Dear Friends,

You are receiving this email because you have made a commitment to spend fifteen minutes a day, five days a week, in solitude and silence, so as to draw near to God.

We want to hear how this is going for you! Please respond to this email and tell us what you are learning, what God is saying, and how this commitment is going.

Also, who else do you know who might want to make this commitment? Forward this email to them. They can receive these emails by registering here.

We are praying with and for all of you!

Blessings as you spend time in solitude, study and prayer,
Cindy and Chuck

P.S. Have you picked up your Drawing Near Resource Guide and Prayer Journal? They are available for pickup in front of the church offices. These weekly emails will soon start referring to prayers and practices that are in the resource guide.
Drawing Near
General Instructions:

  1. Be patient and give yourself grace. This is new for many of us! 
  2. Decide which days and what time you will enter into solitude and silence. Consider putting these times on your calendar, and, if needed, share this commitment with those you are living with so that they can support you.
  3. Find a quiet place, free from distraction, where you can be comfortable.
  4. Consider lighting a candle so as to claim the space as “holy ground.”
  5. Begin each time by letting your spirit and mind settle, and asking God to guide your time with him.
  6. Consider keeping a journal so as to record how God is leading you.
Scripture for This Week:

The Revised Common Lectionary is a listing of readings from the Bible assigned to each day and follows the liturgical church calendar. It was first assembled in 1969 and was designed to be used in Christian worship. We hope these readings from last week can guide your reflections this week and help you in “drawing near.”
 

* If one passage resonates with you, consider dwelling in that verse or verses for more than a day, and perhaps the whole week.
Reflection for This Week:

Each day, reflect on one or more of the following, and consider writing your thoughts down in a journal: (A suggestion is to CONCLUDE EACH REFLECTION by “singing” the DOXOLOGY! “LORD, we give you great THANKS for all these “saints” who take time to reflect on you and your word this week.  Bless them in the name of Jesus!”)
 
  1. In Revelation, the writer talks about a “great multitude” from every nation, every tribe and people and language. Who do you think that multitude includes today? They sang “blessing, and glory, and thanksgiving, and honor and power and might to God.” Which of these is the easiest for you to sing today? Which of these is the most difficult for you to sing today?
  2. In Psalm 34, the psalmist invites praise all the time to “exalt his name.” What makes it difficult in your life to praise God all of the time? What routines could you establish in each day to praise God more?
  3. I John talks about being children of God. How does it make you feel to think of yourself as a child of God? The writer says we will be like God someday; that we have the hope of being a moral likeness to God. What do you do to stay on this journey? Where do you get discouraged and need help?  Consider asking someone to pray for you and your journey.
  4. The beginning of Matthew talks about Jesus' royal lineage, traced through King David and all the way back to the patriarch Abraham. How do you reconcile Jesus being the Son of God and also being the Son of Man? How does this inform and help your faith?
  5. Of what does this story in Joshua 3 remind you? What do both stories tell you about the God you worship and trust?