Month: August 2019

God Desires Tender & Humble Heart

While Saul is still on the throne,
Samuel anoints David as Israel’s
next king. Young David then bravely
conquers Goliath, the Philistine
champion, and establishes a
lifelong friendship with Jonathan,
Saul’s son. When Saul realises that
David will become king one day,
he grows very jealous and tries
to kill David on several occasions.

Lord, we learn from Saul the danger
to take matters into our own hands.
Help us not allow self-importance;
but be on guard against pride.
Help us learn from David to have
a Tender heart seeking after you.
Help us have the right perspective
in difficult situations by focusing
on Your Faithfulness & recalling how
You’ve helped us in the past. Amen.

Lord, we aspire Tender Heart:
But the Lord said to Samuel:
The Lord does not look at the
things man look at. Man looks
at the outward appearance,
but the Lord looks at the heart…
Then Samuel took the horn of
oil and anointed him in the midst
of his brothers; and the Spirit of
the Lord came upon David from
that day forward (1 Sam 16:7, 13).
Lord, I am grateful that You do
not judge me the way people do.
You look on my heart to see thots,
attitudes and love for You, and not
how successful or attractive I am.
Show anything in my heart that
should not be there and l’ll confess.
Remove all sinful desires Lord and
fill my heart with your love. Amen.

Lord, we Trust Your Faithfulness:
The Lord who delivered me from
the paw of the lion… He will deliver
me from the hand of the Philistine.
Then David said to the Philistine:
You come to me with a sword,
a spear and a javelin. But I come
to you in the name of… the God
of the armies of Israel who you
have defiled. This day the Lord will
deliver you into my hand… that all
the earth may know that there is
a God in Israel (1 Sam 17:37-46).
Lord, when faced with difficulties,
help us have the right perspective
by looking from your point of view.
And help us have the courage and
faith in You by recalling how You
have helped us in the past. Amen.

Lord, we aspire to remain Humble:
When the victorious Israelite army
was returning home after David had
killed Goliath; women came out from
all the towns to celebrate & to cheer
for King Saul… This was their song:
Saul has killed his thousands, and
David his ten thousands! This made
Saul very angry…He said. They credit
David with ten thousands and me
with only thousands. Next they’ll
be making him their king! So from
that time on Saul kept a jealous
eye on David (1 Sam 18:6-9).
Lord, we note Saul’s popularity
had made him proud and arrogant.
Help us not to allow popularity
to twist our perception of our
own importance. Help us to be
on guard when on centre stage
due to temptation of pride. Amen.

God Strengthens & Directs You

Isaiah’s prophecies begin to focus
on the approach of the Assyrians.
Ephraim (northern kingdom) reels
like a drunkard, oblivious to the
danger & falsely confident in Egypt
to deliver her in time of trouble.
Ariel (Jerusalem, symbol of the
southern kingdom) stands next
in line for judgment if her citizens
follow Ephraim’s sorry example by
relying upon Egypt for protection.

Lord, You Strengthen & Direct Us:
This is what the Sovereign Lord
says: In repentance & rest is your
salvation, in quietness and Trust
is your Strength (Isa 30:15).
The Lord longs to be gracious to
you; therefore He will rise up to
show you compassion. Blessed
are all Who Wait for Him (v18).
Whether you turn to the right
or to the left, your ears will
hear a voice behind you saying:
This is the Way, Walk in it (v21).

Lord, forgive me for trusting
in anyone or anything but You.
Give me wisdom to see a satisfying life is possible only when I look to U.
Sensitive my spirit to Your voice; for
I have set my heart to listen to You.
And I set aside my anxieties, plans
and impatience to hear from You.
So in my quietness, be my Strength.
Deliver me from trouble; and grant
me Strength to Trust You. Amen.

Lord, thanks for being true & faithful
and that You are Waiting to show me
love and compassion. Forgive me
for looking elsewhere for help; and
acting as though I am in charge.
You reward those who seek You;
and I need and want to turn to You.
Give me the resolve, the courage
and the tenacity to Wait for You.
And Strengthen my faith to see
Your faithfulness in my life. Amen.

Lord, Your Will is a place of safety
for me and I need to know I am
headed in the right direction.
So speak to me about Your Will
so that I can aspire to walk in it.
Help me hear Your voice speaking
to my heart telling me what to do,
especially with regards to the decision I need to make each day.
In Jesus’ precious name. Amen.

God Is Merciful & Reliable !!

Isaiah’s prophecies begin to focus
on the ominous approach of the
Assyrian armies. Ephraim (northern
kingdom) reels like a drunkard,
oblivious to the danger and falsely
confident in the armies of Egypt
to deliver her in time of trouble.
Ariel (Jerusalem, symbol of the
southern kingdom) stands next
in line for judgment if her citizens
follow Ephraim’s sorry example by
relying upon Egypt for protection.

Lord, You are Reliable & Merciful:
So this is what the Sovereign Lord
says: See, I lay a stone in Zion,
a tested stone, a precious corner-
stone for a Sure Foundation; the
one Who Relies on it will never
be stricken with panic (Isa 28:6).
When a farmer plows for planting,
does he plow continually? Does
he Keep On Breaking up & working
the soil? When he has levelled the
surface, does he not Sow (v24-25)

Lord, Your Word says we don’t
have to panic because we have
You as our Sure Foundation. But
there’s times when we are at the
end of resources & fear beckons.
Being in impossible situations,
we will desperately need Your help.
Instead of trying to solve dilemmas
myself, I ask You to help me. Grant
me Your favour and favor of men
and show me the way to go. Amen

Lord, we recognise from scripture
that plowing illustrate God’s work
in our lives to prepare us produce
a harvest. The season of plowing
to break up the going is messy
and can be painful. You are a Good
God and You won’t plow the ground
where you are not going to plant.
So I surrender to Your work in my life
as You plow the ground of my heart.
For I know the plowing will not go on
forever & harvest will come. Amen.

Lord, we are Your children
Chosen and called by Your name
With one heart & mind we gather
To glorify You and proclaim that
You Lord are our Sure Foundation
We will not be afraid
When the storm comes
we will not be shaken
For by your hand we are saved.
O by your hand we’re saved. Amen