As the rain and snow

“O Lord, God of my salvation,
    I cry out day and night before you.
Let my prayer come before you;
    incline your ear to my cry!

For my soul is full of troubles,
    and my life draws near to Sheol.
I am counted among those who go down to the pit;
    I am a man who has no strength,
like one set loose among the dead,
    like the slain that lie in the grave,
like those whom you remember no more,
    for they are cut off from your hand.
You have put me in the depths of the pit,
    in the regions dark and deep.
Your wrath lies heavy upon me,
    and you overwhelm me with all your waves. 

You have caused my companions to shun me;
you have made me a horror to them.
I am shut in so that I cannot escape;
my eye grows dim through sorrow.
Every day I call upon you, O Lord;
I spread out my hands to you…
Is your steadfast love declared in the grave,
or your faithfulness in Abaddon?
Are your wonders known in the darkness,
or your righteousness in the land of forgetfulness?” Psalm 88:1-9,11-12

The answer is a bold, loud, resounding Yes! In every region of mind, heart, and experience, in every dark tunnel, deep chasm, and cobbled alley, God’s love is declared! His faithfulness reaches! His wonders occur! His righteousness prevails! His balm soothes every pang!

The psalms are personally and pointedly helpful in relating real struggles of real people. They can exquisitely mimic our very felt needs, deep regrets, and agonized questions. The descriptions of each night of soul are consistently met with mention of morning, just as in God the Creator’s majestic plan, every dark night is faded and followed by day. Jesus came as light into darkness, and He pledges to dispel it for us, no matter its source or measure. (John 1:4-5,9,14; 8:12)

We may be overwhelmed by besetting sin, our flesh inability to rid of pesky, relentless temptation. We may be battling an incurable disease, and face decision after difficult decision on our next course of action. We may be suffering unjustly under another’s mistreatment, false accusation, or broken communication through no fault of our own. We may be slammed by rejection every time we attempt headway. There are sorrows and horrors of this life we will not escape until we meet Jesus, yet He abides with steadfast love and constancy in the midst here below. (Psalm 46:1-3; 1 John 1:6-9;3:2)

What confusions, what predicaments, what griefs and horrid places and dreams have we allowed to take on darkness by keeping them from our Lord? There is no place too deep for His reach, His arm is not short to save. Would we come as the psalmist, and lay out our concerns, not in exasperated defeat, but in expectant surrender to His ability and promises? Would we walk with Jesus step by step, in His light of lamppost after lamppost? Would we honestly ask our questions, then receive, believe, and thank Him for His answers? (Psalm 139:7-12; Isaiah 59:1)

Good Father, tighten my grip on You, and Yours on me. Bring gracious morning into my every dark region, so I spontaneously praise You as my salvation in trouble. (Isaiah 33:2)

“I will sing of the steadfast love of the Lord, forever;
    with my mouth I will make known your faithfulness to all generations.
For I said, ‘Steadfast love will be built up forever;
    in the heavens you will establish your faithfulness…’

Let the heavens praise your wonders, O Lord,
your faithfulness in the assembly of the holy ones!
For who in the skies can be compared to the Lord?
Who among the heavenly beings is like the Lord,
a God greatly to be feared in the council of the holy ones,
and awesome above all who are around him?
O Lord God of hosts,
who is mighty as you are, O Lord,
with your faithfulness all around you?..

The heavens are yours; the earth also is yours;
    the world and all that is in it, you have founded them.
The north and the south, you have created them…
You have a mighty arm;
    strong is your hand, high your right hand.
Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne;
    steadfast love and faithfulness go before you.
Blessed are the people who know the festal shout,
    who walk, O Lord, in the light of your face,
who exult in your name all the day
    and in your righteousness are exalted.
For you are the glory of their strength;
    by your favor our horn is exalted.
For our shield belongs to the Lord…

His …throne [shall endure] as long as the sun before me.
Like the moon it shall be established forever,
a faithful witness in the skies.” Psalm 89:1-2,5-8,11-12a,13-18a,36-37

It is impossible to gaze at the heavens without contemplating the infinite and eternal. We look up, and we are dwarfed. God created the skies to open the window of His dwelling place, to draw us into His sanctuary, to lure our thoughts upward, to elevate our souls to lofty and indescribable places that captivate our wonder and affection. The endless vault of blue above beckons sublime amazement and the soaring of the human heart. (Psalm 8:3-4)

The heavens cannot contain God, but they can praise Him. And this infinite God who owns the heaven of heavens and resides far above them has set His affection on us, and condescended to make His home among us. He is our sanctuary and delight. (Deuteronomy 10:14-15; 1 Kings 8:27; Psalm 108:4-5)

How else can we respond except to join nature in its praise? How can we not take time to soar above earthly busyness, to shrug off weighty cares, to exult in song? Partaking of the heavenly adds deep dimension to our human days and business. It affords keener insights, richer love, quickening compassion, godly wisdom, and appropriate responses to the world around us.

What will it take to turn ephemeral focus to eternal vision? Look up! How can we shrug off petty bothers and insignificant endeavors? Consider the skies! How do we guard against downward spiraling? Lift our eyes! What can transform flesh appetites into divine longing? Behold heaven! How can we dismiss heaviness and mourning? Praise heaven’s Keeper! (Psalm 94:19; 96:4-6; Isaiah 61:3)

Lord of the heavens, be always my praise, for You are my God, exalted above all. (Deuteronomy 10:21)

“I cry aloud to God,
    aloud to God, and he will hear me.
In the day of my trouble I seek the Lord;
    in the night my hand is stretched out without wearying;
    my soul refuses to be comforted…

I consider the days of old,
    the years long ago.
I said, ‘Let me remember my song in the night;
    let me meditate in my heart.’
    Then my spirit made a diligent search…

I said, ‘I will appeal to this,
to the years of the right hand of the Most High.’

I will remember the deeds of the Lord;
yes, I will remember your wonders of old.
I will ponder all your work,
and meditate on your mighty deeds.
Your way, O God, is holy.
What god is great like our God?
You are the God who works wonders;
you have made known your might among the peoples.
You with your arm redeemed your people.

When the waters saw you, O God,
    when the waters saw you, they were afraid;
    indeed, the deep trembled.
The clouds poured out water;
    the skies gave forth thunder;
    your arrows flashed on every side.
The crash of your thunder was in the whirlwind;
    your lightnings lighted up the world;
    the earth trembled and shook.
Your way was through the sea,
    your path through the great waters;
    yet your footprints were unseen.
You led your people like a flock
    by the hand of Moses and Aaron.” Psalm 77:1-2,5-6,10-20

“God my King is from of old,
    working salvation in the midst of the earth.” Psalm 74:12

There are times in the day of trouble and the midst of storms it is not even on our radar to get any perspective. We’re groping in the dark to get footing in the slamming wind. We’re treading water, choking for air, trying to survive, and it’s impossible to see any periphery or long view. But it’s there, and our Lord painted it, and still holds the brushes, and bids us come consider.

Look up, He calls, seek Me and bring Me your cares. And look back, He urges, remember how I’ve worked in the past and brought you to this place. In your dark trouble and melancholy, He prompts, remember bright blooms, and your song. In your immediate, remember My years, My wonders of old. In your helplessness, remember My might, and in your weakness, My strong arm. I waste nothing, and will redeem. (Isaiah 40:28-31; 2 Corinthians 12:9-10)

Our God is more than a match for our every want and need. And once we are revived, we have a fresh and long perspective to stir gratitude and action. We recognize anew and sieze the privilege of passing on the stories of God’s faithful and mighty deeds to the next generation, that they, too, can take heart. (Psalm 78:1-4)

What discipline can we implement to seek the Lord with hungry intention? Deliberate praying, meditating, and journaling help bring His attributes and gracious works to mind. Pondering His greatness and might is sure to burst forth in glorious songs of amazement and praise.

Lord, captivate my heart and spirit. Fix my mind on Thee and keep me exalting You for Your wonderful deeds and plans formed of old, faithful and sure. There is none like You! (Isaiah 25:1)

“Hear, O Israel: you are to cross over the Jordan today, to go in to dispossess nations greater and mightier than you, cities great and fortified up to heaven, a people great and tall, the sons of the Anakim, whom you know, and of whom you’ve heard it said, ‘Who can stand before the sons of Anak?’ Know therefore today that he who goes over before you as a consuming fire is the Lord your God. He will destroy them and subdue them before you. So you shall drive them out and make them perish quickly, as the Lord has promised.

“Do not say in your heart, after the Lord your God has thrust them out before you, ‘It is because of my righteousness that the Lord has brought me in to possess this land,’ whereas it is because of the wickedness of these nations that the Lord is driving them out.., and that he may confirm the word that [he] swore to your fathers.

“The Lord is not giving you this good land to possess because of your righteousness, for you are a stubborn people… you have been rebellious…

“The Lord your God has chosen you to be a people for his treasured possession,.. not because you were more in number that the Lord set his love on you and chose you, for you were the fewest of all peoples, but it is because the Lord loves you and is keeping the oath that he swore to your fathers… Know therefore that the Lord your God is God, the faithful God.” Deuteronomy 9:1-4,5b-7; 7:6-9

Today. Nothing matches the anticipation, the excitement, like today. What you have looked forward to, the expected but unknown you have waited for, the fulfillment of a sure promise, is occurring today. Packaged with Moses’ bold announcement were tidbits of pointed reminder he deemed necessary as the Israelites would finally enter their land.

Remember your enemy, and the great thing God is about to do for you. Be realistic. They are big, foreboding, and powerful. They are entrenched in the land He will give you to possess. Do not forget the stronghold you are up against, and that He is your leader. (1 Peter 5:8)

Remember who this faithful, loving Lord is, and that He is the One taking You in and leading your conquest. He is the consuming fire in battle and in jealousy over His people. He is the One who subdues the enemy. Do not think too highly of your own strength or righteousness. God will thrust out your enemies because they deserve their judgment. (Deuteronomy 4:24)

Remember, you also deserve judgment. Don’t be haughty. God in sovereign, merciful love chose you as His own, not because you earned or deserve His favor. This is all of Him and His grace. (John 15:16; Romans 12:3)

Having assessed vicious enemies, alert to raging temptation, in view of flesh affections and weaknesses, what is God calling us to vanquish today in His strength? What anxiety has He promised to conquer, what apathy will He overcome, what giants of fear or confusion, timidity or regret, has He equipped us to take on and displace? Would we now march confidently in His armor, following His fire, and possess the free, wide place He’s promised? (Psalm 18:19; Ephesians 6:10-17)

Lord, help me seize all You have for me today, taking full advantage of Your promises and enabling to possess Your immeasurable bounty. To You be all honor and glory.

“Sennacherib king of Assyria came up against all the fortified cities of Judah and took them…

“The Rabshakeh said to them, ‘Say to Hezekiah, “Thus says the great king of Assyria: On what do you rest this trust of yours? Do you think that mere words are strategy and power for war? In whom do you now trust, that you have rebelled against me?.. If you say, ‘We trust in the Lord our God,’ is it not he whose high places and altars Hezekiah has removed, saying to Judah and Jerusalem, ‘You shall worship before this altar’?.. Is it without the Lord that I have come up against this land? The Lord said to me, ‘Go up against this land and destroy it.’”

“Then the Rabshakeh stood and called out in a loud voice in the language of Judah: ‘Do not let Hezekiah deceive you, for he will not be able to deliver you. Do not let Hezekiah make you trust in the Lord by saying, “The Lord will surely deliver us. This city will not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.” Do not listen to Hezekiah. Make your peace with me and come out to me. Then each of you will eat of his own vine, and fig tree, and… drink the water of his own cistern, until I come and take you away to… a land of grain and wine, of bread and vineyards. Beware lest Hezekiah mislead you.'” Isaiah 36:1,4-5,7,10,13-18

The Rabshakeh, a high-ranking military officer, was sent by King Sennacherib to unnerve Hezekiah and the people of Judah to topple their trust, disparage their God, and ruin their land. His psychology was to inflate the greatness of Assyria and belittle King Hezekiah’s faith in the Lord’s help. He undermined his royal authority by speaking directly to his people in their common parlance, doing all he could to discourage the soldiers and distract them with false promises. Such is the texture of the enemy’s tangle, and it has been so since the beginning. (Genesis 3:1-7)

Unbelievers do not comprehend the mind of Christ, but they certainly pretend to, and use their mental wiles to mimic truth and unsettle vulnerable believers. While their understanding is warped, their strategy is keen and effective when they bark loudly enough. We can buffet ourselves against attack by knowing our unique, almighty God, His word, and His ways. (1 Corinthians 2:14)

The Rabshakeh compared Israel’s God, who was personal, to other nations’ gods that are man made. He belittled their divine defenses matched against his numerous and muscular ones. While his gloating had merit by earthly measures, he failed to grasp the true spiritual nature of all warfare, and that there is only one ultimate Victor. (Ephesians 6:10-12; Revelation 17:14)

It’s important we not only ground ourselves in God’s word, but understand its context. The Lord would use Assyria as His instrument for judgment, but their pride too, in time, would be debased. (Isaiah 10:5-6)

Where do we fall prey to the devil’s distortions of God’s character? Where are we temporizing our allegiance to God’s word in order to adjust it to our preferences? In whom do we really trust?

Father, foundation of my thinking and doing, may I believe and trust in You alone.

“And I pleaded with the Lord at that time, saying, ‘O Lord God, you have only begun to show your servant your greatness and your mighty hand. For what god is there in heaven or on earth who can do such works and mighty acts as yours? Please let me go over and see the good land beyond the Jordan, that good hill country and Lebanon.’ But the Lord was angry with me because of you and would not listen to me. And the Lord said to me, ‘Enough from you; do not speak to me of this matter again. Go up to the top of Pisgah and lift up your eyes westward and northward and southward and eastward, and look at it with your eyes, for you shall not go over this Jordan. But charge Joshua, and encourage and strengthen him, for he shall go over at the head of this people, and he shall put them in possession of the land that you shall see.’” Deuteronomy 3:23-28

In one of the most poignant passages of Scripture, faithful Moses, almost 120 years old, pleads with the Lord with whom he’s walked humbly his whole life. From God’s marvelous protection at his birth, through 40 years raised, educated, and enmeshed in Egyptian culture; after his decades in Midian, the miraculous deliverance from the Egyptians through the Sea, and 38 years of desert wandering; now Moses proclaims that with the defeat of Sihon and Og he’s “only begun to see God’s greatness and mighty hand.” It’s hard to imagine his heart is not fully satisfied with all of God’s care and miracles and personal attention, but in fact, all he’s seen and known of his Lord has only caused craving for more.

Isn’t this inspiring? Shouldn’t the myriad of ways our God has acted and intervened on our behalf only whet our appetite for more of Him? With every new day, as the sun pokes its majestic colors through the dark yet once again, we are offered fresh promise. We can see new facets of His splendor, know Him better, love and trust and marvel in His ways more deeply. Our spiritual passion can be renewed, our soul cheer heightened, our anticipation of Christ’s fingerprints enhanced, our hope strengthened.

Have we grown complacent with, or apathetic toward, God’s graces? Has worldliness or self- effort numbed us to His supernatural deeds, His marvelous protections, guidance, and deliverances every day? Are we so distracted with lesser temporal things that we fail to behold the divine and everlasting? Do our urgent plans and frenetic strategies drown out His good and underlying purposes? Are we no longer thrilled with holy expectancy at who our God is, and all He continually does for His name’s sake?

Would we regularly recount our indescribable blessings in Christ, our encounters with His Spirit, our communion and fellowship with God, and say, “More, my Lord. Please, more.”

Father, your mercies are indeed new every morning. Awaken me daily to all that is fresh and new with You. Ignite my heart with joyful longing to know You better and love You more. (Isaiah 50:4; Lamentations 3:22-23)

“I sent messengers from the wilderness of Kedemoth to Sihon the king of Heshbon, with words of peace, saying, ‘Let me pass through your land. I will go only by the road; I will turn aside neither to the right nor to the left. You shall sell me food for money, that I may eat, and give me water for money, that I may drink. Only let me pass through on foot, as the sons of Esau who live in Seir and the Moabites who live in Ar did for me, until I go over the Jordan into the land that the Lord our God is giving to us.’ But Sihon would not let us pass by him, for the Lord your God hardened his spirit and made his heart obstinate, that he might give him into your hand, as he is this day. 

“The Lord said to me, ‘Behold, I have begun to give Sihon and his land over to you. Begin to take possession, that you may occupy his land.’ Then Sihon came out against us [with] all his people… And the Lord our God gave him over to us, and we defeated him and his sons and all his people. And we captured all his cities… We left no survivors. Only the livestock we took as spoil for ourselves, with the plunder of the cities that we captured. From Aroer, on the edge of the Valley of the Arnon, and from the city that is in the valley, as far as Gilead, there was not a city too high for us. The Lord our God gave all into our hands.” Deuteronomy 2:26-36

We think one way, God another. We foolishly pretend the enemy is not dangerous, and gear our strategy thus: dismiss, skirt by casually, or hope a simple, peaceful separation can be accomplished with minimal effort and trouble. But God’s enemies are vicious and must be slayed and left forever. When He deals with them, He does so wholly, in a way that glorifies Him and teaches us who’s really the Victor. (Isaiah 55:8-9; 1 Peter 5:8-9)

In God’s wisdom, He calls us ahead one step, one enemy, at a time. Begin to take the land. Life is a continuum of battles, and He gives triumphs individually so our confidence in Him grows and we can learn methods and mindsets from each to apply to the next. His faithfulness stands fixed and firm, our faith increases with each exercise of its power. We experience His enabling and accomplishing, and know better and better the LORD our God and His absolute commitment to His promises. (Deuteronomy 3:1-8,21-22; Psalm 119:89-90)

Are there dangerous habits of heart and mind we deem benign, that we flirt with and try to transect with no effect on our affection for Jesus? Where have we grown spiritually flabby? What warfare has God assigned against temptation that we are not taking seriously? What will it take for us to take Him at His word, and conquer once for all the beasts of pride, hatred, favoritism, greed, lukewarmness? What new spiritual land of humility, love, compassion, unselfishness, forgiveness, is God calling us to possess?

“Onward, Christian soldiers, 
marching as to war,
With the cross of Jesus
going on before!
Christ, the royal Master,
leads against the foe;
Forward into battle,
see his banner go!” ~S. Baring-Gould (1637)

Lord, give me eyes to recognize, and courage to conquer, Sihons that would ruin my love and witness for You.

“Do not fear what you are about to suffer… Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life.” “I am coming soon. Hold fast what you have, so that no one may seize your crown.  The one who conquers, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God. Never shall he go out of it, and I will write on him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which comes down from my God out of heaven, and my own new name.” Revelation 2:10; 3:11-12

“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing.” 2 Timothy 4:7-8

“Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.” James 1:12

“And when the chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory.” 1 Peter 5:4

Crown: a reward of victory or mark of honor; a royal or imperial headdress

A life intent on the crown is one planned with holy inspiration and executed with intention. When we believe and are saved, we receive the Spirit of God, who infuses us with a passion to live for our King and endeavor to please Him. He implants vision for our royal purpose and heavenly course, discipline for the training, and endurance for the race. Our goals increasingly do less with temporary and self, and more with everlasting and Him. Our efforts take on higher dimension, geared more toward the unseen than the seen, on the lasting over the temporary. (Matthew 6:19-21; 1 Corinthians 9:24-27; 2 Corinthians 4:17-18)

Our Jesus laid aside His glory to wear a crown of thorns. He bore our sin and died, so we could rise to receive from him a crown of righteousness, eternal life, and glory. The rewards for which we live are crowns bestowed by God’s grace alone, honors we will one day lay at His feet when we see Him face to face as reigning King of kings. (1 Corinthians 3:10-16; 2 Corinthians 5:21; Philippians 2:5-11; Revelation 3:21; 4:9-11)

How does the promise of crowns motivate us to live, or change the way we live, today? What self-serving pampering, what transitory pleasures, what near-sightedness or pettiness, need transformation? Would the hope of reward, and offering them in gratitude back to Jesus, infuse in us endurance for suffering and steadfastness for every trial here below? Whom will we run alongside to race well together? How are we spurring one another on to a victorious finish? (Hebrews 10:23-25)

“Crown him the Lord of life,
who triumphed o’er the grave,
and rose victorious in the strife
for those he came to save;
his glories now we sing
who died and rose on high,
who died eternal life to bring,
and lives that death may die.

Crown him the Lord of years,
the potentate of time,
creator of the rolling spheres,
ineffably sublime.
All hail, Redeemer, hail!
for thou hast died for me;
thy praise shall never, never fail
throughout eternity.” ~Matthew Bridges (1851)

Father, my soul’s glory, joy, and crown, may I live my days for crowns to offer You on that day. (Isaiah 28:5)

“Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world.  By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist… You are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.  They are from the world; therefore they speak from the world, and the world listens to them. We are from God. Whoever knows God listens to us; whoever is not from God does not listen to us. By this we know the Spirit of truth and the spirit of error…

“By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him…

“We love because he first loved us. ^‘If anyone says, ‘I love God,’ and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. ^‘Whoever loves God must also love his brother.” 1 John 4:1-6,13-16,19-21

When we hear ‘whoever,’ we want either to quickly step up and wave a hand for favor and notice, or shrink back and hide if that identity brings disdain or punishment. John spends this whole letter assuring Christians “that they may know they have eternal life,” so every ‘whoever’ brings another test. We either confess Jesus, or we do not. We are either from God, or from the world. We either have the Spirit, or we do not. We either abide in Him and His love, and so love others, or we do not, and cannot. God’s bold whoevers make stark and clear distinctions for every person. (1 John 5:13)

By what do we know what we know and believe? Every day we have a choice whether we will listen to the antichrists who do not confess Jesus, and speak falsehoods and error from the world, or to the Spirit of God, and those through whom He speaks according to biblical truth. The distinguishing factor is what they say and support about Jesus, whether or not He came in the flesh as the divine Son of Man. He is not just a prophet, a good teacher, or one of many sons, but the immutable, unique, holy Son of God who came to take away the sins of the world. Any lesser identity is inadequate. (John 1:29; 3:16)

By what are we known? How clear is the evidence that we know and love Jesus? Do we readily confess His name and supremacy? Do we exercise Spirit-led discernment? Are we abiding in His love and generously loving our brothers?

Father, test and prove me by Your word and Spirit. Help me live out every assurance that I know and belong to You, so those who meet me, recognize You. (Romans 8:16; Hebrews 4:12)

“John to the seven churches that are in Asia:

“Grace to you and peace from him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven spirits who are before his throne, and from Jesus Christ the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of kings on earth.

“To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood and made us a kingdom, priests to his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen. Behold, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him, and all tribes of the earth will wail on account of him. Even so. Amen.

“‘I am the Alpha and the Omega,’ says the Lord God, ‘who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.'” Revelation 1:4-8

John’s brief greeting to the churches is chock full of Jesus Christ. John- his heart, his mind, his vision, his compulsion, his life aim- is also full of Jesus, and it is this Savior he adores, is fixed upon, and compelled to proclaim. The blessing of grace and peace to begin his letter is possible only from Jesus, whose name is the limitless Source of both.

The name of Jesus is no game, but the ever-present reality of our King who endures forever. (Psalm 135:13)

Him who is and who was and who is to come: Our Savior, eternally existent with the Father, sustains us to walk in His name forever. (Deuteronomy 33:27; Micah 4:5; John 1:1-2)

The faithful witness: Jesus is the exact image of the Father, and reveals Him to us by radiating His glory. (Hebrews 1:3)

The firstborn of the dead: Jesus rose from death to give us resurrection life and power. (Romans 8:11; 1 Corinthians 6:14)

The ruler of kings on earth: Sovereign God reigns over all things, and is trustworthy to fulfill His righteous purposes. (Psalm 57:2; Isaiah 14:24)

Him who loves us: He sets His affection on us, enabling us to love Him and others. (Deuteronomy 7:7-9; Isaiah 43:4; 1 John 4:16;19)

Him who has freed us from our sins by his blood: Once we are set free from the penalty, grip, and condemnation of sin, we are free indeed to serve. (John 8:36; Romans 8:1; 1 Peter 2:16)

Him who made us a kingdom, priests to his God and Father: We are chosen to proclaim His excellencies to a dark world. (1 Peter 2:9)

The Alpha and the Omega: He who begins every good work- in us, those we love, and the world- will see themthrough to completion. He founds and finishes all faith. (Philippians 1:6; Hebrews 12:2)

The Almighty: There is nothing too difficult or wonderful God cannot do. (Genesis 18:14; Jeremiah 32:17)

In which name will I delight and trust today? Which identity will I wear and proclaim? The One who calls us by name is the One who backs that calling and salvation by the authority and power of His.

Resplendent Lord Jesus, may I daily take time to gaze at Your eyes of pure fire, cling to Your solid feet, and listen keenly to Your voice that roars like many waters to wash and catch me in its flow. May I never stop marveling at Your name that is above all others, so that, according to Your grace and dominion, it may be glorified in me. (Philippians 2:9-11; 2 Thessalonians 1:11-12)