Hearing God’s Voice from His Word
James 4:8 says, “Come near to God and he will come near to you.”
Take a moment and turn your attention to God. Tell God that you desire to trust and obey Him. Ask God to speak to you from His word.
Psalm of the Day
Psalm 90:1-2 Lord, you have been our refuge in every generation.
2 Before the mountains were born, before you gave birth to the earth and the world,
from eternity to eternity, you are God.
Read the Entire Psalm
Eternal God – God has always been. He will alway be. Mountains seem stable and constant, God existed before the mountains. There was an existence before the earth and the world. God was all that existed in that reality. Praise Him for His eternal nature.
SCRIPTURE READING:
John 10:1-21 – Christian Standard Bible
The Good Shepherd
10 “Truly I tell you, anyone who doesn’t enter the sheep pen by the gate but climbs in some other way is a thief and a robber. 2 The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. 3 The gatekeeper opens it for him, and the sheep hear his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4 When he has brought all his own outside, he goes ahead of them. The sheep follow him because they know his voice. 5 They will never follow a stranger; instead they will run away from him, because they don’t know the voice of strangers.” 6 Jesus gave them this figure of speech, but they did not understand what he was telling them.
7 Jesus said again, “Truly I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. 8 All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep didn’t listen to them. 9 I am the gate. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will come in and go out and find pasture. 10 A thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I have come so that they may have life and have it in abundance.
11 “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. 12 The hired hand, since he is not the shepherd and doesn’t own the sheep, leaves them and runs away when he sees a wolf coming. The wolf then snatches and scatters them. 13 This happens because he is a hired hand and doesn’t care about the sheep.
14 “I am the good shepherd. I know my own, and my own know me, 15 just as the Father knows me, and I know the Father. I lay down my life for the sheep. 16 But I have other sheep that are not from this sheep pen; I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. Then there will be one flock, one shepherd. 17 This is why the Father loves me, because I lay down my life so that I may take it up again. 18 No one takes it from me, but I lay it down on my own. I have the right to lay it down, and I have the right to take it up again. I have received this command from my Father.”
19 Again the Jews were divided because of these words. 20 Many of them were saying, “He has a demon and he’s crazy. Why do you listen to him?” 21 Others were saying, “These aren’t the words of someone who is demon-possessed. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?”
Having God’s Ear through Prayer
- Express thanksgiving to God.
- Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal sin to you.
- Confess your sin to Him and receive forgiveness.
(1 John 1:9 “If we confess our sin He is faithful and just and will forgive our sins.”) - Bring your personal requests to God.
(Psalm 62:8 “Pour out your heart before God”) - Pray for someone in your small group.
- Join with others from River and pray for the youth at River. Ask God to empower students to live with boldness on their school campuses.
Living as God’s People by applying the Bible
Scripture Reflection from the Sermon
Reading this daily devotion is a habit that can impact our hearts. We are training to follow Jesus, not trying to follow him. Training is not about earning, trying is. Trying is “pass/fail”, but training is a disciplined process with a greater end in mind. The greater end of training is to know, love, and enjoy the life our Good Shepherd offers us. When we “fail” in our training, it’s not final, it’s part of it. We quickly get up and move back into training. What else can you do to train to enjoy a life without lack? It can be counter intuitive, but part of learning to thrive in the life Jesus has for us is to learn when to say “no” to self. Skip a meal and use the hunger to remind you of your need for God and his provision. Give up some “me” time to serve others and remember that joy is found in giving away your life, not holding on to it. Turn off the TV, go for a prayer walk, and then measure how your heart and mind are impacted by making that choice. Train for godliness. Train to live in this life without lack with the Good Shepherd.