The Lord’s Prayer

Meditations on

Staying In the Grace for Today 

April 30, 2025

The Lord’s Prayer

Give us this day our daily bread.

And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.

Matthew 6:11-12 

One aspect of my worship experience in the Anglican Church that has been especially comforting to me is how the Lord’s Prayer is incorporated in the ebb and flow of our church life. The congregation says the Lord’s prayer before the Prayer of Humble Access as we prepare to come to the Lord’s Table for Holy Communion. And at the end of our pastor’s teaching in Sunday School, and Wednesday evening Bible Study, he will say, “The Lord be with you.” The congregation responds, “And with thy spirit.” Then we all say the Lord’s Prayer. We end Sunday School and Wednesday Bible Study this way, every week.

I’ve taught studies on the Lord’s Prayer where we looked at each phrase and came to understand how this seemingly simple prayer can order every aspect of our lives for the Kingdom of God. The two verses above reveal this truth. We want to stay in the grace for today, so we realize our daily sustenance comes from God, daily! And daily I need, I so very much need, to seek God’s forgiveness of my sins.

The forgiveness line in this prayer always reminds me of Henri Nouwen’s teaching on The Return of the Prodigal Son:

I am the son of my compassionate Father. I am an heir, as son and heir I am to become successor. I am destined to step into my Father's place and offer to others the same compassion that he has offered me. The return to the Father is ultimately the challenge to become the Father. But do I really want to be son and heir with all that that implies?

My Takeaway: “Being in the Father's house requires that I make the Father's life my own and become transformed in his image." I am learning the only way to become transformed in his image, is to remain in the grace for today. 

Sē’lah

My book on prayer,

First Think, Then Pray

is now available on Amazon Kindle.

 

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

 

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com.

 

Copyright © 2025 by Alex M. Knight

 

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Christ Is the Soul’s Familiar Friend

Meditations on

Staying In the Grace for Today 

April 29, 2025

Christ Is the Soul’s Familiar Friend

Come close to God, and God will come close to you.

James 4:8a

On Monday, the Third Week of Lent, (March 24) I read a devotion by Harriet Beecher Stowe. (A Time to Turn, Anglican Readings for Lent and Easter Week) Ms. Stowe’s theme captured my heart: “Christ is the soul’s familiar friend.” As I pondered this devotion, I realized that I had twenty-three names on my daily prayer list, but my name wasn’t there. And it should have been. The next day I had an appointment with a specialist to discuss the shortness of breath I had been experiencing. And, in a few more weeks I am scheduled for an endoscopic ultrasound as a follow-up to an endoscopy I had a few weeks ago. These two appointments have certainly been on my mind. Why wasn’t I talking to Jesus about them?

Maybe, because of the unknowns, I rationalized they weren’t serious enough for Jesus’ time. But the unknowns were serious enough for me to worry. Ms. Stowe’s devotion showed me how my silence before Jesus was distracting my attention span while participating in the liturgy of the church. My worrying was taking my focus away from staying in God’s grace for each day.

My Takeaway: Throughout each day, I often stop what I am doing, and simply pray, “I love you, Lord.” I sense I am close to God, and that He has drawn close to me. But that is not the same as kneeling before Him, and saying, “Lord, I am worried . . .”

I’m still learning how to make the life in Christ my way of life. My thanks to Harriet Beecher Stowe for drawing me close to my soul’s familiar friend on Monday, the Third Week of Lent.

Sē’lah

My book on prayer,

First Think, Then Pray

is now available on Amazon Kindle.

 

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

 

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com.

 

Copyright © 2025 by Alex M. Knight

 

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

The Power and Message of The Cross

Meditations on

Staying In the Grace for Today 

April 28, 2025

The Power and Message of The Cross

And Jesus replied, “I assure you, today you will be with me in paradise.”

Luke 23:43

Several times during my pastoral ministry, I was with people who knew they were dying. They knew their end was in sight. Do you remember how the Apostle Paul faced the end of his life?

The time of my death is near. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, and I have remained faithful. And now the prize awaits me—the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give me on the day of his return. (2 Timothy 4:6b-8a)

I was saddened that many of these people I was with did not embrace Paul’s optimistic faith. They might have said, “Well that’s good for Paul, but look at all he accomplished in his life!” True. But let’s also remember the last line of Paul’s statement to Timothy – it is verse 8b, “And the prize is not just for me but for all who eagerly look forward to his appearing.”

Pastor Alistair Begg, of Parkside Church near Cleveland, Ohio, in his sermon, The Power and Message of The Cross, proclaims the truth of Jesus’ words quoted for today. In this sermon, which is available on YouTube, he presupposes what it might have been like when the thief on the cross next to Jesus arrived in heaven. He might have been asked many questions seeking to establish why he should be admitted to heaven, and for which he had no answers, except to say,

“The guy on the middle cross said I could come.”

Hallelujah and amen! That is the exact statement the Apostle Paul made, and it is the exact statement I can make when my time comes. 

My Takeaway: Any service, any sacrifice I’ve made for God, pales in comparison to the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross. Like the thief on the cross next to Jesus, all I can pray is, “Jesus, remember me.” And, like the thief on the cross next to Jesus, I’ll hear Jesus respond, “I assure you, today you will be with me in paradise.” Why? Because Jesus’ grace is sufficient for today, and every day!! 

Sē’lah

My book on prayer,

First Think, Then Pray

is now available on Amazon Kindle.

 

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

 

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com.

 

Copyright © 2025 by Alex M. Knight

 

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Deep Within

Meditations on

Staying In the Grace for Today

April 25, 2025

Deep Within

For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God.

Romans 1:20 

After Timothy urges us to intercede in prayer for all people, including those with authority over our lives, he writes: “This is good and pleases God our Savior, who wants everyone to be saved and to understand the truth.” (1 Timothy 2:3-4) Together with our passage quoted above, I am encouraged to know God is revealing Himself, through His prevenient grace, to all people, everywhere.

I am also encouraged to know that God’s prevenient grace continues to be at work within me. I am so very blessed to be living in the stunningly beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains, the oldest mountains on our planet. Every time I walk outside my home, I am surrounded by the wonders of God’s creation. Every winter, when spring is maybe just a month away, Cheryl finds Forsythia buds starting to come out. She will take some cuttings and place them in a vase. Then, in the warmth of our home, they blossom. We have God’s creation, springtime in wintertime, in our home. God uses these moments to remind me that for God, who looked at a world that did not exist, and spoke it into being by the power of His word, nothing is impossible. (Genesis 1 - The phrase "God looked at a world that did not exist" refers to the biblical concept of creation ex nihilo, where God brought forth the universe and everything within it from nothing.)

My Takeaway: The wonder of God’s self-revelation in His creation helps me stay in His grace for today.

Sē’lah

My book on prayer,

First Think, Then Pray

is now available on Amazon Kindle.

 

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

 

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com.

 

Copyright © 2025 by Alex M. Knight

 

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

 

Penitence

Meditations on

Staying In the Grace for Today 

April 24, 2025

Penitence

Oh, what joy for those

    whose disobedience is forgiven,

    whose sin is put out of sight!

Yes, what joy for those

    whose record the Lord has cleared of guilt,

    whose lives are lived in complete honesty!

Psalm 32:1-2

The psalmist continues in verse 3, “When I refused to confess my sin, my body wasted away, and I groaned all day long.”  Yes, as I wrote yesterday, God has united us to Christ in His death, burial, resurrection, and enthronement. And for all eternity. Yes, Christ in us is our hope of glory. (Colossians 1:27) However, it is also true that our old nature, the Apostle Paul calls this our flesh, wars against our divine nature. Our calling is to take seriously this raging war between two natures, and to do our part to work cooperatively with God as he works to form Christ in us.

This point was emphasized to me on the second Monday of Lent when our Lenten devotion recalled the Apostle Paul writing, “I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should. Otherwise, I fear that after preaching to others I myself might be disqualified.” (1 Corinthians 9:27) I believe Paul understood that if he didn’t take seriously his part in the raging war, he may well lose God’s calling on his life to preach the Gospel.

(see Revelation 2:5) But Paul did take seriously his part in this war, as revealed in Galatians 2:20, “My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”

My Takeaway: Unconfessed sin can erode our intimacy with God and we, like the psalmist today, can feel as though our life is wasting away. But “If we confess our sins, he who is faithful and just will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9 NRSV) And “Oh, what joy for those” who stay in the grace for today!

Sē’lah

My book on prayer,

First Think, Then Pray

is now available on Amazon Kindle.

 

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

 

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com.

 

Copyright © 2025 by Alex M. Knight

 

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

 

Friends of God

Meditations on

Staying In the Grace for Today 

April 23, 2025

Friends of God

I no longer call you slaves, because a master doesn’t confide in his slaves.

Now you are my friends, since I have told you everything the Father told me.

John 15:15 

So now we can rejoice in our wonderful new relationship with God

because our Lord Jesus Christ has made us friends of God.

Romans 5:11 

I have written often on this passage from Hebrews 12:28-29,

“Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us show gratitude, by which we may offer to God an acceptable worship with reverence and awe, for indeed our God is a consuming fire.”

To help me order my life in reverence and awe of God, I often affirm in my prayers

that I am not my own; I belong to God. By creation and redemption, I belong to God. This thought helps me realize the life in Christ I am seeking as my way of life is not a self-improvement program – it is NEW LIFE!

This new life is expressed in terms of a total change in identity. The Christians in the Middle Ages understood this. When a person came for baptism, they were given a new name – usually from the Bible – and thus came the tradition of referring to your first name as your Christian name. When we come to God through faith in Christ, God accepts all that we have to offer, which is nothing other than our sinful nature. But because we have a desire for forgiveness, God accepts us and then exchanges our old sinful nature with new life in Christ.

In this new life in Christ, we, like Jesus, become the beloved child of God, with whom God is delighted and upon whom God’s favor rests. In this new identity, Christ becomes our life. Because Christ is our life, God, our Father, declares that we have right standing with Him, just like Jesus. He further attests that this right standing, since it was given to us as a gift, is not based on our behavior. We are not his new creation because of what we did, or we are doing, or what we have refrained from doing. Rather, we are His children because of what He has done in uniting us to Christ in His death, burial, resurrection, and enthronement. And for all eternity.

My Takeaway: As God’s new creation, we have become friends of God. I want this truth to be embedded deeply within me and influence every thought and deed in my life.

Sē’lah

My book on prayer,

First Think, Then Pray

is now available on Amazon Kindle.

 

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

 

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com.

 

Copyright © 2025 by Alex M. Knight

 

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

 

Fire in My Heart

Meditations on

Staying In the Grace for Today 

April 22, 2025

Fire in My Heart

“I take joy in doing your will, my God,

    for your instructions are written on my heart.”

Psalm 40:8 

I well remember the first time I encountered these words of Jeremiah:

But if I say I’ll never mention the Lord

    or speak in his name,

his word burns in my heart like a fire.

    It’s like a fire in my bones!

I am worn out trying to hold it in!

    I can’t do it!

Jeremiah 20:9 

I had been a lay speaker and a Sunday school teacher, but Jeremiah’s words resonated deeply within me, and I sensed God had other plans for me. Within a few years of reading Jeremiah’s words, I received my first pastoral appointment. The fire burned in me for the thirty-two years I was in a pulpit and has continued to burn for the last thirteen years as I write these meditations. Early in Lent this year, as I began to ponder what I would write after Easter, I had a passing thought that maybe it was time to retire from writing these meditations. Fifteen minutes later I had developed this theme and began writing. The fire still burns within, and like Jeremiah, I cannot hold it in!

God has a plan for all his children. When you are flowing in God’s will for you, you will experience the same joy as our psalmist for today. How do you discern God’s will for your life? The best place to start is by praying. Then ask your pastor for assistance. You can also Google spiritual gifts and discover a plethora of available materials that help you understand your spiritual gifts.

My Takeaway: In my church, our service of Holy Communion concludes with a prayer asking God to assist us with his grace to continue in holy fellowship with him and do all such good works as he has prepared for us. We are asking God to help us take joy in doing his will for us.

Sē’lah

My book on prayer,

First Think, Then Pray

is now available on Amazon Kindle.

 

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

 

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com.

 

Copyright © 2025 by Alex M. Knight

 

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.