"Give Me Your Eyes"

MORNING PRAYER-- O God, you are the giver of all good gifts and I desire to praise your name for all of your goodness to me. I thank you for sending your Son to die for my sins, for the means of grace, and for the hope of glory, through Jesus Christ. Amen.

Psalm 56, Jeremiah 1:1-19, Romans 1:1-15, John 4:27-42

The ability and presence of God in my life is undeniable. I see Him everywhere I go, and He is now teaching me how to see Him not only in the beauty of nature, or in the beauty found within the innocent face of a child, but to see beauty in every single human being that He has made. This is a very hard concept to grasp for me sometimes, because, as we all know, people are complex. I can never be sure of a person's intentions, values, or their personality by looking at them, but one thing that I can be sure of is that they have been designed, created and formed by God. It doesn't matter if that person has recognized it yet, or if they will ever recognize it for that matter, its about seeing them through God's eyes. It's about me realizing that not one person is better than another in the eyes of the Father. So, instead of judgement, I want love, patience, loving kindness, all that stuff.

Who among us could ever know the people that God has chosen to speak through at any given time? Who among us could know the destiny of someone else's life, or what God is about to deliver that person into, or what He is about to deliver them from? I'm finding out that knowing that is not my job, but that my job is to display the characteristics of the Spirit so that my life may reflect the love for Jesus Christ that has consumed my heart and soul. God changes lives, and anyone, at any given time, can realize His glory. This isn't one of the scriptures above, but it was part of another Devo today: Luke 23:39-43. This is the story of the criminal who, facing death, realized the glory of the Son of God who was facing the same death right next to him on a cross. While the criminal on the other side of Christ joined in with the others in hurling insults at the Son, this man begin to understand the true crimes which were being committed at that place. He confessed that the punishment he was receiving was just what his life deserved, but that " 'this man has done nothing wrong.' Then he said, 'Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.' Jesus answered him, 'I tell you the  truth, today you will be with me in paradise.' " (Luke 23:41-43)

This response by Jesus blows my mind. He didn't answer out of spite to this criminal or even give it a second thought. He recognized the sincerity of this man immediately and answered Him with deep compassion and love. What a God we serve! This is how He answers us daily. I know for a fact that I don't deserve this, nor will I ever. He does not discriminate in who He uses for His glory. He appointed Jeremiah before he was born, before He formed him in his mother's womb.... Once again I say, What a God we serve!

Jeremiah 1:4-8 (Amplified Bible)

⁴Then the word of the Lord came to me [Jeremiah], saying,
    ⁵Before I formed you in the womb I knew [and] approved of you [as My chosen instrument], and before you were born I separated and set you apart, consecrating you; [and] I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.^{(A)
    6}Then said I, Ah, Lord God! Behold, I cannot speak, for I am only a youth.^{(B)
    7}But the Lord said to me, Say not, I am only a youth; for you shall go to all to whom I shall send you, and whatever I command you, you shall speak.
    ⁸Be not afraid of them [their faces], for I am with you to deliver you, says the Lord.

If I am really seeking to live my life for Him, then I desire with all my heart, and will look at others with the same compassion He feels when He looks at me. He looks past all my walls I try to put up, and all of the things of this earth and my flesh that I struggle with daily. He knows my struggles, and has and will be with me through every second of everyone of them. He gives me blessings that I don't need just because He cares. He gives me peace despite the things I try to interrupt that peace with. He gives me love and comfort, even when the discomforts I feel are because of my own shortcomings, and utter disobedience. He is patient with me when I expect the world and everything in it to be on my time. He has changed my life.

Gotta put this song in again guys. I love it, sorry!!!

"Well, I am my beloved's

and He is mine

So come into Your garden

and take delight in me

Take delight in me."

EVENING PRAYER-- O Lord, "the sacrifice acceptable [to you] is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you wil not despise . . . Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow." Amen.