In the Word in a New Year

As a new year begins, I always take time to deliberately pray about and plan for my personal devotional life in the coming year.   I use the New Year as a time for revamping it so that personal time alone with God does not get stale.   Intentional change keeps it fresh and meaningful.  Sometimes gifts that I receive are helpful hints.   This year I received a book of weekly devotionals called Living by Faith written by a friend from college, David Venable.   David was principal of a large Christian school in the Philippines for many years.   We have kept in touch through Christmas letters.  I plan to read it as part of my devotions this year.  I’m looking forward to it. 

This year I also believe it is time for me to return to sequential Bible reading—that is reading straight through books or sections of Scripture. I think everyone should do this some years.   If you can average 3-4 chapters per day you can read the Bible through in one year. Those not familiar with the timeline of the Bible either need a Bible handbook to help them place the books in history or they might try reading a chronological Bible—a Bible with the texts arranged in historical order.   This past year I read Scriptures associated with the devotional book I was using.  They were chosen topically.  But the key thing is to have a plan for being in Scripture each day.   The Holy Spirit works through Scripture to shape our Christian lives. 

I find it meaningful to mark in my Bible too.   I use children’s color pencils for highlighting and I use pens to make notes as well. I love Bibles with wide margins so I have a place to write.   I have noted dates I have prayed through a Scripture for a family member; Scriptures I received as promises on particular occasions; outlines from Bible studies or from sermons I heard; and scribbled notes on a Greek word I looked up, to name a few kinds of notations.   It adds immeasurably to my future studies of those same passages. 

As I look into 2012 devotions, I think I also need to do more with planning my prayer time.  This last year I tended to pray for whatever came to mind.  I was not too happy with that.   I think I need to return to some cards or lists like I have used previously.  It will keep me from being in too much of a habit.   For one thing, prayer lists of whatever type help us to regularly remember to pray for those we have committed to pray for.  Secondly, lists whether on cards or in a journal help us to expand our prayer life to include much more intercession for others than we are likely to do without such lists.   If the lists get too long or devotional time is abbreviated, I do not have to pray for the whole list every day, but can rotate some requests.  But I must pray.   Another aid to prayer time is prayers prepared by others.  Sometimes they are meaningful as they are.  Other times they simply give us ideas.   A third huge aid to devotional prayer time is a method plan.  I know of several and I’m sure there are many more.

1. Use the Lord’s Prayer as an outline, letting each phrase suggest prayer topics for your own prayer.
2. Use the ACTS outline.  Spend time in Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving and Supplication.
3. Pray through another passage of Scripture in a way similar to the way one would use the Lord ’s Prayer as an outline.  

Other helpful items to include in personal devotions if time allows and which I occasionally use are singing and journaling.  Bringing our praise to God in song sets the stage for devotions as not much else can.   Personal daily praise is part of our expression of our love for God and singing is a natural part of it.  Some listen to music to help set the stage for prayer and reading.   Journaling helps us to distil into writing and confirm in our minds what God is speaking to us about in our prayer time and reading.  We can also read in again later for an added blessing and reinforcement.