“If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’” (ESV)
Come to Jesus and take a drink. Once you drink, an eternal river is awakened within you.
“The water that I will give them will become in them a spring which will provide them with life-giving water and give them eternal life.” (GNB)
”…the kingdom of God is within you.” (ESV)
• Stop – The human body is designed to run for six days, then it needs refueling. Don’t ignore God’s carefully engineered design.
• Rest – Take time to rest and meditate in community (Sabbath is not solitude).
• Delight – Purposefully engage in life-giving activities. In a digital world, we must cultivate real human moments.
• Worship – Develop a deep awareness of God’s presence in everything you do.
What if discipleship is simply about friendship—friendship with God, where we learn His love, and friendship with others, where we share His love?
Our city will be transformed by our hospitality long before it will be transformed by sermons preached from pulpits.
Biblical hospitality is more than entertainment. When we invite Jesus to the table, it becomes an altar, and our lives become the offering.
Jesus is the Master at turning the mundane into something meaningful—but it requires sacrifice.
The three phrases people love to hear most around the world:
• I love you.
• You’re forgiven.
• Let’s eat!
Jesus invites us to The Table, where we commune with our Heavenly Father through the broken body and shed blood of Christ. Here, the willingness to take a drink turns into an eternal river flowing into and through us—bringing us from death to life.
Explore the practice of Sabbath and The Table within the unique rhythm of your life this week.
Written by Brad Kelley
I was born on March 15, 1971, in Oklahoma City, OK, to Johnny and Patricia Kelley. Shortly after, my little sister, Katrina Kelley Myers, was born.
If you had asked me 15 years ago, I would have told you I grew up like any other kid in a normal, hard-working, loving home. But as I came to terms with reality, I realized it was nothing like the “normal” I now understand.
It was a loving home, yes—but it was what I now call “tough love.” We had love… but we also had booze, drugs, parties, and violence.
My dad grew up on the south side of OKC and was known as one of those greasers—like the ones in The Outsiders or Happy Days. But I didn’t know that the home he built for us was just a reflection of the one he grew up in—a cycle of excessive drinking, drug use, and violence.
“On December 22, 1997, I got a call from my mom saying I needed to come to the hospital. My dad was unconscious after overdosing on pills. He remained on life support for three days. On December 24, I held his hand, he squeezed mine, opened his eyes, and said, ‘I’m sorry.’ Then he passed away.”
That was the moment my life spiraled out of control.
If I had only known about the principles of Celebrate Recovery back then, I could have admitted that I was powerless to control my tendency to do the wrong thing—and that my life had become unmanageable. But God wasn’t finished with me.
• At age 4, I had my first taste of alcohol—“juice,” as I called it—given to me by my grandfather.
• By age 10, I was stealing alcohol from family gatherings.
• By age 12, I was heavily into drugs.
• By 7th grade, I was selling drugs in middle school.
• By 13, I was deeply involved in the occult, Ouija boards, and satanic rituals.
• By high school, I had been expelled from every school on the south side of OKC.
• By age 22, I watched my best friend, Brandon, die from a drug-induced heart attack over 27 days.
• By age 30, I hit rock bottom—homeless, addicted, and hopeless.
But God had other plans.
He spared me from death. He spared me from prison. And eventually, He rescued me from myself.
Take Me Home
Can you build me a nest?
Will you make it my home?
With pieces of nature,
So I’m never alone.
Can you look at life
From a bird’s point of view?
Would you sing me a song,
Happy or blue?
