An Act of Worship

Lord, I’m Yours. Whatever the cost may be, may Your will be done in my life. I realize I’m not here on earth to do my own thing, or to seek my own fulfillment or my own glory. I’m not here to indulge my desires, to increase my possessions, to impress people, to be popular, to prove I’m somebody important, or to promote myself. I’m not here even to be relevant or successful by human standards. I’m here to please You.

I offer myself to You, for You are worthy. All that I am or hope to be, I owe to You. I’m Yours by creation, and every day I receive from You life and breath and all things. And I’m Yours because You bought me, and the price You paid was the precious blood of Christ. You alone, the Triune God, are worthy to be my Lord and Master. I yield to You, my gracious and glorious heavenly Father; to the Lord Jesus who loved me and gave Himself for me; to the Holy Spirit and His gracious influence and empowering.

All that I am and all that I have I give to You.

I give You any rebellion in me, which resists doing Your will. I give You my pride and self-dependence, which tell me I can do Your will in my own power if I try hard enough. I give You my fears, which tell me I’ll never be able to do Your will in some areas of life. I consent to let You energize me…to create within me, moment by moment, both the desire and the power to do Your will.

I give You my body and each of its members…my entire inner being: my mind, my emotional life, my will…my loved ones…my marriage or my hopes for marriage…my abilities and gifts…my strengths and weaknesses…my health…my status (high or low)…my possessions…my past, my present, and my future…when and how I’ll go Home.

I’m here to love You, to obey You, to glorify You. O my Beloved, may I be a joy to You!

~ from 31 Days of Praise: Enjoying God Anew, by Ruth and Warren Myers


Image Credit: Unknown

Our Prince of Peace

Have you ever wondered about the meanings of the beautiful names for Jesus mentioned in the prophecy of Isaiah 9:6 in Scripture? I have! And I wanted to do a little research on them. Here is an excerpt from an article that I found, entitled “Prince of Peace,” posted on December 21, 2009, updated on March 17, 2013


For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; and the government will rest on His shoulders; and His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. – Isaiah 9:6

Prince of Peace – The last title in Isaiah’s name for the child is the most startling of them all.  Today, we are so used to the “Prince of Peace” appellation for the Messiah that we no longer see how out-of-place this translation really is.  We don’t realize that the Hebrew word sar (in sar-shalom) is almost always a designation for a vassal king or a subordinate authority.  Isaiah does not want us to make this mistake.  In fact, this is the only place in all Scripture where the combination sar-shalom is used.  That should tell us to be very careful about how we translate this title.  It is not to be translated in the usual way.  This child is not a subordinate or lesser official in the Kingdom, as are all the rest of thesarim in the Old Testament.  When Isaiah coins the title, sar-shalom, he is not thinking of Yeshua as a subordinate god.  Isaiah is thinking of the further purpose of the Messiah, and that further purpose is not just about “peace” or about who has authority over peace.

How do we know that Isaiah doesn’t think of sar in the typically Hebrew way?  Because Isaiah has already given us two other titles that can only be ascribed to God Himself, el-gibbor and abi-ad.   The same child who is “mighty God” and “eternal Father” is also sar-shalom.  So, “prince” cannot be correct.  Some other translation is required.

To determine what sar means, we must think about the word shalom.  Of course, shalom does mean “peace,” and the alliteration “Prince of Peace” has a pleasant sound.  But “peace” is far too limited an understanding of shalomShalomis a word that really means well-being in all aspects of life; physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually.  When one Jew greeted another with the word “Shalom,” it need not mean, “Have a nice day.”  It meant, “May all that you need for your well-being today come to you this day.”  That’s shalom.  This child is the official in charge of all shalom.  This child is the “well-being authority.”  If you really want shalom, then you must come to him, for he is the one divinely ordained to give it.

Of course, this means that Yeshua grants peace with God.  But that is not the limit of His authority.  All that is necessary for men to find well-being is under His care.  When Jesus said, “Without me, you can do nothing,” He meant it.  No effort toward well-being is accomplished without the expressed authority of Jesus, even if no one ever acknowledges His power over this effort.  All that I need for a life well-lived is to be found in Him.

No, “Prince of peace” is not enough.  His authority is much bigger than that.  John tells us that His authority extends to all creation; that everything came into being through Him.  This is no subordinate ruler.  This is no prince.  This is the King of glory, the absolute monarch of the ages, the Alpha and Omega of all that is.  This child is Pele-yoez-El-gibbor-Abi-ad-Sar-Shalom.  Quake before Him!  Kneel in submission!

And then remember this:  Amazingly, He loves you.  Now you can rejoice!


“Offering,” (Christmas version)

Over the skies of Bethlehem appeared a star
While angels sang to lowly shepherds
Three wisemen seeking truth, they traveled from afar
Hoping to find the Child from Heaven falling on their knees
They bow before the humble Prince of peace

We bring an offering of worship to our King
No one on earth deserves the praises that we sing
Jesus, may You receive the honor that You’re due
O Lord, I bring an offering to You

The sun cannot compare to the glory of Your love
There is no shadow in Your presence
No mortal man would dare to stand before Your throne
Before the Holy One of Heaven, it’s only by Your blood
It’s only through Your mercy, Lord I come

I bring an offering of worship to my King
No one on earth deserves the praises that I sing
Jesus, may You receive the honor that You’re due
O Lord, I bring an offering to You

I bring an offering of worship to my King
No one on earth deserves the praises that I sing
Jesus, may You receive the honor that You’re due
O Lord, I bring an offering to You

We bring an offering to You
We are an offering to You
An offering of praise we sing
An offering to You

We are an offering to You, Jesus
An offering of praise we sing
An offering to You
We are an offering, oh Lord

We are an offering of worship to our King
No one on earth deserves the praises that we sing
Jesus, may You receive the honor that You’re due
O Lord, we bring an offering to You
O Lord, we bring an offering

Offering to You
We bring an offering to You
We are an offering to You

~ from Christmas Worship, by Paul Baloche


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