Four Things I've Learned About Life and The Gospel From Six Teenage Girls.

Its funny how life works out. For so long in college, I felt the  desire to lead a middle school/high school girls bible study. I never seemed to be in a position in college where that bible study worked out but here I am back at the church I grew up in and God has so firmly planted me in the middle of an amazing, AMAZING, group of girls that I get to do life with. From my Sunday night bible study to the Sunday school class I've had the pleasure of co-teaching this year, I feel so incredibly humbled and blessed that God chose me to get to have even a small part of these girls lives.

This past Friday night, we had a sleepover at my house for our Sunday school class. I always get really excited about these events and then last minute I go into panic mode over having teenage girls at my house. I'm telling you, some days 25 really catches up with me! But, the blessings that those six girls have brought to my life this year are too numerous to count.  I went to bed Friday night listening to the sweet sound of laughter and renditions of Taylor Swift songs coming from my living room. I woke up Saturday morning knowing that friendships had been strengthened and developed through lots of laughter Friday night and I was overwhelmed by the blessing God gave me in allowing me to witness it first hand.

 

The older I get, the more time I spend with these girls, the more I realize what a responsibility it is to be a positive influence in their lives. I constantly find myself thinking, "I can't tell the girls to do this if I'm not willing to do it myself." But what I've realized over the past few weeks is that I learn as much, if not more, from them every day than they ever do from me.  They've taught me so many things this year and its hard to narrow them down but here's 4 things they've taught me over the past few months:

1) Our actions and investment in others' lives often speaks louder than our words:

These girls have taught me that some times people need to know that you care about them and love them more than anything else.  What I've learned from these girls is that often it’s the investment of time that someone makes in our lives that makes the biggest impact. I've had the opportunity the past few months to pick one of my six girls up before bible study on Sunday nights and I don't think she'll ever know how much those car rides together mean to me. Whether she's telling me about some boy at school or I'm taking her with me to buy milk and dog food, I so deeply cherish that time together simply because it gives us time to laugh and be ourselves. She knows I care about her and I know she cares about me. Spending time with these girls and watching them on Friday night at the sleepover has taught me that some of God's biggest blessings in our lives come in the form of friendships we never even saw coming. God places people in our lives every single day. We each have a responsibility and will be held accountable in regards to how we handle those people in our lives. Sometimes people have to know we're willing to invest time in things they care about before they will ever listen to the words coming out of our mouths. If you want to make an impact in someone's life, start investing time there. Don't just expect them to listen to what you have to say if you aren't willing to let them know how much you care.

2) God created us each in our own unique way and when we live in that, we works so wonderfully together

If you look at each of these six girls you see six EXTREMELY different personalities but when you put them all together, you see a beautiful tapestry of lives that God has woven together. The six of them are a beautiful remind to me of the body of Christ. Just like the six of them, we each have unique talents, goals, dreams, and gifts that God has enabled us with and when we use them to glorify him, the richness of blessing that overflows creates a ripple effect on those around us. These girls love each other and they paint the perfect picture to each of us that fellowship in a body changes everyone's life in a positive way. It allows the uniqueness we each have to come out and it allows us  to be the people God created us to be, no fear of judgment, no fear of rejection, just people living in the full life God has promised.

3) We don't have to live in drama, we can overcome it and we can move past it

As with any group of teenage girls I've ever met, there's always drama at some point. Lets be honest, with any group of women I've ever met, there's drama at some point. But what these girls have taught me through all the drama of life is that 1) it's bound to happen at some point, 2) it doesn't have to consume you or define who you are, 3)If a 13-year-old girl can forgive her "mean girl" and move past drama, as a 25-year-old I can too. I feel like at some point in the year I've seen each of these girls deal with different situations of drama in their lives and I've seen them come out stronger because of it. I've seen them set aside their own feelings of hurt, disappointment, and anger and I've seen them take steps to make amends even when it was the last thing they wanted to do. I've seen them be real and honest about their feelings and I've seen them take a deep breath, trust in God's plan, and begin to make changes in their lives to let go of the hurt and drama. In those situations, they have challenged me more than I ever wanted to be challenged. They've caused me to look at situations in my own life and because of it I feel like I'm learning more and more every day to let go of the hurt, anger, bitterness, and resentment and walk in a unified body of believers building each other up instead of tearing each other down. What I've realized about myself is that I'm a selfish person and sometimes, a lot of times, I don't want to let go of the hurt/drama in my life. Sometimes I choose to stay in drama which it the total opposite of what God has called me to. This year I saw these girls write letters of forgiveness to mean girls in their lives and I've seen them live that out. If they can do it, we can to. Sometimes it take a simple reminder that it's not about us and more about who God is in us.

4) When trust is broken we have to look back at the one who will NEVER betray our trust

This morning in Sunday school, we had a hard conversation on trust. We talked about the hurt that comes when someone betrays our trust and how it's often hard to let our guard down to others once we feel like we've been betrayed. We talked about the importance of having trustworthy people in our lives and we talked about the qualities that make someone trustworthy. We talked about the importance of knowing someone in order to trust them. But what we also talked about is that sometimes, even when it's hard, we have to let go of the hurt that comes from broken trust. We talked about the importance of being an example of God's love instead of seeking revenge or further hurt on the one that we can no longer trust.  These girls want to live like this. I see it on their faces and I hear it in their comments. They want to be different from their classmates and they want to live and love people like God commands us to. They want to show unconditional love even when it isn't easy and they make me want to live like that. The only way to do that is to be secure in our faith and trust in the one who died for us. In order to do that, it's vital we know the character of God and the love he has for us. It's vital that we look at the sacrifices He made for us and the unconditional love he pours out when we really don't deserve it. When we take our eyes off ourselves and look at little higher, we begin to trust in the one who made us and the hurt doesn't seem as strong.

I sit here today, so overwhelmed and blessed by God allowing me to know these girls. As I said before, I've learned more from them then they've probably ever learned from me. They make me want to be a better person and they remind me that God uses each of us to touch and impact lives, regardless of our age.  I pray with everything I have that I can continue to be a positive influence in their lives. I pray that our little family that's grown this year can continue to grow and impact lives around us. I pray that when one falls, the rest are there to help their sister up. And I pray that they always always always know that no matter where they go, they are loved and they are making positive changes in lives around them. God has created each of them to be uniquely them, and I am convinced that he has big things in store for their lives. I look forward to watching how he uses them and I look forward to the things that they continue to teach me as we walk through life together.   Just like God wants to use each of these teenage girls, He wants to use YOU too. I pray that you know people love you enough to invest time in your life. I pray that you see the unique gifts God has enabled you with to impact others lives. I pray that past/present/future drama would not define who you are or leave you bitter and broken. And most importantly, I pray that through it all you would know the one who will NEVER disappoint or betray your trust. May that leave a resounding hope and joy in your life that overflows in all you do. 

Somewhere along the journey from brokenness to healing.

What I see all around me is brokenness. Broken hearts, broken lives, broken families, broken dreams, broken futures…the list could go on forever. I see girls who are 14 and broken, 21 and broken, 42 and broken. Brokenness doesn't discriminate. It finds you wherever you are and often when you least expect it. It's a lie that the enemy uses to keep us beat down and hurting in the situations of life. But praise God there is healing in the brokenness. 

After quickly jotting down those words in a journal of mine back in August, I tossed them aside not sure what to add. This often happens with half thoughts that I can't seem to build on when trying to write a blog post. In August, I didn't know how important those words would be to me in December. I didn't know the extent of brokenness that would be present in my life or the lives of those around me right now.

When I woke up this morning and rushed off to work in the all too familiar "it's Monday" irritation, I didn't know that God would bring those words back to me tonight as I shared my brokenness with a close friend.

But that's the thing about God, He works on His timeline and not ours. Just like the brokenness that sets in when we least expect it, sometimes the healing begins in the same way. 

I work in a career where I deal with physical brokenness, pain, and limited function ever single day. Much like my patients, we  often want a quick fix of the problems in life. We want something to fix the pain and brokenness we feel and we want it done now. Just like my patients, we all at some point realize that isn't always reality. We realize that the brokenness that occurred in seconds leaves wounds and scars that don't quickly fade from our bodies or our memories. But that doesn't mean there can't be healing. That doesn't mean the scars have to stay forever or that the tenderness we feel in those moments today have to cause the same hurt tomorrow.

Please know this-  Jesus is the healer of the broken. He is the one saying, "take my yoke upon you for my burden is light." He is the one saying, "I don't care about your circumstances or your brokenness.  I don't care about where you've been or what you've done, I want to bring healing to your heart and life right now."  Aren't you so glad that's what God says? Aren't you so glad that he doesn't want to leave us in our brokenness? Aren't you so glad that he wants to see healing in the broken spaces of our lives and that he wants to take those broken pieces of pottery and put them back together into the beautiful vessel he created us to be? I know I am.

I know that I can't possibly overcome the broken places in my life on my own. Believe me, I've tried. I know that when I try to fix the brokenness on my own, it's often like a bandaid patch on a leaky damn. It's always a temporary fix and often causes more damage as the pressure builds and bursts through like an overwhelming flood.

When I wrote the notes on this topic several months ago, I scribbled down Naomi's name on the page. If ever there was someone who God brought healing in the midst of her circumstances, it was Naomi. But what strikes me about Naomi's story, is that her healing didn't come right away. It also didn't come without a journey back to her home.

By all earthly standards, Naomi was a broken woman. She had lost her husband and her two sons and she was living in a country that wasn't her home. She certainly didn't hide the fact that she felt God's hand had come against her. But Naomi didn't stay in Moab. She didn't stay in the place of her brokenness. Unsure of what the future would hold for her, she set out for the land of her people where she heard God had provided food. For whatever reason, Naomi took the first step towards healing of her brokenness when she set out for Judah,  whether she knew it or not.

So often, God is calling us, urging us, leading us, to make the first step on the journey to finding healing for our brokenness. What I've learned is that He very rarely removes those broken pieces in one fail swoop. Much like Naomi, we often have to walk along the journey from brokenness to healing, no matter how scary or how uncertain. God is often calling us to begin that journey sooner than we ever thought we'd be ready.

If you're like me, you make up every excuse to start the journey. If you're like me, you're often too scared of the brokenness that may lie somewhere on your path to healing. I think about Naomi and I'm glad she didn't stop half way on her journey. I'm glad that she was able to put aside the fears, insecurities, and lies of brokenness in her life. I'm glad she didn't let the fear of gossiping church ladies keep her from making the journey home to find healing for her brokenness. Aren't you?

God used Naomi's brokenness to bring Boaz as the kinsman redeemer for Ruth and Naomi. He was also apart of the lineage of Christ. Had Naomi chosen to stop half way along the journey to healing, the story today would be a lot different.

Friends, God doesn't want us to stop half way on our  journey to healing either. The road from brokenness to healing isn't always going to be easy but He wants us to trust in His plan, knowing that He is working all things for our good. I can't guarantee you that there won't be mud puddles the size of Texas somewhere alone the journey. I can't promise you that old wounds won't be opened again. But what I can promise is that there is a God that loves you enough to keep calling you home in the midst of your brokenness.  There is a God that wants to take the scars and hurts you have in life and cover them up with the His nail pierced hands. You see, those scars on His hands might be the most beautiful picture of healing we ever see. It was those scars that made a way for us to find healing in our brokenness. It was those scars that defeated death and the grave. It was those scars that reconcile all men to the Father through relationship with Him. It's those scars that bring the ultimate healing of the ultimate brokenness of sin in your lives. Aren't you glad Jesus didn't stop  halfway on His journey of brokenness to the cross?

Wherever you are, don't give up now. Don't give in to the brokenness and don't let it keep you from starting the journey to healing. Don't forget that Jesus walked the ultimate road of brokenness so that YOU might find ultimate healing in Him. He cares about where you are right now. He cares about the pain and hurt in your eyes and he cares enough to light the journey towards healing.

Let's step out together friends. Let's begin the journey towards healing. Let's live as the redeemed. Let's live in the glory of God and let's live knowing that as sons and daughters of the King of kings, we are free from the  brokenness and invited to experience healing. Don't stop half way on the journey. Don't fear what may lie ahead. Lift up your eyes and see the one who already walked the road before you. He is waiting to walk the road towards freedom and healing with you right now if you will take the first step on the journey.