First15 Devotional

As children of the Most High God, we have been granted access to unconditional, tangible, and perfect love. All we need we have in relationship with our Father in heaven. He longs to reveal himself to us as a loving, real Father. He longs for us to live in the fullness of restored relationship with him. He longs for us to experience his vast and limitless affections. May we grow in our understanding and experience of God as our good and loving Father this week as we look at what it is to be his child.

Our Scripture for today comes from 1 John 4:9-10, and today's worship is I Don't Have Much by Mission House.

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Thank you for listening to today’s podcast. I’m Craig Denison, author of First15. 

As you go about your day today, look for opportunities to practice the reality that true life comes from living in the knowledge of God. When you face a challenge today, try and think about how knowing God changes the reality of that challenge. When you’re looking for direction, how will knowing God’s heart and will impact the path you choose to walk down? 

Make sure to rate, review, and subscribe if today’s devotional was meaningful for you. 

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

As we end our week on knowing God’s heart for us, we’re going to focus on the call to action that God’s heart doesn’t just stop with us, but is meant to be carried through us into the lives of those around us. When you are operating out of God’s love daily secure in his affections for you, God can do miraculous things through you. Just imagine how God could use you to bless and enrich the lives of others – the possibilities are endless.

Our Scripture for today comes from 1 John 4:7. Today's worship is I Don't Have Much by Mission House.

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Thanks for listening to the First15 podcast. The end of July is fast approaching, so I wanted to reach out with a quick reminder about the $216,584 summer initiative. Reaching this goal by July 31st will help produce new printed books this year and next to help believers connect with God more deeply; produce a children’s version of First15 to help the next generation learn more about Jesus; and produce new Guided Prayers.

So click the link in the show notes or go to supportfirst15.org to help First15 continue offering free resources that offer life change for people around the world.

I can’t thank you enough for all of your prayers and support as we continue seeking God this year! Have a wonderful rest of your day, and may God bless you as you seek him.

God is such a good, loving Father that he wants us to live with a foundational understanding of his affection toward us. He wants the knowledge of his unconditional love for us to be so deeply rooted within us, that all striving ceases and we live in total freedom as his children. Today we’re going to further explore that concept as we begin to finish up our week on knowing the heart of God.

Our Scripture for today comes from Ephesians 3:17-19, and today's worship is Your Love Is A Well by First15 Worship feat. Rachel Denison.  

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Thank you for listening to today’s podcast. 

As you go about your day today, look for one or two opportunities to simply connect with someone around you in a meaningful way. One of the best ways we can be Jesus’ hands and feet is by asking good questions, and listening. So take the opportunity before you today to truly love someone as Jesus did, by laying aside distractions and connecting with others in a meaningful way. 

Make sure to subscribe to the podcast if you haven’t already, and make sure to give First15 a fresh rating and review. 

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

One of the most influential ways I believe God wants to reveal himself and his heart is through others. No one is perfect like him, of course. But we all carry unique aspects of our Father’s character. God wants to use others in your life to show you more about himself on a daily basis. If we’ll open our hearts to those around us, the possibilities are unlimited to what God can do.

Our Scripture for today comes from 1 Peter 4:10, and today's worship is 

More Than Anything by Breakaway Worship.

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When you give to our Summer Initiative, you’re helping with upcoming projects like: 

• Writing and editing of our brand new product line, First15 devotionals for kids,

• Translation of more resources into Spanish through Primeros15,

• Continued development and expansion of our website and app, and

• Production of the First15 podcast.

And your gift will help us reach our goal of $216,584.

So please give to help us meet the Summer Iniative goal!.

Today we’ll explore who the Holy Spirit is, and what that means for knowing the heart of God richly in our daily lives. The concept of God’s Spirit is often seen as elusive, but it’s my hope today we’ll come to know him as a person—just as we have Jesus. The Spirit longs to have a beautiful, deep friendship with you. And all it takes is opening our hearts to him.

Our Scripture for today comes from John 16:13, and today's worship is Holy Spirit by Kari Jobe. 

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

As you go about your day today, look for one more time that you can set aside five minutes to simply rest in the Holy Spirit. Developing touch points with God throughout the day, where you can set aside every other care and burden, and simply rest in the Spirit, is such a lifegiving way to maintain communion throughout the day. 

Make sure to rate, review, and subscribe. 

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

As we seek to know the heart of God this week, today we’ll look to his word as a steady, ever-present guide to God’s feelings toward us. If you’re ever feeling lost or confused about his heart, look no further than his word. May we begin to turn to the Bible as our source of truth and direction first and foremost, rather than the world around us.

Our Scripture for today comes from Hebrews 4:12, and today's worship is Psalm Ninety-One by Kendrian & Lauren Dueck. 

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Thank you for listening to today’s devotional. It’s hard to believe we are halfway through the year! Summer is here and I wanted to share a special request with you. 

First15 has set a $216,584 goal to be reached by July 31 so that together, we can end the summer strong and help more people connect with God and go deeper in their relationship with him. So I want to ask you to give a generous gift to help reach the goal knowing it will be DOUBLED by a generous $20,000 Matching Grant offered by some amazing friends of First15.

Doing so will help First15 produce new printed books this year and next to help believers connect with God more deeply; produce a children’s version of First15 to help the next generation learn more about Jesus; and produce new Guided Prayers.

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 knowing God’s heart, today we’ll explore the idea of continually seeking God in our day to day lives, rather than living off of one-time experiences. God is always available to us, and as his children, we have his Spirit speaking to us as all times, in all places. May we walk away today more inclined to listen and more open to finding God in unexpected ways.

Our Scripture for today comes from 1 Chronicles 16:11, and today's worship is Revelation Song by Kari Jobe Carnes.

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Thanks for listening to today’s First15 Podcast. If you haven’t downloaded our brand new First15 app, make sure to click the link in today’s show notes to check it out! One of the new features that you can enjoy when you download the app is our Guided Prayers. We are adding new prayers to our library every month, so if you need a moment of peace with God, let these prayers be your guide!

In a world where confusion has the potential to be as pervasive as it is contagious, centering ourselves around God’s truth is essential if we are to maintain clarity of thought in any regard. In this prayer, Dr. Jerome Can Kuiken helps us not only seek a lack of confusion, but a deep and abiding relationship with God through acknowledgement and confession of our need for him and adoration for who he is. He is the God who offers peace and direction freely to all who ask for it. May this prayer be a guide to you as you learn to trust in the God who has made a way for us.

One of the greatest privileges as a child of God is that we can have the heart of our heavenly Father. We don’t have to wonder how he feels about us. We don’t have to wonder if he will guide us. We don’t have to question whether he loves us or cares about us. Through the Holy Spirit we have continual, free access to the heart of God. May your relationship with God go deeper and become freer as you build trust and learn how to have God’s heart this week.

Our Scripture for today comes from Psalm 46:10, and today's worship is Good To Me by First15 Worship feat. Taylor Zebracki.

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Thank you for listening to today’s podcast. I’m Craig Denison, author of First15. 

As you go about your day today, look for opportunities to practice the reality that true life comes from living in the knowledge of God. When you face a challenge today, try and think about how knowing God changes the reality of that challenge. When you’re looking for direction, how will knowing God’s heart and will impact the path you choose to walk down? 

Make sure to rate, review, and subscribe if today’s devotional was meaningful for you. 

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

In the final devotional in our series on experiencing God’s promises, today we’re going to look at what it means to live for God’s glory. There is a wealth of promises that can only be experienced when we choose to lay down our own glory, and live for the glory of God instead. We weren’t created to live for our own advancement, and attachment to advancement only breeds pain and suffering. But if we’ll choose instead to seek God’s glory, to lift him up and lead others to him, we’ll find life, purpose, peace, and joy.

Our Scripture for today comes from Romans 11:36. Today's worship is You Get The Glory by Jonathan Traylor.

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A First15 reader, Kim, recently shared with us, “Thank you for this blessing. It is like a balm to my soul. You are bringing the love of Christ to me.”

When you help reach the $216,584 Summer Initiative goal, you’ll be a part of connecting more people like Kim with God. 

When you help reach the $216,584 Summer Initiative goal, you’ll be a part of connecting more people like Kim with God.

If you haven’t given yet — or you’re led to give again — please do so today.

As we near the end of our week-long series on experiencing the promises of God, today we’re going to look at how living with faithful action, being the hands of feet of Jesus, position us to experience more of God’s promises. May God guide us to into a work birthed from the place of abiding in him, that our lives would be marked by the fruit of God’s promises coming to fruition every day.

Our Scripture for today comes from 2 Corinthians 5:18-19, and today's worship is If We Are The Body by Casting Crowns.  

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Thank you for listening to today’s podcast. 

As you go about your day today, look for one or two opportunities to simply connect with someone around you in a meaningful way. One of the best ways we can be Jesus’ hands and feet is by asking good questions, and listening. So take the opportunity before you today to truly love someone as Jesus did, by laying aside distractions and connecting with others in a meaningful way. 

Make sure to subscribe to the podcast if you haven’t already, and make sure to give First15 a fresh rating and review. 

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