The One who comes from above is above all. The one who is from the earth is earthly and speaks in earthy terms. The One who comes from heaven is above all. He testifies to what He has seen and heard, yet no one accepts His testimony. The one who has accepted His testimony has affirmed that God is true. For God sent Him, and He speaks God’s words, since He gives the Spirit without measure. The Father loves the Son and has given all things into His hands. The one who believes in the Son has eternal life, but the one who refuses to believe in the Son will not see life; instead, the wrath of God remains on him. John 3:31-36
My words…
Praise
One hundred twenty-one words. Simple words connected to express a simple, compact truth. All I need to know about You, I find in these words. You come from a place where I must lift my eyes to see – a heavenly place, a place above me. And in that hallowed place, You, Your Son, and Your Spirit existed perennially, immaculately. Pure truth and righteous wisdom filled Your infinite heaven. No earthly place could contain it. What was spoken in Your throne room didn’t stay there. Your Son embodied those words and brought them to us – holy conversations poured forth. Perfect words for an imperfect world. And although the words were from the complex mind of Almighty God, they formed a simple message: Believe in Me, and eternal life is yours. Love in a nutshell.
Prayer for me
Bring me back to Your simple truth, Lord. I get distracted by the mountain of biblical commentary, confused by the traditions man has woven into scripture, and weighed down by the unbelief of others. Help me step inside the nutshell and stay there.
Forgive me
I need to be forgiven of my faithlessness. I have been praying to You for a long time, laying the needs of a loved one at the foot of Your throne, and there those needs remain. I cry out to You over and over, yet my loved one is still in pain. I know You hear my prayers. I know You have a plan for him. But my faith is tested by waiting. Forgive me my lack of long-suffering.
Prayer for others
Jesus often said, “Verily, verily…I speak the truth.” How many times did He clench his fists in frustration and cry out to those around Him: “Don’t you understand? I am pouring over you the very words of God, words I heard, words I spoke, words that will ensure a life beyond the dust of this planet!” Yet so many did not – do not – bother to listen. And many who do listen, don’t believe. They are convinced they don’t need to. They hold in their hands the glitter of this world, and they are mesmerized by its sparkle. Lead them to a place where they will turn from the glitter and look to the cross.
Thank You
Thank You for giving me a simple message to understand. I couldn’t have embraced it otherwise. And thank You for holding onto the secret things that would overwhelm my faith until a time when I am able to perceive them.
More praise
The Apostle John, the unschooled fisherman, understood Your abiding words spoken in angelic surroundings before the world was formed. He grasped the simple message and, through Your Spirit, shared it with the world. He knew, as do I, that the simplicity of Your gospel does not diminish Jesus’ sacrifice and its impact on humankind, nor does it cast a shadow on the radiance of heaven. It’s just the only path from me to You – a path made up of one hundred twenty-one words.
Solomon and all Israel with him were offering sacrifices in the Lord’s presence. Solomon offered a sacrifice of fellowship offerings to the Lord: 22,000 cattle, 120,000 sheep. In this manner, the king and all the Israelites dedicated the Lord’s temple. Solomon and all Israel with him – a great assembly from the entrance of Hamath to the brook of Egypt – observed the festival at that time in the presence of the Lord our God, seven days, and seven more days – 14 days. On the fifteenth day, he sent the people away. So they blessed the king and went home to their tents rejoicing with joyful hearts for all the goodness the Lord had done for His servant David and for His people Israel. 1 Kings 8:62-63, 65-66
My words…
Lord, You have accepted centuries of praise from Your people. Festivals, feasts, and special services when multitudes of worshipers emptied their hearts before Your throne in adoration and gratitude. I know you don’t rank them, but the dedication service for Solomon’s temple must have been one special worship service. The people remembered Your goodness; they were filled with pride to be called Your chosen. And they showed it by an act of unprecedented worship – 120,000 sheep sacrificed on the altar. That’s a lot of sheep. Two weeks of uninterrupted festival worship. That’s a lot of worship. But it wasn’t a hardship. It was a privilege. It was an honor to show You – in the most excellent way they could – how much Your loving kindness meant to them. I am not required to worship You this way. The cross did away with burnt offerings, “counting sheep,” if You will. I don’t have to get blood on my hands because Jesus got blood on His. And for that I am thankful beyond words. But then I ponder the scope of my worship and find it to be woefully inadequate. You have lead me across my Red Sea. You have leveled my wall of Jericho. You have been my armor when I battle my Philistines. Yet I do not worship You according to what You deserve. Not even close. You deserve 120,000 sheep worth of worship from me. You deserve two weeks of non-stop exultation. Month after month. Year after year. Then I hear You say, “Don’t you know that Your heart is worth more to Me than a million sacrificed sheep and a lifetime of festivals?” So I offer my heart to You as an act of worship. I lay it on Your altar. The fact that You accept my imperfect, impure heart with gladness is the reason I keep it there.
But Peter and the apostles replied, “We must obey God rather than men. The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom you had murdered by hanging Him on a tree. God exalted this man to His right hand as ruler and Savior, to grant repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins. We are witnesses of these things, and so is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey Him.” When the Sanhedrin heard this, they were enraged and wanted to kill them. A Pharisee named Gamaliel, a teacher of the law who was respected by all the people, stood up in the Sanhedrin and ordered the men to be taken outside for a little while. He said to them, “Men of Israel, be careful about what you’re going to do to these men. Not long ago Theudas rose up, claiming to be somebody, and a group of about 400 men rallied to him. He was killed, and all his partisans were dispersed and came to nothing. After this man, Judas the Galilean rose up in the days of the census and attracted a following. That man also perished, and all his partisans were scattered. And now, I tell you, stay away from these men and leave them alone. For if this plan or this work is of men, it will be overthrown; but if it is of God, you will not be able to overthrow them. You may even be found fighting against God.” Acts 5:29-39
My words…
Praise
Praise God who gives His Holy Spirit to those who obey Him! Praise to the One whose following has grown over the centuries, across the globe. The message of Jesus of Nazareth rings with peals of hope and peace. It draws those who are seeking a transforming life on earth and a complete life everlasting. Your way is supernaturally powered by Your Spirit – and it comes with a guaranteed eternal reward! False prophets have come and gone, and still come. They claim to “be somebody” – a rival of the true Savior – but their messages do not sustain their followers, and the messenger perishes. But the words of Christ remain alive because the messenger is still living!
Prayer for me
Lord, You have placed a few Gamaliels in my path over the years. They provided wise discernment, a voice of reason during a time of turmoil. Their words were Your words given to me when I needed them most. Oh that I could be a Gamaliel to others! I pray for a deeper understanding of Your holy words and a greater awareness of Your presence so I may be a voice of wisdom for my children and those who walk along life’s path with me.
Forgive me
You make plans, Lord, plans for me. This passage begs the question: Have I fought against You by not submitting to Your plans? Am I like a member of the Sanhedrin who refused to believe your message because it sounded too good to be true? Or because it would mean a major change in my life, one I didn’t want to make at the time? Please forgive me for my weak faith and my pride for taking a stand against You.
Prayer for others
Father, I pray for those wayward souls who have heeded the messages of false teachers; they are like sheep among wolves. Theudas and Judas the Galilean have been followed by many who offer the vulnerable and misguided a way that seems to provide comfort to an aching spirit. But so often it ends in exploitation and sometimes even death. Protect Your children from being devoured by these wolves. Show them the true way, the way that leads to the cross.
More praise
Praise to You, God, whose followers cannot help but praise You even when faced with danger, dissent, ridicule, or indifference. Just as Your apostles stood firm in the presence of the Pharisees, so I, by the power of Your Spirit, stand firm in the presence of my own “Sanhedrin.” With You as the power source, no authority on earth or in heaven or in hell will succeed in diminishing Your message to the lost and suffering. Gamaliel was right then. He is right still. Anything powered by You will never be overthrown. Your plans will prevail.
Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my concerns. See if there is any offensive way in me; lead me in the everlasting way. Psalm 139:23-24
My words…
Prayer of Praise to the One Who Tests Me
Lord, if You walked into the room right now and offered me a chance to ask You one question – only one – what would I ask You? I ponder unusual situations such like these, as You well know. I have concluded that, after praising You prostrate at Your feet for as long as You have time, I would ask You this question: “How am I doing?” I’m not sure that is the best question out of all of the questions in the world. But it’s an honest question. I am not concerned with the age of the earth, the extinction of the dinosaurs, the Nephilim, the flood, or the location of the Ark of the Covenant. I believe David had the same question: Look really hard at my inner-most being. What do you find? Is anything there offensive to You? How am I doing?” You are like the physician who searches for disease, the professor who tests my knowledge, and the pastor who examines my character. What do You find? Is there anything offensive to You in there? Please tell me. I should know. Opening my heart to You so You may sift through all of my thoughts and intentions is an exercise in submission, an act of worship. Test me Lord! You’re the only One who truly can. Show me my offenses, so I may follow You in the way everlasting.
God, if only You would kill the wicked – you bloodthirsty men, stay away from me – who invoke You deceitfully. Your enemies swear by You falsely. Lord, don’t I hate those who hate You, and detest those who rebel against You? I hate them with extreme hatred; I consider them my enemies. Psalm 139:19-22
My words…
David’s words turn suddenly harsh! Pure hatred. The shepherd who spent his evenings writing songs of Your might and majesty, the young man who stood up to the giant who dared to defy You and Your army, the king whose heart was patterned after Yours was incensed by evil committed in Your name by those who hated You. Hated You. They made oaths using Your precious name, and they mocked You. They rebelled against You and enjoyed it. They sought out violence and rejoiced at the sight of a blood-stained sword, knowing You were watching. The constant drip, drip, drip of evil that leaked from them tortured David to the point where he cried out to You to act. Kill them! I completely understand his pain, for those who hate You still roam the earth. I am incensed by reports of murderers, invigorated by the spilled blood of those wearing the name of Your Son, Jesus. They hate You. My heart is pierced by the messages of those who believe You are a myth and that You hold NO sovereignty in heaven or on earth. They mock You. I, who believe You hold me in Your hand and love me with all of Your perfect heart, clench my fists in rage at the actions and language used to debase You. But then… I hear Your voice, Jesus: “Love your enemies.” David didn’t get that message, but I did. From a child, I was taught not to hate. I could hate turnips, but I could never hate a person. So I have spent my life attempting to learn to hate the evil ways without hating the evil-doer. Some days are better than others. I praise You with my heart, soul, and strength because You are the One who endures the attacks yet continues to love the attacker.
How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! If I counted them, they would outnumber the grains of sand. I awake, and I am still with You. Psalm 139:17-18
My words…
A Prayer of Praise to You Whose Thoughts are Vast…
What is difficult is precious. The higher the difficulty level of a task, the more recognition and honor is accompanied with its completion. When David contemplated Your thoughts, he described them as difficult (some translations) and precious (other translations). What proceeds from Your mind is too difficult for me to comprehend. And that is what makes Your thoughts precious to me. David weighed the possibility of counting Your thoughts. Looking across the landscapes of his region, he could only find one natural element that was in more abundance than any other – sand. He compared the task of counting Your thoughts to counting grains of sand, a task that no man could ever successfully complete. Archimedes had some great ideas about counting sand. I wonder if You were on his mind when he theorized about the number of grains of sand it would take to fill the universe (one followed by 80 quadrillion zeros – who knew?). I imagine You smiling as You listened to his explanations to King Gelon. We, Your children, push the limits of our understanding because we want to know more. We need to know more. But we’ll never know the limitless depths of Your thoughts. It cannot be described by a one followed by a bunch of zeros. As much as I delight in meditating on Your boundlessness, it is the last few words of this passage that brings my spirit prostrate before You. You, the only God, the One whose thoughts outnumber grains of sand many times over, like to hang out with me. When I open my eyes after sleeping, anytime I take the time to look – there You are. Then I know that it’s not only Your thoughts that are vast but Your love for me as well.
For it was You who created my inward parts; You knit me together in my mother’s womb. I will praise You because I have been remarkably and wonderfully made. Your works are wonderful, and I know this very well. My bones were not hidden from You when I was made in secret, when I was formed in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw me when I was formless; all my days were written in Your book and planned before a single one of them began. Psalm 139:13-16
My words…
Praise to the One Who Knew Me Before…
David didn’t need to know anything about cell reproduction, deoxyribonucleic acid, or immunology to understand that his body was the complex reaction of Your creative action. For generations, grateful, adoring worshipers have repeated these words to You in awe and gratitude. I am one of them. Even as my body is wearing out, it remains my most precious asset. I have no idea how it works. I understand that my lungs give me breath (somehow), and my heart pumps blood through my veins (somehow). And my liver seems to do all sorts of things I don’t understand. To be honest (what else can I be with You), I take my body for granted. I just expect it to do its job and leave me alone. I have not taken the time to give You proper praise for my anatomy. The human body is a reflection of Your order, Your intelligence, and Your imagination. No other being is powerful enough to create such a marvelous machine. But as much as Your excellence in creativity astounds and inspires me, I am even more astonished and humbled that our relationship began long before I was even an idea of a person. You knew me before my parents were born. While still unseen by my mother, You watched my cells divide and multiply. You knew the sound of my first cry before it left my lungs, and You’ve heard every single one of them since. You know the circumstances which resulted in all of my laughter and each of my tears. You know the exact moment of the exact day when I will no longer inhabit this remarkable vessel called my body. You are not just The Creator; You are my Creator. How proud I am to be Your creation. I pray You are proud of me. Your works are wonderful, and I know this very well.
Where can I go to escape Your Spirit? Where can I flee from Your presence? If I go up to heaven, You are there; if I make my bed in Sheol, You are there. If I live at the eastern horizon or settle at the western limits, even there Your hand will lead me; Your right hand will hold on to me. If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me, and the light around me will be night” – even the darkness is not dark to You. The night shines like the day; darkness and light are alike to You. Psalm 139:7-12
My words…
A Prayer of Praise to the One Who is Never in Darkness
Darkness is not dark to You – another mind-bending facet of Your existence. Darkness is a part of life for me, a reaction of my planet rotating on its axis. If I choose to do evil, I will act under the cloak of darkness because my acts will be hidden from men. Opportunities to hide my actions from men abound because my world is in darkness half of the time. You understand darkness, but You are not bound by it. Nothing I do is hidden from You – the good and the bad. Some would find this concept unsettling, but I find it comforting because if Your “eyesight” were limited, You wouldn’t be omniscient. Who would worship a god who wasn’t omniscient? I worship You because darkness flees from You, for You are light – the two cannot abide together. The light always wins. You always win. All praise to You who sees me, leads me, and holds on to me no matter where I am.
Lord, You have searched me and known me. You know when I sit down and when I stand up; You understand my thoughts from far away. You observe my travels and my rest; You are aware of all my ways. Before a word is on my tongue, You know all about it, Lord. You have encircled me; You have placed Your hand on me. This extraordinary knowledge is beyond me. It is lofty; I am unable to reach it. Psalm 139:1-6
My words…
A Prayer of Praise to the One Who Encircles Me
You know everything about me, Lord. You know the number of times I have sat and risen. You know all the places on earth where my feet have touched. You know the number of my words from my very first to the ones I am writing now. You know the final word of this prayer before I have even written it. Those I love here on earth, those closest to me, do not fully understand me (nor I them), but You know all my ways. You get me. As You know, I spend a lot of time wondering about You. I don’t know all Your ways. I don’t get You. What You know is beyond what I can know. Like David, I can stretch and reach for it my whole life and never grasp it. It is lofty. Then, when I am tired and sore from stretching, Your Spirit says, “It is enough.” And I grow calm and at peace, and I rest in the truth that what I know of You is enough. You are not an intricate machine that I need to take apart and reassemble to know how You work. That’s not my job. It is enough that I know You encircle me. If my spiritual eyes were opened, I would see Your circle of provision around me, for You have blessed me with much more than just daily bread. I would see Your circle of protection around me, for Your heavenly armies fight for me. I would see Your circle of comfort around me, which soothes my spirit and dries my tears. And I would see Your circle of love around me, the circle from which all other circles originate. The circles spin; they bathe me in perfect light – Your light. This doesn’t come close to capturing how You encircle me. I know that. But for now, it is enough.
Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. 2 Corinthians 3:17
My words…
Praise
Lord, wherever You go, freedom follows. When You walked the earth, You were surrounded by enslaved people, enslaved by a law that had been so stretched and twisted over the centuries that the beautiful intent dropped to the ground. You couldn’t even pluck grain from a stalk and put it in Your mouth on the Sabbath without being called out by a teacher of the law. You, who watched Moses receive the law on Sinai, getting called out by a Pharisee. (No wonder they got on Your nerves.) Then You died. Then You rose. And freedom overpowered the law that had become so onerous. Some people cried, “Freedom! Hallelujah!” Others clung to their shackles, refusing to take the key freely given them. That must hurt You. But that was then, and this is now. Your freedom still follows You wherever You go. I have embraced this freedom because it is the only true freedom. As an American, I am free. But when I die, I am only a dead American. As a Christian, I am free. And when I die, I am still free. Now that’s true freedom.
Forgive me
There are days – dark days – when I put on the shackles of guilt, sin, or fear when I have already been freed of them. You forgive to free me of guilt. You died to free me of sin. And You indwell to free me of fear. Forgive me for forging more shackles when You suffered so much to destroy them.
Thank You
How does a freed slave find the words to thank her Liberator? The debt can never be repaid. So I worship You, I listen to You, I love You, and pray You will accept that as an offering of thanksgiving.
More praise
Because of Your freedom, Lord, I am empowered by You to chuck from my life anxiety, fear, despair, and guilt, which leaves a whole lot of room for hope, peace, and confidence. I can say to death, “Welcome, friend,” because I know what waits on the other side is a more glorious level of freedom. And that’s all because of You, my Liberator.
