365 Days of Praise
Praise to the One Who Appoints
“Son of man, I have appointed you a watchman to the house of Israel; whenever you hear a word from My mouth, warn them from Me” (Ezekiel 3:17).
Have you ever considered that God appoints people, times, places, and more? Contemplate the following:
“So Sarah conceived and bore a son to Abraham in his old age, at the appointed time of which God had spoken to him,” Gen 21:2.
“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, And before you were born I consecrated you; I have appointed you a prophet to the nations,” Jer 1:5.
And the Lord appointed a great fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was in the stomach of the fish three days and three nights,” Jonah 1:17.
“So the LORD God appointed a plant and it grew up over Jonah to be a shade over his head to deliver him from his discomfort. And Jonah was extremely happy about the plant,” Jonah 4:6.
“He (Jesus) appointed twelve, so that they would be with Him and that He could send them out to preach, Mark 3:14.
“Take heed, keep on the alert; for you do not know when the appointed time will come,” Mark 13:33.
“And inasmuch as it is appointed for men to die once and after this comes judgment,” Hebrews 9:27.
Yes, God appoints times, people, places, events, and more. What has He appointed us to do? Read the Bible and we’ll find out!
Lord God, ONE WHO APPOINTS people, places, and times, rather than fret, help us accept Your appointed times and gratefully respond to that which You appoint us to do.
Praise to the One God
“For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.” (1 Timothy 2: 5).
We have to make a decision. We either believe what Jesus says about Himself or we don’t. In other words, we call Him a liar or we call Him Lord. Although we might want to say that there are many ways to heaven, that’s not what the Bible says; it’s not what Jesus claimed. And, no other prophet claimed to be God as Jesus did. No other prophet was killed and rose from the dead as Jesus did; His resurrection witnessed by hundreds.
There is one God, and one mediator between God and us, Jesus Christ. If you don’t yet know Him, get to know Him. The account of His life and even His words are recorded in the Bible. A good place to begin is the New Testament book of John. Before you read, you might want to say a simple prayer, “God, please help me see You and find You. If Jesus is Your true Son, open my heart, mind, and spirit to receive Him.”
Lord Jesus Christ, thank You for being the ONE GOD we can trust. We praise You and rejoice in the eternal life You give us.
Praise to OMNISCIENT CHRIST
“Nathanael said to Him, ‘How do You know me?’ Jesus answered and said to him, ‘Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.’”
Nathanael had never met Jesus and was stunned when Jesus said to him, “An Israelite in whom there is no deceit!” Jesus knew everything about Nathanael before they met. In awe, Nathaniel responded, “Rabbi, You are the Son of God; You are the King of Israel.” Jesus knows everything. He knew when Adam and Eve were trying to hide their shame behind fig leaves. He knew Nathanael as he sat under a tree, not being deceitful.
Fig leaves. Fig trees. It doesn’t matter what we’re wearing, where we’re standing, or what we’re saying. God knows us. Does that make you want to hide? And, He loves us. Does that make you rejoice? God’s love isn’t based on our character, but rather, on His character. He is love. Grace flows from His heart. We can be honest with God about our doubts, struggles, and sin. If we’ve been attempting to hide our shame, it’s time to shed the leaves and embrace the all knowing Christ.
Lord, You are the all knowing, OMNISCIENT Son of God! Thank You for loving us and extending grace to us. We worship You, Lord.
Praise to the Omega
“‘I am the Alpha and the Omega,’ says the Lord God, ‘who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty'” (Revelation 1:8).
Do you ever wonder what is going to happen in our world? If you know your Bible, it’s both comforting and sobering to realize that the end of the world, as we know it, is approaching. What comfort can we have as wars and rumors of war continue; as terrorism strikes far and near? Our comfort is that at the end, our Lord God, the Omega, will be there.
Lord, You are the Alpha and OMEGA, who is and who was and who is to come. Knowing that You will always be present with us is comforting.
If you have Prayers of My Heart prayer journal, take time today to go through it and highlight or record ways God has answered your prayers. It’ll encourage your heart to think on His faithfulness in the past and in the future.
Praise to Christ, Anointed with the Oil of Gladness
“But of the Son He says,
‘…Your God, has anointed You with the oil of gladness above Your companions'” (Hebrews 1:8-9).
When you think about Jesus, what do you picture in your mind? A body hanging on a cross? I hope not. Although we need to begin our relationship with Jesus by acknowledging His death on our behalf, there’s more to our relationship with Him. We also need to see Him resurrected, sitting at the right hand of the Father. And, by the way, He’s glad. He’s overjoyed! Why? The kingdom is His. He’s rendered the devil and death powerless (Hebrews 2:14). We’re saved. We’re safe in His presence, where we find fullness of joy.
If we realize that we’re dragging through our day and are discouraged, we can do something about it. We can look toward heaven and remember that the oil of gladness is flowing over Christ because salvation has come to us. We can ask Him to fill us with the oil of gladness so it pours through us to others.
Lord Jesus, we praise You for our salvation. Fill us with the OIL OF GLADNESS so others see and believe in You.
Praise to Christ, an OFFERING to GOD
“Walk in love, just as Christ also loved you and gave Himself up for us, an OFFERING and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma.”
Me. Me. Me. I. I. I. We probably won’t admit it, but in our innermost being we may be more self-centered than sacrificial. Our day may not begin with, “God, what do You want?” Rather, our first thought may be on what we want. Have you ever considered doing a 180: a turnaround based on Christ’s example? We’re told to “be imitators of God” and to walk in love, just as Christ….who gave Himself up as an OFFERING and sacrifice to God. The result? His life was a fragrant aroma to God. Why not follow His example? Offer our lives to God. Change from “Me Me Me” to “You, You, You, God.”
Christ Jesus, You are the ultimate example of being an OFFERING and sacrifice to God. Help me think and act like You.
*I pray that 365 DAYS of PRAISE is an encouragement to you. If so, please LIKE my ministry page HERE. Share these posts with others. Be the fragrance.
Praise to Christ, the NOBLEMAN
“While they were listening to these things, Jesus went on to tell a parable, because He was near Jerusalem, and they supposed that the kingdom of God was going to appear immediately. So He said, ‘A nobleman went to a distant country to receive a kingdom for himself, and then return;“
Jesus told a parable portraying Himself as a NOBLEMAN who went to a distant country to receive a kingdom for Himself and then return. Before He departed, the NOBLEMAN gave talents to His slaves; by which they were to carry on His business in His absence. Two of the slaves took seriously what the NOBLEMAN entrusted to them to use. When He returned, He honored them and entrusted more to them. But the NOBLEMAN said to the lazy servant who didn’t do anything with what He’d entrusted to him, “By your own words I will judge you, you worthless slave.” (Luke 19:22)
Let’s break this down. Jesus is heaven’s NOBLEMAN who came to earth. He’s entrusted spiritual gifts to us (believers); by which we’re to do His work while He’s in heaven. We’re either faithfully working on His behalf; doing the good works He’s prepared for us to do (Ephesians 2:10). Or, we’re being lazy like the unfaithful, wicked slave. Christ is heaven’s Nobleman. How faithfully are we serving His interests on earth?
Jesus Christ, NOBLEMAN of heaven, we pray we faithfully serve You with the gifts You’ve entrusted to us.
Praise to the Lord, Who is NEAR
“The LORD is NEAR to all who call on Him, to all who call on Him in truth.”
Jesus told His disciples He was going to die and ascend to His Father in heaven; but that He would NOT leave them as orphans. Jesus explained that He would send a Helper to them; and the Helper would not only be with them, He would be IN them. You can’t get more NEAR to someone than to be IN them. And, that is what we have. God’s Spirit is IN believers. NEAR. Not far away. NEAR. Not inaccessible. Call on God in sincerity and truth. He’s NEAR.
LORD, You are NEAR, not far removed. Thank You that we can call on You in sincerity and truth.
Praise to Jesus, NAME ABOVE NAMES
“There is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.”
“Why?” That was the question millennials asked me at a recent conference. Why this… Why that… “I guess that’s why we’re called the Y Generation,” a 29 year old explained. “We want to know why.”
Millennials, also known as the “Y Generation,” are those who were born during the 1980’s and early 1990’s. They’re the children of baby boomers. A characteristic of Generation Y is the desire to know why; rather than accept pat answers. In other words, just because a preacher, teacher, or parent says something, that doesn’t necessarily make it so; in their opinion. So, “Why believe in and follow Jesus?” Well, there’s a rather good reason, Peter says. Jesus proved to be more than man. People witnessed His crucifixion and death on the cross. People witnessed His burial. People witnessed His resurrection from the dead three days later. Jesus said He is the way, truth, and life. Peter spelled it out, “there is no other name under heaven that has been given by which we must be saved.” That’s why. It’s why we believe and respond in faith to Jesus. It’s why we repent of our sins. It’s why we gather to worship and praise Him. It’s why we daily think on who He is and commit to live for Him. There is no other name by which we are saved.
Jesus, name above all names, name by which we must be saved, we praise You. Your name is honey on our lips; sweet to our souls.
Praise to the Most High
Lord, MOST HIGH, give us eyes to see Your hand moving in our lives. Give us grateful hearts.
