...but my heart stands in awe

                 of Your words.

I rejoice at Your Word

   like one who

   finds great spoil.

               Psalm 119. 161-162

(God unfolds His blessing,

     His strength, His wisdom,

              grace and love

       through His Word.

When we come before it,

     when we  dive into it

              with great awe,

we read it differently,

we ponder it,

we strive to let it sink in

     and seek to live it out.

Every time we open His Word,

God changes us

     --and everyone around us--

             through it.

These are not just printed out pages,

     but the very words of God.)

O LORD,

Draw us not just to reading Your Word,

   but draw us in

that we would know You more

     and the reality of Your Presence.

Change us through it.

Help us to realize Your treasure

    as Your Word plays out

    in whatever we face or do today.

Thank You for Your Word.

 

When Daniel knew

    that the document had been signed,

he went to his house

where he had windows

     in his upper chamber

     open toward Jerusalem.

He got down on his knees

             three times a day

and prayed

and gave thanks before His God,

    as he had done previously.

              Daniel 6. 10

(The foundation was already laid.

This was not the first time

            Daniel trusted God for his life.

He lived in such a way

         that God was seen in all he did,

         in who he was,

         in how he prayed.

His first response

     was what he did every day.

"If we do not do the running

 on the ordinary days,

 we shall do nothing in the crisis."

            --Oswald Chambers)

O LORD,

May we seek You

  to pray and trust and worship

  on the most ordinary days.

That we may know fully

    Your Presence,

           even in the hard stuff.

You are near, O LORD.

You are our strength.

May Your Word

   engrave faithfulness in us.

May trusting You

            be our default.

 

I have heard of you

that the Spirit of the holy God

                 is in you,

and that light and understanding

   and excellent wisdom

                  are found in you.

                  Daniel 5. 14

(We all worship something.

If we do not worship God,

a lesser god will take

             His rightful place.

Whom or what we worship

    and honor and glorify

will be evident in

            our character,

how we respond,

what we pursue,

how we love others.

What do others see

         differently in us?

Do they sense the evidence

     of the Holy Spirit

      residing there?

That we are faithful to Him?)

O LORD,

We seek not Your blessing in this day,

     but that we would bless You.

Help us to love You with all our hearts

              and minds and strength.

Let that love be evident in

         how we respond to circumstances

         and how we love others around us.

In all that we do today,

      bring Your glory to it.

Please grant to us Your wisdom

                 and understanding

and Your light in situations

     we cannot carry on our own.

 

For this very reason,

make every effort to supplement

        your faith with virtue,

and virtue with knowledge,

and knowledge with self control,

and self control with steadfastness,

and steadfastness with godliness,

and godliness with

                    brotherly affection,

and brotherly affection with love.

                   2 Peter 1. 5-7

(Step by step,

layer by layer,

choice by choice,

    deepening our faith.

And realizing these

    are not just supplements

              or attachments,

but a pursuit that

   empowers us to grow in Him.

And it starts with today.

What choices am I making

            in this day

     to abide in Him?)

O LORD,

We praise You

    because You are with us.

We honor You

    because You are God.

May our lives

         and what we choose

    reflect Your glory.

Help us to grow in You.

Nudge us

    to make different choices

    to follow You fully.

Let our faithfulness to You

   be nurtured in layers

   and daily decisions.

Be thou our vision

            and our strength.

     

 

Daniel answered the king and said,

"No wise men, enchanters,

     magicians, or astrologers

can show to the king the mystery

     that the kind has asked,

but there is a God in heaven

           who reveals mysteries...

                  Daniel 2. 27-28

(Daniel does not draw

          attention to himself,

but points the entire kingdom

     to the reality of God Almighty.

But there is a God in heaven

   --on that reality,

     we can stake our lives.

Nothing random,

nothing without divine purpose,

trusting God

          and being faithful to Him,

even into

      what we cannot yet understand.)

O LORD,

We can live differently

    with hope and joy

          even in the hard stuff,

because You are God Almighty,

            and we are not.

Our prayers to You

for provision, protection, purpose

             and deliverance

are always in some way

     answered unexpectedly,

because there is a lot deeper

           in Your designs

      than we are aware of.

Help us to trust You

    and point others to You

in all that we are,

in all that You have given us

                 to do.

 

...always be prepared

to make a defense to anyone

            who asks you

for a reason

             for the hope

that is in you,

yet do it with gentleness

                  and respect.

            1 Peter 3. 15

(Always be ready,

stay watchful for that unexpected moment,

    to point others to the hope of Jesus.

People are watching us

   to know why we are different,

   why we respond differently,

   and to know after all,

              that God is real.

They don't want a prepared sermon

       or a memorized script.

They are homesick for God.

They want to know our story.)

O LORD,

Help us to know that there are

     no random circumstances,

     nor chance encounters,

but only divine appointments

    to be faithful before others

   and to bring the name of Jesus

               at a moment's notice.

Help us to be aware

               of sacred opportunities

    in unexpected places

    and among unlikely people

to love them into Your Kingdom.

 

And on the banks,

on both sides of the river,

there will grow all kinds

           of trees for food.

Their leaves will not wither,

nor their fruit fail,

but they will bear fresh fruit

              every month,

because the water for them

   flows from the sanctuary.

Their fruit will be for food,

   and their leaves for healing.

                  Ezekiel 47. 12

(What fruit are we bearing

                  with our lives?

What kind of fruit

     do others see

     and experience through us?

What we sow,

into what we send down our roots,

on what sustains us

    impacts not just our lives,

    but everyone around us

          for multiple generations.

The LORD provides.

The LORD sustains.

The LORD brings the growth.

What a beautiful visual

   of God's faithfulness.)

Happy Thanksgiving!

O LORD,

We seek to bring You glory,

wherever You have placed us,

that Your name may be known

and we can thrive,

         even in the drought.

Your faithfulness

    always unfolds fruitfulness.

You are here in this place,

     and we can trust You.

May we honor You this day

    in all that we do,

    in seeking the good of others,

    in bearing fruit

             even in impossible situations,

for Your Kingdom,

for Your glory,

in Your name.