With His Love in Our Hands (BCM Week 7-8)

I've been a bit behind. Thanks for your patience.

God be praised! This is the eighth and final week. My apologies for missing last week’s update. I’ve been swamped with work and tired in the evenings. By God’s good grace, He’s sustained me this far. I’m in the home stretch. Today is my last day of teaching and tomorrow is our end of the summer banquet.

This is a bittersweet farewell. I have grown to know and love my girls, Anahi, Bianca, Izzie, and Stephany dearly. They are all so talented, funny, sweet, and bright and I wish them all the blessings in the world. In all sincerity, I don’t think I’ve ever encountered more beautiful and more intelligent third graders. Their sweetness and fresh curiosity sparks something inside of me that I cannot explain nor can I put in words. My girls have redefined the meaning of childlike faith, unspeakable joy, and unparalleled enthusiasm for life. I walk away at the end of the summer with a newfound lightness in my step knowing I’ve made a difference in these young ladies’ lives.

My relationship with Christ and with others has, of course, been tested, stretched, and challenged, but then again, I went into this summer anticipating change for the better and challenges. Nothing could have prepared me for the classroom curriculum and full-time teaching. I know for sure as of now I could never be an elementary school teacher, though I respect the heck out of anyone who is willing to try and succeed. I would like to thank my mother for her encouragement, ideas, support, and for all those years of home-schooling that prepped me for fun, hands-on learning. My girls definitely benefited from my mother’s expertise.

God has more clearly defined a vision for me for life. I have a renewed faith in Him and in my future and though I have no idea how my dreams and His plan will come to pass I have ever confidence that He is still Lord over my life, the King of Kings sitting on His throne today and He will make it happen. Saying “I’m excited” really doesn’t cut it and I’m not quite sure how to explain exactly how I feel, but in a very understated manner, I am looking forward to what the future holds, to returning to college and sharing my experiences, and to growing even deeper in the knowledge and wisdom of the Lord.

This summer, as cliché as it sounds, has changed my life in so many positive ways. Not only have I learned more about myself and about other cultures and about how people communicate and interact (my major!!!), but I’ve learned more about who Christ is, what He has done for me, and how much I want to share that with the world. There is such an uncontainable passion stirring and an unexplainable joy within me knowing I wake up every morning and close my eyes every evening with Him.

My ideas of community have changed too. God has brought some fresh insights into my life from some unique angles – from my classroom, from my students’ families, from peers I wouldn’t have probably befriended other than this internship, and even from the Catholic church down the street. Despite being a Protestant, I love how reverent and humbling the Catholic services, how very intimate worship is. The messages are simple, but always something I need to hear. A couple Sundays ago the message was on the 23rd Psalm, one I hold especially dear to my heart, particularly verse 3: “He restores my soul.” This past Sunday the theme was the Bread of Life. It was so comforting to be fulfilled by Heavenly food. It’s as though that verse “cast all your cares upon God” really was happening. I felt burdens, mountains of worries, issues, problems just simply lift and evaporate in the holy awesome presence of the Lord and believers. I feel as though when I walk inside and interact in the service that it’s just God and I, and after a long, hard week, this is very much needed and refreshing. I can talk God no matter where I am, but something about this church makes me feel as though I can truly meet God where I’m at no matter what’s happened or what’s going on in my life. It is no longer about me and what I get out of the service, but what I have to offer to my God, my Abba Father. And that’s something no church has ever taught me. Something the priest mentioned last Sunday I really liked: “when we partake in communion, it strengthens us in community and in personal faith.” Because we, as the Body of Believers, no matter what color we are, no matter what our backgrounds, drink in the sweetness of unity through one – Jesus Christ.

A verse that really struck me…. 1 John 4:7
“Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God.” Why? Because God is Love. Think about that. Read that again slowly. God IS Love. He is love. He sent Love into the world for us. As Love, He gave up everything for us. He became man out of Love. And if we love, we know God because God is love. It may seem like I’m repeating myself, but just meditate on those words. We know God when we love because God is Love. I will never look at the definition of love the same way again. It’s not a feeling or an emotion or even a thought. It’s a way of life. It’s a being. It’s God.

Just to conclude, this has been a song on my heart for the past 2 weeks. Listen to the power in the verse and chorus

Matt Papa’s “We will Shine”

Can you hear it?
It’s the sound of the saints with the Spirit,
Coming like an army – we are the people of God! (yeah)
We’re gonna shake the darkness
With His praise in our lips
And His love in our hands.
We’re gonna change tomorrow
For His kingdom and His glory! (yeah!)

So let it rise, let it rise;
Hear the sound of His praise; let it rise!
We will shine, oh, we will shine,
With His glorious light we will shine!

We’re shine like the morning
With our faces ablaze in His glory,
Cuz there’s a kingdom coming
And it won’t be defeated! (no!)
Cuz we are His chosen ones,
And we won’t back down
Till every nation knows His love
Cuz we serve the risen God
And His name is Jesus!

So let it rise, let it rise;
Hear the sound of His praise; let it rise!
We will shine, oh, we will shine,
With His glorious light we will shine!
Oh we’re gonna shine! Shine (yeah!)

Jesus, Jesus, Name above all Names
Risen Savior, worthy of all praise! (2x)

So let it rise, let it rise;
Hear the sound of His praise; let it rise!
We will shine, oh, we will shine,
With His glorious light we will shine!
Oh we’re gonna shine! Shine (yeah!)