But to the one who had told him this, Jesus replied, “Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?”
Matthew 12:48
While Jesus was still talking to the crowd, his mother and brothers stood outside, wanting to speak to him. Someone told him, “Your mother and brothers are standing outside, wanting to speak to you.” He replied to him, “Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?” Pointing to his disciples, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers. For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.” Matthew 12:46-50
One of our Florida students said it best in a recent chapel sermon. “I want my spouse to be the second most important relationship in my life, and I want myself to be the second most important relationship in their life.” So, if our spouse is #2, who then, is #1? The answer, of course, is Christ! It is from the abundance of our relationship with Jesus that all relationships flow – including those closest, most intimate family relationships. When we are separated from Christ, we often find that our relationships follow suit. Continue reading ‘Questions Jesus Asks: Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?’
Friends:
I don’t know how you are feeling at this point in the semester, but I am finding in my ExL class at least, the level of stress is rising. This is not so much a function of the class (though the relentless reality of coursework certainly contributes!), but a combination of school, ministry, family…life! What you are doing is hard work – work that often requires not only intellectual entergy but physical, spiritual and emotional energy as well.
May I encourage you to do a few things to help ease the stress?
#1 – Pray for each other! Perhaps the greatest encouragement is to know that someone is praying for you – let your classmates know that you are praying for them.
#2 – Spend time with God. Make certain that your days do not get so crowded out with busyness that you neglect your primary relationship. Quite time with God – whatever that looks like for you, goes a long way in keeping us centered.
#3 – Don’t forget your closest relationships – children, spouse, friends all can be a source of encouragement for you. Make certain that you are nurturing these relationships as you journey through seminary.
#4 – Take care of your body – get ample rest, eat well, drink lots of coffee….um, I mean water, exercise. Taking care of ourselves and staying healthy will allow us to tackle tasks with greater confidence and strength.
Notice I didn’t say ’study more, read more, work more.” It is at this time in the semester that these are the thoughts that consume us and my guess is that they won’t go away. Find balance in your living, and you will find the study, reading and writing will flow out of a deeper and healthier place.
Know that I am praying for you!
Blessings,
Kandace
Gary Jackson
Up, up, upstairs once again for this episode of Faces. Turn right at the flags and follow the hallway around to the corner that also houses Dr. Buchan. Here you will find another Episcopalian (they like to group together), Mr. Gary Jackson (aka Ga-Ja, or Bam-Bam). Gary is the Mentored Ministry Administrative Assistant and Faculty Support staff person. Basically, Gary is the one making sure that you dot all your t’s and cross all your i’s for Mentored Ministry (read that slowly), and he performs a similar function for the faculty. Continue reading ‘Faces: Gary Jackson’
