There are few times when I’m more effective as an individual than when a fire is lit under me by the stern words of a trusted mentor. Proverbs says, “Give instruction to a wise man, and he will become even wiser.” I’m not particularly wise, but Shawn’s sermon this Sunday was a great example of this! He spoke some truths about the fake “pillars” to our faith that we think hold up our beliefs but really have no foundational value. It was a sermon designed to start hard conversations about how we are living.
It reminds me of a time in my life when I wasn’t living for Jesus; I was lost and, confused and angry, and my good friend Chris stopped and asked me, “How’s your walk with God, Noah?” I was so mad at the time that he addressed the elephant in the room, and we had a pretty hard conversation about the state of my life at that point. But if he didn’t look me in the eyes and call out my sin, I might still be in a very different place now. Chris lit a fire under me by asking point-blank where my faith is and what needs to be done to get back on track. We all need this kind of talk sometimes throughout our lives; facing uncomfortable truths in the moment leads to transformation later.