Sunday Happenings

today at the church of which i am a member, the pastor continued his sermon series teaching simultaneously through the books of ecclesiastes and ephesians. today he covered the first half of ecclesiastes chapter 3. this is the passsage that inspired (and essentially wrote) "turn! turn! turn! (to everything there is a season)" by pete seeger. the intent of seeger, and most of those who covered the song, was for it to be an anti-war anthem. that is clearly not what solomon meant when he wrote the words. i think he is talking about the natural seasons of life. it is how life ebbs and flows. i could go on and on, but i will not do so now. perhaps another time.

tonight was one of the highlights of my week. twice per month the small group my wife and i am part of met. it is the best time when we are together. we always enjoy a meal (thanks k & j) and then spend time with whatever we are studying/reading as a group. we have a rule that goes something like, "whatever is said at lifegroup, stays at lifegroup." i think i can share some of the discussion without violating that confidence. tonight we started a study guide from homebuilders called "building character in your children". it looks to be an interesting study and discussion. our group is made up of people with a variety of backgrounds and perspectives. tonight's discussion centered around legacy and character traits. as we talked about the legacy we leave our children, it was noted that your legacy is simply what you do and who you are. you cannot intentionally "build a legacy". your legacy is your lifetime of experiences and character. a good example of this in terms that are easy to grasp was given. consider president bill clinton. he spent his last year or so in office trying to build his legacy. he wanted peace in the middle east. what is his legacy? it is all the things he is known for and there is still unrest in every area of the middle east. your legacy is the remembrance of who you were after you are gone. you live your legacy. we all want our children to exhibit good character traits, to have a godly character. but where does that come from? ultimately, godly character comes from god. as we are filled with the holy spirit, we bear the fruit of that in good character. fathers display these traits to their children. children learn by example. one day, god can use that example to draw the children to a saving knowledge of himself. my prayer is that i will be an example of godly character to my sons.