So the day I am writing this it is absolutely beautiful outside, which I can only hope is a prelude to the weather changing. As we all know though East Tennessee weather is about as predictable as the outcome of any UT football game. While that may be true of UT Football, it is not true for the leadership of our church. We have been striving as a leadership team to remain reliable for our people to the best of our ability during all of the recent event and we will continue to do so in the wake of them as well. One of the major contributing factors to any Christian being predictable and reliable, is in their ability to be devoted to the word of God which is why this month we are focused on “Daily Devotion”.
We are focused here because of the clear importance that it played in Jesus’ ministry as well as what we see in the early church (which ultimately leads them to succeed). This reality is not just something that we see happening 2,000 years ago, we also see this in the modern age as well. LifeWay led a significant study that revealed time in God’s Word as the far-and-away leading metric for a person’s spiritual growth. In fact, by developing a discipline of “daily devotion”, all other areas of our spiritual growth rise as well. More time in God’s Word means you serve more, give more, and are more deeply engaged in the local church. Scripture is so much more than words on a page, it is an EMPOWERING well overflowing with the life that God desires us to have.
“The gospel of Jesus Christ must not be just an aspect of your theology. It must not be relegated to the “religious” dimension of your life. Your relationship with God through Jesus Christ is your life. It touches and alters every aspect of your existence; it redefines your identity. It infuses your life with new meaning and purpose, and it completely reshapes your destiny.”
- Paul David Tripp
This month as we strive together to be devoted to God’s word I hope you will engage with our weekly EMPOWEING practice that helps us to engage in this discipline. We also hope that you are able to take that EMPOWERMENT and EXTEND it to the ONE that Gos is calling you to lead to Christ this year. The only way we will succeed in anything kingdom related is if God blesses our work, this will only happen if we know what he is asking us to do which comes from “Daily Devotion”. We want to lead you in this as we seek out wisdom in the same way, so look for opportunities to grow in your devotion
Here are some ways you can EMBRACE Daily Devotion this month…..
1) Engage with one of our E3 groups that meets through the week( both virtual and physical)
2) Ask about our upcoming 24 Hour Sabbath as we look to find rest together in His word(March 19)
3) Ask your shepherd (elder or pastor) what they have been studying in thee word this week and see if it inspires you to do the same.
4) Participate in Sunday Service(virtual or Physical) because we understand how difficult it ca be to make time for personal study
We exist as a ministry to EMBRACE you where you are and EMPOWER you with Gods Spirit, so that we can together EXTEND gods kingdom.
We cannot do this without “DAILY DEVOTION”
