Everything Through Christ

 

 

I know how to live on almost nothing or with everything. I have learned the secret of living in every situation, whether it is with a full stomach or empty, with plenty or little. For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength.

 

—Philippians 4:12-13 (NLT)

 

 

 

 

 

Father God, 

 

Help me hold onto the secret of living in every situation, with my eyes, my mind, and my heart fixed on Jesus Christ, the One who gives me all the strength I need to do everything that You ask me to do.

 

Help me remember that I can remain content if I keep a heart full of gratitude and faith—gratitude expressed by continual thankfulness for all the undeserved blessings of my life, and faith demonstrated by my unwavering confidence that You will always provide everything that I need to accomplish the plans and purposes You have for me.

 

Help me to rest in the truth that You provide for me out of Your unlimited knowledge, wisdom and understanding—that You completely know me and the good plans You have for me—while I have only a cloudy memory of where I have been, a partial understanding of where I am now, and by Your grace, perhaps a mere glimpse of where You are taking me.

 

Help me remember that the power You give to me through Christ is not so that I can do whatever I please with my life—or to have anything that I think I want—but rather that I might have the strength to do whatever You would require of me, whether I have little or plenty.

 

Help me hold onto the secret of living in every situation, with my eyes, my mind, and my heart fixed on Jesus Christ, the One who gives me all the strength I need to do everything that You ask me to do.

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

 

Therefore Be Holy!

 

 

“For I am the LORD who brought you up out of the land of Egypt to be your God. You shall therefore be holy, for I am holy.”

 

—Leviticus 11:45 (ESV)

 

 

 

 

 

Holy LORD,

 

Thank You for being the One who called me and brought me out of my slavery to sin, in order that You might be my God—for being the One who makes me holy in Christ Jesus.

 

I praise You, for You are holy! Just as You brought Your people, Israel, up out of their slavery in Egypt, so have You brought me up out of my slavery to sin, through the redeeming sacrifice of Your Son, Jesus.

 

I exalt You, for You are holy!  Just as You called Your people, Israel, to be holy—set apart and uniquely different from the world around them—so have You called me to be holy in Christ—set apart and uniquely different from the world around me.

 

I worship You, for You are holy!  Just as You desired to be the only God of Your people, Israel, so You have called me into a personal relationship with You through Christ—so that You would be my only God!

 

Thank You for being the One who called me and brought me out of my slavery to sin, in order that You might be my God—for being the One who makes me holy in Christ Jesus.

 

In the Name of Jesus, Amen.

Teach Me!

 

 

Teach me to do Your will,
For You are my God;
Let Your good Spirit lead me on level ground.

 

—Psalm 143:10 (NASB)

 

 

Heavenly Father,

 

Teach me, both to know what Your will is and to do it always, so that my journey here on earth is marked by a faithful and settled course of holy living—as You lead me, by Your good Spirit, on that level ground that takes me to my eternal home with You.

 

Teach me!  Let Your good Spirit open the eyes of my understanding, so that I am fully able to discern the depths of meaning found in Your Holy Scriptures—so I can always know Your will.

 

Teach me!  Let Your good Spirit usher me into the plans You have for me, as I step out in faith to do Your will—so I can always walk within the safety of Your will.

 

Teach me!  Let Your good Spirit continue to do Your work of sanctification within me, so that my life would become wholly set apart for You—so I can always live to the glory of Your will.

 

Teach me, both to know what Your will is and to do it always, so that my journey here on earth is marked by a faithful and settled course of holy living—as You lead me, by Your good Spirit, on that level ground that takes me to my eternal home with You.

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

Choose to Obey God!

 

 

Don’t you realize that you become the slave of whatever you choose to obey? You can be a slave to sin, which leads to death, or you can choose to obey God, which leads to righteous living.

 

—Romans 6:16 (NLT)

 

 

 

 

Heavenly Father,

 

Help me to remember that I become the slave of whatever I choose to obey—and may I always choose
to obey You, so that I might live a righteous life, in Christ, before You.

 

Help me to be careful, in every choice I make today, to choose that which honors You—so that in my choosing I don’t enslave myself once again to sin.

 

Help me look to the Truth of Your Word to be my standard, and to listen to Your Holy Spirit as You teach me, along that path of becoming more and more like Christ. 

 

Let my obedience, be proof of my love for you—as You take me to that place of intimate and personal relationship with You, where I find the abundant life You have hidden there for me in Christ.

 

Help me to remember that I become the slave of whatever I choose to obey—and may I always choose to obey You, so that I might live a righteous life, in Christ, before You.

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

Don't Give Up on Me!

 

 

As I learn your righteous regulations,

    I will thank you by living as I should!

I will obey your decrees.

    Please don’t give up on me!

 

—Psalm 119:7-8 (NLT)

 

 

 

Merciful and Gracious LORD,

 

Please don’t give up on me!  Don’t leave me to my own limited understanding and imperfect wisdom—but continue in Your unrelenting, passionate, pursuit of my heart, as You patiently guide me into all Truth.

 

Let the commandments of Your Word permeate my heart, as I listen for Your Spirit to reveal how every commandment plays a part in protecting, providing for, and preserving my life—according to Your perfect plans and purposes.

 

By that same Spirit within me, strengthen me to live as I should—to fully understand and apply Your righteous regulations to my life—that I might live the abundant life that is available to those who choose to follow Jesus.

 

And help me to be grateful—not only in my thoughts and words, but even more so in the way I live my life—so that my entire life might become a continuous offering of thanksgiving and praise to You!

 

Please don’t give up on me!  Don’t leave me to my own limited understanding and imperfect wisdom—but continue in Your unrelenting, passionate, pursuit of my heart, as You patiently guide me into all Truth.

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

 

Life in This World

 

 

Those who love their life in this world will lose it. Those who care nothing for their life in this world will keep it for eternity.

 

—John 12:25 (NLT)

 

 

 

Heavenly Father,

 

Thank You for showing me that the very best life that this world has to offer me is nothing when compared to the unending and unfailing life that You have promised me—a life that is safely kept in Christ, both now and for eternity.

 

Help me to hold every blessing of my life with open hands, lifted up to You—acknowledging that everything I have belongs to You—so that trying to hold onto the things of this life won’t rob me of one moment of the incomparable joy of living my life in Your presence.

 

Save me from my own selfish ways that tempt me to buy into the lies that positions will give me power, material things will bring me security, and pleasures will make me satisfied—so I can clearly see that only in You can I ever hope to experience true power, real security, and lasting satisfaction for my soul.

 

Help me to totally surrender my life into Your care and control—to live for Christ and allow Christ to live in me—so my life would in some way serve Your purposes and bring glory to Your name.

 

Thank You for showing me that the very best life that this world has to offer me is nothing when compared to the unending and unfailing life that You have promised me—a life that is safely kept in Christ, both now and for eternity.

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

 

Joy to the Heart, Insight for Living

 

 

The commandments of the LORD are right,

    bringing joy to the heart.

The commands of the LORD are clear,

    giving insight for living.

 

—Psalm 19:8 (NLT)

 

 

 

Loving LORD,

 

Grant me the hunger to know, and the desire to obey, the commandments of Your Word—so my heart may be full of joy, and my mind would be filled with insight for how I should live.

 

Help me to understand that Your commands are exactly right—that they flow from Your Truth and are written for my good, and for Your glory.

 

Help me to understand that, as I obediently follow them, I not only demonstrate my love for You, but my heart is also filled with joy—as protection, provision and peace flood my life in proportion to that obedience.

 

Help me to understand that Your commands are perfectly clear—that they are pure, clean, that there is no darkness in them at all, and they are clearly understood.

 

Help me to understand that Your commands allow me to see with certainty the best paths for me to follow—as You guide me by Your Spirit on my journey through this life on my way home to You.

 

Grant me the hunger to know, and the desire to obey, the commandments of Your Word—so my heart may be full of joy, and my mind would be filled with insight for how I should live.

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

A Living Sacrifice

 

 

 

 

Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.

 

—Romans 12:1 (NIV)

 

Merciful and Gracious God,

 

Help me truly worship You today—in grateful response to Your enduring mercy and abundant grace—by dying to myself and living for You alone.

 

Because of everything You have done for me, stir within my heart that desire to submit all that I am and all that I have to You—to humbly give my life completely over to Your plans and purposes for me.

 

In light of the final atoning sacrifice of Your Son for my sin, help me to make the only sacrifice that is left to make—a living sacrifice of my life—by consciously and continually setting myself apart for Your use.

 

Help me to offer my true and proper worship to You in every moment of each new day, as You keep me mindful of Your mercy extended toward me—without which I would not have this privilege of life with You, forevermore.

 

Help me truly worship You today—in grateful response to Your enduring mercy and abundant grace—by dying to myself and living for You alone.

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

Not Just a Lot of Talk

 

 

 

For the Kingdom of God is not just a lot of talk; it is living by God’s power.

 

—1 Corinthians 4:20 (NLT)

 

Heavenly Father,

 

May Your Kingdom be seen in me, not just by the words that I say, but so much more by the way I live—as I live according to Your life-giving power at work within me.

 

By the power of Your Holy Spirit, continue to change my heart so that my walk—the evidence that proves what I truly believe—more perfectly reflects my talk—those things I claim to believe.

 

Help me to see that my understanding of the spiritual realm, over which You are sovereign, is not realized merely by knowing the right words to say—but that it is revealed and made alive by my personal experience of the power of Your Holy Spirit working in me, through me, and all around me.

 

Help me to live by submitting my will, my wants, and my desires more completely to Your authority over me, so that I might truly experience living by Your power—and so that Your Kingdom authority would be fully established, both in my life and here upon the earth.

 

May Your Kingdom be seen in me, not just by the words that I say, but so much more by the way I live—as I live according to Your life-giving power at work within me.

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

You Are God!

 

 

Before the mountains were born, Or You gave birth to the earth and the world, Even from everlasting to everlasting, You are God. 

 

—Psalm 90:2 (NASB)

 

Everlasting God,

 

I worship You for who You are—the God who always was, always is, and always shall be—the only One worthy of my worship!

 

I worship You for only You are timeless! Only You existed before time began—before You created everything that now exists, put it all in order, and set in motion, thus creating time itself.

 

I worship You, for among the so-called gods and other worshiped things of this world, only You are the Living God—the One who gives life to all things! Yes, You are alive and live here within me. You make yourself known to me through Your Word, as revealed by Your Spirit, so I can personally experience Your great affection for me as Your dearly loved child.

 

I worship You, for out of all of that which begs my worship, only You will remain steadfast and unchanging for all eternity—only You will always love me with an unfailing love that passionately and unrelentingly pursues me.  And only You will remain worthy of my love and worship and devotion, forevermore.

 

I worship You for who You are—the God who always was, always is, and always shall be—the only One worthy of my worship!

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

Everything Through Christ

 

 

I know how to live on almost nothing or with everything. I have learned the secret of living in every situation, whether it is with a full stomach or empty, with plenty or little. For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength.

 

—Philippians 4:12-13 (NLT)

 

Father God, 

 

Help me hold onto the secret of living in every situation, with my eyes, my mind, and my heart fixed on Jesus Christ, the One who gives me all the strength I need to do everything that You ask me to do.

 

Help me remember that I can remain content if I keep a heart full of gratitude and faith—gratitude expressed by continual thankfulness for all the undeserved blessings of my life, and faith demonstrated by my unwavering confidence that You will always provide everything that I need to accomplish the plans and purposes You have for me.

 

Help me to rest in the truth that You provide for me out of Your unlimited knowledge, wisdom and understanding—that You completely know me and the good plans You have for me—while I have only a cloudy memory of where I have been, a partial understanding of where I am now, and by Your grace, perhaps a mere glimpse of where You are taking me.

 

Help me remember that the power You give to me through Christ is not so that I can do whatever I please with my life—or to have anything that I think I want—but rather that I might have the strength to do whatever You would require of me, whether I have little or plenty.

 

Help me hold onto the secret of living in every situation, with my eyes, my mind, and my heart fixed on Jesus Christ, the One who gives me all the strength I need to do everything that You ask me to do.

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

You Shall Therefore be Holy

 

 

 

“For I am the LORD who brought you up out of the land of Egypt to be your God. You shall therefore be holy, for I am holy.”

 

—Leviticus 11:45 (ESV)

 

Holy LORD,

 

Thank You for being the One who called me and brought me out of my slavery to sin, in order that You might be my God—for being the One who makes me holy in Christ Jesus.

 

I praise You, for You are holy! Just as You brought Your people, Israel, up out of their slavery in Egypt, so have You brought me up out of my slavery to sin, through the redeeming sacrifice of Your Son, Jesus.

 

I exalt You, for You are holy!  Just as You called Your people, Israel, to be holy—set apart and uniquely different from the world around them—so have You called me to be holy in Christ—set apart and uniquely different from the world around me.

 

I worship You, for You are holy!  Just as You desired to be the only God of Your people, Israel, so You have called me into a personal relationship with You through Christ—so that You would be my only God!

 

Thank You for being the One who called me and brought me out of my slavery to sin, in order that You might be my God—for being the One who makes me holy in Christ Jesus.

 

In the Name of Jesus, Amen.

Spirit Lead Me

 

Teach me to do Your will,
For You are my God;
Let Your good Spirit lead me on level ground.

 

—Psalm 143:10 (NASB)

 

Heavenly Father,

 

Teach me, both to know what Your will is and to do it always, so that my journey here on earth is marked by a faithful and settled course of holy living—as You lead me, by Your good Spirit, on that level ground that takes me to my eternal home with You.

 

Teach me!  Let Your good Spirit open the eyes of my understanding, so that I am fully able to discern the depths of meaning found in Your Holy Scriptures—so I can always know Your will.

 

Teach me!  Let Your good Spirit usher me into the plans You have for me, as I step out in faith to do Your will—so I can always walk within the safety of Your will.

 

Teach me!  Let Your good Spirit continue to do Your work of sanctification within me, so that my life would become wholly set apart for You—so I can always live to the glory of Your will.

 

Teach me, both to know what Your will is and to do it always, so that my journey here on earth is marked by a faithful and settled course of holy living—as You lead me, by Your good Spirit, on that level ground that takes me to my eternal home with You.

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

What You Choose to Obey

 

 

Don’t you realize that you become the slave of whatever you choose to obey? You can be a slave to sin, which leads to death, or you can choose to obey God, which leads to righteous living.

 

—Romans 6:16 (NLT)

 

Heavenly Father,

 

Help me to remember that I become the slave of whatever I choose to obey—and may I always choose to obey You, so that I might live a righteous life, in Christ, before You.

 

Help me to be careful, in every choice I make today, to choose that which honors You—so that in my choosing I don’t enslave myself once again to sin.

 

Help me look to the Truth of Your Word to be my standard, and to listen to Your Holy Spirit as You teach me, along that path of becoming more and more like Christ. 

 

Let my obedience, be proof of my love for you—as You take me to that place of intimate and personal relationship with You, where I find the abundant life You have hidden there for me in Christ.

 

Help me to remember that I become the slave of whatever I choose to obey—and may I always choose to obey You, so that I might live a righteous life, in Christ, before You.

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

Living as I Should

 

As I learn your righteous regulations,

    I will thank you by living as I should!

I will obey your decrees.

    Please don’t give up on me!

 

—Psalm 119:7-8 (NLT)

 

Merciful and Gracious LORD,

 

Please don’t give up on me!  Don’t leave me to my own limited understanding and imperfect wisdom—but continue in Your unrelenting, passionate, pursuit of my heart, as You patiently guide me into all Truth.

 

Let the commandments of Your Word permeate my heart, as I listen for Your Spirit to reveal how every commandment plays a part in protecting, providing for, and preserving my life—according to Your perfect plans and purposes.

 

By that same Spirit within me, strengthen me to live as I should—to fully understand and apply Your righteous regulations to my life—that I might live the abundant life that is available to those who choose to follow after Truth.

 

And help me to be grateful—not only in my thoughts and words, but even more so in the way I live my life—so that my entire life might become a continuous offering of thanksgiving and praise to You!

 

Please don’t give up on me!  Don’t leave me to my own limited understanding and imperfect wisdom—but continue in Your unrelenting, passionate, pursuit of my heart, as You patiently guide me into all Truth.

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.