Watch Message Here: Heaven Meets Earth Week 49
5-Day Bible Reading Plan and Devotional Guide
Based on the Sermon: "Heaven Meets Earth — Acts 22"
Day 1: Common Ground Is Holy Ground
Reading: Acts 22:1-3; 1 Corinthians 9:19-23
Devotional: Paul did not begin his testimony with an argument. He began with a relationship. He spoke the language of his listeners. He named a teacher they respected. He found the thread that connected his story to theirs. This is not compromise — it is wisdom. The gospel never changes, but the way we carry it into a conversation must be shaped by the person standing in front of us. Today, pay attention to the people around you. Ask yourself what you have in common with them. That common ground is not small talk. In the hands of a willing believer, it is holy ground.
Reflection: Who in your life needs you to meet them where they are before you invite them somewhere new?
Day 2: Own Your Before
Reading: Acts 22:4-5; 1 Timothy 1:12-17
Devotional: Paul did not sanitize his past. He stood before a crowd that knew exactly who he had been and said plainly that he had persecuted believers to their death. He did not minimize it or skip over it. He owned it. There is enormous power in an honest before. When you acknowledge the darkness that Jesus pulled you out of, you give other people permission to believe that he can pull them out too. Your mess is not something to be ashamed of. It is the very thing that makes your message credible. The depth of your before only magnifies the grace of your after.
Reflection: What part of your before are you still reluctant to share, and what might God do if you surrendered it to him?
Day 3: Let Jesus Be the Hero
Reading: Acts 22:6-11; Ephesians 2:1-10
Devotional: When Paul described his encounter on the road to Damascus, the verbs told the story. The light shone. Jesus spoke. Jesus answered. Jesus commanded. Paul fell down, asked two questions, and was led by the hand because he could not see. The grammar of salvation always reads the same way. God acts. We respond. If your testimony is mostly about how you turned your life around, you have told an inspiring story, but you have not yet shared the gospel. The gospel is not the story of how we found God. It is the story of how God, in his relentless grace, came and found us.
Reflection: When you tell your story, is Jesus clearly the hero, or does your own effort take up too much of the spotlight?
Day 4: Ask the Question
Reading: Acts 22:12-16; Romans 10:13-15
Devotional: Ananias did not simply tell Paul what had happened to him. He pressed him toward a response. "Now why do you wait?" Those four words carry the full weight of gospel urgency. Information about Jesus is not the same as surrender to Jesus. The gospel requires a response, and someone has to be willing to ask for one. Many people have heard the story of the cross their entire lives and have never once been personally invited to respond to it. Do not assume the people in your life know what to do with what they have heard. Ask the question. Invite them to take the next step.
Reflection: Is there someone in your life who has heard the gospel from you but has never been directly invited to respond?
Day 5: Trust Him With the Outcome
Reading: Acts 22:17-21; 1 Corinthians 3:6-9
Devotional: Paul delivered one of the most powerful personal testimonies in all of scripture, and the crowd still rejected it. One word — Gentiles — and the riot resumed. This is the part of evangelism we must settle in our hearts before we ever open our mouths. Success is not measured by response. It is measured by obedience. You plant. Someone else waters. God brings the growth. You are not responsible for saving anyone. You are responsible for sowing the seed faithfully and trusting the God of the harvest to do what only he can do. Draw your circle. Write the name. Pray without stopping. Leave the outcome to him.
Reflection: Is fear of rejection keeping you from sowing a seed that God has already prepared someone to receive?
5-Day Bible Reading Plan and Devotional Guide
Based on the Sermon: "Heaven Meets Earth — Acts 22"
Day 1: Common Ground Is Holy Ground
Reading: Acts 22:1-3; 1 Corinthians 9:19-23
Devotional: Paul did not begin his testimony with an argument. He began with a relationship. He spoke the language of his listeners. He named a teacher they respected. He found the thread that connected his story to theirs. This is not compromise — it is wisdom. The gospel never changes, but the way we carry it into a conversation must be shaped by the person standing in front of us. Today, pay attention to the people around you. Ask yourself what you have in common with them. That common ground is not small talk. In the hands of a willing believer, it is holy ground.
Reflection: Who in your life needs you to meet them where they are before you invite them somewhere new?
Day 2: Own Your Before
Reading: Acts 22:4-5; 1 Timothy 1:12-17
Devotional: Paul did not sanitize his past. He stood before a crowd that knew exactly who he had been and said plainly that he had persecuted believers to their death. He did not minimize it or skip over it. He owned it. There is enormous power in an honest before. When you acknowledge the darkness that Jesus pulled you out of, you give other people permission to believe that he can pull them out too. Your mess is not something to be ashamed of. It is the very thing that makes your message credible. The depth of your before only magnifies the grace of your after.
Reflection: What part of your before are you still reluctant to share, and what might God do if you surrendered it to him?
Day 3: Let Jesus Be the Hero
Reading: Acts 22:6-11; Ephesians 2:1-10
Devotional: When Paul described his encounter on the road to Damascus, the verbs told the story. The light shone. Jesus spoke. Jesus answered. Jesus commanded. Paul fell down, asked two questions, and was led by the hand because he could not see. The grammar of salvation always reads the same way. God acts. We respond. If your testimony is mostly about how you turned your life around, you have told an inspiring story, but you have not yet shared the gospel. The gospel is not the story of how we found God. It is the story of how God, in his relentless grace, came and found us.
Reflection: When you tell your story, is Jesus clearly the hero, or does your own effort take up too much of the spotlight?
Day 4: Ask the Question
Reading: Acts 22:12-16; Romans 10:13-15
Devotional: Ananias did not simply tell Paul what had happened to him. He pressed him toward a response. "Now why do you wait?" Those four words carry the full weight of gospel urgency. Information about Jesus is not the same as surrender to Jesus. The gospel requires a response, and someone has to be willing to ask for one. Many people have heard the story of the cross their entire lives and have never once been personally invited to respond to it. Do not assume the people in your life know what to do with what they have heard. Ask the question. Invite them to take the next step.
Reflection: Is there someone in your life who has heard the gospel from you but has never been directly invited to respond?
Day 5: Trust Him With the Outcome
Reading: Acts 22:17-21; 1 Corinthians 3:6-9
Devotional: Paul delivered one of the most powerful personal testimonies in all of scripture, and the crowd still rejected it. One word — Gentiles — and the riot resumed. This is the part of evangelism we must settle in our hearts before we ever open our mouths. Success is not measured by response. It is measured by obedience. You plant. Someone else waters. God brings the growth. You are not responsible for saving anyone. You are responsible for sowing the seed faithfully and trusting the God of the harvest to do what only he can do. Draw your circle. Write the name. Pray without stopping. Leave the outcome to him.
Reflection: Is fear of rejection keeping you from sowing a seed that God has already prepared someone to receive?
