Wednesday, November 1, 2017

Arrested by Grace

It’s easy to get lost in the busyness and the everyday hustle and bustle of life and not see or notice what God is doing in our midst. The past few weeks have been a blur of planning my visit to the States, tying up loose ends before the end of the school year, planning out the last few teachings of the devotional time, holding the final meetings of the discipleship and leadership groups, and preparing for an upcoming medical clinic. I have started to think and pray about my commitments for the coming school year, envision some of the changes for January, and even took on managing a community project as well. Wow!! Just reading that makes me tired!!

Working on Sponsorship Projects
Yet, God has arrested me in the midst of all my activities and all my busyness and reminded me of who He is, who I am, and what He has called me to these past few weeks. The first moment happened on the last day of regular classes which was October 19th. Early that afternoon, I found myself hitting a brick wall while working at my desk. I decided to take a break and walk down stairs to the elementary level of the school. I hadn’t realized that at that time the classes were being dismissed for the day and the students were leaving to start their two months of vacation.

As I entered the elementary hallway, I was greeted with shouts of “Misssssssssss”, mobbed with hugs of passing students, and received words of gratitude from parents. As I stood in the midst of a sea of children and parents, a first-grade girl latched onto me and squeezed my waist with all her might. In that moment, I was overwhelmed with the goodness of God and what He is doing in the school. As tears filled my eyes, I looked at the passing smiling faces, the sparkling eyes filled with
Graduating Kindergarten Students
hope, and I thought… my God.. who am I that You would trust me to love on Your kids in this place. How would you let me.. with ALL that I’ve done… be involved in Your ministry in this place. That’s when I remembered…  that nothing I do or say makes me worthy of the ministry He does… it’s what He did and who HE IS that makes it possible. My heart (and eyes) overflowed with joy in that moment as I drank in His presence, His goodness, and His grace… all the while my first-grade friend clung to me hugging me with all her strength.

A similar moment took place during the graduation service which took place on October 30th. I will admit, that I cried (a lot) throughout the graduation service watching “my kids” receive their diplomas and be promoted onto the next level of school. I especially had to hold it together for the 9th graders who will not be attending the school in the coming year as they move onto higher education opportunities. I thought I did a pretty good job at holding it together, until after the ceremony when God once again arrested me and reminded me of what He is doing in our village.

Two of my Discipleship Girls
As I locked eyes with one of the graduating 9th grade girls from my discipleship group,
Jessica, I felt the tears rise up in my eyes. She dashed over to me and hugged me firmly around my shoulders while talking into my ear. “Thank you, Miss. I can’t express how grateful I am for all that you’ve done for me this year. You’ve always been there to listen to me, and always been there to give me advice when I’ve needed it. You’ve been my best friend this year.” And that’s when I lost it… the tears started flowing as I spoke identity over this young lady who has gone from a young lady searching for her identity in her appearance to a young lady on fire for the Lord with a gift to teach the Word of God. I thanked her for being a blessing to me and again encouraged her that this was just the first step of the adventure that God has for her. Again, I found myself thinking… God.. why me.. and praise flowed from my heart as I basked in His goodness once again.

So, today I want to invite you.. let God arrest you. Take time to meditate on His goodness and His grace.. let Him pour out your identity in Him today… don’t get so caught up in the busyness, the projects, and the deadlines that you miss what He’s trying to show you. Let His grace, His mercy, and His continual goodness overwhelm you today. He IS working all around us every day… we often just don’t take time away from the busyness to see it.

Thank you for taking the time to read my blog. I appreciate each of you, your prayers, and your support. 

Blessings,

Meaghen 

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