Tag: 22 Sep

Praying the Psalms: Sat, 22 Sep – Psalm 73 ~ God is good to those whose hearts are pure.

Praying the Psalms

+ In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen!

Opening – (Northumbria Community)

One thing I have asked of the Lord, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life; to behold the beauty of the Lord and to seek Him in His temple.

Praise to You, Lord Jesus Christ, King of endless glory.
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Morning Reading: Psalm 73 (NLT) (A Psalm of Asaph)

Truly God is good to Israel, to those whose hearts are pure. But as for me, I almost lost my footing. My feet were slipping, and I was almost gone. For I envied the proud when I saw them prosper despite their wickedness.

  • They seem to live such painless lives; their bodies are so healthy and strong.
  • They don’t have troubles like other people; they’re not plagued with problems like everyone else.
  • They wear pride like a jeweled necklace and clothe themselves with cruelty.
  • These fat cats have everything their hearts could ever wish for!
  • They scoff and speak only evil; in their pride they seek to crush others.
  • They boast against the very heavens, and their words strut throughout the earth.

And so the people are dismayed and confused, drinking in all their words. “What does God know?” they ask. “Does the Most High even know what’s happening?” Look at these wicked people—enjoying a life of ease while their riches multiply.

Did I keep my heart pure for nothing? Did I keep myself innocent for no reason? I get nothing but trouble all day long; every morning brings me pain. If I had really spoken this way to others, I would have been a traitor to your people. So I tried to understand why the wicked prosper. But what a difficult task it is! Then I went into your sanctuary, O God, and I finally understood the destiny of the wicked. Truly, you put them on a slippery path and send them sliding over the cliff to destruction. In an instant they are destroyed, completely swept away by terrors. When you arise, O Lord, you will laugh at their silly ideas as a person laughs at dreams in the morning.

Then I realized that my heart was bitter, and I was all torn up inside. I was so foolish and ignorant—I must have seemed like a senseless animal to you. Yet I still belong to you; you hold my right hand. You guide me with your counsel, leading me to a glorious destiny. Whom have I in heaven but you? I desire you more than anything on earth. My health may fail, and my spirit may grow weak, but God remains the strength of my heart; he is mine forever.

Those who desert him will perish, for you destroy those who abandon you. But as for me, how good it is to be near God! I have made the Sovereign Lord my shelter, and I will tell everyone about the wonderful things you do.
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Morning Prayer

O Lord our God: You are sovereign over heaven and earth, and you are just and good. Help us to make sense out of the chaos, wickedness and injustice around us –

+ teach us to trust you – when we are reduced to helplessness…
+ teach us to trust you – when we are besieged by the powerful…
+ teach us to trust you – when we are persecuted by the wicked…
+ teach us to trust you – when we are baffled and bewildered…
+ teach us to trust you – when we are humiliated, stripped of our pride…

O Lord our God: You are sovereign over heaven and earth, and you are just and good. Help us to see everything clearly as we worship you in spirit and truth –

+ for you still reign over the affairs of men…
+ for you still judge the living and the dead…
+ for you still meet with us as we gather in your name…
+ for you still hear the prayers of the pure in heart…
+ for you still speak to us through your Word and Spirit…

O Lord our God: You are sovereign over heaven and earth, and you are just and good. In Christ Jesus, all things hold together. Fill us with his grace and truth, that we might love and serve you – freely and joyfully – in every circumstance, while we await his immanent return in glory. Amen.
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“Psalm 73” (Enter the Sanctuary) – Jess Ray

Surely God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart. But as for me, my feet had almost slipped; I had nearly lost my foothold. But You hold me by my right hand, and You guide me with your counsel.

My heart and my flesh may fail me, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.

Whom have I in heaven but you? Whom have I in heaven but you? There is nothing that I desire, I desire beside you. You are the strength of my heart and my portion forever.

When I enter the sanctuary, I can see everything clearly, everything clearly. For you are always with me, and you will take me to glory, take me to glory. And I am always with you, and it is good to be near you, good to be near you.
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Blessing – (Northumbrian Community)

May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you, wherever He may send you. May He guide you through the wilderness, and protect you through the storm. May He bring you home rejoicing at the wonders He has shown you. May He bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.
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+ In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Morning Reading & Prayer: Fri, 22 Sep – John 19-21 ~ Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ will come again.

Morning Reading & Prayer

+ In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen!

Opening – (Northumbria Community)

One thing I have asked of the Lord, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life; to behold the beauty of the Lord and to seek Him in His temple.

Praise to You, Lord Jesus Christ, King of endless glory.

Please Read:John 19-21 (NLT) – click here

Reflection & Prayer

The Crucifixion

John 19:16-27 (NLT) – Then Pilate turned Jesus over to them to be crucified.

So they took Jesus away. Carrying the cross by himself, he went to the place called Place of the Skull (in Hebrew, Golgotha). There they nailed him to the cross. Two others were crucified with him, one on either side, with Jesus between them. And Pilate posted a sign on the cross that read, “Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews.” The place where Jesus was crucified was near the city, and the sign was written in Hebrew, Latin, and Greek, so that many people could read it.

Then the leading priests objected and said to Pilate, “Change it from ‘The King of the Jews’ to ‘He said, I am King of the Jews.’”

Pilate replied, “No, what I have written, I have written.”

When the soldiers had crucified Jesus, they divided his clothes among the four of them. They also took his robe, but it was seamless, woven in one piece from top to bottom. So they said, “Rather than tearing it apart, let’s throw dice for it.” This fulfilled the Scripture that says, “They divided my garments among themselves and threw dice for my clothing.” So that is what they did.

Standing near the cross were Jesus’ mother, and his mother’s sister, Mary (the wife of Clopas), and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus saw his mother standing there beside the disciple he loved, he said to her, “Dear woman, here is your son.” And he said to this disciple, “Here is your mother.” And from then on this disciple took her into his home.

The Death of Jesus

John 19:28-30 (NLT) – Jesus knew that his mission was now finished, and to fulfill Scripture he said, “I am thirsty.” A jar of sour wine was sitting there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put it on a hyssop branch, and held it up to his lips. When Jesus had tasted it, he said, “It is finished!” Then he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.

The Burial of Jesus

John 19:38-42 (NLT) – Afterward Joseph of Arimathea, who had been a secret disciple of Jesus (because he feared the Jewish leaders), asked Pilate for permission to take down Jesus’ body. When Pilate gave permission, Joseph came and took the body away. With him came Nicodemus, the man who had come to Jesus at night. He brought about seventy-five pounds of perfumed ointment made from myrrh and aloes. Following Jewish burial custom, they wrapped Jesus’ body with the spices in long sheets of linen cloth. The place of crucifixion was near a garden, where there was a new tomb, never used before. And so, because it was the day of preparation for the Jewish Passover and since the tomb was close at hand, they laid Jesus there.

The Resurrection

John 20:1-10 (NLT) – Early on Sunday morning, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and found that the stone had been rolled away from the entrance. She ran and found Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved. She said, “They have taken the Lord’s body out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put him!”

Peter and the other disciple started out for the tomb. They were both running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He stooped and looked in and saw the linen wrappings lying there, but he didn’t go in. Then Simon Peter arrived and went inside. He also noticed the linen wrappings lying there, while the cloth that had covered Jesus’ head was folded up and lying apart from the other wrappings. Then the disciple who had reached the tomb first also went in, and he saw and believed— for until then they still hadn’t understood the Scriptures that said Jesus must rise from the dead. Then they went home.

Jesus Appears to His Disciples

John 20:19-23 (NLT) – That Sunday evening the disciples were meeting behind locked doors because they were afraid of the Jewish leaders. Suddenly, Jesus was standing there among them! “Peace be with you,” he said. As he spoke, he showed them the wounds in his hands and his side. They were filled with joy when they saw the Lord! Again he said, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I am sending you.” Then he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive anyone’s sins, they are forgiven. If you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.”

Jesus Appears to Thomas

John 20:26-29 (NLT) – Eight days later the disciples were together again, and this time Thomas was with them. The doors were locked; but suddenly, as before, Jesus was standing among them. “Peace be with you,” he said. Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and look at my hands. Put your hand into the wound in my side. Don’t be faithless any longer. Believe!”

“My Lord and my God!” Thomas exclaimed.

Then Jesus told him, “You believe because you have seen me. Blessed are those who believe without seeing me.”

Purpose of the Book

John 20:30-31 (NLT) – The disciples saw Jesus do many other miraculous signs in addition to the ones recorded in this book. But these are written so that you may continue to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing in him you will have life by the power of his name.

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“This I Believe” – Hillsong Kiev


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Blessing – (Northumbrian Community)

May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you, wherever He may send you. May He guide you through the wilderness, protect you through the storm. May He bring you home rejoicing at the wonders He has shown you. May He bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.
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+ In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen!

Morning Prayer: Thu, 22 Sep – Psalm 119:73; 1 Samuel 17:33-37; Ephesians 4:10-13 ~ measure up

+ In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen!

Opening Sentence

One thing I have asked of the Lord, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life; to behold the beauty of the Lord and to seek Him in His temple.

Reading: Psalm 119:73 (NLT)

You made me; you created me. Now give me the sense to follow your commands.

Reading: 1 Samuel 17:33-37 (NLT)

“Don’t be ridiculous!” Saul replied. “There’s no way you can fight this Philistine and possibly win! You’re only a boy, and he’s been a man of war since his youth.”

But David persisted. “I have been taking care of my father’s sheep and goats,” he said. “When a lion or a bear comes to steal a lamb from the flock, I go after it with a club and rescue the lamb from its mouth. If the animal turns on me, I catch it by the jaw and club it to death. I have done this to both lions and bears, and I’ll do it to this pagan Philistine, too, for he has defied the armies of the living God! The Lord who rescued me from the claws of the lion and the bear will rescue me from this Philistine!”

Saul finally consented. “All right, go ahead,” he said. “And may the Lord be with you!”

Reading: Ephesians 4:10-13 (NLT)

full-stature-of-christ

And the same one who descended is the one who ascended higher than all the heavens, so that he might fill the entire universe with himself.

Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ. This will continue until we all come to that unity in our faith and knowledge of God’s Son, measuring up to the full and complete standard of Christ.

Prayer

Lord Jesus: You pour life into me, giving me speech, sense, desire, giving me thought and action. You mark the way before me and give me all I need to love and serve You.

O King and Savior of all, what are Your gifts to me? and do I use them to Your pleasing?

+ Have You given me gifts to build up Your Church? Do I cross cultural barriers, or proclaim Your word with power, or bring others into Your family, or care for and teach Your people?

+ Have You given me gifts to build up Your people? Do I offer wise advice or add special knowledge to those seeking counsel? Do I believe Your promises in the face of seemingly insurmountable obstacles? Do I pray consistently for others?

+ Have You given me gifts to serve others? Do I cheerfully help out where needed, or encourage people in distress? Do I take responsibility seriously, or give generously in support of others, and am I kind in the process?

+ Have You given me gifts that draw others to You? Do I pray for healing, and do I expect miracles? Do You give me messages to encourage Your people, and am I able to distinguish between truth and falsehood? Do I pray in unknown languages during worship, or while praying for others?

+ Have You given me gifts of artisanship? Do I sing or make music for You? Do I dance, or lead others into Your presence? Do I shape and form beautiful crafts of gold, silver, wood, glass or stone? Do I work with my hands to construct buildings and monuments that glorify You?

Gracious God: You distribute Your special gifts to us as You see fit. Open avenues of opportunity for me to use the gifts and abilities that You have given me – to build up Your Church, to serve Your people, and to glorify Your name. And, in the process, may Your Kingdom come – in me. Amen.

“Flawless (Official Music Video)” – MercyMe

Blessing

May the peace of the Lord Jesus Christ go with you, wherever He may send you. May He guide you through the wilderness, protect you through the storm. May He bring you home rejoicing at the wonders He has shown you. May He bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.

+ In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen!