God be

As we hover at the half way mark of 2019, I thought I would offer us a few prayers to reflect on and use in our daily devotions. None of these are my own, but have been used and passed down for generations. May you find these prayers insightful and inspiring over the next couple of days.

"God be in my head, and in my understanding;
God be in mine eyes, and in my looking;
God be in my mouth, and in my speaking;
God be in my heart, and in my thinking;
God be at mine end, and at my departing."

These words were found in the Book of Hours in 1514. Despite being 500 years old, they are still a great way to pray.

Living in Grace
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The Beauty of your peace

“Drop your still dews of quietness

Till all our strivings cease;

Take from our lives the strain and stress,

And let our ordered lives confess

The beauty of your peace.” – J.G. Whittier

We all know that dew only falls after sunset – that during the night time, while the temperature is just right, droplets of water will form as dew on the earth. The busyness of the day and the heat of the sun are not conducive to the dew falling. 

And so it seems to make sense to me that ‘spiritual dew’ will only fall when my strivings cease and I rest in the shadow of the Almighty’s love. When I am at rest, then God pours out the dew of his grace.

Living in Grace

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Rejoicing in work

“O Lord, renew our spirits and draw our hearts to yourself,

That our work may not be to us a burden, but a delight.

Let us serve you with the spirit of bondage like slaves,

But with freedom and gladness,

Delighting in you and rejoicing in your work,

For Jesus Christ’s sake.” – Benjamin Jenks

When it comes to serving others, it makes a huge difference if we commit ourselves to the tasks out of love or out of bondage. A servant who does the minimum, just to avoid being scolded by their harsh master, is unlikely to go the extra mile for that same person. 

However, a servant who knows they are loved and respected by their Lord, will usually go beyond the required limit, just to be a delight to the one who employs them.When we serve Christ, which servant are we? Do we serve out of fear or because we delight in our Saviour?

Living in Grace

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Who am I?

In a haunting poem, written from his prison cell, Dietrich Bonhoeffer reflects on an eternal question... Who am I? Part of the poem goes like this:

Who am I? They also tell me
I would bear the days of misfortune
Equably, smilingly, proudly,
like one accustomed to win.

Am I then really all that which other men tell of?
Or am I only what I know of myself?

In the concluding words Bonhoeffer comes to this conclusion, which I believe is the answer most of us wish to hear.
 
Who am I?
They mock me, these lonely questions of mine.
Whoever I am, thou knowest, O God, I am Thine! 

Even if the world tries to answer the question for you (Who are you?), remember that in the final breath it is only God's answer that will satisfy. Let us be content to hear the words of God today:
We are His!

Living in Grace
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Love that holds on

In June 1882, George Matheson wrote the words to a powerful song, that has been included in many hymn books since the late Nineteenth century. It was during a personal time of suffering that he turned to the Lord as his sure foundation. George remember that God is the faithful friend who holds us close during our times of trial. This is how the first verse goes:

"O Love that wilt not let me go,
I rest my weary soul in thee;
I give thee back the life I owe,
That in thine ocean depths its flow
May richer, fuller be."

It is a timely reminder for those of us who need to rest our 'weary souls' into the hands of our Eternal Saviour and friend. Hold unto the LOVE that will never let us go.

 1 Thessalonians 5:21 - "...but test them all; hold on to what is good."

Living in Grace
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Not my might

 ^"So he said to me, “This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: ‘Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,’ says the Lord Almighty." - Zechariah 4:6

It is hard to discern the difference between working for what you believe God has called you to do, and then allowing the Spirit to do his work. It is tempting to try and do things in our own strength, but then we leave no room for God to work according to his timing and plans. 

In whatever we do, let us remember that the Spirit of God is so much stronger than we can comprehend or even see. Trust in God to work in His power and His ways.

It is not MY might, but the strength of God that gets things done. 

Living in Grace
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 ^"It is not by force nor by strength, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies." - New Living Translation

Discouraged

^"Why am I discouraged? Why is my heart so sad?
I will put my hope in God!   I will praise him again—
my Saviour and my God" - Psalm 42:5

The Psalmist asks a very deep question in this Psalm - he wants to know why his heart has become discouraged and sad. Sometimes we experience the same feelings and we aren't even sure as to why we feel the way we do. It could just be an accumulation of things - like a dripping from a tap, that gets faster and faster, until it eventually bursts out like a dam.

I believe it is vital to acknowledge how we feel before we can start to heal. Once we come to the "why", then we can get stronger and stronger. In this case, the Psalmist chooses to praise God and to place his trust in the goodness of the Lord.
 

The Christian life is not a constant high. I have my moments of deep discouragement. I have to go to God in prayer with tears in my eyes, and say, 'O God, forgive me,' or 'Help me.'
Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/topics/discouragement

"The Christian life is not a constant high. I have my moments of deep discouragement. I have to go to God in prayer with tears in my eyes, and say, 'O God, forgive me,' or 'Help me.'" - Billy Graham

Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/topics/discourageme

 

 

Living in Grace
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What worry does to you

You have to stop and take notice of your diary when the quote on the bottom of the page says this:

"Worry does not empty tomorrow of its sorrow;
it empties today of its strength." - Corrie Ten Boom

What are you worrying about today that is draining you and stopping you from enjoying God's blessings? I know that it is sometimes easier said than done, but we do need to take all our worries to God in prayer. Jesus invited us to come to Him with all our trials and struggles.

Luke 12:22 -  [ Do Not Worry ] Then He said to His disciples, “Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; nor about the body, what you will put on.

Matthew 11:28 - Come to Me, all you who labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

Living in Grace
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From Strength to Strength

Words and phrases creep into our common language over time and we forget their origins. In Psalm 84:7 David uses the following phrase:

"They go from strength to strength;"

It mainly relates to how the Israelites get stronger and stronger, after a period of trial and grief. However, it can also be very meaningful for us today - that when we bring our needs and troubles to the Lord, he helps us grow from strength to strength.

We may not be as strong as we would like to be at the moment, but we must ask the Spirit of Christ to lead us forward. Let us remain connected to the VINE and trust that the Spirit of love will flow through our lives and give us strength.

Living in Grace
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On our Doubts

“A faith without some doubts is like a human body with no antibodies in it. People who blithely go through life too busy or indifferent to ask the hard questions about why they believe as they do will find themselves defenseless against either the experience of tragedy or the probing questions of a smart skeptic. A person's faith can collapse almost overnight if she failed over the years to listen patiently to her own doubts, which should only be discarded after long reflection.”
― Tim Keller 

 

Jude 1:22 - Be merciful to those who doubt;

 

May our doubts lead us to a deeper and more genuine faith.

 

Keep walking in the ways of Christ and may he show you his path. 

 

Living in Grace

D3LM3 

Dear Jesus

If you have ever wanted to pray, but haven't known really what to say, then use this prayer as a starting point. It is truly a great prayer.

"Dear Jesus,

Help me to spread Your fragrance everywhere I go.
Flood my soul with Your spirit and life.
Penetrate and possess my whole being so utterly,
that my life may only be a radiance of Yours.

Shine through me, and be so in me that every soul I come in
contact with may feel Your presence in my soul.
Let them look up and see no longer me but only Jesus!

Stay with me and then I shall begin to shine as You shine,
so to shine as to be a light to others; The light, O Jesus will be
all from You; none of it will be mine;
It will be you shining on others through me.

Let me thus praise You the way You love best,
by shining on those around me.
Let me preach You without preaching,
not by words but by my example,
by the catching force of the sympathetic influence of what I do,
the evident fullness of the love my heart bears to You.
Amen." - Prayer written by John Henry Newman

Living in Grace
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Love them anyway

Have you ever felt so despondent with people that you are tempted to pack it all in and to stop giving of yourself? If you are nodding your head right now, then you will want to read these words -

“People are often unreasonable, irrational, and self-centred. 

Forgive them anyway.
If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives. 

Be kind anyway.
If you are successful, you will win some unfaithful friends and some genuine enemies. 

Succeed anyway.
If you are honest and sincere people may deceive you. 

Be honest and sincere anyway.
What you spend years creating, others could destroy overnight. 

Create anyway.
If you find serenity and happiness, some may be jealous. 

Be happy anyway.
The good you do today, will often be forgotten. 

Do good anyway.
Give the best you have, and it will never be enough. 

Give your best anyway.
In the final analysis, it is between you and God. 

It was never between you and them anyway."

 

These words are attributed to Mother Teresa. They have been adapted from the original words written by Dr Kent Keith.

If you find them useful please feel free to pass them on and give credit to the original authors.

Living in Grace

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Stopped in your tracks

 

    Have you ever been so impressed by something that it has literally stopped you in your tracks? You can't believe what you are seeing & experiencing that you need to stop to appreciate what you are encountering? Usually these events leave a life changing impression upon us and we are 'different' for the experience. 

   Selwyn Hughes argues that this what our encounter with Christ should be - we should be changed by meeting Christ and then living differently. 

  

 “No one can be a disciple of Jesus unless he/she has been stopped in their tracks by Jesus & experienced an inner change.” – Selwyn Hughes

Have you experienced that inner change? Are you still allowing the Spirit of Christ to stop you in your tracks?

Living in Grace

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