Church

Today, I’m sitting at my office desk, taking a break.  I started off the day approving some advertizing, visiting another pastor as we deal with pastoral “things” in Kindersley.  Then I arrived at the church as Dan Driedger set up for personal interviews on finances (see my previous entry on our weekend financial seminars).  Now, I’ve just cleaned up some administration and it’s already 11:25 in the morning.

This 15 minute break is just a time to sit down and reflect.  I’ve been preaching full-time at Kindersley for the last year and a bit.  Sunday I heard two or three people mention things that they remember from sermons I have preached.  This is humbling — of course, every once in a while I get those who disagree with me which is humbling in a different way!!

My wife says I look at things in different ways and my hope is that I can portray that in such a way that people will understand.  I do not want to be heretical — or seen to be heretical because people don’t understand what I am saying.  My prayer is often — “God, give me words so others will understand what I think I see clearly.”

I remember sitting at my brother’s bed a few months before he died from cancer.  I made a remark that I thought was fairly clear.  Even at that point my brother didn’t understand what I was saying.  His comment was that I had made comments most of my life that people didn’t understand even though I understood them!  That started me on a renewed emphasis to say what I mean in such a way that others will know what I mean –do you know what I mean??

Today Dan Driedger came to present some financial seminars.  Jill and I sat in on the retirement planning.  Very well presented — discipline is a big factor.

Tomorrow we head into two further sessions — one on estates and wills and the other on growing  your money without selling your soul!

Never knew money could be such fun!  I’m not a subscriber to “prosperity gospel”, but I am a subscriber to a God for whom the prosperity of my soul is a primary concern.  I’m “rich in faith and hope and love” as an older but still popular Gaitherish song goes!

We have just had a look at our furnace duct work under our house.  Not a pretty sight.  Next week we will need to get some further advice.

Basically water has rusted out some of the duct work.  There are some options, none of which is without expense and time.

In the midst of all this, I’m pushing myself to trust God.  Seems like a small thing to start with him first.  But in most of life I start with him after the figuring out, the advise seeking and the calculated scenarios.  This time I sense a need to do all of the above, after I first get a personal chat with God.  And that chat is just a little reminder to God that not everything goes right all the time.  I’m trusting him to make this one of those “learning experiences.”  And if God has something further, I guess I want to be open.

So, here is my night prayer.

“God, keep me open.  Don’t let my worries overwhelm me.  Bring joy in the morning and throughout the night!”

Good night!

There is a book I have just started reading.  “Love and Respect” by Emerson Eggerichs.

A little over a year ago, a friend of mine was teaching the principles from this book.  He claimed it to be one of the best approaches to marriage that he had encountered.  He has done counselling for over two decades.  So, I was interested!

I checked out the website.  Some good things there.

But not until this week had I run across the book easily accessible to me.  And at price I was ready to give.

The premise is that men are to love women in marriage — women to respect men.  Then a marriage will function well.

I’m interested to see how this relates to other premises I have heard about well functioning marriages.  Without delving too far into the book, I suspect that when a man loves a women he is providing security for her.  When a woman respects a man, she is giving him power in the relationship. 

I could be a long way off — but then, that’s why I like to read books.  The interaction of my thoughts with those of an author make a book another guest around my table!!