365 Days of Praise
Cling to this Horn
Do you ever feel shaky; like you might fall? Do you feel like you don’t have the strength to stand, much less make it through the next day or week? If so, be encouraged. In Psalm 18:2 our Lord is described as our strength in this unique way. “The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, My God, my rock, in whom I take refuge; My shield and the HORN OF MY SALVATION, my stronghold.” If you’re like me, you can understand the Lord being our rock, fortress, deliverer, shield, and stronghold. But what is meant by the Lord being our “HORN OF SALVATION?” Scholar Herbert Lockyer explains: “the figure of the Horn is taken from those animals whose strength is in their horns. Because the horn was once the instrument of the oxen’s strength, it became the symbol of power. And our God and Savior came as a HORN, or mighty instrument of SALVATION. In addition, when horns were fixed to an altar they became projections to which sacrifices were bound and to which those who needed protection could cling.” Jesus is the believer’s HORN OF SALVATION. Cling to Him.
HORN OF SALVATION, we praise You, our strength and salvation. Thank You that we can cling to You.
Better than Bootstraps
Do you feel hopeless? Perhaps the last bit of hope to which you’ve clung just went out the window. Your future may appear bleak. Dark clouds may seem to hover over you no matter where you go or how hard you try. But the good news is, if you’re a Christian, you have every reason to hope. Why? Because Romans 15:13 explains that the GOD OF HOPE is in you through the Holy Spirit. “Now may the GOD OF HOPE fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you will abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” It’s not a question of if you have hope. You do. The question is, are you allowing the GOD OF HOPE to fill you with His joy and peace? You can experience hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. It’s a matter of switching from pulling yourself up by your bootstraps to believing God is on the throne; that He sees you and loves you. He has your best interest at heart. In faith, pray, “GOD OF HOPE, fill me with joy and peace through the Holy Spirit.”
GOD OF HOPE, thank You for giving us the Holy Spirit so we can abound in hope by His power.
Overwhelm Us
Prior to Jesus’s crucifixion, He prepared His disciples for His departure; comforting them that the HOLY SPIRIT would come to them. Can you imagine their confusion? Their frame of reference for the HOLY SPIRIT was God anointing only a few Old Testament people to accomplish divine work on earth. The names Elijah and Elisha certainly came to mind. But them? “Dazed and confused” might have described the disciples as they listened to Jesus tell them about the HOLY SPIRIT. The HOLY SPIRIT would be their Helper. God the Father would send Him in Christ’s name. The HOLY SPIRIT would teach them all things and bring to their remembrance all that Jesus said to them. The HOLY SPIRIT would empower them to live in such a way they bore witness to Christ. (Acts 1:8) HOLY. SPIRIT. Isn’t that what God knows each of us needs? So, He sent Him, a who, not an “it,” to live in believers. Are we treating His heavenly presence as a welcomed, Holy guest? Are we asking Him to reign over our lives? “But the Helper, the HOLY SPIRIT, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.” John 14:26
Heavenly Father, forgive us for discounting the gift of Your Holy Spirit. Forgive our insolence for living apart from Your divine presence. Fill us. Overwhelm us so Christ pours forth from us to serve others and glorify You.
In Favor of the Saints
Do you ever wonder what the future holds? If so, the book of Daniel answers your question. There will be a war and God’s saints will be overpowered UNTIL the One who is more powerful than any other, the Highest One, steps in. I wonder if you feel as I do – overwhelmed with gratefulness to be on God’s side, to be designated as His saint? “I kept looking, and that horn was waging war with the saints and overpowering them until the Ancient of Days came and judgment was passed in favor of the saints of the highest One, and the time arrived when the saints took possession of the kingdom.” Daniel 7:21-22
Heavenly Father, to be referred to as “Your saint” and to know that You, the Ancient of Days, are going to judge in favor of me, of us, Your saints, is overwhelming. Thank You, merciful Ancient of Days.
Unclean Lips and Lives
I don’t think there’s any way we can get our minds around what the holiness of the LORD is like. I don’t think we have the slightest idea of the magnitude of heaven’s glory. Isaiah attempted to describe heaven. (Isaiah 6:1-4a) “In the year of King Uzziah’s death I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, lofty and exalted, with the train of His robe filling the temple. Seraphim stood above Him, …. And one called out to another and said ‘HOLY, HOLY, HOLY is the LORD of hosts, The whole earth is full of His glory.’ And the foundations of the thresholds trembled…” What was Isaiah’s response? “Woe is me, for I am ruined! Because I am a man of unclean lips – And I live among a people of unclean lips; For my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of Hosts.” Isaiah 6:5. Isaiah’s response to seeing the LORD was a profound awareness that he was unclean. Were it NOT for JESUS bearing our sins on the cross, it would not be possible for us to live in the HOLY, HOLY, HOLY LORD’S presence; which is why we praise HIM today and every day.
We praise You, HOLY, HOLY, HOLY Lord!
Could you use sympathy instead of condemnation
Can you imagine what it would be like to go before a HIGH PRIEST who DIDN’T sympathize with your weaknesses? How haughty would that high priest be? How unrelenting might he be? How judgmental? Yet, that is not our Lord Jesus Christ. Yes, He is a HIGH PRIEST, as Hebrews 4:15-16 tells us. But, listen to the description of our High Priest. “We do not have a HIGH PRIEST who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin.” Then, he tells us what to do. “Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” I want to sing and shout “hallelujah” at this description of our merciful High Priest. Why? Because I mess up every day. Unlike Jesus, I get tempted and do sin. But knowing that I can humbly approach Jesus makes me love Him all the more. I can go to Him in prayer and confess, “I messed up big time. I sinned! I fell for this temptation…again. Forgive me. ” Jesus extends grace to us when we repent, but He also admonishes us, “Go and sin no more.” Why? Because He loves us and doesn’t want us living in sin but rather in holiness. If we’ve been avoiding Jesus because of our sin, today is the day to draw near to our sympathetic HIGH PRIEST.
We praise You, our Lord and High Priest, that although You are high and lifted up, you sympathize with our weaknesses and forgive the repentant sinner. Help us sin no more.
When You’ve Failed and Are Low
Things aren’t always what they seem. And, simply because things appear one way in a moment of time, it doesn’t mean they’ll stay that way. Case in point: Jesus. If we’d been in Jerusalem when Jesus was hanging on the cross, we might have labeled the moment, “Jesus failed.” However, what appeared to be Jesus’s lowest moment, was in fact, God’s highest plan being accomplished. Three days after Jesus’s death on the cross, God raised Him. As Isaiah 52:13 prophesied, “Behold, My servant will prosper, He will be HIGH and LIFTED UP and greatly exalted.” Jesus is seated at the right hand of God – HIGH AND LIFTED UP – greatly exalted. The next time something appears to be a failure or loss, look heavenward. Pray. God can change things; even us.
We praise You, Lord Jesus, HIGH and LIFTED UP; greatly exalted.
Groaning. Drained. Hiding.
King David was deceived….thinking he could hide his sin of adultery and murder and merrily continue with his life. But sin isn’t a kind bedfellow. Psalm 32:3-4 records how it affected David. “When I kept silent about my sin, my body wasted away through my groaning all day long. For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me; My vitality was drained away as with the fever heat of summer.” But, what happened when David acknowledged his sin and confessed it to the Lord? We find the answer in Psalm 32:5. “I acknowledged my sin to You, and my iniquity I did not hide; I said, ‘I will confess my transgressions to the Lord’; and You forgave the guilt of my sin.'” What advice does David give us in Psalm 32:6? “Therefore let everyone who is godly pray to You in a time when You may be found.” David discovered that instead of hiding from God, it was better to make God His hiding place. “You are my HIDING PLACE; You preserve me from trouble; You surround me with songs of deliverance.” Psalm 32:7 On occasion, we might be like David and think we can hide our sin from God. But the truth is, we can’t. He sees us and even knows our thoughts. Yet, even while we are in our sin, He invites us to a place of forgiveness – Himself. Today, we can choose to stop trying to hide our sin. We can turn to God and humbly confess, “You are my HIDING PLACE; You preserve me from trouble.” We can experience “songs of deliverance.”
Lord, how sweet to know You as our HIDING PLACE; who preserves us from trouble and surrounds us with songs of deliverance. Thank You. We praise You.
Help is On the Way
“Help is on the way.” It’s all I could think to say as I grabbed my purse and headed to my car. She needed to hear those words. She needed to know that help was on the way…the kind of tangible help we need when we’re at our wits end, when we don’t know how much more we can take. And so, God wants us to know, “He is our HELP.” We may not see Him, but we have the full assurance that “God is our refuge and strength, a very present HELP in trouble,” Psalm 46:1. Are you in trouble and need HELP? Are you in despair and need HELP? Are you disturbed about something and need HELP? Unlike the friend who had to wait for me, the Lord is our present HELP. We need only call on Him as Psalm 43:5 reminds us. “Why are you in despair, O my soul? And why are you disturbed within me? Hope in God, for I shall again praise Him, the HELP of my countenance and my God,”
Heavenly Father, we praise You, our HELP and the HELP of our countenance.
Who Gets it All
Hebrews 1:2 tells us that Jesus is the HEIR OF ALL THINGS. Why was it important for the writer of Hebrews to communicate this about Jesus? At the time the words were written to the Hebrew people, it appeared the government had control over all things. However, God wanted the Hebrews to know that Jesus was the ultimate possessor of everything. He created the world and everything in it; therefore, it is ultimately His. It was important for the first century Christians to be assured of this fact. It’s important for us to be assured of it.
LORD, we praise You for appointing Jesus as the HEIR OF ALL THINGS. Thank You for the assurance that our nation and world are His possession.