Playing well with others...

Our Daily Bread
In 2004, Robert Fulghum released the fifteenth anniversary version of a book called "All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten".  It seemed so simple and unnecessary at the time!  Do you remember two of the most important lessons you learned in Kindergarten?  Sharing and playing well with others of course!

The devotional is about sharing of ourselves and playing well with others.  The title is Living in Community.  In my opinion, living in community is the most important facet of being involved in a church.  Yes, we can have a personal relationship with God and serve God outside of a church.  God intended for believers to be in community and share our lives in him.  It is amazing how much power there is in community!

It is not always easy. I had some hurtful experiences over the summer at church.  That didn't keep me from finding a new church home and moving on with serving God in a place that is better for me.  What about you and your community life?

Lord, you intended for us to share our lives with other believers.  Please help us find where we belong.

Simply Saturday
Discovery
Life can be full of adventures if we let it.  If we keep our minds and hearts open to the possibilities before us. Don't see any possibilities for adventure in your life?  Open you eyes, heart and mind.  I know it is difficult when the roller coaster of life has battered you more than twenty rides on the Beast at Kings Island!  ha!

So how do we really do this?  As usual, these suggestions are all my opinion.  There is no set formula for life.  You have to find your own!  First, pray about it.  I have had the feeling like the latest Coke Zero commercial since I was a child "And....?".  Always questioning, always looking for more.  I knew my life would be different than the folks around me (and not just because I am gay).    Ask God to show you the opportunities before you.  Be brave.  Be sensitive to the call of the Spirit.  Understand that you will get an answer!

Second, set your expectations.  If you expect to be an astronaut on the first manned spaceship to Mars, I can guarantee you that you will be disappointed!  Few of us will be astronauts or Olympic athletes or tremendously wealthy.  You don't have to be these things to have an extraordinary life!  Expect to be amazed at what God can do in your life!   That is realistic!

Finally, as the Nike ad says "Just do it".  What does it matter where the road goes as long as God is leading?  We get so caught up in the minute details of the destination, that we often forget to enjoy the trip along the way!  That is the way it is when you are traveling down God's road.  We already know the destination -- our heavenly home.  It is the adventures along the way with the people we meet that make our lives worth living.

What will you do next?  And...?

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Let go, my friends!  God will be there to catch you and hold you in his loving arms!