shadow

Knowing God

 “My Father has entrusted everything to me. No one truly knows the Son except the Father, and no one truly knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.”

Luke 10:22, (NLT)

teenage-girl-1429948-639x961Our focus in this passage turns to fully knowing and relying on God. The more dependent we become on the Son of God, the more we will grow to know both the Father and the Son. When this happens we will see God’s glory more clearly, hear His words more frequently, and become more useful in promoting His cause. Today, pray that we will become completely reliant on the Lord and set aside any inclination of self-reliance and pride that disrupts our relationship with the Father. Then pray that God will reveal Himself to us and use us to magnify His name.

 

Prayerfully,

Madison

 

photo credit: http://www.freeimages.com/photographer/LilGoldWmn-46256

A Lament for our Country

“Give ear to my prayer, O God; And do not hide Yourself from my supplication. Give heed to me and answer me; I am restless in my complaint and am surely distracted.”
Psalm 55:1-2 NASB

woman-praying-300x187Did you know that over 60 of the Psalms are considered laments? That’s not a word we use very often today. A lament, according to Merriam-Webster, is to express sorrow, regret, or unhappiness about something. We see a true expression of this in Scripture, especially in the Psalms. There is no faking it with God – complaint, anger, doubt, and worry is spewed out. There’s a sense of wrestling with God, yet He is never blamed. Instead, confidence, praise and joy are found within each lament.

Here in the United States, our presidential election is just around the corner. I don’t know about you, but the direction our country is headed grieves my soul. I find myself crying out to God for mercy and healing for our once great land. The fulfillment of Isaiah 5:20 (NASB) is becoming a reality:

Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; Who substitute darkness for light and light for darkness; Who substitute bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter!

Many of my prayers have become laments. Would you join me in crying out to the God of the universe to turn our hearts back to Him? But as with most laments within the Psalms, let us not forget to offer our declarations of praise and adoration to God Almighty. Let us not forget to request His help and intercession. Let us not forget to confess our own sins, as well as the sins of our country. Our God is still in control and in that we put our hope.

O God, in You and You alone I put my trust because there is no god but You. I know Your truths, power and salvation, yet many in our land are clueless of Your existence and ways. Whatever is right in their own eyes is their pursuit. Perversions and sexual immoralities are embraced as normal. Goodness is treated with suspicion and absolutes are deemed obsolete. Our country is such a deplorable mess. Help us, O God! Forgive us for turning our eyes away from You. Revive, restore, and heal us once again. Bring salvation to the leaders of this country. Our lives are in Your hands. All praise and honor and power be to You. Amen and Amen!

[Digging deeper – Psalms 11, 12, 56, 71, 85, and 90]

Confident in Him,

Beverly <><

Childlike Faith

“At that same time Jesus was filled with the joy of the Holy Spirit, and he said, “O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, thank you for hiding these things from those who think themselves wise and clever, and for revealing them to the childlike. Yes, Father, it pleased you to do it this way.”
Luke 10:21, NLT

child-reaching-into-the-shadow-1199093-640x960In the later part of this verse, Jesus thanks His Father for “hiding these things from those who think themselves wise and clever.” This is a warning for us against pride and self-reliance. We need to be careful not to be wise in our own eyes, but to acknowledge God in everything we do (Proverbs 3:5-7). Only when we come to Him with childlike faith will He reveal His truths to us. Today, let’s pray through Psalm 139:23-24. Ask God to search your heart and to remove anything He finds offensive, and then pray that He will grant us a childlike faith that will be pleasing to Him.

Ps. 139:23-24 – “Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting (NLT).”

Prayerfully,

Madison

 

photo credit: http://www.freeimages.com/photographer/AKphotos-49334