Ask and it will be given you; search, and you will find; knock,
and the door will be opened for you. For everyone who asks receives, and everyone who searches finds, and for everyone who
knocks, the door will be opened.”
– Matthew 7:7-8 [NRSV]
Greetings, Everyone, in the Name of the Risen Christ!
As part of our year-long 100th Anniversary Celebration, the Planning Team has offered a range of activities aimed not only at celebration but at giving of ourselves for others through missionsand service. We also want to encourage spiritual formation as part of our Christian discipleship and the continuing legacy of what it means to be part of the Longs Peak UMC family.
So, during the month of August, I will be using a wonderful book from Renovaré entitled The Good and Beautiful God by James Bryan Smith [Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2009] to guide our Sunday morning worship. I would urge every family or household in the Church to get a copy of this book to read through together, as I will only have the time to “whet the appetite” in worship on Sundays.
This book is best read and worked through with others, so you can use it as family spiritual formation guide, in an established small group, with an impromptu small group of friends, whatever. Or, you can also benefit from it by reading through it and doing the “Soul Training” exercises and journaling on your own. John Wesley, the 18th century founder of Methodism, asserted that Spiritual Formation – being shaped into the likeness of Christ – is not something that happens quickly or automatically once one becomes a Christian but over time and with deliberate and consistent attention.
But it is a rewarding and essential part of our Christian discipleship, well worth the effort. I hope you’ll pick up a copy of The Good and Beautiful God and seek after Him with passion & focus this
month.
On Fire for Christ,
Pastor Steve
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