J * U * N * E

June 1

Ah, my Lord God. People accuse you of using them as pawns in the game of beating out Satan. People accuse you of having a life of ease in heaven while we do all the struggling here on earth.  Not so! You are always at work in the background keeping Satan away from us as much as we allow you to. You are always watching people follow Satan with artificial laughter as they destroy their lives and blame you for it. Do they not see? Do they not understand that you go through more pain and heartache than the world ever dreamed of as you watch us fall into Satan’s pit because they wouldn’t pay any attention to you, afraid you would ruin their fun. Oh, how you suffer for us, how you suffer for me. It boggles my mind to understand the love and passion you have for me. I must wear you out as you rush ahead of me and around me, trying to get me to turn back to you. Your grace is as high as the stars at the pinnacle of the universe. I worship you.

I know some people who love to quarrel when I am with them. I get drawn in. I know they are just setting me up by saying the opposite of what they know I believe. But I succumb to their temptations and begin defending what I believe. Solomon said not to answer a fool according to his folly.  Such people just say “jump” and those of us who step into their trap say, “How high?”. Slow me down Lord and help me change the subject or pray with them or walk away.

Thank you for your Bible so I don’t have to guess what you think, what you want, what you are like.  Thank you for solid words instead of fickle feelings. Jesus was your seeable word. Your Spirit is the readable word. You thought of everything to help my faith along.  And thank you for sunny mornings and color and breezes and birds singing. Oh beautiful, fresh mornings. Summer is almost here.

 

June 2

Your love, Oh God, is like the ocean.  When I need you the most, the tide moves in closer and refreshes my soul.  When it is time for me to work on an assignment from you to help people blaming you for their problems, the tide ebbs and moves out to tend to someone else.  Then, when I need refreshed by you, here comes the tide flowing in again. Just like clockwork. You are never far away.  I can always depend on you. You never change. You are from eternity to eternity.

Oh, Father when I catch myself not forgiving someone, I think about what it would be like for you to forgive me as often as I forgive others. Then there are my own sins. I am careful with my speech in front of a friend I respect.  So, why don’t I train myself to be careful with my speech in front of you whom I respect, and not give in to the way Satan wants me to talk. Help me always be aware that Satan wants me on his side and makes following him look so harmless.  Help me, Lord.

Thank you for being my example. Your feet walked a thousand miles back and forth across Palestine looking for people who needed you. Your hands touched a thousand people with diseases and frailties and handicaps and you healed them all. Your lips parted a thousand times to speak words of hope to people in the clutches of Satan who convinced them they were happy when they really weren’t, convinced them they were safe with him when they really weren’t, convinced them that God hated them when he really loved them beyond understand. In some ways I am those people. Yet you kept right on walking and touching and speaking. Thank you, my Lord.

 

June 3

You are the God of the beautiful to my senses, the magnificent to my heart, the awesome to my mind. You made me, and how I long to return to my Maker. Your hands formed me. Your breath brought life to my body. Your spirit made my soul eternal. When I die, I will only change worlds. When I die, I will enter into your wondrous eternal home and bask in the light of your love, the tenderness of your touch, the wonder of your very presence.

I am so afraid to confront when I think someone is offended by me. I am afraid they will get madder if I confront. So, I try to stay quiet and hope the offense will wither and die on its own. The few times I have confronted, everyone felt better. Sometimes they weren’t offended; I just thought they were. Forgive me for running away from my responsibilities.

Thank you, Lord God, for all you have done to save me from the punishment for my sins ~ hell, an eternal living death. An existence made everything Satan is when his masquerade is over. An existence with no light, no goodness, no patience, no love. A place with no walls of salvation, no streets to walk on, no foundations for a bottomless existence. An existence without God is horrid. You have prodded and poked mankind to lure us away from hell.  You do everything possible and keep us for yourself but so many believe Satan’s lies that you hate them. Your love is a tower than cannot collapse. It is a wall that cannot be penetrated. A fortress that cannot fall. How can I thank you?

 

June 4

Lord, you never forget me. You have so much to do in the universe to keep the stars in their heavens, the planets in their orbits, and the seas in their bounds. More, you are always thinking about me. I am always on your mind. You watch me and do all that is necessary to guide me, though you leave the choice up to me. You are so boundless in knowledge and wisdom, yet you respect my decisions ~ right or wrong. Even when my decisions are wrong, you do not interfere. You give me room to think and change my mind. I lift up my hands in praise to you. You are the Great God of the universe, Ruler of heaven & earth and King of my heart.

The other day there were some children shouting at each other in front of my house. And the terrible words that came out of their mouth, even adults should be embarrassed to say. But I got into a rate and yelled at them. Why did I do that? I should have offered each off them a cookie and sat them on my porch to teach them a song. Help me never be so full of rage, I am never really in control of my emotions. Better yet, help me eliminate rage from my life completely.

Your eyes were so sleepy on the day you were born. Ah, what a journey you had made. By the time the wise men found you, your eyes were big and wide and full of curiosity.  As you grew up, your eyes looked intently at what was around you and a vague memory approached of you having made it all. As a full-grown man, your eyes looked with pity on the sick, the crippled, the diseased, the handicapped and you healed them all. Then one day those eyes were filled with tears as you looked down from the cross at people bragging they were at last killing you. Those tears blended with your blood to fall on the hearts of mankind. I kneel before you, my tears mingling with yours.

 

June 5

I praise you God, enthroned in my heart. You are truth. Truth never changes. It is not a different truth for each person. That is opinion. Satan does not want anyone to see truth in anything, for he is the greatest liar in existence, having been that way from the very beginning. Satan favors chaos when no one understands what anyone else is doing or saying or intending. Truth is the pillar of all things good and right.  You never change. You are the same no matter how much I change. You are always good, always right, always there for me. In you I have my foundation and sure path through life. You are my destination. You are my destiny.

Lord, I saw something in the store I wanted. I did not have the money for it, but I bought it anyway. I did not need it, but I bought it anyway. I needed that money to pay a bill, but I bought it anyway. I must return to the store and hope they will take it back. Forgive me for being so rash.

Thank you for saving me from Satan’s eternal tortures. Thank you for the hope of heaven. What you offer me goes beyond what and who I have on earth. Though I may become destitute of possessions and friends, I will always have heaven. Though I lose my health, you will always be by my bedside. Even if one day my mind fades, you will still be in my heart.  Ah, my Lord Jesus, no matter what happens, I still will always have you.

 

June 6

My heart rushes to your heart, Oh God. I cannot bear the thought of being without you. I sigh at the thought of you. Sometimes I weep tears of loneliness. I have many friends and brothers and sisters in the family of God. But they are not the same. How I long to live in your heavenly realm and bask in your glory, the glory of my Maker. Though your light dawns on me every morning, I yearn for the true light of your presence. I worship you once again for, when you are near, it is always dawn.

Lord, I quoted an author the other day who said something I knew deep down was true. But I left it out because I didn’t like it. I robbed my listeners of the truth by my omission. Help me do what is right and leave my ego out of things. Forgive me, please.

Every day that I read your Word, I think of your promises, your assurances to always love me. They are ever with me. They make me confident through the day that you will protect and guide my every step. It would be so wonderful to walk with you as Adam and Eve did in the garden. I cling to your words that it will indeed happen someday. There you will give me a crown though I do not know why.  Are there a million other worlds out there for each of us to rule under you?  You declared idleness a sin. Or will you assign artists to paint rainbows and jewelers to form emeralds and musicians to composed great and wonderous songs to your glory?  Whatever it is, I will always praise you. The gratitude in my heart bursts like a sunrise.

 

June 7

I walk in your shadow, Lord, grateful to be as close as that to you. When I see you go in another direction, I try to stay with you. When I do not notice, you turn back, look for me, and bring me back to yourself. I walk in the shadow of your wings and you lift me up and let me soar with you.  Oh, glorious moments when my soul flies with yours. Someday…yes, someday…you will fling open the gates of heaven and we will be together forever. Great God, you are my soul.

Sometimes, Lord, I attack sin ruthlessly and, in the process, attack the sinner. Help me know where the fine line is so I do not run off someone who is thinking of changing. Help them understand it is not them that I hate.

The cross.  Oh, the cross you suffered on and died on. The cross made of wood. From it your soul cried out to the world, “Come to me. I look weak, but I am attacking Satan for you and will win.”  And so, I crawl to your cross, dare to look up, then touch your bloody feet. The feet that once walked the earth, the feet that once walked on water, the feet that walked out of a death cave. How can I thank you? It is so far above my ability. I will spend eternity trying to find new ways to exalt you.

 

June 8

I praise the God of glory, the God of my soul. When you are near, I reach up and touch rainbows. When you are near, my heart glows.  When you are near, I feel the breath of your comfort. Your hand touched the world and made it beautiful. Your hand touched the dust and made a man. Your hand touched my heart and made me your child. No gold or silver, no rubies or opals can buy your love. You made it free. Oh, God, you made it free.

Lord, help me let go of offenses. Sometimes my feelings are on my shoulder where they should not be. Take my feelings away and let others be there to feel love from me.

I praise the God of my parents, my grandparents, my ancestors of long ago. How lucky I am to have been born where people have Bibles. You were a bulwark to them, keeping them safe when they ran from the enemies of the cross. You were their shield when surrounded by egotistical religious leaders. You gave my ancestors fortitude to stand up and refuse to deny you. How courageous they were. How mighty you were to hold them up. Thank you, my mighty God.

 

June 9

I hear it! The anthem of angels praising God on high. My heart strives to join them. My soul leaps for joy at the thought of seeing you face to face as you are, and bowing before you. How long, Lord? How much longer will it be until my longing becomes a reality? As I wait, I sing my puny songs. Take them, Lord, and make them swell with radiance into refrains that grace your throne. May my songs soar through the universe and come back to me enriched by your laughter.

Father, sometimes I want my congregation to do a certain good work, then I become frustrated because they are not interested. Help me see that which is afire in my heart may not be in theirs. Help me do what I need to do alone. I do not need a committee. Help me willing to do my good works alone with you.

Ah, Lord God, thank you for being my friend. We share everything together ~ our joys and sorrows, our adventures, our quiet times. Sometimes we walk together and Plan tomorrow or bask in today. Though I am one of millions, you notice me and will go with me through tomorrow.  Thank you, Lord God.

 

June 10

Your love, God, is so far beyond my understanding, it knows no limits. Even after you become angry over some sin of mine, you become warm again, hoping this time I’ll love you in return.  Such one-sided love because you are Love.  Still, I offer you my paltry love and hope you will receive it as from a little one, for your child I am. Oh, and someday, Lord, may I sit on your lap?

Father, forgive me when I have trouble loving people who, not only do not love me back, but who do things to tear me down. Help me not take notice of what they do and see only the good in them. Help me bless those who curse me.

Thank you, my Lord, for all you have done and continue to do to save me from Satan and his lies. He makes sin so beautiful and wonderful and powerful and fun and amazing. He tells us, “How can anything so beautiful be wrong?”.  You so want me and everyone else in your heaven of safety. You never stop thinking about me. You keep trying to stay close even after I give up trying and return to Satan’s temptations. I am not worthy of such love. You love me anyway. I am weak and you are strong.  Stay strong for me, my Lord. Stay strong.

 

June 11

I praise and adore you, Jehovah God. I fear your power and justice, yet I am so grateful for it. With your justice, to take people out of my way who want me to believe Satan’s lies by calling good bad and bad good. Sometimes I believe them because they look so successful, so happy, so perfect. Eventually, I come to my senses and crawl back to you.  I cling to your mercy and compassion. You love me without reservation. It is your heaven you are inviting me to. It is your home you wish to share with me.  You made me, set me free, then invited me back home. I’m coming, Lord. I’m coming.

Forgive my selfishness, especially with my time.  I keep so much of it for myself.  I don’t want to interrupt my routine to reach out to someone else. Open my heart to others.

It is you who opened the gate for me to heaven and you did it from the cross.  I could never open the gate myself.  It is impossible. Oh, mighty Plan. Amazing strategy to defeat Satan as you did in a realm I cannot see. Fighting over us. Satan wanting to give us a living hell, you wanting to give us a glorious life beyond our imagination.  He tries to get people to blame you for all the bad he does. He tries to get people to think you don’t want them to have any fund. He tries to get people to think you hate them. Then he teases people and tells them they can go to heaven without reminding them that, if they didn’t like worshiping you on earth, they won’t like it in heaven. Thank you for making Satan back down.

 

June 12

Lord God, you are great beyond understanding. No matter how hard I try, I cannot comprehend you. But it is this that convinces me you are God. You keep my imagination intrigued, and I delight in the adventure of discovering more of you. Compared to you, I am small and insignificant. Compared to you, I am just a speck in a great sea of stars. Compared to you, I am but a small drop of water in a wide and deep ocean. But you love me still.

Lord, I waste my time in senseless activities. I watch too much television, I send out too many emails, I sleep too long, I eat too much. Help me find an activity that involves helping others and is so interesting to me that my time becomes your time.

Thank you, Jesus, for materializing and letting us actually see and hear you.  You showed me how to live and how to die. You are my example and more. What I could not possibly handle, you handled for me. What I could not comprehend, you understood for me. You overcame Satan, hell, and death for me. How can I thank you? I owe you my eternal life.

 

June 13

The more I look to you, my God, the dimmer this world becomes. The more I strain to be with you, the hazier with world and all its busyness seems. As I travel toward you, earth fades and heaven grows more in focus.  Life here becomes less important and all that heaven holds grows in magnitude. Each step I take draws me closer to you. Each path I take is smoother. Each breath is sweeter. And my view of home becomes clearer day by day.

Lord, I slandered someone the other day. I told something about that person that did not need repeating. I wanted to look as though I had the inside scoop on someone important and wanted the others to envy me. How egotistical. Forever me and help me keep things to myself.

I love you, God. And I fear you.  You have the power to save and to turn away.  After all, heaven is your home. You are not obligated to share it with anyone who wants in because they consider themselves “not so bad”. And, well, they prayed, but only when they wanted something.  And were bored worshipping you so would be in heaven. Such “not so bad” people would be so bored in heaven, they would turn it into another earth.  Thank you for keeping heaven a place of peace, excitement and wonder and never ever be bored.

 

June 14

I praise you, Jehovah God of the universe and God of my heart. You are above all things, below all things and in all things. Yet you live in my heart and speak to me in your Word ~ Jesus, your brainchild. You have poured out your heart to mankind in your Word. You have exposed your greatest desires, greatest disappointments, and greatest glory in your Bible.  You reign over the world, crowned with honor, truth, and love.

Someone told a joke about someone with a depraved mind killing off people and I laughed.  I was queasy listening to it and I could have walked away, but I didn’t. I laughed. It seared my conscience. Forgive me, Lord.

How can I thank you enough for your Bible? I read and learn, read and learn, and there is no end to it So amazing it all is ~ each sentence you breathed into it. It contains examples of every type of behavior and how to keep doing it or change.  It contains the answers to life’s questions. It is all I need or could ever hope for. It tells how much you love me and your patience when I walk away from you. It sings your praises and draws me back to you. I bow to you in gratitude.

 

June 15

I praise you, Jehovah, God of all things and people. You made us for your pleasure, for Love cannot stand to be alone. Love must have others to love. But pure love must give a choice to love in return and not be forced. You gave us choice, thus taking the chance we might reject you.  Ah, my Lord, little children love you because not too long before their birth, they beheld your face. May I be as the little child. May my eyes always twinkle, my lips grin wide, and my arms reach out for you. And when I my soul trips and falls sometimes in its hurry, may you reach down, wipe my tears away, hold me in your protective arms and kiss away my hurt.  Help me be like a trusting little child.  I am trying, Lord. I am trying.

Father, I fear being deserted but do not know why. I fear being alone but do not know why. Help me not bring about what I fear. Job in the Bible feared losing his wealth and family, and that is exactly what happened to him. I think, when I get involved in my work, I psychologically desert my loved ones. Forgive me and help me open my eyes and do what is right.

God, you went running after us when we sinned. You begged, “Come back! Come Back!” But we kept sinning. You said, “I’ll do anything. I’ll even send my Son to take your punishment and clear the way for you. Then we’ll be together again.  Come back! Come back to me!”  Then it was that I stopped and turned toward you. Your arms were opened wide for me. Such love I do not deserve.

 

June 16

I praise you, God of my heart, soul and mind, God of the Bible. You never leave me guessing. As in days of old, you judge my thoughts and actions and sometimes punish enough to make me realize how self-destructive I am being. I hear your voice and  turn around toward you. You call out to me. Sometimes I am stubborn, but you are even more so. Your patience and mercy fill in the gaps. So, sometimes when I wander in a wilderness of my own making, you call out to me, “I have the Water of Life. You do not have to be thirsty. I am the Way. You no longer have to wander.  I want you to walk with me. You do not have to be alone.”

Father, help me ask people how they are and then wait for more of an answer rather than just “fine”. Slow me down so I do not wander off before they have a chance to tell me how they really are.

I have freedom to walk down the street and ride down the highway in safety. I have gardens with food and flowers in abundance. I have time to work on my hobby. I have the Bible ~ Words of life  and love. I have the church and your friendship. What more can I ask?

 

June 17

God, you are my life, my heart, my soul. You have done so many stupendous and amazing things to save me from beautiful Satan grabs me in his trap before revealing what he really was. Nothing was too hard for you. You raised the dead back to life and thereby destroyed Death.  You are the light of my soul, my hope, my song. Your love is so high it reaches the stars which join in chorus to sing of your glory. Your love is so deep, the ocean waves dance in gladness at the sound of your voice.

Help me not ever be too presumptuous. When I share what and who you are with others, give me patience to say a little, then step back to give them room to think. Help me not think they should catch on the first time they hear something new from the Bible.

Jesus, you did so much for me ~ for us all.  You came to earth to suffer with me, though you didn’t have to.  I was rebelling against you, so you rolled up your sleeves and met me on my level. Only then did I fully understand you.  Only then would I let you lift me up with you and whisk me to heavenly safety. Thank you, Jesus, for such love. And it is summer. Thank you for summer.  We had a gentle summer rain yesterday and the flowers smiled.

 

June 18

Heaven stirs. The song comes near. Praise God from whom all blessings flow. Angel wings are heard then stilled.  Prayers rise from earth and soar to your majestic throne.  The mountains declare your glory and the ocean answers with a mighty roar.  Your love is like trees in a storm, bending but not breaking, and coming back stronger than ever. My praises break forth from my heart, dear Lord, in jubilation. The forests shiver in excitement and the tiniest creature answers with its tiny squeak.

Someone told me something the other day that was wrong and I corrected them.  It was of no importance whether a city is 100 miles away or 120 miles away. It is of no importance if his shirt was brown or tan. It is of no importance if gasoline was 2c more than someone else said. All I accomplish when I correct people like this is to stir up strife between us. Help me control my tongue.

It is dawn. The sun is shining today. We have had a lot of rain and that made the gardens happy. Now the sun is back, gleaming in a deep blue sky while cottony white clouds bounce here and there in satisfaction. Delightful serendipity, no matter what the heavens bring day by day, I thank you for that, and I smile.

 

June 19

Your love melts the hardest heart and chases away the worst sinful thoughts. Your love strengthens the weakest heart and makes it bold in the face of fear.  Your love shouts from the mountain tops in glistening white purity and spreads delight, wonder, and exultation to those willing to look up. You emerge from the depths of the oceans in face of storms, for nothing can hold you back. You reign from the heavens and are all glorious. Whatever I do, you are there. Whether I run or walk, you are there. Whether I work or rest, you are there. You are in my song and in my silence.

Someone asked me to help them convince a mutual friend to give them some money to help with a worthy project. I just cannot. This person has asked for money for a good work before and then spent it on himself. That is out-and-out swindling. Give me courage to confront this person and work with them to earn honest income.

There are so many things to thank you for, Lord God. If I began right now counting them all, I could not complete my list in a thousand years. You made a beautiful and fascinating world for me to live in. I do not know why it was important to make us in material fashion in a material world unless you wanted us to have daily reminders of you.  Indeed, you are in everything I see, hear, touch and sense. Even then, the world cannot contain you.  What I can see and touch, that I thank you for. And for the wonders I am yet to behold, I bow in gratitude.

 

June 20

The stars join together in rapturous chords to sing your praises from galaxy to galaxy. The planets echo their song. It spirals down to the mountain tops. The mountains tremble and the song soars upward until it penetrates worlds and rests at last at your throne. Though there be hundreds of billions of galaxies, the worlds cannot praise you enough, nor can my heart.

The clerk at the store gave too much change.  I know it wasn’t much, but I did not have a right to keep it.  I must return to the store tomorrow and give the extra back. And I didn’t get my credit card paid last month and won’t be able to this month either. It’s not just the card not paid, but those merchants that sold things to me ~ they’re the ones who I am not paying. I have stolen their merchandise from them. Lord, open my eyes to the things I do that are actually stealing.

I thank you, God, because you never change. No matter how much people change, you stay the same. You never allow anyone to pressure you to give in to us or become like us to ease our consciences.  If you changed, there would be no such thing as truth. If you changed there would be no such thing as love.  If you changed, we could not be saved from Satan and his world. Your love is stubborn, immovable, persevering. You will stand in the universe and among the worlds tall and strong, exalted and majestic. Thank you for never changing.

 

June 21

It is nearly Sunday, the morning nearly 2000 years ago that you rose up out of your grave to live again forever. Oh, glorious day! Oh, mighty day! Day unforgettable! How amazing. Your work was done. The hardest part was at the end. But you did it. You overcame Death for me. You overcame Satan for me. You paid that terrible ransom he had demanded ~ the death of God. Then you fooled him and came back to life because you are life. It is impossible to kill life.  Why doesn’t Satan give up? He knows he has lost but will not admit it.  So, I march on with you, fighting selfishness so that pure love will be all that is left. With you is all mighty, all glory, all majesty. I worship you.

 

 

Forgive me when I want to demand what is mine that someone borrowed from me or took from me. Help me leave it in your hands. It is not for me to punish or demand, I know. But it is so hard to do. Help me keep my thoughts and words to myself and move on.

I thank you, God, for your sense of justice. You do not punish because you like doing it. You punish to help me realize the seriousness of my thoughts and deeds. You punish to avenge the hurt I caused good people trying to do right. But you do not punish forever. You punish, then wait for me to return to you. You punish to stop me in my tracks, take a hard look at myself, and make changes. Your punishment is like walking on sand; as soon as I take another step, the previous step has already begun refilling with sand. Punishment is just momentary until I stop, turn, and move over onto the solid rock of faith in you.  There, I see myself as I am and hurry to walk in your footsteps that are embedded deep so I can always find you. I never thought I’d say this, but thank you for punishing me when I need it. How you love. How you love.

 

June 22

You, God, are the only God. There was none before you and can never be another. None higher or lower. You are self-existent. The child was born ~a Son ~ and he was called everlasting Father, mighty God. What a thought. What a concept. What a resounding declaration. You are the First Cause of all things that exist. You are the fountainhead of every movement. You are the Great Will that the world submits to save itself from being void. Without you there is no order, no cause, no truth, no good, no life. I will praise you alone. I will praise you to my friends. I will praise you to strangers around the world, great and small. To you belongs all honor, glory and majesty.

Father, I am facing bitterness again. I want to think well of everyone, but cannot always do it. When someone insults me, help me bless.  When someone takes advantage of me, help me bless. When someone lies to me or betrays me, help me bless.

God, I have been materially blessed with a decent home to live in and reliable transportation. I have been spiritually blessed with your Bible that pours out your thoughts and exposes your heart. The church here is loving. I have good neighbors. I have a vegetable garden. Flowers too. The sun is shining. It is summer. Thank you.

 

June 23

God, you are the same always. No matter how low I feel, you remain stable. No matter how tempted I am to sin by attitude or actions, you do not budge. You reserve judgment for yourself of both my friends and my enemies so I don’t have to judge.  Your judgment is true ~ always true ~ and tempered with mercy. Great is your wisdom, great is your name in all the world and in my heart. I rise up and bless you in the morning and at the end of day.

There is someone who is trying to take everything from me and I feel so betrayed. Sometimes I want to get even, but how could I without destroying myself? Make this situation go away. And in the meantime, help me take my mind off of it, turn my thoughts to others and remember that I always have you.

Ah, my Lord, I am depressed this morning.  It is hard to find things to thank you for. Thank you for your patience when I get down. When I cry, your tender embrace helps. I turn to your Bible and read the Psalms of rejoicing and that lifts me up. You help me let go of the earthly and dream of heaven. Peace. The thoughts of peace are so warm. I shall take a walk today and thank you for all the delights you have given my little part of the world ~ the trees, flowers, butterflies, blue skies, sunshine, gentle breezes. Thank you for this beautiful world. And love. Thank you for it all.

 

June 24

The beauty of the earth and the glory of the skies declare praises to you. Each hour holds a special wonder of you, each day a throng of delights to carry me through the night. You are my courage amid fear, my expectations amid disappointment, my audacity amid timidity, my hope among doubt. You are my light through the darkness, my path through the wilderness, my life through danger. May your name be proclaimed by children, declared to be true by atheists, lauded by the world. Arise, oh universe! Praise the God of all things and of your very existence!

Lord, I put myself in danger by walking in the dark too long. My friends became worried about me and sent search parties out for me. I was okay but only because you protected me. Because of my thoughtless behavior, I inconvenienced all those people who had to leave the comfort of their homes and walk through that same darkness to find me.  I am so sorry. I was thoughtless.

Thank you for your church, your family. You set it up so perfectly. Congregations of your family here and others there all around the world.  Each congregation survives because you teach us to love one another and overlook intentional and unintentional mistakes. Brothers and sisters hand in hand, praying for each other, eating glad meals with each other, worshipping you together.  Always there with a smile and a sigh, always there with laughter and tears, always together. Always your children, always a part of your family.  Even when we travel and meet people in other parts of the world, we instantly have an immediate love whether it be to Asia or South America, Europe, or New Zealand, the Middle East or North America, Africa or one of earth’s poles. Where ever we find each other, we are still family. You are our Father and forever will be.

 

June 25

You are my God and the only God. You give life, you radiate love, you judge rightly, you bestow mercy.  I lift up my spirit, my heart, my soul to you.  I will sing my praises to you through each day of my life no matter how difficult Satan may try to make it and no matter how short or long I live.  I will sing your praises on and on. I will still be singing when I close my eyes here and walk through the gate into your realm. There I will lift my voice in highest praise, then bow at your feet in delirious exultation and sacred peace.

Lord, there are people resenting me. I do not know why and I want to reverse it so we can be friends. They do not want to reverse it, no matter what I try. Lord, open their hearts and help me keep my heart open. Help me not grow bitter but to bless them and somehow break through their barrier.

Thank you, God, for the friends who came to see me moments ago. You hear my weakest plea. You hear me when I am down and when I am flying high in jubilation. You hear me in my sunset moments, on cloudy days, in darkness and the shadows of a late dawn.  Though there are millions of souls asking for your attention at the same time, you hear us all and come to us all as though each was the only one.  How do you do that? You are God; that is how. And you love me. With my mind, my heart, and my soul I thank you.

 

June 26

I praise you, God, for your everlasting love. It never fades away. It never ceases no matter how bad I may become. You run after me and say, “Come back!  Come back to me.” No matter how many times I wander, you never tire of running after me. Your love is beyond comprehension.  I do not deserve you. But you love me still. How amazing, and how lofty the thought. I adore you.

Lord, I realize forgiveness doesn’t mean I approve of what someone did. It means I wish the best for the offender and hand them over to you. I know that. But sometimes my ego gets in the way and I relive the offense over and over. Help me remember you forgive me of the same things over and over. I hurt you over and over but you keep forgiving over and over. Dare I do less?

Thank you for the gentle summer rain for the flower gardens and summer crops. The cool breeze on a hot day. Thank you most of all for coming to my world to save me from Satan’s realm.  How can I stop thanking you? Your home someday will be my home. Even now, your heart and mind become my heart as much as I can comprehend. You draw me near to yourself, you teach me through your Bible what to do and not do, you invite me to become one with you. Me? Lowly m?. Thank you.

 

June 27

All praises belong to you, Jehovah my Maker, Creator of my soul, the re-Creator of my life. You are astonishing in everything you do. When I call out for help, your chariot races through the storms to rescue me. You are my fortress walled about with salvation. You are my shield between me and danger. At last there is peace once again in my life. Peace that flows like a gentle stream. My every breath whispers your praise and rises to storehouses of white clouds. My every sigh soars through the heavens to your throne and rests in you.

Father, I am confused living in a place with no church family. It is hard. Sometimes I feel as though I am the only one in the world who believes in you and worships you. My confusion grows to discouragement then on to bitterness. Forgive me and make me strong in your strength.

Thank you, God for loving me and being willing to fling my sins off me and trample them underfoot. And the legacy of my family. Thank you for my uncle becoming a Christian so long ago, then converting my grandparents, then my parents and aunts and uncles, and now me. May I leave such a legacy behind for generations after me. The lives of my ancestors were not perfect, but their affection for you was. Ah, how mighty you are and how grateful I am for them. Your Family will never die because it can never die. You are life and the light of my soul.

 

June 28

So powerful you are, Oh, God. There is nothing you cannot do for anyone except for those who refuse your help and refuse to even believe you exist. How you must weep for them. “I’m right here,” you say to them in a million different ways. How you rejoice over those who give in your love and guidance.  Your wisdom is so far above me ~ as far above me as mine is above the animals. Your powers to create are so far above mine ~ as far above us as mine is above the animals.  Animals cannot comprehend what I understand and can do, and I cannot comprehend what you understand and can do. Just observing a telescopic view of hundreds of billions of galaxies boggles my mind because you are so much greater than that. I am less than a spec and yet you notice me, know my name, know my every act and thought, and you actually love me. Magnificent God resplendent in glory, I worship you.

Lord, help me be content with nothing if my possessions are ever taken from me by people or storm or flood or fire. I fear that right now and I know I shouldn’t. I know I should be content under any circumstance. Take that fear from me and forgive me.

Thank you, my Father, for bringing Jesus back to life this morning two thousand years ago ~ the turning point for mankind. Now we knew for sure it was possible to come back to life after we die and live forever in the heavens. Now we understood so many things. We had seen for ourselves. Such power. Such potency. Such intensity of the divine.

 

June 29

I adore you, God. I look up to you in awe that you, my Creator, allow me up so close to you. I am frail. I am feeble. I am made of dust. But you breathed into me the breath of life. Just think!  I have the breath of God in me.  Oh, miracle of miracles! I will return that breath to you in songs of praise. With that same breath I will extol you to the end of my days on earth, and then resume in your world before your throne forever.  As small as I am, you take time to know me ~ the good and the bad ~ and love me still, and make me your friend. More, you have made me your child. Wonder of wonders.

Lord, I still have trouble forgiving sometimes. The only way I can think to overcome it is to “bless those who curse me” as you said. Your way works. I know that. Help me remember to do it. I have to force myself to bless them, but when I do, I feel a release. Forgive me when I don’t forgive.

Thank you, Lord God, for times of worshipping with my brothers and sisters in Christ. Thank you for freedom to worship you. Thank you for your protection. Nothing can hurt me without your permission. And when sometimes I am persecuted, thank you for the privilege of standing tall, forgiving my persecutors, and declaring your majestic divinity before them. And, should I die at their hands, let it be while praising you.

 

June 30

All praises belong to you, my Lord and my God, for your intelligence and wisdom. You put together this whole material world. What I learn about this world you created helps me understand better your spiritual world. What I learn about life in this world helps me understand true life in your world. How awesome and amazing it all is.  How awesome and amazing you are. More than I can grasp but tantalizing and testing me to try.  And you smile. It is what you planned for me to do. You wanted me to touch you.

Father, when I lie or cheat or steal or break the law, I am being ungodly. When I am jealous or bitter or impatient, I am being ungodly. Oh, help me overcome my frailties, my sins.

I have been studying the Bible with some people who just now called and canceled it. Thank you for that. They live too far away. I must go somewhere closer to my home. A nursing home perhaps. There are people there with nothing to do who would welcome time with friends in the Bible. Thank you for that thought.  And it rained a little bit last night. The night before the sky was so clear with no moon and the stars glistened like diamonds. Oh, the enchantments you bring with the changes in the sky, each good in their own way. Storm clouds, rainbows, funny-shaped clouds, sunsets and sunrises. Ah, my Lord, thank you.