![[Down Day One.jpg]] > Come to Stillness: Take a few minutes to allow your mind and heart to be still before God.![[Down_Day_one.mp3]] ### Opening Prayer: *Lord, how great is our dilemma! In Thy Presence silence best becomes us, but love inflames our hearts and constrains us to speak. Were we to hold our peace the stones would cry out; yet if we speak, what shall we say? Teach us to know that we cannot know, for the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God. Let faith support us where reason fails, and we shall think because we believe, not in order that we may believe. In Jesus’ name. Amen. (Knowledge of the Holy by A. W. Tozer)* #### Psalm for the Week: Psalm 138 #### Give Thanks to the Lord Of David. *138 I give you thanks, O Lord, with my whole heart; before the gods I sing your praise;2 I bow down toward your holy temple and give thanks to your name for your steadfast love and your faithfulness, for you have exalted above all things your name and your word.[a]3 On the day I called, you answered me; my strength of soul you increased.[b]* *4 All the kings of the earth shall give you thanks, O Lord, for they have heard the words of your mouth, 5 and they shall sing of the ways of the Lord, for great is the glory of the Lord. 6 For though the Lord is high, he regards the lowly, but the haughty he knows from afar.* *7 Though I walk in the midst of trouble, you preserve my life; you stretch out your hand against the wrath of my enemies, and your right hand delivers me. 8 The Lord will fulfill his purpose for me; your steadfast love, O Lord, endures forever. Do not forsake the work of your hands.* #### Scripture for the Day: Philippians 2:1-11 #### Christ's Example of Humility *2 So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, 2 complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. 3 Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. 4 Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. 5 Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus,[a] 6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant,[b] being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. 9 Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.* #### Reading for Reflection: *In our day and in our culture the language of ascent has indeed become a popular one. Success, productivity, power, independence, and competition seem to be held up, even in the Christian community, as characteristics to be valued and pursued. But when we listen carefully to the voice of Scripture and the words of our Savior, we begin to get a sense of a language and an attitude that is very different from that of the world around us. Jesus, in fact, used a completely different vocabulary to talk about life and faith. He used words like service, fruitfulness, humility, dependence, and compassion—most of which run directly against the grain of both the culture and the day. In fact, when it comes to the language of the Kingdom it seems that the word descent might actually be a more appropriate choice. Hence, if we really wish to follow Jesus’ example and his teaching, we may find that the way actually leads downward. ~Jim Branch September 2006* #### Reflection and Listening: silent and written #### Prayer: for the church, for others, for myself #### Song for the Week: How Great is Our God *The splendor of the King clothed in majesty* *Let all the earth rejoice, All the earth rejoice* *He wraps himself in Light and darkness tries to hide* *And trembles at His voice, trembles at His voice* *How great is our God, sing with me* *How great is our God and all will see* *How great, how great is our God* *Age to age He stands and time is in His hands* *Beginning and the end, beginning and the end* *The Godhead three in One, Father, Spirit, Son* *The Lion and the Lamb, the Lion and the Lamb* *How great is our God, sing with me* *How great is our God and all will see* *How great, how great is our God* *Name above all names* *Worthy of all praise* *My heart will sing* *How great is our God* ### Closing Prayer: *Lord Jesus, give us the grace and the strength and the courage to follow your invitation downward—to the place where there is only you and nothing else. In your name and for your sake we pray. Amen. (JLB)* --- [[Down Day 2]] [[Down Day 1]] [[Down Day 3]] [[Down Day 4]] [[Down Day 5]] [[Down Day 6]] [[Down Day 7]] #Down