Lead Me, Lord

PASSAGE FOR THE DAY:
Psalm 25 (click the link)


KEY VERSES:
4        Make me to know your ways, O LORD;

teach me your paths.

5        Lead me in your truth and teach me,

for you are the God of my salvation;

for you I wait all the day long. (Psalm 25:4-5, ESV)

 

REFLECTIONS:
A few years ago, while spending some time reading through the Psalms, I happened upon these two verses and they gripped my heart. I was at a place where I was hungering to know God in a fresh, new way. And, in these two verses, I found a very simple and poignant expression of my inner desire to think and to live in constant communion with my Lord. So, I committed them to memory and began using them as a prayer that I repeated throughout my day. 

At times or places where it's difficult to pause for an extended heart-to-heart with God, I often repeat this short prayer under my breath as a way of asking God to help me walk with a heart aligned with his. This short breath prayer succinctly captures and expresses a whole host of thoughts going on inside of me. I offer this prayer, trusting that the Lord knows my thoughts and the motives behind my words. Here's a window into my thinking as I repeat this breath prayer… 

Father,

 

I so desperately need your work in my heart. I'm so selfish, so focused on me, myself, and mine. Without even trying, I live for myself. I'm driven by my wants and desires, my interests and ambitions, my comforts and protection. You know how easy it is for me to get wrapped up in myself, to let ME be the focus of all my thoughts and energy. But you are so different. You are so good, so selfless, so others-centered. You give yourself away so freely, you lavish love and blessings of all sorts upon your creation, upon your children. I WANT TO LIVE LIKE YOU! I WANT TO HAVE A HEART LIKE YOURS! So, by your grace, “make me to know your ways.” Change me from the inside out. Renew my heart and transform my mind, so that I begin to live according to your others-centered way. I want to have the same mindset as your Son, Jesus. Touch me, change me, “teach me your paths.” I want to find it increasingly easy and natural to do the things of God, in the ways in which you would have them done. Help me to have your eyes, so that I might see the people and needs around me. Help me to have your heart, so that I might love and nurture others in the name of Jesus. Strengthen me, inspire me, and motivate me to minister to others in practical ways. I want to be your hands and feet and voice upon the earth.

 

We live in a world that perverts truth, that offers a version of “truth” that is antithetical to yours. We are told that you are a figment of our imagination. Or, if you do exist, that you are distant and uninvolved in our lives. But, I don't want to get sucked into the world's way of thinking. I want to hold fast to the truth that you exist and that you reward those who earnestly seek you. So, “lead me in your truth and teach me.”  I want to not only BELIEVE in your truth, I want to LIVE in your truth. I want to think rightly about your character, your power, your wisdom, your love, your unlimited abilities. I don't want to put you in a box or live in a way that limits your power and activity in my life. Above all, I want to live in the truth that you are the King of Heaven and Earth. And I want to surrender every part of my life to you, to relinquish every bit of control to your leadership. Help me to understand not only what is true about you, but what is true about all of life—my own identity and purpose, the value of every person with whom I have contact, the things that are good and noble and true and of eternal value. Strengthen me to truly live according to your truth. “Lead me in your truth” every step of this day.

 

I pray all of these things to you, because I believe at the core of my being that you are the “God of my salvation.” You have rescued me. You have redeemed my life through the blood of Christ. You have raised me up and seated me in the heavenly places. You have given me a new identity, a new purpose, a new path for life. So “for you I wait all the day long.” I rest in you. I trust in your guidance. I look to you. Lead me, Lord.

 

SPIRITUAL PRACTICE: “BREATH PRAYER”
I'd like to encourage you to experiment with the spiritual practice called “breath prayer.” This prayer practice was developed by the Eastern Orthodox tradition as a way of helping us to follow the biblical imperative to “pray without ceasing.” The roots of breath prayer are found in the Psalms, where a repeated phrase can remind us of an entire Psalm. Essentially, the idea behind breath prayer is that a short phrase can encapsulate huge amounts of meaning, depth and longing, and be expressed in just one breath, hence “breath prayer.” 

This prayer is then repeated throughout the day, with the idea that it moves from the mind, to the heart and through the whole being—thus it is internalized and can be with us at all times. When a prayer becomes this powerful and this significant, God can work through it in all kinds of remarkable ways. Just as a potter re-molds his clay again and again, one bit at time until he achieves what he wants, so God uses this prayer to re-moud our hearts patiently and methodically.

One of the great things about the Breath Prayer is its flexibility. We can use scripture, we can use liturgy, or we can ask God for specific breath prayers for the circumstances we face right now, for the things he wants to reveal to us or change in us. I am going to repeat Richard Foster’s guidance on how to develop your own breath prayer…

To do this, simply find a place when you can spend time in silence, enjoying God’s presence. After a few moments allow God to call you by name. Next allow this question to surface “What do you want?” Answer this question simply and directly. Maybe a single word will come to your mind, “peace,” “strength,” “faith.” Perhaps it will be a phrase “to understand your truth,” “to feel your love.” Next connect this phrase with a way you feel comfortable addressing God “blessed Savior,” “Heavenly Father,” “gracious Lord.” Finally write out your breath prayer, staying within what is comfortable to say within one breath.

 

Over the next few days as you say your prayer, allow God to refine it, to center it down on what he wants… Begin saying your prayer as often as possible. Allow God to plant it deep into the depths of your spirit. Do not rush or change prayers too quickly. Eight months ago I received a breath prayer and I have no indication the work is finished…

The idea is that prayer becomes as natural as breathing, and we do not go without it. The practice becomes a reflex and vital to our very being. From this simple, consistent praying can come an increased awareness of God in everyday circumstance, and I have found it makes me more likely to think of him, and bring things to him throughout the day. When you add to this the way God transforms us through breath prayer, it is a remarkably simple way to make a massive difference to our lives.

 

 

WHO AM I?

I am Tres Sansom, and I recently mastered the art of vacuuming. Just one of the many ways that I love my wife like Christ loves the church. :)