Reflection and Repentance
Your Nightly Prayer for Apr. 8, 2025
By Sophia Bricker
TONIGHT'S SCRIPTURE
"Examine yourselves to see if your faith is genuine. Test yourselves. Surely you know that Jesus Christ is among you; if not, you have failed the test of genuine faith." - 2 Corinthians 13:5, NLT
SOMETHING TO PONDER
Lots of parents enjoy recording the growth of their children. This may be through keeping marks on a special growth chart or penciling the changing heights down in a book. Each new entry is a visual reminder of the child’s gradual journey toward maturity.
Other changes in a person’s life, though, are not as easily seen or measured – like spiritual growth. We cannot stand with backs to a wall, pencil in our progress, and see how we have become more like our Savior. Such minute marks of growth are often indiscernible to us. But this is why the Bible encourages us to regularly examine ourselves to see if we are walking in faithfulness. In 2 Corinthians, the Apostle Paul addressed charges against him that he was a false Apostle, which is why he told the Corinthian believers to closely inspect themselves. Instead of questioning if Paul was following Jesus, they should have considered their own actions.
Like the Corinthians, we also need to scrutinize our lives to see if we are taking steps toward Christian maturity. Healthy examination is not about condemnation, but about growth. Staying aware of where we are in the progress of growing up in the Christian life can help us make changes. We can see if we are getting off track in our walk with the Lord and make the needed adjustments to return to Him (Lamentations 3:40). Are we stunted, or are we increasingly becoming conformed to the image of our Savior?
We can examine our faith anytime, but many of us may find the end of the day to be conducive to reflection. To pause, think back on our day, breathe, and reorient ourselves back to the Lord. Perhaps this will be in the form of a prayer, like the daily examen, or a few quiet moments before we drift to sleep. Regardless of what we do, our days will be more focused if we stop to consider if we are living in faithfulness. As David said in a psalm, “I pondered the direction of my life, and I turned to follow your laws” (Psalm 119:59, NLT). Reflection can lead to repentance, and spiritual growth.
YOUR NIGHTLY PRAYER
Loving Lord, reveal anything within me that does not align with my identity as Your child. Help me this night to review the day and see with clarity the areas that need Your pruning work so I can grow and bear fruit for Your glory. Guide my steps, O God, and turn me again toward the path of obedience to follow Your Word. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.
THREE THINGS TO MEDITATE UPON
1. A tool for measurement that you or your parents used when you were a child (a growth chart, tests, report cards, a baby book, etc.). How might you describe where you are in your walk with Christ using the imagery of one of these tools?
2. Fuel for growth, such as food for human development or sunlight for healthy plants. In what ways can you feed or fuel your spiritual life this coming week?
3. The words of 1 John 3:20. We should honestly examine our lives, but sometimes we can be too harsh on ourselves. When we are overly self-condemning, we need to remember that God is greater than how we feel, and He knows all things, including our position in Him as a beloved child.
Photo Credit: ©Unsplash/Johannes Plenio
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