Tag: found

The Doxology

Claire's Prayer

Back when I was a little girl living in Zimbabwe, we would walk down the road to our little church.  It was an interesting combination of Anglicans and Methodists; funnily enough, it really worked, and the two denominations worked well together.  I didn’t appreciate the traditions at the time, but now I find the creeds, hymns, and doxologies comforting, like a warm blanket on a chilly day.  One of my favorite memories is standing next to my Dad as we sang hymns together, listening to his glorious baritone harmonizing with mine!

Doxology is an interesting word, especially to geeks like me!  I hope you’re a little that way too.  It comes from the Greek and means ‘doxa’ or ‘glory,’ and ‘logia’ from ‘logos or word, and speaking.’  Speaking glory!  It was a way to glorify the Trinity in our little African church, my most favorite being, “Praise God, from Whom All Blessings Flow.”  I know some of you are humming that in your heads already! 

In verse three of our text, we see Paul giving glory to the Trinity.  “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ.”  He blesses our Father, who is the origin of all those blessings, includes our Savior, who through His work on the cross is able to bless us, and finishes off with the work that only the Holy Spirit can do, as it is the Holy Spirit that applies the work to our hearts.  It is almost as though Paul couldn’t help himself, knowing the incredible wonder of the Trinity, and so he speaks this doxology, ‘speaking glory’ to the Father!  Putting the Great I Am in His proper place and giving an appropriate opinion of the One who spoke the world into being.  Should we not do likewise?

It really is quite something to recognise that Paul, likely under house arrest and chained to a prison guard.  Reliant on friends to bring him food, unable to go outside and breathe in the beautiful fresh air, he still begins with worship!  He still begins by speaking glory to our Father.  Remarkable!  It really doesn’t take a whole lot to derail my day, and so often I forget to bring glory to my LORD.   I need this reminder to glorify my God in every situation. 

Sometimes we need to remember what God has done for us, what Jesus accomplished by giving His life so that we can live for eternity.  To look back and reminisce on the times when the LORD came through, those ‘But God’ moments.  Then, as faith begins to arise in our spirits, we can speak glory to the Father.  Today I plan to sing the doxology, will you join me and sing it too?!

Praise God from whom all blessings flow.

Praise Him, all creatures here below.

Praise Him above, ye heavenly host.

Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

Reflections

  1. Paul begins with ‘speaking glory’ and worship even when his life is turned upside down, and he is imprisoned.  What circumstances often derail your focus on worshipping the LORD, and how might it look like for you to “begin with doxology” in the hard moments?
  2. The devotional features doxology as “speaking glory” to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  How does understanding the way the Trinity works impact the way you worship God?
  3. The author reminisces on times of worship and reminds us to remember “But God” moments.  Was there a time when remembering what God has done for you stirred your faith and brought gratitude to your heart?

Step-By-Step

Pause today and speak or sing a doxology, remember it doesn’t have to sound perfect.  The LORD loves a joyful noise! Write down and remember three specific “But God” moments in your life where your Father has shown you His faithfulness. Let your remembering turn into thankfulness, your thankfulness into worship, and renewed faith.

Doubting Thomas

Claire's Prayer

Do you remember Doubting Thomas?  Thomas, who, when the disciples said that they had seen Jesus, retorted adamantly, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.” John 20:25. Thomas wanted to see first and then believe.  So often, I find myself like Thomas – doubts will raise their ugly heads and play like a crazy merry-go-round in my head.  Does God really still heal today?  Does He really care about me?  Or perhaps, am I really saved?

Of course, as He always does, Jesus showed up to Thomas and invited him to put his hands into the scars, telling him to stop doubting and believe!  Thomas exclaimed, “My LORD and my God!”  I love Jesus’ gentle response, which is what I often need to hear: “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” John 20:29. We are blessed because we believe in the Son, we believe He was sent to save us, and yet have not seen him.  That’s faith!

In our text, we see Paul referring to “the faithful in Christ Jesus.”  The word for faithful is the same one Jesus used when talking to Thomas – ‘believed.’  Paul is talking to the Saints, you and me, because we are Believers!  We believe!  We have faith!  We have a Savior we can have faith in, one who is constant and never fails. This is a faith we can be loyal to and defend. We can join the vast throng of ‘the faithful’ simply because we believe.  And as we believe, as we trust, God will shape us and make us faithful, with a rock-solid knowledge that the LORD is everything He says He is.

Do you know what I love about the story of Thomas?  God showed up!  Even though Thomas was full of doubt, so many questions, God showed up.  He always does.  And Thomas?  He went on to become the most zealous of missionaries, preaching Jesus to the East, perhaps as far as India and becoming a martyr by the end of a spear.  So certain was he that Jesus was his LORD and God that he was prepared to die for his faith.  In the end, he was not Doubting Thomas but Faithful Thomas.  Faithful in Christ Jesus. 

When doubt threatens to overtake you and questions swirl in your mind, let your Abba Father know.  He hears you.  He sees you.  And He will show up for you.  He will turn your doubt to faith, shaping and molding you to be one of the faithful in Christ Jesus!

Reflections

  1. In what area of your life do you most relate to Thomas right now? When doubts tend to rise in your mind questioning God’s power, His loving care for you, or your own faith, how do you respond when they appear?
  2. In what way can you bring your doubts honestly to Jesus instead of hiding them or fighting them alone?
  3. In what ways can you live as one of “the faithful in Christ Jesus,” trusting God even when you cannot see?

Step-By-Step

Today, when those frustrating doubts surface, take a moment and pray this simple prayer: “Jesus, I make the choice to believe even before I see. Help my unbelief.” Write down a promise from Scripture and one way that your Abba Father has shown up for you in the past. Make this a remembrance that you can revisit whenever those doubts threaten to surface again.

He Loved Us First

Claire's Prayer

1 John 4:19. Says; “We love because He first loved us.” Beautiful words.  Words that breathe refreshing life into any weary soul.  “He loved you first.”  In this sweet and simple verse, we hear the Father declaring His love for us, right from the beginning of time.  A shout through the ages from creation to kings, from wars to prophets, down to the birth of His Son.  “I loved you first.”

Our wonderful Heavenly Father is the initiator, and we are the responder. “You have not chosen me, but I have chosen you.” John 15:16. He chose us, we didn’t choose Him.  So often we tell the story of how we chose God, when the reality is, He chose you!  He chose you way back when you were formed in your mother’s womb and your days were written in His book!  God is the initiator; we are the responder.

We don’t give in order to move God to give us more!  We give because He has already given a thousand blessings, an abundance of miracles, and the assurance of salvation.  He gave first. Our response is to give back out of gratefulness and thankfulness for His generous love.  We don’t praise Him to experience His presence.  We praise our Savior as a response to His majesty, as a response to His greatness, His mercy, and His grace.  Creation responding to the Creator!  God is the initiator; we are the responder.  


Our motivation to give, to love, and to praise must be a response to the Great I am loving us first. He gives in abundance; He never leaves us or forsakes us!  You cannot read your bible long enough, pray enough, or do enough good works to make Him love you more.  He loved you first, with a perfect love, a love that knows no bounds, to which there is no end.  Should we not fling our arms to heaven and declare our love for Him when we know the depths of His love?  Our response should be written into every detail of our lives, in our giving, in our doing, in our praising, and in our living.  “We love because He first loved us.”

Reflections

  1. In what areas of your life do you subtly try to “earn” God’s love instead of resting in the truth that He loved you first? 
  2. In what ways is God inviting you to respond to His first love, with praise, worship, or thanksgiving in this moment?  How might your day shift if you saw these acts as a grateful response rather than a duty?
  3. How does knowing that God chose you first shape your identity and your confidence in yourself today?  Write down any fears, insecurities, or striving you might be able to release to Him because of this truth?

Step-By-Step
Take a journal page and title it “Because He Loved Me First, I Will…”
Write down 5–10 simple, heartfelt responses, all the ways you want to love, give, praise, forgive, or serve this week, not because you want to earn the Father’s love but as a joyful overflowing of His love.💛

God’s Incredible Riches

Claire's Prayer

I found myself within a room and began to look around me, everywhere I looked there were shiny gift boxes, tied with huge satin ribbons in every conceivable colour. For a moment I just marveled at the absolute beauty of the boxes, the perfect way in which they were all wrapped. Then I noticed a card attached to each gift, they had my name on them – every single gift was for me. Oh, the excitement! The anticipation! Who had gone to all this trouble to give me all these perfect presents, to wrap each one so thoughtfully, for me?

But they were so beautifully put together.  Perhaps I should just take them home and put them on my mantlepiece, they would look so lovely there on display. It would be such a pity to ruin them.  Well, maybe I’ll open just one…

I picked up the gift wrapped in iridescent pink, my favourite colour, the bow sparkled with gold and silver catching the light and sending out rainbows. Carefully, slowly, I began to unwrap it, almost a little fearful – what if I don’t like it? I reached into the box and drew out the gift… 𝑪𝒉𝒐𝒔𝒆𝒏! 𝑪𝒉𝒐𝒔𝒆𝒏!  I am chosen.  Before the foundation of the world. Me? Chosen? How can that be? Me? I felt the word well up within me, exploding in joyous colours – 𝑪𝒉𝒐𝒔𝒆𝒏!  I am chosen by God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Tears began to pour down my cheeks as I felt the love of the Father lavished upon me and the word 𝑪𝒉𝒐𝒔𝒆𝒏 echoed all around me, bouncing off the walls and into my heart.

Silence. All was quiet again as I hugged this precious gift to my chest tears drying on my face. I looked around and there were still so many gifts waiting, waiting for me, with my name on them. How could I possibly have ever thought of NOT opening them!

I ran over to the pale blue gift, ripped off the bow, exuberantly throwing it aside.   Knowing that my Father would only give me good gifts.  𝑨𝒅𝒐𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒅!  I stopped and allowed it to sink right in, way down to the depths of my soul – Adopted according to His good pleasure.  He was pleased to adopt me.  To bring me to Himself. He said it was a pleasure.  A delight.  𝑨𝒅𝒐𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒅!  I’m Adopted!

I literally danced over to the next gift, joy filling me to the brim – 𝑪𝒉𝒐𝒔𝒆𝒏, Adopted, by the Father! How did I ever get so blessed? Tearing off the wrapping and throwing it aside… 𝑨𝒄𝒄𝒆𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒅!  This one almost blew my mind, my knees grew weak, and I sank to the floor. A deep groaning came from within me, and I began to sob. 𝑨𝒄𝒄𝒆𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒅, I had always wanted to be accepted. Accepted in the Beloved.  Oh, His grace! I was undone. How long I lay there for I’ll never know, laying in a deep blue pool of his acceptance, waves washing over me that whispered 𝑨𝒄𝒄𝒆𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒅, 𝑨𝒄𝒄𝒆𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒅, 𝑨𝒄𝒄𝒆𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒅. A deep, deep pool of His unfathomable love and grace.

After what seemed like hours I staggered to my feet and looked around me. Gifts, more gifts, what seemed to be a never-ending panorama of His gifts to me. Should I open another? I wasn’t sure how much more I could take.  𝑪𝒉𝒐𝒔𝒆𝒏, 𝑨𝒅𝒐𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒅, 𝑨𝒄𝒄𝒆𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒅 resonated inside me. “I’ll just open a small one,” I thought – reaching out for the little silver box. I lifted the lid and peered in – 𝑹𝒆𝒅𝒆𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒅!  It felt as if I was breaking, my very soul began to shatter. 𝑹𝒆𝒅𝒆𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒅 – it whispered so loud! In Him we have redemption. I sat on the floor and pulled my knees to my chest, questions whirling around in my head. How is that possible? I am redeemed.  But you don’t know what I’ve done, who I am! “𝑹𝒆𝒅𝒆𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒅!” whispered the loudness. I bowed my head and listened “𝑹𝒆𝒅𝒆𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒅.” “You are 𝑪𝒉𝒐𝒔𝒆𝒏, 𝑨𝒅𝒐𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒅, 𝑨𝒄𝒄𝒆𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒅, 𝑹𝒆𝒅𝒆𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒅!” I felt a crystal shower of words flowing all over me, speaking redemption into my being. 𝑹𝒆𝒅𝒆𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒅.

“Open just one more,” said the voice. I couldn’t move but there was a red box within my reach adorned with a liquid red bow. I pulled it onto my lap and opened it. The room went red… liquid red, shimmering red, red all over my knees, my hands, my heart, dripping, flowing. 𝑭𝒐𝒓𝒈𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒏!  The word leapt out at me, ungluing me, my bones turned liquid. 𝑭𝒐𝒓𝒈𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒏!  Red blood flowing all over me, the rich, red blood of my Saviour, my Redeemer, my Jesus. “𝑭𝒐𝒓𝒈𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒏,” said the blood, “𝑭𝒐𝒓𝒈𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒏,” sang the blood, “𝑭𝒐𝒓𝒈𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒏!” shouted the blood. As I soaked in the wonder, the beauty of my latest gift, everything began to turn white… White as snow, so white it glistened, so white it hurt my eyes. I looked at my hand, my body, my heart, my soul – white, forgiven, washed in the blood of the Lamb.

I was exhausted, but so full, I felt so rich, amazed at the gifts the Father had poured out upon me in huge bucketsful of love! Clean, so clean. New, so new. He has made me new.  Tears of gratitude once again began to pour down my face. 𝑪𝒉𝒐𝒔𝒆𝒏, 𝑨𝒅𝒐𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒅, 𝑨𝒄𝒄𝒆𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒅, 𝑹𝒆𝒅𝒆𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒅, 𝑭𝒐𝒓𝒈𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒏!

Flowers began to grow in front of me, millions of sunflowers, roses, lily of the valley and a fragrance so sweet and indescribable filled the air. I looked and saw a road before me and heard the Father speak, “Now go, go and tell the others to open their gifts, not to put them on the mantlepiece for decoration or to look pretty, tell them to tear off the wrapping and see the beauty and wonder of the gifts I have given them!”

𝗪𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘂𝗻𝘄𝗿𝗮𝗽 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗴𝗶𝗳𝘁𝘀? 𝗧𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘆!