Father, You made it possible for us to experience this earthly journey in abundance when You sent Jesus to earth. He came that we might have the fullness of the Spirit within our lives. The devil comes to steal from us and destroy our lives but as we test Your Word we find that You supply in abundance Your peace, joy, purpose for living and an overcoming spirit in the midst of the enemy’s arsenal of weaponry. Through many tribulations we will enter Your Kingdom, but it will be worth it all when we see Christ. Keep us faithful till then. In the name of Jesus we pray. Amen.

Father, the day to day living can be so challenging and easily drain us of the pleasures in life if we’re not careful. We thank you for our family and friends who pull us away from that mindset and add laughter to our lives, as well as the unexpected events that make us laugh at ourselves. Would you bring heartfelt laughter to the hearts of our readers today as they go about their daily duties. May they hear laughter and may they make laughter, verbally, and in their hearts. In the name of Jesus we pray, Amen.

Father, I consider the words of Nehemiah who wrote, “The joy of the Lord is my strength” and Solomon who reminds us that “A cheerful heart is good medicine.” Both verses speak about matters of the heart where we store up Your love, joy and goodness. Help us not to rely solely on external stimulus to bring forth a smile, but let our smiles be contagious as they are evidence of Your abundance within in our lives. Help us to find a person today who has no smile so that we can pass ours onto her or him in the Name of Christ Jesus we pray. Amen.

Father, You’ve called us all to a life of obedience. This includes the command that we are to raise our families in such a way that they will come to know You and grow in godliness in accordance to their individual faith. We also have opportunity to influence others for Jesus as we follow the great commission in reaching out to those who don’t know Him, whether it’s our neighbor, co-worker, team member or the homeless living on the streets. We want to make a difference in our world, one person at a time, since You touch individual hearts for the kingdom one at a time. We want to faithfully do our part through Christ Jesus our Lord in whose name we pray. Amen.

Father, we want to show our love to friends in regular conversation and in tangible ways as we reach out to them and express personal interest in their lives. Proverbs 17:17 teaches us that “Friends always show their love”, not only in the good times but we share together in times of trouble upholding, supporting, and bearing their burdens with them on their life’s journey. As we mutually bear our burdens we are strengthened and encouraged together. Our lives are greatly enriched by the friendships we establish and grow from day to day. Amen.

Father, we know that without a fresh manifestation of Your Holy Spirit power in our lives, our faith will not prevail in the midst of the evil that abounds in our day. Just as Habakkuk pleaded for You to manifest Yourself to Him, we also pray for renewal in our spirit so that we remain a part of the faithful remnant fully committed to You. We choose to rejoice in the Lord our God who enables us to hold tightly to our godly faith in the midst of enemy invasion. We pray for deliverance and sustaining power so that we emerge victorious during the battle even as Job declared, “Though God slay me yet I’ll trust Him”. Amen.

Father, much like Barnabas the encourager, we want to be uplifting to our brothers and sisters, our family members, and others we see from day to day. There are those who’ve left us with stinging reminders of their hurtful words often accompanied by painful actions. Gratefully, there are others who have brought us strength and encouragement through their words of affirmation, hope, challenge, and helpful instruction. They remained supportive of us when others gave up. Help us to be numbered among the encouragers as we live in these perilous days where confusion abounds and deceitfulness is rampant. May we encourage others not only by our words but also by our steady, consistent, Christian lifestyle. In the name of Jesus we pray, Amen.

Father, we consider the greatest proof of genuine love is when one lays down his life for another. We are grateful recipients of Christ’s substitutionary death for us – the atoning sacrifice for our sins. Thank You for proving Your genuine love as You endured the greatest test of love and presented the greatest gift to humankind – forgiveness for our sins. We’re eternally grateful and, though we have not seen, by faith we do believe. Amen.

Father, thank You for speaking to us through Your Word, other believers, and through serious events in our lives. You beamed Your searchlight from the portals of heaven to show us how lost we were. We’re tremendously blessed to know that celestial beings held a celebration in heaven when we chose to be Your followers. Though misplacing material things leads to time lost and great frustration, misplacing our faith leads to error and eternal damnation. Father, You’ve shown us the way and instructed us, “This is the way; walk in it.” Help us to seek out others who’ve yet to find the way so that they too will follow You and cause rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents. We pray this in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Father, thank You for Your wonderful salvation through Your Son, Jesus Christ. You created in my body a thirst and hunger for physical food just as You created in my soul a hunger and thirst for spiritual food. My soul thirsts for You, the living God. As I drink from Your living water my soul’s desires are satisfied. I am refreshed as I taste and see that You are good and Your mercies are everlasting and very personal. As I partake of the Living Water and the Bread of Life I am led by Your hand. I am no longer my own, for I have been bought with a tremendous price – Your Son, Your only Son, who gave His life that I might experience forgiveness for sin. Thank You for forgiving me and leading me in the paths of righteousness where I find love, joy and peace forevermore. My heart and my flesh, they may fail, but You are my strength and my portion for ever and ever. Amen.