I Will Yet Praise Him- A Prayer

God, I praise you, for you are worthy of our praise. You are gracious and merciful, even when we don't deserve it. You are holy and you are just - no wrong will be overlooked; you will right every wrong done against us, and every wrong done by us.

You are righteous - you never maliciously hurt us.

You are loving at your very core, and only make decisions in our best interest. Your decisions are not based on our meeting your needs, for all your needs are met by your own nature. Rather, you choose to meet our needs even when we least deserve it.

You are Creator of this wonderful universe, and you did it for our enjoyment, for you are not simply a practical God, but an extravagant God.

You are gracious, merciful, holy, just. You are righteous, loving, selfless. You are Creator. You are so much more than we could ever imagine, though we have eternity to learn. And because of all this, you are more than worthy of our praise.

This prayer is a sequel to this post.
Have your own prayer of praise you are willing to share? I'd love to hear from you!

Unsolved Mysteries Solved

Ever watch those shows where they solve murder cases and the like? I like the ones that are like a big long movie, like 24 and Fringe. I like how the pieces begin to come together so that I can see the bigger picture, what the puzzle was intended to look like.

The universe around us is filled with all different kinds of mysteries. There's mysteries about people, about nature, about buildings. How did the dinosaurs come to be extinct? Did the snake have legs in Eden? What has been happening in the spiritual realm around us all our lives? Was a war fought? Were multiple wars fought? How often did angels save our lives, while we were completely unaware? Beyond our planet, our solar system, how many other planets are there? What does it look like at the center of our solar system? Are there other planets where we could live?

Many, if not all, of these mysteries, we will never be able to solve during our lifetime. But that's just it. We're not just here for this lifetime. We are here (or on the new earth) for an eternity! There are some mysteries I think we'll never fully understand- or else we'd be God. But many, I think, we'll be able to seek out and discover the truth. For in eternity, we'll have unlimited health, time, and resources, not to mention we will no longer have Satan fighting against us, trying to turn us against our Father. It'll take hundreds, thousands of light years to get to another planet like ours? So what! We'll have that time! It's dangerous? Not anymore! Not in eternity! It's too expensive? I'm sure God would foot the bill.

As a child, I really wanted to become an astronaut. I loved the movie, Apollo 13, and probably watched it at least once a week during that season of my childhood. I wanted to go to one of those space camps you saw advertised on TV, but it was way too expensive. As I grew older, and more health problems developed, I knew it would never be a reality. It was too expensive to get the education necessary, and I would never get health clearance anyways.

There have been many things, like becoming an astronaut, that I've decided I would never be able to do, for various reasons: my body won't let me, it's too expensive, I'm not smart enough. But Romans 12:2 says this: "Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is - his good, pleasing, and perfect will." I never really, truly, understood what that verse meant until now. I thought I did, but didn't really. Our thoughts follow patterns, determined by these decisions of what we can and can't do. When we restrict our thinking to the thinking of the world, we become like everyone else. But when we see reality as God sees it, it frees us, allowing us to believe in the impossible, to plan to do the impossible.

What have you decided you will never be able to do? What dreams did you have during childhood that you haven't thought of since? Let God free you by the realization that you WILL be able to do those things someday.

The Doorway to Joy

At one time in my life, years ago, I know I truly experienced the joy of the Lord. So much so, that others started noticing. Even on the days when I felt sick and tired, others would comment: "You look so happy!" And today I have been reminded of the source of that joy.

In Psalms 37:1, David advises us:

"Do not fret because of those who are evil
   or be envious of those who do wrong;
for like the grass they will soon wither,
   like green plants they will soon die away."

If the wicked are the ones who are going to wither, to soon die away, then why do we act as though we are the ones who are lifeless, without hope? Most of the time, it is as though we are barely alive, struggling just to survive this journey we call life. The truth is, though, God has not called us to a life of mere survival. He has given us much much more.

Sometimes we miss the significance of what Jesus did on the cross. Before the cross, ALL were just as the evil people David talks about. But Jesus took all that sin, all that blame, even though he had never once disobeyed God, his closest friend. And when he took our sin, and our shame, God had to turn his back on him. Imagine those on death row. Many are guilty of hideous crimes. Yet Jesus took even the most hideous of crimes upon himself, and in doing so wiped them clean, declared them innocent, if only they would accept that sacrifice.

WHY? Why did he make such huge sacrifice, made that decision which caused his FATHER, who he shared such a deep, intimate relationship with, to turn his back on him, and, in a way, to disown him?

So that we will no longer be like the grass or green plants that will soon die away. Instead we get to live for ETERNITY with GOD! And what will eternity be like? John shared what he saw in Revelations 22:

"Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him. They will see His face, and His name will be on their foreheads. There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign for ever and ever." (v. 1-5)

In short, heaven is not a place where we bounce around on the clouds in a state of dreaminess. No, it is a real place, as real as where you are standing today. There are trees, and rivers, and streets. We will walk, run, eat. We will serve God. What's more, we will explore the depths of who God is and what he has done. We will have eternity to talk to other people, hear their stories. We will have eternity to explore the earth and the universe and discover its secrets. We will have eternity to compose music, create beautiful artwork, cook incredible food, and invent amazing machines. And we won't ever get tired. We won't need darkness to sleep, because we will be so full of energy and joy and life that we won't need to sleep.

In that time of my life where I felt the joy of the Lord so strongly, these are the sorts of things I meditated on. I made mental to-do lists of what I would do when this life was over and we finally cross over into eternity. I'm going to climb mountains, run marathons, explore space even. I want to have a pet lion, and ride it around town (like Aslan in the Chronicles of Narnia).

Do you have dreams of what you want to do in eternity? If not, maybe you should. Look towards Jesus, his life. He is the doorway to the joy we so need, and desire. If you do have dreams, share them with me! I might want to join you in your adventures when we reach that wonderful time and place!