I am sure you have seen professional athletes after completing an amazing, or very difficult goal, basket, touchdown or other play, stop and point to the sky, pointing to God. They may not know it, but they are expressing this Latin phrase, Soli Deo Goria which means To God Alone the Glory.

Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 10:31, “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.” This is truly our mission here on earth, to glorify God. He has given us all skills talents and situations to allow us to do this in our own way. We can do it by sharing Gods love with the poor in the soup kitchen line, or we can do it on national television using amazing athletic skills God gave a few. We should remember it is not how amazing we are, it is how amazing God is.

Dear Lord, Help us remember that all we have came from You, help us remember to give you the glory for the great things we can do and the great things we have. In Jesus’ name we pray. Soli Deo Gloria! Amen.

Have you heard this prayer? “Dear Lord, please give me patience, and give it to me right now.”

Psalm 37:4 Says, “Be delighted with the Lord. Then he will give you all your heart’s desires.” however, the Psalm goes on in verse 7 to say “Rest in the Lord; wait patiently for him to act. Don’t be envious of evil men who prosper.” TLB

It is important to trust God’s timing and “rest” or stay in peace patiently while we wait for Him.

Dear Lord, Help us wait patiently for the things for which we desire and pray. Help us trust your timing knowing that you care for us. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

When we pray the Lord’s Prayer, we say “forgive us our sins…” It is an important part about praying for God to help us that we confess and ask for forgiveness.

In the Old testament, Isaiah the prophet said to the Jews in Isaiah 59:1,2 “The Lord isn’t too weak to save you. And he isn’t getting deaf! He can hear you when you call! But the trouble is that your sins have cut you off from God. Because of sin he has turned his face away from you and will not listen anymore.” and in verse 9 he tells them, ” It is because of all this evil that you aren’t finding God’s blessings” TLB

He then prophecies about Jesus coming in verse 20, “The Redeemer will come to Jerusalem to buy back those in Israel who have turned from their sins”

So Jesus is the Redeemer of us for those sins that have cut us off from God’s blessings. When we pray, let us make sure to confess and turn from our sins like Isaiah describes, so we can receive God’s blessings.

Dear Lord, we are sorry for our disobedience to you, forgive us so that we may receive your blessings, most of all the blessing of salvation through Jesus our Redeemer. In His name we pray. Amen.

I think I heard this from an elementary school teacher in the past, you may also have heard this said “God gave you two ears and one mouth, use them in that proportion?”

James says in James 1:9, “My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen and slow to speak, and slow to become angry.”

This is particularly true in witnessing. People tend to be most open to letting the Holy Spirit in, when they are troubled by some difficulty, tragedy, or fear. Simply listening to people and asking whether they know that God is there with hope and comfort, may be what they need at the difficult time. Psalm 86:5 says, “for you Lord are forgiving and good, abounding in love to all who call to you.”

Also, when speaking with someone is opposed to Christianity, just asking simple questions, like Do you wonder where everything came from? or Do you wonder why we have a conscience? Then listen to their answers. This may allow them to open up their heart to the Holy Spirit.

Dear Lord, help us take Paul’s guidance and listen to others so that we might understand them and share your love with them. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

I have always been interested in the evidence assembled supporting what we believe as the bible creation story, and the conflicting stories we read about evolution, and the earth being millions or billions of years old. In order to explore this more, I recently read a book called Creation and Evolution; Compatible or in Conflict, by Jay Seegert. This book is a well researched and easy to read assembly of the information and perspectives on this subject. I found it very helpful in cutting through the headlines and hype, and understanding the evidence. (Click on the Title to see more information or get a copy.)

The conclusion I took from the book is that as Christians, we believe the bible story of creation, because we believe the bible is the inspired word of God. Our belief is supported more and more by archaeological and astronomical discoveries. Evolution, the Big Bang Theory, and other non biblical explanations for the origin of the universe, earth, and the origin of life are as much a religious belief as Christianity. The people who promote these theories start with the assumption that God cannot be part of the origin, so they must come up with some other guess then try to identify data that support their guess. Our growing understanding of the complexity of life and the universe make it more and more difficult for them to rule out the Creator.

Arguments against God and Creation have been ongoing since bible times, as Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 3:19, “For the wisdom of this world is foolishness to God.” and in Romans 1:20 he writes, ” Since earliest times men have seen the earth and sky and all God made, and have known of his existence and great eternal power. So they will have no excuse when they stand before God at Judgment Day” TLB

If you have interest in knowing more, I would recommend the book.

Dear Lord, We thank you for people who will take the time and effort to help us understand the evidence that exists to support our belief in the validity of the bible. Please send your Spirit to those who question your word in the bible, and let them know You and know that the bible is your word. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.