Courage to Trust Sanctify yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you. Joshua 3:5
Holy God, You have called me to holy living. You have shown me that to be holy is to belong first and foremost to You. My only claim to this awesome word holy is that You have chosen and called me to be Your person.
The same is true for me today. You want to make the future a friend with each tomorrow filled with Your blessings. And yet, You patiently wait for me to claim my status as Your person, and consecrate myself completely to You. I put myself inside the skin of one of those priests as he shouldered the
Lord, give me the courage to trust You knowing You will be on time with Your intervention to give me exactly what I need. The Boomerang Repay no one evil for evil. Have regard for good things in the sight of all men....Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. Romans 12:17,21 Gracious God, in Christ and the cross You have broken the syndrome of hurt, resentment, and retaliation. When humankind deserved damnation, You gave grace. I have received that grace in unlimited abundance. Now I have the power not to nurse resentment or seek to retaliate. As You did not insist on getting even, set me free of the urge to get even with people who have hurt me. Forgive me for the different ways I package my retaliation: the pout, harmful gossip, benign neglect, or outright quid pro quo punishment. When I do that, I’m the loser in the end. I send the boomerang and it always returns to my own soul. Help me to love myself as loved by You so that I will not inflict this pain on myself. In each relationship in which I’m tempted to retaliate there is a good I can return instead of evil. Help me discern what is that good thing I can do or say today. Then give me courage to follow through. You know me: I’m better at thinking about what needs to be done than I am at putting it into action. Today’s a day to break the syndrome of hurt, resentment, and retaliation – for goodness’ sake! Soul Rest in Him Oh, that I had wings like a dove! For then I would fly away and be at rest. Psalm 55:6 Holy Spirit, there are times I share the psalmist’s desire to escape responsibility. Along with most people, there are moments, even days, when I’d like to get away from problems and challenges, difficult people, the troubles of the city, and the seemingly impossible situations life dishes out. I bring this turbulent feeling to You, my Counselor. You know how to work with people who sometimes want to leave the post of duty or have been AWOL from discipleship. Remind me that You don’t train escape artists. You develop courageous people who are faithful and consistent. You do not provide easy escapes from reality. So here I am: the same old person in the same old circumstances. Give me new eyes to see what You want done; give me new enthusiasm for the ordinary circumstances; change my bland, bored attitude to an attitude of expectancy; fill me with love for people who frustrate me: and help me see that dogged doldrums are simply self-pity. As a new person filled with Your joy and hope, I’m ready to mount up with wings like eagles and soar in the jet stream right where I am. Seeing Life Through God’s Eyes Nothing will be impossible for you. Matthew 17:20 Lord Jesus, I begin this day with a renewed and unreserved commitment of my life to You. Fill me with Your Spirit. Think Your thoughts through my mind. Express Your love to the people around me through my words. Energize my will to do Your will. Focus my attention on all the opportunities of the day ahead. I’m thankful for the challenges that will make me trust You more completely. I surrender each of these and ask for Your supernatural power, wisdom, and guidance. Thank You, in advance, for displaying Your majesty and might in the mundane duties of life. Life is meaningful when I remember that I’m here to love You by serving others. Lord, nothing makes me love people more than talking to You about them. Thank You for the gift of intercessory prayer. The more I pray for people, the more I am able to love them as You do. I’m amazed by the way You change my attitudes. Help me to pray in Your name, Your perspective, purpose, and power. Help me to move through this day with Your watchword, “Nothing is impossible.” The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you. Philippians 4:9 Dear God, these words of Paul to the Philippians seem audacious at first reading. He actually was confident that the things he taught and lived when he was with them had given them the secret of how to experience and express Your peace. As I reflect on that, I begin to wonder what the people around me are learning about true peace from me. Does your peace really rule in my heart? Is there anything between You and me, father, that robs me of Your peace? These questions lead me to ask for a deeper experience of Your peace. May my inner peace show in my countenance. Help me be a source of peace rather than acrimonious discord. Keep me from agitating arguments, hostile conflict, and contention. Show me the impact in others of my moods for good or grimness. Remind me that I am accountable to You for how much of Your peace flows through me to the people in my life. Make me a peacemaker. Use me to bring reconciliation between people who are separated by hurting memories or current conflict. Will anyone see, feel, understand Your peace from me? If not today, when? Forgetting those things which are behind.... Philppians 3:13 Holy Spirit, my Counselor, I came to You to ask that You help me overcome the memory of failures I cannot forget and successes I fear I cannot top. Thank You for enabling me to take my “yesterdays” to the cross. You remind me of all that Christ has done for me. That’s Your assignment and I’m grateful. Now in this time of honest confession, lead me to a deeper understanding of the real cause of my repetitive behavior that results in guilt. Shine Your light into the hidden corridors of my mind. You want to set me free of the sorrows, injuries, losses, and mistakes of all my yesterdays. At the same time, expose the false confidence in the successes of the past, which are crippling my expectancy. Help me succeed my old self and break old records of achievement. Free me to expect great power from You and attempt great things as a disciple of Christ. Your plan is to fashion me in Christlikeness. The thought of that takes my breath away. Good thing; now I can ask You to breathe into me the breath of Your power. You work in me to help me to participate in the wondrous activity of the Trinity. You enable me to share the Son’s communion with the Father: You bring me into union with the Son; You make me a part of the glory circle. The Father glorifies the Son, the Son glorifies You, and You give me works to praise Father, son, and Holy Spirit. Hallelujah! Seek the peace of the city where I have caused you to be ... and pray to the LORD for it; for in its peace you will have peace. Jeremiah 29:7 I wonder if everyone in my city lived out his or her faith as a citizen the way I do, what kind of city would it be? Often I leave the burden of responsibility on other people’s shoulders and then criticize them for what they do or leave undone. Lord, wake me up to my responsibilities! Moses returned to the LORD and said, “Oh, these people have sinned a great sin, and have made for themselves a god of gold! Yet now, if You will forgive their sin – but if not, I pray, blot me out of Your book which You have written.” Exodus 32:31-32 Holy god, Moses’ broken sentence out of a broken heart over the people’s sin makes me think of times I wish I could have taken the burden of guilt for people’s failures and suffer Your judgment on their behalf. Your response to Moses reminds me that You’re not impressed with self-oblation. You have called me to be a communicator of Your atonement rather than try to atone for others. On this side of Today, I want to be specific in my prayers of intercession for those I know who are estranged from You because of unconfessed sin. Also, I pray for those whose resistance to Your grace has become so habitual that they no longer are sensitive to Your judgment. Father, help me to share the good news of Your unqualified love that will not ever forsake. You are the initiator of the desire to repent and return to You; create that desire in the people for whom I pray. Disasters and Disappointments Be not dismayed, for I am Your God. Isaiah 41:10 Dear God, every so often, it happens. It’s this sense of distance from You. A feeling of separation. There’s a longing for Your love, the flow of Your joy, the assurance of Your guidance, but something is wrong. Occasionally, the real problem is a rift in my heart. It’s difficult for me to admit, but there are times when I entertain disturbing questions. How could You, a good god, allow bad things to happen? When these things afflict me personally or those I love, the rift becomes all the more poignant. For a time, I even wonder if You are listening to my prayers. Today, I feel Your reach across the rift. You allow me to get in touch with it, confess it, and heal it. Now I know that when I feel a distance it is not You, but I who moved. When I have a quarrel with how You managed things, You help me trust You more deeply. You are working Your purposes out in spite of the evil in the world and the meanness of some people. You can bring good even out of evil and turn difficult people to praise You. Forgive me when my vision is limited. The cross is Your reach across the rift. You come to me with grace and hope. It’s not my job to run the universe. I want to allow You to be God today. I smile. Did I have a choice? You are in charge and You know what You are doing! Blessings Blessed be the Lord, who daily loads us with benefits, the God of our salvation! Psalm 68:19 Gracious God, You are never reluctant to bless me with exactly what I need for each day’s challenges and opportunities. Sometimes I am a stingy receiver who finds it difficult to open my tight-fisted grip on circumstances and receive the blessing that You have prepared. You know my needs before I ask You, but You wait to bless me until I ask for help. Lord, inside of me is that sacred sanctuary of the soul, the port of entry for Your Spirit, the place You live in me, and the portion of me that determines the development of my character and direction of my life. I long for You to heal my soul with Your forgiveness, to uplift my peace, to sustain my soul with Your patience, and to calm my soul with Your pacing and timing. I’ve learned that true peace and lasting serenity result from knowing that You have an abundant supply of resources to help me meet any trying situation, difficult person, or disturbing complexity, and so I say with the psalmist, “Blessed be the Lord, who daily loads us with benefits” (Psalm 68:19). Amen For I am the LORD, I do not change. Malachi 3:6 Dear God, with whom there is no variableness or shadow of turning, more steadfast than the stars and more reliable than the rising and setting of the sun, I thank You for Your changelessness. You are the same yesterday, today, and forever. You are my one fixed stability in the midst of changing circumstances. Your faithfulness, Lord, is my peace. It is a source of comfort and courage that You know exactly what is ahead of me. Go before me to show the way. Here is my mind; inspire it with Your wisdom. Here is my will; infuse it with desire to follow Your guidance. Here is my heart; infill it with Your love. I realize, Father, that there is enough time today to do what You desire ... so grant me freedom from the tyranny of the urgent. You have been so patient with me; help me to be patient with those around me. I commit this day to You, and thank You for Your power and presence. Cast your burden on the LORD, and He shall sustain you. Psalm 55:22 Gracious Father, through the Lord Jesus Christ You have set me free, yet on many days I don’t feel free. So often I let myself become tied down by feelings of guilt, bound up by frustrating anxieties, uptight over problems, incarcerated by people’s criticisms or negative opinions, and pressured by fears of the future. In all that, I feel within me a longing to be free. Truly free. Free to enjoy life, myself, and others. Free to five and receive love, forgiveness, and acceptance. Free me to pull out all the stops and live with boldness and courage. You have shown me that a new burst of personal freedom comes only from knowing You, trusting You, and committing to Your care the burdens I carry. Untie me when I get tied up in knots; unbind me when I get bound up in myself; unleash me when I hold back; I want to serve You by serving others. Free me, Lord, from self-concern ... and help me to give myself away to loved ones, friends, and those whom I meet during the course of this day. Yes, the LORD will give what is good. Psalm 85:12 Gracious God, thank You for the serendipities You arrange—those unusual surprises in usual circumstances. You delight to surprise me with interventions and inspiration I do not expect. In a timely way, You guide my thoughts with wisdom and insight that I could not have discovered on my own. You help me untie knotty problems and I am amazed, wondering why I had not thought of the solutions You provide. You use people to help me, bolster my esteem, and to communicate Your love in remarkable ways. You have given me a life full of surprises! Now as I begin a new day, I want to live expectantly, open for what You will do or give. I am so thankful for Your goodness. May that give me a positive attitude toward what is ahead today. Banish my grimness with Your grace. Dear God, it’s great to be alive and have the privilege of serving You. I report in for the duties of the day with delight! In you, O LORD I put my trust....incline Your ear to me, and save me. Be my strong habitation, to which I may resort continually. Psalm 71:1-3 Gracious Father, my heart is filled with gratitude. I am thankful that You have chosen to be my God and chosen me to know You. Your love embraces me and gives me security; Your joy uplifts me and gives me resiliency; Your peace floods my heart and gives me serenity; Your Spirit fills me and gives me strength. I truly believe that Your loving hand is upon my life; help me to be sensitive to every guiding nudge of direction. Keep me from making up my mind and then asking for Your approval. Keep me from acting as if I have Your answers to all questions. Keep me humble in my search for my application of Your truth to the matters that face me. Free me from condemnatory judgments, and save me from the exhaustion and frustration of rushing up self-chosen paths without Your guidance. Give me insight to see Your path for my life, and the patience and endurance to walk in it with my hand firmly in Yours. Then you shall call, and the LORD will answer; you shall cry, and He will say, “Here I am.” Isaiah 58:9 Almighty God, You said through the prophet Isaiah that when I call, You will answer, and while I am speaking, You will hear. I thank You that prayer begins with You. It originates in Your heart, sweeps into my heart, and gives me the boldness to ask for what You desire to give. In my communion with You, Lord, may the desires of my heart be honed by Your greater desires for me. Then, Lord, grant me the desires of my heart. And may my human understanding be surpassed by Your gift of knowledge, my inadequate judgment with Your wisdom, and my limited expectations with Your vision. May this day be one continuous conversation with You. I ask this not just for my own peace and security, but for my responsibility to loved ones and friends around me. The margin of human error is an ever-present concern. So I yield my mind, heart, will, and imagination to be channels for the flow of Your divine guidance. Without Your help I will hit wide of the mark. But with Your power, I cannot fail. One thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward calling of God in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:13-14 Gracious father, help me not to lose my sense of humor. Free me to laugh at myself when I do the wrong thing at the right time or the right thing at an inappropriate time. Sometimes I say things that, upon later reflection, make me cringe. Or, I’ll take myself too seriously and become tense. Little issues can become so crucial to me that I miss the big issues confronting me. And often I’ll worry about what others think of me. Relieve me, Lord, of my assumed importance, and help me realize that others most often are consumed with their own concerns. Forgive me for all the energy I have wasted on checking my own popularity pulse. Make me secure in Your love so I can lighten up, and then, listen up to what You want me to do about what really matters. Make me care-free, but never careless. Remind me that by worrying I cannot add a single cubit to my stature ... and that by seeking first Your kingdom, I can expend my energy on the things that are truly important. Listen and Act “Behold, the days are coming,” says the Lord GOD, “That I will send a famine on the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD.” Amos 8:11 Almighty God, and Lord of creation, in Your presence I fall on the knees of my heart with praise and adoration. It is with awe and wonder that I behold Your signature in the natural world and the sheer majesty of Your creation of human life. You have given human kind minds to think Your thoughts, emotions to express Your love, wills to discern and do Your will, and bodies intricately made to reflect Your glory. I particularly thank You for the ability of hearing not just sounds from the world around me but Your voice within me. Thank You for prayer in which You speak through thoughts You form in my mind and impress on my heart. Help me to listen to You intently. May I never become so resistant to what You have to say that You would send a famine of hearing of Your words. I want to keep the ears of my mind and heart open. Speak Lord, now in the sacred silence or receptive prayer. I know that simply hearing without action will result in spiritual dullness. I will take seriously Christ’s words, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven” (Matthew Seek the peace of the city where I have caused you to be ... and pray to the LORD for it; for in its peace you will have peace. Jeremiah 29:7 Dear God, You care profoundly about my city. Its problems are on Your heart. Now in this time of prayer I sense You are placing these problems on my heart and on my agenda. As I read today’s verse from Jeremiah that You spoke to the people of I wonder if everyone in my city lived out his or her faith as a citizen the way I do, what kind of city would it be? Often I leave the burden of responsibility on other people’s shoulders and then criticize them for what they do or leave undone. Lord, wake me up to my responsibilities! In quietness and confidence shall be our strength. Isaiah 30:15 Almighty God, for this brief moment I retreat into my inner world, that wonderful place where I find Your strength. Here, I escape from the noise of demanding voices and pressured conversations. With You, there is no need to impress, there are no thoughts to defend, there are no feelings to hide. In Your presence, I can simply be. You love me in spite of my mistakes and give me a new beginning each day. I thank You that I can depend on Your guidance in all that is ahead of me. Suddenly I realize that this quiet moment – in which I have place my trust in You – has refreshed me. I am replenished with new hope. Now I can return to my outer world with greater determination to keep my priorities straight. Today, Lord, is a magnificent opportunity to serve You by giving my very best. Thank you for allowing me this privilege. Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love. Revelation 2:4 Gracious, loving Father, You have taught me to give thanks for all things, to dread nothing but the loss of closeness with You, and to cast all my cares on You . Set me free from timorous timidity when it comes to living the absolutes of Your commandments and speaking with the authority of Your truth. All around me I see much evidence of moral confusion. People talk a great deal about values, but have lost their grip on Your standards. Help me to be one who lives honestly, with integrity, and trustworthily. I want to be an authentic person rather that a studied caricature of character. Free me form capricious dissimulations, from covered duality, from covert duplicity. Instead of manipulating others with power games, help me motivate them with love. Grant me the passion I had when I first heard Your call to commit my life to You, the idealism I had when I first understood the greatness of Your cause, and the inspiration I knew when Your Spirit was my only source of strength. May this be a day for recapturing my first love for You and my first priority of glorifying You through all that I do.
Our Peace Robbed
Freedom from Yesterday
My City
Intercession Needed
Faithful God
Freedom in Jesus
Grace for Grimness
Guidance
His Power
Lighten Up to Listen Up
My City
Rest in Jesus
The Power of a Thankful Spirit