Daily Share-a-Prayer w/e 30/11/2025
Derek Mill
Worship Leader, All Saints Church, Belton
Friday 28th November
Heavenly Father, help me to persevere! Help me to be determined to succeed. Help me to be patient. Help me to be obedient. You tell us to obey is better than sacrifice. Joshua obeyed and was successful; King Saul disobeyed and lost his kingdom. At Jericho, Joshua did everything You commanded him. It would have been easy for him to think, "Why wait seven days? What difference will that make? We are the Lord's people, surely one day will be enough." However, Joshua did everything You had commanded him, and on the seventh day the walls of Jericho fell
Your ways are often a mystery to us, but obedience was a key to Joshua's success, as was patience and perseverance. He had to wait seven days, and he had to do the same thing again and again. He did not question Your ways, he simply obeyed every detail, including putting all the silver, gold, bronze and iron into Your treasury
Saul on the other hand did not do everything You had commanded him. You commanded him: "Now go, attack the Amalekites and totally destroy all that belongs to them. Do not spare them; put to death men and women, children and infants, cattle and sheep, camels and donkeys." For whatever reason Saul did not do as You said. "But Saul and the army spared Agag and the best of the sheep and cattle, the fat calves and lambs - everything that was good." Saul claimed he wanted to sacrifice the sheep and cattle to You, but the prophet Samuel said to him: "Does the Lord delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the Lord? To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams... Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, He has rejected you as king"
Lord, if You ask me to keep chipping away, I will chip away. If You ask me to blow a trumpet. I will blow a trumpet. Help me to be obedient, to be patient, and to persevere under Your guidance, until the walls come tumbling down. Thank You
Amen
Songs for today:
You will make a Way
Joshua fought the battle of Jericho
To obey is better than sacrifice
Thursday 27th November
Heavenly Father, when a ship or a boat wants to remain safely in one place it will usually drop an anchor or be tethered to other ships or to a mooring site or dock. It seems we too, as people, need to have an anchor for our soul or we need to be tethered to something, or someone
That something, or someone is You, our God and Father. We are linked to You through Jesus. Life is like being on an open sea. There are storms and gales that buffet us, huge waves that threaten to engulf us. We may feel that we are drowning in a sea of despair or sorrow. But in all of this, even on the high seas, we can drop anchor by turning to You. We can cry out to You, knowing You are with us, and You keep us safe.
Sometimes the storm rages on for a while, as it did when Paul was at sea, but not one was lost. Your Word tells us: "On the fourteenth night we were still being driven across the Adriatic Sea... Altogether there were 276 of us on board... Fearing that we would be dashed against the rocks, they dropped four anchors from the stern and prayed for daylight... When daylight came, they did not recognize the land, but they saw a bay with a sandy beach, where they decided to run the ship aground if they could... He ordered those who could swim to jump overboard first and get to land. The rest were to get there on planks or on other pieces of the ship. In this way everyone reached land safely."
Or sometimes help comes quickly, as it did for the disciples: "A strong wind was blowing and the waters grew rough. When they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus approaching the boat, walking on the water; and they were frightened. But he said to them, 'It is I; don’t be afraid.' Then they were willing to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat reached the shore where they were heading"
Lord Jesus, in the storms of life You are my anchor, You are my Saviour. Help me always to cry out to You until I know I am safe again
Amen
Songs for today:
Will your anchor hold
Song of the saints
Anchor
Wednesday 26th November
Heavenly Father, thank You for lifting me up this morning. As You have done so often before, You lifted me through worship. Putting You in the place where You should be, makes me realise, and remember, that the difficult times will pass
As a good friend pointed out this morning: I heard a bloke in church ask another bloke who'd been born again for decades "Why does it often say in the Bible 'And it came to pass'?" The older Christian answered "Because mate it doesn't come to stay"
Thank You for Your Word to us: "Weeping may remain for a night but rejoicing comes in the morning." And: "Those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy. He who goes out weeping carrying seed to sow will return with songs of joy carrying sheaves with him" Life will always be full of ups and downs, but Your promise is to be with us in every circumstance
Thank You for the songs You gave me this morning which encouraged and inspired me. You are the God we love. Who else is worthy of all our praise and worship. Hallowed be Thy Name
Thank You that at any time we can turn to Jesus and look to Him to restore us: "Turn Your eyes upon Jesus, look full in His wonderful face; and the things of earth will grow strangely dim in the Light of His glory and grace." If I remember correctly, as the sign at the Addenbrookes Hospital states: "Whatever it is... it will pass"
Thank You
Amen
Songs for today:
The God we love
Who else is worthy
Hallowed be
Let me see Jesus/Turn your eyes upon Jesus
Tuesday 25th November
Heavenly Father, when the rug is pulled from under one's feet it means we are destabilised. There are many reasons we can feel like this: loss of a job; loss of a home; loss of a partner; loss of confidence, etc. All of a sudden life seems different and difficult. Things we did almost without thinking, now need great concentration. The touch that was so assured now becomes a fumble
I see this happen in football all the time, when a player loses confidence, stroking the ball into the net becomes a wild slash at the ball, or a complete miskick, or a goalkeeper rushes to punch the ball or drops what was really a simple catch
Instead of going out into the world and meeting people, we might stay at home and watch TV. Instead of preparing a meal we might order a takeaway or just throw something in the microwave or air fryer. In some ways, life loses its purpose and we flounder, not knowing what to do next. The day loses its structure as the things we did by second nature, by habit, are no longer there
Lord, how do we recover from having the rug pulled? I guess it takes time. I guess we need to find a new focus for our day. I guess we need to restructure our day. I guess we need to find a purpose for living. Lord, help all those who have had the rug pulled to find You in the midst of the confusion and fear. You have a plan for us to prosper, to give us hope and a future. I guess we need to just hold on, hold on to You that is
"The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him; it is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord." "Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord." "Those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint." "You alone are my strength, my shield, to You alone may my spirit yield. You alone are my heart's desire and I long to worship You"
Help us to come back to the heart of worship
Amen
Songs for today:
The Image
When the music fades
As the deer pants for the water
Never leave
Monday 24th November
Heavenly Father, some people may say that I am lucky or fortunate, and I am; but there is far more to it than that; I am greatly blessed, for I am surrounded by my family and friends, who love me and support me in the most difficult of days. When I am down, they come to visit me, stay with me, sit with me, often in silence, but also talking with me. Thank You. It must be so difficult living life without the support of others, when there is no one to share successes and failures; no one with whom to "chew the fat" as a friend of mine asked to do the other day
Conversation, as well as travel, broadens the mind. Thank You for those who share new ideas and perspectives, helping me to understand different viewpoints. There are often deep and challenging conversations, but really, a lot of our chat is rambling, searching for the Truth, which of course we find in Your Word. And a lot of our talk is about past events, shared memories and recollections. And a good deal of it is nonsense, sharing jokes and funny thoughts
Thank You, Lord, for all those relationships that enrich my life; thank You for old friends, new friends, acquaintances becoming friends, and strangers, friends I haven't yet met. And thank You especially for my friendship with You, through Jesus. I find in You everything I could ever ask for in a good friend. And I find that most of my best friends know You as a friend too
Lord, help me to be a blessing to others, to be a good friend, and in time to introduce You to those who don't yet know You
Amen
Songs for today:
What a friend I've found
He calls me friend
Lord and Friend
Friend
all songs (usually with lyrics) and talks courtesy of YouTube
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