And when in time to come,

your son asks you,

"What does this mean?"

you shall say to him,

"By a strong hand

    the LORD brought us

    out of Egypt,

from the house of slavery."

               Exodus 13. 14

(We share with others

    --even our families--

all kinds of stories

      and experiences.

But do we share with them

    --and do they know--

the chronicle of God's faithfulness

               in our lives?

Those stories engrave

            a lasting imprint,

even the details long remembered,

     to know and grasp that God is real.

A testimony never sows a single seed.

  It plants a forest.)

O LORD,

Grant us not just the courage

   to tell the stories of

   Your great faithfulness,

but in sharing,

   let those stories

           point others to You.

And to remind us too

   that You are with us

even now,

even in this.

You are the Almighty One.

 

...for we must take of them

       to serve the LORD our God,

and we do not know

       with what

       we must serve the LORD

until we arrive there.

                 Exodus 10. 26

(We have no idea where,

        when,

        how,

        why,

or with what we must

                serve the LORD,

except with a willing

       and faithful heart.

Hold nothing back.

None of our resources,

       or experiences,

       or right where we are

             is random.

God is using us

      for His mighty purposes.

We will be amazed

      with what He uses

                    most of all.)

O LORD,

May we be faithful to You

even on paths we do not know

      or ways familiar or strange.

Even as we are faithful, 

      help us to trust You in this

and be ready with shoes tied on

   for whatever

   You strategically place us today,

even for what we are unaware of.

We seek to serve You

    with great intention and joy.

May our transformed hearts

    be a witness in this world

and in this impossible situation.

 

...but Jesus said,

"Let the little children

           come to Me

and do not hinder them,

for to such

belongs the Kingdom of heaven.

               Matthew 19. 14

(For every child around us,

    whether ours or anothers',

let nothing stand in the way

of a child learning about Jesus.

Teaching them in the every days

   --and taking them to church.

Take up every opportunity

      to love them to Jesus,

including (and maybe especially)

           how we respond to them.

Kindness and attentiveness

     reverberate for a lifetime.

It is how they come to understand

    what it means Jesus loves me.

"Jesus loves the little children,

      all the children of the world."

God uses us to do exactly that.)

O LORD,

May we not just be

    aware of the children around us

        (even the grown ones)

but sensitive to their needs

     by seeing them,

          listening to them,

          and loving them.

Help us to shepherd

   the little lambs and the big ones

that they may know

                they are Yours.

 

God spoke to Moses...

"I have heard...

I have remembered...

I will bring you out...

I will deliver you...

I will redeem you...

I will take you...

I will be your God,

    and you shall know

    that I am

           the LORD your God...

             Exodus 6. 2-7

(None of this

has been for naught,

   but that we would

   not just believe in God,

       but know Him as LORD.

The plagues were not

             just about Pharoah,

but that Moses, Aaron

      and the Hebrew people

would know that the

              LORD is God.

We are not alone

      in our hard situations.

God's purposes run deeper

    than we will ever know,

far deeper than even they did.)

O LORD,

Help us to know that You

have strategically placed us here,

   even in a place

   that makes no obvious sense,

because You wanted us here

   and needed us to be a witness

             of Your glory.

May all we do

    reflect our love for You,

even in impossible places.

You guide us in Your goodness.

Help us to remember

    You embrace us

    with Your steadfast love.

www.nightlytea.blogspot.com

 

But Moses said to the LORD,

"O, my Lord,

I am not eloquent,

either in the past

or since You have spoken

             to Your servant,

but I am slow of speech

      and of tongue."

                 

             Exodus 4. 10

(That is exactly why God chooses us,

not by what we see in ourselves,

     but how God sees us.

We indeed

          cannot do it without Him.

"I can't do this."

God replies,

    "Good.  Because I can."

We have only to be faithful

    and keep our eyes on Him.)

O LORD,

It is not that we are so great,

               but You are.

It is not that we have strength

         or power or even courage,

   but we can walk with You.

You have strategically appointed us

      even in this difficult situation

             for Your glory.

It is all sacred ground,

      nothing random,

      nothing mundane,

      nothing He cannot redeem.

Help us to realize who You are.

And that "It is not in me,

                       but You."

 

Be not far from me,

for trouble is near,

and there is none to help.

            Psalm 22. 11

(Read this verse of

    comfort and courage

               differently.

Not as our cry

      for God to come to us,

but as His call to us,

    "Be not far from Me."

How do we approach

      this difficulty,

     or this hard situation?

Either way,

   recognizing God is our help.

Knowing His promise,

       "I am with you,"

             changes everything

in what we do, what we say,

       and how we respond.)

O LORD,

May we stay by Your side,

walking with you

            even through this,

abiding with you

     in the joys and hard stuff.

Help us to not

             just sense Your Presence,

but to know You are with us.

Wrap Your courage around us

     and Your grace

to face both abundance and trouble

        with a heart renewed by You.

 

As for you,

you meant evil against me,

but God

       meant it for good,

to bring about that many people

should be kept alive,

       as they are today.

              Genesis 50. 20

(The key words in this verse are

           But God.

God intervenes and redeems

   for His glory

   and for ultimate good.

Do we trust Him in that?

Forgiveness reverberates

     and gets all over everything.

And to be sensitive that

      there is something much bigger

                 going on here.

There always is.

Are we setting our hearts on Him?

"Trust Me in this.")

O LORD,

Help us to see deeper

       by trusting You more,

even in what we do not understand,

even in what costs us,

even when it doesn't seem fair.

You are doing a mighty work

            in our days,

that we wouldn't believe

       even if we were aware.

You are God,

              and we are not.

Help us to have a forgiving heart

     to bring You the glory in this.

 

...the God who has been

              my shepherd

all my life long

              to this day.

            Genesis 48. 15

(Do we stand back, acknowledge

           and recognize

   His Presence with us?

His infiltrating steadfast love,

His goodness,

revealing and redeeming,

His faithfulness

   even in the really hard places.

God does not promise

           that life will be easy,

but we do not walk alone.

                   "I am with you."

In what we see

     and in the blessings of the deep

     of which we are totally unaware

           "Trust Me in this."

   Even in this, today.)

O LORD,

You are our shepherd.

You guide us on Your paths.

You nurture us.

You love us.

You pursue us.

Help us to trust You

       into this day before us

and be faithful to You.

You change the course of our lives

    for the blessing of many people

and to bring You glory,

      even in impossible places.

 

Do not enter the path of the wicked,

and do not walk

           in the way of the evil.

Avoid it,

do not go on it,

turn away from it

                and pass on.

              Proverbs 4. 14-15

(We are surrounded by distractions

   carefully designed to

   catch our attention

           and turn us away from God.

Don't go there.

Don't even look.

Step away and no one gets hurt.

We can never know

    what "little innocent thing"

    will grab hold.

And we will never realize

    how our actions impact and influence

    everyone around us.

This may not even be about us.)

O LORD,

Help us to keep our eyes on You

and watch that our steps

       point us to Your ways

       and on Your paths.

May what we choose,

        what we say and do,

   and on what we dwell

           be honoring to You.

Direct our steps to You today.

Align our hearts with Yours.

Keep us from distractions

    that we may be sensitive

                   to Your nudges.

 

And God sent me before you

to preserve for you

          a remnant on earth,

and to keep alive for you

                 many survivors.

So it was not you

who sent me here,

                       but God.

                 Genesis 45. 7-8

(Forgiveness releases us

    into God's higher purposes.

Joseph trusted God

    in every turn of events,

knowing he was in God's hands,

    even in unlikely places

God's purposes run a lot deeper

          than we can imagine.

And it is never all about us.

We have only to be faithful

   and know He is in this

            to bring His glory here.

"Trust Me in this.")

O LORD,

How much easier our way

                if we trusted You,

and not dragged along

      resentments and worries

              and fears?

How many times do You try

                  to convince us,

     "Do not be afraid.

      I am with you?"

Help us to be faithful to You.

Help us to know that

    Your strength

                 and courage

    are being built in layers

as we follow You in the ordinary.

You live, O Almighty One.

    And that changes everything.

 

He made my feet

    like the feet of a deer

and set me secure

              on the heights.

...You gave a wide place

     for my steps under me,

and my feet did not slip.

              Psalm 18. 33, 36

(Trusting God

     is a step-by-step following,

not always to somewhere else,

  but faithfulness right where we are.

We cannot tell by our own sight

           which rocks are unsteady

    or where that other path goes,

but God guides us in His way,

            even in unexpected places.

We cannot ever know for what

     He is bringing us through this

and how He is training us

                to trust Him even more.

There are no small obediences,

      nor insignificant ones.)

O LORD,

Make our feet like the nimble deer

   and set us secure

              in the high scary places

          and even in the ordinary.

Guide our feet, our thoughts,

     even for what we pray,

that we would know You,

          trust You,

    and love You more.

Even today.

 

...finding one pearl

                  of great value...

            Matthew 13. 46

(This day is not going to be perfect.

Indeed, we all may be slogging

        through miry bogs

        and what appears as barren fields.

But may we not overlook

   what God has placed before us

   or caught in the underbrush,

          the thicket,

 or a downright mess

             all around us.

Look for that one pearl today,

    dig for it, if necessary,

   wash away the encrusted mud,

and treasure it in your heart.

A kind word, an act of the unexpected,

   or even an opportunity

         to stand in the gap for someone else.\

Don't overlook His treasures.

Search for what may not

      initially appear as precious.

God helps us to see differently

   and live abundantly

with His joy in our hearts

not dependent on circumstances.)

O LORD,

Open our eyes that we may see

         Your Presence in our situation,

that pearly of great value

    that would be You.

Help us to look for Your joy

   in whatever we face

and indeed seize every opportunity

           to share You with others.

 

His master saw that

   the LORD was with him

and that the LORD caused

   all that he did to succeed

               in his hands.

               Genesis 39. 3

(Do we see what we do differently

      because we walk with the LORD?

Do others see the LORD

                   in what we do

and how we choose to do it?

Even in what is really difficult,

even in what appears as failure

     or turns out unexpectedly,

God redeems for greater good.

God multiplies through us.

We may be part of the equation,

   but God brings the outcomes,

that are never singular

and mostly beyond our vision.

Joseph had no idea

             what God was up to.

But he was faithful all the same.)

O LORD,

You have strategically placed us

        on this sacred ground

that we do not fully understand.

But we can be faithful to You

   in Your innumerable purposes

   and deep within Your will.

Use us this day,

                   and in this way,

    for Your glory.

 

I bless the LORD

who gives me counsel;

in the night also

    my heart instructs me.

I have set the LORD

         always before me;

because He is at my right hand,

      I shall not be shaken.

               Psalm 16. 7-8

(When we set the LORD before us,

He counsels us,

guides our thoughts,

aligns our hearts with His.

Even in the middle of the night,

we bring our concerns

         not to the god of worry,

                       but to Him.

When we set our hearts

              and minds on Him,

we can walk with Him

                     through it.

Even in the night,

   He is whispering our name,

"Do not fear.  I am with you.")

O LORD,

Thank You that we can abide in You,

even in the storms that

           threaten to swallow us alive.

Help us not just to sense Your Presence,

   but to know Your Presence with us.

We set You before us today

     in whatever that is on our path,

knowing that we can walk differently

        because we walk with You.

 

Do not be afraid

          of sudden terror

or the storm of the wicked,

          when it comes,

for the LORD will be

     your confidence

and will keep your food

            from being caught.

            Proverbs 3. 25-26

(God does not say

     "There is nothing to be

                      afraid of."

He points out, "when it comes."

But we need not panic

           nor be afraid.

Take just one step

     and then another.

He holds us

   even on the shattered pavement

                   of this broken world.

The LORD allows us

      to live differently

because we walk freely with Him

              in His strength.

Are we looking at our inadequacies

      and the scary cliffs around us?

Or looking to Him

          and holding His hand?

"Walk with Me

        and don't miss the view.")

O LORD,

Help us to trust You

     in the every days

that we may know Your strength

          in the extraordinary ones.

You are so faithful.

You do not just keep us in Your sight.

       You are with us.

Let not fear trip us up,

or worries bog us down.

We don't have the bandwidth for that.

As we quiet ourselves in Your Presence,

     may Your strength and confidence

     seep all over us

that we would be faithful to You,

   even in what is before us today,

because it all matters to You..

 

Come to Me,

all who labor and are heavy laden,

and I will give you rest.

Take My yoke upon you,

      and learn from Me,

for I am gentle and lowly in heart,

and you will find rest for your souls.

For My yoke is easy,

        and My burden is light.

                   Matthew 11. 28-30

(We carry around a lot of

     unnecessary baggage

     and anxieties and fears

that God never intended for us

                   to drag along.

A trusting relationship with Jesus

  does not just change our trajectory

                but the journey.

Jesus guides us, gives us strength,

   and shows us

                His way in this situation.

He aligns our hearts with His.

"Walk with Me"

     with a willing heart to learn

              and abide with Him.

We will not just see things differently.

          We will be different in it.)

O LORD,

We do not just come to You,

    but we walk with You into this day,

knowing that You are with us,

ordering our day,

guiding our steps,

directing our thoughts,

and aligning our hearts

                    with Yours.

Grant to us as we go forth

        into this task,

        or difficulty,

   Your strength, courage,

             wisdom and rest.

Please multiply Your grace in us.

 Whoever finds his life

         will lose it,

and whoever loses his life

        for My sake

will find it.

                Matthew 10. 39

(What are we looking for?

           Life in Him?

What are we doing today

           for His sake?)

 

O LORD,

May our eyes be focused on You

      and Your way for us.

May we live for Your sake

      in this situation

and walk with You.

 

 

But the God of my father

         has been with me.

         Genesis 31. 5

(A chronicle of God's faithfulness

extends far in the past

    and way beyond in what is next.

Acknowledge not just His hand,

               what we can see,

    but recognizing His Presence

       even in what we cannot yet.

"Trust Me

               even in this."

Just because it is difficult

   does not mean

   it is not point-blank in His purposes.

God is at work

    and we are to be faithful,

nothing but nothing too small.)

O LORD,

Help us to listen, respond

   and to be faithful to You

                in all things.     

And above all,

     to bring You glory

and bear witness

         in this broken world.

Thank You

   that You are with us.

May we live that way

       covered by Your Presence.

 

Then Jacob awoke

    from his sleep and said,

"Surely the LORD

            is in this place,

and I did not know it."

             Genesis 28. 16

(We can trust Him

even in what we

             cannot yet see

    nor understand.

How would we respond

                   differently

   if we knew God was in this?

Trusting Him

    changes our journey

  because we walk with Him.

And God never works

            in singular outcomes.)

O LORD,

You are with us,

    even in this strange place

    or hard path.

Help us to awake from our sleep

    and know You are working,

    even in what we don't grasp.

Empower us to see,

    approach and embrace

        all things differently

   because we walk with You.

 

They said,

"We see plainly

that the LORD has been with you."

                 Genesis 26. 28

(Does anyone see or sense

      anything different in us---

how we navigate life,

what we desire,

how we approach problems

       or impossibilities,

what we say and do,

how we treat others,

what we love?

Even in our attitudes?

Spending time with Him in His Word

                 and in prayer,

listening and responding to Him,

    radically changes our hearts

and impacts everyone around us.

God changes the world

              one heart at a time,

    and He starts with us.)

O LORD,

May others not notice me today,

    but to see You in me.

"Not I, but Christ." (Galatians 2.20)

Flow through us

            Your steadfast love

    that others are aware

    that they are so beloved by You.

May even our attitudes today

            --even in the miry bogs--

       point others to You,

because we walk with You.

 

And the LORD appeared to him and said,

"Do not go down to Egypt;

     dwell in the land

     of which I shall tell you."

...And Isaac sowed in that land

   and reaped in the same year

              a hundredfold.

                         Genesis 26. 2, 12

(God's guidance is not always "go,"

   but to stay and sow,

                 not always

                 in the obvious soil,

   sometimes in what appears

                            as barren.

But even this

                   is sacred ground,

    even this God can touch

          with His blessing.

God blesses faithfulness

     even in the oddest places.)

O LORD,

Help us to follow You

    on the paths and sacred ground

                  where You lead us today

and to be assured

   that You are doing something deeper

   than what we can see on the surface.

Above all,

       may we dwell with You

       in every situation

and know that You always bring

    fruitfulness from faithfulness,

even in what we are unaware.

 

Ephron answered Abraham,

"My lord, listen to me:

a piece of land

    worth 400 shekels of silver,

what is that

          between you and me?"

                   Genesis 23. 15

(What do we allow to

           come between us?

Make the relationship

     the most important

-- not stuff,

   not wounded pride,

   not shards of

          what we have not forgiven.

Let Your grace change the trajectory.)

O LORD,

Help us to be both gracious

                and generous

with what You have given us.

Your love for us is undeserved

                 and unearned.

May we extend Your love

        and know that You work

   in deeper dimensions

   than on the surface.

Help us to trust You in this.

And know You are redeeming

      to draw others to You.

Help us to

      respond unexpectedly

with Your great grace and love.

 

Then God opened her eyes,

and she saw a well of water.

                Genesis 21. 19

(When we pray,

when we come before the LORD,

call to Him, walk with Him,

listen and respond,

God changes our hearts

that we can see differently

           His provision,

           His way in this,

           and know His Presence.

God changes our vision,

                        our appetites,

         even our requests.

He is our strength,

   even more than we need.)

O LORD,

We seek You into this new day

         and week and year.

We know that nothing can remain

    the same when Your name

                  is engraved on it.

Help us to dwell in You

                        and on You

We trust You, even in

    this situation before us.

Provide us Your way.

Help us to approach difficulty

            differently

   because we walk with You.

May others see something

            different in us.

   And may that be You.

 

But seek first

the kingdom of God

           and His righteousness,

and all these things

   will be added to you.

            

                Matthew 6. 33

(But implies a change of direction,

       not this but this instead.

Seek first God,

  not what He will -- or should--

                 give to us,

but seeking God Himself.

He will change our appetites,

          our prayer requests,

          our trusting in Him,

and the course of our lives.

He will give

          more than we ever imagined

      or thought that we needed.

God exceeds our needs.

         He gives us Himself.)

O LORD,

Help us to seek You

    not just in this situation

    or difficulty

    or this time of dire need.

But to seek You

    in the ordinary,

       which is never so ordinary,

not for our sakes

           but for Yours,

in Your name,

for Your Kingdom,

        and for Your glory in this.

 

Is anything too hard

           for the LORD?

At the appointed time...

             Genesis 18. 14

(That doesn't mean that

    all of our own ideas

                are best.

The situation may not

        be ready yet.

We may not be ready yet.

God's sovereignty and timing

    far exceeds our expectations,

    and His purposes

          far beyond our vision.

Nothing is too hard for God,

  but not everything is

               in His appointments.

We can trust Him with both

    the known and the unknown,

    His provision, appointments,

                    and timing.)

O LORD,

We lift up our eyes to You

not just for what You give,

    but for Your Presence.

Align our hearts with Yours

  that we may seek You

  and Your way

       in all our situations.

May we not just be

               mindful of You,

   but to bear the mind,

      the heart and name of Jesus

           in all that we are and do,

even today,

even in this.

We trust You

           in Your sovereignty.

 

Arise,

walk through the length

      and the breadth of the land,

for I will give it to you.

                   Genesis 13. 17

(God does His greatest work

   in what only appears

   as the middle of nowhere.

Examine every corner,

nurture every square inch,

sow the seeds of a forest.

This is not just barren and hard dirt,

but where God strategically positions

                 every one of us

on the sacred ground of His Kingdom.

         We can be faithful here.

What is before me today?)

O LORD,

How differently would we approach

        this difficulty or task,

how differently our attempts

              or what we actually do,

     if we trusted You in this?

Help us to be faithful

   even in what is before us today,

   even in what we cannot yet see,

                   for Your glory

      and in Your Presence.

Even in this.

 

And there

he built an altar to the LORD

and called upon

    the name of the LORD.

                Genesis 12. 8

(To what or to whom

     are we building an altar?

To God

         or to ourselves, perhaps?

When we worship God

    and not our stuff

    or achievements

    or our own well-being,

              everything changes.

First worship God,

and seek Him

    and not just a prescribed answer

            or preferred outcome.

The altar is not a place

    to drag and dump our troubles there,

                     but to come to Him.

Worshiping God

            is not a means to an end,

    but ultimately changes us

               to the core of our being

by seeking Him in His rightful place.

Have we built an altar to the LORD

      in this situation we are in?)

O LORD,

Show us how

    to worship You

no matter what is before us

  or where we find ourselves today.

May our work,

our attitudes,

our words and thoughts,

    bring glory to You,

even in ways we are unaware.

We do not lay our day before You

      to see how You can squeeze in,

    but ask that You

        lay Your day before us,

    Your grace and glory all over it.

Nothing too small,

          nothing random,

   nothing but nothing insignificant

                 in Your eyes.

 

And He said to them,

"Follow Me,

and I will make you

           fishers of men."

Immediately

they left their nets

     and followed Him.

             Matthew 4. 19-20

(When we follow Jesus,

He takes us to a different place,

    even right where we are.

When we are faithful

                and trust Him,

He enlarges and deepens

   the scope of our work

by multiplying His glory in it,

   even in what

   we do not yet see.

Trust in the slow work of God.)

O LORD,

You call us not just to work,

but to Yourself,

    even on the most ordinary days,

    which are never ordinary.

Help us not just to follow You

                  into it,

but to trust You

     right in its midst.

Grant us the courage

               and endurance

   to be faithful to You.

Be fruitful through us this day.

 

...for I have seen that

   you are righteous before Me

              in this generation.

                Genesis 7. 1

(Faithfulness to God

      is never a waste of time.

Faithfulness to God

      always bears fruit,

      even that we never realize.

Faithfulness means different choices,

             a different path,

and different outcomes that impact

   everyone around us

   and for generations to come.)

O LORD,

Help us to be faithful to You

      even in this very day,

choosing to walk with You,

listen to You,

               and respond.

Grant us the courage

    to trust You in this.

Order our day.

Guide our thoughts.

Align our hearts with Yours.

Bear Your fruit through us,

   even that which will

                   outlive us.

 

...and remain there

     until I tell you...

        Matthew 2. 13

(Not a time of complacency

       but of completion.

Why do we always think

         of God's guidance

         as an exit door?

God does not even say

               "shelter in place,"

but "be faithful in place."

Waiting for God

      until everything is ready,

      everything is ripe,

                including us.

God has strategically appointed us

    and placed us for His glory.

Even in the familiar,

    even what we see as ordinary,

He guides our hearts

              into the supernatural--

which is the only way He works.

Just watch

        what God does with this.)

O LORD,

Help us to abide in You

and know that we are

          divinely appointed

    and strategically placed

even in what only appears

               as wilderness,

    unlikely places,

    unexpected people,

       none of whom

       are even paying attention.

Help us to be faithful

      to what You have given us

      and where we are.

Shoes double-tied,

               hearts set on You,

   ready to pivot on a dime,

     or ready to stay the course.

 

And God blessed them.

And God said to them,

    "Be fruitful and multiply..."

             Genesis 1. 28

(God believes in higher math,

not just adding one plus one,

but multiplying huge numbers

     beyond our comprehension.

Be fruitful and multiply

      is our commission

                   for this new year,

comprised of day by day,

       seed by seed,

             becoming a mighty forest

    most of which we will not see.

Being faithful always bears fruit

          far beyond our lifetimes.

What does being faithful look like

                     today?)

O LORD,

We seek You in this fresh morning

         of a new year.

We rejoice that we can

              walk with You through it,

seeing even the familiar

    with different hearts.

Thank You for blessing us.

We desire to bless You.

Unfold this very day

        with Your intricate designs,

bless the work of our hands

                   for Your glory.