Walking the Narrow Way | Devotional Guide(lines)

The Sermon on the Mount is more than a collection of inspiring teachings or moral rules. In Matthew 5–7, Jesus offers his disciples a vision of an entirely different way of life: a life shaped by humility, mercy, integrity, trust, love, discernment, and faithful practice.

This devotional guide accompanies our sermon series, The Narrow Way: The Cost of Following Jesus. Its purpose is not simply to help us learn more about Jesus’ words, but to help us become people who increasingly live them. To integrate our head and heart and our hands.

Each weekday includes four simple movements:

1. Read — Spend time with a short passage of Scripture.
2. Reflect — Consider how the reading connects with the way of Jesus.
3. Consider — Sit with a question that invites honest attention to your own life.
4. Practice — Take one small, concrete step toward putting the teaching into action.

You do not need to rush through the guide or find the “right” answer. Read slowly. Notice what stands out. Pay attention to any resistance, comfort, conviction, or invitation that emerges. You may wish to journal your responses, discuss them with someone else, or simply carry the day’s question with you.

The practices are intentionally small. Discipleship is rarely formed through one dramatic decision. But rather discipleship grows through repeated practices. Over time, these ordinary practices help cultivate a life with Jesus, like Jesus, doing the things Jesus did.

Use the guide in whatever rhythm works best for you: individually, with your family, with a friend, or in a small group. Missed a day? Simply begin again. The goal is not perfect completion. The goal is to keep returning to Christ and learning to walk with him on this Narrow Way.

Week 3 - Devotional Guide

Hidden Lives

Theme: Integrity
Formation goal: Integrity forms when our public and private lives become one



Monday 08/17

• Read: Matthew 6:1–4
• Reflect: Even generosity can become a performance. Jesus invites us to give without needing recognition, applause, or control over how others perceive us.
• Question: How much of your goodness depends upon being noticed?
• Practice: Give something anonymously today: money, food, time, encouragement, or assistance. If the urge to talk about it comes up later, pause and reflect on the urge.

Tuesday 08/18

• Read: Matthew 6:5–15
• Reflect: Prayer is not a performance for God or other people. It is honest communion with the One who already knows what we need.
• Question: What do you find most difficult to say honestly to God? 
• Practice: Pray the Lord’s Prayer slowly, pausing after each phrase.

Wednesday 08/19

• Read: Matthew 6:16–18
• Reflect: Fasting creates room to notice the appetites and habits that quietly control us. Its purpose is not punishment but cultivating greater awareness of our attachments that we might grow in freedom and attentiveness.
• Question: What do you regularly reach for when you are uncomfortable, bored, or anxious?
• Practice: Fast from one nonessential habit for part of the day. When you feel the urge to move to that habit, instead use the space for prayer.

Thursday 08/20

• Read: Psalm 139:1–18, 23–24
• Reflect:: God sees the hidden parts of our lives without turning away. Being fully known by God is not merely threatening; it is also deeply comforting.
• Question: What part of yourself are you most tempted to hide?
• Practice: Sit silently for five minutes and repeat: “God, you know me, and I am still loved.”

Friday 08/21

• Read: Luke 18:9–14
• Reflect: The Pharisee uses prayer to strengthen his public identity. The tax collector brings his true self before God and asks for mercy.
• Question: When are you most tempted to compare your spiritual life with someone else’s?
• Practice: Confess one specific failure or struggle to God without explaining, minimizing, or defending it.