BE A SPONGE!!

      Be a sponge!! No, not that silly cartoon character Sponge Bob! I'm referring to the attitude we should have when it comes to wanting to learn and desiring to acquire more knowledge. We need to soak up knowledge and allow others to teach us. In other words,be teachable and be open to learning! Be a sponge!

     The sponge comes from the ocean. I always thought that was funny since a sponge is known to soak up water. We use sponges every day. They sit on our kitchen sinks, we use them on dishes and to clean counters. They are at the end of mops that we use to clean tile or wood floors. Millions of sponges have been used since the beginning of time. A sponge is known to soak up lots of water. When a sponge sits and rests on your sink for quite a while, guess what? It gets very hard. You really can't use it when it's dry and hard. It's useless! When you run it under water for a bit it is once again ready to use. 

     I look at this when it comes to our lives. If there is one thing I have learned in the past 35 years it has to be "To be a sponge!" I learned the hard way that I didn't know it all. I discovered as a 23 year old I needed to learn from others and stop acting like I knew it all. I thought I knew it all when it came to running a children's ministry. I discovered I was wrong. Even as a potential pastor I thought I had it all together until one day a dear pastor sent me a letter before I started my ministry career. Pastor John Arntsen was a mentor to me and he wrote in his letter to me "You need to be teachable." Since that point I always looked up to pastors and ministry leaders who had experience. I always wanted to know how I did after I spoke or did a program.I really wanted constructive criticism. I wanted to be a sponge and soak up knowledge from others who had experience. In 1992 I befriended a church custodian named Bill McCrone. I always loved talking to Bill. I love "old school" comedy and Bill and I always would crack jokes about the Honeymooners or Abbott and Costello. We became very close. After my father died in 1995, Bill became a second father to me. Whenever I needed advice about something in my house whether it was about plumbing, our boiler, our grill or something minor, I always asked Bill about it. As I listened to Bill, I was a sponge. I was soaking up the knowledge he had. Yes, there were times he didn't have an answer. But when he did I soaked it up! Bill died in 2018 and I was not able to attend his funeral because I was in the ER with kidney stones!

     I always cringe whenever I'm at work or at church especially when I try to train or give advice to someone younger than me. When they say "I know how to do that!" or "I know!" is the response I get. I want to say to them "NO, YOU DON'T!" The kids of today need t be seeking out the generation that has gray hair or no hair at all, They need to "Be a sponge" and soak up their knowledge and be teachable. I realize the kids of today don't like the "Old School" way but truthfully if it worked for the "gray haired gang" it will certainly work for them! I have learned a lot in the past 10 years about kids ministry, writing,relationships, my relationship with the Lord, the bible prayer, work related things and life in general. I have learned what it means to "Be a sponge." I am certainly not perfect but I can say one thing, I learn something new every single day. So in conclusion friends..."BE A SPONGE." You won't regret it!

HAVE A BLESSED WEEK!!