A Story That Needs to be Heard

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=relmfu&v=PvPOLDmMPyQ&nomobile=1

I ran across this youtube video that someone posted on facebook. It definitely almost had me in tears seeing the outcome of God's Sovereignty. It amazes me that God can orchestrate a completely unique and complex story for each person. He is so powerful!

These are examples of people who got what they wanted. They are, without a doubt, powerful stories. But I started thinking...what about the people who don't have stories like that? What about the ones who DON'T get what they want? What about the people who lost their child to cancer or were never able to have children? We can't only look at the "good" stories, because there is good in every story. 

William Cowper (pronounced Cooper) was a poet born in the 1700s. He gave his life to Christ at the age of 33. He is actually the author of the famous hymn "There is a Fountain Filled With Blood." But here's the thing....he struggled with intense depression throughout his entire life. He was never able to cope with his mother's death at his young age of six years old. He was studying to be a lawyer, but he was so frightened by the final examination that he had a mental breakdown which he was never able to recover from. Cowper unsuccessfully tried to kill himself after a love affair that didn't work out.

My point in telling you this is not to depress you. William Cowper's story needs to be heard. His story does NOT go like this: "I struggled from severe depression but after I began my relationship with God, He healed me of it." He still struggled majorly with depression even after he came to know Christ. He lived with a pastor who helped him along Spiritually and emotionally. Some nights all he could do was sit and look out the window for a couple of hours until it didn't hurt so badly and he could fall back to sleep.

Cowper was not healed of his illness, but he had a new hope. Even in his sadness, he wrote these beautiful words:

     There is a fountain filled with blood
     drawn from Immanuel's veins
     and sinners plunged beneath that flood
     lose all their guilty stains

     The dying thief rejoiced to see
     That fountain in his day;
     And there may I, though vile as he
     wash all my sins away

     Dear dying Lamb, Thy precious blood
     shall never lose its power
     till all the ransomed church of God
     are saved, to sin no more

     For since by faith I saw the stream
     Thy flowing wounds supply
     Redeeming love has been my theme
     and shall be till I die

     When this poor lisping,
     stammering tongue
     lies silent in the grave
      then in a nobler, sweeter song
     I'll sing thy power to save

William Cowper understood the meaning of life more than most people. God allowed the depression in his life for a reason. I don't know why He did and I'm sure Cowper was wondering the same thing. But that's the thing....we don't always know the answer to the popular question "why?" but God does and that should be enough for us. Do we believe God is sovereign? I do. [do some deep thinking...if the problem begins here, so does the solution] If your answer was yes, should we trust God even when we don't know the answers? Yeah I think we should. Do I trust God completely with my life? I wish I could answer that with anything but the truth right now....

God is a big God. He is sovereign. He knows us inside and out. He does what He knows is best for us, knowing we will get mad at Him. That's what I call a good Father and Friend. So if you are mad at life right now, if you hate the world, praise Him anyway. He deserves it, because if we look past all our troubles, we see the bottom line: God loves us. Let me repeat that for you: God loves you. God loves you. God loves you. God loves you. 

"The Best Four Years of Your Life" so I'm told...

Hey college kids!! A lot of you are heading off to college for the first time this week and you are all on my heart. I pray that your college experience is a blessed one filled with life-changing experiences and I pray that at the end of it, you will look back and have no words other than praises for what God did. He will do things in your life you cannot even imagine right now.

I wanted to write this blog entry to encourage y'all, give some advice, and let y'all know I am here for you if you need anything from an experienced college-goer. So here it is...

• I'm sure you've heard some people say that college is "the best four years of your life." Well it is for some people and it isn't for others. You've been preparing for this for 18 years and have a lot of expectations, a lot of worries, and a lot of pre-made plans. Forget all those...forget what other people told you college was like for them (advice is good but do your own thing with it), forget the expectations you have, forget the worries, and prepare to start a new plan. Go in with the mindset that anything can happen. If you don't like your major, change it. If you don't like the new one, change it again. The average college life span is four years, but what's wrong with five or six? Don't stick to the "plan"; take it one step at a time. God will throw you some great surprises, but if you are too focused on "sticking to the plan," it may take longer for you to see what God really has planned for you.

• Keep an open mind at all times. You will learn so much in the next four years....don't miss any of it because you didn't open your mind to new things, new answers, or new ideas.

• You are about to enter the most worldly place you probably have ever been. There will be temptations galore. STAY ROOTED IN YOUR FAITH. I cannot stress this enough. Don't go into this sin-infested place without your belt of truth, shield of faith, sword of the Spirit, etc... (ephesians 6). ["For our struggle is not against flesh and blood,but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms." ~vs. 12]. Spend time in the Word, listen to sermons, read commentaries, pray, pray, pray, pour truth into your minds as much as you can because there are so many lies out there. People will lie to you, satan will lie to you, and you will lie to yourself....feed truths into your mind so you will not give in to these lies. 

• Put yourself out there...be bold! Everyone else is feeling just as scared as you are so be the person that steps up and puts you all at ease! Invite new friends to coffee, get to know the people on your hall, and don't let yourself hide in your room too much! (this is mostly for us introversts!!)

• Find good friends right away...once you get into the wrong group, its difficult to get out. Intentionally search for friends who will help you walk down the right path. A good, Christian community is vital. Find a good church if there is one around. Even if you are involved in a campus ministry, churches have so much more to offer...they have people older than you to give you wisdom (i know...right now everyone is older than you, but you won't be the youngest forever!), they have younger people for you to pour into (serving people that are younger than you provides lots of clarity about life sometimes plus they really look up to you), and sometimes it's just nice to have somewhere to escape to when you want to get away from anything campus related. Church gives you people that are in a different stage of life...if you stay on campus all the time, everyone around you is pretty much in the same stage of life. So find all kinds of people you can learn from...this is a beautiful time of growth in your life!

• Cherish every moment and use each minute. Time will FLY like you wouldn't believe! When I think about the fact that I'm already halfway through college (if i finish in four years), I feel like I've wasted so much time. Be constantly on the lookout for ways to learn and grow and serve others.

•  Learn early how to manage your time so you have just the right balance between your classes and your friends.. If you are too focused on getting straight A's, classes tend to suck the life out of you. Yes, please focus on your grades because that is why you are there in the first place, but don't forget to cherish the sweet friendships you make. Accept the fact that you will not make A's in all your classes...you will have some subjects you just don't understand as well as others. Just do your best, work as hard as you can while keeping your sanity, and feel accomplished!

•  I'm gonna tell you something, but don't let it freak you out... you WILL fail at least one test (probably more). When someone told me this, I didn't believe it until it happened...and again... and again. I was too prideful and didn't like asking for help so failing tests became a pattern for me in some classes. ASK FOR HELP! Seek help after you make the first bad grade or even before then when you see that you don't understand the material...don't wait until finals week! Go see each of your professors at least 2 times during the semester. This will show them you want to learn and they will remember that. Some of my professors actually scolded our class for NOT going in to see them. They have office hours for a reason...use them! Also, if professors see you trying, they will be more lenient while grading your papers! This may be different if you have large lecture classes... The biggest class I've ever had was about 60 people.

• Please actually go to class! Now don't get me wrong...I do encourage occasionally skipping class just for the sake of sanity. If you are completely overwhelmed, it's okay to skip a class if there is nothing going on that day (this will refresh you so you can work hard later)....occasionally.

• If you don't own a pair of rainboots, invest in some :)

• Take lots of pictures, make scrapbooks, photo albums, etc. 

• Explore your campus...find the little special spots that noboby knows about!

• Never do homework in your room...people know where to find you and distract you. Also, the bed will stare you down, call your name, and taunt you until you agree to go lay in it...I gave in to it 90% of the time!

• Even if everyone else goes home every weekend, stay on campus. Use the weekend to relax, do fun stuff, de-stress from the week! Plan activities ahead of time so you know at least someone will be there with you and get to know that person better. But do talk with your parents about when you will visit them...they will always be your #1 supporters...don't forget that!

• Lastly and most importantly: You're going to meet a lot of people with different backgrounds and different stories than yours....always remember that God gave you your story for a reason. and the best news is that He isn't done writing. The Maker of the universe is writing your personal story. It's individualized and beautiful because He is the One writing it. Never doubt what He can do. Look for Him all the time; He is everywhere. Watch Him orchestrate the tiniest moments as well as the mile-markers. You are His beloved, His friend, His child. You are His. You will, without a doubt, change in this new season of life, but NEVER forget your identity.