II Samuel 24: 24
But King David replied to Araunah,"No, I insist on paying you for it. I will not sacrifice to the Lord my God burnt offerings that cost me nothing." So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen and paid fifty shekels of silver for them.
The Lord had spoken to David to build an altar on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite (v. 18). This is the same piece of property where the Temple of Solomon was built, the Temple Mount. This is significant.
What I noticed here, though, is that David would not sacrifice to the Lord what had not cost him anything. Is it really a sacrifice if I'm not giving up something that has worth to me? Is God worth my very best? What has cost me much?
In my selfishness I tend to want to keep what I have for myself. But if I grasp ahold of my life, it will squeeze through my fingers and I will lose it. But if I hold the things of my life with an open hand, even if it should fly away, then my hand will be ready to receive even more than what I had before. Do I trust God that much? Do I really believe that He loves me that much?
O my Father, help me to learn the lessons of this "school" of life You have given me on this Earth, in this World. Show me what You are doing for me and to me so that I will respond in deeper faith and greater trust in You. Even when things are not going as I wanted them to go, I know that You are sovereign, and are working in the hearts and wills of all who are here and interacting with one another, to further Your Plan, in Your way, in Your time.
Continue to mold me and make me into the very image of Your dear Son, my Lord Jesus. Let me feel Your Presence with me, and enjoy the intimacy with which You deal with me so gently. May Your joy be my strength through trials, and keep me firmly in Your hand.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Saturday, March 3, 2018
Friday, March 2, 2018
A Broken Heart
Psalm 51
Vs. 3-4 For I know my transgressions and my sin is ever before me. Against Thee, Thee only, have I sinned, and done what is evil in Thy sight. So that Thou art justified when Thou dost speak, and blameless when Thou dost judge.
V. 10 Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
V. 13 Then I will teach transgressors Thy ways, and sinners will be converted to Thee.
David has responded to Nathan's confrontation with a broken heart.
V. 17 The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, Thou wilt not despise.
David came to his senses and realized the great evil he had done in committing adultery with Bathsheba, knowing she was Uriah's wife; then murdered her husband to save his own reputation.
David had no business even being in Jerusalem at that time "when kings go to war," but merely sent his armies. And he had no business walking on his roof, which was supposed to be a safe place for a woman to bathe, above the eyes of everyone else.
He was blinded by his lust for this beautiful woman, and ignored the morality of what he was doing, until Nathan took his life in his hands and woke him up. David could have responded in anger, but decided to face what he had done and confess to God.
David saw what had happened to Saul when he refused to humble himself before the Lord, going down that slippery slope away from God.
O my Father, strengthen me to always humble myself before You, to always respond with acknowledging my wrong-doings and confessing them. Then You will give me Your forgiveness, and teach me to forgive myself, creating a clean heart in me; and permitting me to testify to others, showing them Who You are. Then You will draw them to Yourself, also, through my story.
Father, allow me always to be bold in sharing my testimony of Your great mercy and grace, Your perfect Love for all You have made. Use me to further Your plan to have every person in every Nation and every tribe and every family and every language on this Earth, to hear and understand that You are Lord of all, and have already provided such great salvation for each one of them. You are not willing that any would perish, but that all would come to repentance and faith in the only One Who can redeem them from sin.
Send me, Father, to open my mouth with Your words to share with others everywhere how much You love them. Use me, Lord, to draw those You have chosen to Yourself.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Vs. 3-4 For I know my transgressions and my sin is ever before me. Against Thee, Thee only, have I sinned, and done what is evil in Thy sight. So that Thou art justified when Thou dost speak, and blameless when Thou dost judge.
V. 10 Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
V. 13 Then I will teach transgressors Thy ways, and sinners will be converted to Thee.
David has responded to Nathan's confrontation with a broken heart.
V. 17 The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, Thou wilt not despise.
David came to his senses and realized the great evil he had done in committing adultery with Bathsheba, knowing she was Uriah's wife; then murdered her husband to save his own reputation.
David had no business even being in Jerusalem at that time "when kings go to war," but merely sent his armies. And he had no business walking on his roof, which was supposed to be a safe place for a woman to bathe, above the eyes of everyone else.
He was blinded by his lust for this beautiful woman, and ignored the morality of what he was doing, until Nathan took his life in his hands and woke him up. David could have responded in anger, but decided to face what he had done and confess to God.
David saw what had happened to Saul when he refused to humble himself before the Lord, going down that slippery slope away from God.
O my Father, strengthen me to always humble myself before You, to always respond with acknowledging my wrong-doings and confessing them. Then You will give me Your forgiveness, and teach me to forgive myself, creating a clean heart in me; and permitting me to testify to others, showing them Who You are. Then You will draw them to Yourself, also, through my story.
Father, allow me always to be bold in sharing my testimony of Your great mercy and grace, Your perfect Love for all You have made. Use me to further Your plan to have every person in every Nation and every tribe and every family and every language on this Earth, to hear and understand that You are Lord of all, and have already provided such great salvation for each one of them. You are not willing that any would perish, but that all would come to repentance and faith in the only One Who can redeem them from sin.
Send me, Father, to open my mouth with Your words to share with others everywhere how much You love them. Use me, Lord, to draw those You have chosen to Yourself.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Thursday, March 1, 2018
The Lord Is My Shepherd
Psalm 23: 1-3
A Psalm of David
The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want.
He makes me to lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside quiet waters.
He restores my soul;
He guides me in the paths of righteousness
For His Name's sake.
This is perhaps the most beloved Psalm.
David likened himself to a sheep. He had been his father's shepherd, before he became king over all Israel. He knew what sheep are like.
Sheep need a shepherd to guide them, or they will go off in the wrong direction, into danger, and all the other sheep will follow. Just like us.
The sheep do not know how to find sustenance or shelter for themselves. They are completely helpless without a shepherd (green pastures).
They will not approach a moving river or stream, because their wool will absorb the water, drawing them into the depths to their death. So the shepherd brings them to the quiet pool he has made from the stream.
The shepherd is totally responsible for the well-being of each sheep in the flock, calls them all by name, and protects them from all predators.
So the shepherd is the one who benefits from all his work keeping the flock.
David considered the Lord to be his Shepherd, Who provides everything he needs, not himself. God is the One Who is the Source for everything we need, and His hand gives all the Earth its bounty. When we change our attitudes to be dependent on God instead of ourselves, He will show Himself to be generous in His giving out His bounteous provisions. It is He Who gives each of us our talents, and our abilities, and our being able to have prosperity in every way.
We can depend on Him and acknowledge His provision and give Him credit for everything we have been able to do, or we can exalt ourselves as though we did anything of ourselves: then He will give us the results of our choices, whether good or bad; whether we cooperate with Him and enjoy His bounty, or take His glory for ourselves and suffer loss. It's our choice.
O my Father, strengthen me with Your Spirit, to cover my weaknesses of wanting to bypass Your good road for any "shortcut" I may think I see. Help me to run from every temptation to take any credit for myself, and to face the enemy with Your armor and Your Word to dispel him.
I am Your sheep, Your little lamb, and You are my Good Shepherd, Who calls me by name and cares for me, meeting my every need and protecting me from all dangers that are designed for my destruction.
Thank You, Father, for Your care, Your provisions, and Your protection. Thank You for teaching me and training me and molding me into the very image of Your dear Son, my Lord Jesus. Please continue to draw me ever closer to You, making me into one who can withstand the power and volume of Your great Glory, to live with You forever and give You all the praise and glory ever more.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
A Psalm of David
The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want.
He makes me to lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside quiet waters.
He restores my soul;
He guides me in the paths of righteousness
For His Name's sake.
This is perhaps the most beloved Psalm.
David likened himself to a sheep. He had been his father's shepherd, before he became king over all Israel. He knew what sheep are like.
Sheep need a shepherd to guide them, or they will go off in the wrong direction, into danger, and all the other sheep will follow. Just like us.
The sheep do not know how to find sustenance or shelter for themselves. They are completely helpless without a shepherd (green pastures).
They will not approach a moving river or stream, because their wool will absorb the water, drawing them into the depths to their death. So the shepherd brings them to the quiet pool he has made from the stream.
The shepherd is totally responsible for the well-being of each sheep in the flock, calls them all by name, and protects them from all predators.
So the shepherd is the one who benefits from all his work keeping the flock.
David considered the Lord to be his Shepherd, Who provides everything he needs, not himself. God is the One Who is the Source for everything we need, and His hand gives all the Earth its bounty. When we change our attitudes to be dependent on God instead of ourselves, He will show Himself to be generous in His giving out His bounteous provisions. It is He Who gives each of us our talents, and our abilities, and our being able to have prosperity in every way.
We can depend on Him and acknowledge His provision and give Him credit for everything we have been able to do, or we can exalt ourselves as though we did anything of ourselves: then He will give us the results of our choices, whether good or bad; whether we cooperate with Him and enjoy His bounty, or take His glory for ourselves and suffer loss. It's our choice.
O my Father, strengthen me with Your Spirit, to cover my weaknesses of wanting to bypass Your good road for any "shortcut" I may think I see. Help me to run from every temptation to take any credit for myself, and to face the enemy with Your armor and Your Word to dispel him.
I am Your sheep, Your little lamb, and You are my Good Shepherd, Who calls me by name and cares for me, meeting my every need and protecting me from all dangers that are designed for my destruction.
Thank You, Father, for Your care, Your provisions, and Your protection. Thank You for teaching me and training me and molding me into the very image of Your dear Son, my Lord Jesus. Please continue to draw me ever closer to You, making me into one who can withstand the power and volume of Your great Glory, to live with You forever and give You all the praise and glory ever more.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Wednesday, February 28, 2018
The Joy Of Your Salvation
Psalm 51: 10-13
Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
Do not cast me away from Your presence
And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of Your Salvation,
And sustain me with a willing spirit.
And the result will be:
Then I will (be qualified to) teach transgressors Your ways,
And sinners will be converted to You.
This is the song David wrote, When Nathan the Prophet came to him after he had gone in to Bathsheba (Psalm 51: Title).
David had seen God take His presence and His Spirit away from King Saul, who had such a good beginning. But Saul didn't continue to trust God, and ended up with a demon spirit, driving him insane.
David instead humbled himself before God, confessed his sin, and sought God's forgiveness and favor.
And the result of this was that David would be able to testify of God's great mercy and grace to others who also need His forgiveness.
This is the attitude we all should have, who have experienced God's forgiveness. We also need to testify of God's amazing love and grace, which He offers to every member of this race we call Mankind.
Dear Father, thank you for all You have planned, all You have accomplished so far, and for all you will complete of Your purposes for everything You have created. You do nothing without purpose, and Your purpose for us is to know You. You have revealed Yourself to us in so many ways: In Your Word, in Your Living Word Jesus, in the natural world You placed on this Earth, in the heavenly array of the cosmos around us, and, not least, in our human spirits where You have placed Your own Holy Spirit.
O Father, please continue to draw me ever closer to You, ever searching Your Word and Your Words in all You have made. Help me to want You more than just Your gifts. Help me to want Your Son more than the Salvation He provides. Help me to want Your Spirit more than the knowledge He teaches me.
You have been so good to me, Father, so merciful and gracious. You sent Your Son to be with us as one of us, and He prayed that we could be with Him where He is (John 17:24). So You provided for Him to be sin in our place, so that we could be Your righteousness in His place, on His Throne with Him (II Corinthians 5:21). This is incredible!
I know that You are God, there is no other. You do the impossible that we cannot. You do everything You have decided to do, all Your will. And You will accomplish everything You have planned, to fulfill all the purposes for which You made everything.
Help me, Father, to testify to others of how good and gracious and merciful You are; to show them how You have already met all their needs, as You have mine, and You want them to also know You in the way that You will show Yourself to each and every one that You call to Yourself.
You have chosen to glorify Yourself in us, and I am Your bondslave; sustain me with Your willing Spirit to obey You, doing Your will for me, to promote Your Kingdom and Your rule over all.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
Do not cast me away from Your presence
And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of Your Salvation,
And sustain me with a willing spirit.
And the result will be:
Then I will (be qualified to) teach transgressors Your ways,
And sinners will be converted to You.
This is the song David wrote, When Nathan the Prophet came to him after he had gone in to Bathsheba (Psalm 51: Title).
David had seen God take His presence and His Spirit away from King Saul, who had such a good beginning. But Saul didn't continue to trust God, and ended up with a demon spirit, driving him insane.
David instead humbled himself before God, confessed his sin, and sought God's forgiveness and favor.
And the result of this was that David would be able to testify of God's great mercy and grace to others who also need His forgiveness.
This is the attitude we all should have, who have experienced God's forgiveness. We also need to testify of God's amazing love and grace, which He offers to every member of this race we call Mankind.
Dear Father, thank you for all You have planned, all You have accomplished so far, and for all you will complete of Your purposes for everything You have created. You do nothing without purpose, and Your purpose for us is to know You. You have revealed Yourself to us in so many ways: In Your Word, in Your Living Word Jesus, in the natural world You placed on this Earth, in the heavenly array of the cosmos around us, and, not least, in our human spirits where You have placed Your own Holy Spirit.
O Father, please continue to draw me ever closer to You, ever searching Your Word and Your Words in all You have made. Help me to want You more than just Your gifts. Help me to want Your Son more than the Salvation He provides. Help me to want Your Spirit more than the knowledge He teaches me.
You have been so good to me, Father, so merciful and gracious. You sent Your Son to be with us as one of us, and He prayed that we could be with Him where He is (John 17:24). So You provided for Him to be sin in our place, so that we could be Your righteousness in His place, on His Throne with Him (II Corinthians 5:21). This is incredible!
I know that You are God, there is no other. You do the impossible that we cannot. You do everything You have decided to do, all Your will. And You will accomplish everything You have planned, to fulfill all the purposes for which You made everything.
Help me, Father, to testify to others of how good and gracious and merciful You are; to show them how You have already met all their needs, as You have mine, and You want them to also know You in the way that You will show Yourself to each and every one that You call to Yourself.
You have chosen to glorify Yourself in us, and I am Your bondslave; sustain me with Your willing Spirit to obey You, doing Your will for me, to promote Your Kingdom and Your rule over all.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Tuesday, February 27, 2018
David's Sin
II Samuel 11 and 12
Chapter 11 records David's sin.
Chapter 12 tells us of Nathan's confrontation of David and David's response.
12: 13 says, Then David said to Nathan, "I have sinned against the Lord." And Nathan said to David, "The Lord also has taken away your sin; you shall not die."
When David came to his senses, he immediately confessed his sin, and Nathan let him know that he was immediately forgiven. But he still had to face the consequences of his actions:
Because "you struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword and took his wife to be your own. You killed him with the sword of the Ammonites. Now therefore the sword will never depart from your house, because you despised Me and took the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your own" (12: 9-10)--he always had serious trouble in his own dysfunctional family;
And, Out of your own household I am going to bring calamity upon you. Before your very eyes I will take your wives and give them to one who is close to you, and he will lie with your wives in broad daylight. You did it in secret, but I will do this thing in broad daylight before all Israel (12: 11-12)--His own beloved son Absalom would challenge his throne and humiliate him with his wives (16:21-22);
And, Because by doing this you have made the enemies of the Lord show utter contempt, the son born to you will die (12: 14)--he had to forfeit the child conceived in adultery.
God's plan was to have David's immediate heir to his throne be born of Bathsheba: her son Solomon, who God called Jedidiah, "loved by the Lord" (12:25).
God uses even our foolish, poor, sinful choices to further His Program, then, like David, we need to suffer through negative consequences. How much better, though, to wait on God for His way, and reap positive results from good, godly choices, and enjoy His benefits while giving Him the glory.
O my Father, You are so good! You are so generous with us! If we only will come to You, learn Your ways, and live our lives according to Your will for us; then You will give us all the bounty of this Earth, harmony in our family life, peace in our hearts and in our Nations.
But even when we rebel against You and despise Your rules thinking we know better or can hide from You, then we will have to suffer through the painful consequences of our decisions--but Your Plan will continue to unfold, regardless of our choices. So it's our prerogative to decide how we will live our lives.
Please help me to always and continually seek Your face, Your ways, Your good will for me, to bless me with prosperity in every way, and You will receive the credit, all the glory, for what You are doing in my life and in this World.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Chapter 11 records David's sin.
Chapter 12 tells us of Nathan's confrontation of David and David's response.
12: 13 says, Then David said to Nathan, "I have sinned against the Lord." And Nathan said to David, "The Lord also has taken away your sin; you shall not die."
When David came to his senses, he immediately confessed his sin, and Nathan let him know that he was immediately forgiven. But he still had to face the consequences of his actions:
Because "you struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword and took his wife to be your own. You killed him with the sword of the Ammonites. Now therefore the sword will never depart from your house, because you despised Me and took the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your own" (12: 9-10)--he always had serious trouble in his own dysfunctional family;
And, Out of your own household I am going to bring calamity upon you. Before your very eyes I will take your wives and give them to one who is close to you, and he will lie with your wives in broad daylight. You did it in secret, but I will do this thing in broad daylight before all Israel (12: 11-12)--His own beloved son Absalom would challenge his throne and humiliate him with his wives (16:21-22);
And, Because by doing this you have made the enemies of the Lord show utter contempt, the son born to you will die (12: 14)--he had to forfeit the child conceived in adultery.
God's plan was to have David's immediate heir to his throne be born of Bathsheba: her son Solomon, who God called Jedidiah, "loved by the Lord" (12:25).
God uses even our foolish, poor, sinful choices to further His Program, then, like David, we need to suffer through negative consequences. How much better, though, to wait on God for His way, and reap positive results from good, godly choices, and enjoy His benefits while giving Him the glory.
O my Father, You are so good! You are so generous with us! If we only will come to You, learn Your ways, and live our lives according to Your will for us; then You will give us all the bounty of this Earth, harmony in our family life, peace in our hearts and in our Nations.
But even when we rebel against You and despise Your rules thinking we know better or can hide from You, then we will have to suffer through the painful consequences of our decisions--but Your Plan will continue to unfold, regardless of our choices. So it's our prerogative to decide how we will live our lives.
Please help me to always and continually seek Your face, Your ways, Your good will for me, to bless me with prosperity in every way, and You will receive the credit, all the glory, for what You are doing in my life and in this World.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Monday, February 26, 2018
God's Kindness
Psalm 18: 35c
... And Thy gentleness makes me great.
This is a long Psalm, commemorating that God had given him victory over all his enemies and established his position as king over all Israel. All the mighty and violent battles and all the dangers he experienced; all the hard and sharp things of the battles; yet he claims that God's gentleness is what has made him strong. Not His might and strength and vengeance.
I think that David perceived God's dealings with him personally as very gentle and kind. As I have.
No matter how hard the times are, how prickly the issues, how sharp and piercing the pain; God's rescues reveal His gentleness in His strength, and His kindness in His vengeance.
David wanted to show God's kindness to himself by extending kindness to the grandson of his enemy:
II Samuel 9
This chapter records David's kindness to Mephibosheth, Jonathan's son and Saul's grandson, who was lame in both feet. And Ziba, Saul's servant, became Mephibosheth's servant, along with his 15 sons and his own 20 servants, working Mephibosheth's land that had been Saul's.
And Mephibosheth eats at King David's table with David's own sons regularly.
I am also "lame in both feet," so to say, and I will also sit at my King's table regularly in His Kingdom.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
... And Thy gentleness makes me great.
This is a long Psalm, commemorating that God had given him victory over all his enemies and established his position as king over all Israel. All the mighty and violent battles and all the dangers he experienced; all the hard and sharp things of the battles; yet he claims that God's gentleness is what has made him strong. Not His might and strength and vengeance.
I think that David perceived God's dealings with him personally as very gentle and kind. As I have.
No matter how hard the times are, how prickly the issues, how sharp and piercing the pain; God's rescues reveal His gentleness in His strength, and His kindness in His vengeance.
David wanted to show God's kindness to himself by extending kindness to the grandson of his enemy:
II Samuel 9
This chapter records David's kindness to Mephibosheth, Jonathan's son and Saul's grandson, who was lame in both feet. And Ziba, Saul's servant, became Mephibosheth's servant, along with his 15 sons and his own 20 servants, working Mephibosheth's land that had been Saul's.
And Mephibosheth eats at King David's table with David's own sons regularly.
I am also "lame in both feet," so to say, and I will also sit at my King's table regularly in His Kingdom.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Sunday, February 25, 2018
God's Plans
II Samuel 7: 2, 11, 16
The king said to Nathan the Prophet, "See now, I dwell in a house of cedar, but the Ark of God dwells within tent curtains."
... The Lord declares to you that the Lord will make a house for you.
And your house and your kingdom shall endure before Me forever; your throne shall be established forever.
David wanted to build a house for the Lord to dwell in, a Temple, instead of the tent of the Tabernacle that was carried through the desert for 40 years.
God was pleased that David had concern for the Lord's dwelling place, that he considered that the Lord's house should be grander than his own.
But God told him that He would build a house for him, a dynasty that will last forever. And that his son would build the Temple.
His son Solomon did build the Temple, a magnificent edifice. And David's dynasty had an interruption, but God kept track of it, so that Jesus was born with the genetic and legal right to rule; and He will rule as King forever.
O my Father, thank You so much for Your faithfulness to Your Word! You know what You have planned for this World of people on this Earth, and since You see the end from the beginning, You are able to confidently tell us what You will accomplish, before it comes to pass. You will see to it that it works out just as You have planned.
You have Your Grand Plan of the Universe, and You have also planned out each of our lives, as parts of that Grand Plan. Your Plans are our future, but You see them as our past, already accomplished.
O Father, I am still waiting to see how You will work out my life from this point on. I thought I could see what is coming, a part of it, but even that keeps getting postponed. And I am still stuck here.
Please help me to not be discouraged, but grow my patience as I learn to depend harder on You. I know You love me more than I can imagine, and what You have for me is better than I could want, or even think of.
Help me to think Your thoughts, Father, not my thoughts, so that my ways will conform to Your ways. Give me Your attitudes on all the controversial issues of this day, so that I can work for the benefit of Your Kingdom, not my own little world. Enlarge my boundaries so that I will see with Your eyes and my influence for Your ways will extend to the uttermost part of the Earth.
Then send me, Father, to those far corners to give credence to what I write, to rejoice with those who You have called to Yourself through my meager efforts, anointed with the oil of Your Spirit.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
The king said to Nathan the Prophet, "See now, I dwell in a house of cedar, but the Ark of God dwells within tent curtains."
... The Lord declares to you that the Lord will make a house for you.
And your house and your kingdom shall endure before Me forever; your throne shall be established forever.
David wanted to build a house for the Lord to dwell in, a Temple, instead of the tent of the Tabernacle that was carried through the desert for 40 years.
God was pleased that David had concern for the Lord's dwelling place, that he considered that the Lord's house should be grander than his own.
But God told him that He would build a house for him, a dynasty that will last forever. And that his son would build the Temple.
His son Solomon did build the Temple, a magnificent edifice. And David's dynasty had an interruption, but God kept track of it, so that Jesus was born with the genetic and legal right to rule; and He will rule as King forever.
O my Father, thank You so much for Your faithfulness to Your Word! You know what You have planned for this World of people on this Earth, and since You see the end from the beginning, You are able to confidently tell us what You will accomplish, before it comes to pass. You will see to it that it works out just as You have planned.
You have Your Grand Plan of the Universe, and You have also planned out each of our lives, as parts of that Grand Plan. Your Plans are our future, but You see them as our past, already accomplished.
O Father, I am still waiting to see how You will work out my life from this point on. I thought I could see what is coming, a part of it, but even that keeps getting postponed. And I am still stuck here.
Please help me to not be discouraged, but grow my patience as I learn to depend harder on You. I know You love me more than I can imagine, and what You have for me is better than I could want, or even think of.
Help me to think Your thoughts, Father, not my thoughts, so that my ways will conform to Your ways. Give me Your attitudes on all the controversial issues of this day, so that I can work for the benefit of Your Kingdom, not my own little world. Enlarge my boundaries so that I will see with Your eyes and my influence for Your ways will extend to the uttermost part of the Earth.
Then send me, Father, to those far corners to give credence to what I write, to rejoice with those who You have called to Yourself through my meager efforts, anointed with the oil of Your Spirit.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
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