The most difficult command of all

Romans 12:14
Bless those who persecute you;
  bless and do not curse

  . 

Hear my voice

Psalm 5:1-3

Give ear to my words, O Lord,
  consider my sighing.
Listen to my cry for help,
  my King and my God,
  for to you I pray.
In the morning I lay my requests before you
  and wait in expectation.

Fountain of life

Psalm 36:5-6

Your love, O Lord, reaches to the heavens,
  your faithfulness to the skies.
Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains,
  your justice is like the great deep.

Faithful in prayer

Romans 12:12

Be joyful in hope,
patient in affliction,
faithful in prayer.

Enduring hardship

Hebrews 12: 5b -7

"My son, do not make light of the Lord's discipline,
   and do not lose heart when he rebukes you,
because the Lord disciplines those he loves,
   and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son."

Endure hardships as discipline;
God is treating you as sons.
For what son is not disciplined by his father?

Be merciful

Psalm 4:1

Answer me when I call to you,
  O my righteous God.
Give me relief from my distress;
  be merciful to me and hear my prayer.

My refuge

Psalm 9:9-10

The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed,
  a stronghold in times of trouble.

Those who know your name will trust in you,
  for you, Lord, have never forsaken those who seek you.

The paths of life

Acts 2:28

You have made known to me the paths of life;
   you fill me with joy in your presence.

The path of righteouness

Proverbs 4:18-19

The path of righteousness is like the first gleam of dawn,
shining ever bright till the full light of day.

But the way of the wicked is like deep darkness;
they do not know what makes them stumble.

In the shadow of your wings

Psalm 63:7

Because you are my help, Lord,
I sing in the shadow of your wings.

The Lord is my shepherd

Psalm 23: 1-2

The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing.

He makes me lie down in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters.

Trust

Isaiah 26:4
Trust in the Lord forever,
for the Lord, the Lord himself, is the rock eternal.

Grace be to you all

2 Timothy 4:22
The Lord be with your spirit.
Grace be to you all.

Photo courtesy of Sergio Kendall

There is freedom of spirit

2 Corinthians 3:17
Now the Lord is the Spirit,
and where the Spirit of the Lord is,
there is freedom.

Grace be to you all

2 Timothy 4:22

The Lord be with your spirit.
Grace be to you all.

As the waters cover the sea

Isaiah 11: 9b

For the earth will be filled
with the knowledge of the Lord
as the waters cover the sea.

Filled with joy

Psalm 126:3

The Lord has done great things for us,
  and we are filled with joy.

A new heart

Ezekiel 36:26

I will give you a new heart
and put a new spirit in you;
I will remove from you your heart of stone
  and give you a heart of flesh.

Filled with hope

Romans 15:13

May the God of hope fill you
with all joy and peace as you trust in him,
so that you may overflow with hope
by the power of the Holy Spirit'

Understanding, knowledge and wisdom

Isaiah 11:2

The Spirit of the Lord will rest on him-
the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding,
the Spirit of counsel and of might,
the Spirit of the knowledge and the fear of the Lord

I have called you

Isaiah 42:6-7

"I, the Lord, have called you in righteousness;
I will take hold of your hand.
I will keep you and make you
to be a covenant for the people
and a light for the Gentiles,

to open the eyes that are blind,
to free captives from prison
and to release from the dungeon those who sit
in darkness."

The old days

Ecclesiastes 7:10

Do not say, " Why were the old days better than these?"
For it is not wise to ask such questions.

Small is the gate

Small is the gate
and narrow the road that leads to life,
but only a few find it.
Matthew 7:14

Hebrews 4:12

For the word of God is living and active.
Sharper than any double-edged sword,
it penetrates even to dividing the soul and spirit,
joints and marrow:
it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.

Psalm 50:1

The mighty One, God, the Lord,
speaks and summons the earth
from the rising of the sun to the place where it sets.

Psalm 63:1

You, God, are my God,
earnestly I seek you:
I thirst for you,
my whole being longs for you,
in a dry and parched land
where there is no water.

Romans 15:4

For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us,
so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures
and the encouragement they provide
we may have hope.

Romans 15:13

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him,
so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Matthew 11:28

Come to me,
all you who are weary and burdened,
and I will give you rest.



Sitting in our vehicle waiting to cross the border to Tanzania a group of young Maasai women surrounded us demanding we buy their goods. In the distance this frail old woman simply stood off to the side, never saying a word.



Psalm 50:11

I know every bird in the mountains,
and the insects in the fields are mine.

Photo courtesy of Sandy Dantone

Psalm 50:2,6

From Zion, perfect in beauty,
God shines forth.

And the heavens proclaim his righteousness,
for he is a God of justice.




Photo courtesy of Sandy Dantone

 

Psalm 62:1-2

Truly my soul finds rest in God:
my salvation comes from him.

Truly he is my rock and my salvation;
he is my fortess, I will never be shaken.

Isaiah 48:18

If only you had paid attention to my commands,
  your peace would have been like a river,
  your righteousness like the waves of the sea.

Proverbs 3:27-28

Do not withhold good from those who deserve it,
  when it is in your power to act.

Do not say to your neighbor,
  "Come back later; I'll give it tomorrow"-
  when you know you have it with you.

All this child wanted from us was a pen for school. He had no money and there was no store.

Isaiah 58:12

Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins
and will raise up the age-old foundations:
you will be called Repairer of Broken Walls,

Restorer of Streets and Dwellings.

Psalm 119:164-166

Seven times a day I praise you
 for your righteous laws.

Great peace have those who love your law,
and nothing can make them stumble.

I wait for your salvation, Lord,
and I follow your commands.

Proverbs 3:5-6

Trust in the Lord with all your heart
   and lean not on your own understanding:
in all your ways acknowledge Him
   and He will make your paths straight.

Isaiah 44:22

I have swept away your offenses like a cloud,
  your sins like a morning mist.
Return to me,
for I have redeemed you.

   

Psalm 5:3

In the morning, Lord, you hear my voice;
in the morning I lay my requests before you
 and wait expectantly.

Psalm 139: 9-10

If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
if I settle on the far side of the sea,
even there your hand will guide me,
your right hand will hold me fast.

Psalm 143:5-6

I remember the days of long ago;
  I meditate on all your works
  and consider what your hands have done.

I spread out my hands to you;
  my soul thirsts for you like a parched land.

Psalm 119:132-133

Turn to me and have mercy on me,
as you always do to those who love your name.
Direct my footsteps according to your word;
let no sin rule over me.

Psalm 139:13-16

For you created my inmost being:
  you knit me together in my mother's womb.
I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully
        made:
  your works are wonderful,
  I know that full well.
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.
your eyes saw my unformed body:
All the days ordained for me
  were writtten in your book
  before one of them came to be.

Isaiah 64:8

We are the clay, you are the potter:
we are all the work of your hand.

1 Corinthians 14:15

So what shall I do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will also pray with my mind: I will sing with my spirit, but I will also sing with my mind.