Lesson From a Message Board

I asked this question recently on a message board--

"Just wondering how often you use stuff from the message board here in your sermons. Or how helpful is the day to day stuff you learn here in your preaching?"

My own answer to my question--

"I find a lot of things here. Mostly about myself which necessarily means it ends up in my preaching. Often the discussions and the points raised cause me to pause and consider and re-consider what has been said.

I have been forced to examine what I believe, I have repented more than once as a result of something I ‘saw’ from this message board.

I am driven to my Bible and I must do as the Bereans did--
Acts 17:11 And the people of Berea were more open-minded than those in Thessalonica, and they listened eagerly to Paul’s message. They searched the Scriptures day after day to see if Paul and Silas were teaching the truth.

I also find that revelation will come as a result of what someone else has said. That the Lord will speak through this message board and drive me to search for the truth of what being a Christ-follower fully means.

Some things are easy to share--the fun of a photograph of four dozen pairs of shoes laid out in symmetry and color coordinated. Other things from here are hard to tell, the pain filled story of someone (Anyone) feeling abandoned and lost because the church has misplaced her Compassion and has taken it out on Anyone.

The hard stories are needful for my people to hear. Now I know that ya’ll probably don’t have any homophobic people in your congregations, but I have. I need to hear and be touched by the hard stories. Jesus demands we tell the hard stories—so the Good News will continue to be good.

Hardly “divulging confessional secrets” except that it is my own confession which I willingly divulge in my preaching. If I can admit that I have been wrong about something the folks will have courage to repent as well.

This message board abounds with wisdomfull things.

I need all the wisdom I can get and I’m gleaning the corners of this field and am being well-fed.

peace"