H.A.B.I.T.S.

Plumbline Devotional
Hang Time with God

Wh e n l i f e k n o c k s y o u t o y o u r k n e e s , a n d i t w i l l , w h y , g e t u p !
When life knocks you to your knees, and it will, why, get I f i t kn ocks y ou t o y ou r kn ees a gai n , a s i t wi ll , wel l , i sn 't
t h at th e best p osi t i on f rom whi ch t o pray? -E th el Barrym or e
up! If it knocks you to your knees again, as it will, well,
isn't that the best position from which to pray? -Ethel
Barrymore Jan. 8 — Jan. 14, 2009
Bible Devotion
Fairy, Inc.
Page 2
WITH GOD
A.C.T.ing Out
The first step in our journey of developing healthy spiritual habits is to
spend some time hanging out with God. You can’t have a relationship
with someone if you don’t spend any time with him.
Even though our omni-present God is with us all the time we need to set
aside special relationship-building time with him...usually through the
communion of prayer.
In Luke the disciples asked Jesus to teach them how to pray. In response
Christ gives them what we refer to as “The Lord’s Prayer” to serve as a
model for us. Read it now: Matthew 6:9-13.
Over time scholars and thinkers have developed a pattern for prayer
based on the Lord’s prayer and labeled it the A.C.T.S. system: Adora-
tion, Confession, Thanksgiving, and Supplication.
Today we are going to practice ADORATION (Matthew 6:9)
What is Adoration (See the dictionary at the back of this book)?
Practically...Adoration is praising God for WHO AND WHAT HE IS.
List some of your favorite things about God:
January
January 1,8,
20092009
Page 15
Matthew 6: 9-15 "This, then, is how you should pray: " 'Our Father in
heaven, hallowed be your name, 10. your kingdom come, your will be
done on earth as it is in heaven. 11. Give us today our daily bread. 12.
Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. 13. And lead
us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. ' 14. For if you
forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also
forgive you. 15. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will
not forgive your sins.
Matthew 26:28 This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out
for many for the forgiveness of sins.
I Thess. 5:16. Be joyful always; 17. pray continually; 18 give thanks in
all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.
Phillipians 4:6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by
prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
John 10:27-28. "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they
follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; nei-
ther shall anyone snatch them out of My hand".
Dictionary
Adoration: Homage paid to one in high esteem; profound veneration;
intense regard and love; fervent devotion.
Attribute: something attributed as belonging to a person, thing, group,
etc.; a quality, character, characteristic, or property: Sensitivity is one of
his attributes.
Supplication: a humble request for help from someone in authority
Dictionary
Page 14 Page 3

Scripture References Read the following verses and list the attributes of God celebrated in
each verse:
Leviticus 20:26 You are to be holy to me because I, the Lord, am holy, Leviticus 20:26
and I have set you apart from the nations to be my own.

2 Samuel 22:4
2 Samuel 22:4 I call to the Lord, who is worthy of praise, and I am saved
from my enemies.
Hebrews 6:17
Hebrews 6:17 Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of his
purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised, he confirmed it
with an oath.
Using the above verses and the list below, write a prayer of adoration to
God. Start with God you are...
Revelation 4:2.11 At once I was in the Spirit, and there before me was a
throne in heaven with someone sitting on it. 3. And the one who sat there
had the appearance of jasper and carnelian. A rainbow, resembling an
emerald, encircled the throne. 4. Surrounding the throne were twenty-
four other thrones, and seated on them were twenty-four elders. They
were dressed in white and had crowns of gold on their heads.
5. From the throne came flashes of lightning, rumblings and peals of
thunder. Before the throne, seven lamps were blazing. These are the
seven spirits of God. 6. Also before the throne there was what looked like
a sea of glass, clear as crystal. In the center, around the throne, were four
living creatures, and they were covered with eyes, in front and in back.
7. The first living creature was like a lion, the second was like an ox, the
third had a face like a man, the fourth was like a flying eagle.
8. Each of the four living creatures had six wings and was covered with Eternal Good Transcendent
eyes all around, even under his wings. Day and night they never stop say- Holy Loving Faithful
ing: "HOLY, HOLY, HOLY IS THE LORD GOD ALMIGHTY, WHO Unchanging Gracious Wrathful
WAS, AND IS, AND IS TO COME." 9. Whenever the living creatures Impassable Merciful Comforter
give glory, honor and thanks to him who sits on the throne and who lives Infinite Just Mighty
for ever and ever, 10. the twenty-four elders fall down before him who All-powerful Sovereign Abba Father
sits on the throne, and worship him who lives for ever and ever. They lay Everywhere-present Freedom The Head
their crowns before the throne and say: 11. "You are worthy, our Lord All-wise Jealous Creator
and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all All-knowing Love
things, and by your will they were created and have their being." Self-existent Our Provider
Self-sufficient Peace
Immaterial Immutable
Scripture References
Page 4 Page 13

S: Supplication
WITH GOD
Confession
Did you cringe when you saw that word? I know that I did...but confes-
sion it the C in our A.C.T.S. and we can’t skip it just because it makes us
tremble with fear. In fact, learning to do it right, should remove the fear
and make us thankful for a God that accepts our confession without re-
quiring copious blood shed anymore.
L: Listening
Read Matthew 6:12

What does this verse say about confession:

“Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.” Sounds so

easy, doesn’t it? If only.

Why do we need to ask

forgiveness?

Sin separates us from God

and the longer we let our
private sins and unrepen-
tance build up, the further
away we get from God.
And if you are further
away from God...He’s not
the one who moved!

As we are involved in unceasing thinking, so we are called to unceasing prayer. The

January 9, 2009 difference is not that prayer is thinking about other things, but that prayer is thinking in
dialogue, ... a conversation with God. -Henri Nouwen
Page 12 Page 5

Read Matthew 26:28

Write out a prayer to God using every part
What did God give to offer us forgiveness:
of the A.C.T.S. System
A: Adoration:
The blood of Jesus was given so that we no longer have to offer sacri-
fices—sacrificing a calf on Sunday morning would put a real crimp in
my pretty Sunday dresses.

Sins against God vs. Sins against others

Some sins we commit are just against God (Yeah, “just”) deep within our
heart. Some sins we commit against our fellow man. Either way we
should be confessing our wrong and seeking their forgiveness.

C: Confession Steps to Confessing and Asking for Forgiveness

(from eHow.com)
1. Think about what happened and what it is you are sorry for doing.
2. Write down your apology; this will help you organize your thoughts
and calm your nerves.
3. Practice what you plan to say until you feel comfortable with it.
4. State clearly what it is you are sorry for doing.
5. Acknowledge your actions without making excuses.
6. Share your feelings about what happened - avoid blaming, exaggerat-
T: Thanksgiving ing or saying empty words.
7. Listen to the other person's response without getting defensive.
8. Offer to make amends if appropriate.
9. Move on. Once you've apologized, let it go.

Write out a prayer of confession to God using the steps above. Now put
them into practice asking for forgiveness for a wrong against another.

Prayer is first of all listening to God. It's openness. God is always speaking; he's always "Pray: To ask the laws of the universe to be annulled on behalf of a single
doing something. Prayer is to enter into that activity. ... Convert your thoughts into prayer. petitioner When life
confessedly knocks
unworthy." -Ambrose you
Bierceto your knees,
Page 6 “It is for this reason that you need to not only talk to God Page 11
constantly about everything, but you must also listen for God
to speak to you. And the best way to listen for God to speak
to you is to look to your heart and your mind for his answer. Most peo-

WITH GOD
ple expect God to answer them in some divine way or somehow speak
to them verbally, right out of the heavens, but that isn't the way God
operates. God speaks to a persons heart. To their mind. To their sense
Thanksgiving of moral righteousness and fairness. To their sense of what is right and
Godly. When Jesus Christ is dwelling within a person he is communi-
cating constantly with that person's, heart, conscience, soul, and spirit.
How thankful are you in everyday life? Put yourself on the graphs be- His answer may even be in that certain feeling that you have. That un-
low: expected feeling that came out of no where
and that shines additional light on the prob-
1. Thankful for something good happening lem. His answer may lie in that sudden pause
that you experience. That pause that gets you
Thankful_____________________________________ Ungrateful thinking about a different path to take.”

2. Thankful for having a family -Taken from: http://members.tripod.com/

~robertwells/listeningtogod.html
Thankful_____________________________________ Ungrateful
Even with this advice, sometimes the voice
3. Thankful for getting in a car accident this morning we hear is that of our own desires or of an-
other who wishes us to walk a path away
Thankful_____________________________________ Ungrateful from God’s perfect will for our lives.

Some steps (practice them here):

Most of us would judge ourselves pretty low on the thankful scale for 1. Ask God for something specific. It’s much easier to hear an an-
number three. Good. We shouldn’t be thankful FOR everything, but we swer for “Should I take the job at the bank” than “What do you
should be thankful IN everything. If you walked away, be thankful that want me to do today?”
no one got hurt. If the car got totaled but your final English paper didn’t
get smudged, be thankful. If you have two broken legs, be thankful it
wasn’t two arms. Get it? 1. Write down what you hear.

What do you have to complain about today? Vent here. I won’t tell.

1. Pray back that answer and ask for confirmation.

Practicing listening and recording your answers can help you determine
God’s course for you and when you are hearing you and when you are
hearing Him.
There are many things that are essential to arriving at true peace of mind, and one of
January 12, 2009 When islife
the most important knocks
faith, which you to
cannot be acquired your
without prayer. knees,
-John Wooden
Page 10 Page 7

Do you see how easy it is to get wrapped up in the thing to complain

about and forget about all the things to be thankful for? God commands
WITH GOD us to pursue an attitude of thankfulness to remind us of what we have.
Because we forget...not because he’s forgotten.
Listening
What can you be thankful for today? List them here...it better be a longer
list than the other one!
Time to put on your listening ears…

Remember that phrase from the carefree days of elementary school?

God, the best teacher of all, also reminds us to put on our listening ears
because prayer isn’t just telling and talking, it is listening. Because, like

I Thess 5:18
it or not, the King knows what’s best for my life even if it means denying
me my first choice of classes, colleges, boyfriends, parents, siblings,
friends, parties….

Many times we make our requests and then go about our day waiting for
the yes or no. But what if you need to decide between two equally good
choices? You need to listen for what God would have you do. The abil-
ity to hear his voice comes in mighty handy when he’s talking to you
when you aren’t concentrating.

Read John 10:27-28

What is a requirement for hearing God’s voice?

For better or worse, in sickness and in health, for richer for poorer...do
those words sound familiar? They are spoken at wedding ceremonies
across the country. We are the bride of Christ. We are to be faithful de-
What are other benefits of being one of God’s sheep? spite all that goes wrong or right. Pray a prayer of thankfulness here.

Dear God, thank you for:

According to the passage on the facing page, how does God speak to his
children?

Remember God's bounty in the year. String the pearls of His favor. Hide the dark parts, except so far as
January 14, 2009 they are breaking out in light! Give this one day to thanks, to joy, to gratitude! -Henry Ward Beecher
When life knocks you to your knees,
Page 8 Page 9

What was the last request you made of God? How did
he answer?
WITH GOD
Supplication
How did you respond?
What is Supplication (consult the dictionary at the back of your book):

And in laymen's terms:

How is the supplication part of the Lord’s Prayer worded?
Matthew 6: 11
Right—this is the request part.

Imagine you live in Jolly Ole England and you want to make a request of
the queen.
Imagine entering the throne room
while she sits high on a throne re-
splendent in robe and crown flanked
by high-hatted British police.
A simple request for that which we need to survive.
Other categories to pray for:
Spiritual concerns, physical concerns, world issues, political leaders,
friends and family, health concerns, spiritual leaders...make your own
list.

You approach when beckoned, kneel

before the sovereign and make your
request. Then you wait.

If she says yes, you beam, give Take some time to lay your requests at the throne of the King:
thanks and leave. If she says no, you
would be disappointed but you would
thank her for her time and trust that
she knows what is best for her king-
dom.

Now imagine that the throne room is

high in the clouds of heaven, that the King’s robe fills the entire room
and shines so that you can barely look at him. Instead of British police ,
seraphim flank the throne. How now would you make your request?
With more or less reverence? (Read Revelation 4:2-11)

January 13, 2009 If thou shouldst never see my face again, Pray for my soul. More things are wrought by
prayer ThanWhen
this worldlife knocks
dreams of. -Alfred Lordyou to your knees,
Tennyson