1 Chronicles 29:11 (NIV)
Yours, Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is yours. Yours, Lord, is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all.
I read this verse from 1 Chronicles this morning and just felt overwhelmed with the message … an exaltation … an expression of praise to God simply for who He is! It helped me to remember (before I start my day) that He is everything! There is none besides Him! I need (we all need) this perspective … God reigns! This passage reminds me of when Jesus taught His disciples the “Lord’s Prayer” … a model of prayer to guide us in our communication with God … the “finale” which concluded the prayer is very similar:
Matthew 6:9-13 (NKJV) – Jesus is speaking
9 In this manner, therefore, pray:
Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name. 10 Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. 11 Give us this day our daily bread. 12 And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. 13 And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.
Although the final phrase of Verse 13 is not contained in most texts or manuscripts, and therefore, not included in other “translations” of the verse, the King James Version includes this “doxology” or liturgical formula of praise to God which I believe originates from the rich language of 1 Chronicles 29:11. I personally love its inclusion in the Lord’s Prayer because of the recognition it gives to sovereignty, majesty, and glory of God the Father. I think it helps us better understand who we are in light of who He is. We are the creatures and He is the Creator! This truth should diminish all rebellion and sin in our lives as it penetrates our hearts….
Anyway, in my time of mediation this morning, these thoughts became more personal in nature; and I was drawn to the words Psalm 139. This Psalm brings a more intimate knowledge of how God is sovereign over our lives … our own beings. I thought that I would share it this morning – thinking someone besides me truly needs this Word to speak to them … and to remind them how deeply God loves you and how intimately He knows you. He knows where you are. He sees you … and He lavishly loves you beyond all you can think or imagine! You need to trust Him … His Word … His Mercy … His Compassion … His Kindness … His Goodness … His Patience … His Faithfulness … (oh help me, Lord) … HIS EVERLASTING SOVEREIGNTY! There is no life … no salvation apart from Him. He is seeking YOU this morning! God wants personal time with you today! I fervently pray you will go the “secret” place and just meet with Him there! You WILL find healing in the shadow of His wings. You will find rest. He is waiting for you….
Psalm 139:1-18 (NIV)
1 You have searched
me, Lord, and you know me.
2 You know when I sit and when I rise;
you perceive my thoughts from afar.
3 You discern my going out and my
lying down; you are familiar with all my ways.
4 Before a word is on my tongue you, Lord, know it completely.
5 You hem me in behind and before,
and you lay your hand upon me.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for
me, too lofty for me to attain.
7 Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence?
8 If I go up to the heavens, you
are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are
there.
9 If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
if I settle on the far side of the sea,
10 even there your hand will guide me,
your right hand will hold me fast.
11 If I say, “Surely the darkness will
hide me and the light become night around me,”
12 even the darkness will not be
dark to you; the night will shine like the day,
for darkness is as light to you.
13 For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful; I know that full well.
15 My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth.
16 Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.
17 How amazing are your thoughts concerning me, God! How vast is the sum of them!
18 Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand—when I awake, I am still with you.
So Now You Know 