First Things First

When my wife and I first met, I was not a spiritual giant by any means - not that I am now either!  But I definitely wasn’t one then.  Anyway, by His marvelous grace, after we had been married about three years, God led my wife and me to a little Bible church up in White River Junction, Vermont.  And it was at this church that God really began to work on my heart.  He did this by exposing me to three simple things in those first few months up in the Green Mountain State.

The first thing the Lord exposed me to was the importance of being a part of a small group.  In our very first week at that church, we were invited to join a young couples Bible study which met on a weekly basis.  And as a result of that initial experience, I have come to believe with all my heart that fellowship with God's people in a small group setting is very essential to the growth and vitality of God's people.  And believe it or not, it was in that very same Bible study, that my wife and I first met someone who was indirectly responsible for us ending up in Rockville 34 years later.  In that study we met a man who eventually married the sister of one of my parishioners here at Union Church; and she is the one who told me about the opening here at Union Church back in 2007.  Way back then God sovereignly set in motion His plan that would eventually lead us to Union Church and Rockville.

The second thing I was exposed to in Vermont was the faithful preaching of the Word of God.  On our second Sunday at that little church, the Rev. Eli Mercer, the brand new pastor began his ministry there.  It was to be the very first church he ever pastored, so I was privileged to sit under this man of God and watch him unfold the Word of God week after week.  I’ll never forget that first Sunday when he stood up and asked everyone to turn to Genesis, chapter 1, verse 1, where it says, “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.”  For me, as a fairly new Christian, being exposed to those foundational truths was one of the best things God could have ever done for me.

And finally, the third thing I was exposed to was the Bible itself.  As the new year approached, Pastor Mercer challenged everyone in the church to read through the Bible during 1974.  Along with many others in the church, I took up the challenge, and I have never been the same since.  I’ve read the Bible many times since then, but I can honestly say that I probably grew more as a Christian during 1974, than in any single year since.  I committed myself to the Lordship of Jesus Christ, and I was baptized that summer, and I committed myself to full-time Christian ministry as well.

So there you have it!  Three things that I believe are essential for anyone who wants to get closer to God.  Get into His word on a regular basis, get into a good Bible-believing church on a regular basis, and get into a small group with other believers who also want to get closer to God.