Mondays are usually not a day of joy for many people. The fact that the weekend is over and that we must get up early and get back to the daily grind can be challenging and discouraging.
Tuesdays are far better for many since the Monday blues have passed, and Friday is looming closer! Yet, it is still Tuesday, and we can praise Jesus for giving us another day to be alive. Though it is rather difficult, it is important to rejoice in the grace of the present.
It is often in the monotony and the mundane that Christians can see the world as enchanted with a sense of wonder since Christ is making all things new by the power of His agape love. So, here are six blessings to make your Tuesday better and encourage you with God's Word and prayer.
Having a sense of gratitude gives us a sense of humility for the gift of life, community, and each new day. When I think of how many painful things I have gone through on my journey of faith and look back on how so many incredible people were there for me when I was struggling, I praise Christ--for the community I have, the gift of this particular day and for this present moment.
My favorite author, C. S. Lewis, wrote his books for the glory of Christ after his conversion from atheism to Christianity. Lewis had an incredible sense of gratitude, and reading his works always reminds me to be grateful for all the good sacramental things in this life that are gifts from Christ.
Jesus, Great Artist
Thank you for another day and for another breath on this Tuesday morning! How good it is to be alive in the present!
On this Tuesday I am thankful for the clothes on my back, a place to call home, a good community of people in my life, and for your agape love for all of humanity. I continue to marvel at your love as each day goes by. Thank you that I got to wake up this morning. Thank you for the warm cup of coffee. Thank you for giving me the strength to get through this day. Amen!
Courage can be very challenging to find when one sees all the chaos going on in the world, and how individualistic and cynical our postmodern world has become. How can courage be found in such a broken and fallen world? Fortunately, courage can be found through the love of Christ.
Courage is an incredibly important virtue. It has to be cultivated over time, just like faith. It takes a great deal of faith to have courage. I often pray for enough courage to get through the day, to do a good job at work, to cultivate my craft as a writer, and even when I am afraid of something challenging that I must face, by grace, I am able to find the courage to face the challenge, come what may.
Jesus, Great Artist,
Give me the courage that I need to get through each day, both the bad and the good. From the time I get up in the morning, and when I go to bed each night, you are sustaining me.
Give me the courage to live out my faith by grace, to love and learn from different worldview perspectives, and to use my gifts for your glory. I often find myself afraid of not fitting in or of letting family and friends down, and I can be very self-critical. Give me the courage to take care of myself, to know my boundaries, and to love all the amazing people in my life. Amen!
Depression is complex and quite difficult to deal with. It is not easy to talk about, and many people suffer in silence. The Psalms explore the complex human struggle with depression but also give the affirmation that we need not despair since we can trust in the mercy of Christ. Psalm 120:1 says, “I took my troubles to the LORD; I cried out to him, and he answered my prayer.” Christians rejoice at this truth!
Many Christian poets, writers, and musicians have been honest about their struggles with depression through their art. This has reminded other Christians that they are not alone in their struggles and that it is possible to heal and thrive. One of the most well-known works of literature that has helped millions of Christians around the world is The Wounded Healer by Henri Nouwen. In the book, Nouwen writes poignantly about how, by being honest about our own struggles with depression, we can help others find healing and hope in Christ.
Jesus, Great Artist,
You know and understand my struggle with depression. Even though sometimes it feels as if I am alone and I can start to doubt my faith, I look back over the years and see how your love has sustained me through some very dark times. There is no logical explanation. It has all only been because of your love.
Help me to find a good counselor that can help me in my struggles with depression. I hope that through my own struggles with depression I can help others since I know what it is like personally.
Thank you for my church community, for the truths found in scripture, the gift of sunlight, the gift of laughter, and for how much I have grown in my faith as I have dealt with these struggles with depression. Even though it has been painful at times, I have become a more compassionate person, have learned to trust you more, and to truly understand, with my mind and heart, that you are always with me. Amen!
Hope is an important theological virtue and is something that everyone is searching for in their heart of hearts, even the staunchest skeptic. People try to find hope in different religions, spiritual paths, in relationships, job careers, money, and social status. The good news is that hope can be found in Jesus Christ.
Christians are called to be people of hope to a world that is filled with broken, hurting, and weary people. Because of our Lord’s resurrection in the first century, we have hope and freedom from death and sin and should rejoice that we can share this hope with everyone we encounter by living out our faith. Hope in Christ is what keeps us going.
Jesus, Great Artist,
With all the negativity in the headlines, in the news, and the chaos going on in the world, it can be hard to believe that there is any hope. Yet, because you defeated death, sin, and the powers of darkness, there is hope. Remind me that my hope is in you, that you are here with me, and to help others who are searching for meaning and hope.
I am thankful to you that hope is not wishful thinking or a delusion but faith in your love that is greater than any of my existential doubts and beyond any finite human comprehension. I am thankful for the poets, musicians, writers, and artists who were honest about the human condition and their hope in you. These artists helped me find hope in you when I was lost, confused, and struggling with despair.
Thank you for the gift of hope in you, which keeps me going on this journey of faith! Amen!
Grace is something that is unmerited and cannot be earned based on anything we do. Grace can be quite difficult for human beings to accept or even understand since we all struggle with some form of pride. Being able to experience a sunrise, a sunset, the love of another person, and having a community of genuine people in your life are all gifts of grace.
Throughout Scripture there are many poignant verses about the grace of Christ. One of the most moving is the Parable of the Prodigal Son that Jesus tells in Luke 15. The parable conveys how, although the lost son runs away and squanders his inheritance, he is welcomed by home and embraced by his father. This is an example of the grace of Christ that we are shown each day. It is something to marvel at.
Jesus, Great Artist,
Please give me the daily grace that I need each day, the grace to show patience and kindness to everyone that I encounter, and to show grace to myself if I feel as if I have not done enough.
Thank you that your grace is sufficient to forgive my past sins and give me hope for the future.
I thank you for your unmerited grace, which is bestowed on everyone who comes to you searching for redemption and hope. Amen!
We often have to truly experience something in order to understand it. Before Saul of Tarsus became a Christian and his name was changed to Paul, he persecuted Christians. Saul found the Christian faith to be quite a threat to the Jewish way of life, and he wanted to do whatever it took to help destroy it.
Saul came to understand grace with both his mind and heart after his profound spiritual encounter with the risen Christ when he was on the road to Damascus. After this encounter, Saul changed his name to Paul and truly understood what it means to be loved by Christ, and the mission of his life became to help others understand this love.
Jesus, Great Artist,
Help me to have discernment when making important daily decisions. Sometimes, my emotions can get the better of me, and I ask that you help give me a balance between my reason and emotions.
I pray to understand your will for my life, for wisdom when I find myself in difficult situations, and for reassurance to truly know, with my mind and heart, that I have hope in you, despite circumstances.
Thank you for giving me understanding to see with the eyes of the heart, as St. Paul wrote in Ephesians 1:18: “I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints.” Amen!
Wiggins has also had poems and other short pieces published by Clarendon House Publications, Sehnsucht: The C.S. Lewis Journal, and Sweetycat Press. Justin has a great zeal for life, work, community, writing, literature, art, pubs, bookstores, coffee shops, and for England, Scotland, and Ireland.
He is a cross pendant.
He is engraved with a unique Number.
He will mail it out from Jerusalem.
He will be sent to your Side.
Emmanuel
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