encouragement and wisdom for the journey : a devotional Welcome to the Body & Soul session: As you join us to exercise and improve your physical fitness, we hope the message in the music motivates you to embrace life today. Take action to make wise choices one day at a time. Understand more fully that the way you live today impacts your tomorrow. The songs focus on living life with the following focus: • running in the right direction • giving our lives away • singing a new song • following the right hope • believing in eternity Reach for a higher level of spiritual fitness this session in Body & Soul. Look for the songs you like online so you can listen to them often and think about the message you are hearing. Let your instructor know if there is any way she can help you, and feel free to contact us at www.bodyandsoul.org. Wishing you an abundant life of joy and peace— starting right here, right now! Jeannie Blocher President, Body & Soul Fitness 1. Best Days......................................Lincoln Brewster 2. Life............................................................Beckah Shae 3. Reaching for You.......................Lincoln Brewster 4. Send Me Out............................................................Fee 5. All My Heart...........................................Stellar Kart 6. Promised Land.......................................................Fee 7. Almost Missed This Moment....................Revive 8. No More................................................Beckah Shae 9. Show Me Life.....................................Addison Road 10. One Shot....................................................Newsboys 11. Love Found Me...............................................Revive 12. Show Me What It Means...Meredith Andrews 13. Born Again................................................Newsboys 14. Say It..........................................................Britt Nicole 15. Cover Us...................................................Sonflowerz 16. Here in This Moment.....................Beckah Shae 17. Running to You.......................................Newsboys 18. Change in the Making..................Addison Road 19. I Will Follow..........................................Chris Tomlin 20. Blink......................................................................Revive 21. City On Our Knees....................................TobyMac Have you felt “too busy to breathe”, or like “life was passing you by”?1 None of us want to look back over a day and feel like we have wasted time, or missed out on special moments. To live every day to the fullest we need direction, right direction. -First thing in the morning, remind yourself that God has a good plan for your day and that nothing about your day will surprise him.2 - 2nd, ask the Lord to protect you from harmful choices and lead you to quiet places of peace and refreshment.3 - 3rd, spend time reading the Bible, his guidebook, every day! One who did this well prayed: “Direct me in the path of your commands, for there I find delight.”4 - 4th, it has been said that “good things are the enemy of the best.” So eliminate the good things and prioritize the BEST things. - Finally, each evening evaluate how you spent your day. Make adjustments and thank God for his provision, protection and presence in your life. Gratitude will take you down a path that is always headed in the right direction. Almost Missed The Moment by Revive Jeremiah 29:11 3Ps. 23:2-4 4Ps. 119:35 1 2 peless siturn that there are no ho 1 “When will we ever lea less about them.” pe ho n ow gr ve ha o nces.” ations, only people wh n’t know my circumsta do ou “Y , ing ink th e u’r Maybe yo m fatigue. uscles are cramping fro Your perseverance m and are...over Me, all you who labor Jesus said, “Come to and relieve you to rest— I will ease e us ca ll wi I d an , ed m Jesus burden 2 rsonal invitation is fro pe is Th .” uls so ur yo and refresh yesterday... 3 out you. He loved you ab s re ca ly ine nu ge o wh w, today. His ..he loves you right no w. ro or m to u yo e lov ll enough to he wi abundant that he has so is ce an er ev rs pe legendary he can’t do that nts to hold you up, but 4 share with you. He wa someone else. or g hin et m so on n Is your if you choose to lea deeply? Turn to Jesus. u yo rt hu e on ed lov a Has ? Turn to ur beloved hurting child heart breaking over yo wn around you? ms come crashing do ea dr ur yo ve Ha s. su Je of your 5 row the whole weight th n ca ou 6 “Y s. su Je When Turn to his personal concern.” e ar u yo for , him on anxieties up to persevere. , you must be care-ful your life feels care-filled or by God, himself. Why? You are cared-f 3 1 Charles Swindoll, “Bedside Blessings” 2Matt. 11:28 Amplified Romans 8:38-39 4Is. 41:10 5Hebrews 12:2 6I Peter 5:7 Phillips Lk.1:31,32,38 NLT 2 Eph. 2:10 NLT 1 God has equipped you, as his beloved masterpiece, to touch people in your sphere of influence.1 Down through the centuries God has used ordinary people to impact lives, even change the course of nations. One thing they all have had in common was their willingness to serve. Mary, the mother of Jesus is a perfect example. Every Jewish young woman in her Romanoccupied country desired to be the woman chosen to bear the promised Deliverer. An angel told Mary; “You will become pregnant and have a son, and you are to name him Jesus. He will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High.” Mary wondered how this could be-- she wasn’t married. Her heart’s response was remarkable: “I am the Lord’s servant and I am willing to accept whatever he wants.”2 Like Mary, our willing attitude is fundamental to giving our life away. We need to resist self-absorption that can blind us to other’s needs, and deafen us to God’s gentle whispers of guidance. Take heart, God continues to use those whose souls echo Mary’s words: “I am the Lord’s servant and I am willing...” Because of the grave danger for the Jewish people, Mordecai, Esther’s adoptive father, sent this secret message to her: “who can say but that you have been elevated to the palace “for such a time as this.”1 The future of the Jewish nation depended on her. She asked all the Jews to fast and pray when she realized that God had placed her there, as queen, “for such a time as this.” Her resolve: “If I must die, I am willing to die.”2 We learn treasured truths from Esther’s life. Her willingness to die to accomplish the task God had given her exemplifies Jesus’ teaching that whoever loses his life, for his sake, will find it.3 The result--not only was Esther’s life saved, but the lives of all the Jews living in Persia were also saved. Esther valued prayer. If you have determined to live your life by giving it away; enlist people who will consistently pray for you. “For such a time as this” God has you where you are. He is “looking for devotion that is more than just routine.” Plead with him: “show me what it means.”4 Esther 4:14 2Est. 4:15 3Matt.10:39 4Show Me What It Means by Meredith Andrews 1 We can’t sing when we are grumbling and complaining. The truth is that out of the mouth come matters of the heart.1 Nurturing a heart attitude of gratitude will put a new song on the lips of any complainer. It’s imperative that we learn to “give thanks in all circumstances.”2 This does not mean that we are grateful FOR all circumstances, but that we are grateful IN all circumstances. Your circumstances don‘t determine if God is worthy of thanks. Consider this: Jesus lives to intercede FOR YOU.3 A time is coming when God will wipe every tear from every eye.4 Circumstances are temporary. God promises to hold you up with his righteous right hand and give you wisdom.5 Instead of nursing a grumbling attitude, nurture an attitude of gratitude until your daily routine is accompanied by a mental focus on new lyrics. “Sing new songs of praise to him; ... For the word of the Lord is right and true; he is faithful in all he does is worthy of our trust. ...his unfailing love fills the earth.”6 4 8:34 Rev. 7:17 3 -18 Romans 6 16 5: . es Th :3a,4a,5b I 1 Matt. 15:18 es 1:5 Ps. 33 5 Ps. 63:8, Jam 2 Guilt... Just reading that word strikes a dissonant chord in our hearts. Guilt is everywhere. Who hasn’t thought, said or done things we’re not proud of?1 Sometimes the guilt incessantly plagues our thoughts.2 We want its relentless noise to stop, but we don’t know how to mute it. The great news is that God not only knows how to turn it off; but he also knows how to give us a new song to play in its place.3 When you admit to God that you are guilty of breaking his rules, he forgives you.4 He removes the stain on your soul, making it whiter than snow.5 Because of this gracious mercy, there’s no replay button for what he forgives.6 There’s no need to dread another shoe dropping.7 These reasons can inspire you to burst into song.8 When you thank God for forgiveness, you “jump over doubt and dive into belief”9 Rom. 3:23 2Rom. 3:10 3Ps. 40:3 4I John 1:9 5Isaiah 1:18 Jeremiah 31:34b; Hebrews 8:12 7Romans 8:1, 31-33, 38-39 8 Psalm 98:1 9No More by Beckah Shae 1 6 ything Real hope is an h. is w w lo al sh ten just a ay; there is “I hope so” is of life becomes gr s, de fa pe ho stances as “When eive our circum 1 rc but superficial. pe to sy ea can be cynicism.” To t “I or , ” it. m is to r im lo ss no co fear, pe ho is o surrender to over the One w sc di to ed hopeless and...t ne e w ch a bleak life escape living su al hope. the source of re Hope is built on more than luck or ‘karma.’ It is built on the promises and unchanging character of Almighty God.2 A. W. Tozer wrote: “With the goodness of God to desire our highest welfare, the wisdom of God to plan it, and the power of God to achieve it. What do we lack?”3 Some of you reading this page have never pursued a relationship with God and now you’re curious. Take a look at the message near the end of this booklet. We invite you to grasp hold of God and assure for yourself a future filled with hope. We pray that God will; “fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you will abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”4 ”Fear Not Tomorrow, God is Already There” Ruth Graham. 2II Peter 1:3-4 ”The Knowledge of the Holy” A. W. Tozer 4Romans 15:13; Philippians 4:7 1 3 Hope often has a purifying affect. For example, in hope of better health we do things like reducing fat intake, while increasing our intake of fruit and veggies. For those who follow Christ, the greatest example of hope-inspiring purity comes from the flawless life of their Savior. In anticipation of his second arrival, his followers prepare to meet him by being as much like him as possible.1 But our hope of being as pure as he is doesn’t reside in our own efforts. None of us have that capacity. That’s why we cling to the promise in the Bible that when we finally see him, we will be made like him.2 God will transform us on the spot and all the residual effects of being part of the flawed human race will be incinerated. Some type of spiritual refining will leave us as pure as Jesus. The certainty of that hope is transforming. When you try to imagine something to compare to the magnitude of that event, everything else just seems like a warm up act.3 Luke 6:40 1 2 I John 3:3 3 Philippians 2:10 ife Live L Many have mused that, “There’s got to be more to existence than just the here and now.” Those sentiments are confirmed by a wise man who declared that God has given us all an innate sense of existence that transcends time. We call it eternity.1 If we are going to make the most of the “here and now”, we must have eternity as a reference point. It’s the only way to make sense of the quandaries of life. We grapple for some meaning in this life. We believe we are more than just intelligent bipeds at the top of the food chain. This is a statement of belief that has to be accepted by faith.2 This faith is what makes us sure enough to alter our course of action on earth. It is what makes us certain of things we’ve never detected with any of our five senses. The Bible tells us how people who lived with such convictions changed not only their lives but the course of history. They fought and won wars. They experienced show-stopping miracles. They survived unbelievable hardships. Some even cheated death. They lived out what they believed in full color and surround sound. The stories of these heroes of the faith are found in the Bible.3 “Boil all the stories down, and you come to an awareness that the central characters possessed three things.”4 4 hrist Followers 3 r. 4:16-18 “C 46 2 5 w 11:1 II Co atthew 25:311 . 3:11 Hebre cl Ec acDonald M 6 Peter 1:3-4 II orld”, Gordon M In The Real W 1. They possessed a certainty about how to meet and commune with their God. 2. They gained a remarkable degree of self-control as they came to understand the importance of the power of God filling their interior lives. 3. They came to see that all of us make a bit of history and that it is vital to make history in accord with the purposes of God”. Most who make history have little sense that their actions are that significant. Others think their actions too small to matter. Mother Teresa said, “Not all of us can do great things. But we can do small things with great love.” Jesus said that even giving someone a cup of water in his name would not go without eternal reward.5 Whether it is the kitchen stove or the cauldron of world affairs, all faith begins with a choice. Can I... will I, take God at his word. Will I trust him to equip me with all I need for this life and the one to come?6 Will I live out the sentiments of the plaque on grandmother’s wall? “Only one life ‘twill soon be past. Only what’s done for Christ will last.” Do you want to live life to the fullest? Everyone wants to live a rich life, full of people and things. The trouble is, that type of richness cannot last. People dissapoint; material possesions do not satisfy. When we attempt to make our lives fulfilling by chasing this ‘richness’ we always fail. We fail because this world is broken. We fail because we are broken. God wants to fix it, to fix us. He sent his Son to earth to cover our mistakes and connect to us again. God’s Son, Jesus, bridges the gap between God and us. If we intentionally choose to accept that Christ is the only way, we can experience God and his goodness. We can have an abundant life, both here and for eternity. How to Accept Jesus Christ Admit your mistakes and express your desire to live the abundant life that God has planned for you. 1. Turn from sin, believing that Jesus Christ died for you on the cross. 2. Through prayer, invite Jesus Christ to forgive your sin and be your Savior. The following is a suggested prayer… Lord Jesus, I want to live the abundant life that you have promised. I open the door of my life and accept you as my Lord. Thank you for forgiving my sins and giving me life that is everlasting. Take control of my life. Make me the person you want me to be. Does this prayer express the desire of your heart? If so, pray this prayer right now and Christ will come into your life, just as He promised. Please write your comments and share this with your Instructor: ____________ ____ ____________ __ Name:________ ____________ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ r: _____ Phone numbe ____________ __ __ __ __ __ __ E-mail address: Please comment on any aspect of our Body & Soul class you enjoy Please tell us any ways we can improve this class or our program Please check any of the following items that are true for you: ___I would like to meet with you to discuss what it means to have a personal relationship with Jesus. ___ I have recently prayed the prayer in this booklet & invited Jesus to come into my life. ___I would like to study principles from the Bible and learn more about the Christian life. ___I would like to talk with you one-on-one. P.O. Box 2288 Germantown, MD 20875-2288 301-258-1018 - 888-660-SOUL www.bodyandsoul.org devotionals written by: Dr. Clement & Anne Walchshauser art design by: Rebecca Blocher