Submitting to My King

Please join me in praying aloud the prayer our pastor, Chad Hovind offered during worship to bring in the year 2023. May your heart be strangely warmed to declare submission to your King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

A Time of Prayer

Reflecting on what it means for God to be our King

Lord, I declare You are King over last year.

King over the things I expected and the things I did not expect.

I declare You King over this year.

I am going to trust You for whatever comes my way.

I declare You King over the unknown.

You are King over my fears;

God, You are King over my family relationships.

I declare You King over my calendar,

King over my pocketbook.

Father, I declare You King over my imagination,

Recognizing that it can work for me when submitted to You

And against me when it turns to worry or control.

I declare that I want my imagination, my senses, what I hear, and what I say to be submitted to Your reign, Father.

God, You are not just a King. You are The King!

And You are not just The King; You are my King! And I want You to reign!

Father, I ask You to reign over my health . . .

Whether I receive good news, bad news, or no news.

Reign over my uncertainties when they come this year,

And please give me Your peace in the midst of them.

Lord, I ask You to reign over every opportunity that comes my way—

Every challenge before me.

Finally, God, I recognize that Your kingdom is bigger than any other kingdom.

I confess I’ve been living for a kingdom that is smaller than Yours.

Your kingdom is bigger than my mistakes, bigger than my sin.

Your kingdom of forgiveness is bigger than what I’ve done.

God, thank You that Your kingdom is bigger than my past.

Father, forgive me for living for false idols and worldly kings (lesser kings). Lord, You are THE ONLY TRUE KING, the only King who didn’t sacrifice His servants for Himself,

But You sacrificed Yourself on the cross for Your servants . . .

That we would know Who the real King is,

And that we would ask Your will to be done on earth as it is in Heaven.

In the Name of Jesus,

Amen

Living With Eternal Intentionality®

“He has also set eternity in the hearts of men” (Ecclesiastes 3:11).

What specifically does it mean to you for God to be your King in 2023?

Which word triggers a specific need for release to His control (Unknown? Unexpected? Family? Calendar? Imagination? Forgiveness?)?

“Now may the God of hope give you all joy as you trust in Him that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit” (Romans 15:13).

Almost Here, The New Year!

As the sun sets on the year 2022, count your blessings, consider your sorrows, calculate your regrets, and celebrate your successes. And above all, remember Jesus. Never for one second did He leave you or forsake you. His grace was amazing; His goodness and mercy followed you.

As the sun rises on the year 2023, take to heart the words of Brad Paisley.

The Wonder Within The Words

The German Christmas pyramid spins, the fire glows, and the music plays. Sipping warm wassail from a red mug, I absorb the ambiance and ponder the significance of the occasion. Even in the buzz of busyness, a sense of quiet and holy awe always surrounds The Christmas Story.

For a brief moment, consider 3 aspects of The Wonder Within the Words:

The Inconvenience for Mary and Joseph
The Insignificance of Bethlehem
The Incomparable magnitude of the manger

The Inconvenience for Mary and Joseph
My respect for this young faith-filled couple only increases with each reading. The arduous travel, the ambiguity, the aloneness, and the absence of a mother or a sister all portray a daunting picture of enormous inconvenience. Yet, we glaze over their challenges. 
Pause…
Obedience involves inconvenience.

The Insignificance of Bethlehem
Have you ever asked, “Why Bethlehem?” The prophecy in Micah 5:2 records Bethlehem's seeming insignificance: But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times.
Pause…
Jesus. Gave. Bethlehem. Significance. 
Does this thought find lodging in your soul? (It does in mine.) Jesus gave Bethlehem significance, and Jesus gives you and me significance. 

The Incomparable magnitude of the manger
My amazement concerning the manger deepens even further when we consider how my story merges with your story and how our story merges with their story—that one Glorious Story!
Pause…
The Messiah in the manger is the Savior in our hearts. 
You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven … to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant … (Hebrews 12:22-24).

Here is a suggestion: take a moment now to rediscover and savor The Wonder Within The Words, as you read, alone and aloud, the beloved Christmas Story:

The Birth of Jesus

Luke 2: 1-20

In those days, Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.) And everyone went to his own town to register. So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger because there was no room for them in the inn. 

And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”

Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.”

When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.” 

So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.

It is true, isn’t it? Jesus has changed our hearts forever. And because of Him, we are able to grasp The Wonder Within the Words.

Now, may you have a wonderful season of celebration. Lord willing, I will meet you here again in January 2023, and together we can press on toward Living With Eternal Intentionality®.