Sing to the LORD a new song, for he has done marvelous things; his right hand and his holy arm have worked salvation for him.
—Psalm 98:1

Thoughts on Today's Verse...
Songs can stir us up or they can bring us comfort. Songs can take us back to a special time, or songs can give us hope for things to come. Unfortunately, we usually leave the words and the music of our songs only for someone else to write, never taking time to write our own "new song." But today, why not make up your own new song of praise and thanks to God. It doesn't have to be great, just heartfelt and offered to the Father from whom all joyful songs come.

My Prayer...
Father God, thank you for the gift of song. Please receive my song of thanks and praise from a heart you have filled with your delight. In Jesus' name. Amen.

Come, let us sing for joy to the LORD; let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation.
—Psalm 95:1

Thoughts on Today's Verse...
Having a loving God who is Eternal, a Rock of stability in a "topsy turvy" world, is really something to shout about. So much of what we get excited about in our world today is just a fleeting victory, a vicarious sporting thrill, or personality worship. But in God, we have something to truly sing about with joy. He has known us since our conception, he has loved us from before the foundation of the world, he has sent his Son to save us, and he will bring us home to himself! No quiet song will do today. Let's sing with joy and shout out loud to the LORD!

My Prayer...
Hallelujah, LORD God, you have brought your salvation down to me! You have blessed me with your grace, comforted me with your love, and renewed me with your Spirit. My life overflows with the abundance of your many rich blessings. I praise you with my heart. I praise you with my thoughts. I praise you with my words. I praise you with my hands. I praise you with all that I am. In Jesus' name. Amen.

Stop trusting in man, who has but a breath in his nostrils. Of what account is he?
—Isaiah 2:22

Thoughts on Today's Verse...
How many times have you been disappointed by someone for whom you voted, betrayed by a friend, been abandoned by a loved one, or let down by a church leader? While we love others and care about them, every other person in our world is just like us — a flawed human being who breathes the same air and walks the same ground as we do. Only One is worthy of our ultimate trust. He showed us by sacrificing what was most precious to him so we could know his love. Let's not put our hope in other mere mortals; only God can safeguard our trust. Let's put our hope in him!

My Prayer...
Father, you know the broken places in my heart that were caused by the failure of people in my life. I confess that I have sometimes become disillusioned with your way because of the failures and inconsistencies in your people. Deep down I know, dear Father, that their failures do not mean your failure, but it is hard for it not to feel that way. Call me close to you. Give me a more gracious heart toward those who fail me. Establish my faith, strong and firm in you, O LORD. In you I put my trust. In Jesus' name. Amen.

I myself am convinced, my brothers, that you yourselves are full of goodness, complete in knowledge and competent to instruct one another.
—Romans 15:14

Thoughts on Today's Verse...
While we may be flawed and imperfect, Paul reminds us of how important, competent, and useful we can be to each other. While our hope is in God, he has given us each other in our walk of faith. Let's not live as isolated islands of faith, but lean on each other and learn from each other as we look to Christ for our salvation and strength.

My Prayer...
Thank you, dear Father, for placing the people in my life who have shaped, taught, corrected, and supported me in my life with you. I am thankful for your support of me through their words, example, and touch. Thank you for giving me a family to travel with on my journey home to you. In the name of Jesus I pray. Amen.

As far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.
—Psalm 103:12

Thoughts on Today's Verse...
Now that's a long way - from sun rising to sun setting, that's how far God has removed our sins. But the key word is removed. When we sin and come to God in repentance, God doesn't just forgive our sin; he purifies us of all unrighteousness. What was unholy in me is made righteous in him. What was impure is now clean. What was stained is spotless. Why? How? We can now see more fully what the Psalmist could know only in part. God doesn't see our sin, but Jesus' sacrifice. His blood purifies and cleanses us! Our sin is gone and we are clean.

My Prayer...
Father of mercies, thank you for not only forgiving my sins, but for removing them. I thank you that I can stand before you holy and without fault because of the blood of Jesus and your gracious desire to forgive. I now ask, Righteous Father, that you strengthen me with your Holy Spirit so that my conduct will reflect your estimate of me in Jesus. In the name of the Christ, your Son and my Savior, I pray. Amen.

Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.
—Acts 4:12

Thoughts on Today's Verse...
While many substitute Messiahs have been offered, only the True Messiah saves. While we often live for many lords, only one Lord liberates and sets us free from sin and death. While many ways are claimed to bring us close to God, Jesus insists that he is the only way. So we're driven to one ultimate reality: do we believe salvation is in Jesus alone, or do we not. It's our choice. But what we decide about Jesus is really deciding about everything. Is Jesus your Lord? Is Jesus the name above all names in your life? Is Jesus your Savior? If not, then please reconsider, for the Bible says: "Salvation is found in no one else."

My Prayer...
Thank you, Almighty God, for choosing to share your grace with me in Jesus. May I never take the precious name of Jesus in vain. May Jesus himself come and reign as Lord in my heart and in my life. May Jesus be seen in the way I treat others. May Jesus know that there is no other rival for my allegiance to him. In that precious name of Jesus, your Son and my Savior, I pray. Amen.

He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.
—Colossians 1:15

Thoughts on Today's Verse...
If we had been alive when Jesus worked in the carpentry shop in Nazareth or walked along the Sea of Galilee near Capernaum, we could have said, "There goes God," and been right. The amazing reality of Jesus is that he was God among us. Matthew calls him Immanuel, "God with us." In Colossians 1, Paul pours out every superlative he can use to describe Jesus' preeminence over everything and everyone. He is God with a human face. He is the ruler, the transcendent one, who reigns above all creation. He is also our Savior and our sacrifice.

My Prayer...
Almighty God, why you should love us so much, I can't comprehend. We have rejected you, spurned you, ignored you, blasphemed you, and sought to place you on the periphery of our lives. Yet time and again, you are there to hear our cries and save us from ourselves. Forgive me, Father, for not reverencing you more. Forgive me for not recognizing the greatness of Jesus and the utter humility it took for him to sacrifice himself for me. But Father, thank you! Thank you for being patient, sacrificial, and long-suffering. Thank you, in Jesus' name. Amen.

It is not good to have zeal without knowledge, nor to be hasty and miss the way.
—Proverbs 19:2

Thoughts on Today's Verse...
Maybe one of the most important things we can do to grow in spiritual maturity is to find the right things to get passionate about. We can get riled up about some of the most inconsequential issues. We can get wildly passionate about everything from sports to chocolate pie. But zeal, passion for an issue, must be anchored to spiritual wisdom and understanding. We can get worked up over something and completely miss the will of the Lord because we were blinded by our own passions. While I want zealous people around me, I want them to be zealous for God's things and for Kingdom issues.

My Prayer...
Powerful and perfect God, I find it so easy to get "all wound up" about something and then lose my zeal for it by the next morning, or I get so roused to action, I go off half-cocked and do terrible damage. Dear Father, please give me the wisdom to see what is best and right and true. Holy God, I want to serve and honor you and bless others in your name. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

We know also that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true. And we are in him who is true — even in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.
—1 John 5:20

Thoughts on Today's Verse...
Jesus came to reveal God to us. He has given us the clearest picture yet of what God is really like. Because of Jesus, we can know God, the only one who is truly genuine. Because we are in Christ, we share that special bond with the Father and find in him a whole new quality of life. This life won't end when our bodies die, and eternal life begins now, as we walk with him each day and extends unto forever. For the eternal and transcendent God to make himself known to us is grace. For him to do it in Jesus is salvation!

My Prayer...
Holy and awesome Father, I know that because my life is joined to you through Jesus, I will enjoy your presence forever. I love you for all you have done for me and the terrible price you paid to redeem me from my sins. I love you for creating me and having a plan for my life when no one else knew I was even conceived. Most of all, I love you for being God and choosing to be the kind of Father who wants his children to know and love him. In Jesus name. Amen.

My righteousness draws near speedily, my salvation is on the way, and my arm will bring justice to the nations. The islands will look to me and wait in hope for my arm.
—Isaiah 51:5

Thoughts on Today's Verse...
God's promises stand through the ages. He has fulfilled them in many different ways. He has punished evil nations, he has redeemed Israel according to his promises, and he has sent Jesus as Savior and redeemer. But most importantly of all, Jesus stands at the edge of history waiting to return and bring full redemption for God's people and salvation for those everywhere who long for his return.

My Prayer...
Sovereign Lord, I see so much injustice in the world and I long for truth, righteousness, and justice to triumph. While I long for the return of Jesus, my heart also breaks for the many that do not know Jesus and for those who are in rebellion to your will. I don't know what to ask other than that your will be done on earth as it is in heaven and may the triumph of your will begin with me. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.