9 How can a young man cleanse his way?
By taking heed according to Your word.
10 With my whole heart I have sought You;
Oh, let me not wander from Your commandments!
11 Your word I have hidden in my heart,
That I might not sin against You.
12 Blessed are You, O Lord!
Teach me Your statutes. Continue reading “Psalm 119 Prayer: Make This True In Me”
Lord, there is nothing better than You. Thank you for putting me back together and making me whole. Help me to walk peaceably with others as much as it depends on me. (Romans 12: 18) God, I am struggling in this moment; so, I cry out to You, my refuge and my strength. This moment feels like defeat and it’s hard to see hope ahead; so, I thank You that the promise of Your word is that You will complete the good work that You started. (Philippians 1:6) “Help my unbelief!” (Mark 9:24) Thank You for the work You have done; remind me of Your faithfulness. Thank You for the work You are currently doing; give me eyes to see. Thank You for the work You will do; grant me faith to believe. I am begging you to show me the faithfulness of Your promise. I cling to the truth that “The Lord your God, who goes before you, He will fight for you.” (Deuteronomy 1:30) Lord, You go before me and fight for me. Help me by the power of the Holy Spirit to ‘hold my peace,’ for “The Lord will fight for” me. (Exodus 14:14) Continue reading “Prayer: Help My Unbelief”
“When the waves of death surrounded me,
The floods of ungodliness made me afraid.
The sorrows of Sheol surrounded me;
The snares of death confronted me.
In my distress I called upon the Lord,
And cried out to my God;
He heard my voice from His temple,
And my cry entered His ears.”
2 Samuel 22:5-7
Lord, it feels like waves of death are surrounding me: physical pain, emotional turmoil, mental stress, chaos, helping kids navigate distance learning, trying to do full time work from home, taking care of the house, witnessing to a neighbor, navigating COVID (“waves of death surround”), lack of time and apparent ability, I am not managing us well in the time such as this. Help Lord!
Lord, I am in distress, so I call upon You, LORD my GOD, Maker of Heaven and Earth. I cry out to You, Christ Jesus Who won the war. My GOD, You hear my voice from Your holy temple. My cry enters Your ears. In You I put my trust!
Continue reading “Prayer: The LORD Hears My Cry of Distress”
“Then the earth shook and trembled;
The foundations of heaven quaked and were shaken,
Because He was angry.
Smoke went up from His nostrils,
And devouring fire from His mouth;
Coals were kindled by it.
He bowed the heavens also, and came down
With darkness under His feet.
He rode upon a cherub, and flew;
And He was seen upon the wings of the wind.
He made darkness canopies around Him,
Dark waters and thick clouds of the skies. Continue reading “Prayer: THIS is my Daddy”
“So it was, as the multitude pressed about Him to hear the word of God, that He stood by the Lake of Gennesaret, and saw two boats standing by the lake; but the fishermen had gone from them and were washing their nets. Then He got into one of the boats, which was Simon’s, and asked him to put out a little from the land. And He sat down and taught the multitudes from the boat. When He had stopped speaking, He said to Simon, “Launch out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.” But Simon answered and said to Him, “Master, we have toiled all night and caught nothing; nevertheless at your word I will let down the net.” And when they had done this, they caught a great number of fish, and their net was breaking. So they signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats, so that they began to sink. … So when they had brought their boats to land, they forsook all and followed Him.”
(Luke 5:1-7, 11 NKJV, emphasis mine)
The biggest deception since the dawn of time is circumventing the proper timing to receive what will be given. For example, there is a jar of cookies on the counter; but the parent says the child cannot have one until after dinner. If the child takes a cookie before the proper time, though there is sweetness for a moment, it is followed by the bitterness of consequence that will last much longer. But if the child waits until the proper time, then the cookie is given and lingering sweetness is enjoyed.
So it is for all humanity. In the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth and placed Adam and Eve in the garden, He gave them an abundance of good things and told them that only the one tree was not to be eaten of (the cookie jar).
