Quiet Time

PRAYER
Lord, let my heart and mind be awestruck by the wonder and majesty that is You. As I enter your throne room in prayer remind me of the signs of your omnipotence and perfect genius working through your creation. I am but a man, unworthy of any good gift from above, but in your great mercy and steadfast righteousness you have chosen to bring me into communion with You by your Son's perfect sacrifice. Help me to delight more and more in You, my Savior.
Keep my eyes on your Kingdom from moment to moment, because my flesh pulls at my heart, deceiving it to put confidence in the temporary, feeble pleasures of worldliness. I am prone to wander, in my pride, like a foolish lamb with no sense. My haughty eyes turn so quickly from gazing at your glory; they do not see the snares this world has set before me. Grant me a repentant heart that I may not stray from You, my good Shepherd. Let my every thought come under submission to your will.
Thank you for your undeserved mercy and kindness; for your patience in the gentle restoration project of a broken man such as myself. Only by Your will might I have the gift of breathing my next breath. Thank you for the Body of Christ that seeks your will. I pray that we walk together towards you, in fellowship in this life and in Worship for all eternity.
Righteous in Christ & preserved by the Spirit,
Jason

DAILY SCRIPTURE READING HIGHLIGHTS
Proverbs 16:2 All the ways of a man are pure in his own eyes,
but the LORD weighs the spirit.
3 Commit your work to the LORD,
and your plans will be established.
Psalm 92:1 It is good to give thanks to the LORD,
to sing praises to your name, O Most High;
2 to declare your steadfast love in the morning,
and your faithfulness by night,
Daniel 2:20 "Blessed be the name of God forever and ever,
to whom belong wisdom and might.
21 He changes times and seasons;
he removes kings and sets up kings;
he gives wisdom to the wise
and knowledge to those who have understanding;

WORSHIP SONG
All I Have Is Christ
I once was lost in darkest night
Yet thought I knew the way
The sin that promised joy and life
Had led me to the grave
I had no hope that You would own
A rebel to Your will
And if You had not loved me first
I would refuse You still

But as I ran my hell-bound race
Indifferent to the cost
You looked upon my helpless state
And led me to the cross
And I beheld God’s love displayed
You suffered in my place
You bore the wrath reserved for me
Now all I know is grace

Hallelujah! All I have is Christ
Hallelujah! Jesus is my life

Now, Lord, I would be Yours alone
And live so all might see
The strength to follow Your commands
Could never come from me
Oh Father, use my ransomed life
In any way You choose
And let my song forever be
My only boast is You

© 2008 Sovereign Grace Praise (BMI), by Jordan Kauflin

Groaning to God

There are times in every one's life where the pain doesn't seem to make sense. And the soul seems so weak that a well-delivered prayer cannot be given. Thank God He does not require some standard for performance in prayer beause some days all I can do is cry out incoherent pleas of desperation.
"Lord, please remove this pain of want for what I do not have."

sin

Oh Lord, I will never comprehend in this life the depths of which You plunged to rescue a soul as dark as mine. The breadth and width of your love is beyond the limits of my mind. For you saved me when Satan was my closest ally and I beckoned to the every whim of he who was once my prince. Easily seduced to playing a fellow deceiver, my every display of "goodness" contained only the most selfish of motives. And it is an act of mercy that even now in this saved state not all my sins and weakness manifest in my mind, for certainly the full knowledge of awfulness still to wring out would plung me deep into the depths of a life-long despair. With what easy vanity can I look back at how "far" I have come, but would my head turn and see the distance between myself and perfection before me, fully luminated, the knowledge would crush my mind completely. It must be by grace that my conscience addresses only a few vices at a time.

And still, in light of my salvation and of coram Deo I shall certainly sin again, committing acts of hatred against the One who loves me most, of whom I claim as Lord, confirming that without His grace I too would have joined the crowd in chanting, "Crucify Him. Crucify Him." How often will I offer endorsement to the crimes of Adam? How can He who is perfect love me?

current reading: Original Sin by Augustus Toplady

Prayer in light of His sovereignty

We know that in light of your sovereignty, O God, you do all that you please. Every moment and decision is appointed by You to come to pass and all of it will come to pass to evidence Your glory and splendor. And we know if our hearts are set upon You and what your delights are, we have every reason for sustained confidence in the outcome of every trial and test. Lord, we know you appoint and allow some seasons for Your enemies to establish themselves and reap their worldly desires, but such times of apparent diffusion of your light of the gospel are designed to create a more conspicuous stage for when You draw the apparent reign of the wicked to a close, overcoming idolatries with all wisdom, power, grace, mercy and justice.

For what reason can We, your servants, be anxious? You clothe even the most remote of fields and flowers in great splendor, and O how much more you clothe us. Your ways and designs for your glory are well beyond our comprehension and all we can be pleased to do is rest easy in the knowledge that all your ways are perfect and the ultimate outcome for our current sufferings are for a greater good beyond our imaginings.

All we have is this responsibility to move forward in the faith knowing that if we truly love you, we love those who bear your image. And so we equip ourselves for battle not with vengeance or wrath, for that is the Lord's. But as ambassadors of truth, justice, grace, mercy, peace, patience, kindness, self-control, etc. etc., for Yours is the kingdom, power and glory forever. Amen