Sometimes we lose the essence of things when they are done on a regular basis. Tonight I am reminded of the purpose of bible studies. I attend a bible study group from the chinese church called Barnabas fellowship on a regular basis. This evening, I was contemplating whether to spend the time to prepare a bible study which I’m leading in SR on Friday instead of attending Barnabas. In the past, I sometimes attend because of commitment, i.e, simply being faithful. Though it’s not wrong, but it helps to go one step beyond, knowing why I am attending these bible studies. It’s not about wanting to win any ‘Attendance award’, it’s about God, fullstop.
So if I were to prepare for the bible study and not go for Barnabas tonight, I would not have felt guilty, because I would have been investing time in helping to point others and myself to God. It was an issue of priorities instead-am I doing too much outside of research? Someone recently commented that he thought my Phd was a hobby as I seem to be involved with stuff outside research most of the time.
I read the passage that was going to be covered tonight and it surrounded one of the spiritual topics I am currently examining-evil spirits. So I simply made up my mind to attend Barnabas with a specific aim to know more about this area, especially looking forward to hear opinions from a pastor who usually goes as well.
As I was driving out of the university, I saw a rainbow and got encouraged :) Next comes the test…when I arrived at the church, I realised that the pastor’s car wasn’t there! I found myself thinking of whether to drive back to the university! Had to remind myself that it’s all about God, nothing else. Not the size of the group or the people in the group. God speaks, not man, and He can speak through anybody.
Amazingly, I picked up one important illustration which is relevant to Friday’s bible study from this evening’s Barnabas. Also, without me specifically sharing about my desire to know more about evil spirits, tonight’s discussion dealt a lot with that area. Although there’s still a lot I am still trying to get to grips to, I gained from tonight’s discussion. Along with all that, it was a good time of seeking the Lord and being united in the body of Christ.
Thank God for tonight’s Barnabas :)
1 comment:
Thanks for being honest! I'm glad that God spoke to you in this study. As we discussed, God can use ANY one, ANY situation, ANY time and in ANY place for HIS glory and purpose even when we ourselves doubt this. I feel that if each one of us trusts in God, He will speak through us with the power of the Holy Spirit. Sometimes, we can be too reliant on the wisdom of those with the proper qualifications and/or experience thinking that only they have the answers but with a Bible in our hands and the Holy Spirit guiding, we can learn a lot about God whoever we are! To Him be the power and glory!
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