Unashamed Reading Plan
Check out all the previous Unashamed readings here.
Unashamed Reading Plan | Week 12 | Day 3
Prayer
Pray for God to show you areas in your life that you need to rely on Him more. Ask for guidance and assistance on how to release more to Him.
Bible Reading: Romans 12:2b
Read these verses three times slowly.
Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.
Reflection & Questions
By Preston Kulesha
In our reading yesterday, we read the first part of this verse. In it, Paul emphasized that Christians should be prioritizing being influenced and changed by God, rather than by the world that we live in. While this is easier said than done, God’s influence is the only thing worth being influenced by in a broken world.
In the second half of the verse, Paul is telling Christians that when they are actively being influenced and changed by God, then they will be able to better see what God wants them to do in their lives.
To put it simply, Christians need to be actively focused on learning about and from God if they want to best understand how to follow Him. Have you ever tried to put together a furniture set from Ikea without looking at the instructions? It goes ok for a little while… until you have 6 spare pieces and it turns out you built it upside down, backwards, and wobbly. What do you do then? You check out the instructions!
If we proclaim that Jesus is our Lord, and that we want to follow Him for our entire lives and teach others about Him, how can we expect to know what’s right if we aren’t reading the instructions? The Bible was given to us as God’s true and holy word – and He intends for us to be actively renewed by it so we can be actively knowing what He wants from us in our lives. It’s not always easy to have the right answer, but when we live a life dedicated to following Jesus, we can test our choices, decisions, and actions with God’s word to make sure it lines up as closely as possible.
- Are there any choices you’ve made recently that don’t line up with how God tells us to live in Scripture?
- Take some time to pray and talk to God, asking Him to help you better live a life that is based on His Words in the Bible, and the way that He wants you to live.
Prayer
Talk to God in response to today’s reading.
Worship Song
You might use this song today to worship Jesus today:
Bible Reading: Romans 12:2b
Read these verses three times slowly.
Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.
Reflection & Questions
Yesterday we read the first part of today’s verse: it explained that as Christians we should be trying to be more like God and less like the sinful world. Today’s verse explains that if we are truly trying to live as God wants us to live, we will be able to see more and more of what it is that God wants us to do.
If you want to understand how to follow Him, you’ve got to spend time with Him and in His word, the Bible – makes sense, right? If you bought a piece of furniture from Amazon or Ikea and tried to put it together without reading the instructions, it might end up with backwards pieces or a bit wobbly. It’s a good idea to read the instructions as you go!
It’s the same with Jesus – if we want to live (build) the life He wants us to live, then we need to make sure we are reading His instructions – the Bible!
- Have you made any choices lately that don’t follow along with what the Bible tells us to do?
Pray
Ask God to help you live your life based on His words in the Bible, the way that He wants you to live.
Check out more Bible Reading Plans here.
Questions?
Ed Applegate
