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Continuing our week on Jesus’s parables, we’ll look today at the parable of the mustard seed. As we dig into this rich, beautiful parable, may our hearts and minds be enlightened. Take a moment even now to ask God to give you fresh revelation. Our Scripture for today comes from Matthew 13:31-32, and today's worship is Faith of a Mustard Seed by Bethel Music. --   The Songs Tell the Story, the 25 day Advent devotional is perfect for starting on December 1st and ending on Christmas Day!  Each reading only takes a few minutes and the stories behind how these Christmas hymns came to be are sure to make you hear & sing them in a whole new way. You and your family will want to listen to the songs with a newfound appreciation for how God worked to bring such timeless songs into our yearly celebrations of the gift of Christmas. Our hope is that each story reveals more of God’s heart for you in this season and renews your sense of wonder for the birth of our Savior. So make sure to grab your copy at first15

As we continue this week allowing the parables of Jesus to speak directly to our situations, mindsets, and core beliefs about who God is, today we’ll dive into the parables of the hidden treasure and valuable pearl. Upon learning about God forsaking everything to find us, we’ll assess our own hearts and see what they value most in this life. Open your heart today and choose to take an honest look. You might be surprised at what you find.   Our Scripture for today comes from Matthew 13:44, and today's worship is Treasure by Hillsong UNITED. -- The Songs Tell the Story, the 25 day Advent devotional is perfect for starting on December 1st and ending on Christmas Day!  Each reading only takes a few minutes and the stories behind how these Christmas hymns came to be are sure to make you hear & sing them in a whole new way. You and your family will want to listen to the songs with a newfound appreciation for how God worked to bring such timeless songs into our yearly celebrations of the gift of Christmas. O

Jesus loved to use stories to illustrate profound, life-transforming concepts. He loved to use real and genuine settings, characters, and ideas that apply to all of us to reveal God’s heart of pursuit and love. This week we’re going to spend time allowing the parables of Jesus to speak directly to our situations, mindsets, and core beliefs about who God is. Open your heart and mind to be transformed by the powerful and captivating stories of Jesus.   Our Scripture for today comes from John 10:14-15, and today's worship is Shepherd by Influence Music.   --   Thanks for listening to today’s First15 Podcast. My name is Ryn, and I’m a part of the First15 Team. If you haven’t downloaded our brand new First15 app, make sure to click the link in today’s show notes to check it out! One of the new features that you can enjoy when you download the app is our Guided Prayers. We are adding new prayers to our library every month, so if you need a moment of peace with God, let these prayers be your guide!    In today’s

As we wrap up this week looking at the desires of every heart, we’re going to look today at the desire to live a life of significance. God has a plan to use you in ways far beyond what you could ask or imagine, a plan for you to make an eternal impact in the world. As we make space for God to speak and lead today, may he give us a deeper sense of purpose and calling in him.   Our Scripture for today comes from Matthew 25:21, and today's worship is Pour Me Out by Brandon Lake. --   The Songs Tell the Story, the 25 day Advent devotional is perfect for starting on December 1st and ending on Christmas Day!  Each reading only takes a few minutes and the stories behind how these Christmas hymns came to be are sure to make you hear & sing them in a whole new way. You and your family will want to listen to the songs with a newfound appreciation for how God worked to bring such timeless songs into our yearly celebrations of the gift of Christmas. Our hope is that each story reveals more of God’s heart for you

In today’s devotional, we’re going to explore the desire we all share to be passionate. Everyone of us desires to give our lives to something, our passion to something that truly matters. And God has given us all that desire with a perfect plan to satisfy it in a unique way, a way he’s perfectly wired each of us for. May each of us get a greater sense of how we can live more wholeheartedly in him today. The main concept for this week is derived from The Seven Longings of the Human Heart by Mike Bickle and Deborah Hiebert.   Our Scripture for today comes from Mark 12:30, and today's worship is Love You More by Harvest.  --   The Songs Tell the Story, the 25 day Advent devotional is perfect for starting on December 1st and ending on Christmas Day!  Each reading only takes a few minutes and the stories behind how these Christmas hymns came to be are sure to make you hear & sing them in a whole new way. You and your family will want to listen to the songs with a newfound appreciation for how God worked to

In today’s devotional we’re going to look at the desire we all share to be fully known and fully loved. You and I were made for this. And pursuing that sense of knowledge and love from the world has left so many of us wounded. But the good news is that God has a path for healing, relationship, and love that’s void of shame, and wants to guide us down that path today as we create space and follow him together.   The main concept for this week is derived from The Seven Longings of the Human Heart by Mike Bickle and Deborah Hiebert.   Our Scripture for today comes from Ephesians 2:4-5, and today's worship is Hide & Seek feat. Nikki Moltz by First15 Worship. -- The Songs Tell the Story, the 25 day Advent devotional is perfect for starting on December 1st and ending on Christmas Day!  Each reading only takes a few minutes and the stories behind how these Christmas hymns came to be are sure to make you hear & sing them in a whole new way. You and your family will want to listen to the songs with a newfo

Today as we continue our series looking at the desires of every heart, we’re going to take time to recognize and satisfy our desire to be great. The desire to be great within the heart of man has produced tremendous and terrible things. It’s produced peace and war, advancement and destruction. And as we look at this desire today, I pray that God reveals the purity and power of it as well as his plans to satisfy it moment by moment, day by day. The main concept for this week is derived from The Seven Longings of the Human Heart by Mike Bickle and Deborah Hiebert.   Our Scripture for today comes from 1 Corinthians 2:9, and today's worship is Making Something Beautiful by Pat Barrett.  -- The Songs Tell the Story, the 25 day Advent devotional is perfect for starting on December 1st and ending on Christmas Day!  Each reading only takes a few minutes and the stories behind how these Christmas hymns came to be are sure to make you hear & sing them in a whole new way. You and your family will want to listen

As we continue our week-long focus on the desires of every heart, today we’re going to look at the desire we all share to behold beauty. God has created beauty all around us, beauty we can see and beauty we can feel. And in a world so inundated with false notions of beauty, today my prayer is that God reveals the purity within this longing that resides within each of our hearts, and his perfect plans to satisfy it.   The main concept for this week is derived from The Seven Longings of the Human Heart by Mike Bickle and Deborah Hiebert. Our Scripture for today comes from Psalm 149:4, and today's worship is Wonder by Bethel Music. --   The Songs Tell the Story, the 25 day Advent devotional is perfect for starting on December 1st and ending on Christmas Day!  Each reading only takes a few minutes and the stories behind how these Christmas hymns came to be are sure to make you hear & sing them in a whole new way. You and your family will want to listen to the songs with a newfound appreciation for how G

In today’s devotional, we’re going to look at the desire we all share for wonder. We serve an absolutely fascinating God – a God who has created a whole world to marvel us. May we set our eyes on him today by the power of the Holy Spirit, that our desire for wonder would be satisfied in relationship with our powerful and good God.   Our Scripture for today comes from Romans 1:22-23, and today's worship is Wonder by Hillsong UNITED. -- The Songs Tell the Story, the 25 day Advent devotional is perfect for starting on December 1st and ending on Christmas Day!  Each reading only takes a few minutes and the stories behind how these Christmas hymns came to be are sure to make you hear & sing them in a whole new way. You and your family will want to listen to the songs with a newfound appreciation for how God worked to bring such timeless songs into our yearly celebrations of the gift of Christmas. Our hope is that each story reveals more of God’s heart for you in this season and renews your sense of wonder

All of us have insatiable desires that can only be satisfied in communion with our heavenly Father. The desire to be delighted in, for wonder, to behold glory, and to be someone great are driving forces within each of us. The desire to be fully know and fully loved, to be passionate, and to live a life of significance resound within each of us at the foundation of who we are. God created these desires knowing that they can only be fully satisfied in him—that they would be avenues to deeper relationship with him. As we look at each of these desires individually, I pray your heart would find its fulfillment in the loving nearness of your heavenly Father. The main concept for this week is derived from The Seven Longings of the Human Heart by Mike Bickle and Deborah Hiebert.   Our Scripture for today comes from Isaiah 62:5, and today's worship is Mistakes by Influence Music. -- Thanks for listening to the First15 Podcast. My name is Ryn, and I’m a part of the First15 Team.  If you haven’t heard, we just launc

As we wrap up this week focusing on tilling the soil of our hearts, today we’re going to look at the role of hearing God’s voice in living open and responsive to God. I know for a lot of us the idea of hearing God speak can be a confusing, sometimes too far out there subject. But as God’s children, he wants us to live in communication with him. And through the Holy Spirit, you and I have the ability to hear God speak to our hearts. May we discover today that we serve a communicative God who loves to talk to his people. And may his voice soften our hearts to receive all that he longs to give us.   Our Scripture for today comes from John 16:13, and today's worship is Wherever You Lead by Bethel Music (feat. Kristene DiMarco). --   The Songs Tell the Story, the 25 day Advent devotional is perfect for starting on December 1st and ending on Christmas Day!  Each reading only takes a few minutes and the stories behind how these Christmas hymns came to be are sure to make you hear & sing them in a whole new w

In today’s devotional, we’re going to continue our week long focus on tilling the soil of the heart by looking at the power of prayer. There is no better way to soften our hearts towards God than making space to have a real conversation with him. His voice breaks down our walls. His answers give us the peace and direction we need. And his presence, simply resting in him, builds the solid foundation of connection we need to live open and responsive to him throughout our day.  May God do a mighty work in us today as we discover the power of prayer.   Our Scripture for today comes from Philippians, and today's worship is Keep Praying by Maverick City Music.  --   The Songs Tell the Story, the 25 day Advent devotional is perfect for starting on December 1st and ending on Christmas Day!  Each reading only takes a few minutes and the stories behind how these Christmas hymns came to be are sure to make you hear & sing them in a whole new way. You and your family will want to listen to the songs with a newfou

As we near the end of our week focusing on tilling the soil of the heart, today we’re going to look at the role of community in positioning ourselves to receive all that God longs to give. God is calling us into a deeper commitment to love others, and be loved by others. He wants to use us and those he’s placed around us to guide us deeper into fullness of life. So as we set our eyes on him, may he fill our hearts with compassion and love, and desire to be fully known and fully loved by our communities.   Our Scripture for today comes from Romans 12:4-5, and today's worship is Power When We Worship by Here Be Lions. -- The Songs Tell the Story, the 25 day Advent devotional is perfect for starting on December 1st and ending on Christmas Day!  Each reading only takes a few minutes and the stories behind how these Christmas hymns came to be are sure to make you hear & sing them in a whole new way. You and your family will want to listen to the songs with a newfound appreciation for how God worked to brin

As we reach the middle of our week-long focus on tilling the soil of our hearts, today we’re going to look at the power of Scripture in receiving all that God longs to give us. Within the pages of Scripture there is a wealth of stories all conveying how God has met with and restored his people from the beginning of civilization. And these stories are powerful resources in softening our hearts towards God, inviting him to meet with us and mold us into his likeness. As we look at the power of Scripture today, may God stir our hearts to spend time every day in the pages of this transformative book. And may Scripture guide us deeper into true relationship with it’s author.   Our Scripture for today comes from Psalm 1:1-2, and today's worship is Your Word by Hillsong Worship.  -- The Songs Tell the Story, the 25 day Advent devotional is perfect for starting on December 1st and ending on Christmas Day!  Each reading only takes a few minutes and the stories behind how these Christmas hymns came to be are sure to

As we continue this week-long focus on tilling the soil of our hearts, today we’re going to look at the power of worship in opening our hearts to receive all that God longs to give. For most of us, worship is something we engage in in a corporate setting. It’s a collective expression of adoration and relationship. But worship can be so much more than the songs we sing together. It’s a powerful avenue to softening our hearts towards God that we can, and should journey down every day.  As we make space to focus on the power of worship today, may God stir up each of our hearts to worship him with all we are and all we have. Our Scripture for today comes from Psalm 29:2, and today's worship is Let My Life Be Worship by Bethel Music, Jenn Johnson, feat. Michaela Gentile. --   The Songs Tell the Story, the 25 day Advent devotional is perfect for starting on December 1st and ending on Christmas Day!  Each reading only takes a few minutes and the stories behind how these Christmas hymns came to be are sure to m

As we continue this week focusing on tilling the soil of our hearts, today we’re going to look at the role of thankfulness in opening our hearts to receive all that God longs to give. While Scripture is filled with encouragements to be thankful, I think our own lived experience tells us that being thankful is essential in the pursuit of an abundant life. So may God remind us of all we have to be thankful for today as we make space to meet with him. And may our days be better as the result of taking just a few moments to be thankful for who we are, what we have, and all God has done for us as his beloved children. Our Scripture for today comes from Psalm 107:1, and today's worship is Thank You by Maverick City Music. -- The Songs Tell the Story, the 25 day Advent devotional is perfect for starting on December 1st and ending on Christmas Day!  Each reading only takes a few minutes and the stories behind how these Christmas hymns came to be are sure to make you hear & sing them in a whole new way. You

This week we’ll look at a vital spiritual practice to all those seeking to grow in God: tilling the soil of the heart. Jesus spoke in Matthew 13 of two different types of soil—hard and soft. God longs for us to till the soil of our hearts that we might be receptive to the seed of his word and bear fruit. May your heart become more responsive to the presence, will, and love of God this week as you cultivate good soil with the help of the Holy Spirit.   Our Scripture for today comes from Matthew 13:23, and today's worship is Refiner by Maverick City Music. -- Thanks for listening to the First15 Podcast. My name is Ryn, and I’m a part of the First15 Team.  If you haven’t heard, we just launched a brand new First15 app, available now in your app store! One of the new features that you can enjoy when you download the app is our Guided Prayers. We’ve created unique guided prayers that are created specifically to help you connect with God in prayer wherever you are.    Today, we’re sharing a preview of a Guided

As we conclude our week on living for heaven, today we’ll explore the return of Christ and what that means for us. How can you be best prepared for the return of Jesus? What does God expect of you as his child? May your heart only grow in anticipation and joy at the thought of his return after today. Our Scripture for today comes from Matthew 24:36, and today's worship is You Are My One Thing by Bethel Music feat. Hannah McClure. --   The Songs Tell the Story, the 25 day Advent devotional is perfect for starting on December 1st and ending on Christmas Day!  Each reading only takes a few minutes and the stories behind how these Christmas hymns came to be are sure to make you hear & sing them in a whole new way. You and your family will want to listen to the songs with a newfound appreciation for how God worked to bring such timeless songs into our yearly celebrations of the gift of Christmas. Our hope is that each story reveals more of God’s heart for you in this season and renews your sense of wonder

As we begin to wrap up our week on living for heaven, today we’re going to explore what it means to have our perspectives shift toward the things of God rather than the things of earth. We are so easily bogged down by the weight of the world, and today God wants to lift our chin and point our eyes upward to things unseen, the things of heaven. Our Scripture for today comes from 2 Corinthians 4:18, and today's worship is Son of Suffering by Bethel Music.  --   The Songs Tell the Story, the 25 day Advent devotional is perfect for starting on December 1st and ending on Christmas Day!  Each reading only takes a few minutes and the stories behind how these Christmas hymns came to be are sure to make you hear & sing them in a whole new way. You and your family will want to listen to the songs with a newfound appreciation for how God worked to bring such timeless songs into our yearly celebrations of the gift of Christmas. Our hope is that each story reveals more of God’s heart for you in this season and ren

As we continue in our week on living for heaven, today we’ll explore what it means to see Jesus’s prayer that God’s will would be done on earth as it is in heaven fulfilled. God desires his kingdom to invade the earth, and he wants to do it through us, his people. Open your heart and mind to God’s will for your life, and allow him to fill you with excitement and joy today.   Our Scripture for today comes from Matthew 6:9-10, and today's worship is As It Is (In Heaven) by Hillsong Worship feat. Joel Houston. -- The Songs Tell the Story, the 25 day Advent devotional is perfect for starting on December 1st and ending on Christmas Day!  Each reading only takes a few minutes and the stories behind how these Christmas hymns came to be are sure to make you hear & sing them in a whole new way. You and your family will want to listen to the songs with a newfound appreciation for how God worked to bring such timeless songs into our yearly celebrations of the gift of Christmas. Our hope is that each story reveal