fuel

Genesis 18:3
3 He said, "If I have found favor in your eyes, my lord, do not pass your servant by.”

When we serve God, we need him to fuel our service. In fact, we can’t serve without him. Not in the ways he intends. God wants us to enjoy being a blessing for others and so he favors us as we reach out.

As you serve today, imagine Jesus alongside.

will

John 8:29
29 The one who sent me is with me; he has not left me alone, for I always do what pleases him."

When our will and God’s will intersect, we begin to see him at work the way Jesus sees him. When we are serving God, we never have complete solitude because there is always someone hanging around with us. Thank Him!!

Pray that God is your constant companion this new year.

alone

Luke 9:18
18 Once when Jesus was praying in private and his disciples were with him, he asked them, "Who do the crowds say I am?"

We can be alone even with others. It is a matter of focus, as well as location. Jesus has support as he supports. This still works.

Chose someone who serves the Lord powerfully from your own life and pray for them today.

knowing God

Christmas is not just for Christians- when God reveals himself as Jesus, we are all confronted with hope

mountain

Luke 6:12
12 One of those days Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to God.

I have a chance to be in the mountains on occasion. It is always beautiful and it changes your perspective. While hiking up Half Dome in Yosemite, one of the things you notice about mountains is it makes you concentrate on just catching your breath. The mountains bring you back to the basics, including the very air you breath.

Thank God for the gift of life and for carrying you along the way.

habit

Luke 5:16
16 But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.

Solitude is not a special occasion kind of thing. On a regular basis, being alone can become a pattern in your life. There you will have to best chance to have the environment Jesus had to make his best decisions.

Pray for solitude to become a habit.

reveal

Mark 9:2
2 After six days Jesus took Peter, James and John with him and led them up a high mountain, where they were all alone. There he was transfigured before them.

Amazing things sometimes happen in solitude. What about a combination nuclear reactor and Savior? That is kind of special. A baby in an obscure cave/ stable somewhere in the middle of the universe? Not so ordinary. How can we shine today? Maybe some time alone will guide us to figure it out.

Pray for God to reveal what he has in store for you.

when

Mark 1:35
35 Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed.

If you are a morning person, this is by far the best time to spend alone with God. Now remember, Jesus is divine and so he appears to be a night person and a morning person! You just need to pick one as the best time for you to be alone with him.

Pray for the desire to spend more alone time with Jesus.

what is Christimas?

when the Messiah comes the desert blooms
where are the deserts in your life?
insights by Pastor Ed Markquart

review

Matt 14:23
23After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone,

Jesus, himself, needed alone time. Night is a great time to reflect on the events of the day and to think about what is coming up tomorrow. I don’t think he needed a day planner, but I am sure he had daily concerns just as we do.

Pray about your day tonight.

diffferent

Jeremiah 15:16-18
17 I never sat in the company of revelers,
never made merry with them;
I sat alone because your hand was on me
and you had filled me with indignation.

Being alone may mean acting differently than those around you. Like Jeremiah, who is speaking specifically here about drunken, party animals. This is especially the case for followers of Jesus who would choose not to join in behavior they think is inappropriate. A quiet “No thanks,” is much more effective than a condemnation, of course.

Pray for graciousness with those who have different lifestyle guidelines.

desert

Isaiah 35:1
1 The desert and the parched land will be glad;
the wilderness will rejoice and blossom.

Lonely places can be beautiful. It is not uncommon for those seeking the Lord to go out in the desert. This is a popular place to gather your thoughts and focus. Yet, the desert is also a place to see the beauty of God in the wind sweeping over the sand and the flowers coming out of the cacti. Just avoid the ATV’s and bring plenty of water!

Pray for St. Andrews Abbey, in the high desert at Valyermo, CA.

good

1 Kings 17:4
4 Drink from the brook and eat what the ravens bring you, for I have commanded them to bring you food.”

Elijah was in solitude and God provided. This is good to know. When we are alone with God, it gives us a sense of our ultimate limitation in life. All we can trust on in the end is God. All we can hope for in the end is God. All we need is God. It’s good to spend some solitude time getting to know God. Very good.

Pray for God to quiet your mind.

open

Numbers 23:9
9 From the rocky peaks I see them, from the heights I view them. I see a people who live apart and do not consider themselves one of the nations.

Too much solitude is not a good thing. I can be a loner, on purpose, because I don’t want to deal with people. We can even be in solitude as a community. This is especially challenging if we are a Christian church. We are to be a blessing to those around us, but if we set up barriers against the “evil” outside world we never connect the Jesus who is already out there serving.

Pray for God to get you out with people more.

Christianity and other religions

does God speak through other religions as he draws people to Christ?
we explore this issue

wrestling

Genesis 32:24
24 So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak.

Jacob wrestling with a man/ angel/ God is a fascinating story. Like Nacho Libre, without the comedy. Jacob struggling with his life, the poor choices he has made in his life, and his future. God appears to him and they wrestle it out.

Wrestling with God in the quiet to the night is not a rare phenomenon. Even atheists do it. It’s called the “conscience.” So whether deliberately or subconsciously, night wrestling may be the only time God finds us open enough to listen.

Pray for God to bug you tonight if you need bugging.

solitude

Solitude- The creation of an open, empty space in our lives by purposefully abstaining from interaction with other human beings, so that, freed from competing loyalties, we can be found by God. (Renovare Study Bible)

We will finish the year in solitude. What an appropriate time during the hustle of these days before Christmas. We are with people more this month of December than just about any other time of year and yet we also can feel very lonely. Solitude teaches us that there is a difference between being lonely and being alone.

Pray for times of refreshment and looking within alone with God.

mouth

James 3:1-12
7 People can tame all kinds of animals, birds, reptiles, and fish, 8 but no one can tame the tongue. It is restless and evil, full of deadly poison. 9 Sometimes it praises our Lord and Father, and sometimes it curses those who have been made in the image of God. 10 And so, blessing and cursing come pouring out of the same mouth. Surely, my brothers and sisters, this is not right!

This is such an easy one to figure out. Do we want to be a blessing to others or do we want to be a curse? Stinking thinking leads to cursing, damaging language. Everything that is necessary to bring blessing or curse is located in that area just above our necks. “If you can’t say something nice about someone….”

Grandma was right.

Pray for God to either teach you his brand of love, or render you speechless (Luke 1:20).

listening

James 1:19
19 Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry.

“He’s the listen of the town.” “I’ll listen to you later.” “Listening is precious!”

I don’t know if we can replace “talk of the town,” “I’ll talk to you later,” or “talk is cheap” from our list of phrases (nor if we want to), but it’s interesting to think about how much more we talk of “talking” rather than “listening.”

Pray for listening to become more a part of your life.

truth

Rom 3:19
19 Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world held accountable to God.

God’s way of life is for everyone. He speaks to us through the Bible and our conscience. No one is exempt. We can ignore the Bible and ignore our conscience but that doesn’t mean the truth is not discovered there. Whether a believer or not, God is not silent to the world.

Pray for the wisdom to make progress in your study of God’s Word.

mood

Zephaniah1:7
7 Be silent before the Sovereign LORD,
for the day of the LORD is near.

The Day of the LORD is when all God’s plans come to fulfillment. It is a joyous and scary day for disciples. Joyous, because finally the new creation is complete and the world is set to right. Scary, as it is also a time we honestly realize how much we need God and how much we have failed him. Somber and joyous together make a good combination for silence.

Pray for a sense of urgency always to be obedient to God.

worship

Habbakkuk 2:20
20 But the LORD is in his holy temple;
let all the earth be silent before him."

I chuckle when I think of this text used to try to get people quiet in church services. The opposing team pulls out, “Make a joyful noise unto the Lord,” and we can start “Fight Club.” There are times to connect with each other and there are times to listen. A little silence can be powerful, especially at worship.

Quietly pray for the worship at your church before you arrive.

John 2:12-22 Bible Study

why is Jesus so perturbed at the Temple?
why does he go Ultimate Fight?

King Jesus

what does it mean for Jesus to rule the universe and in our own lives?