When was the last time you felt absolutely loved to the core of your being?

Today we invite you to re-visit a contemplative practice we engaged in at church yesterday. Throw a set of headphones on and click play on the video below, allowing yourself to drink deep once more of the reminder of how completely loved and held you are right now – no matter what.

Click Here for “The Father’s Love Letter: Remix"

Do you ever feel pushed to the edges of yourself or your life? Take a moment to examine the landscape of your current reality and bring to mind any ways in which this might currently be true.

How do you typically engage with God, in those situations and seasons?

Today we invite you to bring those feelings and experiences into a practice of prayerful worship, with the song Be Still.  Before you begin to sing, pause to consider some of these lyrics:

Heart in my throat and my body on fire

High over the ground walking on a wire

Got my hands held tight around all I desire

I’m calling your name but I’m scared I won’t find you

Would you hold, would you hold, will you reach out and hold me?

‘Cause I’m out on a limb and afraid to keep going

Do you know, do you know, do you know what is coming?

I’m afraid to be still, and too tired to keep running 

When you are ready,  Click Here for a YouTube video of Be Still, by Audrey Assad.

Today marks the beginning of the season of Lent, the 40 days leading up to Easter (Sundays excepted), mirroring the 40 days Jesus spent in the wilderness. Observing Lent is a practice that began during the 4^th century as a way to prepare Christians for the holiest days of the year.

Whether or not Lent is something you have intentionally engaged in previously, we invite you to consider giving it a try this year. Author Kate Bowler has created an excellent 40-day devotional guide (“Bless The Lent We Actually Have”) which can be downloaded FREE at the link below.

Today we encourage you to download the doc and open it up to Pg 10 to engage with today’s reading.   

Click Here for the free downloadable devotional by Kate Bowler

Scripture: Click Here to read Luke 4:1-13 (The Message Translation)  

Read the passage over slowly, prayerfully and attentively a few times. As you do, allow God to highlight a word, phrase or verse – something that jumps out at you personally.

Observations: Think about what is being said, by who, and why they might be saying it the way they are. What is the surrounding context? What other background information do you have? How and where do you see the heart of Jesus in this? Don’t make conclusions or applications yet, just observe everything you can.

Application: Now consider how this passage might apply personally to your life. In what way does it speak to your own circumstances? How can it help you? How does it challenge you? How does it call you to love both God and others better? How does this word from God apply directly to your day-to-day life and how you are learning to follow Jesus?

Prayer: Now that you’ve read and reflected on God’s word and begun the process of application to your life, simply talk to God about it all. Share what’s swirling in your head and heart, allow space to listen for what the Holy Spirit is wanting to say to you in return as well.

The Prayer of Examen is a classic spiritual practice the church has been engaging in for hundreds of years. It’s an exercise meant to attune us more sensitively to the activity and presence of God in and around us – knowing that the busy demands and general noise of our lives tend to drown out that natural awareness.

Examen is a practice of looking backwards and re-examining where God was at work, in the hopes that it will train us to more readily spot and cooperate with where God is at work in our present moments.  Which is 100% a learned – and learnable – skill!

So today we invite you to engage this classic discipline – Click Here for a 10-minute guided experience.