The LORD Directs Our Steps

 

The LORD directs our steps,
    so why try to understand everything along the way?

 

—Proverbs 20:24 (NLT)

 

 

Heavenly Father,

 

When I don’t quite understand all that is going on, grant me the faith I need to trust You and the patience I need to wait and watch, as You unfold before me—according to Your perfect timing—Your plan to use all things to accomplish Your purposes.

 

Keep me in Your peace, by helping me to accept that the full impact of Your plans and purposes—for those things that happen both to me and all around me—is infinitely beyond my ability to fully comprehend, but still a part of Your plan.  

 

Don’t allow my days to be so consumed by my own “need to understand” the reason behind why certain things happen, that I miss doing the next good and right thing, with the opportunity that You have placed immediately before me—a gracious and loving invitation to join in with what You are doing.

 

Keep me from the temptation to “make You in my image”—thinking I know best what You should do and how You should do it.  Rather be the Lord of my life—as the Sovereign God that You are—in my heart of hearts.

 

When I don’t quite understand all that is going on, grant me the faith I need to trust You and the patience I need to wait and watch, as You unfold before me—according to Your perfect timing—Your plan to use all things to accomplish Your purposes.

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

He Bends Down to Listen

 

I love the LORD because he hears my voice
    and my prayer for mercy.

Because he bends down to listen,
    I will pray as long as I have breath!

 

—Psalm 116:1-2 (NLT)

 

Merciful and Loving LORD,

 

I love You, LORD! For You are the One who bends down to listen, who hears my prayers for mercy! 

 

In a world where so many are speaking but so few are listening, let my comfort and hope be found in the truth that You are always interested in what is on my heart. 

 

For You are my Heavenly Father and You bend down to listen to me—not willing to miss a single word I pray—because I am Your dearly loved child.

 

So, help me to make every next breath I breathe a prayer lifted up to You—from a heart that is filled with love for You—knowing You will hear me and answer me according to what is best for me and for Your glory!

 

I love You, LORD! For You are the One who bends down to listen, who hears my prayers for mercy! 

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

Special Treasure

 

“They will be my people,” says the LORD of Heaven’s Armies. “On the day when I act in judgment, they will be my own special treasure. I will spare them as a father spares an obedient child.  Then you will again see the difference between the righteous and the wicked, between those who serve God and those who do not.” —Malachi 3:17-18 (NLT)

 

O LORD of Heaven’s Armies,

 

Thank You for adopting me into the family of those who are Your people—those who are Your special treasure!

 

Help me to remain faithful to obey Your Word and the promptings of Your Holy Spirit—so that on the day You act in judgement, You will spare me as a father spares an obedient child.

 

Help me never to walk away from the righteousness that is mine in Christ Jesus—never trample upon that redemption that Christ purchased for me with His own blood.

 

Help me not grow weary in serving You with my whole heart—so that I might never be counted among the wicked, but be counted as a servant of God, and of Him alone!

 

Thank You for adopting me into the family of those who are Your people—those who are Your special treasure!

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

You Alone!

 

“You alone are the LORD. You made the skies and the heavens and all the stars. You made the earth and the seas and everything in them. You preserve them all, and the angels of heaven worship you.”

 —Nehemiah 9:6 (NLT)

 

O LORD Most High,

 

Let all creation worship You alone—for You alone are worthy of our worship!

 

You alone are the LORD—the Creator and Keeper of all that has ever been, is now, or ever will be!

 

The skies, the heavens, and all the stars, the earth, the seas, and everything in them exist at Your Word—and are preserved by Your unfailing love which was demonstrated in and through Christ.

 

The multitude of heavenly host—all the angel armies—worship only You. May I, too, never fail to give all my worship only to You.

 

Let all creation worship You alone—for You alone are worthy of our worship!

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

Judge Fairly

 

“This is what the LORD of Heaven’s Armies says: Judge fairly, and show mercy and kindness to one another.”

 

—Zechariah 7:9 (NLT)

 

O LORD of Heaven’s Armies,

 

May all my judgments be fair, and may I always show mercy and kindness to others—as I am reminded of the way You judge everything about me fairly, yet still lavish me with love and grace, pouring out Your mercy and kindness upon me.

 

Keep me from standing arrogantly in rash judgment of others—from being too quick to condemn people for how they act.  For only You can truly know the deep wounds of a person’s heart, and only You can judge their motives and intentions.

 

So instead, give me the boldness to speak the Truth in love against that which is sin—as You have revealed it in Your Word—all the while showing the same mercy and kindness that You pour out upon us all, because of Your great love for each one of us.

 

Grant me the wisdom to fairly judge for myself between that which is right and good, and that which is wrong and evil—so that I would live a life full of truth and grace, and bring glory to You in all of my thoughts, words and actions.

 

May all my judgments be fair, and may I always show mercy and kindness to others—as I am reminded of the way You judge everything about me fairly, yet still lavish me with love and grace, pouring out Your mercy and kindness upon me.

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

Search Me, Know Me, Test Me, Lead Me

 

Search me, O God, and know my heart;
    test me and know my anxious thoughts.
Point out anything in me that offends you,
    and lead me along the path of everlasting life.

 

—Psalm 139:23-24 (NLT)

 

Holy God,

Search me and know my heart—and by the continuing work of the power of Christ in me, point out and remove anything that is offensive to You, so I can walk more perfectly with You the path that leads to everlasting life.

 

As You test the integrity of the motives my heart and as You reveal my secret fears, grant me the strength to endure Your testing and the faith to overcome my fears—so I might learn to put all my trust and hope in You.

 

Grant me the courage to ask You to shine the light of Your love on the hidden places of my heart to dispel the darkness—indeed the evil—of anything in me that offends You, as I repent and run to You. 

 

Grant me the peace and the joy that comes when I invite You to lead me along the path of everlasting life—to that place where nothing remains that would keep me from that close, personal, intimate relationship that You desire to have with me, and which I so desperately need to have with You.

 

Search me and know my heart—and by the continuing work of the power of Christ in me, point out and remove anything that is offensive to You, so I can walk more perfectly with You the path that leads to everlasting life.

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

Remain

 

“Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in me.”

 

—John 15:4 (NLT)

 

Gracious Father God,

Let me continually and forever remain in Jesus Christ—for He is my Savior, my Lord, and the very source of my life.

 

Help me always to abide with Him—to inseparably link every aspect of my life to Him—and live in according to the Truth which He came to declare to us all, comforted by the knowledge that He will remain in me.

 

For it is only in Christ—through my openness to receive the full measure of grace and truth that He pours out over me—that I find everything that I need to accomplish every plan and purpose for which He has uniquely crafted and equipped me.

 

And without Him I cannot produce any good thing—I cannot fulfill Your will for me—and I cannot enjoy the privilege of being used to be a part of the great things that You are doing in the lives of those all around me.

 

So, help me to be fruitful—producing good works which are a reflection of Your amazing love, truth, and grace—so that others might see Christ in me and give You the glory, honor, and praise that You are due.

Let me continually and forever remain in Jesus Christ—for He is my Savior, my Lord, and the very source of my life.

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

A Humble Heart and Pure Motives

 

Live in harmony with each other. Don’t be too proud to enjoy the company of ordinary people. And don’t think you know it all!

 

—Romans 12:16 (NLT)

 

Heavenly Father,

 

Give me a humble heart and pure motives, so that I might have the privilege of joining in with You to touch the lives of others with Your love.

 

Help me to live in harmony with those around me—by celebrating the diversity of souls that You have created and making my first consideration my own shortcomings, rather than the shortcomings of others.

 

Keep me from taking a proud and haughty attitude with others, thinking I am better than them, when in truth it is only by Your mercy, grace, and strength that I can stand at all.

 

Teach me to enjoy the company of “ordinary” people—people who are just broken in different ways than I am—and help me to work willingly alongside them as you lead, understanding that You are the One who knows it all.

 

Give me a humble heart and pure motives, so that I might have the privilege of joining in with You to touch the lives of others with Your love.

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

You Heal Me, You Save Me

 

O LORD, if you heal me, I will be truly healed;

    if you save me, I will be truly saved.

    My praises are for you alone!

 

—Jeremiah 17:14 (NLT)

 

Sovereign LORD of My Life,

 

All my praise belongs to You alone!

 

Thank You for being the One who truly and fully heals me of all my brokenness—physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually—as You draw me closer and closer to You and form the true character of Christ in me.

 

Thank You for being the One who truly and completely saves me—from all my sins, from all my faults, and from all my failures—the One who sets me free to become everything that I have been created and called to be in Christ. 

 

No one else deserves my praise, so help me never give to another that which belongs to You alone. For You are the One who truly heals me, the One who truly saves me. May Your praises forever be on my lips.

 

All my praise belongs to You alone!

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

For the Good of Others

 

Don’t be concerned for your own good but for the good of others.

 

—1 Corinthians 10:24 (NLT)

 

Loving and Compassionate God,

 

Save me from any self-centered tendency in me that would cause me to consider only that which is good for me!

 

Too often I make decisions according to what I think is best for me—with little thought to making those decisions based on what is good for others.

 

Help me to think about myself less, so I can think more about the people that You divinely place in my path—and what I might do that would be best for them.

 

Today, grant me opportunities to be more self-sacrificial—and help me to be willingly obedient to Your Spirit’s promptings, so that Christ may be glorified in me.

 

Save me from any self-centered tendency in me that would cause me to consider only that which is good for me!

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

Our Hope

 

Let your unfailing love surround us, LORD,
    for our hope is in you alone.

 

—Psalm 33:22 (NLT)

 

Loving and Merciful LORD,

May I forever place all my hope in You, LORD—as You faithfully surround me with Your unfailing love.

 

Teach me not to place my hope in my possessions. Help me to understand that what I have is not my own, but Yours—and remind me that if it were all stripped away from me today, I would have lost nothing, because I still have You, the One who is everything to me.

 

Teach me not to place my hope in other people. Help me to see that other people are human and just like me, they sometimes disappoint, they sometimes fail, and they sometimes let me down. Remind me that even if everyone else abandoned me, You would still be with me always.

 

Teach me not to place my hope in my position or in my own strength. Help me to see that any position or strength that I have was given by Your hand—to be used for Your glory and not my own—and that even if I was removed from my position and all strength was drained from me, You would still uphold me in Your everlasting arms.

May I forever place all my hope in You, LORD—as You faithfully surround me with Your unfailing love.

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

Salvation From the LORD

The LORD is good to those who depend on him,

    to those who search for him.

So it is good to wait quietly

    for salvation from the LORD.

 

—Lamentations 3:25-26 (NLT)

 

Good and Faithful LORD,

 

May I always depend on You, and see that You are good. May I always search for You, and discover that You can be found. And may I always wait quietly for You, and find my salvation always and only comes from You.

 

Help me to acknowledge that I am totally dependent on You—that apart from You I have no hope. Display Your goodness in every corner of my life, as it is Your desire to do.

 

Help me to search for You with all my heart, so that You can usher me into Your presence and show me who You are.

 

Help me to wait quietly for You, trusting in Your faithfulness. Let me experience the salvation that comes to everyone who puts all their hope in You.

 

May I always depend on You, and see that You are good. May I always search for You, and discover that You can be found. And may I always wait quietly for You, and find my salvation always and only comes from You.

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

 

Turn Back and Live!

 

 

“I don’t want you to die, says the Sovereign LORD. Turn back and live!”

—Ezekiel 18:32 (NLT)

 

Sovereign LORD,

 

Thank you that even in my wanderings away from You, You never wanted me to die. You wanted me to turn back to You and live!

 

Thank You for loving me with an unfailing love and for the unrelenting way that You call me to Yourself—because You want me to be in right relationship with You.

 

Thank You for showing me that You want me—not for Your own selfish reasons, but rather so that I can walk in the abundant life that is available to all who will accept Jesus as their Savior, and who choose to make Him Lord of their lives.

 

So, help me to simply trust and obey Your Word and every prompting of Your Spirit within me—so that I can turn my back on the sin that leads me to death, and walk, with Christ, down every path that leads to life in Him.

 

Thank you that even in my wanderings away from You, You never wanted me to die.  You wanted me to turn back to You and live!

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.