Gracious Lord, it’s a new day with its troubles.
Hear my prayer, and incline Your ears to my humble petitions.
In Your faithfulness and righteousness, bring relief to me.
Prayer
A King’s Benediction
King David is arguably the most beloved king of Israel. Besides being a king, his songs and psalms have had great impact far beyond his time. Myself and many others have identified with and found solace in his expressive demonstrations of love and faith even in the midst of hardships and doubts. In this psalm, this beloved king declares a blessing over his people in word and song. Words of encouragement and faith in times and seasons of trouble and unrest. We may not have leaders today as beloved and as attuned to the plight of their people as David was, but we can still identify with and find solace in his benediction to his people. As leaders in our homes, families, communities and organizations, let us take some cues from his rule-book, and be sources of encouragement, hope, and blessings for those placed under our care. There are better days ahead.
Continue reading
Easy
Tell me that it’s easy,
To rise up each morning at the break of dawn
To set your knees in that spot in the mat
With the perfect grooves made from wear;
A testament to the consistency with which they carry
The weight of your desperation and dreams.
Tell me how you’ve gotten used to the familiar aches –
The pain of the strain of holding a position
That under different circumstances would be called corporal punishment;
Hands clasped underneath chin,
Elbows scraping the edge of the bed…
But none of these compare to the aches
That rampage in places the eye cannot see;
None of these compare to the screams that no ear hears –
None, except One.
Search Me
Father, You have searched me, and You know me – even better than I know myself. You know my sitting down and my rising up. You perceive my thoughts long before they are formed within me. You search out my path, even to where I lay my head to rest; there is no part of my life’s journey that is obscured from You. No word has reached my tongue that You didn’t already know about. You hem me in behind and before; and You have laid Your hand on me. You give me knowledge of things beyond me, lofty things that I cannot attain.
Is there a place that Your Spirit cannot reach? Is it possible for me to escape Your presence? If I were to ascend to heaven, that is Your throne and You would be there; but even if I were to make my bed in the depths of Sheol, I would not be beyond Your piercing gaze. If I take the wings of the dawn, and settle in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there Your hand will lead me, and Your right hand will hold me.
Continue reading
Beloved Father
“Beloved Father in Heaven, I hallow Your Name; I long for the establishment of Your Kingdom on earth; How awesome it would be, if everything was here as it is in Heaven. Notwithstanding, You are my Lord, and I look to You this day for everything I will need. Please teach me not to hold the faults of others against them, even as You do not hold my trespasses against me. Order my steps away from the things and places that will cause me pain and sadden You. Deliver me from every evil, because I am Yours, and You have the power to keep me; And I will glorify You with every breath that is in me, now and forever. Amen.”
This is the first in a new series where I take portions of Scripture that are directly ‘prayable’ and personalize them. I hope you pray along and be blessed.
#Personalized
#Matthew 6:9-13
#Praying_The_Scriptures_001
Find Me On My Knees
Find me on my knees,
Kneeling on my doubts and distresses;
Hands clasped, holding tight my faith;
Eyes closed firmly, that I may not be moved by sight;
My words are incoherent, rightly depicting the state of my mind;
My mouth seems too slow, not fast enough to articulate the flow –
The gushing of thoughts and emotions from my mind backed up behind my throat,
My tongue feels tired, but there’s a will
That seeks to push until something happens…
Giving no rest to self or God;-
The mystery that keeps mighty men on their feet in battle,
And keeps the sword of the warrior stuck to his hands
Even when his arms are wearied beyond remedy;
And keeps him facing a thousand as they descend on him
Breathing destruction and slaughter….
A small portion of the mystery, that brought a Man
To the carrying of the burdens of the whole world.
Increase In Knowledge; Persevere In Prayer
The Scriptures are littered with God’s promises to His people, and they are also littered with the consequences of disobedience and sin. But it would seem upon observation that the consequences of disobedience are more pronounced and are executed more speedily than the promises and blessings are manifested. That would suggest that ‘The Accuser’ and his team take their tasks more seriously than most Christians do.
It is true that God rules, He sets the rules and He reigns; but most of the time, we seem to forget that the devil is not a very obedient entity, and obviously not a ‘law-abiding citizen’; if he was, he would not have rebelled in the first place, and there wouldn’t be such disorder in creation. He may be a defeated foe, but he is not powerless, and he has not suddenly become obedient. The fact that God has said, “Touch not my anointed, and do my prophets no harm,” does not mean the devil will obediently leave you alone if you don’t know enough to stand upon that knowledge, and God knows this too; and that is why He has given us the provision of His Word, and the ability and tool of prayer, to contend against the devil and his team of experts.
Welcome
Take me to the Place where the saints gather,
To the convention of the just made perfect;
Where the clouds of glory settle and tongues of fire dance;
To the atmosphere so pure that I come undone to be refined.
It is where David dances and Solomon sits to be taught;
A place whose gates Sampson’s strength does not qualify him to guard.
Continue reading
Sing Me A Song
Thirteen minutes ago, I got a call.
It wasn’t good news, Granny was ill,
And I somehow knew this was going to be the last time.
We spoke over the phone, and she said not to come over;
The voice was Nanny’s voice as I remember it,
But it carried something more now,
A certain weight I couldn’t place,
Though she sounded frail also…it was the strangest thing.
Nanny spoke like I’ve never heard her speak before,
And I listened as if I was in a trance:
Continue reading
Quote #45
“God is never surprised by the kind of prayers we pray; He is well aware He came to hear broken people. He ignores the selfishness, ignorance, bitterness, and unbelief; and keeps whispering, ‘My child, this too shall pass; Morning is nigh’.” – Makafui.
Makafui's Journal 