jesus calling devotional
The Healing Power of God’s Presence
The best response to the glorious gift of grace is a thankful heart that delights in doing My will. It is vital to proclaim the gospel not only to yourself but to the world. … Seek to share this good news—both near (to family, friends, coworkers) and far (to the nations). All peoples need to know the truth about Me. Jesus Always, July 16 From the beginning, God has always wanted to have a relationship with His children. Even after Adam and Eve sinned against God and hid from Him, He continued to have a relationship with them. And, in fact, one of the ways God strengthens our relationship with Him is when He reveals His presence to us. But in my religious upbringing, I learned to see God the way Adam and Eve did as they hid—I learned to think He would be a vengeful God. So I kept God at a d...
Don’t Fear the Storm, Jesus Is With You
“Do not be afraid, for I am with you. Hear Me saying, “Peace, be still,” to your restless heart. No matter what happens, I will never leave you or forsake you. Let this assurance soak into your mind and heart until you overflow with Joy.”From Jesus Calling, April 20 “US coronavirus outbreak sees its deadliest day yet.” “Worldwide COVID-19 numbers are growing at unprecedented rates.” “The economy may take years to recover.” Over the past month, we have heard countless statements like these about the coronavirus. We pray for the day this virus will be a distant memory. But in the months and years to come, we will face many other challenging moments, when it feels like the easiest path to take would be to succumb to fear Fear is contagious. But so is faith. Fear is contagious. But so is faith...
When All Seems Lost, God Is Still There
Today’s episode features two guests who know what it’s like to lose everything. They share with us how their hope was restored through God’s promise that He will never leave us or forsake us. Our first guest is Brett Swayn who shares how his journey through homelessness brought him to a place where he is now able to share the hope he found in Christ with others going through the same situation. Our second guest is Sherry Taylor, a graduate of The Next Door, a faith based rehabilitation center. Sherry. She shares how she lost everything in the throes of addiction, and how God restored her from brokenness to wholeness in Him. Narrator: Welcome to the Jesus Calling Podcast. Today, we talk with two people who know what it’s like to lose everything. They share with us how their hope was restore...
Just As I Am: Lisa Harper and Point of Grace
Today’s episode touches on themes of acceptance and how God loves us just the way we are. Lisa Harper is a Bible Teacher and a speaker. She shares about how she moved past the shame and trauma associated with early sexual abuse in her life by being able to view herself as worthy in God’s eyes. Shelley Breen, Leigh Cappalino and Denise Jones join us from award winning contemporary Christian singing group Point of Grace. They share their joy and honor at being able to bring messages of hope and acceptance to the world through music for over 20 years; plus their thoughts on favorite hymns and worship songs that are part of their new record “Beautiful Name.” Just As I Am: Lisa Harper and Point of Grace – Jesus Calling Episode #93 Narrator: Welcome to the Jesus Calling Podcast. Our guests today...
6 Ways to Make Prayer Simple for Kids
That shiny purple birthstone, set in a ring to fit my six-year-old finger, was my most prized possession. That’s why I dreaded telling my mom I had lost it. Cartwheels in the grass had given way to utter panic as I realized the ring wasn’t on my finger anymore. After I confessed what had happened, my mother uttered four words that impacted my spiritual journey for the rest of my life: “Let’s pray about it.” “When you pray, I want you to share everything with Me: your joys and heartaches, your struggles and triumphs, your worries and questions. I am you best Friend—pour out your heart to Me.”Jesus Calling: 365 Devotions for Kids,January 11 My husband and I often talk about the goals and desires we have for our kids. Like everyone around us, we’re neck-deep in sports and academics and servic...
Choices in a Faith Journey
In 2012, my word for the year was risk. My daily devotional consisted of studying risk takers, AKA crazy people, in the Bible. It was a pivotal year for me in my faith journey. I’m not a natural risk taker. Far from it, actually. I like to control my environment and make calculated decisions. I call it wisdom, but in reality, it teeters on a lack of faith. And as someone who’s not a risk taker, the words of the December 9 entry of Jesus Calling strike me to the core: “Be willing to go out on a limb with Me. If that is where I am leading you, it is the safest place to be. Your desire to live a risk-free life is a form of unbelief . . . In order to follow Me wholeheartedly, you must relinquish your tendency to play it safe.” Have you ever looked up the definition of risk? In case you haven’t...
Giving Away Good News Across the Street and Around the World
In my daily devotionals growing up, somehow I missed the good news that Jesus could save me on earth in physical and emotional ways—even though I was already spiritually saved for heaven. Finding this brand of holistic peace, which helped me find a calming joy with Jesus in everyday life, meant I could give it away. “The friendship I offer you is practical and down to earth, yet it is saturated with heavenly Glory. Living in My Presence means living in two realms simultaneously: the visible world and unseen, eternal reality. I have equipped you to stay conscious of Me while walking along dusty, earthbound paths,” September 5, —Jesus Calling. I’m just an ordinary person. But I started to live a spiritual adventure by following Jesus to the nations in my neighborhood, to people with the leas...
Make Sure the Holiday Is What You Desire
The Christmas season is so, so exciting. It gets us in touch with so much that is important: the message of God’s gift of Jesus and His redemption, the importance of family, relationships, gratitude and love, and so much more. “Living in collaboration with Me is the way to instill meaning into your days.Begin each day alone with Me, so that you can experiencethe reality of My Presence.” Jesus Calling, December 14 At the same time, it can be fraught with pain and conflict. Sometimes holidays bring out the grief of what someone has never had, or what has lost been or destroyed. Longings go unmet, and past pain is often revisited. Then there is the opportunity for old pain and patterns in toxic relationships to be repeated, as families get together and some people find themselves around hurtf...
When Life is Hard, God is Near
As a young husband and father of two, holding down two jobs and taking extra work, life was hard. But no one is supposed to say that, especially in faith circles. To some, admitting life is hard implies God is not enough for me, that my faith is small, that I’m ungrateful. Some say life is filled with blessings if we say and do the “right” things. I call this “fake-it culture.” Good reader, I can tell you with confidence, I was wearing myself out doing the “right” things—and it caught up with me. I was 32 and directing a multi-state, multi-faceted youth program that was making huge impacts. My staff was talented. My children were doing well. My wife and I had the makings of the American Dream. Until depression hit. I’d managed to hold off the dark feelings for years, but a launching event ...
Tending My Piece of the Garden
Sometime decades ago—so long ago that I don’t remember when—I knew my purpose in life was to tend to my little piece of the Garden. Watching my mother, it’s no wonder I felt like this. When she left a campsite, Mom would ensure it was meticulously clean. She wanted us to always leave things better than we found them. Hours before leaving for Christmas dinner at her parents’ home, Mom would find out that our cousins were bringing a stranger. She always had general gifts ready. Mom’s way of wrapping family warmth and love around a stranger was to make sure there were presents under the tree with that person’s name. She included a stranger in our family for the evening. How could I have a different approach to life? “I am the Light of the world…the Holy Spirit who lives in you can...
God’s Invitation to Peace and Joy
Adapted and edited for the Jesus Calling Blog. You can find Pastor Nicewonger’s original post, The Road to Peace, here. As you grow closer to Me, I open your eyes to see more and more of My Presence all around you. Jesus Calling, December 28 How do we find peace amid chaos? When turmoil reigns, anxiety rules, and worry is winning, how do we find the road to peace? My Journal Talks I came across something I wrote after meeting with my spiritual director. As we closed our time together, he invited me to live and move with the spirit of the Jesuits: seek first to discern God’s invitation, and do what you discerned wholeheartedly. Thus you find joy and peace. I was struck by his words. They voiced the way I have sought to live and move through a significant portion of my life. Notice the word ...
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