Day 2
Are you ever unsure about what you should pray? Do you prayers become dull or repetitive? Do you ever feel as if you’re praying incorrectly?
Our Scripture engagement practice for today is a way to strengthen your prayer life by praying Scripture.
The Psalms are a great place to start this practice. We can echo those prayers word-for-word to God easily because of the wide-range of emotions and situations found within the Psalter.
But how would you pray a passage of Scripture that doesn’t include a specific prayer?
In today’s video, Phil Collins guides you through a familiar story in Jesus’ ministry – turning water into wine in John 2 – but in a fresh and engaging way.
How did today’s devotion impact you?
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17 replies on “Abide Bible – Day 2 in The Gospel of John”
When I’m driving to visit my wife in hospital, I pray. Sometimes sing.
An opportunity to get a bit closes to God.
Thank you for the devotion.
Phil Ingle
Oxford New Zealand
This was a helpful way to slow down and really internalize and chew the passage. Thank you. I had tried to sing passages of the Bible but the sound of God cringing…well you know.
This was very enlightening to me in that I learned a couple things that I hadn’t thought about in reading this scripture before & I also learned a lot more about praying scripture & how to do that when it is not an actual prayer or psalm.
Reading scripture and praying about it specifically is a beautiful way to communicate with God. Thank you for this lesson. It will be an added blessing when studying scripture.
It is a blessing to be able to strengthen my prays by praying scripture this way. I was custom to praying mostly the scriptures of the Book of Psalm but Day 2 has showed me that praying scripture is not limited. Thank you for, once again, showing me another out look.
I love this praying scripture session. This will surely help my prayer life. Thanks, Pastor Phil.
This time with my Lord strengthened me and encouraged me to pray and expect great things from God and attempt great things for God. What are the jars God wants me to fill so he can turn water into wine? Am I excited to participate with him in glorifying his great name?
Reminded of the authority of Jesus Christ. reminded that all authority is given Him.
GOD has convicted me of my slackness, GOD is not slack as men count slackness; I am. Grant me the strength to over come this weakness.
This has to be one of the most powerful ways of prayer. Allowing myself to be guided by the Word while at the same time making sure that the Word stays in my mind and heart. There’s no forgetting the scriptures after praying them.
Which of the two abide Bible is being used? May God bless you and all who are providing this to help us all dig a little deeper:-)
You are helping me to slow up. Be quiet. Think. Create my prayer.
And listen. Pray I will be faithful.
It’s amazing how God can cause you to draw closer to Him! I knew I was watching too much television and not spending enough time in His Word in meditation! Then my television went black and my husband wanted to hurry to replace it. I said “No!” I believed this was God’s way of having me draw closer to Him. Then Nelson Bible 21-day study email caught my attention! I am so filled with gratitude because I know this is where the Lord wants me to be. I can feel His presence like a proud Father.
Day 2 and I’m finding it hard to pray in my prayer slots due to weeping. On reflection, I think it is because all my life I have longed for someone to ‘show me how’ – a Rabbinical Jesus-style way of teaching by example – and this is exactly what you are doing – you show us you doing it first, and then we do it. It ministers to me deeply, to a part of me that has felt bereft since the beginning. It is for me father-child engagement – not just telling the child what to do and to go off and do it on their own, but sitting with the child to do it together.
The thing that intrigues me the most about this passage is the interaction between Jesus’ Heavenly Father God, Jesus’ earthly mother Mary, and Jesus Himself.
Mary presents a need to Jesus on behalf of the wedding family – it is an intercessory statement – not asking directly for assistance, but simply bringing the need of others before Him – that’s all.
Jesus resists her, asking her why she is coming to Him since He has not yet started His public ministry and presumably has not yet had the go-ahead from His Father.
Mary ignores this response!!! She banks on the assumption that He will help anyway, despite His protestations, and gives instructions to the servants, fully expecting Jesus to take action. What is going to happen now? Is a conflict about to occur?…..
No. He did as His mother wanted!!! We also know that He lived in complete obedience to His Father, therefore God the Father must have said yes to Mary – honoring her position as His mother, and responding to her faith in Jesus that He will assist.
In effect, Mary was the catalyst that began Jesus’ public ministry!!
God shows right from the start that He wants to lift up women and motherhood, and recognize their position as valid and to be respected. How beautiful.
I also love how she didn’t verbalize what she wanted Him to do. She simply presented the need, and left it to Jesus to bring the solution of His choice – always the best solution.
What a lesson for my intercessions!
And isn’t it wonderful that He revealed who He was to the servants first of all. They knew before anyone else. Lovely.
This is a new was to pray Scripture. As you and others mentioned, I am used to praying Psalms or other prayers in the Bible. Thank you for this new way to engage!
I am so blessed by the simplicity and sincerity of engaging with Jesus through these disciplines.
My family is facing a ministry and financial crises, but the anxiety and burden was lifted from my mind when I was reminded that Jesus cares about our practical needs. He made excess provision miraculously for the wedding. He did a similar fete for Sarah, Hagar/Ishmael, Hannah, Isaac, Elijah. He will do it for us. Thank you for leading us in Bible Engagement