First15 Devotional

As we begin to wrap up our week on Jesus’s High Priestly prayer, today we look at what it means to reflect God’s glory. How could man ever look like God? In our broken, fallen state, can we ever reflect his glory? Let’s find out as we explore God’s heart and intention behind filling us with his Holy Spirit and giving us his new nature. May your heart and mind be open to God’s truth and will for your life today as we seek him together.

Our Scripture for today comes from John 17:22-24, and today's worship is You Came (Lazarus) by Bethel Music, Jonathan David Helser, Melissa Helser.  

Thank you for listening to today’s devotional. 

Has this podcast been a blessing to you? You can help make this a blessing for others as well, by giving a year-end donation to ensure we can continue producing this show and reach even more listeners in 2024.

First15 has set a $378,160 goal to be reached by December 31 so that together, we can end the year strong and help more people connect with God in 2024. 

So I want to ask you to give a generous gift to help reach the goal. And right now your gift will be DOUBLED by a $65,000 Matching Grant provided by a generous friend of the ministry..

Your gift today will help First15 produce more children’s versions of our devotionals to help the next generation connect with God; and produce new releases of First15 music for more powerful moments of worship as well as create more in-depth prayer videos. All of this is in addition to the continued release of the daily devotionals that are experienced by nearly 2 million believers in email, podcast, web and app format.

Click the link in the show notes or go to supportfirst15.org to give today. That’s supportfirst15.org. Thank you for your support, and may God bless you as you seek him.

Today we continue our week on Jesus’s High Priestly prayer by exploring the topic of sanctification. What does it mean to be in the world but not of the world? What does sanctification look like played out in our lives practically? Often the concept of being sanctified is daunting and a bit intimidating. But today God wants to clear up our common misconceptions and help us enter this process with joy. Open your heart to the kindness of Jesus and allow him to give you rest.

Our Scripture for today comes from John 17:14-19, and today's worship is Give Us Clean Hands by Passion Music.

Thanks so much for listening to today’s podcast. 

I hope you’re enjoying the podcasts so far this week as we’re unpacking Jesus’ High Priestly prayer together. Today as you go out, know that the Lord is sanctifying you out of his love for you, remaking you in his image, that you could enjoy life as it was meant to be lived. 

We’ve got two more days of looking at this wonderful passage in John 17 together. I hope the end of this week will enrich and bless you life. May God bless you as you seek him today.

Jesus is a joyful King, and we find in his High Priestly Prayer that he desires that his people would be filled with his joy too. We all have a myriad of burdens and things in life that cause us stress and worry. But what does it look like to have deep abiding joy in all circumstances? Today we’ll explore that and more.

Our Scripture for today comes from John 17:13, and today's worship is Joy Is Coming by Todd Galberth (feat. Travis Greene).

Thank you for listening to today’s devotional. 

Has this podcast been a blessing to you? You can help make this a blessing for others as well, by giving a year-end donation to ensure we can continue producing this show and reach even more listeners in 2024.

First15 has set a $378,160 goal to be reached by December 31 so that together, we can end the year strong and help more people connect with God in 2024. 

So I want to ask you to give a generous gift to help reach the goal. And right now your gift will be DOUBLED by a $65,000 Matching Grant provided by a generous friend of the ministry..

Your gift today will help First15 produce more children’s versions of our devotionals to help the next generation connect with God; and produce new releases of First15 music for more powerful moments of worship as well as create more in-depth prayer videos. All of this is in addition to the continued release of the daily devotionals that are experienced by nearly 2 million believers in email, podcast, web and app format.

Click the link in the show notes or go to supportfirst15.org to give today. That’s supportfirst15.org. Thank you for your support, and may God bless you as you seek him.

As we continue our week on Jesus’s High Priestly prayer, today we’ll explore God’s desire to see his people unified. Why would this be important to him? What good could be in unity for us and others? What is Jesus trying to communicate to the world through us? May our hearts be open to the answers we discover today as we take a deeper dive.

Our Scripture for today comes from John 17:10-11, and today's worship is This Is The Kingdom by Elevation Worship (feat. Pat Barrett). 

Thanks for listening to today’s podcast on the unity available to us in God. 

Whenever conflict arises today, remember that God has a perfect plan to lead you into unity with others around you. Take a moment, if you can’t see the path to unity, and ask him to illuminate it for you. A wonderful prayer you can pray is, God help me to see where you’re at work in the lives of others around me. Help me to see you in others.” 

May God give you a profound sense of connection with your brothers and sisters in the faith today as you seek to live in unity as Jesus’ prayed. Have a wonderful rest of your day, and may God bless you as you seek him.

As we take a deep dive into Jesus’s High Priestly prayer in John 17 this week, we will discover together the deep desires of the heart of God. Today we explore Jesus’s desire to be known by his people. Isn’t it amazing to think the God of the universe desires to be known intimately by you and me? What a beautiful blessing and gift he desires to give each of us. May we take hold of this gift and experience it fully today as we take a closer look.

Our Scripture for today comes from John 17:3, and today's worship is Out Of Hiding by Steffany Gretzinger.

Thank you so much for listening to today’s podcast. 

Rest today in the reality that you were made for relationship. You are not what you do. Who you are is the beloved child of God. When you feel the temptation today to define yourself by your accomplishments, or to seek value from the opinion of others around you, stop and remember that you don’t need approval from anyone. The point of life, of all of eternity, is relationship. 

Have a wonderful rest of your day, and may God bless you as you seek him.

We have a great High Priest who constantly intercedes on our behalf. The Son of God and Man loves you more deeply than you can fathom. He prays for you, that you might walk in the abundant life his death affords you. And in John 17 we get a glimpse into the fullness of his desire for all those who would believe in him. As we dive deeply into the riches of Jesus’ High Priestly Prayer this week, may your heart be awakened and your life be transformed by the riches of God’s love.

Our Scripture for today comes from John 17:1-2, and today's worship is King Jesus by Brooke Ligertwood.

Thank you so much for listening to today’s devotional. 

Stay tuned for the rest of the devotionals this week, as we unpack together this incredible prayer from Jesus. In Jesus’ words we find a wonderful picture of God’s heart, as God prays to God, a perfect prayer given on our behalf. 

Have a wonderful rest of your day, and may God bless you as you seek him.

In today’s devotional, the last in our series on the parables, we’ll be looking at the parables of the lost sheep and coin. May you discover today how precious you are in the eyes of God. And may you be empowered to see yourself, your value, as he does.

Our Scripture for today comes from Luke 15:4-7, Luke 15:8-10. Today's worship is Where I'll Be Found by Restoration Worship.

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Outro / Wrap Up:

Thank you so much for listening to today’s podcast, the last in our week-long series on vision and boundaries. 

Tomorrow we start a brand new series, looking at Jesus as our King, to help us engage our hearts in this beautiful season of advent. My hope is that together we can center our lives around the goodness of who Jesus is, and establish him as our source in this Christmas season. 

Make sure to subscribe to our podcast so you won’t miss an episode. Have a wonderful rest of your day, and may God bless you as you seek him. 

As we begin to wrap up our week on boundaries and vision, today we’ll explore having clear vision for community. All of us will likely fall in different places with this topic today. It is my prayer you discover what is healthy and God-ordained for you in regards to community—and that may look completely different than someone else! We all have different capacity, and it’s very important to remember that as we discuss living life with others in community. May our hearts be open today to whatever the Lord might speak.

Our Scripture for today comes from Matthew 18:20, and today's worship is King Jesus by Brooke Ligertwood.  

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Next week is Giving Tuesday, the one day a year when the world focuses on unleashing radical generosity.

And what better cause is there to be radically generous about than helping people connect with God?

A generous donor has offered a $25,000 Matching Grant to help reach First15’s $110,287 Giving Tuesday goal.

This means any gift you give today will be DOUBLED.

You and I were made to connect — with others, and most importantly, with God. But many people struggle to find a devotional resource that’s easy to understand and relatable to daily life.

This is why First15 exists, and I assume it’s why you’re part of this growing community.

You can give your Giving Tuesday gift and have it doubled by visiting supportfirst15.org! 

Many of us are in a very necessary need of vision for and boundaries around our work. This may be one of the most important topics we discuss all week. We spend so many hours a day working, this time must surely be important. May you discover God’s heart for your work, and find deep purpose and joy today as you submit to God’s vision and boundaries for it.

Our Scripture for today comes from Luke 18:10-14, and today's worship is 

Mercy by First15 Worship feat. Amanda Cook.

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Outro / Wrap Up:

Thank you so much for listening to today’s podcast. 

We just launched our final campaign for the year, seeking to raise $100,000 to make our final budget goal for the year, so we can start off 2019 on the right foot. Already this year our readers and listeners have been so generous. So in this final campaign of the year, if you haven’t yet supported this space we’re creating for God’s presence, now is the perfect time to do that. 

You can find a link in the description below to give. 

Thanks so much for listening. Have a wonderful rest of your day, and may God bless you as you seek him. 

As we continue our week on vision and boundaries, today we’ll explore what it looks like to have vision for loving and serving others well. Is loving people something you do intentionally? Or is something you believe will happen effortlessly as you live your life? Sometimes God is asking us to intentionally discover vision for certain seasons, and is specific about ways we could minister to or bless someone. Today may we learn how to serve people in a healthy, intentional way with good boundaries and vision.

Our Scripture for today comes from Philippians 2:4, and today's worship is Unstoppable God by The War Within.

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Next week is Giving Tuesday, the one day a year when the world focuses on unleashing radical generosity.

And what better cause is there to be radically generous about than helping people connect with God?

A generous donor has offered a $25,000 Matching Grant to help reach First15’s $110,287 Giving Tuesday goal.

This means any gift you give today will be DOUBLED.

You and I were made to connect — with others, and most importantly, with God. But many people struggle to find a devotional resource that’s easy to understand and relatable to daily life.

This is why First15 exists, and I assume it’s why you’re part of this growing community.

You can give your Giving Tuesday gift and have it doubled by visiting supportfirst15.org!