Something Greater

Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your law. My soul clings to the dust; give me life according to your word! My soul melts away for sorrow; strengthen me according to your word! Turn my eyes from looking at worthless things; and give me life in your ways. This is my comfort in my affliction, that your promise gives me life. My eyes long for your promise; I ask, “When will you comfort me?” I am severely afflicted; give me life, O Lord, according to your word! You are my hiding place and my shield; I hope in your word. A Prayer based upon Psalm 119 // Milt Reynolds Photo by Eddie & Carolina Stigson

Lord Jesus, God of my salvation, I cry out before you day and night. I call to you for help...in the morning my prayer brings me to you. Lord, I must trust you. I must trust that you hear and that you care. Or else, I'm undone! Forgive my sin...I don't deserve your forgiveness, but I cannot live without it. I cannot bear the thought of never being in your presence, never knowing your comfort, never being treasured and loved by you. You are my strength and my shield. My heart trusts in you, and that trust brings confident, expectant hope. That trust makes my heart celebrate and sing with gratitude! Hallelujah! Be my shepherd, Lord Jesus my God! Carry me forever! A Prayer based upon Psalm 28, 58, 88, 118, 148 // Milt Reynolds Photo by Liane Metzler on Unsplash

The earth and everything in it, the world and its inhabitants, belong to the LORD...The LORD, strong and mighty, the LORD, mighty in battle.. God is my Helper, the Sustainer of my life, for he has brought me through every trouble. I ask for favor and honor and all that is good in the eyes of God alone. Upon God alone do I depend and trust, in this life of toil and temptation, and in the life of rest and rejoicing to come. A Prayer based upon Psalms 24, 54, 84, 114, 144 // Milt Reynolds Photo by abshky on Unsplash

Lord, it was you who brought me out of the womb, making me secure at my mother’s breast. I was given over to you at birth; you have been my God from my mother’s womb. Too often do I forget this. Too many times hard circumstances and conditions push me into a corner of dark self-pity and distrust in your constant oversight and provision. Rescue me, Lord, from forgetting you! Save me from being dissatified with your rule over my life! Correct my inclination toward trusting in riches, taking refuge in destructive behavior, and refusing to take refuge in you. Open my mouth in praise of your care for me. Open my heart to hope in your name, for it is good! Although my spirit is weak within me, you know my way. You are my shelter, my portion in the land of the living. A Prayer based upon Psalms 22, 52, 82, 112, 142 // Milt Reynolds Jonathan Borba on Unsplash

Lord God, I find your victorious strength to be a source of great joy. I ask for rich blessings, and you give more than could be imagined! I ask for life, and you promise that I will be with you forever. I ask for majesty and splendor, and you grant me to be a child of the King! I ask for peace and joy, and you help and reassure me with your Spirit. Your gracious, faithfully and strong love has blots out my rebellious words and actions. You completely wash away my guilt and cleanse me from the prison of sin. Without your mercy and grace, I would be punished for my sin. I was guilty when I was born, sinful from the start. But you purified my past, cleansed and washed it whiter than snow. You turn your face away from my sins and blot out all my guilt. O, God! Create a clean heart for me, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Restore the joy of you salvation to me and sustain my spirit with eagerness to love your ways and to help others return to you. My hea...

Lord, today looms over me as a day of trouble...chores and errands that I dread, my body feeling weak, my head feeling dull, my obligations feeling heavy and frustrating. Protect me, Lord, from despair. Protect me from scorning, ignoring and harming the people you've brought near to me. Help and sustain me today. Renew my heart to desire what is good and right in your sight, for your whole puposes. May you have the victory in the fight for my soul. Make my heart's pride be centered upon your goodness and rightness in all circumstances and in all conditions. Make my faith be grounded upon you alone, and not in my own self, or politics or any human power or prestige. Restore me, God; make your face shine on me today so that I may be saved from dishonoring and disobeying you. Revive me, Lord, and I will call on your power and authority. A Prayer based upon Psalms 20, 50, 80, 140 // Milt Reynolds Photo by Alexandra Fuller on Unsplash

Lord, our Lord, open my heart and mind today to delight in your magnificent goodness and greatness. Remind me of your power shown in creating everything out of nothing: the earth, the universe...every molecule of substance, created and sustained by your constant power and wisdom. Lord, grant me humility today. Move my heart towards gratitude and obedience and worship in all that you have done, are doing, and will do for the sake of your glory and our greatest good. Make me keenly aware of the selfish, willfully disobedient part of my heart and mind. Make me see how I am searching for love and success and satisfaction in all the wrong places. Make me to know afresh how created things can never truly satisfy my hunger and thirst for my the One Who created me. I put my hope in you, Lord. Bring me out of anxiety. Bring to an end my loneliness. Bring me to you! Open my heart and mind to shout and sing in jubilant joy in you our Lord, our King! A Prayer base...

Listen to my words, Lord God; consider my sighing. Pay attention to the sound of my cry, my King and my God, for I pray to you. In the morning, Lord God, you hear my voice; in the morning I plead my case to you and watch expectantly. Only through the abundance of your faithful love dare I come to you, in reverential awe of you. Lord God, lead me in your right ways...there are so many temptations and distractions and frustrations that beset me; let not my heart go astray and ignore your ways. Guide me, Lord God, in your straight way. Renew my heart and mind to rejoice in how you are using circumstances and conditions, through thick and through thin, for your ultimate glory and my best good! Come, let’s worship and bow down; let’s kneel before the Lord God our Maker. For he is our God, and we are the people of his pasture, the sheep under his care. A Prayer based upon Psalms 5, 35, 65, 95, 125 // Milt Reynolds Photo by joseph d'mello on ...

When my life is unbalanced, when loss and disappointment loom large in my thoughts, support me, Lord, with your faithful love. When I am filled with cares, comfort me, Lord, with joy in your rule over over every circumstance and condition. Be my help today, Lord God. You are the Maker of heaven and earth, and nothing is too hard, or too small, for you! A Prayer based upon Psalms 4, 34, 64, 94, 124 // Milt Reynolds Photo by Alejandro Tocornal on Unsplash

Lord, how my troubles have increased today! I feel overwhelmed and and I need your help. Protect me from faithless anxiety. Remind me of your great goodness and sovereign rule over all that concerns me. Grant me trust-filled sleep and restore my confidence in your control over all circumstances. Remind me of your promises and plans for me, promises and plans of righteousness and justice. Restore my trust in you unfailing love. Everything in the world and all that is in the universe are under your control, Lord. Teach me to fear the consequences of ignoring you, of minimizing you, of making plans and pursuing goals with little regard for your majestic power and judgement. Teach me to depend on your faithful love, in all circumstances, through thick and through thin. Teach me to wait for you, to rejoice in you, to trust in you, and to hope in you. I lift my eyes to you, the one enthroned in heaven. Like a servant’s eyes on his master’s hand, like a servant girl’s...

Oh my soul, why are you sad today? Have you forgotten the joy of forgiveness? What troubles are you keeping to yourself today, hiding from your Lord, refusing to pour out your heart to the One Who hears and cares? Is your pain caused by distrust of your Maker and Master? Do not act like a stubborn mule without understanding! Trust in the Lord and come near to his faithful love. Be glad in the Lord and rejoice in his forgiveness and favor! Find rest in God alone. Do not try to find satisfaction in circumstances of business or fame or distraction. Put no trust in defeating others, in gaining wealth, or ruling with importance. Strength belongs to God. Faithful love belongs to the Lord. He alone will have the final word on all things. He alone is just, and there is no unrighteousness in him. Rejoice, oh soul! Place into his hands all that you need and desire, and rest secure in his goodness and power over all circumstances and conditions. Trust in the Lord and come...

Lord, what broken, sin-confused platform, pleasure or protest am I thoughtlessly allowing to guide my plans and desires? What assumptions am I naively making that I'm not questioning...not contrasting with your holy Word? Lord God Almighty, my only King and Counselor, Savior and Sustainer, lead me in the way I should walk, the way in which I should stand, the way in which I should sit, and the way in which is my greatest good and your greatest glory! In you, O Lord, do I take refuge from deceptive, destructive counsel. In your righteousness deliver me. For your name's sake, lead me and guide me out of the net of self-glorification, self-moralization, and self-defeating desire to impress others. Into your hand I commit my spirit, for you have redeemed me, O Lord, faithful God! My times are in your hand, and gladly will I trust you through thick and through thin. A Prayer based upon Psalms 1, 31, 61, 91, 121 // Milt Reynolds Photo by Quang ...