Walking in Wisdom

Pastor’s Pen…
These are definitely days in which we need to be walking in God’s wisdom due to the COVID 19. Part of that wisdom involves sanitizing the sanctuary and restrooms each week.  On Saturday at 10:30 a small group will again meet to sanitize the sanctuary and prepare for Sunday.  This Saturday I’ll be tied up with a surprise parade for a graduating grandson. If you wish to help and can take my place,  your presence will be greatly appreciated.  Let Barbara (469-569-2849) or Bruce (972-979-1887) know. 

John Royal was scheduled to preach for me Sunday, as we were to be in Chicago to speak for a Mission India event. That event was postponed, and John suggested we reschedule him at a time when that event might be rescheduled. I told him I do want him to preach sometime this summer. When we have gifted preachers in the church family, I always like to use them.

By the way, thanks to all of you who expressed concern in both tangible and intangible ways regarding my drop in blood sugar at the close of the service last Sunday. I have done well this week, and will be careful about taking significant insulin dosages prior to the service! 

Also a matter of wisdom is holding Sunday services with all safety protocols and pre-service sanitizing in place. No Sunday school yet, and the nursery will not be available.  We will continue following the protocols as outlined by GA-18 guidance.  Face masks are required, social distancing and no physical contact. We will again use bulletins printed untouched by human hands, with songs, etc. printed therein.

If you still feel uncomfortable attending just yet, you can join the live-stream on Facebook (at 10:45 am) which includes communion and the worship hymns, or the message,  posted on the website Sunday afternoon.  We are blessed to have the technology available that allow us to still worship, and those in our church family who have the expertise to post the service online.

A recent article excerpt from the British medical journal Lancet suggested that researchers in Singaporefound that a combined approach of physical distancing -- quarantining infected individuals and their families, closing schools and practicing workplace distancing -- reduced the estimated median number of COVID-19 cases in the population by as much as 99.3 percent.

Sunday's bulletin will be full with music and responsive reading, so I will include the Pastor’s Pen here. 

This week’s message, “Walking in Wisdom” is taken from Ephesians 5:15-18.
Our world has been inundated with an explosion of knowledge. Google can put virtually any fact at your fingertips, and Wikipedia provides a collection of some facts with opinions on people places and other subjects. Today computers store terabytes of information in the cloud, and make that information available with the click of a mouse.
While Scripture makes learning and understanding facts a priority, the major emphasis in both the old and new Testaments is on wisdom, which can be defined as the skill at living, which is achieved by obedience to God's Word. As Jesus told his disciples in the Upper Room, “if you know these things, you are happy if you do them!” (John 13:17) 
In his letter to the Ephesians church, Paul first writes about our wealth in Christ (chapters 1-3), then focuses on our walk (Chs. 4-6), which as he points out is to be worthy of our position as children of God. One key aspect of that is the demand to “walk in wisdom.”
I.               Defining wisdom
a.     An explosion of knowledge
b.     A deficit of wisdom
II.             Walking in wisdom 
a.     Step one: “Be careful how you walk” (v. 15)
b.     Step 2: “Make the most of your time” (v. 16)
c.     Step 3; “Understand the will of the Lord” (v. 17)
                                               i.     Misconceptions
                                             ii.     Categories
Conclusion/Application: “Be controlled by the Spirit” (v. 18)
May the Lord will use this message to motivate us walk in wisdom during these challenging days, remembering the  “The fear (reverent trust) of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” 

Don Hawkins, D. Min.                                                                                                                          Interim Pastor

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