starting the fall off right.

Although few of us are in school anymore, it seems that our world still operates on a school-year schedule - as does our church.  It makes sense that it works this way, summers are usually filled with vacations and chaotic traveling schedules and things settle down come September.  This is the reason that at LBC we launch our classes in earnest in the fall, as you know, since you probably received The Atlas at some point over the past two weekends at church.

Now that you have The Atlas in hand, my encouragement to you in this post is to look at it, intentionally, thoughtfully, prayerfully.  The fact is, no one is in charge of your personal growth other than you.  The church can provide opportunities, the Christian publishing industry can produce loads and loads of devotional material, you can own seventeen Bibles, and you can tell people that you need to grow all you want...but the x-factor in growth is your intentionality.

Some people might read that and think that it is too person-centric, that we have removed God from the equation because, clearly, he is the one who produces growth.  My response to this is to say that this is absolutely right - the Biblical support for this is undeniable.  However, what this often translates into on a practical level is an apathetic, passive, approach to growth that seems to suggest that we expect God to just zap us into mature beings - without our participation playing a part.  The reality is, we don't need to wait on God in this matter, he's waiting on us.

So, the question is for each of us individually - where or how do I need to grow and what am I doing in order to see that I'm in the most advantageous position for growth? The Holy Spirit produces the growth, but I'm confident that he'll show up - so let's quit using him as an excuse.

Getting back to The Atlas - there is stuff in there for everyone.  You might find that there is no sub-heading titled "Young Adults."  Don't let this lead you to believe that the church isn't offering anything for us - we need to grow in ways that are common across the board, right? Growing in my prayer life is not an age specific or life situation specific desire.  So approach The Atlas as a disciple of Jesus who is trying to become like Jesus rather than as a Young Adult - that is the intention of The Atlas, it is a map for disciples.

So - with that in mind I want to encourage you to look at one particular class: RENOVATION OF THE HEART.  The great thing about this class is that it is being led by some of our very own - Young Adults who are passionate about growth into Christlikeness and want to walk with others through a conversation about how that happens - how God uses things like memorization of Scripture, prayer, etc. to transform us into the image of his son.  

My prayer for all of us is that this fall would mark the beginning of remarkable growth - let The Atlas and the classes offered this fall be a useful tool towards that end.