Posted on 12/05/2004 12:19:35 PM PST by Faith
Luke 1: 31-33; 38
"And behold, you will . . . bear a son, and you shall call His Name Jesus.
He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High;
and the Lord God will give to Him the throne of His father David,
and He will reign over the house of Jacob for ever;
and of His Kingdom there will be no end.”
And Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord;
let it be to me according to Your Word.”
We never tire of contemplating the beautiful account of the Christ Child’s birth, and we marvel with wonder at the trust and obedience shown by Mary and Joseph as they believed upon Your unfailing Word that they would be the parents of the Savior of mankind. We thank You for this beautiful, precious Gift, brought to us in humble and lowly humility. We bow our heads in gratitude for who You are and for what You have done through Your Son. We thank You, Father, that Jesus’ life, His death, and His resurrection forever changed this world. What can we give You in return, Lord? Whether we be rich or poor, we know that what You want from us is our hearts. May we withhold nothing, Father, surrendering all to You.
As we enter these days filled with celebrations among family and friends, let us remember Your faithful answers to our prayers. Thank You for shedding Your grace upon America and for allowing President Bush to be our leader for another four years. We commit him to You, Lord, knowing that You Who began a good work in him will be faithful to complete it. Father, we see doors of opportunity opening for him and for America as the possibility emerges of appointing new justices and judges who could redirect our nation toward a culture of life. Please lay upon our President’s heart the people You have chosen for these influential roles and convict the senators to approve every God-revering man or woman nominated or appointed. Thank You for giving President Bush wisdom and strength to complete the work You have assigned him. Grant him and Laura, their daughters and their parents special blessings as they celebrate the joyous birth of Jesus.
Thank You, Lord, for those who stand ready to defend this nation and who have committed to freeing a nation held hostage by a terrorist regime. May our soldiers’ time in Iraq soon end and may they leave that corner of the world in far better condition than it was when they arrived. Grant them the patience to wait for Your perfect timing in completing the tasks You have assigned them. May each new dawn bring them hope and joy. Prepare for them special celebrations of Your love as they spend Christmas away from their earthly families.
As we enter a new week filled with the busy preparations of the season, help us to make ready our hearts for the Christ Child, for that is the only preparation that is truly needed. May Jesus Christ be the center of our focus and may we instill in our children the source of true joy brought by the Savior’s birth. Thank You for Your faithful answers to all our prayers which we lift up to You in the Name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Praise God that His Son has come, did come, and is coming again. Amen.
Amen! Hallelujah! Thanks, annie.
In the name of Your Son, my Saviour, I ache for You to hear my prayers. Amen
And surely He does hear and respond out of the goodness of His heart and according to the unfailing truth of His Word. Thank you, trebb.
Isa 9:6 "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace."
Blessed Savior, Your Name is Holy and exhalted above all Names. Thank you for the life You gave for all. Amen.
Thank you, CAWats.
AMEN FAITH AND AMEN ALL!
GRACE TO YOU!
Ps 44:1 To the Chief Musician. A Contemplation of the sons of Korah. We have heard with our ears, O God, Our fathers have told us, The deeds You did in their days, In days of old:
2 You drove out the nations with Your hand, But them You planted; You afflicted the peoples, and cast them out.
3 For they did not gain possession of the land by their own sword, Nor did their own arm save them; But it was Your right hand, Your arm, and the light of Your countenance, Because You favored them.
4 You are my King, O God; Command victories for Jacob.
5 Through You we will push down our enemies; Through Your name we will trample those who rise up against us.
6 For I will not trust in my bow, Nor shall my sword save me.
7 But You have saved us from our enemies, And have put to shame those who hated us.
8 In God we boast all day long, And praise Your name forever. Selah
9 But You have cast us off and put us to shame, And You do not go out with our armies.
10 You make us turn back from the enemy, And those who hate us have taken spoil for themselves.
11 You have given us up like sheep intended for food, And have scattered us among the nations.
12 You sell Your people for next to nothing, And are not enriched by selling them.
13 You make us a reproach to our neighbors, A scorn and a derision to those all around us.
14 You make us a byword among the nations, A shaking of the head among the peoples.
15 My dishonor is continually before me, And the shame of my face has covered me,
16 Because of the voice of him who reproaches and reviles, Because of the enemy and the avenger.
17 All this has come upon us; But we have not forgotten You, Nor have we dealt falsely with Your covenant.
18 Our heart has not turned back, Nor have our steps departed from Your way;
19 But You have severely broken us in the place of jackals, And covered us with the shadow of death.
20 If we had forgotten the name of our God, Or stretched out our hands to a foreign god,
21 Would not God search this out? For He knows the secrets of the heart.
22 Yet for Your sake we are killed all day long; We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.
23 Awake! Why do You sleep, O Lord? Arise! Do not cast us off forever.
24 Why do You hide Your face, And forget our affliction and our oppression?
25 For our soul is bowed down to the dust; Our body clings to the ground.
26 Arise for our help, And redeem us for Your mercies' sake.
(NKJV)
"And the Lord shewed me four carpenters."
- Zechariah 1:20
In the vision described in this chapter, the prophet saw four terrible
horns. They were pushing this way and that way, dashing down the strongest
and the mightiest; and the prophet asked, "What are these?" The answer
was, "These are the horns which have scattered Israel." He saw before him
a representation of those powers which had oppressed the church of God.
There were four horns; for the church is attacked from all quarters. Well
might the prophet have felt dismayed; but on a sudden there appeared
before him four carpenters. He asked, "What shall these do?" These are the
men whom God hath found to break those horns in pieces. God will always
find men for his work, and he will find them at the right time. The
prophet did not see the carpenters first, when there was nothing to do,
but first the "horns," and then the "carpenters." Moreover, the Lord finds
enough men. He did not find three carpenters, but four; there were four
horns, and there must be four workmen. God finds the right men; not four
men with pens to write; not four architects to draw plans; but four
carpenters to do rough work. Rest assured, you who tremble for the ark of
God, that when the "horns" grow troublesome, the "carpenters" will be
found. You need not fret concerning the weakness of the church of God at
any moment; there may be growing up in obscurity the valiant reformer who
will shake the nations: Chrysostoms may come forth from our Ragged
Schools, and Augustines from the thickest darkness of London's poverty.
The Lord knows where to find his servants.
He hath in ambush a multitude of mighty men, and at his word they shall
start up to the battle; "for the battle is the Lord's," and he shall get
to himself the victory.
Let us abide faithful to Christ, and he, in the right time, will raise up
for us a defence, whether it be in the day of our personal need, or in the
season of peril to his Church.
C.H. SPURGEON
SOLI DEO GLORIA!
Amen! May His Holy Name be glorified now and throughout eternity. Thank you, alpha.
Amen, all
Father, we continue to believe you for a cleansing of the hearts of Americans through Your grace. We pray for a healing of our land through revelation of Your Son and Your goodness so that we might be a people pleasing to You and desiring to please You in all things.
As we become increasingly sanctified to Your purpose, there will be a supernatural protection from evil which we so need. Lord, show mercy, we pray. Cleanse us for Your glory! Make us a people after Your own heart. Let it begin in Your church so that no darkness can hide Your light and truth to a darkened world. Help us to let our light so shine before men that they will see our good works and give You the glory! Let us be cleansed vessels fit for the Master's work.
We agree with our Brother-President for a shield of protection over our nation and declare unceasingly that Jesus Christ is Lord over the United States of America.
Amen. So be it.
"May the Sacred Heart of Jesus be adored, glorified, loved and preserved throughout the world now and forever Amen."
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