On Ramps to Spiritual Growth: Personal Devotional Habits
God wants a RELATIONSHIP with us, so he can shape our IDENTITY, & prepare us for ETERNITY. This relationship is possible through Christ sacrificial death, which reconciles us to God by wiping away sin, which broke that relationship. God invites us into this relationship through His REVELATION of Himself. He reveals Himself to us through the beauty & order of creation, through the person & work of Jesus Christ, through His activity in our lives as we seek Him through prayer, through His Word, & through His work in & through other believers. We grow in this relationship by the habits we form. These habits will include Personal Worship (John 4:24), Private Prayer (Matthew 6:16-18), & Bible Reading & Devotion (Joshua 1:8). Devotional habits serve as On Ramps to Spiritual Growth & Transformation.
God didn’t spell out the perfect formulas for our devotional habits. It never says in the Bible, “Spend 15 minutes a day reading the Bible, pray for 10 minutes, read a daily devotional published by reputable publisher, then listen to a worship song or two before you go to work.” He’s left that up to each of us individually to determine the best ways to develop our relationship. When my devotional life is dry, sometimes it helps me to ask a few growing Christians what they do to connect with God. So, in hopes that it will be helpful to someone, here’s my current pattern or habit that takes 45 minutes to 1 hour each day. I hope you’ll share yours as well.
- Wake up early. I’m a morning person, so I enjoy the early AM hours. It all goes down hill after 8am to me. Ha.
- Journaling. I start my day with writing prayers & commitments of devotion to God. (see my post Morning Prayers).
- Reading Scripture. I follow the One Year Bible Plan on Youversion.com. It’s a simple plan that allows you to read the Bible through in a year & the Psalms twice in a year. (See my post How to Get a Grip on the Bible for answers to questions about the Bible & a how to get started reading the Bible).
- Journaling. As I’m reading I write down the verses that jump out at me. When I’m done reading I read back through those verses & write down any Observations, Applications, or Prayers. (See the SOAP method). (Also, check out my post Allowing the Teachings of Jesus to Go Deep, for a plan to Journal through the sermon on the mount. Serves as a great introduction to journaling through the scriptures).
- Devotional Reading. I usually read a devotional of some kind each day as well. This year I’m reading A Year with C. S. Lewis: Daily Readings from His Classic Works. Others that I’ve enjoyed have been My Utmost for His Highest by Oswald Chambers, Experiencing God Day by Day by Henry Blackaby, 21 Most Powerful Minutes in a Leaders Day by John Maxwell.
- Daily News feed. I also use Feedly.com to follow a lot of authors, pastors, networks, & news sites that inspire & inform me.
- Sharing. As I’m reading, I’m asking is there anything that I’d like to share with friends or family, with my church, or with my social media networks. As well as tagging & filing anything that may be helpful for my upcoming speaking & preaching schedule.
- Intercession. I keep a list of people & situations that I want to pray for everyday. It includes my family, the leaders of my church, the team I work with, & others. I’m committed to make time to pray for them. Sometimes that happens in the mornings during my devotions. Sometimes its later in the day. Like at 10:02am when my alarm goes off reminding me to pray for laborers (see Luke 10:2).
Roll with the punches. I wish I could say this all happens everyday. Work, sickness, oversleeping, my poor time management happens, so I plan on rolling with the punches. Some tools we have to help with that:
- Technology. When I don’t have time to read in the mornings. I can listen to my Bible plan using the Bible App during my commute. My newsfeed & devotional is also on Kindle, so I can read it during spare moments of the day.
- Grace. Remember that my salvation is not based upon my ability to read the Bible everyday. Only Jesus saves. Devotional habits are tools for our growth in grace. Don’t give up. The life we have is ETERNAL, so missing a day every now & then does not mean losing.
- Presence. God is not with me only when I’m reading the Bible & praying. God is with me all the time. I can stay connected with him through prayer all day long.
- Tomorrow. One of my favorite sayings is, “YESTERDAY ENDED LAST NIGHT.” The bible says, “God’s mercies are new every morning” Lamentations 3:23-24. If you miss a day of devotional habits, put it behind you, celebrate the grace & presence that you did experience that day, & let that build anticipation for tomorrow or when you can restore your habits.
Jesus said, “Man cannot live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.” Matthew 4:4. Devotional habits are as important to the Christian as food & drink. They are one of the primary On Ramps in our Spiritual Growth & Maturity. Work out a plan that works for you, figure out how to do it everyday, commit to it for life, & roll with the punches.
What are some tools that you use in your devotional life? What is your daily pattern?
The Call to Preach is not just for Preachers
Grateful for Tim Keller’s latest book Preaching: Communicating Faith in an Age of Skepticism, in which he writes that the New Testament call to preach goes beyond just pulpit ministry. Keller argues that there are three levels of preaching.
Level 1 would be through everyday Christian conversation. “Paul calls all believers to ‘let the message of Christ dwell among you richly’ & ‘teach & admonish one another in all wisdom’ (Colossians 3:16).”
Level 2 would be through things like “writing, blogging, teaching classes & small groups, mentoring, moderating open discussion groups on issues of faith, & so on.”
Level 3 would be preaching as we typically define it today – “the public preaching & exposition of the Bible to assembled gatherings.”
I appreciate these distinctions, because I’ve run into people that say they are called to preach, but then when you suggest they come along to the jail or start a small group or teach a sunday school class, they are unenthused. Biblical preaching seldom included a pulpit because such a thing didn’t yet exist. And sometimes we seem to think that vocational preaching is the highest rung on the ladder & everybody else is just a mere volunteer. Praying we recover Levels 1 & 2, without neglecting Level 3 & that we see all our conversation as preaching instead of preaching as just a possible career.
A few other favorite quotes from Tim Keller in Preaching:
- Every Christian needs to understand the message of the Bible well enough to explain and apply it to other Christians and to his neighbors in informal and personal settings.
- It is dangerous, then, to fall into the unbiblical belief that the ministry of the Word is simply preaching.
- No church should expect that all the life transformation that comes from the Word of God comes strictly through preaching.
- We must beware of thinking the Sunday sermon can carry all the freight of any church’s ministry of the Word.
- a church’s gospel ministry should be “pulpit-centered, but no pulpit-restricted.”
- while the difference between a bad sermon and a good sermon is mainly the responsibility of the preacher, the difference between good preaching and great preaching lies mainly in the work of the Holy Spirit in the heart of the listener as well as the preacher.
- Every time you expound a Bible text, you are not finished unless you demonstrate how it shows us that we cannot save ourselves and that only Jesus can.
- we are loved sinners in Christ – so loved that we don’t have to despair when we do wrong, so sinful that we have no right to be puffed up when we do right
- the temptation will be to let the pulpit drive you to the word, but instead you must let the Word drive you to the pulpit.
Keller’s book is also VERY insightful, as always, on preaching in our modern cultural context. Highly recommend adding this book to your library if you haven’t already.
On Ramp to Spiritual Growth: Understand God’s Will
God wants you to grow! And He’s provided everything necessary for you to grow! However, there are obstacles. Just like merging onto a freeway, many times we’re hesitant, things get in the way, we’re lazy, or fearful. One of the on ramps for me personally, was when began to understand what God is doing in the world. What is God’s will? is a frequently asked question. When I saw that God’s will was not difficult or hard to understand, my desire for spiritual growth increased. Here are three words that have helped me understand God’s will:
1. Relationship – The God of the Universe wants a relationship with you. And He went to great lengths to make that a possibility. Jesus showed his desire to have a relationship with us by giving His very life. See John 3:16. The growing Christian will see their life through the lens of this relationship God through Christ.
2. Identity – Christianity is not about what you do, it’s about who you are. Or really, WHOSE you are. God shapes our identity through our relationship with Him. As we relate to Him & draw closer to Him, we become identified with his character & his mission in the world.
3. Eternity – God made us for more than this life. Eternal life starts when we place our faith & trust in Christ, not when we die. One meaning of the word eternal is TIMELESS. Salvation makes us timeless. And this reminds us that God has more in mind for us than just the 60-80 years that we may live on this earth. We’re made for eternity. We are also saved & sent to help others understand & get ready to face eternity.
What helps you understand God’s will?
This month Bridge Church in Madisonville is talking about On Ramps to Spiritual Growth & Transformation. Join us Sunday’s, 10:30am at the Maritime Museum in Madisonville.
You are… You Have…
Dear Church Member,
You are…
- God’s plan to display his glory to the nations.
- God’s plan to show your kids how to follow Christ.
- God’s plan to reach your neighbors & show them what it means to know Christ.
- God’s plan to expand his kingdom in your town, city, state.
- God’s plan to show His wisdom to the world through pooling your gifts with other believers in a local church.
- Loved. Chosen. Favored. Saved. Filled. Forgiven. And so much more.
You have…
- God’s power within to help you overcome the daily & the deadly.
- God’s word to guide you in the way to believe & behave.
- God’s gifts to build others up & help grow his kingdom.
- God’s resources to be managed in a way that honors him & shows others that He is better than this world.
- God’s promise that He will be with you & he will use you & he will empower you.
- God’s people around you to encourage & build you up.
- Power. Wisdom. Grace. Eternal Life. Peace. And so much more.
YOU ARE, much more than just a volunteer. YOU ARE a leader in God’s kingdom & YOU HAVE everything you need to make a difference. No excuses. No delay. No looking at others. Be who YOU ARE meant to be. Use what YOU HAVE.
What’s stopping you? “I’m not…” or “I don’t have…” or “I can’t…” Really?
On Ramps
I live in a growing community where the Interstate – I-12 – basically serves as a service road. That being said, merging onto the Interstate has become quite an adventure over the last few years. We’ve added on ramps & there is a wide diversity of drivers moving about every day. Along with that, there has been some questionable engineering on area bridges & on ramps. All this together means sometimes tying to merge onto or off of the interstate can cause you to get stuck.
Spiritual life is like that as well. Many people today get stuck on or never approach the path to Spiritual Growth. This past Sunday at Bridge Church we drew some parallels to growing spiritually & merging onto the Interstate.
1. Some drivers are just too HESITANT.
They approach the on ramp too slowly, they ride the shoulder. Other drivers are screaming, “ARE YOU GETTING ON OR NOT?”
A lot of people are like this spiritually. They are faithful to church for awhile or every now & then. We like the idea of spiritual growth, but we struggle to make a lasting commitment. Call it being “on the fence.” Jesus called it being LUKEWARM & SICKENING (Revelation 3:16).
2. Some drivers are easily DELAYED.
Something – a crash, debris, etc. – gets in the way.
Spiritually, our past, poor relationships, the opinions of others, sinful habits, lack of discipline, misunderstanding God & His will are some of the things that can get in our way & drastically slow our spiritual development.
3. Some drivers are just plain LAZY.
They avoid the interstate all together, even though its the fastest way, just because its TOO MUCH TROUBLE.
Relationships, commitment, dealing with our selfishness, being challenged to get out of our comfort zone. These are the things that growing spiritually will put you in the middle of. Some people opt out, because it’s not the easiest path.
4. Some drivers are too FEARFUL.
I’ve talked with people in our area, that won’t drive on the Interstate, because they are afraid of WHAT MIGHT HAPPEN.
They might ask me to serve in the nursery. I might be challenged to deal with that pain in the past. I might be disappointed again by a pastor or leader. Commitment is always risky. Jesus commended risk taking & actually sternly warned the fearful who choose the easy path (Matthew 25:14-30).
Where are you on the Path to Spiritual Growth? Are you driving full speed ahead? Are you hesitating? Are you delayed? Does it seem like too much trouble? Are you afraid?
God wants you to grow! And He’s provided all that you need to grow, starting with a relationship with Him through Jesus’ death & resurrection. He’s promised his presence & power for those that get on board with this journey. There’s no need to hesitate. You can do this! This year!
Join Bridge Church in Madisonville as we tackle this topic this month in a series we’re calling On Ramps to Spiritual Growth. Sundays, 10:30am at the Lake Pontchartrain Basin Maritime Museum, 133 Mabel Drive.
82% of Churches are Below 125 in attendance – How do we breakthrough?
Only 10% of our current church plants in Louisiana have broken the 125 Growth Barrier. Actually, 82% of all evangelical churches in Louisiana are under 125 in attendance. Here’s a great podcast on how to break through at NewChurches.com.
https://newchurches.com/episode-23-break-through-the-125-growth-barrier/
- “Getting past the 125 barrier requires a systems mindset.”
- “To break the 125 barrier, you need 5-10 leaders, and 4-5 leaders of leaders.”
- “Protect your time with the leaders and the lost.”
- “What are the things that only you can uniquely do?”
- “Why do must churches stay small? Largely because most pastors don’t know how to build systems, structures, and processes that are not contingent upon them. Most pastors can care for people, but don’t build systems of care. Most pastors can develop leaders individually, but lack the skill to implement a process of leadership development. When a pastor can’t build systems and structures that support ministry, the only people who are cared for or empowered to lead are those who are “near” the pastor or those very close to the pastor. This limits the size of the church to the size of the pastor.” – Darrin Patrick
Pastoral Prayer for Humility #Tozer
Now, 0 Lord of heaven and earth, I consecrate my remaining days to Thee; let them be many or few, as Thou wilt. I accept hard work and small rewards in this life. I ask for no easy place. I shall try to be blind to the little ways that could make life easier. If others seek the smoother path I will try to take the hard way without judging them too harshly. I shall expect opposition and try to take it quietly when it comes. Or if, as sometimes it falleth out to Thy servants, I should have grateful gifts pressed upon me by Thy kindly people, stand by me then and save me from the blight that often follows. Teach me to use whatever l receive in such manner that will not injure my soul nor diminish my spiritual power. Let me never forget that I am a man with all the natural faults and passions that plague the race of men. And if in Thy permissive providence honor should come to me from Thy Church, let me not forget that I am unworthy of the least of Thy mercies.
#NewYear: Gospel – Devotion – Relationships – Mission
21 Questions for clarity & focus in 2016.
Gospel:
- Is my hope & trust in Jesus Christ & His work for my salvation, success, sustenance in 2016?
- What situation, life issue, or circumstance do I most need God’s help with this year?
- Am I trusting God or myself in this situation, or life issue?
- What person or relationship needs more grace & truth from me this year?
- What sin do I need to confess & forsake right now?
- How will I share the Gospel with others in 2016? In my home? In my community? at my work place?
Devo:
- How will I draw closer to God with intentionality in 2016?
- What character quality, habit, discipline do I need to develop or hone in 2016?
- When & where will I spend time with God in 2016?
- What Bible reading plan will I follow to connect with God everyday? What books will read to grow my faith?
- How will I lead my family to experience God & his word in 2016?
Relationships:
- What relationships do I need to work on mending in 2016?
- Who will I lean on for advice? as a mentor? for accountability? & as a prayer partner?
- Who can I call at 3am? or when I’m desperate?
- Who can I open up to with my deepest hurts? confess my wrongs? share my private prayer requests?
- Do I need to pray for deeper relationships?
- Who will I mentor? Share the Gospel with? Pray for? Invest in?
Mission:
- How will I allow God to use my gifts? resources? home? money?
- Is there a ministry at my church that I am investing in? that I can improve? that I can invite others to engage in ?
- Is there a new ministry or need or project that God is laying on my heart to engage?
- Who around me need encouragement? challenging? confronting? a listening ear? a prayer partner?
15 Technology Recommends from 2015
Technology continues to dominate our time & attention for the good & bad. Here’s the good list for me in 2015, that will be making the jump with me to 2016 & that I’d recommend to my friends.
1. Turn off all Social Media Notifications. One of the best decisions I made in 2015 was to turn off notifications on my iPhone so that social media comes to me on my time & not in real time. Likes & shares, tweets & retweets are just not that important in the grand scheme of things. Social media can be a good servant or a terrible master. Start getting on top of things by turning off notifications.
2. Got an external hard drive & ran Omni Disk Sweeper on my Macbook Air. On my 3rd Macbook Air. Love it. But they do clog up. This year, I broke down & bought an expensive external hard drive & started saving everything there. Also started regularly running Omni Disk Sweeper, which kills off unneeded clutter. My Macbook now has another year or two in it & it even feels lighter. Ha!
3. Audible.com. I drive about 2k miles & walk/run about 25 miles each month. Audible.com has allowed me to redeem this time through listening to great books. Tripled my usual reading load for the year. Also allowed me to get in more biography & history, which is easier to listen to, & stick non-fiction leadership type books in my hands, which are better to read with a highlighter, which I love.
4. Youversion.com One Year Bible Plan. “Every Christian worth his salt reads the Bible cover-to-cover every year” – J.I. Packer. My first time all the way through the One Year Bible Plan & I loved it. Youversion.com is such a great tool, allowing ease of sharing on social media. And for days I’m off too early to read, I can listen to my Bible reading for that day in the app.
5. NFL.com Fantasy Football App. I managed to avoid Fantasy Football for 40 years of my life, but got drawn in this year by friends from my church. And I LOVED IT! Didn’t win much, but there’s always next year. Ha!
6. Fitbit.com & the Fitbit App. I took 3.5 million steps, covering 1,634 miles this year. How do I know? Fitbit! Loved having this quirky tool to track exercise & daily steps this year. And you don’t have to have a Fitbit. You can track your steps with your phone or other wearable.
7. 7-Minute Workout App. Cut the gym out of the budget to make room for some other things this year. Along with the Fitbit, the 7-Minute Workout has been a good tool to try to keep the Dad bod from completely taking over. Try it out! You’ll be surprised.
8. Feedly.com & Feedly App. My Feedly Newsfeed has replaced the morning paper for me. Keeps me up to date on news & my favorite writers around the globe. Also, allows me to save & tag articles for later reading & for preparing teaching & sermons.
9. PluggedIn.com & PluggedIn App. “Hey dad, can I go watch ____ movie with my friends?” “Can I download this game?” Plugged In App allows me to check out movies & games from a Christian perspective very quickly.
10. Waze App. Saw this on a billboard in Texas. Driving 2k miles per month this has been a great companion & community to be a apart of. Allows other drivers to alert me to faster routes, police nearby, debris in road, etc. Check it out on your next road trip.
11. Biblehub.com. When I got my last computer I opted to try to do without a Bible Software. I found that a lot of the tools that I’d used were available for free online. Biblehub.com has been the most frequent site I’ve used for sermon prep with language tools I was familiar with & a lot of other helps. Without the drain on hard drive space & costly prices.
12. BizExpense Tracker App. There are a lot of Expense tracker apps. I’ve found the BizExpense works best for me, because it allows me to track multiple accounts – My work with the LBC, my church miles & expenses, our medical travel (for those who itemize expenses), volunteer hours & miles.
13. Covenant Eyes & Covenant Eyes App. Wouldn’t go without the Covenant Eyes Filter & Accountability software. Also use the Search Engine on all our kids devices. Block Safari or Internet Explorer, so that they can only search through the Covenant Eyes. CE does a great job helping our family keep covenant with our eyes (Job 31:1). Also, love following the Covenant Eyes blog for great stories of redemption, parenting tips, & current issues in the pursuit of purity.
14. YNAB (You Need A Budget). This was our third year using YNAB for personal finances. Love it! Its a cloud based solution. My wife can enter her grocery store receipts on her iPhone on the way to the car & it’s in the program on the computer when we get home. Reports are great. Budgeting tool is clear. Did Microsoft Money, Quicken, & Mint. YNAB beats all of those for us.
15. Allowance Manager. Like most couples today, we seldom deal with cash, so allowances meant extra trips to the bank. Allowance Manager allows our kids to get money basically credited to an account that they can check & manage from their iPad Mini’s. Next step for our 13 year old this year is his own bank account. Yikes!
What app or site would you recommend for your friends?
Outreach Idea: Christmas Eve Stocking Giveaway
Christmas is about a BIG GIVEAWAY! God gave away his very best so that others could know Him & have Eternal Life (John 3:16). This year, Bridge Church took on a BIG GIVE in order to help others know God & have eternal Life. We set out to give a stocking to EVERY MULTI-HOUSING RESIDENT in Covington on Christmas Eve! Great project that any church can take on!
Here’s what we put in the Stockings:
- A copy of The Value of A Soul, this year’s My Hope DVD from the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association. $1 per. Three great testimonies from real people on how life In Christ impacted them.
- The Living in Christ Book from My Hope with Billy Graham. $1 per. Includes how to begin a relationship with God, 4-part study on beginning the Christian life, & the Gospel of John.
- Christmas Candy & Goodies. (Most of this was left over from our rained out Trunk or Treat. Ha!)
- Some type of small family game. Like a deck of cards or mini board game or puzzle. $1-$2 at local dollar stores.
- Fresh fruit purchased at a local fruit stand. $35 per case.
- A few packs of Hot Chocolate. $.10 each at Sam’s Club.
- Invite to our church & an area Bible Study.
We knocked on each door & said “Merry Christmas from Bridge Church!” & asked if there was anything we could pray for them about. Great conversations. Loved serving with my family & other on mission believers from our church on Christmas Eve. With great participation we were done by noon. We even had some leftovers that we were able to deliver to area Fire Stations. Probably touched over 500 people on Christmas Eve.
Hope you’ll pick a multi-housing complex or a neighborhood & tackle a BIG GIVE project next Christmas!
Lane Corley 