Devotional Guide 24 May 2026

Adult Devotional Companion

What God Has Done, Where We Are, and Where We Are Going
One Year of Grace, Growth, and Mission

Senior Pastor Dr. G. Ryan Perry PhD.
Good Hope Baptist Church
24 May 2026

Big Idea: This past year has not been about what we have built, but about what God has done. He has helped Good Hope become more visible in the community, added children, youth, and families, raised up leaders, and clarified the mission before us. Now we must respond with gratitude, faithfulness, unity, prayer, and room for the people He is sending.

DAY 1 — Remembering What God Has Done
Scripture: Acts 14:26–27; Philippians 1:3–6

When Paul and Barnabas returned from their missionary journey, they gathered the church and told them what God had done. They did not report ministry fruit, so the church could admire them. They testified so the church could recognize the grace of God.

That is a healthy way to remember. We do not look back so we can live in the past. We look back so we can see the faithfulness of God and move forward with trust.

This past year has not been about one person, one program, or one season of activity. Good Hope was here long before this year. People prayed, served, taught, gave, cleaned, cooked, visited, carried burdens, loved the church, and kept showing up through difficult seasons. The story did not begin recently.

Still, it is right to pause and give thanks for what God has done. He has opened doors. He has brought people. He has stirred faith. He has allowed the church to serve schools, children, youth, families, grieving people, and the community. He has made the witness of Jesus more visible.

Gratitude does not mean everything is finished. Thanksgiving does not require pretending. Paul thanked God for the church at Philippi while still knowing they had more growing to do. That is where a healthy church lives. We give thanks honestly, and we keep walking faithfully.

Reflection:
 Where have you seen God’s faithfulness in the church this past year?
 How can remembering God’s work help you move forward with greater trust instead of fear?

Prayer:
 Father, thank You for what You have done among us. Help us remember with humility, not pride. Teach us to see Your hand, give thanks for Your grace, and move forward with trust. Amen.

DAY 2 — Salt and Light in the Community
Scripture: Matthew 5:13–16

Jesus does not describe His people as hidden. He calls them salt. He calls them light. He calls them a city set on a hill.

That matters for the church. A congregation is not meant to exist only for itself. The church gathers for worship, teaching, prayer, fellowship, and discipleship, but it is also sent into the world as a witness to Christ. The light is not ours. The glory is not ours. Jesus says our good works should lead people to glorify the Father.

A year ago, the question was asked: if Good Hope did not exist tomorrow, would the community notice? That was not meant to shame the church. It was meant to awaken us to the calling of the church. Jesus did not save His people so they could become invisible. He made them His witnesses.

When students receive food, when grieving people are comforted, when children hear the Gospel, when families are welcomed, when schools are served, when the community sees love in action, the church is not just being busy. The church is letting the light of Christ become visible.

The danger is that we can make visibility about our name. Jesus makes visibility about the Father’s glory. We do not want the community to notice Good Hope because we are impressive. We want them to notice because Jesus is becoming more visible through His people.

Reflection:
 Where do you personally have opportunities to let the light of Christ become visible?
 How can the church serve the community without making the mission about its own reputation?

Prayer:
 Lord Jesus, make Your light visible through us. Keep us from pride, self-promotion, and inward focus. Help our works point people to the Father, not to ourselves. Amen.

DAY 3 — God Gives the Growth
Scripture: 1 Corinthians 3:6–9

Paul said, “I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth.” That sentence keeps the church honest.

We plant. We water. We plan. We organize. We teach. We invite. We serve. We prepare rooms. We hold events. We pray with people. We care for children. We sit with the grieving. We train leaders. We give. We work.

Still, God gives the growth.

That truth protects the church from two dangers. It protects us from pride when ministry is fruitful, and it protects us from despair when ministry is hard. If growth depended entirely on us, pride and panic would be our only options. Since growth belongs to God, we can labor faithfully without pretending we are the source of life.

The past year has included real fruit. Children and youth have come. Families have been added. People have been baptized. Leaders have stepped forward. Ministries have expanded. Local pastors have been encouraged. The community has been served. Those things matter.

Yet the point is not that we did a lot. A full calendar is not the same thing as faithfulness. The point is that God opened doors, and by His grace, we have tried to walk through them obediently.

The church is a field. The church is God’s building. We are workers, not owners. That should make us grateful, careful, and humble.

Reflection:
 Where are you tempted to take too much credit for what God has done?
 Where are you tempted to become discouraged because you cannot control the results?

Prayer:
 God, thank You for allowing us to plant and water. Keep us faithful in the work You place before us. Remind us that growth comes from You, and help us serve with humility and hope. Amen.

DAY 4 — Growth Is a Blessing and a Responsibility
Scripture: Psalm 127:1–5; Luke 12:48

When God adds people to a church, He is not just filling seats. He is entrusting souls.
Children are not decorations for a healthy church. Youth are not future members who only matter later. Families are not statistics. Senior adults are not leftovers from a previous season. New believers are not interruptions. Hurting people are not burdens to be managed. They are people God loves, and they must be cared for well.

Psalm 127 says children are a heritage from the Lord. That means the presence of children is not just a sweet blessing. It is a sacred stewardship. If God sends children, the church must disciple them. If God sends youth, the church must shepherd them. If God sends families, the church must strengthen them. If God sends grieving people, the church must comfort them. If God sends people who do not yet know Christ, the church must be ready to speak the Gospel with truth and love.

Growth brings joy, but it also brings weight. More people means more needs, more questions, more discipleship, more care, more space, more workers, and more prayer.
Jesus said that to whom much is given, much will be required. That is not meant to crush us. It is meant to sober us. God’s gifts come with responsibility. Good Hope must not receive God’s kindness lightly.

Reflection:
 Who has God placed near you that needs care, encouragement, discipleship, or prayer?
 How does seeing people as entrusted by God change the way you view church growth?

Prayer:
 Father, help us receive the people You send as a gift and a responsibility. Give us love for children, youth, families, the grieving, the lost, and one another. Make us faithful stewards of the people You entrust to us. Amen.

DAY 5 — The Church Is Not a Spectator Sport
Scripture: Ephesians 4:11–16; 1 Corinthians 12:12–27; 1 Peter 4:10

The New Testament does not picture the church as a room full of spectators watching a few people do ministry. The church is a body.

Christ gives leaders to equip the saints for the work of ministry. That means pastors, elders, teachers, deacons, ministry leaders, and volunteers all have important places, but the work does not belong only to a handful of people. The whole body is called to serve.

Some parts of the body are visible. Some are hidden. Some teach. Some encourage. Some pray. Some repair. Some visit. Some cook. Some welcome. Some work with children. Some help with youth. Some sing. Some run sound. Some clean. Some organize. Some give generously. Some quietly notice people who are easy to overlook.

No part is unnecessary.

That truth matters in a growing church. The same few people cannot carry everything forever. That is not guilt. It is reality. The body works best when the body works together.
Peter says each person should use the gift they have received to serve others as a good steward of God’s varied grace. God’s grace is varied. He does not give every person the same gift, the same capacity, or the same season of life. Still, every believer should be asking, “Lord, where do You want me to be faithful?”

Jesus came not to be served but to serve and give His life as a ransom for many. A church that follows Him cannot be content to sit back and watch.

Reflection:
 Where has God gifted you to serve the body of Christ?
 Is there a place where you have been watching when God may be calling you to step in?

Prayer:
 Lord, show me my place in the body. Keep me from comparison, passivity, and pride. Help me serve with the grace You have given me, for the good of the church and the glory of Christ. Amen.

DAY 6 — Making Room for the Mission
Scripture: 1 Corinthians 4:2; Psalm 127:1; Zechariah 4:6

Space is not the mission. Buildings are not the mission. Comfort is not the mission.
Still, space can serve the mission.

A building can become a hiding place where people gather inwardly and forget the world outside. It can also become a mission stronghold, a place where the Gospel is taught, children are discipled, youth are shepherded, adults are equipped, grieving people are comforted, families are strengthened, worship is offered, prayer rises, and the community encounters the love of Christ.

Good Hope’s building is part of the church’s story. Generations before us believed the Gospel mattered enough to sacrifice, build, gather, preach, pray, worship, and serve. Before the current building, there was another meeting place. Before that, there was a tent. The story has never been only about a structure. It has always been about a people willing to make room for the work of God in their generation.

Now it is our turn to steward the mission entrusted to us.

After the flood in the basement, the church had to reconsider how that space was being used. Making it a dedicated place for children was not just a practical decision. It was a discipleship decision. Since then, God has brought more children and young families. That does not mean the children’s ministry is the only ministry that matters. Every age group matters. Every service matters. Every ministry has its proper place.

We need room for the mission, but we need the right heart. Not pressure. Not preference. Not pride. Faithfulness. Unity. Prayer. Dependence on the Lord.

Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build labor in vain. Not by might. Not by power. By His Spirit.

Reflection:
 How can conversations about space stay centered on mission instead of preference?
 What would it look like for you to steward the church’s resources with faithfulness and prayer?

Prayer:
 Lord, help us make room for the people You are sending. Keep us united, humble, and prayerful. Teach us to steward buildings, resources, gifts, and opportunities for Your mission, not our comfort. Amen.

DAY 7 — Where We Are Going
Scripture: Matthew 28:18–20; Acts 1:8; Isaiah 40:31

The mission of the church begins with the authority of Jesus.
Jesus said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” That is why the church goes. We do not go because we are strong enough, organized enough, wealthy enough, or impressive enough. We go because Jesus is Lord, Jesus sends His church, and Jesus promises to be with His people.

Acts 1:8 reminds us that the church does not move outward by human energy alone. The Holy Spirit empowers the witness of God’s people. That matters deeply. Vision without the Spirit becomes ambition. Activity without prayer becomes exhaustion. Growth without dependence becomes dangerous.

The path ahead must be Jesus-reliant mission. We need deeper worship, stronger discipleship, faithful evangelism, visible charity, care for children and youth, support for families, compassion for the grieving, service to the community, more workers, more space, more unity, and more prayer. More than all of that, we need the Lord.

Isaiah 40:31 says those who wait for the Lord will renew their strength. Waiting on the Lord is not laziness. It is dependence. It means we obey without pretending we can carry the weight ourselves. It means we move forward while trusting God to supply what He calls His people to do.

A good year is not arrival. It is grace. God has opened doors. Now we keep walking through them faithfully.

May Good Hope be a church the community would notice if it were gone, not because the church’s name is great, but because Jesus has been made visible through His people.

Reflection:
 What step of faithfulness is God calling you to take as the church moves forward?
 Where do you need renewed strength from the Lord instead of relying on yourself?

Prayer:
 Jesus, You are Lord of the church and Lord of the mission. Fill us with the Holy Spirit. Renew our strength. Make us faithful, united, prayerful, and ready to serve. Let everything we do bring glory to the Father. Amen.

Closing Prayer for the Week
Father, thank You for one year of grace, growth, and mission. Thank You for the people who served faithfully before us and the people You are sending now. Thank You for children, youth, families, senior adults, grieving people, new believers, and those who still need to hear the Gospel. Give us wisdom for the days ahead. Give us workers for the harvest. Give us space for ministry to happen well. Give us unity so this does not become about preferences or pressure. Give us prayerful dependence because none of this can be done in our own strength. Most of all, give us more of Jesus. Make Good Hope Baptist Church a faithful witness in this community and beyond, until Christ returns. Amen.






© 2026 Dr. G. Ryan Perry, PhD. Published in partnership with Good Hope Baptist Church (GHBC) and Cross+Walk Ministries. All rights reserved.