Thursday, October 3, 2013

My God is personal

This year has been a time of transition and newness. For most people who know me well, they know that I don't like to sit still for very long. I like change. I like transition. I have a hard time with doing the same thing for a long time. It's no wonder that I love my current ministry, and enjoyed the job I was doing before it.

Recently, I applied and was accepted into ministry as the youth pastor at my home Church. This is a position that I've been thinking and praying about for years already; constantly wondering whether this was something that God wanted me to do, or I wanted to do on my own. Over the past number of years, God has been showing me how much I need him for everything. There are so many times I can think of that I've tried to do things on my own, and failed. I love this job, because it's always different, which forces me to change and grow. I need to rely on God, because it's really his ministry, and I'm just here for him to use to impact lives and introduce people to Jesus.

Thinking about the call on my life to be an example of what a vibrant, and living relationship with Christ is like, can seem pretty intense at times. Another part of me, is excited beyond words at the opportunity that it is, to be able to seek God and his will for my life, and those that I lead, as a career. I realize that this ministry comes with its yucky parts too. Working with people is never the same, as situations come up that you don't necessarily expect. For instance, yesterday we were having a routine youth night, and one of the young people got sick, and I spent some time cleaning up after them this morning still. New experiences, and new ways of being stretched and grown, and having to call on others to help me to learn how to deal with this kind of stuff.

I am so thankful that God decided that he wanted to make people different. Not everyone is the same, and I am super thankful for that. Our junior and senior high leadership teams are made up of different people, but we are all here for the same goal. We want to live for God, and to learn what it means to follow him, together. We want to be examples to youth, like the youth leaders that came before us.

More transitions in my life this year have been: buying a house for the first time,  and finding out I'm gonna have a son or daughter for a birthday present this year. I'm so thankful that God is my provider, and I can lean on him, when I don't quite see how everything will work out. He knows us so well. My wife Cassie is an amazing woman, and I am very thankful that she's not exactly the same as me either, I love that she encourages me, and tries to support me in the things that I'm doing. I am so excited that we get to raise kids together, it's gonna be an adventure!

One thing I'd like to leave you with, that God's been teaching me through all the transition and change, and newness and stress in my life, is again that he is faithful. He is constant. He is good! It's silly how often we believe lies that come in the form of questioning ideas in our heads. 

"Is God really good?" - In the book of Daniel in the Bible, there's a story of the man named Daniel being thrown into a den of lions overnight, since some guys wanted to kill him, and they tricked the king into passing a law condemning him for praying to God. The King really didn't want Daniel to die, since he liked him, so he spent the night fasting and praying on Daniel's behalf. After the night is over the King went to the lion's den, and they found Daniel alive!! The story's in chapter 6, and it's pretty cool. After the whole ordeal King Darius sent a message to "the people of every race and nation and language throughout the world" (Daniel 6:25) and told them about God. "For he is the living God, and he will endure forever. His kingdom will never be destroyed, and his rule will never end. He rescues and saves his people; he performs miraculous signs and wonders in the heavens and on earth." (Daniel 6:26b-27) Read the story for yourself, it's cool. God is good. He is our rescuer!

 "Does he really love me?" - Cliche as it is...John 3:16 is true. "For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him." God wants to be in a relationship with you. He wants you to accept his love,and believe that it's real! If you do, you won't be able to keep yourself from loving him back! He wants you to share that love with others around you too!

Read the Bible, it's alive, and powerful.