Yesterday was very analogous to out spiritual journey. Upon reaching Central park, we found ourselves exhausted and spent. It was the 4th of July. There were a lot of couples and families spending time together for the holiday. Many of us found ourselves wondering if we should bother them. Some of us just wanted to get the time done with.
It's interesting this is a very accurate picture of the majority of our days spent following Christ. If I were to look at it from a calendar year, here's how I see the lives of most students run...
June through August - refreshing, refocusing, energized, eye-opening, growing
September through November - Living out loud, going for it, seeing good things.
December through February - Getting tired, breaks that tend to be very busy and exhausting,
March through May - Sick of everything, Loss of focus, just trying to get through.
Yesterday was a March through May day. As we pulled the team together, I took some time to ask who thought their day was successful, who thought their day was unsuccessful, and why they would answer the question....
Hannah walked up to a couple of gals that were playing Boggle, and asked if she could join them. As their conversation went along, Hannah discovered that one of the gals was Jewish. Through the conversation, Hannah was able to talk to her about her Savior and Messiah, Jesus. Kalyn Lantz (back home) said she was specifically praying Hannah would be able to share her faith with a Jewish person.
Brock has been growing like crazy. The first day, it was very hard for him to talk to anyone. On Monday, he had a rough day of rejection, but was able to listen as Brad talked with several individuals. On Tuesday, he sat with Brad again, but this time added in his own questions and thoughts in the conversation. Yesterday, he, on his own, approached several individuals and was able to carry on some great conversations about Jesus.
Justin has been a conversational juggernaut. He has had some great conversations and seen very amazing results. Yesterday, he approached many people, but none of the people wanted to talk.
I was walking along the famous fountain (it's in a ton of movies) and our girls had been stopped by BobbyK, a musician who does Beatles Sing-alongs. Kristen had requested "Yellow Submarine" so 7 of us sang along as he played. He asked what who we were, what we were doing, etc. and Kristen told him that we were a church group from Indiana talking to people about God. He then, somewhat jokingly broke in to "Amazing Grace." He really enjoyed talking with our kids, yet continually was asking me questions (I told him I was their Pastor). After our fun time together, I got a chance to sit with him for 20 minutes where he really opened up about his life and some of the tough things he's had to go through recently. In that time, I met an incredibly kind, sweet, intelligent, hurting, just out of college young man who has been desperately seeking truth. I was able to share some insight into his life, and let him know why I believed Jesus Christ was worth pursuing. He gave me his myspace account, and I hope to continue our conversation/relationship.
Craig was tired and didn't want to do anything yesterday. He chose to fight through it, and took a seat beside a Chinese guy on the same fountain I met Bobbyk. Through the conversation, it become clear that this man was ready to find out how he could have a relationship with God. Craig explained the message of salvation with him, and asked him if he would be willing to become a Christ Follower. He said yes, and Craig took time to walk him through the sinners prayer to receive Christ.
So, back to my question, what was success? Was it the results? I don't think so. I challenged the students to remember that as a Christ Follower we must remember that success can only be measured in our obedience to God. Whether is was Hannah taking that obedient step to play Boggle, or Justin taking the steps and being rejected, or Brock taking each step along the way to build his boldness, or Kristen stopping to sing with Bobbyk, or Craig pushing through the tiredness, it was in the obedience to God that we can call success.
Below is BobbyK and I talking, and in the background is Craig talking with our new Brother in Christ.
There are many stories to share about our time here. Most are stories of success, some are unsuccessful stories.
My question for you today,
Was yesterday a successful day?
Were you obedient to God?
Will today be a successful day?
Will you be obedient to God?
John 14:23
23Jesus replied, "If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.
It's interesting this is a very accurate picture of the majority of our days spent following Christ. If I were to look at it from a calendar year, here's how I see the lives of most students run...
June through August - refreshing, refocusing, energized, eye-opening, growing
September through November - Living out loud, going for it, seeing good things.
December through February - Getting tired, breaks that tend to be very busy and exhausting,
March through May - Sick of everything, Loss of focus, just trying to get through.
Yesterday was a March through May day. As we pulled the team together, I took some time to ask who thought their day was successful, who thought their day was unsuccessful, and why they would answer the question....
Hannah walked up to a couple of gals that were playing Boggle, and asked if she could join them. As their conversation went along, Hannah discovered that one of the gals was Jewish. Through the conversation, Hannah was able to talk to her about her Savior and Messiah, Jesus. Kalyn Lantz (back home) said she was specifically praying Hannah would be able to share her faith with a Jewish person.
Brock has been growing like crazy. The first day, it was very hard for him to talk to anyone. On Monday, he had a rough day of rejection, but was able to listen as Brad talked with several individuals. On Tuesday, he sat with Brad again, but this time added in his own questions and thoughts in the conversation. Yesterday, he, on his own, approached several individuals and was able to carry on some great conversations about Jesus.
Justin has been a conversational juggernaut. He has had some great conversations and seen very amazing results. Yesterday, he approached many people, but none of the people wanted to talk.
I was walking along the famous fountain (it's in a ton of movies) and our girls had been stopped by BobbyK, a musician who does Beatles Sing-alongs. Kristen had requested "Yellow Submarine" so 7 of us sang along as he played. He asked what who we were, what we were doing, etc. and Kristen told him that we were a church group from Indiana talking to people about God. He then, somewhat jokingly broke in to "Amazing Grace." He really enjoyed talking with our kids, yet continually was asking me questions (I told him I was their Pastor). After our fun time together, I got a chance to sit with him for 20 minutes where he really opened up about his life and some of the tough things he's had to go through recently. In that time, I met an incredibly kind, sweet, intelligent, hurting, just out of college young man who has been desperately seeking truth. I was able to share some insight into his life, and let him know why I believed Jesus Christ was worth pursuing. He gave me his myspace account, and I hope to continue our conversation/relationship.
Craig was tired and didn't want to do anything yesterday. He chose to fight through it, and took a seat beside a Chinese guy on the same fountain I met Bobbyk. Through the conversation, it become clear that this man was ready to find out how he could have a relationship with God. Craig explained the message of salvation with him, and asked him if he would be willing to become a Christ Follower. He said yes, and Craig took time to walk him through the sinners prayer to receive Christ.
So, back to my question, what was success? Was it the results? I don't think so. I challenged the students to remember that as a Christ Follower we must remember that success can only be measured in our obedience to God. Whether is was Hannah taking that obedient step to play Boggle, or Justin taking the steps and being rejected, or Brock taking each step along the way to build his boldness, or Kristen stopping to sing with Bobbyk, or Craig pushing through the tiredness, it was in the obedience to God that we can call success.
Below is BobbyK and I talking, and in the background is Craig talking with our new Brother in Christ.
There are many stories to share about our time here. Most are stories of success, some are unsuccessful stories.
My question for you today,
Was yesterday a successful day?
Were you obedient to God?
Will today be a successful day?
Will you be obedient to God?
John 14:23
23Jesus replied, "If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.
1 comment:
During my lunch today I'll be spending some time in prayer for BobbyK and the man Craig met. I often feel led to pray for people, and almost always shrug it off. Not today. I want today to be a successful one! Thanks for continuing to teach all of us back here while you lead all of them there!
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