Day 1: Read 1 Peter 2:4-5. Just like Jesus was “the living Stone—rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to him” (v. 4), Christians are called to be “living stones” that are “being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ” (v. 5). Such living stones like you and me come in all kinds of shapes and sizes, preferences and quirks, and possibilities and problems. That’s the beauty of the church. Think of 3 different Christ-followers you know, what’s the same? What’s different about them? How do the sameness and differences describe the beauty of the church?
Day 2: Read 1 Peter 2:9. Being and becoming a church is all about knowing God and worshipping him as king. This is contradictory to a consumerist approach to the Christian community, which places our personal desires for what church should be like on the throne and tempts us to walk away from communities that don’t meet all our preferences. When do your personal preferences get in the way of following Jesus and being part of His church? What is He calling you to do to align to His way instead of your preferred way?
Day 3: Read Luke 9:23-24. It’s easy to find basic happiness and comfort, but living the Christian life and being part of a church community requires making sacrifices that may feel uncomfortable but ultimately help us to become more like Jesus. It’s a trade-off that’s always worth it. What is your daily challenge in following Jesus? Where is He calling you to take up your cross today and go with Him?
Day 4: Read Luke 9:25-26. Jesus tells us what it will cost to follow him: our lives. We grow by leaving our comfort zones and entering into the challenges and discomforts of our faith. Instead of avoiding this truth, we should embrace it and press into the joy of dying to ourselves and living for God and our neighbors. Where is your comfort zone in following Jesus? Where might God call you to step out of that comfort zone in your life?
Day 5: Read 1Peter 2:6-8. If Jesus was rejected, we too might face rejection because of our faith. Where do you find strength when you must walk with Jesus instead of the world? Where is your greatest temptation to live the world’s way instead of Jesus' way?
Day 6: Read 1 Peter 2:10. Peter contrasts life with and without God. Think in your life when you have lived for God and lived In some sense without Him? What brings you back to Him? How does it feel to be considered part of Jesus’ royal mission to save the world? Where are you in your development as a dynamic disciple for Christ?
Our annual theme for 2022/2023 is "DEVOTED" from Acts 2:42.
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