A work in progress.

A thought that hit me last night at High School Church‘s Home Invasion.

Sometimes, when you’re on your hands and knees in the filth and chaos serving others you’re taken advantage of by the very people you’re trying to show God’s love and grace to–especially, when you’re serving QUIETLY and behind the scenes.  It’s like, while you’re on the ground attempting to build Christ’s Kingdom you’re being kicked in the ribs over and over again…but you continue serving and submitting anyways because you know it’s what God is calling you to do.  It’s insanity!  Same act–same result.

Then, I think about Jesus!  He served QUIETLY while being kicked in the ribs over and over again and hung on a cross to rescue mankind.

Is this what it means to share in Christ’s sufferings?

What’s the hardest thing about serving to you?

*By the way, I’ve written and re-written this post and cannot figure out the clearest way to demonstrate this thought.  Maybe you can help me out

Unfortunately, I suppose in leadership there is always opposition.  I think opposition is a good thing because eventually, it makes everybody better and has the potential to make a community stronger.  However, it’s not easy.  Sometimes, in the midst of it you feel like you completely suck at life.  That’s where I’ve been this week.  I’m not down or anything but that thought has certainly crossed my mind.

The cool part about this is that I’ve experienced a lot of encouragement from strange places.  I can’t even begin to explain everything.  The encouragement hasn’t necessarily been from one person saying something but it’s been from multiple people’s actions even though they have no idea what it has meant to me.  There are also some other weird affirmations that I don’t think are appropriate for me to discuss here but they are thoughts and dreams that God has given me for the past seven or eight years that are on the cusp of break through.  Thank you God for the encouragement…you know just what I need in the face of opposition.

I’m reminded of some Scripture I just taught about this past weekend and is something I’m hanging onto right now.

But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

“Yes, we know the Word and a have a genuine desire to share the gospel with them (students).  But we haven’t taken the time to know them and their changing culture.  When it becomes obvious they aren’t responding to our efforts, we lament the fact they have turned a deaf ear to church.  But is that really the case? I don’t think so.  More often than not, their ambivalence to the church is rooted in the fact they can’t hear anything we’re saying.  Because we haven’t taken the time to know them and their world, they don’t hear or understand any of it.  They’re not deaf–we’re dumb.  In the end, we’ve done an ‘injustice to people whom Christ loves and for whom he died.’”

Engaging the Soul of Youth Culture by Walt Mueller

Wow!  If this isn’t a challenging quote–I don’t know what is.  This quote has inspired me to take my “calling” more serious and become a better cross-cultural missionary to students.  I admit it…I’ve been so focused on things like getting my series planned out for the rest of the year or organizing “this and that,” that I’ve forgotten them.  I see students, I talk to students, I listen to them…but it’s all in the context of our church walls or student ministry events.  I haven’t been in THEIR world lately.  Have you been in the world of the people you are “called” to lately?