There is nothing more exciting than the birth of your child(ren). I had the great privilege of being present at the birth of three of my six kids, although I nearly missed one of those because of an extremely fast delivery! (I was only present for three births because my wife and I adopted three wonderful children in 2014. We are very blessed to have six kids we love dearly!) I cried at every birth. It was an overwhelming experience. To witness the birth of a new life. To hold that life in my hands feeling the weight of the enormous responsibility of bringing up a child in this world.

In 1 Peter 1, Peter reminds us of what Christ has done for us. And what Christ has done is nothing less than the miracle of new birth. For those that follow him, he has taken the old person, one on a dead end path, stuck in an “empty way of life” (vs 18), with no hope or life, and we are reborn. Made completely new. And as Peter says, “Praise be to God!” (vs 3)

This new birth comes with some pretty amazing benefits. It is in this new life we find a living hope. No matter how bad this life might seem, there is always awaiting us something better. There is a day coming when this world will be completely redeemed and we will be with Christ in the new heaven and the new earth. But it gets even better. This new birth also comes with an inheritance. Like the kids I adopted last year, we are adopted into the family of God. No longer strangers or enemies with God, we are now brothers with Christ. And this inheritance never fades, spoils, or dies. An eternal salvation and a promise to be with God forever.

This new life comes about only because of Jesus, his death on the cross and his resurrection. May we never forget the excitement of the moment we were given new life in Christ.

Questions to Ponder

1. How has your live changed as a result of the new life you’ve been given?
2. When you think of your life in Christ, do you view it as more from the perspective of what you lose, or what you have gained? Why do you view it that way?

For many of us, directions are for those losers who can’t figure it out or lack the imagination to be able to devise their own contraptions. But all too often, the directions are what allow us to build something within the specifications of the creator. Following directions also keeps us from getting to the end of the project and asking, “What are all these spare parts for?!”

Just like the instructions we receive when we purchase a piece of furniture from Ikea, or a robotics kits for our kids, our lives come with instructions. But just like the instructions we receive for the earthly things, often we ignore the instructions, saying to ourselves, “I can do this without those pesky things.”

In the latter part of Ephesians 4, we find Paul giving instructions on how to live. He tells us to put off things like falsehood, sinful anger, stealing, unwholesome talk, ignoring the Holy Spirit, bitterness, rage, fighting, slander, and mailce. He also tells us how those who follow Christ should behave: speak truthfully, work, share with those in need, speak to build others up, kindness, compassionate, forgiving.

All to often, we look at this and think, I am a free person, I can live however I want. And if you are in Christ, that is true. You are been set free from the bondage of sin and death. Paul, in other letters, tells us we have freedom. But does that mean we should cast off these instructions and just wing it, just figure it out as we go along? Not at all.

Just like the instructions we receive on our furniture, if followed, we build what the creator intended. And the end result is (usually) a safe, stable piece of furniture, that is ready to fulfill its purpose in life as your end table, your dresser, your television cart, whatever it may be.

When we following the instruction God has given us, we find fulfillment in being shared and formed into exactly what our Creator made us to be. We don’t have to search for purpose. We know it. We don’t have to seek significance from others. We experience it from God. 

As you read Ephesians 4, ask God to reveal those areas that we might be attempting to keep hidden from him, so that we can surrender them to God and find what true freedom is all about.

“Freedom, then, is not the absence of limitations and constraints but it is finding the right ones, those that fit our nature and liberate us.”—Tim Keller

Questions to Ponder

1. Do you look to the Bible to be a guide, the authority of your life? In not, what are you putting in its place?
2. Does you character look more like the list Paul tells us to put off or the list he encourages us to do? What does that tell you about your walk relationship with Christ?

“How could I think that was a good idea?”

“What was I thinking?”

Each of us have done things we regret.  Sometimes we realize our error immediately and sometimes it is years later before we realize how bad of a choice we made.  And those bad choices are the result of our foolishness, selfishness, or sometimes complete naïveté.   We simply displayed a complete lack of wisdom in the situation.  The question we all want to answer then is this: what can I do to make sure I never make costly mistakes like that in the future?

This is the question Proverbs 3 seeks to answer.  It tells us we need to seek wisdom, and not wisdom in our own eyes, but wisdom from God.  Too often we try to acquire knowledge to help us make better decisions in life, but knowing the facts isn’t enough.  Wisdom means knowing how to apply the facts to a situation to make good decisions.  And when we seek that wisdom from God, Proverbs 3 tells us we will reap the benefits of long life, peaceful paths, more restful sleep, and no fear.  That sounds like a life I want to have!

But to experience that life, to gain that wisdom from God, we have one requirement to meet: 

5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart;

do not depend on your own understanding.

6 Seek his will in all you do,

and he will show you which path to take.

You see, being wise in your own eyes will continue to lead you into trouble.  But God, who created you, who wants you to experience rest and peace, promises to give you wisdom and show you which paths to take as soon as you stop depending on yourself and start depending on him.   So the final question you have to answer for yourself: are you willing to fully depend on God for wisdom?

Questions to Ponder 

1. What is a problematic area in your life where you are seeking to solve the problem through your own good ideas? 
2. Release that area of life to God in prayer (including your worries and fears) and ask him to give you the wisdom to navigate the situation.  

I have loved Galatians 6 for years. I have found it to be an encouragement to me. What has been an encouragement is the idea of perseverance. Paul says to us, “Don’t give up!” It is easy to get discouraged. You do good things, the right things, and they go unnoticed. You are working hard and someone criticizes you, or puts you down. Paul reminds us, keep going. Wrapped up in verses about farming, we are reminded, we will reap what we sow. If we sow the kingdom of God, we will reap the kingdom. If we so selfishness, we will reap selfishness.

The idea of perseverance is seen over and over in the Bible. Even in our reading last week, James said we will have trials, but don’t give up. The result of trials is a maturing faith and a deeper relationship with God.  

So are you tired, ready to throw your hands up and walk away from it all because you have yet to see the results you desired or thought should be. Don’t give up. God is not done with you yet. And he will continue to use you to reveal his glory to the world. As the writer of Hebrews reminds us, “since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.” (Hebrews 12:1-2 NIV) 

Questions to Ponder 

1. Is there something in your life that is making you think about giving up? 
   What would happen if you walked away? 
2. What could happen if you believe Galatians 6:9 that you will reap a harvest if you persevere?

Sometimes this feeling of longing for something missing is referred to as thirst.  We find that language in verse 1 & 2 of Psalm 42:

      As the deer pants for streams of water, 
         so my soul pants for you, my God. 
      My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. 
         When can I go and meet with God? 

The problem is that all too often when we feel this thirst described here, we try to quench the feeling with tangible means.  A new cell phone, new friends, new job, new trinket from the dollar section of Target… big or small, we’ve all tried to quench the thirst in our souls with items or changes that never satisfy the way we hope.  

What we need to do is learn from the author of this psalm.  There are some things in life that only God can satisfy – and the deep longing for contentment, protection, and acceptance are only found in Him.  So join with me and let’s give up our dependence on cheap substitutes and let’s drink deeply of the satisfaction our souls will find by spending time with our Heavenly Father who loves, comforts, and protects us like none other.

Questions to Consider:

1. Do I ever feel a thirst to spend time with God?  If not, why not?  
2. What are the usual things I try to substitute for spending time with God?  Surfing the web? Shopping? TV?
3. Pray for Jesus to put a deep thirst in your soul for him.  Drawing closer to Jesus can begin with a prayer that he be the one to draw you in.  After all, he has the power which you might lack.

Join our Reading Plan Today

1. Download the Bible app to your smartphone at bible.com and add the plan titled “Love Renovation”
2. Download & print a copy of the reading plan to keep in your Bible (View PDF)
3. Follow us on Facebook or Twitter for additional devotional thoughts and questions to consider

Death. A part of life. But not something most people like to talk about. Yet, when you look at Christianity, we see death talked about and seen all around. But there is something that is strikingly different about the death mentioned in the Bible. 

We are so used to life and death. People are born. They live their lives. And then they die. Death is the end. It truly is the nail in the coffin! But when you read about death in the Bible it is just the opposite. Death is not the end. In fact, death is just the beginning. Christ died on the cross. But after his death came life. Glorious life.  

We are called to die. Die to self. Die to sin. But we are called to die not as the end of our lives. We are called to die SO THAT we might live. This idea baffles human logic. It makes no sense. We believe we are to preserve our lives at all costs. After all, isn’t that what the world calls living? 

With Jesus, life only comes when we surrender ourselves. Die to our own desires, will, and way, and choose to live for him. As I heard Andy Stanley recently say, “The essence of following Jesus is self-denial, not self-improvement.” 

Questions to Consider 

1. Is there an area of your life that you are holding on to, trying to preserve, that you know should be surrendered to Jesus? 
2. What is the biggest obstacle that keeps you from dying to yourself so that you can find real life for Christ?

We all avoid painful situations. Things that hurt, that make us uncomfortable, that cause us to struggle. We when see a potentially trying situation coming at us, we run, avoid, and do just about anything we can to protect ourselves.  It’s human nature, really.  But what if there’s something significant in those painful situations we avoid and dread? James seems to think so.

He tells us in this passage not only to not avoid or protect ourselves from pain and trials but to consider them “pure joy” as you face them. He sounds nutty, doesn’t he?! But he has insight into how God works and moves and it seems that there is something significant that happens in our trails and hardship. Our faith is tested and proved strong, we persevere, and in doing so we mature. And it seems that this is specific and unique to hard situations. That there’s a growth and maturity of our faith in trying times that we don’t get as profoundly in easy, effortless experiences.

What if we took this invitation seriously? What if we viewed the trails facing us as an invitation to joy, to stronger and deeper relationship with Jesus, and to a new level of maturity in our faith?

Instead of avoiding and protecting ourselves, lets lean in, embrace hardship knowing you’re not alone but doing it with Jesus, and trusting that there’s joy and significant growth and maturity in the journey.  

Questions to Consider:

1. What trials are you currently facing and what is your attitude about them? 
   
2. Think back to trials and hardship in your past. How did you see God at work in those places and what did you see God do in you as a result of enduring them? 

Join our Reading Plan Today

1. Download the Bible app to your smartphone at bible.com and add the plan titled “Love Renovation”
2. Download & print a copy of the reading plan to keep in your Bible (View PDF)
3. Follow us on Facebook or Twitter for additional devotional thoughts and questions to consider

I imagine many tears were shed during Jesus’s final night with his disciples before his crucifixion on a cross.  In John 14, we read about this climax of emotion between Jesus and his traveling companions of 3 years, his disciples.  Like many great endings, Jesus tells his friends that they will be better off when he goes, that they will do great things, and that he loves them very much.  The difference here is in leaving, Jesus actually is able to make things better for his disciples.  He plans to ask God for whatever they ask him for.  He plans to send them the Holy Spirit who will give them wisdom and understanding.  And he is going to prepare a place for their eternal destiny.  Unlike movie characters who are simply saying nice things to make the other feel better, Jesus will actually be working to make the future better for his disciples.

And the same is still true for us 2000 years later.  While we wait for Jesus, he still takes our prayers to his Father, God Almighty.  He still gives us his Holy Spirit to lead and guide us in all we do.  He is still preparing a place for when our bodies give out on this earth.  

And it is in those promises that we should find comfort in this amazing farewell scene.  This farewell, afterall, is part of the most famous story ever told.

Questions to Consider:

1. How do you see the role of the Holy Spirit in your life?  Given that role, does it make sense for Jesus to say it is better for you to have the Spirit than Jesus himself?  If not, is your view of the Holy Spirit perhaps too limited?
2. Jesus promises peace to his followers in this chapter.  Not a guarantee a conflict-free life, but a peace within the conflict.  How much of that peace do you experience?  If you lack peace, why?
3. Who does Jesus imply is the prince of this world?  How can you combat the very real spiritual battle against him?

Join our Reading Plan Today

1. Download the Bible app to your smartphone at bible.com and add the plan titled “Love Renovation”
2. Download & print a copy of the reading plan to keep in your Bible (View PDF)
3. Follow us on Facebook or Twitter for additional devotional thoughts and questions to consider

Questions to Consider:

1. Look back at the key verses.  Is there one you should commit to memory?
2. Where do you need to repent of sin and let the Holy Spirit make you more like Jesus?
3. How are you demonstrating to others the love of Jesus inside you?

Join our Reading Plan Today

1. Download the Bible app to your smartphone at bible.com and add the plan titled “Love Renovation”
2. Download & print a copy of the reading plan to keep in your Bible (View PDF)
3. Follow us on Facebook or Twitter for additional devotional thoughts and questions to consider

The problem with this sin is that if we all feel more important than those around us, then our cares and concerns are more important than other’s cares and concerns.  So we spend our time on our own issues, rather than helping others.  Or maybe we even spend time doing the things we really enjoy, ignoring those in need around us because, “that’s their problem.”

If anybody could take that attitude, it would be a king reigning from his throne, looking down on his poor and pitiful subjects, glad that he isn’t one of them.  But here is what makes Jesus, so amazing and worthy of our worship.  He is a king, who gave up everything, to live among the poor and destitute people of this earth.  And why?  Because he cared more about our cares and concerns than about himself.

In this chapter, Paul is holding Jesus up as a model for all of us who call Jesus our King and Lord.  We are challenged to see others as more important than ourselves, to be willing to give up our comfort, convenience, time and money, to help others in need.   Will you accept the challenge to live for the sake of others rather than yourself?

Questions to Consider:

1. What is one hobby, or item, or moment that you distinctly remember giving up for someone else’s benefit?  How did you feel when you gave of something that was important to you?
2. What is one selfish interest that you cling most tightly to, sometimes at the expense of others?  Ask God to help you give up that selfish interest, to sacrifice your own unhealthy desires for the benefit of those around you.
3. Imagine how it would feel to walk into your home or into our church if everybody was living as Paul describes in verses 3 & 4 – in putting others’ interests before your own.  That would be a community I want to be a part of!  What small step can you take to do your part in creating a family and a church community of people who think more highly of others than themselves?

Join our Reading Plan Today

1. Download the Bible app to your smartphone at bible.com and add the plan titled “Love Renovation”
2. Download & print a copy of the reading plan to keep in your Bible (View PDF)
3. Follow us on Facebook or Twitter for additional devotional thoughts and questions to consider

Reading Psalm 30, you feel a little bit like you are on a roller coaster. Praise and pit. Healing and hurt. Weeping and joy. Wailing and dancing. We could almost recommend a good counselor or medication for David’s up and downs. That is until we remember we function much the same. 

As David remembers the ups and downs of his life, what ties everything together is God. When life has been great, God was there. When he was in despair, God was there. When he was on the top of the world, assuming nothing could ever touch him again and then found out he was so very wrong, God was even there. Regardless of the situation, God was with David. And that gave David reason to praise. 

Life will never be all roses and buttercups for us. We live in a fallen world. Sin is real. Evil exists. But regardless of what happens, we can cry out to the Lord, and let David’s prayer be our prayer. “Lord, heal me, lift me, heal me, spare me, hear me, be merciful to me, and clothe me with joy.”

Questions to Consider:

1. What area of your life are you lacking joy? Have you asked God for help there?
2. Are you able to praise God regardless of what is happening to you? If not, why?
3. Pause today and think of a time you have seen God move on your behalf and speak aloud a prayer of praise.

Join our Reading Plan Today

1. Download the Bible app to your smartphone at bible.com and add the plan titled “Love Renovation”
2. Download & print a copy of the reading plan to keep in your Bible (View PDF)
3. Follow us on Facebook or Twitter for additional devotional thoughts and questions to consider

In Romans 12, Paul talks about a transformation of a different kind. This is a transformation of us. We are the “fixer-upers” that God is wanting and willing to remodel, to make us into something different. Something better. Something that looks more like Jesus. The catch is that we have to stop chasing after the carrots the worlds holds in front of us. We have to realize that even if we were to catch whatever prize the world holds in front of us, its value is nothing when compared to becoming like Christ.

But the world makes it so appealing to want to look and act like them. If we didn’t know better, we would assume that copying the world would lead us to fame, fortune, acceptance and love. But all too often, all we find is emptiness.

True renewal comes by allowing God to change us, from the inside out, by renewing our minds. And as we have been posting this week, that renewal comes by the Holy Spirit when we spend time with Jesus and with God’s Word. May you be encouraged today to continue on this path of renewal to be a little more like Jesus today than you were yesterday. 

Questions to Consider:

1. In what ways do you tend to copy the patterns of the world? 
2. Is the idea of God “remodeling” you into a new person something you embrace or something you resist?
3. How would your thinking be different if God completely transformed your mind?

Join our Reading Plan Today

1. Download the Bible app to your smartphone at bible.com and add the plan titled “Love Renovation”
2. Download & print a copy of the reading plan to keep in your Bible (View PDF)
3. Follow us on Facebook or Twitter for additional devotional thoughts and questions to consider

Granted, Paul immediately follows that statement up with a warning not to use your freedom to sin, but to instead love and serve others freely.  So the point of this passage is to stop focussing on not sinning and start focussing on going out and serving!

Questions to Consider:

1. In what ways do you try to “earn” your righteousness?
2. In what ways might you abuse your Christian freedom?
3. What does it practically look like for you to walk in step with the Spirit TODAY?

Join our Reading Plan Today

1. Download the Bible app to your smartphone at bible.com and add the plan titled “Love Renovation”
2. Download & print a copy of the reading plan to keep in your Bible (View PDF)
3. Follow us on Facebook or Twitter for additional devotional thoughts and questions to consider

So we strongly encourage each and every one of you (youth and kids included) to join us in this 21 day adventure.  We believe it has the potential to impact our church in bigger ways than we could ever imagine.

The reading plan includes one chapter of scripture each weekday and challenges you to use the weekend to meditate on what God has shown you through the weekday readings.  Additionally, each day includes a key verse from the chapter for you to consider.  You might even want to memorize some of the key verses if they really speak to you.

Follow Along

1. Download the Bible app to your smartphone at bible.com and add the plan titled “Love Renovation”
2. Download & print a copy of the reading plan to keep in your Bible (View PDF)
3. Follow us on Facebook or Twitter for additional devotional thoughts and questions to consider.

Begin Today

Join us from Day 1 – read Luke 10 today and focus on verse 27:
And he answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.”