Powerful Reminder Today…

October 25, 2009 at 10:23 pm (Uncategorized)

I just walked in the door from FUSION and my normal routine on any given sunday night is come home, plop down on the couch, converse with my wife Kate about the day while we watch The Amazing Race together. Usually it’s a time where I decompress from my long day and unwind and start to prepare for my upcoming week.  But tonight my mind is elsewhere and Kate is watching some movie I could care less about on TV so I decided I would pull out my laptop and blog about some of the things I’m currently processing.

Tonight was a great night.  It was our Parent night at FUSION which was incredible.  We had one of our largest turn outs yet and it was great to meet with parents one on one and hear about their students and how we can team up with them as we walk alongside of their sons and daughters this year in our small groups. There were many stories and many laughs as we shared stories and insights into the lives of their students.

I believe a reason that made tonight so enjoyable is because of the awesome staff we have.  Granted, being on that staff I am biased, but I truly love what I do and who I work alongside of.  Mark and Jen are not just great co-workers but they are also people who I love dearly and challenge me to be more like Christ on a daily basis.

As I got into my car tonight after FUSION, my phone buzzed signaling a new email message.  I took it out and noticed it was an email from a good friend, a fantastic volunteer, and a lover of Jesus who is battling cancer and has had a hard week with discouraging news being revealed about her diagnosis.  However her love for Jesus and the hope she has in HIM overshadows the fears of the unknown.   I was struck by this statement in her email:

“I have been thinking these last few days about Heb. 12:1-4, especially the part of the verse that says, “the race marked out of us.”  Each of us has a race that looks different; some long, some short, some with more obstacles, some smoother…  Our race is individual, no race is identical.  But each is a test to see what we are made of and how we will glorify or deny God along the way.”

wow…

I sat in my car and read that over and over and over again reflecting on what I just read.  Only hours earlier I was talking to parents about how we want to see their kids run the race and make it their own.  To take their faith and fuse it with their day to day life.  I had been so focused on the students taking ownership of their faith and running that race with fervor, that I momentarily forgot that this is something just as important for me to do as well.

In a few weeks I will be teaching in the Jr. High about what it means to “Worship Fully”.

Do you worship fully?

Are running the race wholeheartedly?

Am I?

Am I running that race that Christ has set out before me in such a way that I can say that I am giving it my all?  I can’t expect the students to do this if I am not doing it myself…let alone teach on it.  As I prepare for this lesson, I thank God for these moments where He captivates my heart when I would least expect him to. Such a range of emotions today, but thankful for God letting me experience each and everyone of them.

I’m thinking about showing this video when I teach in November.  Thought it was a fitting way to end this post.

Running the Race Fully,

Pastor Tyler