Daily Devos for 2019

Happy podcast Tuesday! Thanksgiving is just a little over a week away, and we're spending this episode of Spill the Beans...feeling thankful! Hoping you'll join us in counting blessings of your own!

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I know. It's not even Thanksgiving, it's not even Christmas, and I'm talking about stuff for 2019 already? True story. I like to plan ahead! I told my mother-in-law yesterday that I sometimes roll my eyes at my own self when I start a project way early, because I know I'm overachieving, but more times than I can count, I end up glad I got a head start. Something always comes up that would have made it impossible to start and finish in a normal time frame. So yes, I'm already thinking ahead to devos for 2019, because I want a plan in place.

This year, as I've told you before, Ryan and I decided to read through the Bible chronologically. We are just days away from finishing the gospels and will then sail through the rest of the New Testament! I am so glad we did this. I've learned so much, and it's been a fantastic discipline for us this year.

My friend Julie (hi, Julie!) has also been doing this, and every Monday, we email each other with some of our learning notes from the previous week. It's been a good form of accountability for both of us! Julie's been reading from The Voice, which is a translation I am fairly new to reading, and as she's shared with me different quotes, I've decided I want to read all four gospels in this translation soon - just so I can see the words in a new light. In fact, the whole thing intrigued me so much that I decided I want to actually spend all of 2019 focused just on those four books of the Bible. I want to go through them slowly, unpack them, study them hard, and savor them.

So today, I thought I'd share with you some of my favorite studies and devos in case you're looking for something to do in 2019 too!

1. Read through the Bible chronologically.

I know we're technically NOT done with this, but we are far enough along that I can highly recommend this as a daily devotion idea. Ryan and I found a reading plan from the site She Works His Way (if you go here and scroll down, you'll find where you can download it) and used that as our guide. We didn't use anything other than our Bibles as we read through - and we took notes each day on the things that stuck out to us the most! You can find read-through-the-Bible-in-a-year plans all over the internet, so if you don't want to read chronologically, you can find another option that fits you better!

2. Streams in the Desert

I've used this book as my daily devo two different years. The most recent was back in 2010, which I had no idea was going to be the year of the desert for me. I about wore out the copy I purchased for that year, but I was so glad God led me to it. If you're going through a difficult time, this is an excellent devotional reading. It was written many many years ago by a woman going through a tough season of life. She compiled readings and quotes she came upon in her own journey, so some of the writing is not hers originally, but my goodness. What a wonderful resource it is! You can find this book in all kinds of versions and all price points. You can get fancy leather journal editions or mass market paperback editions. It all reads the same, though, and I highly recommend.

3. Beth Moore's 90 Days Series

Beth Moore has a series of books that have 90 days of devotions inside them. Though buying all four would be a pricey option, they make for great studies! You can get books on David, Jesus, John, and Paul, and each day's reading has a Scripture passage, her thoughts, and some journaling prompts. If you get all four books, you'll be just a few days shy of a full year's worth of devotions! Great in-depth study into the lives of four men of the Bible.

4. Women Who Loved God

This book seems to be a bit hard to find these days (I did find it here on Amazon, but it wasn't available on Christian Book) but oh how I love it. I adore anything written by Elizabeth George, and this daily devo was a great read the year I did it. If you're interested in pulling lessons from the women of Scripture, this is a fantastic resource. (Also - just read all of Elizabeth's books. ALL of them.)

5. Everyday Prayers

This is more of a prayer guide than a devotional, but I love Scotty Smith's written prayers so very much. I will be the first to admit I'm not a fan of written prayers in a church setting (preferring to hear people pray out loud on the spot from the heart) but Scotty has the gift of putting into words what you wish you could say but can't seem to form. This book can help guide your daily prayers or fill in for you on the days when you simply don't have words. 

6. Sparkling Gems from the Greek.

In one of my (rare) book cleanouts, I let this book go and have regretted it every moment since. Stupid move, Bekah. This is a thick book, but a great resource for digging into the original language of the Bible - in a way that the average person can understand. I see the author, Rick Renner, has a second volume that released last year, so you actually have TWO options in studying! I love studying in the original languages, because they pull out the richer, deeper meanings we usually miss, but I don't actually speak those languages, so I rely on others to fill in the gap! 

7. Daily Light

I have used this book in previous years as well! It's a book of Scripture readings - one for the morning and one for the evening - every day for a year. There aren't any additional thoughts written; it's merely a compilation of Scripture by topic. If you want to get deeper into the Word without extra writing on the side, this is a great guide! 

So there you go! If you're looking for an idea of books to read in 2019 to help you be more diligent about daily time with the Lord, hopefully this has helped! I'm excited to dive into the gospels and see what I can learn about the life of Christ!