SPEAKER_00: Hi everyone, it's Nancy, and it sure is great to be back here on our Wednesday Daily Walk.
SPEAKER_00: I want to share something I learned recently that was impressive and also personally challenging.
SPEAKER_00: A friend who works as an engineer at NASA told me that recently he traveled with a group of fellow program directors and communications experts who work with the Artemis program to work with geologists in the Arizona Desert.
SPEAKER_00: It was in preparation for the next Artemis journey to the moon.
SPEAKER_00: Can you imagine what those astronauts will discover then?
SPEAKER_00: The purpose of the trip to the desert was to get a sense of what it might be like for the astronauts as they studied the moon's surface more closely.
SPEAKER_00: These program directors want to determine how to communicate effectively with the astronauts so the team here on Earth can understand what they're finding and experiencing on the moon in order to better support them and to guide them in that part of their mission.
SPEAKER_00: The astronauts are going through extensive training and preparation, of course, for their task.
SPEAKER_00: And the NASA program team, the Artemis team, understands that education, training, and preparing themselves are keys to effective leading.
SPEAKER_00: I thought about this as I listened to our guest pastor's sermon Sunday as he spoke of the importance of spiritual training for our children.
SPEAKER_00: How we as parents, grandparents, family members, friends, and a church family can lead our children to a relationship with God and to spiritual maturity.
SPEAKER_00: It is after our our calling.
SPEAKER_00: And I also thought about our mission as a church to magnify Christ and share the gospel.
SPEAKER_00: If we want to follow that mission and if we want to be effective in supporting, leading, influencing, training, coaching, and encouraging others spiritually, we need to prepare ourselves.
SPEAKER_00: And the first and foremost place to turn to in order to do that is God's word.
SPEAKER_00: As we spend time with him in study and in prayer, we can learn what he wants us to share and how he wants us to do so in a way that will magnify him and lead others to him.
SPEAKER_00: Psalm 119, 105 says, Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.
SPEAKER_00: As a young girl, I memorized that verse, and I knew it was telling me God's word would guide me.
SPEAKER_00: And now that little girl has lived many, many years, and she still puts her hope in that promise.
SPEAKER_00: As we look to the Lord to lead us, let's also ask him to help us understand what life is like for those we want to encourage in their spiritual walk.
SPEAKER_00: We can ask him to first prepare our hearts and then prepare our minds to give us wisdom to know how to effectively lead and to give us opportunities to be salt and light.
SPEAKER_00: I'll close with this promise found in Proverbs 2 6.
SPEAKER_00: For the Lord gives wisdom from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.
SPEAKER_00: Amen.