Knowing Things - by Ben Barnes

I have an ever-growing pile of books in my office that I’d love to read.  Every morning, I sit down at my desk and that pile of books stares at me, growing a dusty coat, just taunting me quietly.  I enjoy reading, not because I enjoy taking the time to read, but because I enjoy learning.  Every teacher I’ve ever had would disagree with that, so let me rephrase.  I enjoy knowing things.  And quite often, reading leads to knowing things.  The pile of books in my office bothers me because I just never seem to have the time to dig into any of them.  I’m busy completing daily tasks of rehearsing with the worship band or editing videos or making sure that Sunday morning services are worshipful for the people that come to Redeemer.

This morning, I was hit by two scriptures that speak to my pile of books and my daily tasks.  Ecclesiastes 1 is a lament from the King of Israel that says ‘Much learning earns you much trouble.’  And Matthew 6 tells us to store up treasures in Heaven instead of treasures on earth.  I guess my take-away from those two very different ideas would be this:  Knowing things isn’t going to last.  But helping people glorify God on a Sunday morning (and beyond) certainly will.