Receiving God's Word From Others

A good magazine: a sure sign of idleness
and a precursor to hearing God's voice

One of the real advantages of having a Deacon assigned to St. John's is that I get to hear someone else preach on a regular basis.  It is easy to go online and hear a sermon, but doing that does not give me the opportunity to hear the preacher on a regular basis, so I don't get to experience the fullness of his theology, nor do I get to develop a real relationship with the preacher.  We are particularly blessed at St. John's now, because Deacon Don Eager is a regular who preaches the fourth Sunday of each month, with a few adjustments for major holy days and vacations.  We also have a licensed lay preacher, Nick England, who is a student at the deacon's school, and knows more of the Bible than many priests I know.  Every time they preach, my soul is fed, and I am drawn closer to God.

Having other preachers at St. John's also gives me the opportunity to set aside the quest for creativity and to walk away from being a scholar on such a regular basis.  In short, the situation here lets me rest my brain- and that is more welcome than many people may realize.  Last night, with no sermon to prepare, I went to Easton Towne Center with Rebecca where she made a teddy bear for her upcoming picnic with our grand-daughters.  Then we ate at a great Italian place, walked down to look at the marvelous toy train layout, and watched kids playing in the fountains.  We wrapped up the trip with a stroll through the book store where I bought the latest edition of "Fieldsports."

This morning I got up a bit before six and took all four dogs on a run through the woods before letting out the birds and feeding Ashley's Thoroughbred, Little Princess.  By a quarter to seven, I was clearing brush, a rather mindless but very physical activity for an old fat guy who works mostly with his brain and emotions these days.  Rebecca and I had coffee at 9 or so, and then it was back to work until the heat just played me out.  The rest of the day was spent in similar activity, and as darkness falls, I feel very rested, and I can't wait to go to church tomorrow and hear a great sermon.  I know God has something he is going to tell me.