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Realizing Life's Potential
By Leah Stanley
The clock starts ticking from the moment of conception, and by the time a baby turns one year old the birthday candles start lining up as an annual reminder that no one is getting any younger. The question is are you trying to out-run your birthday candles because they make you feel old or are you boldly leading them from one year to the next in anticipation of the great things God wants to do in your life? If you've got at least 55 candles in tow and believe that God still wants to use you for His glory, then "Life's Potential" could be the Sunday School class for you. And if you feel like your life isn't any fun anymore, then you should definitely visit this class because these folks love life and their attitude is highly contagious.
Class teacher Reverend Phil Clements said the group of about 70 people is delightful to meet with each week, and that one of the most precious things about the class is that its members consistently support one another in prayer.
"Prayer is a vital part of the class," he said. "Our prayer time takes almost as long as the lesson."
Another special feature of this senior adult assembly is that within the larger group there exist smaller "care groups" which allow prayer requests to be processed so that no member's needs are missed. Brother Phil's wife, Freda, said they also maintain a prayer list which keeps everybody informed about the on-going needs of their fellow class members.
"They are such a caring class," Freda said. "Some of these folks don't have family members living nearby, so this class is their family." Class member Jeanette Roach said she couldn't agree more.
"They are dear Christian friends," she said. "You can really see Jesus in these people."
In addition to their overwhelming prayer support and the unity of a family atmosphere, Life's Potential class members are devoted to missionary outreach. According to Brother Phil, the class gives approximately $300 a month to the various missionaries supported by Central.
"And as a class they have been most supportive of the church," Brother Phil said. "There's a lot of loyalty among these seniors."
The class is currently involved in a study of the book of Mark. It is the shortest of the Gospels, Brother Phil pointed out, and deals primarily with the hard facts of Jesus' earthly ministry without a lot of detail.
"We like to fill in the broad picture with information from the other gospels," he said, "while maintaining our focus on what Mark had to say."
Brother Phil has been officially retired for the last 3-and-a-half years from his position as an associate pastor after more than 20 years of faithful service at Central Church. He has been teaching the Life's Potential class for 10 years, sharing his responsibilities with his assistant teacher Bob Watkins. Phil and Freda have been married for 48 years and have seven children and 21 grandchildren.
So if you're still trying to find a way to run fast and far from your birthday candles, Brother Phil wants you to remember Paul's words to Timothy: "Study to show yourself approved unto God." (II Timothy 2:15).
"I want people to realize that it's never too late to enter a new study of God's Word," Brother Phil said.
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