Lord willing, next July I will finish 35 years at Memorial Drive. I love the thought of getting to be the preacher here. I share possibly the top five things I have learned while getting to be here...beginning at the bottom and working up:
#5 I needed more help than I would have guessed.
I began ministry believing I was inadequate. It turns out it was much worse than I had
imagined. It seemed at first that God would need to help out on occasion. Not so. He has to
do the work. Mine is to believe him.
#4 PLACE defines and connects.
Jason Thornton introduced us to the can opener of church connection. I never realized the
value of the body as a whole. My immaturity convinced me if all were as me, we would have
an ideal congregation. To learn our PLACE through this fabulous teaching has helped me
back off from paranoia. Plus, it has given me increased confidence that I am not in this
alone...nor is anyone else.
#3 Jesus is to be preached.
I won't spend much time here as I have voiced this recently. There is a church of difference
in preaching Jesus instead of Church of Christ. I had no idea how rugged this move would
be (and still is); but preaching Jesus will upset and bless a church.
#2 The Holy Spirit is active.
For all practical purposes the Holy Spirit was a sure sign of infidelity to those sound in
Church of Christ-ism. Yet, He is the life among and within us. The Bible still tells me so.
To be without the active Holy Spirit is to be a church dependent upon its cumulative
steam...which will always weary in doing good.
#1 God is to be praised
Little did I realize the strength and depth of praising God. I am still in kindergarten. God
is to be praised and the more we honor Him the more He seems to give us to brag about His
handiwork. Church assemblies were why I wasn't looking so forward to heaven for I
assumed it was just eternal church. Praise--authentic and heartfelt--is heavenly to the
soul.
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