The Up Devotional

Lately, I’ve been putting down my phone more often. (And yes, I appreciate the irony that many of you are reading or listening to this on your phone—but stick with me…)

Not only have I been putting down my phone more often, but I’ve been trying to not pick it up in the first place. When we’re not careful, we can simply pick up our phones when we have ten seconds of downtime. It becomes automatic.

For example, I was outside barbecuing some chicken. It still had some time to go, so I pulled my phone out of my pocket and opened Instagram. The first thing I saw annoyed me, and the second thing I saw upset me. In about twenty seconds my brain was taken to a less-than-ideal place.

Why did I pull out my phone again? 

I would have felt better if I had simply looked at the sky, put on some good music, or just pondered the day in silence.  

The point of life isn’t to become frantic and to melt into a puddle of digital goo—it’s to glorify God as the hands and feet of Christ. 

In Matthew 6:28-29, Jesus says: “Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.” In context, Jesus is teaching about worry, and about how God provides. 

But recently it struck me that Jesus often uses imagery from the world of nature. 
-“Consider the lilies of the field…”
-“Look at the birds of the air…” 
-“A farmer went out to sow…”

There is something good and beautiful about being rooted in the natural rhythms of the world God made, instead of just starting at our screens all the time.

Sure, we need to check our messages and find out what time practice starts. But more and more often, our phones are trying to take the wheel, and kick our mental well-being into the back seat.

A phrase comes to mind: “Phones face-down.” I’m going to try it more often. Perhaps you might want to try it too. 

The point of life isn’t to become frantic and to melt into a puddle of digital goo—it’s to glorify God as the hands and feet of Christ. 

Notes:

-Bible quotes, ESV.

Let me say something bold. Hear me out, and then I’ll explain.

To not believe in the effectiveness of prayer is to say that God is a liar.

Woah, hold on. Who wants to call God a liar? Not me! And I’m sure you don’t want to do that either. 

However, the Bible—which is God’s Word—consistently instructs us about both the importance and effectiveness of prayer. 

In James 5:16, Jesus’ half-brother says: “The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.” He also tells his readers: “You do not have, because you do not ask” (James 4:2). In Psalm 145:18, David writes: “The LORD is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth.”

Further, Paul says to pray without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:17), and Jesus himself gives an extended teaching about prayer in Matthew 6:5-15. He also tells us to offer up prayers to God in his own name (John 14:14).

On top of all of this, let’s add into the mix the fact that God doesn’t lie. He “never lies” (Titus 1:2). In fact, it is “impossible” for him to do so (Hebrews 6:18).

That’s why I said what I said: To not believe in the effectiveness of prayer is to say that God is a liar.

Keep in mind that this statement is not something I would use as a hammer on a new Christian, or on someone who was simply curious about the faith. It’s something we need to humbly learn and apply over time. 

The reason I say it is because followers of Jesus need the reminder, continually. Why? Because the world tries to deceive and discourage us every single day. ‘Why bother! What difference does it make?’

But who are we going to listen to—the word of the world, or the Word of God?

Prayer can be challenging, especially when we don’t see things progressing as we’d like. But keep at it. God’s word is true. He does not lie. And he invites his people to commune with him and to live their lives through prayers that come into his very presence at the throne of grace (Hebrews 4:16).

Be not discouraged, and be not deflated. “The LORD is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth.”

Notes:

–Podcast episode: “Your Throne Does Not Tremble—a prayer.” Click here, or find it on ‘The Pulse Podcast with Matthew Ruttan’ through Apple Podcasts, Spotify, etc.

-The Up Devotional is published 5 days a week (Monday-Friday) and returns on October 5, 2026.

-Bible quotes, ESV.

In Ecclesiastes 2, the Teacher is on a hunt for wisdom. At this point in the book, he is frustrated. Things often don’t make sense. They often don’t work out as he’d like. 

Can you relate?

That’s when he has a realization: “There is nothing better for a person than that he should eat and drink and find enjoyment in his toil. This also, I saw, is from the hand of God, for apart from him who can eat or who can have enjoyment?” (verses 24-25)

In the context of the book, his argument is that these simple gifts from God can give enjoyment to our daily work, and can be encouragements from him as well—especially when life is frustrating or confusing.

This is helpful and gives us much-needed perspective about the place of the physical things in our lives. Physical things serve a purpose; they aren’t the purpose. In other words, things like food, our houses or apartments, our clothes, or even our electronic devices, can help us along in the journey of life, but they aren’t the purpose of the journey.

When things become difficult, take a look around. Is there food in the fridge? Are there shoes on your feet? Is there a gorgeous sky above you? Is there a friend to talk to? What if you thought about these things in a new way: as gifts from God which encourage you forward when life gets tough. 

Physical things serve a purpose; they aren’t the purpose. So let’s be thankful for these gifts from God and use them well. With daily simple gifts, the Lord is encouraging us forward when life gets tough. 

Notes:

–New podcast episode: “Your Throne Does Not Tremble—a prayer.” Click here, or find it on ‘The Pulse Podcast with Matthew Ruttan’ through Apple Podcasts, Spotify, etc.
-Bible quotes, ESV.

Everyone leaves some sort of legacy. What will yours be? 

In Ecclesiastes 2, the Teacher frets about this—a lot. He started to hate his job because his life’s work might be squandered by someone who came after him: “I hated all my toil in which I toil under the sun, seeing that I must leave it to the man who will come after me, and who knows whether he will be wise or a fool?” (verses 18-19). This makes him “despair” (verse 20).

However, as we learn in chapter 2, his view is limited. At this point, he isn’t thinking about the big picture. 

The bigger picture is that even though many of the physical things in life will pass away, every person leaves some sort of a mark that outlives them. Since Jesus is real, and since eternity is real, and since heaven and hell are real, and since we all have an actual role to play as the hands and feet of Christ in the world, who we are and how we live matters to God.

Billy Graham once said: “The greatest legacy you can pass on is your character and your faith.”*

Isn’t that liberating? It’s not how rich or “successful” you are. It’s not if your name appears in a history book. It’s not about piling up a bunch of letters behind your name or having a million followers online. 

When we focus on the wrong things it’s easy to “despair.” Just ask the author of Ecclesiastes.

So when it comes to our legacy, let’s focus on being like Christ, and on sharing his grace and truth with others. “The greatest legacy you can pass on is your character and your faith.”

Notes:

-*Billy Graham, Nearing Home (Thomas Nelson: Nashville, 2011), 119.
-Bible quotes, ESV.

There can be “seasons” to one’s faith.

For example, it is often noted how new Christians have zeal. They are “on fire for the Lord”! That’s amazing. Sometimes it lasts. Sometimes it doesn’t. There are seasons. And that’s okay. Life includes ups and downs. One of the risks with this particular season is that as soon as someone doesn’t “feel” their passion, they conclude that the Holy Spirit has left them. That’s just not true.

There are also seasons of great joy, and of great sorrow. There are seasons when we look to the sky and cry out, “God, where are you!?” And there are those seasons when we feel a deep and abiding peace. It’s hard to describe, but when it’s there, we know that it’s a foretaste of heaven on earth.

There are also seasons that we might call “drudgery.” Everything feels like duty, not delight. One of the reasons for feeling this way may be because we have forgotten the heart of the good news. Perhaps we have turned our faith into moralism and outward religious performance.

Michael Barrett has a word for seasons like this: “Only when Christians ignore the gospel, and the beauty of the Savior that lies at its heart, do they find Christianity to be drudgery.”*

The kingdom of God is where and when God reigns as King through Christ. It is where and when truth triumphs over deception; where love triumphs over hate; where freedom triumphs over bondage; where healing triumphs over fracture; and where peace triumphs over chaos.

At it’s centre is what Jesus accomplished on the cross. He died in our place, paying the price for our sins, so that we will have forgiveness and peace with God, adoption into his household, and eternal abundance. 

Psalm 16:11 says: “You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.”

Do you want to know the antidote to drudgery? It’s the gospel, not moralism. It’s gratitude, not entitlement. It’s grace, not just working harder. It’s glorifying God, not ourselves. 

“Only when Christians ignore the gospel, and the beauty of the Savior that lies at its heart, do they find Christianity to be drudgery.”

Notes:

-*Michael Barrett, How Can We Live Our Faith from the Inside Out (Grand Rapids: Reformation Heritage Books, 2018), 8, digital version.
-Bible quotes, ESV.

“For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs” (1 Timothy 6:10).

Mother Teresa was known for her devotion to God and for serving the poorest of the poor. People respected her because, as the saying goes, she put her money where her mouth was.

She also had a very direct way of speaking. She was honest, and often very to-the-point. For example, there was a time when she made a very cutting comment about the plight of the western world, and it might come as a bit of a shock.

“The spiritual poverty of the Western world is much greater than the physical poverty of our people in Calcutta. You in the West have millions of people who suffer such terrible loneliness and emptiness… These people are not hungry in the physical sense, but they are in another way. They know they need something more than money, yet they don’t know what it is. What they are missing really is a living relationship with God.”*

Wow. Let’s just take a moment to underline that idea so it doesn’t pass us by. She said that the spiritual poverty in the western world is greater than the physical poverty in Calcutta. 

Imagine walking down the street and encountering a missionary from Calcutta. And then imagine that missionary telling you about God and Jesus as if they had something that you lacked. Also imagine them speaking to you in rags. What they had to say was urgent, as if everything in your life depended on it.

Do you want purpose, peace, joy and truth? Then just chase the latest experience. Actually, no; don’t do that. Well then, better just do whatever feels good, or try to get as rich as you can as fast as you can. Again, actually, don’t do that either.

What are you chasing? 

Ironically, the man with nail marks in his hands already has everything that matters most. And he gives it freely to those who are his.

Notes:

-*Quoted in: Kyle Idleman, The End of Me: Where Real Life in the Upside-Down Ways of Jesus Begins (David C Cook: Colorado Springs, 2015), 123.
-The Up Devotional is published 5 days a week (Monday-Friday) and returns on September 28, 2026.
-Bible quotes, ESV.

[Workshop notice below in footnotes…]

~

Every day we are surrounded with physical things that can remind us about spiritual realities. 

For example, the sun can remind us about the light of Christ. An evening breeze can remind us to “be still” and know that only God is God (Psalm 46:1). A loud horn can remind us about the trumpet that will resound when Jesus returns.

Today’s suggestion is that these can be prompts to prayer. 

In a short book about prayer, Joel Beeke writes: “Be like the young woman who, as she dressed in the morning, prayed for God to clothe her with Christ; as she cleaned the house, prayed for God to wash sin from her family’s lives; and as she cooked supper, prayed for God to help the preacher to prepare spiritual food for his flock.”*

That young woman was a great example of what it means to “pray without ceasing,” as Paul instructs in 1 Thessalonians 5:17.

The reason I really like this practice—and the reason I have often adopted it myself—is because it is very practical, and because it reminds us that spiritual things are not just “out there.” Instead, they are enmeshed with the normal everyday things that are “right here.”

Every day we are surrounded with physical things that can remind us about spiritual realities. Let’s seize the moments that these prayer prompts provide. They’re all around us. And let us walk in greater alignment with the kingdom come, and with God’s will being done on earth as it is in heaven.

Notes:

–WORKSHOP NOTICE: If you’re near Simcoe County (in Ontario, Canada) the church I pastor is hosting a workshop on Saturday, October 3rd called “Like Christ.” It will include worship, the keynote speaker, 2 workshop options, lunch, registration bags, some giveaways, and a closing Q & A. Click here to learn more, see a preview video, or register.

-*Joel Beeke, How Can I Cultivate Private Prayer? (Grand Rapids: Reformation Heritage Books, 2016), 32, digital version.

-Bible quotes, ESV.

The author of Ecclesiastes did some first-hand research. He was looking for wisdom and knowledge but was getting frustrated. Nothing seemed to satisfy him. 

“I built houses and planted vineyards for myself,” he said. “I had also great possessions of herds and flocks, more than any who had been before me in Jerusalem. I also gathered for myself silver and gold and the treasure of kings and provinces. I got singers, both men and women, and many concubines, the delight of the sons of man” (Ecclesiastes 2:4-8)

Today, we might call this the cult of “bigger, better, more.” However, the buzz wore off quickly. The lyrics of that Rolling Stone song come to mind: “I can’t get no satisfaction.”

The same is true today. In the words of Craig Groeschel: “We have more stuff—cars, homes, clothes, gadgets, toys—than any other generation in history, yet we long for more.”*

Advertisers know this. Of course they do. We see ads and commercials all day long. The underlying philosophy seems to be that you are incomplete and are missing something in your life. ‘But everything will be better if you buy what we’re selling!’

Ecclesiastes 1-2 is a sober reminder that our identity and purpose is found in God, not in the fleeting pleasures or pressures of the world. You can keep up with the Joneses or you can keep the faith, but you can’t do both. Keeping up with the Joneses is all about what other people are doing. Keeping the faith is all about what God is doing. 

When you are tempted to look elsewhere for your life’s purpose, and when you are tempted to fulfil your deepest longings with things that are here today and gone tomorrow…

Resist. 

The sparkling things of this world will one day be relegated to the dump heap of history. Job 19:25 famously says: “For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last he will stand upon the earth.” Yes, he will. And if you are in Christ, you’ll be right there with him.

Our identity and purpose is found in God, not in the fleeting pleasures or pressures of the world.

Notes:

-*Craig Groeschel, Liking Jesus: Intimacy and Contentment in a Self-Centred World (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2015), 13.
-“Habits are Coordinates.” Click here to listen or watch on YouTube, or find it on Apple Podcasts or Spotify at The Pulse Podcast with Matthew Ruttan.
-Bible quotes, ESV.

Good habits, bad habits. We probably all have both. 

At first you make your habits, and then your habits make you. That’s the part about habits that we often neglect—that they are shaping us and leading us in a certain direction. They are not “one offs.” They have a cumulative effect. They are directional.

Like coordinates.

If you’re interested in going deeper with the power of simple habits, I’ve put together a 12-minute podcast episode and YouTube video to explain more. If you’re interested, follow the link below. 

But for the purposes of this devotional, let me just say this. 

Habits are coordinates. They are taking you in a certain direction. Bad habits set a trajectory—perhaps to do with your health or with a relationship. Good habits also set a trajectory—perhaps with your mental well-being or also with your friends. 

This is also true for your faith. 

Regular prayer strengthens your relationship with God and can bring you into greater alignment with his will. People don’t tend to stumble into a strong relationship with God. It’s what happens after small-but-consistent habits from day to day. 

Regular Bible-reading does the same. So does Sunday worship. So does _______. 

1 Timothy 4:7-8 gives us some encouragement: “train yourself for godliness; for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way…” Think about training. Successful athletes do certain things consistently. They go to the gym, or do laps, or eat well. These are habitual. No one stumbles onto an Olympic podium. 

So it is with strong discipleship. 

Think of your habits like coordinates. And choose well. 

Notes:

-“Habits are Coordinates.” Click here to listen or watch on YouTube, or find it on Apple Podcasts or Spotify at ‘The Pulse Podcast with Matthew Ruttan.’
-Bible quotes, ESV.

All of us sin, myself included. When this happens, we feel bad about it. And who likes to feel bad, right? 

Well, today I’d like to explain how even feeling bad about sin can be a sign of God’s love for you.

Let me explain—and you’ve got to stick with me on this one.

Before we get to the nice part, let’s be honest about the nasty party.

First, sin is very bad. Technically, it is going against God’s laws and teachings. The apostle John says this directly in 1 John 3:4: “sin is lawlessness.”

King David was very aware of the vileness of sin. After having committed a series of serious sins, he said: “Cast me not away from your presence…” (Psalm 51:11). Hebrew linguist Robert Alter says this carries the sense of not flinging him away in disgust, as someone might fling a dead mouse out of the house. David is aware that his sin is repugnant to God.

In this same vein, Isaac Ambrose once wrote: “The memory of my pollution is a vomit to my soul…”* That is someone who has taken the depravity of their own sin seriously!

With all this in mind, let’s get to the second point—and this is where we’re heading.

God gave you your conscience. When you go against his teachings and laws, and when you feel bad about it, this is actually a sign of God’s love. He’s disciplining you because he cares for you. It’s one of the ways that our heavenly Father encourages his children to change course. He wants us to go in a good direction, not a bad one—and our conscience is one of the tools he uses.

Happily, our God is a forgiving God. If you have sincerely asked for his forgiveness in Christ, he has given it to you. You don’t need to keep beating yourself up. Receive his forgiveness, and move forward in a genuine commitment to Christlikeness. (Theologically, this is called repentance.)

Let’s thank God for giving us a conscience which reminds us about sin and leads us in a better direction—a conscience which reminds us that he loves us and wants better things for his precious children. 

After all, as we are told in Hebrews 12:6: “the Lord disciplines the one he loves…”

Notes:

-*Tim Chester, ed., Into His Presence: Praying with the Puritans (The Good Book Company, 2022), 91.
-Bible quotes, ESV.