Devotional #2-Day 1-Eat the Meat
Opening Stillness
Take a breath.
Let your jaw unclench. You don’t have to keep working on what already happened.
Scripture (English Standard Version-ESV)
“Test everything; hold fast what is good.” - I Thessalonians 5:21
Reflection
Life will always serve fish with bones.
Conversations. Relationships. Jobs. Seasons. Churches. Friendships. Very few experiences come without something that pokes, disappoints, or lodges itself where it doesn’t belong.
The wisdom isn’t avoiding life altogether. The wisdom is learning how to eat.
Some of us were never taught how to separate nourishment from harm. We replay moments, chew on words, relive losses, and wonder why we feel so emotionally exhausted. But the exhaustion often isn’t from what happened- it’s from what we keep chewing.
There was something good there.
There was something you learned.
There was growth, insight, or protection you didn’t recognize at the time.
And there may also be something that was never meant to stay.
Maturity begins when we ask an honest question: “What here fed me - and what is simply hurting me to hold onto?
Today isn’t about spitting anything out yet. It’s just about noticing what you’re still chewing.
Soul Question
What experience, relationship, or disappointment have you been replaying instead of discerning.
Prayer
God, give me the courage to be honest about what I’m holding onto. Help me recognize what has nourished me - and what no longer does. Teach me discernment without bitterness and awareness without shame. Amen.
Closing Invitation
Sit quietly for one minute.
Picture yourself at a table.
Notice what you’re still chewing- without judgment.
Tomorrow, we’ll learn how to separate the meat from the bones.
