Hello friends. Since 2016, I seek the Lord about my new “word of the year” with a Bible verse attached to my word. Since I follow the academic year, I seek my word during the summer months.
In summer 2023, I received the word “Rest” with this Bible verse and for the first time a quote from someone whom I greatly admire.
Isaiah 30:15 (NKJV)
For thus says the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel: “In returning and rest you shall be saved; In quietness and confidence shall be your strength.”
(“If you look at the world, you’ll be distressed. If you look within, you’ll be depressed. If you look at God, you’ll be at rest.” – Corrie Ten Boom)
I did a pretty poor job with my word “rest” but in my defense it was also because the Holy Spirit had me intercede for the nations A LOT for the first time. I felt like I was starting a new job! I was greatly distressed by looking at the world so much in order to intercede properly. Corrie ten Boom’s quote would always remind me in times of distress to look at Jesus. I do that by reading the Bible, and hearing/reading testimonies from believers. I know for others it’s worshipping with songs. Whatever makes you look at Jesus when you are in distress, please figure it out.
In summer 2024, my new word for that academic year was two words – it was “Hold Fast”. Bible verse anchored to my new word was:
Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. – Hebrews 10:23
Bible Gateway passage: Hebrews 10 – New King James Version
I don’t really know until the end of the year how the new word will be applied. But throughout the past year, the words “hold fast” anchored me when life and news were very turbulent for me personally, our country and the world. It was a roller-coaster type of a year. God is faithful to His promises and we, as His people simply need to stay close to Jesus and “hold fast” together with other likeminded believers.
Since we are still in the middle of summer, please pray about having your own word of the year from God with a Bible verse attached to your word. I haven’t received my new word yet but I know it’ll come with signs and confirmations.
Jesus Method:
This podcast interview was excellent. This pastor has a PhD in Cognitive Psychology and with a background in social science, I learned a lot about evangelism and having conversations with various groups of people from his scientific approach to dissecting Jesus’ method of communication. I highly recommend listening. I think I’ll listen to it again. Here is the podcast description:
“In a world filled with outrage, division, and culture wars, how should Christians respond to the most controversial issues of our time — from abortion and LGBTQ+ rights to immigration and politics? Should we speak out? Stay silent? Or is there a third way?
In this episode, Pastor Ted Bryant unpacks The Jesus Method — a bold, compassionate, and deeply biblical approach to engaging hot-button issues the way Jesus did. Whether you’re tired of shouting matches or afraid of saying the wrong thing, this conversation offers clarity, conviction, and hope.”
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/maybe-god/id1329159271?i=1000716515797
This podcast was excellent too. Asking in prayer to be “filled to overflowing” is actually very powerful for successful evangelism. I think the last time I had such a filling of the Holy Spirit was right after I got saved in a middle school summer retreat. I came back home and shared about Jesus and the good news of the gospel with everyone that summer.
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/gateway-churchs-podcast/id88410531?i=1000715150523
Texas Tragedy:
Ray Comfort wrote a very good short article on why God allowed children to die at a Christian camp. I suggest you read it so you could be prepared with some thoughts if it comes up with your children, family members and friends.
Axis ministry wrote this on their last week’s newsletter.
Tragedy in Texas
What it is: Communities in Texas are reeling from grief as the death toll from last weekend’s flash floods continues to climb over 120. At least two dozen victims were children attending the Christian, all-girls camp known as Camp Mystic.
Why it’s hitting so many, so hard: For over a hundred years, families have been sending their children to the Christian camps on the Guadalupe River. Connecting with camp staff and other campers in a spiritual environment every summer is a tradition that generations have come to treasure, and the memories made are a foundational part of countless personal testimonies of faith. Several of the camps have been physically devastated, but the spiritual devastation of this disaster may be deeper still. The tragedy raises the question of how God could allow such a terrible, tragic thing to happen—and whether joy and laughter will ever return to the banks of the Guadalupe.
Let’s translate this one further…
Like so many parents, I cannot stop thinking about the girls of Camp Mystic. They were supposed to have a blissful summer making lifelong friends, practicing archery, making crafts, and encountering Jesus. But something horrible happened. There were heroes present. There were prayers uttered. And yet, those girls are gone.
“After I lost my son, it took me years to figure out if I still loved God,” read one comment on a news article about the historic flash flood. This commenter may have been speaking to no one in particular, but everyone reading could feel their pain. It’s the kind of pain that never goes away, borne from a question that so many philosophers and theologians have grappled with: Why do terrible things happen to God-fearing people?
Young Life Ministries operates 23 camp properties in the U.S, including one in the Texas Hill Country. “Like all who have followed the news over the past four days, it’s been tremendously sad and heavy,” Gabe Knipp, Senior Director of Content at the organization, told us. “As observers, we feel the tension that runs through life, feeling the weight of the tragedy, and yet continuing to host young people at camp. It speaks to the tension between death and life we all feel at times, and it becomes more acute at times like this.”
As Christians, we are called to pray ceaselessly for peace and comfort for those who are grieving. If you’re reading this and have been impacted by this tragedy, we want to hear from you. Reply to this email with your request, and we will pray together for you as a staff.
We also encourage anyone reading to lift up our brothers and sisters in prayer as they bear the unbearable, knowing that Jesus has gone before us in all our pain and suffering. As Dorothy Sayers once put it, “For whatever reason God chose to make man as he is—limited and suffering and subject to sorrows and death—He had the honesty and the courage to take His own medicine. Whatever game He is playing with His creation, He has kept His own rules and played fair. He can exact nothing from man that He has not exacted from Himself.”
(If you want to subscribe to their free weekly newsletter, please visit their website. They are excellent for anyone with teenagers. https://axis.org)
Prayer needs for Bible college students:
I was reading through this prayer requests for Bible college students. Many of them must have non-supportive family members and parents. I’ve never thought about that before but it makes sense. Jesus’ family members didn’t support him during his three years in public ministry. It was only after his resurrection that we see evidence of their support and belief. James is a half brother of Jesus and he wrote the book of James. He called himself a servant to Jesus Christ in his introduction, not as a half brother.
https://www.gfa.org/pray/monthly/
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=James%201&version=NKJV
Pastor Francis Chan addressed this topic recently. Here’s the podcast description:
“What does it really look like to die to yourself? It’s a phrase often heard in church but rarely lived out in radical, visible ways. In this episode, Francis Chan confronts the quiet drift happening in the Church—where believers try to hold on to their lives while adding Jesus on top. Through Scripture and the powerful story of a village in China that chose selfless love over personal comfort, Francis invites us to wrestle with the truth: following Jesus isn’t about adding Him to our plans—it’s about letting go completely.”
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/crazy-love-podcast/id1007053996?i=1000715205222
The Chosen series is filming Jesus’ crucifix scene right now in Italy. Please keep them in your prayers. It must be extremely challenging for them to ask for prayers. Please pray for them.
God bless you abundantly as you grow in the wisdom of God, and pray for these needs.
Journal of Faith 