Ch. 176 - Everything is "Fine"

Just because I'm surrounded by many believers who know and love Jesus Christ doesn't mean I'm not surrounded by many believers who are hurting.

I didn't know I was scheduled for a rude awakening tonight until it was happening right before my eyes. We had a floor meeting. It was the first time for my meeting many of the girls on my floor, so it was nice to finally put names with faces I've seen. Standard procedure, I suppose. Attendance sheet passed around. Introductions. Announcements. Open dorm theme voting. It's going just fine. You can see smiles all around the group and a lot of laughter breaks out here and there.

Then come the prayer concerns.

Well, at first nobody said anything. Then our RA mentioned something that was going on in her life; once she had spoken, it was like the dam had broken. Soon all of this stuff came rushing forward.
Sad stuff.
Angry stuff.
Troublesome stuff.
Heartbreaking stuff.

You could hear the hurt in the voices.
You could see the worry in the eyes.
You could feel the anxiety in the air.

Naturally, you likely wouldn't be able to figure out that anything was wrong if you were to speak with these people. But it's there. Lurking under the surface. I don't think these girls are looking for pity. I don't think these girls are looking for sorrow.

Prayer.
Encouragement.
Strength.
Community.

That's what these girls are looking for.
That's what these girls need.

And I know I can't save the world. I'm not a superhero. But my heart went out to these girls and it's like I want to do everything possible to make things good for them. I think they're in a beautiful place to be during these difficult points in their lives (meaning to be here at Central Christian College of the Bible). I know these daunting situations are not meant by God to bring grief, but growth. But when you add in work schedules, six or so classes, mandatory service hours, relationships (whether that means friends, significant others, or both), and whatever else... the stress level increases pretty rapidly. And that's not good.

I just pray that God will place His healing hand over all of these people and that His spirit of peace and comfort will wash over them. I simply hope they just give everything to Him and completely put their trust in Him. God has a plan for all. And He is good. All the time.


'Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him.'
[Psalm 34:8]

......

Chapter 176, Part Two:

This week's memory verse:

'Rejoice always; pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.'
[1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, NASB]

Ch. 27 - Always Learning

Pastor Phil started a new sermon series this weekend; it's on spiritual disciplines. Yesterday's discipline happened to be prayer.

I pray a lot.

But do I know a lot about prayer?

I'd like to think so, but it's not true. You may ask, "But what's there to know about prayer?" Perhaps you think prayer is simply closing your eyes, bowing your head, starting with 'Dear God,' saying a bunch of stuff that you may or may not mean - or, better yet, what you think God wants to hear - and ending with an 'Amen.' Nothin' to it.

I suppose to some people that is what prayer is all about. My heart breaks for them, because they are truly missing out on a beautiful experience.

Phil used a C.S. Lewis quote that I really liked, it says this:

"The moment you wake up each morning all your wishes and hopes for the day rush at you like wild animals. And the first job each morning consists in shoving it all back; in listening to that other voice, taking that other point of view, letting that larger, stronger, quieter life come flowing in."

Take a step back at some point in your day, give time to God, and pray. Talk to Him. Let Him know what's going on in your life. Share with Him your joys, your sorrows, your happiness, your anger - everything. He wants to be a part of your life so bad. Make sure, however, that you also take the time to listen to Him. You'll know when He speaks to You, trust me.

'... louder than your conscience, but softer than your thoughts.' I heard this from a friend once - he had read it in a book, I think. It describes hearing God perfectly. Truly beautiful.

Phil brought up an interesting point yesterday. He said that prayer is to be learned. I agree. He gave the example of Jesus saying to His disciples, 'Pray like this:' and how He shared with them the Lord's Prayer. We grow and mature in our prayers as time passes, I think. We become comfortable in lifting our prayers to God, speaking to Him. We realize that prayer is not constricted. Don't be afraid to branch out a bit.

I'm excited to continue learning about prayer over the course of my life. After all, God's a magnificent teacher.


'...pray continually...'
[1 Thessalonians 5:17]