ADORATION – Reflect on God’s Greatness
JESUS IS THE CHURCH’S HEAD God the Son, Jesus, is the head of the Church. As the head, the part of the body that sees, hears, thinks, and decides, He gives the orders that the rest of the body lives by.
Ephesians 1:22-23
And he subjected everything under his feet and appointed him as head over everything for the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of the one who fills all things in every way.
Praise Jesus the Head of the Church
Praise Jesus, God in the flesh. Praise Jesus for surrendering his body to save the church. Praise Jesus for his submission to the Father’s will. Praise Jesus that he is alive and still leading his church in the world.
CONFESSION: Confess your sins to God and receive his continued mercy.
“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:9
THANKSGIVING: Giving thanks to God for his specific blessings in our lives.
“Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth. Worship the Lord with gladness; come before him with joyful songs. Know that the Lord is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. For the Lord is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.” Psalm 100
SUPPLICATION: Bringing our requests to God.
- Bring your personal prayer requests to God.
- Pray for Christian Challenge as they meet tonight. Ask God to strengthen student’s faith as they gather and help them grow in community.
SCRIPTURE READING:
James 4:1-3 – The Message
Get Serious
4 1-2 Where do you think all these appalling wars and quarrels come from? Do you think they just happen? Think again. They come about because you want your own way, and fight for it deep inside yourselves. You lust for what you don’t have and are willing to kill to get it. You want what isn’t yours and will risk violence to get your hands on it.
2-3 You wouldn’t think of just asking God for it, would you? And why not? Because you know you’d be asking for what you have no right to. You’re spoiled children, each wanting your own way.
Copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson
SCRIPTURE REFLECTION:
For children, and many adults, life is mostly or completely about them. You have seen it and you probably feel that pull on your own heart. It probably isn’t something you have given yourself fully over to, or you would not be reading this devotional right now. However, we all struggle in degrees with making life about us. It can show up in pettiness, or giving people the “silent treatment,” or in feeling sorry for ourselves, or in any number of foolish attitudes and actions. On the one hand your life does have deep value and meaning because God has given it to you. On the other hand, your life is like a mist that appears for a moment then vanishes. Holding these two truths in balance can be difficult. If we fail to see our value before God, we can think much of self in the form of self-pity or self-loathing. If we fail to see that we are like a mist, then we can think too much of self in inflated ways. How do we maintain this tension? We must resolve to think of self less often and of God more often. When we are fixed on our favorite subject, us, we are unable to find a balance. When we are fixed on what should be our favorite subject, God, we can find this balance. We are beloved sons and daughters of God who are nothing on our own apart from him.