Deep-End Discipleship

 “ Fear of the Lord is where wisdom begins;     sure knowledge is for all who keep God’s laws.         God’s praise lasts forever!” - Psalm 111:10 CEB - So if you have tuned in at all during this last summer’s Sunday night youth fellowship times, we have been looking at what does it take to be wise. (God pities the fool!) I admit that wisdom is one of those topics that just fascinates me about our faith and the call that God gives us as Christians. It feels like an embodiment of literally chasing after goodness. We are told to be wise, but what do we exactly do to make wisdom? We are told that wisdom is a virtue, but rarely do we get or gain wisdom instantly. We can’t just download an app, approve an update or change to a better wiser model. Even in our Scripture, we are told that wisdom begins with “fear of the Lord” but that easily seems like a phrase that is just tossed around in the Bible...

How happy is the man who does not follow the advice of the wicked or take the path of sinners or join a group of mockers! Instead, his delight is in the Lord’s instruction, and he meditates on it day and night. – Psalm 1:1-2 (HCSB) – TV shows, social media, news pages, advertisements, blogs, friends, family, politicians, leaders, teachers, bosses, books, podcasts, songs… We input large amounts of data into our brains every minute we are awake. We hear people telling us to try this new thing, go back to the old thing, think this way, don’t think that way, and here’s some tips for life. Though we are used to the amount of information we take in daily, it’s undeniable that it’s a huge amount of data for our brains. Sometimes, in the midst of all the voices it can be challenging to know which voices to listen to. Which voices are good or bad? Which voices are helpful or harmful? Psalm 1 reminds us that we have a choice between choosing right and wrong things in our live...

Fear of the Lord is where wisdom begins;  sure knowledge is for all who keep God's laws. God's praise lasts forever! - Psalm 111:10 (CEB)- Let ’s face it, fear probably isn’t anyone’s favorite topic. We prefer to avoid our fears and often face them begrudgingly. Because of this, reading passages which say to “fear the Lord” can sound weird to us. However, often in the Bible, fear refers to something besides simply terror. Fear can also be the idea of being completely amazed at something truly awe-inspiring. When someone is filled with awe at something, there is an idea of amazement which captures their mind and heart. I think of going to a concert with your absolute favorite singer and then getting to meet the person afterwards. There is excitement, awe, and it’s probably the only thing you’re going to think about the week prior or the week after! Our God - the creator, savior, compassionate, just, good God - is much greater than any human musician. Though ce...