Monday, Aug 18, 2008

TWG - August 18, 2008

Download this episode (18 min)   
TWG - August 18, 2008
To Listen to Today’s Reading http://timewithgod.mypodcast.com
Leviticus 26:1-13; Psalm 73; 1 Peter 1


Today is August 18, this is time with God, I’m Pastor Dennis - I’ve been waiting here for you. Welcome to our life transforming community. Together we are strong. As we walk though the word together we help each other grow..

The Lord’s Day is past… Sunday morning I talked about maintaining a positive attitude no mater the circumstances. It seemed to make an impression on quite a few folks. We had a beautiful service and then a great BBQ. Well attended and the people just seemed to enjoy being around each other! That’s what it’s about. William won our free airplane ride from VBS and his dad Chris is pumped about it! We had a great crew of people stick around afterwards to clean up all our canopies and stuff. It was great! Then Susan and I spent a quiet afternoon together. I put a picture of the view of the sunrise from my house on the Blog at http://timewithgod.mypodcast.com. Check it out.

This week’s theme verse is Hebrews 5:11-14 We have much to say about this, and hard to explain, since you are slow to learn. For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God; and you have come to need milk and not solid food. For everyone who partakes only of milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, for he is a babe. But solid food belongs to those who are of full age, that is, those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil. Therefore, leaving the discussion of the elementary principles of Christ, let us go on to maturity"

I have often been in the slow learner row. When I was a kid, I had nightmares about wearing a dunce cap. I don’t know how many times I had to write lines on the board, “I will pay attention in class. I will pay attention in class. I will…” It never helped; I’d just drift off to day dream land a few minutes later. I wasn’t born and bred for book learnin’. I was an adventurer not a scholar! I was dull of hearing and slow to learn. The problem wasn’t intelligence (no snide remarks from the peanut gallery please!) it was focus. It wasn’t so much that I didn’t want to learn… I had the wiggles and the wiggles always won. Understanding the concepts was so difficult and entering the adventure land of day dreams was so inviting. I’m afraid there was much I didn’t learn because I was in another world. And I paid the price for it in bad grades. I don’t think I got over a C + on my report card until I was in High School! I don’t know how many times I had to stay after class to do make up work. Often I was restricted from recess. One year I had to go to a ghastly term of summer school. I pledged that if I ever had kids, I would never inflict such torture upon them! Well, maybe not. There is a purgatory on earth for those of us who refuse to learn and grow. In the material world, slackers end up as life long McDonald’s tellers or career laborers… not that there is anything wrong with entry level work, it’s just that it’s difficult to provide for a family on entry level wages! Who wants to live in a run down apartment with paper thin walls for life and own an old beater for a car that constantly breaks down? The same holds true in the spiritual world. For those of us who refuse to learn and grow in Christ, life becomes stale and barren. Instead of running slow motion through a fragrant field of flowers, we find ourselves getting caught in acres of thorns and briers! Growing in Christ is a necessity. If you ever stop growing in Christ you will become entangled with emotions and encumbered by the cares of this world that will punish you severely. One very important life long commitment is the determination to stay in God’s Word, to Pray, to push the envelope of growth and constantly challenge yourself to new levels of maturity and service for Christ. You’ve just got to grow and blossom into all God wants for you… the alternative is falling into bushels of briers. And you ain’t no Brer Rabbit!

Dear Holy Spirit, be my teacher and my guide. I want to learn from You. Please fill me with the desire to grow and challenge myself to new levels of maturity and ministry. I want to become more and more like Jesus!

You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.”-

Posted by Dennis Kreiss at 10:52 AM |  MAKE A COMMENT  

<< Home