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
Lord, be gracious to us; we long for you. Be our strength every morning, our salvation in time of distress. (Isaiah 33:2)
Prayer of Confession
Confession is formative. It trains us to recognize the ways our hearts have become de-formed and how Christ is at work bringing redemption in our lives. Pray with this in mind.
Surprising God, who would have thought that dying was good?
My instinct is to avoid it. But, in Jesus, I see that dying is the way to life.
Equip me to do what is so difficult—to die to myself and become new.
May I be genuinely sorry for my sin, to hate it more and more,
and to run away from it. Amen.*
Take a moment to confess your sins, knowing that he hears you.
*Prayer borrowed from Philip Reinders’ Seeking God’s Face
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 42| Read Galatians 4
- 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: “Paul’s letter to the Galatian churches helps them, and us, recover the original freedom of the gospel. It also gives direction in the nature of God’s gift of freedom—most necessary guidance, for freedom is a delicate and subtle gift, easily perverted and often squandered.” Meditate on the passage, noting a few words or a phrase that stood out. Take them to God in prayer.
Evening Readings:
Pray Psalm 43 | Read Deuteronomy 15
- OT Context: “The book of Deuteronomy is organized as a series of addresses given by Moses to the people of Israel in the land of Moab, where they had stopped at the end of the long wilderness journey and were about to enter and occupy Canaan…The great theme of the book is that God has saved and blessed his chosen people, whom he loves; so his people are to remember this, and love and obey him, so that they may have life and continued blessing. The key verses of the book are 6:4–6, and contain the words that Jesus called the greatest of all commandments, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.”Reflect on the passage. Who was the original audience, and what was their situation? How is that relevant to you today?
Sermon Devo
Each day this devo will tread along a variety of paths connected to the week’s theme in Knowing God. Consider this your invitation to come along for the ride as we head into the wilds of coming to know and experience God’s person and grace.
I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust”. . . . He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart. Psalm 91:2, 4 (NIV)
God loves clingy people. You can cling to God, and he won’t mind at all. Cling to him in love, and you will have his strength.
That’s a pretty nice trade. You bring to him your weakness, and he gives to you his strength. He will be your shield and your rampart. He will cover you.
That’s how faith works. If you believe that, you’re pretty well on the way to having your joy fulfilled and your joy restored. It’s very easy to presume and think you’re believing. Presumption and faith are often very close to the same thing. Both are characterized by confidence. But presumption is confidence in yourself or in some human resource. It never has submission to God in its makeup, but instead is always trying to get God to submit to your will.
Faith has trust in it, reliance on God—on Christ’s death on the cross—and submission to the will of God. That’s what brings you into fellowship with God. It’s not your power to be religious, but rather that you have a God who has drawn near. And he has come in the person of Jesus Christ. Because he has drawn near, he is drawing me nearer through Jesus.
Today’s Devo is from Jack Miller’s Saving Grace
Reflect: How would you respond to Jesus’ question: “What are you after?” How have you responded to his invitation? “Come along and see…”
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
May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. (2 Corinthians 13:14)
