Holy God,
You are Lord almighty.
You are my Shepherd and Guide.
You are my Rock and Refuge.
You are by my side.
You have redeemed me.
I am alive.
You have saved me.
Your love You don’t deprive
You’re worthy of all praise.
You’re worthy of all worship.
My soul has been renewed.
Your Spirit in me, please stir up.
You give Life.
You give peace.
You give hope.
Your love will never cease.
So You sent Jesus,
My Lord and King.
He is my Savior.
What a beautiful ring.
I am Yours.
And You are mine.
Fill my heart,
For with You I want to be aligned.
Prayer
Open
Open the eyes of my heart that I may see and respond.
Open the eyes of my heart to see the hurts of others.
Open the eyes of my heart that I may join You in mission.
Open the eyes of my heart that I may bring You glory.
All that You want me to do is clear – if only I would see.
All that I am to say is clear – if only I would listen to Your Spirit.
Opportunities abound.
Hurts are all around.
People are lost.
People are searching.
Open my eyes that I may lead them to know they are found.
May I not stall.
May I not turn away.
May I not give excuses.
May I not seek my own way.
Open the eyes of my heart that I may see You and follow You –
Anywhere and everywhere.
Open, oh Lord, open.
Open the eyes of my heart.
Amen!
Life
Life is fragile and delicate.
Life is valuable and precious.
Only You, Lord, can be entrusted with it.
Only Your mighty and gentle hands can handle it.
But even though these fragile shells – shells that we call a body – will eventually crack, it doesn’t mean that You are careless.
These bodies are precious, from the moment we are conceived, but there is something even more precious, that which Jesus died to save –
my soul.
That’s what’s in Your hands forever.
I hate to see shells
crack,
die
and decay
but I praise You that which is inside is perfectly safe and sound in Your mighty and gentle hands.
My life is precious.
My life is saved.
All praise be to You through Christ Jesus my Lord.
Amen.
Morning Glory
I wrote the last stanza of this poem yesterday morning as a short prayer as I prepared for worship. This morning, I share it with you – with a couple more stanzas. To God be the glory!
Hold me with Your grace.
Bring me from disgrace.
My sins please erase.
For Your glory!
For Your glory!
Hear me when I pray.
Each and every day.
With You I want to stay.
In Your glory!
In Your glory!
Jesus is my King.
What an awesome ring.
My heart will loudly sing.
Your great glory!
Your great glory!
Bless me as I preach.
Guide me as I teach.
Many souls may I reach.
To Your glory!
To Your glory!
Doer
The preaching text for today is James 1:19-27 as I continue working through the Epistle of James. The following is the Holy Communion liturgy I wrote with this James text in mind and heart. To God be the glory.
It is indeed right and salutary that we should at all times and in all places give thanks and praise to you, oh God, for You and You alone are worthy. But words are not enough to fully express our worship, and so may we not get caught up in only spouting off words of doctrine – falling into complacency – but may we also be doers of the Word. May we control our tongues, care for the vulnerable and be holy as you are holy. Oh Lord our God, Creator and Redeemer, Shepherd and Fortress, our hope and salvation. You call us to action and thus grant us Your Spirit that we may respond and so glorify You. And so with the church on earth and the hosts of heaven we join in singing Your unending praise.
Never Alone
Have you ever felt discouraged, attacked, beaten down, driven away like chaff or defeated? Have you ever felt like running away, hiding or curling up into a ball to wait out what’s afflicting you? Have you ever felt alone, lost or hopeless? Have you ever wondered if God actually cares? Have you ever wondered if God really knows what is going on or is doing what He said He would do? Well, you are not alone – and in more ways than one. First of all, you are not the only one to feel this way and second, you are never alone. God, your Shepherd, is always watching His sheep – He is always watching over you. Satan may get his punches in, but Satan will never remove and devour the sheep of the Shepherd, our God through Jesus Christ. And so, raise your voice to the Shepherd, but know – you are never alone, and Satan will never win.
Satan is on the prowl,
Looking to devour,
And I feel so defenseless.
He bites and scratches,
Wounds are appearing,
Injuries sustained,
Energy is draining.
And there is nothing I can do to stop him.
Hopelessness is his goal.
Lostness is his desire.
Oh God, come and rescue me.
Smash out his teeth,
Destroy his goals,
Slay the lion,
Leave him defeated.
Oh my Shepherd,
Keep me close to You,
May Your rod and staff comfort me,
Lead me through this dark valley,
May I once again see green pastures and still waters,
As You lead me in Your path of righteousness;
Healing and restoring my soul.
Satan is on the prowl, but YOU, oh God, are my Shepherd.
And thus, I am yours,
In Your house dwelling,
Forever and ever to worship You.
Amen.
Abundant Wisdom
1 Timothy 2:1–4 (ESV) ~ First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.
James 1:5 (ESV) ~ If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.
Oh God of all wisdom,
Wisdom seems to be in short supply,
But people stepping up to the microphone are abundant.
People raise themselves up to be leaders.
People raise others up to be leaders.
But rarely is it considered: Are they wise?
Rather, what is considered are qualities that are flawed and fleeting:
Appearance
Power
Money
Intelligence
Ability to make people feel certain things
Ability to manipulate words.
But wisdom, oh wisdom, is in short supply.
Without wisdom, we can not lead Your people to fear you – to live peacefully.
Oh God, You give generously to those who ask for wisdom.
Oh God, I now ask that you may give wisdom generously to:
Our president
Lawmakers on every level
Judges
Lobbyists
Teachers
Law enforcement
Media professionals
And so on and on…
And, oh God, I ask for wisdom for myself.
May I be a wise leader:
in my family
in my church
in my community
May I strive to glorify you and be obedient.
Oh God, wisdom is indeed in short supply, but not with You. So please give generously out of Your infinite supply that we may lead peaceful lives glorifying You. I don’t ask for my glory or for my comfort but for Your glory.
Oh God of wisdom, please give generously – please give generously.
Through Jesus Christ my Lord I pray,
Amen.
Creation Chorus
As the morning sun rises above the horizon, shining it’s life-giving light for the world to see, may my rising this morning shine the glory of your love and grace.
As the birds sing their beautiful song, filling the air with joy and peace, may I sing Your praises of joy and peace that comes only through Jesus my Lord.
As the flowers open to receive the sun’s light, soaking up every ray, may my heart be open to receive Your Word, soaking up every promise.
As Your creation is faithful in returning praise to You, may I not cease to worship You and thus be put to shame by the rocks crying out.
And so, as this new day begins, fill me with Your Spirit that I may join the creation chorus as we joyously sing Your praise in beautiful harmony.
To You be the glory, oh God, this day and always.
Amen.
Praying the Psalms ~ The List
Let’s keep the list going. Can you add to it?
“Praise the Lord! Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever! Who can utter the mighty deeds of the Lord, or declare all his praise?” [Psalms 106:1-2 ESV]
Who can utter Your mighty deeds, Oh Lord?
Who can declare all your praise?
I will certainly try but my list will be far from complete.
For Your deeds are numerous and Your faithfulness unending.
Your love endures forever and Your might is unmatched.
You created all that I can and can not see.
Your creation is a thing of beauty.
Your wonders never cease.
You formed me from within my mother’s womb – I came forth from You.
You breathed life into me.
You declared all life to be precious.
Though a sinner You gave me Jesus.
Though a sinner You gave me Your Spirit.
Thus, I will live with You.
You raise up the lowly.
You humble the proud.
Hand in hand, we will stand before You in worship.
You have defeated all Your enemies.
You have subdued them all.
You have chased away my fear.
Oh God,
You are worthy of my worship.
You are worthy of all honor.
You are my God.
You are always with me – never have You departed.
You are always true – never have You been deceptive.
You are always holy – never to be corrupted.
You are.
Oh Lord, this is but a minuscule list – so much more can be said.
And so I will continue to praise and give You thanks, for Your steadfast love endures forever and ever.
Amen.
Being Built Up
This is the liturgy I wrote for Holy Communion today based on the preaching text, James 1:1-18. To God be the glory…
It is indeed right and salutary that we should at all times and in all places give thanks and praise to you, oh God, for, of Your own will You brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of first fruits of Your creatures. (James 1:18) You brought us forth through Jesus Christ and thus You have promised to bring us to completion and place on our head the crown of life. You put us through trials in order build us up that we may remember who we are and whose we are – becoming more and more Christ-like. You do not desire our destruction but rather our salvation. May our endurance bring You the glory that You rightly deserve. And so, with the Church on earth – redeemed sinners through the blood of the lamb – and the hosts of heaven, we join in singing Your unending praise.
The Heart of a Pastor 