Enjoying God and Other Rare Events - Steve Sampson

Enjoying God and Other Rare Events
did at one time.
“And no one, having drunk old wine, immediately
desires the new; for he says, ‘The old is better'”
Luke 5:39.
Breaking Through the Barrier of Self-Centeredness
A few years ago when our son was two years old, we took a
trip to Florida. Our daughter, who was older, rode in the back
seat with her brother the entire way. Upon our return, she
decided to stay with her grandparents for awhile, so my wife and
I and our son drove back to Texas. We had driven the first day
for hours and hours, before our son finally spoke up and said,
“Where’s sissy?” In his immaturity and self-centeredness, he
had not even noticed her absence.
Through this incident the Lord spoke to me about His
Church. He said many have stayed immature due to being in a
self-centered and self-conscious state. Just like our little boy,
they remain unaware of anyone else’s need except their own.
In a self-centered state all we see is what we need. It is not
wrong to want God to bless us, but it is wrong to let the blessing
stop there and never move beyond us. The question of spiritual
maturity is not how much we receive, but how much flows
through us as we give out. A good question to ask the Lord is,
“Is there someone who has a need, Lord, that you desire me to
minister to?”
There are seemingly three stages of maturity:
1. Those who just make it to church.
2. Those who come to church expecting to receive from God.
3. Those who come with a motive to be a blessing and give out
what God has given them.
Paul said to be prepared to give.
“How is it then, brethren? Whenever you come
together, each of you has a psalm, has a teaching, has a
tongue, has a revelation, has an interpretation. Let all
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