Still Runnin'

We are here in Niles, MI, where our teams are staying at Community Evangelical Free Church. The students are still impressing me with their great attitudes. The service projects went well, it was a new and challenging idea for us.

My prayer is that God is working in the lives of my students this week. It's one of those things that can't be gauged; at the end of this trip we may be able to say how many miles we traveled (maybe around 1,100?), but we won't be able to say that we came 'this far' in our faith. This evening I poured myself out in the teaching. I taught on the audience we have as runners of the faith race, the Christian life. I centered on the fact that God is cheering us on, both as our coach and as our greatest fan. I believe it. I know it. Scripture says it. As we live and obey and struggle and learn and worship, God cheers and applauds and beams, the image of a proud Father. He desires for us to succeed. Some have the misperception that He is some detatched judge in the sky, some horrible ogre of a being, observing with disdain and awaiting our every mistake. That is not so.

The message of God as cheerleader inspires me. I'm caused to worship, to marvel; I am humbled and in awe. How can it be that God even knows me, let alone cheers louder than anyone as my Advocate?! Yet it's true.

Sometimes my students are more cryptic than the clues that I've written for this race. They are often unreadable. I couldn't tell if the message was fully received (they are quite tired, afterall). Please pray that their hearts will be open, that they will welcome the transforming power of God's Word. Tomorrow evening will be an espescially important message. My hope is that the setting will provide perspective and the impact that I'm longing for. I'm sure you'll read about it.

As with our race, it's impossible to know what will happen tomorrow, we just have to keep runnin'!