Friends,
This Sunday, we will begin a new sermon series called Not for Me. One of the most inspiring things about the life of Jesus is how he was constantly living for other people. His life was not lived for himself, but for others. He had a ‘not for me’ approach to life.
Here’s a question for you: How was Jesus able to live like this?
The easy answer to that question is simply that he is God and therefore perfect. However, Jesus was also human, fully human. I don’t know about you, but my experience with human nature is that it is generally less interested in others and more interested in self.
When I look at the life of Jesus, it’s fascinating that I see Jesus looking to bless others AND I see him tending to spiritual practices. I can’t help but think there’s a connection: tending to your soul leads you to be a person who makes a difference. In my experience, living for others and blessing others doesn’t just happen. One of my favorite maxims is that spiritual doesn’t happen on accident.
In the same way, a life lived for others doesn’t just happen. We don’t stumble on accident into making the kinds of choices and developing the kinds of relationships that impact others positively. We need to grow to become those kinds of people.
In our series Not for Me, we’re going to explore the connection between spiritual practices (like prayer) and how they lead us to become difference-makers. We’re going to explore this connection by looking at the life of Jesus and the kinds of things Jesus did to tend to his soul and to shape his life. If Jesus had to tend to certain practices to shape his life, what does that say about us and what we need to be paying attention to?
I hope you’ll join us as we explore the connection between spiritual formation and living to bless others. Together we’re going to be inspired and challenged to grow into the people God has called us to be.
I can’t wait to see you on Sunday!
Spencer