Teach Me Your Paths

Show me your ways, Lord,  teach me your paths. (Psalm 25:4)

Teach Me Your Paths.

Which way should I go, Lord?
I have so many options before me.
I have so many voices that clamor for my attention.

Show me your ways, Lord. 

  Teach me your paths. 

Guide me in your truth and teach me, 

   for you are God my Savior, 

   and my hope is in you all day long.

I can try to be my own guide through the maze of this world,
  but that doesn't usually turn out well.
I can imitate what I see on TV and the movies,
  but then I'm not really myself.
I know that when I get off-path
  I may stumble and fall,
  or get lost.

Show me your ways, Lord, teach me your paths.

The bookstore is full of self-help aisles,
  each book promising happiness.
Where will I really find happiness and well-being?
Where will I find wisdom, truth?

Show me your ways, Lord, teach me your paths.

Of all the options before me, I can only choose one.
I can only serve one master.
I choose to serve you, Lord.
With all my heart.

Show me your ways, Lord, teach me your paths.

Feed Me, Lord

"One does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord."Deuteronomy 8:3

Then Jesus declared, "I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty."John 6:35

A mother heron feeds her young

Feed Me, Lord

Feed me, Lord.

I'm hungry, and I need food for strength. I need food to live. 

Give me this day my daily bread, please.

I'm not talking about food for my body, though you do provide me with an abundance of that (thank you very much).

What I seek today is food for my soul.
Because I cannot live on bread alone.
What I need is food that endures to eternal life.

I need the bread of life.
I need your word.
I need the Living Word.

I'm hungry, Lord. Feed me with your word.
I need your word, stored up in my heart,
that I might not sin against you.
I need your word to be a lamp for my feet,
a light on my path.
I'm hungry, Lord. Feed me with your word.

I need food that endures to eternal life.
I need the bread of life.
Nourish me, strengthen me, O Jesus.
Fill my heart with you.
Feed my heart with you.

Give me today my daily bread, please.
Feed me, Lord.

Wow. Just Wow.

O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! (Psalm 8:1)

Wow. Just Wow.

I'm not going to ask anything right now, God.
I simply want to be in awe of you and behold your glory.

You make the sun to rise in the east
and set in the west.
Every day, you create a new masterpiece,
using every color imaginable from your palette.
Every. Day.
Even the gray of cloud cover is beautiful in your hand.

Wow. Just wow.

You put the stars in place and call them by name.
You set the moon on its path every night, 
again creating a new masterpiece.
Every. Night.
The darkness of night is beautiful in your hand.

Wow. Just wow.

You sustain all of life through the seasons --
Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter.
Again, and again, and again. 
Year after year after year.
It never gets old (though we do, eventually!).

Wow, just wow.

Your beauty and majesty is even imprinted on the small stuff:
The designs on the wings of a moth in intricate detail
    and symmetry.
The seeds on the head of a dandelion, 
  the petals on a flower,
    the stripes on the back of a lizard,
      the dew drop on the leaf of a bush,
        the order and pattern found on every leaf of every tree,
You have not overlooked a single detail.
And you are in the details, God. All the amazing details.

Wow, just wow.

And then there is your human creation, of course.
You have created us in your image
(though we kinda messed it up, didn't we?).
You give us the capacity to feel, to love.
You give us life,
  sustain our lives,
    accompany us in the valley of the shadow of death,
      and grant us eternal life through your Son.

Wow, just wow.

You forgive us of our sins,
  and cleanse us of our iniquity.
By your grace. And out of your steadfast love for us.
You teach us and guide us with your Word
  and by your Holy Spirit.
You produce in us
  Love
    Joy
      Peace
        Patience
          Kindness
            Goodness
              Faithfulness
                Gentleness
                  Self-control.

Wow. Just wow.

I could lie here all day, every day,
noting all the things about you that amaze me.
And I would never have to repeat myself,
nor would I run out of reasons to be amazed.
But I would eventually run out of disk space.
And I really should go out and live for you.

And so I'm going to get out of bed now,
and live this day enjoying and appreciating you.

Wow. Just wow.

Sunday Psalm

Note: As the observance of Lent does not technically include Sundays, instead of a prayer I will offer verses from the Psalter. 

Psalm 103:8, 10-12

The Lord is merciful and gracious,
    slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
9 
...
[God] does not deal with us according to our sins,
    nor repay us according to our iniquities.
11 For as the heavens are high above the earth,
    so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him;
12 as far as the east is from the west,
    so far he removes our transgressions from us.

For This Day, I Give Thanks, Part 2

From the rising of the sun, to the place where it sets, the name of the Lord is to be praised.(Psalm 113:3)

For This Day I Give Thanks 

Now I lay me down to sleep, O God. 

The sun has set, and the moon brightens the sky.

The day is done.

Thank you.

For the gift of life for another day,

  for the opportunities I had to glorify you today,

    for the beauty I encountered,

      for the people you brought into my life,

I give thanks.

For those moments when I touched someone with your love,
  for the times when your Spirit shined through in me,
I give thanks.

I didn't always do things right,
  I sinned, of course.
    And you forgave me. Of course.

Thank you.

I know that you were with me all the day long.
  I couldn't hide from you even if I tried.
    Not that I would even want to hide from you.
But you were always with me:
  to guide me,
    to comfort me,
      to use me.

For the experience of your presence,

  for the guidance of your Spirit,

    for the knowledge that you forgive my sins,

      for the experience of your grace,

I give thanks.

The sun has set.

  Your glory is still shining.

You promise that goodness and mercy

   would follow me all the day long.
      And it did.

For this day that I have lived,

I give thanks.

For This Day, I Give Thanks, Part 1

From the rising of the sun, to the place where it sets, the name of the Lord is to be praised.(Psalm 113:3)

For This Day I Give Thanks

I have awakened, O God.

The sun will soon rise.

The day will soon begin.

Thank you.

For the gift of life for another day,

  for the new opportunity to glorify you,

    for the beauty I will encounter,

      for the people you will bring into my life,

I give thanks.

I don't know what this day will hold for me,

but I do know you will be with me,

and I know you have a purpose for me.

Thank you.

For the assurance of your presence,

  for the guidance of your Spirit,

    for the promise of your forgiveness,

      for the experience of your grace,

I give thanks.

The sun is rising.

Your glory is shining.

You promise that goodness and mercy

    shall follow me all the day long.

For this day that is still ahead of me,

I give thanks.

For a Good and Faithful Servant

I know that my redeemer lives, and that in the end he will stand on the earth. And after my skin has been destroyed, yet in my flesh I will see God; I myself will see him with my own eyes—I, and not another. How my heart yearns within me!(Job 19:25-27)

For a Good and Faithful Servant

Almighty God, our Heavenly Father,

from whom we come and unto whom our spirits return:

we give thanks for the life and witness of Billy Graham.

We thank you for his strong character, his unwavering convictions, his humble spirit. We thank you for his undying love for his Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, and for his steadfast commitment to share the message of your love with the world.

He was a vessel of clay, used mightily by you as he preached the gospel around the world. You used him to speak words of wisdom and guidance to world leaders. Through him you proclaimed the good news of forgiveness and eternal life

to hundreds of millions of people. 

His greatness was not in his fame, but in the humble, gentle spirit with which he shared the love of his Savior. He was a model of Christian integrity, a man who truly sought to live according to your word. Even more, he truly sought to model Jesus Christ in his life.

The hope that he proclaimed is now his reality. Once he saw you dimly, as in a mirror; now he sees you face to face. And surely he has heard you utter the words we all long to hear:

“Well done, good and faithful servant.”

Remind us each day of the hope of the resurrection, that we may be inspired to live in faithfulness to your good news

 and manifest in our own lives the love and grace you have shown to us.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Recycle Me

“Whoever is in Christ is a new creation; the old has gone, and the new has come!”(2 Corinthians 5:17)

The recycling department of the City of Clinton (North Carolina) is located a few blocks down the street from our house. On the wall facing the street there are three murals made of discarded plastic containers. This prayer is inspired by those murals.

Recycle Me

I offer my life to you, O Lord.

It's not much, I know. I got the sin in me.

I'm not exactly perfect. Not even close, really.

Sometimes I wonder if I'm any good at all.

Still, I offer myself to you. As a living sacrifice.

Take me, I pray, and use me for your glory.

You are the God who makes all things new.

You take us as we are, but you don't leave us that way.

Your specialty is transformation.

You take broken and sinful humans,

and you make us new creations.

Recycle me, Lord.

Re-use me.

Renew me.

Make me part of something beautiful.

I offer my life to you, O Lord.

Use me, for your glory.

Amen.

Make Me a Reflection

The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. (Psalm 103:8)

Make Me a Reflection

Lord, make me a reflection.

Make me a reflection of you.

You have created me in your image. Show me how to live so that I accurately reflect your image. As I try to represent you in the world around me, I want people to see the kind of Lord you are:

  gracious

    compassionate

      patient

        kind

          faithful

            forgiving

              present

Lord, make me a reflection of you.

You care about the poor, the hungry, the homeless. Make me to care, too. Make me a reflection of you.

You care about justice, and righteousness, and truth. Make me to care, too. Make me a reflection of you.

You love unconditionally and eternally. Make me to love, too. Make me a reflection of you.

Lord, make me a reflection of you.

A Prayer for Monday

 Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my thoughts. See if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.

(Psalm 139:23-24) 

Here am I; Send me! 

(Isaiah 6:8)

Kelvingrove Art Museum, Glasgow

A Prayer for Monday

Dear God,

I'm not a fan of Mondays. The weekend has been relaxing. I've enjoyed the down time. The sabbath rest was good. But now the week begins again. Back to work. I'm not a fan of Mondays.

But you know that. You know me through and through. You know I'm not a fan of Mondays.

Spirit of the living God, fall afresh on me.

Renew in my heart today the commitment to live into my great purpose in life – to glorify you, and to enjoy you forever. Send me into the world as an ambassador of Jesus Christ, faithfully administering the ministry of reconciliation. Fill me with your Holy Spirit, that I may offer myself as a living sacrifice to you.

Spirit of the living God, fall afresh on me.

I'm not a fan of Mondays. But I do love you, and I want to be faithful to you today. And so I will make this day one in which I live a life worthy of the calling I have received.

I'm not a fan of Mondays. But, still, here I am. Send me.

Amen.

Kelvingrove Art Museum, Glasgow