“See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are.” 1 John 3:1

Even though the deep truth of God is that we are absolutely loved at the core of our being, it can be stubbornly hard to let ourselves embrace that tenderness, and let it sink deep into our bones in a way that it becomes a reality that we actually live in – and then live from.

Today we invite you into a 12-minute meditation prayer practice, designed to help move this great big loving truth from our heads down into our hearts.

Click Here for A Loving Kindness Prayer

Today we invite you to engage in a contemplative spiritual practice designed to help re-connect you with your own childlike self, through the link below.

Consider pausing the video even longer than provided during the reflective space – as long as you need to let the practice go really deep. Ask God to stir the childlike heart inside of you, helping you to remember even more of the kid you once were, and enabling you to absorb even more his abiding parental love for you. Stay in the moment as long as you can.

Click Here for the practice: Children of God

Today we invite you into the practice of prayerful worship, with the song All I Want (Let You Love Me).  Before you begin to sing, pause to consider some of these words:

“I’m going to let you love me

I’m going to let you close

Lord may my heart be open

Nothing with you is hidden

Don’t let me stay the same

I’m going to let you love me”

• Where do these words ring true for you in your experience?
• Where are you still longing to see this become more real in your life? 

With both of these realities in mind, click the link below and bring your full heart before God in worship – both in gratitude for the love you have already experienced, and in prayer for the healing and hope you’re still longing for.

Click Here for All I Want (Let You Love Me) by Gas Street Music

Scripture: Click Here to read Philippians 1:1-11 (The Message)  

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.