Be Still: Daily Devotional

Today is July 5. May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace through the power of the Holy Spirit.    Take a moment and quiet yourself. Take a deep breath. Welcome God’s presence. And say, “Come Holy Spirit.”       Today’s reading is from the book of Judges, chapter 16.     Now the rulers of the Philistines assembled to offer a great sacrifice to Dagon their god and to celebrate, saying, “...

Today is July 4. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with you.      Take a moment and quiet yourself. Take a deep breath. Welcome God’s presence. And say, “Come Holy Spirit.”        Today’s reading is from the book of Acts, chapter 26.   Then Agrippa said to Paul, “Do you think that in such a short time you can persuade me to be a Chri...

Today is July 3.   The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.     Take a moment and quiet yourself. Take a deep breath. Welcome God’s presence. And say, “Come Holy Spirit.”        Today’s reading is from the book of 1st Corinthians, chapter 3.     I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow. So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything,...

Today is July 2. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with you.       Take a moment and quiet yourself. Take a deep breath. Welcome God’s presence. And say, “Come Holy Spirit.”          Today’s reading is from the book of 1 Samuel, chapter 31. And our passage is one that tells a historical story that is filled with chaos and trouble. It...

Today is July 1. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.    Take a moment and quiet yourself. Take a deep breath. Welcome God’s presence. And say, “Come Holy Spirit.”         Today’s reading is from Psalm 86.           I love you, LORD, my strength.         The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer;            my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge,            my shield a...

This is a version of the five-step Daily Examen that St. Ignatius practiced. 1. Become aware of God’s presence. 2. Review the day with gratitude. 3. Pay attention to your emotions. 4. Choose one feature of the day and pray from it. 5. Look toward tomorrow.

Today is June 28 . May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace through the power of the Holy Spirit.      Take a moment and quiet yourself. Take a deep breath. Welcome God’s presence. And say, “Come Holy Spirit.”       Today’s reading is from the book of Daniel, chapter 7.           “As I looked,             “thrones were set in place,            and the Ancient of Days took his seat.     ...

Today is June 27.   The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with you.     Take a moment and quiet yourself. Take a deep breath. Welcome God’s presence. And say, “Come Holy Spirit.”       Today’s reading is from Psalm 139.           You have searched me, LORD,            and you know me.         You know when I sit and when I rise;         ...

Today is June 26. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.     Take a moment and quiet yourself. Take a deep breath. Welcome God’s presence. And say, “Come Holy Spirit.”        Today’s reading is from the book of 1st Thessalonians, chapter 4.      Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mank...

Today is June 25. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with you.       Take a moment and quiet yourself. Take a deep breath. Welcome God’s presence. And say, “Come Holy Spirit.”         Today’s reading is from the book of Exodus, chapter 9.     Then Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron. “This time I have sinned,” he said to them. “The LORD...

Today is June 24. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.      Take a moment and quiet yourself. Take a deep breath. Welcome God’s presence. And say, “Come Holy Spirit.”          Today’s reading is from the book of Acts, chapter 27.     When a gentle south wind began to blow, they saw their opportunity; so they weighed anchor and sailed along the shore of Crete. Before very long, a...

This is a version of the five-step Daily Examen that St. Ignatius practiced. 1. Become aware of God’s presence. 2. Review the day with gratitude. 3. Pay attention to your emotions. 4. Choose one feature of the day and pray from it. 5. Look toward tomorrow.

Today is June 21. May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace through the power of the Holy Spirit.     Take a moment and quiet yourself. Take a deep breath. Welcome God’s presence. And say, “Come Holy Spirit.”       Today’s reading is from Galatians, chapter 6.     Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch...

Today is June 20. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with you.     Take a moment and quiet yourself. Take a deep breath. Welcome God’s presence. And say, “Come Holy Spirit.”       Today’s reading is from the Deuteronomy, chapter 31.  Then Moses went out and spoke these words to all Israel: “I am now a hundred and twenty years old and...

Today is June 19th.   Today, we commemorate Juneteenth. Juneteenth marks the day in 1865 when a group of enslaved people in Galveston, Texas, learned that they were free from the institution of slavery, almost two-and-a-half years after President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation.   The first Juneteenth in 1866 was celebrated at church with food, singing, and the reading of spir...

Today is June 18. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with you.       Take a moment and quiet yourself. Take a deep breath. Welcome God’s presence. And say, “Come Holy Spirit.”          Today’s reading is from the book of Jeremiah, chapter 21.     “Moreover, say to the royal house of Judah, ‘Hear the word of the LORD. This is what the...

Today is June 17. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.      Take a moment and quiet yourself. Take a deep breath. Welcome God’s presence. And say, “Come Holy Spirit.”         Today’s reading is from the book of 1 Samuel, chapter 14.     One day Jonathan son of Saul said to his young armor-bearer, “Come, let’s go over to the Philistine outpost on the other side.” But he did not t...

This is a version of the five-step Daily Examen that St. Ignatius practiced. 1. Become aware of God’s presence. 2. Review the day with gratitude. 3. Pay attention to your emotions. 4. Choose one feature of the day and pray from it. 5. Look toward tomorrow.

Today is June 14. May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace through the power of the Holy Spirit    Take a moment and quiet yourself. Take a deep breath. Welcome God’s presence. And say, “Come Holy Spirit.”        Today’s reading is from the Gospel of Luke, chapter 23.    There was a man by the name of Joseph, a member of the Jewish High Council, a man of good heart and good character. H...

Today is June 13.   The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with you.     Take a moment and quiet yourself. Take a deep breath. Welcome God’s presence. And say, “Come Holy Spirit.”        Today’s reading is from the book of Acts, chapter 14.     In Lystra there sat a man who was lame. He had been that way from birth and had never walked. H...

Today is June 12. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.     Take a moment and quiet yourself. Take a deep breath. Welcome God’s presence. And say, “Come Holy Spirit.”        Today’s reading is from Ezekiel 17.   “ ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I myself will take a shoot from the very top of a cedar and plant it; I will break off a tender spring from its topmost shoots an...

Today is June 11. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with you.       Take a moment and quiet yourself. Take a deep breath. Welcome God’s presence. And say, “Come Holy Spirit.”          Today’s reading is from the book of 1 Kings, chapter 18.     Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, “Choose one of the bulls and prepare it first, since...

Today is June 10. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.      Take a moment and quiet yourself. Take a deep breath. Welcome God’s presence. And say, “Come Holy Spirit.”          Today’s reading is from the book of 1 Samuel, chapter 7.     So Samuel said to all the Israelites, “If you are returning to the LORD with all your hearts, then rid yourselves of the foreign gods and the As...

This is a version of the five-step Daily Examen that St. Ignatius practiced. 1. Become aware of God’s presence. 2. Review the day with gratitude. 3. Pay attention to your emotions. 4. Choose one feature of the day and pray from it. 5. Look toward tomorrow.

Today is June 7. May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace through the power of the Holy Spirit. Take a moment and quiet yourself. Take a deep breath. Welcome God’s presence. And say, “Come Holy Spirit.” Today’s reading is from the Gospel of Luke, chapter 21. As Jesus looked up, he saw the rich putting their gifts into the temple treasury. He also saw a poor widow put in two very small c...