Category Archives: Affinity Groups

5 Ways the Youth Ministry Blesses Me

by Roger Alcaraz

For the past eight months, I’ve been able serve and hopefully bless our youth ministry. I absolutely love the people there and though life can get demanding, ministering to them has never been a burden. You have been able to get to know some of them more through recent interviews and more are still to come, but for now, I want everyone to know why I love serving in this ministry. Before I begin, I should clarify: it may sound like I make the students to be such great people that I can’t help but to love them. The truth is, I love them not for who they are, but simply because God has placed this group in my life to serve and give my life to. Still, God has seen fit to bless me by allowing this ministry to bring much joy and comfort in life. Here are five ways the youth ministry has blessed me.

  1. I am never alone. Pastor Patrick sometimes reminds me, “You’re not a leader if no one is following you.” So while I was dubbed as the youth leader, I would be helpless without my staff. I’m aware that they follow my lead mostly for the same reason I love the youth, but it doesn’t change the fact that I can depend on them for anything. Their love for the students is as great as mine and the success of this ministry is entirely dependent on the staff all having a shared goal. No matter who you talk to on staff, their goal is to sacrifice their time, money, sleep, and everything else to bring even one lost sheep to the fold. Not only do I see their love for the students but I see their immense devotion to Christ and to the spread of the gospel. I used to feel bad for asking so much from the staff but I know how much joy they have in serving. I am blessed to have a staff so committed to the MVP.
  2. Their parents desire for them to grow. As great of an impact the staff and I hope to make with the gospel in the lives of the students, we know the biggest influence and witness to each of them is their own family, particularly their parents. It would be a huge struggle if the parents were telling their children to pursue the things of this world with us having to teach against their counsel. It would only confuse our teaching. But here at Lighthouse, I’m blessed to know that parents teach the Bible to their children and care about their salvation even more than the staff or I do. We do have some students who do not have believing parents and for that, I’m thankful for blessing number three.
  3. They desire to grow. It seems basic, but having a youth ministry that wants to grow is not the norm for many youth ministries. I talk with other youth pastors and the main heartache they have is that they preach on deaf ears and hard hearts. Or worse is when most of their time is spent trying to get the students to settle down so that the gospel can even go out. I’ve always thought our youth ministry was weird because I could never even sit still in church when I was younger and yet because of their desire to grow they are willing to not just endure but enjoy studying the Bible. I always pray that their pursuit of holiness continues and that they would be abiding in Christ.
  4. They’re challenged by God’s Word. It’s not easy to tell people about the cost of following Christ—that they are to deny their own desires in pursuit of loving God and people. But it’s a blessing that they understand this cost and not jump to hasty conclusions that they’re a disciple of Christ apart from living for Him. This follows what Jesus advises in Luke 14:25-33. Certainly I would want professing believers, but I do not want them be unaware of the life to come so that their profession is genuine. It is a blessing that when a student claims to be a Christian, they’ve done so considering what God’s Word has required of them and seeks to follow him.
  5. They challenge me. For older people, it is easier to compartmentalize God to Fridays and Sundays. I’ve noticed that for the believing youth, this is impossible. A young Christian man or woman includes Christ in his or her daily life, depends on His mercy, and lives for Him in ways I wish all believers would. This puts me to shame because when I accepted Christ, I was too afraid to publically proclaim Christ to my class. I certainly did not write a commentary on a book of the Bible. I did not choose a college based on where there is a good church that I could grow in. And yet, this seems normal for the youth who believe because they understand that love so amazing, so divine, demands their soul, their life, their all. It is a blessing and humbling to see such maturity in faith from those who are younger.

Lighthouse Kids’ Club (LKC)

by Josh Liu

It’s been about four months since the start of Lighthouse Kids’ Club for the 2010-2011 academic year, and we are already halfway through the curriculum! For this term, we have the great joy and privilege of going through the attributes of God. So far, we’ve covered God’s holiness, eternality, creator-ship, sovereignty, kingship, provision, faithfulness, unchangingness, wisdom, goodness, and attentiveness.

It’s been humbling and encouraging to witness the increase in these kids’ cognitive and spiritual capacity to hear the Word of God. Still, many have not genuinely confessed Christ as their personal Lord and Savior. We will endeavor to continue sharing the gospel and the character of God every week.

To that end, the LKC staff has been joyfully serving every week. The LKC staff includes Chris Tang, Daniel Yee, Danny Kim, Peter Park, Jennifer Shih, Lily Han, Melody Yu, and Vicky Williams. As a physically young staff, we are all constantly challenged to develop a firm biblical philosophy of children’s ministry, and how to apply that in our unique context. For example, to continue teaching the Word of God, the kids are divided into small groups based on age. Each small group is made up of two to three kids and one or two staff leaders. It’s been an enormous blessing having many willing servants be small group leaders. This allows us to tailor our ministry to meet the specific needs of individuals.

If you’re curious, I would encourage you to ask the staff about how to lead a small group for children. I believe it takes wisdom and creativity to communicate the truth of God’s Word to a child, to challenge them with appropriate application, and effectively illustrate main points.

As we desire minister to the parents, we plan to begin emailing 1-page summary sheets (beginning February) detailing the lesson and small group discussion/activities to further support parents’ discipleship of their children. We hope in all this to create a caring environment that allows kids to have fun while being ministered to by the Word of God.

Peacemaking for Families (Grace Life)

by Pastor Patrick Cho

A couple weeks ago, the Grace Life ministry began a study through Ken Sande’s book, Peacemaking for Families. So far, the lessons have been greatly helpful in providing instruction and pointing to biblical principles of conflict resolution. Sadly, since we are sinners, our sin oftentimes manifests itself in our marriages and parenting. We hurt those we claim to love the most and we act selfishly, seeking only to get what we want.

The opening chapters of Sande’s book have been very helpful getting us to honestly confess that our conflicts stem from the sinful desires of our own hearts. We can’t solely blame others (“They make me so mad!”), and we can’t blame our circumstances (“All this noise is driving me crazy!”). As the Bible clearly indicates, in conflict we must first look inward to find the problem (James 4:1-2).

In any relationship, conflict is going to be reality. The teaching of Christ in Matthew 5:23-24 is particularly insightful. Jesus says that if someone has something against you, you are to go and resolve the conflict before offering the sacrifice at the altar. Even if you are doing everything you can to be at peace with others, you still can’t control how others are going to act towards you. The passage doesn’t say, “If you have a problem with someone…” It says, “If someone has a problem with you…”

This study through biblical conciliation in the context of the home is sure to be greatly practical and helpful. Hopefully, our families are already finding ways to implement the principles in their relationships. We all need to work hard at identifying our sinful desires and unbiblical demands in order to better love and serve one another. This isn’t to say that conflicts will be avoidable altogether. We may stumble along the way, but at least we can have the biblical principles in mind when we do in order to make peace quickly and completely.

Single Life Ministry Update

by David Ahn

This past fall represented a time of transition for the Single Life ministry at Lighthouse Bible Church, as it resumed after summer hiatus under the leadership of Pastor Patrick after previously being led by Pastor John. It also saw many actively serving single adults leaving to join the church plant or to join staff of the other ministries such as College Life and Youth Group (which I propose should be renamed HighLighters) as all three bible studies are held concurrently on Friday evenings.

Thankfully, God has used these changes to grow the singles ministry. In place of many of the familiar faces that have left for married life, San Jose, and other staff ministries, God has brought many newcomers into our midst and has given opportunities for new people to step up and serve. I am consistently amazed and challenged to see newcomers who are so eager to commit and invest in their spiritual walks when the world sees single life as a time to enjoy worldly pleasures and delay the maturing process. They often come from a variety of backgrounds: some are transplants from vibrant, healthy churches; some are recommitting after wayward college years; and some are newly seeking the gospel. However, all are exposed to the universal truth of God’s Word faithfully preached and the love of Christ’s Body.

The structure of our Friday night ministry has not changed dramatically, and still consists of an opening time of musical worship, welcoming announcements, and then a teaching time. New since the fall has been RAP groups, which is a dedicated time after the teaching for us to “lyrically freestyle” (aka “RAP”…reflection, application, and prayer) about the sermon, so that we can have some time to actively digest the truths that Pastor Patrick shared that night. Lastly, people are encouraged to spend time hanging out in the midst of refreshments and games.

I think most of the single adults would agree with me when I say that Friday Night Bible Study comes at a challenging time, when most of us have just completed a grueling workweek and are eager to usher in the weekend. Sometimes it seems almost counterintuitive to cap off the week by going to a bible study when our flesh yearns to kick back and “chillax.” However, I also believe that most would agree with me when I say that I often end up leaving Friday Night Bible Study more rejuvenated than before after having been challenged and encouraged by the gathering of believers.

Staff Perspective (College)

by Teddy Yu

Hello, my name is Teddy Yu and God has richly blessed me and many others with the joy of serving on college staff and to intimately witness God at work in the lives of the collegians here at Lighthouse. College life is a critical time where many young men and women live away from family and begin to make many independent and important decisions. It is during this time that many decide a career path, develop lifelong habits, and even pursue a potential spouse. But more importantly, college ministry presents the unique opportunity to minister to many young men and women while they are ready and willing to listen to the Gospel. For it is during this time that they are in the process of forming convictions on matters of life and faith that will guide them through the rest of their lives.

So just as there is joy before the angels of God over each sinner that repents (Luke 15:10), it is our great joy to witness, by God’s grace, steady spiritual growth in the lives of each of the beloved collegians. It is a blessing to be used by God to encourage the collegians by being involved in their lives on a personal basis with weekly small groups, individual meet-ups, or even unexpected and sometimes late-night emergency phone calls. Even simple gestures of kindness such as providing a simple meal or chatting in the hallway at church or writing a quick encouragement note or praying faithfully for them can go a long way in encouraging the collegians. And while it can be humbling and intimidating at times, do not underestimate the influence of your counsel, teaching, and example of holiness, whether in a formal or informal role, to either build up or tear down the faith of the collegians.

These personal relationships with the collegians make it all the sweeter to witness the spectacle of God’s powerful grace in their lives as they: hear the Gospel and respond in faithful repentance, grow in conviction of sin and submission to Christ, publicly identify themselves with Christ through baptism, commit to membership at Lighthouse, delight more in the faithful teaching of the Word, serve with humility, etc. And just as Paul rejoiced at proven of faith (1 Thessalonians 1:2-3; 1 Peter 1:6-7) so too do we rejoice as the collegians bear the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23) and continue to run hard in the worship of God after graduation. And especially for those who choose to stay in San Diego after graduation, it is a rich blessing to serve as co-laborers of Christ to bring glory to God together. It is to this end that we in the college ministry strive so that God would, by His grace, work in the hearts of the collegians to bring Him glory in all that they do.

Press on in the faith with perseverance collegians!

Interview with Angela (Youth)

by Grace Wu

This week, the Youth affinity group brings us an interview with one of their members: Angela. Angela is one of the newer additions to Lumos, having come to the church by herself through the recommendation of family and friends. She is an example of the wide-reaching ministry of LBC, extending not just to college-aged or single adults searching for churches in San Diego, but also to the youth group. Though her parents are not members of LBC, she still regularly attends youth group on her own. She is originally from New York and moved to San Diego just a couple of years ago with her family. Angela is currently a senior in high school.

How long did it take you to find a church in San Diego after moving from New York?

It took about six months to a year to find a good, stable church to go to constantly.

How was the process of looking for a good, stable church to go to?

It was stressful because I kept arguing with my parents about what kind of church I wanted and what kind of church they wanted because we had different views about what church should be. It was hard for me because my church from New York was the church I grew up in. I didn’t know if I’d feel the same at a new church, so it was very stressful to find a church to settle in.

How and when did you start coming to LBC? What were you first impressions? What was it like coming to church on your own without your parents?

My brother’s friends from college heard Pastor John as a guest speaker at a retreat they went to and they knew that he was a pastor at a church in San Diego and so they told me to go to LBC. The sermons were very strong and straightforward. It was long but it was very beneficial. Coming by myself, I paid attention more. I felt more independent so I felt like I needed to listen more. I was nervous coming by myself, but I overcame that nervousness. There were a lot of friendly people and it was comforting to see that people at LBC care about their new visitors.

What made you to want to settle down at LBC?

The sermons that were presented were very helpful during the week and the people were very friendly.

Was it hard to want to stay at LBC because people are so much older than you?

No, since people here are older than me and have more experience, I think I could learn from them what they have learned.

What’s something you’ve learned since being in Lumos that has impacted you?

Taking up the cross everyday. It was my 2nd or 3rd Bible study at youth group, and I was going through some rough times, and listening to those sermons about taking up my cross and following Christ made me think if I made better Christian choices, then my life’s path will go the right way and that I wouldn’t feel so lost.

How is Lumos different from your old youth group?

It’s more one-on-one and very personal. My old youth group was pretty big so I couldn’t get much time with a leader. I learn more when it’s one-on-one or with fewer people.

How has senior year been?

So far, it’s been hard and very stressful. There’s been a lot of work. Even though it’s been stressful, there are times I could go out more because it’s senior year. There’s a lot more peer pressure in school because it’s my last year, I’m older, and I’m going to college so there are a lot more opportunities to be pressured.

What are your hobbies?

I love to dance, if it weren’t for dance I don’t think I’d be Angela. I usually do choreographed pieces and if I do do freestyle, I’d do hip hop dancing

Sonlight (Children’s Ministry)

by Stephanie McAdams

I have had the privilege of helping the elementary children of Lighthouse participate in our annual LBC Christmas Concert for the past few years. If you have ever attended one of these concerts, you would have a hard time forgetting the youngest performers of the night. Arrayed in costumes appropriate for Luke 2:8-14 or matching scarves and jingle bell bracelets, all you may see are smiling faces and perfected hand motions (just kidding, we are thankful when they all just start and end together with no one falling off the stage!). If you are curious about what happens behind the scenes of our performances, read on!

As a Sonlight (Sunday children’s ministry) staff, we desire to use any opportunity to share God’s character and Word with these children, emphasizing Jesus Christ. Every Sunday, through messages, small group discussion times, side conversations, and even game times, we believe that the children can learn what it means to be a true Christian from what they see and hear. So planning, practicing, and performing for the concert is no different! If lengthening the Christmas Concert or seeing cute kids on stage for pure entertainment were the only reasons for the children to participate in the concert, I would hesitate to organize a performance. But every year, without fail, God has shown me that He can use this precious time to exalt and exult His precious Son and our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Planning

As our annual Fall Festival (Halloween alternative) came to a close, I began to think of how the children could contribute to the Christmas Concert. In the past, we’ve acted biblical passages, sang songs with and without hand motions, made a video, you name it! This year, we decided to sing “Hope Has Come” by Sovereign Grace Music with hand motions. I spent some time listening to the song on repeat every day and reading the song lyrics whenever I had a moment here and there. I tried to think of hand motions that would help the kids focus on and remember the meaning of the lyrics. Ask my husband, and he’ll testify to hearing me sing and do the hand motions in the car, during dinner, while trying to go to sleep, etc…I’m sure it stuck in his head, too.

Practicing

We spent about four weeks preparing for our performance. With the help of all the staff, we devoted the last 30 minutes of each Sunday to teaching the song and hand motions through repetition. It’s truly amazing how quickly kids can pick up tunes, lyrics, and hand motions… might I say even twice as fast as us adults?! We tried to explain each line of the lyrics, explaining big words like “alleluia”, how “Christ” is synonymous with “hope”, and to also tell them how each hand motion helps us understand the words and message of the song better. My husband also taped me doing the hand motions to the song at our home, put it on Youtube (it’s not there anymore; sorry friends), and asked the parents to play it for their kids throughout the weeks to promote practice at home and hopefully discussion about the song lyrics within the families. As the performance day approached, some of the children expressed fear and other negative attitudes. This was a great opportunity to share with them multiple times that we are not performing to receive praise, glory, and attention from the audience. We want to help the audience focus on the lyrics of the song, praising Christ for coming to be our Lord and Savior!

Performing

For me, the actual performance is the least important aspect of it all. Of course I would love it if they projected their voices, got all the hand motions right, smiled with big eyes even though the bright lights were shining down on them, and caused everyone in the audience to clap along and chuckle at how cute they are… but I told them that even if they mess up really bad, it is completely okay because the most important thing is that they are thinking about the words they are singing and considering who Christ is and what He did for them. The dress rehearsal the night before the concert was (and has always been) a “controlled chaos” as the kids get to practice on stage for the first time with the homemade fleece scarves and jingle bell bracelets. But this helps the kids familiarize themselves with the stage and to not have stage fright! Then came the actual performance. With the help of the staff, we got the kids in costume, prayed for our performance, and quietly (well, as quietly as you can with over 20 jingle bells on wrists) walked on stage to perform. As usual, I squatted in front of them to help them with the hand motions in case they all forgot (who knows, it could happen). They did a great job! I couldn’t help but smile a lot as I watched them sing about Christ while praying in my heart that one day they would all come to submit their lives to Christ and truly worship Him. As soon as they finished, we went straight to our Sonlight room and had a birthday party for Jesus! One of the teachers explained why Jesus’ birthday is most important because though He is God, He chose to come down to earth as a man and die for our sins, but since He rose from the dead He still lives today!

In my opinion, the biggest challenge of this whole process is the fact that most of the children are not Christians. We do not want them to think they are just because they are singing and doing hand motions to a song about Christ. In reality, we hope that the opposite would happen- that as they listen to the song lyrics, they might consider God’s character, what sin is, how they each are slaves to sin, and why they would need hope – specifically, Christ. We also can’t force them to be joyful as they practice and perform because it must come from a heart that has been saved and loves Christ.

I’ll end with a memory following one of our Sunday practices that made me smile: After finishing practice, we let the kids just hang out and play some games while waiting for the parents. One of the kindergartners was just walking around the room, doing the hand motions and mouthing the lyrics as she observed some boys playing a ball game. This same girl later told me that she had been practicing the song in her shower. I prayed at that moment that she would one day be a true worshiper of Christ.

We Memorize to Internalize (Grace Life)

by Pastor Patrick Cho

Most people at Lighthouse probably know by now that in GraceLife we are currently studying the life of Christ in the book of Mark. So far it has been a good study and has generated some helpful discussions. What people might not know is that along with the study, we are currently memorizing various passages of Scripture that are consistent with the themes from each lesson. The passages are not necessarily from Mark, but are intended to help us remember what the lesson was about and challenge us in our application.

Our first memory passage was Mark 1:14-15 where Jesus goes about Galilee proclaiming the gospel of God. The reason why this passage is so significant is because it serves as a clear, succinct summary of what Jesus’ gospel presentation entailed. He preached a gospel of repentance and faith in light of the kingdom being at hand. This serves us as a helpful reminder that the gospel is more than coming to understand a series of facts. When a person truly understands the gospel and is saved, there is a necessary inward change, a turning from sin and to God.

Our second memory passage was Hebrews 4:15 where Jesus is referred to as our sympathetic high priest. This was the verse that corresponded to the lesson on Jesus’ baptism and temptation in the wilderness. In His baptism, Jesus stood in the place of sinners as one who represented us to the Father. One of the amazing truths about His incarnation and humanity is that He understands from experience our temptations, struggles, and hardships. We have a high priest in Christ who really can sympathize with us.

Our third memory passage was Romans 10:9. Paul writes that a person who confesses with his mouth that Jesus is Lord and believes in his heart that God raised Him from the dead will be saved. This verse corresponded with the lesson about the preaching focus of Jesus’ ministry. Certainly Jesus performed amazing signs and miraculous deeds, but He came primarily to teach, and specifically to preach the gospel.

In like manner, all the memory passages correspond with the week’s lesson and help us internalize the point of each passage of study. Our hope is that by having these passages memorized, it will help us to constantly have God’s Word on our hearts and to remember the important themes and lessons from the book of Mark. A complete list of the weekly memory passages can be found at the GraceLife webpage.

Singles Life Update

by Abram Kim

Pastor Patrick started his Singles ministry this past fall by going the book of Colossians. This study on Friday nights has been a great follow-up to our Singles Retreat last March, when Pastor Nam Park of Immanuel Bible Church spoke four wonderful messages on the preeminence of Christ through Colossians. I remember that retreat being a tremendous blessing because Pastor Nam’s preaching magnified the person, character, and worth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Through Paul’s letter to the Colossians, the Singles group saw a clearer and greater image of God very God, Jesus Christ.

Pastor Patrick’s teachings from Colossians have likewise been a tremendous blessing for our Singles Ministry. This study, I believe, has renewed our passion to live in light of the preeminence of Christ. We just finished chapter 1 this past Friday. I’ll highlight a few key thoughts from the messages in the following paragraphs below. I pray you will learn what we have been learning as a Singles Ministry Friday nights, but more so that your view of who Christ is will become deeper and richer and fuller.

“Grace to you and peace from God our Father.” (Col. 1:2)

Paul starts his letters with this standard greeting, and Pastor Patrick started out the Colossians series. We took a closer look at the author of letter, Paul, the apostle, Roman citizen, and Jew of Jews. We examined the audience of the letter, the saints, i.e., true Christians, who are faithful to Christ and are in the world but not of it. And lastly, we studied Paul’s standard greeting with its focus on the grace of God for Christians, and the peace Christians have in Christ alone.

“… hope laid up for you in heaven.” (Col. 1:5)

As true Christians, we must not get satisfied with the temporal things of this world (i.e., appetizers) but seek the eternal heavenly reward yet to come (i.e., great feast). This hope in future glory is secured above in heaven, and is the reason, purpose, and motivation of the Colossians’ faith and love. The hope of future glory ought to also motivate our lives for godly living today.

“firstborn of all creation… firstborn from the dead” (Col. 1:15, 18)

Christ is the firstborn (beginning point), and therefore, the prototype of all of creation, as well as recreation. Christ was the means for creation when God created the heavens and the earth (Genesis 1-2). Christ is now also the means for the resurrection, for though He wasn’t the first to rise from the dead chronologically, He is the first to rise to never die again (1 Corinthians 15:20f.).

“Him we proclaim…”  (Col. 1:28)

Verse 28 and 29 are Pastor Patrick’s life verse for ministry. Here is the heart of Paul’s ministry summed up in three concise words. There is no other message but this one person, the Lord Jesus Christ. It is a stumbling block (scandal) to Jews and folly (moronic) to Gentiles, but this is Paul’s one message in his preaching ministry (1 Corinthians 1:20f.). Therefore, the goal from the pulpit must be to know and love Jesus better, and not anything else like knowledge that puffs up or something that tickles our ears. Thank God this is the desire of our pulpit as well!

Qualification for Leadership (College)

by Emily Kuo

There is a plethora of books written on leadership, ranging from what makes you a good leader to ways to get people to follow you or ways to get people to do tasks for you. I know this because I was once myself buried beneath the pile of books about leadership. Before I became a believer, I had the great ambition to lead my high school class to foster “inclusion.” I wanted to abolish the social hierarchy in high school and close the gap between the popular kids and nerdy kids. That vision and pursuit today is now vain to me because I have a greater and eternal purpose to have the privilege to take part in God’s kingdom plan. As I have been called to serve on the leadership for our church’s college group, I am excited but at the same time feel and know that I am inadequate. I have the heart’s desire to serve the Lord in whatever way and capacity, but questions flood my mind. How do I know that I am ready? Or will I be effective? How do I know this is the ministry and place God has called me to serve? Studying over the “Qualification for Leadership” packet, my questions were answered and my ministry to serve the Lord in College Life was more affirmed. In sum, the qualifications for a leader are character qualities that every Christian should strive for after regardless of where God has called them.

“Those called into leadership are not necessarily called because of their ability but because of their character.” God commanded David to be prince over his people because he was a man that sought after God’s own heart (1Samuel 13:4). If a servant’s heart is completely surrendered to God and is in a continual pursuit to earnestly know Him and His will, the servant’s motives will be purified and the desire to cultivate character pleasing to God will be simply an aftermath or overflow. However, is the servant faithful? Has he proven himself? Or is it as Chris Mueller puts it, is it “a flash-in-the-pan sort of spiritual enthusiasm”? When I first became a believer, I had strong desires and was in continual euphoria. I was ready to share the gospel to any stranger I met. I couldn’t put the Bible down as I found gem after gem. And I couldn’t take my mind off the things of God. However, my faith was still weak. My convictions were shallow. And my character was inconsistent with the Word. I needed a lot of pruning and shaping of my character and faith. One of the character qualities for an elder is to that he is not a new convert. God’s ways are always wise, if I were to serve on leadership for College Life two or three years ago, I would have been puffed up and had the arrogant heart that God hates. Thankfully, over the years God has placed me in various trials to purify my faith and to shape my character. Indeed I can now see why Paul asks us to rejoice in our suffering, because it “…produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope…” (Romans 5:3-4). Though some of the various trials sometimes felt heavier than I can handle or brought tears and pain to my soul, they were given because He loves me and with great purpose. Through the trials, He taught me humility. He taught me to depend on Him as He comforted me and was my hiding place and tower. He taught me faithfulness as He Himself was faithful to me. He taught me service that though in the midst of difficulty, my calling to serve and love my church family does not cease. And He taught me worship, for my heart sings to Him not because I know about Him but because I know Him as He’s proven Himself true in my life.

There is still A LOT more work to do in my life as I look at the character qualities that God expects of me. I am encouraged to see that His Spirit and truth has been sanctifying me but at the same time I am humbled and excited to know that “[H]e who began a good work in [me] will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ” (Philippians 1:6). Therefore, in His grace and power, may I strive to be the woman He calls me to be, so that He may be most glorified. And may my service to Him be motivated by His love for me and a desire to “bring people into the kingdom of God and help them to grow in respect to their salvation.”