Back to School

Pause

There are times that it may seem we have “outgrown” our faith. It is at times like these we can rediscover our calling to grow daily in the knowledge of Jesus and in our relationship with him.

Everyone is different, even as we are much alike. It is in the journey, one day following another, that we come to discover our true selves.

And it takes time. Moments such as these now help to provide direction.

Listen

He said to them, “Why were you searching for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?” But they did not understand what he said to them. Then he went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was obedient to them. His mother treasured all these things in her heart. And Jesus increased in wisdom and in years, and in divine and human favor.

Luke 2:49-52

Think

There’s one story in the Gospels about Jesus as a preteen; this is it. On a trip to Jerusalem with his parents, Jesus went missing. When they started to worry and look for him, they found Jesus sitting in the temple with the teachers, listening and asking them questions.

It’s easy to forget this story. We think about his miracles, the great preaching, and his divine love. We see him as the Christ, exalted in heaven at the right hand of God.

But Jesus was as human as we are. In this story, we are called to journey with him in the way of faith. When we follow Jesus’ model, faith isn’t just about accepting a list of beliefs, but about growing in our relationship with God and with the world around us. It’s about being willing to learn and asking questions so that we grow in wisdom.

Meredith Forssman

Pray

Dear Jesus, thank you for living as a human so that we can relate to you. Help me to live into this story. I want to follow in your way of faith. Amen.

Go

There is a place for you and a time for you.
In the moments when it seems the world is a very awkward place,
Remember that it is still your home.

Gather with your friends;
Open your hand to strangers.
Determine that even in the tensions between
What is and
What could be,
You will trust in the Maker of time and space,
The One who is keeping you to the end.