Category: Daily Prayer

Our scripture this morning is 1 John 4:9-11.

God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. This is real love—not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins. Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other.

John wrote in his Gospel “God so loved the world that He gave His only Son that whoever believes in Him might have eternal life” (John 3:16). He phrases it slightly differently here in his letter, but the message is the same: God loves us so much He was willing to give up a part of Himself in order to save us. All life is precious to God, but we were created specifically in His image. We have been given a special responsibility to care for His creation. May we accept and fulfill the charge He has given us, loving Him and one another as Jesus taught.

Gracious God, when we fell into sin You made a way for us to be redeemed through Your Son. Bless us to go in Your name to share that love with the world. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is 1 Peter 5:6-9.

So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time he will lift you up in honor. Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you. Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith. Remember that your family of believers all over the world is going through the same kind of suffering you are.

Peter quotes Psalm 55:22 ”Give your burdens to the Lord, and he will take care of you.“ We all need help at certain times and we are to accept it gratefully. Being overly self sufficient is a form of pride, especially when we refuse God’s help. Evil is waiting to convince you you don’t need God or others. Jesus warned us of the earthly opposition we would face and how evil tries to separate us from fellow Christians. Giving our problems to God in prayer relieves our worries and allows Him to work in our lives.

Heavenly Father, we are weak but You are strong. Help us to give up the things that trouble us that we might focus on our mission to share the Good News. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is Psalms 139:9-12.

If I ride the wings of the morning, if I dwell by the farthest oceans, even there your hand will guide me, and your strength will support me. I could ask the darkness to hide me and the light around me to become night— but even in darkness I cannot hide from you. To you the night shines as bright as day. Darkness and light are the same to you.

In this wisdom psalm David sings of the attributes of God, His marvelous creation and our relationship with Him. This passage tells us that God is everywhere throughout His creation, involved in the lives of His people. He knows everything about us because He made us and we all belong to Him. No matter where we go, He is there for us. This is a joy because we will never be beyond His love. Even when we try to hide as Adam and Eve did after they had sinned (Genesis 3) God knows where we are. When we confess, we can be made whole again and reconnected to our Heavenly Father.

Loving Lord, forgive us when we run from Your love because of our own selfish desires. Bless us to be Your children and go in Your name to share the Gospel everywhere. Amen.

Friends, I’m traveling this weekend to officiate a funeral for a classmate in a different time zone, so posts will shorter and later until I’m home Monday. Please pray for her and her family as we remember her.

Our scripture this morning is 2 Corinthians 12:9-10.

Each time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me. That’s why I take pleasure in my weaknesses, and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

Paul writes to the Colossians about the troubles we face in this life and why God doesn’t take them away. God tells Paul (and us) “my grace is all you need.” Paul says that because of this he can “boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me.” We are all frail in one way or another, it is the human condition since sin entered the world. However, God in His mercy has made a way for us to be saved from sin and reconciled to Him through Jesus. May we be a living example of His love, sharing the Good News with all.

Gracious God, we are sorry for the number of times we try to make things right on our own. Only Your love can heal us and our world. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is Colossians 4:2-4.

”Devote yourselves to prayer with an alert mind and a thankful heart. Pray for us, too, that God will give us many opportunities to speak about his mysterious plan concerning Christ. That is why I am here in chains. Pray that I will proclaim this message as clearly as I should.“

Paul lived an active prayer life and encouraged others to know the joy that comes from this connection with God. He teaches us to pray “with an alert mind and a thankful heart”, indicating we must not just download our cares on God (although we are blessed to do so) but engage with Him in our thoughts and emotions. God knows our hearts and minds already but through prayer we receive help, guidance and comfort.

I often find it easier to pray for others than my own issues because I think it selfish to pray for myself. However, God wants us to recognize our own needs and failings and pray about them for healing and improvement. It is almost prideful NOT to pray for ourselves as if we had nothing to concern us.

Of course we should always pray for others and Paul asks the Colossians to pray for his ministry, even as he is imprisoned. He doesn’t pray for relief or release but that he may have the opportunity to spread the Gospel. May we pray for such opportunities as well that we may share the truth of Christ with the world.

Loving Lord, we are sorry that we are lazy in our prayers. Help us to be the active prayer warriors You call us to be, aware of the needs of others and ourselves. May we be united in our prayers as Your people. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is Amos 5:21-24.

“I hate all your show and pretense— the hypocrisy of your religious festivals and solemn assemblies. I will not accept your burnt offerings and grain offerings. I won’t even notice all your choice peace offerings. Away with your noisy hymns of praise! I will not listen to the music of your harps. Instead, I want to see a mighty flood of justice, an endless river of righteous living.“

The prophet Amos was sent to warn the people of the danger of their religious hypocrisy. It wasn’t honest worship they offered the Lord but an outward practice that hid inner rebellion. God is more concerned with how we care for others than any gathering or ritual.

God tells them their offerings for sin don’t replace living according to His word. We can’t sin all week and then expect forgiveness when we don’t change our behavior. Our worship should ready us to go into the world with His love in hearts, refreshed and renewed. 

Amos wasn’t saying we shouldn’t worship. Sabbath is important to prepare us for the next six days of caring for creation. However, the work is in the world where we live and we can’t hide in a sanctuary to avoid our responsibilities. God calls us to be an active part of His plan of salvation, bringing His love to all.

Heavenly Father, forgive us for just going through the motions and ignoring what really needs to be done. Strengthen us in faith that we may share the Gospel everywhere and always. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is 2 Peter 1:3-4.

By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence. And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires.

Peter writes words of hope, explaining that through Christ’s coming to be with us we can know God in ways that make sense to us. We have always been awed and somewhat confused by “the presence of God”, so in His love and mercy He became one of us. Jesus the Son is the best representation of God the Father for us.

Author Ronald Rohlheiser tells the story of a little girl who was frightened at night. Her mother said “you know God is here with you” to which she replied, “I need someone with skin on!” While this is amusing, it is a good analogy for our human condition. We weren’t getting God’s message, we needed someone with skin on to walk with us in faith.

During the Last Supper Jesus tells His disciples ”The words I speak are not my own, but my Father who lives in me does his work through me“ (John 14:10). We are best shown what God is like through the life of Christ. We can be like Him, part of God’s plan and perfected in faith.

Loving Lord, we are grateful for the gift of Your son who came to love and save and free us. Bless us to be the bearers of the Gospel everywhere. Amen

Our scripture this morning is Zephaniah 3:17.

For the Lord your God is living among you. He is a mighty savior. He will take delight in you with gladness. With his love, he will calm all your fears. He will rejoice over you with joyful songs.

We read much about God’s love for His children, but this verse gives us an example of the true emotion our Father feels for us. It speaks of Him being with us, His protection and the boundless joy He expresses when we are connected to Him. The prophet Zephaniah tells us “He will rejoice over you with joyful songs.”

It seems we expect a different connection with God then we do with one another. While we see it in different ways, God’s love is the basis for all human relationships. We love Him as our creator and each other as brothers and sisters. Our love for one another is shown by caring for their human needs and sharing the joy of the Lord. This is also how we show our love for God.

We can’t love God fully without loving each other and we can’t love each other fully without God in our lives. Turning to Him in prayer and repentance allows Him to speak into our lives and send us to share His love with the world. Love God, love neighbor, make disciples – this is what Jesus came to teach us. God has made a way for us to be saved, let us tell everyone the Good News.

Loving Lord, we are sorry for the times we fail to love You and Your creation as we should. Forgive us and strengthen us to go to the world in Your name. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is James 3:13-15.

If you are wise and understand God’s ways, prove it by living an honorable life, doing good works with the humility that comes from wisdom. But if you are bitterly jealous and there is selfish ambition in your heart, don’t cover up the truth with boasting and lying. For jealousy and selfishness are not God’s kind of wisdom. Such things are earthly, unspiritual, and demonic.

James continues his lesson on demonstrating God’s love through how we live our lives. The Filament Study Bible says “Only in humility can we receive God’s true word.” This also applies to sharing God’s word. James focuses on Christian wisdom in action, not just words.

Do our lives reflect what God has taught us? Earthly “wisdom”, marked by envy and strife is always inferior to God’s wisdom. It celebrates “our” knowledge and skill, rather than the gift from God that allows us to come to Him.

Godly wisdom in us is humble, sharing with love and giving the glory to Him, not ourselves. James says the way to eternal life is by “doing good works with the humility that comes from wisdom.” This combination of faith and works is essential to living the life Christ has taught us.

Gracious God, You have given us a wonderful world and the wisdom to live in it well. Help us to act wisely and lovingly toward our brothers and sisters and all that You have created for us. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is Proverbs 9:9-11.

Instruct the wise, and they will be even wiser. Teach the righteous, and they will learn even more. Fear of the Lord is the foundation of wisdom. Knowledge of the Holy One results in good judgment. Wisdom will multiply your days and add years to your life.

This passage focuses on the fact that those who are wise and righteous will accept instruction. Christians should be grateful for loving input into their lives, knowing the source is God Himself, working through those who care about others. We are to offer and accept corrections because of our love for God and one another.

How do we react when someone corrects us? We need to listen and determine if their statement is God-given and offered in love. Temptation often poses as “good advice”. Those who follow Jesus will never put others down to make themselves look smarter nor will they advocate evil against others.

Paul writes ”if another believer is overcome by some sin, you who are godly should gently and humbly help that person back onto the right path. And be careful not to fall into the same temptation yourself“ (Galatians 6:1). We are all charged to watch over each other in love, not to be superior to anyone, but caring for our brothers and sisters as Jesus taught us.

Loving Lord, You have given us the greatest gift, our savior Jesus Christ. Help us to follow in faith, bringing the Good News to the world. Amen.