Hey everyone! It's Zach again! Get ready for another update on all the awesome things that God is doing over here in Virginia Beach! #VBLT2013
This post is going to tell the story of what went down the day of the fourth project day of the summer. BOOM.
To recap, the past week's project day (#3) was all about diving into a deeper understanding of our personal walk with the Lord. This week was going to be continuing that process and even taking it a step further.
Well, to begin, it was sunny! That always makes the start of a project day really awesome. :)
However, we had to start the day at 7:15, so for some, maybe even some in this picture, it was quite a shock to have to get up that early on their day off from work. But alas, we migrated as a whole to the beach on 57th street.
Upon getting to the beach, we were instructed on what we were going to be spending the morning doing. We were going to be spending time with the Lord. This definitely made sense to all of us. Now the twist was this: last week we started off this section of the summer by spending two hours hashing out questions with God. THIS week it was doubled, so we were going to be spending four hours with God. The instruction that we had came from the one and only Chad Frank from Kent State in Ohio. He had us compare our time with God like a family sunday morning drive. We were encouraged to read through something that we feel called to read in the Bible. But while we were to be reading we were told one instruction:
Don't read for distance. Read for depth.
Story of my life. This has always been something that I have struggled with when it comes to me reading the Word. I always feel like when I am spending time with God the thing I need to focus on is how MUCH I can cover within a certain amount of time to feel accomplished. But that shouldn't be the case. I focus on the quantity, not so much the quality sometimes...well, most times. So for me, this was definitely a challenge I needed to hear.
Also, while reading (for depth and not distance) we were also told that when we found a passage or a verse that really stuck out to take a rest stop and "absorb the scenery." In this case, we were encouraged to reflect on, think about, and even pray through what it is that was sticking out to us.
We broke off and were told to go wherever we had to in order to spend some quality alone time with God. This is my favorite part of the day! I think of all the things I have talked about in my posts I am going to enjoy these the most. Times with God are probably the highlights of my summer!
So, I walked...
And I walked...
And then I stopped for a while. It seemed like I didn't really walk that far, but I ended up looking at my phone and it had been almost an hour of strolling down the beach. As I walked, I noticed that the weather was starting to look a little gloomy, and it drizzled a bit, but eventually, the clouds broke and the sun popped back out. While I was walking, I just was praying for the day and all that God would have in store, I listened to quite a bit of worship music (because I also had to lead that afternoon), and eventually I came to a stop. This stop was about 32 blocks down from where I started. Oops...wasn't intending on going that far. But I just went with it.
So, I decided to post up in a little sailboat that was dug into the sand near the coast. While I was there I decided that I wanted to read a bit from the book I have been going through this summer. It's called the Attributes of God by A.W. Tozer, and it's essentially all about breaking down just that: all of God's attributes and how they all combine to form his perfect heart for us. At this point in the summer I was in the middle of reading the sixth chapter. It deals with God's grace.
Essentially, the main part of the message is that no one, NOT ONE person, whether in the New Testament or Old, has ever been saved without the grace of God being the center of it. God saves because his grace comes through our faith in our Lord Jesus. I really enjoyed reading this during this time, because for me it's something that I could really sit and think about for a while as I read it. And in my eyes, this was definitely depth and not distance. Christian novels are not like fantasy books, where chapters and storylines all lead into each other. These books are dense, they're heavy, and they make us think. For me, I hit my rest stop of the day.
I loved what Tozer had to say about grace, how like God, it has always been present. Grace, like the rest of God's attributes, are not things that simply became from nothing. They are all things that God just IS. And the quote about the grace of God through the testaments shows really strongly in this statement and really put it in perspective for me:
"Everybody from Abel on was saved by looking forward to the cross. Grace came by Jesus Christ and everybody that's been saved since the cross is saved by looking back at the cross."
Since Adam's first born after the fall, grace has been present, because Jesus has always been present in God's heart for us. Everyone knew that God was going to do something big, and his bigness was shown through the giving of His One Son and the sacrifice that He made for every person here. That's why we have been saved. Nothing else we do on this earth can save us.
And the most amazing part? It NEVER LEAVES US. "But where sin abounded, grace did MUCH MORE abound." -Romans 5:20
That's pretty special. And for me, I was glad I stumbled upon this idea as I was spending time with God. Because it allowed me to look into my relationship with God and see just how much MORE there is to my Lord and Savior. God's greatness is a mystery, and it is a beautiful mystery indeed. It is impossible to know the wonder of God. We just have to accept it. We went away with Adam, but came back in Christ.
I really enjoyed this last quote that ended that chapter. It went like this: "All the infinite attributes of God rejoice together when a man believes in the grace of God and returns home." If we really and truly believed, things would be so much different and honestly things would be so much better. This is something that even as I look back on it, is something that I need to pray even more about: strength to understand that God's grace is always abounding in my life, regardless of my situation.
Alright, so back to the story. After I chewed on this for a while, prayed a bit through this very thing, I decided that it might be a good idea to start walking again. But...the clouds returned. And I'm going to be honest, they were quite angry. Look and see for yourself!
For me, seeing this was quite overwhelming, because I was by myself and 30 blocks from where I live, so basically I had to accept that I was no longer going to remain dry. So I headed up the boardwalk while it started to pour. Not knowing what else to do to keep myself dry, I jumped under the walkway and huddled.
And I huddled some more...
Well, you get the picture. Literally.
But it was interesting to experience God in this way. It made me very vulnerable, and it put me in a good position to think. While I was under the boardwalk, I just couldn't help but think about how the storm symbolized God in a mysterious light. The storm rained down and brought about a sense of newness to a very hot and heavy situation. In a way, it reminded me of just how God's grace, his mercy, and his love are always raining down on our lives.
Eventually it stopped. Eventually, I was able to move back towards my condo. And eventually, I got dry. After the storm happened, it kind of still misted almost the entire way back down to my condo. I decided that walking down the main street would be easier than hoofing it across wet beach sand, so that's what I did, and while I was walking, I couldn't help but start singing praise to God. At first, I was really frustrated about the situation I had been put in, but as I walked back to 57th I couldn't help but smile and enjoy the beauty of the rain sparkling in the sun. It reminded me of a song by Chris Tomlin.
"Up in the heavens, come living water. All my fountains are in You. Rolls like a river, Your love is running through. All my fountains are in You."
The bridge made it all the more clearer:
"Come on and rain down on us, rain down on us Lord."
This is what I sang almost the entire way home. Though I was soaked, though my towel was plastered to my wet clothes, and though my bible pages had many a pages wet in the corners, I couldn't help but love just how the morning had progressed.
Then the afternoon happened. This week, we were not able to have a thursday night main session, because this week was special. Independence Day was on a thursday this summer, so our program directors made sure that our employers all had us work that day, since it is one of the busiest days of the year for the VB beach strip community. So, our main session was happening during our project day this week. And Carl got to present his second message!
As I mentioned in the last post, something that I have always enjoyed about Carl's messages is that he never doesn't make me think or feel the words that he's speaking about. Honestly, God really uses him (as well as the other speakers) to really open up my eyes to all that God has to offer. This afternoon was no different.
Carl started his message with a verse.
"I will praise the Lord all my life, I will sing praise to my God all the days of my life." -Psalm 146:2
The most common fear is the fear of death.
He asked us a very valid question: if we fear, then how do we all respond to fear? It really depends on what it is we face most. He then asked us to think about what it is that we face most.
For me that's a really good question. I feel like in my life I fear a lot of things, and honestly death isn't the top of my list. I think for me, one of the greatest fears I have is that I will never know what I am meant to do with my life. I think that my future has always been the focus of my life, because I have never really experienced much security in my present day-to-day life. So for me, thinking about where I am going brings me fear, because I have absolutely no idea where the next step is going to lead me or what path it is that God has planned for me. Honestly, I think I fear just that. I feel like God either is going to take me somewhere I don't want to, or that I just won't ever find out where I'm meant to go. That scares me a lot. And probably every day.
Ultimately, the world is scary and dangerous. And because of that trait the world possesses, we mitigate that fear by trying to take control. Of EVERYTHING. We say that we are doing certain things in our lives because we love others. But it is really because if we feel like we lose control of what we have and who we have, then everything is going to fall apart.
Control is an illusion. We just don't have it.
Carl hit it right on the head for probably every single person that was in the room listening, and if he didn't I would be very surprised. I think it was something that every person needed to hear. I'm willing to bet that even the most laid back person desires on some level to have some sort of control in their life. But again, it is just something that is always fleeting. Control, though we may think we have it, will last only for a short time. We lose control of the control we have eventually. It just doesn't work.
"I can only fly freely when I know there a catcher to catch me." -Henry Nouwen
The alternative to our fear in life is faith. Jesus is the Catcher that we need in our lives. He is the One that we can trust. God has all control, and by faith in Christ our security should come from that.
Carl shared many stories about how fear has gripped his life. He has feared about making sure that plans have gone accordingly to big events in his life. He has feared most about his family. He has feared for their safety and he has feared what would happen to them if he were to no longer be here on earth with them if he were to pass. He worries about the physical safety of his kids, and he has feared for his daughter's life literally as she has faced bacterial meningitis as a newborn. Fear has gripped us all in different instances, even to the point of death for some.
But that's the hope of this story: Christ is EVERYTHING we need and he drives out fear.
Carl then shared his favorite verse. It's actually not a verse at all. It's an entire Psalm.
"The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not be in want. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he restores my soul. He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will FEAR NO EVIL, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my hear with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever." -Psalm 23
The Lord is the good Shepherd. Our safety is in Him. Jesus is no hired hand and with Him the world is a safe place.
"I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. The hired hand is not the shepherd who owns the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf attacks the clock and scatters it. The man runs away because is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep. I AM the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me - just as the Father knows me and I know the Father - and I LAY DOWN MY LIFE FOR THE SHEEP." -John 10:11-15
"There is NO FEAR in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. the one who fears is not made perfect in love." -1 John 4:18
Death should not be feared. God has it covered. And when we can't have control, we need to learn how to surrender. God's control is so much more secure.
"The Lord watches over the alien and sustains the fatherless and the widow, but he frustrates the ways of the wicked." -Psalm 146:9
That message was nothing less than powerful, and God really knew how to speak to every heart in the audience. What made this week really stick out aside from just the messages was the worship that we had together. Worship is always a tough thing to deal with, because for me it is so easy to get caught up in only how things sound and if things run smoothly during the service. This week started to open the door to true worship, because things just made sense and felt so powerful. The worship meant more than just words and pitches. It felt like the Spirit moving. A lot. This week was truly a blessing.
After spending the day really thinking about a lot of things, we had the chance for some free time with the group, since you know...we all had the day off. That evening, we all had a cookout that got moved inside considering that the weather was actually quite inconsistent. So, we grilled inside and made burgers and macaroni and cheese for dinner in one of our sister condos. It was quite fun. And quite a lot of people.
At the end of the day, we spent some time engaging in physical activity with some of our coworkers. We all met up at Beach Garden park to have some games. People brought frisbees, kickballs, footballs, etc. It was quite interesting. We ended the night winning a game of kickball and dunking water on the winning captain, Carl Frost.
We ended with a trip to Sonic for some half-priced milkshakes and some awesome fellowship. It was quite the long day, but quite the rewarding day as well. God continues to blow my mind with the lessons he is constantly teaching in everything we are doing here. Hopefully what was learned today can be something that sticks with us for quite a while. I am truly thankful for every experience that God has given in this past few weeks, and I'm stoked to continue growing more and more in my remaining days here!
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