It’s time for a guest blog! I’m excited to bring you these words from my husband, Jon Wright!! This message has been stirring in his heart, and he was eager to share it this week. Be encouraged in your walk with God and be inspired to go deeper!

“On the Daily” by Jon Wright

Exodus 16 tells the story of God providing manna in the desert for the Israelites. His instructions were to gather what they needed for each day. If they tried to save some extra for the next day, it would spoil and be filled with maggots.

It’s an amazing story of God’s provision and also our need to receive from Him daily. I recently heard an excellent sermon about this, and it’s been on my heart ever since. One part that really stuck out was a Costco illustration. I love Costco (Sam’s Club for my PA friends). You can stock up on items in bulk, and they last a while. And then there are the samples! Come on, somebody!

Sometimes, we tend to take kind of a “Costco” mentality with our Christian walk. I say “we” because I’ve found myself in this pattern a number of times. Here’s what I mean… We go to church on the weekend, maybe even every other weekend, and we try to stock up on the Bread of Life. And then we go about our lives from Monday to Saturday, and we find ourselves waning by the end of the week. That’s not the way it’s supposed to be. Going back to the example set in the wilderness with the Israelites, it’s meant to be a part of our daily life. And let’s be honest: Monday to Saturday can certainly feel like the wilderness. But we aren’t meant to live off of Sunday’s bread on Friday. Or any other day for that matter. When Jesus set the example for how we are to pray, He said “give us this day our daily bread.”

Bread is a symbol of God’s provision. We see Him provide for the physical need of the Israelites with food, and we see Him provide the spiritual need of salvation through Jesus, the Bread of Life (John 6:41). We need to make it a daily habit to receive from God. He sustains us. While I have, in past seasons, made it through days at a time without spending time with God, praying, worship, and reading His word, I know that living that way is not His best for me. He’s a God of relationship, and He loves spending time with us. I can’t imagine what my relationship with my wife would be like if I only spent one day a week with her. Or my kids. My friends. That’s really the most important part – relationship! It’s not about a legalistic discipline. It’s not about checking off our Bible-reading for the day and saying our prayers before each meal. Our motivation should be to draw closer to our Loving God who promises that He will draw close to us.

Here are a couple practical things I’ve done. They might work for you, or you might find another way. First of all, I started a Bible plan on the YouVersion app. I’m reading through the whole Bible in a year. It might seem silly, but something that motivates me is seeing the progress throughout the year, particularly the streaks of consecutive days. Let’s be honest, there are days when I can try to talk myself out of reading, and I do because I don’t want to break the streak. But I’m always reminded in the midst of it, even through some of the hardest, most dry parts of the Old Testament, that it’s important to get the Word in my heart. There are days when I have “wow” moments, and something really resonates in my heart. On the flip side, there are days where that doesn’t happen, but I know it’s still valuable time.

This is a good way to establish the rhythm and discipline of reading the Bible every day, however I want to add that it’s also important to dive deeper into the Word, too. Whether it’s through personal study time, discussing the Word with friends, or listening to teachings/sermons.

Second, I’ve learned to value quiet time. As a musician, I absolutely love listening to music. Perhaps you don’t know this about me, but I love just about every genre. Worship music, of course, is a given, however another favorite is hip hop. I’ve also found myself listening to pop, rock, country, and jazz. Sometimes I get in the car and turn on music without even thinking about it. But I intentionally take times to shut it off and pray. Listen.

Find some ways that work for you to create daily habits that connect you with God.

We recently introduced a song to our church called Fresh Wind by Hillsong. It’s about receiving the Spirit of God, a fresh anointing. I started to think about some of the times when I’ve had really amazing encounters with God. Those can carry you for a while, and we like to tell the stories. “There was this one time a couple years ago at a retreat…” or “One time at a worship night our church had…”

I don’t know about you, but I want to have more of those stories. But not “a couple years ago…” I want them to be fresh! Retreats and worship nights are amazing, and I love them! But we can have amazing encounters with God in our homes. In the car (maybe pulled over if you need). Anywhere! Any time! Draw near to Him and He will draw near to you.

I shared a little bit in my last guest blog about some of the hurt and difficulty I’ve faced over the last couple years. I also shared about the healing that took place. Let me tell you, it was pressing into God that brought about that healing! And the result? I’m growing more and more hungry for the things of God every day. We have a couple weekly prayer meetings at our church: Tuesdays for staff and Wednesday evenings for anyone who wants to come, and those are two of my favorite parts of the week.

I encourage you to make it a daily habit to spend time with God. In worship, in His word, and in prayer. There will be days that it just feels like a routine, but be intentional about reminding yourself why you’re doing it. I promise that you will be refreshed and sustained.

Check out Jon’s latest cover on YouTube – Know You Will by Hillsong United!