Publisher's Synopsis
This guide into worship, scripture meditation, and prayer contains daily devotionals for the forth quarter of 2019 (October 1, 2019 through December 31, 2019). The guide is intended to be used on a daily basis; however, the goal is not to follow the guide without any deviation from its structure. Like a garden trellis, the guide is simply a structure to encourage and support your growth, following your unique path and at your personal rate. This is not a Bible commentary or Bible study, which are both great tools to learn about God. Rather, this guide is designed to help you grow in your relationship with God. On average, most people complete a Daily Rhythm in about 30 minutes, but it can be completed in as little as 10 to 15 minutes, or you can take your time and spend as much as an hour or more each day. The foreword is by Gem Fadling of Unhurried Living. Future quarterly guides will be published approximately one month before their start date, with forewords written by others skilled in the ways of spiritual formation.Questions about the Daily RhythmWho is this written for?Anyone who desires to grow in their love for God and others. Age, gender, spiritual maturity level, and theological persuasion are not important factors. The only important factor is your desire to seek God with all your heart, soul, and mind.Why was it written?Steve grew up attending church and has served in various Christian ministry roles over the years. At age 51 he was diagnosed with a serious heart condition that caused him to seek God with a new and fresh perspective. Up to that point in time, his devotional life would run hot and cold as he tried to set aside time each day to hurry through a few scriptures and offer up prayers from a list. With a desire to live more fully in God's presence and become more pliable to God's promised transforming power, Steve developed-first just for himself, and later for several fellow believers-this Daily Rhythm publication. He wanted a resource that would simply guide him into daily worship, scripture meditation, and prayer. Steve's hope is that this daily guide will help many others grow to know God's presence more deeply. His prayer is that those who follow this guide will, like him, change their devotional times from a guilt-ridden, hurried duty into a joyful adventure of drawing closer to a wonderful, loving heavenly Father.What are the three components of each Daily Rhythm?-Worship: each Daily Rhythm starts with prayer, scripture verses, and a time of worship through music that invites and welcomes God into your presence.-Scripture meditation: each Daily Rhythm contains a Bible passage for you to read from your personal Bible. -Prayer: each Daily Rhythm will guide you through the Lord's Prayer and encourage you to pray for people and situations as the Holy Spirit leads. Also, you will be encouraged to journal your thoughts and prayers each day.How are the daily Bible passages selected?The primary Bible passage of each Daily Rhythm comes directly from the Revised Common Lectionary (RCL). The RCL is a three-year reading plan that covers the entire Bible. Each week's readings center on an event or teaching of Jesus that is read on Sunday from one of the Gospels. On Monday, you will read a psalm; on Tuesday, an Old Testament passage; and on Wednesday, another Gospel passage. Each of those readings supports the prior Sunday's reading. Thursday and Friday's passages come from the Old Testament, and Saturday's passage is taken from a New Testament letter. These three passages all lead into the next Sunday's Gospel passage.Which translation of the Bible is used?The short, printed Old and New Testament passages for each day are taken from the New International Version (NIV). The primary passage is purposely not printed so that you can look it up and read it from your personal Bible.
