We thought we understood your plan.  We thought we knew your purpose.

But now it seems you’ve altered that plan.  Now it appears you’ve adjusted that purpose.  You’ve pulled us off course.  We’re off the map.

Remove the obstacles you’ve placed before us.  Stick to your plan.  Stay the course.

We trust in you.  We believe in the future you’ve envisioned. 

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O God, an inner-city third-grader said today, “I could ask my uncles to kill him.” 

My friend was tutoring him.  The boy was sad.  Someone had smashed his mother’s car’s window.  My friend said, “Let it go.  Let the adults worry.”  The third grader wouldn’t.  My friend said, “Let it go.  There’s nothing you can do.” 

The third grader said, “Yes there is.  I could ask my uncles to kill him.”

O God, the city is full of prowling and howling dogs.  They are shaping this boy.  They are ruining this boy. 

Punish them.  Consume them in your wrath.

And be this boy’s strength.  Be his fortress.  Be the God on whom he can rely.

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O LORD, those in power misuse their power.  They employ authority to benefit themselves.  They only look out for number one.

But not you, LORD.  You rightly use power.  You employ authority to benefit others.  You look out for every one.

So make them like a lion with no teeth.  Make them like a river with no source.  Make them like a slug with no shade.

Power them down.  And power yourself up.

Do this, and the world will know that there is a God.  The world will know that God cares. 

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God Most High, today my life is a tragic tale.  It’s like I’m starring in a National Geographic documentary.  I’m the young and frail animal pursued by seasoned and chiseled lions.  It won’t be long before these hurtful humans in my life devour me.

But God Most High, you are the one in charge.  They may be actors but you are the director.  They may have roles but you are the producer.  I’m praying that the morning will bring no doubt as to who is really calling the shots in this movie of my life.

I know how this film ends–with your sky-high love and faithfulness.  As a result, I’m singing.  Even today, my soundtrack is praise.

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God, all day long people attack me.  All day long people pursue me.  All day long people discredit me.

Their wickedness makes me weep.  Their terror makes me teary. 

But I know you know.  You see it all.  You’ve even recorded each salty drop from my eyes.

And in the end, my trust is still in you.  In you I am not afraid. 

They are mere mortals.  You are still God.

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Things are too tense, O God.

So stressful, O God!

I want to escape.  Sprint.  Flee.

I long to fly away to a distant desert, some remote refuge.

So, I will fly to you.  I will cast my cares on you.  And there they will remain.

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Trouble-makers were making me blue.

But you became their trouble-maker.

And now, I am trouble-free.

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You, LORD Almighty, are with us.  You are our storm shelter.  You are our homeland security.  You are our refuge.

And  because of who you are, this is who we are: unafraid, unmoved, and unshaken.

Even if the Sierra Nevada quaked and fell into the Pacific, we would neither quake nor fall.  Even if a rogue nation rattled its arsenal, we would not be rattled.  While the storm waves crash, we remain courageous.

We are still.  We know that you are God.  And because of who you are, this is who we are: unafraid, unmoved, and unshaken.

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We know the glory-stories of people battling disease whose health you restored.  People battling lust whose marriages you reconciled.  People battling finances whose budgets you stabilized.

But there seem to be no miracles for us.  The glory-stories are always about someone else.

 Rise up, O God, and help us.  Redeem us.  Act mightily for us.  Let those stories be our story.

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My God, I felt rejected by you.  Forgotten by you.  Abandoned by you.

But then I withdrew to a lonely place.  I sought out solitude.  And in that holy and quiet place, I met you for the first time again.

Now my soul is no longer downcast.  My hope is renewed.  And praise once more flows from my lips.

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