By Any and Every Means

 The LORD redeems

 the life of His servants....

               Psalm 34. 22

 

(Yes, what we do

         matters to God.

He does not just notice,

    but God redeems.

In unexpected ways,

  He reveals the full value

  of every faithful endeavor.

By any and every means,

God releases, sets free,

  and fulfills His purposes

  for His saints,

far beyond our lifetimes.

There are no ordinary tasks,

    just extraordinary ones.

And God uses them all.

Does what we do matter?

    Absolutely for all eternity.

We would be amazed to see

   what God does with it.

God redeems.)

 

O LORD,

Help us to serve You

  in whatever we do today.

Empower us to know

that You don't just redeem

   our every action,

but You are constantly

    redeeming our lives.

Past tense, present tense,

       and eternally.

What Does This Make Possible?

 

I sought the LORD,

and He answered me

and delivered me

    from all my fears.

 

          Psalm 34. 4

 

(When we seek the LORD,

He provides another way

    through the scary stuff,

  the miry bogs,

  disappointments,

  and stuff we don’t understand.

God always answers

  in one way or a thousand,

cutting through our fears,

    both real and imagined.

Fear always changes

  what we do

  and how we do it.

Seeking God changes things too.

God may not alter circumstances,

      but transforms how we see them

      and how we respond

   and gives us His strength.

This hard matter

may not be a dilemma at all,

      but God’s deliverance

      in unexpected ways.

 What does this make possible?

     God is unfolding something new.

     And we learn to trust Him more.

We cry, “O God, I can’t do this.”

And He whispers to us,

    “Good.  Because I can.”

What would we do differently

   if there is nothing to be

   afraid of

              in this situation?)

 

O LORD,

Please help us to know

   to seek You first,

and to know that

      You are in this too,

      right here with us.

Use this situation

to align our hearts with Yours.

Help us to realize

   that You are making possible

something we never even imagine.

May we be faithful

    in putting aside our fears

to walk with You instead.

Impossible Situations and Improbable Solutions

 And You divided
the sea before them,
so that they went
through the midst
of the sea
on dry land…..

      Nehemiah 9.11

(We all have Red Seas,
the dilemmas of
impossible situations 
and improbable 
          solutions.
But no matter the situation,
whatever the trouble, 
despite the dead end,
flooded with difficulty, or
absolutely overwhelmed,
God provides 
         (present tense)
a different and unexpected 
             way for us.
God breaks through 
the middle of 
anything we face.
Are we willing to 
hold it up to Him
and walk with Him
      on dry ground?)

O LORD,
You are the God
of breaking through.
Please guide us 
and help us 
to touch bottom,
to swim when necessary,
to walk right in the midst,
even when we cannot yet
see a path to your glory.
How can we get
to the other side of this?
Only with You.
Show us how to walk 
                   with You
on sacred ground.
Even in this.

God Doesn't Just Recycle

Will they revive the stones 

out of the heaps of rubbish,

and burned ones at that?
             

                 Nehemiah 4.2

(God does not just reuse,
recycle, repair, rebuild,
patch with duct tape,
restore what is broken 
and impossible,
but He redeems,
revives the unexpected,
and breathes His life
into it.
Not just back,
but better, stronger,
and different.
What does this
make possible?
God causes 
whatever we face
to flourish 
in unexpected ways.)

Resistance Training

For they all wanted
     to frighten us, 
thinking, “Their hands
will drop from the work, 
and it will not be done.”
But now, O God,
    strengthen my hands. 

Nehemiah 6.9

(Excuses always arise
to not do the work 
God has appointed us,
but always a thousand 
reasons to be faithful.
There is always resistance,
but even more,
His strength to do it.
How do we handle 
the hard stuff?
Do we panic 
or do we interject prayer
into our day,
our conversations,
our complications,
our circumstances?
A friend used to tell me,
Stop, drop and pray.
Right on the spot.
Why are we surprised 
we can’t do this work 
without Him?)

O LORD,
Strengthen our hands
in fulfilling this work
before us,
for Your glory
and in Your name.
Train our heart muscles 
to be faithful to You
and trust You
not just in the outcome,
but every detail 
along the way.
Let even resistance 
serve to strengthen us,
and by Your hand on us
accomplish what appears
impossible.

Redirecting the Journey

...for the good hand

            of his God

was upon him.

For Ezra had set his heart

to study the Law or the LORD,

      and to do it

and to teach

His statutes and rules in Israel.

             Ezra 7. 9-10

(Ezra was just a scribe,

but everything changed

when he set his heart

      on the LORD.

He did not just copy down

    the scriptures.

He directed his life by them.

He aligned his heart 

   and thoughts on the LORD

in whatever and wherever

        God led him,

by studying God's Word,

teaching others,

worshiping Him

      through his work,

and being faithful.

Faithfulness in any form

   changes how we see,

how we respond,

and is evident 

     in a million outcomes

  beyond our lifetimes.)

O LORD,

We pray for Your good hand

   upon us this day.

Reveal to us

  how we can honor You

and respond to You

in all we do and say,

   manifested even in

         our attitudes.

Help us to trust You

and see Your good hand

even in what is hard,

uncomfortable,

inconvenient,

but also in unexpected wonders

   we have not yet recognized.

Thank You for Your Presence.

 

We Are What We Love

 

And this was their reply to us:

  "We are the servants

of the God of heaven and earth..."

             Ezra 5. 11

(Live in such a way

that others are compelled

        to ask why.

Do others see

       any difference in us

by how we respond,

how we treat them

  or even those against us,

what we pursue,

what we read, watch,

on what we spend

   our time, talent, treasure,

and for what we strive?

"We are what we love"

       -- James K. A. Smith)

O LORD,

We are Yours.

May we be known as Yours,

  not just by what we do,

  but who we are,

even when we think

     that no one is looking.

Help us to navigate this day

   in a way that brings

   Your glory to this.

Align our hearts to Yours

  that we may see

  another way through.

Help us to go far beyond

  just being seen

  as "nice people,"

but instead

gracious and faithful to You.

Empower us

     to serve You today

in both the ordinary

            and extraordinary.

There is no difference.