Morning Prayer
I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
Inspiration
What is a sacrifice? It is easy perhaps in our own lives to think of it as an act of limiting one's own freedoms for someone else, or otherwise some common good. Yet through Christ, through his teachings and ultimately upon the cross, we were shown a different interpretation of sacrifice –as rather an act of love, of generosity. Living with this example, it is up to us to offer our own bodies up to the Lord as a sacrifice, not in order to simply receive his love, but also to give -and give boundlessly- one's own in return.
Prayer
Lord Almighty, thank you for the path you have shown me through your only begotten Son. Through this gift, you have shown me the purity and light of salvation. Teach me Lord how to embody this sacrifice, to share not only with all mankind, but also to offer up my own body to thee, O Lord, and bestow my love as an everlasting gift to you, my Heavenly Father. 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.
