by Phyllis Bourque
When I first began attending church services many years ago, the ladies would come up to me with warm greetings and make me feel so welcome. Conversations would often center around children, as I had a toddler and a newborn at that time. It was an exciting experience because God was opening my mind to the truth and I had a new sense of direction and purpose in my life!
These new acquaintances quickly became friends and conversations migrated to spiritual principles and practical application of God’s laws. Several would invariably share what lesson they had learned during the preceding week. I remember listening in quiet amazement to their various stories, being particularly fascinated by the remarkable correlation between simple everyday events and spiritual lessons. At the same time, I was quite disappointed in myself, as I wondered, “What am I learning?” I didn’t have an answer. Oh yes, I was learning to keep my children quiet during church, and I was learning about clean and unclean meats. I was learning what it meant to “keep” the Sabbath, and I was learning about the Holy Days and how they outline God’s master plan for mankind. But when it came to personal spiritual lessons, I had nothing to share with them.
Little did I realize then that the spiritual truths I was learning were actually the building blocks in a new relationship with the God that I thought I already knew. These truths would later prove to be the very foundation on which I could stand when Satan attempted to destroy my personal convictions and the very church in which I was so anchored.
I have long since learned to see the spiritual parallels in my everyday life and I thank God for showing me the significance of these daily growth opportunities. I need to thank God for what I am experiencing, whether or not I can identify the reason at that moment, because I know it is He who presents me with the lessons that I have to learn in order to become what He wants me to be.
