Any one of us weak fleshed beings are capable of denying the Christ apart from Your work of grace in us, Lord. Draw near to me, Lord, as I draw near to You. Fill me with Your Holy Presence, for apart from You I can do nothing. You are my first, most vital need and necessity. You are the oil in my lamp that keeps me dressed in readiness with lamps alight. Make me faithful and, according to Your faithful Word, empower me to stand despite any fear that comes my way. You are my hope and my help. I bow to You. This I pray in Jesus, amen.
The hardest and most important thing about confessing sin is seeing self rightly and truly, as You see me. I too readily tend to look at myself with rose colored glasses, if I am not careful to honestly and earnestly seek Your opinion or keep ears attuned to You.
I understand the importance of right relationship with You, Father, and the role of sincere repentance in maintaining that connection with You. Empower me to be quick in hearing You and faithful in seeking hard after You. Grant me eyes to see clearly as You see me; ears to hear truly, recognizing Your voice over those that are falsely self approving and deceptive; a mind of comprehensive understanding, in agreement with Your will done Your way; a heart set to seeking You with right desire for You as first and foremost need and necessity; and a spirit vitally united with Your Spirit, bowed down to You in willing obedience.
“This is my desire to honor You. Lord with all my heart I worship You. All I have within me, I give You praise. All that I adore is in You. Lord I give You my heart. I give You my soul, I live for You alone. Every breath that I take, Every moment I’m awake, Lord have Your way in me.” In Jesus, amen.
Thank You, Father, that You desire a loving, open, full, complete, and trusting relationship with us, so much so that You gave Your Son to achieve it. Thank You that as we seek You wholeheartedly, You give us Your Spirit Teacher to make Yourself known to us, disclosing Yourself and Your Word to our understanding. I praise You that, in Christ, You open the chambers of Your secret place, where we can meet heart to heart, a place no one can take from us. There, through Your Living Word, You instruct us in the way in which we must go, and grant us grace sufficient for our successful journey through this life, taking us safely to the fullness of Your Presence.
Thank You that as we earnestly seek You, You grant us understanding of how to walk out our salvation as pleases You, and You undergird us as Your bondservant-child, making us stand to the glory of Your name and the fulfillment of Your purpose. Nothing is to difficult for You. I bow in faith’s trust, and rise in belief’s loving obedience. Glory to Your Name, in Jesus, amen.
Every time we face something in life that appears impossible or tempts us away from faithfully following You; any time we sense Your call to a hard thing we aren’t sure we can do; with every opportunity to doubt or fear, a stone pops up to cause stumbling, making us stop, leading us to sin against You. Father, grant us faith to trust You that, in all You call us to and every opportunity You set before us, You are with us to move those stones or show us the path to removing their hindrance. When we walk with faith that fully trusts You, stones of stumbling get crushed under the Cornerstone of our faith, and we walk free to stand firm on the foundation of our victory in Christ. Increase our trust as we walk securely in The Way, The Truth, and The Life. Make us faithful to trust You more and obey You fully, especially in the hard places. IJA
“For it was an act worthy [of God] and fitting [to the divine nature] that He, for Whose sake and by Whom all things have their existence, in bringing many sons into glory, should make the Pioneer of their salvation perfect [should bring to maturity the human experience necessary to be perfectly equipped for His office as High Priest] through suffering.” – Hebrews 2:10 AMPC
Thank You, Lord, for doing life in human experience to the full so You are adequately equipped to encourage, strengthen, and help us in our struggles. Thank You that You understand human flesh and how to overcome, setting the example that helps us know truth so we can walk free indeed. Thank You for being with us and for us. May we be faithful in walking through life with and for You. In Jesus, amen.
“I know your works, your labor, your patience, and that you cannot bear those who are evil. And you have tested those who say they are apostles and are not, and have found them liars; and you have persevered and have patience, and have labored for My name’s sake and have not become weary. Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love. Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place—unless you repent. But this you have, that you hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.” – Revelations 2:2-6
Father, thank You for this passage that always gives me opportunity for self evaluation. Am I producing a work that honors You as God, laboring in patient endurance out of love for You, as pleases You as my First and Foremost desire? Am I testing the teachers and teaching I sit under by digging into Your word for myself, that I may know truth, giving me a basis for recognizing falsehood? Do I live as one who hates evil? Am I remaining true to You as my First Love?
Here am I, O God. Search me and know my heart. Try me and know my anxious thoughts. Grant me eyes to see myself – my heart – as You see me. See if there is any hurtful way in me, and lead me to a right heart in walking through life into eternal purposes fulfilled to the glory of Your Name. Grant me right heart attitudes in serving You with whole hearted fervor, practicing patient endurance, to a finish that glorifies Your name and accomplishes Your purpose. May I realize the evil around me and recognize any way in which I inadvertently give myself to those things that displease and dishonor You. Deliver me from evil, and lead me to repentance that reestablishes right standing with You. Make me a light that helps those I love or come in contact with to find You for themselves. This I pray in Jesus’ Name and by His authority, amen.
Father God, You have been encouraging my prayer life all morning, reminding me to ask, seek, and knock with a view toward right and true evaluation of my motives in my requests. To pray with a pure heart dictated by love. To pray with a heart set to love You through obedience. To seek Your face with a whole heart set on things above, not on worldly desires, lusts of my flesh, or demonic wisdom and influence. Praying this way does require an honesty with self and with You that only Your Holy Presence can empower in me. As You give me eyes to see my own heart and know the truth of it, only then can I pray in truth and righteousness, from an honest stance and in full assurance of faith that reveals my trust in You. Here am I, O God. Grant me understanding that will empower me to ask, seek, and knock with a pure heart and clean hands. In Jesus, amen.
Father, thank You that You do care about the smallest details of our lives, and You tell us to seek You for them, as whether we eat or drink, or whatever we do, we are to do it to the glory of Your Name.
As I pray that, my heart turns to Luke 16:10, “He who is faithful in a very little thing is faithful also in much; and he who is unrighteous in a very little thing is unrighteous also in much.”
Of course You care about the smallest details of our lives, for how we behave in the small speaks volumes about our ability to rightly and truly handle the big. If we won’t seek You, Your will and Your way, in the small things, why should You bless us with and in the big. Thank You for this enlightening and encouraging truth. In Jesus, amen.
As I have studied Your Word, I have come to understand that the thing that caused You to sweat blood drops was knowing that You would, for the first time EVER, experience the turned back of God who could not look on our sins born on Your shoulders on that cross, thus, saving us from eternal damnation. You saved us who know Your sacrificial gift, have received it and are walking out the salvation You provided, from ever having to know God’s turned back. For this, my eternal soul saved in Christ and walked out in love for You, I thankfully praise You. In Christ, amen.
Thank You for the privilege of allowing me to know You as Abba, my loving, life giving, caring Father. Thank You for teaching Your daughter to trust Your love, which disciplines me for my eternal good and Your here and now and everlasting glory. May I be found faithful to turn quickly to Your truth and walk away from sin to the path of Your will done Your way. It is my greatest desire to follow and serve You. Grant me eyes to see, ears to hear, a mind to know, and a believing, understanding heart that gives way to a willing Spirit of obedience. In Jesus, Amen.
“And He said to them, When you pray, say: Our Father Who is in heaven, hallowed be Your name, Your kingdom come. Your will be done [held holy and revered] on earth as it is in heaven.” – Luke 11:2 AMPC
Thank You, Father God, for loving and receiving me, and for delivering me from my most unjustifiably rebellious and miserable failures, consummate waste and ruined potential. Here am I, O God. Grant me eyes the see and recognize every opportunity You give me to honor and glorify You as Lord of lords and King of kings, my Savior. In Jesus holy and righteous name I pray, amen.
Father, by the power of Your Spirit working in and on me, grant me to walk in Your ways, guarding and keeping my heart so it will be perfect and blameless toward You. May my heart prove to be completely Yours, loyal in all things, fully committed to You. Fill me to overflowing with the power of Your holy presence so that my every thought, desire, word, work, and deed prove my heart to be completely dedicated to You, Your will, and Your way as I walk this pilgrimage to Your eternal Kingdom. Set my mind and heart, and keep them set on the things above where Christ is, seated on the throne of glory, and let Your throne possess me. In Jesus, Amen.
Darlene's Ponderings 