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Day 5 Gospel Stories Devotional

PRAY:

Ask God to orient or reorient you to Himself. Confess any known sin. Thank Him for His forgiveness. Be still and reflect on Jesus and His sacrifice for you. Ask the Holy Spirit to open your heart and mind to God’s Word. Pray for others in your life that they, too, would know and love God today.

READ:

Several weeks ago Terry introduced a model for living in a missional way. The model had five parts to it. For our devotional this week we will ask God to help us grow in devotion to apply that model to our lives. The model included 5 P’s – Pray, Pursue, Prepare, Proclaim, and Plan.

Today P #5 – Plan to Include Others

Philemon 1:6, “I (Paul) pray that you may be active in sharing your faith so that you may have a full understanding of every good thing you have in Christ.”

Colossians 4:2-6, “Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim it clearly, as I should. Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.”

UNDERSTAND:

This is the final day of our march through the missional lifestyle model. The five parts were Pray, Prepare, Pursue, Proclaim, Plan. These pieces are each principles for leading a missional lifestyle. They are not steps in a recipe. I pray and if God gives me opportunity today, I proclaim. Maybe I proclaim the gospel to a complete stranger and leads me to pursue a relationship with that person.

Today I want to highlight again the need for prayer and being watchful and then we will discuss the last P – Plan. If there is any verse that summarizes this approach to a missional lifestyle I think it is Colossians 4:2-6. If you were going to memorize a verse related to this approach, this is the passage I would recommend.

In this passage Paul goes back and forth between singular pronoun “I” and the plural pronouns, “us”, “we”, “our.” Paul was aware that making God’s love known is a team sport. Yes, I am responsible and called to be faithful but I am also part of the body of Christ. Authentic Christian community is a great testimony to the power of the gospel to transform a person’s life and friendships. Making God’s love known is not a chess match – one-on-one. It is a team sport and invites the involvement of others. People far from God have moved closer to God by coming to BBQ’s, going on rafting trips, visiting small groups, and rubbing shoulders with other believers. As you pray for and pursue your unbelieving friends, ask God to help you plan for ways to introduce them to other believers. Again this activity does not have to be weird or awkward. If you are having a July 4th BBQ invite your friends over, your churched friends and your un-churched friends. Pray and watch for God to work in their conversations and relationships. Pray that your believing friends would have a chance to proclaim the gospel clearly.

APPLY:

How can you Plan to introduce your believing and unbelieving friends to one another?

LIVE:
(Personalize this prayer today; make it specific to the circumstances that face you.)
Ask God to lead you through His Spirit as you go through your day. Ask Him to bring to mind the truth of the gospel and its implications for what you will encounter today. Tell Him “Yes” to His will and ask Him for His power and protection to live this “yes.” Ask God to create and reveal opportunities to proclaim the good news today. KEEP PRAYING THROUGHOUT YOUR DAY.

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