Dear Heavenly Father, thank You for the urgent reminder that we need to present ourselves to You. Thank You for reminding us that we need to please You. We are prone to please ourselves. Please help us to sacrifice our own wishes and cling to Yours. Please help us to fight the lure of the world and allow You to transform us into the image of Christ. We need Your help.
I pray this in Jesus’ name.
God is so good.
Dear Heavenly Father, thank You for giving us Your words. Thank You for telling the Israelites to fix Your words in their mind and beings. Thank You for the physical imagery of keeping them close. Thank You for reminding us in 2 Timothy 3:16-17 that, “All Scripture is inspired by God and beneficial for teaching, for rebuke, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man or woman of God may be fully capable, equipped for every good work.”
We know that Your word is important, but it can be too easy to put it aside for easier, short-term pleasures. Please help us to prioritize the importance of the Bible and “fix Your words into our minds and beings.” There is nothing more important.
I pray this in Jesus’ name.
God is so good.
Dear Heavenly Father, thank You for Your perfect example of faithfulness. Please help us to remember that You value faithfulness in the small things as well as the big. We need Your help in all things. Please help us to see our dishonesty and make corrections. Faithfulness honors You and we want to glorify Your name.
I pray this in Jesus’ name.
God is so good.
Dear Heavenly Father, there is so much going on in the world around us. We need to stand firm in the faith You have given to us. We need maturity and strength to keep going. Please help us to be motivated by love. We need Your guidance to know how Your love should drive our behavior. We know Your Word is a powerful tool, please help us to read and study it to drive our maturing love.
I pray this in Jesus’ name.
God is so good.
Dear Heavenly Father, we often do not have endurance to continue the race. Thank You for the “cloud of witnesses” You tell us about in Your Word. Please help us to remove the obstacles that get in the way of running the race You have chosen for us. Please remind us to look to Jesus who started and perfects the faith. Thank You that Jesus endured the horrors of death on a cross for us. He deserves to sit “at the right hand of the throne of God”.
I pray this in Jesus’ name.
God is so good.
I want to keep working on praying passages of Scripture. I know that we need to keep biblical principle in mind when we pray, but God gives us words that we can say in talking to Him. This passage shares what the apostle Paul was praying for the Philippian believers. I want to pray the same thing for the believers I know.
Dear Heavenly Father, please help us to continue to learn Your word to increase our love for You and others. Please guide us in wisdom so we can make the best choices to honor You and be “pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ to the glory and praise of God.”
I pray this in Jesus’ name.
God is so good.
I think this part of God’s will is often considered the same thing as suffering. Government overreach can be difficult to navigate. However, God tells us that we are to obey the government. The reason is to keep foolish people silent. Those who hate God want to silence those who seek to honor God. If we live appropriately, we will silence the critics. They will have nothing to say against us.
This can be hard to do, but is worth the effort. Those of us who have trusted in Jesus Christ have help from God to obey. He gives the strength needed to do what is right.
Dear Heavenly Father, thank You for providing authority to punish the evil. Please help us to obey the authority even when it is hard. Please help us to remember that You have a purpose for our obedience. We need Your strength to obey.
I pray this in Jesus’ name.
God is so good.
Too many times we want details about God’s will. What job should I have? Whom should I marry? What car should I buy? The Bible doesn’t go into the detail we tend to want. God does give us principles to use when asking those questions. One of the principles is to be filled with the Spirit. When a person trusts in Jesus Christ for salvation from sin, the Holy Spirit comes to dwell in us. The verb in this passage is passive. This isn’t something we do – although we can fight against the Holy Spirit’s work. Our passage today tells us that we need to walk in wisdom understanding God’s will.
This is one passage out of many that gives principles to follow when looking for God’s will. We need to keep searching Scripture to understand what God wants for our lives. Our decisions need to be driven by the work of the Holy Spirit, not our selfish desires. God’s way is always better.
Dear Heavenly Father, thank You for giving us direction about Your will. Please help us to allow the work of the Holy Spirit so we can be wise. We need Your help.
I pray this in Jesus’ name.
God is so good.
As we get full swing into 2025, I want to remember that there is work to do. God tells us to be diligent. The Bible tells us how to be “approved to God”. We need to work towards that goal.
Dear Heavenly Father, thank You for the instruction and encouragement You give us in Your Word. Please help us to obey what You have commanded. There is nothing better.
I pray this in Jesus’ name.
God is so good.
Pleading in Prayer 