A post from Dan!
God has really been testing my faith lately. Or maybe it isn’t God at all; maybe it’s Satan trying to keep me down. I’m not really sure which one, but whatever it is, it is causing me to lose focus. I can’t sleep at night. Over the past 72 hours I’ve slept about 9 hours. My whole body is racked with pain. I’m not really sure what to do at this point, because no matter how exhausted I feel, I can’t fall asleep.
There was a loss at the church this week. A young man, who was married with two small children, had some kind of heart condition and died Thursday morning. The whole church is in a state of shock. There are a lot of tears and it’s been making me think of my mother. Also a friend back home just lost her father unexpectedly. It seems like this has been happening a lot lately. My faith tells me that God can do miraculous things from bad situations and I’ve seen that very thing happen in my own life, but this string of untimely deaths has really shaken me. I still believe in God and I still believe he can do wondrous things, but my spirit is broken right now and everything is so gloomy.
On a lighter note, Hilary and I went to the mall yesterday. We are planning a welcoming event for the upcoming youth next week and we are doing a scavenger hunt through the mall. So we spent a few hours just going from store to store finding random things and writing down the prices. When we actually set the teens loose they will have the name of the items and they will have to find them and tell us the price of the item to verify that they found it. I think it’s going to be a lot of fun and hopefully we’ll see a lot of new faces to add to the youth group for the summer.
Wow, Dan. I'm sorry to hear all of that. It seems youth pastors have a tough job. Kevin has been complaining about his exhausting workload and busy schedule. I feel bad for him and I know he needs help, so I've been praying for him. I'll pray for you too, not that I haven't already been doing that.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad to hear that your faith is being tested. God chastises the son he loves. Good will come from this in some form or another. And it doesn't matter whether it's God or Satan, it has happened because God allowed it to. Having your spirit broken is a good thing. It means you have that much more opportunity to grow. Just as it is good for the plant to have some of it's limbs cut off to make room for better limbs or because those ones were bad, so are we strengthened when our spirits are broken and our faith it tried. Faith is, indeed, the keyword. Recently, God has really worked in my life and I have found a very sincere faith and trust in Him that I've been after for years. To trust in God means that you are that much more capable of fulfilling His will because you're more likely to let HIM take control as oppose to doing things yourself. And, honestly, we usually screw up His plan.
I hope this helps.
The scavenger hunt sounds like fun. Good idea.
You know Dan, as I recall you me and Katie won a scavenger hunt at the mall that was eerily similar to the one you are describing. LOL. I'm sure you will all have a blast! How many kids are you taking, btw? Hahaha...I also just recalled that that was the trip where Hilary and i put my makeup on KC...oh, good times. !!!
ReplyDeleteAlso, i hope you can get some sleep soon...I had a rather hard go of it last night, and didn't fall asleep for over two hours, which is very unusual for me. I will continue to pray for you and Hilary in all of this, and i have faith that you will emerge victorious!
love ya,
Sandy
Hi Dan, I am so sorry you are having such a hard time sleeping, sounds like you have alot on your mind right now. Please remember that you are loved very much and God will continue to help both you and Hilary on this journey. I think both of you are doing a great job so far from home and I am glad you have each other. Many hugs from this side of the fence and take care of each other. Love Aunt Barb
ReplyDeleteHey Dan/Hilary - sounds to me like God is at work in your lives! This is good, even though it is difficult. I'm sorry for the loss in your church, this happened here a couple weekends ago, I mentioned it, a 19 year old young man who had just renewed his life for Jesus, was killed when another 17 year old young man ran a red light. The 17 year old who ran the red light was at the funeral of the 19 year old. Our pastor led this young man up to the grieving parents, and the parents wrapped their arms around this hurting young man and hugged him, and told them they forgave him for their own son's death. This was so amazing and it bolstered my own faith.
ReplyDeleteI really get a lot out of reading our friend Steveo's comments too - thanks Steveo!! :)
Please remember that Peter goofed up so many times in his walk with Jesus, and he stuck his foot in his mouth so many times (especially on the mountain when Jesus had the vision of Moses and Elijah). However, later on, Peter really became a good teacher and here is a bit of wisdom from him: "Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you. But, rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when His Glory is revealed. If you are insulted because of the Name of Christ, you are blessed, for the Spirit of Glory and of God rests on you...." 1st Peter 4:12 & 13.
I know you're going to have a blast with your scavenger hunt. As Aunt Barb said, you are both very loved very much and we are all praying for you guys. :^)
That was supposed to be "YOUR" friend Steveo's comments - sorry!
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