The Absurd Reality of the Thing we Christians Call a Jesus Date

To Sabbath means to stop and rest in God. So Sabbath is a pretty big and fancy Christian term but I like to call my Sabbath days: “Jesus dates”. Sounds more personal and fun, and that’s how I like to think of my God. It’s pretty weird though, to tell people I’m going on a date with Jesus, as many get confused and think I’m just talking about some boy, but no I’m seriously spending time with my savior, the Son of God. It’s pretty darn weird. I know that, and I admit that. Following Jesus is weird period.

How to go on a date with Jesus: So how does this absurd Christian thing work??

Well everyone likes to rest differently, but the point is to spend some time with Jesus and in doing so be refreshed in your soul and feel more deeply connected with God.

For me: my love language (if you don’t know what a love language is click here) is quality time. So to feel close to God and well rested, that means that I need to do a solo hangout with God. Here’s a typical Jesus date of mine.

Get All Prettied-up

I’m going on a date, so of course I wanna look good! My friends will comment on my cute outfit and extra makeup and ask whom I’m trying to impress. Uhm well the King of the Universe, no big deal. Haha no really, I know that Jesus doesn’t care about such silly things as the outward appearance (Bible nerd time: “For God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart” (1 Samuel 16:7).) But I get ready to make it special. I treat it like I would a real date, because in my eyes it is real. So I get dressed up and all pretty and it puts me in the right mindset. Plus it’s fun!

Coffee Shop It Up

Yup. I start off my day by letting Jesus take me out for a cup of chai tea. He’s so kind, he buys me scones and lets me eat all of them. Such a cool guy. But of course we “shall not live by bread alone” (Matthew 4:4) so after I’ve settled into the coffee shop vibe it’s Bible time!

Word of God

Then I take out my hefty bible (shout out to the bro and sis for buying me an epic journal bible) and read my daily devotional. I try to read a little of the bible everyday just to practice my spiritual disciplines (aka scripture, prayer, worship, etc). But Jesus rewards my sacrifice of carrying around my huge bible (these things are heavy!) by letting me see more of His character in the stories it contains.

Pen to Paper

I’m a huge fan of journaling. I like to write in my journal as if I’m writing a letter to Jesus. That way I’m directing talking to God and it becomes a type of prayer. Also if you haven’t ever written out your prayers before, I would highly recommend it! Sometimes I forget what I’ve asked for and don’t even realize when God answers. But when I look back at my journal, I realize the many ways God has indeed been answering my prayers and it’s pretty amazing. Still waiting for God to write me a letter back one of these days though. Postage from heaven is pretty rare I hear.

Hammock time

So once the coffee shop baristas start staring at me and wondering when I’m going to leave already, I figure it’s best to go hang outside. Literally, in my ENO hammock. I love being outside (incase you haven’t noticed) so that’s what I tend to do to feel refreshed. It’s just easy to look around at the beauty of nature and see God. He created all of it! How mind-blowing and creative, right!

Prayer

My prayer muscles need a workout, because I find them pretty weak when I pray alone. I get distracted really easily when I’m praying by myself (that’s why I journal my prayers to keep me focused) but I still try to practice prayer. So typically I set a goal-time of about a half hour to earnestly lift prayers up to God. I pray thanks, I pray fears, and I just talk to God and let him know how I’m doing. Then I try to practice listening prayer to make room for God to talk back to me.

YUP

That’s typically how it goes, and I feel so refreshed and awakened afterwards. I know that my God is near to me and that He loves spending time with me. Plus, when I think about how He probably thinks of our dates as super cute and endearing I get all teary eyed.

But everyone is different and everyone should find a way that works for them to spend time with Jesus. If being alone leaves you feeling weird, take a friend along with you to intentionally hang with Jesus together. If being outside isn’t your thing, don’t force it! You know what you’d enjoy! Get out there and let Jesus take you on a date already! He wants to, believe me.