Prayers of the Saints

O Lord and Master of my life,
Grant not unto me a spirit of idleness,
of discouragement,
of lust for power
and of vain speaking.

But bestow upon me, Thy servant,
the spirit of chastity,
of meekness,
of patience,

and of love.

Yea, O Lord and King,
grant that I may perceive my own transgressions,
and judge not my brother,

for blessed art Thou unto ages of ages.

Amen.

~ Ephraim

303-373

Photo:

Monastery of the Holy Paraclete

 Oropos, Attica, Greece
Link to St. Ephrem the Syrian

A Psalm for Rememberance

Remembering a Post from the Archives...

In my morning Bible reading, a particular morsel really caught my attention. While this is not unusual, what is so unique about this reference is that I can't even point you to a particular verse.

Let's look together at Psalm 70. Just a small portion of the descriptive subtitle states "to bring to remembrance" (NLT). Isn't that precisely what we need in desperate times? To remember God's past deliverance, grace, and provision? A recollection of past deeds always restores hope for me.

Now let's look a bit further into the actual Psalm itself. Can't you sense the urgency in David's petition?

"Please God, rescue me! Come quickly, Lord, and help me.
But I am poor and needy; please hurry to my aid, O God,
You are my helper and my savior; O LORD, do not delay!"
(vs 1, 5).

The King James version for verse 1 states "make haste" and the New American Standard says "hasten to deliver me". Obviously he is in dire need. Where else is there to turn but the One and Only, God? But David also takes time to notice who God is.

Praise always settles the soul and puts things in proper perspective, as he acknowledges in verse 4;

"But may all who search for You be filled
with joy and gladness.
May those who love Your salvation repeatedly shout,
"God is great!"

Thank you, David, for offering this prayer for all seekers!  He has spoken a mystical truth in these words; in that, no matter what circumstances we find ourselves in, when we shift our focus, God renews our countenance and graciously fills our spirit with His peace.

If I find myself in a situation and recall His acts of past kindness', my faith is renewed to believe He is able and will do it again.

I have found this to be true in my experience and noted a few occasions recorded in Scripture where remembrance changes one's outlook:

• Song of Moses in Deuteronomy 32
• Deuteronomy 7: 17-19
• Matthew 16:8-10

The most significant to note is the Lord's institution of the Lord's Supper. He gave the command for us to participate in this as a rememberance of Him and the new covenant in His blood, proclaiming His death until His return [Lk 22:19; 1 Cor 11:24-26]. I am so thankful for this observance and the blessing this memorial brings to my life. Remembering my Lord, His sacrifice, and His promised return keeps my life focused in Him.

God has promised that He remembers His covenant with His chosen (Ref Gn 9:15, Lv 26:42, 45; Ps 105: 8-10; Ps 111). Let that fact sink deep, build upon your faith and compel you to worship our great God.

God is GREAT! Oh to remember You, Most Holy Father, as You remember Your children.  Turn these eyes, this mind, this heart homeward in this Lord's season. 

Season of Remembering

In this season of Lent, a Christian observance in the advent of Easter, we keep our hearts and minds remembering. Remembering God’s Beloved Son, broken for our transgressions, in this Advent of His return.

It is a time of remembrance, to prime our hearts with an infusion of Life. An infusion of Light.

How priceless is your unfailing love!

Both high and low among men

find refuge in the shadow of your wings.

They feast on the abundance of your house;

you give them drink from your river of delights.

For with you is the fountain of life;

in your light we see light.

[Ps 36:7-9]

• Remembering God’s Love is unfailing.

• Remembering our Refuge.

•  Remember the forthcoming Feast.

• Remembering His Delight streaming from the heavens.

• Remembering the refreshing, overflowing Fountain of Life.

In the light He gives us to see dark places, we see light. Light of grace. Light of hope. Light of His mercies ever-new. Light to illuminate those errant ways. Shine on the things temporarily misplaced, pushed behind the immediate hogging the spotlight for attention.


Pontius Pilate inquired:

"What shall I do, then, with Jesus who is called Christ?"

What will you do with Jesus this Easter Advent season?



My Fountain of Life; I come to You remembering and in Your Light I see Your unfailing love and find refuge.



Link to Related Post:
Another Season-Within-A-Season

Lent's Call to Worship

The forty days of Easter has begun,

The Light and Life of Lent has come!

Prayers for rest now turn to praise,

Worship songs of love are raised.

Look upon Him, His life, and death,

Remember His call to faithfulness.

Remember words of our cross to bear

And give to Him each earthly care.

Bow low before God and in joy adore,

Celebrate our victorious, Risen Lord!

Copyright Debbra Stephens

Use by permission only

Sacrifice of Self

This far I have focused on Lent as being a season of repentance, but it is so much more than that.  I will continue personally to ask God to search my heart and bring to mind those things that I need repent of and strive to keep that discipline ongoing. 

Moving on, I contemplate yet another element of the season that bears need of my attention -- sacrifice.  Lent is also a season for sacrifice. Foremost in loving response to the sacrificial love of our Lord, Jesus Christ.  Also, in remembrance of the sacrifice of His perfect, sinless life to atone for my sin.

I am in dire need of repentace from being self-absorbed in exchange for sacrifice of self.  I have found myself consumed with wants and preoccupied with the details of life at the expense of abandoned dependency upon a trustworthy, sovereign God.

Aren't we called to lay down our lives?  Lose our lives in Him?  I need to sacrifice self...self-centeredness, that is!  Sacrifice the constant awareness of self to become more self-sacrificial. 

God has tuned my shameful ears to listen to my own prayers of late.  He has pricked my heart to recognize the continual requests for preservation.  Repeated prayers for blessing and comfort. 

I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.

The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God,

who loved me and gave himself for me.

[Gal 2:20]

I live only because He gave His life for me.  It all begins and ends with HIM -- not me!

I've forgotten that I have been crucified with Christ.  It is I that no longer lives, but Him that lives in me.  Anything less is not exactly living by a God-pleasing faith!  We see the sacrifice of two selves in that verse.  His and mine.  I've forgotten the "mine. " (Or, rather, remembered it far more than I ought!) 

How does one forget what you thought you once knew...lived...believed?

God instituted various festivals when handing down the Law in order to worship a holy God and make atonement for the sins of His people. I think along with these reasons He was meeting another need. The human need for remembrance!  The practice of Lent, the oldest Christian festival, helps us to remember.  It's an opportunity to have the Spirit refresh and renew a world-weary spirit, distracted mind, and flawed, fickle heart.

Holy God; Hallowed by Thy Marvelous Name.  Forgive me for my self-centered life.  I need repent of self and seek an attitude of self-sacrifice.  Striving to live a Christ-centered life in service to others by the example You have set.  May it begin today, for now is the season to renew heart, mind, soul, and body - consecrated solely unto You.

Sights to Remember

The LORD said to Moses, "Speak to the Israelites and say to them: 'Throughout the generations to come you are to make tassels on the corners of your garments, with a blue cord on each tassel. You will have these tassels to look at and so you will remember all the commands of the LORD, that you may obey them and not prostitute yourselves by going after the lusts of your own hearts and eyes. Then you will remember to obey all my commands and will be consecrated to your God.  [Nu 15:37-40]




I'm a visual person. And it carries over into my spiritual life. I attribute this in part to my religious upbringing in the Greek Orthodox church. We were surrounded by icons. Not to worship...but remember. To this day I choose to surround myself with visual reminders of my Christian faith. Prompters that keep my identity in Christ before me.

This short passage struck me as appropriate to this season. God provided an assortment of visual prompters during the Israelites desert trek recorded in the Book of Numbers. Here in Chapter 15 He has given them yet another. God knows that where our eyes wander our heart oftentimes follows.  They were to wear the vestments of their priesthood. A simple blue tassel to hone in on prompting them to obedience. Reminding them of His commands and to live consecrated lives.  To keep their eyes on something in order to keep from giving their hearts away to idols.

Where shall we lock our sights?

So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever. [2 Cor 4:18 NLT]

Let's fix our gaze on God's eternal kingdom.  Fix our gaze on the Author of our Faith.  Fix our gaze on the heart-dwelling Breath of God, the Holy Spirit.  It is there we meet God face-to-face.

Lock discerning eyes upon the invisible God.  The world's a stage filled with reminders of what God has said.  Determine to use the physical, if necessary, as faith-prompters.  Reminders of His expectancy of obedience.  Reminders that we are to live lives set apart from the world.  Reminders to adorn our hearts and minds with the vestments of our priesthood - the Fruit of the Spirit.

Set your gaze upon the sun,

By it remember the Light and Written Word.

Set your gaze upon the trees,

By it remember the Cross and obedience call.

Set your gaze upon the ground,

By it remember the world and to set apart.

Set your gaze upon the sparrow,
By it remember His faithfulness and provision.

Fix your gaze upon God's majesty all around,

Remember your Holy, Ever-Present Father.

Jehovah God; Use the simple things around me as reminders of Your commands.  Keep my eyes and heart from straying and set upon the Unseen.  This season of repentance I turn these eyes, this gaze, unto the Holy One of God. 

Prayers of the Saints

Eternal God,
the refuge of all your children,
in our weakness you are our strength,
in our darkness our light,
in our sorrow our comfort and peace.

May we always live in your presence,
and serve you in our daily lives;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.

~Saint Boniface

680 – 754

When Enough is Enough

"There are three things that are never satisfied,

four that never say, 'Enough!':

the grave,
the barren womb,

land, which is never satisfied with water,

and fire,

which never says, 'Enough!'

[Prv 30:15-16]

The captioned footnote in my Life Application Bible reads; "'Three things....four' is a poetic way of saying the list is not complete."  That being the case, could we then also add to this catalog a worldly heart as something that never says "Enough"?

The heart (mine anyway) can tend to have an insatiable appetite.  Especially when it longs for anything other than God. Needing to remain filled, it desires.  Desiring worldly things incubates into an unquenchable plague.  Some examples of what I classify as "worldly" (temporal things the world values) can be a standard of living, material possessions, finances, items of leisure/comfort, etc.  Only God fills that void and keeps the desires of our heart satisfied.

Delight yourself in the LORD

and he will give you the desires of your heart.

[Ps 37:4]

Truly delighting in the Lord changes your desires. From desires of prosperity to His promise. From the created to the Creator. Yearning for a change in circumstance to yearning for God's presence for strength to endure.

So, how can you drift from contentment to longing?  That's the question I keep asking myself!  How did that happen?!  Honestly, I'm not real sure.  I can't pinpoint exactly when, where, or how that changed. (Wouldn't that be reverse "transference?") My theory is that three months of material assault of various crisis preoccupied my mindset until I found myself crying "Uncle!"  In a state of discouragement the object of my hope was hijacked; the source of joy dethroned from Creator to created.  I wanted relief.  I wanted ease.  I wanted solutions.  I wanted...  The description of my writing tanked from Journal of Faith to Diary of a Whimpy Kid.

"Enough!"  I'm repenting of a misguided heart.  Lent being a season of sacrifice and penitence, I'll choose to sacrifice my temporal wants. Exchange the secular for the sacred.  Desire God and have enough.


Merciful God; This heart hungers for You. Give me discernment to recognize that any other longing is an imposter.  Anchor these desires to the eternal.  You are my heart's desire and my true delight!  Help me to keep my heart -- my whole heart -- stayed on Thee.  

Graves of Craving

The rabble with them began to crave other food, and again the Israelites started wailing and said, "If only we had meat to eat!”....

Moses heard the people of every family wailing, each at the entrance to his tent. The LORD became exceedingly angry, and Moses was troubled.

Now a wind went out from the LORD and drove quail in from the sea. It brought them down all around the camp to about three feet above the ground, as far as a day's walk in any direction. All that day and night and all the next day the people went out and gathered quail. No one gathered less than ten homers. Then they spread them out all around the camp. But while the meat was still between their teeth and before it could be consumed, the anger of the LORD burned against the people, and he struck them with a severe plague. Therefore the place was named Kibroth Hattaavah (1),because there they buried the people who had craved other food. From Kibroth Hattaavah the people traveled to Hazeroth and stayed there. [Nu 11:4, 10; 31-35]

1). BibleGateway.com Footnote: Kibroth Hattaavah means graves of craving.

For me, this season of repentance is a call to repent of worldly wants. To travel on from Kibroth Hattaavah to Hazeroth. From “Graves of Craving” to “Enclosure.” From the empty-tomb feeling the world generates to the satisfied fullness of being enclosed in God’s all-sufficient grace.

From man’s first days want has marred the human condition. Every generation since Eve has faced this relentless temptation. We are continually tempted by the lust of our hearts. But only by choice do we sin.

The Book of Numbers records clearly the plight of every man – discontentment. The Israelites were unsatisfied. They complained that the manna God provided wasn’t good enough. They desired more....different. Grumbling against His gift in essence was a form of rejection. Their complaining spirit showed contempt for Him and He became exceedingly angry (Nu 11:10). God abundantly gratified their desire for meat. He granted their request and they then indulged to their own ruin.

This season of turning I am conscience of my need to turn from desires that make me miserable with discontentment. To bury those cravings before they bury me. To remember to reckon myself as dead to my sinful nature (Ref Rm 6:11-12).


Holy God; Give me power to let go of my wants of the world before I am buried with them. From birth, each day is a continual progression toward death. May I not die unsatisfied, complaining and wanting for more. Chasing after desires contrary to Your provision is a sin against You. In Christ help me to put to death the hungry, bottomless grave lurking in this craving heart. Grumbling hurts You, Father. Forgive me and fill me with a thankfulness that bears the fruit of contentment.

'Tis the Season

'Tis the Season. A season of essential repentance.

A season to mourn. Mourn the suffering and death of Jesus Christ. My sin and rebellion that made it necessary.

A season to celebrate. Celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ, His victory over death. Celebrate our rescue and restoration in the act of His atoning sacrifice and forgiveness.

There are many traditions-of-men in this season of Lent. Simply allow the Word, the Person of Jesus Christ, through the Holy Word, the record of His life in the Gospels, minister to you this blessed season. As will I.

The work He was doing, as it was being done in the world, went mostly unrecognized by the populace. Now, large portions of the world have access through a variety of media resources to what He accomplished then. Let's also stop to see what He is doing still. In our lives and the lives of others. Acknowledge now what was denied Him then. Praise. Worship. Adoration. Declaration that He is God. God of the cosmos, God of the people, God of my life.

Rend your heart
and not your garments.
Return to the LORD your God,
for he is gracious and compassionate,
slow to anger and abounding in love,
and he relents from sending calamity.[Joel 2:13]

The Lord repeatedly cautions and requests our return to Him. There is no such thing as "no turning back."   As long as it is a day, turning is possible. 'Tis the season.  So turn now. Turn to the Son and may He shine on your season of holy reflection and celebration.

"Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near."
[Matthew 3:2]

Lord Jesus; Bring Your kingdom near--into our hearts--in the remembering and proclaiming of Jesus as the Christ this season.


Related Links: (click below to travel to older posts on Lent)
Easter Advent 2009

Shifted Horizon

"God measures our progress
by our capacity to endure."
~Charles Stanley ~

Endurance -- day-in, day-out stick-to-it-ness. Now that's sticky business!

It's one thing to suffer through a tough day. Quite another for the long term. I so admire those that remain steadfast through years of toil and pain.

Circumstances that are hard is rough enough; ongoing, a true test. When one week turns into a month, and a month quickly becomes a year. Year after year, turning to five. Time marches on. Seasons change but circumstances don't. What if it becomes ten? Sometimes hard questions must be asked, pondered.

There were days I tried to be stoic (that was my first of many mistakes!), days of masked strength, days of grin-and-bear-it determination. From God's abundant grace and goodness faith grew, tried and true, and I settled in to real peace, joy, and genuine contentment.

And time marched on.





Somewhere, unbeknownst, undetected, and unforeseen, the horizon shifted. What came into view was what I thought I missed, suddenly longed for. A change in my heart's desire. A substitute mirage moved into sight. Persistent crashing waves slammed into disposition, eroding stamina. In a weakened state, the joy-robber, contentment-stealer broke through, disrupting my heart, draining my spirit, clouding my view. Who would cause such havoc? Me!

It's not that you become unfaithful. Notice I didn't say "faith-less"? (Less faith doesn't mean no faith, right?) Disciplines and behaviors don't have to change. Can you remain faithful in deed and not in attitude? Does God forgive those weary, longing-for-more days (that easily turn to weeks)? As long as you don't get stuck there!

But have you ever been so reluctant to discuss your feelings for sheer fear that you would lose control and never be able to stop? That if you ever started crying the dam would burst and you would drown in a puddle of your own tears? Or have you ever been so distressed that you absolutely could not get the words past your throat? When that happens, they have been given prominent position and too much power. The hold must be broken.

The experience of those in our "cloud of witnesses" came to mind. Abraham's difficulties through years of waiting for fruition of God's promise is well recorded. Joseph's days in prison turned to years. Job suffered long and hard for an uncertain resolution to his predicament. Moses' short journey through the desert became years of wandering without destination arrival. And David, crowned king, did not move from anointing to throne room expediently.

Thankfully, there is the Anchor to our souls that doesn't allow us to drift too far off course before He uses someone or something to draw us back. Aligned to True North. He moves a friend to notice the hurt and all it takes is a timely question of love and concern. Once expelled, the heart and mind are released. Captive no more to the self-imposed pain.

It doesn't say much of your supposed strength if you crumble when a crisis hits (to paraphrase Proverbs 24:10 ). But what if it lingers? Takes up residence in your life? We are told to endure. There isn't a clause for letting us off the hook. No statute of limitations or time period specified that qualifies us for exemption. So then, does God allow for our sometimes frail human condition that stutters and falters? That experiences a brief season of world-weariness from wishing for more, different (add a good measure of self-pity)? My guess is a conditional "yes".

The condition? Repentance. A change in my heart's desire. Turn from the sin of my sulky attitude (no excuses!). Remember that He is, ever and always, more than enough. Pick up that cross and turn to Father God.

Horizon shifted, I set my sights, hoping to stay the course. To make "progress by my capacity to endure." Enduring, by God's power, even if nothing ever changes.



Forgive, Father dear. I turn to You, choosing not to return to this dismal place where You don't reign. Grow in my faith the ability to endure -- for however long that is. As the seasons change, yet should this season never change, may my contentment in You remain unchanged. Locked into heaven's horizon.

God's Valentine

The color of Love
..........Sacrificial red
..........Flowing down

..........Stained brown
..........Nailed high


The texture of Love
..........Rough, splintered
..........Wooden beams

..........Soft, torn
..........Incarnate flesh


The sound of Love
..........Forgiveness prayers
..........Victory declared

..........Last breath
..........Rolling stone

God's Valentine
For all mankind


Beautiful Love;
Eternally etched
On sacred scrolls,
On cross beams,
On human hearts:
"Be Mine"

Memories of You

Delightful daughter
Full of song and sunlight
Birthed 15 years ago

Precious gift of God
Placed in untrained, broken hands
To hold, to form, to love

Today, a mama’s mind remembers
The you and I
When a previously unknown love flooded over me

Our eyes met and my heart whispered “It’s you”
In that instant I felt I knew you my whole life
Though I didn’t really know you at all

You looked just as I somehow knew you would
My mind agreed “Of course!”
Two bodies now separated, two hearts bonded forever

Rocking gently, peacefully
In odd hours of the night
Love sounds in the dark

Coos and murmurs
Gurgles and sighs
The unspoken language of mother and babe

Nuzzle of warmth those first winter nights
Soft breath of your dreams kissed my neck
Prayers whispered for both parent and child

The hope
The fear
The indescribable joy

Those early days of sweet exhaustion
Purest of all contentment
True blessedness from Heaven’s Grace

Over the years
The giggles, the squeals, the roars of laughter
Countless reasons for ultimate thanksgiving

Now grown of God
And taller than I
You’ll never outgrow your mommy’s arms

You’ll never be outside this heart
There will always be
This unspoken language of mother and babe

The language of love

"There could never be a more beautiful you"

Making the Team

My daughter qualified for the JV Soccer team at her high school last week. (Congrats, sweetie!) After a week of grueling try-outs in less-than-favorable weather conditions, she made the grade and was given the nod from the coaching team. Over the past months of conditioning and through the week of try-outs she hoped, and wondered, and prayed that she would make the team, not knowing for sure if she would.

Thankfully it wasn't near that difficult for her to make Jesus' "team". She believed, confessed her faith, and made the commitment to the Lordship of Christ as her Savior through baptism.

God accepted her. Not based on her skills, abilities or performance. He didn't test her for speed, agility, endurance. He didn't require any signed wavers or financial commitments. It wasn't about who she was, what she could do or how well she could do it. He loved her, she loved Him and believed in His Son and that was all it took.

It's the same for you. He doesn't play favorites. You don't have to perform at a certain level, have specific skills, live in the right district, maintain an acceptable GPA. Just hear Him call; "Come."

Here I am! I stand at the door and knock.
If anyone hears my voice and opens the door,
I will come in and eat with him, and he with me.
[Rev 3:20]

He stands ready and waiting for You to follow. Yes, there are costs of discipleship to consider but He welcomes you for who you are -- His.

My daughter said "yes" to His call to follow Him, that she would be His child and He would be her God, and He had the perfect position just right for her in His family.

He waits patiently, knocking on the door to our hearts, for us to come to Him -- but He won't stand on the sidelines forever. Get in the Game. Join the Team -- no crunches or sprints required.

Thank You, Lord Jesus, for preparing a place for us. For calling and making a way for us to be with You. Amen.

Forgiven Debts

Ever have a debt paid for you? One you could not pay? $5 might as well be $5,000 when you don’t have the ability to cover a debt. And debt is not a merciful master. It holds its subjects captive and bound, anxious and stressed. I have been the recipient of such generosity and I will never be able to express my deep gratitude.

Have you ever had a debt forgiven? Completely cancelled out? A burden that would have shadowed you for years to come—gone in an instant. Again, this was a gift that still leaves me speechless. I attribute the unexpected and unsolicited act to Christ living in the hearts of men.

To say the experience stirs feelings of immense gratitude is an understated given. But along with the lifting of the burden and a sense of freedom comes the dissolution of the shame one feels. Deliverance somehow makes the immensity of the debt seem even larger. Say, what was once $1,000 now seems as if it were $10,000. It seems as if the debt, once paid, is that much greater. When owed, we convince ourselves we can pay it -- eventually. With enough commitment, hard work, and perseverance.

What of the debt I cannot pay? The non-fiscal debt my sin racks up? Do I fully appreciate just how large that is? These debts have been both paid in full and forgiven. Jesus didn't just use His perfect standing as holy and His position as Son to clear the debt, He paid it Himself and wiped my record clean.

I cannot -- must not -- ever forget or diminish how much it cost Jesus to pay my debt with God. The cost was enormous! A cost only He could pay. And it is paid. That, also, I must not forget. I must live free of its burden, guilt, and shame.

Honestly, I don't know that I will ever fully comprehend the sizable debt my Savior paid for me. However, I can understand it a tad better having received such gifts and acts of kindness. But they pale drastically in comparison to the grace of God in the Cross of Christ. That forgiveness is "in accordance with the riches of God's grace." A grace beyond computation.

May I make the paradigm shift from one living in debt to one that is living a life of indebtedness to her Redeemer.



Majestic God; Hallowed be Thy Name. "My mouth will tell of your righteousness, of your salvation all day long, though I know not its measure". I am Your humble and ever-thankful bondservant, Lord; bought at a price. Ransomed only because You have deemed me worthy. Although the debt I owed was far more than I could ever pay, You have never treated me as if I were poor, for You have made me rich. As You have so graciously forgiven my debts in Christ, bring to my awareness those debtors I need forgive and the grace to cancel any debt I may hold. May it be that I honor the price paid for my life all of my days. Amen.