Sundays are a triple threat

Here's some thoughts for ya:

A coincidence occurs when God chooses to be anonymous.

If over the course of our free will, we freely choose to become a certain person, then the choices we make are no longer a matter of freedom. They are chosen for us. (gulp)

God doesn't ask us to fully understand Him, He asks us to fully trust Him.

Really, we just want to believe in a God who will do stuff for us.

What do I mean by all of these? Sundays are jam-packed. I have GROW class in the morning where I get my fill of older adults pouring into my life (whether they realize it or not). Today we talked about spiritual healing when there are demonic forces at work. This is a tough pill to swallow, so I'll just recommend Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis. Aaaaand I'll also say that I sincerely believe in spiritual warfare. But perhaps details for that topic are for another day.

I do want to mention that Don Whipple stopped me in the hall after church today. This man is awesome--a WWII veteran who even recently went to a reunion at Iwo Jima. Yeah. He fought there. He was injured and escaped the hospital boat (headed back to America) to continue fighting. He continues to wear his purple heart. Don was also a fellow missionary last year. Both of us were presented to the church about this time last year. I was leaving for Russia, as he was leaving for Costa Rica. I had always found it so cool that we were commissioned on the same day. When people from the church would shake our hands after the service they would look to Don, 70/80ish years old, in amazement, then me, 22ish years old, in amazement (but maybe because they were thinking I was just a teenager, as did half of Russia).

He stopped me to thank me for my comments in class. To which I responded with awe, "No thank YOU! I always love what you have to say!!" Then he asked about Argentina. When I said I was going with Operation Mobilization he said, "Now that is a great outfit."

Oh Don. (to be said in the most Beaver Cleaver sort of way)

Insert brief (yet traditional) Sunday afternoon nap, followed by my time at IVN. And I tell you! Pastor Victor brought word!! From what I could comprehend of course. He was talking about Nehemiah, focusing on the second chapter about how Nehemiah had a plan for the rebuilding of the temple. He talked about the prayers of Nehemiah leading up to the point of telling the king his plans.

The application was that we need to be in prayer, but we also need to take action. He focused on our friends and family that need to know Jesus. He challenged our thinking by saying we can pray and pray for the salvation of our friends, but what if it is us that needs to tell them? And just as Nehemiah had a time in which he would finish rebuilding the wall, we need to challenge ourselves with a date by which we tell our friends. All was said in the most non-legalistic way. It was more a matter of that sharing the good news is the most loving thing we could do!

And then came a short skype call and dinner break. Noah, Alex and I played 2 truths and a lie over dinner which made me laugh. Any way..

Merge. Bebo Norman's song I will lift my eyes comes to mind. We were talking about prayer, primarily the prayers of David in the Psalms. I loved thinking about how raw, how emotionally rollercoaster-like his prayers are. Makes me feel a little more normal. Has a lot to do with being a very small creature in a friendship with a very big God, I think :)

The pastor also talked about Nebuchadnezzar's time of insanity (See Daniel 4:28-37). This part struck me most, because there are times when I'm so self-focused. I don't mean to call on God only when it's convenient, or when times are hard. But I do. The story was a reminder of how much I need to keep my eyes on things above, not on earthly things.

Sunday is a bit overwhelming. Nonetheless, I wouldn't change the routine while I'm here for the world.