Holy One, the Holy One from everlasting, our sovereign Lord, our living God, our God who is alive—real—existing, our God who rewards those who seek Him, our Father who has loved us and chosen us and called us: we are among those who want to draw near to You. We want to please You by exercising true faith in believing that You are who You say You are and that You do what You say You do.
We are among those who desire to please You only because You loved us more than we hated You. You wanted us more than we wished to get away from You. You overpowered us and brought us to Yourself. Thank You! Thank You! You brought us to Yourself. And along with us, You have brought an innumerable host of others who are also “bought with the precious blood of Christ.” You have called out a people—a people for Your own possession. We are Your people—Your church. You decided to get Yourself glory by creation and redemption. Thank You. Thank You for redeeming us. We praise You for such infinite generosity on Your part. You are the infinite God. We have no category for You. You break all of our boxes and all our preconceptions and all our expectations. We cannot fathom You. You exceed everything we could ask or think. In the extremity of our limitations (we are limited in every single capacity—without exception!), it is easy and natural for us to be frustrated with Your freedom and with our inability to comprehend You or predict Your doings. We don’t like being outclassed, and we do not really understand worship. And so we resent You, or we try to recast You into a form that we can process—something that fits in a box and resembles our native concepts of reality. But this never works for You. You shatter every human notion. You snap the chains with which we arrogantly and foolishly seek to bind You. You crush the boxes we designed for You. You will not give Your glory to another! You will not be worshipped like a mere idol is worshipped. You will be exalted and enthroned. You will take Your place as the Sovereign of the universe. You will exercise all Your freedom and capacity. You will do whatever You please. You will manifest every diversity that You choose. No one will stay Your hand. No one can rebuke You for what You do. No one can take You on and win. You have the absolute right to act according to Your own counsel and to pursue Your own glory and good pleasure. Good God, breath-taking, brilliant God, we praise You!
We praise You, and we come to You. We—our body, Hampton Park—needs You. We need You to work in us and grow and us and change us and let us know You. Break our boxes today. Shatter the limits of our finite demands and expectations of You. Forgive us for making an idol—crafting an image of You in our own imagination and calling it “God.” You are not “a tame lion.” You will not be domesticated. You are not safe. But You are good. You are wise. You are trustworthy. Forgive us for thinking that we can figure things out and live, in our own strength and understanding, lives that please You. Do violence to our paltry, shriveled paradigms of thinking and feeling and living. Enlarge our capacity for You and really, for life—for living: both now and Later. O to know You and Live! Open our eyes to see You as You really are. If only You would excavate our hearts! Teach us to know the love of Christ so that we are capacitated for being filled with all the fullness of God. The life of God in the soul of man—of necessity this is a painful, breaking thing. By definition, it is impossible. But the things that are impossible with men are possible with You. You can fashion the human heart into a temple that is fit for even You to live in. You can make the redeemed soul a home for Yourself, and You can live there with joy and power and peace. You can make many hearts come together and grow together and love together. O do this! Do this for our body! Come! Live in us—individually and corporately—even though the housing of the fullness of God tear our souls apart with the fierceness of the love and joy and the radical nature of the change. Scarring joy. Sweet pain. Genuine truth wedded to genuine love. You can make our church reflect this. You can grow us in truth and love and unity and joy. You can bring about true fellowship—with You and with each other. You can do this, so please do. Grow us.
Teach us to live by faith. If we are living by faith, then we will let You be who You are. We will not arrogantly seek to solve all the questions and provide all the answers and dictate to You what Your course of action must be. We will let You reign. We on earth will reflect Heaven as we reverence Your Name, as we pursue Your Kingdom, and as we do Your will. Accomplish this in us. Teach us to live by faith—O that Christ would dwell in our hearts by faith. It is because Christ is living in us and changing us that we are making these requests. It is on the basis of His standing before You, Father, and our standing in Him alone that we are here confidently and willingly spreading out all of our weakness and sin and inability and desire before You and asking for Your grace and power and truth and love to come and accomplish Your work in our body. We know that You give grace to throne-of-grace-comers. So we come. We love You, and we trust You. We believe that everything really is from You and through You and to You. Please be glorified in us now in increasing measure and then perfectly forever. Amen.
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