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.

The Way, The Truth, and The Life!

 

 

Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.”

—John 14:6 (NLT)

 

 

 

 

 

Heavenly Father,

 

Thank You that I can come to You and call You my Father because of the redeeming sacrifice, of Your Son and my Savior, Jesus Christ, for me.

 

When I lose my way and I find myself separated from You, remind me that Jesus is the Way—the only way—to You. Help me not to seek some lesser path back to You, but only seek the person of Jesus Christ.

 

When I am confused and unsure of what is true, help me not to merely seek what is true. Help me seek the One who is not only faithful and true, but is the very embodiment of Truth.

 

When I am feeling like my life is draining from me, help me not to seek to save my life. But rather, help me to find my life in the One who is everlasting life Himself.

 

Thank You that I can come to You and call You my Father because of the redeeming sacrifice, of Your Son and my Savior, Jesus Christ, for me.

 

In the Name of Jesus, Amen.

My Strength, My Song, My Salvation!

 

“Behold, God is my salvation,
I will trust and not be afraid;
For the LORD GOD is my strength and song,
And He has become my salvation.”

 

—Isaiah 12:2 (NASB)

 

 

 

 

LORD GOD Almighty,

 

You are my strength and song—the One who saves me in every way! I choose to trust You and not be afraid!

 

With wide-eyed wonder and an ever-grateful heart, I declare that You are my salvation—not only because of the saving work of grace that was accomplished through the sacrifice of Your Son, Jesus, but also because of the place of perfect peace and safety You have reserved and called me to in Him. 

 

Knowing what You did for me, how can I still be afraid?  How can I not believe that You will take care of every temporal need while I am here—working all things for my good because of Your great love for me—until You take me to my forever home with You?

 

Help me to always reflect Your faithfulness to me—by my consistent obedience to Your Word and Your Spirit—as I put all my hope and faith in You for the continuing salvation that You have promised to me.

 

Be my strength—flooding the void of my weakness with Your sustaining power—equipping me in every way for every battle of faith that comes along the path upon which You have set me.

 

Be my song—overwhelming my spirit with Your Holy Spirit—so that the music of my life would be one of continual praise and thanksgiving for all You have done, and uninterrupted worship for all that You are.

You are my strength and song—the One who saves me in every way! I choose to trust You and not be afraid!

 

In the Name of Jesus, Amen.

Completely Love God!

 

If someone claims, “I know God,” but doesn’t obey God’s commandments, that person is a liar and is not living in the truth.  But those who obey God’s word truly show how completely they love him.  That is how we know we are living in him.  Those who say they live in God should live their lives as Jesus did. 

 —1 John 2:4-6 (NLT)

 

 Heavenly Father,

 

Help me to live in the truth—to obey all the commandments of Your Word as a demonstration of my sincere love for You—so I would be found truly alive in Christ, and so my life would be an acceptable and living sacrifice to You.

 

May any claim that I make that I “know you” be established as truth by my commitment to study Your Word and to be instructed in truth by Your Spirit—in order that I would fully know and understand, then carefully follow, all Your instructions and commands.

 

May my faithful obedience to You be an outflow of my love for You, as a fitting response to the amazing love that You passionately pour out over me—a love that is unending, unfailing, unrelenting, and far beyond measure.

 

Continue to work in me to make me more like Jesus—as You call me into an ever-deepening relationship with You and cause the character of Christ to be formed within me—so that my life would be a more perfect reflection of the life of Christ.

 

Help me to live in the truth—to obey all the commandments of Your Word, as a demonstration of my sincere love for You—so I would be found truly alive in Christ, and so my life would be an acceptable and living sacrifice to You.

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

An Example to Follow

 

 

I have given you an example to follow. Do as I have done to you.

 

—John 13:15 (NLT)

 

 

 

 

 

Heavenly Father,

Thank You for the gift of Your Son, Jesus, to us all! May I always follow His example of obedience, humility, and sacrifice, as I serve those whom You have entrusted to me, with the love of Christ.

 

Help me to follow His perfect example. May I reflect His heart more perfectly, offer His grace more compassionately, speak His Truth only out of love, and emulate His servant leadership more completely.

 

Help me to walk in His humility. May I set aside all my pride—not considering anything You ask me to do to be beneath me—and joyfully embrace any invitation that You give me to be a part of what You are doing.

 

Help me to love as Jesus loves. Make me humbly and willingly obedient to every command and instruction of Your Word and every prompting of Your Holy Spirit within me, as evidence of my love for You and my love for my neighbor, for Your glory, honor, and praise. 

 

Thank You for the gift of Your Son, Jesus, to us all! May I always follow His example of obedience, humility, and sacrifice, as I serve those whom You have entrusted to me, with the love of Christ.

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

 

Saved by Love!

 

 

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.  For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. —John 3:16-17 (NKJV)

  

 

 

Heavenly Father,

 

Thank You for loving us!

 

Thank You for Your amazing love for us all—a love which is ever reaching out to us to draw us into relationship with You.

 

Thank You for the perfect love that You freely gave in the form of Your only begotten Son—who You willingly sacrificed, so we could know just how far true love will go.

 

Thank You for the complete freedom from our sin that You bought for us, and the path to joy and peace that You laid out before us—when Christ laid down His life for us all.

 

Thank You for not sending Your Son to condemn us to die as we deserved—but to offer everlasting life with You to all who would believe in Jesus.

 

Thank You for loving us!

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

And We Beheld His Glory

 

 

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.

—John 1:14 (NKJV)

 

 

 

Heavenly Father,

Thank You for Your perfect plan to send forth Your Word to become flesh—in the fragile form of a baby—so that He could dwell among us and so we could behold His Glory!

Help me to be a good student of Your Word, that I might learn the lessons that Jesus came to teach us all—about who You are, and who we should be—and help me faithfully apply them to my life, so that Christ Jesus might more perfectly shine through me.

Help me to follow the example of Jesus in the way that I live my life in this world, so that my life would stand out in its uniqueness, rather than blend in with the “norms” of this world’s thinking—and would draw others to Christ.

And help me to learn to live a life of sacrifice—to represent well the life of perfect sacrifice that Jesus came to live, so that I could have an abundant life of grace and truth here and now, and eternal life with You forevermore.

Thank You for Your perfect plan to send forth Your Word to become flesh—in the fragile form of a baby—so that He could dwell among us and so we could behold His Glory!

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

Look at the Heart

 

 

 

“The LORD doesn’t see things the way you see them. People judge by outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.” 

 

—1 Samuel 16:7b (NLT)

 

 

 

O LORD, who sees each heart,

 

Help me not to judge others based on their outward appearance, but rather help me to take the time to see them as You see them—at the level of their hearts—and then empower me to love them as You do.

 

Keep me from being that person who makes snap judgments about others based on what he sees on the surface—discounting another person's value with the glance of his eye.

 

Rather, teach me to take the time to try to understand the heart of each person that I encounter—to search out the treasures that You have hidden there, just waiting to be discovered.

 

Then help me to see what You see, LORD—a soul worth saving, a life worth sacrificing Your only begotten Son to redeem—and give me that kind of love for them.

 

Help me not to judge others based on their outward appearance, but rather help me to take the time to see them as You see them—at the level of their hearts—and then empower me to love them as You do.

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

The Example of Christ

 

 

Imitate God, therefore, in everything you do, because you are his dear children. Live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ. He loved us and offered himself as a sacrifice for us, a pleasing aroma to God.

 

—Ephesians 5:1-2 (NLT)

 

 

 

Father God,

 

Help me learn to imitate You in love.

 

Just like a child—a child who is truly loved—experiences love demonstrated for him by his father and then follows his father’s example and teachings of how to love, so let me walk in all the ways of Your love.

 

Help me to love without caution or hesitation, but rather generously and extravagantly—unselfishly seeking the best for others.  Help me to love those You put in my path that way—not looking to receive something from them, but only to bring glory to You.

 

Teach me how to give of myself to others, even to the point of giving all of myself—if that is part of Your plan for me—just as Your Son did when He came and died for us to give us life eternal in Him.

 

Help me learn to imitate You in love.

 

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.

The Word Became Flesh

 

 

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.

 

—John 1:14 (NKJV)

 

Heavenly Father,

 

Thank You for Your perfect plan to send forth Your Word to become flesh—in the fragile form of a baby.  Thank You for sending Jesus to dwell among us—that mankind might see His Glory, be instructed in the uniqueness of all His ways, and experience the fullness of the grace and truth that He brought to us all, because of His great love for us!

 

Help me to be a good student of Your Word, that I might learn the lessons that Jesus came to teach us all—about who You are, and who we should be—and then faithfully apply them to my life, that Christ Jesus might more perfectly shine through me.

 

Help me to follow the example of Jesus in the way that I live my life in this world—that my life would stand out in its uniqueness, rather than blend in with the “norms” of this world’s thinking, and would draw others to Christ.

 

And help me to learn to live a life of sacrifice—in order to represent well the life of perfect sacrifice that Jesus came to live, so that I could be saved to eternal life with You.

 

Thank You for Your perfect plan to send forth Your Word to become flesh—in the fragile form of a baby.  Thank You for sending Jesus to dwell among us—that mankind might see His Glory, be instructed in the uniqueness of all His ways, and experience the fullness of the grace and truth that He brought to us all, because of His great love for us!

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

Those Who Belong to Christ Jesus

 

 

Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to his cross and crucified them there.

 

—Galatians 5:24 (NLT)

 

 

 

Heavenly Father,

 

Grant me the power, once again today, to choose to nail the passions and desires of my sinful nature to the cross of Christ and crucify them there.

 

Thank you that because of the sacrifice of Your Son, Jesus, on the cross, and my acceptance of His gift of salvation, I have been set free from sin’s power over me—so that now, I can choose not to give in to sin.

 

Show me that even though the Holy Spirit is alive and living in me, my flesh still remains—along with all of its self-serving inclinations. It is at war with my recreated heart—and must be nailed to the cross and made to die there, so that Christ may be seen in me.

 

Help me, as I commit to surrender my sinful nature to Your control and draw on the sanctifying power of Your Spirit to give me the strength to walk in victory over sin. 

 

Give me strong nails and a heavy hammer, so that what I take to the cross stays on the cross and is left there to die.

 

Grant me the power, once again today, to choose to nail the passions and desires of my sinful nature to the cross of Christ and crucify them there.

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

Incredible Greatness, Mighty Power

 

 

I also pray that you will understand the incredible greatness of God’s power for us who believe him. This is the same mighty power that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in the place of honor at God’s right hand in the heavenly realms.

 

—Ephesians 1:19-20 (NLT)

 

Omnipotent God,

 

Help me to grow in my understanding of the incredible greatness of Your power—so I might more fully live my life by that same mighty power that raised Christ from the dead, which now lives in me!

 

Help me to know and believe that it is Your power alone—as given by the Holy Spirit and made possible by Christ’s redeeming sacrifice—that enables me to become everything You have called me be, and that apart from that I am powerless.

 

Help me to realize that in order to fulfill Your call to become more like Christ, I must continually draw from that unlimited resource of Your power within me—in humility and in willing obedience to the commands and instructions of Your Word, and every prompting of Your Spirit. 

 

Help me forever stand in awestruck wonder of Your power, knowing that it is that very same power—the power of Your love in action for all mankind—which is presently and actively at work within me. 

 

Help me to grow in my understanding of the incredible greatness of Your power—so I might more fully live my life by that same mighty power that raised Christ from the dead, which now lives in me!

 

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.