Unoriginal Title Number 3

The group today consisted of John, Joanna, and myself. This was not a problem, and we delved right into the first question, which was to John, about what he we learning from the class.

John explained that he had previously believed that meditation was something that he would never be able to really do. He thought that meditation meant to sit alone and be silent for many hours on end. This cut off any opportunity he had to meditate, because he simply can not sit still for that long without falling asleep. In class he discovered that meditation could mean memorizing and repeating scripture throughout his day. Not only was this possible, but it is actually something John was already doing. Joanna added that it is nice to know that meditation is not for Buddhists only.

We then talked about how we have learned from our college experience so far. John's perspective was clear and concise: We are learning great things but are too busy to practice these spiritual disciplines. I (Mat) agreed emphatically. The amount of knowledge that is absorbed at EBC is so extensive that it is not possible to integrate it all into our lives.

On the other hand, Joanna has had some positive experience with this so far. She has been effectively challenged to make spiritual practices a part of her day, and has managed to make time to do so. We then had some discussion about how it is difficult to take time for spiritually healthy activities when there is so much to get done. Joanna ended up challenging John to do something spiritual for five minutes instead of going for a smoke break at least once before class next week. John likened Joanna's challenge to a punch in the face.

Team Awesome Small Group meeting 2

Our group is now complete, we welcomed Joanna and Matt as our newest members and it was evident right of the start that this group was ready to share and discuss. We briefly took some time to introduce ourselves and then began discussing Willard’s interview regarding the church losing the connection between salvation and Character.
Everyone in our group agreed with Willard’s remarks, some more passionately then others. Joanna stressed that it is not merely behaviour but rather our actions should be in response to the grace given to us. Joanna admits that one of the things that frustrates her and actually turned her away from the church for a time was apathetic Christians. John liked the illustration of sharing the “lions” with the new believer and believes we have to otherwise we are simply deceiving people. Kate also shared that she fines it frustrating when she sees Christians doing something that specifically hurts their bodies. She finds it in poor character for example when a Christian smokes or drinks and she appreciates having “rules” for Christian behaviour or character. Matt was challenged by the whole idea of improving the connection between salvation and character and wondered aloud what that process may look like. Ultimately we agreed that changes had to come but it would be at a cost of “membership” but an increase of “authentic” Christians or disciples would be the gain.
I appreciated the insights from my fellow group members and enjoyed how open everyone was with sharing their ideas. As a group I feel like we are already developing trust and I look forward to seeing what God has in store for us as we continue to meet.

How do I know that I'm growing spiritually?

How do I know that I'm Growing Spiritually? For myself(John) I did not notice growth in myself. I was made aware of the majority of my spiritual growth by others close to me. I do see a change from before I came to a saving knowledge of Christ, and I do notice the fruit of the Spirit in my life but I cannot feel a specific change in myself from when I first became a Christian to now. Others around me have noticed a huge growth and that has been for me a gauge. For example I have been told by a close friend of mine that I have gained a lot of patience in dealing with others.
Kate on the other hand said that she feels the growth in her. Kate is still young in her faith in Christ and says that she can feel a definite growth in herself spiritually from even just a few months ago. Kate also has two young children who notice a change as does her mother also.
Ben noticed spiritual growth in himself from the fruit of the Spirit. Much like the only part of my growth that I noticed, Ben was seeing the Spirit at work in himself. Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness.......are evident in his life, and that is how he said he noticed spiritual growth in himself.
Ben also said that as he grows spiritually he can see that he is becoming more like Christ, which should be the goal of all Christians. Other than that I find it difficult to comment on how Kate and Ben have grown because I don't know them well enough yet.