Reason #942
Is anyone, besides me, shocked by the fact that we are in the last week of August. I know fall doesn't technically start until the end of September, but in my book it starts on September 1. It is almost time for a new season. Summer, which is my favorite, always passes too quickly. But that's how time works it seems. The good things go by the fastest.
School starts tomorrow. Of course, this makes no difference to me since I am not in education and don't have kids. But I remember how excited I was for the start of a new school year when I was in school. Sometimes I still have a hard time believing I am done with school for the rest of my life. Aaron just started working on his masters, and although I'd like to do the same, I also enjoy having free evenings to spend in any way I want. Yet I realize what a blessing it is to learn. I think this is something we have taken for granted, and unfortunately, I don't think many people understand how lucky they are to have the opportunity and the ability to do so.
But the wise never stop learning. That's how they become wise. It's the wise that realize the more they know, the more they have to learn. Just when we start to feel like we've got it down, we've really just scratched the surface. And if we want to be a people of wisdom, a people who continue to grow and flourish and prosper, we have to be sure that we never stop learning.
I remember thinking that once I got out of college, I'd be complete prepared for the corporate world. I quickly realized I knew nothing and was going to have to learn to learn. I was going to have to learn new processes, new procedures, new policies, and new methods. There was no cookie cutter way that was going to happen, either. If I was going to be successful in whatever job I had, it was up to me to learn it. But more than that, I was up to me to really know it, understand it, and apply it. To allow myself to remember what I learned rather than memorizing it so that I could just get by. But I think we're a people of short term memory. A people who don't want to learn new things because learning requires much of us. Learning means we have to really be intentional, diligent, and willing. And why try so hard when you can just Google it or ask someone to do it for you?
But wisdom can't be Googled. No one can be wise for you. And as children of God, we need to learn. We need to learn His word. Study it in a way that sticks. We need to understand it and know it. Because knowing God's word is how we find abundant and eternal life. How do you know what is good and permissible if you never take the time to learn it? How are you positive that you are doing the right thing if you aren't actually sure what it is? You can ask around, but you may very well get different answers. And so how do you know who to listen to and who is misleading you? If you don't learn truth, how can you understand it? How do you live it? Because there are a lot of people who do good things. There are a lot of people with kind hearts and good intentions. But there is a difference between living a good life and living your life for God. We've got to learn that difference, know it, and then do it.
The more we know about God, the more we realize we have a lot to learn. Any teacher will tell you that the student with a willingness and desire to learn is the one that prospers. And a student who applies what has been learned it going to find success. The same works for God's people. We have to be willing to learn. We have to desire to know, and we must apply what we've learned. We can never believe that we've got it all figured out. We have to not only be followers but also students of Christ. We can never stop learning from Him or about Him because that's where we find truth, and that's how we begin to understand the life of faith.
So be willing to learn. Open yourself up to the lessons He desires to teach you. Allow Him to show you great and unsearchable things. He isn't asking you to figure it out. He already knows it all. He just desires to take you deeper and pull you closer. To equip you with all that you need to live out your walk of faith. But only you can choose to learn it, remember it, and apply it. Just know that God's lessons will always be beneficial, applicable, helpful, and life giving.
#942 - Because His lessons are life giving.
"As I learn your righteous regulations, I will thank you by living as I should!" - Psalm 119:7
School starts tomorrow. Of course, this makes no difference to me since I am not in education and don't have kids. But I remember how excited I was for the start of a new school year when I was in school. Sometimes I still have a hard time believing I am done with school for the rest of my life. Aaron just started working on his masters, and although I'd like to do the same, I also enjoy having free evenings to spend in any way I want. Yet I realize what a blessing it is to learn. I think this is something we have taken for granted, and unfortunately, I don't think many people understand how lucky they are to have the opportunity and the ability to do so.
But the wise never stop learning. That's how they become wise. It's the wise that realize the more they know, the more they have to learn. Just when we start to feel like we've got it down, we've really just scratched the surface. And if we want to be a people of wisdom, a people who continue to grow and flourish and prosper, we have to be sure that we never stop learning.
I remember thinking that once I got out of college, I'd be complete prepared for the corporate world. I quickly realized I knew nothing and was going to have to learn to learn. I was going to have to learn new processes, new procedures, new policies, and new methods. There was no cookie cutter way that was going to happen, either. If I was going to be successful in whatever job I had, it was up to me to learn it. But more than that, I was up to me to really know it, understand it, and apply it. To allow myself to remember what I learned rather than memorizing it so that I could just get by. But I think we're a people of short term memory. A people who don't want to learn new things because learning requires much of us. Learning means we have to really be intentional, diligent, and willing. And why try so hard when you can just Google it or ask someone to do it for you?
But wisdom can't be Googled. No one can be wise for you. And as children of God, we need to learn. We need to learn His word. Study it in a way that sticks. We need to understand it and know it. Because knowing God's word is how we find abundant and eternal life. How do you know what is good and permissible if you never take the time to learn it? How are you positive that you are doing the right thing if you aren't actually sure what it is? You can ask around, but you may very well get different answers. And so how do you know who to listen to and who is misleading you? If you don't learn truth, how can you understand it? How do you live it? Because there are a lot of people who do good things. There are a lot of people with kind hearts and good intentions. But there is a difference between living a good life and living your life for God. We've got to learn that difference, know it, and then do it.
The more we know about God, the more we realize we have a lot to learn. Any teacher will tell you that the student with a willingness and desire to learn is the one that prospers. And a student who applies what has been learned it going to find success. The same works for God's people. We have to be willing to learn. We have to desire to know, and we must apply what we've learned. We can never believe that we've got it all figured out. We have to not only be followers but also students of Christ. We can never stop learning from Him or about Him because that's where we find truth, and that's how we begin to understand the life of faith.
So be willing to learn. Open yourself up to the lessons He desires to teach you. Allow Him to show you great and unsearchable things. He isn't asking you to figure it out. He already knows it all. He just desires to take you deeper and pull you closer. To equip you with all that you need to live out your walk of faith. But only you can choose to learn it, remember it, and apply it. Just know that God's lessons will always be beneficial, applicable, helpful, and life giving.
#942 - Because His lessons are life giving.
"As I learn your righteous regulations, I will thank you by living as I should!" - Psalm 119:7