365 Days of Praise

Have you ever seen the look in a child’s eyes when they were startled or afraid because they couldn’t see where their parent was? On the other hand, have you seen a child who is afraid look for and find their father and run to him? Have you heard a child cry for their parent?  If so, consider Romans 8:15 that says believers have “

received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, ‘ABBA FATHER.

 Abba Father can be translated Daddy. So what does Romans 8:15 imply? It tells us that our relationship with God is tender and close. God has chosen to come close to us. He has chosen to embrace us. He has chosen to get into human skin so we can see and smell Him. We can watch and learn from Him. We can run to Him as children ran to Jesus and He embraced and blessed them. He protected and defended them. Our Heavenly Father and Lord Jesus Christ deeply care for us. In a world that sometimes seems to have gone mad, it’s reassuring to know that we have a Heavenly Father. Although we may be startled or afraid at times due to the events in our life, nation, or world we can look to our Father and assured that He’s watching out for and over us.

Heavenly Father, ABBA FATHER, thank You for adopting us into Your family. When we fear, turn our eyes to You. Help us walk confidently through our day assured that You’ve got us. 

Happy New Year! By the way, who was it that decided time would be marked by years? Hmmm – have you ever thought about that and that when we celebrate a new year, we’re celebrating what our Almighty Creator established?  Yes, Genesis 1:14 states that at the creation of the world, God said,

Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night, and let them be for signs and for seasons and for days and years. 

“Year” and “years” are mentioned over 800 times in the Bible. The Bible records the number or years people lived, the years people were in captivity, the number of years rulers reigned, and on and on. In God’s eyes, the first day of a new year is not simply another day. It has past, present, and future value.  Consider a sampling of how God keeps note of years:

Genesis 7:11 In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, on the seventeenth day of the month, on the same day all the fountains of the great deep burst open, and the floodgates of the sky were opened.

Genesis 18:14 Is anything too difficult for the LORD? At the appointed time I will return to you, at this time next year, and Sarah will have a son.”

Leviticus 27:24 ‘In the year of jubilee the field shall return to the one from whom he bought it,

Numbers 10:11 Now in the second year, in the second month, on the twentieth of the month, the cloud was lifted from over the tabernacle of the testimony

2 Kings 25:27 Now it came about in the thirty-seventh year of the exile of Jehoiachin king of Judah

1 Samuel 27:7 The number of days that David lived in the country of thePhilistines was a year and four months.

Isaiah 6:1 In the year of King Uzziah’s death I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, …with the train of His robe filling the temple.

Years have significance to our Heavenly Father. He ordains events for certain years. He marks them. He takes note of them and uses people who are sensitive to His call. Rather than letting today come and go with perhaps some passing thoughts about resolutions, let’s pray to our Heavenly Father with anticipation about what He has in store for this year and how we can be a part of what He is accomplishing.

Heavenly Father, how exciting that You, Creator God, set years, months, and days in which to accomplish Your will. Use us! Let us be a part of the unfolding of Your eternal plan.  

Prayers of My Heart

Last year innocent people were killed. Covide didn’t go away as hoped. You made it through one storm and another hit. Are you ready for the new year?  If so, may I recommend how Psalm 61:3 describes God.

You have been a refuge for me, a tower of strength against the enemy.”

A tower is a high place from which we can look at life and see it from God’s perspective. The spiritual tower of prayer is the place from where we can pray, pour out our heart to God, intercede for others, and quietly listen for His counsel. If we want to experience God’s best next year, we can. Our Father is a tower of strength and refuge to whom we can go.  Start the New Year strong…with your face set like flint toward heaven, with your pen in your hand ready to write words of praise to your Father and intercessions for your family, church, nation, friends, and yes, yourself.  The Bible is a journal of God’s interactions with man, of people’s struggles, and God’s faithful interventions and merciful hand. Your copy of Prayers of My Heart becomes your journal of God’s interactions with you, of your struggles, and God’s faithful interventions and merciful hand. I encourage you to get a journal. Why? Because it’s a spiritual, emotional, mental game changer. Take a glance at the benefits of journaling. I also have a Quick Start Video on how to get started, a Quick Start Guide, or you can watch my conference Starting Strong with 2020 Vision. Begin the new year with a new approach – journaling with God.

What Others Are Saying- scroll down

Jesus, tower of strength and refuge, we praise You. When we don’t know how we can get through the next minute, You help us get through the next year. You are our strength and help. Thank You for all the ways You guarded and guided us this past year. We look to this coming year with joy and hope because of You.  

As you look at the past year, are your thoughts, “It’s been great!” Or are your thoughts more along the lines of, “It’s been a rough year”? Perhaps the “rough” is related to health issues, finances, work, your marriage, children, parents, friendships. It may be related to your frustration with yourself, that you continue to struggle with the same issues. Whatever the case, God wants us to be mindful of the fact that just as He was there for us in the past, He’ll be there for us in the new year.  That’s something for which to be grateful!

Why not be intentional about developing a more grateful attitude in the new year? Why bother? Consider – who would you rather be around? A negative person or a grateful person; someone who takes advantage of your kindness or someone who expresses their appreciation?   Psalm 63:4 says,

“I will bless You as long as I live; I will lift up my hands in Your name.”  

Are you daily blessing the Lord by recalling what He does for you each day? I’m not referring to generalities such as, “Thank you, God, for this food and our home and family,” although we should express our appreciation to God for those things. Rather, I’m referring to blessing the Lord by gratefully celebrating how He has worked in your day and in the lives of those for whom you have prayed. I hope you have a copy of  Prayers of My Heart journal so you can begin the new year daily lifting your hands in praise, lifting your pen to paper and journaling God’s character trait and what He has done each day. It is not too late to order.  Make this next year distinct by making it the year you daily bless God with your thanks.

Here’s a good place to start: Our Heavenly Father is

“just and justifierof the one who has faith in Jesus.” Romans 3:26

We bless you, Lord, for being both just and for being our justifier. We are so grateful!

LISTEN

Jesus is the Son of Man who knows what it is to live in human skin. However, what is inside of Him is different from us. His innermost being is holy glowing purity.  Revelation 2:18-20a describes the ascended Christ as having eyes like a flame of fire and feet like burnished bronze. Revelation 1:16 describes His face as

the sun shining in its strength.

Imagine that visual for a minute. Jesus’s face like the sun shining in its strength. Following these magnificent other worldly descriptions of Jesus, we’re told that Jesus, the Son of God, says this,

“I know your deeds, and your love and faith and service and perseverance, and that your deeds of late are greater than at first,, but I have this against you that you tolerate the woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess, and she teaches and leads My bond-servants astray so that they commit acts of immorality and eat things sacrificed to idols. I gave her time to repent, and she does not want to repent of her immorality.”

Yes, Jesus is the Good Shepherd and He is slow to anger, but we must never forget that He is also the Son of God reigning in glory. He sees our deeds and what we tolerate that is against Him. Is there anything we need to repent of before we ask Him for His continued blessings?

LISTEN

Do you ever wish you had more support at work? Perhaps you wish you had support parenting your children. Or, you may wish you had a supportive spouse or friend. I remember a night long ago when I realized that God was my support. I was in a position where no one could help me. It wasn’t that they wouldn’t. It was that I had to go through something by myself. I was lonely and didn’t know what to do. It was just God and me. During that time I found that I wasn’t without help. God was with me. He was my support. As 2 Samuel 22:19  says,

They confronted me in the day of my calamity, but the Lord was my Support.

If you’re looking for support today and don’t have it, it can be lonely. In some cases, terrifying. In reality, though, you do have support. You may be at a time in your life like I was – where God is allowing you to get to a new place with Him, a deeper place, a more real relationship. Jesus is not causing your loneliness, rather He is there for you in it. Remember, if anybody knows what it’s like to go through something alone, He does. If anyone knows what it is to be misunderstood, it’s Him. When you pray you’re talking to a friend who loves you and can appreciate what you’re going through. I guess that’s why Jesus went away by Himself to pray early in the mornings – to get his thoughts straightened out while talking to his Father. If you’ve been blessed with a father or someone you’ve been able to talk things over with, then you know how helpful it can be to talk things out. That’s the same relationship you can have with your Heavenly Father. Just start talking like you would to a trusted person. Now here’s the key we often overlook. Have your Bible and a notepad and pen close by. When Jesus brings thoughts or a verse to your mind, jot them down. Think deeply on the verse. Act on what he brings to mind. Be assured that if David found the Lord to be supportive, you can find him to be supportive, too.

Radiant! You look radiant. Do people say that when they see you? Does the glow on your face cause them to comment? If you said no, neither has anyone said that about me. Guess who that is said about, though? Jesus. Hebrews 1:3 describes Him in this way:

 “He is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of His nature,…”  Hebrews 1:3

The word “radiance” is only used 5 times in the Bible and in each instance refers to God. Commentator Vines defines God’s “radiance” as “shining forth, of a light coming from a luminous body.” Isn’t that exciting? One day we will see Jesus and His radiance. So remember that when things around you are dark, Jesus isn’t. Nothing can extinguish His radiance. One glorious day we’ll join those who are living in God’s radiance. We’ll fall on our knees overwhelmed by what we see. That day is coming when we go to Jesus or when He returns through the clouds. Keep watching and living for Him!

Heavenly Father and Lord Jesus, our hearts are overwhelmed when we think of how we will one day stand in Your radiance.  We praise You and look forward to that day! 

“He’s coming with a sleigh and reindeer.” That’s what some parents tell their children about Santa and kids get excited in anticipation of his arrival. But hey, believers! The real gift-giver from above is coming in the clouds and not with a sleigh and reindeer. Rather, Christ will come with the armies of heaven following Him. (Revelation 19:14) Rather than wearing a human made santa suit, Revelation 19:16 describes Christ’s robe and what is written on it:

on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, ‘KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.’

Christ’s coming isn’t a fairy tale. It’s a fact. It’s incredible and beyond exciting.  As Old Testament believers once looked forward to the day the Messiah would come, believers look forward to the day Jesus will return to earth in glory. How magnificent that will be!

Christ Jesus, LORD OF LORDS, we bow in worship and praise You, King of Kings. 

Do you ever feel empty or drained? What about anxious or uptight? Does mad or angry better describe you? Or sad and melancholy? Whatever our condition, whatever our need, we have a SUPPLIER. Short on perseverance? Ready to give up or cave in? Feel like you’re going to blow a fuse? Don’t know how you’ll ever smile again? Those are temporary feelings that we can have at times. But if we’re a Christian, we have hope. God offers to SUPPLY all our needs according to HIS RICHES in GLORY in CHRIST JESUS. Don’t tightly hold on to any angry or discouraged feelings. Rather, open your heart and hand. Take hold of what you need through God’s SUPPLY of glorious riches in Christ Jesus.

“And my God will SUPPLY all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”   Philippians 4:19

Do you agree that our world is filled with a variety of gods to which we give our time, energy, and money? What kinds of gods? Sports gods, education gods, work gods, money gods, pleasure gods, political gods, and social gods to name a few. In effect, we worship them when they become the driving force in our life, occupy our thoughts, and even affect our mood.  However Jesus makes it clear in John 17:3 that there is only one TRUE GOD. He is to be the object of our love and passion. He is to occupy and control our thoughts, emotions, energy, and resources. We are to love the LORD with ALL our heart, and ALL our soul, and ALL our mind. (Mark 12:30)  And, importantly, as He states in John 17:3, He is the way to eternal life.  

This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only TRUE GOD, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent. 

What or whom do we worship and therefore give power to in our lives?