Reflections from FUPC

May has always been one of my favorite months of the year. The weather is usually warm (but not TOO warm), making it easy to go outside and do fun things, or even just relax outside to get some needed fresh air and sunshine after being cooped up inside all winter.  It’s also a great time to start restoring the “man shed” in the back of the yard for use over the next six months.  (For the record, it’s hard to traipse through the backyard through the snow and muck during the winter to get there, and the floor is too cold to go comfortably barefoot in there). And, of course, the youth and kids I interact with all know that soon, school will be out, and summer will be here for even more fun. When I was their age, I also looked forward to the end of May, which marked the end of the school year in Nebraska. 

However, growing up, there was always one drawback to the month of May—it had a very hypnotizing effect on me!  It was so easy to look out the window and see beautiful sunshine and growing grass, beckoning me to get out of the classroom and enjoy life and all the free time summer would bring.  I had to constantly keep my guard up, staying focused on getting homework and school assignments done, because if I spent too much time dwelling on the outside, I was liable to flunk my classes!  Even today, I have to catch myself not getting too distracted by the beautiful spring weather here, because if I do, my responsibilities of getting ready for graduations, Memorial Day, VBS, and camps for the church would all get pushed aside, and that would not go well for me.

I know it’s not weather related, but Scripture gives us much the same warning about keeping our guard up in our lives.  Having emerged from Easter, where we celebrated Jesus’ resurrection and the new life given to those who believe in Him, where do we go from here?  Peter responds in 2 Peter 3:14, when he tells us to “make every effort to be found spotless, blameless, and at peace with Him.”  Just because we have been justified by our faith in Jesus, proved by His resurrection from death at the cross, doesn’t mean we can gaze out the windows of our lives, longing for eternity to come.  Peter continues in 2 Peter 3:17, “Therefore, dear friends, since you already know this, be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by the error of lawless men and fall from your    secure position.”  I don’t think Peter is saying we can lose our salvation by sinning, but  he is saying that if we don’t stay focused on our love and obedience to Christ, we can fall from the security of his abundant mercy and grace.  Jesus may forgive our sins, but He doesn’t excuse us from the consequences of our sins, particularly as they affect others around us.  

So I want to encourage all Christ followers to stand strong in their faith and love for Jesus Christ, walking in humility and obedience to the one who gave us eternal life by sacrificing Himself on the cross for our sins.  May we never forget what He has done for us, and may we respond  accordingly to what He has done for us!

Director of Student Ministries

Dana Miller