Daily Devotional for Wednesday, July 22, 2020
Daily Devotional for Wednesday, July 22, 2020
The Upper Room <notifications@upperroom.org>
Wednesday, July 22, 2020
DAILY DEVOTIONAL FOR WEDNESDAY, JULY 22, 2020
Coming Near to God by Barbara Gordon (Missouri, USA)
READ 1 CORINTHIANS 9:24-27
24 Don't you know that in a race all the runners compete, but only one wins the prize? So then, run to win! 25 Now every athlete in training submits himself to strict discipline, and he does it just to win a laurel wreath that will soon wither away. But we do it to win a crown that will last forever. 26 Accordingly, I don't run aimlessly but straight for the finish line; I don't shadow-box but try to make every punch count. 27 I treat my body hard and make it my slave so that, after proclaiming the Good News to others, I myself will not be disqualified.
Come near to God and he will come near to you. (JAMES 4:8 (NIV))
James 4:8 Come close to God, and he will come close to you. Clean your hands, sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded people!
I clutched my side and felt a pulsating sensation in my throat. With each labored breath, my chest heaved up and down. I had finished my first 5K run, just before my fifty-first birthday.
I had started running just one year earlier. In those early days, I jogged only when I felt like it and at a speed that felt comfortable. That approach, however, did not yield great results. Then I discovered a plan.
My strategy began with walking a few minutes, followed by running 60 seconds. The alternating walking/jogging schedule increased until after a couple of weeks I could run five minutes nonstop. Instead of feeling exhausted with limbs too heavy to move, I felt refreshed.
Distance running required disciplining my physical life. Likewise, we strengthen our spiritual lives through the disciplines of Bible study, meditation, fasting, and prayer. A Bible-reading plan and a designated time and place of prayer help me stay focused as I come near to God. Coming close to God requires directing our hearts toward God — not with a prescribed list of activities to earn God’s favor but rather an outpouring of desire to spend time with God. And just as today’s verse promises, God comes near to us
TODAY'S PRAYER:
O Lord, increase our desire to know you better. Amen.
* * *
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:
I come close to God by spending time with God.
PRAYER FOCUS:
Those beginning a new spiritual practice
Comment on Today's Devotional
The Upper Room®
1908 Grand Ave, Nashville, Tennessee 37212, United States
Copyright © The Upper Room 2020, All rights reserved.
The Upper Room <notifications@upperroom.org>
Wednesday, July 22, 2020
DAILY DEVOTIONAL FOR WEDNESDAY, JULY 22, 2020
Coming Near to God by Barbara Gordon (Missouri, USA)
READ 1 CORINTHIANS 9:24-27
24 Don't you know that in a race all the runners compete, but only one wins the prize? So then, run to win! 25 Now every athlete in training submits himself to strict discipline, and he does it just to win a laurel wreath that will soon wither away. But we do it to win a crown that will last forever. 26 Accordingly, I don't run aimlessly but straight for the finish line; I don't shadow-box but try to make every punch count. 27 I treat my body hard and make it my slave so that, after proclaiming the Good News to others, I myself will not be disqualified.
Come near to God and he will come near to you. (JAMES 4:8 (NIV))
James 4:8 Come close to God, and he will come close to you. Clean your hands, sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded people!
I clutched my side and felt a pulsating sensation in my throat. With each labored breath, my chest heaved up and down. I had finished my first 5K run, just before my fifty-first birthday.
I had started running just one year earlier. In those early days, I jogged only when I felt like it and at a speed that felt comfortable. That approach, however, did not yield great results. Then I discovered a plan.
My strategy began with walking a few minutes, followed by running 60 seconds. The alternating walking/jogging schedule increased until after a couple of weeks I could run five minutes nonstop. Instead of feeling exhausted with limbs too heavy to move, I felt refreshed.
Distance running required disciplining my physical life. Likewise, we strengthen our spiritual lives through the disciplines of Bible study, meditation, fasting, and prayer. A Bible-reading plan and a designated time and place of prayer help me stay focused as I come near to God. Coming close to God requires directing our hearts toward God — not with a prescribed list of activities to earn God’s favor but rather an outpouring of desire to spend time with God. And just as today’s verse promises, God comes near to us
TODAY'S PRAYER:
O Lord, increase our desire to know you better. Amen.
* * *
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:
I come close to God by spending time with God.
PRAYER FOCUS:
Those beginning a new spiritual practice
Comment on Today's Devotional
The Upper Room®
1908 Grand Ave, Nashville, Tennessee 37212, United States
Copyright © The Upper Room 2020, All rights reserved.
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