Update from Tyler!

6/23/08-

Last week was one of what I hear is going to be one of the busiest weeks of the summer, and after going through it I can understand why with the schedule that we had here at Springs of Grace (SoG). We had had what we normally do with the “getAhead” torturing program on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday from 2-4:30, but in addition to that in the morning we started Vacation Bible School (VBS) which went from 9-12. So as you can imagine on the days when we had both of these events going, it was busy.

Not having much time, or any time at all for lunch or even a break; the week basically took me to the point where I though that I was tired and pushed me beyond that.

I remember having one verse stick in my mind throughout the whole week, and it is a verse that has been coming to mind pretty much since I have been here. The wonderful thing about this verse, and the reason I bring it up is because of the way I got to see yet again how the Lord fulfilled the promise He makes in it. This promise comes from Matthew 10:39 when Christ says “Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.”

I know that many probably don’t think of being an intern for the summer as a way of “loosing their life,” or that having to work with kids from 9-5 is a hard job that is stretching, because it really isn’t the most difficult job out there, and there are many ways that I could probably be “losing” my life in a more physical sense. But, often times when there is no other reason to do something, except with the hope of seeing lives being regenerated through the “foolishness of cross,” often times the littlest thing can be an opportunity to “lose your life” for Christ sake. The reason for this is because it is my tendency to hold onto my life and get frustrated when things don’t go the way I want them to go. So it can be hard to willingly lay my life down as an offering, and loose it for the sake of Christ. Yet, this week God fulfilled His promises made here in this verse, not to the point where I am perfect at trusting in this promise yet, but to the point where I can see Him giving grace to help in the time of need for helping me find real abundant life in losing it for Him.

Lord willing and this will hopefully be something that can continue for all of us here interning at SoG, so when these grains of wheat fall to the ground and lose their life much fruit will be found to the praise and the glory of Him in these kids; and no hope was being placed in “keeping our lives,” so that when we lay our lives down, it would produce much fruit to eternal life.