Go, go, go. Do this, this, and this so we can get to that, that, and that. All this to “be effective for God”!? It is so hard to pull away to spend unhurried time with our life line…God, the Father. Seth reminds us exactly how we can and why we must do just that! What a perfect way to start the new year!

Scripture

Yet the news about him spread all the more, so that crowds of people came to hear him and to be healed of their sicknesses. But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed. 

Luke 5:15-16 

Reflect

I remember a wise man telling me as a youth, “Life will only get busier.”  As a young man I had difficulty imagining this to be true. But as life has changed from school to work, singleness to marriage, then the addition of parenting, these words have become so very true.  There are seemingly endless tasks to be accomplished.  There is more work to be done, more laundry to do, more errands to run, more dishes to wash, more and more. How easy it is for us to get caught up in life and neglect our responsibility to withdraw and pray!  How can we impress upon our family the importance of daily time with the Lord?

1. Lead by example: As Jesus’ popularity grew in the beginning of His ministry we see a beautiful example of His dependence on the Father. Jesus was literally healing people, yet He found his prayer time so important He got up early to be alone with the Father.  His example was so profound that Matthew, Mark and Luke commented on it in their gospels.
2. Strive for consistency: Jesus sought out the Father in life’s highs and lows.  We see here in Luke 5 as His ministry is starting to take off, Jesus spends time in prayer.  Then at the end of His life when darkness closes in on Him we see Jesus again seeking the Father in prayer (Luke 22:41). No matter the situation, Jesus was seeking to connect with the Father. This is how our lives should look as well.
3. Dialogue about what we are reading (Deuteronomy 11:18-21): Talk as a family about what scripture you are reading.  God calls us to speak about what He has done and what He said. Sometimes we get caught up thinking we need to be spiritually “deep” or “profound” when instead we need to be scripturally faithful. It’s starts with saying, “I was reading in the Bible today…”

The best example we could ever set as a parent, or anyone leading someone younger is an authentic relationship with God just like Jesus had.  It is then that we may be like Paul and say “Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ.” (1 Corinthians 11:1)

Camper Corner

 When do you choose to spend time with Jesus? What distracts you from your daily time with Jesus?