What Grabs My Heart

I love it when God "re-grabs" my heart for certain things.

I spent the weekend at a middle-school (6-8th grade) event with about 20 of our church's youth. I never want to go to these weekend things because they are exhausting and I normally dislike being gone all weekend. However, I'm always amazed after weekend events when I come home tired but refreshed and refocused on God, as was this weekend. But I am digressing.

I l.o.v.e. middle school students. Love, love, love! They are at such a good age. They are funny, quirky, genuine, innocent, smart, and accepting. They are easy to get to know and love back easily. They can act mature and reflective one moment and then turn and be entertaining and exuberant the next. They can make me laugh one moment and then make me cry the next.

It was reiterated to me this weekend that middle school students have some deep thoughts. They are so young and yet this is the age when they start wrestling with God, their identity, and their purpose in life. Their thoughts excites me. And the burdens that some of these youth carry around on their shoulders, makes my heart break. Lord, whatever you have in store for my future is fine but please let it include middle-school students somehow!

Another thing that grabs my heart is missions. Our speaker this weekend challenged the youth to be a part of sharing the gospel to those who have never heard. Then he had an alphabetic list of people groups (and the countries they are in) who have minimally heard the gospel or not at all, running on a big screen. We were seriously in the "A's" for at least 4 minutes alone. It broke my heart. I'm willing to go wherever the Lord wants me to go. Here am I, send me!

Lastly, I learned a new song this week that I love: "You're Beautiful" by Phil Wickham. Enjoy.