Monday, February 28, 2011
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
Monday, February 14, 2011
Learning to Love Again
Somewhere along my years in college - helping hurt. And I mean HURT.
In the name of "serving, loving, helping" - something like that it hurt. I was taken advantage of and it left the last two years of college simply miserable.
I won't go into all the details, but ultimately, it left me with a guarded heart. A heart that wanted to "check you out" before I helped, before I loved, sometimes even before I cared.
Over the years I've known that this isn't God's desire for our lives.
He doesn't desire for us to be hurt - ultimately, though - because of sin - sometimes we are.
He does desire for us to love, to serve, to reflect Him in our actions.
Ultimately, through this situation I've learned that you have to love, even when you've been hurt - its hard - but we are called to love others. It's important to be careful and not to allow others to take advantage of you, to set boundaries and stick to them, even when it seems nearly impossible - but its important to not miss out on the love God has for us through serving others.
So, today on this Valentine's Day, I'm reflecting with a little less guarded heart, a heart that is healing from a massive hurt, and a desire to spend the next year continuing to love others.
In the name of "serving, loving, helping" - something like that it hurt. I was taken advantage of and it left the last two years of college simply miserable.
I won't go into all the details, but ultimately, it left me with a guarded heart. A heart that wanted to "check you out" before I helped, before I loved, sometimes even before I cared.
Over the years I've known that this isn't God's desire for our lives.
He doesn't desire for us to be hurt - ultimately, though - because of sin - sometimes we are.
He does desire for us to love, to serve, to reflect Him in our actions.
Ultimately, through this situation I've learned that you have to love, even when you've been hurt - its hard - but we are called to love others. It's important to be careful and not to allow others to take advantage of you, to set boundaries and stick to them, even when it seems nearly impossible - but its important to not miss out on the love God has for us through serving others.
So, today on this Valentine's Day, I'm reflecting with a little less guarded heart, a heart that is healing from a massive hurt, and a desire to spend the next year continuing to love others.
Labels:
Bible,
Life,
Never Letting Go
Monday, February 7, 2011
Favorite Super Bowl Commercial
This was probably one of the more creative Super Bowl Commercials that has been produced in the past few years! I am sure there are little boys all over america running around in Darth Vader suits today using "the force"!
I'm sure this little guy I took trick-or-treating this past fall has already tried "the force" out today!
I'm sure this little guy I took trick-or-treating this past fall has already tried "the force" out today!
Sunday, February 6, 2011
Jake
This is my buddy Jake.
Last June, God began to cross my path and his mom's path through a simple conversation about his younger brother. In July, God crossed another path with another coworker at church. By October I was standing in our children's ministry hallway looking into the eyes of parents who had been dealt an unimaginable blow. Jake has cancer. Without a miracle, Jake's time here on earth will be short.
Through the pain has come perspective. A perspective on life that I began to peer into four years ago when I found myself holding a four year old in his mother's hospital room as she slipped into the arms of Jesus - it was a time when I began to truly grasp the effects of cancer and the reality that we aren't guaranteed eighty years. In fact, we aren't guaranteed the next eighty seconds.
Sometimes, I find myself thinking "Jake probably won't experience next year's Christmas, next year's super bowl, etc", but do any of us really know if we'll experience tomorrow?
As I've spent time with Jake and his mom and dad and siblings over the past several months I've not only walked along with them through their journey, but also seen the reality and effects of cancer on many families and many children at Riley. The 5th floor is the cancer floor - it is a floor that you hope you never have to press the elevator button to ... and when you do, everyone looks at you with a sadness, knowing that you are somehow connected to a child with cancer.
Yet, through the ashes is beauty. Jake has a heart that is impacting others and helping other children at Riley. Even as he undergoes his own cancer treatments, he spends a little extra time at Riley handing out Pillow Pets to kids in the hospital, undergoing the same treatments he is. Not thinking about his own situation, but instead loving and helping others - knowing first hand how each of these children are feeling.
This past weekend on the Northview Blog there was an incredible article posted about Jake and his servant's heart. He and Northview will be collecting Pillow Pets over the next two months for the kids at Riley - the goal is 1,000 of the plush pillows - so far he has nearly 200!
As Jake walks this road pray for him, pray for healing, for understanding, and for comfort. Pray that he has the strength to visit family in Florida in a few months and that others are impacted by his story.
You can read Jake's article here: Jake's Compassion
And if you would like to help, Pillow Pets can be dropped off at Northview. There is also a fund at 5th/3rd Bank for donations - "Jacob McConahay" is the account name.
Jake's Caringbridge (follow Jake's story here!)
Last June, God began to cross my path and his mom's path through a simple conversation about his younger brother. In July, God crossed another path with another coworker at church. By October I was standing in our children's ministry hallway looking into the eyes of parents who had been dealt an unimaginable blow. Jake has cancer. Without a miracle, Jake's time here on earth will be short.
Through the pain has come perspective. A perspective on life that I began to peer into four years ago when I found myself holding a four year old in his mother's hospital room as she slipped into the arms of Jesus - it was a time when I began to truly grasp the effects of cancer and the reality that we aren't guaranteed eighty years. In fact, we aren't guaranteed the next eighty seconds.
Sometimes, I find myself thinking "Jake probably won't experience next year's Christmas, next year's super bowl, etc", but do any of us really know if we'll experience tomorrow?
As I've spent time with Jake and his mom and dad and siblings over the past several months I've not only walked along with them through their journey, but also seen the reality and effects of cancer on many families and many children at Riley. The 5th floor is the cancer floor - it is a floor that you hope you never have to press the elevator button to ... and when you do, everyone looks at you with a sadness, knowing that you are somehow connected to a child with cancer.
Yet, through the ashes is beauty. Jake has a heart that is impacting others and helping other children at Riley. Even as he undergoes his own cancer treatments, he spends a little extra time at Riley handing out Pillow Pets to kids in the hospital, undergoing the same treatments he is. Not thinking about his own situation, but instead loving and helping others - knowing first hand how each of these children are feeling.
This past weekend on the Northview Blog there was an incredible article posted about Jake and his servant's heart. He and Northview will be collecting Pillow Pets over the next two months for the kids at Riley - the goal is 1,000 of the plush pillows - so far he has nearly 200!
As Jake walks this road pray for him, pray for healing, for understanding, and for comfort. Pray that he has the strength to visit family in Florida in a few months and that others are impacted by his story.
You can read Jake's article here: Jake's Compassion
And if you would like to help, Pillow Pets can be dropped off at Northview. There is also a fund at 5th/3rd Bank for donations - "Jacob McConahay" is the account name.
Jake's Caringbridge (follow Jake's story here!)
Labels:
Kids,
Life,
Ministry,
Missions,
Monster Suits,
Never Letting Go,
Service Projects,
Special Needs,
Studio 6.7
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