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Thoughts on Growing Up

Today was a very long and busy day. It had a lot of big-event-lots-of-people moments and also some very crucial personal ones. I enjoyed speaking at the History Makers’ Campus Harvest Conference today and I’ll blog about it soon. In the meantime, here’s some updates from Dennis Sy, a good friend and our senior pastor in Victory Greenhills. It was also great seeing my wife minister to a few hundred women in the You Are Worth the Wait event by Victory Makati.

And in between those two things, I’m thankful for the times I got to catch up with some officemates, some old friends and new ones. Big-time ministry is fun and there’s nothing like it. But there’s nothing like getting personal with someone and getting to know them better.

Here’s a thought I had that I shared with some friends over dinner tonight:

When I was younger, I thought things would always be the way they were.

Then I got a little older and things changed, so I thought things would never be the way they were.

Then I got a little older still and realized that my finality was premature. Yes, things change but that doesn’t mean they can’t change back either

As a kid, I had friends, but it came as a shock to me when because of circumstance, time, or just plain growing up, we weren’t as close anymore. That’s when I started to attempt to anticipate the change. “Fine, if that’s the way things are gonna be, then I’ll play that game.” And I got used to it too.

But lately (meaning, the past few years), I’ve begun to see things happen that I thought weren’t gonna happen anymore:

  • a friend who’s been out of church for a while, shows up again and is now at a better place with God than ever (There’s so many of these.)
  • a person whose dysfunctions I’d considered as just another part of his character changes for the better naturally
  • an impossibility at work, something that we considered a necessary evil, gets settled for good
  • a meeting we thought was going to be bloody with a person I’m expecting will be difficult goes much better than our projections
  • a personal failing that keeps recurring just goes away as Jesus changes my life
  • a relationship I’d considered dead, or if not that melodramatic, at least just “hi-hello,” starts again stronger than before
  • a guy I’m discipling seems like he’ll never get the point and the next thing I know is he’s living it and passing it on to others (Lots of these too.)
  • my own prayers lifted up years ago, are answered by God, even as they collected dust in my mind

In short, we don’t know what the future holds. The results are God’s business. Our job is to believe and therefore obey. To end, here’s a poem I substantially modified from The Charge of the Light Brigade:

Ours not to reason why
Ours not to make reply
His grace will our faith supply
And on His love we will rely

Leave a Reply to Addie Cancel reply

2 comments
  • “Our job is to believe and therefore obey.”

    Exactly what Father God was telling me during my intimate moment of devotion earlier today. God is certain. He knows what we do not know yet. It’s a waste of emotional energy to be anxious about the uncertainties of the now when we could just put our trust in the Word of life, in God.

    I was blessed during that moment, and having read this post is yet another blessing from Him. Praise God.

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