*My Face Is Radiant*

I   sought   the   LORD,   and   he   answered   me   and   delivered   me   from   all   my   fears.   Those  who  look  to  him  are  radiant,  and  their  faces   shall   never   be   ashamed.   (Psalm   34:4-5)

Father,

Thank   you   that   when   I   seek   you,   you   answer   me.   You   are   not   a   distant,   busy,   unfeeling,  uncaring   God,   who   doesn’t   care   about   my   troubles.   You   are   a   God   who   is   near,   and   aware   of  every   detail   of   my   life.   When   I   seek   you,   you   don’t   turn   a   deaf   ear   to   my   cries.   You   don’t  harden   your   heart   toward   me.   When   I   call   out   to   you,   you   hear   me,   and   you   come   to   my   aid.  Such   an   astonishing   truth!   The   Lord,   Yahweh,   the   Almighty   One,   hears   me.   The   world-shaper,   star-‐maker,   white   hot   sun-‐creator,   hears   and   comes   to   my   aid.   Such   a   comforting  truth.

You   may   not   relieve   me   of   my   circumstances,   but   you   deliver   me   from   all   my   fears.   You   may  not   change   my   life,   but   you   do   change   my   heart.   When   you   are   with   me,   I   don’t   need   to   be  afraid,   no   matter   what   the   circumstances.   When   you   are   for   me,   it   doesn’t   matter   what  circumstances   are   against   me.   You   are   greater   than   my   circumstances   and   greater   than   my  fears.   I   praise   you   that   you   are   a   delivering   God.   A   rescuing   God.   A   God   who   works   mighty  wonders   for   your   people.   You   are   not   a   passive   God.   You   are   a   God   who   actively,   and  aggressively   works   on   the   behalf   of   your   people.   I   bring   all   my   fears   to   you,   and   I   trust   you   to  deliver   me   out   of   these   fears.   I   don’t   know   how   you   will   deliver   me,   and   I   don’t   need   to   know  how  you  will   deliver   me.   I   place   simple,   child-‐like   trust   in   you   to   deliver   me.

Oh   Lord,   give   me   your   supernatural   joy   in   the   midst   of   life’s   dificult   circumstances.   Because  I   know   you,   I   can   have   overcoming,   radiant,   gloom-‐dispelling   joy   at   all   times.   I   can   be   a  fountain   of   joy   in   the   midst   of   desert   places.   This   radiant   joy   does   not   spring   naturally   from  me,   but   comes   when  I   look   to   you.   Lord,   let   your   joy   radiate   out   of   me,   touching   and   blessing  everyone   I   encounter   today.   Let   your   joy   pour   out   of   me   so   that   I   give   thanks   even   in   the  midst   of   trials.     I   know   that   if   I   continue   looking   to   you,   I   will   never   be   ashamed.   Today   help  me   look   to   you   again   and   again.   Help   me   take   ten   looks   to   you   for   every   one   time   I   look   to  myself.