Well-deserved cold water in my face!

by Stephan Joubert

“Is this the first time you preach?” asks the blind boy after a sermon I gave at an English congregation in Perth, during the time I spend there recently to lecture. While searching for a suitable reply, he suggested a few things I can try to at least preach somewhat better next time. I must say, it was a well-deserved cup of cold water in the face. I have been pretty focused on preaching almost every Sunday morning and evening during recent years. And then I heard the truth straight from the mouth of someone with a vision impairment — “Practice sometimes doesn’t make perfect!”

“You’re never too old to learn,” says the proverb. Whether we actually do it is another question entirely. As someone once said, “Wisdom comes with age, but sometimes age comes alone.” So I have to keep learning about anything from preaching and communication to God’s will. For some reason I easily become familiar and complacent with familiar habits and routines. Even though I trust the Lord for wisdom and guidance, I know that this doesn’t exempt me from my responsibility to work hard and learn from friends, books, and also from life itself. I must allow God to renew my thoughts every day, as Paul teaches in Romans 12.

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