Cockeyed with Gratitude

WATCHWORD:

“O Come, let us sing for joy to the Lord; Let us shout joyfully to the rock of our salvation. Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving; let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise! For the Lord is a great God, and a great King above all gods.”   Psalm 95:1-3

 “Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name! For the Lord is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations.” Psalm 100:4-5

“Give thanks to the Lord for he is good, his love endures forever.”   Psalm 118:29

 “I will give thanks to you, LORD, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonderful deeds.”  Psalm 1:9 Continue reading

After the Darkness

WATCHWORD:

45 Philip found Nathanael and said to him, “We have found Him of whom Moses in the law, and also the prophets, wrote—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.” 46 And Nathanael said to him, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth? ”Philip said to him, “Come and see.” 47 Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward Him, and said of him, “Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom is no deceit!” 48 Nathanael said to Him, “How do You know me?” Jesus answered and said to him, “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.”  John 1:45-48 Continue reading

Advent House Cleaning

WATCHWORD:

Have mercy on me, O God, because of your unfailing love.  Because of your great compassion, blot out the stain of my sins. Wash me clean from my guilt. Purify me from my sin. For I recognize my rebellion; it haunts me day and night. Against you, and you alone, have I sinned; I have done what is evil in your sight. You will be proved right in what you say, and your judgment against me is just.[a] For I was born a sinner— yes, from the moment my mother conceived me. But you desire honesty from the womb,[b] teaching me wisdom even there.Purify me from my sins,[c] and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.Oh, give me back my joy again; you have broken me— now let me rejoice. Don’t keep looking at my sins. Remove the stain of my guilt. 10 Create in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a loyal spirit within me. 11 Do not banish me from your presence, and don’t take your Holy Spirit[d] from me. 12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and make me willing to obey you. Psalm 51:1-12 Continue reading

Monday, November 30

WATCHWORD:

The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your fellow Israelites. You must listen to him. For this is what you asked of the Lord your God at Horeb on the day of the assembly when you said, “Let us not hear the voice of the Lord our God nor see this great fire anymore, or we will die.” The Lord said to me: “What they say is good. I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their fellow Israelites, and I will put my words in his mouth. He will tell them everything I commanded him. I myself will call to account anyone who does not listen to my words that the prophet speaks in my name. Deuteronomy 18:15–19

All of us, like sheep, have strayed away. We have left God’s paths to follow our own. Yet the Lord laid on him the sins of us all. He was oppressed and treated harshly, yet he never said a word. He was led like a lamb to the slaughter. And as a sheep is silent before the shearers,
he did not open his mouth. Isaiah 53:6-7 Continue reading

Saturday, November 28

WATCHWORD:

19 Because of that experience, we have even greater confidence in the message proclaimed by the prophets. You must pay close attention to what they wrote, for their words are like a lamp shining in a dark place—until the Day dawns, and Christ the Morning Star shines[a] in your hearts.20 Above all, you must realize that no prophecy in Scripture ever came from the prophet’s own understanding,[b] 21 or from human initiative. No, those prophets were moved by the Holy Spirit, and they spoke from God. 2 Peter 1:19-21 Continue reading

Friday, November 27

WATCHWORD:

Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.  Colossians 3:15-17

I thank and praise you, God of my ancestors:
    You have given me wisdom and power,
you have made known to me what we asked of you,
    you have made known to us the dream of the king.  Daniel 2:23

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
    his love endures forever.    Psalm 118:1 Continue reading

Thanksgiving Day

WATCHWORD:

11 As Jesus continued on toward Jerusalem, he reached the border between Galilee and Samaria. 12 As he entered a village there, ten men with leprosy stood at a distance,13 crying out, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!”  14 He looked at them and said, “Go show yourselves to the priests.”[a] And as they went, they were cleansed of their leprosy. 15 One of them, when he saw that he was healed, came back to Jesus, shouting, “Praise God!” 16 He fell to the ground at Jesus’ feet, thanking him for what he had done. This man was a Samaritan. 17 Jesus asked, “Didn’t I heal ten men? Where are the other nine? 18 Has no one returned to give glory to God except this foreigner?” 19 And Jesus said to the man, “Stand up and go. Your faith has healed you.[b]” Luke 17:11-19

7 “Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened. “You parents—if your children ask for a loaf of bread, do you give them a stone instead? 10 Or if they ask for a fish, do you give them a snake? Of course not! 11 So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give good gifts to those who ask him. Matthew 7:7-11 Continue reading

Tuesday, November 24

WATCHWORD:

Take delight in the Lord,
and he will give you your heart’s desires. Psalm 37:4

I delight to do your will, O my God; your law is within my heart.” Psalm 40:8

These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full. John 15:11 Continue reading

Saturday, November 21

WATCHWORD:

As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God. My soul thirst is for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God? Psalm 41:1-2

31 Jesus said to the people who believed in him, “You are truly my disciples if you remain faithful to my teachings.32 And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” 33 “But we are descendants of Abraham,” they said. “We have never been slaves to anyone. What do you mean, ‘You will be set free’?”

34 Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave of sin. 35 A slave is not a permanent member of the family, but a son is part of the family forever. 36 So if the Son sets you free, you are truly free. John 8:31-36 Continue reading

Friday, November 20

WATCHWORD:

 7 for he is our God. We are the people he watches over, the flock under his care. If only you would listen to his voice today! Psalm 95:7

32 “So don’t be afraid, little flock. For it gives your Father great happiness to give you the Kingdom. Luke 12:32

28 “So guard yourselves and God’s people. Feed and shepherd God’s flock—his church, purchased with his own blood[a]—over which the Holy Spirit has appointed you as leaders.[b] 29 I know that false teachers, like vicious wolves, will come in among you after I leave, not sparing the flock. Acts 20:28-29 Continue reading

Thursday, November 19

WATCHWORD:

11 “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. 12 The hired hand is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep. So, when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it. 13 The man runs away because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.

14 “I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me— 15 just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep. 16 I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd. 17 The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life—only to take it up again. 18 No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father.”  John 10:11-18 Continue reading