365 Days of Praise

“…we have not ceased to pray for you and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His (God’s) will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding,”

Colossians 1:9

Paul prayed for believers to be overflowing with spiritual wisdom. The word spiritual is significant. If defines the kind of wisdom we should seek. We can be street wise, money wise, smart in business. However, the wisdom for which Paul prays is divine wisdom. Think about that. Do you have spiritual wisdom? Do you know individuals whose intimacy with God enhances their ability to determine His will? Do you know those who are so intimate with God that their thoughts reflect His? This is the divine wisdom Paul prays we have. Is his prayer being answered in us?

Lord, the fact that You created me with the capacity to have spiritual wisdom is incredible! Please help me not live the rest of my life with only earthly wisdom, but rather seek the wisdom from above.

from If God is In Control, Why Am I a Basket Case? 

“Since the day we heard of it, we have not ceased to pray for you and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His (God’s) will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding,”

Colossians 1:9

How often do we say, “I just don’t know what to do,” regarding our marriage , children, finances, career, or church situation? God has a will for our lives and Paul prays we be filled to the brim with it. In other words, God isn’t asking us to play “hide-and-see” with His will. Rather, God has provided both a general will, given through biblical principles, and a specific will for us as individuals. The Bible and Holy Spirit work hand in hand to guide us into both. One will never negate the other. The more we know the Bible, the more the Holy Spirit can lead us in both God’s general and specific will. Sometimes I wonder if God doesn’t reveal more of His specific will because I’m not obeying His general will, which He’s already given in the Bible. Might that be true of you?

Lord, thank You for the opportunity to not only know You, but to also live according to Your will. Forgive me when I ask for more knowledge; yet I’m not acting according to the knowledge You’ve already given me. Today, may I be a better steward of what I know so that I am increasing filled with the knowledge of Your will for my life. 

from If God is In Control, Why Am I a Basket Case? 

“because of the hope laid up for you in heaven,”

Colossians 1:5

Today many of us may be facing a difficult time. Physical, emotional, or financial problems may loom before us. However, this world is not all there is. Rather than focus on our dismal conditions or think if only…we can choose to focus our hearts on the hope laid up for us in heaven. Is the hope a prize for which we must work? No. It’s “laid up” for us. Have you ever put something in layaway? If so, you understand what Paul is talking about. Christ paid for our salvation in full. He secured our heavenly hope when He died on the Cross for our sins. Our hope of heaven is in layaway for us. If you’re going through a discouraging time, I pray you’re encouraged as you focus the eyes of your heart on heaven. God’s blessing for you is His present help and the hope of heaven laid up for you.

Lord, I’ve never thought of myself as rich. But, now I realize that I am. I’m among the richest of rich. You have written me into Your will! The riches of heaven await me! All praise to You for making me a recipient of heaven’s hope!  

from If God is In Control, Why Am I a Basket Case? 

“since we heard of your faith in Christ and the love which you have for all the saints.”

Colossians 1:4

Have you ever noticed how there is a special bond between Christians? Or, saints, as Paul call us? 🙂 When we are filled with Christ’s Spirit, we love as He loved us. God is love, so it’s natural for Christians to love other Christians. I experience this all the time when I travel to teach at conferences. I may not know one soul when I arrive. But, immediately upon meeting other believers, I sense a swelling up of love inside of me for them. Maybe we aren’t loving by our own nature. But remember, saint, you have the bonus of a new nature – Christ’s! Let His love flow in and through you!

Lord God, You who are LOVE, swell up in me and fill me with Your love so that I love others as You do. 

from If God is In Control, Why Am I a Basket Case? 

“We give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you,”

Colossians 1:3

Paul was under house arrest when he wrote to the Christians in Collosae. What does he mean when he said, “praying always for you”? I don’t believe Paul woke in the mornings, said, “Bless all those you love, Lord,” and went about his day with a furrowed brow and a worrisome gnawing in his stomach. “Praying always for you” does not mean Paul literally verbalized prayer every moment of his day. Rather, he is stating that he lived in a state of communing with God. He managed his stress by going to God in prayer. In prayer, he voiced his concerns to the Father. In addition, he listened to God. Does “unmanaged stress” or “prayerful” better describe us?

Lord, Thank You that with my citizenship in heaven comes the open door to go to You in prayer. I pray that in 2014 “prayerful” increasingly describes me. 

from If God is In Control, Why Am I a Basket Case? 

“To the saints and faithful brethren in Christ …”

Colossians 1:2

Before you jump ship and wonder how many days we’re going to stay on Colossians 1:2, hang in here with me one more day as we consider our identity in Christ. “Faithful,” Although this can be a general term for believers, Paul uses it as a description of those being faithful to their heavenly calling. Yes, we may fall under the category of faithful. The big question is: Are we being faithful day by day, not only on Sundays? It’s something to think about.

Lord, You are faithful to me. Help me be faithful to You and my heavenly calling. 

from If God is In Control, Why Am I a Basket Case? 

“To the saints and faithful brethren in Christ who are at Colossae…”

Colossians 1:1-2

Have you ever thought of yourself as a saint? According to God, you are! “Saint” isn’t a term for only the “most holy” of believers. Rather, it is what each of us are in Christ. It means holy, separated to God. Later, in Colossians 3:12, Paul reminds us that, because we’re holy, we should behave in ways that reflect God’s holiness. In other words, as those separated to God, we can respond differently to situations than those who don’t know Christ. Our calling allows us to see our circumstances as opportunities to glory God in a holy way.

Lord, thank You for providing a way for me to live that allows me to respond to life’s circumstances differently than those who don’t know You. Help me be mindful that I am a saint – holy and separated to You. 

from If God is In Control, Why Am I a Basket Case? 

Friends, many of you have replied that you miss the morning praise, so….how about we continue a few times a week and also look at who we are in Christ and God’s calling on our lives? And, thank you for your patience when you get a double email, as you did Saturday. I’m trying to fix a timing “bug.” Please don’t give up on me in the next day or two if you get duplicates. We WILL figure this out! 🙂 And, now, from Colossians….

“Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, To the saints and faithful brethren in Christ who are at Colossae: Grace to you and peace from God our Father.”

Colossians 1:1-2

“In Christ.”  The wording must have baffled the Christians in Colossae to which Paul wrote. Think about it. You would never say you were “in” your pastor. Yet, Paul wrote that believers are “in Christ.” What does he mean? We are more than residents “in” the city in which we live. We also reside “in Christ;” in the blessing of His holiness, His eternity, His grace, His favor, His empowering. Our praise extends beyond who God is, but also to what He has done for us.

Lord God, to be securely “in Christ” is an overwhelmingly grand thought. But it is more than a thought. It is a truth on which I can stand and for which I praise YOU!

from If God is In Control, Why Am I a Basket Case? 

Friends, I was going to send this to you via my E-Devotional, but decided since this is the way you are used to hearing from me, I’d post here.

Why use today to PRAISE GOD for what He did in 2013? Well, it is fitting, isn’t it? 🙂

But, also, just as God tells us to praise Him, He tells us to THANK HIM. Both commands, to praise and to thank Him, are not vain requests. He isn’t sitting on His holy throne saying, “Oh, I just love to hear how wonderful I am.” Far from it! God, who wired us, knows it’s spiritually, emotionally, and even physically unhealthy and unproductive when our minds are stuck in a loop of what we don’t have and don’t like. So, He tells us to look heavenward and be reminded that He’s present and can help us. Then, when He’s answered our prayer, it’s important to think on it and celebrate! So today, we celebrate what God had in mind long before we knew we were to be a part of 365 DAYS of PRAISE in 2013!

It began when I asked God how I could effectively manage my prayers. I would get requests and sometimes forget to pray for the person. I also knew I was supposed to thank God for His answers, but would often have trouble finding where I had recorded the request. God’s answer was the spreadsheet format of Prayers of My Heart. Once, after speaking in the Houston area, I visited Beth Moore’s class. She saw my journal, complimented it, and so I gave her one. Later, I prayed that if God could use it to help her organize her prayers, that He would prompt her to read it. A few weeks later, she called my ministry and ordered them for her staff and volunteers. Sometime later I went to my first writer’s conference and showed the journal and Beth’s endorsement to Howard Publishing. A few weeks later, they offered me 2 book contracts: one for the prayer journal and another for a book on prayer. Thus, Pray with Purpose, Live with Passion, which focuses on 26 of God’s A-Z attributes, was born.

BUT I COULDN’T STOP with 26. In my personal study, I soon collected 100, then 200, then 365 ways God revealed Himself. In 2012, the Lord prompted me – “Debbie, don’t hang on to it. Share it.” YOU, DEAR FRIEND have been a part of God’s unfolding plan.

So today we PRAISE GOD for all the OBSTACLES that HE OVERCAME such as:

* Me clicking on something and losing the formatting 2 days before kickoff. Praise the Lord, Jason Barnes, the graphic designer, and Feedblitz were able to re-install it.

* Scheduling attributes to go out several days ahead when I was out of the country and then they didn’t go out. But, praise the Lord, my daughter, Lauren, jumped in. God used her to forward them to you.

* As recently as last month, the whole thing shut down. We had no idea why. My hands were tied. All we could do was pray. It was finally figured out, although the days were messed up. But, at least you were able to receive them.  Thank You, Lord!

* And then, there were those days that I would come home from work or a retreat and think, “Oh! I haven’t done my 365 yet!” You see, I had not intended to write a devotional with each one. I had planned to schedule an attribute with the Scripture reference to go out for  the year . However, a few days before kickoff several people suggested that I write a short devotional. It sounds simple, but it wasn’t. Especially, when what should have taken 30 minutes often took an hour because my internet was down. Thank YOU, Lord!

So, we celebrate God’s goodness and thank Him for His faithfulness!  

Won’t it be thrilling when we stand before His throne and 365 and MORE attributes flow from our hearts in praise? 

WHAT NOW? Well, don’t be surprised if you find a little something in your inbox Monday. And, if you haven’t replied “YES” to let me know you want to be notified when 365 DAYS of PRAISE is available in a keepsake /reference book, you can reply “YES” now. You’ll be among the first to know!  

Love, Debbie

Hill Country Ministries, Spreading the Word and Love of God

260 Thompson Dr, Kerrville, TX 78028 

PO Box 290264, Kerrville, TX 78029-0264 (NEW MAILING ADDRESS)

Phone: 888.815.9412 or 830.257.5995