Opening Prayer: Psalm 95
1 Come, let us sing for joy to the Lord;
let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation.
2 Let us come before him with thanksgiving
and extol him with music and song.
3 For the Lord is the great God,
the great King above all gods.
4 In his hand are the depths of the earth,
and the mountain peaks belong to him.
5 The sea is his, for he made it,
and his hands formed the dry land.
6 Come, let us bow down in worship,
let us kneel before the Lord our Maker;
7 for he is our God
and we are the people of his pasture,
the flock under his care.
Today, if only you would hear his voice,
8 “Do not harden your hearts as you did at Meribah,[a]
as you did that day at Massah[b] in the wilderness,
9 where your ancestors tested me;
they tried me, though they had seen what I did.
10 For forty years I was angry with that generation;
I said, ‘They are a people whose hearts go astray,
and they have not known my ways.’
11 So I declared on oath in my anger,
‘They shall never enter my rest.’”
God’s Voice:
- Old Testament (covenant): Exod. 2:1-22
- Psalm (song): 107:1-32
- Epistle (letter): 1 Cor. 12:27–13:3
- Gospel (good news): Mark 9:2-13
Pursuing Holiness
- Prayer: What is God saying to me today? How will I respond?
- Fasting: What can I deny myself today (food, drink, behaviors) as an act of worship?
- Charity: How can I help someone in need today with my time, money, or goods?
Closing Prayer: Psalm 102
1 Hear my prayer, Lord;
let my cry for help come to you.
2 Do not hide your face from me
when I am in distress.
Turn your ear to me;
when I call, answer me quickly.
3 For my days vanish like smoke;
my bones burn like glowing embers.
4 My heart is blighted and withered like grass;
I forget to eat my food.
5 In my distress I groan aloud
and am reduced to skin and bones.
6 I am like a desert owl,
like an owl among the ruins.
7 I lie awake; I have become
like a bird alone on a roof.
8 All day long my enemies taunt me;
those who rail against me use my name as a curse.
9 For I eat ashes as my food
and mingle my drink with tears
10 because of your great wrath,
for you have taken me up and thrown me aside.
11 My days are like the evening shadow;
I wither away like grass.
12 But you, Lord, sit enthroned forever;
your renown endures through all generations.
13 You will arise and have compassion on Zion,
for it is time to show favor to her;
the appointed time has come.
14 For her stones are dear to your servants;
her very dust moves them to pity.
15 The nations will fear the name of the Lord,
all the kings of the earth will revere your glory.
16 For the Lord will rebuild Zion
and appear in his glory.
17 He will respond to the prayer of the destitute;
he will not despise their plea.
18 Let this be written for a future generation,
that a people not yet created may praise the Lord:
19 “The Lord looked down from his sanctuary on high,
from heaven he viewed the earth,
20 to hear the groans of the prisoners
and release those condemned to death.”
21 So the name of the Lord will be declared in Zion
and his praise in Jerusalem
22 when the peoples and the kingdoms
assemble to worship the Lord.
23 In the course of my life[b] he broke my strength;
he cut short my days.
24 So I said:
“Do not take me away, my God, in the midst of my days;
your years go on through all generations.
25 In the beginning you laid the foundations of the earth,
and the heavens are the work of your hands.
26 They will perish, but you remain;
they will all wear out like a garment.
Like clothing you will change them
and they will be discarded.
27 But you remain the same,
and your years will never end.
28 The children of your servants will live in your presence;
their descendants will be established before you.”
How to Use this Devotional
- Read the “Opening Prayer” from scripture to the Lord as your prayer
- Choose one or more of the scripture passages under “God’s Voice” for further reading
- Answer the questions under “Pursuing Holiness”
- Your reflection on the scriptures and how you sense the Holy Spirit leading you today
- Identify how you will practice self-denial today based on God’s leading
- Identify how you want to practice giving today
- Let prayer, fasting (self-denial), and giving be your living, spiritual worship
- Keep notes in a journal or planner to enable your follow-through and create a record
- Read the “Closing Prayer”
Since the third century, Christians have used Scripture, Prayer, Fasting (Self-denial), and Charity (Almsgiving) as spiritual preparation for Easter.
What is Lent?
Lent is the season in the Christian calendar that leads up to Easter. Lent is 40 days long because Jesus was tempted in the wilderness for 40 days before his public ministry. The Israelites, because of their disobedience and rebellion, were made to wander for 40 years in the wilderness before arriving in the promised land. Moses spent 40 days on Mount Sinai engaged with God in receiving the Ten Commandments. In the Bible, the number 40 is often used to indicate a period of preparation and testing.
In the wilderness, nothing is hidden. We are laid bare to God. We do not have our creature comforts. We are separated from common distractions. We ultimately return to our lives when the time of preparation is complete. We focus our passion on God while He refines us to fulfill His calling.
Give