“…to You, O Lord, I lift up my soul. For You, Lord, are good, and ready to forgive, and abundant in mercy to all those who call upon You.”
Psalm 86:4b,5 (NKJV)
Praise be to you, Jesus, my Lord, Adonai, the One who has the right to expect from us complete obedience and gives complete provision, empowering us to do so. I give you glory for your merciful and gracious heart.
I thank you that we can lift our souls to you, telling you what we are thinking, wanting and feeling–being completely honest and transparent before you, knowing that in your Omniscience and Love, you desire our full honesty with you.
You aren’t shocked by what we confess—you already know it all! You don’t condemn us for our openness, you are delighted by it, and through it you give us joy in the light of your presence. You pour out your forgiveness on us! You give us mercy! You give us goodness! (Ps. 86:4,5).
You, O Lord Jesus, are wonderful to your rebellious creatures, showing your grace in giving unearned, undeserved mercy. This flows from your beautiful character, for you are majestically glorious in your mercy, even though it is uncalled for, undeserved and unexpected—it is the opposite of what even the angels thought would happen. But such goodness flows from you, O Lord Jesus, because you are Love, you are Light, you are Life. You are Holy, completely other than your creation. You are fully good, wholeheartedly giving, and totally gracious.
At the same time you are also purely righteous, fully just and faithfully true. No one who refuses your offer of pardon will escape your power to judge and you will judge correctly. Praise you for your umbrella of mercy you have provided for all who will believe, to protect them from your coming wrath, which must fall on all sin.
For these great truths, I give you praise and honor in my heart, in my thoughts, in my words, and in my obedience. You, Lord Jesus, are the Perfect One, the Trustable One, the Powerful One, the Eternal One. You are worthy of our obedience, our worship, our trust, our submission. To you belongs all praise and I bow before you, desiring to bring you such exaltation in my life today.
Prayer: “May I obey you out of love this day, Lord Jesus, bringing glory to your name. I want to be transparent before you, letting your light shine down into my soul and then out of me to others. Protect me, O Lord, from myself and my tendency to sin. I want to bring you joy today through obedience. Help me to follow you alone and I praise you now for how you will answer. Amen.”
