God has given us the Disciplines of the spiritual life as a means of receiving His grace. The Disciplines allow us to place ourselves before God so that He can transform us.
Prayer is the central avenue God uses to transform us. To pray is to change.
January 8 – The prayer of faith (James 5:13-18)
January 9 – The prayer of worship (Psalm 103)
January 10 – The prayer of repentance (Psalm 51)
January 11 – The prayer of thanksgiving (Psalm 150)
January 12 – The prayer of guidance (Matthew 26:36-46)
January 13 – The pattern of prayer (Matthew 6:5-15)
January 14 – The prayer of command (Mark 9:14-29)
More than any other discipline, fasting reveals the things that control us.
January 15 – The example of Christ (Luke 4:1-13)
January 16 – God’s chosen fast (Isaiah 58:1-7)
January 17 – A partial fast (Daniel 10:1-14)
January 18 – A normal fast (Nehemiah 1:4-11)
January 19 – An absolute fast (Esther 4:12-17)
January 20 – The inauguration of the Gentile mission (Acts 13:1-3)
January 21 – The appointment of the elders in the Churches (Acts 14:19-23)
Christian Meditation, very simply, is the ability to hear God’s voice and obey His word.
January 22 – The glory of meditation (Exodus 24:15-18)
January 23 – The friendship of meditation (Exodus 33:11)
January 24 – The testing of meditation (Exodus 20:18-19)
January 25 – The object of meditation (Psalm 1:1-3)
January 26 – The comfort of meditation (1 Kings 19:9-18)
January 27 – The insights of meditation (Acts 10:9-20)
January 28 – The thrill of meditation (2 Corinthians 12:1-4)
January 29 –The Lord has triumphed gloriously (Exodus 15:1-2, 20-21)
January 30 –The joy of the Lord (2 Samuel 6:12-19)
January 31 –Bless the Lord (Psalm 103)
February 1 –Praise the Lord (Psalm 150)
February 2 –Hosanna! (Luke 19:35-40)
February 3 –Walking, leaping, and praising God (Acts 3:1-10)
February 4 –Hallelujah! (Revelation 19:1-8)
February 5 – The call of submission (Mark 8:34 & John 12:24-26)
February 6 – The example of Christ (Philippians 2:1-11)
February 7 – The example of Abraham (Genesis 22:1-19)
February 8 – The example of Paul (Galatians 2:19-21)
February 9 – Submission in the marketplace (Matthew 5:38-48)
February 10 – Submission in the family (Ephesians 5:21 – 6:9, 1 Peter 3:1-9)
February 11 – Submission with reference to the state (Romans 13:1-10, Acts 4:13-20)
February 12 – The need for confession and forgiveness (Isaiah 59: 1-9, Romans 3:10-18)
February 13 – The promise of forgiveness (Jeremiah 31:34, Matthew 26:28, Ephesians 1:7)
February 14 –The assurance of forgiveness (1 John 1:5-10)
February 15 –Jesus Christ is our adequate Savior, Mediator and Advocate (1Timothy 2:5, 1 John 2:1)
February 16 –A parable of confession (Luke 15:11-24)
February 17 –Authority and forgiveness (Matthew 16:19, 18:18, John 20:23)
February 18 –The ministry of the Christian fellowship (James 5:13-16)
February 19 –Worship in spirit and truth (John 4:19-26)
February 20 –Communion: the essence of worship (John 6:52-58, 63)
February 21 –The life of worship (Ephesians 5:18-20, Colossians 3:16-17)
February 22 –The Lord high and lifted up (Isaiah 6:1-8)
February 23 –Sing to the Lord (Psalm 96)
February 24 –Worship of all creation (Psalm 148)
February 25 –Worthy is the Lamb (Revelation 5:6-14)
As you read, write out the verse(s) that stuck out to you the most.
What truth can you learn? Are there any warnings? Principles? Commands? What is the overall message of the verse?
How does this verse apply to your life today? How can you live differently in light of this truth?
Turn these thoughts into prayer. Ask the Lord to show you how to meditate on and apply this scripture to your life.
“Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where He prayed.”
Matthew 1:35
HAVE A CERTAIN TIME
Jesus got up early in the morning to spend time with His Heavenly Father. Make a daily appointment with God — whether it’s first thing in the morning, at lunch, or in the evening — and faithfully keep it.
HAVE A CERTAIN PLACE
Jesus had a specific place He went to pray. Having a designated place to pray helps us remove distractions and frees us to worship and pray out loud.
HAVE A CERTAIN PLAN
When Jesus taught His disciples how to pray, He gave them a prayer outline. We call it “The Lord’s Prayer.” Each day, our plans for our prayer time can vary, maybe including worship music, Bible reading, and quiet time to listen to God. It doesn’t always have to look the same; it just helps when we have a plan for connecting regularly with God.
ACTS Prayer
A
ADORATION – This is giving God praise (adoring Him). Glorify Him.
“O Lord, I will honor and praise your name, for you are my God.
You do such wonderful things! You planned them long ago, and now you have accomplished them” Isaiah 25:1
C
CONFESSION – This is where we confess our wrongdoings to God.
“But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness.” 1 John 1:9
T
THANKSGIVING – This is where we thank God. After all, we have so much to be thankful for.
“Enter his gates with thanksgiving; go into his courts with praise. Give thanks to him and praise his name.” Psalm 100:4
S
SUPPLICATION – This simply means to ask God. This is where you pray for yourself and others.
“Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God” Philippians 4:6
The Lord’s Prayer is often recited in churches or at religious events, but there’s so much more to this prayer. Jesus provided this model as an outline to teach us how to pray in a way that connects us to God, aligns our priorities with His, and helps us live dependently on Him. This model takes us through each part of The Lord’s Prayer, showing us how to pray the way Jesus instructed. One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When He finished, one of His disciples said to Him, “Lord, teach us to pray…” (LUKE 11:1)
“Our Father in Heaven, hallowed be Your name. Your Kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in Heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the Kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.”
Matthew 6:9-13 KJV
The goal of fasting is to draw nearer to God. Biblical fasting always has to do with eliminating distractions for a spiritual purpose; it hits the reset button of our soul and renews us from the inside out. It also enables us to celebrate the goodness and mercy of God and prepares our hearts for all the good things God desires to bring into our lives.
Remember, your personal fast should present a level of challenge, but it is very important to know your body, your options, and, most importantly, to seek God in prayer and follow what the Holy Spirit leads you to do.