{"id":15222,"date":"2017-06-28T15:26:07","date_gmt":"2017-06-28T19:26:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/pitmanumc.org\/wp\/?p=15222"},"modified":"2017-08-22T09:52:29","modified_gmt":"2017-08-22T13:52:29","slug":"first-camp-meeting-is-an-eye-opening-experience-62517","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pitmanumc.org\/wp\/?p=15222","title":{"rendered":"Eye Opening Experience! (Camp Meeting, 6\/25\/17)"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>

Rev. Bill Wilson<\/p><\/div>\n

Summer!\u00a0 When the end of May hits the calendar our senses are surrounded with a fresh set of experiences: The smell of burgers on the grill… The chlorine-laden breeze of a pool… The sights of sand and beach…\u00a0 The smell of sunblock lotion… The quiet splash of whirling lake water as you paddle a canoe.\u00a0<\/p>\n

But to experience all of that, our senses must be open.<\/p>\n

The speaker at the first service of the 2017 Pitman Camp Meeting was Rev. Bill Wilson, and he focused on our sense of sight.\u00a0 Actually, our sense of Spiritual<\/em> sight.\u00a0 Rev. Wilson’s sermon was based on Jesus’ teaching in Matthew 6:22-23…<\/p>\n

\n

The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are good, your whole body will be full of light.\u00a0 But if your eyes are bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!<\/span> <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

 <\/p>\n

Cataracts<\/span><\/h3>\n

Cataracts is a disease that affects many of us as we get older.\u00a0 Our vision isn’t shut off.\u00a0 But gradually, step by step, it becomes more and more clouded.\u00a0 Eventually you get to a point where you can’t make things out.\u00a0 Images are right in front of you but you can’t see them well enough to decipher their meaning.<\/p>\n

The same thing happens to our “Spiritual Vision.”\u00a0 Spiritual Cataracts cloud our vision and dull our ability to see God;\u00a0 to make godly decisions, to take advantage of opportunities to show His love, or to see the hope He supplies in our own desperate situations.<\/p>\n

Rev. Wilson opened our eyes to three “Spiritual Cataracts”…<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

1: Prejudiced Attitudes<\/span><\/h4>\n

Rev. Wilson opened with the following story…<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t

A white man who lived in the Southern US was living a life that constantly led him to God.\u00a0 His experiences built a love of Jesus within his heart, and he longed to tell others about it.\u00a0 So, he was led to go into the ministry, and he traveled north to attend seminary.<\/span><\/p>\n

After he arrived, his southern drawl attracted the attention of another seminarian who spoke with a mid-west accent.\u00a0 He approached the new student and immediately lashed into him about the terribly bigoted ways of the South- “How could you dare to preach the Word of God when you’re so bigoted?!?”<\/span><\/p>\n

The new student was flustered.\u00a0 He loved the Lord.\u00a0 He loved God’s people.\u00a0 He was totally sold out for God, and his life had no room for bigotry.\u00a0 Back home, he had friends who were African American, and he deplored the way that some of his white friends treated people of color.\u00a0 By any objective measure, this man was NOT a bigot.\u00a0<\/span><\/div><\/div>\n

Obviously, the person in this story who suffered from Prejudice was not the Southerner.\u00a0 It was not the one who was being called a bigot.\u00a0 The prejudiced attitude was coming from the mid-western student.<\/p>\n

But he couldn’t see it.\u00a0 Opportunities to grow and learn from a devout follower of Christ were lost because this man’s vision was blinded by the cataract of a Prejudiced Attitude.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

2:Judgemental Attitudes<\/span><\/h4>\n

Each of us is a beloved child of God.\u00a0 Each of us (as Christians) is infused with the Holy Spirit.\u00a0 We all need to be loved, we all need to love, we all need to learn from eachother.\u00a0 We all need God.<\/p>\n

And yet, Spiritual Cataracts can cause us to not view others in the way that God views them.\u00a0 Judgemental Attitudes can cause us to think that we somehow have a corner on God.\u00a0 That we’re right.\u00a0 That they’re wrong.<\/p>\n

My Way or the Highway!<\/p>\n

But God wants us to lead a life where we grow closer to Him by honoring those who He loves.\u00a0 The Spiritual Cataract of a Judgemental Attitude limits our ability to foster a loving attitude which brings us into God’s likeness.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

3:Narrow-Mindedness<\/span><\/h4>\n

Sometimes our minds are set on the things that won’t help us…<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t
The General Manager of a baseball team was convinced that they needed to improve their run production.\u00a0 As his scouts scoured the college and high school fields, the GM demanded that they find the best bat available.\u00a0 They need to score more runs!<\/span><\/p>\n

One scout returned and enthusiastically reported that he had found the best pitcher ever!\u00a0 This guy could throw 100 MPH.\u00a0 He had a devastating curve.\u00a0 His slider was unhittable.<\/span><\/p>\n

The scout said that he saw this prospect pitch a perfect game.\u00a0 Not only that, he struck out 27 batters.\u00a0 He was so dominating that only one opposing batter even made contact; a weak foul tip.\u00a0 Signing this pitcher would be the best scoop of talent any baseball team had ever pulled off.<\/span><\/p>\n

The GM patiently listened to the scout’s account.\u00a0 The scout was sure that he had discovered a player that could turn their team around.\u00a0 But the GM suffered from the Cataract of Narrow-Mindedness.\u00a0 He wanted a hitter.\u00a0 Pure and simple.\u00a0 His team needed a bat.\u00a0 And so he replied to the scout- “I want to sign that batter who hit the foul tip!”<\/span><\/div><\/div>\n

OK.\u00a0 A silly story; best pitcher ever…\u00a0 But don’t we do the same thing?\u00a0 We are so sure that we have the answer, that we know the direction we need to go in.\u00a0 We’re on a one-track path, and when a different idea comes along we’re not able to process it.\u00a0 We can’t take advantage of it because of the Cataract of Narrow-mindedness.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

What if We Cleared up the Cataracts?<\/span><\/h3>\n

Jesus said that if our eyes are clear our hearts will be full of light.\u00a0 Light.\u00a0 Clear eyes allow us to see God’s activity in our lives… and to see the way we’re reacting.\u00a0 Are we obeying God?\u00a0 Are we willing to submit and to let His word be the truth in our lives?\u00a0 If so, we’ll be able to enjoy the blessings of a life lived out in fellowship with God- the way He designed us to be.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\n

 <\/p>\n

Music<\/span><\/h3>\n

The evening’s music was provided by PUMC’s Chris Valianti, and Jennifer Andrade added depth to Chris’ music by signing it.\u00a0\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Chris sang two Casting Crowns songs.\u00a0 The first one (“O Glorious Day”) told us the Truth of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The second\u00a0 (“Voice of Truth”) told us to remove our own cataracts so we can fully depend on God for our strength and to live out the life He has called us to.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

+\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 +\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 +\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 +\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 +\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 +\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 +<\/span><\/p>\n

The Pitman Camp Meeting services are held every Sunday evening in the summer at 7:30 PM.\u00a0 They are located in the Bud Moore Auditorium located in the center of the Pitman Grove area.<\/p>\n

For more information about the Pitman Camp Meeting, click this button:\u00a0 Camp Meeting<\/span><\/a> \u00a0<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\n He talked about 3 “spiritual cataracts”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Summer!\u00a0 When the end of May hits the calendar our senses are surrounded with a fresh set of experiences: The smell of burgers on the grill… The chlorine-laden breeze of a pool… The sights of sand and beach…\u00a0 The smell of sunblock lotion… The quiet splash of whirling lake water as you paddle a canoe.\u00a0 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2214,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[113,50,14],"tags":[181],"class_list":["post-15222","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-pitman-camp-meeting","category-sermons","category-worship","tag-knowinggod"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pitmanumc.org\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15222","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pitmanumc.org\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pitmanumc.org\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pitmanumc.org\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pitmanumc.org\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=15222"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/pitmanumc.org\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15222\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16172,"href":"https:\/\/pitmanumc.org\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15222\/revisions\/16172"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pitmanumc.org\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2214"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pitmanumc.org\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=15222"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pitmanumc.org\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=15222"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pitmanumc.org\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=15222"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}