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Friday, October 5, 2007
 I work in a large youth ministry. Last Sunday night, 433 students came through the doors. Before you write us off as “too into numbers” or as a holding bin for teenagers stuffed with free pizza, let me say that big numbers don’t necessarily mean anything. Or, they can mean a lot. Actually, numbers do matter because people matter, and in that crowd of 433, there were 433 unique individuals looking for acceptance and a safe place to have fun. Certainly, the Holy Spirit can and does move through large crowds as well as small crowds, orchestrating circumstances and drawing people’s minds and hearts to Him.Case in point: a middle school student I’ll call “Bobby.” Sunday night, our youth pastor noticed Bobby at a video game. They had never met before, but our pastor engaged Bobby in conversation. It turns out that Bobby’s father had collapsed and died of a heart attack at 53 years old this week. The funeral was already over. Our pastor was of course moved by Bobby’s circumstance. He was able to establish the beginning of a relationship with Bobby and speak hope and courage into Bobby’s life. But God didn’t stop working there. Later that night, our guest speaker was Stephanie Arnold, a former Olympic archer who uses her skills to enhance her talks about her faith in various venues. This past year, Stephanie’s father was killed in a motorcycle accident. She told the crowd Sunday night that this was the first time she had been able to talk about her loss without breaking down. She talked about how God had helped her through this hard time in her life. Do you think that one little 6th grade boy in the crowd was hanging on every word? It took a lot of time, work and resources to make last Sunday night happen, and God receives the glory. It is by him, in him and for him that nights such as this happen. And yes, it was an elaborate event. Some might say over the top, too "worldy," too many bells and whistles, not deep enough, not churchy enough--but I know how the staff would respond; I feel sure that they would do it all again, even just for Bobby. Because he’s worth it. He matters to God, and he matters to us. Do you recognize times in your life when God arranges moments and circumstances to meet you at your point of need? Do you realize that you matter so much to God that he always sees you in the crowd, even a crowd of 6 billion people? May you feel his watchful, loving eye on you as you move throughout your day. Whatever trials touch you, they are only passing through by his permission, and he will give you grace to face them. And if you should happen to remember Bobby today, please pray for him. It’s been a tough week, but God’s eye is definitely on him. He’s a V.I.P..  Please come by and visit my personal blog at 2nd Cup of Coffee. Labels: grief, Holy Spirit, Linda's Articles, teenagers, trials, youth ministry Leave a comment... 12 Comments Links to this post “…And, yet God, You’re still sovereign, Your throne intact and eternal.” Lamentations 5:20b Have you ever had those moments when you just really felt like everything was going wrong, times when life just seems to be spinning out of control? Perhaps it is a health issue with you or a family member. Maybe it’s the loss of a job or just the stress of too many responsibilities. Whether it’s from our own poor choices, decisions made by those around us, or just circumstances beyond our control, we’ve all had times when we just felt like the bottom was falling out from underneath us. That is exactly where we find the children of Israel in Lamentations chapter five. In this case, they were being disciplined by God, their loving Heavenly Father, for their sins. They had chosen to “buy into the pagan system” of their day (boy, does that sound familiar) and God was grieved and angry. The bottom had fallen out of their lives. They were dealing with famine, war, violence, and complete despair. The writer of Lamentations is drawing the desperate picture for us, and right in the middle of all the discouraging details, he penned these words in verse twenty. “…and yet God, You’re still sovereign, Your throne intact and eternal.” No matter how bad things were, he recognized Who was still in control. This isn’t always easy, but this is an amazing truth that is often times our only hope. No matter how difficult life may get, God is still sovereign and His throne is still intact and eternal. We can trust Him with our health concerns. We can rest in His sufficiency, knowing that no matter how hard the storm rages, His Anchor holds. Corrie ten Boone said it so eloquently, when she said, “There is no pit too deep, that He is not deeper still”. We are never so far that His arm cannot save us. Our life is never so dark, that He cannot see exactly where we are. When life seems to be spinning out of control, hang on, my friend, because God, the Creator and Sustainer of this universe, is still in complete control. He is still on His throne, where He will remain for all eternity, and He is working all things (the good, the bad, and the ugly) together for our good and for His glory! Lord, thank you that you are God and you are in total control. Thank you that your reign is eternal and there is nothing, or no one, that can overthrow you. Thank you that you are, right now, working everything together for our good and we can trust you. Help us to remember when life is hard, whether it’s due to our own sin or circumstances out of our control, that nothing surprises You and nothing is too big for You. In Him ~ Tammy… You can read more from Tammy by visiting her personal blog at Steps In Our Journey Labels: coping, courage, Endurance, Faith, fear, grief, heart matters, Hope, peace, Suffering, Tammy, trust Leave a comment... 7 Comments Links to this post
Sunday, September 9, 2007
 One week ago today, I pulled myself away from my 18 year-old son and left him “all alone” to begin his new life at college. Heart-wrenching! I hardly had time to process my grief because two very beloved cousins whom I had not seen in years spontaneously flew in to visit. Joy! Twenty-four hours later, they zipped off with no assurance or plan for our ever being together again. Sorrow! Note the events in one week: Sad separation, ecstatic reunion, sad separation. Picture water faucets being twisted one way full-force, then jerked back the other way, then the other way. The water works flowed. But God is good. He had led me to re-read Luke 24 several times lately, and now I think I know why. Separations and reunions were about to happen all around me, and my loving Lord would prepare me, if I would recognize his voice, to receive his peace. Luke 24:17 tell us that on the road to Emmaus, the two disciples’ faces were “downcast,” probably revealing confusion, fear of the future, disillusionment. Often the disciples forgot/didn’t understand Jesus’ mission, even though he told them exactly what to expect, and even though the angel at the tomb reminded them, “Remember how he told you ….” Still, I have compassion for these guys. It’s hard to be clear-headed when you’re grieving. But--there was a reunion at dinnertime: as soon as Jesus broke bread with them, they recognized him with spiritual eyes and in their hearts. Immediately, they went back to their friends with renewed hope, vigor and joy! This account shows that Jesus cares when our hearts are heavy. If we will recognize him in the midst of our pain, he will renew us, too. John Piper notes that Jesus’ ascension is called the "Ascent of Joy." He adds, “Ordinarily when our best beloved departs on a long journey we do not rejoice. We cry. In order for that crying to be turned into rejoicing we have to be deeply assured of two things.” The first criterion is that we believe the separation is not final. The Lord gave us many promises about being reunited with him, but John 16:22 is very pointed: “You are now very sad. But later I will see you, and you will be so happy that no one will be able to change the way you feel.” He promised us, “There are many rooms in my Father's house. I wouldn't tell you this, unless it was true. I am going there to prepare a place for each of you. After I have done this, I will come back and take you with me. Then we will be together” (John14:2-3). The second criterion is that “we must be assured that the separation is best for us and best for our beloved.” And here, of course, is the line that brought all of this together for me: “It has to be more like sending your nine-year-old off to camp or your 18-year-old off to college. And so it was. The ascension of Jesus Christ into heaven at God's right hand was an ‘ascent of joy’ because it meant that the greatest possible blessing would come to Jesus and to his people.” The Son was returning to his glory with his Father, and we became the beneficiaries of eternal mediation between God and man, provided by the Spotless Lamb. He returned to his rightful place, and we received a blessing we had no right to receive. This week, my Comforter met me on my own Emmaus walk. Now I’m ready to square my shoulders, turn around and carry on what I was about before, renewed and reminded of his faithfulness. If you feel as though you’re walking alone today, look up, and recognize your traveling companion. “… For He [God] Himself has said, ‘I will not in any way fail you, nor give you up nor leave you without support. I will not, I will not, I will not in any degree leave you helpless, nor forsake, nor let you down or relax my hold on you! Assuredly not!’” (Hebrews 13:5b, Amplified) Please visit my personal blog at 2nd cup of coffee. Labels: Faith, grief, Linda's Articles, Loneliness, peace Leave a comment... 5 Comments Links to this post
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