Praise Without End

I will praise you every day; I will praise you forever and ever. The Lord is great and worthy of our praise; no one can understand how great he is.

Psalm 145:2-3

Creation praises God. Angels praise God. Infants praise God. One day every knee will bow as the whole world praises God. Scripture is filled with examples of praise, especially throughout the book of Psalms. Every one of those verses has a lesson to teach about honoring the Lord of the universe. The specific portion of Psalm 145 is significant because it is like a mini-primer on praise. It tells the who, what, when, where, and why of giving God glory.

The who explains God is the One most worthy of your praise. He is so deserving that it is impossible to run out of reasons for praising him. You can praise God for his gifts, but praise is broader than thanksgiving. What praise does is honor God for who he is, not just what he does. By honoring God through your prayers and actions you bless him. giving him pleasure. This alone is a great reason why you should praise God (along with the fact he deserves it!). Praise benefits the one giving it, as well as the one receiving it. Praise cultivates contentment by helping you develop a right view of God and yourself.

As for when to praise God, Psalm 145 tells you that it is appropriate to praise God every day. The psalm says that you will praise God forever, which means your praises will reach beyond the borders of this earth right into your eternal home in heaven. That's a where that you can look forward to.

The Hebrew word for praising God means "to celebrate his perfections". Put what you've learned into practice by taking time to do that right now.

Source: The 100 Most Important Bible Verses

Pray to God and give him praise. Praise him during the good times, during the sad times, especially during the confusing and hurting times. We may not understand the events of our daily life but God does and if we praise him daily all events serve purpose to glorify God. ~ MME Team

Finding Your Heart's Desire

Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart.

Psalm 37:4

At first glance, the words from Psalm 37 feel a bit like a blank check. They seem to say, "Enjoy God and get everything you want." But instead of a promise of prosperity, the words are a proclamation of a profound truth; the closer you draw to God, the more your desires will reflect his own.

This oft-repeated verse is part of an acrostic psalm, where every other line begins with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet. Although each verse in Psalm 37 contains its own unique insight, all the verses work together to convey one important message. Those people who are wise have no need to worry during times of trouble. This psalm gives you four practical ways to defeat worry when evil people seem to be getting ahead: (1) trust in the Lord, (2) commit your way to the Lord, (3) wait on the Lord, and (4) delight in the Lord.

The focus of the psalmist's words is delighting in the Lord. The Hebrew word for delight is much more powerful than its English counterpart. Here it means "to find exquisite joy," To delight in God is to find your deepest pleasure, your highest ecstasy, and your richest fulfillment in life through your relationship with him. This is an ongoing process as you delight in him afresh each day. As your relationship deepens, what is dear to God's heart becomes dear to your prayers are answered, you discover that your deepest desires are fulfilled.

Any time you desire something that you know would also delight God, spend a moment thanking God for how he's helping you grow to be more like him.

Source: The 100 Most Important Bible Verses

Pray to God and give thanks for his leadership; for his faithfulness to you and your life. That he loves us so much that his promise is to bring delight, joy and ecstasy both on earth as it is in heaven. ~ MME Team

Consolation Prize

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our tribulations, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.

2 Corinthians 1:3-4

The apostle Paul began his second letter to the church in Corinth just as he did his other letters, with a brief introduction that leads straight into thanksgiving. Paul's cause for thanks, however, sets this letter apart. You can be thankful for comfort only if you've know the pain of suffering. Paul certainly did, and so did his Corinthian audience. So does every individual who reads these words today.

Through levels of personal suffering differ, pain and heartache are universal. Yet amid that sobering truth, Paul gave reason for praise. God's comfort is at hand in every type of trouble. The original meaning of the old-fashioned-sounding word tribulation covers a lot of ground. It can mean "distress," "affliction," "persecution," or simply "great mercy." God's comfort fits any and every situation perfectly.

Through Paul, God provided even more good news: there is a positive, productive side to suffering. As God comforts you, you learn how to better comfort others. This is different from simply being sympathetic toward people and their problems. The Greek word for comfort implies action. It means "to come alongside and help." God actively comes alongside you with strength, encouragement, hope, and healing, and you gain the ability to do the same for others. When you are struggling with difficulty in your life, remember to reach out to God and then to others. God provides comfort to help you become a comforter like him.

When you're facing tough times, follow Paul's example. Praise God for the comfort he's already promised, and then ask him to help you use your own experiences to bring comfort to someone else.

Source: The 100 Most Important Bible Verses

Pray to God and praise him in your suffering. It is in the suffering that we strengthen our faith and find peace and hope in the mercy and grace of our Lord. ~ MME Team

Empty Tombs

If Christ is not risen, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins!

1 Corinthians 15:17

The moment Jesus rose from the dead, everything changed. How God related to people in the Old Testament (by speaking to the whole nation through prophets) gave way to the New (by speaking to people individually through the Spirit). God forgave the sins of those who chose to follow him. Death was defeated. Eternal life was certain. There was absolute proof Jesus was who he said he was, God and Savior.

The apostle Paul's' words to the Corinthian church remove the option of believing the Bible is collection of morality myths. His words do not allow for Jesus to be regarded as a prophet or a good teacher. Either Jesus rose from the dead, proving he was who he said he was and that he did what he said he would do, or your faith is useless. Paul, the writer of 1 and 2 Corinthians, went on to say that if Jesus did not rise form the dead, then Christians are to be pitied as the most miserable people on earth because they base their faith, their hope, and their purpose in life on a lie.

History says otherwise, however. More than five hundred witnesses saw Jesus alive after he died on the cross. The bodies of other great religious leaders, such as Buddha and Mohammed, remain dead in their graves. Only Jesus lives beyond the grave. This important verse is a subtle reminder that because of Jesus, one day you will too.

Through Jesus's death paid the price for people's transgressions, Jesus's resurrection is evidence of God's acceptance of that payment. Let Paul's words help keep you grounded in the historical facts that support your faith.

Pray that your wisdom on earth will not take away your victory with God in heaven. When mankind speaks of history and science they speak from wisdom derived from their own assessments; when God's people speak of history we speak of the Bible and the eternal truth. ~ MME Team

Watching and Waiting

See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, waiting patiently for it until it receives the early and latter rain. You also be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand. 

James 5:7-8

          God's timing is always perfect. He parted the Red Sea when his people needed it most - when they were trapped between the rushing waters and an approaching army. God allowed the water to flow again, but only after Moses and the Israelites had made it safely across. God provided what the people needed at the precise moment that it would make the greatest difference.

          For a human vantage point, it isn't always easy to recognize that opportune moment. Waiting for God's answer, when your own internal timer has already gone off, can make you feel as if God isn't listening or he simply doesn't care. When you find yourself in that situation, take a lesson from this important verse in James and put yourself in a farmer's shoes. You can't rush a perfect harvest or an answer to prayer. As a farmer waits for the fruit of his labor, he doesn't just sit around complaining about how long the growing season is. He continues to work. He trusts God, and his patience grows right along with his fruit.

       James provides a valuable tip for those who wait. He advises you to establish your heart, which means "to firmly plant your life and expectation in the fertile soil of God's truth." There is a bountiful harvest as certain as the fulfillment of God's promises: the Lord will return; the hard times you face will end; and God will answer your prayers when the time is right.

          The image of a patient farmer is an encouraging visual picture for prayer. Picture every prayer as a seed planted in God's will. As you wait, picture them ripening, trusting in God's perfect harvest time.

          Pray for God's grace to intervene and plant in your heart patience rooted in faith as big as a mustard seed. ~ MME Team

Job Description: Excellence

In all the work you are doing, work the best you can. Work as if you were doing it for the Lord, not for people. 

Colossians 3:23

          Work is a noble calling. God commends people for doing it well, and he also does work himself. When God created the world, he worked. The excellence of his work is evident in everything he made. He even took a day off to review the results of his efforts and declared them "good." God continues to work, sustaining what he created that very first week in the world history.

          Since God created you in his image, work should be a part of your life. Doing it well reflects God's creativity and character. It is easy, however, to lose your motivation when a job is difficult or you become bored with doing the same thing day after day. Paul's words to the Colossians can help you keep your work in its proper perspective. Working the best you can literally means working "out from the soul." You are not working simply to pay the bills, please your boss, or pass time of day. God sets this job in front of you. When you do your job well, God notices, even if no one else does.

         This section of Colossians was originally directed toward slaves. It encouraged them to remain positive and productive, even if they were working in bondage under a tyrant. If a slave, who could be beaten even if he did a job well, could strive for excellence by  maintaining a Colossians 3:23 perspective, certainly it is something you can do in whatever job is facing you.

          Focus on God's perspective throughout the day and image at all times that he is your boss.

          Pray to God for wisdom to acknowledge that our work is done to glorify and honor him. May you be a blessing in all the work God has planned for you. ~ MME Team

Matthew 6:8

Jesus said, "Your Father knows the things you need before you ask him."

The more you recognize your dependence on God, the more thankful you become, and the deeper your love grows. 

Jesus gave his disciples the Lord's Prayer as an example of how to pray. Right before he spoke those famous words, Jesus shared a few reasons why one should pray. To do this, he provided two examples - negative ones. Jesus said the Pharisees prayed in public because they wanted to be seen as holy by other people. He also said idol worshipers prayed, repeating themselves over and over, because they believed that the more frequently they asked for something, the better chance they had of having their request granted. After those negative examples, Jesus spoke the reassurance that God already knows what you need.

At first, his words may seem to provide a reason why not to pray, instead of why to pray. If God knows what you need before you ask, why bother asking in the first place? Jesus's point is, the purpose of prayer isn't to be noticed by other people - or even by God. God already notices you. He knows everything about you and your life. Prayer is not a way to draw God's attention to your needs. It is a way to draw your attention to how much you need God. 

Your greatest continual need is to better know and love God. Communicating with him about details of your life keeps you aware of how involved he already is. It also helps you see how many of your needs he fills every day. The more you recognize your dependence on God, the more thankful you become, and the deeper your love grows.

The Lord's Prayer teaches you to pray for your daily bread. Jesus's words form Matthew don't contradict that lesson. They're a reminder that God needs to be involved in your life, not merely informed about it.

Pray now and thank him; submit to his will in your life and hold the hand of your Father, the Creator, who made you and loves you unconditionally. 

Amen,

~MME Team