A Serious Devotional for the Not-So-Serious: A 30 Day Devotional with Serious Spiritual Thoughts for Those Who Don’t Take Life Too Seriously

By Mike Neumann

Do you take life too seriously? Or, do you absolutely not take life seriously at all? This book is for you. Somewhere in-between the two? Well, come on down. Dig in to some of the stories in the Bible and how they impact and direct your life, and enjoy the mix of deep thoughts, powerful wisdom, and intermingling laughs along the way.

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: May 6, 2021
• ISBN: 9781664223196

Book preview

Copyright © 2021 Mike Neumann.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means,

graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by

any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author

except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

WestBow Press

A Division of Thomas Nelson & Zondervan

1663 Liberty Drive

Bloomington, IN 47403

www.westbowpress.com

844-714-3454

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in

this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views

expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the

views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models,

and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®,

Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995

by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. www.Lockman.org

ISBN: 978-1-6642-2318-9 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-6642-2320-2 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-6642-2319-6 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2021902857

WestBow Press rev. date: 05/03/2021

To my

wife Kathryn.

For your love, devotion, and laughs.

Also your chocolate chip cookies are the best.

Like really. No one is better.

Contents

Introduction

Day 1 The Quiet Place

Day 2 Spiritual Vagrant

Day 3 Fear or Faith

Day 4 Your Guide to Being A Super Christian

Day 5 A Day in the Life

Day 6 Do I Stand or Do I Bow Now

Day 7 Divine Combat

Day 8 Living on a Prayer Life

Day 9 Oh the Things You can Positively Think

Day 10 A Tale of Two Brothers

Day 11 Good Grief

Day 12 Vanity of Vanities

Day 13 End Game

Day 14 Joyful Joyful

Day 15 Get Back Cupid

Day 16 Heart of the Issue

Day 17 Laying Down the Law

Day 18 Shine Bright

Day 19 The Man Behind the Curtain

Day 20 Justly Merciful

Day 21 A Long Time Coming

Day 22 Faithfulness of Christ

Day 23 My Personal Friend Jesus

Day 24 The Chosen One

Day 25 Original Sin

Day 26 The Reckoning

Day 27 The Crowning of the King

Day 28 Deep Dish Discoveries

Day 29 Hold the Line

Day 30 Faithfully Thinking

Epilogue

About the Author

References

Introduction

If you’re like me, then you grew up going to church. If you’re like me (and how could you not be), then you grew up with Christians of all sorts. And if you’re like me, certain of those personalities clicked better with you than others. Let me see if this all sounds familiar.

You might be in a typical church if:

• You know people who answer, How are you with an emphatic, I’m blessed!

• You know people who sing loud and proud, though they are woefully off key.

• You know people who will smile, even if their dog just got run over.

• You know people who are grumpy despite singing about the joy of Christ.

• You know people who use the sermon to think of deep things (with their eyes closed because they need to focus).

• You know the person who sprints to the door once the last song is sung like it’s the buzzer at a basketball game.

• You know the person who is there because, well, it’s the right thing to do.

Does this sound like your church? Here’s the secret: that’s every church. Every church has a mix of people with their own experiences, personalities, hopes, and wounds. They all influence who we become and how we come before God. Luckily, God has given us a sense of humor. I think that’s one of His traits that often gets overlooked. I mean, if He created people, then He must have a sense of humor.

Here’s how I imagine this book will work: there will be a Bible passage to read. Start off with a reading so you get the context we are working with. Then there is the meditation regarding the passage. There will be some questions to consider at the end for journaling, to use with groups, or just to make yourself feel super smart. Whatever it may be, make sure to start this process with prayer. Ultimately this is about what God is teaching you and doing in and through you. The book is meant to have a conversational, laid back tone. For some of you who have read other devotionals, this will be a bit different than those.

If you see these people (or even yourself) and can’t help but smile and shake your head, then this book is for you. If you’re taking life a bit too seriously, then this book is for you (though you may not enjoy it as much). This book gives you some serious thoughts couched in a humorous take. I have found that humor can make truths easier to handle. It diffuses situations that can be hard. My prayer is that this book gives you some thoughts regarding God’s word and allows you to enjoy life while interacting with it. May you be blessed in this process. May you be filled with joy.

Day One

The Quiet Place

Read: 1 Kings 19:9-18

My wife’s family is a loud family. They are from a suburb an hour west of Chicago, which is part of what’s called, Chicagoland. They are loud, out there, and jovial. My family, on the other hand, are from quiet northern Wisconsin. I remember when our families first met at a place in Wisconsin Dells called Mr. Pancake. My mom and I shrunk away in our seats as her family met us there and exclaimed their joy with the thunder of the heavens. Since then both parties have learned how to cope with each other’s personalities.

I’ve always had a quieter personality. For me, I can think better in the quiet moments of life. Don’t get me wrong: I love a rip roarin’ concert. Nothing gets the blood pumping and gets you feeling alive like a driving bass line and electric guitar. When I need to think though, I prefer solitude. For me, that’s when God really does His work. I think that’s why this Bible story always meant a lot. Now, some of you reading this may not be the quiet people. Maybe for you, the excitement and drive of life is what’s up for you. Perhaps this story helps make the best of those quiet times you have.

39690.png

Recalling the Bible passage you read today I want you to take a second to look at the story just before this. You see that Elijah is not having a great day. He isn’t seeing huge conversions, lives changed, or the church giving out Prophet Appreciation gifts. In fact, in the first eight verses of this chapter, Elijah has a hit out for him by the queen of the