Committed to Learning

I’ve talked to some young minister’s wives who feel frustrated, even intimidated, because they feel their own Bible knowledge lags so far behind their husband’s or others in the church. Maybe this is the year for you to commit to a class, like a Bethel Bible series, Walk through the Bible, or some other good Bible overview class.

Or maybe you know a lot about the Bible, but you feel you are losing touch with the students and their culture, so you need to commit to reading more (or surfing more!) to learn about what’s out there. Then you can help the students develop “worldview eyes” to see their culture through God’s lenses.

It crossed my mind that we could all make a resolution to learn something new every day…but that brought to mind a passage that gave me a healthy new perspective, even when I first read it at the ripe old age of 12. This is an excerpt from the Newbery Award-winning book, From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, by E. L. Konigsburg:
[11-year-old] Claudia said, “But, Mrs. Frankweiler, you should want to learn one new thing every day. We did even at the museum.” “No,” I answered, “I don’t agree with that. I think you should learn, of course, and some days you must learn a great deal. But you should also have days when you allow what is already in you to swell up inside of you until it touches everything. And you can feel it inside you. If you never take time out to let that happen, then you just accumulate facts, and they begin to rattle around inside of you. You can make noise with them, but never really feel anything with them. It’s hollow.

So, learn a little, then let God fill you up and touch every corner of your life!

Happy New Year!