“Spiritual disciplines” are things we do to stay in love with God and grow in faith. They can be things we do alone or together; they can be ways to spend time with God or to serve others. As the people of Sylva First UMC share one of their spiritual disciplines with you each week, we hope it will inspire you to new ways of loving God and growing in faith.
When I was in the 8th grade at James Bowie Jr. High, in Beaumont, Texas, I announced to the father of a close friend that I was going to write a book when I grew up and the title would be If I Should Die Before I Wake. I even promised to dedicate it to him; G.R. Scott. I made this vow because he was the father figure I most respected and wanted to honor. I also had a very selfish, foolish, secret desire to learn to be a good enough Christian to earn my way to heaven so I could be reunited with my mother who had died four years earlier.
That was sixty years ago and I have not written that book. Nevertheless, I found a Book that has helped me accept the fact that God’s plan for His children very seldom match our plans. Personally, there are two of the thirteen most powerful spiritual disciplines that have enabled me to grow spiritually and they are “Study” and “Prayer”. I first learned of these disciplines, in a book by Richard J. Foster entitled Celebration of DISCIPLINE (The Path to Spiritual Growth). Nothing has helped me mature more than the daily discipline of intercessory prayer and my study of the Bible. I am especially grateful for two of the eleven pastors I have worshiped under here at FUMC, including Pastor Mary, who weekly encouraged us to study our Bible and pray.
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A copy of Celebration of Disciple is available in the church library, located by the elevators on the second floor. If that one is already borrowed, Lorraine and Pastor Mary both welcome you to borrow their copies!
