Commit your work

           to the LORD,

and your plans

   will be established.

            Proverbs 16. 3

(Not a prescription,

          but a promise.

It does not mean

seeking a set of instructions

    "just tell me what to do!"

but seeking Him,

          abiding in Him,

  and He will direct our steps.

Commit is a heart condition,

   a term of engagement

        and dedication in a way

     that directs our actions,

        both great and small.

Commit in Hebrew literally means

         "to roll."

To roll what is on my heart

     and to bind myself to Him.)

O LORD,

You never promised

            an easy path,

   paved with no potholes,

but You continue to promise,

"Do not fear. I am with You."

         And You are.

We seek You, Almighty One,

    above all things.

May we seek to abide in You

    in whatever we do.

Order our day.

Guide our steps.

Direct our thoughts.

Align our hearts

              with Yours.

 

And yet

this is a small thing

         in Your eyes,

  O Lord GOD.

             2 Samuel 7. 19

(We would be astonished

      by His greatness,

    by His designs in this,

by what only God can do.

We have witnessed

    only a tiny slice

    of His might

and His incredible purposes.

Even in this.

When we seek Him,

   not just directions,

   or outcomes,

   or answers,

God reveals Himself

   in unexpected ways.)

O LORD,

Help us to not be distracted

by the worthless and immediate,

    but to seek You.

You walk with us

    right in the midst

    of the impossible.

that we may

           know You more.

And see Your fingerprints

       all around us.

Align our hearts

           with Yours.

Help us to be faithful

   in pointing others

          to Your greatness.

Help us to be mindful

    in pointing our hearts

         to Your might.

 

As the LORD lives,

who has redeemed my life

out of every adversity...

               2 Samuel 4.9

(David had seen too much

to question God in this.

God had redeemed

    and was redeeming,

    and not about to stop now.

God is redeeming

    even what we are going through,

    even in this impossible situation,

            far beyond our lifetimes.

God's redeeming

         has no expiration date

         and no exclusions

   and impacts many more

              than ourselves.

Whether we see it

        in our lifetimes or not,

               God still redeems.

If this situation was easy,

   would we seek Him?

   Would we know Him more?)

O LORD,

Thank You

for the chronicle of Your faithfulness

    we have experienced

that we would know You more.

Every adversity

            means every adversity.

You walk with us through them.

And sometimes break through

    in unexpected ways.

Help us to respond with grace

   those things we do not understand,

knowing that You are at work.

Knowing You.

Help us to take to heart

    Your reassurance:

       "Trust Me in this."

 

He laid aside

    His outer garments,

and taking a towel,

tied it around His waist.

Then He poured

       water into a basin

and began to wash

            the disciples' feet

and to wipe them with the towel

   that was wrapped around Him.

                   John 13. 4-5

(What do I carry

           into this day,

among the people I see

      and meet

      and am appointed?

A towel and basin,

   the fundamental tools

             of a believer.

Ready in hand,

    tied around our waists,

not just to serve

but to love others

          in tangible ways

and to worship God.

Not just what is on my agenda,

   but what is His agenda for me?

   How can I honor Him?

                   Wash feet.

What does that look like today?)

O LORD,

May we not just bring

  the implements to serve You,

but to bring into this day

  a different heart.

Help us to see with new eyes

      not just needs to step into,

but people behind those needs,

      not to fix but to love.

May we continually wear

       a towel around our waists

and know how to use it.

There are no small ways,

       only eternal one.

     

 

Open to me

   the gates of righteousness,

that I may enter through them

and give thanks to the LORD.

                  Psalm 118. 19

(What kind of open doors

             are we seeking?

For what is now?

    Or just what is next?

And have we ourselves

    locked them from the inside?

Gratefulness to God

   --the practice of

         giving thanks to Him--

is a gate and well-trodden path

    that changes our trajectory

by focusing us on Him.

His hand and Presence

       are not elusive,

        but right here with us

                   all along.

Being grateful to the LORD

    empowers us to see

              in the dark

and see doors already opened,

      right in front of us.)

O LORD,

We give thanks to You,

      for You are good,

and Your steadfast love

      endures forever.

We give thanks to You,

     not just for all that You do,

     or for how You bless,

but for Who You are.

Thank You for loving us

     right to You.

Thank You for loving us

    through the miry bog

    and the mess we have made,

and loving us

               no matter what.

Gratefulness to You

    changes our hearts

            and our vision.

 

...all the people

      were bitter in soul,

each for his sons and daughters.

But David strengthened himself

       in the LORD his God.

                  1 Samuel 30.6

(Everyone struggles with something.

Which do we choose?

       Bitterness or

            turning toward God?

That changes everything

    in how we respond,

    to what we see before us,

        how we see God,

        how we see others,

        how we see ourselves.

Bitterness consumes.

                  Always has.

Trusting God

      acknowledges the difficulty

      and draws on God's strength.)

O LORD,

You are our strength.

What does it take

     for us to realize that?

How much does it take

    for us to turn to You?

Help us to

   strengthen ourselves in You.

Infuse Your strength in us

      that we may know Your more.

Help us to be aware of You

  and pray to You,

our first response,

           not as a last resort.

Bring Your glory

            into this,

even into what I can't

       yet see.

Bitterness says

      this is the end of my story

      and the end of my world.

Trusting You

    opens up the universe

    and stakes my life

            that You are in this

            and You are with me,

no matter how impossible.

 

...so that you may believe.

           John 11. 15

(What does it take for us

      to believe in Him?

To "trust Me in this?"

Not distracted by circumstances,

or wishing for a particular outcome,

or explaining Him away,

or taking the credit for ourselves.

     But simply trusting Him in this.

What does it take

  for God to get our attention?

If we believed in Him,

    we would be astonished.

We would see His glory,

               even in this.

Why is this situation so hard?

God replies,

        "Now watch this!")

O LORD,

You are with us.

Help us to realize

        Your Presence,

even in the difficult

   and beyond our understanding.

Help us to not just seek an answer

         or solution to the puzzle,

         or exit door out of this mess,

    but to seek You.

Help us

    to be faithful to You 

         above anything else.

You are Who we love

         above anything else.

Help us to believe.

    Evaporate our unbelief.

That we would see Your glory.

That we would see

                   only You.