365 Days of Praise

Have you ever been called a “gift” because of who you are and what you give to others? Second Corinthians 9:15   describes Jesus in this way. “Thanks be to God for His INDESCRIBABLE GIFT.” What is the indescribable gift? Jesus Christ laying down His life so we could be heirs of heaven!!! However, there is so much more to the INDESCRIBABLE GIFT. There’s the grace, righteousness, and fruits of the Holy Spirit we receive in salvation! Who is the recipient of God’s INDESCRIBABLE GIFT? Everyone who repents and confesses Jesus as Lord. YOU!

And, along with God’s indescribable gift of Himself and all that entails, we have the gift of our mothers. So to all the mothers out there, a great big Happy Mother’s Day from my heart to yours!

Thank You, Heavenly Father and Jesus, God’s INDESCRIBABLE GIFT! 

Have you ever been overwhelmed with new information yet tried to process it all as best as you could? No doubt, that’s how Christ’s friends felt. They had heard Jesus’s sermon on the mount. That was pretty upside down. Meek inherit the earth. Blessed are the peacemakers. Not warriors???  Deny yourself? Take up your cross?  Certainly they must have had private chats among themselves after Jesus downloaded kingdom principles for their “best life.” However, one of the more overwhelming teaching to process must have been about the Holy Spirit. That He, the Holy Spirit, would come to them and help them. Imagine their questions!  Their frame of reference for the HOLY SPIRIT was God anointing a select few Old Testament people to accomplish divine work on earth. Names like Elijah and Elisha most certainly came to their minds. But them? Common fishermen? Tax collectors? Dazed and confused might have described the disciples as they listened to Jesus tell them God the Father would send the Holy Spirit to them. That the HOLY SPIRIT would teach them all things and bring to their remembrance all Jesus said to them.  That the HOLY SPIRIT would empower them to live in a way that bore witness to Christ. (Acts 1:8)  HOLY. SPIRIT. Isn’t that what God knows we need? A Holy Spirit? So God did just that –  sent His Holy Spirit – the Who, not “it” to live in us. Are we treating His heavenly presence in us as a welcomed, Holy guest? Are we giving Him reign over our lives? Are we yielding to His prompts? Are we asking Him to overwhelm us so we glorify our Heavenly Father and Lord Jesus Christ?

“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,  thank You for the incredible blessing of the Holy Spirit. We ask for the Holy Spirit to fill us, to overwhelm us so Christ is preeminent in our lives.   

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 us is overwhelming. Thank You, merciful Ancient of Days. 

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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.

“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…”Isaiah 6:1-4a.  

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!

Things aren’t always what they seem.  And just 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 concluded, “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. So the moment was really, “God’s plan succeeded. Jesus accomplished His mission.”  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 you feel like a failure and that God’s plan isn’t working, remember Christ on the cross. A moment doesn’t define you. It may be a step forward. Look up and pray in faith. Ask your Heavenly Father, who can move mountains and bring success out of defeat, to work positive changes in your circumstances. Walk by the promptings of His Spirit.

NOTE to Moms: (Or anyone who has a mom or loves a mom.) Hey Mom, we can sometimes (or often) feel like a failure. God knows how many times we fail and cry out to Him for forgiveness, strength, “overs,” wisdom, protection for our children, and that they will come to know Him as Savior and Lord. If you can relate, I encourage you to get my book, “The Plan A Mom in a Plan B World.” (Different book from The Plan A WOMAN in a Plan B World) I had mom friends of all ages/stages share personal stories that will encourage you and provide practical/spiritual tips. The discussion questions at the end of each chapter make it a great resource for mom groups, also. $7.49 Mother’s Day special.

We praise You, Lord Jesus, HIGH, and LIFTED UP, greatly exalted. We can’t wait to see You face to face! 

PS: If you aren’t getting my monthly Kidz Time devotional activity for your kids to watch, get it here and spread the word. It’s free. It’s fun! Subscribe & it’ll be delivered to your inbox monthly. A great Saturday morning or rest time activity. 

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.” 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 wit’s 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.