A
funny thing happens when you break out of your usual routine. Maybe you moved
to a different part of town, decided to go back to school, or went to a
different coffee shop. It seems like the simplest shuffle of our routine can
give us opportunities we wouldn’t have had otherwise. I think this comes down
to a simple truth: when you change where you go or what you do, you meet new
people. This is one of the ideas behind our annual church picnic. We want to
change our routines so we mix with friends both new and old. You never know
what could happen when you start mixing people like this. All sorts of
friendships have developed at the picnic and, on one occasion, the beginning of
a marriage.
Tim
and Aimee didn’t know much about each other before the church picnic in 2012.
They knew of each other but never had the time to sit down, eat together, and
talk. That is, until Tim invited himself to come along with Aimee to the church
picnic so they could sit together. Their paths had never crossed much before
this and it wasn’t until the routine changed, until there would be one service
with our entire church together that the opportunity came. On that day, with
the sun shining, burgers grilling, and nothing pulling them away from the park,
they sat together at the service. They had time to sit and eat together because
they didn’t have anywhere else they had to go to eat lunch. With time on their
hands, they decided to take a walk and talk. They haven’t stopped talking
since. Their love only grew from that day and they got married the next August.
Anything
can happen when you change up your routine and start meeting new people. The
church picnic is the perfect opportunity to run into people you haven’t seen in
a while, eat with a family you’ve never met, or maybe even find someone
special. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying you’ll meet your future spouse at
the church picnic, but you might meet your next best friend.
Patrick
Frost
Middle
School Youth Pastor
Gaining
perseverance can be brutal. Having to keep going despite difficulty and delay
is not something we are eager to experience. You can only have perseverance
after you have gone through the refining fires of disappointment and
discouragement. Waiting, praying, working, hoping, and crying brought my wife
and I to the moment in Ethiopia when we first laid eyes on him and he first
laid his head on our shoulders.
I
think I must picture things in slow motion, at least the big moments of life,
because they always happen so much faster than I imagine they will. When we
arrived at his orphanage after about 30 hours of traveling, they brought us to
the orphanage office. I didn't know what the plan was, how long we would wait,
or who would play the victorious music as he and I ran toward each other. It
was all very confusing. But then, before I could even ask what was going on, he
was there! In the doorway, being held by his favorite nanny, was the answer to
my prayers. When I saw him, I felt almost star struck. I had talked about him
for so long and looked at his pictures so many times that he almost took on
this bigger than life place in my mind. But he wasn’t bigger than life. He was
little, beautiful ruggedly handsome, and tired. Sear held him, and I went full
dad mode shooting videos. If it had been the 80s, I would have had a big VHS
recorder on my shoulder, giving full commentary and telling everyone to wave to
the camera. Instead, I took pictures and video with the GoPro and gave full
commentary and told everyone to wave to the camera.
As
he sat in his mom’s lap, one big tear formed in his left eye and rolled down
his cheek. It wasn't just a signal of natural fear; it was a symbol of natural
courage. He had every right to bawl and wail. New people, new room he’d never
been in, and the largest person he’d ever seen pointing a camera in his face
shouting at him in a language he didn’t speak. You could sense the fear was
there but it didn't own him. He was calm, looked around the room, and leaned
into his new mom for cuddles. I knew right there that he was brave, strong and
courageous, and I was in love.
When
Sear looked up at me and asked if I wanted to hold him, I was nervous. I
thought being handed over to the big, white bear of a man would finally make
him break. I grabbed him, his bottom lip quivered, but no tear came. Instead,
we just looked at each other and I could see my reflection in his big brown
eyes. I could tell he was analyzing me because he looked me right in the eye
and furrowed his brow. In that moment, every insecurity I have rushed to the
forefront of my mind. I thought surely he would push me away, reach for someone
else, reject me until he was a little older. In those three long seconds, I
never wanted someone to love me so much, but felt so sure that he wouldn't. And
then, he put his head on my chest and nuzzled me just a little... almost as if
to comfort my fears; to give me just a little bit of the courage he had in such
abundance. I will be telling people about that moment in Heaven, long into
eternity. It's not just engraved in my mind, it's embossed in my heart.
Gaining
perseverance is really hard. To even have the chance to persevere it means you
aren’t getting what you want for long periods of time and that’s not fun. It’s
worth it though. When you stick it out and keep praying despite your doubts and
fears you not only see God’s answer, you also see God more clearly. Don’t give
up on God too early and miss what He has for you because the only thing harder
than waiting on God, is wishing you had.
--Patrick
Frost
Middle School Youth
Pastor
