Be Still: Daily Devotional

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...

Today is June 6. 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 Ezekiel 11. I will give them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them; I will remove from them their heart of stone and give them a hear...

Today is June 5. 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. Hear me, LORD, and answer me, for I am poor and needy. Guard my life, for I am faithful to you; save your servant who trusts in you. You are my God; have mercy on me, Lord, for I call to...

Today is June 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 Psalm 99.            The LORD reigns,            let the nations tremble;            he sits enthroned between the cherubim,     ...

Today is June 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 1 Samuel, chapter 2.     Then Hannah prayed and said:             “My heart rejoices in the LORD;            in the LORD my horn is lifted high.            My mouth boasts...

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 May 31. May the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way.       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 Romans, chapter 8.   What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but...

Today is May 30. Grace to all who love our Lord Jesus Christ with an undying love.      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;            you perceive my thoughts from afar.    ...

Today is May 29. 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 Mark, chapter 4.     He said to them, “Do you bring in a lamp to put it under a bowl or a bed? Instead, don’t you put it on its stand? Fo...

Today is May 28. 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 25.     “Make an atonement cover of pure gold—two and a half cubits long and a cubit and a half wide....

Today is May 27th. 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 Revelation, chapter 4.   After this I looked, and there before me was a door standing open in heaven. And the voice I had first heard speaking to me like a trumpet said...

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.

The fifth day after Pentecost Sunday. May the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way.       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 Isaiah, chapter 2.     In the last days             the mountain of the LORD’s temple will be established            as the high...

Today is the fourth day after Pentecost Sunday. Grace to all who love our Lord Jesus Christ with an undying love.    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 Romans, chapter 8.     Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the...