I Dare You

Aren't you though?

Howdy everyone! School's over and done with! And now it's summer! Life's in an interesting time for me right now. It's a mix between really happy moments, and really sad moments. In short, it's bittersweet. I'm so ready for the next four years, and the changes they'll bring. At the same time, I don't want to let go. I don't want to say goodbye to so many of my friends, change where I live, change so much about my life. It's exciting and scary all in one.

I'd been thinking about all this for quite a while. Now it's real. And as it's come, I've realized many things. The first is the above quote. I am soo lucky that it's hard for me to say goodbye. It reminds me of just how blessed I am. If any of my friends are reading this now, thank you for everything. Keep in touch!

Yeah, I'm going to miss a ton, but I know that with God at my side it'll all be ok. 

Today sent me another reminder of things though. One of my friends sent me the story of Zach Sobiech today. If you haven't heard of him, you should look him up!! (Here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9NjKgV65fpo) He was a young man with terminal cancer that just died on the 20th of this month. He didn't let that stop him from living though. He just kept on living, and kept on doing what he knew best: making others happy, right to the end. He reminded me of many things. 

It's with that, that I begin today's topic. If I seem a bit scatterbrained, forgive me. I'm processing a lot for lack of a better word. :p

So.....

--------------------------------------------------------------------

Living

Funny right? I've done a post about letting go already (check it out here!) so that's not what this one is about. And no, this isn't about death either. Maybe I'll do that one someday. Not now. No, what that young man inspired me to write about was living, truly living.

I am dying right now. Now don't freak out guys, because guess what? You are too! Every second we live is a second closer to death as well. Everyone dies. It's a fact of life. And it's ok. Lion King, remember? Circle of life, etc. What matters is what we do with the time we have left. There's this poem I've heard a few times called "The Dash" by Linda Ellis (found here). Basically on your tombstone there's this dash between the dates of birth and death. That one small little line summarizes your entire life. Because the date you were born and the date that you died aren't really as important as what you did with the time in between, no matter how short or how long. 

How much longer do you have? How much longer do I have? You know, neither one of us can know that. I might have 50 years or 50 seconds (though if I finish this post, it's probably not the second one!) So what does that mean? Well, there are only a few things left to do then. I could curl up into a ball and be constantly afraid of the end - not really my cup of tea. I could continue living life like I'm going to live forever - not ideal. Or I could live each and every day to the fullest. I'm feeling the third one. If I do that, then it doesn't matter which day is my last.

So here we are, at the crux of the issue: because we will die, we should live. I don't mean just watching life pass from the sidelines like some sort of Nick Carroway. I mean diving in, headfirst, even if the water feels like it's 20 degrees and it's winter. Because ultimately, it's what we are all called to do.

There are so many people in the world today who aren't living. Myself included sometimes. There are so many people who think they don't deserve to live. There are so many people who don't think they can. I was thinking about it the other day, when it hit me:
God created all of us for a reason. A task only we could do. We are all called to know, love, and serve Him. We are called to do that in different ways. The very fact that you and I are still here, are still breathing, are still talking, means that our job is not done. God says that we have more to do. He says, by our simply breathing, that we are SOO important that the world literally could not function without us. If it could, we wouldn't be here. We aren't done yet. And We are sooo important that without us His plan wouldn't go the same way. We are irreplaceable, and completely necessary. Just by still existing.
So you see, we are CALLED to live. Interesting huh?
Then what does it mean to live?

Anyone can survive. All that takes is breathing in and out. It's so easy that most of the time our bodies do it on autopilot. It's harder to live. Living takes action and movement and participation. Not just watching, but doing. Living means doing what you love. It means doing what you are called to do. It means doing what makes you happy. It means doing and being what God made you to be; what you were created for. It might not be what you think it will be, but if you watch, it'll be great.

Alright so how do you live? In short: serve. It doesn't have to be in the traditional way. Just do what you are meant to do to make the world a better place. That young man Zach? He was kind to everyone he met, always smiled, and left his music for people to share. It doesn't have to be big things. It just has to be you. It means you do the best you can each day because you don't know which one is your last. Yeah, some days you might mess up, but don't get bogged down by them. Just start over. Live each day being the best person you can be. That way if your last day does come suddenly, you won't regret time not spent. You won't regret not getting done everything that you could. You won't regret not serving others more. You won't regret not loving more. In short: you'll be ready.

Everybody dies. Not everybody lives. Live your life.
Matthew 6:43 says:
"Do not worry about tomorrow; tomorrow will take care of itself. Sufficient for a day is its own evil."

Live today. That way if tomorrow doesn't come, you know that you gave it your best shot. Make your dash something beautiful.
--------------------------
Today's song is "Dare You to Move" by Switchfoot. It's all about living life, no matter the past, no matter the mistakes, no matter the future for that matter. It's where the title comes from today.

I dare you to move

I dare you to move

I dare you to lift yourself up off the floor

I dare you to move

I dare you to move

Like today never happened

Today never happened before

Move. Live. Love. Serve. Don't let your dash pass by in a blink.
Jeremiah 29:11 says:
"For I know well the plans I have in mind for you, says the LORD, plans for your welfare, not for woe! plans to give you a future full of hope."

Listen to the plans, and live them. You're still breathing, so you're still called to live.
God loves you always.

Praying for you all!

Until next time,

~Wanted~

Chance Encounters

God gives us hope eternal!

Sometimes I find that I can't write anything at all. This is not one of those times. Yes, I know AP exams are up and I should be studying. Something happened tonight that was just beautiful. It really was, in a sense, miraculous. 

Mr. Solomon, if you ever read this, thank you. You have no idea how much God worked through you tonight.

Finding answers means forgetting questions right? 

Sometimes the answers will just walk right up to you and have a nice chat.

What am I talking about?

I'm talking about a

---------------------------------

Chance Encounter

Before I can even get to who Mr. Solomon is, I need to touch on events leading up to our meeting. Yes, be warned, for just this once you will get a glimpse into the life of Wanted. Enjoy it while it lasts!

Tonight I was called upon to speak to a confirmation class at my church about ways they could get involved. They had just gotten confirmed a little over a week beforehand, a major step in their lives as Catholics. I was glad to do it, and excited, but I was disappointed. Very few people were signing up for things, and no one signed up for adoration, my topic. I was sad because they had just committed to the Catholic life as adults, and had become sealed by the Holy Spirit, yet they didn't realize what a tremendous gift they had been given. How could they not see how blessed they were?

Back tracking a little bit more... The past few weeks have been a bit rough. There has been so much going on in the nation, and in the lives of those around me, that it's been a lot to take in. I know it's not all my problem, but I like to help others, it's what I do. Seeing so much pain made me ask MANY questions. (Hence the post "...why?".) And it also got me worried. About the world, about my friends. About the future. Especially about the last one. There are quite a few changes coming in my life really soon, and I'm excited about them, but at the same time I'm very afraid. I'll touch more on this later.

After the talks, we went and had a Bible study with some kids from our youth group. While it was good, and I did learn a few things, it wasn't what I was looking for. I wanted to know more about what God said and why He said it, and what we did tonight wasn't really that. So I had fun, but I ended up wanting to just get something to eat, and go home.

God had other plans.

My friends and I all went out because we hadn't really had time to eat before our talks. As we walked into the restaurant, each one of us carried with us something that needed resolving. For me it was my worry. For another it was their self doubt. Yet another worried about their future. And there were more. None of us really thought that there would be any resolution, and I can guarantee NONE of us saw what God had planned coming. There we sat, having fun but feeling unsatisfied.

Then along came Mr. Solomon.

At first, we weren't sure what to think. Here was a stranger walking up to us and trying to strike up a conversation, right as we were leaving. Honestly I just wanted to go home. We tried to hurry up our conversation, so we could go. He asked us how we were, and what grade we were in. As we talked to him, he asked us what he wanted to be.

That was when the conversation changed.

When one of my friends answered that they wanted to be a youth minister, he smiled. He said did she know why? She answered, but it wasn't the answer he wanted. He asked us if we knew why, but none of us could give the answer he wanted. He said look up Matthew 28:18 to the end. He said we'd have our answer then. It read:
Matthew 28:18-20

Then Jesus approached and said to them, "All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the holy Spirit,teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.  And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age."

We were all stunned. He went on to explain why that was so important, and why it mattered that people do what my friend wanted to do. He then did it for 2 more of my friends, asking them what they wanted to do, and telling them why they wanted to do it, and what was important about it. I wish I could tell you all of it, but I don't remember it word for word, and it would be the longest post EVER.

As we listened, we sat in awe of this complete stranger who initially creeped us out, but now was revealing to us some of the deepest yearnings of our hearts. He told us about how to combat sin in the world we are about to face, and about facing it with the armor of God. (Ephesians 6:11-17) He told us that no matter what, we should never fear because God is with us. If God is with us, than who can be against? The devil is soo afraid of Him, that as long as we stand with Him, and cling to Him, we have nothing to fear.

Those words stuck in my head: "Do not fear". All those broken friends. All those problems. All those worries about the future. I'd love to say they melted away, but that's not what happened. They were still there. But I wasn't afraid anymore. I was peaceful. I was reminded this night that I need to trust in God. Nothing is too great for Him. I might not understand why He does what He does, but it happens for a reason. He will never do anything to hurt us, and in the end we will be fine because we have Him. As long as we speak His words, and lead the life he wishes for us; as long as, like Mr. Solomon told us, we are crucified to ourselves and rise in Christ, then we need not be afraid, for God is with us. There is nothing that can break His power.

Our conversation with Mr. Solomon ended with him telling us to always remember Psalm 1:1-3. He said that it was the motto of his family, and if we follow that, then we will be successful in life, because we will be doing what God wants. By the time he was done talking, none of us wanted to leave. We had all entered the restaurant with different things on our minds, different loads on our chests, but we all left it rejoicing, with huge smiles on our faces. God had come to us in a way we never expected, and it turned our night around dramatically. We learned more in that conversation then we did the entire rest of the day beforehand. It was nothing short of a miracle.

Looking back on it, it's divine providence that things happened the way they did. If we had eaten beforehand, or had chosen another place, we never would have met Mr. Solomon. Not only that, but Mr. Solomon's name itself was too much of a coincidence to be .... well a coincidence! King Solomon was, in the Bible, the wisest person who ever lived. He was meek and humble, and good to all (at least in the beginning).  A man whose very name is associated with wisdom came to us tonight to tell us what God wanted us to hear. It's too much to have simply been a random happenstance.

So how does this relate to any of you? I'm glad you asked! We weren't expecting God to talk to us tonight, and we were DEFINITELY not expecting Him to talk to us through a stranger. The Holy Spirit WAS at work tonight after all. Remember when I talked about prayer and listening? This is proof of it. God will always be there for us, and always answer our prayers. We just have to be open to receiving it. If we had pushed away Mr. Solomon, like we wanted to at first, we never would have heard exactly what we needed to hear in that moment. God works that way.

A chance encounter brought us the answers we had been searching for. Be aware of how God is moving in your life. Be kind to everyone. Again, don't judge people. You never know who God might send to help you. God will ALWAYS be there for you, no matter what. It's up to us to listen to Him, and pay attention the messages He sends us through the people around us. That's why everyone is so important, because God can work through all of us. If we had passed off Mr. Solomon, we would have missed God's message, all because we judged him before we knew him. Instead we heard a miracle in action.
------
So what is Psalm 1:1-3?

Happy those who do not follow the counsel of the wicked, Nor go the way of sinners, nor sit in company with scoffers. Rather, the law of the LORD is their joy; God's law they study day and night.
They are like a tree planted near streams of water, that yields its fruit in season; Its leaves never wither; whatever they do prospers.

 Be the tree rooted in God's law and love. Live out His ways in your life. Put the messages together: Follow Him, Trust Him, Listen for the Answers, and Don't Judge Others. In doing so He will do marvelous things in your life. I don't just guarantee it, He does:

Matthew 28:20

"And behold I will be with you always, until the end of the age."

The song tonight comes from God's message to me: 

Be Not Afraid by John Michael Talbot

Be Not Afraid

I go before you always

Come follow me

And I will give you rest

Following Christ the way He calls us to will give us peace and joy beyond our imagination. Listen, and be ready for your own chance encounters. God's just waiting to talk to you. It's up to you to be open to the answer.

---

I feel like tonight was the ending of this series of posts, and the beginning of something new. God gave me a lot to think about tonight. I hope He did for you too.

It's time to put the messages together. It's time to start dying to ourselves that we might live. It's time to put on the armor of God. It's time to be a Christian.

Praying for you always,

~Wanted~