Unless you live under a rock, you probably know the last week or two has been pretty rough in the world. It reminds me a bit of when Covid first hit where people, Christians and the world alike, went into a tailspin (rightly so) and we all fell apart to some degree or another. It seems to me it took far too long to recover from all the kneejerk reactions of Covid. Honestly we still aren’t fully recovered, and maybe that’s part of the reason the reactions to Charlie Kirk’s assassination are so big. I don’t mean that just negatively. Yes, some people have been atrocious, including people who say they are followers of Jesus. But the reaction has been big on the positive side as well. Many people are flocking to church, longing for connection, love and support. They are longing for Jesus. And that’s beautiful!
Originally I was excited about writing an article about this. I thought I could help people who don’t know Jesus find him, and I thought I could help those who do know Jesus evaluate if they’re acting like Him. But now it all seems too big a task, to write something like that, especially when I don’t have it all figured out.
What do I have figured out? At this point I’m reminded to get back to the basics. Am I reading my Bible at least as much as, if not more, than I’m looking at screens? Am I loving God well? Am I loving my neighbor well? Have I been outside in the nature God made and moved my body? Is there anything in my life that I’m holding as a secret that I need to repent of?
That might seem like a lot, and honestly, I have more. But before I share the more, I’ll tell you this: I read once in a book where someone likened too many good ideas to a picnic basket full of food. The idea was that if someone gave you a picnic basket with multiple sandwiches in it, lots of different drinks, 8 different types of fruit, and 6 different desserts, the expectation would be that you would pick and choose what stood out to you and just eat that, rather than try to wolf down the entire basket-full. The same is true of the questions above and the list below. As you read through, ask God to highlight the ones you should focus on.
- Go to a Bible preaching church. Come to ours, if you want. My husband Eric is actually preaching this Sunday (Sept 21).
- Find a small group and attend regularly. If you’re in Lake County you can look at this list and join one.
- Read the Bible daily. I love using the YouVersion Bible App on my phone and reading the NET version of the Bible. I also appreciate all the devotional plans in it if you might be looking for some direction with where to start.
- Talk to God. Tell Him your thoughts, ask Him your questions, and then sit and listen. Prayer is a two-way conversation, but not if you don’t stop and listen.
- Watch a sermon that is especially helpful right now. I saw this one from my son’s old church in Seattle and I’m excited to dive in to the list the pastor made.
- Read about a life worth having on John Piper’s web site.
- Listen to worship music that points you toward God. Some favorite songs of mine right now are: Move Your Heart by UpperRoom, Nothing I Hold Onto by The Palms Project, and Behold Him by Paul Baloche.
- Get together one-on-one with people. Invite them to coffee and see how they’re doing in real life. Share with them how you are as well.
- If you’re married, do something for your spouse that you know they’d love. Create more intimacy between the two of you.
- Attend a Celebrate Recovery program. They’re for hurts, habits, and hangups. If we’ve learned anything these last two weeks, it’s that a lot more of us have a hurt, a habit, or a hangup than are working toward freedom from those things.
Okay, I’ll leave the picnic basket at that. If you have questions about doing any of the above, or you’re doing all of that and still are not finding closeness with our good Father God, feel free to e-mail or call the Grace Church office. We weren’t designed to try to do this alone.
God loves you, and so do we!
-Monica Schlange