A Few Thoughts on GROWTH

I guess I'm on a blogging kick right now... Last week I didn't have many blog posts compose themselves in my head. This week is quite different however! This post is in response to small groups on Sunday after the OEM service.

I suppose I need to give you a little bit of background before I tell you about our discussion. Last week I hit my 6 week marker in Korea - the same amount of time I spent in China. While I was in China, I began running consistently for the first time and made significant progress... even started to enjoy it. I also learned a decent amount of basic Mandarin (ordering food, introductions/greetings, directions, etc.) Last week, I started to compare my progress in China (in regard to exercise & learning the language) and felt kind of embarrassed. True, I'm not taking a consistent language course and it's not exactly necessary to know Korean in order to get around for the most part. However, that's no excuse! And... I have a fitness center in the basement of my building... and had only used it maybe twice in the last 6 weeks!

Upon arriving in Korea, I made a list of some areas I hoped to grow in, but didn't really make super-concrete goals on purpose. I wanted to allow room for flexibility/margin/grace. It's such a challenge to find a balance between being TOO detailed/obsessed with goals and allowing room for flexibility/margin. In the past, I've definitely swung from one side to the other.

So how does this relate to small group on Sunday?

We were discussing Luke 2:40-52... the part where Luke writes about how Jesus grew - intellectually, physically, spiritually, and socially. I used to always make my goals according to this passage, but hesitated for some reason this time. I think in the past I always made the goals and tried to accomplish them in my own strength. Since the Lord has been teaching me more about total dependence upon the Holy Spirit (John 15), I am gaining a different perspective on growth. Rather than focusing upon "goals"... I'm praying for growth. I'm not sure if any of this makes sense...

Anyway, I spent some time reflecting and praying about how God might have me grow in each of those areas this year while I'm here in Seoul. It was time well spent, I think. I'm learning so much about how I must rely on the Holy Spirit for all things... including things like getting up earlier to run. So my week started with a renewed focus and prayer for the strength of the Holy Spirit - particularly in regard to learning Korean and exercising, among other things.

Thanks for "listening" to this rambling post of mine...
~Holly

P.S. This afternoon, Alice gave me my first Korean lesson (yesterday we decided to start meeting consistently... and this morning she presented me with two Korean language workbooks).
P.P.S. I've gotten up twice this week to exercise before school!

Apart from me you can do nothing... John 15:5