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November 14, 2012
Day 9
Hand of Mercy
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Dear Praying Friend,
A quick scan of the immoral and corrupt landscape surrounding us (and quickly engulfing us) gives us just cause to point the finger at the ungodly citizens of this world as the reason for all the difficulty and challenges we are facing. Unfortunately, much of the world is living as expected, while much of the Church is failing to live as required. The world does not (yet) have a personal relationship with the living God, therefore it is not being held up to the same standard as the followers of Jesus Christ are. We have spent too much time trying to justify our own behavior while attempting to judge everyone elses; and all the while we are falling increasingly behind on what should be our number one priority - nurturing our own personal relationship with the Lord. As we meditate on Psalm 6:1-2 today, we must recognize how weak the Body of Christ has become - we are only as strong as the sum of our parts. Our greatest strength rests in our connection to the Head, which is Christ Jesus. Unfortunately, that vital connection has become filled with static (and often stagnant) because we have rejected His priority position in our lives to pursue the things of the world. We now find ourselves, as the psalmist has, in a position of crying out to the Lord in weakness and agony, and appealing to the Lord for His hand of mercy. The Lord knows our hearts; He desires to remove our hearts of stone and replace them with hearts of flesh, but He can't get to them as long as we keep up walls and refuse to surrender to His capable hands. We want great healing for the whole Body, but we have to first be willing to accept healing as an individual part so He can purify us and begin the rebuilding project. "This is how you talk, but you do all the evil you can" (Jeremiah 3:5). "You rebuke and discipline men for their sin; You consume their wealth like a moth - each man is but a breath." (Psalm 39:11) Dear Heavenly Father, 'Hear my prayer, O LORD, listen to my cry for help; be not deaf to my weeping. For I dwell with You as an alien, a stranger, as all my fathers were. Look away from me, that I may rejoice again before I depart and am no more'. Lord, You know the number of our days and we don't want to live our days in fear of Your wrath. We ask forgiveness from living a life of sin that has caused us to be separated from You, and has led us to be trapped by the enticements of this world, and stolen countless hours from our life that should have been dedicated in a passionate pursuit of You. Lord we understand Your anger is always an expression of Your righteousness - for You desire to restore us to Your presence. Lord we want nothing more than to be delivered from the oppression of our enemies and to rest in Your presence. All we want is more of You and we realize that Your wrath will relent when we repent. Your Word tells us, "if a nation does not listen [you] will completely uproot it and destroy it". Lord, for the fame of Your name we pray for healing, cleansing, and restoration in the Church. Give us ears to hear and eyes to see, and time to return to the work of our Father, so that all may come to Your glorious light and salvation. We give thanks to You LORD because of Your righteousness and we sing praise to the name of the LORD Most High. In Jesus' Name. Amen. Steadfast in prayer, Traci Alexander Trumpet and Torch Ministries Psalm 27 __________________________________________________________ Prayer Scripture References: Psalm 2:5; 7:17; 39:5, 12-13; 43:1-4; Isaiah 6:3; Jeremiah 3:12-13; 12:17; Matthew 24:45-46; John 4:34. |
