Adoration
Psalm 99:1-5; “The Lord reigns, let the nations tremble; he sits enthroned between the cherubim, let the earth shake. Great is the Lord in Zion; he is exalted over all the nations. Let them praise your great and awesome name; he is holy. The King is mighty, he loves justice, you have established equity; in Jacob you have done what is just and right. Exalt the Lord our God and worship at His footstool; He is holy.”
Sitting outside on my deck at sunrise this morning; watching the hedge apples drop and seeing the leaves on the trees gently dancing in the southernly breeze. Listening to a few blackbirds encouraging me to leave my deck so they can approach the bird feeder without fear. Admiring the cornfield thirty feet to the east, at how quickly and tall it grew last month with the rainfall and warm days. Here I am sitting outdoors, enjoying how wonderfully awesome our Creator is; He is holy. Where do you see Him in your life?
A time of ‘Adoration’ to our Heavenly Father.
· Please take time to sit and reflect how our Triune God has impacted your life, as a child, teen, adult and perhaps a parent or grandparent. Consider with sincere amazement all the ways He has created, molded, and brought you to this very point in your life’s journey.
· Be mindful of the Haitian children who this summer are eagerly awaiting and hopeful that their school will restart this month so they can learn more about You, seek Your directions for their future and give Witness of their Risen Savior to the souls still caught up in the lies of vodou.
Confession
We were born, sinful and unclean, through no fault of our own, but because of the sins of our parents, grandparents…Adam and Eve.
God sent His only Son to die for our sins. Jesus did everything right while he was here on this earth. He loved you with a love that cannot be measured. He gave to the world when there were no thanks returned to Him. He healed when there was no hope, and He died without complaint. Jesus did nothing wrong and everything right; all this for you. He lived for you and died for you. Our sins nailed Him to the cross on Calvary and kept Him there until His life on earth had ended.
Psalm 32:1-7; “Blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man whose sin the LORD does not count against him and in whose spirit is no deceit. When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was sapped as in the heat of summer. Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, "I will confess my transgressions to the LORD" and you forgave the guilt of my sin. Therefore let everyone who is godly pray to you while you may be found; surely when the mighty waters rise, they will not reach him. You are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance.”
· A time of personal confession.
Our sins are placed at the base of the cross...His cross, and we give thanks that the times we have fallen short in the eyes of our Heavenly Father have been washed clean and we have been forgiven through the Blood of our Risen Savior Jesus Christ.
Thanksgiving
There is so much to be thankful for since COVID 19 swept into our homeland five months ago and disrupted and uprooted the normal daily activities in our lives. We live in a world that has been broken since sin entered in through the devil’s appearance in the Garden of Eden. Through the ages our God has always been with us, providing us with more and more reasons to be thankful.
Romans 8:31-32; “What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all; how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?”
When we stop to give Him thanks, we too often think of the things we possess in this world to be thankful for; our physical blessings, health, family, talents, treasures, freedoms, and neglect the true treasure that our Savior gave to us on Calvary.
We are thankful that our Heavenly Father has protected us through this and other challenges along our journey and continues to be near us as we eagerly await His directions for the next opportunity to serve Him.
Psalm 95:1-7; “O come, let us sing unto the LORD: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation. Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving and make a joyful noise unto him with psalms. For the LORD is a great God, and a great King above all gods. In his hand are the deep places of the earth: the strength of the hills is his also. The sea is his, and he made it: and his hands formed the dry land. O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the LORD our maker. For he is our God; and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand.”
We come to You now with hearts, minds and words filled with ‘Thanksgiving’.
· We give thanks for our Creator, Redeemer, and Holy Spirit.
· We give thanks for the countless donors here in the U.S. who joyfully give of their time, talents & treasures to the work of Trinity HOPE.
· We give You thanks for the Haitian children who are not only the prime purpose of Trinity HOPE but also Your missionaries for the future generations in Haiti.
· We give You thanks for the countless hours that Keith, Denise, and other board members have expended putting together a program to place food into the homes of children when COVID 19 forced their schools to close early.
· We give You thanks for the work that is being accomplished by the Haitian parents, school principals, and Feeding Program Directors who are gathering the expected attendance numbers for the coming school year.
Supplications
At times we ‘ask’ for things without really considering how they will impact our calling and our journey; to serve Him as He desires us to serve Him by bringing others into the Kingdom. Heavenly Father, we seek your wisdom.
2 Corinthians 5:15; “And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.”
School in Haiti is scheduled to start early this year, August 10th, in hopes to make up for the weeks of learning that was lost due to the COVID 19 pandemic. Much needs to be accomplished before that date with the school feeding programs in Haiti and with Trinity HOPE volunteers here in the U.S. We seek Your Wisdom and then ALL hands on deck for another school year.
Heavenly Father, we bring our supplications before You;
· Heavenly Father, give an extra portion of wisdom and energy to ALL those involved with feeding Haitian schools this coming year.
· Lord, please bless the annual Trinity HOPE Board meeting that will be conducted via Zoom.
· Lord, please continue to place Your healing hand upon Mark Gudlin as he continues to battle infection in his knee joint.
· Heavenly Father, please bless new donors unknown to us but out there ready to help to feed Haitian children.
Lord God, bless Your Word wherever it is proclaimed. Make it a Word of power and peace to convert those not yet Your own and to confirm those who have come to saving faith. May Your Word pass from the ear to the heart, from the heart to the lip and from the lip to the life that, as You have promised, Your Word may achieve the purpose for which You sent it; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.
2 Corinthians 13:11-14; “Finally, brothers, good-by. Aim for perfection, listen to my appeal, be of one mind, live in peace. And the God of love and peace will be with you. Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the saints send their greetings. May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.”
May God be with you dear sister and brother in Christ,
In His love
Jay Brinkmeyer