A CHRISTIAN'S SUNDAY MORNING PRAYER
My Father and My God,
You are the Sovereign One: Father, Son, Holy Spirit.
You alone rule in Heaven above, the earth below, the sea, and even in the abode of Hell, You are the Sovereign Ruler.
You control all the kingdom's of men for Your glory and the good of Your church.
O LORD: Father, Son, Holy Spirit, You are omniscient, omnipotent, omnipresent, infinite, immense, and eternal.
You are loving, gracious, merciful, kind, long-suffering, forgiving, and at the same time holy, just, and righteous!
You have always existed! You are the Ancient of Days! You are the Eternal One!
This knowledge is too wonderful for any mere mortal to grasp. It is too high, I cannot attain it.
However, I can apprehend it because it is revealed in Scripture.
But no mortal man can comprehend such depths of glory, splendor, holiness, and wonder.
O Lord, You are the zenith of purity, but I am so sinful in thought, word, and deed.
Who am I or what am I that You, O Lord, are mindful of me, that You should care for me, that You should redeem me?
I have violated all Your holy commandments! I have kept none of them!
I am worthy and deserving of damnation! Of myself, I am vile, corrupt, and unclean in Your sight!
But in a wonder of Your grace, You have redeemed me, body and soul, to be Your own.
You have cleansed me with Christ's blood! You have covered me with Christ's righteous robes!
I am humbled to the ground "that You would give Your only Son to make this wretch (me) His treasure."
I have no words to fully express Your gracious, wondrous, awesome redemption.
But, nevertheless, I praise Your name!
I praise You, Father! I praise You, Jesus! I praise You, Holy Spirit!
One God in divine essence yet three distinct Persons.
O Holy Spirit, continue Your transforming work within me.
Make me think and live like my Savior Jesus, Who always did those things that please the Father!
O Jesus, humble me when I obey; chasten me when I rebel against You!
Retrieve me when I go astray; keep me within Your sheepfold, O Great Shepherd of the Sheep!
Never loosen Your grip upon me lest I return to the broad road that leads to destruction!
My trust for redemption, from justification to glorification, is You, Lord Jesus!
Use me for Your glory, even though I am sinful, weak, and feeble!
Use me up for Your glory! Fill me with Your Spirit and Word.
Holy Spirit, bring my mind captive to the obedience of Christ!
I know I am a sinful vessel, but please, Lord Jesus, I plead with You, use me for Your glory and the good of Your church!
As the hymn writer penned:
♫ Guide me, O thou great Jehovah,
pilgrim through this barren land.
I am weak, but thou art mighty;
hold me with thy powerful hand.
Bread of heaven, bread of heaven,
feed me till I want no more;
feed me till I want no more. ♫
Bless our worship this morning.
Humble us in Your holy presence.
Open our hearts to hear Your Word and to trust solely in Christ!
Cause Your power and presence to be experienced this morning!
Grant us inexpressible joy in Christ this Lord's Day.
Loose our tongues to sing Your praise!
Revive us again, Oh Lord of Hosts!
May Your name alone be exalted in our midst!
May we decrease and may Christ increase!
In Jesus' name!
Amen!
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A THANKFUL LIFE
“In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.”
—1 Thessalonians 5:18
The Bible gives us a multitude of reasons to be thankful to God. In the Psalms, we learn that we give thanks to the Lord for He is good. The psalmist also declares that we ought to give thanks to God because His mercy endures forever. Moses wrote in Exodus 20:6 that God shows “mercy to thousands of generations of those who love Him and keep His commandments.” Another reason we give thanks to God is because He is the sovereign Ruler of heaven and earth who provides for His people. The Apostle Paul wrote in 1 Timothy 6:17 that God “gives us richly all things to enjoy.” And David wrote in Psalm 37:23-26, “The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD, and He delights in his way. Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down; for the LORD upholds him with His hand. I have been young, and now am old; yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his descendants begging bread. He is ever merciful, and lends; and his descendants are blessed.”
The psalmist gives thanks to the Lord because He redeemed his life from the pit, and because every good and perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights (James 1:17); “Who keeps truth forever, executes justice, shows mercy, gives food to the hungry, freedom to the prisoners, opens the eyes of the blind, raises those who are bowed down, and loves the righteous” (Psalm 146:6-8). The Bible has a myriad of things for which we ought to give thanks to the Lord, and so the Apostle Paul simply says in 1 Thess. 5:18, “In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.”
Did you notice the all-inclusive words in our text? “In everything give thanks.” There are many favorable circumstances that happen in each of our lives for which giving thanks to God is altogether appropriate, and rather easy to do. But what about the times when things are not so pleasant? Are you willing to give God thanks when in His good providence pain, suffering, hurt, turmoil, or death touches your life? How then do you respond to God? Are you one who seeks only the blessings or the Giver of all blessings? The Apostle Paul says in our text that we are to give thanks to Almighty God in everything!
We may not be able to understand every little detail God is doing in our life, or why He has done certain things the way He has, but we do know from Scripture that He has promised to work all things together for His glory and our eternal good (Rom. 8:28), and that He has promised to never leave us or forsake us (Heb. 13:5). This should make us thankful to God in all things, even the evil that He sends upon us in this troubled life. If we truly believe God causes all things to work together for His glory and our eternal good, then we can be thankful no matter what situation we may find ourselves in. We must look to the end result of what God is doing and the word of Scripture to us is simply that we must trust our heavenly Father even though we may not understand what He is doing. As we read in Hebrews 11:8, “By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to the place which he would receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going.” And He did so, even as Sarah regarding the birth of Isaac, because he “judged Him faithful who had promised” (Heb. 11:11). Walking by faith in the promises of God enables the child of God to be thankful to the LORD in every circumstance. Take time today to praise His holy name!
Friday Devotional: November 6, 2026
In Christ,
Pastor S. Henry
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