365 Days of Praise

“Our soul waits for the LORD; He is our help and our shield.”

Psalm 33:20

“Help is on the way.” It’s all I could think to say as I grabbed my purse and headed to the 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, “Help is on the way.” We may not see it. We may not know the exact moment, 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? HELP is on the way. “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,” Psalm 43:5.  

Lord God, You are my HELP. I praise You!

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“Therefore, you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”

Matthew 5:48

Perfect? As our heavenly Father is perfect? Gulp. Does Jesus’ statement cause you to take a step back, as it does me? What does He mean? It helps, as always, to take His statement in context. Jesus has been teaching the ways of God’s Kingdom; that they are different from our natural inclinations. For instance, in the verses prior to Him saying we are to be perfect, Jesus has said we’re to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us. “If you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others?” Mt 5:47. So when Jesus says we’re to be perfect, He is not implying that we’ll attain sinlessness this side of heaven. Rather, He is saying that we’re to be “mature and complete in the likeness of God.”* The point? We have a heavenly Father and He calls us to mature and be like Him, not the fallen world in which we live. 

HEAVENLY FATHER, I praise You and Your high, kingdom, holy ways!

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*Charles Ryrie, Ryrie Study Bible Expanded Edition, New American Standard Bible 1995 Update, pg 1521

“…is God the God of the Jews only? Is He not the God of the Gentiles also? Yes, of Gentiles also.”

Romans 3:29

Whew! And I don’t say that lightly. A thunderous applause should erupt upon hearing that God is not just the God of the Jews; but also of those who are not Jewish. Have you given a hearty praise to God for being your God?

GOD of the GENTILES, I praise You for including me in the blessings and inheritance given to the Jews. 

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“…regarding the resurrection of the dead, have you not read what was spoken to you by God: I AM THE GOD OF ABRAHAM, AND THE GOD OF ISAAC, AND THE GOD OF JACOB”? He is not the God of the dead but of the living.”

Matthew 22:31-32

Jesus is the one talking. He has just told those who were asking Him questions that they were mistaken about some things. Imagine that! That we humans might be mistaken about some things. Then Jesus used the Old Testament to rectify their thinking. To those who discount the importance of the Old Testament, please reconsider its relevancy. Jesus often quoted from it. And what did He quote? That GOD IS NOT THE GOD OF THE DEAD, BUT OF THE LIVING. Do you have a loved one who is no longer alive in your presence? Well, be assured on the basis of Jesus’s words – your loved one is alive. 

GOD of the LIVING, I praise You for receiving my loved one into your presence. Thank You that I will be alive in Your presence one day, also.

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“After you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself perfect, confirm, strengthen and establish you.”

1 Peter 5:10

Do you feel a bit dischelved? Perhaps incomplete or imperfect? Do you ever feel a bit shaky or wish you were stronger in your convictions and stable in your walk with the Lord? Do you ever wonder how God could love and forgive you?  GRACE. The answers to our questions are summed up in that one word.  Notice that 1 Peter 5:10 doesn’t say that we will one day pull ourselves up by our boot straps and viola, we’ll be perfect, confirmed, stengthened, and establised. Rather, the verse states, “God Himself will.”  The God of all grace has called us to His eternal glory in Christ and He will finish by grace what He began in grace. Remember: He’s the God of ALL grace.   

GOD of all GRACE, I love You and praise you! Thank You for calling me to eternal glory in Christ. Thank you for taking it upon Yourself to complete what You began – my perfection, confirmation, strengthening, and establishment in Christ Jesus.

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“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.”

Genesis 1:1

When we go to the beginning, to the very first way the ONE we worship is addressed, it is GOD; Elohim. Biblical scholar Charles Ryrie explains that it is “a generic term for deity as well as a proper name for the true god. Its basic meaning is ‘strong one, mighty leader, supreme Deity.’ The form of the word is plural, indicating plentitude of power and majesty and allowing for the NT revelation of the triunity of the Godhead.” That is the scholarly definition of the GOD we love and worship. But how would you explain who God is to you?

GOD, ELOHIM, we bow in worship and praise of You, for how You have revealed Your majesty to us; for how You’ve reached down and saved us; for how You will raise us up to be in Your presence one day. It is with unspeakable reverance we praise You!

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“Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest  for your souls.”“

Matthew 11:29

Gentle. The all powerful God is gentle?  What does Christ mean when He says He is gentle?  Another word is meek. It’s often explained as “power under control.” Although I can’t fully understand this great combination of attributes, I see a glimpse of them in my husband. Keith has great strength of character; yet he stoops down to pick a tiny flower amidst a field of grass in order to gently hand it to me on our walks. Moreso with Christ. While holding infite power, He offers us His gentle, humble heart where we find rest for our souls. He invites us to walk closely with Him and learn from Him. 

Lord Jesus, You are both strong and GENTLE! I praise You!

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YOU’RE INVITED! JOIN ME TODAY AT THE KERRVILLE KROC CENTER CHAPEL I’LL BE TEACHING 12:10-12:45 AND WOULD LOVE TO HAVE YOU JOIN US!

“For with You is the fountain of life; In Your light we see light.”

Psalm 36:9

When we come to God for new life in Christ, we do not come to a sippy cup by which we have to strain for a flow of refreshing life. We come to a fountain bursting and flowing, spashing, and dancing in the sunlight. “Come to Me and drink!” Jesus invites all. (John 7:37) And don’t stop drinking. God’s fountain flows from the “innermost being”** of the one who believes in Jesus  From where does the living water originate, we might ask? The FOUNTAIN of LIFE: GOD.  Thirsty? Dry? Maybe it’s because our view of God is as a sippy cup and it’s time for us to see Him as the FOUNTAIN. 

Lord, You are the FOUNTAIN of LIFE! Splash on me! Fill me up. Flow in and through me!

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*Blue Letter Bible, http://www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?Strongs=H4726&t=NASB, **John 7:38

“He is also head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything.”

Colossians 1:18

Today I went to a funeral. We celebrated the life of a dear woman who went to be with the Lord. She follows Christ, who is the firstborn from the dead. “Born from the dead.” Have you ever thought about what that means? Christians have a “new birth.” Before our salvation we are “dead in our trespasses and sins.” However, after we repent of our sins and confess Jesus as our Lord, we receive the Holy Spirit and are “born” from our dead state and made alive in Christ. What we experience internally in our spirit at the moment of salvation will be fully realized eternally at our bodily resurrection. Christ has led the way as the firstborn from the dead with a resurrection body. We can be sure that as He rose, we will follow Him and rise!

Lord God, I praise You, the FIRSTBORN FROM THE DEAD! 

“…in the forbearance of God He passed over the sins previously committed; for the demonstration, I say, of His righteousness at the present time, so that He would be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.”

Romans 3:25b-26.

Some people wrongly accuse God of not being tolerant. However, our faith is based on the tolerance* or forbearance of God.  It’s not that God is tolerant of sin.  Rather, sin is so “intolerable” to God that He sent Jesus to die for our sins so that we would be free of it.  However, in God’s forbearing love, He “passed over” or “paid for” sins even committed before Jesus died. The forebearing Lord is just. The forebearing Lord is the justifier (just as if I’d never sinned) of the one who has faith in Jesus. Do you have faith in Jesus for the forgiveness of your sins? Then you have reason to praise Him!

Lord God, I praise You for Your FORBEARANCE! You are great and merciful! 

TODAY IS CATCH UP DAY!  

 BE SURE TO RECORD GOD’S ATTRIBUTES IN YOUR PRAYERS OF MY HEART PRAYER JOURNAL. RECORDING IT HELPS PLANT GOD’S ATTRIBUTE IN YOUR MIND. PLUS, YOU’LL HAVE A TREASURE KEEPSAKE OF GOD’S 365 ATTRIBUTES AT THE END OF THE YEAR.  HERE’S MINE:

*”Forebearance,” http://www.blueletterbible.org