Daily Share-a-Prayer w/e 08/06/2025
Derek Mill
Worship Leader, All Saints Church, Belton
Wednesday 4th June
Heavenly Father, my granddaughter, hates it when she does things wrong. When it is explained why it was wrong, she says, "I didn't know that was a rule". She lives her life by rules and is quick to point out, often quite loudly, if someone breaks a rule. "That man is parked on double yellow lines! What is the speed limit Grandad?" and so on
I suppose, in a way, the way she builds up her rules isn't unlike the way the Jewish leaders in the Old Testament built up their set of rules, and the way we have the law in the UK, and in most countries today. Each new case builds in a new set of parameters within a simple law. You gave us ten commandments, just ten, but we have law books that fill entire libraries!
I know I've prayed about this before, probably more than once, but Your commands were quite simple, in an abridged form: "No other gods and no idols. No swearing. Take a day off. Love and respect your mum and dad. No murder. No adultery. No stealing. No lying. No coveting"
I find myself saying two 'If onlys'. "If only we could keep these ten rules. If only it were that simple". Life should be simple; the commandments You gave us are simple. But we all know it has become very complex. Within us there are desires and ambitions that drive us to do things, and often those desires and ambitions lead us into sinful behaviours. Just eating an apple that we shouldn't is the prime example. Wanting to be something or someone we are not is another prime example; wanting to be God for instance
Father, I have no excuse because I know the 'rules'. I can't claim, "I didn't know that was a rule". I know Your commandments are the best Way to live
Lord Jesus, You show us the best Way to live, and even though it got You crucified, it is still the best Way
Help me, Lord, to keep life simple and live life the Way You did; loving God with all my heart, soul, mind and strength, and loving my neighbours as I love myself. Thank You
Amen
Songs for today:
Love Your neighbour
Lord I need You now
Hineni (Here I Am)
Tuesday 3rd June
Heavenly Father, it seems that You are a God who turns the world upside down; You do things back to front; You turn things inside out! Jesus said: "Whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for Me will find it". And: "The greatest among you will be your servant. For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted". And: "The last will be first, and the first shall be last"
St Paul writes in Your Word: "Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day... So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal". For those who are suffering Paul tells us: "For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all"
It seems as though You are doing Your best to discourage us from coming to You rather than encouraging us! But I wonder, if what You are really doing is just being totally honest? Your economy is different to ours. "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways. As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts"
The things You value are different to ours. You see life as most valuable, precious; while in so many ways we think life is cheap. Some see life as expendable, being lost every day through famine, warfare, gang violence and knife crime, mass shootings in shopping malls, schools and on the streets
Paul considered everything he thought important as mere refuse, garbage, or dung, compared to knowing Jesus. He accepted the exchange rate of Your Way. He gave You his earthly life to gain eternal life, he became a servant to become great in Your eyes, he was beaten and imprisoned so that he could gain freedom, he gave up everything he could see to gain that which is unseen. He worked to become like Jesus
Lord Jesus, rather than being discouraged; help me to see the unseen, to love the unloved, to lose my life to gain it, to be inwardly renewed as my body wastes away, and to value every person as You value them. Help me to be transformed by the renewing of my mind. Thank You
Amen
Songs for today:
That's What Faith Must Be
With You (Paradoxology)
Faithful
Monday 2nd June
Heavenly Father, we had a Bible Study as part of church yesterday. We were looking at the passage in Acts where Paul and Silas had been thrown in prison because they had upset some men who had a girl with a spirit in her that could tell the future, so they made a lot of money from her 'gift,' but the spirit had been cast out by Paul. He and Silas had been beaten with rods before being jailed, so I would have thought they would have been annoyed with You; but no!
Instead of being annoyed, angry or upset I read this: "About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everyone's chains came loose". The building didn't fall on them, no one was hurt or killed, amazingly the doors flew open and their chains fell off! What a weird and wonderful outcome from an earthquake
There are times when You Word speaks to us, as if they are lit up. It really hit me that this happened while they were "praying and singing hymns". I jotted down on my phone: "The power of praise and worship"
If You can respond with an earthquake, shake the earth, and set prisoners free during prayer and praise then, You can do it now! Jesus Christ is the same, yesterday, today and forever. You tell us: "I the Lord do not change"
Help me Lord to trust You in my prayer, praise and worship. There are many people, including myself, who are 'in chains' bound in some way, imprisoned within themselves, who needs an earthquake to set them free, just as I need to be set free! As I pray and worship now, send Your Spirit, to shake the foundations of someone's life so their chains fall off and the doors open so they are free. "It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery"
Thank You. May I carry on always praying and praising You and Jesus and then see what happens
Amen
Songs for today:
Rejoice rejoice Christ is in you
Power in the praise
There is power in the name of Jesus
Show Your power
all songs (usually with lyrics) and talks courtesy of YouTube
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