Last week Alvin wrote an article, then preached a sermon on Sunday to help launch us into our summer plan. He used the word “Discipline” — a word that most of us don’t like very much. We all know we need it, but it is just too hard! We just don’t seem to have enough willpower. It often just takes too much work, right? But most of us really know we need it in several areas of life.
- Disciplined eating habits: Because when we don’t discipline our food intake it shows! And we are so physically uncomfortable.
- Disciplined exercise: These days so many of us use our phone to make sure we get enough steps in each day! Or we join a gym to make sure that we get the full work out needed!
- Disciplined sleeping habits: Some have a phone that counts the hours that we sleep, and if we are lacking we take medication to see if we can get it right.
- Disciplined financial budgeting and planning: to make sure we stay on target to reach certain financial goals!
Why do we go to so much work to try to ‘fix’ certain parts of our lives, YET we treat the most important part of our life – our Spiritual Life – with such casualness?
This is our Summer of 2023.
I am excited to lay out for us the challenge of how to grow in the Spiritual Disciplines that God has laid out for every one of us… young or old; rich – poor – or middle class; from any background or culture; no matter what your skill level is or achievements in life. Just like the human disciplines or physical exercise and health are for all people of all stations in life, these are the disciplines that you need to live on for the rest of your life.
Here are the 7 Spiritual Disciplines for the summer – and the Sunday they will be taught:
- Prayer Life: (guest speaker Scott Brewer)
- June 4th
- June 11th
- God’s Word:
- June 18th
- June 25th
- Gathering:
- July 2nd
- July 9th
- Sharing Your Faith: (guest speaker Kevin Perry on July 30)
- July 16
- July 30
- Giving: (guest speaker Ron Shepard)
- July 23
- August 6
- Rest: (guest speaker Don Turner)
- August 11, 12, 13 (at our Family Camp Weekend at Black Lake Camp Olympia)
- Worship:
- August 27
- September 3
I am using 8 different speakers throughout the summer (4 of them are outside guests to our church). I will be here all summer growing in the disciplines together, but I specifically invited some longtime friends of mine because we get the chance to hear from new voices and experiences of those who have walked this journey. Each week we will have an article in the LifeWay Innerview newsletter from some of our church leaders and how the spiritual habits can impact our lives. What I am trying to say is that this Summer can be life transformational if you allow it. If you are gone during the summer for a vacation, then please I encourage you to get online and listen to the message and work your way through the disciplines. Let it shape the rest of your life! You will be able to look back and realize that the Summer of 2023 could be the most transformational summer you have ever had. Not because of an amazing vacation, but because you began to implement Spiritual Habits that become as natural as breathing.
Introducing Scott Brewer: I have asked my friend of 30 years Scott Brewer to be a guest preacher/teacher for us for these first two Sunday’s in June, and to teach about the Spiritual Habit of Prayer. I came to know Scott and his wife Sherrie when they planted Meadowbrook Community Church in Redmond Washington in the late 1980’s. For a several years we met together with four other Church planters in the Puget Sound area (we were all part of the PSBA cooperative), and he has for all these years been a trusted friend all these years. I am honored to have Scott come these two Sunday’s. Plus, it gives me a chance to do what I love… and lead our worship team for these weeks. Come prepared to take notes and learn from Scott’s experience.
LifeWay Spiritual Habits Lab: On Wednesday June 14 we are following the two Sunday’s of teaching with ‘lab’ on ‘how to’ develop the practice of a regular Prayer Life. Meet Alvin and me in the annex on that date (youth group will be going on in the auditorium).
See you this Sunday morning at 10am as we grow in our Spiritual Habits together.
