I recently read through the book of Job.
What Job didn't know was that he was in the middle of a much bigger story that was taking place. His suffering was not random, and certainly not planned by God. He and God were not the only characters in that story. There was another character, an enemy, set on destroying him.* It may not have been til he died that Job found out that God was letting a story play out that for thousands of years would encourage people to keep going in a world full of tragedy and loss. - How often do we forget that something bigger is going on here? - How often do we fail to realize there's an enemy set on destroying our hearts and destroying our relationship with God? - How often do we forget that God can redeem and restore us and use our lives to encourage, uplift, and enable others to keep going? I forget those things all the time. BUT I'm thankful for the story of Job that reminds me that nothing is random, nothing is purposeless, nothing is meaningless. God can turn all of the trial, testing, and tragedy into testimonies of His overwhelming grace, His overcoming power, and even His indestructible joy. * credit to John Eldredge's book EPIC for his thoughts on the larger story and the enemy as a character in the story.
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WHO I AM
I'm a follower of Jesus, husband to my lovely wife Judy, father of Evangelina, Micah, Josiah, and Jeremiah, missionary to the northeast United States and advocate for all things youth ministry. WHAT I DO
I am the northeast regional coordinator for the National Network of Youth Ministries. I've worked for the last 24 years as the co-executive director of Teens For Christ, a ministry that equips teenagers to share their faith in their schools. I also served on staff at Cherry Tree Alliance Church for 15 years as youth pastor and family life pastor. My Websites
Youth Ministry Consultations Youth Ministry Networking 9 Month Mission Trip Speaking at camps, retreats, youth groups, etc. Archives
March 2022
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