Our hope at River City is that you grow daily in your walk with God! One way to do that is to spend time with God every day. This Grow, Pray and Study Guide (GPS) is just one easy way to connect with God on a daily basis.
Monday
Read Nehemiah 2
God cares deeply for his people. In the Old Testament God’s focus was centered around the people of Israel. It broke God’s heart that they were in such great need. God chooses to use people to meet the needs of other, so when Nehemiah heard of what was happening in Jerusalem, his heart was broken as well. Instead of sitting in sorrow he acted out of his giftedness and created a plan to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. Nehemiah was gifted. You are gifted. Spend some time with God asking three questions:
- What breaks my heart?
- What breaks God’s heart?
- What step can I take to address this need?
Close out your time in prayer watching this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b_RjndG0IX8
Tuesday
Read 1 Corinthians 12:4-11
Do you know your spiritual gifts? Take this 5-10 minute questionnaire that will help you identify your spiritual gifts. You will be given definitions and possible ways you can use those gifts. http://mintools.com/spiritual-gifts-test.htm
Send an email to Derek at derek@rivercitymethodist.com with your top 3 spiritual gifts!
Wednesday
Read Matthews 2:1-5
The paralyzed man’s friends probably had multiple gifts. One of them had the gift of compassion and was motivated to help the man. Another had the gift of leadership and developed a plan to get their friend to Jesus. Another had the gift of digging a hole in the roof and not getting arrested! Either way they all used their giftedness, but they also all did something they probably didn’t want to do. I bet one of them didn’t like digging. I bet another had a hurt shoulder or back and it was hard to carry the mat. I bet another didn’t think this was a great plan and they could get in a lot of trouble. We are called to serve in our giftedness a majority of the time, but sometimes we are called to just serve. For me this might mean helping clean up after a meal, set up a table, take out the trash, etc. None of us get excited about these things, but at times we are all called to serve in such ways. When these things are presented to you as service are you hesitant to serve? Do you think “someone else can do that b/c I’m doing this”? Is that a holy thought? How have you done something behind the scenes that seemed hard or inconvenient at the time, but produced fruit?
Thursday
Read Genesis 6:9-22
Noah was a righteous man. It was pretty clear what God asked him to do. I bet if God appeared to you and clearly told you to do something then you would jump on it just like Noah. But would we stick with it? God has gifted us, but that doesn’t mean it is going to be easy to consistently use our gifts for God. What if Noah would have stopped building the ark? What if he had given up? It took a long time, a lot of ridicule and a lot of energy to build the ark. Is God working in you on something “ark like?” God would not have called you if he wasn’t going to equip you, but we miss out on what God wants to do in our lives because we give up too early and too easy. It is important that we know “why” we are working on a project out of our giftedness. Noah built a boat b/c God told him to. People at River City who read to kids at Alex Kennedy Elementary do so because the lives of kids will be better. What is the thing God has called you to do and what is your why for doing it? Knowing your “why” is important so you will have a reason to keep on building even when there is no rain in the forecast.
Friday
Read Genesis 8
This is a story of God’s faithfulness to Noah and to God’s people. The fruit of Noah’s labor had paid off and the story of God’s people continued. Through Noah’s gifts the story continued. Through your gifts the story continues as well. Think back along your journey. Is there someone in your life that because they used their spiritual gifts made a profound impact on your life? If so do they know it? Could you tell them? Now think about you and your gifts for just a moment. Is there anyone that you can say that your gifts have made their life better? Don’t brush this question off and give a quick “no.” Think about it. I know that there are many people; some that you can think of and many that you don’t come to mind!