The jar of flour

     was not spent,

neither did the jug of oil

          become empty...

         1 Kings 17. 16

(This is not the end of the road,

the bottom of the barrel,

the last drop of hope,

but the work of the LORD

    beyond our imagination,

    beyond what we can yet see.

This is not all there is

   --we can stake our lives on that.

Faithfulness follows God,

     not distracted by circumstances.)

O LORD,

We have seen nothing yet

    of what You can do.

The empty barrel only confirms

that our lives depend on you,

not on favorable situations,

or what we see as good,

           but on You.

Help us to faithfully follow You,

to be faithful in what is before us,

even when we cannot see

          the end of the matter.

Because with You, O LORD,

there is no end,

          but a continuing story.

You never work

         in singular dimensions.

Be glorified, dear LORD,

             even in this.

...for I have sent them.

                  Acts 10. 20

(Aware of daily

          divine appointments)

O LORD,

You have placed people in my life today,

those who are familiar to me,

those who are total strangers,

those whom I love,

those with whom I struggle,

even in what only appears

        as casual encounters

      or momentary meetings,

the expected and unexpected,

not one is

       an insignificant rendezvous.

Turn, I pray,

confrontations into conversations,

mere contacts into relationships,

                    all for Your glory.

No one slides randomly in or out of my life,

within my view or on my path,

--neighbors, colleagues,

  even the clerk at the store--

          but only by divine appointments,

                         only by Your hand.

I have no idea

           who I will meet today.

    But You arranged it all.

Please make me

extraordinarily aware of those around me

and love them into Your kingdom.

...for this thing

          is from Me.

           1 Kings 12. 24

("Take My hand

and follow Me into this."

One step,

          and then the next.

Faithfulness may never know

     where it ultimately leads,

             but with Whom.

God never promised

              a life of ease,

but "I am with you."

   Even in the hard stuff,

            God redeems.)

O LORD,

Thank you for this fresh day,

wide open and full of Your wonder

            and mighty works,

even that which I can't see

                               yet.

Please help me to respond to You,

   to daily come before You

and choosing Your way through,

not my grand schemes

               but Your glory.

Your Presence

          changes everything.

Help me to bless and honor You

         right where I am

and through what is before me.

Not my way,

          but Your higher way.

Nothing random at all,

     but You are in this.

But rise and enter the city,

and you will be told

  what you are to do.

               Acts 9. 6

(Following Him one step

         at a time,

even if the next step

         is not yet obvious.

It is not just

     what is His path for me,

but who God has

           placed on it

    to love into the kingdom.)

O LORD,

Help me to quiet my heart

so as to hear Your voice

       in this and about this,

even in loud places,

even amidst the din,

    You are here with me.

Help me to follow You

   in extraordinary situations

   and on ordinary days,

into the surprises

     and into the familiar.

And as for you,

    if you will walk with Me...

                 1 Kings 9. 4

(Am I walking with the LORD

         through this?

It matters.

It matters a lot.

It is the big "if" that changes

     the trajectory of my day

     and the course of my life.

Far more than I can

                ever imagine.

"Walk with Me even in this.")

O LORD,

I don't know where I am

        or where you are leading me

        in this odd situation.

But You do.

Help me to be faithful

    in walking with You today.

Nothing ever insignificant

                     in that.

Even Simon himself believed...

                 Acts 8. 13

(When we are faithfully

         sharing God's Word,

when we are faithfully

         living it out,

even among the rebellious,

even on the most ordinary day,

even on familiar paths,

      we would be amazed

      at how God uses us

and at who responds

               to His Word.

No one stands

beyond the reach of His grace.)

O LORD,

Please make me aware

of Your Word

and Your power in it

      and through it.

Please help me to realize

where I am

and among whom I live

       is not for my convenience

but for Your glory.

May Your Word penetrate

         the most unlikely,

even my own heart.

Also the whole altar 

that belongs 

to the inner sanctuary 

he overlaid with gold.

               1 Kings 6. 22

(Where we bring

our burdens,

our brokenness,

our nasty idols,

our shame and guilt,

our selfishness

is a sacred place

   of great significance 

where we find 

       Jesus already there,

        already forgiving.)

O LORD,

You go before,

You come behind,

You walk with me

through the miry bog

         of my sin.

Thank You, dear Jesus,

    for coming,

not just to rescue me

but to forgive

         and to redeem.