Daily Readings at Southeast

  Faith Over Feelings: How to Stay Grounded in Hard Seasons Having vision is powerful, and having Jesus is even more amazing. You may have experienced the highs of faith—the moments in worship when tears stream down your face because of the awesomeness of God. I’ve definitely been there. But what about those times when you’re not in a service, when you’re wrapped up in the covers, crying over the death of a loved one or the end of a marriage? In those moments, when emotions are overwhelming, we have to work to stay grounded. Not living the same year twice doesn’t mean life will be easy. You will face hard seasons, difficult days, and low moments of faith. You will feel pain and heartache. These moments are real, and they matter. But even in those times, we have a Comforter—the Holy Spirit—and a Savior who has endured so much pain and betrayal. We have a Lord who doesn’t just sit high above, but comes low to meet us in our brokenness. In these moments, hold onto faith, cling to your...

  Creating a Prayer Board That Reflects Your Vision In 2016, I created my first prayer board because I had all these words, desires, and ideas swirling in my heart, and I needed a place to put them. They were scattered across my prayer journal and stuck on notes all around my room. I realized I didn’t just need to know my vision—I needed to see it all around me. So I sat with God and slowly went over my desires. After a few days, I got clear on some of my biggest dreams: building a ministry with global impact, one day getting married, and more. I added each of these to my prayer board and, in faith, prayed and believed that in God’s perfect will, they would come to pass. Some of those goals were achieved within the year, while others took several years—but either way, I stopped living the same year twice. I began to see how God could use my heart’s desires to fuel His purposes for me. I planned and prayed, but ultimately, God guided me to His will. Today, I do have a global ministr...

A Better Year, Every Year When I think back to the young woman who failed out of college, felt lost in life, and didn’t even have enough to pay my cellphone bill or put gas in my car—it feels crazy. Because every year since then has gotten better and better, and I’ve stopped living the same year twice by walking in vision and faith. Vision is all throughout the Bible—and no, I’m not just talking about seeing visions—I mean having a clear vision for your life. When I didn’t know where I was headed, I wandered aimlessly. I’d be at the next party, the next bar, just drifting. But when I got vision, things inside me began to change. I started taking faith-filled steps instead of staying stuck. With vision came Godly confidence, because I knew: “If God is for me, who can be against me?” Every year I’ve had vision has been better than the last, because I finally have a target, a destination. Imagine a ship leaving the dock with no destination—it drifts aimlessly and ends up anywhere. That wa...

Starting The Year with God As believers, we all want to start the year with God, giving Him full access to our lives. But sometimes, there are areas we keep off-limits—our relationships, finances, future plans, business, health, and more. This year, invite God into the areas you’ve been trying to handle on your own. Bring Him into your marriage struggles, your life’s pains, and even the places where you’re already thriving. When you start letting God into the “small” things, you’ll begin to see it overflow into the big things—more patience with your spouse, greater awareness of your words, and peace in decisions. Starting the year with God means rededicating your life to Him—giving Him full access to what you were once hesitant to surrender. That one choice to let Him in can change everything. Reflection: Take a moment to invite the Holy Spirit into your life, especially into the areas you’ve been holding back. Give God full access to the good, the messy, and everything in between, and...

  Remember The Promises All throughout the Bible, God reminds us of His promises, like “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” These promises are so comforting, yet when we find ourselves stuck in seasons or situations, it’s easy to forget them. Maybe you even have a personal promise from God—about your life, your plans, your family, or your future. Refusing to live the same year twice means keeping God’s promises at the forefront of your mind and heart. His promises are true, unshakable, and able to stand against anything! Even when you don’t see how it will all come together, trust that it will. In your lowest seasons, in your moments of doubt, God’s promises can wrap around you and breathe life back into what feels dead or stuck. Breaking free from old patterns starts with anchoring yourself in the promises of God—and letting them guide your every step. Reflection: Which specific promises in the Bible speak to your heart the most? What personal promises has God spoken directly...

  Don’t Live It Twice One day, while sitting in my old high school bedroom—after failing out of college and honestly just holding onto the little bit of faith I had left—I realized something: if I didn’t start doing something different, I was about to repeat the exact same year all over again. That revelation hit me hard. I had prayed, I had believed, but I wasn’t actually getting up and doing the things God kept placing on my heart. I was still tangled up in the failures of my last season, feeling completely stuck. It’s so easy to get caught up in the rhythm of life and suddenly realize none of your goals have moved. Or to look at your current situation—your finances, your circumstances—and think, “ There’s no way I can get ahead.”  That might be the story others settle for, but that’s not the story God has for you. God calls you the head and not the tail. You are above and not beneath. You are the apple of His eye, deeply loved and completely seen. He has better for you—grea...

  Guarding Your Heart Scripture gives us a clear filter for our thoughts: “Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is pure, lovely, of good report—think on these things.” (Philippians 4:8). Every day, thoughts will knock on the door of your mind and heart. Some will bring peace; others will bring confusion. You must decide what stays. Here’s how: Reject wrong thoughts  – Say, “I refuse this imagination in Jesus’ name.” (2 Corinthians 10:5) Replace them with truth  – Speak or recall Scripture that counters the lie. Resist the enemy  – If the thought feels persistent, rebuke the enemy, just as Jesus resisted the devil in Matthew 4:10. As you practice these, your mind becomes a dwelling place for light. Meditation isn’t passive; it’s intentionally fighting to stay our focus on the right things by feeding our minds with the word of God. Hence, we must labor to let the word of the Lord dwell in us richly in all wisdom, because, out of the abundance of the mind, the ...