As Jesus got into the boat, His disciples followed Him. Suddenly, a violent storm arose on the sea, so that the boat was being swamped by the waves. But He was sleeping. So the disciples came and woke Him up, saying, “Lord, save us! We’re going to die!” But He said to them, “Why are you fearful, you of little faith?” Then He got up and rebuked the winds and the sea. And there was great calm. The men were amazed and asked, “What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the sea obey Him!” Matthew 8:23-27
My words…
Praise.
You know I have never had a near-death experience. I’ve never been lost in a desert, adrift on the ocean, or caught in an avalanche. The cars, planes and trains in which I travel all seem to work in perfect order. I have never suffered from a snake bite, gun shot, or lightning strike. So I cannot pretend to know what Your Apostles were experiencing on the Sea of Galilee. One thing is clear from scripture: They were scared to death. The roar of the wind and the waves made it nearly impossible to communicate without screaming. The waves crashed over the side of the boat, soaking their robes and sandals. Four of them were hardened fishermen, accustomed to navigating the sea, but their skills appeared to have been useless. They were left with only one choice: wake You from a deep slumber brought on by an exhausting day of teaching, healing, and arguing. What Your Apostles didn’t know at the time was that they were in the safest place they could have been at that moment. They had yet to realize Your greatest talent: saving people. And when they witnessed Your power, they were astounded. At the sound of Your voice, the violent wind and pounding sea grew still. I’m sure the Apostles never forgot the day they witnessed the sea and the wind bowing to the Son of God in worship.
Prayer for me
Lord, I know You have directed the same words to me that You did to the Apostles: Why are you fearful, you of little faith? My faith is malleable instead of solid, erratic instead of grounded. I weather storms alone instead of crying out to You for help. Bolster my faith, Lord, to know that You are in the boat with me, and I am safe.
Forgive me
Forgive me for being content with my faith-level. I am not daily striving for deeper faith. I am complacent. I am sorry for not making my time with You and my time with Your word a priority in my life.
Prayer for others
Because Your great plan included becoming human for a while, You empathize with our predicaments, our labors, our suffering. You know exactly what we are going through. There are so many of Your children sailing in the cancer boat. You’re in that boat with them. Then there’s the poverty boat. Yep, you’re there. And let’s not forget the boat of abuse. You’re there, too. These boats, and many, many more, are filled with people who are scared to death. But what they don’t know is that You’re in the same boat. All they have to do is let You save them. So I pray for those who are frightened of the storms that are raging around them. I pray they will come to believe in the One who is able to calm the storms.
Thank You
Thank you for revealing Your power in ways that are unmistakably You. This story is like a gift that I open when I want to be reminded of Your omnipotence. Thank you for showing me Your power through these words.
More praise
Jesus, You spoke into existence with wind and the waves. How beyond magnificent You are that the wind and the waves know Your voice and obey it!
Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from inside the fish: I called to the Lord in my distress, and He answered me. I cried out for help in the belly of Sheol; You heard my voice. You threw me into the depths, into the heart of the seas, and the current overcame me. All Your breakers and Your billows swept over me. But I said: I have been banished from Your sight, yet I will look once more toward Your holy temple. The waters engulfed me up to the neck; the watery depths overcame me; seaweed was wrapped around my head. I sank to the foundations of the mountains; the earth with its prison bars closed behind me forever! But You raised my life from the Pit, Lord my God! As my life was fading away, I remembered Yahweh. My prayer came to You, to Your holy temple. Those who cling to worthless idols forsake faithful love, but as for me, I will sacrifice to You with a voice of thanksgiving. I will fulfill what I have vowed. Salvation is from the Lord! Then the Lord commanded the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land. Jonah 2
My words…
Praise
Father, Your holy scriptures are at times … strange. A man runs away from a job You had given him to do, and You bring him back around in the belly of a big fish. Scholars can’t seem to agree whether this is fact, fiction, allegory or parable. I figure since Jesus mentions Jonah, it must be fact. I hope so! Either way, I can learn so much from Jonah and so much about You. The city of Ninevah was filled with detestable idolators, committing reprehensible acts and calling it worship. Yet, You couldn’t bear that they had not been given a chance to know You. Your limitless mercy is intended for all humankind, no matter how abhorrent. A father who sold his daughter as a sex slave or a mother who sacrificed her baby boy to a heathen god were both worth saving – in Your eyes. Instead of choosing a willing, obedient prophet to preach to the Ninevites, You chose obstinate Jonah who dared to turn his back on You and head out of town. You chose him because Jonah needed to learn something. Jonah needed to grow. Running away from You and his responsibility to You landed him in a dark, wet place with his head wrapped in seaweed. So he prayed, and You saved him. And through him, You saved Ninevah. Praise God from whom salvation is offered freely to all men for all time.
Prayer for me
I identify with Jonah. I get where he’s coming from. What you ask of me is not easy. My heart does not break when I encounter those who live purposefully wicked lives. Instead of being drawn to them as a messenger for You, I am repulsed. I need Your discernment and a measure of Your mercy to see them as lost and searching, caught in a snare set by the evil one. You see them as worth saving, and so must I. Are they any less worthy than I? No. They are not.
Forgive me
Forgive me for my prideful ways. Like Jonah, I have plans of my own. Surely they must be better than Your plans! How foolish. Forgive my reluctance to follow Your lead and trust that I will end up in a better place with a stronger faith.
Prayer for others
Father, today I pray for that someone who is running away from You. She knows You. She has served You in the past. But now her heart has hardened, and she refuses to worship You or pray to You. Perhaps she no longer believes You exist. She needs a Jonah on her doorstep! I pray You send a messenger who will capture her attention so Your Spirit can re-kindle her devotion to You.
Thank You
Thank you for saving Ninevah! In doing so, You offer hope to all, even those who feel they are beyond saving. And thank you for saving Jonah! By doing so, You prove Your longsuffering for all who are running from You.
More praise
Father, I lift this prayer to Your holy temple. I know You hear each word of every prayer as it is uttered. You heard Jonah from the belly of a fish. You hear me now. How magnificent You are! I praise You as the God whose ears are always attentive to the prayers of His children.
But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for His possession, so that you may proclaim the praises of the One who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. 1 Peter 2:9-10
My words…
Praise
God, You created a race of people not defined by outward appearance but comprised of every skin color, every hair texture, every eye shape. This race is a chosen race – a race of priests. I am a part of Your chosen race and a member of Your priesthood (I’m a priest!). And not just any priesthood – a royal priesthood. I serve at the pleasure of You, Jesus – my King. We priests make up a nation not constrained by lines on a map. We are a world-wide nation, praising You, the One who called to us saying, “All those sick and tired of stumbling around in darkness, step into the light with Me. I will lead the way home.” I am humbled, honored, and elated to walk in the light, chosen by the God who knows me at my absolute worst and loves me still.
Forgive me
Lord, I do not proclaim Your praises as often and as boldly as I should. You have done so much for me and I so little for You. Forgive my lack of boldness and my lack of focus. The world is so intimidating and distracting, but that is no excuse. Forgive me.
Prayer for others
We humans are so caught up with outward appearance, spoken language and accents, and cultural differences. But instead of accepting our human differences, we rate each other according to them then treat each other unequally. Help us to see each other through Your eyes. You see past the flesh and see only the hearts of Your children. Only through Your Spirit are we able to see each other equally. I pray Your Spirit will churn the waters of our hearts to not just tolerate each other but to embrace each other as children of one Father.
Thank You
You know my pedigree – not impressive by worldly standards. I was not born into wealth. I hold no titles. There are missing branches in my family tree. But You have bestowed on me heavenly titles that are infinitely more valuable than anything I could have earned on earth. I would rather be a priest than a president. So I thank You from the deepest part of my heart for the place I hold in Your race, Your priesthood, Your nation.
More praise
You detest the spiritual darkness that envelops so many of Your children. Your desire is for every member of the human race – past, present and future – to be a part of Your chosen race. You are the One from whom mercy gushes. And I am the blessed one on whom Your mercy falls.
…I kneel before the Father from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named. I pray that He may grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power in the inner man through His Spirit, and that the Messiah may dwell in your hearts through faith. I pray that you, being rooted and firmly established in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the length and width, height and depth of God’s love, and to know the Messiah’s love that surpasses knowledge, so you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Now to Him who is able to do above and beyond all that we ask or think according to the power that works in us – to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen. Luke 3:14-21
My words…
Praise
Dear God, how can I adequately praise You? There is no human language with words that can describe Your power and (especially) Your love. Linguists haven’t the ability to discover or create the words. If there is such a language, only the angels know it. When I meditate on the vastness of space (one hundred billion galaxies, according to man’s limited knowledge), I perceive You as HUGE, BEYOND SCOPE. But when I see images of grains of sand through a microscope, I see You there also – Your beauty hidden from view. As I meditate on Your existence, knowing I will never comprehend the volume of Your love and power, I hear a still voice in my mind, “I am here.” And then I know: All that matters is that You are with me, in my heart – my innermost being. Just because You are beyond sight and touch does not mean I cannot know You are right there with me. Apostle Paul writes to the Ephesians about this truth: Being full of You is the very best way to live.
Prayer for Your people…
Lord, when Your people are filled with Your fullness, there is nothing we cannot accomplish. Barbs from the evil one do not penetrate Your fullness. Worldly persecution does not diminish Your fullness. Your fullness is what convicts us, emboldens us, sustains us. As my faith has grown, so has Your fullness within me. I no longer suppose You are with me. I know it. So I pray for all of us who know Your fullness: May You grant us a measure of comprehension of the length, width, height, and depth of Your love so we, like the Ephesians, will be rooted and firmly established in You.
More praise
To You who is and does so much more than I will ever imagine – to You be all the praise! All the glory! All the time!
But will God indeed live on earth? Even heaven, the highest heaven, cannot contain You, much less this temple I have built. Listen to Your servant’s prayer and his petition, Lord my God, so that you may hear the cry and the prayer that Your servant prays before You today, so that Your eyes may watch over this temple night and day, toward the place where You said: My name will be there, and so that You may hear the prayer that Your servant prays toward this place. Hear the petition of Your servant and Your people Israel, which they pray toward this place. May You hear in Your dwelling place in heaven. May You hear and forgive. 1 Kings 8:27-30
Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? 1 Corinthians 3:16
My words…
Praise
Your servant David desired to build a special place for You knowing full well there can never be a building worthy enough to place Your name. But if anyone in history had a heart for honoring You on earth, it was David. And if anyone in history had the means for building the most glorious dwelling ever built, it was Solomon. Only the very best materials and the most skilled artisans were used. By earthly standards, it was beyond compare. You honored David and Solomon by consecrating the temple and placing Your name there. You – the One who lives in the heavens and has beheld beauty beyond that which can be imagined – dedicated the building made of cedar and covered in gold as the place to bear Your name. You recognized it as the very best that David and Solomon could accomplish. For Your chosen people, it was the place where You would hear their petitions, their exultation, their cries of repentance. Nothing base or common was ever to be practiced in the temple. It was a place set apart for worship. But over time, Your people desecrated it. Your enemies destroyed it. All that is left are artists’ renderings. You, not surprisingly, had Your own idea of a temple to place Your name, and it did not include walls of cedar and gold. In fact, it did not include walls at all. Your presence dwells within Your children. We are walking temples. Praise be to You, God, who has seen fit to place a part of Yourself in me.
Prayer for me
When I contemplate the reality that You, the God of which the highest heaven cannot contain, have chosen me as Your temple, I am flooded with both types of fear: the one where I drop to my knees in reverence and awe of Your perfection, and the one where I am terrified of Your judgement because You have been witness to my every thought and action – for my entire life. But then You remind me – You consecrated me, set me apart for a purpose, just as You did Solomon’s temple. So, Lord, I pray that I will become the temple You are proud to indwell.
Forgive me
Forgive me for the times I do not act like Your temple, for the times when I complain more than I worship, for the times I question more than trust.
Prayer for others
Lord, Your church is a collective temple, a group of believers with a consecrated purpose. And Your church is huge and diverse, covering the globe, lifting up praise together on days of worship, being a light in a dark world. But like Solomon’s temple, Your church is the target of enemy warfare from within and without. So today I want to lift up before You every single collective temple wearing Your name. No request is too big for You! Some temples have allowed their purpose to lapse. Others have forgotten their purpose altogether. I pray they seek You first and then keep out of the way of Your Spirit working among them.
Thank You
I am so happy that I don’t have to travel to a sacred place to offer up my prayers and praise. You are within me always, making it very convenient for me to worship You and for You to guide me. And for this, I offer You my deepest gratitude.
More praise
Oh Lord, You dwell among the heavens and within me as well. How different I am because of You! How proud I am to wear Your name – the name that is above all names!
And as the apostles were saying these things, He Himself stood among them. He said to them, “Peace to you!” But they were startled and terrified and thought they were seeing a ghost. “Why are you troubled?” He asked them. “And why do doubts arise in your hearts? Look at My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself! Touch Me and see, because a ghost does not have flesh and bones as you can see I have.”
Then He told them, “These are My words that I spoke to you while I was still with you – that everything written about Me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets, and the Psalms must be fulfilled.” Then He opened their minds to understand the scriptures. Luke 24:36-39, 44-45
My words…
Praise
Jesus, I am so happy You chose to stick around earth for a while following Your resurrection. I am so blessed when I read the encounters You had with Your disciples. Most all of them reacted the same way upon seeing you: joyfully terrified beyond belief – and confused. Those of us living a couple of thousand years later may not understand the confusion. You did mention to Your apostles, on more than one occasion, that You would suffer, die and rise again on the third day. But it seems they did not fully understand Your meaning. Nor did they fully understand the Psalmist’s prophetic declaration that the Messiah would not see decay. So, as a final parting gift, You dispelled the confusion and opened their minds to understand the Scriptures. Wait. What? You opened their minds to understand the scriptures! I wish I could have seen the apostles’ faces as the epiphanies unfolded in that place. Suddenly everything they had heard You say made sense. All of their questions were answered. And with this influx of understanding, I can only believe they clung to You, knowing fully Your true nature. Only You, so full of love, would choose this way to prepare them for what lay ahead.
Prayer for me
Your words tug at my thoughts. As You know, I spend a lot of time thinking about what I read in the Bible. At times, I am overwhelmed by the density of the verses (Hebrews) and at other times, I am just as confused as the Apostles (Nephilim?) It is during these times that I ask of You the same gift You imparted to Your apostles following Your resurrection: Open my mind to understand the scriptures. I desire a deeper understanding of Your word. I desire more epiphanies!
Forgive me
Forgive me when I neglect to depend on Your power – Your Spirit – when contemplating Your words. I long to know You better, but that cannot be accomplished if I rely on my own understanding of scripture. Forgive me when I do not treat Your words with the respect they deserve.
Prayer for others
I pray for those servants who have taken on the mission of getting a Bible into the hands of everyone on the planet. Your words are power – power enough to change the lives of people and change the direction of nations, and because of this, owning and reading the Bible has been outlawed in many countries. So I pray for those who risk their lives in order to own a Bible. Open their minds to understand the scriptures!
Thank You
I am grateful for every Spirit-drenched word You left behind. I wish there were more! I would love to read exactly what You, Elijah, and Moses discussed during Your time of transfiguration. A few more verses about what happens in the unseen spiritual realm would also be heartening. But I believe Your wisdom determined the canon, and I thank You that everything I need to know to live the life You intend for me is found within Your two convenants.
More praise
Jesus, when You stood among Your disciples as a risen Savior, You imparted the perfect words to allay their fears and fill their hearts: “Peace to You. Why are you troubled? It’s Me!” And that is just one message among hundreds that I go to in scripture when I am fearful and confused. Your words are eternal and transforming in every culture and every age. The best part? Each word was written out of love for me, love for Your children. And that is why I hold them close.
In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a high and lofty throne, and His robe filled the temple. Seraphim were standing above Him; each one had six wings: with two he covered his face, with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. And one called to another: Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; His glory fills the whole earth. The foundations of the doorways shook at the sound of their voices, and the temple was filled with smoke. Isaiah 6:1-4
Therefore, with your minds ready for action, be serious and set your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. As obedient children, do not be conformed to the desires of your former ignorance. But as the One who called you is holy, you also are to be holy in all your conduct; for it is written, Be holy because I am holy. 1 Peter 1:13-16
My words…
Praise
I sneak away to a quiet place and close my eyes, so I can create my own mental image of what Isaiah saw in his vision so many years ago. I see You sitting on a throne of crystal with prisms forming an arc above the throne. Beams of colorful light explode from each prism forming an iridescent halo over Your throne. And your robe – it billows throughout the temple yet never touches the floor. It was fashioned by angels who wove fine threads of silver and gold to create a perfect seamless garment. They interwove beads made from light, light of every hue from the lightest yellow to the deepest blue. The six-winged Seraphim swoop and hover around your throne, their eyes covered out of respect for You. Their wings are made of clouds and stardust; their voices strong, clear like bells in perfect harmony. They love to worship You – it’s all they want to do for eternity. Their worship is so intense that even the walls and the floor tremble in praise to You. The room fills with smoke, but not a smoke that stings the eyes or burns the nose. It is a moist, pleasant smoke which feels like dew on the skin and smells so clean like the air in the Garden of Eden. I am moved to worship, but I utter only one word: holy. It’s the only word worthy of this vision. I open my eyes. The image is gone. But my spirit has been fed by what Isaiah saw. I am amazed by the fact that the most glorious image of You I can imagine is nothing compared to Your true likeness. And I am joyful that I will one day join the Seraphim in worship around Your throne.
Prayer for me
After meditating on Your holiness, my heart drops when I contemplate Peter’s exhortation for me to be holy. Holiness is found in places like Isaiah’s vision with angels and praise and smoke. Your words have been gathered into a book called the Holy Bible. I have never described myself as holy. It’s like the top rung of the ladder I have yet to reach. But when I dwell on Peter’s words, I gain a practical definition of holiness: Live each day with my mind and heart focused on the surety that I will see You, Jesus, and while I’m waiting for that moment, behave like You would want me to behave. This I can do. Not perfectly, but with Your Spirit teaching and exhorting me, the top rung of the ladder doesn’t seem out of reach.
Forgive me
Forgive me for allowing the torrent of unholiness around me to affect my desire to be holy and to hinder me from recognizing the holiness of others. Forgive me for my unholy actions: cynicism, doubt, impatience, pride. It’s time for me to examine my every action and ask myself, “Was that holy?”
Prayer for others
I pray for those who have convinced themselves that living a holy life is unattainable. Their past actions have been so damaging, they believe they are beyond redemption – they are too damaged to live a holy life. Send a convincer to them, Lord – someone who will share Your promise of love no matter their faults. They have the same opportunity to live a holy life as I do.
Thank You
Thank you for showing a snippet of Your glory to Isaiah. Just this glimpse of Your majesty has sustained the spirits of millions of Your children for generations. These visions are gifts that I hold in my mind so I may remember Your unrestricted wonder whenever I want.
More praise
Highest praise to You who is thrillingly, amazingly, and lovingly holy!
How long, Lord, must I call for help and You do not listen, or cry out to You about violence and You do not save? Why do You force me to look at injustice? Why do You tolerate wrongdoing? Oppression and violence are right in front of me. Strife is ongoing, and conflict escalates. This is why the law is ineffective and justice never emerges. For the wicked restrict the righteous; therefore, justice comes out perverted. Habakkuk 1:2-4
The Lord is in His holy temple; the Lord’s throne is in heaven. His eyes watch; He examines everyone. The Lord examines the righteous and the wicked. He hates the lover of violence. He will rain burning coals and sulfur on the wicked; a scorching wind will be their portion. For the Lord is righteous; He loves righteous deeds. The upright will see His face. Psalm 11:4-7
My words…
Praise
I live in a violent world with violent people. Habakkuk did, too. He and I share the same frustrations: Oppression and violence are right in front of me. Strife is ongoing, and conflict escalates. Habakkuk witnessed one nation conquering another, hauling off the king of the weaker nation, murdering his sons in front of him before gouging out his eyes. I hear of a shooter murdering school children, a sniper firing a rifle at police officers, and a truck driver steering into a crowd of sightseers. As a person who changes stride to keep from stepping on an ant, I cannot fathom the mindset of premeditated violence on another human. I don’t want to understand it. But You understand it, Lord. You witnessed murder in just the second generation from the creation of mankind. And the violence hasn’t stopped since. We cry out to you, “Where are You, God?” But You have provided all we need to stem the course of violence – Jesus offered so many perfect examples: love your enemies, turn the other cheek, go the extra mile. But the violent man turns a deaf ear to Your words and sets a destructive course. In doing so, he stands in the way of Your judgement. I praise You as the God who knows the heart of every person, making You the perfect One to judge both the peaceful and the violent.
Prayer for me
Keep me, oh Lord, from losing hope in a world where the wicked keep violence in their back pockets, ready to use when the notion arises. So much senseless violence wears on my heart. But meditating on Your word and being reminded of Your justice keeps my heart light. Help me look to You more each day.
Forgive me
Forgive me for questioning Your love and care for Your creation when I inquire: Don’t you see what is happening, Lord? Why don’t You act? You see everything, and You act according to Your limitless wisdom. Who am I to question You?
Prayer for others
Father, today I pray for those who choose violence as the first reaction to an injustice. They refuse to consider any other alternative. Perhaps they use violence to fill a hole in their hearts, a hole carved out by prejudice, hatred, and anger. Their acts of violence widen the hole and spur others to be imitators of their beliefs and actions. I pray they will look to You to fill their hearts and chase away the need for violence.
And there are so many grieving families around the world, their hearts ripped open at the loss of someone they held dear. I pray that these recent events will not drive them away from You but closer instead.
Thank You
Thank You for the intended acts of violence that never occurred because of Your intervening hand. For the vehicles that never crashed, for the bombs that never exploded, for the victims who did not perish – I thank You. Perhaps even my life was one that was spared?
More praise
Lord, You created violence within nature. But the earthquake and the tornado do not select those who lie in their paths. The lion and the spider do not hate their prey. The violent man selects his victims, hoping to hear their cries of pain. But You see him Lord, from Your place in the heavens. His acts of violence will not go unseen. And for this, I praise You.
Brothers, I tell you this: Flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, and corruption cannot inherit incorruption. Listen! I am telling you a mystery: We will not all fall asleep, but we will all be changed, in a moment, in the blink of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we will be changed. For this corruptible must be clothed with incorruptibility, and this mortal must be clothed with immortality. When this corruptible is clothed with incorruptibility, and this mortal is clothed with immortality, then the saying that is written will take place: death has been swallowed up in victory. Death, where is your victory? Death, where is your sting? Now the sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ! Therefore, my dear brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always excelling in the Lord’s work, knowing that your labor in the Lord is not in vain. 1 Corinthians 15: 50-58
My words…
Praise
I spend a lot of energy battling corruptibility. Each trip to the grocery sets off a race: Can we eat the berries before they grow mold sweaters? Can we drink the carton of milk before it curdles? Or better yet: Is there really an anti-aging anything? It’s a race against decay because everything on earth is destined to die, decompose, and wear out. Our sun has about 5 billion more years to burn (You know the exact number!) But burn out, it will. My skin is drying out, my eyes are losing sight, and I can never remember where I parked my car as I exit a building. I am part of Your creation, designed to die. Unlike the sun, I will burn out much sooner, and honestly, it scares me at times. But because of Your definitive victory over death, I won’t be battling corruptibility when I am raised to meet You. Paul tells me I will be wearing incorruptibility and immortality. Even though I cannot imagine that, it makes me smile! There is a part of me clutching my earthly ties, what is familiar, what is comfortable. But there is also a part of me that can’t wait to hear the trumpet and – in a flash – stand victorious over death, wearing my new clothes.
Prayer for me
Paul writes these words to kindle my spirit, urging me to remain steadfast and immovable in my adoration and dedication to You. Sharpen my focus on things above so I may loosen my grasp on what is corruptible.
Forgive me
Forgive me for giving into the temptation of believing that life immortal may not be that glorious after all. I allow my finite, narrow mind to control my expectations of what You have in store for me. My life on earth has been a blessing from You. I have seen such beauty in nature and experienced such love from family. But the purest joy I have experienced on earth during my entire life will not compare to what I will know when the mystery is revealed. Forgive me for comparing what is corruptible with what is incorruptible.
Prayer for others
Years ago, I asked a family member, “What do you think will happen after you die?” “Absolutely nothing,” he replied. His response made me sad. Sad for him. I pray for him today, Father, and others with the same mindset: what they see is what they get. Their spiritual eyes are clamped shut, unwilling to gaze upon what could be. Open their eyes, Lord, to see the truth and live for something other than what is here and now. Give them a glimpse of what is eternal.
Thank you
Because You conquered death, Jesus, so too may I live immortal, victorious, and incorruptible. Maybe then, I will know how to thank You in a way worthy of Your sacrifice. Until then, accept my deepest gratitude. I offer it from the very center of my heart.
More praise
Lord, You are the balm that alleviates the sting of death. You offer that balm so we, the heirs of Your kingdom, will realize inexhaustible joy when we are raised incorruptible. The mystery of life immortal will be revealed, and I await the day when I can rejoice in harmony with the trumpets.
The Angel of the Lord went up from Gilgal to Bochim and said, “I brought you out of Egypt and led you into the land I had promised to your fathers. I also said: I will never break My covenant with you. You are not to make a covenant with the people who are living in this land, and you are to tear down their altars. But you have not obeyed Me. What is this you have done? Therefore, I now say: I will not drive out these people before you. They will be thorns in your sides, and their gods will be a trap for you.” When the Angel of the Lord had spoken these words to all the Israelites, the people wept loudly. So they named that place Bochim and offered sacrifices there to the Lord. Judges 2:1-5
So now, say to the men of Judah and to the residents of Jerusalem: This is what the Lord says: I am about to bring harm to you and make plans against you. Turn now, each from your evil way, and correct your ways and your deeds. But they will say, ‘It’s hopeless. We will continue to follow our plans, and each of us will continue to act according to the stubbornness of his evil heart.'” Jeremiah 18:11-12
My words…
Praise
How often, Lord, have Your children disappointed You, ignored You, disobeyed You? You draw up a plan for our lives, a plan hinged on our obedience to You with peace and prosperity as the promised reward. But we never live it out as You plan. We try to manipulate the plan to better suit our desires. And when that happens, life doesn’t work out right. We find ourselves in Bochim, our personal place of weeping and seeking repentance. But then, before long, we are right back to following our own plans. It happened with the Israelites. It happens still. I bet you’re growing sick and tired of it. (Then again, maybe not since You are slow to anger – abounding in love.) You delight in seeing Your children happy. You know what we should do in order to experience the highest level of happiness and contentment here on earth. Your plan is not difficult to understand, and we have You empowering us to live it out. But for some reason, we fight You. Why do we have to drive out the Canaanites, Jebusites, Asherites, and Amorites? Let’s just let them stay, and we will make them slaves. They will not influence us. Then the downfall begins. After so many times, I imagine You turn Your eyes away. You ask us to remove the traps, but we are confident we can sidle up next to them and remain safe. How foolish we are for not holding fast to Your plan. How remarkable You are for loving us anyway.
Prayer for me
I know Your plan for me: a more disciplined life. You are asking me to drive out time-wasting habits and spend that time with You, serving You, learning from You. But I can be stubborn, holding tightly to my interests and whims which take up more of my time than they are worth. So again, I petition You to strengthen me toward self-discipline.
Forgive me
Like the Israelites in Canaan, I am guilty of sizing up Your plan for me and deciding that my idea is actually better. My plan is better than Yours. What arrogance. What foolishness. Forgive me.
Prayer for others
Father, I pray for those who have served You in the past but have allowed their faith to weaken because of the influence of others close by. Your plan for their lives interferes with how they have been living for years. Weaken the influence of those around them so they will think of You…remember You. Open the eyes of their hearts so they may see Your plan and embrace it once again.
Thank You
Thank you for being the God with a plan. And I am so grateful that You love me enough to have a plan for me.
More praise
Lord, You are not arbitrary, irrational, or impulsive. With You – there is order and design. You not only designed the workings of the inner ear, the process of pollination, the laws of thermodynamics, but You designed a plan for me which leads to a life of spiritual riches and contentment. I put my faith in Your plan because You see what I cannot, and You know what I do not. I praise You for being a Father who plans for His children.
