listen

Opening Prayer: “But I have stilled and quieted my soul, like a weaned child with its mother; like a weaned child is my soul within me.” (Psalm 131:2)

Scripture: Zephaniah 3:17

Journal: Is your life still enough and quiet enough to hear the song of love God is singing over you?  Why or why not?  Will you listen to his voice of delight and affection today?    

Reflection:

if you are not

still and quiet

you cannot hear

the song of love

he sings over you

Pray

Closing Prayer: “Is that a joyous choir I hear?  No, it is the Lord exulting over you in happy song.” (Zephaniah 3:17, TLB)

thanksgiving 2024

Opening Prayer: Always, continually, and in all circumstances, that is your will for me.  Forgive me, O Lord, when I offer you so much less than that.  Thank you that your desire for me is so much bigger than that.  Give me the strength and the grace and the courage to accomplish your will.

Scripture: 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

Journal: What do these verses stir up in you?  What is your current level of joy, prayer, and gratitude?  How will you live a life that is pursuing all three?

Reflection: “Rejoice always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” 

Most of us are content to be joyful when things are good, prayerful when they are not, and thankful only when we are happy and healthy.  But the Scriptures tell us a much different story.  God’s will for us is much bigger than that.

God’s will for us is to rejoice always.  That’s right, always!  Even when things aren’t going so well.  Even when we are sad or sorrowful or depressed.  The beautiful thing about joy is that it’s a choice.  It is not contingent on everything being rosy in our lives and our world.  Joy can coexist with sorrow and sadness and pain.  It is much deeper than an emotion; it is an attitude, a state of mind.  It is a determination to hold fast to God’s goodness and his love, even when our hearts are breaking.  Because joy is about trust, a deep-seated trust that God is always working for our ultimate and eternal good, and that he will take care of us just the way he promised.

Secondly, it is God’s will that we pray continually.  Not just every now and then.  Not just when we think we should.  Not just when we’re feeling guilty or dutiful.  Not just when we want something.  He wants to hear from us always, and he wants to be with us in continual, intimate union.  He is not just the one we turn to when we are in a jam or need a favor, but the one we are in constant communication with.  That’s what a genuine relationship is all about.  It’s ongoing, it’s give and take, it’s back and forth, it's speaking and listening, it’s being with.  In other words, it’s continual.   

And finally, God’s will is that we live a life of gratitude, constantly giving thanks.  Not just when things are going our way, but in all circumstances, knowing that he is always at work in ways we can’t see or understand.  Knowing that he is doing things in us and through us that can only be accomplished through struggle and strife and dependence.  The hard times are the ones that accomplish his deeper purposes in and through us, and that’s something to be thankful about.

Pray

Closing Prayer: Be cheerful no matter what; pray all the time; thank God no matter what happens.  This is the way God wants you who belong to Christ Jesus to live. (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, MSG)

the secret stairs

Opening Prayer:

They all were looking for a king

To slay their foes and lift them high;

Thou cam'st, a little baby thing

That made a woman cry.

O Son of God, to right my lot

Naught but Thy presence can avail;

Yet on the road Thy wheels are not,

Nor on the sea Thy sail!

My how or when Thou wilt not heed,

But come down Thine own secret stair,

That Thou mayst answer all my need,

Yea, every bygone prayer!

~That Holy Thing by George MacDonald

Scripture: Luke 1:35

Journal: How do you normally expect God to show up in your life?  How does he usually show up?  How will you keep your eyes on his “secret stair” during this season? 

Reflection: How do you expect God to come to you?  In power and glory, with a show of might and brilliance, or down the secret stairs?

If the Nativity taught us anything, it’s that Jesus, most likely, is not going to show up in quite the way we expect him to.  In fact, He is likely to come as he did that first Christmas Eve/Day, in lowliness, in hiddenness, and in humility.

And since he chose to come to us in that way, it is highly likely that he wants us to show up in the lives of others in that way as well.  Not in a blaze of glory with spotlights shining but using the secret stairs.  Thus, how we show up is almost as important as if we show up at all.

God is not looking for a big presence who will take the world by storm, he’s looking for those who are willing to slip in the backdoor unnoticed, those willing to enter by the secret stairs and show up lovingly, humbly, and consistently in the lives of those who are in desperate need of him.

Pray

Closing Prayer: I am forever grateful, O God, not only that you came, but also for how you came.  Help me to do the same.

deeper healing

Opening Prayer: Thank you, Lord Jesus, that you aren’t just concerned with the wounds of our bodies, but also the wounds of our souls.  Your deepest desire is that we be whole again, both inside and out.  Thanks that you always aim at the deepest healing possible.

Scripture: Mark 5:24-34

Journal: What is the deeper healing that God wants to do in you?

Reflection: “Daughter, your faith has healed you.  Go in peace and be freed from your suffering.”

When Jesus heals, he always heals on the deepest level.  He doesn’t just want to heal the outside; he wants to heal the inside.  He doesn’t just want to stop the bleeding of our body but wants also to stop the bleeding of our soul.  That’s why he kept looking around for the one who touched him; he hadn’t finished healing her yet.  Oh sure, her bleeding had stopped, but she was still far from whole.  That would also require a work in her soul.  He still needed her to know who she really was and how deeply she was loved, so he called her daughter.  “You are no longer unclean, that is not who you are.  You are now my daughter; my dearly loved little girl.  Go from this place and live your life from that beautiful reality.” 

Pray

Closing Prayer: Heal me, Lord Jesus, at the deepest levels, so that I can be whole and free.

 

advent 2024

Two great options for Advent, in case you are looking for a good companion.

his song of love

Opening Prayer: “Cheer up, Zion!  Don’t be afraid!  For the Lord your God is living among you.  He is a mighty savior.  He will take delight in you with gladness.  With his love, he will calm all your fears.  He will rejoice over you with joyful songs.” (Zephaniah 3:16-17)

Scripture: Zephaniah 3:14-17

Journal: What song are you listening to today?  Can you hear the song the Lord is singing over you?  Why, or why not?  What does his song do in you?

Reflection: “The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing.” (Zephaniah 3:17)

What song do you listen to each day?  Do you listen to the song of those around you who demand that you become like them?  Do you listen to the song of the voices within you who continually tell you that you are not enough?  Or do you listen to the song of the One who made you and wants you to know the depths of his delight and affection?  Because the song you listen to the most is the song that your life will sing to others.

Pray

Closing Prayer: “Is that a joyous choir I hear?  No, it is the Lord himself exulting over you in happy song.” (Zephaniah 3:17, TLB) Listen to the song of delight and affection he is singing over you today.

plans

Opening Prayer: O Lord, help me to be about your plans, not my own.  For your plans are to prosper me and not to harm me.  Your plans are the ones that give me a hope and a future.

Scripture: Jeremiah 29:11-14

Journal: Who is making your plans these days?  What are they?  What would it look like to submit to God’s plans for you?  Do you really believe they are to prosper you and not to harm you? 

Reflection: If you want to walk with God, you had best check your plans at the door.  Life with him is as beautiful as it is demanding.  It is an amazing dance, an awesome adventure, and a challenging journey.  It is a journey in which we are not in control, he is.  We do not charge ahead with our agenda and invite him to come along.  We follow his lead, he doesn’t follow ours.   

Our job is to stay attentive to his voice, in tune with his will, and aligned with his purposes.  Life with him is about his plans, not our own.  Fortunately, his plans are to prosper us, not to harm us.  His plans give us a hope and a future.  His plans, although they might demand a lot of us, are always for our good, our benefit, and our growth.  We just have to trust in him.

Pray

Closing Prayer: Help me, O Lord, to let go of my plans, so that I might embrace yours.