I was
really excited to be part of the riding portion of the class; I love the
opportunity to learn by doing. So last
Wednesday I rode for three and half hours.
I think I traveled maybe a mile or two in slow circles. The class is made up of many different people
with different experience levels. I have
had my permit for 3 months if you subtract the winter, and have driven over
1000 miles on my scooter. Some of the others
in the class were sitting on a motorcycle for the first time. So at times the riding was very slow paced
and boring and I didn’t not feel the challenge the way first time riders were
challenge.
We spent the first half of the
class learning how to use a clutch. My
first 3 cars were stick and using a clutch is really the same on a bike as a
car. Others in the class had never even
driven with a clutch in a car. For you
who have driven stick you realize that it is about getting the feel of the
clutch and the friction zone, although challenging at first it over time it begins
to feel like second nature. So we rocked
back and forth over and over again to get the feel. This first half of class was boring, I was
not being challenged. Ever feel like you
have already heard it all before? That
was the feeling I was having at this point.
The next part of class we started
to weave though cones and practice driving skills. This part of the class was
great! I had opportunity to practice
shifting up and down through gears. I
drive a scooter and my scooter does not have gears or a clutch, but for the
class we use regular motorcycles. Most
people drove around in first gear. But
this was my opportunity to practice shifting through the gears. This part of the class flew by, and we were
done in no time. I left feeling confident
in my ability to shift a motorcycle.
This was a skill I knew I needed to learn.
As I thought about my experience, I
realized that we can trapped in these same kind of situation in life. And I think this can also play out in the
church, we can get stuck in circle of learning and study then what should be life-giving
sucks the life from us. We go from
service to service or Bible study to Bible study without first putting in to
practice the new things we have learned.
Could it be that what we lack is forward motion? We have the fuel we just have to get our
hearts in gear!
Many times in Church we are tempted
to put in the minimum, we do not want to busy up our lives. I could have done the same thing if I just
rode like my peers in class, and stayed in first gear. But, then the second part of class would have
been as disappointing as the first. When
we put in minimum effort we get minimum results and quickly lose interest. Listen to Paul’s Challenge.
1 Corinthians 9:25-27 (NIV)
Everyone who competes in the games
goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we
do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like someone
running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. No, I strike a blow to my body and make
it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be
disqualified for the prize.
Paul
is talking about maximum effort and focusing on purposeful development, “Strict
Training” and “not aimless”. In church
do you find yourselves repeating steps over and over again, failing to take the
challenges we face whenever we are confronted with God’s Word? Is the time we spend between Bible studies
and sermons time we are training ourselves or are we just coasting? When
we allow God’s word to live in us and work in us, I believe we truly understand
what it means to live. When we follow
God’s word we put in extreme effort and see extreme results. Because knowing God’s word is only important
if we do what is say.
James 1:22-25 (NLT)
But
don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are
only fooling yourselves. For if you listen to the word and don’t
obey, it is like glancing at your face in a mirror. You see
yourself, walk away, and forget what you look like. But if you
look carefully into the perfect law that sets you free, and if you do what it
says and don’t forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it.
To escape the circle we get caught in we need
to:
… Know where you need God’s impact on your
lives and make the most of any opportunity you have to hear God’s word. Look in
the mirror and get to know yourself and be real about where you need to be
changed. Then like I did in my class take
advantage of the time you find yourself in the circle to think through and
prepare for the change you need to make. Then even if you find yourself in the circle,
you are prepared to take time to listen to what God is telling YOU.
… Put ourselves in situation where we can be
stretched. Find opportunities to serve
God that are out of the routine. You know
the routine you have been living. Paul
challenges us to train like an athlete.
For the average person this means a change of routine, couch potatoes
and athletes have significantly different lifestyles. Take that step respond to God in your life
and see what happens. James calls the
results a blessing!
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