God is great! So great that I’m not ever sure I will ever be able to comprehend why He loves me the way He does. But then again, does that even matter??? I know that I am one blessed son and luck has nothing to do with it. I’d even say that “luck” is just another word for God’s grace that He has for us. It’s now July 2010, and as I look back on the past 2 years of my life, all I can do is exhale deeply and say “Thank you Jesus…”. I’ve lived an incredible life in my crazy 24 years of existence. Highs and lows like everyone, but the past 2 years have been extra special for me. I have had some amazing opportunities to serve, minister, travel the world, meet all sorts of amazing people and much more. In early 2008, I had my first real encounter with the Holy Spirit at World Race training camp. It truly was like nothing I had ever experienced before in my life in so many ways. I never really felt His presence like this or even knew what it really meant to be baptized in the Spirit. So its fair for me to say that the past 2 years have been the most exciting and fulfilling years of my life. I was blessed to go 11 months around the world with incredible friends on mission and learning more about how the church body functions and of course a lot about myself…through a lot of brokenness. Well worth it! After that surreal experience, it was time to go back home to Texas and figure God’s next step for me. It was great getting to come back to friends and family with open arms, but in all honesty it got old real quick. I had just had my world rocked and now before I realized it, I was back in my home town as if the World Race was just a dream that I had woken up from. I felt like I was dazed and lost in the woods looking for the right direction to get out of there saying, “Uhhh… Jesus? Lil help please…” Over the next first couple weeks of being home, I quickly prayed for direction in my future and was able to come to the resolution of attending G42 Leadership Academy led by Andrew Shearman in Spain. http://www.g42leadershipacademy.org/ Talk about a crazy and amazing Man of God!
I didn’t know a whole lot of what G42 in Spain had to offer or what the curriculum was like, but I knew enough about Andrew to want to take a leap of faith and pursue this opportunity and it made all the difference. Before moving out to Spain, I was able to talk to a few friends who had completed or were going through G42 and God use them to bring peace of mind about the whole idea and trust to follow him with the decision. 6 months later, I am here a changed man for the better to who I am supposed to be right now. In summary, my whole reason for wanting to go to Spain, other than the beautiful scenery, was to get my butt in gear for the rest of my life and figure out what I need to be doing with my life. Sure, it was very appealing to have an amazing mentor and the right environment for me to process my World Race experience, but I knew there was something more than that. I knew with smaller group settings that I’d have a better chance of getting that personal attention I was looking for and needing.
And I did. Once it was all said and done, I knew that I utilized my time there in Spain to get ready for the rest of my life. In many ways, I was able to break chains that I didn’t realize where still holding me back from living my life. Purpose, planning, direction, apathy, using my voice, avoiding responsibility… It can be hard to understand or accept for many at first, and I’m not saying I have this mastered…probably never will completely. But in this world, I know that what ever I do for His kingdom on Earth, I will do it for others and not myself. Because in the end, I know that I have orders and responsibility to love others and live to be selfless in everything I do. I’m not in anyway saying to have a man pleasing spirit, but rather I want to wake up everyday and lay my life on the line the way many mentors, teachers, and friends in my life have done. God knows I love him, and more important than that, I know He loves me! So now all I have to do is say YES to Him and hear His voice tell me how to love my neighbor, and the the one next, and the one next, and so on… That’s it. As harsh as it sounds, MYLIFE is NOT about ME! It’s about glorifying His Kingdom and I feel that I do that by loving those who are around me at all times with a joyful heart. That’s another thing I’m not sure I’ll ever completely grasp, but that’s another story. My life now has PURPOSE that I understand and love. I have PLANS that I know are God given. “I” now turns into “You”. Because in the end, I believe it has nothing to do with me, but what I can do for Him. Christ HAS ALREADY DONE for me so much MORE than I could ever do for Him. But I still like to think that I can have a friendly competition with Him to see who can do more for the other. And just in case you’re wondering how that game between Jesus and I is going… well He is winning by a quite a bit more… All jokes aside, the world is calling and in need of being loved by its creator, savior, and best friend. And I don’t plan on being on the side lines. I am self sufficient in Christ. I AM and WILL show the people of this world that there is something bigger and greater than ourselves and I will show up to accept the calling that is put on my life to bring Heaven to Earth. I WILL bring FULLNESS into emptiness! I WILL be the LIGHT in darkness! I WILL restore ORDER in chaos!
So are you willing to do the same and show up for your own life???…
