SELAH

Selah is a word used in the Old Testament that means to have an intentional and deliberate pause. In the Psalms, Selah was used when the reader or audience was invited to pause and reflect on what they had just sung. We have taken the word selah and used it as an acronym to help prepare our hearts as we approach God each day. Take some time to slowly walk through SELAH—Stop, Exhale, Lean-in, Ask, and Hear.

Stop

Before you read, take some time to stop and limit your distractions. Start by turning your phone to Do Not Disturb so you won’t receive notifications. Take some time to close your eyes and begin to prepare your heart for the transformation God wants to lead you in today.

Exhale

With your eyes closed, take several slow deep breaths. As you breathe in, invite God into your time with Him today and as you breathe out, exhale your stress, anxieties, worries, distractions, and sins. Make your breathing all about receiving Him and removing yourself.

Lean-In

As you continue to breathe, take a posture leaning forward. Today you want to lean in to what God wants to teach you and how He might want to transform you. As you lean forward, tell God that you are ready for any work He might want to do in or through you.

Ask

Now with your eyes closed, breathing slowly and leaned forward, ask God to transform you today. Your goal should be to live and love more like Jesus than you did yesterday. You need God’s help for this to be possible. He loves to help His children, but He is waiting for you to ask.

Hear

Now, stop & listen. Don’t continue talking, but give yourself time to hear from Him. He will speak to you today through worship, His Word, and the devotional you’re about to read. He is ready to speak. Are you ready to hear from Him?

Remember His Promises

Reflect

Welcome to your very first day of this devotional! You’re about to embark on a journey that has the potential to change your life. Your goal today is not to walk away with another piece of information from the Bible. Instead, you are being invited to begin a daily habit of regular time with the God who can completely transform you. Remember Transformation > Information.

Reflect

If you’re at all like me, you probably skipped over verses one through three. I always got into the habit of skipping any section that started with “these are the names.” BORING. But what if God had a reason for writing this? What if God wanted to reveal something to us through these verses? Go back and look again at verse seven. This whole book is going to start with the premise that God is faithful to the promises He makes. Years ago, God made a promise to Abraham (the grandfather of Jacob/Israel mentioned in verse 1). This promise was that He would take Abraham, a 90-year-old childless man, and turn him into a great nation. Even though the circumstances that the nation of Israel will find themselves in aren’t great, the author of Exodus wants us to realize that God is keeping His promise that He made nearly 400 years before. So spoiler alert: as we keep reading you’ll see that God continues to be the God who keeps His promises.

Respond

No matter what circumstances you find yourself in, we want to challenge you to do two things today. First, take some time somewhere to write a few ways you have seen God keep His promises to you. Then, make a list of things you want to see Him transform in you this year.

Additional Reading Suggestions:

Genesis 17:1-8 and Hebrews 10:19-23.