As the morning light shines on me,
may Your love warm my soul.
As the birds sing their praise,
I too worship You.
As the dew of the dawn refreshes the ground,
nourish me with Your Word.
As the sun’s rays brighten this new day,
reveal to me Your glory again and again.
Oh God, Your mercies are new every morn and Your love is ever refreshing.
Your glory is amazing and wonderful.
Your grace is abundant and true.
May this day be another chance for me to live for You and shine the light of Your love.
I know that I fell way short of Your glory yesterday.
Forgive and restore me.
Fashion and mold me.
Shape and direct me.
Renew my heart.
Wipe my slate clean.
Oh God, I long for another chance to make much of You as You have made much of me.
May Your Spirit continue to dwell in me and Your love ooze from my being as a over-soaked sponge. May I not seek ones worthy of my love, but as in the parable of the Good Samaritan, may I simply be a good neighbor;
Doing justice,
Loving kindness,
And walking humbly with You.
And so, I embark: equip me, empower me, embolden me.
You are worth it beyond all measure.
To You be all glory, honor, praise and worship, through Christ Jesus my Lord.
Amen.
Morning devotions
Light Prevails
There is no barrier.
There is no force.
There is nothing that can stop Your light from shining forth.
Darkness can not boast.
Evil will not win.
Satan has been defeated.
Oh Lord, Your light prevails.
The world tries to get in the way,
but You will not be denied.
The world tries to restrain,
but You will not be held down.
The world tries to redefine,
but You are who You are.
Oh Lord, Your light prevails.
People try to silence You.
Governments try to legislate You.
Preachers misrepresent You.
Oh Lord, Your light prevails.
You shine in the darkest dark.
You radiate in the gloomiest gloom.
You glow with the purest love.
Oh Lord, Your light prevails.
You are the Light of the world.
You are the Light of my life.
You are THE Light.
Oh Lord, You have prevailed.
The Path
Creator God, awesome and mighty,
You burst forth in the morning,
holding nothing back.
You make a grand entrance,
announcing Your presence.
Oh Lord, there You are.
But how, oh Lord, can anyone possibly say this isn’t from You? How could they even think such things?
I am perplexed by that thought.
For there is nothing random here. Only Your masterful hand lovely painting every stroke of color; each one planned and purposefully presented that all glory may be Yours.
Every hue.
Every ray of light.
Every beautiful detail.
Everything! – emanates from You.
Oh Lord my God, You blessed me this morning with this beautiful tapestry; for to see it was a pathway to Your glory – knowing that something even greater than this awaits me because of Jesus.
Oh God, I am in awe.
Wow!
Thank You for this morning artwork, but even more than that, thank You for this path to remember Your grace through Jesus Christ. I can hardly wait to see what awaits me.
To You be all glory, honor, praise and worship, through Christ Jesus my Lord.
Amen.
In the Morning
In the morning You treat me to You glory.
In the morning You shine Your love on me.
In the morning Your mercies blaze anew.
In the morning Your radiance lights up my life.
May the light of Your love fill me and direct me; leading me in the ways of righteousness that brings You glory.
May I see people with Your eyes and treat them thus; as beloved children in Your care.
May I show grace and mercy; for the grace and mercy You have shown me is beyond comprehension.
May I shine bright this day; leading people to see Your radiance.
Oh God, this day You created for me is for You and thus I worship You.
You are awesome!
To You be all glory.
In Jesus name I pray,
Amen.
Bright and Beautiful
Oh God, bright and beautiful,
Whose love is warmer than the noontide sun,
You are glorious and gracious,
And I am truly blessed.
As the sun shines on me this day,
May Your grace warm my soul.
As the breeze cools my face,
May Your Spirit comfort me.
Oh God, bright and beautiful,
Whose power created this new day,
Create in me a clean heart,
That Your glory may shine through me.
Your mercy is new every morning,
Your wonder springs afresh,
You are the master artisan,
And I never ceased to be amazed.
Oh God, bright and beautiful,
My Father and my Lord.
Thank You for this new day,
And guide me in Your Way.
In Jesus name I pray,
Amen.
Praise Befitting
Praise the Lord ! Praise the Lord , O my soul! I will praise the Lord as long as I live; I will sing praises to my God while I have my being.
[Psalms 146:1-2 ESV]
Praise is befitting You for You are glorious.
Your beauty is beyond words,
for when I gaze at Your creation I stand in silent awe.
And that is just the tip of the iceberg,
for to see Your full glory and beauty would short-circuit my brain;
not to mention that as a sinner I can’t see You face to face and live.
Your beauty is beyond words,
and,
Your holiness is perfect.
And thus as a sin-stained creature I am nothing in Your sight.
But You, Oh Lord my God, are full of
Mercy
Grace
Compassion
Forgiveness
Yes, praise is befitting You for You do not give to me as I deserve.
But You gave me Jesus.
Oh wow, You gave me Jesus.
Your beauty is beyond words.
Your holiness is perfect.
and Your love is amazing.
Yes, Lord, Your love; for You are love.
Ohhhh,
I am at a lose for words as I meditate on You.
May even my groanings and sighings be praise befitting You.
Praise to You, oh Lord!
Praise to You!
Beautiful Jesus
We worship God because he sent Jesus to reveal His love and grace to sinful people through his death and resurrection. As you prepare to worship on this Lord’s Day, reflect on the beauty of Jesus; the glory that shines forth revealing the Father. Don’t enter your places of worship out of a sense of duty to one another, but because of what God has done through Jesus Christ. As the psalmist says, in Psalm 27:4, “One thing have I asked of the Lord, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in his temple.“
The following poem is dedicated to the beauty of Jesus…
Lord Jesus you are beautiful,
And your heart is full of mercy.
Your love is all encompassing,
Your compassion has no boundary.
Your presence gives me holy peace,
Your comfort soothes my broken heart.
I was weak, blind and oh so lost,
From you I’ll never be apart.
You shine forth the Father’s glory,
Your face glows brighter than the sun.
Your beauty takes my breath away,
And with you I am so undone.
I long to gaze upon your face,
And to bask in your loving glow.
Lord Jesus you are beautiful,
And its you that I want to know.
Help Me, Oh Lord My God!
“Help me, Oh Lord my God!
Save me according to your steadfast love.” (Psalm 109:26)
Help me Oh Lord my God!
Guide me with Your Holy Spirit.
Help me, Oh Lord my God!
Teach me to know Your ways.
Help me, Oh Lord my God!
Show me the path to follow.
Help me, Oh Lord my God!
I want to glorify You with my life.
As the psalmist cried out to You for help;
knowing his shortcomings;
knowing his failings;
knowing his sin;
I cry out to You.
I cry out to You for help that I may not be crushed by my sin.
Save me according to Your steadfast love,
For my faith is in Jesus.
I am weak.
I fall short.
I often turn from You.
If salvation were up to me, I would certainly be damned.
Please do not turn from me.
Please do not give to me as I deserve.
May Your grace shower me and drench me.
May I be caught up in Your river of Life;
sweeping me away in a torrent of Love.
“Help me, Oh Lord my God!
Save me according to your steadfast love.”
Arise and Give Thanks
Arise and give thanks unto the Lord,
For his mercies are new every day.
His love is wide.
His grace is abundant.
His faithfulness is unending.
His glory is radiant.
He is worthy of all praise,
Each and every second,
Each and every moment,
He is worthy.
Arise, oh believer, arise,
For New Life is yours through Jesus.
Arise, oh believer, arise,
Give thanks unto the Lord.
Help
I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? My help comes from the Lord , who made heaven and earth.
[Psalms 121:1-2 ESV]
We have family staying with us this weekend and because of that, my 4-year-old son has been displaced from his room and is sleeping in our room. He usually ends up with us in our bed each night but is not accustomed to starting in our room.
Anyway, an hour or so after he went down, my wife hears something upstairs – it’s our son, whimpering at the top of the stairs. She scopes him up and brings him back to our room. After a little while she returns downstairs saying that he wants daddy. I rush up there and he’s crying. I ask him if he’s scared and with a crying whimper he says, “Ye-e-s”. I laid down next to him and held him close. Within minutes he was out. All he needed was to know daddy was near.
“From where does my help come? My help comes from the Lord , who made heaven and earth.” Isn’t it nice to know that your heavenly Father is always there for you? You are never alone in the darkness. You are never alone in your fears. You are never alone in trials. You are never alone in tribulation. Cry out to Him and know your heavenly Father is there.
From where does your help come?
The Heart of a Pastor 