In today’s reading of Revelation 4, John shares the worship that takes place to our God, who is on His throne. John shares the voices heard and the praise of a Heavenly Choir singing glorious praise to the only one who deserves it all.
Regardless of what comes upon us regarding tests and trials, as Christians, we know that our final outcome will be in the presence of this throne. If you believe, all places will lead to His Eternal Kingdom. Will you take a moment to repeat this praise to Our Heavenly Father?
8 “Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!”
11 “Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they existed and were created.”
Heavenly Fathe,- coming off Thanksgiving and having these special moments to praise you are the best part of my day. Lord, help us to focus more on You and less on ourselves. Let us know that this life and everything that happens daily come from you. Lor,d help us realize that everything we have is on loan and will one day be back in Your presence. You are worthy of our best every moment. Help us to give You that. Amen
12 The righteous will flourish like a palm tree,
they will grow like a cedar of Lebanon;
13 planted in the house of the Lord,
they will flourish in the courts of our God.
14 They will still bear fruit in old age,
they will stay fresh and green,
15 proclaiming, “The Lord is upright;
he is my Rock, and there is no wickedness in him.”
In reading the verses for today, I paused when I got to Psalm 92. I started to think about the warm beach and loved the connections the writer of Psalm made to palm trees. Palm trees have a very distinct root system compared to other trees. They have a fibrous root system. Palm trees are known for their long life. Flourishing for a palm tree would mean to live long. Palm trees can even bend 40 to 50 degrees without snapping and withstand hurricane-force winds. The cedars of Lebanon grew to 120 feet and up to 30 feet in circumference. Cedars are solid, strong, and immovable. These verses let us know that as believers, we will stay upright, firm, and immovable despite the winds of our circumstances.
Jesus warns us that those without strong roots are easily shaken by trials and fall away (Matthew 13:5-6, 20-21). Without strong roots, a Christian cannot endure the storms of life. The righteous, in contrast, are not easily shaken.
Where are your circumstances right now? Do you feel the breeze blowing? If you are going through your own storm right now, first know that God is with you. If you hold true to His promises, He wants us to come through stronger than before and ready to flourish. Stay strong, keep your faith firmly in God.
Lord, thank you for making me strong in You. I pray that whatever happens around us helps us remain strong. We ask that in the storms that will come, we use them to help us grow. You are working in and through our storms. Thank you, Lord, for keeping our mind and heart focused on You. Amen
Today’s Readings: Ezekial 34-36, Psalm 86, John 12
11 Teach me your way, Lord, that I may rely on your faithfulness;
give me an undivided heart, that I may fear your name.
12 I will praise you, Lord my God, with all my heart; I will glorify your name forever. 13 For great is your love toward me; you have delivered me from the depths, from the realm of the dead.
Do you remember what it was like to feel dead? Have you ever experienced moments where you felt useless, lost, or confused? I have.
David’s prayer on today’s readings was a prayer I’ve prayed for many nights, days, and moments when I’m seeking direction. This prayer is one I pray today. His Word can take a divided heart and mind and point you in a direction where you can find hope, peace, and truth. Every day, I try to remember to invite the Lord into the moments I open His Word. I ask Him to show me all I need to hear, all I need to know to take my heart that can feel divided towards my desires and help me understand, believe, and obey.
I seek God to answer my anxious thoughts, prayers, and struggles. I’ve realized the closer I grow to Him and the more I seek Him, the more I have less of a divided heart. Teach me and unite my heart. Cast your worries on Him and choose to be thankful. Lord, I pray You will help us walk in Your truth and Fear Thy Name. No matter how close we are to our Lord, we can always ask Him for ways to increase our awareness and improve our obedience. Lord, help me always to know You will provide and are the source of my hope and joy. Will you commit this prayer to memory with me?
10 And they will know that I am the Lord; I did not threaten in vain to bring this calamity on them.
The phrase “and they will know that I am the Lord” occurs 65 times in the book of Ezekial. The Lord doesn’t say this to show His ability to get revenge but to impress upon the people that the Lord is the only true Living God. Many people in Ezekials day were worshipping man-made idols and calling them gods. Today, I could say that we all have many idols that can preoccupy and take our focus away from our faithful God, who determines our eternity. As I reflect on the difficulties I have caused, I think about how I placed other small gods before the source of my eternal life and love.
Even as we read in John 2 today towards the end of the chapter, Jesus knows we ride the struggle bus daily. That our human nature falls short. In this life, some will have a superficial faith. In times of joy, we sing praise, while we can seem lost in the trials.
24 But Jesus would not entrust himself to them, for he knew all people. 25 He did not need any testimony about mankind, for he knew what was in each person.
Heavenly Father, I pray we stay focused on you through it all. Lord, help us remain strong and connected to you as the worldly idols pull at human hearts and minds. Lord, we can not do this life without You. There is nothing more important in our life than you. Thank you, Lord, for sharing Your Word that keeps us grounded and reminds us that there are no idols on this Earth that will fulfill our longing in our hearts besides Your love and grace. ~ Amen
Today’s Readings: Jeremiah 21, 34, 37, Psalm 79, James 5
In each passage from today, I read about the daily prayers given and asked for others. The true conversation with the Lord is available every day.
Dear Heavenly Father,
As I read these passages today, I feel grateful and blessed by the grace you have given us. These passages remind me of your comfort in every conversation with You and how I feel security, strength, peace, identity, and hope. Lord, you have provided everything we need for this day. You have provided a 24/7 time we can come to you in prayer. Lord, I ask for those gentle touches when I stray. When I think I have it figured out, when I’m too proud when I’ve lost my way. Lord, please humble, comfort, and remind me to go to You in prayer and nowhere else.
Father, I come boldly before Your throne of grace, thanking and praising You for this day. This is the day You have made; therefore, I shall rejoice and be glad in it! You said that if we acknowledge You in all our ways, You will direct our paths in every situation. Let us commit everything to You, Lord. Amen
From the time we wake up until the moment we fall asleep, there is decision after decision to be made. There is a question we all live out, including what we will do in the next 24 hours.
The world offers plenty of options. I can reach for my phone, go to the fridge, work out, turn on t.v., cater to my kids, the list can go on and on, looking different for each of us.
Today’s Reading: 2 Corinthians 8,
8 I am not commanding you, but I want to test the sincerity of your love by comparing it with the earnestness of others.
Today, test the sincerity of your heart. Where will you put your time, mind, heart, actions, and words? Paul was reminding the Corinthians and us to
7. excel in everything—in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in complete earnestness and in the love we have kindled in you[a]—see that you also excel in this grace of giving.
Sadly this test I have and will fail over and over again. I am so grateful for His grace. I pray that I look to Him every day from the moment I wake up to the moment I fall asleep. Even though the world may paint the picture that we serve ourselves, I pray for the heart and sincerity to love others. To point everyone to God, who sent His son to die for us all to walk in the grace provided to me today.
And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ.
Save me, O God, for the waters have come up to my neck. 2 I sink in the miry depths, where there is no foothold. I have come into the deep waters; the floods engulf me.
The fear of drowning is real. I know the pressure I feel when I try to show my kids how long or far I can hold my breath underwater. The feeling of not being able to gasp for breath. Did you know that when you dream of drowning, it is usually related to having too many things going on?
Psalm 69 – The psalmist David provides a vivid picture of a person dealing with so many pressing issues at once that he feels as if he were drowning. David was inspired to prophesy more details of Jesus’ agony at this separation from His Father.
Let’s take water away and think of our lifestyle. Have you ever felt you were metaphorically drowning? I know I have. Maybe it’s the start of a school year? A season of crazy with your kids’ schedules? A new job with all new expectations? Medical bills? Paperwork? We have all been there at some time.
Even Jesus felt like He was drowning when living on Earth. It seems impossible to even fathom what Jesus had to endure. When facing all the attacks and drowning struggles, Jesus prayed to His Father.
But I pray to you, Lord, in the time of your favor;
in your great love, O God, answer me with your sure salvation.
14 Rescue me from the mire, do not let me sink;
deliver me from those who hate me, from the deep waters.
15 Do not let the floodwaters engulf me or the depths swallow me up
or the pit close its mouth over me.
So many things vie for our attention in our complex world. Take a moment to lift your head out of the water and pray to our Father. He is loving and full of grace. He knows everything we have done and will do and still calls us by name. There are days when we can feel like we are drowning. Turn to our Lord to be rescued.
God provides a space to breathe and live. God saves his people from drowning.
33 The Lord hears the needy and does not despise his captive people.
You keep him in perfect peace where mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you. Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord God is an everlasting rock. Isaiah 26: 3-4
Oh, how I love moments of perfect peace. The time of calmness and gentle security you can feel with no distractions. I’m sure this idea of perfect peace would look different to each of us. Our daily invisible wars can involve marital issues, child raising, finances, and health issues. The internal wars we face can capture our minds leading to anxiety, depression, anger, and fear. The distracting barrage of things that come at us pulls us away from this perfect peace unless we are intentional.
Peace = the freedom from disturbance
Sometimes we need to step back and remember whose we are. Here are some action steps we can take to find this perfect peace more often in our lives.
🅿 = Pray for the peace of God. Pray right now. E– Exercise Faith and Trust in His Will for the moments, days, and years.
🅰 = Anchor your life to the Lord. Always connected. C = Choose peaceful thoughts. Submit all impure thoughts to Him. E = Enter into His word daily.
Psalm 65 5. By awesome deeds you answer us with righteousness, O God of our salvation, the hope of all the ends of the earth and of the farthest seas; 6 the one who by his strength established the mountains, being girded with might; 7 who stills the roaring of the seas, the roaring of their waves, the tumult of the peoples, 8 so that those who dwell at the ends of the earth are in awe at your signs. You make the going out of the morning and the evening to shout for joy.
As I start my 25th year as an educator, I still get so excited, like it is my first day. My wife will jokingly tell me I am the only one who gets that way still. I remind her that I know many other parents who are counting down the days until school starts. (We did have a blast making the short trips around time and just being together as we did some travels.)
For myself, as we work towards the end of the summer, it is often a time of reflection. What happened? What did we learn as a family over the summer? Were there any highlight moments? The start of the summer did present itself with an opportunity to move my family. It was hard to think of these changes. I have been pretty content, but looking to do or need more based on selfish and earthly family dreams. My ongoing prayer was for God to put me exactly where HE wanted me. For now, it is still here. Doing all I love. These reflective moments brought me to today’s verses on judgment and hope. Sins of selfishness brought me to my knees when I expected everything to go how I wanted things. I, I, I was a repeat in various places. Today’s verses reminded me about earthly idols that can impact every person. These verses also reminded me about our Savior, who died to wash me clean. To wash you clean.
I reflected upon everything I saw. Lots of selfishness in so many of my decisions, looking more at things of this world and trying to live in this earthly world instead of looking towards Heaven. I lost sight of His glory and looked to my own success or trying to please others.
These verses help remind me about God’s promises of not only judgment but hope.
Isaiah 1:18 “Come now, let us settle the matter,”
says the Lord. “Though your sins are like scarlet,
they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson,
they shall be like wool. 19 If you are willing and obedient,
you will eat the good things of the land;
Do the idols in life sometimes get too big to where you can fall into disobedience? Pray for obedience daily.
8. Their land is full of idols; they bow down to the work of their hands,
to what their fingers have made. 9 So people will be brought low
and everyone humbled— do not forgive them. (watch for idols we can create with our hands)
11 The eyes of the arrogant will be humbled and human pride brought low;
the Lord alone will be exalted in that day. 12 The Lord Almighty has a day in store for all the proud and lofty, for all that is exalted. (judgment will come)
10 Those who know your name trust in you, for you, Lord, have never forsaken those who seek you. (trust and seek Him always – He is not of this world)
(Matthew reminds us what is truly the most important. )
36 “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” 37 Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’[c] 38 This is the first an greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’[d] 40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
As I read through our readings for the day, I was reminded of the inherited influences left for me. Now there was no royalty involved or finances that could come close to this lifestyle, but I remember plenty of things that have impacted me throughout growing up and into my “adult” life. I wish I could say that everything growing up pointed to the Lord. That would not be true. In fact, there were many complicated things that I faced that were attached to sin. This would then impact the choices that I would make growing up. In today’s reading, Kingdoms were affected. In my world, parents, siblings, and friends were impacted by my selfish, prideful, and insecure self. It wasn’t until I started an authentic relationship with the Lord that some of these choices changed. I pray that I can stay away from slipping back into these same sinful decisions each day.
2 Kings 13-14
2 He did what was evil in the sight of the Lord and followed the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, which he made Israel to sin; he did not depart from them.
In our reading today, we see Kings who followed the ways they were taught before they reigned. We read about Kings who decided to go against the Lord’s ways. ( Not a good idea.)
As a husband, father, sibling, and friend, I pray that I continue to live out and point to the Lord.
Psalm 53
The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.”
They are corrupt, doing abominable iniquity;
there is none who does good.
2 God looks down from heaven
on the children of man
to see if there are any who understand,[b]
who seek after God.
Lesson learned from previous Kings.
Remembering that open defiance against God may bring temporary gain but will also bring conflict, fear, and ultimately painful defeat.
We learn that it is in futility that we attempt to “recreate” worship of God in the way that we want to do it. This counterfeit worship only leads to destruction.
Israel had many kings, but they were not the ultimate authority in Israel. Instead, God’s covenant word was the absolute authority.
Matthew 12
33 “Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or make the tree bad and its fruit bad, for the tree is known by its fruit. 34 You brood of vipers! How can you speak good, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. 35 The good person out of his good treasure brings forth good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure brings forth evil. 36 I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, 37 for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.”
