In spoken worship there are two main aspects: thanksgiving and praise. Thanksgiving focuses on what He has done for us, and praise on who He is in His character.  Here are some examples from my prayer journal, both praise and thanksgiving.

“Praise you, Lord God, Creator of heaven and earth, the sea and all that is in them. Truly you are high and powerful, majestic and mighty. I praise you, O God, for your great and rich love, for your wide and deep wisdom and your positive and pure power.

You are able to bring together those aspects which are opposites and seem to contradict each other: unity and diversity, truth and love, justice and mercy, righteousness and forgiveness. Praise you, Lord God, that you have revealed this to us in your Word.

“Thank you that you have given us the tremendous privilege of being your children, bringing us from being your enemies ensnared by sin and transforming us into your sons and daughters clothed in righteousness. To know you is a stupendous privilege beyond understanding and comprehension, priceless and pristine; we are overwhelmed by this high and undeserved grace.

“Thank you that you have watched over us through a very difficult year, one in which your grace, protection and guidance have shone in the dark events that surrounded us, that could have overwhelmed us but your shining grace carried us through.

“Thank you for the future ahead—nothing guaranteed except your love, for all is in your hands, not our plans–but all is in your heart of goodness, shown in your doing what is best and loving for us, although it may be hard. Truly, God, to live with you is a never-ending opportunity for growth and deepening.”

Prayer: “Lord God, help me to praise you in my quiet time, to praise you throughout the day and on into the night. May praise be the keynote of my life, for you are worthy. Amen.”

The Names of God, Number 1  Elohim: translated as “God.”

This first is used in Genesis 1:1  “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” Each name of God has a meaning and Elohim means “the strong and faithful One who swears and is able to keep His word.”

Strength:

He shows His power in creation: breathing the stars, gathering them into galaxies,  putting them each in their place, naming each one. He stretched out the canopy of the universe; hanging the earth on nothing; giving it the perfect spin and orbit. His power is infinite, all pervasive, unconquerable and unending.

Faithfulness:

Elohim shows His faithfulness in promising and then providing Salvation. He planned it before creation, worked it out through history with Abraham, Joseph, Daniel, Isaiah, Joseph and Mary and others, bringing His Son into the world at the right time. Elohim is utterly faithful, always keeping His promise so we can trust Him, He always has more than enough power to bring His promises to pass.

Revelation:

Elohim is also the first hint of the trinity in the Bible. In the Hebrew language there are two plural forms for nouns. One is for two objects, the other for three or more. Elohim is plural for three or more, pointing to the trinity. And this is quickly underscored when Elohim says, “Let us make man in OUR image,” not “in my image.”

He is worthy of worship, of obedience, of surrender. Elohim, the triune God, Creator of all, Provider of salvation for all His enemies! Let us surrender and rest in His being Elohim.

We sadly live in a time of great division. In this situation we as followers of Jesus should work towards healing these divisions. One thing we can do to  make this happen:

Stop being offended!

As you know, being offended has become  a national past time with people looking for things to be offended about. And even being offended for others who aren’t offended themselves!

What did Jesus have to say about this?   How should we act in such a toxic society?

Col 3:1 “Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth.”  rather than on protecting our honor or feeling good.  1

“Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. “Col 3:13 That’s a pretty inclusive statement

“And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.” Col 3:13,14  and  “love covers over a multitude of sins.” 1 Peter 4:8

The truth is, we can all easily be offended, but we can also choose not to, to overlook an offense  and pave the way for healing of relationships and divisions. And we can also encourage others to stop being offended. Let’s follow Jesus and do it!

The one concern of the devil is to keep Christians from praying.

He fears nothing from

prayerless studies

prayerless work and

prayerless religion.

He laughs at our toil,

mocks our “wisdom.”

But he trembles when we pray.

Samuel Chadwick

“You have not because you ask not,” James 4:2

How’s your prayer life?

More thoughts on Psalm 86:15, “you are a God who is full of compassion, gracious, long suffering and plenteous in mercy and truth.”

You, Lord God, are rich in mercy and truth—mercy and truth for us are opposites: one soft and pleasant, the other hard and unyielding. Only you, Lord, could put these two together!

You don’t shy away from pointing out our sins (truth) and at the same time do not give us what we deserve (mercy)

As it says earlier in Psalm 86, “Among the gods there is none like you, neither are there any works like yours…. You are great and do wonderous things.” You are, in a sense, too good to be true, but you are more than true, for you are Truth itself: immutable, unwavering, solid and eternal.

I praise you that you are full of compassion, gracious, slow to anger and plenteous in mercy and truth. Help us all to live in the light of that Truth!

This picture shows  Jesus combining Truth (sin requires a sacrifice) with Mercy (redeeming his enemies).