The Pastor’s Corner

Meditation for the day taken from Everyday Prayer with John Calvin written by Donald McKim:

Scripture: Joel 2:28-32

The passage being considered today is one that has caused a great deal of theological discussion. Though I have my views as to the issues and timing regarding the Day of the Lord, what is essential to ponder are the words found in 2:32, "And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved." Regardless of the exact nature of the calamity that the prophet is describing (and it is one of the highest calamity -- the judgment of the LORD), one thing is sure: God's people, the redeemed of the LORD, are protected by him and moved to call upon him while under great distress. That, after all, is what Christians do when faced with matters of great trial or circumstance. It may be a marriage that is collapsing. It may be a financial struggle with no relief in sight. It may be sickness, either usual and seasonal, or chronic pain that never seems to let up. It may be matters related to loved ones who do not know the Lord. It may be the impending collapse of a job, nation, or society. Whatever the issue, the people of the LORD are moved by the Spirit of the LORD to cry out to him.

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Prayer: Our God in heaven, we thank you for your many mercies and your faithfulness that is new every morning. We thank you for your grace and compassion and your patience as we labor on to do your will in this world. We mourn the condition of our culture and our world. We see the disastrous effects of sin and the impact it has made in the lives of people. We witness the destruction of marriages, communities, and health. Many are laboring through serious marital issues. Many communities are under duress. Many suffer from chronic illness and pain. All of these things are due to sin and our fallen condition. We thank you that you are laboring to reverse the effects of the fall. We thank you for the glorious promise made to your children that you will be with us and help us. We thank you for the hope of the New Heavens and the New Earth. We pray with the myriad of your people that our Lord and Savior would come quickly. We look forward to that great day. Until then, help us by your Spirit to walk worthy of the calling which we have received. Please give us what you command and help us to love you and love others. We pray this in the name of the Lord Jesus. Amen.

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Prayer: Almighty God and Father of your redeemed people, we who are needy and weary come to bow before your majesty today to ascribe to you honor and glory and praise. You alone are the one true God, though we live in a world that cranks out their own idols on a daily basis. Unlike the idols of our lives, you are a God that hears, sees, and acts according to your purpose and decree. You have promised your people to accomplish all things, bringing us safely to our heavenly rest. You, a God who cannot lie, have guaranteed the glorious end of all those that your Son redeemed. As the Greater Moses, he has delivered us from the bondage of Egypt, freeing us to walk in the newness of life. You have given us eyes to see and ears to hear. Yet, this new sight causes us great distress as we look at a world that rebels against you. You invite sinner, yet they rebel. You offer sinners a great bounty, yet they insist on starving. We plead with you to open the eyes of the blind and the ears of the deaf. Please be pleased, Father, to grant your great work of salvation to our family, friends, loved ones, and all those you are pleased to call to yourself. Thank you for hearing us as we pray in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

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Prayer: Our Father, we are thankful to you for the blessing of the Lord's Day. It is on this day that the seed, which is your Word, is scattered and falls on the soil of man's heart. it is this seed that is a light to our path and a soothing ointment for our souls. We thank you that you have ordained the preaching of your Word to feed your people and grow your kingdom. Today we plead with you to come and speak to us, by your Spirit, and that the seed sown would fall on good ground and yield a hundred-fold fruit. We pray that as it is sown, those who scatter the seed would draw comfort and strength from the eternal Spirit, waiting patiently for it to grow yielding a great harvest. We plead with you to shake the foundations of the earth as your Word goes out and pray that you would cause your people to listen carefully and obey diligently. Please help us, Lord. Forgive us for the many times we forget what we hear. Please grant us an extra measure of grace today as we enjoy the bounty of your Word. We pray all these things in the name of the living Word, your Son and our Lord. Amen.

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Prayer: Almighty God, we thank you for your church and the impact she has on the world. We thank you that she is called "salt and light" in a decaying and dark place where the enemy of the souls of men holds them captive. Yet, we look around and see your church in some circles failing to live up to the mandates of the King and Head of the church. Instead of sticking to the main things, the ordinary means of grace, she has replaced it with cultural, societal, and political methods that undercut the very Gospel of the Lord Jesus. Instead of preaching the Word and the gospel of Christ, which is the power of God for salvation, she has turned to other inventions and schemes of men. Instead of believing that the preached Word accomplishes great things, she has supplanted it with other activities that are bound up in the foolishness of this world. In short, your church in some corners of this world has adultered your Word and harmed your sheep. We pray, our God, that you would rise up in our day and turn the minds and hearts of those who would pervert your truth and bring them to their knees in true, godly repentance. Father, we are in dire and perilous times, and we long to be faithful to you and discharge the mandate of the Savior: to preach the Word and the full counsel of God. We know there are many of your servants who are faithfully persevering in difficult circumstances. We pray for them that you would bless and keep them. We know that many are striving to persevere against the majority who cause division within your church. We ask that you make your face shine upon them and give them peace. We pray, Lord, that you would destroy the theological liberalism that is reigning and exalt your name. We pray for your sheep, who are looking to their under-shepherds for help and guidance and receiving methods and ideas that rob them of a healthy diet. We pray that your sheep would not fall captive to blind guides who mislead them. We pray these things in the name of the King, Head, and Shepherd of the church, the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

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Prayer: Our Father, we thank you for a new day to serve you and glorify you with our lives. We are grateful to you for your redeeming and renewing work in our lives as you conform us more and more into the very image of your Son and our Savior. As your people, we desire to be holy and to live each moment glorifying you. We long to see the fruit of the Spirit in our lives. Therefore, be kind to us and work in us more love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, and faithfulness. Please help us to love you and love one another. Please help us to demonstrate joy that can only come from you regardless of our circumstances. Please grant us more kindness to others and to speak evil of no one. Please cause us to live more faithfully before you with our lives. Forgive us, Father, for the many ways in which we wander from your Word and grant us more of your Spirit that we may serve you with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength. We pray these things in the name of the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

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Prayer: Almighty God, we thank you for a new day in which your mercies are refreshed in our lives. Your faithfulness to your people is new every morning, and as a God of truth, we have great confidence in your promise to sustain us and help us on our journey. We are thankful for your Word and how it encourages us in our daily lives as we pilgrim as exiles in this world. While we long for the day in which we will enjoy your presence in the New Heavens and the New Earth, we plod on in this life with the sure hope of your love and favor for us. Your word tells us that you created us and called us by name. In that, we are told how much you love us and care for us. Your Word tells us that you will be with us through the various trials of this life, and your continual presence strengthens us. Your Word tells us that we are precious in your sight and loved with an infinite love. We are grateful beyond words for your sustaining care and kindness displayed to us. Though we are sinful creatures and offer our best labors mingle with sin, we know that you accept us in Christ. Through your adopting work, you are pleased to call us sons and daughters. Thank you, Father, for your care and help us today to glorify you out of gratitude for all you do for us each day. We pray these things in the name of the Savior, your Son, and our Lord. Amen.

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Meditation for the day taken from Everyday Prayer with John Calvin,” written by Donald McKim:

Scripture: Daniel 9:1-10

Daniel 9 is a prayer offered by Daniel as he was in exile in Babylon. The opening verses of the chapter set the stage for Daniel's prayer as he recounts the circumstances of God's people. As he reflects on the words of Jeremiah the prophet, he is painfully aware of the trial that his people face and the discipline they are currently experiencing. As a result of the anguish of his soul, he turns to pray and plead with the God of heaven. The example of Daniel should encourage us to do the same. When we are facing difficulties, we should turn to the Lord in prayer. Nothing else will do. We must learn to plead our case before the Lord. Calvin comments, "God does not here promise his children earthly blessings, but eternal life, and while they grow torpid and cast aside all care and spiritual concern, he urges them the more to earnestly to prayer. For what benefit do God's promises confer on us, unless we embrace them by faith? But prayer is the chief exercise of faith...For the true proof of faith is the assurance when we pray that God will really perform what he has promised." (64). Life for Daniel and the church of old was hard and they were under God's discipline. Yet, Daniel reflected on the promise of God to return the people to their land. This reflection turned to prayer and that a demonstration of his great faith in God and his promises.

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Prayer: Almighty God, we praise your name today because you are good and kind to your people. You have given us your Word in which we hear your voice and know your will. We thank you that you have given us ears to hear and hearts to respond to your commands. We thank you that through the primary and ordinary means of grace -- that preaching of your Word -- we hear the living voice of the Lord Jesus speaking. As he speaks, He ministers to his people as the Good Shepherd of the sheep. We confess that there are times when we do not listen and heed the things the Spirit declares to his church. We confess that we fail to prepare our hearts and minds to hear your Word. We are ashamed at how dull of hearing we often are as we sit under your Word. Forgive us, Lord. Please cause us to hear you today, the Lord's Day. Please cause us to listen diligently and meditatively so we may bring forth fruit of your Word in our lives and glorify you. We pray these things in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

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Prayer: Our great and gracious God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, we praise your name today because you are good and kind to your people. Throughout all ages, you have proven yourself to be patient and good to us. As we read your Word and observe the many ways in which you cared for your people. Your Word describes the events that prove your faithfulness. You brought your people out of the land of sin and bondage and safely across the Red Sea. You provided their daily bread as they journeyed to that land of promise. There, in that land, you went before them and conquered all their enemies. You patiently tolerated stiff-necked people and gave them a king. Throughout all ages, you continued to labor and work and offer yourself to the church of old. Today, we continue to witness your kindness to undeserving people. You have given us your Son, and through him, we have peace with you. He is our older brother, and he ministers for us today. He is carefully and patiently guiding his church and promises our safe arrival in a better country. We praise you, our God, that though we too wander, we know that your faithfulness to us is new every day. Forgive us, Father, for our tendency to stray. Thank you for being good to us. We pray these things in the name of Christ. Amen.

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Prayer: Our God in heaven, you who ordained your Son as the suffering servant who would come, take upon himself our humanity, suffer in all ways that we suffer yet know no sin, we thank you for the labor and ministry of your beloved Son, our Lord, and Savior, Jesus Christ. We know that we, like sheep, often go astray. Like David, we bemoan that our sins are ever before us. Yet, we know that your Son, as our High Priest, is patient with us -- more patient than we are with ourselves and others. Your Word tells us that he will not break the bruised reed. That is, he will act tenderly and compassionately towards those he has redeemed. He does not snuff us out, though our light is barely burning. Your Son deals gently with the ignorant and wayward, and these things often characterize our lives. Forgive us, Father, for such a low view of your love for us and a poor understanding of the gospel. May we preach the hope of Christ to ourselves es in times of great sin and struggle. Be merciful, Lord. We pray all of these things in the name of the Savior. Amen.

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Prayer: Our Father, we look into your Word, and we take note of how it describes the tendency of our own hearts. We are prone to wander, Lord, we feel it. We are prone to leave the God we love. We are like sheep that often go astray. We mourn that we often do what we know is wrong and do not do what we know is right. Your Son tells us to watch and pray lest we fall into temptation. Yet, we often rush into temptation, forgetting to pray and plead with your Spirit for the face needed to overcome and mortify sin in our life. We are ashamed at how easily we give in to besetting sins and those things that so easily cause us to stumble. We are weak. You are strong. Forgive us, Father. Please help us meditate deeply on your Word and hide it in our hearts that we might not sin against you. We pray these things in the name of the Lord Jesus. Amen.

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