Category: Daily Prayer

Our scripture this morning is Psalms 47:1-7.

Clap your hands, all you nations; shout to God with cries of joy. For the Lord Most High is awesome, the great King over all the earth. He subdued nations under us, peoples under our feet. He chose our inheritance for us, the pride of Jacob, whom he loved. God has ascended amid shouts of joy, the Lord amid the sounding of trumpets. Sing praises to God, sing praises; sing praises to our King, sing praises. For God is the King of all the earth; sing to him a psalm of praise.

Songs of praise and worship are numerous in scripture. It is a natural reaction for us to give thanks for God’s goodness and protection. If we could maintain this attitude throughout our lives how much happier we would be!

In some translations this psalm is titled “One God, one King, one people”. In our modern understanding we forget how rare the worship of one God was. Monotheism was unique to Israel in that time and region. They had a special relationship with the Creator of all things.

However, they asked for an earthly king when God was already their king (1 Samuel 8:20). They chose to follow the ways of people, rather than the plan God had for them. May we choose the Lord over all the gaudy things the earth may tempt us with, and claim Jesus as our Savior!

Gracious God, we often fall into the lure of worldly things. Help us to see the truth through Your light and love, and go to share this blessing with the world. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is Psalms 28:6-9.

Praise be to the Lord, for he has heard my cry for mercy. The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and he helps me. My heart leaps for joy, and with my song I praise him. The Lord is the strength of his people, a fortress of salvation for his anointed one. Save your people and bless your inheritance; be their shepherd and carry them forever.

“The Lord is my strength and my shield”, what a profound statement of faith. It shows the connection between the psalmist and God, that even in trying times our hope is in Him. Our Father knows every situation we face, but when we cry to Him in prayer, we become part of the healing process.

This passage speaks of both individual and community faith, that God has chosen us for a purpose. It is up to us to accept the love and protection He offers through obedience to His law and authentic worship. The plea to “save Your people and bless Your inheritance” acknowledges His power and His reign over us all.

Seeing God as our shepherd is a way of understanding our fallen state, that we need His love and guidance in order to be saved. We can’t do it on our own. God stands ready to forgive us when we come in repentance, strengthening us for the kingdom work we are called to do.

Loving Lord, we are amazed that You chose us to help share Your word and Your love with the world. Bless us to be obedient and energetic in our mission. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is Romans 15:13.

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Today is the third Sunday in Advent. Many Christians celebrate this time of waiting for Christ’s arrival with an Advent wreath and candles that represent hope, peace, joy, love and Jesus Himself. Paul mentions these things in this verse from his Letter to the Romans.

Paul speaks of the power of the Holy Spirit as the source of our hope. Jesus promised that after He returned to the Father He would send us “another advocate to help you and be with you forever“ (John 14:16). Those who claim Jesus as their savior know God’s presence through this gift.

The old hymn says “my hope is built on nothing less than Jesus’ blood and righteousness.” Our hope, peace, joy and love all flow from His cross on Calvary. His sacrifice for us is the reason we can come to God as forgiven sinners, washed clean and ready to go in His name to all the world.

Loving Lord, You sent Your Son to save us from our sin that we might have eternal life. Bless us to be servants of Your kingdom, sharing Your love with everyone. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is John 13:33-35.

Little children, I am with you only a little longer. You will look for me; and as I said to the Jews so now I say to you, ‘Where I am going, you cannot come.’ I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.

Jesus gives us a “new commandment”, to love one another. The commandment itself is not new – in Leviticus 19:18 God tells us to “love your neighbor as yourself”. Jesus repeats this verse when asked what is the greatest commandment  (Matthew 22:39). John repeats it in his first letter (1 John 3:11).

However, in this passage Jesus adds the qualifier “As I have loved you”. This amplifies the instruction substantially. We are not just to love, but to do so as Jesus has done for us. Jesus came as our example and this is the way we are to follow Him.

He also tells us that this will distinguish those who follow Him – “by this everyone will know you are my disciples”. The world will only know God’s love if we are willing to share the gift our Savior has given us. We are called to go in His name everywhere.

Gracious God, You created us in Your image and gave us Your love. Bless us to be eager servants of Your kingdom, loving one another as You first loved us. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is Colossians 3:14-17.

Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in the one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly; teach and admonish one another in all wisdom; and with gratitude in your hearts sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

Paul writes that we are to “clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.” Loving one another as Jesus taught us is always the best starting point. When we approach a problem with love rather than frustration or anger we can come to the solution God intends for us.

As in 1 Corinthians 13, Paul teaches us that love is the most important gift we have received, the fuel that drives all other gifts. It doesn’t matter what we do, if love isn’t the motive, it isn’t God’s will. Everything God has done for us is out of His love; we are called to do the same for each other.

This is the reason for Paul’s instruction “whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus.” Christ tells us “No one who does a deed of power in my name will be able soon afterward to speak evil of me. Whoever is not against us is for us“ (Mark 9:39-40). His love leads us to be connected to God and one another as He is.

Gracious God, we know Your love and want to share that blessing with the world. Help us to go in Your name, telling the Good News of salvation to all. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is John 14:18-21.

I will not leave you orphaned; I am coming to you. In a little while the world will no longer see me, but you will see me; because I live, you also will live. On that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you. They who have my commandments and keep them are those who love me; and those who love me will be loved by my Father, and I will love them and reveal myself to them.

John 14-17 is called the Farewell Discourse, a fancy name for the lesson Jesus gives the eleven remaining disciples in the Upper Room after Judas has departed. He says “in a little while the world will no longer see me, but you will see me.” His words give them hope and assurance, even in the face of His impending crucifixion. 

Jesus is returning to the Father but promises them “I will not leave you orphaned.” Jesus explains later in this passage that the Holy Spirit will come as His presence with His people. We are never alone if we have His spirit within us.

He closes with a reminder “they who have my commandments and keep them are those who love me.” What we think and say are important, but keeping His commandments means doing, showing the love He has given us to all our brothers and sisters. We are all called to go in His name, using our gifts in the service of His kingdom.

Loving Lord, we are blessed by Your coming to be one of us, showing what a life in God lived fully can be. Help us to show the world Your love and the joy of being children of God. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is Psalms 95:3-7.

For the Lord is a great God, and a great King above all gods. In his hand are the depths of the earth; the heights of the mountains are his also. The sea is his, for he made it, and the dry land, which his hands have formed. O come, let us worship and bow down, let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker! For he is our God, and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand. O that today you would listen to his voice!

This praise psalm exalts God as the maker of all things. It tells that He is the one true God above any idols made by human hands. We are called to worship and obey because of His love and care for us.

We recognize His power in the wonders of creation we see around us. God created “the depths of the earth, the sea and dry land” as gifts for us to use wisely and for the good of all. For this reason “let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker”.

The psalmist implores us “O that today you would listen to his voice!” God has reached out to His wayward people since we allowed sin into the world. If we realize that we are “the sheep of his hand”, and accept the guidance He sends, we can live in holy relationship with Him.

Patient Lord, we are sorry for the times we test Your love through our disobedience. Forgive us we pray and bless us to go in Your name to all people. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is 1 John 4:13-16.

By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. And we have seen and do testify that the Father has sent his Son as the Savior of the world. God abides in those who confess that Jesus is the Son of God, and they abide in God. So we have known and believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them.

John teaches us the importance of our confession that “Jesus is the Son of God.” We recognize Him as our Savior and through this acceptance, we abide in God and He in us. God wants us all to be connected to Him and each other in love.

This is the most important lesson for all of us, that “God is love” and in order to be saved we must love God and one another. Jesus tells us this when asked which is the greatest commandment (Matthew 22:36-40).

In Matthew 16:15-16 Jesus asks “But who do you say that I am?” and Peter answers, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” He asks the same question of each of us. We must be ready with the same declaration, determined to follow Him as the disciples of today.

Loving Lord, help us to see You in all Your children, and to love them as You first loved us. Bless us to go in Your name, bringing Your light and love to everyone. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is Matthew 6:25-26.

Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?

Jesus teaches lessons in a much different way than the scribes and Pharisees of that time. They taught about rules and punishments; Jesus speaks of our connection to God and one another. Yes, God has set standards for how we are to treat each other but people are the most important thing.

Jesus uses logic to show that since God bothered to create us, He will certainly sustain us – a greater to lesser comparison. Then He flips the argument from lesser to greater – if God cares for the birds, He surely cares for us. We can always count on God’s love and care.

This lesson is about trusting God and that life is more than our wants and needs. God made us in His image to be in a special relationship with Him. Nothing else in all of creation is as important as this.

Loving Lord, we are sorry for the times we have turned away from Your love. Forgive us and strengthen us to go in Your name to tell the world of Your love. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is Isaiah 40:1-5.

Comfort, O comfort my people, says your God. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and cry to her that she has served her term, that her penalty is paid, that she has received from the Lord’s hand double for all her sins. A voice cries out: “In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain. Then the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all people shall see it together, for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”

This passage has been special to me for many years. It makes up the opening of Handel’s Messiah – the Tenor solos Comfort Ye, and Every Valley, followed by the chorus And the Glory of the Lord. I have been blessed to do those solos several times and believe me, singing together in praise has always been a blessing.

Isaiah writes to Israel in exile that “she has served her term, that her penalty is paid.” God offers them comfort and forgiveness, and leads them back to the land He had given them. He loves His people and He has work for them to do.

God promised Abraham “through you all nations will be blessed” (Genesis 22:18). This is the beginning of our Great Commission to come in the New Testament. We are called to “prepare the way of the Lord” so that “the glory of the Lord shall be revealed.” May it be so, Lord!

Gracious God, we are amazed that You call us to be part of Your heavenly plan. Forgive us for the times we have failed You and send us with Your strength to tell the world of Your love. Amen.