"Smell the Roses"

Wow! Where has January and February gone? Time is moving on at a very fast pace. Growing up mom and dad would always say, "Time flies by so fast. The older we get, the faster time goes." I thought, "What world are you guys living in?" Time goes so slow! Time in my eyes seemed to move at a snail's pace. I couldn't wait until I was a teenager, then in my own eyes I would be considered big stuff. At sixteen I could get my driver's license. At eighteen I would be graduating from High School (hopefully). At twenty one I would be my own boss and no one would tell me what to do. Well as you can see, I had a lot to learn in life. These milestones seemed to take forever to come. But now that they have come and gone, it seems like life has been put into high gear. Ok mom and dad, I now see what you were both talking about. I see you are from planet Earth!

Life is fast paced and we can miss many blessings if we're not careful. One of my favorite Bible verses is Psalms 46:10, "Be still, and know that I am God." With all the business each day of our life, it is important to take time each day to be still and to exalt God. Don't miss the blessings of communing with God each day!

With all things going on in life, not only in the Church but in our daily lives, we must never forget the reason why we are here on earth. As Christians, we must continue to put God first in all things. This may mean that we have to give up activities that take our focus off Him. Satan does not care if we're busy, he just doesn't want us to be affective.

Sometimes we as Christians get so busy doing things (even church work), that we forget the real reason for serving. This is why we must try our best, with the Lord's help, to manage our time. Give God the time He deserves. He gave of His time for you and me. Take time to read your Bible daily; take time to pray on a regular basis. Satan will whisper to you that you don't have time. Some more convenient day! It is amazing that the more time we give to God, the more time we have for other things. That sounds strange, but it seems to me that, that is how it works.

March is a very busy month in the life of Maple Grove Church. We call it "March Madness," because each March we not only in the Lent season, we are in the tail end of our Upward season that concludes with a night of celebration. We also are in the midst of having Lenten services with New Paris CoB and West Goshen CoB which is a big blessing. We finish the month of March each year with our daily "Revival Services." This year we are having Harold Martin from Pennsylvania coming and being our Revival speaker.

So you can see how busy our March can be. Those mentioned above are over and beyond our normal activities here at Maple Grove. But they are also a true blessing to have. With everything we do let us remember: "Be still, and know that I am God." Take time to smell the roses!

Pastor Dwayne