Sometimes we get things a bit out of perspective, and think that we can make deals with God, like we might do with a friend. For example, we are getting pulled over for speeding and say, “God, I’ll go to church if you prevent me from getting this ticket,” or “God, if you help me make this sale, I’ll put more in the offering plate.”

We forget the incredible difference there is between us and God. Isaiah writes God’s words in chapter 66:2-3, “Heaven is my throne and the earth is my footstool: What Temple can you build for me as good as that? My hand has made both earth and skies, and they are mine. Yet I will look with pity on the man who has a humble and a contrite heart, who trembles at my word.”

The NET translation finishes this verse like this, “I show special favor to the humble and contrite, who respect what I have to say.”

We need respect the awesome power of God; Power to destroy as he chooses, but also power to bless those he chooses.

Dear Lord, You are Power and Love. We thank you for loving us enough to save us through Jesus Christ. Help us look to you with humble and contrite hearts and do what you direct us to do. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

Some personal development coaches talk about how the most important factor in making a change in your life is the decision. After making the decision with conviction, the rest is just follow through. For example, they would say, you can lose 10 pounds in a minute, it just takes weeks of follow-up to see the change occur.

Jesus describes a similar concept in John 6:47 where he says, “anyone who believes in me already has eternal life!” One step, believe. In this case the follow-through is not necessary for us to have eternal life, but the follow-through demonstrates that being saved is impacting our lives.

Dear Lord, thank you for the simple path to salvation. Believe in you and have eternal life. Help us live our lives knowing and sharing the joy that having eternal life can bring. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

Jesus teaches his disciples to pray what we call the Lords Prayer in Luke 11. In verse 2 Jesus says, “When you pray, say: “Father, hallowed be your name…” Jesus teaches them to start their prayer with praise and acknowledgment of the power and awe of God. In a similar way, David prays in 2 Samuel 7, going on in many verses about how great and amazing God is.

There is a point to beginning our prayers this way, acknowledging the power, glory and amazement of God. It puts God in the proper place above us in our minds, so that we bring our requests and concerns to God, humbly recognizing that he knows better than we do, and we submit our desires to his will. As Jesus’ tells us in Matthew 6:8, God knows what we want before we ask.

Dear Lord, How amazing and almighty you are thank you for hearing our prayers, and giving us what we need. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

You may have heard it said that the fear of something is often as bad or worse than the thing itself; Like a child worrying about getting a shot at the doctor’s office, or the fear of speaking or performing in front of a crowd; Fearing the difficult professional exam, driver’s test, or flying checkride. The fear can sometimes immobilize us from thinking or doing anything.

It is interesting how David writes Psalm 34:4. “I prayed to the Lord, and he answered me. He freed me from all my fears.” He doesn’t say that God prevented the bad things from happening; He says God freed him from his fears. We don’t know why God allows some bad things to happen to us, but knowing that he will take away the fear is a blessing in itself. It allows us to endure our struggles with peace, which can be an amazing witness to others.

Dear Lord, free us from the fears we have that prevent us from moving forward in faith. Help have the peace that comes when we do not have fear because we are putting our trust in you. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

Different denominations of Christians have different processes for confession, whether that is personally to a pastor or priest, or during the service as a group, or on one’s own. The important thing is that we confess our sins to God, ask for forgiveness, and relief from the temptations that pull us toward those sins. The more specific we can be when we confess, the better. Confessing to God is so much different than confessing our mistakes to other people. When we confess our sins to God, we can expect the weight of the guilt to be lifted, and to receive the peace of being forgiven.

The Living Bible says in 1 John 1:9, “But if we confess our sins to him, he can be depended on to forgive us and to cleanse us from every wrong. And it is perfectly proper for God to do this for us because Christ died to wash away our sins”

Proverbs 28:13 says, “Whoever conceals their sins does not prosper, but the one who confesses and renounces them finds mercy.” NIV

Dear Lord, as we pray in the Lord’s Prayer, “Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us.” Help us remember for our own good to confess our sins to you, and carry-on with renewed peace to avoid them in the future. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.