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“You Are Everything” by Matthew West

24 May

“You Are Everything” by Matthew West

I'm the one with two left feet
Standing on a lonely street
I can't even walk a straight line
And every time you look at me
I'm spinning like an autumn leave
Bound to hit bottom sometime

Where would I be without someone to save me
Someone who won't let me fall

You are everything that I live for
Everything that I can't believe is happening
You're standing right in front of me
With arms wide open, all I know is
Every day is filled with hope 
'Cause you are everything that I breathe for
And I can't help but breathe you in
And breathe again
Feeling all this life within
Every single beat of my heart

I'm the one with big mistakes
Big regrets and bigger breaks
Than I'd ever care to confess
Ah, but you're the one who looks at me
And sees what I was meant to be
More than just a beautiful mess

Where would I be without someone to save me
Someone who won't let me fall

You are everything that I live for
Everything that I can't believe is happening
You're standing right in front of me
With arms wide open, all I know is 
Every day is filled with hope
'Cause you are everything that I breathe for
And I can't help but breathe you in
Breathe again, feeling all this life within
Every single beat of my heart

You're everything good in my life
Everything honest and true
And all of those stars
Hanging up in the sky
Could never shine brighter than you

You are everything that I live for
Everything that I can't believe is happening
You're standing right in front of me
With arms wide open, all I know is
Every day is filled with hope
'Cause you are everything that I breathe for
And I can't help but breathe you in
And breathe again, feeling all this life within
Every single beat of my heart

You are, oh, you are.
Jesus, you are
You are everthing

Songwriters Matthew West and Sam Mizell

Dear God, I normally copy and paste lyrics when I do songs like this, but this time I really wanted to sink into this song and worship you with the words so I typed them out. I need some worship time. I feel like I am spinning a little. With some personal struggles combined with preaching in the morning, working alongside my wife tomorrow afternoon with a couple about to get married, teaching a Bible study Monday night and then officiating a funeral on Wednesday, I have a all of these things swirling through my head. How will I manage them? How will I do you justice in all of this? The answer: Stop and worship. Make everything in my being about you. Worship you. Take my eyes off of all of this and just fall into you. Let you do it through me.

To be clear, what I am experiencing is first-world problems. You have given me so much. I was listening to a podcast earlier today and this pastor was talking about exhorting his congregation to make a practice of observing Sabbath, and he got feedback from some that they would love to, but they cannot because they are working two jobs to make ends meet. From his view of the world, choosing to observe the Sabbath was a choice that his “internal Pharaoh” would have to grant, but he realized that a lot of people live with an “external Pharaoh” that compels them to ignore Sabbath.

Another good thing I heard today as I listened to another podcast was the importance of not teaching the secondary benefits of Christianity as our motivation for worshipping you. And I’m not talking about prosperity gospel heresy, but even making the motivation to worship you and live a life of discipleship be attaining the fruits of the Spirit. Yes, that is a side-effect, but I’m here right now not for that. I’m here right now simply because I love you. I’m into you. I first followed you almost 46 years ago. I’ve been intentionally discipling in one way or another for 38 years. Can I see your fruit in my life? Absolutely. Is that why I’m here? No. I’m here because I simply love you.

Father, Jesus, Holy Spirit, inhabit me. Inhabit all of my being. I feel like I’ve been broken this week. I feel like you’ve been melting me and molding me. Now fill me to overflowing so that you might overflow onto those around me. All for your glory, oh, Lord. All for your glory.

I pray this in Jesus and with the Holy Spirit,

Amen

 
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Posted by on May 24, 2025 in Hymns and Songs

 

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Luke 8:4-15

22 May

4 One day Jesus told a story in the form of a parable to a large crowd that had gathered from many towns to hear him: 5 “A farmer went out to plant his seed. As he scattered it across his field, some seed fell on a footpath, where it was stepped on, and the birds ate it. 6 Other seed fell among rocks. It began to grow, but the plant soon wilted and died for lack of moisture. 7 Other seed fell among thorns that grew up with it and choked out the tender plants. 8 Still other seed fell on fertile soil. This seed grew and produced a crop that was a hundred times as much as had been planted!” When he had said this, he called out, “Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand.”

9 His disciples asked him what this parable meant. 10 He replied, “You are permitted to understand the secrets of the Kingdom of God. But I use parables to teach the others so that the Scriptures might be fulfilled:

‘When they look, they won’t really see.
    When they hear, they won’t understand.’

11 “This is the meaning of the parable: The seed is God’s word. 12 The seeds that fell on the footpath represent those who hear the message, only to have the devil come and take it away from their hearts and prevent them from believing and being saved. 13 The seeds on the rocky soil represent those who hear the message and receive it with joy. But since they don’t have deep roots, they believe for a while, then they fall away when they face temptation. 14 The seeds that fell among the thorns represent those who hear the message, but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the cares and riches and pleasures of this life. And so they never grow into maturity. 15 And the seeds that fell on the good soil represent honest, good-hearted people who hear God’s word, cling to it, and patiently produce a huge harvest.

Luke 8:4-15

Dear God, I’m preaching at a local church this Sunday, and I’ve had this sermon idea running around my head for at least a month leading up to this. So I thought I would take time away from my Saul series and spend a moment preparing for this sermon.

So here’s my idea. A couple of weeks ago, I was listening to the Voxology podcast. I don’t think I could find the exact episode or moment again, but I remember he was talking about hearing a woman say, “If I take hell out of the equation, I don’t see a compelling reason to follow Jesus.” That broke my heart–mainly because there was a time in my life that I could relate to that statement. As a child growing up in a Baptist church and going to revivals and Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA) conferences, I heard the question more than once, “If you were to die tonight, do you know where you would go?” Most of the times I was walking the aisle, I feel like I was doing it to buy my “fire insurance.” I am so thankful that I actually went to an FCA Leadership Conference in 1987 that taught me there is a Christian life to be lived and how to live it.

Before I go any further, Holy Spirit, I know I’ve prayed about this over the last month, but as I sit here and type these words this morning, please reveal yourself through my fingers and this keyboard. Take my mind and heart to the places you need them to go for the good of the people, or maybe just that one person, who will need to hear what you have for them through me on Sunday. Let the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart bring glory to you and be pleasing to you, oh Lord.

So here’s the rough overview of my plan. Holy Spirit, correct me if I’m doing anything wrong:

  • Start with Voxology story: If I take hell off of the table, I don’t see a compelling reason to follow Jesus.
  • If we were having lunch with a friend, and they asked us this question, how would we answer them?
  • Happiness study by Sam Peltzman that reveals married people are likely to be happier than unmarried people.
    • But we don’t take that knowledge and get married so we can be 30 points happier than we would be if we were unmarried. We marry for love.
  • We should not enter into our relationship with God with anything other than him in mind.
  • We enter into this relationship because we carry around sin, insecurity, and this hole in our heart that we are constantly trying to fill. When we find God and a relationship with him, we turn loose of that and experience a life that produces fruit.
    • Fruits of the Spirit in Galatians 5:22-23: Love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, kindness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control.
  • How do we provide the Holy Spirit space to grow good fruit in our hearts?
    • Parable of the Sower
    • Odds are that the hearts in this room are not represented by the path or the rocks.
    • Most in this room are either fertile soil or soil that chokes out the Spirit with weeds and thorns.
  • Every gardener knows you have to weed your garden and tend your soil with water and fertilizer.
    • How do you tend your soil?
  • What is your floor
    • My floor:
      • Daily prayer journal
      • Faithful and consistent giving as well as extra giving
      • Intentional time in conversation with Megan
      • Hearing at least one Bible lesson/sermon from someone else each week
      • Communication with at least two male friends each week
      • Avoiding sexual temptation/lust.
      • Exercising at least four times a week.
      • Serve my wife by doing chores, favors she asks, and even using headphones
    • Things I add to the floor:
      • Extra writing projects
      • Volunteer work and praying for our community and country
      • Listening to Christian music and Christian podcasts
  • Use the bulletin insert to make up your own floor

Father, I pray that this is the message people need to hear from me this weekend. I pray that there might just be one person for whom this is a blessing. I pray that out of this time people would be drawn into deeper relationship with the God who loves them and only wants to grow great fruit in them for their sake. Make this all about loving you and not about any selfish gain on our part. You are worthy of my worship and my praise. I pray that you will share that with others through me.

I pray all of this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 
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Posted by on May 22, 2025 in Luke

 

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James 3:13-18

19 May

13 If you are wise and understand God’s ways, prove it by living an honorable life, doing good works with the humility that comes from wisdom. 14 But if you are bitterly jealous and there is selfish ambition in your heart, don’t cover up the truth with boasting and lying. 15 For jealousy and selfishness are not God’s kind of wisdom. Such things are earthly, unspiritual, and demonic. 16 For wherever there is jealousy and selfish ambition, there you will find disorder and evil of every kind.

17 But the wisdom from above is first of all pure. It is also peace loving, gentle at all times, and willing to yield to others. It is full of mercy and the fruit of good deeds. It shows no favoritism and is always sincere. 18 And those who are peacemakers will plant seeds of peace and reap a harvest of righteousness.

James 3:13-18

Dear God, the fruits of the Spirit are interesting. What do we do with them when we see them in someone who does not have faith in you? TV characters like Ted Lasso. Even an interview I saw with Jay Leno last night led me to see him as a kind person who tries to forgive slights and move on, although in Mr. Leno’s case I couldn’t help but wonder if it wasn’t a survival mechanism he developed over time.

But what James is describing here is kind of Paul’s Fruits of the Spirit from Galatians 5:22-23. The first thought I had when I read this passage this morning is that this is how I know you are a loving God. Proximity to you brings about these fruits. The closer I get to you the more loving I am. The more patient I am. The more forgiving I am. If you aren’t these things, then I wouldn’t be drawn to them as I get closer to you.

Father, I am grateful for this time with you this morning. I plan to try to be in this moment with you as much as possible. Holy Spirit, walk with me today. Help me to know how to love the Father. Jesus, teach me. Thank you for everything. Father, thank you to you as well. I love you, my Triune God.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 
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Posted by on May 19, 2025 in James

 

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Acts 14:8-20

18 May

8 While they were at Lystra, Paul and Barnabas came upon a man with crippled feet. He had been that way from birth, so he had never walked. He was sitting 9 and listening as Paul preached. Looking straight at him, Paul realized he had faith to be healed. 10 So Paul called to him in a loud voice, “Stand up!” And the man jumped to his feet and started walking.

11 When the crowd saw what Paul had done, they shouted in their local dialect, “These men are gods in human form!” 12 They decided that Barnabas was the Greek god Zeus and that Paul was Hermes, since he was the chief speaker. 13 Now the temple of Zeus was located just outside the town. So the priest of the temple and the crowd brought bulls and wreaths of flowers to the town gates, and they prepared to offer sacrifices to the apostles.

14 But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard what was happening, they tore their clothing in dismay and ran out among the people, shouting, 15 “Friends, why are you doing this? We are merely human beings—just like you! We have come to bring you the Good News that you should turn from these worthless things and turn to the living God, who made heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them. 16 In the past he permitted all the nations to go their own ways, 17 but he never left them without evidence of himself and his goodness. For instance, he sends you rain and good crops and gives you food and joyful hearts.” 18 But even with these words, Paul and Barnabas could scarcely restrain the people from sacrificing to them.

19 Then some Jews arrived from Antioch and Iconium and won the crowds to their side. They stoned Paul and dragged him out of town, thinking he was dead. 20 But as the believers gathered around him, he got up and went back into the town. The next day he left with Barnabas for Derbe.

Acts 14:8-20

Dear God, I know I’ve read this story before. So how could I forget it? I guess there’s only so much place for things in my memory, and this one didn’t make the cut. But it is such a wild story! Such a wild story.

But I guess it reminds me of the mob mentality I talked about yesterday. What is it about us that is so susceptible to the group think and peer pressure of others? These people in Lystra have preconceived notions about religion, and when they see a miracle they apply that to the situation as a collective. Not even Paul and Barnabas themselves can disabuse them of their mistake. Then some persuasive men show up and talk the crowd into stoning them. It is reminiscent of Jesus’s triumphal entry on Sunday and crucifixion on Friday.

I guess this is a reminder for me to question everything. Absolutely everything. I know some people I truly respect and love who have a completely different view than me of the current political landscape in the United States. They celebrate what I grieve and they grieve what I celebrate. There are still areas for our Venn Diagrams overlap, but on some really core issues we are miles apart. So who is part of the mob mentality and who isn’t? Or are we all in different mobs, deceived in different ways?

Now that I think about it, the passages in the Gospels that describe passion week and this passage here never say that they crowds at the beginning of the stories contain the same people as the crowds at the end of the stories. Maybe we are all part of a mob and we don’t realize it. Maybe it’s human nature to find comfort in group-think.

Father, open my eyes so I can see this. Open my mind and heart and reveal the lies I believe to me. The main thing I need you to show me is how to love you better and how to love people around me better. If I can stick to those two things then the rest will fall into place. At least, that is what Jesus promised me. All of your other laws fit under those two. So I worship you. You are God. You are my absolute authority. You are my King. Let your Holy Spirit guide me moment to moment today. Show me where I am wrong and make me quick to repent. I offer myself to you. Help me as I teach this morning. Keep me from heresy. Keep me from leading anyone in the wrong direction and away from you. Use me today to lead others at least one step closer to you.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 
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Posted by on May 18, 2025 in Acts

 

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1 Samuel 11

13 May

11 About a month later, King Nahash of Ammon led his army against the Israelite town of Jabesh-gilead. But all the citizens of Jabesh asked for peace. “Make a treaty with us, and we will be your servants,” they pleaded.

2 “All right,” Nahash said, “but only on one condition. I will gouge out the right eye of every one of you as a disgrace to all Israel!”

3 “Give us seven days to send messengers throughout Israel!” replied the elders of Jabesh. “If no one comes to save us, we will agree to your terms.”

4 When the messengers came to Gibeah of Saul and told the people about their plight, everyone broke into tears. 5 Saul had been plowing a field with his oxen, and when he returned to town, he asked, “What’s the matter? Why is everyone crying?” So they told him about the message from Jabesh.

6 Then the Spirit of God came powerfully upon Saul, and he became very angry. 7 He took two oxen and cut them into pieces and sent the messengers to carry them throughout Israel with this message: “This is what will happen to the oxen of anyone who refuses to follow Saul and Samuel into battle!” And the Lord made the people afraid of Saul’s anger, and all of them came out together as one. 8 When Saul mobilized them at Bezek, he found that there were 300,000 men from Israel and 30,000 men from Judah.

9 So Saul sent the messengers back to Jabesh-gilead to say, “We will rescue you by noontime tomorrow!” There was great joy throughout the town when that message arrived!

10 The men of Jabesh then told their enemies, “Tomorrow we will come out to you, and you can do to us whatever you wish.” 11 But before dawn the next morning, Saul arrived, having divided his army into three detachments. He launched a surprise attack against the Ammonites and slaughtered them the whole morning. The remnant of their army was so badly scattered that no two of them were left together.

12 Then the people exclaimed to Samuel, “Now where are those men who said, ‘Why should Saul rule over us?’ Bring them here, and we will kill them!”

13 But Saul replied, “No one will be executed today, for today the Lord has rescued Israel!”

14 Then Samuel said to the people, “Come, let us all go to Gilgal to renew the kingdom.” 15 So they all went to Gilgal, and in a solemn ceremony before the Lord they made Saul king. Then they offered peace offerings to the Lord, and Saul and all the Israelites were filled with joy.

1 Samuel 11

Dear God, when I read the end of this story this morning and I saw the mercy Saul had towards his detractors, I was so proud of him. He was really on it here. It’s interesting that he still wanted Samuel as his crutch in going into battle: ““This is what will happen to the oxen of anyone who refuses to follow Saul and Samuel into battle!” He wanted Samuel there still. But when the mob (and mobs are always so stupid) wanted to kill Saul’s detractors, Saul had mercy and forgave them.

It all made me think of people who have newly accepted Jesus and are new to Christian faith. That honeymoon phase is sweet and powerful. You just want to absorb as much Jesus as possible. The love is strong. It seems Saul was having a similar experience here. He was seeking you. You were coming up on in power. And then, when he was at the peak of his accomplishment, he exhibited mercy. The joy of the Lord was his strength!

One of the tricks is to not let our mercy grow dim. Not let our faith grow dim. Not let our love for you grow dim. I’ve known my wife for 36 years. No, we don’t have the ooey gooey infatuation we had in the summer of 1989 any longer, but our love is so much deeper than that now. Even as we visited over breakfast this morning and talked about our vacation this summer, we talked about how compatible we are in our travel. We’ve morphed into a oneness together. But that takes discipline. It takes dying to myself and loving her. Giving my time that I’d rather use selfishly to her.

Father, the same is true for you and my relationship with you. Those ooey-gooey feelings don’t last forever. But love grows deeper in relationship. In oneness. The more we become one…the more I sink into you, spend time with you, worship you, and know you the more I change into being like you. And, going back to my wife, if we are sinking into you while we sink into each other the more we will become like you as individual and as a couple. So help me, father, to take that time today to sustain what is important. And there are people in my heart I’m praying for right now. My children. Their extended families. My friends. Even my country and its leaders. My extended family. I give them all to you. I pray for it all. Bring us into your presence. Bring us to repentance. Deliver us from evil. Stop the evil, Father.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 
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Posted by on May 13, 2025 in 1 Samuel

 

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“The End of the World will be Livestreamed” by Russell Moore

12 May

Dear God, I was listening to the weekly short thought of the week or whatever they call it from Russell Moore at Christianity Today this morning. The episode is called “The End of the World will be Livestreamed,” and he talked about a novel from the early 1970s called Love in the Ruins by Walker Percy. Apparently, this novel pretty presciently foretells of a time in America that is now seemingly much like the one we are in now. I need to go back and listen again, but what I really liked is the resolution for the main character. In the midst of everything just falling apart, with the left dedicated to its progressive agenda, and the right diametrically opposed to the left’s agenda there is no room in the middle. There is no middle. One must choose side. So the society starts to collapse. The are left states and right states. Left cities and right cities. Ne’er the twain shall meet.

But then the main character, a lapsed Catholic, walks by a church or something (I need to check out this novel and read it for myself) and hears an invitation to just follow Jesus. In the midst of everything: “Follow me.” That is the ultimate resolution, I believe, for the book the way I heard Moore describe it (and I might not have heard him correctly). But I liked the idea that this man just started doing his one little part in your creation by being one of your created billions of people by starting to follow you. Forget the right. Forget the left. Forget the wisdom of this world. Just follow you.

Right now, I see all kids of things happening in this world that I simply cannot affect. I was reading about the continuing civil war in Sudan that I’ve been hearing about for decades. I cannot imagine the pain those people are in. Oh, Father, relieve their pain and bring healing. I think about the immigrants living around me who wake up in fear of being pulled over or an agent coming to their home. Oh, Father, comfort them and give them a good, healthy path forward. I think about my friend whose husband is gravely ill. Oh, Father, heal, comfort, guide, and love them. Don’t let this pain be wasted. Make it count. Be glorified in their lives. I think of my friend mourning the loss of his wife. Oh, Father, comfort him. My job isn’t to fix the Sudan, immigration, my friend’s husband, or even help my other friend to no longer mourn. My job is to follow you, and love those who are withing my reach. That includes the men I will love this evening through the Bible study we will do. Most of these men are on probation and feel forced to be there. Help this to change their lives. I give my service to you, Jesus. I will follow you. Lead me.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 
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Posted by on May 12, 2025 in Miscellaneous, Musings and Stories

 

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Disturbing Thought on Saul

11 May

Dear God, I had a disturbing thought about Saul as I thought about him when I woke up this morning: Did you just use him and then discard him for David? How could it have gone differently for Saul? I thought about this because it is obvious from Saul’s origin story that he wasn’t built to be king outside of his height. Later, when you’re picking David, you are clear that outward appearance doesn’t matter, but what’s in the heart does. Well, there doesn’t seem to be a lot of depth of character in Saul. Even though he is a head taller than anyone else around he just doesn’t seem up to the job.

So that’s my human brain. Then as I sit here with you and I work this out with the Holy Spirit, I’m reminded that your strength is made perfect in our weakness. In Saul’s case, there were times when you filled him and caused him to prophecy. In the next chapter, we will see that your Spirit will fill him and he will lead people into battle. He had ever opportunity to succeed if he would just find a way to lean into you and not make an idol out of his new position as king and the lineage it would leave for his family.

My wife and I were talking over breakfast about the worship service he did without Samuel that cause you to be so angry with him. I told her that it seems like others got away with a lot more than Saul did. She said, “How we worship matters.” I liked that. How I worship matters. How I lean into you matters. Even this morning, how I pray to you now, teach Sunday school later, and then worship with my wife after that matters.

Father, maybe you are using me and my life. Maybe you are sometimes asking me to do something that is beyond me so that I will simply lean into you instead of expecting to just get it done myself. And sometimes it might look for feel like I’ve been set up for failure, but I will lean into you and trust you. If you need to use me for a period and then have me move aside, so be it. Just help me to see what that time comes so that I can do it as worshipfully and humbly as possible. And since it is mother’s day, I want to just bathe my wife in prayer before I close this prayer journal. Love her. Help her to feel loved. This is a day of sorrow in so many ways, but I pray that your Holy Spirit will fill her and lift her. Raise up people around her who will love her and buoy her. Give her peace. Give her joy. Give her you. Help me to give her what you need her to have from me.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 
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Posted by on May 11, 2025 in 1 Samuel

 

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Samuel, Saul, Jonathan, and David

09 May

1 Samuel – 2 Samuel 7

Dear God, I want to map out what I’m planning for the 10 weeks of Bible study for the Christian Men’s Life Skills class I’m helping with. I’m 90% sure I want to do a cohesive arc of Samuel, Saul, Jonathan, and David, although I think Samuel will only be there as the thread between the the other three, so we will really start with him recruiting Saul. First, however, I want to look at the themes for each of the 10 weeks as determined by the overall class leader for Monday nights:

  • Self-Esteem
  • Values
  • Vision
  • Ego
  • Motivation
  • Leadership Attributes
  • Work Place Survey
  • There is No More Time
  • Work Ethic
  • Work Ethic

With out there, I want to see how I would break up 10 weeks of 1 Samuel and see if there is a way the Venn Diagram matches up when I lay them over each other:

  • Samuel Recruits and Coronates Saul
  • Saul and Jonathan (Jonathan’s curse)
  • Saul’s Failure
  • David and Goliath
  • Saul’s Jealousy of David Part 1, Jonathan’s (humility and friendship)
  • Saul’s Jealousy of David Part 2, David’s Response (Mercy)
  • David in Exile
  • Saul’s and Jonathan’s Deaths and David’s Ascent
  • David Consolidates the Kingdom
  • David Brings the Ark to Jerusalem & God’s Promise to David

This might actually work. Here they are laid over each other:

  • Self-Esteem: Samuel Recruits and Coronates Saul
  • Values: Saul and Jonathan (Jonathan’s curse)
  • Vision: Saul’s Failure
  • Ego: David and Goliath
  • Motivation: Saul’s Jealousy of David Part 1, Jonathan’s (humility and friendship)
  • Leadership Attributes: Saul’s Jealousy of David Part 2, David’s Response (Mercy)
  • Workplace Survey: David in Exile
  • There is no more Time: Saul’s and Jonathan’s Deaths and David’s Ascent
  • Work Ethic: David Consolidates the Kingdom
  • Work Ethic: David Brings the Ark to Jerusalem & God’s Promise to David

Father, thank you for walking me through this over the last 24 hours. I’m feeling better. I still have a lot of work to do for each lesson, but at least now I feel like I have an idea of where I’m going. Now be with me as I prayerfully visit with the teaching leader today. Help me to hear him and his counsel. He has done this a lot more than me, and he might have legitimate problems with what I’ve done here. Help me to not be stubborn or defensive, but to be teachable. This isn’t about my ego. This is about blessing these men…being your blessing to these men. Being your hands and feet. Being your voice. Oh, Lord, be glorified in all of this so that your kingdom will come and your will will be done on earth as it is in heaven through this work and these men.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 
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Posted by on May 9, 2025 in 1 Samuel, 2 Samuel

 

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1 Thessalonians 5:12-22

07 May

12 But we request of you, brethren, that you appreciate those who diligently labor among you, and have charge over you in the Lord and give you instruction, 13 and that you esteem them very highly in love because of their work. Live in peace with one another. 14 We urge you, brethren, admonish the unruly, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with everyone. 15 See that no one repays another with evil for evil, but always seek after that which is good for one another and for all people. 16 Rejoice always; 17 pray without ceasing; 18 in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. 19 Do not quench the Spirit; 20 do not despise prophetic utterances. 21 But examine everything carefully; hold fast to that which is good; 22 abstain from every form of evil.

1 Thessalonians 5:12-22

Dear God, there’s almost too much here to think through, but it’s all so good. I almost need to see it in bullet-point form:

  • Honor leaders in the church
  • Show leaders in the church wholehearted love.
  • Live peacefully with each other
  • Warn the lazy
  • Encourage the timid
  • Care for the weak
  • Be patient with everyone (emphasis mine)
  • Don’t let anyone payback evil for evil (That’s an interesting one. The focus isn’t just on me not doing it, but that I shouldn’t let others do it.)
  • Do good to each other and to all outside of the church as well
  • Be joyful
  • Pray without ceasing
  • Be thankful regardless of the circumstances
  • Encourage and nurture the Holy Spirit
  • Be open to prophecies, but test them
  • Keep good in my life
  • Actively stay away from evil

See. I was right. There were 16 admonitions in those verses. And they are so good. Help me to carry at least a few of these with me today.

Father, right now, I want to thank you for last night. It wasn’t my best night, but I think it was a good night for you. And that’s great. I wasn’t “on” or really polished, but I think the entire event was able to bring glory to you and inspire people in their faith. Let it be. And I want to also mention this. I learned last night about a friend and dear woman whose husband has a cancer recurrence. Oh, how this sank my heart. For him. For her. Holy Spirit, move in his body. Heal. Comfort. Guide. Do the same for my friend. Comfort her. Encourage her. Guide her. Love her. Minister to them both through your Holy Spirit and even directly with angels who will comfort them. Draw them into the middle of your heart. Be glorified in their lives so that all who know them might see you.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 
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Posted by on May 7, 2025 in 1 Thessalonians

 

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James 5:13-18

06 May

13 Are any of you suffering hardships? You should pray. Are any of you happy? You should sing praises. 14 Are any of you sick? You should call for the elders of the church to come and pray over you, anointing you with oil in the name of the Lord. 15 Such a prayer offered in faith will heal the sick, and the Lord will make you well. And if you have committed any sins, you will be forgiven.

16 Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results. 17 Elijah was as human as we are, and yet when he prayed earnestly that no rain would fall, none fell for three and a half years! 18 Then, when he prayed again, the sky sent down rain and the earth began to yield its crops.

James 5:13-18

Dear God, for what shall I pray? That is my question this morning. Our nonprofit has a fundraising dinner tonight. It’s an important part of our fundraising for the year, but I have to tell you, while by head feels the pressure of bringing in as much money as possible, my spirit–your Spirit?–is telling me that it’s not about the money. It’s not about the strokes to my ego that will come with a financially successful evening. I am going to have about 290 people who need you. They need your love. They need your touch. They need your inspiration. They need to love you. They need to love their neighbors. They don’t realize it, but this evening isn’t about what they can do for us as potential donors. It’s about what we, as an organization, can do for them.

Perhaps we will inspire them to give. But maybe, just maybe, we will soften their hearts towards the hungry, the imprisoned, the lonely, and, yes, the unhealthy. Some say empathy is a sin, but I disagree. You have empathy with us through the life you lived on earth. We can’t say, “You don’t understand,” because you do understand.

So I am turning my eyes towards you for this evening. I am not praying for how much money we raise. I’m not even praying for our patients. Who I’m praying for are the people in the room. Prepare each heart, including mine, for what you might have for us tonight. Let your Holy Spirit flow through the room. Let it flow out of each believer there. Be glorified, oh Lord, be glorified! Whatever money may come is welcome and we will do our best to be good stewards of it for the sake of our patients. But I don’t want that to be the focus tonight. I want it to be about every soul we encounter tonight. I want it to be about every soul you love. Be glorified in our small town tonight, Father!

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 
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Posted by on May 6, 2025 in James

 

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