O LORD, Whose Words Have Power

Then the LORD stretched out His hand and touched my mouth, and the LORD said to me,

“Behold, I have put My words in your mouth.

“See, I have appointed you this day over the nations and over the kingdoms,

To pluck up and to break down,

To destroy and to overthrow,

To build and to plant.”

—Jeremiah 1:9-10 (NASB)

O LORD, Whose Words Have Power,

Fill my mouth with Your words, so that I can speak against that which is not honoring to You—in order to pluck it up, break it down, destroy and overthrow it—and then build upon a foundation of Your Truth, by planting Your words of love, and peace, and joy.

As You give me Your words, let me first speak to my own heart and mind—so that any lies that have been planted there by the enemy about who I am, or whose I am, would be uprooted, broken down, destroyed, and forever overthrown and replaced with Truth, in order that I would know my true identity in Christ.

Then show me how to only allow Your words to tell me who I am—so that I am no longer carried away from Your Truth by the words the enemy, or others, might say, but can fully live out my life according to Your specific plan and purpose for me.

And help me always, and only, speak Your words to others—not my own ideas—so that Your words would tear down the lies that they have bought into, and so they too would be set free to become all that You have called them to be.

Fill my mouth with Your words, so that I can speak against that which is not honoring to You—in order to pluck it up, break it down, destroy and overthrow it—and then build upon a foundation of Your Truth, by planting Your words of love, and peace, and joy.

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

Beyond Myself

Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too.

—Philippians 2:3-4 (NLT)

Heavenly Father,

Save me from my own self-centeredness—that I might love others, as Christ has loved me—and help me to willingly serve others, in order to build unity within the body of Christ.

Help me not to be selfish—always looking at everything to see what’s in it for me.

Help me not to try to impress others—but rather, only do all I can to please You, as I follow Your “every moment” plan and purpose for me, by faith.

Keep me humble before You and before others—and help me to think of them as better than myself, so that I am never found arrogant, irritable or unapproachable.

Help me to focus on how the things I am asked to do will benefit others—before I consider how much of an inconvenience they might be for me.

Help me not to look out for my own interests alone—but make my first effort to look out for the interests of others.

Save me from my own self-centeredness—that I might love others, as Christ has loved me—and help me to willingly serve others, in order to build unity within the body of Christ.

In the name of Jesus, Amen

Speaking Truth, Doing Good, Making Peace

Does anyone want to live a life
    that is long and prosperous?
Then keep your tongue from speaking evil
    and your lips from telling lies!
Turn away from evil and do good.
    Search for peace, and work to maintain it.

—Psalm 34:12-14 (NLT)

Heavenly Father,

May the words that I speak and the path that I choose to walk in this life, always bring glory to You.

Help me not to speak evil things—words that hurt, rather than heal; words that tear down, rather than build up; words that bring despair, rather than hope.

And help me not to tell lies—words that deceive, rather than reveal; words that slander, rather than commend; words that omit, rather than declare the whole truth.

Help me to understand that while it is good for me to turn away from evil, it is not enough.  Help me to remember that to be obedient to You, I must also purpose to do good to others.

Help me to understand that in order for me to live in the peace that You want me to enjoy, I must never stop searching for that peace and working to maintain it through my words and actions.

Help me to do all these things, as a testimony to Your power at work in me, so that I may live long enough in this world to accomplish Your will for me here, then  join You there for eternity.

May the words that I speak and the path that I choose to walk in this life, always bring glory to You.

In the name of Jesus, Amen.