A Challenge...

Peace of Christ to you! Thank you for your prayers--they have been needed and felt. Sometimes it can be very exhausting trying to show someone the beauty and perfection of God's love when they have had no experience of it thus far in their life, and have never really understood what the words "God loves you" mean.

This weekend I met students that did not necessarily believe in God. In fact, when I asked them whether they believed in God, they said, "halfsies". They told me they don't really know if He is up there--He might be, that would be nice, but there's no way to know if anything in the Bible is true. The Passion could be totally made up after all, they said--it seems kind of crazy to claim that the body disappeared. And then to say that Jesus ascended makes no sense at all, because what is it to ascend into the clouds? That's totally weird.

What was I thinking this whole time? Praise God that they can be honest, and praise God that they aren't faking belief right now. But what work we have to do as a Church! These kids are asking questions and challenging our belief because they are longing for them to be answered. Let's do it! Let's answer their questions, and let's encourage them to keep asking! Let's challenge them, because you know what? They like it, and they want it. They are tired of being told that "we can't get into this" or "this is too deep". If we're not willing to go deep and challenge them (and ourselves), we'll lose them...

During the challenges activity, one girl named her own body as a challenge for her, because it was the wrong type for professional ballet dancing. If only she could know that her identity was more than ballet dancer--that she is a precious, beautiful daughter of God whether the dance company acknowledges that or not. Let's not let them go through life like this, thinking that they were created wrong. No more! Let's share the truth--that God calls us to accept His unconditional, self-giving love, and when we do, we find the real, lasting joy that we were meant to experience.

Praised be Jesus Christ.

Marissa +AMDG+