GOOD NEWS FOR PLANET EARTH

GOOD NEWS FOR PLANET EARTH

Romans 1:1-4
http://www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=Romans+1:1-4

Dear Father, who commissioned the Good News to earth,

Thank you for the Good News for planet Earth which you promised
through your prophets in the Holy Scriptures.

We love you for giving us this Good News about your Son, who,
though he was descended from King David according to the flesh, was
designated your Son, the Son of God in power according to the
Spirit of holiness, by his resurrection from the dead.

We exult in thanksgiving for Jesus Christ, holder of all
authority, in whose name we come. Amen.

VERSE:

VERSE:
Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto
thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.
-- John 3:3
http://www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=John+3:3&translation=kjv

THOUGHT:
"Fast away the old year passes ..." But we can be new and fresh
and clean (cf. 2 Cor. 4:17). Kingdom people are those who have been
born fresh and new through the power of the Spirit and the grace of
God (cf. John 3:3-7; Titus 3:3-7; John 1:11). So as we close out
the old year, with its good things and bad, achievements and
failures, successes and disappointments, let's approach the New
Year as Kingdom people. God's mercies are new every morning and our
lives can be made new every day by the Holy Spirit who lives in us.
Yes, we have been born again. But each sunrise offers us the
opportunity to be made new, to live in a fresh new way, as God's
grace rekindles our hopes and the Holy Spirit makes us new as we
trust in Jesus our Lord.

PRAYER:
Heavenly Father, you are holy and righteous. I confess that as
hard as I have tried and as much as I have wanted to be holy and
righteous, without your grace and the empowering presence of the
Holy Spirit, I fail. Thank you for your forgiveness. Please make me
new. As I stand on the threshold of a new year, please empower me
beyond my weaknesses and besetting sins. Open my eyes to your work
in the world around me and use me in your work of grace. Fire my
passion to live fully for your Kingdom and my King, Jesus Christ,
in whose name I pray. Amen.

FILLING THE EARTH WITH GOD'S GOODNESS

FILLING THE EARTH WITH GOD'S GOODNESS

Philemon 1-16
http://www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=Philemon+1-16

Dear Father, bestower of freedom,

Thank you for the love and the faith which you have put in your
people. Please help them share this with each other and with the
world. Let this promote the knowledge of all the good that is ours
in Christ Jesus. Put such joy in our hearts and such gladness on
our faces that people will want to know what makes us happy.

Help each of us to render such help and comfort, expressing our
love, that the hearts of all your holy people will be refreshed.
Help us not to make demands on each other, but to entreat, seeking
consent, so that the good we ask from others might not be given
through compulsion but through free will. Help us to bind up broken
relationships. Help us to be willing to step into the breach, to
enable others to make amends, even if it costs us money, effort, or
time.

May the grace of our Lord Jesus be with our spirits. In his name I
ask. Amen.

VERSE:

VERSE:
But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the
sons of God, even to them that believe on his name...
-- John 1:12
http://www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=John+1:12&translation=kjv

THOUGHT:
Isn't it incredible that we are called children of God!? But
that is exactly what we are! (cf. 1 John 3:1-3.) We are God's
children. Our Father created the universe with its billions and
billions of heavenly bodies. Our Father paints a new sunset every
day and chases away the darkness every morning. Our Father not only
loves us, but he also claims us as his own and will bring us to his
eternal home. Why? Because we heard his message in Jesus. Because
we received his grace offered in his Son. Incredible! Glorious!
Grace!

PRAYER:
Abba Father, thank you for claiming me as your child through
Jesus, in whose name I praise and thank you. Amen.

WORKING TOGETHER

WORKING TOGETHER

Colossians 4:12-18
http://www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=Colossians+4:12-18

Dear Father,

Help us to remember each other earnestly in our prayers.

Help us to stand mature and to be fully assured in your will.

Help us encourage one another to carry our assigned works to
completion.

Help us fulfil whatever ministry we have received in the Lord.

Help us to remember those who are in prison, and those who suffer
in any way for your service.

May your perfect grace sustain and keep all of us.

In the name of Jesus I ask. Amen.

VERSE:

VERSE:
No man hath seen God at any time, the only begotten Son, which
is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.
-- John 1:18
http://www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=John+1:18&translation=kjv

THOUGHT:
Jesus is God's greatest message. He not only proclaims and
declares God's love, mercy, and grace; he has made it known. Only
Jesus can display God to us fully, for he is one with the Father.
Yet when we "see" Jesus ministering in the Gospels, we see God. If
we want to know how God feels about us, all we have to do is look
at how Jesus ministers to others. If we want to know what God would
do for us, we can notice what Jesus does to bless others. Jesus is
our window to the Father's heart. So as this year winds down, and
as you stand in the afterglow of Christmas, why not make a
commitment to get to know Jesus better in this coming year by
spending more time with him in the Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke,
and John)? If you do, you will better know God!

PRAYER:
Thank you, Father, for giving me a window to your heart through
the life and ministry of Jesus. Please bless me as I seek to know
you better by knowing, understanding, and following Jesus more
passionately. I pray in the name of your Son, Jesus Christ, my
Lord. Amen.

FULLNESS OF LOVE

Colossians 4:2-6
http://www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=Colossians+4:2-6

Dear Father, grantor of wisdom,

Help me conduct myself wisely toward outsiders, making the most of
the time.

Let my speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, and may I
always know how to answer.

Help me and all your saints to show ourselves to be a people who
live life to the fullest, because we live in the fullness of your
love shown in Jesus Christ!

In the name of Jesus I ask you to fill our lives with your holy
life and to claim all our motives and deeds as your own. Amen.