“Let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most” (Heb.4:16)
Heavenly Father, we come boldly to your throne of grace today—thankful it is a throne, not a hammock. We never have to wake you from a nap, for you remain in labor-of-love mode 24/7 on behalf of your people. We’re also grateful it’s a throne of grace—not a judge’s chamber, Olympics score table, or room full of hyper-critical Pharisees. Hallelujah!
We come boldly, not sheepishly, into your presence because Jesus went humbly to the cross on our behalf. He took our judgment and gave us his righteousness. Our guilt is gone, and along with it, all condemnation. The power of sin has been broken in our lives, and one Day it’s very presence will be gone. The war for our hearts is over, and Jesus won. But the “clean-up operation” continues. Thus we need your mercy and grace on a daily basis. For example, Father…
We confess nursing grudges as though we were giving a warm bottle of Miracle-Grow-formula to a baby. We confess lying when we tell people we are praying for them, but aren’t. We confess remembering sports, music, culinary, fashion trivia better than Scripture.
Though you told us to diligently guard our hearts, we’re pretty casual about it. Instead of feasting on Jesus’ beauty, goodness, and truth, we snack away on fast-food gossip, garden-fresh fears, moldy political silage, and all kinds “Honey Nut Cheerios.”
It’s not that HNC’s are bad, but if that’s our main diet, our teeth, gut, blood, and brains will, in time, mock us and pay us back. Father, forgive, free, and transform us. What will collapsing on Jesus, and getting up and honoring you look like today? So Very Amen.
