February 2011 Sketchings:

“A ‘Quick Start’ Guide”

I’m a man, for goodness sake, so I tend to not want to have much to do with “Owner Manuals”. I tend to not take time to read the directions and I ignore instructions.

I really like the “Quick Start Guides” that come with most gadgets these days. Usually they are only a few pages, a fraction of the size and complexity of the full manual. In a few easy steps on can find out all one needs to know to set up and operate fancy equipment without digging through all the details of a think manual.

“Just tell me what I know to get this thing going!” The Quick Start Guide is just the ticket as far as I’m concerned.

A “Quick Start Guide” to faith could be a good thing too. Of course, we have the full manual for faith and our relationship with God – it’s called “The Bible”. But what are the few basics that lay a foundation to get things headed in the right direction and help keep my relationship with Jesus on track?

These “marks of discipleship” might serve for our “Quick Start Guide” to faith:

1) Worship. Weekly worship of God in the community of faith is essential for our faith. In the community we are encouraged by and offer encouragement to other worshipers, humans/sinners just like us. In worship we let God know that we believe God is “worthy” of honor, praise and our undivided attention for a while. You see, worship isn’t about us. Worship is all about God and the prayer, praise and thanksgiving we bring to God. The Psalmist said, “Enter into his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise.” (Psalm 100:4)

2) Pray. Prayer is a deep conversation with God. Prayer is the way in which we build a relationship with God, just like we build a relationship with another human through sharing and conversation. Taking time, even short moments of time, to pray deepens our sense of God’s presence and gives God some time to reveal God’s self to us. Prayer isn’t just our telling God what we want, need, think, but pausing in silence to give God a chance to “speak” with us.

3) Bible Study and Devotion. Sometimes, the “quick start guide” doesn’t give me enough information and I have to turn to the full manual. The same is true in our faith. We’ve got to dig into the Bible, the Word of God, to find directions for the bigger picture in life. The use of daily devotional booklets, like “Our Daily Bread”, coupled with a time of reflection and Bible reading open our spirits for deeper insights into God’s grace and love and calling upon our lives. A program of “reading through the Bible in a Year” (i.e. http://www.oneyearbibleonline.com/) is one way to create the discipline of reading.

4) Generosity. Generosity with our resources, time and money, is one of the ways in which we are able to put life in perspective. In generosity we make a statement that we are not the center of the universe. God is the center. God is the provider. God owner of everything and simply gifts us with what we want to call our own. In generosity, we return to God portions of what is already God’s to give evidence to our sense that life is a gift for which we have deep thanks and for which we are deeply grateful. The biggest temptation is always to take care of ourselves first and bring God what is left – if anything. The basic principle here, though, is to be generous with God first (in worship, in prayer, in Bible Reading and devotion and in sharing of time and money). It is to recognize God’s ownership by first returning to God what is God’s already. What we want to say is “I don’t have the time/money.” The truth is we don’t have anything, all of it is already God’s. So by first being generous by returning to God a portion of our blessings, we always have it, it is always readily available. From there God is able to bless His abundance into the rest of life. It is like the popular routine of how many rocks and pebbles will fit into a container. If one starts with the little pebbles, there isn’t room for the big rocks. But if one starts with the big rocks (the most important things – the basis of generosity) there is always room for much more than one might expect of the smaller rocks and pebbles.

I like the idea of a “Quick Start Guide.” I like the idea of some simple steps to deepen my walk with Jesus.

I’m praying for God’s full abundance to, as we walk the walk of faith in 2011, as we enjoy the wonders of God’s baptismal grace”

T. O. M.