Beauty-Making God,
Thank you, Jesus, for the invitation you have extended to each of us to follow you. Thank you that we can know you as Lord and Savior and serve in your Kingdom. Your Love, Kindness, and Faithfulness have caused Holy Spirit to drawn us into relationship with you and we thank you for that gift of Grace. Thank you that we can accept you as Master and Teacher, the One who disciples us. God, sometimes (more than we want to admit), we find ourselves with the father of the sick boy, agreeing that “I believe, help me overcome my unbelief.” We are followers of yours – overcome the parts of our flesh that are not following. We trust you – help us to trust you fully. We have some courage – help us to have more of your courage and holy boldness. We follow you, with sometimes stumbling steps, knowing that you will make us “fishers of men.” But sometimes the process of “making” is long, difficult, and even painful. You created us in your image, but the brokenness, pressures, trials, and wickedness of this world can break down the Beauty of who you created us to be. You have made everything – each one of us – beautiful in our time, so give us the courage to call to you to restore that Beauty. Give us courage to allow you to work within our hearts, minds, and souls to be renewed. Make us fully devoted disciples, men and women of full faith, courage, trust, boldness, and beauty, who have eternity set in our hearts. We ask all of this in Jesus’s name, Amen.
“Jesus said to them, ‘Follow Me [as My disciples, accepting Me as your Master and Teacher and walking the same path of life that I walk], and I will make you fishers of men.’” (Matthew 4:19 AMP)
“Immediately the boy’s father exclaimed, “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!”” (Mark 9:24 NIV)
“So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.” (Genesis 1:27 NIV)
“He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end.” (Ecclesiastes 3:11 NIV)