Good Morning!
Let’s focus our day by spending some time with Jesus before it begins.
Play or sing some worship music you love, or use a playlist from Paradox on Spotify.
If you’re new to the Daily Focus, read this first.

WEEKLY 40 FOR 40 FOCUS | Diligent Teaching (Deuteronomy 6:4-9)
Over the 40 Days of Lent, add 40 minutes of prayer to your week - either 1x/week or 7 minutes/day.
Pray for our generation. Pray that we would be a generation that loves God, holds His commands in our heart, & teaches the next generation to follow Him. Is there a step of obedience God is inviting me to take?

Note: This past weekend at Paradox, we created reminders of the choices we’re making to remember God’s faithfulness and respond in faith. If you missed it, watch the message and learn how we’re responding.

DAILY PRAYER FOCUS | Use the PRAY acronym each morning. 
P = Pause. As you start your time of prayer, begin by pausing and being still before the Lord.
R = Read. Read the Scripture Focus slowly and focus on words/phrases the Holy Spirit highlights as you read.
A = Ask. Ask God to come and speak to you. Open up your heart to Him as your heavenly Father.
Y = Yield. We want to yield our lives to the words we have prayed and commit to follow Jesus’s way.
Begin your prayer with “Father, I remember your faithfulness to…” and respond with, “Give me faith to…”

SCRIPTURE FOCUS | Today’s reading is from Deuteronomy 30
Highlight verses that capture your attention, and ask three simple questions as you read…
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?

A THOUGHT FROM TODAY’S READING…
The Lord’s call in this chapter reverberates through the generations, reminding us of the power of choice with the equivalent consequences, the hope of repentance, and the eternal faithfulness of God. Even in our current struggles the wisdom from these biblical principles guide us, encouraging us to choose the path of life and blessing through our obedience and love. Moses told the Israelites that when they were ready to return to God, He would be ready to receive them. God’s mercy is beyond our comprehension and imagination. Even if His people deliberately walked away from Him and ruined their lives God would still take them back, forgive them, and give them spiritual renewal when they would repent. God will bring His people back from the most distant locations and lands and “circumcise their hearts” meaning they would genuinely love  and commit to Him. Why do you think God places such a strong emphasis on “choice” in this chapter? How can you actively “choose life” in your day-to-day decisions? The Lord created us with a free will to choose or to reject life, death, prosperity, disaster, good, evil, blessings, or curses. In verse 19a, the Lord through Moses said, “Today I have given you the choice between life and death, between blessings and curses. Now I call heaven and earth to witness the choice you make. Oh, that you would CHOOSE LIFE.” (NLT). The people of God were challenged to choose life, to obey God, and to continue to experience His blessings. God doesn’t force His will on anyone. He allows us to decide whether to follow Him or reject Him. This decision is a life-or-death matter and daily in each new situation, we must affirm and reinforce this commitment to the Lord our God. - Lawrence Payton

REMEMBERING PRACTICE | (Optional) Practice remembering with a Daily Examen each evening.
The Examen prayer was made popular by Ignatius of Loyola (1491 – 1556). It has helped Christians for centuries to re-center themselves on Jesus as they come to the end of long days. We are using a variation creat-ed by Pete Greig from his book, How to Pray, to help us remember Jesus at the close of our days.
Replay = Replay your day. What made you happy or joyful? What made you anxious or burdened?
Rejoice = Give thanks to God for the small and the significant things from the day.
Repent = Ask God for forgiveness where you need. Receive His forgiveness afresh.
Reboot = Commit to walk with Jesus tomorrow. Ask for grace to see His presence more clearly.
*For help or an audio prayer version, use the Lectio 365 app.

SHARE THE FOCUS | 1-5 Minutes
1. Text someone a prayer/encouragement, or share a thought/question with us in the Forum.
2. 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!