Hello everyone!

This week has been really tough. Why? Because Vacation Bible School (VBS) started! But that’s expcted. This year’s theme is “Hero hotline” and we speak about some “super heroes” from the Bible. We spoke about how Jesus asembled a team; how Shiphrah, Puah and Miriam took care about baby Moses; about Moses and the burning bush; the three kings and about Paul. Each day, the kids learn a different “hot line tip” which is a short motto. The main verse for the whole VBS is Romans 14:19: “So let’s strive for the things that bring peace and the things that build each other up”.

I am responsible for recreation – that means games. I have planned out what games we gonna play throughout the week. The only problem there was the fact that we didn’t know how many kids will come. So when VBS started, things didn’t go preciselly as planne and I needed to improvise a lot. But that’s ok. They seem to like it. And I am happy they like it. The only trouble I experience is the lack of energy I have after I get home. I am drained.

This week as I was calling with Ema, my girlfriend, we talked about running. We wanted to start a few months ago, but we couldn’t motivate ourselves enough to do it. I mentioned to her that I had a mood for a run on Monday but it was to late to go out for a run. So she teased me about it and I went for a run on Tuesday. She couldn’t accept that I went jogging and so she did the same the following day. I want to put down at least a few pounds before I go back to Czech Republic. That also means that I changed my diet. I am watching carefully what I eat. Now I need to eat my veggies and less cheeseburgers and tacos.

Being on a diet and leading a healthy lifestyle means sacrifice. You cannot eat all the stuff you like and you need to do things which you generaly hate. For instance, I hate running. But if I want to achieve something and be healthy, I need to sacrifice my comfort and go out for a run at least twice a week. It is like chess – sometimes you need to give up your piece to gain some advantage or even to win. It isn’t easy, but you need to be focused on the outcome. And well, life with Christ also has its sacrifices. We give up things that bring us pleasure because God hates them. And if we love God, we naturaly want to do things ehich please Him. How do we know what pleases Him? He told us in the Bible. I want to motivate you not only to a healthy lifestyle, but also to read your Bibles. Try to read what He likes! Life with Christ means sacrificing ourselves, it means the daily drowning of the old Adam (Romans 6). It means giving up myself and puting on Christ every day. It is the popular question “What would Jesus do?”.

I wish you passion for God’s word and for doing what pleases Him. It is not easy and we will never be perfect in it but let’s not be discouraged. Don’t be afraid to sacrifice since that is necessary to win.

I wish you a blessed week and I am looking forward to see you next week!