year with jesus

 

“The Lord, the Lord,
a God merciful and gracious,
slow to anger,
and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.”

Exodus 34:6

WELCOME TO A YEAR WITH GOD

In Exodus, God passes by Moses and makes this powerful proclamation that He is abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness. For the next fifty two Sunday’s we will be posting images, verses and reflections following the church calendar that reflects this steadfast love and faithfulness. The posting will lead us on an immersive faith journey for fifty two weeks that tells the story of God and Jesus through the annual rhythm of the Christian’s church calendar.

This year long series will start on December 2nd, with the first week of advent. So get ready, have your Bible at hand and a notebook to start journaling. Find a space in your house or outdoors that is quiet and will help you be by yourself with our Lord. A place where  a simple few minutes alone will change your life.

We will move from the Advent period to Christmas and on into Lent and the Passion week. And we will follow along the seven weeks or fifty days of the Pentecost. Throughout this journey we will encounter and explore the verses that explain and help us reflect on the majesty of God and God’s gift to humankind, Jesus the Christ.

Each week we will post an image, verse and a reflection that will follow the church calendar. Each week is designed to lead us through a complete exploration of the Christian faith and a deeper understanding of our faith.

As a guide each week readers will be given an opportunity to answer three questions about their faith. Not designed to test our knowledge, but to encourage us to think about our faith. Over the year, we will present a way to fully see the Gospel and its meanings in our lives.

In our reflections we are not proposing how people should think, but merely asking to reflect on our life’s journey with our faith. No one person’s faith life is similar and every person has a different starting point. If in some small way we can add value to faith lives, we will consider ourselves successful.

For the reader we ask that prior to starting this journey, that a journal is created. The first entry should be a reflection on the following:

  • What is your understanding of faith and how it has become a part of your life?
  • How connected do you feel to God and Jesus?
  • What areas of your faith lives would you want to increase?

Over the course of the year, periodically refer back to this first writing and see what has changed.

Each week, at the start of the week, answer the three questions on Sunday. Try bringing the Holy Spirit into this time of reading and contemplation. Consider what the Spirit is telling you. Then throughout the week, reflect on the verse, the image or the reflection. Each day, take five minutes to review how it is affecting your daily life. On Saturday, write what has changed or what has been improved.

A simple journaling that is private to you and your life. Each week the journal will grow and so will your faith.

If you would like to help others, leave a comment on the blog for the week. A simple note of a special moment or new understanding. Through this sharing we help and inspire each other.

Don’t forget each day, say a prayer that includes an aspect of the verse for the week.

We hope, pray and trust that this journey with God will help your life and bring you closer to a God that is abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.

Blessings, until next time,
Bruce L. Hartman

Photo by Ben White

We love giving credit to budding photographers to help them gain more exposure.