Loading more...
Prayer Is a Conversation
Growing up, prayer was largely a matter of table grace, prayer at church, and praying for Read More
Anne DeLoach Nelson | Read Psalm 1:1-6
Sign Up Today and get full access to the daily Discipline and the rest of The Upper Room content FREE for 30 days.
Sign Up TodayOne of my favorite stories is Max Lucado’s You Are Special. It tells of the Wemmicks, uniquely created wooden people carved by Eli the woodworker. Every day the Wemmicks give one another stickers: golden stars for good looks and fine talents; gray dots for things that seem “less than.” One...
O God, may we walk in the way of righteousness, delighting in your law. Amen.
Scripture tells us that in our lives in general, and especially in our spiritual lives, we need to distinguish what is true from what is false. The psalmist admonishes us to follow the truth of God and flee wicked ideas. This week we read about Judas, who did not follow the psalmist’s advice—with disastrous results. In Acts the apostles seek to replace Judas among their number with a witness to Jesus who has not been led astray. In John’s Gospel, Jesus bemoans the loss of Judas and prays that his followers will cling to his words. The author of First John testifies that God’s words are trustworthy above all others. They bear witness to the life that comes through Christ, whose legitimacy was confirmed by his ascension into heaven.
• Read Acts 1:15-17, 21-26. When have you experienced the disruption of a meaningful relationship through death? How did you eventually recover?
• Read Psalm 1. When have you allowed the world to define you? How do you avoid that?
• Read 1 John 5:9-13. How have you come to know the testimony of God in your heart?
• Read John 17:6-19. What helps you sense God’s presence and protection?
Respond by posting a prayer.
"Many of us are used to the idea that we might speak to God or to Jesus. Maybe at times it feels like shouting into the darkness or whatnot, but it’s not hard to do—at least as an imaginative exercise. What’s harder—even imaginatively—is to try to hear Jesus speaking to us. Are we just making things up? Are we just using Jesus as a puppet to say whatever we want to hear?" READ MORE
