Claire's Prayer

Right from the very start – gifts given and flowing from our beloved Father. “Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the LORD Jesus Christ.” Ephesians 1:2. Grace and peace, two sought-after, treasured, priceless gifts. Make no mistake, these two gifts can only come from the Father and our precious Savior. Grace is the unmerited favor of God, which He lavishes upon you, not expecting anything in return. Wow – doesn’t that make you stop and think? God pours out His grace upon you, and you don’t have to do a thing!

I simply have to include this quote by F. B. Meyer because it is so beautiful and captures the essence of grace and peace! Read it slowly, let it sink in… “Grace to help in our times of need; Peace to keep our heart and mind. The one as the blue vault of Heaven above us, with its smile of sun, and breath of air, and reviving rain; the other as the blue depths of the ocean, tranquil and calm. But neither of these blessed gifts can be ours till we have come to recognise God as our Father. Be doubtful about that, and you will not dare to exercise the child’s privilege of claiming what you want from the Father’s stores; and you will miss the unspeakable rest which breathes through the heart of the child, as it nestles to the father’s side. Open your heart to the Spirit of Adoption that He may flutter, dove-like, into its depths; and, in the cry Abba, bear witness with your spirit that you are a child of God, and if a child, then a participator in His Grace and Peace.”

We are His children, and just as mine reach into my fridge anytime they want to and partake of the food within, so can we claim what we need from our Father’s storehouse. We are His children, His girls; that is who we are. That is the core of our identity. We can nestle close to the side of our Father and breathe in His peace. Here we are, Saints in Christ Jesus and children of the Living God, full of grace and peace.

When I was a little girl, I was baptized into the Methodist church, and I will never forget Reverend Ken Mew speaking this blessing over me in his soothing voice. “The Lord bless you and keep you; The Lord make His face shine upon you, and be gracious to you; The Lord lift up His countenance upon you, And give you peace.” Numbers 6:24-26. And I still love hearing that blessing to this day. Here again, we see grace and peace. Grace first, peace flowing from His grace. Peace is always built on the foundation of His grace, His loving-kindness, His bountiful favor. That gift from our Perfect Savior that requires nothing in return. ‘Oh, what a Savior, isn’t He wonderful!’

Reflections

1. Grace is described as the unmerited favor of God—freely and abundantly poured out upon you, with nothing asked for in return. Are there things in your life that make it difficult for you to receive the Father’s grace without feeling the need to earn it? In what ways might that affect your relationship with God?
2. This devotion highlights our identity as a daughter of God—able to come to the Father’s storehouse, taking what we need. Are there ways you live like His beloved daughter who has total access to the Father, and where do you still hesitate, afraid to come boldly into His presence?
3. Peace is always built on the foundation of God’s grace. How have you experienced peace when you simply rested in God’s grace, and how might your life change if you anchored your peace in His grace all the time?

Step-By-Step

Today, instead of striving, intentionally receive from the Father. Take five minutes to sit with the LORD and quietly pray, “Abba Father, I receive Your grace and Your peace as Your beloved daughter.” Write down one area where you have been trying to earn God’s favor, and then give that over to to Him. Let His peace settle upon you as you rest in being His child.

Paul was always amazed that he was called by God.  “Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God,” (Ephesians 1:1a). A man who was bitter and angry, a persecutor of Christians, a Pharisee and Roman Citizen who sought to imprison and kill all those following Christ.  It’s almost as if Paul was saying, “Wow, I can’t believe it, because of God I am now a spokesperson for Jesus!”  Over and over throughout the New Testament, you see a man who stands amazed, whose boast is only in the LORD, never in himself.

Honestly, that’s me!  When I think back upon my past and where I came from, I am ‘gob-smacked,’ as my husband would say, that the LORD called me.  That He chose me when there are so many other, much better choices that He could have made.  My path was one where I only thought of myself, worked hard, and played harder, sadly there were a few casualties along the way, as there so often is. There was a “But God” moment in my life, a “Come to Jesus” moment!  God turned my broken life around, and I am still so often surprised by where this journey with my Savior has taken me.  Glory to God!

And so, Paul simply states in a humble fashion, “I am a spokesperson for God by the will of God.”  What I love next is that Paul is talking to the Saints in Ephesus.  “To the saints who are in Ephesus, and faithful in Christ Jesus,” (Ephesians 1:1b). The Saints!  Not some holier-than-thou saints with gleaming halos upon their heads, but real, everyday Christians in Ephesus.  Doctors, nurses, retailers, lawyers, clerks, you name it, people just like you and me.  This verse could say, “To the saints who are in ______,” insert your city here.  You are that Saint that Paul is talking to!

Now, let’s take the religiosity off Saint for a second.  Saint means one set apart, holy.  That’s you! When you said ‘yes’ to Jesus, you became set apart, and through His precious blood, holy, as if you had never sinned!  Wow, the very thought fills me with awe.  As we read through this time, as we seek our true identity in Christ, the very first thing to remember is that you are called by the will of God and that you are a Saint, holy and set apart.  Doesn’t that make you want to rejoice?  Stand a little straighter, Saint, lift your head a little higher, He has called you!

Reflections

1.  Paul always remembered who he was before Christ and how far he had come. How does remembering your own “before Christ” story make you thankful for God’s calling on your life?
2. Paul describes himself simply as an apostle “by the will of God,” not by anything he had done and certainly not by luck. Do you sometimes struggle to believe that God truly chose you—just as you are?  How can you begin to trust that God chose you as you are?
3. The believers in Ephesus were ordinary people just like you and I, but Paul calls them “saints.” How does redefining “saint” as “set apart and made holy through Christ” change your view of yourself and other believers?

Step-By-Step

Today, write your name and city into Ephesians 1:1b (for example, “To the saint, ____, who is in _____, and faithful in Christ Jesus,” Read this verse out loud as a declaration that you are indeed called by the will of God, you are set apart for His purposes. Walk throughout your day with a consciousness that you are His called and chosen saint, remember gratitude, and humility in the person He called you to be.

Who doesn’t love to travel, see new places, experience new things? For me try all the new cuisines! But to do that we need to have a passport, a document that tells authorities exactly who you are, you wouldn’t be able to travel without this very important identification.

Way back in Mark 10, we see just how important identification was. Imagine the scene, Blind Bartimaeus was sitting at the side of the road, begging, when Jesus passed by; “𝑯𝒆 𝒃𝒆𝒈𝒂𝒏 𝒕𝒐 𝒔𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒕, “𝑱𝒆𝒔𝒖𝒔, 𝑺𝒐𝒏 𝒐𝒇 𝑫𝒂𝒗𝒊𝒅, 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒎𝒆𝒓𝒄𝒚 𝒐𝒏 𝒎𝒆!” 𝑴𝒂𝒏𝒚 𝒓𝒆𝒃𝒖𝒌𝒆𝒅 𝒉𝒊𝒎 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒐𝒍𝒅 𝒉𝒊𝒎 𝒕𝒐 𝒃𝒆 𝒒𝒖𝒊𝒆𝒕, 𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒆, “𝑺𝒐𝒏 𝒐𝒇 𝑫𝒂𝒗𝒊𝒅, 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒎𝒆𝒓𝒄𝒚 𝒐𝒏 𝒎𝒆!” 𝑱𝒆𝒔𝒖𝒔 𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒑𝒑𝒆𝒅 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒔𝒂𝒊𝒅, “𝑪𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒉𝒊𝒎. 𝑺𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒄𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒃𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒅 𝒎𝒂𝒏, “𝑪𝒉𝒆𝒆𝒓 𝒖𝒑! 𝑶𝒏 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒇𝒆𝒆𝒕! 𝑯𝒆’𝒔 𝒄𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒚𝒐𝒖.” 𝑻𝒉𝒓𝒐𝒘𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒄𝒍𝒐𝒂𝒌 𝒂𝒔𝒊𝒅𝒆, 𝒉𝒆 𝒋𝒖𝒎𝒑𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒇𝒆𝒆𝒕 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒄𝒂𝒎𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝑱𝒆𝒔𝒖𝒔.” Throwing his cloak aside? Why did Mark even mention this cloak? Was it important? You see, the Roman government issued identification to the blind man, giving them the legal right to beg. A cloak was given, an identity allotted. Bartimaeus wore that cloak which announced to the world, I am blind, this is who I am.

When Bartimaeus heard Jesus coming, he threw aside that cloak, his old identity. 𝗕𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗲𝗱, 𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗲𝘄 𝗶𝘁 𝗮𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲. He knew that today was the day that he would be changed forever, he would be able to see!

How like Bartimaeus we can be. Wearing the cloak that the world has given us, perhaps a cloak of shame, anxiety, doubt, fear, or failure. That cloak can become our identity. Bartimaeus knew that only Jesus could change his identity and he was ready! He was ready for a new identity, one that could see, one that knew Jesus could exchange failure, fear, and frailty for courage, love, and peace.

I often wonder what happened to Sharp Sighted Bartimaeus, one thing I know for sure is he never picked that cloak up again, Mark tells us, “𝒊𝒎𝒎𝒆𝒅𝒊𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒍𝒚 𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒆𝒄𝒆𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒅 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒔𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒇𝒐𝒍𝒍𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒅 𝑱𝒆𝒔𝒖𝒔 𝒐𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒐𝒂𝒅.” No time to turn back. I want to be like Bartimaeus, throw away my old identity, the one the world has placed on my shoulder and take on the identity of Christ. Healed. Loved. Forgiven. Child of God.

Sometimes it feels as though we do nothing but battle. We wrestle, we struggle, and we fight. Ephesians 6:12 tells us this exact thing; “𝑭𝒐𝒓 𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒖𝒈𝒈𝒍𝒆 𝒊𝒔 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒂𝒈𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒔𝒕 𝒇𝒍𝒆𝒔𝒉 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒃𝒍𝒐𝒐𝒅, 𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝒂𝒈𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒔𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒖𝒍𝒆𝒓𝒔, 𝒂𝒈𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒔𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒂𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒆𝒔, 𝒂𝒈𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒔𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒑𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒅𝒂𝒓𝒌 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒍𝒅 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒂𝒈𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒔𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒑𝒊𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒖𝒂𝒍 𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒄𝒆𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒆𝒗𝒊𝒍 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒗𝒆𝒏𝒍𝒚 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒎𝒔.” Some translations use battle, fight, or wrestle.

Interestingly, this verse is not sounding an alarm; it’s not a clarion call announcing a call to arms, but a statement, a declaration that we are already in this battle. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗮𝗿 𝗶𝘀 𝗮𝗹𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘆 𝗿𝗮𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗴, 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝗺𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗴𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗖𝗵𝗿𝗶𝘀𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗟𝗢𝗥𝗗’𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗺𝘆.

I had a picture of an intense battleground, bombs were exploding everywhere you looked, snipers were in the trees and there were ambushes hidden around the corner. And there, walking among the flowers, was a person who looked like they were on a Sunday stroll. Stopping to pick flowers, oblivious to that which was going on around. It made me want to shout, to shake the stroller and say, “𝘊𝘢𝘯’𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘴𝘦𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶’𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘪𝘥𝘥𝘭𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘢 𝘣𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘭𝘦! 𝘉𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘶𝘭!” All I could think was, “𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘨𝘦𝘵 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘯 𝘰𝘶𝘵!”

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗹𝗲 𝗶𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘄, 𝗶𝘁’𝘀 𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗻𝘂𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲.

The surest way to lose a battle is to pretend it doesn’t exist. In 2 Corinthians 2:11, as Paul talks about forgiving one another, he says, “𝒊𝒏 𝒐𝒓𝒅𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝑺𝒂𝒕𝒂𝒏 𝒎𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒐𝒖𝒕𝒘𝒊𝒕 𝒖𝒔. 𝑭𝒐𝒓 𝒘𝒆 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒖𝒏𝒂𝒘𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒔𝒄𝒉𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒔.” The devil schemes, he plots, and he plans and his conspiracies are not ones for your good, they are to kill you, like a lion to devour you. (1 Peter 5:8)

I feel we must put a BUT GOD moment in here! But God has equipped us, has given us armor, has advised us of the battle plan. We are fighting a battle that we will win! The Holy Spirit was sent to us to be our guide, He helps us in our weakness and leads us in all truth. God’s Word illuminates our path, equips us for battle. Our worship to the LORD conquers even the fiercest of enemies. And prayer, oh prayer, Karl Barth put it this way; “𝘛𝘰 𝘤𝘭𝘢𝘴𝘱 𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘱𝘳𝘢𝘺𝘦𝘳 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘧 𝘢𝘯 𝘶𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘨𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘭𝘥.”

I’ve been reading the last 3 chapters of Judges and honestly there isn’t a whole lot to like in these stories! It is a tough couple of chapters full of what life looks like when man goes their own way and does “𝒘𝒉𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒔𝒆𝒆 𝒇𝒊𝒕”, takes matters into their own hands, and there is very little of God in the story.

An interesting verse stood out to me, and I really wondered why it was even referenced, it’s Judges 20:16; “𝑨𝒎𝒐𝒏𝒈 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒔𝒆 𝒔𝒐𝒍𝒅𝒊𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒘𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒔𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒏 𝒉𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒓𝒆𝒅 𝒔𝒆𝒍𝒆𝒄𝒕 𝒕𝒓𝒐𝒐𝒑𝒔 𝒘𝒉𝒐 𝒘𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒍𝒆𝒇𝒕-𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒅, 𝒆𝒂𝒄𝒉 𝒐𝒇 𝒘𝒉𝒐𝒎 𝒄𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅 𝒔𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂 𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒂𝒕 𝒂 𝒉𝒂𝒊𝒓 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒎𝒊𝒔𝒔.” Left-handed men? Remarkable that there were so many left-handed men who were select troops. If you are left-handed, this is something to celebrate, as left-handed people have been given a bad rap for so many years. In many countries, well into the 21st century, children were forced to write with their right hand, sometimes having their left hands tied behind their backs!

There is a story about an island of men who used sling shots, in the Balearic Islands, today Majorca and Menorca. You could hire these elite troops who would fight on the front lines shattering the shields and helmets of the enemy. When the boys were young their fathers would put their bread for the day on the top of a tree or stick and the little boy would have to sling stones at it if he wanted to eat that day! A sure-fire way of making a great shooter. These incredible select troops could shoot a 1-pound stone at 100 miles an hour!

Now the bible says that these left-handed men were so good at what they did that they could sling a stone at a hair and not miss! Incredible.

Interestingly the word for miss in the Hebrew is ‘chata’ meaning, to miss the way, to fail; to err, to swerve from truth, to go wrong, to sin. Miss is the common word for sin. When we miss the mark, don’t hit the standard that God has set for righteousness we sin. And God’s Word tells us in Romans 3; “𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒏𝒆𝒅 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒇𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒔𝒉𝒐𝒓𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒈𝒍𝒐𝒓𝒚 𝒐𝒇 𝑮𝒐𝒅, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒋𝒖𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒇𝒊𝒆𝒅 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝒍𝒚 𝒃𝒚 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒈𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒆𝒅𝒆𝒎𝒑𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒄𝒂𝒎𝒆 𝒃𝒚 𝑪𝒉𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒕 𝑱𝒆𝒔𝒖𝒔.”

We all miss the mark, if we were young boys living on that island, none of us would eat! BUT, we are all justified and redeemed by His grace. Because of the blood of our precious Savior, we are all freely forgiven, raised up, and delivered. Today I am thankful that Jesus paid the price for my sin, for my terrible aim, for my inability to hit the mark, because of Jesus’ grace I am free, it is as though I have never sinned.

𝗧𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘆 𝗜 𝗽𝗿𝗮𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗼𝗼 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗴𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗳𝗿𝗲𝗲, 𝗹𝗶𝗯𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗱, 𝗮𝗯𝘀𝗼𝗹𝘃𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝗱𝗼𝗿𝗲𝗱!