bonfire

About a year or two ago, Kris was speaking in youth on a Wednesday just like usual but instead of in the youth room, we were in field for a bonfire. He talked about some of the things in his past that he has had to give up in his life in order to get closer to God. I had really not ever thought about the fact that if we want to have a real relationship with God, then we have to make an effort to change some things about our lives. Weather that is changing relationships, things we do, or just things we put before him. I have heard countless times that we need to turn our lives over to him, but I never knew that by doing that we would get so much in return.

Kris began writing things down on a piece of paper. Things about his life that he had prioritized above God. He then would take those things and throw them into the fire. Weather that is an addiction, or bad relationship, it is different for all of us. If we lay EVERY part of our lives down at Gods feet, we will truly be changed for the better.

I grew up thinking that going to church was just something that "good" people did. I didn't go for any other reason than to hang out with my friends and show that I was a good person. It wasn't until the summer after my senior year that I realized what a relationship with God really was. I didn't understand that he really loved me and that he really did want every part of me.

I sat there just like every other person, watching Kris throw paper into the fire. Thinking about what I had in my life that I placed before God. I was wondering what God could burn away in my life. I started thinking about how God could change me and what he could do in my world. So that became my prayer. That He would burn away anything in my life that was not helping me grow in him. I prayed that he would not only take control of all the things that I could present to him, but that he would also take the things I couldn't. Not only the "good" things but also the bad and that he would take them and make them into good things. That he would take every scar I had in my life and every situation that hurt me and turn them into beautiful pieces of artwork that would speak to other people.

So I ask you. Is there anything holding you back from Him. Anything that you feel could be hurting you right now. Because if you can give them to God, he will use it in ways that you would never thought possible. He will use them as stories that have the potential to shake the world. If you want to make a difference in the world, there is no better way than turning everything over to God and using the gifts and talents that he has stored in you.

"Only you can mend the broken heart and cause the blind to see. Erase complete the sinners past and set the captives free. Only you can take the widows cry and cause her heart to sing. Be a father to the fatherless our savior and our king"