JOHN SHIRK – In the Year of Focus, we take a look at a prayer of thanks from Psalm 118:21.

“I will give you thanks, for you answered me; you have become my salvation.”

Prayer involves more than simply offering our requests to God. In prayer, we have the opportunity to give Him thanks for answered prayer, His abundant blessings, and His unfailing love. Psalm 118 ends exactly as it begins with these words, “Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever.”

This prayer of thanks is worth examining for a faith-focused life.

John Shirk

john@wjtl.com

JOHN SHIRK – 2026 is the Year of Focus at WJTL. Be listening for devotionals focused on Jesus, along with insights for growing in our relationship with Him in prayer and praise.

Today’s Praise Focus comes from Psalm 40, verse 3.

“He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see and fear the LORD and put their trust in him.”

When God changes our heart, He also changes our tune. We start to identify with songs that stir our soul to praise. The lyrics that move us are different.

David was the man who wrote this Psalm. He was a man after God’s own heart. As he used music as an instrument of praise, it would become a form of ministry to encourage others to trust in God.

The new song that God places in our mouth is a reason to praise God in the Year of Focus.

John Shirk

john@wjtl.com

JOHN SHIRK – 2026 is the Year of Focus at WJTL. Be listening for devotionals focused on Jesus, along with insights for growing in our relationship with Him in prayer and praise.

In our Prayer Focus today, we take a look at the prayer taught by Jesus in Matthew 6:12.

“Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.”

There is freedom in confession as there is freedom in forgiveness. The power of God’s forgiveness is available to us when we sin against Him. He invites us to come into the light, to acknowledge what we have done, and ask for His grace to forgive and restore a right heart.

Knowing God’s forgiveness also gives us the power to forgive others who have done something wrong against us. It is the path forward to keep bitterness and hatred from taking root in our hearts.

The Prayer taught by Jesus, seeking forgiveness, is worth examining for a faith-focused life.

John Shirk

john@wjtl.com

JOHN SHIRK – 2026 is the Year of Focus at WJTL. Be listening for devotionals focused on Jesus, along with insights for growing in our relationship with Him in prayer and praise.

Today’s Praise Focus comes from Psalm 40, verses 1 and 2.

“I waited patiently for the LORD; he turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand.”

Whenever we see answers to prayer, that is a reason to praise God. Wherever we see Him lifting us out of our desperate circumstances to a place of stability, that is a reason to praise God.

This Psalm reflects the experience of salvation for anyone who calls on the name of Jesus. He lifts us out of the mud and mire of our sin, and puts us on the firm foundation of His grace and truth. His unfailing love rescues us and cleanses us from sin.

Knowing Jesus as the Rock of our salvation is a reason to praise God in the Year of Focus.

John Shirk

john@wjtl.com

JOHN SHIRK – 2026 is the Year of Focus at WJTL. Be listening for devotionals focused on Jesus, along with insights for growing in our relationship with Him in prayer and praise.

In our Prayer Focus today, we take a look at the prayer taught by Jesus in Matthew 6:11.

Give us today our daily bread.

This is a prayer for God to provide what we really need. Our greatest need is Jesus, who identified Himself as the Bread of Life. His grace is sufficient and endures forever.

This prayer is also expressed in the Old Testament, in Proverbs 30, verse 8. “Give me only my daily bread. Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you and say, ‘Who is the LORD?’ or I may become poor and steal, and so, dishonor the name of my God.” Seeking God’s provision for what we need trains us to depend on Him every day.

The Prayer taught by Jesus, requesting our daily bread, is worth examining for a faith-focused life.

John Shirk

john@wjtl.com

JOHN SHIRK – 2026 is the Year of Focus at WJTL. Be listening for devotionals focused on Jesus, along with insights for growing in our relationship with Him in prayer and praise.

In our Prayer Focus for today, we take a look at the prayer taught by Jesus in Matthew 6:10.

“Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”

This is a prayer that welcomes God’s rule and reign over the earth. It can refer to the longing of the heart for Jesus to return in the future. It can also refer to the spreading influence of the Gospel in the present age. This can also be a prayer that we make personal.

“God, have Your way in my life. Be enthroned on my heart to reign as my King as you are honored in Heaven.”

The prayer taught by Jesus, for His Kingdom to come, is worth examining for a faith-focused life.

John Shirk

john@wjtl.com

JOHN SHIRK – 2026 is the Year of Focus at WJTL. Be listening for devotionals focused on Jesus, along with insights for growing in our relationship with Him in prayer and praise.

Today’s Praise Focus comes from First Peter 2:9 and 10.

“You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.”

This is what happens when we are receptive to the love of God. His forgiveness frees us from the guilt of sin. He gives us a place in His forever family. He gives us a place of ministry to serve Him in productive ways. He brings us out of spiritual darkness into the light of His mercy.

God’s Mercy is a reason to praise God in the Year of Focus.

John Shirk

john@wjtl.com

JOHN SHIRK – 2026 is the Year of Focus at WJTL. Be listening for devotionals focused on Jesus, along with insights for growing in our relationship with Him in prayer and praise.

In our Prayer focus for today, we take a look at the prayer taught by Jesus in Matthew 6:9.

“Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name.

That word “Hallowed” means “Set apart as holy and worthy of reverence.” This is an accurate view of God that gives us clarity of His unblemished purity whenever we enter His throne of grace. He is completely untainted by sin. At the same time, He is compassionate toward humans like us who have the sinful nature. And so, we enter His presence with the awareness that He is a great God, and a compassionate God, which enables us to approach Him with humility and confidence.

The Prayer taught by Jesus, acknowledging the holiness of God, is worth examining for a faith-focused life.

John Shirk

john@wjtl.com

JOHN SHIRK – 2026 is the Year of Focus at WJTL. Be listening for devotionals focused on Jesus, along with insights for growing in our relationship with Him in prayer and praise.

Today’s Praise Focus comes from Deuteronomy 32:3 and 4.

“I will proclaim the name of the LORD. Oh, praise the greatness of our God! He is the Rock, his works are perfect, and all his ways are just. A faithful God who does no wrong, upright and just is he.”

In all His ways, God is right in what He does. Just as He led the Israelites to the Promised Land by His faithful hand, we can trust Him to lead our way by His guiding light. Through His counsel, through His discipline, and through His love, He builds the lives of His followers on a firm foundation and moves us forward as witnesses for the Gospel. We might not understand all His ways, but in the light of His wisdom, God knows what He is doing. We can count on Him to be faithful to His people.

The greatness of God is a reason to praise God in the Year of Focus.

John Shirk

john@wjtl.com