Bible Reading

For the next several weeks we want to encourage everyone at LCBC to spend time interacting with God; listening to Him by reading the Bible and talking to Him in prayer. A great outline for prayer is in the word A.C.T.S.: Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving and Supplication. Each day until the end of May, you will be given four short readings from the Bible that highlights these four aspects of prayer.

Adoration is praising God for who He is. Your adoration reading will be a few verses that serve as an example. You could just read these verses as a prayer of adoration to God.

Confession is agreeing with God about how you fail to live life as God wants you to, asking him to forgive you and committing to avoid this sin in the future. The confession reading will give you an example. You can pray the verses given, but also confess your own failures to obey God.

Thanksgiving is thanking God for what He has done for us or for yourself in particular. The thanksgiving reading will remind you of something God has done. You can thank God for that thing He has done.

Supplication is asking God for things. Most of the supplication readings will be commands that God has given us. One of the requests you can make to God is to ask Him to help you obey that command. You can also ask for other things that you want either for yourself or others that you know have needs.

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Thoughts on May 18 – A.C.T.S.

A. -Isaiah 45:21-22  21Consult together, argue your case. Get together and decide what to say. Who made these things known so long ago? What idol ever told you they would happen? Was it not I, the Lord? For there is no other God but me, a righteous God and Savior. There is none but me. 22Let all the world look to me for salvation! For I am God; there is no other.(NLT)
C. – Jeremiah 17:9-10
  9“The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is? 10But I, the Lord, search all hearts and examine secret motives. I give all people their due rewards, according to what their actions deserve.”(NLT)
T. – Ephesians 1:7-8
  7He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins.8He has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding.(NLT)
S. – 1 Thessalonians 4:1
  1Finally, dear brothers and sisters, we urge you in the name of the Lord Jesus to live in a way that pleases God, as we have taught you. You live this way already, and we encourage you to do so even more.(NLT)

Thoughts on May 17 – A.C.T.S.

A. – Isaiah 45:5-6   5I am the Lord; there is no other God. I have equipped you for battle, though you don’t even know me, 6so all the world from east to west will know there is no other God. I am the Lord, and there is no other.(NLT)
C. – Jeremiah 10:23-24
  23I know, Lord, that our lives are not our own. We are not able to plan our own course. 24So correct me, Lord, but please be gentle. Do not correct me in anger, for I would die.(NLT)
T. -Galatians 4:4-7
  4But when the right time came, God sent his Son, born of a woman, subject to the law.5God sent him to buy freedom for us who were slaves to the law, so that he could adopt us as his very own children.6And because we are his children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, prompting us to call out, “Abba, Father.”7Now you are no longer a slave but God’s own child. And since you are his child, God has made you his heir.(NLT)
S. – Colossians 4:5-6
  5Live wisely among those who are not believers, and make the most of every opportunity.6Let your conversation be gracious and attractive so that you will have the right response for everyone.(NLT)

Thoughts on May 15 – A.C.T.S.

A. – Isaiah 40:25-28  25“To whom will you compare me? Who is my equal?” asks the Holy One. 26Look up into the heavens. Who created all the stars? He brings them out like an army, one after another, calling each by its name. Because of his great power and incomparable strength, not a single one is missing. 27O Jacob, how can you say the Lord does not see your troubles? O Israel, how can you say God ignores your rights? 28Have you never heard? Have you never understood? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of all the earth. He never grows weak or weary. No one can measure the depths of his understanding.(NLT)
C. – Romans 6:6-7
  6We know that our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin.7For when we died with Christ we were set free from the power of sin.(NLT)
T. – 1 Corinthians 15:57-58
  57But thank God! He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ. 58So, my dear brothers and sisters, be strong and immovable. Always work enthusiastically for the Lord, for you know that nothing you do for the Lord is ever useless.(NLT)
S. – Colossians 3:8
  8But now is the time to get rid of anger, rage, malicious behavior, slander, and dirty language.(NLT)

Thoughts on May 14 – A.C.T.S.

A. – Isaiah 40:22-23  22God sits above the circle of the earth. The people below seem like grasshoppers to him! He spreads out the heavens like a curtain and makes his tent from them. 23He judges the great people of the world and brings them all to nothing.(NLT)
C. – Isaiah 59:12-13
  12For our sins are piled up before God and testify against us. Yes, we know what sinners we are. 13We know we have rebelled and have denied the Lord. We have turned our backs on our God. We know how unfair and oppressive we have been, carefully planning our deceitful lies.(NLT)
T. – 1 Corinthians 15:51-53
  51But let me reveal to you a wonderful secret. We will not all die, but we will all be transformed!52It will happen in a moment, in the blink of an eye, when the last trumpet is blown. For when the trumpet sounds, those who have died will be raised to live forever. And we who are living will also be transformed.53For our dying bodies must be transformed into bodies that will never die; our mortal bodies must be transformed into immortal bodies.(NLT)
S. – Colossians 3:5-7
  5So put to death the sinful, earthly things lurking within you. Have nothing to do with sexual immorality, impurity, lust, and evil desires. Don’t be greedy, for a greedy person is an idolater, worshiping the things of this world.6Because of these sins, the anger of God is coming.7You used to do these things when your life was still part of this world.(NLT)

Thoughts on May 13 – A.C.T.S.

A. – Isaiah 40:13-18  13Who is able to advise the Spirit of the Lord? Who knows enough to give him advice or teach him? 14Has the Lord ever needed anyone’s advice? Does he need instruction about what is good? Did someone teach him what is right or show him the path of justice? 15No, for all the nations of the world are but a drop in the bucket. They are nothing more than dust on the scales. He picks up the whole earth as though it were a grain of sand. 16All the wood in Lebanon’s forests and all Lebanon’s animals would not be enough to make a burnt offering worthy of our God. 17The nations of the world are worth nothing to him. In his eyes they count for less than nothing— mere emptiness and froth. 18To whom can you compare God? What image can you find to resemble him?(NLT)
C. – Isaiah 54:7-8
  7“For a brief moment I abandoned you, but with great compassion I will take you back. 8In a burst of anger I turned my face away for a little while. But with everlasting love I will have compassion on you,” says the Lord, your Redeemer.(NLT)
T. – Habakkuk 3:18-19
  18yet I will rejoice in the Lord! I will be joyful in the God of my salvation! 19The Sovereign Lord is my strength! He makes me as surefooted as a deer, able to tread upon the heights. (For the choir director: This prayer is to be accompanied by stringed instruments.)(NLT)
S. – Colossians 2:8
  8Don’t let anyone capture you with empty philosophies and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the spiritual powers of this world, rather than from Christ.(NLT)

Thoughts on May 12 – A.C.T.S.

A. – Isaiah 6:1-3  1It was in the year King Uzziah died that I saw the Lord. He was sitting on a lofty throne, and the train of his robe filled the Temple.2Attending him were mighty seraphim, each having six wings. With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they flew.3They were calling out to each other, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of Heaven’s Armies! The whole earth is filled with his glory!”(NLT)
C. – Isaiah 53:3-6
  3He was despised and rejected— a man of sorrows, acquainted with deepest grief. We turned our backs on him and looked the other way. He was despised, and we did not care. 4Yet it was our weaknesses he carried; it was our sorrows that weighed him down. And we thought his troubles were a punishment from God, a punishment for his own sins! 5But he was pierced for our rebellion, crushed for our sins. He was beaten so we could be whole. He was whipped so we could be healed. 6All of us, like sheep, have strayed away. We have left God’s paths to follow our own. Yet the Lord laid on him the sins of us all.(NLT)
T. – Isaiah 25:8-9
  8He will swallow up death forever! The Sovereign Lord will wipe away all tears. He will remove forever all insults and mockery against his land and people. The Lord has spoken! 9In that day the people will proclaim, “This is our God! We trusted in him, and he saved us! This is the Lord, in whom we trusted. Let us rejoice in the salvation he brings!”(NLT)
S. – Colossians 2:7
  7Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness.(NLT)

Thoughts on May 11 – A.C.T.S.

A. – Galatians 1:3-5  3May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace.4Jesus gave his life for our sins, just as God our Father planned, in order to rescue us from this evil world in which we live.5All glory to God forever and ever! Amen.(NLT)
C. – Galatians 5:17
  17The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions.(NLT)
T. – 1 Corinthians 1:4-5
  4I always thank my God for you and for the gracious gifts he has given you, now that you belong to Christ Jesus.5Through him, God has enriched your church in every way—with all of your eloquent words and all of your knowledge.(NLT)
S. – Philippians 4:11-13
  11Not that I was ever in need, for I have learned how to be content with whatever I have.12I know how to live on almost nothing or with everything. I have learned the secret of living in every situation, whether it is with a full stomach or empty, with plenty or little.13For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength.(NLT)

Thoughts on May 9 – A.C.T.S.

A. – Psalm 139:17-18  17How precious are your thoughts about me, O God. They cannot be numbered! 18I can’t even count them; they outnumber the grains of sand! And when I wake up, you are still with me!(NLT)
C. – Proverbs 6:16-19
  16There are six things the Lord hates— no, seven things he detests: 17haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that kill the innocent, 18a heart that plots evil, feet that race to do wrong, 19a false witness who pours out lies, a person who sows discord in a family.(NLT)
T. – Psalm 145:18-20
  18The Lord is close to all who call on him, yes, to all who call on him in truth. 19He grants the desires of those who fear him; he hears their cries for help and rescues them. 20The Lord protects all those who love him, but he destroys the wicked.(NLT)
S. – Ephesians 5:11
  11Take no part in the worthless deeds of evil and darkness; instead, expose them.(NLT)

Thoughts on May 8 – A.C.T.S.

A. – Psalm 139:7-12  7I can never escape from your Spirit! I can never get away from your presence! 8If I go up to heaven, you are there; if I go down to the grave, you are there. 9If I ride the wings of the morning, if I dwell by the farthest oceans, 10even there your hand will guide me, and your strength will support me. 11I could ask the darkness to hide me and the light around me to become night— 12but even in darkness I cannot hide from you. To you the night shines as bright as day. Darkness and light are the same to you.(NLT)
C. – Psalm 143:10
  10Teach me to do your will, for you are my God. May your gracious Spirit lead me forward on a firm footing.(NLT)
T. – Psalm 138:4-6
  4Every king in all the earth will thank you, Lord, for all of them will hear your words. 5Yes, they will sing about the Lord’s ways, for the glory of the Lord is very great. 6Though the Lord is great, he cares for the humble, but he keeps his distance from the proud.(NLT)
S. – 1 Corinthians 16:14
  14And do everything with love.(NLT)

Thoughts on May 7 – A.C.T.S.

A. – Psalm 139:1-6  1O Lord, you have examined my heart and know everything about me. 2You know when I sit down or stand up. You know my thoughts even when I’m far away. 3You see me when I travel and when I rest at home. You know everything I do. 4You know what I am going to say even before I say it, Lord. 5You go before me and follow me. You place your hand of blessing on my head. 6Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too great for me to understand!(NLT)
C. – Psalm 139:23-24
  23Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. 24Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life.(NLT)
T. – Psalm 118:28-29
  28You are my God, and I will praise you! You are my God, and I will exalt you! 29Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good! His faithful love endures forever.(NLT)
S. – 1 Corinthians 10:31
  31So whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.(NLT)