E is for Education

Education should be a life long practice. 

2nd Timothy 3:16 All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right. 17 God uses it to prepare and equip his people to do every good work.

Wether you are in school or done with school, there is an opportunity to prepare yourself and equip yourself for the things you are doing now and the things you will do in the future. 

Wednesday is my day to give extra attention to educating myself. Reading the Bible and studying what I read has changed my life. 
I can testify that the Apostle Paul is 100% correct when it comes to what he said to young Timothy. 

​Decide on a system that will help you educate yourself. 
Here are a few things that I do:

1. I read the Bible, one book at a time, in small bite size pieces. For example. I will read a story in the Bible or a paragraph and ask a few questions. 
What is going on here? 
How does this apply to my life?
What am I going to do differently now that I have studied this?

2. I use a highlighter and colored pens when I study the Bible. This helps me to know what spoke to me. I come back to it often and let the teaching develop further. 

3. Think about the concept of discernment. 
Discernment is defined as the ability to judge well. 
There are false beliefs and false teachers and it is up to you to be careful not to get into trouble. Find good Bible teachers that do not take things out of context with the hidden aim to manipulate you. 
Be careful who you listen to. 

Here is a helpful scripture for you when thinking about your life. 
Galatians 5:22-23 The Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, and self-control.

Each of us will benefit by looking at our life and our actions and asking ourselves if we are producing these things or if we need to work on improving them. 

May each of us do the continuing education to help equip us and prepare us to be more loving. 

​Love, Pastor Max