Good Morning!
Let’s focus our day by spending some time with Jesus before it begins.

WORSHIP Worship can be as simple as thanking God for who He is & what He’s done.
Play some worship music you love, or choose from one of our Spotify Playlists.
Say or journal what you’re thankful for in the last 24 hours.
First Step: Start by playing or singing 1 song & writing 1 thing. Grow to 3-5 from there.
Next Step: Read Isaiah 44:9-11. Focus on one truth about who God is & thank Him for it.

PRAYER Prayer is a conversation that involves both talking and listening to God.
Start praying for yourself using the Lord’s Prayer or pray for others using a Ripple Prayer.
First Step: Start by praying for 2 minutes. Then, work your way up to 5, 10, or 15 minutes.
Next Step: Learn more about prayer & find help at paradoxchurch.com/pray.

SCRIPTURE Our memorization & meditation focus for this study is Romans 3:23-24.
Today’s reading is from Romans 1:18-32
Families: Get Focused together using the Parent Cue app.
First Step: Ask the following SOS Questions & journal your thoughts.
S = Say. What is the main point? What does it teach about God (Jesus) & yourself?
O = Obey. What can you apply (practice) from this passage today?
S = Share. Who can you share what you’re learning with today?
Next Step: Dig deeper in Bible Study & discuss your answers with a Lifegroup.
Read 2 Timothy 3:1-9. In Romans 2, Paul says that sin comes from “exchanging the truth for a lie.” Read over this list again. What is a lie someone might believe that would lead to one of these actions?

A THOUGHT FROM TODAY’S READING
I love Romans. Paul speaks very clearly and honestly with us for our own sakes. He wants us to have a right understanding of, and right-standing with God. In this set of verses, Paul starts by pointing out that God has plainly shown himself to everyone by what he has made. This means that when we look at the beauty, scope, complexity, and functionality of the universe there is only one sane conclusion: something outside this universe created it. As Creator, therefore, God is more powerful and knowledgable than us. He invites us to learn what is true about us…that is: who we are, what we were created for, and how we should best live our short lives here. Instead we exchange the truth of God for lies. Why? Because we have short term thinking. We want comfort, immediate pleasure, victory over others, etc. Paul lists plainly for us many ways in which we follow our own worldly desires, living in ways that are against God’s will for our lives, aka SIN. God calls us to sacrifice for others, build deep, authentic relationships, face adversity to build our character and reliance on him, etc. “Sounds too hard!”, we say. So, we choose to acknowledge no God at all or change him in our minds to be something more palatable to us and more open to the way WE want to live. Oh, and we also want eternal salvation. So how do we reconcile all of this. Thankfully, Paul will walk us through this conundrum in the chapters to come. -Mike Nank

SHARE The good news comes to you on its way to someone else.
First Step: Share a thought/question or send an encouraging text from today’s reading.
Next Step: Invite someone to read the Focus with you. Text “FOCUS” to (586) 200-6277.

That’s all for today.
Stay focused on Jesus, and make it a great one!