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Todays devotion is from “The Sayings of the Desert Fathers,” a compilation of sayings from the desert monks of Egypt, Syria, and Palestine in the fourth to sixth centuries.

What is pure prayer? Prayer which is brief in words but abundant in actions. For if your actions do not exceed your petitions, then your prayers are mere words, and the seed of the hands is not in them.

Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. [Colossians 3:23-24]

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Written by Uli Chi, a contemporary business leader, writer, teacher, and mentor.

The early 20th-century evangelist, Billy Sunday, was asked what the ideal Christian life looked like. He was said to have replied: “You walk down the ‘sawdust trail’ in the revival tent. You accept Jesus at the altar. And then you walk out of the tent, get hit by a truck, and go straight to heaven.” No backsliding, no spiritual growth necessary, “instant eternity!” That’s a far cry from the biblical story told about Jesus. To grow up like Jesus means learning to grow up as a human being. To learn to love God and to love your neighbor. To be curious about the world God created and entrusted to us. And to discover our vocation and contribution to that world. That kind of formation takes a long time and requires us to be immersed in the ordinary circumstances of life.

And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. [Galatians 6:9]

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Written by Steve Robinson, a contemporary pastor and author.

Have you ever caught yourself drifting—slowly sliding away from the simple truth of Christ into a mindset of performance, shame, or self-effort? That’s what happened in Galatia. Paul’s heartbreak was that believers had embraced “a different gospel,” one that sounded spiritual but stripped away the power of Christ. The true gospel is the life, death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus. It is not Christ plus works, Christ plus rules, or Christ plus our own strength. It is Christ alone. Paul makes it clear: grace is God doing for us what we cannot do for ourselves. The gospel saves us, yes—but it also changes us. It reshapes our desires, rewrites our story, and sets us free from shame, addiction, and fear. False gospels abound: religion that says you earn your place, works that trust in your goodness, broad roads that claim all paths lead to God, or hyper-grace that avoids repentance. Each one leaves us empty because they either add to or subtract from Jesus. The real gospel is Christ in us, living through us by His Spirit. The question is: where are you tempted to drift? Has your faith turned into striving, or loosened into apathy? The invitation today is to come back to the center—the cross, the empty tomb, and the Spirit who empowers new life.

I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. [Galatians 2:20]

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Written by Mark Roberts, a contemporary writer.

One of my friends went on a mission trip with members of his church to an impoverished area in southern Africa. Upon arriving, he was struck by how little the people he was visiting had in material wealth. They lived on the edge of serious poverty. But on the first night of his visit, his hosts prepared an elaborate and delicious feast for him and his fellow guests. At first, he felt guilty eating this feast, knowing what a sacrifice it was for his hosts. But when he saw their joy in serving him, his guilt subsided. His acceptance of their exceptional generosity gave them a chance to rejoice and, indeed, to flourish. They were flourishing by living richly through giving richly. 

One person gives freely, yet gains even more; another withholds unduly, but comes to poverty. A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed. [Proverbs 11:24-25]

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This prayer is from the Pray.com app.

God, I thank You for Your love for me today. I thank You for Your hand leading me. I thank You for Your Spirit guiding me, as I reach for higher and greater things in Your name, Jesus. Everything I do today is to glorify You. Let every person who sees me be inspired themselves to reach for more of what You have for them, more of what You have called them to—for Your glory. I command anything within me that wants to play it safe or desires things to be easy to leave my heart, my mind, my life right now. I don’t want anything less than Your best for me. “Faith” is the word that will direct and define my day, because I am reaching for the increase that You have promised me. God, I praise You for building me up on the inside, so that nothing I face on the outside can tear me down. Continue to strengthen me today. Bring breakthroughs in every area of my life— mentally, physically, emotionally, and spiritually. Bring breakthroughs in my work, in my relationships, and in my family. Where I am weary or discouraged, where I have been hurt or wounded, I ask You to comfort me. Heal me, inside and out. Surround me once again with Your unfailing love. Draw close to me, as I draw close to You. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Increase my honor and comfort me again. [Psalm 71:21]

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Written by George Mueller (1805-1898), an English evangelist and one of the founders of the Plymouth Brethren Movement.  This is an excerpt from his book “Life of Trust.”

“And the peace of God which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” And this is so great a blessing, so real a blessing, so precious a blessing, that it must be known experimentally to be entered into, for it passeth understanding. O let us lay these things to heart, and the result will be, if we habitually walk in this spirit, we shall far more abundantly glorify God, than as yet we have done.

And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. [Philippians 4:7].

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Written by Timothy Keller (1950-2023), an American Presbyterian pastor, preacher, theologian, and Christian apologist.

From the time Jesus’ identity is revealed, he begins to say, “Follow me.” If he is who he says he is, what does it mean to follow him? Being a disciple of Jesus Christ means setting a new priority, finding a new identity, and living a new mercy. All three are critical; they all fit together… Discipleship is not just a matter of bending your will to Jesus’ will; it’s melting your heart into a whole new shape… A disciple is not only someone who has set a new priority, but someone whose entire identity has been reshaped and forged… But you can’t change your identity by just deciding. It’s not an act of the will. You cannot change your identity without a radical experience of mercy! without a radical experience of grace! without a radical experience of love!…Reason and willpower are not enough… Follow Jesus. He’ll give you what you need. He’s a wonderful counselor… He will love you singularly. He will love the real you. He will love you into a whole new identity.

And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. [Luke 9:23-24] 

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Written by Jami Amerine, a contemporary author.

When I found out I wasn’t following the real Jesus, I was totally undone. The hard work of making Jesus fit my brain, answer when I called, and label me righteous was a full-time job that robbed me of peace. When I finally fell into the loving arms of the real Jesus, I began a genuine relationship with the Savior of the world—the One who died for me. He is everything He promised and so much more. Our culture presents us with so many versions of Jesus, letting us make Him in our own image. Maybe you’ve come to depend on a false Jesus and didn’t even realize it. False versions of Jesus people keep falling for include: a mean Jesus, a political Jesus who would vote one way, a genie in a bottle Jesus, an I’ll punish you Jesus, a Jesus who brings struggles you can’t handle, a distant Jesus, a church Jesus you lose faith in when a church fails, a transactional rule-based Jesus, and a confused Jesus. If you are struggling to find peace, consider what Jesus said about Himself and test your beliefs against the truth from Scripture.

For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths. [2 Timothy 4:3-4]

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Written by Susan Monk Kidd, a contemporary American writer.

As I stood inside the Martin Luther King, Jr. Center in Atlanta waiting to interview Coretta Scott King, I gazed at an exhibit of the travel bag Dr. King had used on his fatal trip to Memphis. Inside the bag were two books. The one on top was entitled Strength to Love. It reminded me of his audacious belief that loving one’s enemies, not violence, held the power to transform society. Was he right? I wondered. Could simply acting in love in the face of hostility really make a difference? Later I asked Mrs. King. “Let me tell you a story,” she replied. “One January night in 1956 while Martin was away, I sat home with our baby. Suddenly there was a thunderous blast. A bomb had been tossed onto the front porch. The baby and I were unharmed, but an angry crowd of our friends, wanting revenge, had gathered around the house when Martin got home. “It was the first test of his theory,” she continued. “Martin hushed the crowd and said, ‘I want you to go home and put down your weapons. We must meet violence with nonviolence. We must meet hate with love.’” “What happened?” I asked. “The anger melted and the crowd faded into the night,” she said with a smile. “You see, the power of love is a mighty force.”  As I left I stopped by the exhibit one more time. I wanted to see the title of the other book in Dr. King’s bag. It was Where Do We Go From Here? I thought about the hostility in our world, the conflicts between neighbors, even the angry situations in our own houses. The question on the book followed me all the way home. Lord, on this Martin Luther King’s Birthday—and every day—give me the strength to love even when I am wronged.

But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also. [Matthew 5:39]

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Written by C.S. Lewis (1898-1963), a British writer, scholar, and Anglican lay theologian. This is an excerpt from his book “Mere Christianity.”

Give up yourself, and you will find your real self. Lose your life and you will save it. Submit to death, death of your ambition and favorite wishes every day and death of your whole body in the end: submit with every fiber of your being, and you will find eternal life. Keep back nothing. Nothing that you have not given away will ever be really yours. Nothing in you that has not died will ever be raised from the dead. Look for yourself, and you will find in the long run only hatred, loneliness, despair, rage, ruin, and decay. But look for Christ and you will find Him, and with Him everything else thrown in.

But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. [Matthew 6:33]

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