Hi, this is Joni Eareckson Tada and this is "Joni and Friends".
Here we are in summer and I haven’t unpacked my suitcases in two weeks. Yikes! So as I look at that open suitcase on my bedroom floor and as I glance over my schedule for the next few weeks, I’m thinking, Whoa! So—if you don’t mind—I want to put out a prayer request today: Please pray for me, would you? Ken and I were just up at our Family Retreat up in New England; it was such fun but I tell you what it was very exhausting. We were in Chicago, and then we were in Boston where I was speaking at Gordon Conwell Seminary. But I’m home now to do some washing, catch up on some things, and have Ken join me for the next leg, because next, we’ll be going to another Family Retreat up along the coast of California; and so, I think I need your prayers.
This is a busy summer. It’s go, go, go. But here’s the thing: I don’t want to be on automatic cruise control, just moving from one thing to another on automatic pilot. I’ve done that before; I’ve lived that way; I’ve traveled that way, and I always lose energy halfway through the trip. No, instead I want to go from strength to strength. I want to keep in step with the Spirit. My motto—actually it’s a Bible verse—but for me this month, it’s a motto. And it’s Colossians 1:28‑29 where it says, “We proclaim Jesus ... To this end I labor, struggling with all His energy, which so powerfully works in me.”
Friend, this is my focus; it’s my goal; it’s why I do what I do; it’s what it’s all about—proclaiming Jesus. It is ‘to this end’ that I’m laboring this summer, in fact, the whole team here at Joni and Friends. And although it’s ‘proclaiming Him’ on the go, I want to do … I’ve just got to do it with all His energy. And when you’ve got God's energy pushing you forward, you can feel, you can tell, you know it’s working powerfully within you, especially when other people are praying for you. I think God’s power is released through the prayers of others and I don’t want to falter or faint or flick myself on cruise control over the next few weeks. Besides, I’ve got this disability, this wheelchair I deal with, and I need you to pray that God will stave off any infections or broken bones or the kinds of things a quadriplegic my age starts to wonder and worry about. Ask God to give me rest, strength, help me to seize opportunities, help me to keep my messages fresh, my focus on Him, my nose in His Word, my vision clear, and my heart strong.
How about you? What is the ‘end’ to which you labor this summer? Maybe that verse in Colossians should be your motto, what do you think? Proclaim Jesus in Vacation Bible School this month or at church camp or leading your Bible study or on that short-term mission trip or sharing Christ in your neighborhood ... with the people you’ve come to know at your market; the girl who does your nails; or you guys, those fellows at the gas station. Proclaim Jesus: that’s the goal, that’s your focus, that’s why you do what you do. And if your summer schedule looks busy, don’t feel overwhelmed—labor on, struggling with all His energy, which so powerfully works in you. You can do it. You can go from strength to strength if you move forward in His energy and if you’ve got Christian friends backing you up with their prayers.
Hey, let me know how we at Joni and Friends can pray for you. Our staff meets every morning for prayer and if you’ve got something special coming up, maybe giving your testimony, or you’re going on a missions trip, let us pray for you. Just drop a note on my radio page at joniandfriends.org and we’ll pass it on to our morning prayer team. Speaking of which, I’m closing up my suitcases and I’m heading out on a wing and your prayers.
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P.O. Box 3333, Agoura Hills, CA 91376