God created diversity.
Daily we see different abilities glorified over others, jobs held in higher esteem, body types are preferred over others, and so on… Instead of seeing the uniqueness in the world around us, we compare it and decide on which is best. Comparison is a thief of joy in diversity.
Who you are and what you’ve been through highlights a different aspect of who God is to the world.
We are in Peru now, and getting to spend a lot of time with an old World Race alumni. He went to Peru on his world race and is back again helping out with the church. He has set aside his time to disciple us, and challenge us in our walks with God. He has planned out a bible study for us every morning before breakfast everyday, he stops everything he’s doing to talk to us if we have a question, he puts up with seven crazy girls, is very wise, seeks hard after God, is always in the scriptures, and is more concerned with how God sees him than man.
Grant and I happen to be totally different. He is very opinionated, loud, and intense. I don’t like sharing my opinions if it means offending someone, I am more soft spoken, I actually think my yelling is his normal talking voice, and I am more relaxed and go with the flow.
Something he focuses on more than most people is the wrath of God. In many present day churches, they are more concerned with making it a comfortable and welcoming place, telling people how much they are loved and how sweet God is and wishing them a good week, rather than telling them the truth that God is a just God and that without Jesus we are under his wrath. In response, he showed us many verses that talk about the wrath of God on the ungodly. Initially, it was hard to hear about the wrath of God so much, but it pushed me to press into who God really is.
Growing up, the wrath of God scared me, as it still does. It is not the wrath of God that draws us close to God, but his grace. Hearing about wrath draws we away, because I know I am not worthy. But I can look at it and see that that is what I was saved from. I was made worthy so that I could approach God and never know his wrath.
I believe that the Almighty God of the world cares for me. I believe he is gentle. I believe his love is sacrificial and unconditional. I believe that Jesus saved us from God’s wrath and we have to repent of our sins and follow him with all that we are. I believe he is big and great and majestic, and I believe he is personal, compassionate, and good.
God is the same to everyone. I am not trying to say that MY God does these things, because I don’t want to believe in my god, I want to believe in THE God.
The verses in the Bible that stand out to me talk about how:
God comforts those in affliction so we can comfort others in theirs.
God is my fortress
God is my strength
These reflect a lot of who I am. I struggle with fear, so I have clung to verses about God being my fortress and protecting me.
I didn’t understand why God would allow hard situations to pass, then I found James, and the testing of our faith produces steadfastness. Those hard situations work out for our ultimate good.
It was so hard for me to see people suffering, so I held tight to the verse that says that God comforts us in our afflictions, because that’s what people in pain need, comfort.
I repeat verses about God being my strength all the time, because I clearly see my shortcomings and inability and know that I need Christ.
Because of who Grant is and what he’s been through, different parts of the Bible stand out to him.
I am not saying that we can talk about different parts of God, his character, and the gospel. We cannot leave out the parts that we don’t like or don’t seem as important to us. It is interesting how our different experiences give us a unique viewpoint to share and highlight parts of the gospel. Grant can share stories and experiences about his past that reflect the reality that he deserves wrath but has received grace, in a different way than I can because we have different stories and experiences.
The whole bible reflects people’s differences. There are four gospels that tell the majority of the same stories, but in a different way because different people wrote them. It was important that we see four men’s different accounts of the life of Jesus, because different aspects of Christ’s life stood out to each of them.
I live with six other girls and each of their relationships with God show me something different about God:
Bern is super creative, she gets beautiful visions from the lord and finds beautiful ways to know him better.
Tori is someone who puts her time with the Lord as a priority in her life, she fights after God even when it’s hard. Her relationship is an example to me of discipline and desire for God.
Kaitie is someone who has a great knowledge of the Bible, and she uses that knowledge to recognize if statements are biblical or not. She carries a lot of wisdom about the Bible and what is says, and she helps others along in understanding. Even though she has a good understanding of the Bible, she never stops seeking to know more.
Elizabeth is someone who spends so much time getting to know God, listening to him, and following him hard. You can see her love and relationship with God in the way she serves and loves people.
Carly is the real deal, she is honest about life and how it’s not easy. I have seen amazing transformation through Christ in her life in the past few months. It’s amazing to see how she has pressed into who God is and who he says she is.
Haley is a learner. She is always seeking to know more about the lord and learn new things about him. She is constant in her reading of the Word even when she doesn’t understand it. She speaks out in wisdom but is always opened minded to hear others and learn from them.
The family of God is diverse. There is diversity in how we think, look, talk, learn, and teach.
We all serve the same, one, true God.
We are all saved by the same, one, true God.
UPDATE!!! My squad has had a route change! Instead of going to India for 3 months, we will go to India for 2 months, and spend our last month in NEPAL!!
