Tag: Devotional

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Have you ever sat down to read your Bible, and after reading over a passage had the thought, “I have no idea what I just read or why it’s important in my everyday life.” Don’t worry, you’re not alone. It’s sometimes very difficult to read an ancient text that was written to an ancient people in an ancient culture who lived very different lives than we do. 

But just because a passage may be difficult to understand, it doesn’t mean there isn’t tremendous value in the text. Slowly but surely, through reading, study, prayer, and discernment, you’ll glean new and valuable insights from the text. These new insights will continually help you to know the heart of God.

Next time you read a passage that seems difficult to understand and apply to your life, study it out in greater detail. What did the text mean to the original people who read it? How did it impact their view of God and themselves? Through ongoing reading, study, prayer, and discernment, you’ll come to place more and more value on the Scriptures. And as you do, you’ll also grow in helping others value them too. 

READING & JOURNALING:

    2 TIMOTHY 3:16-17, ACTS 17:11

On a scale of 1-10, how much would you say you value the Scriptures? 

In what ways may this impact your ability to make disciples? 

PRAYER:

Heavenly Father, there are some Bible passages I know by heart, but I confess there are others that are sometimes confusing. Help me to grow in valuing all of the Scriptures, as it all comes from You. I pray in Jesus’ name. Amen. 

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Every day you hear dozens of voices and are put in the position of choosing which ones to listen to and which ones to ignore. You may choose to listen to one cable news network and not another. You may choose to listen to one sports radio program but not another. You may choose to listen to one podcast but not another. 

Whatever your choice may be, you are essentially choosing to be a student (or a disciple) of one person and not another. You’re learning from one news anchor’s perspective and not another. You’re learning from one sports radio host’s perspective and not another. And on and on it goes… 

There’s nothing inherently wrong or sinful about this. In fact, it’s good to have a fuller understanding of what’s happening in the world, or it may be enjoyable to learn which teams or players are currently on a hot streak. 

But these voices do have the potential to drown out or overwhelm other more important voices. If you truly are called to make disciples, the best step to take is to be a disciple of Jesus. Today, let His voice be the one you think about most.

READING & JOURNALING:

     PSALM 25:4-5

In a previous devotional, there was a quote provided from Peter Scazzero. “An emotionally healthy disciple slows down to be with Jesus, goes beneath the surface of their life to be deeply transformed by Jesus, and offers their life as a gift to the world for Jesus.”

How will you slow down to be with Jesus today? This week? This month? Be specific, and consider asking a trusted friend to help you as you adjust your daily rhythms.

PRAYER:

Heavenly Father, I confess there are days when I don’t really see myself as a disciple. But as somebody who has chosen to trust in You, I recognize that it is You I am to follow, and Your voice I should be what I’m most listening to and meditating upon. Today, help me to see any path I may be following which is not directly from You. I pray in Jesus’ name. Amen. 

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At the end of Jesus’ ministry He offered one final command to His disciples. He said, “…go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:19-20)

You may read this passage and think to yourself, “That sounds great, but I don’t really have any experience in making disciples. I’ll let the professionals do that and I’ll just try to serve God in other ways.”

But this isn’t what Jesus has called you to do. He has called all of His followers to “…go and make disciples.” It’s as if Jesus was saying, “Everything you do from here on out, all of it, it’s about making disciples. Every moment of every day, you have the opportunity to help others know Me. To see what a free and full life looks like. Go, and live that out in such a way that others will grow in their understanding of who I am.”

All who follow Jesus have a responsibility when it comes to making disciples. 

READING & JOURNALING:

     MATTHEW 28:19-20

Do you agree that you have a responsibility when it comes to making disciples? 

What do you think is the first step in making disciples? 

PRAYER:

Heavenly Father, there are many moments in my life when I believe that somebody else would be better equipped to make disciples. But You have called me to trust You in everything, which includes being intentional in the pursuit to make disciples of all nations. Help this truth to permeate my thoughts and actions. I pray in Jesus’ name. Amen. 

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How regularly do you stop to pause and consider the level of abundance we have in our culture? If we’re all being honest, it’s so normal for us that we forget just how much stuff we have. There are the basics, such a roof over our heads and food to eat. But we don’t just have food to eat, we have a lot of options of what kinds of food we can choose to eat.

Compare this with the people of God in the Old Testament. The people of God were enslaved in Egypt, and after they were freed God provided them with just enough food to eat. Manna appeared on the ground every day and it was just enough for each person to have their fill. When they became thirsty God provided just enough water for them to continue. 

How did the people respond to this? They complained to Moses and to God. They wanted to go back to be enslaved, because as slaves they at least had an abundance of food and water. But God’s plan wasn’t for His people to be enslaved. Part of His plan was to provide for His people, and for His people to  trust that He and He alone could provide what they needed most.

READING & JOURNALING:

     2 PETER 1:3-11

Today, take the opportunity to write down at least ten ways God has provided you what you need most. Then write out your own prayer of thanksgiving. 

PRAYER:

Today, write out your own prayer of thanksgiving.

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Each and every day you follow certain routines. While some aspects of your schedule may change from day to day, there’s often a defined order to what you do and when you do it. To put it another way, you have practiced living a certain way and have practiced it so well that many aspects of life are routine. These practices will all impact how you live and how you grow.

As a result, it is vital that we all make a radical shift in our daily practices. In Emotionally Healthy Discipleship, Peter Scazzero outlines what this radical shift looks like. While it’s difficult to summarize what this looks like, Scazzero does an admirable job of narrowing it down to a single sentence. He writes, “An emotionally healthy disciple slows down to be with Jesus, goes beneath the surface of their life to be deeply transformed by Jesus, and offers their life as a gift to the world for Jesus.”

There are three main practices highlighted here. First, slowing down to be with Jesus. Second, going beneath the surface in your emotional and spiritual to be deeply transformed by Jesus. These two lead to the third, offering your life as a gift to the world for Jesus. 

READING & JOURNALING:

    COLOSSIANS 2:13-23

In what ways can you make radical shifts in your daily practices so that you can slow down to be with Jesus, go beneath the surface in your life to be transformed by Jesus, and to offer your life as a gift to the world for Jesus? 

PRAYER:

Heavenly Father, today’s reading has helped me see that the Christian life truly does require a radical shift in the way I think and the practices I live by. Continue to guide me, shape me, and transform me into the person You have made me to be, so that I may reflect Your love to others who may be living in brokenness. I pray in Jesus’ name. Amen. 

PRAYER:

Heavenly Father, I realize I could swim in an ocean of Your promises and would never be able to see how far and wide and deep they go. Today, I pray that the truth of being raised to a new life will captivate my thoughts, words, and deeds. I pray in Jesus’ name. Amen. 

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Imagine for a moment that you’ve just read every single promise made by God throughout the Scriptures. Over a period of several months, perhaps years, you’ve taken the time to write down every promise He made, and now you’re re-reading each promise in an effort to better understand the mysteries of who God is. How are you currently feeling after reading through these promises? Which of them stuck out to you? 

Answers to these questions will vary greatly from person to person. But there’s one promise that is regularly repeated throughout the New Testament. And this is the promise of being freed from death, and raised to new life in Christ. 

In his book Gentle and Lowly, pastor and author Dane Ortlund writes, “Christ was sent not to mend wounded people or inspire bored people or spur on lazy people or educate ignorant people, but to raise dead people.”

While it’s true that you will experience wounds, boredom, and more through life, it’s also true that God has raised you to a new life in Christ. Live in that hope. 

READING & JOURNALING:

     EPHESIANS 2:1-10, COLOSSIANS 3:1-4

Think about your daily routines, thoughts, and behaviors. Is your life marked more by your old dead life, or by your new real life? 

PRAYER:

Heavenly Father, I realize I could swim in an ocean of Your promises and would never be able to see how far and wide and deep they go. Today, I pray that the truth of being raised to a new life will captivate my thoughts, words, and deeds. I pray in Jesus’ name. Amen. 

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What were the first thoughts that went through your mind when you woke up this morning? Was it a prayer of thanksgiving? Was it a peaceful thought about the changing of the seasons? Were you thinking about all the things you need to do?  

If we’re all being honest, sometimes the first thoughts that enter our mind each morning are none of the above. Sometimes, perhaps more often than not, our minds are flooded with thoughts of fears and feelings of inadequacies. 

Think of it this way. Answer the following fill-in-the-blank question and write in the very first word that comes to your mind.  Fill in the Blank: Sometimes I wonder if I am or ever will be ___________ enough.

How did you fill in the blank? Sometimes I wonder if I am or ever will be good enough?…worthy enough?…significant enough?…successful enough? 

Now, take the opportunity to wrestle with an even more important question: Who told you you’re not _____ enough? 

READING & JOURNALING:

     2 PETER 1:3-11

Why do you think people struggle so much with fears and feelings of inadequacy? 

Be honest: Who told you you’re not _____ enough? In what ways can you take this lie captive and cast it aside? 

PRAYER:

Heavenly Father, today I confess that I give in to self-loathing and feelings of inadequacy far too often. Today, I offer my thanks that You have not told me I’m ____ enough, but have instead called me your beloved child. May I remember and rest in this truth today. In Jesus’ name. Amen. 

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Think about it: is there a day within the previous month, six months, or even a year, when you felt completely at peace? What was happening in your life before that day? What were the events that unfolded that helped you experience that day of sheer contentment? 

As people, we focus a whole lot of time and energy on the things we don’t like. Didn’t like the service at a restaurant? Vent to somebody about it later in the day. Didn’t enjoy a certain movie? Tell somebody what you didn’t like about it. Didn’t like a decision made by a politician? Tell the television how wrong it is. Didn’t like the decision the coach made? Throw the cat at the television! 

This pattern of focusing on what we don’t like creates an unhealthy mindset. It creates within us a habit of keeping an eye out for what we don’t enjoy. Simultaneously, it prevents us from focussing on the things we do enjoy. Today, take the opportunity to think differently. Spend time thinking about and doing things that bring you contentment. Fill your tank. 

READING & JOURNALING:

     PHILIPPIANS 4:4-13

What are some things that help you experience real peace and contentment in life? 

What are some ways you can incorporate these things into your daily life (or even your thoughts), so that you can more regularly experience peace and contentment? 

PRAYER:

Heavenly Father, today’s reading has helped me realize just how often I think about what I don’t like, instead of thinking about all the joys, wonders, and beauty You have granted to me. Today, my desire is to see myself, others, and the world as You do – part of Your beautiful creation. I pray in Jesus’ name. Amen. 

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