Good Ministry

Now before I get started I would like to state that we've had a lot of good ministry here, and I've really been enjoying it; but every so often I hear a sermon where something is presented in a little bit different way and it helps me to look at things differently. Tonight was one of those times.

Bro. Dennis started his talk about how when he was 14 or 15 he liked a girl and really thought he loved her. He thought he knew what love was. Looking back now he can see how it was more of an obsession than anything. He said when he married his wife he thought he loved her too; and I'm sure he did, but he explained how after 20 years of marriage he knows her so much better that the love he felt back when they were first married seems insignificant compared to what he feels for her now. He explained how the reason he loves her so much deeply is because he's gotten to know her. He knows how and why she feels and thinks the way she does. He knows her well enough that he can know how she feels or thinks about something without her even telling him. He understands her so much better and it has caused him to love her so much more.

He then compared this to how we should search out to know and understand the Lord; so that we can love him and be so much closer to him. He explained how instead of just following the commandments of God, we should try to understand why he wants us to follow those commandments. In finding the reason behind the commandments we can get to know God better and understand him better. If we understand him better and grow to love him more we will then have a better relationship with him. We will have more of a desire to serve him rather than just going through the motions because that's what we're supposed to do.

Now there were a couple of reasons this talk had such an effect on me. First of all I had never quite thought of things that way; about how we should try to understand God and then learn to love him more, and then have more of a desire to please him. I, of course, knew that we should understand the will of God, that we should love him and desire to please him, but I had never had it all connected like that for me before.

The other reason this talk really got me to thinking is because it allowed me to see how to work on my relationship with my husband. Now this is a little hard for me to admit, but I've realized for awhile that our relationship just isn't quite what it ought to be. It's not real bad, but I know that we aren't as close as we should be. The one problem I've had is respecting him sometimes. To be perfectly honest there are times that the way he feels, thinks or does things I just think is really stupid! I've had a hard time respecting him with these things. Bro. Dennis' talk helped me realize that if I strove to understand why he feels, thinks and does the things he does my relationship with him will be better. When I look back on some of the things he's done, or said, or whatever, that I just really didn't agree with, I can see where his reason behind it was good; but because he's imperfect he sometimes comes up with imperfect feelings, thoughts or actions. I really, really want to strive to get to know my husband and my God both better; so that I can have a stronger relationship with both.

I would also like to explain that I really do love Matt, and he is a good husband and father. He cares about his family, and he takes good care of us. He loves the brethren and has always been steadfast in the faith. There is so much good in him that I know it out-weighs the bad. Those of you who are married I'm sure can relate to how we can love our husbands so much, but still get so irritated at them sometimes! I really want to try to be more understanding of why he's does what he does during those times that he irritates me.

As some of you know, I have my cousin, Kara, staying with us. She's been helping me quite a bit around the house and with the kids. This pregnancy it seems like I've had a harder time being able to do everything and she's been a good help to me. She just turned 2o and she's not in the faith. Every once in awhile we'll get into some pretty in depth conversations about problems or concerns that she may have, or about the faith. Just the other day we had a really long conversation and I was able to talk to her pretty frankly about some things. What was really neat is that Bro. Dennis brought up a lot of the things we had talked about in his ministry tonight. I noticed some of the things he said, and how it was so close to the conversation I had had with her. After church Kara mentioned the same thing. It was so great that God was able to confirm our conversation in that way. I think it really helped her to hear someone else say the same things I had said and not even know about her life like I do.

Bro. Lee also got up and talked about how if he saw a rich man with a lot of land and he had servants to work that land he would think a lot of that man. But he also said that if he saw the workers just sitting around doing nothing he would wonder how in the world that man got rich. He said his advice to that man would be to get different workers that wouldn't waste his time and money. I know that I have been to idle in the faith, and I sure don't want God to give up on me and grant someone else my place in his kingdom.

He also explained about striving for perfection. He compared it to when he has workers working for him in his tile business. When he tells them to do a job that he knows they are capable of doing, he expects them to do it. If he comes back and it's not done, or done right, and he explains to them their mistakes; he expects them to correct their mistakes. He said it doesn't really matter to him the process they use to get the job done as long as the finished product is done according to his specifications. To him that his perfection. I know we always think of perfection as everything done exactly right, but God knows and understands us. If we make mistakes he just expects us to correct them. Basically as long as we are truly striving to please him and doing all we know to do, and doing what we can to fix or learn from our mistakes, that is perfection.

There really wasn't a whole lot done in meeting, but I really got a lot out of it and came home with a lot to chew on. Hopefully I swallow it and digest it and allow it to really improve my life.

I wasa going to wait until tomorrow to post this, but I couldn't go to sleep anyway because it was all going over and over in my mind; so I thought I would relate it all to my blogging buddies while it was still fresh in my mind. Just pray that I will follow the exortation I recieved tonight.