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Poverty

 Matthew 5:3 ESV Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. This is a counterintuitive verse. We tend to equate riches with blessedness, whether materialistically or even spiritually. We #blessed the expensive holiday snaps on social media for example. Jesus says the opposite to what we might assume. If we know ourselves to be naturally poor spiritually, we can come to God for the riches he provides to those who know their need of him. He who was rich beyond all splendour, all for love's sake became poor, so that we through his poverty might become spiritually rich. If we think we're good enough for God as we are, we're deluding ourselves. We need to admit we're beggars spiritually. We receive the Bread of life through faith in him. Christians are famously described as beggars telling other beggars where to find bread. We're not to bad stingy with the spiritual sustenance we find in Christ. We're to be generous with others to tell them ...
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Pure

 Matthew 5:8 ESV Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. At first glance this might seem a nice promise by Jesus. On second thoughts, it's concerning. How can impure people like us see the Holy One? Doesn't it say elsewhere in Scripture that no one may see God and live? Thankfully, the Lord Jesus is the image of the invisible God. Through Christ we can see the Almighty. We're naturally impure. We struggle with the likes of lust and hatred. Yet Jesus is able to purify us. When we're metaphorically washed in the blood of Jesus, we're purified of our spiritual impurities. God often tries us in the furnace of affliction. It's not an easy process, but it skims off our cross and makes us purer than gold. 'Dear God, please purify our hearts so that we can see you in your beautiful glory. For your honour and praise, amen'.
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Shield

 Psalm 3:3 ESV  But you, O Lord, are a shield about me, my glory, and the lifter of my head. David was at one of the lowest points of his life. The consequences of his adultery and murder meant his family and even his very kingdom were falling apart before his very eyes. Yet even in the midst, we have this powerful declaration of faith. The Lord was a shield about David against his murderous son Absalom. David trusted in God to look after him even though humanly speaking he was hopeless. David's glory wasn't in himself but in the Lord his Saviour. There's an apocryphal psalm where 'David' is all self congratulatory about killing Goliath. It doesn't ring true with genuine Psalms where the Psalmists are God congratulatory. David didn't pat himself on the back.  David could have gone around crestfallen, like he was avoiding sniper fire. Yet he testified that God lifted his head. We don't have to be overcome by guilt and shame. 'O Lord, please prove the ...
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Harmony

 Romans 15:5 ESV May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus,  God helps us to endure in the Christian life. It isn't always easy. Often we may be poor, sad, downtrodden, persecuted etc.  The Christian life doesn't require us to grit our teeth. Neither does it require us to have a permanent grin. The reality is somewhere in the middle. Inevitably, there will be conflict in the Christian life. Yet we are to live in harmony with one another. We're to seek to encourage each other, not to discourage one another. In Christ Jesus, harmony is possible. Unity in diversity is a reality in the body of Christ. We just have to live up to it. 'God, please help us to endure, to encourage and to live in harmony with one another. In Jesus' name, amen'.
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Wholeheartedness

 Jeremiah 29:13 ESV You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.  Taken in isolation, I actually find this verse concerning! Maybe at first glance it seems like a nice promise. Yet can we say we wholeheartedly seek God? Elsewhere in Jeremiah we're told that our hearts are deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked. Who can understand them? So even if we think we're wholehearted, how do we know we're not deluding ourselves? Thankfully, in Ezekiel, God promises to give us new hearts. If God gives us new hearts, we will seek and find him. It depends on his grace, not upon his performance. Even as born again believers, we struggle with old fleshly desires. Even David, the 'man after God's own heart', committed adultery and murder. Yet God is willing and able to forgive and to restore. 'Almighty God, may we seek you wholeheartedly, and so find in you our all in all. For your glory we pray, amen'.
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Rivers

 John 7:38 ESV  Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’”  Belief in Jesus isn't just a 'get out of hell free card'. If we believe in the Lord, we will become blessings. We'll be like fresh mountain streams to thirsty travellers. Our faith isn't to be JAM- Jesus And Me. Our faith is to be JOY- Jesus Others You. We're to bless others with the blessings we've received from God. Jesus had complete confidence in God's word. We should too. If Scriptures say it, so shall it be. People sometimes criticise the Scriptures for being violent or misogynistic for example. I respond that the Bible is a realistic book about life in a fallen world. We should come to Christ for life and the hope of a glorious eternity. 'Dear Lord, may we be blessed by you, and so become blessings. We ask for your honour and praise, amen'.
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Ask

 Matthew 7:8 ESV For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. Interestingly, in the context, Jesus isn't just talking about salvation. He mentions Father God being able and willing to give us 'good things'. God isn't just concerned about our spiritual welfare, but our holistic wellbeing. Having said that, I don't think this verse is a blank cheque. We're not necessarily going to get a private jet if we ask for one. We have to ask in line with God's will. There's definitely an application of this verse around our need to be saved from sin. 'All who call upon the name of the Lord will be saved'. If we sincerely ask God in faith for salvation, he will grant it to us, because of Christs death on our behalf. I'm sure this verse isn't just about 'good things' in a materialistic sense. The best thing is a relationship with God as our heavenly Father, Christ as our spiritual Br...
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Thirst

 Psalm 42:1 ESV  As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God. What are we thirsty for? Gratification? Money, sex, power? The Psalmist was thirsty for God. What we long for says a lot about us. Longings are asking to be satisfied, whether for food, water, or even God. As CS Lewis said, if we have a desire this world can't satisfy, we can reckon that we were made for another world. As Augustine said, we were made for God, and our hearts are restless until they find their rest in him. We need to find out satisfaction in God ultimately. Anything else is a broken cistern that doesn't hold fresh water as it were. Thankfully, God delights to quench our spiritual thirst. He wants to make us fulfilled in him. By trusting in Christ crucified on our behalf we get to do so. 'Dear God our Father, please satisfy our spiritual longings. For we ask in Christ's gracious name, amen'.
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Grief

 2 Corinthians 7:10 ESV For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death.  God knows our hearts. Are we sad because we got found out? Or are we sad because we've grieved God's Holy Spirit? Selfish sadness over the consequences of our sins is deadly. We need to be sorry over our wrongdoing itself. We're not just to be upset that we got found out. I vaguely remember reading statistics that said that the vast majority of sinners get found out. Only a small minority confess and renounce their sins before they're caught. It's better to come clean before it's too late.  I love this statement that we don't need to have regret. We can leave the past behind us. We don't have to harbour shame in our lives, but to leave it at the foot of the cross. 'God, please have mercy upon us and cause us to grieve the sins that sent your Son to the cross. May we have no regrets, as we trust in you. In Jesus...
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Trust

 Psalm 56:3 ESV  When I am afraid, I put my trust in you. Note that the Psalmist doesn't say if, but when he is afraid. Fear is inevitable. What we do with it is what matters. We could let fear paralyse us. Or we could take it to the Lord in prayer. Trust isn't the opposite to fear, but it is the antidote. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. It isn't a fear that shrinks away in terror. It is a child afraid to displease his loving heavenly Father, who he trusts. The beginning of wisdom is the fear of the Lord. The heart of wisdom is the love of God. When we get to know our Saviour, we discover we needn't be afraid of him. 'Dear heavenly Father, we're grateful that we can trust you and don't need to be afraid. Please help us to do so. In Christ's name we ask this, amen'.
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