{"id":19922,"date":"2018-10-20T13:31:22","date_gmt":"2018-10-20T17:31:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/pitmanumc.org\/wp\/?p=19922"},"modified":"2018-12-17T12:17:56","modified_gmt":"2018-12-17T16:17:56","slug":"pastors-ponderings-time-to-sharpen-your-blade","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pitmanumc.org\/wp\/?p=19922","title":{"rendered":"Pastor’s Ponderings: Time to Sharpen Your Blade?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Is your Christian life a burden?\u00a0 Shouldn’t it be a Joy to follow and serve Christ?!?\u00a0 If life is a burden, maybe you need to “sharpen your blades” and re-connect with God.\u00a0\u00a0 Pastor Jim wrote the following article for the October issue of Steeple Notes (our church newsletter)…<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n\n\t\t

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\u201cIf the ax is not sharp and he does not make it sharp, then he must use more strength. Wisdom helps one to do well.<\/span>\u201d<\/p>\n

Ecclesiastes 10:10, New Living Version<\/p>\n\t\t<\/div> \n\t\t\t<\/div> \n\t\t<\/div> \n

As I was watching the lawn service caring for the grounds at the church a couple of days ago, I began to think back when I was cutting the grass when I was a boy. Back then, our family did not have a motorized lawn mower . Dad use to have one of those manual lawn mowers which needed to be pushed by and. Some of you reading this may remember those \u201cantiques.\u201d Quite frankly, cutting the small patch of grass we called a back yard in Delanco was not a big deal IF I did what Dad had instructed. You see, he told me repeatedly to keep the blades sharp. He even gave me the files and showed me how to sharpen the blades.\"\"<\/p>\n

I learned very quickly that if I let the blades become dull, I had to work harder , perspire more, and become frustrated about how difficult the job was. Yet, as I listened to my father’s instructions, used the tools he had given me, the work was enjoyable, and the results made me proud.<\/p>\n

I see a valuable spiritual lesson in that real story from my childhood. We must keep our spiritual blades sharp at all times. I fear that too many well intentioned disciples of Christ try to serve God and the church, but are using spiritual blades which have become dull. Using dull spiritual blades can lead to frustration, increased difficulty, rob us of the joy of serving, and will not produce lasting fruit for the Church.<\/p>\n

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IS IT TIME TO SHARPEN YOUR SPIRITUAL BLADES?<\/span><\/h3>\n

God provides us with the tools to keep our blades sharp. God has invited us to have an active prayer life, communicating with God at least on a daily basis, hopefully several times a day and participating in worship consistently where we can sing, pray, be stretched, challenged, encouraged, and enjoy fellowship with our sisters and brothers in Christ.<\/p>\n