Hey all,
A little later than usual getting this to you this week. Monday was a travel day to Dallas and today was day one of the conference. And a good day it was!
This past Sunday we talked about spiritual maturity being a process, a process that is lifelong. We will not be all that we are created to be until we stand in the presence of Jesus one day but we all need to continue to “grow in wisdom and in favor with God and all the people.”
How do we grow spiritually? No matter our age, we need to continue to study – not just read – the Bible. While we might read the Bible in a year are we really digging in and understanding? Do you check different translations to see how they read? Do you have any commentaries to see what other scholars think the passage means? How about checking the Hebrew and Greek words being used? Both of those languages are much richer than English. Take the commandment “Thou shalt not kill (Deut. 5:17)” for example. Do you know there are seven different Hebrew words for kill? And don’t forget the word “love” that we have talked about as in love the Lord or love your neighbor or your enemy? I know of four different Greek words for love. These varying words can easily change the meaning or the intent of a passage. Try journaling and keeping a notebook of what you have read, what it means to you and how you can apply the lessons to your life,
Prayer is our means of communication. Do you have an active prayer life? Do you take the bulletin home and pray for any of those listed on the prayer requests again during the week? Do you pray for others first and then your needs? This morning we began our conference with prayer…lots of prayer. We covered a few passages of scripture and then prayed for its application in our lives or in the lives of our churches. Then we dug into a few more verses and prayed again. At the end of the day, how do you think we ended it? That’s right in prayer…people on their knees, people at the platform, people in the hallways all praying.
We must all be in community as well. There are over 3000 church leaders from around the world here. Sherry and I had lunch this afternoon with a young lady who is the creative director in her church in Lubbock. Lubbock isn’t a foreign country but it is far enough away it could be. We talked to people from Springfield, MO and saw people from Florida and even our old congregants from FBC Augusta. All of us in one place for the purpose of being in community with likeminded people – people striving to be better at their ministries.
What are you doing to grow spiritually and in wisdom? It should be purposeful and done with intention. There is always something new to learn, new prayers to be said, and new people to meet and learn from. Don’t shy away from it or think you are too old to learn…as long as your living, you should be learning.
Learning is not attained by chance, it must be sought for with ardor and diligence. Abigail Adams
Intellectual growth should commence at birth and cease only at death. Albert Einstein
P.R.
