Matthew 4:19-20

Good Morning Father

What was it that made 12 men leave their lives to follow a stranger. What did they see in Jesus. Isaiah tells us that He has no form or comeliness; And when we see Him, There is no beauty that we should desire Him. What was it that Matthew saw that made him walk away from his pile of money and never look back.

What was it that made a roman centurion look up at a naked, brutalized body on a cross and say truly this was the Son of God. What did he see?

Was Jesus displaying Your splendor? Was Jesus revealing Your Glory? Was He the visible witness of Your love?

Father, Do people see in us what they saw in Jesus? Do they see us displaying Your Splendor? Do we reveal Your Glory? Are we a visible witness of Your love.

Father it seems we’ve taken the easy way out. We’ve segregated ourselves from the very people You came to seek and save. We have created ways to avoid being faced with the challenge of having to seek You to for guidance, protection, and wisdom. We’ve created private schools, segregated churches, programs, and entertainment features to make us look good instead of being a light that points people to the cross. In reality, Father, we’ve lost our way. We haven’t been a visible witness of Your love. But that was yesterday. Today we make a conscious choice to love like Jesus loves, to be a witness of His love in our lives. We choose to display Your splendor and reveal Your glory. We choose to pick up our cross and follow Jesus.

We pause today to kneel at the cross and ask you to forgive our sins and our apathy. We ask You to help us keep our eyes, our minds, and our hearts focused on You. We ask You to help us keep our ears tuned to Your voice.

As we participate in Your final harvest, Father, may we like Jesus disciples, follow, without every looking back.

Be blessed as we praise, be honored as we worship. And may we live to make God visible.

In the name of Jesus we pray.

Amen

Isaah 61:1

Good Morning Father,

When Isaiah wrote these prophetic words years before Jesus came, Your spirit was on him, just as Your spirit is on us today. Isaiah was called and responded to Your call with a never look back attitude. He spoke from the perspective of one who had stood in hell and had seen Heaven. Whether what Isaiah saw was in the sky or in his mind pales in comparison to the Splendor and Glory of Who he saw. And after seeing You he could do nothing but cry Holy and plead for mercy.

Centuries later, those same words were read by Jesus to the Nazarenes. Their response was to try to run Him out of town. The were blind to Your glory. But there is coming a day when every knee will bow, and every tongue will confess that the good tidings are truth at last.

In the meantime, Father, just as you called Isaiah and sent Jesus, You call us. You desire to put Your spirit on us so that we will proclaim Your good news; so that we will offer those around us a path to a healing Jesus; and proclaim to those around us that there is freedom in Jesus Christ our King.

Father, as we today ask for Your mercy and cleansing from sin, fill us with a passion that will respond to Your call and a longing to join the Angels in singing Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord God Almighty.

Help us Father, to not update our resume to add You to our list of references, but to cling to and plead for Your mercy in our lives and the lives of our families and acquaintances.

Be blessed as we praise, be honored as we worship, and let Your Kingdom come and Your will be done in us, just as it is in Heaven.

In the name of Your Son Jesus, we pray.

Amen

Exodus 33:11

So the Lord spoke to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. And he would return to the camp, but his servant Joshua the son of Nun, a young man, did not depart from the tabernacle.

Good morning, Father Hallowed by Your Name.

The day came, when Your people grew restless and complained so much that Aaron took their Jewelry and crafted a golden calf and called it their new god. We can look back at that story and say why couldn’t they remember how much You had done for them. Why did they forget to be thankful. Did they have the same tendencies that we have….to get so wrapped up in our own little world and our own state of importance, that we forget to look at what You have done for us and desire to do with us?

The consequences of worshipping the golden calf were severe, There was anger, then brothers killed brothers. Selfishness had led to death. The far greatest tragedy was that You moved Your presence outside the camp. Moses had to come away to worship You. Sadly, when he would go out to the tabernacle, the people would stand and watch. There is no place where it says they could not come to worship you. They were content to watch from afar.

Father, don’t let us worship from afar. Forgive our sins. Wash us clean and bring Your righteousness to our lives through the Blood of Your Son Jesus. Father create in as a desire to stay, like Joshua, in Your presence. Allow us to come into Your sweet presence today, just as Moses and Joshua came to You so many years ago.

Father, remove from us the temptation to be wrapped up in our own problems, and deliver us from the evil that surrounds us. Because it is You who deserve the glory, It is You who deserve the honor, It is You who are all powerful and we can’t make it on our own.

Be blessed as we praise, be honored as we worship and may Your Kingdom come and Your will be done in us, just as it is in Heaven.

In the name of Your Son Jesus, we pray.

Amen