Sorry that I have not posted much lately. Life has been busy, both physically and emotionally, for me lately.
This weekend was a big one for our youth. It was d*weekend (discipleship weekend) where our teenagers spend all weekend growing, learning and bonding in the Lord. It was certainly fun and I got to act like I was 17 again and hang out with twelve, absolutely amazing, 16 & 17 year old girls. To say that I was exhausted on Sunday would be the understatement of the month.
Before that though, my emotions have been drained. You see, a week ago I began a new friendship. My new friend "K" and I met and very quickly saw so many similarities in our lives. We laughed, talked and last Sunday (a week ago) she gave her life to the Lord. I was so thrilled, yet I knew the pains that awaited her.
Her life now looks a lot like my life from not-so-long-ago. And, as I watch her wade her way through the muck, desperately trying to seek God's face, I see the strain and stress that she is facing. It's heavy stuff, and there is little that I can physically do to help her. But, my heart aches.
I want her to see, so clearly, that God is making a way. I want her to know Him intimately, deeply and in the most profound way possible. Yet I know that full surrender is a process, and not even something I myself have yet mastered.
I want K to know, without reservation, that the Lord loves her, and even more than that He likes her and wants her to be stable and successful.
But as I sit here on the sidelines and watch her begin this journey, I know, all too well the ups and downs she will face. I know that she will struggle, doubt, question, love, know, see, taste, smell and feel God everyday. I pray that my new, dear friend hangs on. Or that she realizes, with her whole heart, that the God who holds the winds, the rains and all of creation in His mighty hand, also hold her. When she feels like letting go, He will hold onto her and say, "Don't be afraid." I pray that she will feel held, in the palm of His marvelous hand.
This weekend was a big one for our youth. It was d*weekend (discipleship weekend) where our teenagers spend all weekend growing, learning and bonding in the Lord. It was certainly fun and I got to act like I was 17 again and hang out with twelve, absolutely amazing, 16 & 17 year old girls. To say that I was exhausted on Sunday would be the understatement of the month.
Before that though, my emotions have been drained. You see, a week ago I began a new friendship. My new friend "K" and I met and very quickly saw so many similarities in our lives. We laughed, talked and last Sunday (a week ago) she gave her life to the Lord. I was so thrilled, yet I knew the pains that awaited her.
Her life now looks a lot like my life from not-so-long-ago. And, as I watch her wade her way through the muck, desperately trying to seek God's face, I see the strain and stress that she is facing. It's heavy stuff, and there is little that I can physically do to help her. But, my heart aches.
I want her to see, so clearly, that God is making a way. I want her to know Him intimately, deeply and in the most profound way possible. Yet I know that full surrender is a process, and not even something I myself have yet mastered.
I want K to know, without reservation, that the Lord loves her, and even more than that He likes her and wants her to be stable and successful.
But as I sit here on the sidelines and watch her begin this journey, I know, all too well the ups and downs she will face. I know that she will struggle, doubt, question, love, know, see, taste, smell and feel God everyday. I pray that my new, dear friend hangs on. Or that she realizes, with her whole heart, that the God who holds the winds, the rains and all of creation in His mighty hand, also hold her. When she feels like letting go, He will hold onto her and say, "Don't be afraid." I pray that she will feel held, in the palm of His marvelous hand.