Dec 24 Search my heart

Father, through Zechariah, You told the people of Bethel that it was not simply the observance of anniversaries, holy festivals, feasts and fasting, which pleased You.  It is the condition of my heart that You are concerned with.

While it is true that those things can be done as acts of worship to honor You, the Lord Almighty; they can also be done for the sake of the activity.  You alone know the hearts of the people involved; whether they participate to please themselves or to honor You. 

Father, today help me examine myself.  Search my heart, look at my motives.  Do not let me simply “go through the motions.”  Fill my spirit! 

When I praise You, I will do it with a full and sincere heart.

When I give money or time or energy, I will do it gladly as an act of worship.

When I read Your Word, I will do it with an open mind and spirit to hear and receive what You have to say to me.

When I feast or fast, I will do it not for the recognition of others, but for an audience of One – You.

And whether I am celebrating Christmas or Passover I will do it with sensitivity to the spiritual meaning, not just what history or the world has made it to be.

Father, I acknowledge and thank You for Your deeds.  I celebrate and trust the way You do things.  I don’t always understand, because Your ways are not my ways – but I trust them.  And I cannot wait until every knee bows to You, and every tongue confesses that You, indeed, are Lord!  Amen!

Zechariah 7:1-14

Dec 24 Search my heart

Father, through Zechariah, You told the people of Bethel that it was not simply the observance of anniversaries, holy festivals, feasts and fasting, which pleased You.  It  is the condition of my heart that You are concerned with.

While it is true that those things can be done as acts of worship to honor You, the Lord Almighty; they can also be done for the sake of the activity.  You alone know the hearts of the people involved; whether they participate to please themselves or to honor You. 

Father, today help me examine myself.  Search my heart, look at my motives.  Do not let me simply “go through the motions.”  Fill my spirit! 

When I praise You, I will do it with a full and sincere heart.

When I give money or time or energy, I will do it gladly as an act of worship.

When I read Your Word, I will do it with an open mind and spirit to hear and receive what You have to say to me.

When I feast or fast, I will do it not for the recognition of others, but for an audience of One – You.

And whether I am celebrating Christmas or Passover I will do it with sensitivity to the spiritual meaning, not just what history or the world has made it to be.

Father, I acknowledge and thank You for Your deeds.  I celebrate and trust the way You do things.  I don’t always understand, because Your ways are not my ways – but I trust them.  And I cannot wait until every knee bows to You, and every tongue confesses that You, indeed, are Lord!  Amen!

Zechariah 7:1-14

May 10 The Best Parent

O Father, how many times have I behaved like the Israelites here, and asked for something so I could be like everyone else?  Instead of trusting Your will and the plan You had for me, I settled for what You allowed because I asked for it.

So many times the wisdom of the world seems right.

It makes sense to the mind.  It pleases the eye.  It pacifies the emotions.  But one can follow logic and still be dead wrong.   A person can feel like things are going well, when they are not.  Things can look good, but be rotten to the core.  This is proven each time someone is tricked or duped; because we trust our eyes and our logic.

But You, Father, can see the end from the beginning.  You have a perspective that I do not.

I protect my child when I prevent them from a danger I can see that they cannot.  To them, it may feel like I am restricting them, not protecting them.   Hopefully as they grow, they trust my judgment until they can see the dangers for themselves.

And sometimes, I need to let them make their own choices, even if they are unwise, in order to learn for themselves.  For instance, when you eat a tube of raw cookie dough, there are unpleasant consequences, even though it tastes really good during the eating part.

Though I like to think of myself as independent and smart enough to make wise decisions, I have learned that simply lining up pros and cons and judging by worldly standards is not the only or the best method.

I have access to the God who created the universe!  You have wisdom I could never in a million years attain.   And praises to You, You are willing to share it with me!

Father, when I want something, remind me to examine my motive. Help me discern what is best from Your perspective.

Give me godly understanding that surpasses the world’s view.  And help me accept that wisdom if it turns out that what I think I want is not the right thing.  Help me wait for the best thing.  Teach me to be wise.  Amen

I Samuel 8:1-22

Nov 20 While here on earth

Father, how I long for the day when I will be in Your presence for all eternity.  My real home is with You.  I long to sit at Your feet, to see You face to face, to wrap my arms around You and rest in Yours.

But for now, I must be here.

And not just with You, but with billions of other imperfect people like myself, who I need to learn to get along with.  Father, James tells me I need to live in this world, but not be friends with it.

I need to relate to people, but without speaking badly of them or judging them.

I need to suppress the desires within me that might cause me to selfishly fight and quarrel with others when I don’t get my way.

And I need to recognize the devil and resist him.

Thank You for placing Your Holy Spirit in me to help with all these things.  Thank You for the grace You extend to me.  James tells me the key is to submit to You and humble myself.

So Father, I submit myself to You.  I give You my plans.  Take the days of my life that You have already numbered, and show me how to live each one.  Do not let me get ahead of You.  And do not let me lag behind.  I trust Your timing for all of it.

I draw near to You Father, and ask You to search me and remove any desires that are not godly.  If I ask for the wrong thing, or ask with a wrong motive, show me where I have messed up.  If I become too attached to the things of the world, wean me from that dependence.  For with You, I have all I need.

Father, examine my relationships.  If there are any that do not serve Your purposes, then help me let them go.  If I am quarreling with anyone, or am out of fellowship with them, show me what caused it, Your plan for the relationship, and how to make it right again.

And when I am tempted by the devil, let me clearly see the “hook” beneath the lure he is dangling before me.  Strengthen me to resist, and turn away from that trap.

As long as You have me living here on the earth, Lord, guide and strengthen me.  Help me overcome my flesh and the evil one and the pull of the world.  I choose to hold my possessions, my relationships, my plans loosely so I can follow Your will.  Grant me success.  Amen

James 4:1-12

Mar 22 Can I get a Witness?

Lord what a seemingly complex system You dictated to the Israelites for justice.

You have told us before that the shedding of innocent blood pollutes the land, and that the blood has a voice.

You heard the voice of Abel’s blood calling to You from the ground and confronted Cain.   Here, one who kills with intent is a murderer and is to be put to death by the blood avenger.  The blood avenger is the male relative closest to the one who was murdered.  He is to avenge the blood that was wrongly taken.

If there is a question about the motive, whether there was intention to kill or not, the one who killed can flee to a City of Refuge to stand trial, and be safe there from the blood avenger.  At the trial, no one is to be put to death on the testimony of less that two witnesses.

Today, we call a ”witness” to testify as to what they “saw.”  However, they have no way of judging the intent, or what was in the mind of the person accused.

But in the Hebrew culture, one teaching suggests that a “witness” is one who has already

• confronted the potentially guilty party,
• explained to them what they were doing is wrong,
• and the penalty they will bear if they proceed.

Thus, they can testify that the accused was aware that what they were doing was wrong, and that they had been warned of the penalty.  If the accused proceeded with the act, it was with volition and intent.

Father, I pray You would send witnesses into my life if I begin to stray down a path leading to sin.  Stop me in my tracks and confront me with the realization of where I am headed, so I can turn around before it’s too late.

Numbers 35:1-34

Nov 20 While here on earth…

Father, how I long for the day when I will be in Your presence for all eternity.  My real home is with You.  I long to sit at Your feet, to see You face to face, to wrap my arms around You and rest in Yours.

But for now, I must be here.

And not just with You, but with billions of other imperfect people like myself, who I need to learn to get along with.  Father, James tells me I need to live in this world, but not be friends with it.

I need to relate to people, but without speaking badly of them or judging them.

I need to suppress the desires within me that might cause me to selfishly fight and quarrel with others when I don’t get my way.

And I need to recognize the devil and resist him.

Thank You for placing Your Holy Spirit in me to help me with all these things.  Thank You for the grace You extend to me.  James tells me the key is to submit to You and humble myself.

So Father, I submit myself to You.  When I am obedient to You, I will not obey the devil.  I will not be selfish.  I will not mistreat others.

Father, I give You my plans.  Take the days of my life that You have already numbered, and show me how to live each one.  Do not let me get ahead of You.  And do not let me lag behind.  I trust Your timing for all of it.

I draw near to You Father, and ask You to search me and remove any desires that are not godly.  If I ask for the wrong thing, or ask with a wrong motive, show me where I have messed up.  If I become too attached to the things of the world, wean me from that dependence.  For with You, I have all I need.

Father, examine my relationships.  If there are any that do not serve Your purposes, then help me let them go.  If I am quarreling with anyone, or am out of fellowship with them, show me what caused it, Your plan for the relationship, and how to make it right again.

And when I am tempted by the devil, let me clearly see the “hook” beneath the lure he is dangling before me.  Strengthen me to resist, and turn away from that trap.

As long as You have me living here on the earth, Lord, guide and strengthen me.  Help me overcome my flesh and the evil one and the pull of the world.  I choose to hold my possessions, my relationships, my plans loosely so I can follow Your will.  Grant me success.  Amen

James 4:1-12

Mar 22 Can I get a witness?

Lord what a seemingly complex system You dictated to the Israelites for justice.

You have told us before that the shedding of innocent blood pollutes the land, and that the blood has a voice. You heard the voice of Abel’s blood calling to You from the ground and confronted Cain.   Here, a murderer, one who kills with intent, is to be put to death by the blood avenger. The blood avenger is the male relative closest to the one who was murdered. He is to avenge the blood that was wrongly taken.

If there is question about the motive, whether there was intention, the one who killed can flee to a City of Refuge to stand trial, and be safe there from the blood avenger. At the trial, no one is to be put to death on the testimony of less that two witnesses.

Today, we call a ‘witness’ to testify as to what they ‘saw’. However, they have no way of judging the intent, or what was in the mind of the person accused. But in the Hebrew culture, one teaching suggests that a person who is a ‘witness’ is one who had confronted the potentially guilty party, explained to them what they were doing is wrong, and the penalty they will bear if they proceed. Thus, they can testify that the accused was aware that what they were doing was wrong and that they had been warned of the penalty. If the accused proceeded with the act, it was with volition and intent.
Father, I pray You would send witnesses into my life if I begin to stray down a path leading to sin. Stop me in my tracks and confront me with the realization of where I am headed, so I can turn around before it’s too late.

Father, care for me as You care for the land. You “water the land and enrich it abundantly”. In the same way, pour out on me what I need for growth and fertility in my spiritual life. Provide me with the nourishment I need to grow in maturity and grace. You “drench its furrows and level its ridges, softening it with showers, blessing the land and crowning it with bounty and abundance”.   Father, drench me in Your love, even out my rough places, soften my heart where it is hardened. Open my eyes to acknowledge Your bounty and abundance of blessing in my life, and I will shout for joy and sing praises to You. Amen

Numbers 35:1-34; Psalm 65:9-13