You Forgave!

 

 

I acknowledged my sin to You,
And my iniquity I did not hide;
I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the LORD”;
And You forgave the guilt of my sin. Selah.

 

—Psalm 32:5 (NASB)

 

 

 

 

Gracious and Forgiving LORD,

 

Help me to own up to my sin—to freely, openly, and completely confess it all to You in repentance—so that I may fully experience the wonders of Your forgiveness, Your grace, and Your unfailing love for me.  For only in understanding fully the grace that You have given me, can I begin to offer that same grace to those around me.

 

Help me to understand that when I try (in vain) to hide my sins from You—refusing to honestly and completely confess them before You—I am only inviting You to extend Your hand of discipline on my life, robbing myself of the blessing of grace that Christ died to bring me.

 

Help me always hurry to lay myself bare before You in true repentance of my rebellious, sinful nature—knowing that You forgive my disobedience, You put my sin out of Your sight, and You clear my record of all guilt, making me as righteous in Your eyes, as Christ Himself.

 

Show me my heart that I would see clearly those things I have yet to surrender to You—as I submit to the changes that You want to make in me by Your Word and by Your Spirit.  And help me to acknowledge that any goodness in me comes from You alone—and is intended only for Your Glory.

 

Help me to own up to my sin—to freely, openly, and completely confess it all to You in repentance—so that I may fully experience the wonders of Your forgiveness, Your grace, and Your unfailing love for me.  For only in understanding fully the grace that You have given me, can I begin to offer that same grace to those around me.

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

Heavenly Treasures

 

“Don’t store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal. Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal. Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be.”

—Matthew 6:19-21 (NLT)

 

 

Heavenly Father,

 

May I never forget that the only treasures that will ever truly satisfy the longing desires of my heart are found in Jesus Christ.

 

Help me not to allow the distractions or the attractions of this world to become a quickly vanishing treasure that I get lost in seeking after—when such a greater treasure is made available to me in Christ.

 

Help me remember that only the treasures that I lay up for myself in heaven are truly mine to keep—that they are the only treasures which can never be taken away from me.

 

Help me keep my heart set on those eternal things, things that cannot be destroyed, and cannot be taken from me—as I lift up to You every blessing You have given me in this life with open hands and surrendered it all to You to be used for Your Glory.

 

May I never forget that the only treasures that will ever truly satisfy the longing desires of my heart are found in Jesus Christ.

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

The Power of Goodness!

 

 

Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

 

—Romans 12:21 (NIV)

 

 

 

 

 

Heavenly Father,

 

May I never be overcome by the evil that surrounds me, nor miss the opportunity to overcome evil with good.

 

When I feel overwhelmed by the evil that is evident all around me, remind me that it is the power of Christ’s love that has delivered me out of the enemy’s hand and has made me an overcomer.   

 

And help me to enforce the enemy's defeat in my life—to stand against evil as You lead me to do what is good and right in Your sight, to choose light over darkness.

 

Remind me that the only way to conquer evil is with good—that good will always win over evil in the end. Let the power of Your goodness flow into me and through me to overcome every evil thing I face.

 

May I never be overcome by the evil that surrounds me, nor miss the opportunity to overcome evil with good.

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

 

Fully Committed!

 

 

The eyes of the LORD search the whole earth in order to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him.

 

—2 Chronicles 16:9a (NLT)

 

 

 

O LORD my God,

 

Let it be that You would find in me a heart that is fully committed to You—so that You would strengthen me in every way, for the work to which You have called me.

 

Don’t allow me to settle for having a heart that is only mostly surrendered to You—a heart that is willing to stop at, “At least I’m better than I used to be!” or “Nobody’s perfect, everybody sins.”

 

Purify my heart!  Show me my heart and any darkness I have hidden there!  Help me to root out those things that I am withholding from You—according to the sanctifying power of Your Holy Spirit within me.

 

Grant me a heart that is willing and obedient—willing to seek out the truth of Your Word, and faithful to obediently apply that Truth to my life, so that I would be found faithful in Your eyes.

 

Give me a listening heart—a heart that listens to hear and respond to every prompting of Your Spirit, a heart that is eager to do all that You ask of me.

 

Give me a loving heart—a heart that loves You first, and best, and always, and loves others in the same way that You have so graciously and wondrously loved me—as a proof of my love for You.

 

Let it be that You would find in me a heart that is fully committed to You—so that You would strengthen me in every way, for the work to which You have called me.

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

 

Know the LORD!

 

 

Oh, that we might know the LORD!

    Let us press on to know him.

He will respond to us as surely as the arrival of dawn

    or the coming of rains in early spring.

 

—Hosea 6:3 (NLT)

 

 

Loving and Compassionate LORD,

 

Your Word promises that You will respond to me, when I seek You, when I choose to press on to know You. So, help me to know You as You are—to know You in truth! 

 

Don’t allow me to settle for knowing about You, LORD, but help me to know You intimately—through my experience of Your Holy Spirit at work in me, through me, and all around me.

 

Help me to understand that my deepest needs and desires are satisfied only by knowing You personally—not as some abstract idea, but in unbroken fellowship with You, as Your very own child.

 

Help me to seek You through continuous prayer, in spontaneous worship, and by careful meditation on the Truth of Your Word—and by application of that Truth to my life.

 

Keep me mindful that You so desired a relationship with me, that You chose to live inside of me by Your Holy Spirit when I first surrendered my life to Christ—sealing my life in Your love forever.

 

Your Word promises that You will respond to me, when I seek You, when I choose to press on to know You. So, help me to know You as You are—to know You in 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.

 

Jesus, Lord of My Life

 

 

 

“So why do you keep calling me ‘Lord, Lord!’ when you don’t do what I say?”

 

—Luke 6:46 (NLT)

 

 

Heavenly Father,

 

Help me to fully realize that making Jesus Christ the Lord of my life involves so much more than merely calling out to Him, “Lord, Lord!”

 

Help me to understand and accept the truth that, in order for Jesus to be my Lord, I must freely surrender the “liberty of my free will” to “His will for me”—and then, and only then, find true freedom from the things that hold me captive.

 

Help me remember that my obedience to His commands and instructions is the best measurement of His Lordship over my life—and that the example of how He lived His life is the only standard of comparison by which I should examine my own life.

 

Keep me from the hypocrisy of claiming Christ as my Lord, while choosing to go my own way—allowing my own fleshly desires to control me, rather than living surrendered to the Spirit of Christ that lives in me.

 

Help me to fully realize that making Jesus Christ the Lord of my life involves so much more than merely calling out to Him, “Lord, Lord!”

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

God's Way!

 

 God's way is perfect. 

     All the LORD’s promises prove true.

    He is a shield for all who look to him for protection.

 

—2 Samuel 22:31 (NLT)

 

O LORD, my God,

 

Help me always to trust in Your way—and rest in the integrity of Your character.

 

Help me never doubt that Your way is perfect, because You are perfect—that you are ever-faithful to fulfill Your promises and never-changing in Your love for me.

 

Help me to learn all Your promises—by searching Your Word for them—and then prove them out in my life through my obedience to all that You ask of me.

 

As I surrender my life to You—as I look to You to be my everything—be for me a shield of protection that surrounds me.

 

Help me always to trust in Your way—and rest in the integrity of Your character.

 

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.

Restore Me!

 

You have allowed me to suffer much hardship,
    but you will restore me to life again
    and lift me up from the depths of the earth.
You will restore me to even greater honor
    and comfort me once again. 

—Psalm 71:20-21 (NLT)

 

Loving and Gracious LORD,

 

In Your sovereign and infinite wisdom, You have allowed me to suffer much hardship in my life. And still, the story You are writing with my life is—and always will be—a testimony to the faithfulness of my God!

 

For I have seen You use every hardship that You have entrusted to me, as part of my story, to bring about something good—always drawing me closer to the abundant life that I find only when I totally surrender to Your plan for my life.

 

So, help me to continue to look for Your hand in every difficulty that may come, that I would see Your faithfulness once again—as You lift me up from the depths of this earth, from heartache, pain and evil of this fallen world, and restore me to life in You again.

 

Be my source of comfort in this world, as by Your grace You honor me, taking me to those higher and deeper places I have yet to discover in Christ. Keep me and sustain me in every way through everything that I may face—until that day You rescue me completely out of this world and its hardships and take me home with You.

 

In Your sovereign and infinite wisdom, You have allowed me to suffer much hardship in my life. And still, the story You are writing with my life is—and always will be—a testimony to the faithfulness of my God!

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

A Servant of Christ

 

Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ.

 

—Galatians 1:10 (NIV)

 

 

Heavenly Father,

 

May I always seek the approval of my Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ—the One to whom I choose to surrender myself, as a servant, forever! 

 

Forgive me, for too many times I have sought the approval others—allowing what they think to determine my decisions, and thus, the course of my life—while disregarding what is required of me to win Your approval, O Lord my God.

 

I know that to win Your approval, I must completely set aside my own will—breaking down all my fleshly impulses to act independently of the One who created me for His purposes—and live every moment of my life in service to Christ.

Each day, let me surrender my life anew—signing away my own “perceived rights” to my life and living in absolute surrender to Christ—so that I may be found to be a true bondservant to the One to whom I owe everything.

 

May I always seek the approval of my Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ—the One to whom I choose to surrender myself, as a servant, forever! 

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

All the Ways of a Man

 

 

All the ways of a man are clean and innocent in his own eyes [and he may see nothing wrong with his actions],
But the LORD weighs and examines the motives and intents [of the heart and knows the truth].

 

—Proverbs 16:2 (AMP)

 

All-Knowing LORD,

 

You alone know the truth about the motives and intents of my heart—so I ask You to show me my heart.  And then help me to surrender all my ways to You—so that You make Your home in my heart.

 

Don’t allow me to deceive myself into believing that all my ways are clean and innocent—but help me to find the truth behind the reasons for what I do, so that I can more perfectly submit my thoughts, words, plans and actions to Your will for me.

 

Help me to live every moment of my life in willing obedience to the instruction of Your Word and according to the promptings of Your Holy Spirit—so that I can live an emotionally, mentally, physically and spiritually healthy life of Truth.

 

Help me never to try to hide my impurity from You, but openly come before You to confess and repent of my sin and ask You to change me by Your mercy, forgiveness and grace—fully aware that You already know every imperfection in me but love me anyway.

 

You alone know the truth about the motives and intents of my heart—so I ask You to show me my heart.  And then help me to surrender all my ways to You—so that You will make Your home in my heart.

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

And You Forgave

 

I acknowledged my sin to You,
And my iniquity I did not hide;
I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the LORD”;
And You forgave the guilt of my sin. Selah.

 

—Psalm 32:5 (NASB)

 

Gracious and Forgiving LORD,

 

Help me to own up to my sin—to freely, openly, and completely confess it all to You in repentance—so that I may fully experience the wonders of Your forgiveness, Your grace, and Your unfailing love for me.  For only in understanding fully the grace that You have given me, can I begin to offer that same grace to those around me.

 

Help me to understand that when I try (in vain) to hide my sins from You—refusing to honestly and completely confess them before You—I am only inviting You to extend Your hand of discipline on my life, robbing myself of the blessing of grace that Christ died to bring me.

 

Help me always hurry to lay myself bare before You in true repentance of my rebellious, sinful nature—knowing that You forgive my disobedience, You put my sin out of Your sight, and You clear my record of all guilt, making me as righteous in Your eyes, as Christ Himself.

 

Show me my heart that I would see clearly those things I have yet to surrender to You—as I submit to the changes that You want to make in me by Your Word and by Your Spirit.  And help me to acknowledge that any goodness in me comes from You alone—and is intended only for Your Glory.

 

Help me to own up to my sin—to freely, openly, and completely confess it all to You in repentance—so that I may fully experience the wonders of Your forgiveness, Your grace, and Your unfailing love for me.  For only in understanding fully the grace that You have given me, can I begin to offer that same grace to those around me.

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

Store Your Treasures in Heaven

 

“Don’t store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal. Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal. Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be.”

—Matthew 6:19-21 (NLT)

 

Heavenly Father,

 

May I never forget that the only treasures that will ever truly satisfy the longing desires of my heart are found in Jesus Christ.

 

Help me not to allow the distractions or the attractions of this world to become a quickly vanishing treasure that I get lost in seeking after—when such a greater treasure is made available to me in Christ.

 

Help me remember that only the treasures that I lay up for myself in heaven are truly mine to keep—that they are the only treasures which can never be taken away from me.

 

Help me keep my heart set on those eternal things, things that cannot be destroyed, and cannot be taken from me—as I lift up to You every blessing You have given me in this life with open hands and surrendered it all to You to be used for Your Glory.

 

May I never forget that the only treasures that will ever truly satisfy the longing desires of my heart are found in Jesus Christ.

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.

Overcome Evil With Good

 

Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

 

—Romans 12:21 (NIV)

 

Heavenly Father,

 

May I never be overcome by the evil that surrounds me, nor miss the opportunity to overcome evil with good.

 

When I feel overwhelmed by the evil that is evident all around me, remind me that it is the power of Christ’s love that has delivered me out of the enemy’s hand and has made me an overcomer.   

 

And help me to enforce the enemy's defeat in my life—to stand against evil as You lead me to do what is good and right in Your sight, to choose light over darkness.

 

Remind me that the only way to conquer evil is with good—that good will always win over evil in the end. Let the power of Your goodness flow into me and through me to overcome every evil thing I face.

 

May I never be overcome by the evil that surrounds me, nor miss the opportunity to overcome evil with good.

 

In the name of Jesus, Amen.