“But now that Timothy has come to us from you, and has brought us the good news of your faith and love and reported that you always remember us kindly and long to see us, as we long to see you— for this reason, brothers, in all our distress and affliction we have been comforted about you through your faith.”
1 Thessalonians‬ ‭3:6-7‬ ‭ESV‬‬

Does that sound like you? Were you an encourager in 2020? A friend called you to tell you their spouse left them. They lost their job and are facing eviction. Their rock-solid family member was taken due to Covid.
They are rocked with depression and lost all hope.

When messy-people bring messy-problems, it makes sense to bounce. “Ew! I don’t want to deal with that!” When your car is making a terrible noise your solution is to turn the radio up.
But, encouraging people are tough people. Tough people do tough things. And life is tough. Taking your car to get fixed is time-consuming and it’s costly. The same with encouragers.

Encouraging people are nosy jerks. I do not mean that literally. They poke and prod and pry to get in your business. If you are hated for it, you are a good encourager. It is those nosy jerks that know the other side because they have often been through it themselves. They do not run. They do not hide. And they are not afraid to drag you out by your ears.

A guest post by Pastor Brandon Woodard

Why are we busier than ever but for many of us, more empty than we could imagine? Because we have bought into the lie that being crazy busy is the way of life. 

Enter Jesus. His interaction with the allure of the grind will give us hope for today. Here are 2 quick things we learned from Jesus’ ministry that can help us get off of the hamster wheel of being crazy busy to a place of restful redemptive focus. 

Never Chase the Allure of the Crowds

In Mark 1, Jesus’ ministry had taken off, and somehow amid the frenzy of ministry he ducked off to getaway. The disciples find Him and share with him that everyone in the crowd was looking for him. This was a turning point in his ministry; he could have stayed and allowed the adulation of the crowd to satisfy him, but he didn’t. He heft. Why? Because, Jesus didn’t need a crowd to affirm who he was, or ascribe to him the value that his father already gave to him. Matthew 3 tells us that before he did anything his father had already declared that he was pleased with him. This is the truth we need to grasp as followers. You are already loved, accepted, and valued. Your work doesn’t make God love you any more or any less. Maybe you’re crazy busy trying to prove your value when the Father declares He is well pleased with you because of what Jesus has done on your behalf! 

Fight for Margin

Jesus always had time to get away to be with the Father, and so should you. In a crazy busy world, our calendars are slaves to the moment. We must practice the lost art of being ruthless with our time! A priority we need is scheduled time to simply BE instead of being busy DOING. You are a human BEING, not a human DOING. It is in the margin-time that the Father gives restoration, gives rest, and opens our eyes to what He has. We then bask in His presence. Many are crazy busy doing things that God may have told you should have been shelved a while back, but you have been so busy you have not been able to hear from the Lord for direction. It was on the heels of a time of margin for Jesus that the scriptures tell us that He would set his face towards Jerusalem (Luke 9:51). 

A scheduled margin is a designated time in my schedule where I cut off all distractions. I spend time in silence, with my bible and journal. I read, reflect, pray, contemplate, and enjoy the stillness. 

You can continue to be a slave to the hamster wheel of Crazy Busy, or you can enter into the restful mission Jesus has for you! 

To hear the complete sermon series be sure to visit Reconcile Community Church’s website: www.reconcilecincy.org/teachings.  

Guest post by Dominique Turner

You know what’s really annoying? Anxiety. There you are, minding your own business—and BOOM—anxiety pops up like an uninvited guest. It feels like thousands of thoughts swarming in your mind that can’t be turned off. I don’t know about you, but most of my anxiety stems from how I appear to others. I’m talking about everything from my appearance to my accomplishments. Is that you, too?
It wasn’t until I started going to counseling that I realized most of my anxious thoughts were due to the unnecessary pressure I was putting on myself. I was telling myself I had to look a certain way, or reach certain achievements in order to be accepted by others. I was viewing myself through my own lenses instead of God’s lenses. 

Have you ever taken a step back to see yourself through God’s eyes? Ephesians 2:10 tells us that we are God’s masterpieces and He created us for a specific purpose. There aren’t words deep enough to describe the love God has for us or how He sees us. When we seek validation from people or through our accomplishments, we lose sight of or forget what God says about us. The beauty in Ephesians 2:10 is that your purpose is tailor-made specifically for you. Think about that for a second, and think about that every time those anxious thoughts try to assert themselves into your mind. 

Everyone experiences anxiety at some point, but we have to remember that those nagging thoughts that haunt our minds everyday are so far from the truth. Here’s what’s reassuring: God’s word reminds us we are loved, and his word promises that we can experience supernatural peace when we pray instead of worrying.(Philippians 4:6-7)

I’ve been wearing glasses for about eight years, and there’s nothing like getting a new prescription. Everything can be seen clearly and the lenses are free of smudges. That’s what I imagine it’s like when we begin seeing ourselves the way God sees us. We’re putting on our new prescription glasses. Put those anxious thoughts to rest. Use His Word (new lenses) as you’re searching for answers regarding your identity and purpose. 

Today, June 8th, 2018 Christen has ended her tenure at her job. And a week out from that on June 15th, I will have ended mine as well.

It’s really dumbfounding to me on how we got here. Going from a possible restructuring of my job duties, or looking for something different, and now we’re packing it all up and heading 12 hours north.

It’s surreal.