Thursday

I actually remembered to put a title on this post. I often forget to do that. When I wrote it, I was reminded of one my favorite old jokes.

Three old men were walking down the street. The first old man, commenting on the weather, says, "Windy, isn't it?" The second old man says, "No, it's Thursday." Then the third old man says, "So am I. Let's go get something to drink." Now, wasn't that funny??

We had another good class last night. My challenge today is to take all the good stuff I heard last night and combine it with all the stuff I've read, humbly seeking to allow the Spirit of God to lead me through the process.

I downloaded a book yesterday on my Kindle. I downloaded it and read most of it because it is relevant to this week's preaching passage, Mark 9:14-29. I down loaded Lynn Anderson's If I really believe, why do I have these doubts?. It's a good read.

One of the points he makes about developing and sustaining faith is its connection with morality. It we compromise our morality, justifying our own sins, then we are going to struggle with our faith. This thought brought to mind a conversation that I had about 3 years ago with my Turkish guide, Selcuk, pictured above.

Here's a quote from my blog about that conversation:

I had an interesting talk today with Selcuk, my guide. I asked him what he thought about Jesus and the resurrection. He knows the stories but has not thought about them in a way that applies to him. He considers himself a Muslim; he believes in Alla. He says he is afraid to draw too close to his religion. He says he knows that if he draws closer, then he will have to give up significant portions of his lifestyle. Interesting (but sounds familiar).

I will go into more details about the conversation on Sunday, I think.

OK, time to have some breakfast and make this day count. Gotta lot to do...