Weary

Matthew 5:3 — “Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

I am weary, God,

but I can prevail.

Weariness and strength,

the Lord knows them both.

For He created the mountains,

He set apart the valleys;

His footsteps mark them both.

In my weariness

I look to the Lord my God.

I call out to Him in need

for deliverance.

In my weariness

the Lord is my only hope

and He will prevail.

For it is Him who gives me strength;

I am His chosen creation.

The Lord delights in my weariness,

He loves to give me His strength.

He casts down the wicked,

the proud

who see no need for Him.

But He uplifts the meek,

the weary

who see all their need in Him.

I am weary, O Lord,

but I can prevail

because I am Your beloved.

Fill my cup, O mighty Creator,

so that I will never run dry.

Praise Your name, O my God,

for You deliver Your people.

Amen.

Love Unknown

Matthew 22:37 — Jesus replied: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.”

Love is what brought me

to You,

love is all that You ask

in return.

I could not possibly understand

love

until I received it from

You.

I could not possibly give

love

until I received it from

You.

Your love is nothing like

what I thought love was,

it is abundantly more than

what I thought it could be.

Now that You have shown me

Your love,

I cannot possibly understand it

any other way.

Now that You have shown me

Your love,

I cannot possibly give it

any other way.

I will abide in Your love,

for it is my rescue,

my safety,

my joy,

and my treasure.

Amen.

Your Heart

Romans 8:14-15 — For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.”

I think too much

and I perform too hard

sometimes,

oftentimes,

overlooking the heart

of who You are.

You desire my

adoration and love,

not just my effort.

You desire my

joy and thanksgiving,

not just my intensity.

You, Lord,

are unknown and complex,

but simple.

You, God,

are unapproachable and just,

but Fatherly.

You invite me

to be a child,

defined by faith

and eager to seek Your heart.

Not as a rule-follower

nor shameful self-loather,

but as an unkempt servant

full of gratitude and trust.

This is freedom

in the Lord.

Amen.

Only Reason

Hebrews 10:14 — For by one sacrifice He has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.

My only hope

is the grace of God.

My only option

is to trust the Lord.

I have tried

to hope in myself,

to trust in the world -

it led to my destruction.

But,

under the blood of Jesus

alone

I am no longer condemned.

Sanctified,

healed,

redeemed,

died for,

the perfect love of Christ

is the only reason

I live.

This gives me every reason

to live,

every reason to worship

You.

Amen.

Today

Matthew 6:24 — Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Today comes

and my soul waits.

If tomorrow comes,

eagerly

my soul will be waiting for You,

Lord my God.

You are my hope, Father,

my only hope,

and that is more than enough.

Love unfailing,

redemption complete,

forgiveness purchased,

I wait for the Lord

and put my hope in His word.

Amen.

Beloved

Exodus 33:14 — The Lord replied, “My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.”

“Beloved,

I made you.

Beloved,

I see you.

Beloved,

I know you.

Beloved,

I care for you.

Beloved,

I fight for you.

Beloved,

I provide for you.

In the palm of My hand,

beloved,

I am watching over you,

moving around you,

and preparing a way for you

to glorify Me.

Rest in Me,

beloved;

do not be afraid,

just rest in Me.”

Amen.

Prepare Him Room

Ephesians 3:16-17 — I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith.

O my heart,

prepare Him room!

At the head of the table,

at the center of my life,

prepare Him room.

As Master of my actions,

as Commander of my thoughts,

prepare Him room.

From my deepest hurt

to my greatest victory,

prepare Him room.

For the present moment,

for the coming return,

prepare Him room.

Son of God,

Son of Man,

take all that I have

and all that I am.

O my heart,

prepare Him room!

Amen.

Wonderful Discipline

Hebrews 12:6, 10 — For the Lord disciplines the one He loves, and He chastens everyone He accepts as His child… God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in His holiness.

When You discipline me,

I curse You.

Yet,

when Your discipline

completes its work in me,

I rejoice in You.

I am a child

with such need for a patient Father.

How wonderful it is

that I have One.

I hope to avoid Your correction,

but Your correction is what keeps me near

to You.

Patient Father,

Just God,

teach me joyful obedience,

humble righteousness

that comes only through Your discipline.

It is far better

to endure hardship and receive correction,

than to live a lifetime of worldly comfort.

For the joy of everlasting life in You

comes through my earnest dependence

and Your merciful discipline.

Amen.

Beautiful

Genesis 1:27 - So God created mankind in His own image, in the image of God He created them; male and female He created them.

I am

beautiful.

I am

lovely.

I am

cherished.

I am

chosen.

Because You made me,

because You redeemed me,

because You sent Your Son for me,

I am

all that You say

I am.

Because You are God

and You made me

in Your image,

I am beautiful,

lovely,

cherished,

and chosen.

Amen.

Forgiven

2 Corinthians 5:17 - Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!

What can separate me

from the love of the Lord?

What can take me away

from the grace of the Father?

How can I lose

what has been given to me,

what I never earned

in the first place?

I cannot.

Therefore,

I rejoice in You, Lord,

for the gift of grace,

the perfect gift of mercy

through Christ.

I am Your temple,

Your territory -

I cannot be consumed by evil,

I cannot be torn from Your love.

As sure as I have breath,

as sure as the earth below my feet,

I am redeemed,

forgiven,

and saved by the blood of Christ.

Nothing will separate me

from You,

my God,

because You chose me,

saved me,

and reconciled me

back to You.

Amen.

Infinitely

Psalm 130:5 — I wait for the Lord, my whole being waits, and in His word I put my hope.

In a dark and hopeless place,

my spirit groans for You, Lord.

Though it is silent,

though I feel empty,

I know that You hear me,

that Your eyes are upon me.

I am undeserving of rescue

because of my sins;

You desire to rescue me

because of Your love.

You pour out forgiveness

by grace

so that I can walk in obedience,

so that Your glory is revealed.

Every part of me

waits for You,

You are my only hope.

In my waiting,

I will meditate on Your word,

pressing on by Your Spirit.

I wait for You

as if my life depends on it

because my life depends on it.

You are unfailing love,

You are complete redemption,

You are total grace.

Therefore,

I will put my faith -

my hope -

in You alone.

You, Lord,

You Yourself

are my restoration.

Amen.

Flesh & Spirit

Psalm 149:6 — May the praise of God be in their mouths, and a double-edged sword in their hands.

I can praise

in my weeping,

I can worship

in my grieving.

I will praise You, Lord,

even against the will

of my own flesh.

I will worship you, Father,

even against the lies

in my own mind.

Did You find me

in a light and easy place?

Or did You form me

in the bowels of suffering?

Did You create me

for comfort and worldly safety?

Or did You resurrect me

for resilience and eternal life?

God of majesty and wonder,

power and love,

judgment and meekness,

I will live

because You rescued me from death;

I will praise

because You redeemed me in hopelessness.

My Joy

and my Salvation,

my Rock,

and my Deliverer,

I will bless Your holy name

until my breath is no more.

Amen.

But You

Isaiah 53:3, 5-6 — He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering and familiar with pain… But He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on Him, and by His wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.

I ran from You,

but You never left my side.

I turned my back on You,

but You remained in front of me.

I left Your presence,

but You chose to seek me.

I cursed Your Name,

but You followed me into darkness.

I neglected Your love,

but You gave it to me anyway.

I hated You,

but You chose to give me grace.

I blamed Your ways,

but You had plans for me.

I treated You like swine,

but You died for me.

I followed my own path apart from Yours,

but You knew it led back to Your feet.

I raged against You,

but You never held it against me.

I spit in Your face,

but You called me beloved.

Though I have lived

to hurt You,

You lived

to die

for my wretched soul.

Amen.

Lose

Matthew 16:24-26 — Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it. What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul?”

I seek to save my life,

and I lose it.

I seek to satisfy myself -

my desires,

my satisfaction,

my expectations -

and I end up nowhere.

I seek to gain the whole world -

gratification,

idolatry,

envy -

and I lose my soul.

I lose my life for You, Lord,

and I save it.

I seek to deny myself and follow You, Father -

Your instruction,

Your glory,

Your wisdom -

and I have complete purpose.

I seek to crucify myself to the world -

temptation,

lies,

selfishness -

and I gain eternal joy.

When I have in mind

only the mere concerns of my flesh,

I stumble and fall.

When I have in mind

the concerns of God,

I am firmly planted and cannot be moved.

Amen.

Like You

Ephesians 5:1-2 — Follow God’s example, therefore, as dearly loved children and walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

Give me patience

to love like You love.

Give me peace

to think like You think.

Give me wisdom

to speak like You speak.

Give me humility

to forgive like You forgive.

Give me joy

to persevere like You persevere.

Give me kindness

to wait like You wait.

Give me strength

to remain like You remain.

Give me hope

to carry on like You carry on.

Give me self-control

to listen like You listen.

Amen.

Never Relent

Romans 12:2 — Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind…

I dishonor You, Lord,

because I look the same

as the rest.

I discredit You,

because I act the same

as everyone else.

I dishearten You, Father,

because You offer me all that I want and need,

yet still I turn from You.

Still,

I am afraid;

still,

I am prideful;

still,

I am distracted;

still,

I am self-reliant.

Yet still,

You earnestly seek me;

You graciously forgive me.

Your mercy

is the reason I can return to You.

Your mercy

is the motivation for me

to never relent in my obedience to You.

Amen.

Rise

Psalm 4:8 — In peace, I will lie down and sleep, for You alone Lord, make me dwell in safety.

When I rise,

I come before You.

With my first words,

my first thoughts,

I fall on my face

at Your feet;

I do not want to live this day,

apart from You.

As temptation swarms,

waiting for me like a lion,

I turn from it,

to face You;

I refuse to give in

to anything that takes me from You.

As decisions surround me,

swirling about like a mighty wind,

I kneel before You;

only Your will

I seek -

nothing else will satisfy my heart.

As worries descend upon me,

slithering towards me like a snake,

I recall Your word;

I breathe in Your Spirit,

the peace of knowing who You are,

and what You call me.

As fatigue settles in my flesh,

covering me like a blanket of stone,

I meditate on Your promises;

I call to mind my final resting place,

and consider it joy to carry on for You.

When I come to rest,

I will return to You.

With my final words,

my final thoughts,

I will close my eyes at Your feet;

I will rejoice

that I will never live another day

apart from You.

Amen.

Radical

Isaiah 7:4,9 — Be careful, keep calm and don’t be afraid… If you do not stand firm in your faith, you will not stand at all.

O Lord,

help me grasp

the faintest image of Your glory,

the quietest sound of Your power.

O God in heaven,

I cannot even rely on You

without Your help;

I cannot even depend on You

without Your guidance!

Father,

God,

King,

make me faithful unto death,

desperately bound to You in this life.

I want to hate what You hate,

love what You love,

and live shackled to Your instruction.

I want to know reverence,

like I know breath;

I long to understand worship,

like I understand sight.

Engrain Yourself in me, Lord,

that I cannot comprehend

how to live apart from You.

Crucify me, Father,

that I may simply not know

what it means to live for myself.

I refuse to accept

anything less than total,

complete,

addiction to following You, O my God.

Amen.

Submission

Job 26:14 — And these are but the outer fringe of His works; how faint the whisper we hear of Him! Who then can understand the thunder of His power?

O Lord,

how did You create everything,

out of nothing?

How can it be,

that before anything was,

You already were?

Why,

in the fullness of Yourself,

did You create me?

O,

how my soul longs for things,

so much greater than it can comprehend.

Yet,

did You not create me,

to wonder, O endless Creator,

to marvel at Your handiwork?

I rejoice in meditating,

on You, Lord;

I am content in knowing,

I will never fully understand,

Your ways.

When I consider the mysteries of the universe,

I am deeply glad,

that You are God,

and I am just me.

O, the sweet satisfaction,

the everlasting contentment of my soul,

in complete submission to You, Lord.

Amen.

A Lifetime

Daniel 3:16-18 - Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to him, “King Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand. But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.”

Power and truth,

are found in the fire.

Humility and grace,

come from the flames.

O Lord,

test me, test me,

but do not let me fall!

Deepen my need,

increase my longing,

that I may never depart from You.

Let me see Your judgment,

yet cling to Your grace;

for in this,

I am free.

Why would I live,

with comfort and ease -

why would it matter?

Rather,

let me cherish suffering,

praising You in the pain;

for it brings me closer to You.

A lifetime of suffering,

is worth an eternity of worship;

let my soul take hold of the truth.

Amen.