DAILY PRAYER (BY SPURGEON)
Now, Lord, we acknowledge that all good must come from you, through Jesus Christ by your Spirit, if ever we are to receive it. And we come humbly, first of all acknowledging our many sins. How many they are we cannot calculate, how black they are, how deep their ill-desert; yet we do confess that we have sinned ourselves into hopeless misery, unless your free undeserved grace rescues us from it.
Lord, we thank you for any signs of repentance—give us more of it. Lay us low before you under a consciousness of our undeserving state. Let us feel and mourn the atrocity of our guilt. O God, we know a tender heart must come from you. By nature our hearts are stony, and we are proud and self-righteous.
Amen.
VERSE OF THE DAY (COMMENTARY BY SPURGEON)
“For you are saved by grace through faith, and this is not from yourselves; it is God’s gift…” (Ephesians 2:8)
We are saved “through faith,” but salvation is “by grace.” Sound forth those words as with the archangel’s trumpet: “By grace you are saved.” What glad tidings for the undeserving!
See then, dear friend, that the weakness of your faith will not destroy you. A trembling hand may receive a golden gift. The Lord’s salvation can come to us though we have only faith as a grain of mustard seed. The power lies in the grace of God, and not in our faith. Great messages can be sent along slender wires, and the peace-giving witness of the Holy Spirit can reach the heart by means of a thread-like faith which seems almost unable to sustain its own weight. Think more of him to whom you look than of the look itself. You must look away even from your own looking, and see nothing but Jesus, and the grace of God revealed in him.
RECOMMENDED RESOURCE
Read the whole Bible (every chapter!) to your kids (and help them stay engaged)
We know and believe that God’s Word is powerful. God, through his Word, has brought us to salvation and taught us to fight sin in every form. If you want God to do that kind of work in your children, start by regularly exposing them to the wonderful Word of God.
To help you along the way, I’ve created a new resource, GodCenteredFamily.org. Subscribers receive everything they need for a daily family Bible time, including…
- Daily Scripture readings (read and discuss the whole Bible every three years)
- Discussion questions (lead your kids to understand and apply the Bible)
- Interactive worksheets for each child (help kids stay engaged)
- Prayer guides and suggested songs (respond to the reading together)
- Hands-on activities and object lessons (encourage active learning)
- Bonus resources for parents (become a more faithful parent)
I believe that God is going to do amazing things in your family’s life. And he’s going to do it through his Word. I know that if you subscribe to God Centered Family and make family Bible time a daily habit, you and your kids will know the Bible better, foster a deeper family connection, and love God more.
Download a free one-week family devotional at GodCenteredFamily.org.