How to Have an Amazing Summer: Refresh

by: Whitney Jones

Webster’s Dictionary defines relaxing as spending time resting or doing something enjoyable especially after you have been doing work.

When you think of things that you consider work, what comes to mind? Maybe it’s deadlines, or being a taxi driver for your kids, or keeping up with house chores that’s stressing you out. Whatever it might be we all need to take the time to relax and refresh from the daily grind.

It’s important to take a break from daily activities so you can be the best version of yourself: the best parent, the best spouse, the best friend, the best worker.

In the world we live in today, it’s easy to think if I’m not doing something productive all the time then I’m not doing my best or giving 100%. We think we always have to be multitasking or else we aren’t being productive.

In order to be effective, you don’t always have to be “busy” or on the go. You have to have a balance of productivity and stopping every once and awhile to relax and enjoy the moment.

Even God took time to refresh, “By the seventh day God completed His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done”  - Genesis 2:2.

Some ways you can relax and refresh are:

•   take a walk

•   go on a vacation

•     go out on a date with your spouse

•     take time for yourself (go to the gym or do something you love)

•     spend quality time with each member of your family

•   read a book

•   unplug from technology

Finding refreshment is how you are able to live the life you want to live. It’s about being intentional and passionate with your time and what you do. So if you want to make this summer amazing, make sure to find time to refresh and do what makes your soul happy.

How to Have an Amazing Summer: Make Memories

by Desi Ash

Outside of travel soccer, sports camps, and some sort of educational camp, summer for my family meant at least one fun filled vacation. Those family vacations led to lots of memories:

·        The time I learned the word soda

·        The time my brother drove the van completely out of gas

·        The many summers spent trying to conquer my fear of heights at Cedar Point

·        The summer I became deathly afraid of escalators

·        Or the time I thought I lost my brother at the campgrounds

The memories are endless. They are fun to reminisce and share with others.  They remind me of times when cellphones and computers didn’t get in the way of our interactions.

Last summer Pixar released the movie Inside Out. This movie takes viewers inside the mind of an eleven year old girl and shows how emotions advise her throughout her daily life. Viewers see how memories are made and stored and how after some time are forgotten. While Pixar’s Inside Out is a film for children, there is some truth in the psychology behind it. Our brains do store memories (sensory, short-term, and long-term) and over time those memories are forgotten.

Our daily lives are building the memories we will have for a lifetime. Another way to have an amazing summer is to make memories.

This summer take advantage of more freedom; of later bedtimes and fewer practices, and no last minute big projects due in the morning. Make making memories a priority for your family. Close the laptop, silence the cellphone, shut off the TV and interact together.

To make memories, one doesn’t need to pack up and leave home. You can make memories in your own backyard. 

·        Hop on Pinterest and find a fun DIY project! Even if you fail the laughter and together-ness will make a fun memory.

·        Pick a day and every week go get ice cream together.

·        Pull out all the blankets and make a fort!

·        Break a rule that you normally have! Eat dessert before dinner, better yet, have dessert for dinner.

Spend time together as a family laughing and having fun. Don’t miss this phase of summer to put your family first and make memories.

The memories formed this summer will last. Do you want those to be memories of everyone interacting with a screen or everyone together laughing until they pee their pants?

How to Have an Amazing Summer: De-stress

by Devin Dummel

If you’re breathing, you’ve got stress.

Stress is a natural physical and mental reaction to both good and bad experiences that can be beneficial to your health and safety. God designed your body to respond to stress by releasing hormones and increasing your heart and breathing rates.   So stress and how your body deals with it are actually part of God’s intelligent design.  In the short term, stress helps you cope with tough situations.  It’s a mechanism that we need and that God gave us.

Stress can be triggered by the pressures of everyday responsibilities at work and at home. And as you have probable experienced, negative life events like going through a divorce or the death of a loved one cause stress.

Not getting enough rest, dealing with a physical illness, or an unexpected traumatic event, can keep your body’s stress levels elevated far longer than is necessary for survival.  Chronic stress can cause a variety of symptoms and can affect your overall health and well-being.

So we all need a break from the stresses of life if we are going to keep ourselves healthy and on track.  One way to make this an amazing summer is to find time to de-stress.

While the summer may seem like a time that can be busier than the rest of the year, I encourage you and your family to view the summer as a strategic time to find opportunities to de-stress.  Don’t also these few short months go by without taking some time to release your “stress valve” and get back to normal.

As follower of Jesus, there is no better way to de-stress than to take time away from all the pressures and spend some time with Him.  He said, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28).

Set some time aside this week and read some of the following passages of scripture.  Take a piece of paper or a notebook and write out some of the key phrases that jump out to you, doodle, draw or write out your prayers.  You don’t need much to spend time with Him.   Just create a little extra space in your day.

·        Jeremiah 29:11

·        Proverbs 29:11

·        Proverbs 3:5-6

·        Ephesians 4:26

·        Ephesians 4:31-32

·        Matthew 6:19-21

·        Hebrews 12:6

I want to encourage you that if you don’t already have some time set aside in your day or your week to get alone without any distractions and get with God, that you create a habit and do so.  There is nothing that will have a greater impact for your stress levels than trusting and relying on God daily.

Outside of reading scripture this summer you may want to find other ways to decompress and de-stress.  Everyone is different and you probably already know some of the ways that you like to destress but here are a few examples of other things you could do to relieve your stress and making this summer amazing:

·        Read for fun – it seems these days reading is a lost art.  Go to the library and check out a book, borrow something recommended by a friend, or dust off something you purchased in the past.  But read a book cover to cover for fun.  Don’t worry about “getting something out of it”.  Just read to get lost for a little bit.  I would encourage you to pick up some form of fiction and just get lost in your imagination.

·        Get outside – Go to a park. Go on a hike.  Sit by a pool. Drive around the country with the windows done.  Whatever you do, just get outside and breathe some fresh air.  Enjoy all the beauty of God’s creation, and just take it in.

·        Unplug for 24 hours – It may be difficult, but for 24 hours have your family shut off all the screens.  Turn off the phones, iPads, and gaming devices and just unplug.  Play some board games, explore your neighborhood, do anything that doesn’t involve electronics. 

·        Do something new – try something you never have before.  Do something that maybe you’re nervous about doing.  Go to a restaurant you’ve always wanted to try.  Get together with that high school or college buddy.  Whatever it is get out of your routine for a few minutes.

 

Whatever you do this summer, make sure you include letting go of some of the stress in your life.   I promise you that you won’t regret it.  You will be so thankful you took the time to decompress.  You family will also find itself in a much healthier and happier place as they transition back into the fall.   If you choose to strategically take some time now to de-stress, I promise it will just be one of the many reasons why this summer will be amazing. 

How to Have an Amazing Summer! - EXPLORE

by Desi Ash

There is something special and unique about getting out in the great outdoors, experiencing all of God’s creation.  As a child, before I knew anything about God, I loved nature. I climbed trees, explored the woods behind our house, studied tornados, and even dreamed of becoming a storm chaser. When I discovered that everything that is in nature is part of God’s masterpiece, my love for it grew even more. When I got my license I would drive to different parks to hike trails, I would drive just to drive, to see what I could find, and one night I even drove out into the country to find a dark enough spot to watch a meteor shower (which I chose to do laying in a sleeping bag on the side of the road!).

When was the last time you stopped and explored God’s masterpiece? How long has it been since you last took the back roads home or stopped to read what that historical marker sign had to say?

Has it been awhile? No worries, this summer is the perfect time to get back outdoors.  One way to have an amazing summer is to pause and go exploring. Exploring doesn’t need to be elaborate; it could simply be traveling to Indy using all back roads if you usually take the highway.

God spent six days creating a world full for us to explore and enjoy. Don’t spend your summer behind your desk or on the couch. Get up and get dirty. Let God speak to you through creation.

Need some ideas:

·        Go geocaching (google it!)

·        Take a trip: before you leave flip a penny to decide which way to turn when you get to a stop light/sign. Heads for right, Tails for left.

·        Walk downtown Pendleton. Stop in at a store you haven’t ever been to or one you haven’t been to in a while.

·        Spend an afternoon at Mounds State Park (there is a fee for parking)

 The rhythm of life changes over the summer and it may seem like the hours drag on. So the next time you hear the phrase “I’m bored”, go exploring and take in the vastness of God’s masterpiece.

Enjoy the summer and make it AMAZING!

Finish Strong: Finish Line

A friend of mine planned on running in the annual mini-marathon in Indianapolis.  For months he trained, plotting a course through town and laying out a training schedule so that he would be ready.  He ran religiously.  I knew on certain days and certain times if I drove through town I would find him pushing himself harder to reach his goal.  He did everything that he needed to do in order to be ready, but the evening before the race my friend didn’t feel very well, and he knew that race day was going to be a long day.

He had put all the hours and miles in order to be ready, so he was determined to get on the course and run the race even though he wasn’t feeling one hundred percent.  Things started out fine, but he could tell that he was expending more energy than he should be just trying to keep up with the pace he had set for himself.  As he entered the track at the speedway he could tell things were getting worse, and before he could make it around the loop he collapsed.  He was sick and dehydrated and his body couldn’t take any more.  He found shelter and shade in a medical tent, where he was given great attention.  He was feeling so terrible that it took him a while to get the strength back up to get back on the track.  When it was all said and done, it took my friend over four hours to complete the race, more than double the time he was aiming for.  

A few days after the race, he sat in my office.  He was visually discouraged and frustrated after putting in all the hard work and not getting the result he wanted.  We talked for a bit and he told me that he was planning on doing another mini in the near future, knowing that he could do better and cross the finish line the way he wanted this time.  Last weekend, he ran that race and finished very close to the time he was shooting for.

I know it’s not how he envisioned it, but I was really proud of my friend for finishing strong.  He accomplished what he wanted to do – he crossed that finish line proud of all that he had done.

This past week, we received word that one of the long time members of our church passed away.  He was a great man of God who was very influential in the lives of so many people in our congregation.  He spent most of his adult life doing God’s work, sharing the Gospel with anyone who would listen or care to watch him live his life.  In the last five years he developed Alzheimer’s, and then in the fall he was diagnosed with cancer.  It was difficult for his family to watch his decline.  But the amazing thing was watching him and his family finish strong.

When I think of this great man I am reminded of the words of the Apostle Paul nearing the end of his ministry, “For I am already being poured out … I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.”  Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord … will award me on that day - and not only to me, but also to all who have longing for his appearing” (2 Timothy 4:6-8).

In the coming days, we will celebrate the life he lived.  We will also celebrate how he finished the race strong.  We will talk about how he fought the good fight.  We will remember how he kept the faith.  And we will smile when we realize that one day we too will have the opportunity to be awarded the crown of righteousness, not for anything we had done – but because we lived our lives longing for God.

This week, I have asked myself how do I run a race like that.  How do I live a life like he lived?  How do I keep the faith, fight the good fight and finish strong?  I think the secret is in our perspective.  It’s not about one race.  It’s about many races.  It’s not about one battle or fight; it’s about a daily skirmish.  The secret to running THE race and finishing well has to do with what we do each day.

We have to run the race each day.  We have to train to make the right decisions.  We have to practice fighting the good fight.  We have to get better at being faithful in tough times.  And all of those things happen one day at a time.  You can’t just sit down and say, today I am changing course and I am going to finish the race strong, twenty … thirty … forty … fifty years from now.  No, you have to decide today that you will run the race, and fight the good fight, and finish strong.

And when you do that – there is no doubt in my mind that some days you will not cross the finish line the way you wanted to, or the way you planned to.  But my friends, remember you still crossed the line. 

And then tomorrow you will get back up and you will try again, knowing that you can do a little bit better than you did the day before.  You will also know that when you live life this way, (running the race, fighting the good fight, and longing after God) that one day you will receive an award that is far greater than just crossing the finish line.

So I encourage you, finish this day strong.  Then finish the next one and the next one and the next one.  Finish this season strong.  Finish this year strong.  Run the race.  Fight the good fight.  And anxiously await for the day, when you will be embraced into His arms and you will hear your Father in Heaven say, “Well done.”

Finish Strong: Priorities

I don’t know about you or your family, but in our house, we love sports.  We talk about sports.  We play sports.  We watch sports.  And as our children get older I am confident that we will run around on Saturdays from one sport to the next until we can barely move.  Sports are part of our family DNA.

Sports are also part of our cultural DNA, so much so that it’s even embedded in our language.  You probably have had to “take one for the team” before.  Maybe you had a project that went “down to the wire”.  It’s even possible that you’ve had a “knock-down, drag out” where the “gloves came off” and you were willing to “go to the mat” for your view or position.  The point is that there is something about sports that unifies us – that the language resonates with us and helps us see a common image.

The idea of using sports images to unify people isn’t new.  It’s actually been around a long time.  The ancient Hebrew and Greek scriptures have these references sprinkled throughout them.  This month we have been looking at some of these references as we focus on what it means to finish strong.

There is an idea in sports which transcends the games being played, be it boxing, basketball, figure skating or any other number of competitive sports – this idea centers around finishing strong.  In athletic competition it’s not enough to come out and do well to begin, but you must finish your opponent.  You have to “get them on the ropes”.  You have to display a “killer instinct”.  When you have the advantage you want to “break the will” of the other team. 

The Apostle Paul recognized this idea and he leveraged it to try and help his fellow brothers and sisters in Christ understand what it looked like to “Finish Strong”.  “Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize?  Run in such a way as to get the prize.” (1 Corinthians 9:24)  The way that Paul expressed this idea was trying to help us understand that it’s not just enough to run.  It’s not about running hard – it’s about pursuing the prize.

There is a simple, yet amazing, book by Andy Stanly titled, The Principle of the Path.  In it, Stanley reminds us of a very basic but powerful principle that we all should take notice of.  The principle of the path states that:  Direction – not intention – determines our destination.  In other words your current direction will determine your destination.  Where you end up in life will never be determined by what you wish for, hope for, or plan for.  Where you end up – the goal – the prize you are seeking after is directly connected to the direction that you are currently headed.

Paul’s idea of running in a way so that you win the prize, connected to the Principle of the Path reminds me that if we want to finish strong (this semester/  this year / this life) then the direction you currently have matters a great deal.  The priorities and the way you have oriented your life currently are pointing you toward a prize.  The question you should ask yourself is:  “Is the prize I’m chasing, truly a prize worth winning.”

I’ve seen a lot of parents chase after the prize of athletic achievement.  Their kids are good at sports and they had fun (at least for a while) playing every sport all year long.  But in the end the prize of athletic achievement leaves them feeling empty.  While they may have been the best in town, they fail to achieve at the next level.  I’ve seen other parents run after the prize of wealth, believing that money and shiny toys will help their family have fun and stick together.  Many of these family end up divided because what mattered more to them was the next big purchase or experience.  I’ve even seen families run after the prize of happiness, believing that if everyone is happy and never has to go through anything difficult that life will be better that way.  But the prize of happiness is deceptive, and children who have never learned how to respond to tough situations crumble under the pressure.

My friends remember Direction – not intention – determines our destination.  And if we are to run in such a way that we win the prize then we must first make sure that our priorities and our direction are placed on the right prize.  So what is the right prize?  I think there are a few ways that you can think about or package the answer to that question.  But my favorite is the conclusion to one of the stories that Jesus told.

The story is called, the Parable of the talents and in this story each servant is entrusted with something of value from the master.  Jesus tells this story hoping that we will see that we are the servants, and God is the Master.  He has entrusted us with so much, especially with the lives of our children.  Ultimately it’s up to us to make the right choices when it comes to what God has given us. 

The prize I think we each should focus on is having God say to us at the finish line what the Master says to his servant at the end of the parable.  “Well done, good and faithful servant!  You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things.  Come and share in your master’s happiness!” (Matthew 25:23).  That’s the prize – not just to do well and be faithful … but to be with God and share in His happiness forever.

I want to encourage you to run in such a way that you win that prize.  Slow down this week, and take time to ask yourself:  What direction is our family headed on?  What prize are we chasing after?  And if you don’t like the answer make the choice to change your destination by changing your direction and recalculate what your priorities should be so that you and your family can finish strong.

Finish Strong: Grateful

by Desi Ash

It can be really easy to be stuck in the routine. May is a busy month. The school year is ending, schedules for summer are either filled or almost maxed out, and the to-do list is longer than ever. During this time do you find yourself being grateful?

For me, it’s not the first response. My first response is to feel exhausted, worn out and ready for a new pace.

I was reminded last week at re:mix, the preteen ministry of PCC, that I need to take time to be grateful for the things going on around me, to not just aimlessly go through the year, being grateful only at thanksgiving.

Between finishing the school year, prepping for summer events, and trying to plan a trip back to my hometown, I have overlooked many things.

I have overlooked

o   How awesome the preteens at PCC are and how much they have grown this school year.

o   How much fun I get to have working with a best friend

o   How God has worked through PCC

o   How much I continue to personally grow and mature

And the list goes on. If we aren’t careful we will miss the moment, we will miss being able to thank God, and we will miss seeing God at work around us.

The Apostle Paul talks about this in 1 Corinthians 9:26a

            Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly;

Running aimlessly. Running without purpose. For me this looks like not sleeping because I am worried about tomorrow or so focused on the project being complete that I miss the growth happening in the moment. What does running aimlessly look like for you? What are you missing because your purpose is not set?

Running aimlessly isn’t going to get us far. We will burnout and lose energy. And the same is true day to day. If we don’t take the time to be grateful, to count our blessings we will burnout and lose sight of God.

When we are grateful our perspective completely changes. I recently saw a quote that read “Don’t let a bad moment ruin your day. Think of it as a bad minute, not a bad day and you’ll be okay”. By changing your perspective on that one moment your perspective changes for the day.

The same is true when we take time to be grateful. Instead of being negative or caught up in the to-do list, look around and see the positive, how God is working.

God hasn’t stopped showing up; we might just be wandering aimlessly and missing it. Pause this week and spend time being grateful. Let the gratitude change your perspective so you can finish strong.