See sermon notes below and find the podcast link at the bottom of this post.

In this week’s message, we walked through a prayer called The Daily Examen that can be practiced as part of recognizing God’s presence in our lives. 

1. Be Still – Become aware of the presence of God.

Repeat the phrase “Jesus Christ, Son of God, I am yours..” a few times, slowly, focusing on the words and phrases. These words can help us focus on God’s presence and help us commit ourselves to listening to God. 

2. Give Thanks – Review past activities with thankfulness. 

What have we been thankful for during the past 24 hours? It could be for the people in our lives, or lessons learned during a struggle, or the victories that we have experienced. Through being thankful, we are identifying the ways in which God has shown up and provided for us.

3. Reflect – Become aware of your emotions.

Ask, “How am I doing today?” Name the emotions we are feeling, or have felt over the past 24 hours. Then, give each one to the Lord. Invite Him into those emotions, and be open to what he might have to say to us about what we are feeling.  Name our emotions and invite Jesus into those spaces. 

4. Pray – Choose one feature of the day and pray about it.

Settle on one memory or emotion. Perhaps it is a single event, or maybe it’s a pattern of behavior that has come to mind as we have reviewed the past day. Whatever it is that has emerged, allow it to fuel our prayer. Don’t worry about the other things that we could think about right now; stay with the one thing that has come to mind and pray from those thoughts and emotions.

5. Hope – Look ahead with expectation.

Think about what might be coming our way in the day ahead. Think of important relationships, major (and minor) decisions to be made, skills to learn, habits to build, healing to seek, the things we want to accomplish. Tell God about these and ask him to give us what we need. 

End by committing ourselves to trusting that God is with us and that he is good.

 

Comforting Words for Difficult Times

Message by Josh Mutter – January 10, 2021

 

God With Us

Deuteronomy 31:1-3 NLT  Then Moses went out and spoke these words to all Israel: “I am now a hundred and twenty years old and I am no longer able to lead you. The Lord has said to me, ‘You shall not cross the Jordan.’ The Lord your God himself will cross over ahead of you. He will destroy these nations before you, and you will take possession of their land. Joshua also will cross over ahead of you, as the Lord said.

Deuteronomy 31:7-8 NLT  Then Moses called for Joshua, and as all Israel watched, he said to him, “Be strong and courageous! For you will lead these people into the land that the Lord swore to their ancestors he would give them. You are the one who will divide it among them as their grants of land. Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord will personally go ahead of you. He will be with you; he will neither fail you nor abandon you.”

 

Application:

Trust grows in seasons of uncertainty.

How are we being invited to trust God right now?

God is with us in seasons of uncertainty.

Deuteronomy 31:8 NLT  Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the LORD will personally go ahead of you. He will be with you; he will never fail you or abandon you.

 

The Daily Examen Review (see above for more detailed description)

  1. Be Still – Become aware of the presence of God.
  2. Give Thanks – Review past activities with thankfulness.
  3. Reflect – Become aware of your emotions.
  4. Pray – Choose one feature of the day and pray about it.
  5. Hope – Look ahead with expectation.

 

About Josh Mutter: Josh Mutter is the Lead Pastor at Westheights Community Church. Josh is married to Michelle and they have two very busy little boys named Silas & Isaac. Josh enjoys long walks on the beach and smooth jazz – well, not really. But he does enjoy time with his family, spending time outdoors, watching baseball, sipping coffee and reading a good book.

 

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