"Praise the LORD from the Earth" - 17 March 2019



Praise the LORD! Praise the LORD from the heavens; praise him in the heights! Praise him, all his angels; praise him, all his hosts! From the highest to the lowest, from the nearest to the furthest, may all come and worship you, submitting to you, praying to you, cherishing you as their greatest good and deepest joy. Therefore, we pray for you to give our missionaries assets and guide their achievements to this end. And we pray that you would reclaim and rescue those who are outside of Christ…

Praise him, sun and moon, praise him, all you shining stars! Praise him, you highest heavens, and you waters above the heavens! Let them praise the name of the LORD! For he commanded and they were created. And he established them forever and ever; he gave a decree, and it shall not pass away. We pray for the earth that its vast resources would be replenished and maintained. Bring us rains and showers in ways and quantities that are most fitting. Settle the shaking, shifting fault lines and tectonic plates that cause so much damage. Restrain destructive floods and reverse devastating droughts. Prosper the scientific and medical studies that are good, right, moral, and honorable. And for those involved in research that is dehumanizing and demoralizing, bring them to see that they are not gods, and that “can” does not mean “should”.

Praise the LORD from the earth, you great sea creatures and all deeps, fire and hail, snow and mist, stormy wind fulfilling his word! Mountains and all hills, fruit trees and all cedars! Beasts and all livestock, creeping things and flying birds!  May our farmlands produce bountifully, and our cattle be plentiful. Enrich the labors of our farmers and ranchers, fisheries and those who harvest the seas, as well as those involved in industry and manufacturing. May their work be safe and successful and help them to produce in ways that respect the earth and its resources.

Kings of the earth and all peoples, princes and all rulers of the earth! Young men and maidens together, old men and children! For our own country and all peoples of this world, we pray “O God of love, O King of peace, Make wars throughout the world to cease; The wrath of sinful man restrain; Give peace, O God, give peace again.” We pray this especially for Venezuela. Guide our nation in ways right and good, restrain evil and further wholesome morality.

Let them praise the name of the LORD, for his name alone is exalted; his majesty is above earth and heaven. He has raised up a horn for his people, praise for all his saints, for the people of Israel who are near to him. Praise the LORD! Help your global Church, including this congregation, and Edmond Church of Christ, The Springs Church of Christ, Barnes Church of Christ, and Bethany Church of Christ; that we would rightly exalt your name, appropriately make clear your majesty, fittingly declare and exhibit your Gospel and sound doctrine, and joyfully make disciples of all nations. And be with those who are sick, sad, or struggling… Restore and refresh them that they would rise up and praise your exalted name. For Christ’s honor and rule we pray. Amen.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

"Was America Founded as a Christian Nation?" (Rev. Ed.) by John Fea. A Review

Image
  John Fea is a professor of history at Messiah University in Mechanicsburg, PA. A university founded in 1909 by the Brethren in Christ Church. He originally published "Was America Founded as a Christian Nation? A Historical Introduction" in 2011, and it was revised in 2016. This 328-page paperback is packed full with Colonial and American history, drawing from original sources to answer that question. It is a book written "for the historically minded and thoughtful reader who is looking for help in sorting" out this question, avoiding polemics (xix). Since we live in a sound-bite culture, Fea recognizes that it is difficult to have a sustained dialogue on this topic, but he makes a valiant effort toward having that sustained dialogue. The book reads fairly straightforward, and doesn't seem to get bogged down in the contentious mudpuddles or bogs. In the end, Fea seems to get his point across. To answer the reigning question if America was founded as a Christian...
Read more

Union with Christ - An Application

Image
  (This was my weekly letter to my congregation on Wednesday, 21 February 2024) This morning in my devotional reading, I was working through 1 Corinthians 8. Though I’ve read these words a huge number of times over the years, today one verse caused me to stop and take stock.  Paul wrote, “ Thus, sinning against your brothers and wounding their conscience when it is weak, you sin against Christ ” (1 Corinthians 8:12). What struck me is a couple of things. First, in God’s saving work, we are – by grace alone – united (hitched, bonded, ingrafted) to Christ so much so, that what happens to us happens to him, and what is his becomes ours (think of Galatians 2:20, for example). As Sinclair Ferguson put it, “through union with Christ all that is his by incarnation becomes ours through faith” (“The Christian Life,” 110). Let that percolate in your heart for a while. Your fear, anxiety, tears, and so forth, he feels. And his “ Peace, be still ” is yours. Second, the way we treat one an...
Read more

"Ah, Lord! We are Animated by Anger and Anxiety, Fear and Fury..."

Image
I hesitate to put this out there because of the combative environment we are in at present. But I think some souls will take courage from this, and some will also join with me as we get to the end of this little composition. I am struck by the words of God in Zechariah 8. As he rehearses the waywardness and faithlessness of his people in the past, he clearly declares that he " set every man against his neighbor " (8:10). That got me thinking long ago. I started putting the pieces together and realized that one of God's acts of judgment is division, setting a man against his neighbor. That's what happened when he divided his people into the northern tribes and southern tribes (see 1 Kings 11:26-40). Because of Solomon's turning aside, allowing his wives to turn his heart away from the God of his father, David, the Lord brings about a rift in God's people. And this pattern of divisive judgment runs throughout Scripture. On the other hand, truthful unity is the g...
Read more