Brian Simmons

Prepare yourself to remember the meaning of Lent and celebrate Easter this season: grace for our past and present, hope for our future Beginning with Ash Wednesday, Grace & Hope: A 40-Day Devotional for Lent and Easter will guide you through this holy season of self-reflection, prayer, fasting, and remembrance-all to prepare you for the hopeful words "It is finished " and even more wondrous words, "He is risen " Each short, engaging devotional will focus your heart and prepare your soul to celebrate the death and resurrection of Jesus, using a faithful and relevant new translation of the Bible, The Passion Translation. It is an ideal devotional for your own personal, family, or small-group use. And daily Bible readings from The Passion Translation will deepen your understanding of God's Word as you journey toward the cross. We trust this devotional and version of Scripture will kindle in you a burning, passionate desire for the One who bore our pain and shame, and give you a greater measure of grace and hope

Psalm 5:3 says, 3At each and every sunrise you will hear my voice as I prepare my sacrifice of prayer to you. Every morning I lay out the pieces of my life on the altar and wait for your fire to fall upon my heart. Every emotion of our hearts is reflected in the Psalms with words that express our deepest and strongest feelings. Sighing is turned to singing and trouble into triumph. The Psalms provide comfort and joy, leading us to the place where worship flows. When discouraged or downcast, we can take new strength from reading them. They charge our batteries and fill our sails. Their thunder stirs us, and sweet melodies move us into the sacred emotions of a heart on fire. Dark rain clouds of grief turn to bright rainbows of hope as we meditate on Davids soul subduing songs. The Psalms are clearly poetic. They are praises placed inside poetry that spill out of a fiery passionate heart. The Psalms free us to become emotional, passionate, sincere worshippers. These 150 poetic masterpieces give us an expression of faith and worship. They become a mirror to the heart of Gods people in our quest to experience His presence.