honest praise

Sunday, July 19, 2020 (5:29 a.m.)

Holy God,

Thank You! You continue leading and guiding us.

Yes Lord. Step by step out of the pit of resentment and disrespect into which we had so deeply fallen. Holy God, how truly we thank You.

Oh most Blessed Father You absolutely know Your best for us. Pretense is not it!

Thank You God. Yes thank You! Thank You that our trust is in You. And with this Truth? A song.

Putting my mantra [“I can’t. You can. I’ll let You.”] of this most recent struggle into musical form. ♪My life is in You, Lord My strength is in You, Lord My hope is in You. It’s in You… I will praise You with all of my life I will praise You with all of my strength… All my hope is in You♪

It is Lord! You are our only hope. When stubborn pride and pretense keep us from being able to truly be honest with You, ourselves and others, You peel back the layers. Exposing all the hurt that underlies the hypocrisy.

Thank You for Your Truth. Thank You for Your promises. Thank You for Your will. And Your way. Thank You for Your sacrifice that allows us to come to our senses before it is all too late.

Your Word has much to say about praising You. The importance of it. The privilege involved in it. This morning I stand on John 4:23-24 asking You to continue blessing us with forgiving hearts.

“It’s who you are and the way you live that count before God. Your worship must engage your spirit in the pursuit of truth. That’s the kind of people the Father is out looking for: those who are simply and honestly themselves before Him in their worship. God is sheer being itself - Spirit. Those who worship Him must do it out of their very being, their spirits, their true selves, in adoration.”

Yes! When I harbor deep seeded hurt, unforgiveness, resentment in my heart, it affects every aspect of my being. My soul, mind, even my strength. Confessing it all to You, looking to You, depending on You allows Your Truth to rise. Thank You Lord.

Thank You for Your Truth which calls us to love You and others as we do ourselves. With all of our heart, all of our soul, all of our mind and all of our strength (Mark 12:30-31). Without Your Holy Spirit running our lives, simply being civil and polite to one another can quickly become disrespect and rudeness.

Thank You for all You do to save us from ourselves and our still present evil natures. I love You God. And I truly thank You for the work You are doing in our lives. Continue helping us learn how to genuinely love and respect one another as only You can.

Use us to Your good and to Your glory. With our most honest praise we pray. Thank You. Amen.

(498 words ~ 7:19 a.m.)