Mind The Gap
Daily Scripture Readings
Monday: Mark 4:35-41
Tuesday: Mark 5:1-20
Wednesday: Mark 5:21-43
Thursday: Mark 6:1-6a
Friday: Mark 6:6b-13
Saturday: Mark 6:14-29
Sunday: Mark 6:30-44
Opening Prayer
Lord Jesus, Thank you for this time. Thank you for this day and another opportunity to get to know you better. Thank you for your Word. Lord, let the readings this week challenge my soul and life so that I may be formed more into the person you have created me to be. For the glory of your name, AMEN.
DEVOTION:
Fill in the blank (feel free to offer several responses): “Life with Jesus is _______.”
There are a lot of ways we could answer this question. As I read through Mark 6: 30-44 (and really all of this week’s readings) there are several different responses you could give about life with Jesus just from this passage:
Life with Jesus is busy. Life with Jesus is amazing. Life with Jesus is challenging. Life with Jesus is satisfying. Life with Jesus is messy. Life with Jesus is miraculous. Life with Jesus is tiring.
Are any of these responses similar to yours?
Recently, I have been working on getting a certification for premarital counseling through a program called Prepare Enrich. It’s a very thorough program, with metrics and analysis. One of the elements the program shared with me was something they call, “idealistic distortion”. Idealistic distortion is basically how much someone’s responses are skewed in a positive direction. Especially for couples, this is a reality–honeymoon phase, anyone?
We have the tendency to approach all sorts of things with a level of idealism, not just marriage. The way that we approach life with Jesus (and our time/involvement with church) is one of these areas especially prone to idealism. In other words, we expect life with Jesus or our time in church to go better than it often does.
The truth is, our ideals and even expectations are rarely what happens. As we realize this truth, it can be easy to get jaded, even apathetic, and become really pessimistic about the church and following Christ.
Here’s what I love about this passage. It shows us in life with Jesus there is room for both the brokenness of humanity and the abundance of God. Life with Jesus is ‘We need a quiet place and rest’ AND ‘These people have chased us down and are hungry for a savior.’ Life with Jesus is ‘Where are all these people going to get food to eat?’ AND ‘They all ate and were satisfied.’
Challenge: This passage presents a great opportunity to look at our own lives and journey following Jesus. Where are the places in your life or following Jesus that you’ve had an idealized expectation? Have you found yourself getting jaded, apathetic, or pessimistic in your walk with Jesus or experience with the church? How does this passage speak to your experience? How can you proceed faithfully?