Father, You have taught us that there are two overriding commandments. First we are to love You with all of our heart, mind, and strength and second, we are to love our neighbors as our selves.
An unexamined life is not worth living…still true (Socrates)
Here You tell us to examine ourselves, to look into our hearts and ask ourselves if the Holy Spirit, Jesus in us, actually exists. The answer, if we are to be saved, is yes, yes, He lives in my heart and every time I turn to Him I am making the right decision, the right move. Bless each of us and help us as we seek to know You better.
Is death the beginning or the end?
Father, no matter whether we are stressed out, cheerful or ill, James teaches us that we are to pray. Help us O’God to learn to pray unceasingly and to include You in all of the details of our life. Your word tells us that not a hair falls from our head without You knowing it. That sort of “presence” deserves/requires a response.
Am I adopted? What does predestination mean?
Father, You know the beginning from the end, the alpha from the omega. Nothing we do surprises You. You “see” what is not yet and our faith and love for You, though it requires an act of faith on our part, was foreknown to You. Thus we are predestined, adopted as sons, Holy and without blame, only because of the cleansing of You, Jesus.
Silent before God about your sin? A painful circumstance…
Father, when we stand before You, guilty of sin, we are truly blessed to have our sins forgiven. We know that in this life we have sinned against not only You but other people as well. We pray they are as generous in forgiving us as You have been. Father we too must forgive and forget the past sins of others. We must render to them the type of grace and mercy You have shown us.
Why seek God, “early in the morning”?
Our souls truly wait upon You during the trials we face each day and when we awake to a new day, You are there. We learn from Your word, over and over, that “early in the morning” Your prophets and Your people have sought You. Why “early” each day? Perhaps it is because we can be alone with You before our hectic schedules begin.
Being forgiven when I do not deserve it is stressful
Father, we know it is Your will that we take care of Your children, whether they are being obedient or not. When we have an opportunity and they have a need, it was an appointment made by You. You have taught us to love our neighbors as ourselves. You have said elsewhere, “They will know us by our love”.
To be forgiven enables you to forgive
Core Christian Value: God gave His only Son as a sacrifice for our sins. God forgives us for our sins and He expects us to forgive others who have disappointed us. We must forgive others in order to receive forgiveness.
I slip, too often, but You lift me up, repeatedly
Father, we know from other references that our personal righteousness is as filthy rags compared to the righteousness of Jesus. Jesus, Himself, rebuked a man for calling Him good, prior to his transformation as the perfected Son of God, saying “Call no man Good, except God in heaven”. But here King David, tells us that our steps, if we love the Lord, are ordered by the Lord and that as we follow in His way, God delights in us.
How could God possibly forgive me…my sins seem indelible
Father, here King David admits that his iniquities have overtaken him. Father, at times some of us feel the same; our iniquities weigh so heavily on us that we don’t know how You could possibly love us or forgive us. That is the miracle, Father, that makes life worth living. It is never about the present, with its moments of difficulty, but it is about the future. We know that is only true if we admit, as David did, that we need Your help.
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