Pastor Paul’s Blog

Unsolicited advice – if you don’t want it stop reading this blog. I can’t get away from that phrase and thought. It was at Valley Shepherd’s one day marriage conference that Dr. Todd Bennett spoke to us about unsolicited advice. Think about it, if you’re dealing with an issue in life, whether spiritual, mental, financial, physical or any other, you don’t want to hear or listen to anyone’s advice unless you solicit (ask for) it. And then, even if you ask for their advice, you won’t necessarily take it unless you believe in and trust the individual giving it.

My problem is that I think I know enough about life and what it’s all about that I don’t ever need to ask for anyone’s advice. Ah, but I’ve noticed that the wiser I get in my old age the more I solicit other’s advice. I read this proverb one day in a devotional book by Chuck Swindoll which said; “A Freshman doesn’t know that he doesn’t know. A Sophomore knows that he doesn’t know. A Junior doesn’t know that he knows. A Senior knows that he knows.” I don’t know that I know which one of those stages I’m in right now in life. I’m pretty sure I’m not the Freshman and I know that I know I’m not the Senior.

So why am I blogging about this? Well, I guess because I watched a movie last Sunday night with our teen group – “To Save A Life”, in which the main character stood up in a youth group meeting and gave some very stern “unsolicited advice”. In the scene he said something to the effect of “If we’re not going to allow this stuff to change our lives then what are we doing here?” Well, what are we doing here? Why are you reading a blog on a church website? Why do you attend church? Why do you read the Bible? Is it all just a bunch of unsolicited advice to you? Or do you let it change your life? I’ll be honest, at times it’s been the former for me, but at other times and especially as of late it’s been the latter.

So here’s my bit of unsolicited advice for you; Read God’s Word, listen to Him when you pray, go to church, get involved with the Body of Christ, and let His love change your life. Hey, and if you don’t like it, re-read the first sentence in paragraph one.