This 5-day devotional draws directly from Calvary Hawthorne's sermon “SUNDAY WORSHIP | 10 AM | DR. HOSEA COLLINS | CALVARY HAWTHORNE | 07.19.2026 - 2026-07-20” so you can keep engaging with the message all week. Read, reflect, and share it with your small group or friends.
You Are Not the Devil's Target
Monday — Understanding the Truth
Have you ever felt like trouble just keeps finding you? Like no matter what you do, something is always coming at you from some direction?
Today's Scripture "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour." — 1 Peter 5:8
Reflection Here's something that might surprise you: the devil is not looking for perfect people. He's looking for vulnerable ones.
Think about how a lion hunts. It doesn't chase the strongest animal in the herd. It watches, waits, and looks for the one that has wandered off — the one that's tired, distracted, or isolated from the rest.
That word "may" in the verse is worth sitting with. The devil is seeking whom he may devour — and that word suggests permission. Not everyone is available to him. Some people are, as the sermon put it, simply off limits.
What makes someone off limits? A strong, consistent prayer life. When you stay close to God through prayer, you're not wandering. You're not an easy target. You're surrounded.
This isn't about being perfect or having it all together. It's about staying connected. Prayer is your spiritual positioning — it places you close to God where you receive his strength, his wisdom, and his protection.
The lion may be circling, but he can only devour what he can catch.
Today's Step Take a moment today to honestly ask: Am I staying close to God, or have I been slowly drifting? Just naming it honestly is a powerful first step.
A Closing Thought You were never meant to face this life alone and unprotected. The good news is — you don't have to.
When Life Pulls You Away
Tuesday — When It's Hard
Be honest: when things get hard, prayer is usually the first thing that goes, not the first thing you reach for.
Today's Scripture "Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken." — Ecclesiastes 4:12 (NIV)
Reflection There's a reason isolation feels so natural when you're hurting. When life gets heavy — when relationships fall apart, when you're exhausted, when you feel embarrassed or ashamed — the instinct is to pull away. Stop answering calls. Stop going to church. Stop praying.
And that's exactly when the enemy moves in.
Wildlife experts will tell you the safest place for a zebra is inside the herd. Lions rarely attack the middle. They attack the edges — the one who's wandered off, the one who's lagging behind.
We do the same thing spiritually. Something hits us hard and we stop going to church, stop reading scripture, stop praying. And then, a few months later, we wonder how we got so far off course. The truth is, it didn't happen all at once. It happened slowly, through small moments of disconnection.
The enemy doesn't always need to destroy you. Sometimes he just needs to distract you — to get you just far enough from the herd that you're no longer protected by what surrounds you.
If you've been pulling away lately, you're not too far gone. But this is your moment to notice it.
Today's Step Think about one thing that has been pulling your attention away from God recently. Name it. Then ask God to help you redirect even a few minutes of that attention back toward him today.
A Closing Thought God isn't waiting for you to have it together before you come back. He's just waiting for you to come back.
Recharge Before You Run Out
Wednesday — Putting It Into Practice
Your phone is useless at 1% battery — no matter how expensive it is. Your spiritual life works the same way.
Today's Scripture "David was greatly distressed... but David encouraged himself in the Lord his God." — 1 Samuel 30:6
Reflection David had just returned home to find his city burned to the ground, his family taken captive, and his own men talking about stoning him. It was, without question, the worst day of his life.
And what did he do? He didn't scroll through his problems looking for sympathy. He didn't lean on his past success. He didn't wait for someone else to encourage him. He went straight to God.
Here's the practical truth: prayer is a charging station for your soul. When you pray, an exchange takes place. You bring God your worry; you walk away with peace. You bring him your weakness; you walk away with strength. Prayer doesn't just calm you down — it builds you up.
So what does this look like today? It doesn't have to be long or polished. Start with five minutes in the morning before you check your phone. Put it in your calendar like an appointment you won't cancel. When anxiety creeps in during the day, pause and pray before you Google. When you feel the familiar pull to isolate, reach out instead — to God, or to someone in your community who will pray with you.
Small, consistent steps beat one dramatic moment every time.
Today's Step Before you go to bed tonight, try this simple prayer: "God, I'm giving you what I've been carrying. I trust you with it." Then actually let yourself rest.
A Closing Thought You don't have to have the right words. You just have to show up — and God will do the rest.
Peace in the Middle of the Storm
Thursday — What This Looks Like in Real Life
Imagine two people lose their jobs on the same day. Same situation. Completely different responses.
Today's Scripture "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee." — Isaiah 26:3
Reflection One person spirals. The panic sets in immediately — What am I going to do? How will I pay rent? What does this mean for my family? The worry becomes the loudest voice in the room, and it crowds out everything else.
The other person feels the fear too. They're not pretending it isn't hard. But somewhere in the middle of the uncertainty, they pause. They pray. And slowly, something shifts — not the circumstances, but the person inside the circumstances.
Prayer doesn't always change your situation immediately. But it changes you immediately.
That's the difference. Not that one person had fewer problems, but that one person had a place to take them. When you stay connected to God through prayer, you don't become immune to storms — you become someone who can have peace inside the storm.
This is what it looks like in real life: your car gets hit, and instead of spiraling for days, you feel a steadiness you can't fully explain. Your doctor calls with uncertain news, and instead of writing your worst-case scenario, you breathe and pray first. You still feel it. You're still human. But you're no longer facing it alone.
That peace isn't luck. It's the fruit of a prayer life that has been quietly built over time.
Today's Step Is there something you've been panicking about this week? Try reversing the order today — pray first, then proceed. Even just once.
A Closing Thought Peace isn't the absence of trouble. It's the presence of God in the middle of it.
The Lion Roars, But It Won't Win
Friday — Carrying It Forward
A chihuahua can bark louder than a pitbull. But the loudest sound doesn't always come from the strongest animal.
Today's Scripture "The Lord is my refuge and my strength, a very present help in trouble." — Psalm 46:1
Reflection Here's something worth carrying into your weekend: the enemy often roars louder than he can actually bite. He intimidates with what-ifs and you-can'ts. He roars through bad news, unexpected bills, family tension, and worst-case scenarios — not necessarily because he has the power to destroy you, but because if he can get you scared enough, he doesn't have to.
But a lion's roar can never drown out the promises of God.
This week, you've been reminded that separation creates danger — so stay close. That distraction is the first stage of destruction — so stay alert. That prayer isn't just preparation for the battle; prayer is the battle. And that when life hits hardest, the most powerful thing you can do is encourage yourself in the Lord.
As you head into the weekend, you don't need to have everything figured out. You don't need perfect faith or a flawless prayer life. You just need to stay close to the Shepherd. Because the Shepherd has never lost a sheep that stayed close to him.
Every time you kneel in prayer, something is declared — that you belong to the King, and the enemy has no claim on you.
Today's Step Write down one thing God has already brought you through. Let that be your reminder this weekend that he has a proven track record — and he's not done yet.
A Closing Thought The enemy may roar, but he won't win. Not over a life that stays prayed up, plugged in, and close to God.