December 14

Matthew 5:16  Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.

Colossians 1:28-29  He is the one we proclaim, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone fully mature in Christ. 29 To this end I strenuously contend with all the energy Christ so powerfully works in me. 

Hebrews 12:1-2  Let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, … fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before Him He endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 

1 John 5:14-15  And this is the confidence that we have in Him, that, if we ask any thing according to His will, He heareth us: and if we know that He hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of Him.

2 Timothy 2:21  Those who cleanse themselves … will be instruments for special purposes, made holy, useful to the Master and prepared to do any good work. 

Psalm 42:11  Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted within me? hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise Him, who is the health of my countenance, and my God.

May you run to the Lord in trust and obedience, not looking at the task and its challenges, but at the Lord and His provisions. What He sends you to will be greater than your strength, larger than your capacity, and heavier than you can bear – otherwise, you would do it on your own and have the glory for yourself. Jonah 1

May you know that if you make a wrong turn in your walk with the Lord, that God will always be able to make a way back for you, if you come before Him in humility and repentance. Jonah 2

May you understand that although affliction, on its own, can drive a person from God, the power of His grace in the midst of adversity is what will draw a person, through repentance, back to their work and duty, to go where the Lord sends them and come when He calls them, doing what He bids them. Jonah 3

May you rejoice with the heart of God over sinners who hear the word of God and turn from destruction, rather than be angry in your heart over the blessing your distasteful neighbor receives. Jonah 4

   Declare My praise, My child, do not hold back or stint the measure you give to proclaiming My goodness. 
   Let your expression of gratitude for My mercy and loving-kindness be whole-hearted and full-fledged. Offer the sacrifice of praise to Me before the congregation and in the midst of the assembly, My love, even as I have shown My dedication to you in the view of all while on the cross. 
   For as you continue to give honor to Me with all your heart, My dear one, I will cleanse you of all iniquity, giving you victory over each burden of the flesh and every challenge of the soul. By making for Me a name of joy before all the people so they will hear of the good I do for them, I will draw all men to Me in this time of harvest. 
   As you sing the glory of My name, confessing My majesty and holiness, magnifying Me with thanksgiving, I will renew your life, taking you from strength to strength, making you stronger and stronger, enabling you to endure every affliction that you encounter. 
   As you delight yourself in Me, I will change your desires to perfectly align with and correspond to My will for you, and when you pray, you will have what you ask, for you will not ask amiss, and My will shall be done, on earth as it is in heaven. 

May you rejoice with the multitudes around the throne of the Lord over the Lamb of God, the Lion of Judah, Who is found to be worthy to receive all honor and all power from the Father because He was slain and His blood purchased you for God, and He has made a kingdom of priests to serve God and accept the responsibility of the task of upholding His justice on earth. Revelation 5

May you find how good and how pleasant it is when all the members of the Body of Christ are united in the anointing of the Spirit which Jesus, the Head, has sent to cover us like the dew, bestowing life evermore, which is the blessing of the Lord. Psalm 133

May you recognize that true justice is handed out in the spiritual realm from the throne of God, not in the natural realm from the hand of man, so seek His face before seeing the magistrate. Proverbs 29:26