Morning Prayer
A froward man soweth strife: and a whisperer separateth chief friends.
Inspiration
Gossip is dangerous business! We often feel we are doing good by sharing details regarding a person's private struggle. We intend to add them to a prayer chain or alert others so they can assist in some way. Sometimes the story we share becomes warped, and the truth becomes a lie that destroys a relationship. When passing along information, we will take our concerns to the Lord and rely on His Spirit to direct our wording. The Holy Spirit will help us understand the difference between information we are allowed to share and details that should be kept private.
Prayer
Dear Father, we do not intend to actively gossip; yet, it happens anyway. We call upon Your spirit to help us discern rumors from meaningful information we are allowed to share. In Jesus' name, Amen.
Night Prayer
Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess.
Inspiration
We despise the thought of a pile of dirty dishes in the sink. The outside is easy to clean; it's the caked-up residue on the inside that's so difficult to remove. Jesus compares the scribes and Pharisees with dishes that have been wiped clean on the outside while dirty inside. The Pharisees took exceptional care of their outward appearance and neglected their inward spirits. We are guilty of allowing our hearts to be left filthy as well. We look and act as we should while our souls are full of darkness. We must continue to converse with the Holy Spirit daily and trust His guidance to cleanse our sinful nature.
Prayer
Dear God, Please forgive our sinful nature. We yearn for cleansing from within, so we are genuine witnesses to Your name. In Jesus' Name, Amen.