4.06.20 - Spiritual Encouragement Wk #3

Hey Guys, Welcome to Holy Week!

This week is perfect to practice something called "Slowing Down" which is actually a spiritual practice. All it is, is making time to have room to breathe and maybe even spend time with Jesus.

Yesterday (Palm Sunday) was the start of the craziest week for the disciples and Jesus over 2,000 years ago. Though we often want this week to quickly pass so we can get to Easter and have a grand celebration for our Risen King, we need to realize the events leading up to Easter hold so much significance too!

Jesus made time to slow down in his crazy life. Even when he was about to be crucified he did one thing...PRAY! CRAZY!!! He did this throughout his time on Earth, go off and pray. Jesus took time to get away from the business of his life to spend time with the Father. The Bible often says that Jesus snuck away or the crowd and disciples would find him praying.

Though I think there were many reasons for Jesus to pray one was probably to not get caught up in the hustle and bustle that he was living in. When Jesus prayed in the garden he was pleading to have the burden of being crucified taken from him. Finally, Jesus said Ok, God, not my will but yours be done. Dangggg!! Jesus slowed down to make sure he was in line with the father and then went through the hardest time in his entire life.

Why I suggest slowing down is because in this quarantine it feels like I am literally waiting for days to pass filling it with things that are useless. Did I really need to watch 8 hours of Youtube, FaceTime for hours with friends, or playing tons of board games? Probably not. Even though there's nowhere anywhere for me to be, but because of my go, go, go mentality, I often don’t leave room for God because I am filling my day with useless things to pass the time instead of His will.

Now when I spend time in silence or with my Papa, over these past few weeks I’ve had some powerful encounters with Jesus. God has been challenging me on how I'm supposed to lay my LIFE down during this quarantine, or if I’m even willing to lose it if it’s for His glory.

That has led me to ponder the question, “If I do something for Jesus during this quarantine, will it actually for His glory or for mine?”

Questions to think about/journal:
1. How have you been laying your life down during this quarantine? What are some ways that you can if you haven’t?
2. In this season of being stuck at home are you being Jesus to your family?
3. If God called you to be a light for Him in this season of sickness and panic would you obey his call?