365 Days of Praise
Thank You, Jesus, for Being Our eXAMPLE
“For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps,”
Have you ever wished you had a mentor; someone to follow; someone to teach you how to do your job better, be a better spouse, or even live for Christ? Many people lack a good “example” to follow. Young girls get pregnant, but may not know how to be a good mother. Husbands may not know how to treat their wives because they grew up in a home with an absentee father. Arguing, lying, and trusting in “self” rather than God is often the norm. Yet, in the midst of a lack of good examples, our Heavenly Father provides a good example in His Son. Jesus shows us how to stand against temptation, how to live for God’s will, how to treat others, and even how to suffer for righteousness’s sake. Jesus is an eXample of how we’re to entrust ourselves to our Heavenly Father. (1 Peter 2:22-23) In a world filled with bad examples, how wonderful that we can follow Jesus.
We praise You, Lord Jesus, our EXAMPLE!
Thank you for remembering us in your year end giving. We’d like to say thank you by sending you my book/study, “The Plan A Mom in a Plan B Word: How to Raise Faithful Kids in a Flawed World” for any donation of $25 or more. Let us know where you’d like us to send your free copy, to you or a friend. Short, encouraging chapters for moms of all ages include: A Snoot or A Smile, I Have to or I Get To, Being Overly Controlling or Trusting God with My Child, Hopeless or Hopeful, Angry and Confused or Of a Sound Mind, Focusing On My Weakness or Living By Christ’s Empowerment, Stuck in Single Mom Grief or Responding to God’s Voice, My Child or God’s Child. Each chapter includes lessons from a Biblical mom PLUS A CURRENT DAY MOM SHARING HER STORY. Great for personal reflection or group study. Thank you for donating. Your gift is tax deductible, deeply appreciated, and enables us to continue to spread the Word and love of Jesus.
Praise the eXALTED CHRIST
“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.”
“I saw the Lord.” Let those words sink in.
There was a time – the year of King Uzziah’s death.
There was a place – sitting on a throne in a temple.
There was a description – lofty…exalted…the train of His robe FILLING the temple. How does that even happen?
There were others – Seraphim stood above Him, each having six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. (verse 2)
There was talking. The seraphim called out to one another and said, “Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord of hosts, The whole earth is full of His glory.” (verse 3)
Someone called out and this happened – “And the foundations of the thresholds trembled at the voice of him who called out, while the temple was filling with smoke.” (verse 4)
This was Isaiah’s response – “Then I said, ‘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.’” (verse 5)
What will be your response when you see the EXALTED LORD JESUS?
EXALTED Lord, we can’t imagine what it will be like when we see YOU. Our hearts tremble at the thought of Your majesty and glory. May our awe and reverence for You be lived out in our daily decisions and behavior… in anticipation of the day, time, and place we see You.
Praise to Our WORTHY Lord
“so that you will walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God;”
Have you ever considered that because Christ paid for your sins you are worthy of heaven? Say that a few times to yourself and let it sink in. “I am worthy of the Lord! I am worthy of heaven!” To be found worthy is a heavenly gift. And now, because we are worthy, we’re reminded to walk in a manner worthy or “suitably” of our Lord. We may have a hazy understanding of what it means to be worthy, but we do know what it means to be suitable. A child who puts on dirty clothes for school is told to put on something suitable, something clean. In the same manner, we are to walk worthily (suitably) of the Lord.
Lord, thank You for making us worthy of Your presence and of heaven. Help us to walk worthily of You!
from If God is In Control, Why Am I a Basket Case?
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Praise to God WORKER of WONDERS
“Who is like You among the gods, O Lord?
Who is like You, majestic in holiness,
Awesome in praises, working wonders?”
Do you need a “wonder” worked in your life? Do you wish you could twitch your nose or snap your fingers and presto, that for which you long would be a reality? The fact is, although those techniques work on television shows, they don’t in real life. However, God does work wonders. Sometimes those wonders take time. Other times, moments. Regardless of the timing, our Lord God is the right One on whom we are to set our gaze and our hearts if we’re in need of wonder working power.
Lord God, You are the WORKER of WONDERS! We look to You, pray to You, and praise You!
Christmas Peace
“For a child will be born to us…And His name will be called…Prince of Peace.”
“When are we getting our Christmas tree? Tonight? Tomorrow?” When I was a child, my sister and I couldn’t wait for the annual tradition of selecting a massive evergreen that would be the centerpiece in our home for the month of December.
Although most of the time it was fun to select the tree, occasionally a few stressful moments crept into our otherwise fun evening. One of us might have our heart set on a short, full tree, while the other had her heart set on a tall, willowy one.
Upon arriving home, additional differences sometimes surfaced when deciding where to put the green giant or whether clumps or single strands of silvery tinsel should decorate each bough. I wonder if God ever shook His head at how easily our Christmas feathers were ruffled over the smallest details.
What about you? What ruffles your Christmas feathers? What upsets the peace and goodwill that is sung about during this season of peace? Today, if you’re lonely, fearful, fighting an illness, or troubled over your marriage, a child, or another relationship, join me in remembering that today isn’t about everything being perfect. Today is for remembering that because of Christ, we will one day live in eternal peace under the reign of the Prince of Peace. Let go of searching for Christmas perfect and instead say of prayer of thanks for Christmas peace in Jesus.
Christmas is not the tinsel.
Christmas is not the tree.
Christmas is about God’s love,
His love for you and me.
Christmas is about the season
When in each of our lives
We thank God for our Savior
Who gives to us new life.
A baby born of woman, yet God
A God born of man, yet divine
God gave to the earth a Savior
Peace, eternal, divine.
So if you are seeking heaven
Would you look and seize the Truth
God’s gift of Jesus on earth
Is God’s gift of Peace to you.
I pray your heart is filled with Christ’s peace as you reflect on the wonder of His love. Debbie
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The Most Important Word
If you were asked what the most important word in the world is, how would you reply? Would it be love, hope, peace? Do a search on the topic and you’ll find a variety of answers such as the most important word is a person’s name. Another answer you might find is “thank you,” which is only one word in French. The Bible has eternal perspective on this topic, however. John 1:1 says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” Bible passages such as Revelation 19:13 explain the most important Word is Jesus. “His name is called THE WORD of GOD.” Acts 4:10-12 warns us there is salvation in no other name except Jesus. Now that you know the most important Word, why not start up a conversation with someone on the topic? It might lead to an opportunity for you to share Christ and tell them how they can be saved. If the person is already a Christian but not closely following Christ, it gives you an opportunity to share with them how life and light are found in Jesus. Let’s not keep this Word to ourselves!
Lord Jesus, Word of God, we love and praise You. Stir the embers in our heart to be a roaring fire so we can’t help but share You with others.
Praise to Our WONDROUSLY MARVELOUS Lord
“I will once again deal marvelously with this people, wondrously marvelous;…”
What is the context in which God’s actions are described as WONDROUSLY MARVELOUS? The prior verse explains. “Then the Lord said, ‘Because this people draw near with their words and honor Me with their lip service, But they remove their hearts from Me, and their reverence for Me consists of tradition learned by rote, therefore, I will once again deal marvelously with this people, WONDROUSLY MARVELOUS.'” “WONDROUSLY MARVELOUS” means “separate by distinguishing action, to do extraordinary or hard or difficult thing, beyond one’s power.”*
Lord, You alone are God, WONDROUSLY MARVELOUS. May our worship of You be in sincerity of heart and true reverence; not lip service.
FIND MORE encouragement HERE.
Praise to Our WONDERFUL COUNSELOR
“For a child will be born to us, …And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.”
Are you at your wit’s end? Do you need someone to talk to; someone who can help you sort out your problems? God understands. He is the original COUNSELOR, and not only is He good, He’s WONDERFUL! He will listen. He is understanding. And, He is full of wisdom. Talk to Him, then listen.
LORD, You are the ultimate COUNSELOR. We praise You!
Praise to the Lord, our WITNESS
“Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him who loves us and released us from our sins by His blood-”
Jesus is a witness. A witness of what, we might ask. He testified to us about heaven, His Father, about the angels in heaven, crowns of righteousness awaiting believers, resurrection bodies, thrones, powers, kingdoms, the judgment seat, forgiveness, redemption, His Father’s house, and even about the reality of Satan. Jesus testified about the fact that Abraham, Noah, Moses, and Jonah were real people and that the Old Testament is true. Our confidence in the Bible and its teachings rests on the faithful witness of Christ Jesus.
Lord Jesus, we praise You, the faithful WITNESS! Thank You for the confidence we have in the Bible and in You because of Your word.
FIND MORE encouragement HERE.
Praise to the Lord of WEALTH, Salvation, Wisdom, and Knowledge
“And He will be the stability of your times,
A wealth of salvation, wisdom and knowledge;
The fear of the Lord is his treasure.”
Many times our search for wealth comes up short. The all powerful dollar is held before us as the “end all” we should seek. However, what the world tells us is opposite of what the Lord tells us. Jesus tells us to lay up treasure in heaven. Isaiah describes the Lord in terms of wealth. Do you consider yourself poor or wealthy? God’s estimation is that if you have Him, you have wealth. Maybe it’s time for us to set our eyes on our wealth in the LORD.
Lord, You are a WEALTH of salvation, wisdom and knowledge. Thank You for all we have in You!
FIND MORE encouragement HERE. Record God’s daily descriptions in Prayers of My Heart.