Happy Tuesday! 

Today (Tuesday morning) I got up at 4:30 AM, hopefully for the last time at least for a while.  I was “on call” at Huguley from 6:00 AM to 10:00 PM for the last time this summer.  As intense as the last ten weeks have been, this experience and this ministry has gotten under my skin and I am going to miss visiting with the patients, listening to them, praying with them, being with their families, providing them with comfort when families have lost a loved one and being with those who are in their final moments on earth. I do not know exactly where God will lead me in this ministry, but I believe with all my heart that it will be in the area of pastoral care. It just feels so right.  Please continue to be in prayer for me about this.

Prayer:  “Good morning, Lord! I want to thank You for praying for me.  I ask for grace to keep my focus on You and Your Word. Help me to obey You and do what You command regardless of how I may or may not feel. Amen.”

(This is being continued on Wednesday because I fell asleep last night. Sorry!)

“And when He sent them away, He departed to the mountain to pray.”

Mark 6: 46

Today, Wednesday, I went to University Christian Church for orientation for supervised ministry.  I will begin a yearlong internship at Rush Creek Christian Church being supervised by its senior pastor.  The pastor has set up a guideline of the different ministries that I will explore: worship participation and pastoral care.  While being involved in supervised ministry I will still attend classes at Brite.  This semester I will take New Testament, Pastoral Care with emphasis on Parish Issues (timely, huh?!) and the reflection group for supervised ministry which is also a class. 

I have shared all of this with you to emphasize the importance of this scripture.  Jesus was a busy man.  He preached, taught, healed, visited with people, performed miracles and held classes with the disciples.  There were times that Jesus needed time to Himself to regain His strength, to process these activities, to rest and to refuel.  In pastor language we call this practicing self-care. If we read the scriptures carefully there are times when Jesus is absent.  

In those absences Jesus got away from the crowds and even His disciples to spend time with God, His heavenly Father.  Jesus knew how important this self-care was to the intensity of His ministry.  Jesus got away to be alone with God to pray, rest, reflect on scripture and receive instruction. 

We are all busy people.  We usually go from one activity to the next with little or no break sometimes exhausting ourselves physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. It is hard to help others when you feel all used up and empty.

I invite you to take some time each day to get alone with God. 

·        Find a scripture passage and ask God to reveal its message to you. 

·        Pray, giving thanks, praying for others, asking forgiveness and praising God. 

·        Finally, be quiet before God, resting in His holy Presence, listening for His voice and practicing your own self-care. 

My supervised ministry class was instructed today to practice spiritual self-care.  I encourage each of you to do the same.

Take joy in the journey.  Wear comfortable shoes and get some sleep. Take care of yourself.  Count your blessings and say your prayers.  Love you all so very much and thank you for all of your prayers and support, Bruce, Gaylene, Geni and Travis.

Gcapplenotes@aol.com     

I am not moved by what I see. I am not moved by what I feel. I am only moved by what I believe and I believe God.