The first category that I want to share in my resolutions for 2011 deals with spiritual matters. I hesitate to even mention 'spiritual' because so many different people think different things about the word. It's like saying "I believe in God". Unless you're a strict atheist you believe in a 'god' just not 'the God' of the Bible. Or it's like saying "I'm a Christian" without including the 'Christ' upon which Christianity is based. I have much more respect for those who say "I'm not a Christian and here's why" compared to someone who claims to be a Christian and believe in the Bible, but who lives and believes completely opposite.
I admit that many can be spiritual without being a Christian. I have many friends and family that are spiritual, but do not believe as I do.
I find it hard to separate my spiritual category from the other categories, especially financial and family. What I'm saying is that what I believe about God, myself, and the world affects everything I do, or at least it should. Do you live in a way that what you believe affects what you do or do you say you believe one thing but have your actions demonstrate the opposite. In other words, are you living consistently with what you believe? While this may seem like I'm pointing out at you, I'm actually pointing back at myself and evaluating what I say and do based on what I believe. Do you see how to me 'spiritual' means something a little deeper than just a word I want to throw around?
With that being said, here are some of my resolutions for the upcoming year:
1) Memorize a book of the Bible
Yes, a whole book. I will try to memorize the book of Philippians this year, verse-by-verse. I have memorized some scripture passages in the past, but nothing like a whole book. There are many in my church who are doing this as well, which is an encouragement to me.
So why memorize the Bible? Well, I believe that life is found there. Because I believe the God who created me also wrote the Bible and preserved it, I believe that it's more than an ancient document, I believe it's living and active and gives me all that I need in this life. As I memorize, I also meditate. This means I purposely take the time to see what God is saying. Another reason for studying and memorizing a book is that verses are less likely to be taken out of context. For example, the book of Philippians was an actual letter written by Paul to a church at Philippi. While God wrote the book through Paul (contact me if you have questions about this), he wrote to a specific people. There was an author and an audience of the letter, much like if we were to write a letter today. We must understand what Paul meant then in order for us to understand what he means now. The easiest way to do this is to read and the study the book in it's context. You wouldn't read one paragraph that I wrote to you alone, you'd read it along with the other paragraphs, shouldn't we do the same with the Bible? I know this sounds like work, and it is, but it's worth it. I enjoy verse-by-book reading, studying, and preaching of the Bible because you aren't allowed to skip verses you don't like or that are controversial. To me it's being more faithful to the text.
The quick answers for me memorizing scripture is: conformity to Christ, triumph over sin, triumph over Satan, and communion with God. It is amazing how often I will study a passage of the Bible and within the next few days something will happen in my life causing me to reflect on what I've been studying. It's almost like God says "remember what you read in my Word, well here's your chance to apply it". Amazing!
Of course with a goal, there needs to be a plan. Thankfully, I found this post: http://timmybrister.com/2010/12/20/partnering-to-remember-the-2011-philippians-memory-moleskine/. Along with that, I have some in my church and my small group who are doing the same. Taking a few verses at a time and doing a lot of review is my plan. I'm on week 2 so far. While some of it is challenging, I am enjoying it. I find myself dwelling on the verses throughout the day. I don't think I'd be able to make some of the personal application without the work of memorizing and meditating.
2. Serve my church more
While this goal could be used in a different category, I decided to put it here. We're thankful that the Lord directed us to our church. In 2011, we plan to serve more. Initially, that means serving on a set-up team. We currently meet in the cafeteria of Hebron Christian Academy, which means that each week a team needs to set up for the Sunday morning service and take down after the service. This involves chairs as well as all of the children's supplies. Volunteers are asked to serve on one Sunday a month as a team. Practically, this means leaving our house an hour or so earlier and getting home about 45 minutes later. We're not sure how much is involved, but we are glad that we are able to contribute, plus it will be at least one week a month when we won't be late for church. :)
We also plan to serve our church through BASE groups. In general, BASE groups are small groups that meet in homes and live life together. They study the Bible, pray for each other, and serve the Lord together. This is not your typical Sunday school class, it's much more informal and involves people being real, sharing their struggles, and their ups and downs. As you read through the Bible, you'll notice that small groups meet a lot. Do you have this type of community? Even if you're not a Christian, do you have this type of environment to share with others what's going on in your life? As you might expect, this can be hard work, it can get messy. What happens if your child is rebelling against you, your spouse is cheating on you, you just lost your job, your parent just passed away, all those things and more can create a mess in your family. I feel it's times like these that make small groups real. They are having problems as well. To summarize how I view BASE groups is basically: broken people living in a broken world seeking to live in community with each other and the God who made them. That won't always be pretty and nice, but hopefully it will be real and authentic.
We also plan to serve in the children's ministry at the church. We love the curriculum that our church uses for children. Stephanie and I went to a conference a few years ago in Chattanooga, TN where the curriculum was featured. It builds on each year meaning that what they learn this year will help what they learn next year. It is very God centered, rather than man-centered. So many kids classes focus on telling kids how good they are rather than telling them about God. The result is that kids really don't think they need Jesus that much because after all, they are pretty good. The man-centered lessons also focus more on bible stories rather than the application of those stories to their hearts. They may learn about David and Goliath, Jonah and the Whale, Noah and the Ark, and others, but they don't learn that God fought for Israel through David, Jonah tried to run from God, but couldn't, and that God judged the world with a flood while saving Noah, his family, and some animals. Do you see the difference? The Children Desiring God lessons focus on two main things when looking at scripture, 1. What does this say about God? 2. What does this say about me? If we could apply those two questions to our bible reading, then we'll be doing well. I'm looking forward to studying the lessons and helping to teach them.
Through our small group and the church in general we plan to keep our ears open for areas in which we (as a family) might be able to serve more.
On a side note, I found out yesterday that my Aunt Sharon in WV passed away. She was battling a long fight with cancer and other health problems. I remember visiting my aunt when I was a little boy. The lasting memory of her in my mind was when my grandad passed away and we both were at his house (I stayed there a lot when I was little and we watched wrestling and Braves baseball together). I went to wake him up but he wouldn't. I went on the porch and told my aunt and immediately saw her expression change as she ran to his room. The next thing I remember is the ambulance arriving and my mom hugging me on the couch. While my grandad was older, his death was less expected than my aunt who was battling with cancer for a while. The doctors let everyone know that the likelihood of her surviving was small. I don't know the spiritual state of my aunt before she passed. I do know this though, everything bad that we can think of in this world pales in comparison to an eternity without God after this world. At moments like this, I trust God more than myself. Not because he sees the heart, because there is nothing, absolutely nothing in us that would be commendable to Him, but because He is good and all that He does is good. Please pray for those who are dealing with the loss of my aunt, particularly her husband Martin and her sisters, my mom and my Aunt Doris.
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