Filled with joy because of God. Being joyful because of Jesus. It’s easy to find joy in so many other things. Yes, you want us to delight in your gifts and creation, but not to the neglect of experiencing soul-satisfying joy in you. 

God, help my joy in you to increase and be infectious to others. Amen.

We humans think so highly of ourselves. Yet David compares us to you and the vastness of your creation. And as he does so, he realizes the underserved grace of you choosing us to be your special creation. Something we don’t marvel at nearly enough and often take advantage of. May we, your people, be humbled by these thoughts.

God, help me to be in wonder and amazement at your grace towards me. Amen.

End evil. A prayer I need to pray more often. Whose evil? The evil of the wicked. It’s humbling to know that, without Christ, this would include me. And even with Christ, I still contribute to the evil in this world that I should be praying to come to an end.

Righteous God, sanctify me, cleanse me, rid me of every form of evil. End evil in my life and in your world. Amen.

Sick at heart. Depression? Some emotion of internal agony. And the cry, “How long, O Lord” shows the desperation for relief and restoration. How long, O Lord, until you restore me and your people? 

God, help me to trust you as I wait for your restoration. And help me to be compassionate to those who are sick at heart. Amen.

God’s people are able to gather together because of his unfailing love. Which means that God’s love is the primary reason why we gather. Not our religious freedom. For many believers gather where there is no freedom, yet they still experience his unfailing love and, in many ways, worship with a deeper sense of awe of God than we who have religious freedom. 

God, thank you for your love, which draws me to worship you. Amen.

Expectant prayer. Though we may pray regularly, how expectant are our prayers? God hears us when we pray, which is a gift. He answers us; another gift. But it’s easy to pray and move on rather than to wait expectantly for God to respond. 

God, help me to pray and to wait expectantly. Amen.

Is the U.S. exempt from this question? I think not. If anything, we are leading the way in anger. Racial anger. Sexual identity anger. Political anger. Religious anger. Anger abounds. We are a nation full of anger. God be merciful towards us.

God, be merciful towards all nations — including ours. We are in desperate need of it. Amen.

Victory comes from our Lord — for he is our Victor. He has won victory for his people and this victory is a blessing he bestows on them. May we never forget who gives us our victory. Not us. Our Lord.

Jesus, you are our Victor. You give us victory. May we never boast about ourselves — only in you and all that you’ve done. Amen.

Joys and delight. And oh what joys are to be found. But why so much joy and who is this joy for? This is joy for those who meditate on God’s Word — delighting in God’s Word as they dwell on it. Joy because they delight in hearing from their God. 

God, help me to delight in your Word for this will give me joy. Amen.

Having gotten rid of — or killed — our old sinful behaviors, we’re to replace them with godly and God-glorifying behaviors. Kindness. Compassion. Forgiveness. Why? Because Christ first was kind, compassionate, and forgiving towards us.