Father, we too live in a time of many false gods and many are simply without any faith in any god. O’God, help us this day to show men who You are by our faith and obedience to You. We know You care. Give Your strength to Your servant…
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.
Pride, the subtle, but terribly effective, tool of Satan
Father, is there any sin more likely to be in our lives than pride? It seems not as we observe the actions of some of your most committed people. Help us notice how pride can creep into our lives. Show us how to convert prideful tendencies into joy in Your presence, joy in victories made possible by You. We are so tempted to “seek the best seat” but here you teach us how embarrassed, before You, we will be when we are asked to yield that seat to another.
A tandem truth…what we say and what we do, matter to God
You tell us that there is a tandem truth; the fruit of our mouth, what we say, and the fruit of our labor, what we do, will be rendered (delivered) to us. We know You are a just God but oh how we lean upon Your mercy. Our imperfections are ever before us.
Guilt leads to fear, wickedness to judgment.
The wicked applaud the wicked and in spite of the fact that each of them know they are sinning, they look away from Your impending judgment. Help us never develop a hardened heart, one that tries to dismiss You, God. We know, Father that even with the clear evidence that sin will be harshly judged, men and women ignore You and go on sinning.
We seek Your mercy, not Your judgment
Forgiven | June 9 Examine me, O LORD, and prove me; try my mind and my heart. For Your lovingkindness is before my eyes, and I have walked in Your truth. Hear, O LORD, when I cry with my voice! Have mercy also upon me, and answer me. When You said, "Seek My face," my heart said to You, "Your ...
Is there any reason God won’t listen to me?
What a wonderful truth – that Your mercy endures forever – for those that trust You. You extend Your loving hand, even when we were and are in sin. Father, we want to be more like Jesus and for sin to move farther and farther from us.
Empowerment; the mind of Christ in you.
If we could have but one wish granted here on earth, it would be to have Your mind in us, Jesus, a mind that sees the beginning from the end; a mind that grants mercy when it is undeserved; a mind which lifts us from the burdens of a sinful world into a perfect and eternal heavenly result if we but love You.
How would your day go if you “felt” the presence of Christ?
We thank you Father for sending the Holy Spirit, a constant source of Your Holy presence in us. O’God, Your thoughts toward us exceed number. That is a reality we have a hard time grasping. Can we do any less but to look to You, all day, in every circumstance. We truly never need to walk alone.
The mystery of the Holy Spirit…revealed!
Jesus, some recoil from the notion that blood must be shed for the forgiveness of sin. Help us learn what You have taught us, many times. Sin is deserving of death or at the very least, it prevents entry into the presence of our Holy Father. Sacrifices of animals, to cover the sins of a believer, were a very serious way of allowing a substitute to die in the place of a sinner.