Use this devo as you are able, in whole or in part. Don’t feel compelled to read it all. Simply read and meditate upon whatever catches your attention. The goal is enjoying time with God through His Word and in prayer. Questions about the devotional elements?

Call to Prayer

Prayer of Confession

Jesus, friend of sinners, your resurrected life is not a private experience or a soothing metaphor but a stubborn public reality.

May your well-attested resurrection impel me to openly announce the outrageously good news—

that sins are forgiven through what you have done when the gospel promise is received in truth faith. Amen!

*Prayer borrowed from Philip Reinders’ Seeking God’s Face: Praying with the Bible through the Year

Reading Plan

This reading plan will help you to develop the habit of being in God’s Word each morning and evening. Come to this time with expectation. Expect God to reveal himself to you. Expect that he delights in you being there, even when you’ve wandered away. Growing a spiritual habit is a slow, patient process. So be kind to yourself as you grow! 

Readings are hyperlinked. Simply hover over the passage or click Morning/Evening Reading (email version).

Morning Readings:

Pray Psalm 86 | Read 2 Thessalonians 1

• Praying the Psalms: Read slowly. Take note of words and phrases. Bring them before the Lord in prayer and personalize the passage as you pray.
• NT Context: “The way we conceive the future sculpts the present, gives contour and tone to nearly every action and thought through the day. Paul’s two letters to the Christians in Thessalonica, among much else, correct such debilitating misconceptions about the future and our present, prodding us to continue to live forward in taut and joyful expectancy for what God will do next in Jesus. Meditate on the passage, noting a few words or a phrase that stood out. Take them to God in prayer.

Evening Readings:

Pray Psalm 87 | Read Joshua 2

• OT Context: “People who want God as an escape from reality, from the often hard conditions of this life, don’t find this much to their liking. But to the man or woman wanting more reality, not less—this continuation of the salvation story—Joshua’s fierce and devout determination to win land for his people and his extraordinary attention to getting all the tribes and their families name by name assigned to their own place, is good news indeed. Joshua lays a firm foundation for a life that is grounded.” Reflect on the passage. Who was the original audience, and what was their situation? How is that relevant to you today?

Sermon Devo

READ: John 4:19-24

A LIFE OF WORSHIP*
Worship must be Christ centered, Holy Spirit led, a response to the Father . . . and always lead to transformation. — Tim Hughes

For the Samaritan woman whose story is told in today’s passage, worship was location dependent. Her main question was one of place: Where should we worship? But Jesus, as he so often does, interacts with a better question: How should we worship? Places and forms of worship can be helpful. But ultimately worship— ascribing worth and honor to God in whatever we do, say, or sing—is about the heart. The Holy Spirit, as our teacher, wants to reveal to us God’s goodness, beauty, truth—and most of all his love. We need only ask. And when God’s love and beauty and truth are seen, it is only natural to respond in thankfulness and worship.

Reflect:

1. What does it mean to worship God “in spirit and truth”?

2. Jesus said, “The hour is coming, and is now here.” What happened in the coming of Jesus that allows us to worship in spirit and truth?

3. Do you desire to grow in the area of worship? Ask the Holy Spirit to show you today God’s goodness, beauty, truth, and love in specific ways. When that prayer is answered, when your heart leaps at beholding something good, offer a simple prayer of worship—like “Thank you, Lord,” or “You are amazing, God.”

*Today’s devo comes from The Reservoir by Christopher Hall and Carolyn Arends

Evening Prayer of Examen

• Where did you move with or feel close to Jesus today?
• Where did you resist or feel far from Jesus today?
• Where is Jesus leading you tomorrow? Ask for joy as you follow him.

Benediction