It's not too late to engage with Lent on a deeper level. And fasting might be the practice that opens the door.

Hi, I'm Brad Coleman, the Campus Pastor at Christ Church Highland Park. This is our final devotion in this week's "Holy Habits" series on fasting. We've covered the biblical foundation, fasting as worship, and fasting as training in righteousness. But if you've never tried fasting before—or if it's been a while—you might be wondering: How do I actually do this?

Today, I'm giving you practical suggestions to begin experimenting with fasting.

In this devotion, we explore:

• The key to fasting: it doesn't work unless you're intentional. Every pang of hunger becomes a reminder—a trigger for prayer and worship.
• A simple approach: find a day that works for you. Some people fast from sundown to sundown. I fast from after dinner one night until dinner the next day.
• What to do when hunger hits: use it as a prompt to say, "Lord, I worship You. I surrender all to You. I need You above all else."
• Other ways to fast: it doesn't have to be food. During Lent, I remove all social media apps from my phone—and the NBA app (that one's tough for me!).
• The principle: fasting from something we enjoy is what makes it effective. Giving up something we already hate isn't the point. Fasting says, "This pleasure in my life is not master over me."

If fasting is new for you, I encourage you to give it a try this Lent. Allow it to become part of what makes this season unique. You may find it as beneficial as I have in my own walk with the Lord.

Thank you for joining us for this week's Holy Habits series. Don't forget to like and subscribe so you don't miss future devotionals!

We don't drift toward Christlikeness. We have to aim for it.

Hi, I'm Brad Coleman, the Campus Pastor at Christ Church Highland Park. Welcome back to our "Holy Habits" devotional series on fasting. We've explored the biblical foundation and fasting as worship. Today, we're looking at fasting as something else entirely: training in righteousness.

In this devotion, we explore:

• The athlete's mindset: I swam competitively from age six through college—10 miles a day in training for a race that was only 200 yards. The training made the race feel easy.
• Paul's words in 1 Timothy 4:7-8: "Train yourself to be godly. Physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things."
• The reality: Our hearts don't naturally move toward righteousness. We can easily be lured toward toxic and harmful desires. We need to train.
• Fasting as a teachable moment: Every pang of hunger becomes an opportunity to say "no" to an appetite—to practice self-control, which is the fruit of the Spirit.
• The outcome: Fasting is like lifting spiritual weights. It strengthens the presence and power of the Holy Spirit within us and diminishes the power of the flesh.
• A personal example: A nightly prayer walk—even when tired, even when it's 12 degrees—trains me to become someone more aware of God's presence and available for His purposes.

Fasting is not something we do to earn God's favor. It's an act of worship—and it's training that shapes us into the kind of people who naturally love, think, and act like Jesus.

Tomorrow, I'll share practical suggestions for experimenting with fasting. Don't forget to like and subscribe so you don't miss it!

What if fasting isn't about what you give up, but about who you lift up?

Hi, I'm Brad Coleman, the Campus Pastor at Christ Church Highland Park. Welcome back to our "Holy Habits" devotional series on fasting. Yesterday, we laid the biblical foundation for this ancient practice. Today, we're exploring fasting as an act of worship—and it might change how you think about it entirely.

In this devotion, we discover:

• We are designed to worship. The first act of human rebellion was an attempt to place ourselves at the center of the universe—and it never works.
• Idols aren't just statues. An idol is anything that takes the place designed for God alone—anything that draws our focus away from Him.
• Worship involves surrender. Romans 12:1 calls us to present our bodies as a living and holy sacrifice—our "spiritual service of worship."
• When we fast, food becomes a stand-in for any human appetite. Laying it aside for a time is a way to posture our hearts in submission before God.
• The built-in reminder: hunger. Every pang becomes an invitation to say, "Lord, I worship You. I surrender all to You. I need You above all else."
• The ultimate goal: to become the kind of person who naturally and joyfully places God in His rightful place—so our hearts align with His heart, our values shaped by His kingdom.

Fasting is not ultimately about what we gain from it. It's about what we lay down—and who we lift up.

Tomorrow, we'll talk about fasting as training in righteousness. Don't forget to like and subscribe so you don't miss it!

What if fasting wasn't just for biblical heroes, but for ordinary followers of Jesus? What if it was assumed—not optional?

Hey, Christ Church. I'm Brad Coleman, the pastor of Christ Church Highland Park. Welcome to this week's "Holy Habits" devotional series. We're in the season of Lent—40 days leading up to the most significant moment in human history: the death and resurrection of Jesus. And during this season, we're focusing on spiritual practices that help us place ourselves more intentionally in God's presence. This week, we're talking about fasting.

In this first devotion, we lay the biblical foundation for the practice of fasting:

• The many examples of fasting throughout Scripture: Moses (40 days on Mount Sinai), Esther (a three-day fast for her people), David (praying and fasting for his sick child), Daniel (a partial fast for 21 days), and countless others.
• The most significant example: Jesus Himself. In Luke 4, He fasted for 40 days in the wilderness, full of the Holy Spirit, preparing for His earthly ministry.
• Jesus' teaching in Matthew 6: "When you fast..."—not if. The assumption is clear: this will be a regular practice for His followers.
• The right way to fast: not for show, not with a gloomy face, but in secret before your Father who sees in secret and will reward you.
• A connection to Jesus' teaching on anxiety: "Do not be anxious for your life, what you shall eat or what you shall drink." Fasting helps us reorder our relationship with food, with provision, and with trust in our Heavenly Father.

Fasting is not a relic of the past. It's a spiritual practice with deep biblical roots—and it has a place in our lives as we grow toward Christlikeness.

Join us this week as we explore fasting as worship, training in righteousness, and practical ways to experiment with this holy habit during Lent.

Don't forget to like and subscribe so you don't miss the rest of the series!

We've talked about why silence and solitude matter. But how do you actually do it? What do you do when you get alone and quiet?

Hi everyone! I'm Jamie Morrison, and this is our final devotion in this week's "Holy Habits" series on Silence and Solitude. We've covered the currents that cause us to drift, the example of Jesus, and the whisper that met Elijah in the cave. But if you've ever tried to be silent and found your mind racing with noise, this one's for you.

In this devotion, I walk you through a simple, practical framework to guide your time in silence and solitude. I call it: E.A.R. to H.E.A.R.T.

First: E.A.R.

• E — Escape: Get away from your surroundings. Hide in the bathroom. Go for a walk. Leave the phone, the music, the podcasts—even the Bible, if necessary. Just be alone with God.
• A — Aware: Notice what's on your mind. The critical thoughts. The barking dog. The ticking clock. Don't fight them—just notice them.
• R — Release: Let it go. Trust God with your worries, your distractions, your noise. Rest in the knowledge that He has you.

Then, move from E.A.R. to HERE:

• H — Hold whatever you're sensing from God. A truth? A promise? A story from Scripture? A characteristic of God? Hold it. Contemplate it. Let it settle.

Finally, move from HERE to HEART:

• T — Thanks: End with a short prayer of gratitude. Thank God for the time, for the thoughts, for the simple truth that you are loved by a personal and involved God.

This is how silence and solitude move from your ears to your heart.

Try it today. Start with 10 minutes. Your appetite will grow.

Don't forget to like and subscribe as we continue our Holy Habits series with more topics in the weeks ahead!

If you're waiting for God to show up in the wind, the earthquake, or the fire—you might miss Him. He's often in the whisper.

Hi everyone! I'm Jamie Morrison, and welcome back to our "Holy Habits" devotional series on Silence and Solitude. Today, we're looking at one of the most dramatic stories in the Old Testament—and discovering that God's most powerful moment came in the quiet.

In this devotion, we explore:

• Richard Foster's famous line: "Superficiality is the curse of our age. The desperate need today is not for a greater number of intelligent people or gifted people, but for deep people."
• The story of Elijah in 1 Kings 19—fresh off a miraculous victory on Mount Carmel, yet exhausted, depressed, and hiding in a cave.
• How God revealed Himself: not in the wind, not in the earthquake, not in the fire—but in a gentle whisper.
• A practical lesson from family road trips: sometimes the problem isn't that the volume is too low—it's that our noise is too high.
• The connection between Elijah, Moses, and Mount Sinai (Horeb)—a place of solitude and silence where God met both prophets in transformative ways.

God's not looking for holy mountains. He's looking for holy hearts with holy habits that are seeking Him. Every place can be a sanctuary when we quiet ourselves enough to listen.

Take some time today to turn down the noise and listen for the whisper.

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If Jesus—the Son of God—needed to get away to a solitary place to pray, what does that say about us?

Hi everyone! I'm Jamie Morrison, and welcome back to our "Holy Habits" devotional series on Silence and Solitude. Yesterday we talked about the unseen currents that cause us to drift. Today, we're looking at the one person who had the most demanding ministry in history—and how He handled the pressure.

In this devotion, we explore:

• The constant pressure Jesus faced: crowds pressing in, people wanting something from Him—teaching, healing, miracles, hope. Sound familiar?
• Jesus' counter-cultural response: He never doubled down on caffeine and overtime. He withdrew.
• Multiple examples from Scripture (Matthew 14, Mark 1, Luke 5 & 6) showing Jesus' regular pattern of leaving the crowds to find solitary places to pray.
• The crucial insight: When the needs got greater, Jesus knew it was more important to connect with the Father. Solitude and silence weren't an escape from ministry—they were preparation for it.
• A re-frame: Solitude and silence are not giving up. They're gearing up. They're not passive—they're power-packed. They're not about loneliness, but discovering the loveliness of God.

If Jesus thought it was important to get away from the rush and hurry to be with the Father, then clearly we—being less—need to seek Him even more.

Take some time today to ask: Where can I follow Jesus' example and find my own solitary place?

Don't forget to like and subscribe as we continue our Holy Habits series!

What do a day at the beach and your spiritual life have in common? More than you might think.

Hi everyone! I'm Jamie Morrison, the Campus Pastor at Vernon Hills, and I'm kicking off this week's "Holy Habits" devotional series on two practices that go together better than peanut butter and jelly: Silence and Solitude.

In this first devotion, I share a personal story about our family's beach tradition that took a scary turn. My daughters were floating peacefully, unaware of a current pulling them farther and farther from shore. By the time they wanted to come back, they couldn't—the current was too strong. They needed a lifeguard to rescue them.

This is exactly what happens to our souls.

In this video, we explore:

• The "unseen currents" of distraction that drift us away from where we want to be—without us even noticing until it's too late.
• Why trying harder isn't enough when the current is stronger than you are. We need a Lifeguard to bring us home.
• The "Six S's" that anchor our spiritual life: Solitude, Silence, Slowing, Stillness, Sabbath, and Sleep.
• A deep dive into Psalm 46—a Psalm of chaos and turmoil that gives way to the serene invitation: "Be still, and know that I am God."
• How silence and solitude aren't just nice ideas—they're how we deliberately seek God, find Him, and let Him anchor our drifting hearts.

This week, I encourage you to get away, find a quiet place, and read Psalm 46. Let the chaos settle. Let the river of God make glad your city. And hear His assuring whisper to your soul.

Don't forget to like and subscribe so you don't miss the rest of this week's devotionals on Silence and Solitude!

Do you ever find yourself treating God like a vending machine—showing up when you want something, then moving on with your day?

Welcome back to our "Holy Habits" devotional series! Today, we're continuing our exploration of Christian meditation—but this time, we're focusing on a crucial shift: moving from doing for God to simply being with God.

In this devotion, we explore:

• A different way to think about God: not as a vending machine, but as a roommate. Someone you live with. Someone you share life with—frustrations, celebrations, and everything in between.
• Psalm 63:6 and the question: What are your final thoughts at night? When you wake up in the middle of the night, does your mind go to stress—or to God?
• Richard Foster's insight: Meditation is the doorway to all other spiritual disciplines. It creates the internal silence necessary to hear.
• The difference between secular meditation (stress reduction as an end in itself) and Christian meditation (attending to God and experiencing His presence).
• Adele Calhoun's definition: "Meditation is attending to God. It's a shift from doing for God to being with God."
• A practical exercise: Palms Down, Palms Up.
  • Palms down: release your worries, anxieties, and cares to God (1 Peter 5:7).
  • Palms up: open your hands to receive whatever He has for you—peace, clarity, gratitude, faith.

Take a moment right now to pause, breathe, and practice being with God.

Don't forget to like and subscribe as we continue our Holy Habits series!

In a world that is overstimulated and undernourished, everyone is talking about meditation. But not all meditation is the same.

Welcome back to our "Holy Habits" devotional series! Today, we're tackling a practice that has often made evangelical Protestants uncomfortable: Meditation. Because of its association with Eastern religion and the New Age movement, many Christians have simply avoided it altogether. But the Bible has a lot to say about it—and it's time to reclaim it.

In this devotion, we explore:

• The Hebrew word for meditate: haga—which means to mutter, chew, or rumble. The ancient Israelites would murmur Scripture under their breath as a way to memorize and internalize it.
• The crucial difference between secular meditation (like Transcendental Meditation) and Christian meditation:
  • TM seeks a blank slate to find the self.
  • Christian meditation seeks a full heart to find the Savior.
• Why Scripture engagement is not primarily for information transfer, but for life transformation.
• Richard Foster's definition: "Christian meditation is simply the ability to hear God's voice and obey His word."
• A practical exercise: We close by reading Psalm 1 slowly. Pick one word—maybe "delight" or "planted"—and after the video ends, sit with it for 60 seconds. Let it settle. Let it chew on you.

This is Christian meditation: clearing the decks, letting the clutter settle, and opening ourselves to what God has for us through His Word.

Take a moment today to pause, breathe deeply, and let the Word shape your soul.

Don't forget to like and subscribe as we continue our Holy Habits series!