The Believers Pray for Courage

Meditations on

Staying In the Grace for Today 

September 15, 2025

The Believers Pray for Courage

But what joy for all who take refuge in him!

Psalm 2:12b

Although Psalm 2 does not identify its author, Acts 4:24-26 attributes it to King David. The context of how this Psalm was used in the first years of the Christian church is as applicable today as it was two thousand years ago!

First, some background. Nations rebelled against God’s Sovereignty. But God, out of the abundance of His mercy, sent His only begotten Son, the Messiah, as the way to restoration and harmony with God. The appropriate response to God’s Messiah is subordination to and worship of God. However, devoting our life to God has always been risky because the ways of God conflict with the ways of the world. Psalm 2 addresses a heavenly view of all history as well as the future beyond the horizon.

In Acts 4, Peter and John were arrested. Immediately after their release from jail, they rejoined the other believers, and they all prayed together. (See Acts 4:23-31) They began their prayer by quoting Psalm 2:1-2, “…The kings of the earth prepared for battle; the rulers gathered together against the Lord and against his Messiah” (Acts 4:26). Their prayer reveals they were encountering vicious resistance to their witness for Jesus, and so they prayed, “. . . give us, your servants, great boldness in preaching your word. Stretch out your hand with healing power; may miraculous signs and wonders be done through the name of your holy servant Jesus” (Acts 4:29-30).

Today, the followers of Christ are a minority in the world and in the USA. Today, there is much resistance, including violence, to the witness for Jesus Christ in our culture. Today, every bit as much as the forbearers of our faith in Jerusalem two thousand years ago, we need to pray for courage to boldly proclaim the Word of the Lord. I believe, with every fiber of my being, that as believers come together to pray, we will share in this experience of our ancestors in the cause of Christ:

“After this prayer, the meeting place shook, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit. Then they preached the word of God with boldness” (Acts 4:31).

My Takeaway: Oh Lord, may we be so empowered for your work 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.

Two Days of Rest

Meditations on

Staying In the Grace for Today

September 12, 2025

Two Days of Rest

For in six days the Lord made the heavens, the earth, the sea,

and everything in them;

but on the seventh day he rested.

That is why the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and set it apart as holy.

Exodus 20:11 

Several years ago, after my heart attack and bypass surgery, the discharge nurse insisted I rest for an hour, every day, after lunch. This was a foreign concept to me, which may have been one of the causes of my hospitalization. But for my wife, Cheryl, it was an affirmation of her lifestyle. She is the Queen of Naps. Every day, after lunch, she retires to the bedroom and reads for an hour and naps for an hour. It took me quite a while but eventually I fell into Cheryl’s pattern. Complementing this lifestyle, we also have two rest days each week.

We consider God’s original Sabbath a day of rest and preparation for joining our church family in worship on The Lord’s Day. Our Sabbath is nothing compared to the myriads of rules and regulations governing the Sabbath in Jesus’ day. Rather, our Sabbath is simpler, and the focus is on not being hurried and exhausted by days end. We want to be rested and fresh for our worship time.

On the Lord’s Day, after our time in worship, we are very intentional about resting in the afternoon and evening. Seldom do we schedule any activities outside of our home on Sundays. On this day our focus is on being rested for the activities of the coming week. 

My Takeaway: Jesus was continually harassed by the religious leaders because He worked, that is He healed the sick, on the Sabbath. He worked his hardest on the Sabbath after His crucifixion when He descended to the place of the dead. And He continued to work for forty days until His ascension. Now He is resting at God’s Right Hand in preparation for His return in final victory. It is good to rest. 

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.

Everything Is Transformed

Meditations on

Staying In the Grace for Today 

September 11, 2025

Everything Is Transformed

And I will ask the Father,

and he will give you another Advocate,

who will never leave you.

He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth.

 But you know him, because he lives with you now and later will be in you.

John 14: 16,17 a,c 

God can do so much, in a relatively short period of time, at least the time we keep on a twenty-four clock. Think of what seems like a short period of time Jesus was with Saul on the Road to Damascus. In this time, Paul went from law to grace like no other person before, or since. Or think about Jesus’ disciples. I don’t think they were able to comprehend Jesus’ statement highlighted above in that moment. But in the forty days after his resurrection, Jesus helped them understand EVERYTHING that they had experienced with him for the previous three years.

So, it is also with us. We can cruise through life, then one day we are reading Romans 8:26-27,

And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don’t know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words. And the Father who knows all hearts knows what the Spirit is saying, for the Spirit pleads for us believers in harmony with God’s own will.

And then on this day, we stopped. We usually rushed on ahead to that wonderful ending of Romans 8 where we are promised nothing can separate us from the love of God. Not on this day. On this day we are stunned. We read the Holy Spirit, who lives in us, is praying and pleading to God for us! We rejoice in the truth that God really is for us.

My Takeaway: In moments like this, we are struck by grace. I believe Paul Tillich helps us process this moment of grace.

“After such an experience we may not be better than before, we may not believe more than before. But everything is transformed." (Paul Tillich, The Shaking of the Foundations, Charles Scribner’s Sons, New York, pages160-161) 

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.

Contemplating Eternity with God

Meditations on

Staying In the Grace for Today 

September 10, 2025

Contemplating Eternity with God

Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time.

He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so,

people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work

from beginning to end.

Ecclesiastes 3:11 

Quoting Isaiah 64, the Apostle Paul, in 2 Corinthians 2:9b, provides me with helpful context for the passage in Ecclesiastes quoted above:

“No eye has seen, no ear has heard,

    and no mind has imagined

what God has prepared

    for those who love him.”

I am so blessed to live in the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains of Western North Carolina. Every day, as I walk around my neighborhood, or drive in and out of my community, I get to gaze toward notable peaks such as Mount Mitchell or Mount Pisgah. Glimpsing sunrises and sunsets, or the gases of the Milky Way in the night sky, causes me to ponder eternity and try to imagine what God has prepared for me.

In contrast, the evening news brings more tragic stories of unimaginable suffering in Gaza and Ukraine. Daily, Cheryl and I pray, “Give peace, O Lord, in all the world; for only in You can we live in safety.” Even so, the needs of those trapped in these wars outweigh our desperate prayers. I am writing this morning after a deluge of rain that has brought more flood warnings. And we are approaching the one-year anniversary when wind, rain and floods devastated our area. It is not selfish to seek solace from news of misery; it is self-care. Self-care that helps us stay in God’s grace for today.

My Takeaway: As I seek to stay in God’s grace for today, I am helped by daring to use the eternity God has planted in my heart to try and contemplate what He has prepared for this child of His who loves him.

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.

Desperate Faith

Meditations on

Staying In the Grace for Today 

September 9, 2025

Desperate Faith

Around midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God,

and the other prisoners were listening.

Acts 16:25 

Many years ago, cruise ships with casinos began offering overnight cruises out of Biloxi, MS. A church there was concerned when they learned the cruise ships offered childcare in areas that included toy gambling equipment. The church prayed for a season (a month), and then the Lord led them to initiate their own overnight childcare, at no charge. Soon, and very soon, their facility was full of children whose parents were off on a casino cruise.

Desperate times call for desperate faith. It wasn’t medical research that caused Naaman to dip seven times in the river; it was desperation. (2 Kings 5) Peter was jailed in chains, and his desperate friends, behind closed and locked doors, prayed for him, and an angel of the Lord escorted Peter out of the prison. (Acts 12) Paul and Silas were chained between the guards in a prison cell. With no other options, they prayed and worshipped God by singing hymns.

My Takeaway: I am blessed to be very comfortable in my retirement years. However, as I look over my prayer list, I see many friends and family members in truly desperate circumstances. I pray that my acts of faith in praying for them will be as effectual as Naaman’s trust, as the prayers of Peter’s friends and those of Paul and Silas.

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.

H Times 3

Meditations on

Staying In the Grace for Today

NOTE: Cheryl and I will be traveling over the next two weeks, and I will have limited email availability. I may not be able to promptly reply to your questions or comments. I have worked ahead, and the next two weeks of meditations are already in the cue and ready to be posted each day.

September 8, 2025

H Times 3

I will sing of your love and justice, Lord.

I will praise you with songs.

I will be careful to live a blameless life—

Psalm 101:1-2a

I am thankful to my friend, Rev. Dick Brown, for teaching me the acrostic H³. It is so helpful in remembering the basic qualities of a follower of Jesus: Hunger for God; Heart for people; and Hatred of sin. Elements of all three of these are used by King David in Psalm 101.

When God’s people were preparing to enter the Promised Land, Moses gave them final instructions. As the Covenant people of God, they were promised God’s blessings: “If you fully obey the Lord your God and carefully keep all his commands that I am giving you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations of the world.” “But if you refuse to listen to the Lord your God and do not obey all the commands and decrees I am giving you today, all these curses will come and overwhelm you” (Deuteronomy 28:1, 15).

As the King of Israel, David was responsible for modeling Covenant-life for his people. In this psalm, he is taking responsibility to lead the people in faithfully obeying God’s commands.

Jesus fulfilled Psalm 101, and Jesus makes it possible for us to fulfill Psalm 101: “For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ” (2 Corinthians 5:21).

I believe Psalm 101 can serve as a reminder of the importance of modeling before those in our circle of influence the life of a fully-devoted follower of Jesus.

My Takeaway: While there may be nuances in how each of us is experiencing the life in Christ, depending on our own Christian maturity and our environment, we’ll always be close to the heart of Christ if we remember H³, Hunger for God; Heart for people; and Hatred of sin.

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.

 

God Can Be Trusted

Meditations on

Staying In the Grace for Today 

September 5, 2025

God Can Be Trusted

Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm,

for God can be trusted to keep his promise.

Hebrews 10:23

I recall reading, many years ago, Principals of Spiritual Growth, by Miles Stanford. In the book, he wrote, to be disappointed with yourself, is to have believed in yourself. I believe this is a thought worth pondering, but don’t tarry here too long. The essence of Stanford’s thought is simply an issue of whether we are trusting God to keep His promises or are we trusting in ourselves for our spiritual growth. I learned a long time ago that my flesh cannot be rehabilitated. I can’t make myself become a better person through spiritual disciplines, no matter how hard I try. The Apostle Paul understood this and used rather graphic descriptions for our entering into new life in Christ. Look at how he discusses death to self in Romans 6, or perhaps even more graphically 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.” (Emphasis mine)

To be disappointed in circumstances and how we relate to those circumstances is a part of life. As an example, consider the two disciples walking to Emmaus on Resurrection Sunday. (Luke 24) They were disappointed and confused. Then something happened, or rather, someone happened. “They said to each other, “Didn’t our hearts burn within us as he talked with us on the road and explained the Scriptures to us?” (Luke 24:32) When we are disappointed in our circumstances, or in ourselves, let’s have a go-to place that can ground us once again in the eternal truth that God can be trusted to keep his promise. We may not have something as dramatic as the two disciple’s Emmaus Road experience, but when we feel ourselves slipping into the mire of disappointment, we need our own pathway out of the mire.

My Takeaway: I have two pathways to help me in times of disappointment. The first is Psalm 23 and reminding myself, “thou art with me.” The second is in the Eucharist where upon receiving the elements of Holy Communion, I am reminded that I am experiencing anew the presence of Christ within me. In both places, I am reminded, God can be trusted to keep his promise. 

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.