This can't be real.

I found myself to be rather exhausted this morning...I didn't know how exhausted I was until I had slept through my alarm for first service at church. Oops. So I decide that second service it shall be. I walked in to church a few minutes late and was promptly greeted with a huge and long hug from a sixth grade girl. So I sat next to her, who is one of the most energetic people I have ever met. During our coffee break, she informs me that she's going to get coffee, because
"I'm tired and I want to be bouncy."
me-"Are you sure that's a good idea?"
"Yeah! Get some with me so you can be bouncy as well."
"I can't be bouncy during service..sorry."
"Why?"
"Because I have to be civilized for service..we can be bouncy together tonight at the Christmas party though!"
"Oh. I'm not civilized."

Oh boy.

Sure enough, approximately three minutes into the sermon, she started to grow very fidgety and looked at me as if she were a bomb full of energy that was about to explode. So I rip a page out of my journal and give her a pen, and tell her to draw a picture of hope.

Now let's just pause here.

I know, I know. Asking a sixth grader to draw a picture of hope...what does that even mean? It was the best I could do at the moment. Give me a break, I'm only an intern.

As the message goes on, I kept saying to myself "This can't be real. Seriously? No. Somehow he knows." as the message completely and totally related to my life in every which way. I thought for sure someone had told the pastor what was going on in my life right now. (In fact, after service was done, I ask someone who knows the situations that have affected the state of my heart currently if she had talked to Pastor John about me. She hadn't. She just states "God is really, really cool.") About five minutes before the end, my sixth grader hands me her drawing (which will be at the bottom) and I'm nearly in tears. It says things on it like "God is willing to fulfill promises if you trust him." "You have to trust him." "God is here and will make it happen." "Trust God and he is willing to fulfill them [The promises]"

Friends, are we going to just have wishful thinking about life, or are we going to have hope? Are we going to have a confident expectation in the power and promise of our God as we approach situations that absolutely drain us physically, emotionally, and spiritually?

God redeems.
Whatever that looks like for you.
That is the beautiful truth about the Ultimate Truth.


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