Thank you, Wimpy, for today’s headline. We all relate to the “gimme now, I’ll pay you later” life view. Harder to grasp is the “praise God now for future blessings” mindset.
Remember that God exists outside of time. To Him the end is as the beginning.
Revelation 1:8 (NIV)
“I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.”
For answers now, and in the past, and yet to come . . . I give thanks.
Do I pray as a last resort, begging God to get me out of a mess of my own creation? Or do I start off prayerfully, praising God for his answer before I even get around to thinking the request?
Herein is the hard part: praising God even if it won’t be the answer I want.
Lord, I praise you for your answer.
Yes, No or Wait.
Because you are gracious and good.
Think ahead to next week, next year, next decade. Praise God for the answers to requests not yet prayed.
For what are you most grateful?
I bumped up against this intriguing thought in a book I’m reading:
“We will all agree to pray and praise God for the answers before we see them, for that be what faith is about. Then we wait and see.”
(from A Harvest of Hope, Lauraine Snelling)
Hmmm . . . praising God for his answer before we even get around to thinking the request? Are you up to that challenge?
1 Peter 1:13 (KJB)
Gird up the loins of your mind.
Who knew? Another verse demonstrating the intersection of the horizontal and vertical planes.
Gird up, anazónnumi in Greek: from aná, “up to down” and zṓnnymi, “gird,” as in take out the slack, get ready to move quickly.
Mind, dianoia: diá, “from side-to-side,” and noús, “mind,” as in considering a matter from one side of an issue to the other to reach a balanced conclusion.
Unencumbered and ready for intense concentration. Sounds like the mind of Christ to me.
Which is easier for you: accepting forgiveness or offering forgiveness?
Forgive us our trespasses – that’s about our relationship with God, the vertical axis. As we forgive those who trespass against us – that’s about our relationship with others, the horizontal.
The horizontal and vertical relationships intersect at the cross.
That’s where we find forgiveness.
Final lesson on The Lord’s Prayer:
Lead us not into temptation.
He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.
Psalm 23:3 (ESV)
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name.
Amen. Full circle.
Day 4: Due to circumstances beyond our control, we had only half as many children at VBS. Disappointing?
Truth be told, I liked it. I could give each child some undivided attention.
God is never overwhelmed by the multitudes vying for his attention. I don’t have to wait my turn. He never says, “Just a second, hold that thought.” I always have his undivided attention. As do you.
