Young - Jesus Calling Devotional Bible, NKJV

Jesus Calling Devotional Bible

Jesus Calling Devotional Bible

Sarah Young

General Editor

www.ThomasNelson.com

Jesus Calling Devotional Bible

2011 Thomas Nelson, Inc.

The Holy Bible, New King James Version

Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.

The text of the New King James Version (NKJV) may be quoted or reprinted without prior written permission with the following qualifications:

(1) up to and including 1,000 verses may be quoted in printed form as long as the verses quoted amount to less than 50% of a complete book of the Bible and make up less than 50% of the total work in which they are quoted;

(2) all NKJV quotations must conform accurately to the NKJV text.

Any use of the NKJV text must include a proper acknowledgment as follows:

Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

However, when quotations from the NKJV text are used in church bulletins, orders of service, Sunday school lessons, church newsletters, and similar works in the course of religious instruction or services at a place of worship or other religious assembly, the following notice may be used at the end of each quotation: NKJV.

For quotation requests not covered by the above guidelines, write to Thomas Nelson Publishers, Attn: Bible Rights and Permissions, P.O. Box 141000, Nashville, Tennessee 372141000.

Devotions are from Jesus Calling copyright 2004 Sarah Young and Jesus Lives copyright 2009 Sarah Young. Thomas Nelson, Inc. titles may be purchased in bulk for educational, business, fundraising, or sales promotional use. For information, please e-mail .

Produced with the assistance of The Livingstone Corporation. Project staff includes Linda Taylor, Linda Washington, Dave Veerman, Bruce Barton, Andy Culbertson, Larry Taylor, Joel Bartlett, Ashley Taylor, Tom Shumaker. Writing contributors include: Kris Bearss, Sandra Bartz, Carol Chaffee Fielding, Julie Gutierrez, Kathy Hardee, Mary Lynn Johnson, David Jorgensen, Kathy Lay, Diane Pearson, Fara Linn Reed, Elise Speiser, Gladys Wilson.

Special thanks to Merrie Noland (19522011), Senior Editor at Thomas Nelson, for her dedication and expert oversight.

Devotional Content Editor: Kris Bearss

Sarah Young has appreciated reading from a number of translations in the writing of her devotionals, including:

The King James Version.

The HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION, NIV. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

THE MESSAGE. Copyright 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group.

The NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE , Copyright 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.

THE AMPLIFIED BIBLE, Copyright 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved. Used by permission. (www.Lockman.org).

The Living Bible copyright 1971. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.

All Rights Reserved

Contents

I treasure Gods Word because it is alive, active, and full of powerdeeply penetrating the human heart and changing our very lives. The Bible contains Gods answers to every aspect of the human condition, telling us how much He loves us and helping us see how He longs to be involved in our lives.

After many years of writing in prayer journalsand then discovering the joy of listening to Jesus with pen in handI believe all of this more than ever today. As I shared in the introduction to my first book, Jesus Calling, Ive gone through prolonged periods of difficulty, struggle, and waiting over the course of my life. And I have been battling Lyme disease, a debilitating illness, for nearly a decade. However, in the midst of it all, through Gods glorious grace, I have experienced something in my journey that outshines everything else: I have enjoyed the Presence and Peace of Jesus. I have known the comfort of living in awareness of His nearness.

What has made the difference? The practice of listening to Jesus and letting Him speak to me. This practice has done more to increase my intimacy with Him than any other spiritual discipline. And the words of assurance and instruction that He has spoken to me over the years are what I have shared in my devotional books.

Jesusthe Living Wordcan speak to you directly through His Word, just as He has done for me. I hope the extrabiblical material in this Jesus Calling Devotional Bible, which includes more than 250 of my writings, will help attune the ears of your heart to His truths. To aid in this pursuit, each of my devotionals (which appear on right-hand pages at regular intervals throughout this Bible) was written from Jesus point of viewas if He were speaking directly to you. So the first person singular (I, Me, My) always refers to Christ, and you refers to you, the reader. I have also included Scripture references after each of the messages. I trust that you will take time to look up those passages in this Bibleand listen to whatever Jesus may be saying to you through His Spirit.

As I listen to God, Ive found that Bible verses or fragments of verses often come to mind. I have woven some of them into my devotionals, where they are printed in italics. Certain Bible verses turn up again and again in my writing as well. That is because God often uses these powerful scriptures to strengthen and encourage me, raising my sights from my momentary troubles to His eternal perspective.

As you read this devotional Bible, I encourage you to keep a journal in which you can record any thoughts or impressions you receiveas Jesus calls to you. I am sure you will find, as I did, that God continues to invite us to lay down our cares, our problems, our sorrowsand seek His Presence. Scripture also assures us that God speaks to those who will listen and that He is always acting on our behalf. The Jesus Calling Devotional Bible reinforces these ideas in three ways: first, with call-outs from Scripture that reveal Gods never-ending interaction and involvement in the daily lives of His people; second, by including a variety of personalized, prayerful entries highlighting scenarios and questions that any of us may face in our journey with God; and third, by presenting Jesus possible responses to those situations in my corresponding devotionals.

Since my writings are rooted in the infallible, unchanging Word of God, having them appear alongside the biblical text would seem to be a natural place for them. It is an honor to have devotionals from two of my books, Jesus Calling and Jesus Lives, included in this volume. May my written words, along with those of the writers who contributed the personalized prayers, draw you closer to the Word, the One who is calling out to you even now: Jesus, ImmanuelGod with us.

Sarah Young

April 2011

Intimate expressions are written as prayers to Jesus, describing various life situations men and women face every day. First names are included in each prayer to represent every man and every woman. Read the personalized prayer first describing a personalized scenario; then read the devotional that follows, written by Sarah Young, who uses the words of Scripture to provide Jesus answer and guidance in that situation.