Monday
Do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised.
New International Version
THOUGHTS ABOUT TODAY'S VERSE ...
Boy there are some tough times in life! They're inescapable. That's when our confidence in the Lord's salvation and our relationship with him get tested! It is one thing to sing "it is well with my soul" at the end of a peel-the-paint worship service, but it is quite another to be able to sing it when they auction your house off at the courthouse steps or you've lost a child to death. That's when the commitment to be who we want to be overrides the weakness of what we feel. Faith can't take a holiday when we travel through the suburbs of hell or we'll never find our way out. So don't throw it away. Be like Job or Jeremiah who both argued and complained to God. Just don't quit.
MY PRAYER ...
Holy and Almighty God, today is a good day. But I am profoundly aware that some of those I love are wrestling with throwing away their confidence in your love, mercy, grace, peace, and deliverance. Please use me, but even more I pray that you use your Holy Spirit to renew their hearts. I pray that you intervene directly to change the course of events and give them relief. In Jesus name I pray. Amen.
Tuesday
My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense -- Jesus Christ the Righteous One.
New International Version
THOUGHTS ABOUT TODAY'S VERSE ...
God hates sin. Don't you? I know I do. But isn't it amazing how we'll fall back into the same old traps again and again. This is where John, the tender Shepherd that he was, hits the nail on the head. The goal is to not commit even one sin. But, knowing our struggle against the flesh, John also gives assurance to those of us trying to live faithful and pure lives that when we do sin, the sacrifice for our sins, God's Son, is also our defense attorney.
MY PRAYER ...
God, no one and nothing is like you. I did not have to provide a sacrifice for my sins, which broke your heart. You provided that sacrifice. Please use me today as I try to give myself, my life, and my future back to you as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to you. Through Jesus I pray. Amen.
Wednesday
We know him who said, "It is mine to avenge; I will repay," and again, "The Lord will judge his people." It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.
New International Version
THOUGHTS ABOUT TODAY'S VERSE ...
God hates injustice, unfairness, brutality and abuse. In a world where the greedy, the murderous, the thieves, the rapists, the muggers ... get away with their shameless and despicable behavior, God is the ultimate assurance that justice will be done and the wicked will not triumph. While those who love and expect Jesus' return do so with anticipation and joy, those who are evil and vile will find out what a dreadful thing it is to fall into God's hands.
MY PRAYER ...
Holy and Righteous God, my Heavenly Father, I am both uncomfortable and comforted to know that you will bring justice on those who have violently abused the innocent, weak, helpless, underprivileged, and infirm. Give me the courage to stand between the evil of my world and those on whom it preys. By the grace and victory of Jesus I pray. Amen.
Thursday
Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
New International Version
THOUGHTS ABOUT TODAY'S VERSE ...
Seek – pursue relentlessly – God's Lordship over your life and the righteousness it demands in your daily life. What you pursue is all temporary; only God and his Kingdom remain. In the process, you will find that the God who gives you his Kingdom and righteousness also will bless you with the things that you need in this life.
MY PRAYER ...
Holy Lord, only in you do I find what satisfies my soul's desires. The things that have captured my eye are boring after only a short while. The artificial things I have pursued, all of my addictive pursuits, have left me empty and enslaved. I find hope and help only in you. Please be near to love, correct, discipline, lead, and mold me to your glory. In Jesus name I pray. Amen.
Friday
The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned.
New International Version
THOUGHTS ABOUT TODAY'S VERSE …
The Holy Spirit is God's abiding gift, God's seal and promise. The Spirit is our assurance that what he began with Jesus' sacrificial death and our participation in it through faith and baptism, he will bring to completion. But the world cannot understand this great promise, just like it cannot understand much of Scripture, because without the Spirit, their eyes see only what they can touch with their fingers and not what is true in God's heart.
MY PRAYER ...
Father, I thank you for sending Jesus. Jesus, I thank you for sending the Spirit. Spirit, I thank you for never leaving me alone. As I am filled with the Spirit, O Lord, so fill me more until my will and my life more nearly reflect your desires. Use me to bless others just as your presence now blesses me. Through Jesus I pray. Amen.
Saturday
Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God.
New International Version
THOUGHTS ABOUT TODAY'S VERSE ...
Truth is seen in what it does and whom it seeks.
MY PRAYER ...
Father of every heavenly light, I ask you to correct me gently as I place myself, my imperfections, failures and sins in your presence. Forgive and cleanse me by the blood of Jesus so that I might be spotless, holy, and blameless in your sights. O Lord, I don't want just to be forgiven, I want to be useful to you and your church. Please help me find my way to usefulness. In Jesus name I pray. Amen.
Sunday
This is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ.
New International Version
THOUGHTS ABOUT TODAY'S VERSE ...
I don't know about you, but my most difficult decisions are not about choosing between good and bad. I usually know what is good and what is bad, especially when bad involves evil. My toughest choices are when I have to choose between good, better, and best. My love for God usually overcomes my weakness and I choose good over bad. But unless I've placed myself before God's word and surrendered my heart to him in prayer, I have a very tough time choosing between good and best. Yet I'm convinced that much of what God would love to do through us today does not happen because we've settled for good when he longs to lead us to best!
MY PRAYER ...
Gracious and Almighty God, teach me your ways and give me your heart as I strive to love you, know your will, and have insight into your ways. Help me to know the best things to do today and to use my time in the best way in my work, my family, among my friends, and especially before those who do not know Christ as their Savior. Through him I pray. Amen.