First Week of LENT (begins March 5) Note: There will be 5 devotions per week. You choose which day to begin.

Day 1
PREPARE TO LISTEN: In your steadfast love hear my voice; O Lord, in your justice preserve my life. (Psalm 119:149)
READ: Matthew 4:1-11
Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.  He fasted for forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was famished.  The tempter came and said to him, ‘If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.’  But he answered, ‘It is written, “One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.”’
Then the devil took him to the holy city and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple, saying to him, ‘If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down; for it is written, “He will command his angels concerning you”, and “On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.”’  Jesus said to him, ‘Again it is written, “Do not put the Lord your God to the test.”’
Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendour; and he said to him, ‘All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me.’  Jesus said to him, ‘Away with you, Satan! for it is written, “Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.”’  Then the devil left him, and suddenly angels came and waited on him. 
MEDITATIVE WORDS
Jesus was led by the Spirit “to be tempted by the devil.”  This sounds like a very intentional thing.  Jesus wasn’t preserved or protected from the onslaught of the devil’s wiles.  He was led into the place where he’d face temptation head on.  I wonder why?  The temptation comes at the end of 40 days of fasting.  Afterwards Jesus, we’re told, “was famished.”  Despite this, Jesus was able to resist the devil, 3 times stating, “It is written,” and quoting from the Law of Moses.  Jesus was able to use Scripture as a sword to defeat Satan, not because he’d memorized appropriate verses, but because he lived all his life in obedience to all God’s Word.  The devil was foiled because Jesus persevered in his commitment to live, as all God’s people are required to live, by every word that comes from the mouth of God.  And when he was tempted, it was this commitment to knowing and living God’s law, not his ability to quote scripture, which sent the devil packing.    
REFLECTIVE WONDERING
Temptation comes subtly, as an idea, barely a thought and we often fail to notice it and therefore fall into temptation.  Wonder how you can become more aware of temptation today by thinking through what lies ahead and where the possible temptations my come.
RESPOND TO JESUS IN PRAYER. 
Lord, I know I can expect temptations to come.  When they do, give me wisdom to recognize them, strength to refuse to give in, and grace to keep on trying until I live more and more like you, Lord Jesus.  Amen.
BE SILENT AND STILL: For a few moments, simply be in the presence of Jesus, who loves you, regardless.
 
Day 2 (1st Week)
PREPARE TO LISTEN: In your steadfast love hear my voice; O Lord, in your justice preserve my life.
READ: Genesis 2:15-17; 3:1-7.  (Before you read this familiar story, forget all you’ve ever heard before, and read it as if for the very first time and as if you’re a participant in the story.)
The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to till it and keep it.  And the LORD God commanded the man, ‘You may freely eat of every tree of the garden; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall die.’
Now the serpent was more crafty than any other wild animal that the LORD God had made.  He said to the woman, ‘Did God say, “You shall not eat from any tree in the garden”?’  The woman said to the serpent, ‘We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden; but God said, “You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the middle of the garden, nor shall you touch it, or you shall die.”’  But the serpent said to the woman, ‘You will not die; for God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.’  So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate; and she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate.  Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made loincloths for themselves.
MEDITATIVE WORDS
Sitting around the family fire one night, a little child asked, Where did sin and evil come from?  Let me tell you a story, the parent replies and the child sits enthralled as a story of funny-named trees, serpents talking and two grown-ups pathetically covering their nakedness with fragile fig leaves unfolds.  What does it mean, the child asks when the telling is done?  It’s quite simple, says the parent, God gave a command, the man and the woman disobeyed it and immediately knew their lives had been changed forever, and not for the better.  They then made a silly attempt to hide from God, their Creator.
The Christian Story has deep, very deep roots, all the way back to this puzzling story in the Garden of Eden.  It’s our story too and we’re in it.  Like the first humans, we know our sin, we’ve tried to cover it in awkward and useless ways (fragile fig leaves).  Like them, we wait for God to come down and restore us.  Lent is a reminder of our need and our waiting for full restoration.
REFLECTIVE WONDERING
The woman is very confident about what she knows but easily swayed by the ‘crafty serpent.’  Reflect on what you know with confidence and what might sway you into discarding it and going astray.  Turn to God’s Spirit for the wisdom and strength you need to stay the course.
RESPOND TO JESUS IN PRAYER. 
Lord God this story is my story; I too often act too confidently and get it all wrong.  But, I know this isn’t the end of the story and you didn’t walk away from creation in disgust.  But, today, I’ll live with this difficult story so that I will be more prepared to humbly receive your gracious gift of restoration in Jesus.  Amen.
BE SILENT AND STILL: For a few moments, simply be in the presence of Jesus, who loves you, regardless.
 
Day 3 (1st Week)
PREPARE TO LISTEN: In your steadfast love hear my voice; O Lord, in your justice preserve my life.
READ: Romans 5:12-19
Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death came through sin, and so death spread to all because all have sinned— sin was indeed in the world before the law, but sin is not reckoned when there is no law.  Yet death exercised dominion from Adam to Moses, even over those whose sins were not like the transgression of Adam, who is a type of the one who was to come.
But the free gift is not like the trespass.  For if the many died through the one man’s trespass, much more surely have the grace of God and the free gift in the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, abounded for the many.  And the free gift is not like the effect of the one man’s sin. For the judgement following one trespass brought condemnation, but the free gift following many trespasses brings justification.  If, because of the one man’s trespass, death exercised dominion through that one, much more surely will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness exercise dominion in life through the one man, Jesus Christ.
 Therefore just as one man’s trespass led to condemnation for all, so one man’s act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all.  For just as by the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous.
MEDITATIVE WORDS
“But the free gift is not like….”  Paul uses this phrase twice.  Did you notice them?  The free gift isn’t like the trespass or its effect.  Paul contrasts what we now experience in Christ with what we once had because of the sin of Adam.  If, after reading the story of Adam and Eve’s sin in the Garden, with some unknowing and angst, Paul’s words should give us hope and assurance.  Yes, Adam’s sin negatively affected us all, but Jesus has reversed that effect.  The free gift brings grace and justification (right standing before God) and life and righteousness.  This is what we have in Jesus, right now.  Live it.
REFLECTIVE WONDERING
Sit with these words of assurance and be emboldened to live freely and exuberantly today in Christ Jesus.
RESPOND TO JESUS IN PRAYER. 
Jesus our Lord and Savior, what you offer is a free gift freely given.  I stand in awe and wonder and can only say, Wow!  I also ask for help to live as one who has received this free gift of grace instead of as one who still seeks to deserve it.  I don’t deserve it and want to live freely.  Thank you, Lord.  Amen.
BE SILENT AND STILL: For a few moments, simply be in the presence of Jesus, who loves you, regardless.
 
Day 4 (1st week)
PREPARE TO LISTEN: In your steadfast love hear my voice; O Lord, in your justice preserve my life.
READ: Psalm 32:1-5
Happy are those whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. 
Happy are those to whom the Lord imputes no iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit. 
While I kept silence, my body wasted away through my groaning all day long. 
For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was dried up as by the heat of summer.
Then I acknowledged my sin to you, and I did not hide my iniquity;
I said, ‘I will confess my transgressions to the Lord’, and you forgave the guilt of my sin.
SOME BACKGROUND INFORMATION
This Psalm is attributed to David, therefore I will use the masculine pronoun.  But, all psalms were written for the faith community and therefore feel free to change the pronoun and make this your personal prayer.
MEDITATIVE WORDS
The psalmist has experienced the grace of forgiveness.  Unconfessed sin had become a weight, as though God’s hand were heavy upon him.  The feeling of such a weight isn’t pleasant (to put it mildly) but it led this pray-er to wake up and acknowledge his sin.  You’ll notice the psalmist spoke to himself, instructing himself on what to do with his sin.  We can only imagine the relief he felt as he wrote and prayed, “and you forgave the guilt of my sin.”
REFLECTIVE WONDERING
Talk to yourself!  Tell yourself what you need to do about your sin, the one that is a weighing you down.
RESPOND TO JESUS IN PRAYER. 
You, Oh Lord, forgive, not just the sin, but the guilt that goes with it.  Give me, I pray, the courage to name my sin and the willingness to receive your grace and live freely.  Amen.
BE SILENT AND STILL: For a few moments, simply be in the presence of Jesus, who loves you, regardless.
 
Day 5 (1st Week)
PREPARE TO LISTEN: In your steadfast love hear my voice; O Lord, in your justice preserve my life.
READ: Psalm 32:6-11
Therefore let all who are faithful offer prayer to you;
at a time of distress, the rush of mighty waters shall not reach them. 
You are a hiding-place for me; you preserve me from trouble;
   you surround me with glad cries of deliverance.
I will instruct you and teach you the way you should go; I will counsel you with my eye upon you. 
Do not be like a horse or a mule, without understanding,
    whose temper must be curbed with bit and bridle, else it will not stay near you. 
Many are the torments of the wicked, but steadfast love surrounds those who trust in the Lord. 
Be glad in the Lord and rejoice, O righteous, and shout for joy, all you upright in heart.
MEDITATIVE WORDS
Notice the change of voice in these verses.  It begins with the pray-er speaking to the LORD (vv6-7), then the LORD speaks to the pray-er (vv8-9), concluding with the pray-er addressing a congregation.  The pray-er is confident in the power of prayer to hold him through difficult times.  God gives the assurance that he will teach and instruct him, “with my eye upon you.”  God also gives a warning, one that we all need to hear and never more so than during a season like Lent.  It’s easy to be like a horse or mule who lack understanding and need to be forced to stay near.  The psalm ends with the pray-er addressing a congregation (perhaps) encouraging them to rejoice and shout for joy.  Be encouraged.
REFLECTIVE WONDERING
What phrase or word caught your attention as you read these verses?  Sit with it and let the Spirit speak.
RESPOND TO JESUS IN PRAYER. 
Lord God who gives warning and comfort, I bow before you.  When distress comes my way, may I be prepared through faithful prayer to hear your glad cries of deliverance.  Thank you, Lord.  Amen.
BE SILENT AND STILL: For a few moments, simply be in the presence of Jesus, who loves you, regardless.