Today is the conclusion, at least for now, of this Crisis Counsels series. You will find all 85 Crisis Counsels reflections on our web site. For daily devotions going forward, we are recommending that everyone begin to use The Upper Room, a United Methodist devotional that has long been available in paper form and which now, for the first, is being made available as a pdf file, so that we can distribute it electronically to the whole congregation. The file is available here. It contains a daily meditation for every day of the week, each meditation written by a United Methodist. The writers come from across the world! We hope that you will find this to be an inspirational tool for your own spiritual journey. For those who prefer a print copy, there are still regular and large print copies available in the office entryway of the church building.

It is good to keep in mind Jesus’ own spiritual practice. The following passage lays it out clearly. Jesus maintained a rhythm of prayerful reflection and compassionate action. He began the day by withdrawing in prayer, then launched into outreach in the world. This is a model for us!

In the morning, while it was still very dark, he got up and went out to a deserted place, and there he prayed. And Simon and his companions hunted for him. When they found him, they said to him, “Everyone is searching for you.” He answered, “Let us go on to the neighboring towns, so that I may proclaim the message there also; for that is what I came out to do.”
Mark 1:35–38

May we follow the example of Jesus with lives that are grounded in prayer and devoted in service to God.

Prayer – Lead us, O Lord, as we would follow as Your disciples. Click To Tweet

Join in Sunday worship, at the 8:30 (in-person) or the 9:30 or 10:30 (livestreamed) worship hours at live.kentmethodist.org. Note that today also marks the resumption of the Weekly Word, with updates every Friday about our church life.

About the Author

Dr. David A. Palmer has been the senior pastor at the United Methodist Church of Kent since 1995. He has a B.A. from Wittenberg University, a Master of Divinity from Duke University, and a Doctor of Ministry from Princeton Theological Seminary. A native of Wooster, Ohio, he has served three other churches in east Ohio before coming to Kent. He and his wife, Mavis, have three children.