Birthing...

My newest kiddo is here! Today Nicholas Isaiah came to join the fray, making the Matt Schaffner clan 6 strong (Me, Kathryn, Gavin, Audra, Gabriel, and Nicholas!). He was 6lbs 14 ozs and 19" long. It's awesome to witness/be a part of new life. Seeing someone so helpless who is ours come to be, is incredible. But, I am also amazed at the parallels to spiritual life.

When someone meets Jesus and begins to follow, those of us who have been around a while and are mature (we'd better be or else there's something wrong with everything we do to see "growth") are there to help and nurture. Why? Because someone who is new to the Jesus thing are like a baby (spiritually) and are unable to fend for themselves! That means some mature believers need to step into that person's life and be mentor/parent figures in a spiritual sense. But, have you ever seen that happen in your church? Probably not very often!

As a youth worker, I hope that my students get to know and be mentored by our volunteers. In fact, that is the primary reason we have a volunteer team: to build relationships and mentor students. If we don't do that, there really isn't much reason for them to come. Without an investment into them, the things we do don't carry any real weight. They're nice and occasionally fun, but nothing real! What we must have is a solid relational base to build from. If a student trusts an adult leader, they will open up, not just to the leader but it can carry over into small groups! Relationships matter! Especially when we are spiritual babies. If no one is there to build a relationship with us or help us or teach us, we'll be adrift alone and susceptible to "any wind of doctrine." That's a bad place to be! Not knowing what we believe because no one has bothered to make sure we knew what we said we stood for is horrible! There is a reason that the Christian life is linked to living, not believing. Believing is so fundamental that it must happen before we can BE someone who believes. Jesus put it best, "They will know you are my disciples by your love (which means the way we live everyday)."

So, who are your spiritual parents? Are you someone's spiritual parent? If so, what are you actually doing about it?

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