Daily Share-a-Prayer w/e 21/12/2025
Derek Mill
Worship Leader, All Saints Church, Belton
Sunday 21st December
Heavenly Father, my devotional today ended with a very interesting comment: "Take a moment to reflect on how you can glorify the Lord and rejoice in Him today." I suspect it may take more than a moment, but then, how do I measure a moment?
Strangely enough a 'moment' does have a specified time: historically, it was a medieval unit of about 90 seconds (1/40th of a solar hour) and used for sundials. We also use it today when we indicate an unspecified period of time, as in: "I'll be there in a moment" or "the moment of Truth"
But, back to the main point, how can I glorify You today? How can I rejoice in You today? Being a Sunday, I could glorify You by going to church! Although I could go and be unholy, just the same as I might be at any time of the week. To glorify You I must always be a reflection of Jesus, Your image. A reflection and an image seem to suggest a mirror
It interests me that the comment I am thinking about asks me to 'reflect'. Perhaps I need to take long, hard look at myself to see if my life is anything like that of Jesus? Are my words and my actions anything like His? Am I pure and holy, like Him? God, help me! I know that I need You to help me to be anything like Jesus
Perhaps the Way to glorify You is to recognise my failings and come to You to ask for forgiveness and to ask You to create in me a clean heart? Help me to live a life reflecting Your Light, like the moon reflects the sun. May the fruit of Your Spirit, love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control, glorify You in my life today
"Rejoice! Rejoice! Christ is in you. The hope of glory in our hearts." It really is all about You. Thank You
Amen
Songs for today:
May the fragrance
Fruit of the Spirit
Open space
Rejoice Rejoice Christ is in you
Saturday 20th December
Heavenly Father, thank You for greetings cards. I have been so grateful for the cards I have received recently: condolence cards, birthday cards and Christmas cards; each one of them showing that I am in someone's thoughts, and very often in their prayers
It is always nice to know I am in someone's thoughts and prayers. It brings a warmth to my soul and often a tear to my eye. Often, the cards have very kind words in them, sometimes a verse or two of a poem, or words written by the sender. I know it isn’t possible to send You a greeting card, as such, but I suppose every prayer is a kind of greeting. And every time we lift our hands in praise, adoration and worship is a greeting to You
When we sing of our love for You we are sending You a personal message. When we acknowledge Your love for us we are receiving from You and responding to Your love with thanks and praise. When we tell You we are sorry for the things we have done wrong we are sending You our condolences, a message of sadness. Help me, Lord, to keep sending messages, prayers, all day long
As the song says: "Prayer is like a telephone for us to talk to Jesus. Prayer is like a telephone for us to talk to God." It is in prayer that I can hear from You. I can be confident of this because of Your Word to us: "Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know"
How great is our God that You would share Your thoughts with us. Fill us with Your Spirit so we have the mind of Christ. Surely the advice given in the 'Telephone' song is good: "Pick it up and use it every day." Thank You
Amen
Songs for today:
Prayer is like a telephone
Father/Praise the Lord for He is good
God answers prayers
Be with You/Jesus You're enough for me
Friday 19th December
Heavenly Father, thank You for the sermon by Rev Dr Shadrach Meshach Lockridge entitled "That's my King." In it he proclaims much of the Truth about Jesus, and also, he asks a question: "Do you know Him?" It's a great question! It's a question every one of ourselves needs to ask ourselves and also answer. Dr Lockridge states a number of times: "That's my King." Every one of Your children knows You and can make exactly the same claim, even if not with such eloquence
I love the doctor's words and have listened to them many times. But I also remember that my faith is a simple faith, I know You love me, that Jesus died to save me, and that You live in me by the power of Your Holy Spirit. I know You and You know me. So, I can answer the doctor's question, simply: "Yes, I know Him"
Reading the doctor's words is inspiring. Hearing him speak with such passion is also inspiring. My hope is that You would inspire me to speak with such passion today to the people I meet. My hope, and belief, is that You will be with me and in me to inspire my speech. I know You will be, because You are my King and You keep Your promise: "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” So I can say with confidence, “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?" Bless the Lord, O my soul. Help me Lord, to remember what Mary said: "I am the Lord’s servant, may your Word to me be fulfilled." Thank You
Amen
Video, transcript and songs for today:
That's my King - Lockridge
That’s My King transcript.pdf
In the bleak midwinter
10,000 Reasons (Bless the Lord O my soul)
The God we love (Nicene Creed)
Thursday 18th December
Heavenly Father, I just listened to a song by Simon and Garfunkel called 'Old Friends.' I was prompted to look it up as I had a strange, but wonderful, experience last night of meeting two of my ex-pupils, one of whom I can accurately place in the school years 1980-82; the other was later
They both recognised me and called me "Mr Mill", which was very nice. They were both so friendly, and rather than meeting ex-pupils, it was like meeting old friends from long ago. I was in a pub, having just sang Christmas carols, where I met them. I was there with a number of new friends from church, most of whom joined in the last few years, and one who is a visitor to the church and will soon move on to a new job 'up north'
I am very lucky to have old and new friends. I am still in contact with friends from my school days in Sunderland, ("Ha'way the Lads") and my years at Teacher Training College in Matlock. I spoke on the phone over the last few days to a number of people I haven't seen for years, to let them know of my wife's passing over to be with You. They were all lovely
Paul Simon wrote a lyric in 'Old Friends' which said: "Can you imagine us years from today. Sharing a park bench quietly? How terribly strange to be 70." Released in 1968 the song is well over 50 years old and Paul Simon is now 84! I wonder how strange it feels for him
Thank You Lord for blessing me with old and new friends. Help me to love them all, as You love me. Every friend is a very precious gift. As Your Word says: "A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for a time of adversity"
Thank You, Jesus, You are my "Friend who sticks closer than a brother." You have loved me at all times, and are with me in my darkest days and times of adversity. May I be a friend like You
Amen
Songs for today:
Because of Your love/Here
'Worship with friends'
As the deer pants for the water
Old Friends
Wednesday 17th December
Heavenly Father, the verse from Your Word in my devotional this morning made me smile. At first it sounds so simple, but there are a couple of words in there, when reading on a bit further, which indicate it is not as easy as it seems
The given verse is Ephesians 4:2 - "Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love." That sounds simple enough, although there is a hint at the difficulty, that we must 'bear' with one another; and we need to be patient... and humble... and gentle. We've all heard people say, and I have said it myself, "I can't stand him," or "I cannot bear him." Well Your Word tells us we have to
And the following verse gives further indication that this is not easy! "Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace." It sounds like this is not going to be easy at all!! "Make every effort..." sounds like a really struggle; a 'grit your teeth and grind out a result' kind of effort. Not as simple as try, but a 'knuckle down and strain every sinew' kind of effort
Why? Because, as the passage continues: "There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all." As a song I heard recently said: "You deserve the applause... You're the most important person here... And I live to love You more and more." And in a song I've known for a long time: "It's all about You, Jesus... It's not about me, as if You should do things my way; You alone are God, and I surrender to Your ways"
In the old westerns, when someone surrendered they put their hands up; help me Lord to surrender to Your Way, and raise my hands in worship. Thank You, Jesus, for Your reminder: "Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it"
Amen
Songs for today:
You deserve the applause
Jesus lover of my soul (It's all about You)
I come to You/Spirit song/Great is Thy faithfulness
Tuesday 16th December
Heavenly Father, I've read about an organisation called 'Hillsong' and heard a podcast about the decline and fall of the leadership and the structure of its work, and following this, certain people have said I should stop singing the songs under their banner
Some people have said they thought they were worshipping Jesus, but in fact they were worshipping an organisation. I sing songs which are copyrighted to Hillsong and I've never read or sang words that worship anyone or anything other than You, Jesus and the Holy Spirit
If I follow this advice to not sing these songs then I better stop singing songs written by members of the Church of England, or Catholics, or Baptists or Methodists, or any another denomination as everyone of them has had elements of corruption in them. In fact I better not sing any songs or hymns written by anyone as every one of them has been written by a sinful person; but by a sinful person who has met and knows the love of Jesus
Whether a song is by Matt Redman or Darlene Zschech, or King David's Psalms, is irrelevant; what matters is if the songs praises and worship You. Your Word gives me some guidance in another context: "' 'Teacher,' said John, 'we saw someone driving out demons in Your name and we told him to stop, because he was not one of us.' 'Do not stop him,' Jesus said. 'For no one who does a miracle in My Name can in the next moment say anything bad about Me. Truly I tell you, anyone who gives you a cup of water in My Name because you belong to the Messiah will certainly not lose their reward' "
I am sure there are things wrong in every church, the Book of "Revelation" show this to be true. Help me to focus on You, no one else and nothing else when I worship. Praise God from whom all blessings flow
Amen
Songs for today:
When the music fades - Matt Redman
My Jesus my Saviour - Darlene Zschech
I the Lord of sea and sky - Bishop Timothy Dudley-Smith
Praise God from whom all blessings flow - Dave Clifton and Andy Piercy
Monday 15th December
Heavenly Father, help me to remember: 'My Dad can fight your dad.' When David fought Goliath he knew he would win because he believed, 'My Dad can beat your dad.' As he approached Goliath, David declared: to the Philistine: “You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied." He knew he would triumph because God, his Father, would fight for him
He knew the same as Moses knew. He knew the same as Elijah knew! Faced by Ahab and the prophets of Baal, Elijah challenged them and their God to consume a sacrifice, but of course nothing happened. Then having soaked the sacrifice three times in water Elijah stepped forward and prayed: “Lord, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel, let it be known today that You are God in Israel and that I am Your servant and have done all these things at Your command. Answer me, Lord, answer me, so these people will know that You, Lord, are God, and that You are turning their hearts back again.” Then the fire of the Lord fell and burned up the sacrifice, the wood, the stones and the soil, and also licked up the water in the trench. And then the prophets of Baal were all slaughtered
It is a very dangerous thing to stand against You, our Father in Heaven. And still today, You fight for us. You no longer slaughter prophets. Mostly the battle is now within us, so You fight against: "the sin that so easily entangles." You encourage us to: "run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith."
My Dad can beat any dad, because my God, Jesus, has beaten death and the grave: "If God is for us, who can be against us? ... No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us." Lord, by Your Spirit, keep fighting for me, until You bring me home
Amen
Songs for today:
The battle belongs to the Lord
Battle belongs
Hymn of Heaven
all songs (usually with lyrics) and talks courtesy of YouTube
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