Good morning, Lord Jesus. First thing in the morning, I turn to You first -- Father, Son, and Holy Spirit of God. I seek first Your kingdom and Your righteousness, that You may set things right in me and set the right path before me in all the steps of my day (Matthew 6:33). ...
My heart is full of gratitude today. Yesterday morning You gave such a strong sense that You were moving mightily on our behalf to confront our world-wide crisis. I strongly sensed You were calling me and so many to humbly pray for the tide to turn and to boldly proclaim in faith that that the tide had turned. And while we may yet have a long way to go to see manifested on earth what You have done in heaven in response to the prayers of Your people around the world, we are seeing some rays of hope, some glimmers of light at the end of the tunnel. We are hearing some good news of Your grace on some major fronts in the battle. And I give You all glory and honor and praise!
Ultimately, regardless of what the world says, You have the final say. And what You have to say for us is always, ultimately good: "For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, for your welfare and not for harm, to give a future with hope. Then when you call upon Me and come and pray to Me, I will hear you. When you search for Me, you will find Me; if you seek Me with all your heart" (Jeremiah 29:11-13).
We have a ways to go to get through this, but You are with us and You are for us and You will get us through this. If God be for us, what can stand against us (Romans 8:31). You will turn this all around for us in ways we can't yet see or even imagine (Romans 8:28; Ephesians 3:20). You're the God who hears and who answers! "To my God, I cried for help. From His temple He heard my voice!" (Psalm 18:6)
"I love You, O Lord, my Strength.
The Lord is my Rock, my Fortress, and my Deliverer,
my God, my Rock in whom I take refuge,
my Shield, and the Horn of my Salvation, my Stronghold.
I call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised,
so shall I be saved from my enemies.
The cords of death encompassed me;
the torrents of perdition assailed me;
the cords of Sheol entangled me;
the snares of death confronted me.
In my distress I called upon the Lord;
to my God I cried for help.
From His temple He heard my voice,
and my cry to Him reached His ears....
The Lord also thundered in the heavens,
and the Most High uttered His voice! ...
He reached down from on high, he took me;
He drew me out of mighty waters
He delivered me from my strong enemy,
And from those who hated me;
for they were too mighty for me.
They confronted me in the day of my calamity;
but the Lord was my Support,
He brought me out into a broad place;
He delivered me, because He delighted in me!"
(Psalm 18:1-19)
Thank You for hearing. Thank You for answering. Thank You for continuing to move mightily on our behalf. Thank You for giving us grace to persist in prayer and proclamation in the authority of Your name until we see the fullness of Your answers manifested on earth as they are in heaven (Mark 11:22-24; Matthew 6:10). In Jesus' name I pray. Amen!
My family, may you be encouraged and strengthened in your faith and hope today, trusting in our God who hears us and answers us, who is moving mightily on behalf of us, in some ways we see and in so many ways we don't even see, in Jesus' name. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friends!
Please share your reflections and prayers with us on this blog in the comment box below.
Resolve to Help in 2023
I want to ask you to resolve this year in partnering with my wife, myself, and One Direction Community by supporting our ministries! We begin a new season of our ministry of pouring completely into planting and growing simple house churches in our neighborhoods, and having “boots on the ground” serving in our community.. Please pray over this. If you click on the link below you can easily set up a weekly, bi-monthly, or monthly auto donations in the amount you desire. . We would be so grateful for your help. You can also give a one-time donation on the same link. Thank you!
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You can mail your donation to One Direction Community P.O. Box 1293 Madison, Al 35758
Discipleship Training.
One of my passions is helping churches or small groups understand and embrace their call to be disciples of Jesus in their community. I offer and lead discipleship trainings in person and on-line. If you are interested I would love to talk to you bout it. Email me at garyl@onedirection.community.
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