This week we learn the importance
of Seeking God, Fully Trusting and Waiting on Him to position ourselves
in order to encounter His presence.
On Monday, we learn from Psalm 1
to Meditate on the Word of God.
On Tues, we learn from Psalm 18
to Place our full Trust in the Lord.
On Wed, we learn from Psalm 27
to Come to the Lord & Wait on Him.
On Thurs, we learn from Psalm 34
to Seek the Lord for Deliverance.
On Friday, we learn from Psalm 37
to Delight and Trust in the Lord.
Let us humble ourselves and pray
and seek His face…In Jesus’ name.
Psalms is not only a book of praise;
it is also a book of practical counsel.
And in the last 5 chapters of Book 1
written by David, you will learn
how to deal with fretfulness (Ps 37)
and failing strength (Ps 38-39);
as well as how to rest in
God’s faithfulness (Ps 40)
and how to rightly respond to
a friend’s unfaithfulness (Ps 41).
Lord, we’ll Delight & Trust in You:
Trust in the Lord… do good;
and feed on His faithfulness.
DELIGHT yourself also in the Lord,
and He Shall Give you the desires
of your heart. COMMIT your way
to the Lord, TRUST also in Him,
and He shall bring it to pass.
Rest in the Lord and wait patiently
for Him… Do not fret, it only
causes harm… But those who
Wait on the Lord, they shall inherit
the earth (Ps 37:3-9). Amen.
Lord, help me to Delight in You;
to centre my heart in knowing You
more and loving You more each day.
Grant me grace so that my heart
Desires You above everything else.
Help me to discover that there is
fullness of joy in Your presence.
Stir up holy passion within me so
that the things I want most are the
things You want to give me. Amen.
All Knowing and Loving Lord,
help me Commit my way to You.
Give me wisdom to sort the
precious from the worthless.
Give me the knowledge of You
that causes me to cling to You.
Fashion my heart so that it
reflects Yours more each day.
Mold me into Your likeness so that
U are the desire of my heart. Amen.
Lord, You promise in Your Word
to help us if we will Trust You.
It just goes against our old sinful nature to wait on Your leading and
to rely solely on Your strength.
There is this human tendency
to get busy in our own strength,
make it happen and push ahead.
Lord, change me to Trust You more,
be willing to Be Still in the soul to
listen to You & Wait on You. Amen.
Psalms 31-36 show how Proper
Perspective can help you face
any circumstance. It can bring
you from gloom to glory (P31);
from failure to deliverance (P32);
fr false security to secured trust(33
from Affliction to Adoration (34);
from persecution to praise (35);
and from darkness to light (36).
Lord, You Deliver When We Seek:
I Sought the Lord & He heard me
& Delivered me from all my fears.
They looked to Him and were
Radiant, and their faces were not
ashamed…The angels of the Lord
encamps all around those who
fear Him, and delivers them.
Oh, taste and see that the Lord
is good, Blessed is the man
who Trusts in Him… Fear the Lord…
Those who Seek the Lord shall not
lack any good thing (Psa 34:4-10).
The eyes of the Lord are on the
righteous and His ears are open to
their cry… The righteous cry out,
and the Lord Hears and Delivers
them out of their troubles (v15-17).
Lord, we give You all our anxieties over finances, work, health or relationships & look to You for help.
Do a deep work in my heart on
those things that strike fear in me.
I lay these burdens and worries before You Lord and ask You
to exchange my fear for faith.
Thank You Lord for Your promise
to answer me when I call on You,
to free me from fear & shame and
to make me radiant with joy. Amen.
Lord, help us to look to You and
to fully Trust In You each day.
There is great joy to be found
in living with Eyes Fixed on You.
Help me to do that so that my
life will be radiant with Your joy.
May others be drawn to You Lord
because of the joy You have put
in my heart. O Jesus, more of
the joys of Trusting In You. Amen.
Lord, it’s such a comfort to know
that Your eyes watch over me and
that Your ears hear my cries for help.
Thank You Lord for hearing my cries,
for rescuing me when I am crushed
in spirit. You Lord are close to
the broken-hearted and to those
who are in dire straits. Praise You
for the hope and courage Your
promises give me when I am facing
with difficult circumstances. Amen.
As David penned psalms 25-30,
he thought of the multifaceted
character of the God he served.
The Lord is good & upright (25:8),
my light (27:1), my strength (28:7),
King forever (29:10) and my God
(30:2). And incidentally Psa 25 is
the first alphabetic psalm, which
enables David remembers content.
Lord, we Come to You & Wait on U:
The Lord is my light & my salvation
so why should I be afraid? The
Lord protects me from danger, so
why should I tremble? (Psa 27:1).
My heart has heard You say: COME
and talk with me. And my heart
responds: Lord I Am Coming (v8).
I would have lost heart, unless
I had believed that I would see
the Goodness of the Lord… Wait
on the Lord; Be of good courage,
And He shall strengthen your heart.
Wait I say on the Lord(13-14) Amen
Lord, help me to see the truth in
Your Word. You are our light and
salvation. You are my protector
from danger and from evil. Indeed
the Lord is the strength of my life,
of whom shall I be afraid? Father,
help me draw close to You and to
rest in the confidence I have in You.
Help me to defeat fear in my life
even as I put my Trust In You. Amen
Lord, give me such a desire for
You that I will run to You right
away when You say “COME”.
Help me to be willing to lay aside
my “to-do” lists and quickly Come
to Your presence and talk with You.
Tune my ears to Your voice Lord
and make my heart sensitive to
Your nudgings to Come to You.
In Jesus’ precious name, Amen.
Lord, I listen with an attitude Your
Goodness will show up in my life.
For Your Goodness is not a theory
but it’s real. I am grateful for that
and fully expect to see more of it.
But Waiting and holding on to faith
in situations that dictate against
it requires fortitude and boldness.
So Lord give me patience & courage
to hear You amidst struggles and
pauses in our dialogues. Amen.
Backgrounder on Psalms 13-18:
In sharp contrast to the fate of the
fool who denies God’s existence(14)
many blessings accrue to those
who serve God wholeheartedly:
joy (Ps13), fellowship with God (15)
satisfaction (16), preservation (17)
& confidence in facing future (Ps18)
Psalm 18 was written by David
on the day that the Lord delivered
him from the hand of his enemies &
from the hand of Saul(2Sam 22:1-4)
Lord, we place our Trust In You:
I will love You O Lord my strength.
The Lord is my rock and my
fortress and my Deliverer; My God
my strength In Who I Will Trust.
My shield and the strength of
my salvation, my stronghold.
I will call upon the Lord, who is
worthy to be praised; for He saves
me from my enemies (Ps 18:1-3)
In my distress I called upon the
Lord, and cried out to my God;
He heard my voice (Ps 18:6).
You armed me with strength for
battle; You made my adversaries
bow at my feet (Psalm 18:39).
Blessed be my Rock! Let the God
of my salvation be exalted (v46).
Lord, be my rock and source
of security when I am beset by
difficulties in an uncertain world.
In You I find protection; and You are my stronghold & I need nothing else.
Be my strength when I am weak.
Be my shield of protection from
those who seek to harm me.
Be the strength of my salvation
when I call upon You; and I will ever praise You for You are worthy. Amen.
Lord, reassuring that You are a God
that hears and answers prayers.
Thank You that You act on behalf
of those who seek You for help.
Be my strength when I am weak &
make me steady when I am unsure.
And I bless You and praise You
at all times for You are faithful and
a very present help in time of need.
In Jesus’ precious name, Amen.
Lord, I am grateful that You have
armed me with the strength I need
for the battle ahead. Help me to
withstand and prevail my enemies.
Teach me to persevere in prayer
and not let down Nor give up.
Enable me to pray through each
situation until I see breakthrough.
Thank You that You are always
with me and working things out
in my favour. In Jesus name, Amen.
The psalms written mostly by
David, over a period of 6 centuries
and used as the temple hymnbook,
capture the essence of what it
means to walk daily with God.
The first six psalms form a fitting
introduction to the entire Psalter.
In them you learn the importance
of meditating on God’s Word (Ps 1),
acknowledging the Lord as King (P2)
and constantly being devoted to
prayer in good times & bad (P3-6).
Lord, we’ll Delight in Your Word:
Blessed is the man who walks
not in the counsel of the ungodly,
nor stands in the path of sinners,
nor sits in the seat of the scornful.
But his delight is in the law
of the Lord, and in His law
he meditates day and night.
He shall be like a tree planted by
the rivers of water, that brings forth
its Fruit in its season, whose leaf
also shall not wither; and whatever
he does shall prosper (Psa 1:1-3).
Lord, I want to have this kind of
blessed life & this kind of happiness.
So I pray that You Lord will cause
me to recognise the wicked and
refuse to follow their leading.
I pray that I will refuse to join in
with those who mock what is
precious to You. And I pray that
the Scriptures will increasingly become the controlling influence
in my life. In Jesus’ mighty name.
Father God, more than anything,
I want to make You Lord happy.
And I want to do and be all that
You planned when you created me.
It’s Your counsel I want to follow,
Your side Lord I want to be on and
Your behaviour I want to imitate.
Help me Lord to Continually Think
of You and Your Word so that
I may experience Your joy. Amen.
Lord, give me the desire to read
Your Word and to meditate on it
day and night. Let me eat deeply
from Your Word & make me wise.
Cause me to Delight in Doing Your will and that’s what I purpose to do.
Most of all, empower me Lord to Do
what it says as well as Transform
me and my circumstance so that
I will bear fruit that lasts. Amen.
In ancient times, a city was only
as secure as its walls. In the case
of Jerusalem, the temple stands
in glistening splendour but the
walls lie in ruin. Enter Nehemiah,
cupbearer to the king of Persia
and God’s choice to rebuild the
city defenses. Armed with a burden
and a blueprint, Nehemiah shares
his request with the king & receives
even more than he asked for!
Lord, we Open our Heart to You:
The king asked: How can I help you?
With A Prayer to God of heaven,
(Nehemiah) replied: If it please
Your majesty… send me to Judah
to Rebuild the city (Neh 2:4-5).
So I came to Jerusalem and was
there three days…. I told no one
what my God Had Put In My Heart
to do… And I went out by night… and
Viewed the walls which were broken
& gates which were burned (v11-13)
Then I said to (the Jewish leaders):
Come Let Us Build the wall of
Jerusalem… And I Told Them of
the hand of God… and also of
the king’s words… So they said:
Let us rise up and build (v17-18).
Lord, we note Nehemiah covered
the whole process of Rebuilding
Jerusalem In Prayer; praying for
his people for four months; and
breathing a brief prayer to You God
before saying the request to king.
And I surrender the church to You
and please manifest in my life with
Your Restoring power. Lord, hear
my prayers as You did Nehemiah’s.
As You God prove Yourself mighty,
may You receive much glory. Amen.
Lord, help me sort out the burdens
in my heart whether they all Yours;
and which ones should I follow.
Lead me to fulfil the purposes
You Have Placed within my heart.
Clarify my vision, secure my steps
and lead me Lord through open
doors to accomplish Your Kingdom
mission wherever You lead and
wherever I can. In His name, Amen.
Lord, thank You for Nehemiah’s
example on how to respond to bad
news. After initial grief, he prayed,
pouring his heart out to You God.
Then he got all the accurate info
he needed to assess the situation.
Only after careful planning would
Nehemiah Share his mission.
Help us Lord to confront challenges
with Trust in God and constructive
action for Your name sake. Amen.
Backgrounder: Sin had infiltrated
every segment of society with
injustice and oppression of poor.
Micah pleads with countrymen to
turn away from sin & back to God.
But the message falls on deaf ears
that will soon hear invading armies.
But within the hardness lies hope;
for when justice is done, God will
restore His people to covenant land
Micah addresses our failure to love
God and to love neighbour; and he
shows us how God wants to draw us
back into relationship with Himself.
True faith in God will invariably generate kindness, justice & humility.
We dare not ask God for help while
we ignore the needy & oppressed;
or while we silently condone the
actions of those who oppress them.
Lord, we will Walk in Your Ways.
Lord, we will Walk in Your Goodness.
Lord, we will Walk Out of Darkness.
In Jesus’ precious name, Amen.
Lord, we will Walk in Your Ways:
Now it shall come to pass in the
latter days that the mountain of the
Lord’s house shall be established
on the top of the mountains, and
shall be exalted above the hills;
and peoples shall flow to it.
Many nations shall come and say:
Come and let us go to the mountain
of the Lord, to the house of…God;
He will teach us His ways, and we
shall walk in His paths (Mic 4:1-2).
Lord, be with me as I step out on
the untrodden way of this season.
I know not what it may bring of joy
or sorrow, of temptation or service;
but I humbly commit myself and
my way to You Lord. Make the best
that You can of me for Your glory.
In Jesus’ precious name, Amen.
Lord, we will Walk in Goodness:
With what shall I come before the
Lord, and bow myself before the
High God? Shall I come with burnt
offerings with calves a year old?
He has shown you, O man what
is good; and what does the Lord
require of you but to do justly,
to love mercy and to walk humbly
with your God? (Micah 6:6-8).
Lord, You are not interested in
outward show, elaborate sacrifice
or religious acts. You want to
develop in us the heart response
of humility, mercy and justice.
Work these noble attitudes in us.
Thank You for showing us what
is good thro example of Your Son.
And help us Lord through Your
Spirit to abide daily in You. Amen.
Lord, we will Walk Out of Darkness:
I will look to the Lord; I will wait
for the God of my salvation;
My God will hear me…
Though I have fallen, I will rise.
Though I sit in darkness, the Lord
will be my light (Micah 7:7-8).
Lord, Thank You that You delight to
show mercy and offers forgiveness
to all who come back to You.
Thank You that even if I were
to fall off Your path, You will always
be there to lift me up when I repent.
Thank You that even if I sink into
darkness, You Lord will be my light.
Praise You for being the light of
my life and keeper of the flame
that burns in my heart for eternity.
In Jesus’ precious name, Amen.
In Micah 1-2, we find the nation is
immoral and corrupt; the time to
repent has come and gone; the
earlier prophets were unheeded.
Such is the state of Judah as Micah
emerges during the reigns of Jotham,
Ahaz and Hezekiah. His task is to
indict the unrepentant people of God
and to announce the irreversible
edict of God for the transgressions
of Jacob and sins of Israel (1:3-5).
The leaders are mostly to blame
for they are not shepherds and
their religion is pretence (3:1-12).
Many prefer to see God as kindly,
eternally patient and somehow
ignorant of the way people treat
each other and the world. But we
see in Micah 1-3 that God would
punish the injustice he so detested
(and still does) & Jerusalem would
be destroyed. God’s anger here
points to His desire that we all
strive for and live in justice & peace.
Lord, grace in our resolutions.
We will Not Engage In Idolatry.
We will Not Be Covetous. And
We will Not Exploit Others. Amen.
Lord, we will Not Engage In Idolatry:
The Sovereign Lord has made accusations against you; the Lord
speaks from His holy Temple. Look! The Lord leaves His throne & comes
to earth..They melt beneath His feet
& flow into valleys like wax in a fire…
And why is this happening? Because
of the sins and rebellion of Israel
and Judah… Where is the center
of idolatry in Judah? In Jerusalem…
I the Lord will make Samaria a heap
of rubble… All her carved images
will be smashed to pieces (Mic1:2-7)
Weep you people of Judah… for the
children you love will be snatched
away & exiled to distant lands (v16)
Lord, we recognise that You are
holy, will remain true to Your nature
& punishes unfaithfulness & idolatry.
Help us Lord to be holy and loving
like You. And grateful that while
You God is holy and just, You’re also
gracious, faithful and loving. Amen.
Lord, we will Not Be Covetous:
Woe to those who devise iniquity,
and work out evil on their beds!..
They covet fields and take them by
violence, also houses & seize them.
So they oppress a man and his house, a man and his inheritance.
But this is what the Lord says: I will reward your evil with evil (Mic2:1-3)
Will the Lord’s Spirit have patience
with such behaviour? If you would
do what is right, you would find
my words comforting (Micah 2:7).
Lord, there are people who fall prey
to the ambitions of the powerful.
We will not use position or power
to take what we want by force;
but will be content with what God
has blessed us with and rely on
Him to provide for our needs. Amen.
Lord, we will Not Exploit Others:
Listen you leaders of Israel!
You are supposed to know right
from wrong, but you are the very
ones who hate good and love evil…
This is what the Lord says: You
false prophets are leading my
people astray! You promise peace
for those who give you food, but
you declare war on those who
refuse to feed you (Mic 3:1-2, 5).
But as for me, I am filled with
power, with the Spirit of the Lord.
I am filled with justice and strength
to boldly declare Israel’s sin (v8).
Lord, we realise spiritual leaders
have an awesome responsibility
to make clear the difference right
& wrong, and to live it out. Never to serve themselves & exploit people.
Lord grant us the courage to act
on what we see and be bold enough
to speak out about what is wrong.
Help us Lord whenever we minister
or serve others, to do so willingly
and cheerfully for Christ. Amen.
This week we learn the importance
of Seeking God through Fasting and Prayer to position ourselves
in order to encounter His presence.
On Monday, we learn from Ezra 8
to Implore God thro Fast & Prayer.
On Tues, we learn from Nehemiah 1
to Recognise Stirring of the Spirit.
On Wed, we learn from Nehemiah 2
that God Put Word In Our Heart.
On Thurs, we learn from Esther 4
to be Ready to Stand & Be Counted.
On Friday, we learn from Job 23
to Keep to the Way of the Lord.
Let us humble ourselves and pray
and seek His face…In Jesus’ name.
