Kingdom come

The whole earth will know his true greatness... ~ Micah 5:4 (CEV)

Come and set up your kingdom. ~ Matthew 6:10 (CEV)

Lord,

THANKS: We are waiting for the time when the whole earth will be engulfed in your kingdom. We look forward to a world defined by your justice, compassion, mercy, and sacrifice. Thank you for that future -- even as it starts to unfold now.

REGRETS: I'm too attached to the kingdom of the world -- the ways and things which currently define how things work. 

INTERCESSION: I need to fully give up my attachments to everything except you and your kingdom. I need help doing that.

PURPOSE: I'm going to be a part of the kingdom that you are establishing across all of your creation.

Amen.

The highest knowledge

The 22nd Sunday after Pentecost

Foolish people say in their hearts, “There is no God.” ~ Psalm 14:1 (NIRV)

Eternal life is to know you, the only true God, and to know Jesus Christ, the one you sent. ~ John 17:3 (CEV)

Lord, you exist. You are the one true God. I have no trouble saying that. But too often I make decisions just as though you don't exist. I decide things based on what feels right or what pleases the people who are important to me. I act as though you are not there. But I am eager to correct that fault in me. I know that I can't change apart from you. Help me to know you even more deeply -- even if it is uncomfortable at times -- even if knowing Christ means that others will disapprove of what I'm doing. The highest and most important knowledge is to know you and your Son, Jesus Christ. Amen.

Powerful Word

In your own days, household of rebels, I speak a word and make it happen. This is what the Lord God says! ~ Ezekiel 12:25 (CEB)

We didn’t repeat crafty myths when we told you about the powerful coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Quite the contrary, we witnessed his majesty with our own eyes. ~ 2 Peter 1:16 (CEB)

Lord,

THANKS: I am grateful for the powerful way that you continue to make yourself present among us. I realize that the significance of your presence will only grow and that there will be judgment. We will once again witness your majesty with our own eyes.

REGRETS: I don't always live like I believe that there is judgment coming. I am short-sighted and I tend to focus only on the immediate.

INTERCESSION: Expand my vision. Help me to take your future coming even more seriously than I do.

PURPOSE: I'm going to live as though the future is now.

Amen.

Living Water

My people have sinned twice. They have deserted me, even though I am the spring of water that gives life. And they have dug their own wells. But those wells are broken. They can’t hold any water. ~ Jeremiah 2:13 (NIRV)

“Sir,” the woman said, “you don’t even have a bucket, and the well is deep. Where are you going to get this life-giving water? ~ John 4:11 (CEV)

Generous God, you fill our buckets with clean drinking water. And I'm not just talking about the kind of water that is in a river or falls from the sky as rain. That kind of water is wonderful. But you also give us the spiritual water that takes care of our thirst for you. I admit that I don't drink as much water as I should. So, please continue to invite me -- to remind me to drink deeply of the water that Jesus gives. I want to become a physically and spiritually healthy person. Amen.