Refueling Our Minds
Okay, so hopefully you're getting to know Jon by this point. He is the typical 17 year old guy who has become the central character of these devotionals. As we've seen, Jon's crazy-busy life isn't allowing him to take care of himself like he should. In our last devotional, we saw how Jon wasn't taking care of his body and the negative effects that was having on him physically. Well guess what. Jon's extreme business isn't allowing him to take care of his mind either. You see, Jon hardly has any time to himself, and the time he does have, he's too exhausted to do anything but crash in front of the TV or Xbox. In other words, there's not much time for Jon to spend time alone with God. The result of all this? Jon is emotionally and spiritually exhausted. His grades are slipping, he's becoming more irritable and difficult to get along with, his outlook on life has become more negative, and his daily walk with God has become almost non-existent. How can Jon reverse this disturbing trend in his life? How can he begin refueling his mind? First of all, Jon needs to slow down and get away. You know who practiced this too? Jesus. That's right. Jesus Himself used to take breaks from His busy ministry and get away to spend time alone with God and pray. Luke 5:16 says, "But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed." We see this again in Mark 1:35 where it says, "Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to solitary place, where He prayed." As we can see from the example of Jesus, He regularly sought quiet and solitude to help maintain His intimate connection with His Father. Don't you think if Jesus did this, we should do it too? Continue reading…
Refueling Our Bodies
Do you remember Jon from our last devotional? Just to refresh you, Jon is a typical 17 year old guy. A normal week for Jon includes school, basketball practice, working out, student council meetings, work, homework, youth group, hanging out with friends, and, if he has the time, sleep. This all sounds okay, but in reality, Jon is way too busy. On average, he's getting only 4-6 hours of sleep per night, his meals are often just what he can grab in the drive-through on his way to the next activity, he is constantly tired, so frequent high-caffeine energy drinks are a necessity, and he is getting sick more frequently than he used to… Okay, stop there. Do you see what's going on here? Because of Jon's crazy-busy life, he's not taking care of himself physically like he should be. Sure, he's getting exercise at basketball practice, but he's not sleeping or eating well, and he's filling his body with sugary, high-caffeine energy drinks. To be totally honest, Jon is not taking good care of his body. Believe it or not, the Bible speaks to this issue. Continue reading…
Refueling Our Bodies, Minds, Hearts, & Souls
Jon is a typical 17 year old guy. He's on the basketball team and student council at his school, he works at a clothing store in the mall 20-30 hours a week, he is actively involved in his church youth group, and he has a busy social life with his group of friends. A typical week for Jon includes school, basketball practice, working out, student council meetings, work, homework, youth group, hanging out with friends, and, if he has the time, sleep. This all sounds okay, but in reality, Jon is way too busy. On average, he's getting only 4-6 hours of sleep per night, his meals are often just what he can grab in the drive-through on his way to the next activity, he is constantly tired, so frequent high-caffeine energy drinks are a necessity, and he is getting sick more frequently than he used to. In addition to all this, Jon hardly has any time to himself, and the time he does have, he's too exhausted to do anything but crash in front of the TV or Xbox. In other words, there's not much time for Jon to spend time alone with God. The result of all this? Jon is physically, emotionally, and spiritually exhausted. He's dragging on the basketball court, his grades are slipping, he's becoming more irritable and difficult to get along with, his outlook on life has become more negative, and his daily walk with God has become almost non-existent. Sadly, this tale is becoming more and more a true description of many teenagers today. Why? Because today's teenagers are too busy, too over-scheduled, and too over-worked. Their crazy lives, though appearing normal and healthy on the surface, are leaving them physically, emotionally, and spiritually empty. That is why it is so essential that we make it a priority to slow down, stop, and refuel our bodies, minds, hearts, and souls. Continue reading…
