Did you take your Jesus today?

Howdy Folks,

I hope that this update finds you enjoying your summer! The shore, the water gap, baseball, NYC, etc…there’s all sorts of good stuff going on.

I wonder, what’s your summer routine like? I know that a popular thing to do among some is to stop going to church in the summer. And I can understand how that happens – people are on vacation, seeing friends and relatives, etc. But does that mean that you take a break from God for the summer? I hope not – ‘cause God doesn’t take a break from you.

One way to keep yourself aware of God in your life this summer is to try some type of daily devotional. In about 5 or 10 minutes, you get a little dose of spirituality…like taking a Jesus vitamin in the morning.

Here’s a quick example: John 14:27, 19:20-21 says “’Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid’… After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, ‘Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.’”

Here’s a thought about it: “When Jesus, risen from the dead, says in his Gospel ‘I give you my peace,’ he is not offering us a life with no inner struggles. He invites us to realize that our hearts find peace especially by being rooted in the spirit of mercy.”

As you’re eating breakfast, or driving somewhere, or mowing the lawn, think about that…What does the spirit of mercy mean to you? What would it mean to have peace but still have inner struggle?

Try something like that for a few days and see how it works out for you. It’s a very small investment in time and effort, with a potentially great reward for you.

Here are a few options for giving this a shot daily: a daily devotional from Taize (that’s where I got the above one), the Upper Room (from the United Methodist Church), and Our Daily Bread. If you aren’t sure which one to use, here’s a link to a quiz to see what type of devotional you might like…

Alright, have a good one! Oh, and a reminder: if you want in on the trip to Dave and Busters, be at the church on Friday at 6:45pm, or meet us up there!

Peace,

Kevin