The Weekly Epistle 11/20/19

When there is a job to do around the house, it helps if you have the right tool.  I don’t have many tools in my toolbox at home, but usually have the right tool for the type of tasks I am capable of handling.  If it helps me to accomplish the job, it is a good choice. There is no value in using a tool for the tool’s sake.  
 
This is also true spiritually speaking.  There are many tools to help us grow, but there is very little sense to use it if it doesn’t move us toward growth as a follower of Christ.  But have you noticed, everyone seems to have certain tools that have helped them grow and then turn that into a rule for everyone else to follow?  
 
For example, a great tool for some has been the spiritual discipline of journaling.  Frankly, I am terrible at it. Hopefully you don’t think less of me, but I hardly journal.  I find that from one entry to the next we have had three different presidents. That is a slight exaggeration, but you get my point.  The tool of journaling is just that- a tool. Just don’t turn that into a rule.
 
Same can be said for the spiritual disciplines of prayer, Bible reading, scripture memorization, meditation and other tools that are helpful for our growth.  I remember in my early years of walking with the Lord hearing about men of God getting up at 4 AM to pray and felt guilty that my prayer time was a few hours later when I could actually put two intelligible sentences together.  Or hearing about those who memorized the entire book of Romans or read through the Bible in a year or began and ended their day by reading Scripture. More guilt!  
 
A careful study of Scripture presents spiritual disciplines as tools rather than rules.  We often confuse the prescriptive with the descriptive. There are passages in Scriptures that simply describe what others did.  There are passages in Scriptures that are prescriptive for they clearly tell us what we are to do. But when we turn every story in the Bible into this template, we are to follow rather than pull out principles to learn from we miss the Bible’s point.  
 
What is my point?  Don’t turn tools into rules.  As long as the tools don’t contradict Scripture, then it is ok to try them and I would encourage you to do so.  But if it isn’t working, then try something else. The value in the tool is that it works for you. What are the best tools for you?  Answer that by asking a second question, “Where do I most need to grow?” Answering that can help you pick the right tool for the job.
 
This is on my mind because of this past week’s sermon on the importance of God’s Word to our growth.  What was conspicuously absent from that sermon were some specifics related to Bible study. That was intentional because I did not want to take a tool and turn it into a rule.  It was a sermon meant to persuade you of the Bible’s value in building your life. Each one of us must work that out as to what it looks like in our lives. I hope you have given more thought to your plan for growing in your relationship with Christ through the use of Scriptures.  
 
Wanting to know Him better, Pastor Brian