May 17

1 Samuel 20:1-21:15, John 9:1-41, Psalm 113:1-114:8, Proverbs 15:15-17 

Pray: Spend a couple moments in silence and listen for God. The earth itself trembles in the presence of the Lord. Ask God for a life of joyful trembling in His presence as you acknowledge His work in your life. 

Read: Jesus’ teaching is the timeless truth of God. After seeing Jesus’ healing work intentionally done on the Sabbath day, consider His teaching about spiritual blindness. Who is “blind” in both the Old Testament reading and New Testament reading? What can you determine is the source for their “blindness,” and what actions and attitudes demonstrate ”blindness” on their parts?

Edify: The way to keep your eyes open spiritually is to worship Jesus as the once-physically-blind man did, as well as, to have covenant friendships as David and Jonathan had. Jesus is the one who physically and spiritually opens eyes. Once we recognize His eye-opening presence in our lives, we stay near Him and give Him the honor that He is due. That is life with the eyes of your soul wide open. Further, in the complicated world we live in, we are still prone to have “blind spots” in our lives. Like David, we need a friend like Jonathan who isn’t going to abandon us and will watch over us with love. This is a beautiful demonstration of the Christian life and our need for the support of others in life groups, serving areas, Celebrate Recovery, and other avenues of relationships within the Christ-centered community called the Church.

Practice: Take an honest assessment as to whether you have Christ-honoring relationships in your life. If so, tell those that you view them that way and how thankful you are for their friendship. Direct them as to how they could serve you better and ask how you could serve them better. If you do not have Christ-honoring friends, then take a step towards them today by joining a life group or ministry area within the church. The best day to plant a tree is 10 years ago, but if you didn’t then the second best day is today. So it goes with getting involved in Jesus’ Church. Get connected today!