I will now turn aside and see this great sight

Moses saw the Angel of the Lord (who appeared to him in a flame of fire in the midst of a bush):

Then Moses said, “I will now turn aside and see this great sight, why the bush does not burn.”
So when the LORD saw that he turned aside to look, God called to him from the midst of the bush and said, “Moses, Moses!”
And he said, “Here I am.”

Father,

May we turn aside (from our daily routine) when we encounter You
May we recognize Your voice when You call our name
May we respond, “Here I am”
Would You reveal Yourself

Amen

Today I am reading: Exodus 3-5; Luke 22

This poor widow has put in more than all;

Luke 21:

“And He [Jesus] looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the treasury,  and He saw also a certain poor widow putting in two mites.  So He said, “Truly I say to you that this poor widow has put in more than all;  for all these out of their abundance have put in offerings for God, but she out of her poverty put in all the livelihood that she had.”

Father,

May we give you all the livelihood that we have.
And may we know You.
Reveal Yourself to us.

Amen

Today I am Reading: Exodus 1, 2; Psalm88; Luke 21

What is man that you are mindful of him?

David, in Psalm 8:

O LORD, our Lord,
How excellent is Your name in all the earth,
Who have set Your glory above the heavens!

Out of the mouth of babes and nursing infants
You have ordained strength,
Because of Your enemies,
That You may silence the enemy and the avenger.

When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers,
The moon and the stars, which You have ordained,
What is man that You are mindful of him,
And the son of man that You visit him?
For You have made him a little lower than the angels,
And You have crowned him with glory and honor.

You have made him to have dominion over the works of Your hands;
You have put all things under his feet,
All sheep and oxen—
Even the beasts of the field,
The birds of the air,
And the fish of the sea
That pass through the paths of the seas.

O LORD, our Lord,
How excellent is Your name in all the earth!

O Lord, our Lord,

It is our desire to see You.
Reveal Yourself

Amen

Today I am reading: Genesis 49, 50;  Psalm 8;  Luke 20

I will praise the Lord according to His righteousness

David, in Psalm 7 medidating about the words of Cush (the Benjamite), concludes:

I will praise the Lord according to His righteousness,
And will sing praise to the name of the Lord Most High.

Lord Most High,

We also praise You… and sing praise to You.
May Your righteousness be revealed to us.

Amen

Today I am reading: Genesis 37, 38; Psalm 7; Luke 15

Put away the foreign gods that are among you…

Genesis (35):

“Then God said to Jacob, “Arise, go up to Bethel and dwell there; and make an altar there to God, who appeared to you when you fled from the face of Esau your brother.”
And Jacob said to his household and to all who were with him, “Put away the foreign gods that are among you, purify yourselves, and change your garments.  Then let us arise and go up to Bethel; and I will make an altar there to God, who answered me in the day of my distress and has been with me in the way which I have gone.”

Almighty One,

May we hear Your voice of instruction as Jacob did.
May we put away from us any other god(s).
May we be pure before You.
Would You reveal Yourself.

Amen

Today I am reading: Genesis 34 – 36; Luke 14

I will not let You go unless You bless me!

Genesis: Jacob is returning home after 20 years of serving his mother’s brother Laban.  He narrowly escaped what could have been a nasty confrontation with Laban, and is afraid that he is about to experience one with his brother Esau.  The night before the expected confrontation Jacob, who was left alone, wrestles with a Man. (Hosea identifies the “Man” as an Angel).  Finally, because Jacob would not let Him go:

…And He (the Man/Angel) said, “Let Me go, for the day breaks.”  But he (Jacob) said, “I will not let You go unless You bless me!”
So He said to him, “What is your name?” He said, “Jacob.”
And He said, “Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel; for you have struggled with God and with men, and have prevailed.”

Awesome God,

May we hold on to You today, holding out for Your blessing.
Would You bless us with the blessing You desire for us.
May we not presume to know what that is.
Would You reveal Yourself to us as we seek You.

Amen

Today I am reading: Genesis 31, 32, 33; Luke 13

Blessed are those servants whom the master, when he comes, will find watching

Jesus, teaching the disciples, explains:

“Let your waist be girded and your lamps burning;  and you yourselves be like men who wait for their master, when he will return from the wedding, that when he comes and knocks they may open to him immediately.  Blessed are those servants whom the master, when he comes, will find watching. Assuredly, I say to you that he will gird himself and have them sit down to eat, and will come and serve them.  And if he should come in the second watch, or come in the third watch, and find them so, blessed are those servants.”

Perfect Master,

You have taught us that we will be blessed if we are found watching for You.
It is for this reason that we remain steadfast in our anticipation.
May we be the servants that You find watching for You.
Would You reveal Yourself to us.

Amen

Today I am reading: Genesis 29, 30; Luke 12

You did not enter in yourselves, and those who were entering in you hindered

Jesus, in Luke, was rebuking (rather confrontationally) the Pharisees and the lawyers (or scribes) at the end of which He concludes:

“Woe to you lawyers!  For you have taken away the key of knowledge.  You did not enter in yourselves, and those who were entering in you hindered.”

Father,

As You reveal Yourself to us, may we never fail to enter in and may we never hinder others from entering in.

Amen

Today I am reading: Genesis 27, 28; Psalm 4; Luke 11

The One to Whom the Son Wills to Reveal Him

Jesus sends out seventy ‘others’ and when they return, naturally excited that, “…even the demons are subject to us in Your name”, He responds:

“I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.  Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you.  Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven.”

In that hour Jesus rejoiced in the Spirit and said,

“I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and revealed them to babes. Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight.  All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, and who the Father is except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.”

Son of the Most High,

May we have the authority to speak in Your name.
May we know You.  May we know Your Father.
May we be counted worthy to make You known.
Reveal Yourself.

Amen

Today I am reading: Genesis 25, 26; Psalm 6; Luke 10

Amazed at the Majesty of God

Jesus took Peter, John and James up a mountain to pray.  On their way down, they were met by a crownd.  A man in the crowd implored Jesus to help his son who was afflicted by a demon.  Not surprisingly, Jesus healed the child.  Luke tells us, regarding this:

“And they were all amazed at the majesty of God.”

Father God,

May we be amazed at Your Majesty today.
Reveal Yourself majestically to us, in us and through us.
Teach us to be servants.
Servants that carry with them their Master’s authority.

Amen

Today I am reading: Genesis 23, 24; Luke 9