Essential Guide to Morning Devotionals
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ScribdTranslationsEssential Guide to Morning Devotionals
Translated by
ScribdTranslationsIt's that moment you dedicate exclusively to listening and talking with
God. It is undoubtedly a moment of spiritual growth.
When practicing devotion, it is necessary to observe some important points:
Correct attitude.
Specific schedule.
Specific place.
Simple plan.
For everything we do, God considers the attitude of our heart as
mais importante. Por exemplo, o rei Amazias fez o que Deus aprova, mas não
with all his heart. (2 Chronicles 25:02).
What should be the posture, or what is the correct attitude of someone who goes into someone's presence?
of God in devotion?
Expectation - Draw near to God with the expectation of enjoying
good moments of communion and blessings like David who said 'God, You
"You are my God, and I seek you earnestly" (Psalm 63: 01).
Reverence - Do not enter the presence of God in any way.
Remember that He is the Creator of the heavens and the earth and is the One who
holds all the power in its own hands. Calm your heart and speak with
He with total respect always remembering who He is and who is
you. (Gen 18: 27).
Obedience - When you are alone with God, have already in your heart the
decision to obey everything He tells you. To grow
spiritually, to develop intimacy with God it is necessary to be
totally submissive to your will and your orders. (John 7:17).
This means about the duration and the time of your devotional. As a general rule, the
the best moment is when you are in the best hour of the day. Dedicate it to the Lord.
the best hours of your day, when you are feeling most energetic.
For most people, the morning period is the best time. Even
for Jesus who went out in the early mornings to pray (Mark 1:35).
In the Bible, many men and women of God would rise early to
we will meet with God. Here are some of them:
Abraham - Gen 19: 27
Job 1:05
Moses - Ex 34:4
Hannah and Elkanah – 1 Samuel 1:19
Davi – Salmos 5: 07/ 57: 07,08
(see also Psalm 143: 08/ Isaiah 26: 09/ Ezekiel 12: 08)
There are good reasons to do devotionals in the morning starting with
the fact that we are giving the first fruits of our day to God, as He taught
Jesus (Mt 6: 33); in the mornings our mind is at rest because why not
faced the tensions of the day that is beginning, we are calm; the doctors
they say breakfast is the most important meal of our day, too
we need a 'spiritual breakfast' to start our day well
day with God. If there were more people practicing in our churches
morning devotionals, we would have fewer brothers with so many problems in
their lives.
Whatever time you choose to be exclusively with God,
be constant, try not to fail, do it at any cost.
The devotional is a meeting with God, don't keep Him waiting for you.
fulfill your commitment.
One last question is regarding the duration of your meetings with the
Sir.
Don't plan to start with two hours of devotion, you can start,
but soon you will get discouraged and will not be able to continue for long
time. For those who are not yet in the habit of doing devotionals, here goes
some guidelines:
Start with a little time, which can be seven minutes, but that it is
Consistent. It is better to spend seven minutes every day than an hour every week.
two weeks
Don't keep controlling your time with the clock. Sometimes you
you may spend a little of that time you planned, and sometimes you may
be even less, but don't keep an eye on the clock.
Care about quality, not quantity. What you do
in this period, even if it is a short time, it is what truly
It's important. Do quality devotions to the Lord.
The place where you do your devotional is also very important. The Bible says
that Abraham had his place to talk to God (Gen 19:27). Jesus had the
costume of praying in the Garden of Gethsemane (Luke 22:39).
Find an isolated place where you will not be disturbed or interrupted.
a quiet place where you can...
Pray out loud without disturbing others.
Read easily (adequate lighting)
Be comfortable (don't do devotional in bed)
Deve ser um lugar especial. Seja onde for o local escolhido para encontrar-se
with God, make it a special place for you and for Him. As time goes by
Soon, this place will have a very special meaning when you remember.
two wonderful moments spent there in the presence of the Lord.
It must be a sacred place. It is there where you meet the Living God and
it can be as holy as the place where Abraham was
Sir. It is not necessary to be in the temple, some people did their
devotional inside a car in a quiet place, others preferred in a
backyard. Each of these places became sacred to these people.
To have a meaningful devotional moment, you will need a plan to
follow. The rule is to follow a simple plan.
You will need a Bible (it would be very good if it was in language
contemporary) and a notebook.
1. Wait on God (relax). Be still for a moment, don't enter
fearful in the presence of the Lord. Follow the advice of God himself:
Be still and know that I am God (Psalm 46:10). Being still is good.
to put oneself in a position of reverence.
2. Say a small prayer. Ask God to cleanse your heart and
guide you during this moment when you will be together. Two good verses
to memorize are:
Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and
you know my inquietudes. See if in my conduct
something offends you and guides me on the eternal path." (Ps 139:
23,24);
Open my eyes so that I may see the wonders of your law
(Psalm 119: 18).
3. Read a passage from the scriptures. This is where your conversation begins with
God. He speaks to you through His Word and you speak to Him through
of the prayer. Read the chosen text several times and in the notebook of
notes answer four questions:
a. What does the text say? Write it simply in your own words.
what the text reports.
b. What does this text reveal about God? Remember that the Bible is
the Word of God, therefore wherever you read, you will be able to
conhecê-Lo, pois Ele se revela nas Escrituras.
c. What does this text say to me? The Bible was written for our
teaching, thus, each portion of it will be speaking
directly with us.
d. How can I apply this truth in my life. All the
God's revelation will only make sense if we apply it.
revelation in our lives.
4. Take a moment of prayer. Based on what you heard from
God, pray asking for grace to live that truth, praise God for the
what He does and for what He is, recognize your sins, present
people who need his action, talk about your own
needs, thank Him for listening to you and for being with you.
To conclude:
Don't worry if you fail one day. Don't feel guilty about it. The
what is important is not to give up, be consistent, perseverant, faithful to your
purpose.
Psychologists say that it usually takes three weeks to
we get used to a new task or habit; and it takes another three
weeks for this to become a habit. Many people do not have
success in your devotions because they never break the six barrier
weeks. For your devotional time to become a habit, it is necessary
that you have done daily for six months.
Based on the book: 'Dynamic Bible Study Methods' by Rick Warren.
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