PrayerLife

From eternity past to eternity future, Jesus is the timeless, everlasting one. Each of the names the prophet Isaiah uses to identify the Coming Child identify a divine characteristic. Our Lord is not limited by time. He sees, and is present in our past, present and future. He is not only divinely timeless, but his posture toward us is that of a loving Father.

800 years before the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem, the prophet Isaiah told of a virgin who would bear a child. That child would be called "Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God" (Isa. 9:6). Jesus is not simply a wise teacher or an insightful philosopher. He is, himself, Mighty God!

"His name shall be called Wonderful Counselor" (Isaiah 9:6). Jesus, the one we celebrate at Christmas, is a wonder of a counselor. He holds the keys to peace and healing in the areas of our lives that confound us.

800 years before Jesus was born, the prophet Isaiah declared that the government would rest upon the shoulders of a child born of a virgin. After His resurrection, Jesus announced, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me" (Matthew 28:18). The infant King we celebrate at Christmas is truly the King of Kings.

"Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel (which means God with us)." - Isaiah 7:14. From eternity past, it was God's divine plan to provide His divine Son to be our Savior. This Christmas celebrate the reality that Christ is indeed with us.

Christmas is the celebration of some of the most remarkable and stirring spiritual realities imaginable. The holiday, however, can easily become a season of stress and materialism. Our prayer is that God will use this month to move in our lives in an extraordinary spiritual way.

To "sanctify" something means to set it apart for a special use. It is so easy for us to be caught up in the busyness and stress of the holiday season. This year, let's sanctify the holidays, setting them apart and inviting God to use this Christmas in a special way in our lives.

Each day through the month of December we will be celebrating the Savior and anticipating the New Year in prayer. I invite you to join me for 90 seconds each day as we worship Christ through the holiday season. Use the PrayerLife Advent Prayer-cast series as a part of your personal devotional life or listen and pray with a friend or your spouse. Parents can use the daily Prayer-casts to gather the...

"Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God" (1 Cor. 10:31). We've seen that, as God's sons and daughters, we are to be characterized by a thankful heart. Paul also reveals that every aspect of our lives are to be be lived for God's glory. In other words, we are to live our lives as thankful representatives of Jesus, for the glory of God.

God is holy and we are sinful. We are dead in our sins and deserve eternal punishment and there is nothing we can do to remedy our dilemma. But God loved us so much that He did what we couldn't do. He sent His righteous Son, Jesus, to live the life we could never live and take the punishment that we deserve. When we place our faith in His provision, relying on Jesus as our Savior, we are forgiven...

"Give thanks in all circumstances for this is the will of God, in Christ Jesus, for you" (1 Thess. 5:18). The will of God for our lives doesn't get any clearer. Having a heart of thankfulness is God's calling for every one of His sons and daughters. How will you embody God's will today?

William Bradford, governor of the Plymouth Colony, left no doubt as to the Pilgrims' reasons for making their perilous voyage. "…they cherished a great hope and inward zeal of laying good foundations, or at least of making some way towards it, for the propagation and advance of the gospel of the kingdom of Christ in the remote parts of the world, even though they should be but stepping stones to o...

Psalm 136 is a beautiful Psalm of Thanksgiving. A repeated phrase in the Psalm reminds us that 'His love endures forever'. We are reminded that He is good, He creates wonders, He delivers us, and he gives us food each day. God's love for us is expressed in may ways and endures forever - one more reason to cultivate a Thankful Heart.

After healing nine leprous men, Jesus took note that only one out of the nine returned to express thankfulness to Him. Every day we are recipients of the goodness and kindness of God. Let us resolve to cultivate a heart of gratitude toward God for all that he is doing in our life and the lives of our loved ones.

The Apostle Paul writes, "But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy" (2 Tim. 3:1-2). As the end times draw nearer, one of the prevailing characteristics of our declining society will be ungratefulness. As the people of God, we are to b...

"So then, whether you eat or drink, do all to the glory of God" (1 Cor. 10:31). We are to live our lives for God's glory. The Gospel is our story and our goal is to make His name renown among the nations.

One of the most marvelous truths in all the bible is revealed in Ephesians, chapters 1 and 2. The apostle Paul declares that when we placed our faith in Jesus, we were spiritually raised from the dead! "You were dead in the trespasses and sins ... But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with...

God has designed us with a need to walk in meaningful relationship with others in the Body of Christ. For the Church to be a powerful movement for societal change, we must be vitally connected to other believers. The Church is God's divine tool for bringing about transformation worldwide.

esus has commissioned each Christian to play a unique role in His global Mission. Jesus came to His disciples and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with...

We frequently pray "Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven." When we pray that we are saying that we long to see the manifest presence of God increasing transform our lives and impact those around us.

We frequently pray "Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven." When we pray that we are saying that we long to see the manifest presence of God increasingly transform our lives and impact those around us.

The defining moment of any romantic relationship is the first time one person declares their love to the other. Affirming our unending love and devotion for God is a defining moment. Jesus said we are to "love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength" (Mark 12:30). Let's come before the Lord and declare that we love Him with our...

Consider this about the many people Jesus healed: If they enjoyed a long life the crippled eventually became lame again, the blind lost their sight and the deaf lost their hearing. Even Lazarus, who was physically raised from the dead, eventually died again. However, all these physical miracles pointed to an ultimate spiritual reality. The One who could heal and raise the dead, physically, could a...

The apostles frequently identified themselves as devoted servants of Jesus. There are many things in our culture calling for our attention and affections. Today, take a moment to affirm to God that you are a devoted follower of Jesus. Express your desire to listen to His voice and respond with obedience. Invite Him to transform your life and impact others through you.

Consider this about the many people Jesus healed: If they enjoyed a long life the crippled eventually became lame again, the blind lost their sight and the deaf lost their hearing. Even Lazarus, who was physically raised from the dead, eventually died again. However, all these physical miracles pointed to an ultimate spiritual reality. The One who could heal and raise the dead, physically, could a...