Heartlight/Leaves of Light

[Judy Harder]

June 25

Jeremiah 23:24
"Can anyone hide in secret places so that I cannot see them?" declares the Lord. "Do not I fill heaven and earth?" declares the Lord.

Thoughts on today's verse

There is no hiding from God, but for those who willingly and joyously seek him, there is comfort, power, and hope in his presence.

Prayer:

El Shaddai, God of the Mountains, be my sources of strength as I seek your presence. I acknowledge your presence in all I do and everywhere I go. Please, don't just keep blessing me, but use me to bless others in your name. Through Jesus. Amen.

[Judy Harder]

June 26

Leviticus 19:18
Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against one of your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord.

Thoughts on today's verse

Hanging on to bitterness and keeping alive grudges is consuming work. It leaves little energy for blessing others, praising God, or enjoying life. The only way to get over these things is to actively love (i.e., serve them) others in ways that bless their lives. If we can't do this because it's good and the right thing to do, we do it because we know God!

Prayer:

Father of light, love and mercy, please remove from my heart any cynicism or delight in seeing others around me fall. Instead, help me to be a rescuer rather than a neglector. I want your grace to be seen in my friendships. Through Jesus I pray. Amen.'

[Judy Harder]

June 27

Matthew 16:25
Spoken by Jesus: "...whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it."

Thoughts on today's verse

The key to life is letting go of ourselves and receiving Jesus. Please don't forget to relinquish your life to the one who gave up his own life. When we lose our life to him, we can have it back forever with him.

Prayer:

Lord Jesus, I believe you are the Son of God, my Savior and King. I long for your life to be made visible in me. To your glory I pray. Amen.

[Judy Harder]

June 28

2 Peter 3:9
The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.

Thoughts on today's verse

Maranatha -- O Lord come! This cry of the early church, especially during times of trial, persecution, and difficulty, must be tempered with the reminder that there is a lost world around us -- many of whom are dear friends and family. Our passion for the Lord's coming must be equaled by our passion to share his grace with those who have not "come to repentance" and changed their lives to serve the Lord who died to bring them life.

Prayer:

O Great and Patient God, please do all within your power and grace to bring my loved ones and dear friends to repentance so that when Jesus appears they can share in my joy and your salvation. Through Jesus The Savior I pray. Amen.

[Judy Harder]

June 29

Psalm 138:8
The Lord will fulfill his purpose for me; your love, O Lord, endures forever -- do not abandon the works of your hands.

Thoughts on today's verse

God has a purpose and plan for each of our lives. The greatest thing we can do is to find that purpose and live it out. We can trust his purpose in us because it is based on his wisdom and love. As long as we seek his will, we're not going to do anything that can ultimately spoil his purpose in us. Yes, we may at times stray from the perfect channel he wants us to travel, but we never get totally out of the main channel. As long he does not abandon us, (and he promised he never would forsake us he will use us) for his purposes.

Prayer:

O Sovereign God, help me discern today what my life is intended to fulfill. Thank you for loving me and promising to walk beside me every step of my life. I live trusting that you will never forsake me. Through Jesus I pray. Amen.

[Judy Harder]

June 30

Zechariah 14:9
The Lord will be king over the whole earth. On that day there will be one Lord, and his name the only name.

Thoughts on today's verse

"Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven." Jesus taught us to pray for the day that the LORD would be the recognized king over all the earth. We look forward to that, because our faith will be shown true and the LORD himself will be glorified as he should be. In a world of profanity, a world where God's name is blasphemed, every knee will bow and every tongue confess that he is LORD, Yahweh, incomparable without rival.

Prayer:

Great Almighty LORD, work to bring yourself glory, in these days. Do mighty works that show your Sovereignty. Help us as we seek to bring others to call on your name and praise your grace. Through Jesus I pray. Amen.

[Judy Harder]

July 1

Romans 12:3
By the grace given me I say to everyone of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you.

Thoughts on today's verse

Pride does go before a fall! It is not easy to balance the two truths: "I must not be prideful, but I must understand just how much God values me." Satan can use our self- denigration, the worthless worm syndrome, to discourage us and keep us from using our gifts for Kingdom work. On the other hand, pride takes God out of the picture and attributes our contribution to God's Kingdom to us and not to God.

Prayer:

Holy Father, as your child, redeemed at the cost of Jesus' life, I know I am loved and valuable to you. I know you have given me abilities and gifts to use for your glory and to bless your church. But Father, I do not want to ever think that my abilities are somehow mine alone. I know you have given me the gifts, abilities, and experiences that have shaped me, so please empower me to your glory. But Father, I never want the glory that is achieved from your gifts to puff me up or turn from me the realization that I am what I am, I have what I have, and I do what I do, because of your grace and your generous gifts. May I ever be your humble but valuable child at work in your Kingdom. Through Jesus I pray. Amen.

[Judy Harder]

July 2

Jeremiah 17:9-10
The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it? "I the Lord search the heart and examine the mind, to reward a man according to his conduct, according to what his deeds deserve."

Thoughts on today's verse

Jesus told us that what is in our heart ultimately works its way out into our activities. The great wise man told us to guard our heart because it is the spring well of our life. Jeremiah wants us to know that God knows our heart. We want to stress the importance of what goes into our hearts because it really makes a difference in what goes on inside our heart. Invite the Lord in to what you do, think, read, watch, and hear and ask him to remove those things that are not worthy of your time and interest.

Prayer:

Righteous Father, please help me guard my heart and be wise enough not to place things into it that would rob it of its devotion to you. I want to be pure through and through. Please search me and help me remove everything that would steal my devotion from you and ruin my influence with others. Through Jesus I pray. Amen.

[Judy Harder]

July 3

Proverbs 14:34
Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a disgrace to any people.

Thoughts on today's verse

Wow, what an indictment. When we vote according to our pocketbook more than character and when we excuse the indiscretions, infidelities, and illegalities in the leaders of both political parties, we have reached a very sad state indeed! But before we rant and rave about the sad state of morality in our public officials, let's make sure we're honest in our own daily lives, that we don't say cruel things about others, that we remain faithful to our marriage and our purity vows to God, and let's make sure that we expect of ourselves higher standards than we do of others.

Prayer:

God, you are not only the Almighty, you are holy! Holy, Holy, Holy are you, the LORD God Almighty. May the whole earth be filled with your glory and may that glory be shown in what I do and say. Forgive me for my own sin and hypocrisy. Bless me with purity and holiness as I pledge my life to your glory. In Jesus name I pray. Amen.

[Judy Harder]

July 4

Psalm 33:12
Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord.

Thoughts on today's verse

What is god of our culture and our nation? Certainly our God is the LORD, Yahweh, King of Israel and Redeemer of the lost. But we can pray for revival to sweep our land and we can repent for not placing him first in our own lives. He has promised to respond if we will humble ourselves and seek him. Let's do that beginning today!

Prayer:

LORD, God of the heavens and Father of all nations, I humble myself before you today, acknowledging my own sin and the sin of my people. I pray that you will revive us by the power of your word and the sanctifying power of your Spirit. Bring renewal to our land. In the name of Jesus and by the power of the Spirit I ask this. Amen.