“You are my witnesses” – this is the Lord’s declaration – “and My servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe Me and understand that I am He. No god was formed before Me, and there will be none after Me. I, I am Yahweh, and there is no other Savior but Me. I alone declared, saved, and proclaimed – and not some foreign god among you. So you are My witnesses” – this is the Lord’s declaration – “and I am God. Also, from today on I am He alone, and none can deliver from My hand. I act, and who can reverse it?” Isaiah 43:10-13
My words…
Praise
In this turbulent world in which I live, I find absolute comfort in the fact that there is only one God, and You are that God. It’s really that simple. I have visited temples and seen man-made gods of stone and gold where worshippers offered gifts of food and flowers. I left wondering who eventually ate the food and smelled the flowers? The gods were formed by the hands, gold, and stone You created. The offering of food spoiled and the flowers wilted. It’s not that the god is dead; the god never lived. You are a living God. You are the only God. Now that is something to declare.
Prayer for me
You didn’t ask Israel to be a witness just as You haven’t asked me. You didn’t say, “Won’t you be my witness?” No, You declared us as witnesses, proclaimed us, announced us, honored us. I, who hold You up as the only God, Yahweh, am called to witness about You. I should declare the truth about You to others, proclaim Your wonders in my life, announce You to those who have never met You. And I do…sometimes. But not enough, and not as I should. And it’s not because I have nothing to witness about – I have plenty. I am a weak witness, and today I pray for holy strength.
Forgive me
You deserve a much better witness than I am. Forgive me when I turn my back on the call to the stand. I have a dirty laundry list of excuses. Cleanse me.
Prayer for others
I pray for a measure of Your power to rain down on those who have devotedly declared, proclaimed, and announced You to innumerable thirsty souls. They hold their opportunities to witness as precious as a handful of gems. Many have been harmed because of it. Some have traded their lives for a chance to witness. Yet, they proudly stand in the box and tell of Your wonders.
Thank You
Thank You for giving me so much to witness about: hope for today and tomorrow, peace like a sleeping baby, heavenly citizenship, epiphanies through prayer, joy through worship, Your promises kept, Royal adoption, the path to wisdom, servant vision, Scripture, existential answers, unconditional love, faith in the One and Only. That should give me enough to witness about for the rest of my earthly life.
More praise
Today I join with the holy angels, the ocean waves, the singing birds, the swirling wind, the rustling leaves, the exploding stars – all in witness of You, the Only God, Mighty God, Maker of us all.
So David went and had the ark of God brought up from Obed-edom’s house to the city of David with rejoicing. When those carrying the ark of the Lord advanced six steps, he sacrificed an ox and a fattened calf. David was dancing with all his might before the Lord wearing a linen ephod. He and the whole house of Israel were bringing up the ark of the Lord with shouts and the sound of the ram’s horn. As the ark of the Lord was entering the city of David, Saul’s daughter Michel looked down from the window and saw King David leaping and dancing before the Lord, and she despised him in her heart. 2 Samuel 6:12-16
My words…
Praise
You created us to dance. When pure and perfect joy wells within us, it reverberates through our arms, legs, shoulders and spine. We can’t sit still. We must move. It’s the joy coming out. Some of us look absolutely ridiculous when the joy comes out, and so we suppress it and sit on our hands. We wouldn’t want to look foolish, now would we? David had no qualms about how he looked. He didn’t consider his reputation or position. He was bringing the ark that was called by Your Name, the Name of Yahweh of Hosts who dwells between the cherubim, into his new capital city, Jerusalem. The Ark was coming home. Joy abounded! David bounded! You created him that way, and he danced for You. No more running for his life. No more sleeping in caves on the cold ground. He was king, but his joy was grounded in the truth that You are King. He was determined to celebrate, and nothing would stop him.
Prayer for me
I have never made dancing a part of my joyful celebration of worship. I hope that’s all right. I really stink at dancing, and You are worthy of a more excellent act of worship. I use writing and singing and laughing and crying. And the occasional clapping. I’m very good at clapping. But maybe I could do more. If my inhibitions are keeping me from growing, keeping me from experiencing a deeper level of joy, show me how to throw them off. I’ll work on doing it. With Your help, of course.
Forgive me
Forgive me when I refrain from expressing my joyful praise because of what others may think. It only matters what You think. The imaginary audience remains after all these years. It’s time it disappeared.
Prayer for others
I pray for the Michels in the churches. Is there a church without one? I doubt it. Just as there are those who refuse to suppress their joy, there are those who condemn them for it. Soften their hearts, Lord. Open their eyes to what true joy looks like. And I pray for the Davids. May they always be dancing!
More praise
Joyful praise of You runs deep, deeper than wedding joy or birthday joy. A heart full of gratitude for Your sacrifice, love for being first loved by You, wonder of Your boundless creation, and sheer delight in being Your child gushes unchecked by those who really believe it. And I really believe it. (I’ve broken out in foot tapping.)
Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by God’s will, for the promise of life in Christ Jesus: To Timothy, my dearly loved son. Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Jesus Christ our Lord. I thank God, whom I serve with a clear conscience as my ancestors did, when I constantly remember you in my prayers night and day. Remembering your tears, I long to see you so that I may be filled with joy, clearly recalling your sincere faith that first lived in your grandmother Lois, then in your mother Eunice, and that I am convinced is in you also. 2 Timothy 1:1-5
My words…
Praise
You have convicted me of the clear fact that my praise of You is just as vital to my life as the food I eat and water I drink. The more I praise You, the stronger I become, in my spirit. Praise equals strength. Praise equals breakthroughs. I have become more enlightened through my praise of You than in any other spiritual communication. How did I learn this? Through Your Spirit. How did I know where to find Your Spirit? Through Your words. What words? The ones written on the thin onion skin paper, bound in leather, given to me by my mom. I still have that Bible. It was made with a zipper closure. After a while, the zipper band tore away from the cover, so I stitched it back together with red embroidery thread. I didn’t know the full impact those pages would have on my life. (I still don’t, really.) But I did know the words were important. I knew they were Your words. And who, in their right mind, wouldn’t want to listen to You? It just made sense to me. And over the decades, I learned to praise. And that has made all the difference. Thanks, Mom.
Forgive me
When I had children, I became part of the Legacy. I don’t think I have ever asked You to forgive my weakness in upholding it. So I am asking You now. I didn’t spend enough time growing a sincere faith to pass down. I spent more time making sure my kids were in a pew. Wearing clean clothes. Being quiet. Who would want that Legacy?
Prayer for me
I rely on Your Spirit to grow my faith, make it more sincere, more genuine. One day, perhaps, it will have become a beautiful Legacy I can leave behind, as did Lois and Eunice.
Prayer for others
I pray that You will strengthen every mother and grandmother who is raising children alone, especially those who are sharing Your words, written on thin paper bound in a book. I know how tiring and discouraging it can be. But I also know the joy of seeing Your words penetrate a young spirit and set it walking on a well-lit path.
Thank You
Thank you for placing me in my Legacy. Of all the families I could have been born into, I praise You that I was born into mine!
More praise
Praise is all about knowing who I am in respect to who You are, where I am in respect to where You are, what I know in respect to what You know. I am just a small carbon life-form with a limited intelligence (very limited) existing on just one of a gazillion planets in the universe. But that’s not praise. I am a daughter of The King, living in Your kingdom among the stars You spoke into twinkling, knowing You created the whole thing for me. And I am prostrate. In praise.
As Jesus was leaving Jericho with His disciples and a large crowd, Bartimaeus, a blind beggar, was sitting by the road. When he heard that it was Jesus the Nazarene, he began to cry out, “Son of David, Jesus, have mercy on me!” Many people told him to be quiet, but he was crying out all of the more, “Have mercy on me, Son of David!” Jesus answered him, “What do you want Me to do for you?” “Rabbouni,” the blind man told Him, “I want to see!” “Go your way,” Jesus told him. “Your faith has healed you.” Immediately he could see and began to follow Him on the road. Mark 10:46-52 (selected)
My words…
Praise
I picture this scene in my mind: You, surrounded by people, hear a cry from someone in the crowd – a desperate cry, a scream. Bartimaeus didn’t know Your exact location on the road, but he had heard You were around, and he could hear the buzz of the crowd. There was always a crowd. “Shut up!” some yelled to the blind beggar. But he may as well have been deaf, too, for he refused to let You pass without making his presence known. He would have regretted it the rest of his life if he hadn’t snagged Your attention somehow. And he did. Then You asked him a question in which You already knew the answer. “What do you want from Me?” You gave him the privilege of answering a question posed by the Creator of space and time. The beggar was no longer just a part of a crowd. He was in relationship with the Son of God: Master Teacher (Rabbouni) to student. The teacher asked a question. The student answered. “I want to see!” It was an obvious, correct answer, for the beggar left the classroom with 20/20 vision and a lot more besides. I wonder how long he followed You around, proclaiming Your power in his life. It all sounds so fun to me. To see a life totally saved and the unbridled joy that followed. I imagine You laughed every time.
Prayer for me
I picture another scene in my mind: You and I, walking a path. I am troubled and blinded as to what I should do. You ask, “What do you want from Me?” I answer, “I want to see!” But nothing changes. The answers I am looking for do not miraculously appear. I didn’t get what I wanted. I had put my token in the machine, but nothing had popped out. I shake the machine, give it a kick, and walk away. What follows? Frustration. Impatience. Doubt. The machine’s on the fritz.
Oh, what a discontented, ungrateful daughter I am.
Forgive me
Forgive me when I allow base, worldly conclusions to float around my soul like a thick oil spill. Your plans for me, plans prepared before my conception, will withstand my petty tantrums, hands on hips, foot tapping. You would never allow my shallow demands, my entitled wants, to undermine Your lordship. My want for me may not be Your want for me. Forgive me when I attempt to push You aside so I can take over.
More praise
You are the Lord of my life. Your will reigns. It’s a shame that I have spent more time contemplating Your question, “What do you want from me?” I should have been posing my question to you, “What do You want from me?”
“Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. Give, and it will be given to you; a good measure – pressed down, shaken together, and running over – will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.” Luke 6:37-38
My words…
Praise
Another fine lesson, Master Teacher. You often teach me lessons based on my life in relation to the other guy: my neighbor, my enemy, those in need, those misguided, those I pass on the street. They are lessons learned from your time wearing human skin. You know what it’s like to be misunderstood, falsely accused, ignored, ridiculed, and loathed. How close did you come to taking Satan up on his offer to chuck it all in? How hard did you bite your tongue when the apostles took so long to understand your message? Daily, earthly life must have been agonizingly difficult (except when the little children showed up). Yet You didn’t let loose on them. You didn’t pronounce a hell-bound judgment. You didn’t take a holier-than-thou (which You were) attitude and point fingers and sneer. Instead, You stumbled to the cross and gave everything You had to us, using a measure foretold, a measure that swallowed up death.
Prayer for me
I am guessing that the people I interact with daily would not label me a judge or a condemner. That’s because I keep it to myself when it happens. And it still happens. With the guidance and patience of your Spirit, I have grown in imitating Your example of loving instead of condemning. I pray You will continue to grow me.
Forgive me
The measure I use to forgive (how many times for this one person?) and give (is it tax deductible?) is shameful; it’s a fluctuating scale depending on my mood and state of hunger. Forgive me when I mete out compassion and forgiveness. It’s a trait I learned from the Enemy.
Prayer for others
If I have judged or condemned anyone, I pray you will send them to me so I may ask for their forgiveness. We are all flawed and sinful, and the responsibility of judging belongs to the One who paid the price to do so: You. Not me.
Thank You
Thank You, Lord, for molding me, instructing me, putting up with me when I disappoint. You are the Constant in my inconsistent world.
More praise
Following Your teaching is always a profitable decision. I receive more than I give, blessings upon blessings, stacked up around me in piles. Being a daughter of Yours is the most precious blessing of all.
Your throne has been established from the beginning; You are from eternity.
Psalm 93:2
My words…
You are from eternity. That’s where You live. It’s a place without space and a time without succession. It’s all at once and always has been and always will be. It’s what philosophers and theologians have expressed with invented terms (some rather pretty-sounding) sprinkled with yets and buts and draped in little confidence. You must smile at their attempts. I don’t pretend to know. I’m not sure I want to know, really. I have my own idea about eternity. I carry it in my pocket. No one need know. I pull it out when I feel empty, and it fills. I clutch at it when I’m afraid, and it comforts. I toss it about when I’m joyful, and it laughs. It is You, and it is me together…apart from space and time. If eternity is where You are, then I am there, too. So, I am from eternity. It’s where I live.
As He got into the boat, His disciples followed Him. Matthew 8:23
My words…
Praise
There’s a lot of following going on these days. Follow us on Facebook! I follow him on Twitter! Following social media doesn’t take much more than clicking time – no real sacrifice. Following You, on the other hand, involves commitment and surrender, learning and unlearning, trust and reliance, time and energy. But, oh what rewards! Transformation and transcendence, peace and security, knowledge and understanding, hope and assurance. You have already done the heavy lifting; You have won the war for me. The trail is blazed. I only need to follow. (too many metaphors? Never!)
Prayer for me
When You lead, I attempt to place my foot where Yours is because I know it’s the best way. It may not be the shortest route or the most comfortable path, but I know it will get me where You want me to be. The disciples followed You into a boat. They had no idea a storm was brewing and they would fear for their lives before they reached shore. You knew, and You led them there. They were different men when they disembarked. They were better men. And that is why I follow You. I want to be a better…everything. I know You will never stop leading. I rely on Your Spirit to strengthen me to keep following.
Forgive me
Forgive me when I don’t act like a follower of Yours. I have zero excuses. I give in to temptation and BAM! I know I shouldn’t have said that condescending remark about the lady in line yesterday. I know I shouldn’t have justified not giving to the needy in my path. I know I shouldn’t do a lot of things I do. I need a purer heart. Clean it. Please.
Thank You
Thank You for never leaving me behind. When I am prancing and skipping along in the thistle, pretending I’m fine, You wait for me to step in line again. And You’re never mad. You really are incredible!
More praise
On the very best of days, when my spirit is at home with Yours, I am not following behind. I am following beside. Those are the days when Your face is shining on me. The longer I live, the more I see Your face. Another reward!
The path of the righteous is level; You clear a straight path for the righteous. Isaiah 26:7
Teach me to do Your will, for You are my God. May Your gracious Spirit lead me on level ground. Psalm 143:10
My words…
Praise
Riding along on an uphill, curvy road makes me queasy. Just as every atom in my body screams for a straight and level way, so my spirit yearns for the straight path for the righteous. How do I know what’s around the bend until I round the bend? Danger may be lurking in my path, but then it’s too late to do anything about it. Struggling with an uphill battle, day after day, year after year, leads to despair. You created me, so You understand. You understand to the point where You work so I won’t have to suffer spiritual queasiness. You clear a level path and straighten the crooked road. I don’t need a map. There’s only one Way. All I need to do is follow the Guide.
Prayer for me
You clear a path for the righteous, but I don’t consider myself so. The only reason I have tread the straight and level is because Jesus paid my toll. I look to Your Spirit to lead me along this path and keep my feet from slipping off the side. The road has pitfalls and potholes. Grow my trust in You that I may walk blindfolded, listening to Your guiding voice.
Forgive me
Forgive me when I plop down on the road and demand a rest (as if I should demand anything). Following is tiring. Remaining alert is wearying. Growing in knowledge is exhausting. But who am I to take a break? You never did. You never do. You never will.
Prayer for others
Lord, I know so many who are plodding along on an uphill, winding road – without a guide. They fend off their queasiness with substances or acquisitions or justifications. This may sound harsh, but I ask that they remain queasy until they search out the straight, level way where they will meet You.
Thank You
Thank You for working for me. You clear a straight path and become my traveling companion, guide, and teacher. But over all of that, You are my Lord. And now I stop, not because I’m weary, but because I am on my knees in thankfulness and awe.
Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son and shall call His name Immanuel Isaiah 7:14
Behold, the virgin shall be with child and shall bring forth a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel; which is, God with us. Matthew 1:23
My words…
Of all the names given You, Jesus, I like this one best. God with us. When Zacheus invited you to lunch, did he know that You were God with him? God in his house! When You spoke to the Samaritan woman about living water, did she know that You were God with her? God at the well! When you entered the gates of Jerusalem, did they know You were God with them? God in their city! No one in scripture ever called You Immanuel except a prophet long dead and an angel. Maybe if they had, they would have understood more clearly where You came from. It wasn’t just Nazareth. Wherever You went, whenever You were with people, something happened. Those who understood Your presence as “we with a Galilean guy” missed out on the greatest opportunity of all time. Those who understood Your presence as “God with us” were never the same. Even now, You remain God with us – but even better. We don’t have to search for You in the dusty streets of Jerusalem or on a hillside talking to kids or in a synagogue thick with tension. You are here in my room. You are here in my heart. You are God with me. You are God in me. Hallelujah!
Unless the Lord builds a house, its builders labor over it in vain; unless the Lord watches over a city, the watchman stays alert in vain. Psalm 127:1-2
My words…
Praise
Nothing worth anything happens by accident. Victories are proclaimed because of You. Accomplishment, achievement, prosperity are direct experiences of Your providence. Humans may beat their chests and hoard credit, but they do so in vain. Happy is the one who knows from where all blessings flow.
Prayer for me
All that I have accomplished in my life, all the good fortune I enjoy, the family I hold dear are upheld by Your loving hand. But there have been times when I have boasted like a four-year-old, “I can do this all by myself.” I took over. I placed You in the spectator section (as if I could place You anywhere). Embarrassment, failure, and regret followed. The four-year-old still rears her impatient, immature head. Guide me to listen to You only.
Forgive me
Even after all this time, I have not been complete in keeping the “unless” in the front of my mind. Unless Your will is done in my life, my life is lived in vain. Forgive me when I have placed my will ahead of Yours.
Prayer for others
I pray for those who are working to build their “house” on their own. They do not know or refuse to know that unless You take over as Master Builder, the “house” will not stand.
Thank You
As the Only God, the God with all the power, You can do anything. You can act however You want. Yet You choose to work for me, care about me, protect me. Maybe You don’t really choose to do so. (Like I don’t choose to be female) It’s just who You are. You can’t be any other way. But it doesn’t mean that I can’t thank You anyway. So, thank You.
More praise
What a joy it is knowing that when I work within Your will, when I surrender to You, the result will be exactly what You intend for me. Every time.
