Take the time to read through this prayer for illumination from Be Thou My Vision. Just like Day 2, today is a day for you to sit, reflect, and wait on the voice of the Lord. As you read through this prayer, ask God to refine your heart to yearn for these things. Ask the Lord to craft in you a true desire to discern His voice as you become more familiar with His written Word.
Show me the wealth of glory that lies beneath the old familiar stories.
Teach me the depths of meaning hidden in the songs of Zion,
Raise me to the heights of aspiration that is reached by the wings of the prophet.
Lift me to the summit of faith that is trod by the feet of the apostle.
Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your law. Amen.
PRAYER
Spend the rest of your time allowing God to bring truths of scripture to mind.
Take a moment and read John 14:15-27.
After the Passover meal, Jesus spoke with His disciples of things to come, one of which being the coming of the Holy Spirit. Just as promised to His disciples, after His death, resurrection, and ascension, the Holy Spirit fell upon the people like a mighty rushing wind. Fantastic signs of God’s holy presence residing in and flowing through His people left the multitude amazed and astonished at the work of God. (Read Acts 1-2 for greater context.)
We can see the Holy Spirit moving and working in our midst as He brings truths of scripture to mind and draws us to greater intimacy with Himself. The Holy Spirit communicates and testifies to us of our true identity as a child of God (Romans 8:16) and beacons us to know Him more fully through a lifelong journey of sanctification. He is the one that empowers us to love and follow God that we might bear these wonderful spiritual fruits: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Galatians 5:22).
So, where does that leave us? Through Day 1 and today’s reading, we know the fullness of the Gospel and a small portion of what God can do through His Holy Spirit. But do we actually have faith that He will do what He has promised: that He will never abandon you? Maybe you find yourself today yearning to the deep depths of your soul for a divine encounter with the Lord. For the Holy Spirit to fall afresh upon you and rejuvenate a life full of beauty and splendor as you soak up His enriching whisper that feeds your soul.
Be encouraged, fellow believer, because God Himself is speaking now. He is the one encouraging and enabling you to dive deeper into this lifelong journey with Him. The life of a believer can have its ups and downs due to our own faulty efforts, but rest assured in faith that it is GOD who establishes us.
First thing first, release your sense of striving and allow God, through the power of the Holy Spirit, to be the one to firmly hold you to Himself.
Take a moment and ask the Lord if there is any area in your life you are trying to control in your own strength rather than allowing Him to sustain. Don’t brush past this, spend at least 3-5 minutes in silence to allow God to bring things to mind.
Finish by reading a quote from the 19th century author, Andrew Murray’s Abiding in Christ, and thank God for His constant pursuit and the strength to live for Him.
Take the time to read through this liturgical prayer gathered from Be Thou My Vision by Jonathan Gibson. In doing so, allow there to be space for the words you read to resonate within. This is a time for you to slow down and reflect. Perhaps you will find the need to read through these words two or three times. As you do so, ask the Holy Spirit to turn your gaze from that which pleads for your affection and return it to Himself—the only one that is truly worthy of all glory, honor, and power (Revelation 4:11).
PRAYER
Finish your time by sitting in awareness of the Lord’s presence and thank Him for who He is.
Today marks the beginning of our 14-day journey to a deeper understanding of how to abide with our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. We will go back and forth on reflecting over passages of scripture and reading historical liturgical prayers to create space for you to enrich your walk with God as you fast. Through this, we are going to look honestly at our lives and ask for the Holy Spirit to invade and sanctify us, that we would look more like Him by the end.
Take a second and breathe. Wherever you are, whatever it looks like—whether it’s a mad scene of children running in circles around the house and you’re trying your best to make the space to commune with Jesus, or you have successfully found a quiet spot, simply BREATHE. Our God is here. He is in your midst, ready to converse with you as His fearfully and wonderfully made child.
Before we dive into talking about how to abide in Jesus, we first must reflect on the life of Jesus and what it means for us. Fully man and fully God, born of a virgin just as the prophesies of the Old Testament foretold. A holy and precious miracle in and of Himself, lived without sin on our behalf because of our inability to do so. The weight of our sin, which separated us from God, had to be purified by blood, for “without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sin” (Hebrews 9:22). Considering this, our Heavenly Father sent His one and only son to take on our punishment through death on a cross. The perfect sacrifice for the atonement of sin, securing an eternal redemption. (Read Hebrews 9-10 for greater context.)
Take a moment and thank God for sending His son.
Now, taking a greater look at the finished work on the cross, read Mark 15:33-39.
The veil that separated man from God’s holy presence was TORN. Those that stood witness to this dark, yet awesome act of the One True God knew He was who He said He was in that moment—the very people that persecuted him, left in astonishment and awe of what had occurred. But this victory that He bestows upon us through the atonement of sin doesn’t stop there. Christ was resurrected on the third day and now sits on the Mercy Seat as our Mediator between us and God the Father. Not only do those that believe and follow the resurrected King Jesus get to spend eternity in perfect union with the Father, but we get to experience His glory on THIS SIDE of heaven! Thanks be to God!!
Read Ephesians 2:4-10.
It truly is a fantastic life we live when we hold fast the confession of our hope through Jesus Christ (Hebrews 10:23).
May the Gospel never slip into a passive story of your religion. May it be that which gives light and breath to your every moment of every day, informing your steps. May God’s grace shine upon you and enable you to see how His perfect mercy is sufficient for yesterday, today, and tomorrow.
PRAYER
Finish your time by asking the Lord to allow the truth of the Gospel to invade what He has set before you today.
We're excited that you're joining us along the journey of Breakthrough in 2022. Our prayer is that you would open your heart to God as you read these devotionals over the coming 14 days. Each morning starting on Monday, January 10th, a new devotional covering spiritual formation and loving God with your heart, mind, soul, and strength will be available here.
In addition to walking through these devotionals we are calling the church to a two week fast also kicking off on Monday, January 10th. As we prepare our hearts and minds for this season, we thought it best to first make sure we clearly communicate the kind of fasting we are encouraging you to partake in.
What is a fast & how should you do it?
The word “fasting” simply means to deny oneself the intake of food.
Some examples we see in scripture are in Esther 1:6, where she and the Jews were to fast from food and drink for three days and Daniel 10:3, when Daniel fasted from specific foods like meat and wine, only to eat things like vegetables and drink water. In our world today, we hear other uses of the word, such as when people go on a social media fast. However, we would prefer to simply refer to that as the practice of abstaining (separate from fasting).
Why should we fast?
Jesus has three things that He expects of us as His followers: pray, give, and fast. The common teaching theme in each of these expectations is in our motivation, as we are to live our lives sacrificially and humbly before God. Fasting is a true matter of the heart that we express in the physical way of denying ourself food.
We fast to see true breakthrough in our lives because, as we see in scripture, some things will never happen without prayer and fasting (Matt. 17:21). Though we know we cannot manipulate the heart of God, the very act of fasting is a testament that we acknowledge we cannot do anything apart from Him. We need His sovereign touch to heal, to mend, to undo, or even resurrect.
During this 14 day journey, we ask that you would fast in one of the three ways:
- Choose one meal each day to fast from
- Fast from sun up to sun down
- Partake in a liquid only diet
- e.g., bone broth, soups without meat, smoothies
We do recognize that some may have a medical reason that would keep you from fasting from all foods. If that is you, we encourage you to partake in the Daniel fast and omit a few particular items from your menu OR abstain from a normal rhythm that tends to take away from your opportunity to spend time with the Lord.
It’s important to note that fasting without prayer neglects the true purpose of why we are fasting to begin with. So, we want to encourage you to use the time that you would be eating and spend it in prayer and/or going through our provided devotional. Each time you notice your hunger, this emphasizes your need for God and reminds you of the area of your life you are asking the Lord to break through.
Remember, His ways are above our ways, and this is an act of obedience and surrender to His ultimate plan. We pray that this time becomes one of breakthrough. Breakthrough in your life. Breakthrough for your family. Breakthrough for our city, nation, and the world.
"Present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God" - Romans 12:1-2
