and then by going to God in prayer. We can't wait. We must pray while God can be found. There are opportunities when God is calling us and we can miss them. People miss out on God and eventually our hearts can get so hardened to everything that it will be almost impossible for us to change. Unfortunately, there are deadlines in life. Whether or not we want them to exist, they do. Thank God, however, that we can hide in Him. We don't have to run and hide somewhere when we are feeling guilty. We can go to Him because He is much better place to hide than any real physical place. God will protect us and restore us. He will make us into someone incredible if we let Him. He created us for great and glorious things and He will teach us and show us the way to go. He will counsel us and watch over us.
There is a catch to these incredible promises though. We have to receive His direction. We need to not be like an animal who has to be forced to go where its master wants it to go. God is longing for us to follow willingly. Our attitude should be, "I will do it!" Let's not force God anymore. The road is much easier for us when we are not rebellious. The way of the rebellious is hard the Bible states elsewhere, but unfailing love surrounds us if we trust in God.
"Rejoice in the Lord and be glad, you righteous; sing, all you who are upright in heart!" (vs. 11)
If I am righteous and upright in my heart, I will be able to do this. I will rejoice and be glad. I will be able to see beauty in everything. This is God's world. Despite the sadness and difficulties, it still is good, and there is always hope.
Prayer for the Day
Dear Lord,
We are grateful for Your forgiveness. Help us not to be deceitful. We are praying. Help us to pray more. We want to find You. You are our hiding place and it is good to be able to run to You. We do not want to run away any longer. Grant us the strength to face where we have gone wrong and turn to You. We need You and we long for Your unfailing love. We will rejoice in You for You are good.
In Jesus' Name,
Amen
QFT
1. How am I deceitful? How can I become honest in all my ways?
2. Is there anything blocking the flow of God's love and communication through me? If so, how can I get rid of it?
3. Am I praying about my needs and the needs of others regularly? Why or why not? How can I get in the practice of praying for others on a regular basis?
4. How am I doing at receiving God's instruction? Am I willing to learn or am I like an animal that needs a bit and bridle in my mouth to force me to obey? Why am I like this and what results am I gaining from my attitude towards instruction?
5. Am I rejoicing daily? What is my attitude about life? Have I let undealt with sin make me bitter? How can I change and start seeing the beauty that God intended for us in the world?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)