Last Sunday we learned about the connection between humility and joy.  (I included the video for your enjoyment…again.)  Then early this week I got another lesson in personal humility.  I was sorting out some old files from my days in seminary.  I came across a paper I wrote titled “Small Group Training.”  The year was 1987.  Hmmm…that could be interesting.  Since I’ve trained hundreds of small group leaders of the last 25 years, I wonder what I was thinking back in grad school.

Most of it was pretty good stuff, even though there were way too many complicated words (they don’t teach simplicity at grad school).  Then I saw it: the calendar for training.  If I hadn’t been sitting on the floor I would have fallen over.  I had proposed a SIX MONTH training course for volunteer small group leaders!  SIX MONTHS!  Seriously, how many of you would sign up for that?

In the many versions of training that we’ve used at Seneca Creek, we never even got CLOSE to that.  We started with a one day event, trimmed it to a half day, then further streamlined it to about two hours.  In the process of actually serving alongside real people, my proposal got humbled.  I learned a lesson in humility.  What I thought I knew was hammered out in real life.

That’s how we grow, isn’t it?  Our ideas and aspirations get hammered out in real life.  And often it’s humbling.  And that’s a good thing.  I just hope your lessons in humility don’t take 25 years to crystallize.

Remember to set your clocks ahead one hour this Saturday before you climb into bed.

And I hope to see you bright and early on Sunday.  Bishop Eliudi Issangya from Tanzania will be our guest speaker.  You’ll be glad you got up early for that!

-Pastor Mark