Reaching and making a Connecting
As someone is drowning, struggling, fighting for life, they will grab anything nearby. As we see someone struggling, with the water rolling over their head, we long to see them live. We reach out, give them the help we need, give them hope and a reason to hang on. As we encounter others in our life, as sure is the day waits for no one, there are folks struggling with their own life, their self understanding. The waves of the world are crashing around them. You have something to give them hope, a way out of the water, and that is your personal experience of Christ and how Christ brought you back up to the surface.
As a child, I used to love puzzles, one of the puzzles I loved the most were connect-the-dots. It was amazing to see how a few lines could bring a bunch of dots on a page, to life. I still like puzzles, and have noticed the greatest puzzle around. We are all dots on a page, waiting to be connected by another, giving us new meaning and a new understanding of life. A dot on a page is lonely, but when they are connected they bring joy and laughter to all who can see the beauty in the picture.
Growing and Serving
Walking around East Texas, looking at everything, I can't help but see the changes. The bushes, trees, flowering plants, and oh, the grass! All are shaped, formed and manicured in such a way that they are reflections of what it is that is in store for them. Squirrels too. They play and prepare for the winter. They know what is in store for them, even if it is in the temperamental weather of East Texas. They want to be ready for all they may encounter. God calls us all to grow, to strengthen our faith. You have talents, you have potential, but without the development of such you tend to forget, leaving you unprepared for what is to come.
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Discipleship
To be a disciple means to live in such a way that you resemble the one to whom you want to be like. Coaches stand before their athletes and demand to be followed in every way. Political parties require those members to be reflections of their beliefs and policy, yet these are not disciples.
Disciples are those who have been so moved by another that they CHOOSE to live in such a way that even though their leader or mentor may be gone, you see the many characteristics of the one who is gone in the disciple. They have changed the way they act in favor of a better way. Those who are moved by Christ, live their life in a way that is a reflection of all that Christ found important and essential to life. Discipleship is about service to God and service to others.
