Humility Month Day 6: “God’s Thoughts Are Higher Than Our Thoughts”

Posted on August 6, 2024 by Pastor Jesse

Good morning! Several of today’s readings are poetic. If you are in a place where you can read aloud, I encourage you to do so. You’ll need a Bible (in print or virtual). Work through all or part of the prayers, scripture, questions and the reading below. May whatever portions you complete be spiritually nourishing and may the Lord bless you and make you more aware of who he is and who you are!


— Praise: (1)
God of grace, God of glory,
You are faithful. You hold us in your hand.
Your ways are not our ways.
Your thoughts are not our thoughts.
As high as the heavens are above the sea,
So are your thoughts and ways higher than ours.
Eternal God,
In our reading of the Scripture, may your Word be heard;
In the meditations of our hearts, may your Word be known;
In the faithfulness of our lives, may your Word be shown.

— Scripture:
Come Holy Spirit, speak to our hearts as we read your word:
Isaiah 55:1-13

— Answer these three questions:
What does this passage say about God?
What does this passage say about people?
As a result of this reading, what is one step God is inviting you to take?
Who is one person you will tell about that step today?

— Response: (2)
We bless you, O God, for gift of your word.
You renew our faith. You sustain us in hope. You build us up in love.
In our weakness, we pray for strength, that you would prepare us now for service in the world you have made.
Father, let our lives be a blessing. Teach us to trust you for each moment.
Let this be for your glory and our good through Christ, our Lord, we pray. Amen.

— Devotional: (3)
Be careful for nothing, He says, not even your service. Why? Because we are so utterly helpless that no matter how careful we were, our service would amount to nothing! What have we to do with thinking we are fit or not fit for service? The Master-workman surely has a right to use any tool He pleases for His own work, and it is plainly not the business of the tool to decide whether it is the right one to be used or not. He knows; and if He chooses to use us, of course we must be fit. And in truth, if we only knew it, our chief fitness is in our utter helplessness. His strength is made perfect, not in our strength, but in our weakness. Our strength is only a hindrance.

— Closing Prayer: (4)
Lord, remind us today that things are not always as they seem. Help us to hold fast to hope.

(1) and (2) Original portions added to selections from The Worship Sourcebook, 2004, Faith Alive Christian Resources.
(3) From “Recovering the Joy of Service” by Hannah Whithall-Smith found in Devotional Classics by Richard Foster and James Bryan Smith.
(4) Original

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Humility Month Day 5: “Remember Your Creator in the Days of Your Youth”

Posted on August 5, 2024 by Pastor Jesse

Good morning! Grab a Bible (or your phone) and work through all or part of the practice below. May whatever portions you read and reflect on be nourishing to your soul and may the Lord bless you and make you more aware of who he is and who you are!


— Praise: (1)
God of knowledge, God of all truth,
God who is keeping his promises
Possessor of heaven and earth,
Your steadfast love endures forever.
Help us today to turn our hearts to you
and hear what you will speak,
for you speak peace to your people.
Lord, where else and to whom could we go?
You have the words of eternal life!
Help us now to hear, receive, and accept your word to us today.
through Christ, our Lord. Amen.

— Scripture:
Lord, help us hear your word:
Ecclesiastes 12:1-8

— Answer these three questions:
What does this passage say about God?
What does this passage say about people?
As a result of this reading, what is one step God is inviting you to take?
Who is one person you will tell about that step today?

— Response: (2)
God, voices in our culture try to convince us to be true to ourselves, to live for this moment, and to follow our hearts. But your word reminds to be sober and to remember you before our time is gone. And our time is so short. Almighty God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, three in one, both now and forever! All too often we focus on ourselves rather than praising you. We become irritated when deadlines are not met. Fear of our neighbors fills our time. We numb ourselves in activity. We neglect your word. We fail to pray. We use our tongues to deceive others and then speak of our own accomplishments to puff ourselves up. Our thoughts, eyes and ears have not been shielded from violence, desire or greed. God, in your abundant mercy we ask for your forgiveness. Make your salvation known to us. Restore in us hearts devoted to you! In your grace, wound our pride and humble us so that we may be transformed by the working of your Spirit to be servants that honor and glorify you. Amen.

— Devotional: (3)
Any spiritual view which focuses attention on ourselves, and puts the human creature with its small ideas and adventures in the centre foreground, is dangerous until we recognize its absurdity…
We mostly spend those lives conjugating three verbs: to Want, to Have, and to Do. Craving, clutching, and fussing, on the material, political, social, emotional, intellectual – even on the religious – plane, we are kept in perpetual unrest: forgetting that none of these verbs have any ultimate significance, except so far as they are transcended by and included in, the fundamental verb, to Be: and that Being, not wanting, having, and doing, is the essence of a spiritual life.

— Closing Prayer: (4)
Lord, help me remember you in the days of my youth. Teach me to be Still and know that I am God.

(1) Original portions added to selections from The Worship Sourcebook, 2004, Faith Alive Christian Resources.
(2) Original – pulled from the LoveFirst Coast worship archives.
(3) From The Spiritual Life by Evelyn Underhill, pulled from A Guide to Prayer for Ministers and Other Servants.
(4) Original

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Humility Month Day 4: “Against You and You Only Have I Sinned.”

Posted on August 4, 2024 by Pastor Jesse

Good morning! Grab a Bible (or your phone) and work through the practice below. Do all or part. May whatever portions you read and reflect on be nourishing to your soul and may the Lord bless you and make you aware that he is near.
— Praise: (1)
Creator God who made us.
Redeemer God who saved us.
Sustainer God who transforms us and changes us to be more like Jesus.
Almighty God to whom all hearts are open,
all desires known,
and from whom no secrets are hidden:
Cleanse the thoughts of our hearts
by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit,
that we may truly love you
and magnify your holy name
through Christ, our Lord.
Open our hearts to what You would say to us through your word.
Remind us of who you are and who we are.
Through Jesus was ask this. Amen.

— Scripture:
Lord, help us hear your word:
Psalm 51:1-19

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— Answer these three questions:
What does this passage say about God?
What does this passage say about people?
As a result of this reading, what is one step God is inviting you to take?
Who is one person you will tell about that step today?

— Response: (2)
God, you know all things. You know that I like to think well of myself and feel good. I don’t want to admit that I harbor self-serving, proud, and fearful thoughts. Worse, these thoughts lead to harmful attitudes and actions. Worse still, I do not recognize the impact of these sins on others. God, save me from hypocrisy. Help me acknowledge my rebelliousness against you and your will. [Take a moment. Humbly ask God to search your heart and acknowledge the sins he brings to your mind]. God, forgive me and by your Spirit, give me the wisdom to receive your grace and the courage to do my part to make things right, through Jesus who paid the price for all of our sins once and for all, Amen.

— Devotional: (3)
Many people still cling to the notion that man is naturally good. We did not get this from the Greeks. Aristotle said, “There is no good in mankind.” We did not get it from Judaism. Jeremiah said, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it?” (Jeremiah 17:9).

We did not get it from Christian teachings. The Apostle Paul said, “All have sinned, and come short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). We got this illusion, I believe, from the philosophers and psychologists of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries who taught the false doctrine that man is a helpless victim of his environment.

The Bible says that man is not naturally good. All human experience confirms it. Man is rebellious by nature. This first rebellion in history happened in the Garden of Eden, where the environment was perfect and there was no heredity on which to blame it!

[Lord Jesus,] Each time I become obsessed by the idea that my deeds are so noble, let me remember the magnanimity of Your perfect life.

(1) Original portions added to a selection from The Worship Sourcebook, 2004, Faith Alive Christian Resources.
(2) Original
(3) “All Have Sinned” by Billy Graham, Courtesy BillyGraham.org

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Humility Month Day 3: God Looks At The Heart

Posted on August 3, 2024 by Pastor Jesse

Good morning! Grab a Bible (or your phone) and work through the practice below. Do all or part. May whatever portions you read and reflect on be nourishing to your soul and may the Lord bless you and make you aware that he is near.


— Praise: (1)
Almighty God, we begin this journey toward humility with prayer.
God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
You are three in one both now and forever
You are the King of kings, the Lord of lords,
The Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End.
You are Lord. You are Savior. There is none like you.
You know our hearts.
Hear our prayer this morning.
Open our hearts to what You would say to us through your word.
Remind us who you are and who we are.
Through Jesus was ask this. Amen.

— Scripture:
Lord, help us hear your word:
I Samuel 16:1-7

— Answer these three questions:
What does this passage say about God?
What does this passage say about people?
As a result of this reading, what is one step God is inviting you to take?
Who is one person you will tell about that step today?

— Response: (2)
For all the possibilities ahead in this day,
make us thankful, O Lord.
Give us wisdom, courage, and discernment
in the face of chaos, despair, and fear.
Help us to see how, in our circumstances,
we can contribute toward peace, faith, and love.
And give us the will to translate our desires into action.
Lord, by your Spirit living in us,
Convict and empower us to take the single step you have called us to.

— Devotional: (3)
First, Do not think better of yourself because of any outward circumstance that happens to you. Although you may – because of the gifts that have been bestowed upon you – be better at something than someone else (as one horse runs faster than another), know that it is for the benefit of others, not for yourself. Remember that you are merely human and that you have nothing in yourself that merits worth except your right choices.
Second, Humility does not consist in criticizing yourself, or wearing ragged clothes, or walking around submissively wherever you go. Humility consists in a realistic opinion of yourself, namely, that you are an unworthy person. Believe this about yourself with the same certainty you believe you are hungry when you have gone without food.

(1) Original
(2) The Worship Sourcebook, 2004, Faith Alive Christian Resources
(3) Jeremy Taylor, Holy Living and Holy Dying. (Written in the 17th Century)

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Hello and welcome to Day 2 of Humility Month. Grab a Bible (or your phone) and work through the practice below. Do all or part. Whatever you can get through is grace. May the Lord bless you and make you aware of his nearness, and may he help each of us know better who God is and who we are!

Praise: (1) Pray this aloud:
Almighty God, we begin this journey toward humility with prayer. You are the sovereign God who holds our future. You are the suffering God who knows our pain. You are the creator God who made us in your image. You tell us who we are. You are the covenant God who claims us. You make us your children. You make us family. All that we have and all that we are is a gift from you. You provide for our needs and for so much more. Teach us to trust you. God of grace who forgives our sins and restores our souls, God of truth who gives light to our path, who shows us the way, Teach us and remind us who we are and who you are. Through Christ we pray. Amen.”

— Scripture: Come Holy Spirit, speak to us through the words of Scripture
Deuteronomy 8:1-18

As your read, look for answers for these two questions:
• What does this passage say about God?
• What does this passage say about people?

Reflecting on what you read and your answers, how would you answer these two questions?
• As a result of this reading, what is one step God is inviting you to take?
• Who is one person you will tell about that step today?

— Response: (2)
O give thanks to the LORD, for he is good;
for his steadfast love endures forever.
Let the redeemed of the LORD say so,
those he redeemed from trouble
and gathered in from the lands.
Loving Father, all good gifts come from you.
We confess that that there are times we slip into foolishness,
thinking we can do things all by ourselves
and sometimes we are worried about things.
We forget that you give us everything we have
and that you make us who we are.
Please forgive us for thinking about ourselves first.
Please forgive us for not trusting you to take care of us.
Thank you for always loving us
even when we forget that we need you.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.

And now, Lord, by the same Spirit, empower us to take the single step you have called us to.

— Devotional: (3)
“All true religion is the work of God. God is indeed the author of salvation in the world, and religion is the work of grace. If there is anything good or excellent found in his Church, it, too, is entirely God’s work, from first to last.
It is God who quickens a soul which was dead, and it is God who maintains the life of that soul; God who nurtures and perfects that life in the Church. We ascribe nothing to ourselves and everything to God. We do not dare for a single moment to think that our conversion or our sanctification is effect by our own efforts or the efforts of another. True, there are means by which we are converted and sanctified, but they are entirely God’s work.”

(1) Original
(2) The Worship Sourcebook, 2004, Faith Alive Christian Resources
(3) ― Charles Spurgeon, Introduction to “Spiritual Revival the Want of the Church”

Posted on August 2, 2024 by Pastor Jesse | Leave a comment