Never to old to learn

In just a few short months, I will turn 49 years old. I have spent my life gaining knowledge. It didn't matter what it was, I wanted to learn everything that I could. 

This desire for knowledge has helped me in so many ways. It made me strive to learn all that I could at my places of employment.  Whether that was at McDonald's, to Mazda- Toyota to now at my current employer, I would read, try and do all that I could to be the very best that I could. This desire to be the best has helped me to move up in areas above my peers.

However, this has also been detrimental in ways. I pushed in ways that rubbed the wrong way. I hurt relationships and friendships to get to what I felt was the top. But, today as I was sitting at work working on a Bible study, I learned something that I should have learned a long time ago. 

I remember several years ago, I was trying to draw a picture of how I was feeling at the time. I drew a head without a face crammed full of books on many subjects. These books were not on shelves or organized in any way, they were just all thrown into this head in any way they could fit. Of course this caused a blockade that restricted the flow from the head to the rest of the body. In my mind, I was trying to represent the disconnect from knowing about God and having a relationship with God which was represented by a heart. 

I don't know where that picture ever went but that thought still holds. But let me take it a step further here.  As you come to Christ and begin learning from the scriptures, are you just packing away all of this knowledge and  never allow it to become a part of you? Do you study and learn to show off your knowledge in Bible drills or to sound wise when you speak? 

As I was doing lesson 10 of The Unshaken Truth which was on reading and studying the scriptures, all of these thoughts started flooding my mind. I'll be honest.  I sat about a month ago and read through this same study and did the final exam in probably less than a week. This same study that pastor took over a month to teach to our youth, written at a young level so that it is easily learned and retained, was child's play for me. I was thinking "Where's the challenge? Anyone should know this stuff." But I had to realize that not everyone has been in church or read and studied before. So I needed to look at these lessons through different eyes. 

Scripture tells us to study to show ourselves approved, workmen who needeth not be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of Truth (see 2 Timothy 2:15). It doesn't tell us to get a head full of knowledge only but to also seek understanding (Proverbs 4:7).Scripture doesn't tell us to take and take and take from the Word. It does tell us to hear and to do (James 1:22).

I have spent these years hearing the Word, both in denominal and non-denominational churches. I have packed away stories, sermons and even things I've written through inspiration of study in this head of mine, probably more than I could ever remember. But what has it profited me? I learned today that it profited more than I thought.

As I sat writing and thinking about these things, the picture started to become a bit clearer. The books thrown and scattered all through the head had suddenly been put into places and ordered. The blockade that prevented what was in the head from getting out was removed and the knowledge that had been piled up started flowing uninhibited. 

This will probably not make any sense to anyone but me so I will probably never post it publicly. I did however want to have a reference point where I could look back and see progress years down the road. 

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