Brief Thoughts on Hope

Tonight my youth pastor declared that hope is not wishful thinking; it is certainty.

In the Bible, Paul spends an entire chapter proofing an argument for Christ’s resurrection (1 Corinthians 15). One verse in particular stands out: “If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied.”

Essentially, the hope of a Christian transcends the earthly realm. This hope is not merely a means for coping with life’s challenges. It is not on the level of morphine, marijuana, and martinis. If this is the “faith and hope” believers are clinging to, they are deluded.

Admittedly, I do believe in the transformative power of divine hope on mood and outlook, but “hope in Christ” suggests that the end is Christ.

Also, in an essay on the “triumvirate” gifts of faith, hope, and love, F.M. Perry writes that they are “spiritual gifts granted by the Holy Spirit…to each and every Christian.”

He details how faith, hope, and love are indeed gifts, not originating from believers themselves. The words of Romans 15:13 make it clear: “Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit” (NKJV).

Hope: a gift of certainty.

Thoughts? Respond in the comments below.

Passion in Action

You may have read my recent post promoting the 2012 Famine.
This year’s experience was more difficult and more powerful for me than the 2011 Famine.

We gathered together Friday afternoon, totaled the funds (over $7,200!), drank gallons of apple juice, collected non-perishable goods, and finally broke the fast on Saturday night: Our 30-Hour Famine is over.

Over 50 students raised funds, fasted, and prayed on behalf of hungry and needy children around the world, specifically those in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bolivia, Kenya, and Zambia.

On Friday night, the middle school youth group joined us for a few “TRIBE” challenges, and we watched and discussed the short film “Journey to Jamaa” produced by World Vision (jamaa means family in Swahili).

On Saturday morning we did landscaping and cleaning for senior citizens in the local community; in the afternoon we did walked around a couple neighborhoods in my town.

At this point during the weekend, I felt so radical: We were walking through a neighborhood, knocking on the doors of strangers and asking for donations of non-perishable dry goods or blankets for the Union County Community Shelter. When we found the courage, we asked for prayer requests and prayed for the family on the spot. If not, we prayed in the street for the empty house or slammed door. I thought, This is the kind of thing that crazy people do—that faithful people do. And I’m one of them.

The Famine weekend is, in a word, satisfying. It is a powerful experience because it made us deliberately dependent on God for energy and strength. We drank only apple juice and water (and even then, some students went without juice). Moreover, we spent extra energy helping our community.

This vulnerability and reliance on God for physical needs is a small picture of the human lifetime: I believe everyone has an emptiness and a longing because God has set eternity in the hearts of men, and we can only depend only on God to fill that emptiness. That is a dependence on God for a spiritual need.

Every “TRIBE” simulation challenge was followed by a discussion time that relates a Bible verse to the game. The following verse speaks of this physical/spiritual parallel:

“Jesus answered, ‘Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.’ ” (John 4:13-14, NIV)

Jesus is speaking to a woman at a well about eternal life. She answers, “Sir, give me this water so that I won’t get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water.” She doesn’t yet understand what Jesus is saying, but the weight of his words eventually sinks in. She will still have to draw water every day whether or not she has eternal life. And for those of us who have already heard about Jesus’s everlasting spring, we still have to pray and read the Bible to taste the water of life and satisfy our souls.

During the prayer walk/food collection, the neighbors called the police on us, but there were no problems.

Also, by the end I had spent 26 hours with dozens of faithful people, reinforcing my idea that every Thursday night I go to a 2-hour family reunion, not merely “youth group.” For me in particular, during the Famine I turned to people for comfort in the absence of food, instead of the other way around. The physical discomfort is so worth the love and joy that permeated every hour. This is the kind of familial love that fills you to overflowing and makes the world seem fresh and beautiful.

By the time we had broken the fast, every need on every plane was satisfied. Amen.

The Famine is over, but you can always contribute to World Vision. Your money will not be wasted.

PS: I want to thank “Aunt Kathy,” a commenter at The Poorganic Life, for the idea of a poster or banner to commemorate the weekend. This is what happened as a result. Everyone signed it and it’s now hanging in our youth building!

Photos courtesy World Vision and Joylily Bogle.

More photos of our event can be seen at http://www.wysite.org/sites/jaarsyouth/PhotoAlbum.

Passion for the Hungry (Guest Post!)

My writing is now featured on another website: my first guest post!

It is my pleasure to direct you to The Poorganic Life by Katrina Ryder. I met her at church, but I have enjoyed getting to know her through the inspired (and hilarious) anecdotes on her blog. She writes about her faith and family, and she is the original creator of poorganic—frugally eating real and organic food.

So, ready for the post? I write about World Vision’s 30-Hour Famine, in which my youth group is participating on February 17-18, and why it is meaningful to me.
Go read >>

 

If you’d like to donate to World Vision, go to http://support.worldvision.org/goto/JAARSFamineNewton.

If you don’t donate, could you please pray for all the teenagers participating in the Famine this year, and for children around the world who are currently suffering from hunger?

This story isn’t over: After the Famine, I’m going to write a follow-up about what God did that weekend. It’s going to be awesome.

Man’s Poetry… and God’s Poetry

God created the tea olive blossom and it smells amazing.

I was struck by a poem I read today, for it reflects (wink, wink) a poem I myself wrote nearly a year ago: “the struggle”.

I read the following poem in Gary Mack’s Mind Gym, in the chapter entitled “The Mirror Test.” The book is a collection of inspirational stories and lessons that relate to anything that requires dedication, mental concentration, and confidence, namely sports. Incidentally, I was inspired to lay out the sayings and aphorisms (AP English vocab – woo!).

Mind Gym Quotes + Get Over Yourself

After that diversion, here’s the poem:

“The Man in the Glass” by Dale Wimbrow, 1934

When you get what you want in your struggle for self
And the world makes you king for a day,
Just go to the mirror and look at yourself
And see what that man has to say.
…
You may fool the whole world down the pathway of years
And get pats on the back as you pass.
But your final reward will be heartache and tears
If you’ve cheated the man in the glass.

Basically, some things the world sees as ‘achievements’ aren’t worth the inner turmoil. Reading my poem, I see striking parallels that lead me to believe I’m not the only one who has felt that way.

And then another coincidence: my youth pastor told me that as a child of God, I am God’s poema, the Greek word for workmanship and the root of the English word poem.

This also stood out to me today because I pour my heart into my poems; I give them every emotion and detail that presses inside me. I distill into the purest essence a certain emotion or experience, and I am proud to attach my name.

Hasn’t God done the same? He calls me His own. I am His poema.

For we are God’s workmanship [poema], created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

Ephesians 2:10 (NIV)

So cool.

Hungry?

In the same weekend, I fasted for 30 hours, and I received a 16-lb. box of organic junk food—could the contrast be greater?

My youth group, as part of World Vision’s 30-Hour Famine, fasted and prayed on behalf of hungry and needy children around the world, specifically the victims of the 2010 earthquake in Haiti. (I predict next year’s Famine will help victims of the tsunami that just hit Japan.)

In the months leading up to the Famine, we raised funds—$7,853.52 in all—for use in rebuilding Haiti and taking care of basic necessities like food, water, and shelter.

A key passage is found in Isaiah 58:6-8:

Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:
to loose the chains of injustice
   and untie the cords of the yoke,
to set the oppressed free
and break every yoke?
Is it not to share your food with the hungry
   and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—
when you see the naked, to clothe them,
and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?
Then your light will break forth like the dawn,
and your healing will quickly appear;
then your righteousness will go before you,
and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard.

We officially started at 1 pm on Friday and broke the fast at 7 pm on Saturday. We met together at 5:30pm that evening and went to a concert by Jay and Nett, who travel the nation, raising “awareness and financial support for children suffering from poverty all over the world.” Then we slept at our youth building and spent all of Saturday together.

We were split into five groups representing regions in Haiti: Cité Soleil, Cavaillon, Pétion-Ville, Carrefour, and Lascahobas. (The beautiful French names belie the desolation of these areas.) During the Famine we did TRIBE simulation activities to put ourselves in the shoes of earthquake victims, like racing to collect the most water. In “tribal councils” we met to discuss Bible passages and pray together.

In the morning, we did a prayer walk around a couple neighborhoods in my town; later we split up into three groups: one collected canned goods and blankets, one picked up trash along a road, and the other did some landscaping and cleaning for senior citizens.

Throughout the day, we sent many prayers up for hungry people all over the world—those who hunger both physically and spiritually. To me, the experience really emphasized that prayer is a powerful tool.

We were able to drink apple juice and chew gum throughout the time; and I drank a full 24 oz. bottle of water every few hours. But imagine if there was no end in sight, as well as no clean water or mint gum, no friends and no warm sleeping bag. On Friday night, we were in kinship with the one billion people who go to bed hungry at night, but for us, it was just one night. We American teenagers found it difficult to go 30 hours—I can’t imagine what a lifetime of hunger would be like.

The Famine is over, but you can always contribute to World Vision. Your money will not be wasted.

Photo credits © World Vision

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