Category: Daily Prayer

Our scripture this morning is Proverbs 4:23-27.

Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life. Avoid all perverse talk; stay away from corrupt speech. Look straight ahead, and fix your eyes on what lies before you. Mark out a straight path for your feet; stay on the safe path. Don’t get sidetracked; keep your feet from following evil.

Many of the wise sayings in Proverbs are attributed to King Solomon, who on becoming the ruler of Israel, asked God for wisdom in order to rule well (2 Chronicles 1:10). While we may not have a country and subjects to deal with, there are issues to handle and people depending us. We have responsibilities to God and each other.

He warns us to “guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life”. In this case our hearts represent the core values in our lives, our character and behavior. Solomon advises us to “keep your feet from following evil”, to know that God has better things planned for us.

God wants us to use all our gifts wisely, but we can only do that by being connected to Him and learning from His word. Jesus came to show us how wonderful our relationship with our Heavenly Father and each other can be. The promise of salvation is given to us, but we must live wisely in faith and obedience to God’s law.

Gracious God, we are sorry for the times we act foolishly, ignoring Your love and guidance. Help us to be the people we were created to be, in service to others and in union with You. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is Ephesians 4:30-32.

And do not bring sorrow to God’s Holy Spirit by the way you live. Remember, he has identified you as his own, guaranteeing that you will be saved on the day of redemption. Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander, as well as all types of evil behavior. Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.

Forgiveness is a tough subject because it means harm has been done to someone and often the relationship is damaged. Paul reminds us that when we offend or injure others we “bring sorrow to God’s Holy Spirit by the way you live”. It’s not how God intends us to treat Him or each other.

When we have caused another pain, we ask forgiveness by admitting the wrong behavior and working to mend the connection between us. When we have been hurt, we are called to forgive whether the other person asks or not. This is often difficult for us but it is the example Jesus gave us.

Even as He was crucified, He prayed “Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they are doing” (Luke 23:34). Because He forgave us all our sin, we must forgive each other. It doesn’t mean it never happened, but through forgiving we let go of the hurt and continue in the grace God has given.

Loving Lord, we are thankful for the gift of our Savior and the blessing of salvation. Help us to forgive as He did and share Your love with the world. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is Psalms 56:1-4.

O God, have mercy on me, for people are hounding me. My foes attack me all day long. I am constantly hounded by those who slander me, and many are boldly attacking me. But when I am afraid, I will put my trust in you. I praise God for what he has promised. I trust in God, so why should I be afraid? What can mere mortals do to me?

This psalm is attributed to King David when he was pursued by the Philistines. Do you see yourself in this passage? Life sometimes seems like a contest, them against us, but we must remember that God is always ready to help those who call on Him.

Jesus tells us “Don’t be afraid of those who want to kill your body; they cannot touch your soul. Fear only God, who can destroy both soul and body in hell” (Matthew 10:28), echoing the lesson of this psalm. David says “What can mere mortals do to me?” For those who put their trust in God, mortal death is not a threat because we have the promise of eternal life through our Lord Jesus. 

When it feels like the whole world is your adversary, remember Paul’s words: “If God is for us, who can ever be against us?” (Romans 8:31). God is always with us to give us hope. We are never alone in the battle against evil.

Heavenly Father, we are grateful for Your forgiveness and Your strength. May we go in faith to share Your love with all the world. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is 1 Peter 5:6-9.

So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time he will lift you up in honor. Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you. Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith. Remember that your family of believers all over the world is going through the same kind of suffering you are.

What can we do when the weight of our responsibility and worry threaten to overpower us? Peter teaches us to “Give all your worries and cares to God, for He cares about you”. Giving it up to God doesn’t mean giving up, it is placing our faith in the One who created us rather than ourselves.

Proverbs 3:5-6 tells us “Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take”. Asking God for His wisdom and strength is a mark of spiritual maturity. We know that we can’t stand alone against the enemy who “prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour”. 

God knows us better than we know ourselves and He is fully aware of our weaknesses. When we try to go it alone against evil we are risking our eternal lives. Peter knew what it was to face evil alone and when challenged, he crumbled. Without God, we all would fail as he did. Give your cares to Him and He will stand with you.

Loving Lord, we are sorry for the times we have tried on our own and failed. May we give up our willful weakness and live in the strength You promise us. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is Colossians 4:2-6.

Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should. Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.

Paul closes his letter to the Colossians (and us) with guidance to “devote yourselves to prayer”. Prayer is so important to our faith lives, allowing us to share our joys and concerns with God, but also to listen for His voice. Jesus gave us the example of regular prayer, rising early and going to pray (Mark 1:35).

Paul also told us to “Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18). What would continuous prayer be like? It means that just as God gives us every breath, we should offer every breath as a prayer, being constantly aware of His presence in our lives.

18th century preacher John Wesley said that prayer is “the grand means of drawing near to God”. By this, we consciously choose Him in our lives and share the things that are important or worry us. By giving up our issues to God, we can be relieved of those burdens, knowing He holds all things in His hands.

Heavenly Father, we are thankful for prayer as our means of sharing with You. Hear our prayers for all Your children, that we may follow Christ to the eternal life we have been promised. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is 1 Thessalonians 5:9-11.

For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with him. Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.

Paul reminds us that God doesn’t want us to fail and fall into sin, but to “receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ”. We were made to be in connection with Him and each other, caring for creation as He intended. Our lives and everything there is are given to us as gifts from God.

Sometimes we forget the obligation we have to God, preferring to go our own way. Some people ask “what has He done for me lately?” The answer is if your heart is beating and your lungs are drawing breath and your brain is able to ask that question, He is doing something right now. Without Him, we literally are nothing.

However, God wants something special for us and wants us to do special things in the world. He has made us in His own image that through each other we might see Him. Paul writes “Therefore encourage one another and build each other up”, a call not just from him but from God. If we lift one another up in faith and love, we can be like Him and with Him forever.

Loving Lord, You created us for a purpose. Help us to use Your gifts well and go in Your name to share Your love with everyone. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is Isaiah 25:1-5.

Lord, you are my God; I will exalt you and praise your name, for in perfect faithfulness you have done wonderful things, things planned long ago. You have made the city a heap of rubble, the fortified town a ruin, the foreigners’ stronghold a city no more; it will never be rebuilt. Therefore strong peoples will honor you; cities of ruthless nations will revere you. You have been a refuge for the poor, a refuge for the needy in their distress, a shelter from the storm and a shade from the heat. For the breath of the ruthless is like a storm driving against a wall and like the heat of the desert. You silence the uproar of foreigners; as heat is reduced by the shadow of a cloud, so the song of the ruthless is stilled.

The prophet Isaiah praises God for His protection, remembering Him going before Israel into the Promised Land. They had to fight for this territory, but God had led them there and assured them of His blessing. This prophecy also looks ahead to a day when God’s justice will come upon the earth “so the song of the ruthless is stilled”.

While God is a loving Father who cares for His children, He is the creator of all things and will crush evil when the time He has chosen comes. Paul reminds us “For we know him who said, “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” and again, “The Lord will judge his people.” It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God” (Hebrews 10:30-31). Those who recognize their sins and turn to Him in repentance can be forgiven. However, Paul also writes “Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows” (Galatians 6:7).

If we are willing to choose Him, we can be saved to eternal life. God honors those who honor Him. He blesses us to go in His name to share His love, that all the world may come to know Him.

Heavenly Father, we are grateful for all the gifts You have given us. Help us to use our blessings well, that Your kingdom may come on earth. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is Galatians 5:13-16.

You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love. For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” If you bite and devour each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other. So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.

Paul reminds us of Jesus words about the greatest commandment: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22:37-39). Jesus tells us how important this is, saying “all the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments” (Matthew 22:40). This means everything we say and do should be based on loving God and one another.

Something we may miss in this is the “as yourself” part. There are times when all of us find we may not love ourselves very much. For some people, this can be a chronic condition, and if we don’t love ourselves, it’s hard to have a loving relationship with God and one another. 

Jesus wants us to see that like many things, self love is a double edged sword. If we love ourselves too much, we forget about serving God and others, wanting only to make ourselves happy. We must have a healthy relationship with ourselves in order to be God’s people. We can’t care for others if we don’t take care of our own physical and spiritual needs (too little self love) or if we are too involved with our own desires (too much self love). God wants us to love Him and our brothers and sisters and ourselves. We are His beloved children, no matter what.

Gracious God, we are grateful for the gift of creation and the wonderful things You have given us. May we love You and one another, and go in faith to share this blessing. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is Psalms 4:6-8.

Many people say, “Who will show us better times?” Let your face smile on us, Lord. You have given me greater joy than those who have abundant harvests of grain and new wine. In peace I will lie down and sleep, for you alone, O Lord, will keep me safe.

God wants to be a part of everything we do, with us in every moment. He has amazing things for us when we walk with Him. However, we must choose to make Him part of our lives.

God doesn’t just insert Himself into what we are doing. While He is our creator and capable of all things, He has given us free will to make our own choices. God waits for us to invite Him into our lives. 

What does that mean for us? It is essential for us to ask God to be part of our everyday existence, not just a chance meeting in church on Sunday. When we give ourselves and the things we do to Him, amazing kingdom work can result! Then as the psalmist says we may “lie down and sleep, for you alone, O Lord, will keep me safe”.

Gracious God, thank You for wanting a relationship with us. Bless us to live for You that all the world may know Your love and care. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is Galatians 2:19-21.

For when I tried to keep the law, it condemned me. So I died to the law—I stopped trying to meet all its requirements—so that I might live for God. My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I do not treat the grace of God as meaningless. For if keeping the law could make us right with God, then there was no need for Christ to die.

Paul teaches that we must die to ourselves and earthly things in order for Christ to live in us. God had given the law through Moses, but we chose our own way instead. Now Jesus has come to live as one of us and teach us how we can be made right with God.

Paul says “So I died to the law—I stopped trying to meet all its requirements—so that I might live for God”. When we get too wrapped up in rules and regulations, processes and procedures, we forget the reason it was given – so that we might live in God’s love and share it with the world. The intent was never for the law to be a weapon, but we have made it one.

Jesus made the sacrifice for sin for all time, living here that we might see God’s love in action, and by this gift we may all be saved. The law could never do this, only a true connection to God will allow us to live for Him. By following the path Jesus has shown us, we can be part of God’s plan for salvation.

Loving Lord, we are grateful for the example of Jesus Christ who came to teach us the way to redemption and eternal life with You. Bless us to go in Your name to share the Good News with the world. Amen.