Apr 17 Learn from the blind beggar

 

“Hear my prayer, O Lord, and answer me.   Thank You for guarding my life.  Father, I devote that life to You.  You are my God and I am Your servant who trusts You.”

Lord, there are so many things I am trusting You for right now.  Things that I cannot see, and have no evidence will ever happen.  I guess that’s what faith and trust are all about: believing in what is not yet seen.

Lord let me learn from the blind beggar.

First, when he heard You were passing by, he knew You could heal him and persisted asking for Your help.

So when I have a need, let me come straight to You; confident that You have the desire and the power to help.  And remind me to be persistent like he was.

Next, when You asked what he wanted, he knew exactly.  Help me see my need for what it is, not hide it or deny it.

And last, when You answer my prayer, as You answered the beggar’s, let other people see it and praise You!

Lord, as I bring my requests to You, I come praising You with all my heart.  I praise You that when I am under attack I can ask for Your strength.  I appreciate that sense of Your presence when I feel discouraged.

I exalt You for teaching me truth from Your Word and showing me how to apply it to my life; thus increasing my faith.  I glorify Your name as You guide me in Your wisdom, and give me discernment.

Thank You that I can call on You when I am in trouble.  I know You will answer me.  For all this and more, I thank You Lord.  Amen

Psalm 86:1-17; Luke 18:35-42

Jan 31 Thank You! Thank You! Thank You!

“Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me!”

Two blind men were sitting by the roadside, and when they heard Jesus was passing by they called out. When You stopped, You asked what they wanted You to do for them. They asked for their sight. You had compassion on them and healed them. What a miracle!

I depend on Your mercy as well. And Your mercies are new every day. But if You were to ask what I want of You, I am already so blessed, it would be hard to answer.

You have already given me eternal life in Your presence for all time. You have forgiven my sin. You have allowed me to be born in a time when most disease is treatable, water and air are safe to drink and breathe, and injuries do not usually become life threatening.

I have no fear of wild animals attacking as I live in a safe place. You have placed me in a country where I have freedoms that most in the world do not. I can worship You freely, I can travel where I want, can vote for my form of government and live my life in peace within its protected borders, without persecution.

You have allowed me to be born into a loving, supportive, Christian family who raised me to love You. And who gave me not only adequate food, shelter, and an education, but loved me and encouraged me.

You have protected me and saved me from more tragedy and trauma than I know about. And have blessed me with a husband and children, and friends. I live in a beautiful place where every day I can look to the mountains and be reminded of Your strength and majesty.

I enjoy four seasons with all the consistent changes that come with them; weather, wildlife, life cycles of plants, flowers, trees. I have full use of all my senses that can take in the beauty around me and see your infinite diversity at work in birdsongs, floral aromas, the lushness of grass, the chill of fresh snow, the painted sky at sunrise and sunset.

As I think of all these things, my heart overflows with gratitude and thanksgiving.

Forgive me for not voicing it every day. Thank You. Thank You. Thank You!

For as many days as I have left on this earth, there will always be something to thank You for. And when I pass into that next part of our eternal relationship, “I will enter Your gates with thanksgiving in my heart, and enter Your courts with praise!”

Matthew 20:29-34, Psalm 100:4

July 31 Sight and Sound

“The earth is Yours, and everything in it, the world and all who live in it…” .

What a majestic place You have created! I watch a sunrise or sunset, and as the colors fill the sky, I marvel at the Creator who made every daily beginning and end full of such beauty. You have brought such splendor to the mundane!

The tiny wings of a butterfly, the miniature iridescent feathers of the hummingbird – these are resplendent with color and design. Who but You would have taken such care and creativity to craft such detail?

“Ears that hear and eyes that see – the Lord has made them both.”

How amazing that we can behold so much of the beauty You created, simply because we have eyes and ears! The mere fact of their workings defies scientific explanation. The cells that make up an eye are so specialized, and they work together to produce an image in our brain in such a unique and complex way.

Just a single cell or a few together would not operate a functioning eye. There were no small steps that cold have evolved into a working eye. Yet, we see.

Father, Thank You for the gift of hearing and seeing. Beyond all the elegance I perceive in Your creation, I ask that You would also open the ears and eyes of my spirit to understand Your Word, Your ways, Your thoughts, Your purposes, and Your will for my life. I want to “see” all You have for me. Amen

Psalm 24:1-2; Proverbs 20:12