the common and the sacred

 Thursday, October 22, 2026 (4:39 a.m.)

Good morning Blessed God,

Mm. Yes. Morning. Good. God. Blessed.

How truly I thank You Lord. You continue teaching me the importance of thanks and praise. Entering gates and courtyards (Psalm 100:4).

(5:18 a.m.)

Father, thank You for time to sit and read about Your tabernacle.

(7:11 a.m.)

Thank You for a phone call interruption. An opportunity to share thoughts and wonders. Some concerns. As well as many thanks and praises.

Yes Lord. I want to get into the habit of being far more aware of the gratitude and admiration I have of and for You. Keeping in mind Your goodness (Psalm 145:7). Your grace (v. 8). Your glorious (5) greatness (6).

Mm. Thanksgiving and praise. Yes! 

Entering Your gates and going into Your courtyards with thanks and praise takes on a whole new meaning for me now that I have seen drawings of how they would have looked.

Father, thank You for this opportunity to look past what I’ve often imagined. Digging just a little deeper into what Your Word represents. A design meant to separate the common from the sacred.

I confess to the various inaccurate thoughts I’ve had concerning You through the years. Just when I begin to think I have a degree of better understanding about You and all You have done, I realize that’s just me (common) attempting to put You (Sacred) into a box of my own comprehension.

Thank You that it can never be done! You will always be God. 

According to Psalm 23:6, “I am sure that You will always be good to me. You will love me all the days of my life. That will never change. I will live in the LORD’s house for as long as I live” (EasyEnglish Bible). Father, I ask (Matthew 7:7) this to be absolutely true for me.

Do all You must to keep me leaving the common for the sacred. Entering Your gates and going into Your courtyards. Thanking and praising.

I love, need, trust and want You Lord. Use me as You know is best. Amen.

(355 words ~ 7:51 a.m.)

blessing the Lord

Wednesday, October 21, 2026 (4:36 a.m.)

Beautiful morning Lord,

Thank You. Praise You.

♪We got dust on our Bibles, brand-new iPhones

No wonder why we feel this way♪

(Dusty Bibles)

Thank You Father. Yes. Thank You.

The Message for Psalm 100:4. “Enter with the password: ‘Thank You!’ Make yourself at home, talking praise. Thank Him. Worship Him.” Can our life with You really be that easy?

“Thank Him. Worship Him.”

(5:13 a.m.)

It reads so simply! Evangelical Heritage Version expands on it just a little. And the next thing I know I’m singing a different song.

“Give thanks to Him and bless His name.”

You absolutely astound me Lord! I’m never sure if the songs come before the Bible verse. Oh how I delight when they come together! Thank You.

Yes. Thank You that ♪Bless the Lord, O my soul, O my soul Worship His holy name Sing like never before, O my soul I’ll worship Your holy name♪ takes me straight to wondering. How do we bless You?

A thesaurus says: praise, worship, glorify, honor, exalt, adore… Teach me more Dear Lord.

♪The sun comes up, it’s a new day dawning

It’s time to sing Your song again

Whatever may pass and whatever lies before me

Let me be singing when the evening comes♪

(10,000 Reasons)

One writer (C.A. Keller) said that blessing You is an “expression of praising thankfulness… exclamation of gratitude and admiration."

John Piper added, “... to bless God means to recognize His great richness, strength, and gracious bounty and to express our gratitude and delight in seeing and experiencing it.”

Thank You Father for the blessings You continuously provide us. Empower and embolden me in using them well.

Do all You must dear Lord that I serve and represent You as You know is best. I love, need, trust and want You. Thank You. Praise You. Amen.

 (318 words ~ 6:35 a.m.)

learning more

Tuesday, October 20, 2026 (5:25 a.m.)

Holy God,

Good morning. And thank You. There are new things for me to learn. I’m asking (Matthew 7:7) You to make me ready, willing and able.

While learning more, I want to keep my focus on You. Looking to You to guide and guard my thoughts, words and actions.

Father, I love, need, trust and want You as my end-all and be-all.

(5:57 a.m.)

Take even that phrase for example. I’d not explored its origins (William Shakespeare’s MacBeth) before. Nor its true meaning… the single most important. Alpha and Omega. Beginning and end.

Blessed God, thank You for opening my heart, soul, mind and strength to not only include You, but to want You first. And foremost! Above all. 

Thank You for leading me just now to the book of Revelation. Not my usual landing. Most perfect at the moment. Thank You Lord.

Urging us to cling to Jesus. And to do what is known to be right. Thank You that You are our Source of hope (Romans 15:13a). Providing Your grace and peace. You always were and are still to come (Revelation 1:4b).

♪Forever God is faithful

Forever God is strong

Forever God is with us

Forever♪

Praise You Lord for being “the Alpha and Omega - the beginning and the end… the one who is, always was, and is yet to come - the Almighty One” (Revelations 1:8).

You know how this day [which You have made (Psalm 118:24a)] is to go. Empower and embolden me to “rejoice and be glad in it” (v. 24b).

Do all You must in using me as only You know is best. Thank You. Praise You. Amen.

(289 words ~ 6:36 a.m.)

thanks and praise

 Monday, October 19, 2026 (4:20 a.m.)

Thank You Father. Praise You God.

Thanks and praise. That’s how we are to enter Your gates and courts (Psalm 100:4). Teach me more, please.

Genuine gratitude and worship. Speaking well of You. Honoring Your reputation. And humbly acknowledging Your authority as Creator and King instead of taking Your goodness for granted.

Father, there is so much to learn. Especially when we take the time to look to You and ask.

Yes, Lord. I’m asking (Matthew 7:7) You to continue Your work in making me truly Yours. Start to finish. One who represents You well. 

In all my humanness. With all my faults and foibles. You are helping me come in to the place of loving and accepting myself. Rather than the harsh criticism with which I am most familiar.

Can it all be as simple as thanking and praising? I want very much to experiment with this today.

Lord God, You absolutely know what is best. Thank You that You do.

(4:50 a.m.)

As I prepare to get started with this day [which You have made (Psalm 118:24a)] I am again looking to You and asking. Do all You must that I will truly rejoice and be glad (24b) in all You provide.

Taking an even longer look at all of Psalm 100, I realize again how very much I want to practice it.

“Shout with joy to the LORD, all the earth! Worship the LORD with gladness. Come before Him, singing with joy” (vs. 100:1-2).

hope and trusting

 Sunday, October 18, 2026 (5:00 a.m.)

Awesome God,

Here I am. Showing up. Unsure why. 

Habit? Necessity? Requirement? Desire? Commitment? Duty?

Nope! Turns out it’s none of those… it’s HOPE! The hope we find only in, with, by, through and for the relationship we have in You.

2 Corinthians 1:1-3

♪All praise to God the Father, all praise to Christ the Son

All praise to the Holy Spirit, our God has overcome

The King who was and is and evermore will be

In Jesus’ mighty name, I Believe♪

Yes! Lord. That’s why I’m here. I believe in the hope of heaven.

(6:18 a.m.)

Dear Lord,

You are having me learn new things. I want to be grateful. Truthfully, I feel rather frustrated. Help me trust You more in this process.

Romans 5:2-5. “Because of our faith, Christ has brought us into this place of undeserved privilege where we now stand, and we confidently and joyfully look forward to sharing God’s glory. 

“We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because He has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with His love.”

Yes, Father! Yes!

The apostle Paul’s words to the Romans continue. “I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in Him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit” (15:13).

Mm, yes please! Fill me with Your joy and peace as I trust in You. So that I overflow with confident hope.

What kind of hope? CONFIDENT hope! Yes. Yes, please. Through the power of the holy Spirit.

Oh yes please Dear Lord. Yes, please.

Use me exactly as You know is best. Trusting You. Hoping. And loving (1 Corinthians 13:13) just as You would have me.

Do all You must Dear Lord. I love, need, trust and want You. Thank You. Praise You. Amen.

(369 words ~ 7:07 a.m.)

Balance.

 Saturday, October 17, 2026 (5:42 a.m.)

Blessed God,

Thank You so very much. 

You provide our every need. Long before we are ever aware of them. Thank You that You are so good. Great. Glorious. Gracious (Psalm 145:5-8).

My thoughts take my mind all over the place. Thank You for curiosity. And Your Truth to balance our wonders. 

Mm, yes. Balance. Both a noun and a verb. A thing or an action. And where do I find it? In, with, by, through and for the hope You provide us. That hope which is the true anchor for our souls (Hebrews 6:19).

Father God, thank You that You supply all our needs (Philippians 4:19). Thank You for continuing to teach us to bring all our faith, fears, trust, doubts straight to You.

The apostle Paul prayed that from Your glorious, unlimited resources You would empower Your believers with inner strength through Your Spirit (Ephesians 3:16). “Then Christ will make His home in your hearts as you trust in Him, Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep your strong” (v.17).

Thank You for the blessing that is You. Our help comes from You (Psalm 121:2). Being still and knowing that You are God (Psalm 46:10) grounds, anchors and brings balance to my heart, soul, mind and strength.

Do all You must that I will live this day [which You have made (Psalm 118:24a)] exactly as You know is best. Rejoicing and being glad in it (24b). “Thank You that we can make our plans, but You determine our steps” (Proverbs 16:9).

You know our every need (Matthew 6:8). I trust You to supply the strength of Your mighty power (Ephesians 6:10). Use me just as You know is necessary. Thank You. Praise You. I love, need, trust and want You. Amen.

(314 words ~ 6:58 a.m.)

♪God Is On the Move, on the move

Hallelujah

God is on the move

On the move today…♪

let's do this...

 Friday, October 16, 2026 (6:38 a.m.)

Awesome God,

Let’s do this… Start all over again

I’ve been here awhile already. Reciting The Lord’s Prayer to You. Hoping to get a better understanding. A deeper connection. With You. “Our Father…”

(7:32 a.m.)

Thank You for this time of exploring. Looking up various translations and paraphrases from both Matthew and Luke.

“Father, may Your name be kept holy. May Your Kingdom come soon. Give us each day the food we need, and forgive us ours sins, as we forgive those who sin against us. And don’t let us yield to temptation” (New Living Translation Luke 11:1-4).

“Our Father in heaven, may Your name be kept holy. May Your Kingdom come soon. May Your will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. Give us today the food we need, and forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us. And don’t let us yield to temptation, but rescue us from the evil one” (Matthew 6:9-13).

Having grown up using the words found in 21st Century King James Version I keep looking deeper. The Message. The Passion Translation. Even the simplicity of Clarence Jordan’s Cotton Patch version. 

Yes Dearest Dad. I am in definite need of simplicity these days!

“Father, may Your name be taken seriously. May Your Movement spread. Sustaining bread, grant us each day. And free us from our sins, even as we release everyone indebted to us. And don’t let us get all tangled up. Amen” (The Cotton Patch Gospel).

“Our Father in heaven, Reveal who You are. Set the world right; Do what’s best - as above, so below. Keep us alive with three square meals. Keep us forgiven with You and forgiving others. Keep us safe from ourselves and the devil. You’re in charge! You can do anything You want! You’re ablaze in beauty! Yes. Yes. Yes (The Message).

There are so many different attempts at getting Jesus' example of prayer across.

“Our Father, dwelling in the heavenly realms, may the glory of Your name be the center on which our lives turn. Manifest Your kingdom realm, and cause Your every purpose to be fulfilled on earth, just as it is fulfilled in heaven. We acknowledge You as our Provider of all we need each day. Forgive us the wrongs we have done as we ourselves release forgiveness to those who have wronged us. Rescue us every time we face tribulation and set us free from evil. For You are the King who rules with power and glory forever. Amen” (The Passion Translation).

As I continue searching and finding, reading and wanting to absorb it all, I ask (Matthew 7:7) You to do all You must that I will implement well the faith, hope and love (1 Corinthians 13:13) You have provided.

I love, need, trust and want You Blessed God. Use me as only You know is best. Thank You. Praise You. Amen.

(495 words ~ 8:20 a.m.)