Prayer Focus: Stewardship of Creation

Gracious Lord, Your creation is something amazing to behold. The diversity of animals and plants. The splendor of the stars and sky. The complexity of every form of life. The genius of reproduction, both sexual and asexual, the beauty of innocent life, and the grandeur of maturity. When I think about all You have made, I marvel at both the design and the delegation. Who is mankind that You would have placed us as stewards over this awesome wonder, to care, learn, and grow as an act of worship of You? We praise You for the fact of creation and how You brought it to be out of Your wisdom and by Your Word. We praise You for how You designed this world as a harmonious ecosystem with plants and animals dependent upon each other, dependent upon the sun and the rain. Trees grow and may yield fruit and the seed within was designed to replicate the same type of tree, each according to their kind. Animals grow and reproduce and replicate their own species. It is truly remarkable! Help us to see how to take care of what You designed and created. Help us to see that it’s not a political issue at all, but one of faith and worship of the One whose Word brought it to be. Help us to be wise and respectful stewards, never abusing this privilege of delegation, but rather to cherish our role as an act of love toward the creation upon which we are dependent, too. Give us eyes to see how You want us to care for the world and to live in peace and harmony with all You have made. We thank You for Your faithfulness to bring it all to perfect renewal when our Lord Jesus returns. It is in His Name we pray. Amen.

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If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2020 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this encounter with God to prepare your heart for Easter! Understanding that prior years’ devotionals remain popular, you may want to have access to a full series ahead of time:

• Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
•  A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God  which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014. 
• Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations.  We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17. 
• ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
• Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ.  It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
• Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.
• Lent 2019 gave us a deeper window into Easter “More to the Easter Story” since we miss so much when we rely only on a superficial understanding of the work of Christ. These devotionals are archived beginning March 6, 2019.

Meditation Focus: His Name is to be Praised

This year’s Lent Devotional Series: Be Thou My Vision resumes tomorrow after today’s Sabbath rest to meditate and worship.

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If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2020 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this encounter with God to prepare your heart for Easter! Understanding that prior years’ devotionals remain popular, you may want to have access to a full series ahead of time:

• Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
•  A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God  which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014. 
• Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations.  We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17. 
• ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
• Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ.  It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
• Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.
• Lent 2019 gave us a deeper window into Easter “More to the Easter Story” since we miss so much when we rely only on a superficial understanding of the work of Christ. These devotionals are archived beginning March 6, 2019.

Prayer Focus: Walking with God

Father, as I reflect upon the words of the hymn “In the Garden” I am overtaken by the knowledge that Adam and Eve once had the continual joy of a close and perfect walk with You in the perfect place called Eden.  The hymnist wrote, “I come to the garden alone, While the dew is still on the roses; And the voice I hear, falling on my ear, The Son of God discloses. Refrain: And He walks with me, and He talks with me, And He tells me I am His own, And the joy we share as we tarry there, None other has ever known.”  We thank You that we can walk with You because of Your love and mercy, even more now because of the grace and sacrifice of Your Son Jesus Christ.  It was His blood that paid for my sins so I could have a walk with You.  That my reply to Your question of Adam and Eve “Where are you?” doesn’t have to be their response of hiding.  How awful that temptation is so insidious to lure them away from a perfect walk with You and into human sin and hiding in total shame.  May I be reminded at times I sin, both knowingly and unwittingly, that forgiveness was bought at such a heavy price as the blood of Christ.  I want to walk with You and to hear Your voice of assurance.  Assurance of forgiveness.  Assurance of Your mercy.  Assurance of Your love.  Assurance of my being able to walk with You in eternity and that it isn’t based upon my efforts, but rests solely on the foundation of Christ’s sacrifice.  The punishment—all Your righteous wrath against sin—was poured out on Him so I could be forgiven.  Assurance that even though I still fall short time and again of the way I want to be, that I can repent and find You ready to forgive, abounding in grace, and merciful because You know my frame and my heart.  Lord God, help me to walk with You at all times, pray without ceasing, and to know that walking with You is a combination of intentional awareness and habit of life.  May I set out each day to walk more closely with You.  To hear Your voice in all circumstances shining a light before my feet, telling me “This is the way.  Walk in it” and that my response would be automatic and eager.  Be with me this day, Lord.  Guide me by the power of Your Holy Spirit.  Keep me from sin and temptation.  Preserve me by Your grace, forgiven through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

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If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2020 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this encounter with God to prepare your heart for Easter! Understanding that prior years’ devotionals remain popular, you may want to have access to a full series ahead of time:

• Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
•  A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God  which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014. 
• Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations.  We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17. 
• ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
• Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ.  It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
• Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.
• Lent 2019 gave us a deeper window into Easter “More to the Easter Story” since we miss so much when we rely only on a superficial understanding of the work of Christ. These devotionals are archived beginning March 6, 2019.

Prayer Focus: God is the Potter, I’m just clay

Almighty God, help me to see what it truly means that I am a created being.  That You formed all of mankind from the dust of the ground in essence when You created Adam and when You formed Eve from one of his ribs. Lord, we praise You for breathing life into Adam and that is how he became… a living being. We thank You for the life we have even though human sin has made our existence a world outside of Eden. We remember that ours wasn’t created to be an imperfect world with thorns and thistles, pain and suffering. No. At one point when You breathed life into Adam and placed him in Your perfect garden, everything was completely perfect, holy, and in harmony. Remind me, Lord, that You are the Potter and I’m just clay. I am the dust of the earth and You formed me in the womb just as You continue to form me for eternity. I pray You will form my character and heart so my actions will bring glory to You. May heaven forbid that my heart or actions would grieve You. Help me to remember that You are the Potter and Your plan is both perfect and wise. So when I don’t get a choice of Your will for me or my circumstance, I pray Lord that I will see You in this all and know that Your will is always good and always perfect, though sometimes I can’t see it. May I willingly and cheerfully submit myself to Your almighty hand forming me, molding me, and to use me for Your purposes in this world… to bring others to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ … to do Your work as Your hands and feet now that Jesus Christ is ascended to heaven. We thank You for the Great Commission that You have given to each of us to make disciples of all nations and to teach others–without prejudice–about who You are and about Your goodness to us all. Give me ears to hear and a mind to remember everything that You have taught us, recorded in Your Word, about the life of Jesus on Earth. May I be a willing instrument in Your hand, to be formed even as You use me to form others for Your glory. Thank You for creating us Lord. We praise You that while we are hard-pressed, we are not crushed to destruction because of Your mercy. We have hope and a future. We offer thanks to You in the mighty name of Jesus Christ, Your Son and our Savior. Amen.

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If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2020 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this encounter with God to prepare your heart for Easter! Understanding that prior years’ devotionals remain popular, you may want to have access to a full series ahead of time:

• Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
•  A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God  which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014. 
• Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations.  We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17. 
• ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
• Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ.  It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
• Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.
• Lent 2019 gave us a deeper window into Easter “More to the Easter Story” since we miss so much when we rely only on a superficial understanding of the work of Christ. These devotionals are archived beginning March 6, 2019.

Prayer Focus: God as Divine Creator

Lord God, our Divine Creator, we praise You and thank You for the beauty of this creation that You have made… that You designed well before it ever came to be.  We praise You that out of nothing ex nihilo that You created the stars in the sky, the sun, the moon, the earth, the plants, the animals, the fish, and the birds.  We praise You that every part of the creation which You have made was very good in the beginning!  We praise You for the way in which You created this world and we ask, Lord, that we would be mindful always that we are created beings.   That it’s our responsibility to care for this beautiful creation which You have made.  That it is our pleasure to receive what the land yields and to shepherd over this world which You have made.  We’re sorry, Father, for the many ways that we have not respected the land.  We’re sorry, Lord, for failing to care for this creation including the animals and other people.  We are seeing anew, Lord, that there is an Image of Yours in every human being– there’s not a man, a woman, a child, or a fetus who has not been endowed with Your Image.  This fact is irrespective of our race, gender, upbringing, or other demographic.  It is irrespective the level of sin that we have because Your Image is still there, however broken in humanity it may be on account of our sin.  We know that it wasn’t always this way in the beginning.  There was a time in which humanity had Your perfect Image.  This world, too, was absolutely perfect before we disrespected Your boundaries, violated Your commands, transgressed against Your kindness, love, and mercy.  We thank You Lord for Your forgiveness—a forgiveness that was bought on the Cross by Jesus Christ Your Son.  We thank You Lord that Your mercies are new every morning and You give us opportunities to live as we ought.  Grant that we would live as self-aware created beings worshipping You, our Creator, who alone deserves to be worshiped.  We praise You and thank You for this vision of You as our Divine Creator.  Keep us humble and help us bring glory to You for all the good You have done to us.  Amen.

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If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2020 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this encounter with God to prepare your heart for Easter! Understanding that prior years’ devotionals remain popular, you may want to have access to a full series ahead of time:

• Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
•  A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God  which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014. 
• Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations.  We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17. 
• ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
• Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ.  It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
• Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.
• Lent 2019 gave us a deeper window into Easter “More to the Easter Story” since we miss so much when we rely only on a superficial understanding of the work of Christ. These devotionals are archived beginning March 6, 2019.

Prayer Focus: God’s Image and His Image in us

Lord God Almighty, we praise You and thank You that we have been created in Your Image.  We praise You and we thank You that Your Image is perfect.  We praise You and thank You that You created us both male and female to be in Your Image.  We praise You and thank You for Your goodness to us.  Help us to see Your Image in our fellow man.  May seeing Your Image in others help us to be better people… to offer grace where grace is needed, to love unconditionally as a reflection of the love You have for us.  Always help us to recall this great love You had in sending Your Son Jesus Christ to die on a Cross for our sins.  We’re sorry, Lord, for the many ways that we have let You down, for our sin nature that we did ourselves by rebelling against You.  Forgive us, Lord, for the sins we have committed as a culture.  Forgive me, Lord, for the sins I have committed.  Forgive me for the sins that I know about and for the ones that have arisen from my nature that remain hidden from my eyes.  May Your Holy Spirit convict me of the things I’ve done which grieve You.  May Your Holy Spirit encourage me to see Your Image in myself and to see Your Image in others.  And most of all, Lord, to see You for who You are.  We offer praise and thanks to You on this Ash Wednesday.  The ashes remind us that You did not have to condescend to save us, but it’s an expression of the magnitude of the love You have for us as Your Image bearers.  Remind us of the sin we have committed in our thoughts, our actions, and in our attempts to hide from You.  Most of all, please remind us—deep in our souls—of the great love You have shown to us by offering forgiveness through Jesus Christ our Lord. May our gratitude rise to You as praise and all glory. Amen.

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If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2020 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this encounter with God to prepare your heart for Easter! Understanding that prior years’ devotionals remain popular, you may want to have access to a full series ahead of time:

• Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
•  A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God  which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014. 
• Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations.  We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17. 
• ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
• Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ.  It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
• Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.
• Lent 2019 gave us a deeper window into Easter “More to the Easter Story” since we miss so much when we rely only on a superficial understanding of the work of Christ. These devotionals are archived beginning March 6, 2019.

And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another– and all the more as you see the Day approaching. (Hebrews 10:24-25)

It’s not enough to run our own race, stay in our own lane, do our own thing, and mind our own business.  On God’s Christmas List, He wants us to help others along the way, too.  In so many places in the Bible, God teaches us to look out for the wellbeing of others (Genesis 18:17-33, Philippians 2:4, Galatians 6:2, Luke 10:36-37, etc.).  Part of that wellbeing is to bring out the best in our fellow man, not egging them into their worst behaviors.  It also involves meeting with likeminded Christian people and strengthening each other.  As it becomes more difficult with the darkness of our world building like storm clouds all around us, we will remain strong by encouraging each other, meeting with each other, and by holding one another accountable. 

On this Christmas Eve and always, that’s what God wants: His people standing strong, grounded in God-fearing unity, and shining brightly with His Gospel truth to be joyfully shared with the world which desperately needs Him.

Think About It: 

• What are some of the ways we can spur one another on? 
• What tangible actions can you take today to encourage someone else? 
• Why would God admonish us to do it all the more as we see the Day (of His Return and Judgment) approaching?

Dear Father, help me to see that Christmas and the birth of Christ wasn’t just about a little baby in a manger, but a revolutionary act of reclamation of Your people by Your perfect design.  Remind me often that had it not been for Your intervention at Christmas in the person of Jesus Christ, each and every man, woman, and child no matter where they lived or who their parents were…all would have been lost for eternity because that’s just how bad sin is.  Open my eyes and my heart to the gravity and power of what You accomplished in the Incarnation.  It is why Christmas endures and will until Your return at Your second advent, Lord Jesus.  Amen!

Let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. (Hebrews 10:22-23) 

When all else around us fails, when people fail us, when our family fails us, and when we fail ourselves, this is the hope we can hold onto:  God is faithful.  Period.

Think About It:

• To know without a doubt that God is faithful is greatly reassuring.  We don’t need to turn to the right or to the left in search of something or someone who will be faithful.  What is our assurance based upon?  Read Hebrews 10:5-25 for context of this important assurance.
• What does unswervingly mean?  Why does God encourage us to hold unswervingly to hope?

In Scripture and therefore on God’s Christmas List, we hold onto hope.

Dear Lord, when I am prone to doubt, when I am lonely and questioning everything, when I do not know where to turn, please dear God, remind me of this assurance:  You are faithful.  Help me to look with eyes of faith not through the lens of my circumstances which are temporary.  Help me to know the eternal weight of glory that outweighs my afflictions.  I thank You and praise You for Your faithfulness.  Amen.

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Join me beginning December 1, 2019 by signing up on the sidebar of my Home Page to receive these daily devotionals. Let’s enjoy exploring what might be on God’s Christmas list.

Acknowledging inquiries about an entire season’s devotionals for your study group’s planning purposes, Seminary Gal’s prior seasons’ Advent devotionals can be accessed via the archives to the right and are as follows:  

• Last year’s Advent Devotional Series (2018) Storyteller began December 2, 2018 and entered into the Christmas story through its telling.
• The 2017 series Still Christmas, began December 3, 2017 and was the Advent complement to the Lenten series, Be Still and Know that I AM God.
• The 2016 season devotionals were called “Timeless: The Message of Christmas for All Ages” and explored how the message of Christmas is timeless truth, for all ages of people, and for all ages at all times.  Timeless hope, encouragement, grace, peace, and love as we looked into the Word, saw the face of our Lord Jesus, and experienced restoration in His presence.  His goodness and His Gospel are truly Timeless. The 2016 devotionals began November 27, 2016.
• The 2015 season devotionals were titled Incarnation and involved digging deep–and yes, I mean deep– in this important mystery of Christian theology.  They began November 29, 2015.
• Carol Me, Christmas! remains one of my most popular offerings and tells the Christmas story through our most beloved Christmas hymns and carols.  You can access all of the numbered devotionals from 2014 via the archives.  They began November 30, 2014.
• The 2013 series was Emmanuel: When LOVE Showed Up in Person and examined the Prologue to the Gospel of John.  It began December 1, 2013.
• The 2012 series focused on Expecting the Unexpected…the unexpected, unlikely, and uniquely divine qualities of God’s perfect plan outlined in Luke’s account of the Christmas story.  It began December 1, 2012.