Paul, called as an apostle of Christ Jesus by God’s will, and Sosthenes our brother. To God’s church in Corinth, to those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus and called as saints with all those in every place who call on the name of Jesus Christ our Lord-both their lord and ours. Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 1 Corinthians 1:1-3
My words…
Praise
The Apostle Paul wrote such beautiful salutations, didn’t he? This one makes me want to be a Corinthian. But the more I ponder, the more I come to believe I am a Corinthian, or rather, very like one. I have a lot in common with those church-goers, meeting in the sixth century. We are both sanctified in Christ. Hallelujah! We both call on the name of Jesus as our Lord. And we are both called as saints. Saints! Just as the Corinthians were gifted this title through You, so am I. We saints, we’re a numerous group, spanning centuries and continents. A few have become famous outside the realm of devotion to You, like Saint Patrick on whose holy day we wear green and speak with an Irish brogue. A shame. Then there is Saint Teresa of Avila. Her prayers, words wrapped in sweet reverence and peaceful consolation, lead any reader winging toward You in the heavens. I can picture her now, instructing angels in praise. And then there’s the woman who cleans bed pans at the nursing home, praying over each patient. She’s a saint. The man who struggles with addiction, calling on Your name. He’s a saint, too. We’re everywhere!
Prayer for me
Some believe one can be either a sinner or a saint. Untrue. I am a sinner and a saint, just like every other saint who has ever lived. You have given me this title to set me apart as Yours. I fall short of walking daily as a reflection of You, and I hate that. So I pray Your Spirit lead me toward a deeper understanding of sainthood, and forgive me when I don’t appreciate everything associated with that precious title.
Prayer for others
Paul was intent on praying for saints. When he met a group of believers then had to leave them, he always remembered them in prayer to You. He loved spending time with saints, as do I. In memory of Paul, I pray for those in Your church, those I have sat beside in the same pew, those I have laughed and cried with. We have called on Your name together, lifted our hearts in worship to You week after week, year after year. We have patterned our lives after Yours. Although we declare we are sanctified in You, Jesus, some are burdened with a heavy load of guilt or doubt or both. Others are being pierced by Satan’s flaming arrows, and they are too weary to hoist their shield of faith. Still others struggle to see You through their particular heartache. Remind them of their sainthood, Father! Pull them toward You, the place of grace and peace.
Thank You
I have noticed that artists portray saints with bright halos above their heads. I don’t read anything about halos in Scripture, but I have to admit, I like them; the person with the halo is the holy person, the one set apart from everyone else in the painting. You have graced me with the same title as the apostles and Paul and Mary and all the other saints wearing halos. I am not worthy to be in such company, but I thank You that I am.
More praise
Being titled is a big deal. Titles are often bestowed by a king. Mine is bestowed by The King. Of all the titles I’ve had (Miss, Mrs. chief cook and bottle washer), I like this one best. I thank you for it. (And I hope there are halos in heaven.)
We must, therefore, pay even more attention to what we have heard, so that we will not drift away. Hebrews 2:1
My words…
Lord, You have given Your children what we need to stay anchored in this life. Your very words, intentions, hopes, instructions, and commands are freely available to us. Your word is alive because You are alive. All we need to do is pay attention. Consistently. And therein lies the rub.
Prayer for me
If I don’t make a habit of feeding on Your word like I feed myself food, I will drift. Your word doesn’t drift away from me. I drift away from it. I reason it out this way: I am not drifting away from You as my God, I just get carried along on a different current away from Your word. But it’s the same thing, isn’t it? You are Truth. Your word is Truth. The only way for me to stay anchored beside You is to keep Your word in front of me. All the time. I’m reaching out to You for Your help. All the time.
Forgive me
I pray Your forgiveness when I dare place any other word before Yours and when I don’t yield my stubborn will to Your teaching. At times, I grow weary, my eyes burn, my mind longs to put my thoughts to rest. One time leads to another, and another. The pages of my Bible aren’t turned for days. (Especially when my reading schedule assigns me to Leviticus, and all I can think about is skipping to Jericho.) Forgive me for taking advantage of Your patience and mercy.
Prayer for others
Lord, I pray for those who are drifting and have been doing so for too long. Put Your words in front of their eyes somehow! Draw them back toward the Truth so they may live the abundant life You will for us all.
More praise
Drifting is a sad, unsettling thought: being carried along without direction. I remember times when I felt I was drifting as a parent, as an employee, as a teacher. But the most unsettling were the times when I was drifting away from You and Your word. When I would finally admit that truth and turn back toward where You were, THERE You were, as if You had tagged along behind. Thank You, God.
Make your own attitude that of Christ Jesus, who, existing in the form of God did not consider equality with God as something to be used for His own advantage. Instead He emptied Himself by assuming the form of a slave, taking on the likeness of men. And when He had come as a man in His external form, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even to death on a cross. Philippians 2: 5-8
My words…
Praise
Divine Jesus, whatever substance or energy that makes up who You are, that current of perfect power, not created but infinitely You, is what makes You God and God alone. The heavenly realm must swirl with the intensity of it! In my limited comprehension, I see You as a force of love, like a perpetual power plant, manufacturing all the love that exists in the heavens and on the earth. Every wisp of genuine love, expressed by angels or humans, is a product of who You are. Love does not remain apart from You. And this is why You acted the way You did, intentionally living as a human among humans, emptying Yourself to become not just a man, but a servant, and not just a servant, but one who willingly stretched out his arms on a cross. For me.
Prayer for me
The Apostle Paul writes that I should make my attitude like that of Yours: willingly emptying myself to assume the role of a servant. I’m not very good at that. I can serve, and I do. But only to the extent it doesn’t interfere too much with my daily routine. In other words, I only empty myself to a certain level, just before it gets uncomfortable, then I stop. I cling too tightly to the stuff I like the most in my life: my hobby time, my spending money, my streaming service. I need an emptying lesson. Will You help me?
Forgive me
Forgive me when I have filled myself up to the brim with ME: what I want; what I think; where I’ll be the next day, the next year. How could there be room for anything else? Anyone else? Forgive me when I take the easy way out and think only of myself and forget (or refuse) to kick myself out of the way and let Your Spirit go to work in my life.
Thank Youand Praise
Thank You for Your humility. As God, You could have behaved however You wanted: shoving Your divinity down people’s throats, insisting on being worshiped everywhere You went, reminding sinners of their unworthiness. Instead, You leaked compassion from every pore, You spoke hope to the leper, and comfort to those in pain. You never stopped teaching. You never settled down. You moved along toward Your undeserved death sentence as Your Father willed. Such emptying. I praise You and lift You up as the perfect example of how humans should treat each other.
You are to construct the tabernacle itself with ten curtains. You must make them of finely spun linen, and blue, purple, and scarlet yarn, with a design of cherubim worked into them. The length of each curtain should be 42 feet, and the width of each curtain six feet; all the curtains are to have the same measurements. Five of the curtains should be joined together and the other five curtains joined together. Make loops of blue yarn on the edge of the last curtain in the first set, and do the same on the edge of the outermost curtain in the second set. Exodus 26:1-5
My words…
Praise
I have always been amazed by the level of detail You required in the construction of the tabernacle. The table, the lampstand, the altar, the ark of the covenant, all so meticulously designed down to the cubit. All very orderly of You. I have often wondered what the tabernacle would have looked like if You had said, “Just build it however you Israelites see fit.” I daresay it would have been chaos. And if it’s one thing You know how to order and prevent, it’s chaos. Before the watery depths and the floodgates of the sky burst open on Noah, You ensured he had the plans to build the ark to Your exact specifications, down to the cubit. When the Israelites departed Egypt as freed slaves, You commanded Moses to assemble the community and record their ancestry by their clans and their ancestral houses, counting one by one the names of those 20 years or older. So orderly of You. And The Law! Burnt offering, grain offering, priestly garments, clean and unclean animals, cleansing skin diseases, holy days, sexual offenses – nothing left to chance. As long as Your well-defined, straight path was followed, chaos remained locked away, and Your children thrived. Your detailed instructions and commandments and statutes were given during the times when no one else knew what to do. It was You, the wise, loving Father, providing for the needs of Your children. You did it then through stone tablets and prophets. You do it today through Your Spirit.
Prayer for me
You know me: I like order. My spools of thread are stored according to color, my spices alphabetically, and my books by genre. Weeds have a very short life span in my yard, and I receive a great deal of satisfaction using a power washer. (See, I am made in Your image!) But all of that doesn’t mean diddly-squat if chaos is having a field day in my soul. Who cares if my clothes are arranged by sleeve length if my spiritual disciplines are in disarray, or worse, non-existent? You never intended for me to spend more time organizing my “stuff” than I do spending time with You in Your word, in prayer, and in solitude. So, I pray that my spirit will learn more from Your precise Spirit living within me.
Forgive me
Forgive me, Lord, when a cluttered closet calls to me more loudly than a cluttered spirit.
Prayer for others
Lord, I pray for those who don’t know You as the God who chases away chaos and brings order into the most out-of-order lives. Only You have the power to shape an undefined, inchoate life. Move in their lives! Hover over them! Pursue them!
Thank You
Thank you for empowering me with Your Spirit to stand against the lure of chaos as You guide me along a straight path. I don’t fear the rat’s nest of life when You’re with me.
More praise
Jesus, I praise You as the deliverer of those whose lives are governed by chaos – where chaos rules. When You wore flesh, You rendered demons powerless and offered healing to the blind, deaf, and lame. You spoke order from chaos. I see you working still from the right hand of the Father. The turmoil caused by addiction, abuse, abandonment, and anxiety dissipates when lives are surrendered to You. You calmed the storm when Your disciples despaired. You can calm anything.
When He entered Capernaum, a centurion came to Him, pleading with Him, “Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, in terrible agony!” “I will come and heal him,” He told him. “Lord,” the centurion replied, “I am not worthy to have You come under my roof. But only say the word, and my servant will be cured. For I too am a man under authority, having soldiers under my command. I say to this one, ‘Go!’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come!’ and he comes; and to my slave, ‘Do this!’ and he does it. Hearing this, Jesus was amazed and said to those following Him, “I assure you: I have not found anyone in Israel with so great a faith!” Then Jesus said to the centurion, “Go. As you have believed, let it be done for you.” And his servant was cured that very moment. Matthew 8:5-11, 13
Jesus came to His hometown, and His disciples followed Him. He began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard Him said, “What is this wisdom given to Him, and how are these miracles performed by His hands? Isn’t this the carpenter, the son of Mary, and the brother of James, Joses, Judas, and Simon? And aren’t His sisters here with us? So they were offended by Him. Jesus was not able to do any miracles there, except lay His hands on a few sick people. And He was amazed at their unbelief. Mark 6:1-6 selected
My words…
Praise
Jesus, You, who spoke creation into being, who watched as the first atoms formed molecules, and molecules formed cells that comprise a whiskered walrus and a whiskered man. You who witnessed the birth and death of dinosaurs. You who completely understands the intricate workings of the universe, from a magnetar to a dung beetle. You cannot be easily amazed, which compels me to sit up and take notice when I read of two instances when You were. What amazes You? Tenacious faith and startling unbelief. You as God expected it; You as man were stopped in Your tracks. A Roman ruler, raised in the shadow of pagan temples, called You Lord and believed You could do what had yet to be seen: heal from afar. Your disciples were both dumbfounded and attentive. Had they seen you that amazed? You made sure they did. In your hometown, unbelief oozed down the walls of the houses and meandered down the streets like lava. Your work was impacted by their overwhelming lack of faith in You and Your message. As God, You expected it. As man, You sadly shook the dust from Your feet. I wonder: How often are You pleasantly amazed by Your followers?
Prayer for me
Lord, I pray I will grow to possess an amazing faith, a faith put to action when I ask You to work in my life, and I am positive You will act. No hemming and hawing but a bold surety like the Roman centurion.
Forgive me
Pardon my sin, Lord, when I don’t respond appropriately to You as the Son of God. The people of Nazareth watched You grow up, and they couldn’t see You as anything but Joseph and Mary’s boy. Forgive me when You are more amazed at my lack of faith than the strength of it.
More praise
I hope You are constantly amazed, Lord. Amazed by Your followers the world over. You paid too dear a price to not be surrounded by a cloud of our confident faith in You. I don’t like to think of You as disappointed, sorrowful, or disheartened. Just amazed.
How lovely is Your dwelling place, Lord of Hosts. I long and yearn for the courts of the Lord; my heart and flesh cry out for the living God. Psalm 84:1-2
My words…
Praise
The Psalmists who wrote these words longed and yearned to be in the place where You are worshipped. So much so that their hearts and mouths cried out for You. When they woke, their first thought was to be in Your sacred courts, in a place where their hearts would be filled with Your presence. Where the Ark of the Covenant was a stone’s throw away. When they lay down at night, they longed for the morning when they could do it all over again. So much longing. So much yearning. It’s passages such as this that make me feel so very inadequate as Your child, Your disciple, Your “called out.” I don’t wake up thinking, “I can’t wait to go to church on Sunday.”
What is it I yearn for? Really yearn for? I long to dwell in a place where the weak and defenseless are safe and not exploited, where not one single person holds murder in his heart, a place where taking disappears in the place of giving, where disease is absent and wholeness abounds, where the only tears are the result of unrestrained elation, a place where everything my eye beholds is transcendent beauty, and the clamor of contention and malice is silenced.
In other words, I yearn for Heaven. But so do most people I know.
So, here’s the crux of the matter: I need to grow to be a better yearn-er. Can yearning be learned? I hope so. I want to know what it’s like to yearn to be where You are all the time, not just on Sunday mornings. To wake up excited to find where You are working and join in. To exhort fellow followers, to be energized in spirit daily, to seek Your kingdom first where I am. So, Spirit-Teacher, here I am again, a student, sitting at Your feet, ready for another lesson: Yearning 101.
Jesus prayed, “I have revealed Your name to the men You gave me from the world. They were Yours, You gave them to me, and they have kept Your word. Now they know that all things You have given to me are from You because the words that You gave me I have given them. They have received them and have known for certain that I came from You. John 17:6-8
My words…
Praise
The Bible on my shelf contains around 800,000 words of which only around 2,000 were spoken from Your lips while you walked the roads and sailed the seas of Palestine. Although few in number, Your words have been the most quoted, studied, dissected, disputed, and revered of any words ever spoken. You knew this before the words left Your mouth. Incredible to ponder. For me, I not only reflect on the words I see on the page, but I wonder about the words that didn’t get recorded. What questions did you ask the teachers of the law in the temple when You were only twelve? Did you ever tire of the hundreds of questions Your disciples must have asked you over the course of three years? “What’s heaven like?” “What’s up with Satan?” “Are You the suffering servant Isaiah writes about?” “How much longer will we live under the boot of Rome?” “Hey, can you turn this stone into bread? I’m hungry.” Every word You spoke was a priceless gemstone. Your sentences were treasures, stored in the minds and hearts of those on whose ears they fell. They carried their treasure around with them like I carry my bible. Mary, the sister of Lazarus, understood the importance of sitting at Your feet so she would not let Your words fall to the ground unheard. I have no doubt Your words, “Feed my sheep,” and so many others emboldened and sustained Peter’s spirit until the day he was martyred. While in exile, John’s soul was nourished by the prayers to the Father You spoke in his presence. Did Your words comfort James as he awaited the strike of the executioner’s axe? Your words are more than just words. They’re life.
Prayer for me
I need to treasure Your words as the disciples did. I am, after all, a disciple. My eyes have moved over Your words on the page for decades, and therein lies my problem. I have read them so many times, I do not pause and allow them to illuminate the corners of my spirit. So, I pray that You will remind me to gather Your words like a treasure and carry them around with me. And help me not just regard them as sparkly and beautiful but take them out and use them, even give them away.
Forgive me
Your words were intended to be heard and obeyed. I hear them okay, but some I don’t feel like obeying, like loving my neighbor. I don’t wish my neighbor any ill will. Does that count for something? I would rather not interact with my neighbors because I prefer to keep myself to myself (as the English would say). But that is not what you say. Forgive me when I pick through the treasure chest and toss out a gemstone or two.
Prayer for others
I pray for those who have yet to read Your words on the page. (And some may live on my street!) I pray for the one You are leading to them to share the treasure even if that one is me.
Thank You
You realize actions speak louder than words. Thank You for becoming the created and changing my life by putting Your words into action. You could have shouted from heaven or sent Your words through carrier pigeon (okay, maybe not), but You chose to leave the side of the Father and show us all how to live an abundant life that leads to even more after death. So much more.
More praise
Jesus, each of Your words is praiseworthy from the ones spoken while smiling and laughing, to the ones uttered through gasps of torment. Your words are cherished by men and angels alike, and we worship the One who spoke them – the perfect creator of words, Jesus Christ, Son of God.
So I turned my attention to the Lord God to seek Him by prayer and petitions, with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes. Daniel 9:3
You turn my lament into dancing; You removed my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness. Psalm 30:11
My words…
Praise
At first glance, the ancient ritual of wearing sackcloth seems a little over the top. Sin, grief, guilt, or shame compelled the replacing of soft linen for course goat hair followed by a time among the dirt. The stiff, scratchy garment was only worn when someone messed up (really badly). Was all that really necessary? Did that practice wing their prayers before Your throne more swiftly? Maybe it did. Maybe that practice should not have fallen among the obsolete. Perhaps sackcloth should be sold today on racks beside blue jeans and sweat shirts. If so, I believe two things would happen: 1. Sackcloth wouldn’t sell because genuine, public contrition has grown out of style and 2. It would come in plaid, stripes, and paisley designs with a brushed flannel lining. The wearer of sackcloth, confessing her sin and seeking forgiveness, experienced the blessing of shedding the uncomfortable garment and standing in Your presence purified. She removed the garment, but You removed the grief and guilt.
Prayer for me
Lord, teach me not to take my sin lightly. When I confess and lay my sin before You, You remove it like sackcloth. And because I know You love to forgive me, I may not view my transgressions as seriously as I ought. Forgive me when I go on sinning so grace may abound.
Thank You
Thank You for removing my sackcloth and clothing me with gladness – a fine cloth, woven with strands of heavenly light. It does not chafe like sin. It is not weighty like guilt. It brings out the best in my spirit when I am reminded of the One who gave it.
More praise
When I turn to You, like the Psalmist, You never fail to give me Your full attention. I, who flounder between spiritual weakling and devoted disciple, have Your full attention. How can that be? It’s too marvelous to comprehend. But that’s You: Too Marvelous to Comprehend.
Jesus told them, “Let’s cross over to the other side of the sea.” So they left the crowd and took Him along since He was already in the boat. A fierce windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking over the boat, so that the boat was already being swamped. But He was in the stern, sleeping on the cushion. So they woke Him up and said to Him, “Teacher! Don’t You care that we’re going to die?” He got up, rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Silence! Be still!” The wind ceased, and there was a great calm. Then He said to them, “Why are you fearful? Do you still have no faith?” And they were terrified and asked one another, “Who then is this? Even the wind and sea obey Him!” Mark 4:35-41
My words…
I find it intriguing that the disciples were terrified both before and after You calmed the storm. Why didn’t their terror subside when the wind ceased and calm descended? Could it be they were terrified of You? Of Your power? It seems only natural that once they witnessed Your command over nature, they would feel as if they had been thrown into an alternate reality (without knowing what that meant). Some of them (fishermen) had already survived a healthy dose of Galilee Sea ruckus, knowing full well no one sleeps through it. Yet You slept…SOUNDLY! Wind and waves had not reacted to the human voice until they heard Yours. The Twelve had seen You heal humans, but “healing” a storm was too much for the disciples to take in, so they freaked. But I like to think of it as a holy terror. They weren’t afraid of You (well, maybe a little); they were slammed with the truth that You are more powerful than they had ever imagined. They could only exclaim, “Who is this guy?”
Prayer for me
I believe all Your followers have, at one time or another, posed the same question to You as the sea-soaked disciples: “Don’t You care? I’m in a bad way here.” It’s not a question of You caring. It’s a question of faith. And that’s my petition to You today. My faith is like an ivy vine, growing and winding through my every thought and action. But it’s a little droopy right now. Water it, Lord. Please.
Forgive me
I don’t see myself as a fearful person. But the few things that do frighten me are powerful. Forgive me when I allow fear to overpower my faith.
Prayer for others
Lord, today I pray You will calm the wind and sea for those who are caught in a storm. They’re frightened, and they don’t know where to turn. They don’t see You asleep in the boat. They don’t see you in the boat at all. Speak peace into their souls in a way that they will know it could only be You, the One whose voice the wind and sea obey.
More praise
Jesus, You had some really long days while You lived as a God-Man on earth. Weariness set in so deeply, You slept in a heaving boat while the waves crashed over the sides. That was the Man part. Although the disciples feared for their lives, You never felt a twinge of fear. That was the God part. Praise to You, the God who never feels fear but understands when I do.
God saw all that He had made, and it was very good. Genesis 1:31
For Yaweh is good and His love is eternal. Psalm 100:5
Do not imitate what is evil but what is good. The one who does good is of God. 3 John 1:11
My words…
Praise
I (and many others) have pondered on just the right adjectives to describe You, and we always come up short. Majestic? Too “House of Windsor.” Awesome? Too middle school. Indescribable? A cop-out. Your Holy Spirit has moved biblical writers to use the word “good.” It’s a word in which its foundational meaning has been beaten out through incorrect use. I’ve used the word to describe a better-than-average cheeseburger or the price of a pair of jeans. (“How was your day?” “Pretty good.”) So, if I use this word to describe You, I must embrace its intended meaning or miss out on an anointing of righteous understanding. When You called Your creation very good, You set the standard. Your creation is a reflection of You: perfect, complete, whole, lacking in nothing. Your goodness may best be described through the inverse: You are neither petty, vindictive, nor ambivalent. You do not lose focus or become distracted. You never stop working for my good. You are not wishy-washy or unpredictable. You are, in the truest sense of the word, good.
Prayer for me
I cannot partake in Your omniscience, omnipotence, or omnipresence, but I can partake in Your goodness by doing what is good. You’ve provided me that avenue. Now, I just need help walking it. Like Paul, I know what good to do, I just don’t always do it. You’re not surprised. Disappointed? No more than I. Infuse me with Your goodness, Lord, so I can imitate You.
Forgive me
Forgive me when I attempt to convince myself that I’m good. (“I write a prayer blog. Good for me!”) Pathetic. Your certain forgiveness is only another facet of Your goodness.
Prayer for others
I know, personally, many who do not believe You are good at all. To them You are a bad-tempered, prejudiced, out-of-touch god-wannabe. They have become blinded to Your goodness. How would their lives change if they truly believed in one sentence: God is good? May they find out.
Thank You
The leaves are turning golden red, carpeting my front lawn. A flock of blackbirds are complaining (or rejoicing?) in the treetops so loudly, it makes me laugh. The children across the road are playing as their dog darts around and through them. I am surrounded by Your goodness, and I thank You for sharing it with me.
More praise
You alone are deserving of all my praise because You are the only truly good person I know.
