May 10, 2006
-
"I do not have a heart for you, I'm sorry..."
At the beginning of 2002 when I was 20, if you had asked me if I had a heart for children I would have told you, "No way. My heart is for college people and maybe teenagers."
If you had asked me if I had any desire to be a missionary I would have told you, "None at all."
If you had asked me if I would consider teaching English after college I would have laughed at you and said, "I will be an engineer!"
If you had asked me where Korea was on a map I would have looked around China but would not have been sure which peninsula Korea was... the one closer to Japan or the one closer to Alaska? Forgive me for my past ignorance.
If you had asked me at the beginning of 2002 what I would be doing with my life, I would have said, "I will be an engineer in Virginia (close to home). I will have a family. I will support my local church. I will maybe help lead a Bible study for college age people or adults."
What about children's ministry or something overseas? "No, I do not have a heart for either."
But look where I am now! Crazy, right? And I am happy! I am so thankful that I am not living the life I once envisioned. God has shaped me so much over the years and changed me in ways only He can. He is good!
Do not restrict God's work in you. Do not close doors that are set in front of you, only let God close them. He has awesome plans for you, just be in prayer and let Him lead you. Every step in your life is preparation for the next.
Jesus never went to a certain people or a certain place and said, "I do not have a heart for you, I'm sorry." He cared for all!
That same love Jesus had is now inside each and everyone of us. Let His love overflow in your life. Do not restrict Him... to restrict Him is to not allow His love to work in an area of your heart. As you let Him lead you, you will be amazed at the love He will give you.
NLCF Band (old school) - How Deeply I Need You
Comments (8)
i always think it's funny how God turns our own plans upside to down to give us the opportunity to live out His, and then we end up being overjoyed
hehe.. thank you, JM! have a great night/day/weekend
i hear ya bro...i hear ya...i had no idea i would be doing youth ministry...especially for this long..people ask me way too often, "when are you going to leave that church?" or "how much longer are you going to do youth ministry?" those are classic questions in which i have no answer for either...God placed me here for a reason, not by my own will!, and God will keep me here until He's ready for me to move on to another ministry...I believe we're all called to do some sort of ministry whatever it is..whether it be full-time youth pastoring, lay ministry, missions...etc....we just have to be obedient bro! i know for a fact though that GOD WILL bless you in whatever ministry you're doing!! SWEETNESS!
that's awesome john-michael...i am especially encouraged by you and ,specifically, the ministry in which you serve. may God protect and bless your heart.
jm, i gotta confess... i never did take u seriously. especially after ur hg made u the shirt where ur a simpsons character.. i think that speaks it all. haha jk. whens the next time u'll be in the states? its real encouraging to see u and tae doin well in korea... keeping being a blessing and pouring out bro!
that's awesome. i'm glad you found joy in your work for the lord. keep it up, you are such a blessing to the people there. it's inspiring to someone like me who still needs to find my way in God's work.
john michael!!! that was a sweet entry! i'm subscribed to you now so keep on sharing your insight... i love it!
looking back, it is pretty amazing, the way God's guided us to where we are now.
see u sunday JM.
i like what u said... every step in life is preparation for the next.
kids are cool JM! it's sooo fun workin with them. you really can learn alot from little kids. you wouldn't really think so, being the older one and their teacher, you think you have to teach them. but, i've learned sooo much from my sunday school kids and my youth kids. it's great to see God working in the lives of those youngins! glad to hear that you are enjoying your time in Korea and that things are goin well. and thanks for the encouraging words. man, i can't believe four years of college is finished. wow. now it's time for me to get out there and do God's work. I'm really lookin forward to it though!
have a great day JM! take care!! =)
Comments are closed.