Twenty Years

Have you ever thought about what it would be like to go back 10 or 20 or more years and experience a day in your life at that time?  I was thinking about that because exactly 20 years ago I began a life-changing journey which God has used to shape me in countless ways.  I joined ARC!  Okay, not the ARC (American Reformed Church) you are thinking of.  I used to be in a different ARC.  The name wasn’t an acronym but referred to a welding arc, where heat and light are transferred from one surface to another to bring about radical change.  The ministry I joined at that time was seeking to do the same through the gospel of Jesus Christ.

In the summer of 1996, at age 19, I began the training program with ARC and quickly found I was way out of my depths.  It was truly a miracle that God even opened the door for me to be accepted.  ARC was a music ministry who typically had over a thousand young adults audition each year for two groups with about 24 total participants.  I auditioned on bass guitar and got in more on heart and passion than talent.  The ministry director said, “You really aren’t very gifted musically, but somehow I sense the Holy Spirit telling me to hire you.”

Arriving at the ministry headquarters in rural Michigan, I was overwhelmed by the spiritual maturity and musical excellence of the other young adults in the group and the two ministry directors.  Over the next two months we practiced music and studied the Bible for about 12-14 hours each day in preparation for the road.  By the end of that year we had performed around 350 concerts in 26 different states, including every major city east of Colorado.  God used me as the main person sharing the gospel message at concerts, and we saw thousands of young people dedicate themselves to following Jesus.  I was truly blown away to think that God could use me to reach others for His Kingdom.

There is a part of me that would love to go back 20 years and experience some of that raw, simple faith that I had at that time and the power of working and living together with a bunch of crazy Jesus Freaks.  Honestly, though, I love where God has me now and can’t imagine giving this up either.  What an amazing phase in life!  Our oldest child just entered the teenage years, but our kids still think we are cool and want to spend time with us.  Our church is supportive and has a great deal of people who are growing and desiring to be used by God.  What more could we ask?  And I believe the opportunity I have to serve in Luverne is a direct result of how God worked in my life 20 years ago.

I think the real trick in an exercise like this is for each of us to ask ourselves the question, “If what I was doing 20 years ago helped me arrive at where I am today, what am I doing today that will help me arrive at God’s preferred future for my life 20 years from now?”  We don’t like to think that far into the future because we know without a doubt that if we reach that point we will likely have less energy, more health concerns, less hair, more wrinkles, fewer dreams for the future, and more regrets!  But there is one thing that trumps all of that…our intimacy and availability with God.  Those are two areas in life that can continue to improve until the day we die.  Erwin McManus said, “If you want to see where you are heading in the future, look at your character now.”  People who are fully surrendered to God today can look forward to many exciting years ahead.  So…how does YOUR future look?

Cory Grimm

 


Life Group Transformation

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world.  Indeed it is the only thing that ever has.”  -Margaret Mead

Isn’t it crazy that we humans simultaneously fear and crave relationships?  We are hard-wired to want to know others and be known by them, but due to the vulnerability and sacrifice required to invest in deep relationships we often opt out.  I believe ARC is called to be counter-cultural in this area, and in so doing we will shine the light of Christ.  We will foster authentic, transformational relationships, and build a network of life groups who change the community and the world!  Through life groups we can:

*Disciple each other- We all have spiritual gifts designed to help each other grow closer to Christ.

*Care for each other- When hard times come, we need other believers to surround us with prayer.

*Build community- Life Groups are not just Bible studies.  We share life and build lasting friendships.

*Be missional- We often talk about being a “missionary to our circle of influence” at ARC.  Our goal is to begin to do this increasingly through life groups so we can foster encouragement and accountability.

*Grow our Church- Disconnected people in our church will be more likely to stay and grow if they are invited into a life group.  Also, many unchurched people who aren’t comfortable attending a worship service may be interested in visiting a life group to discover more about Jesus.

*Be transformed- Sunday worship is very important in a believer’s life, but personal transformation will mainly happened in the loving laboratory of a life group.

Currently we have about 80 ARC adults who regularly attend a life group.  This probably puts us around the neighborhood of 20% participation.  The Life Group Leadership team and the Consistory are praying and believing that we could significantly increase that number in the years ahead, and as we do so we will see greater impact on personal lives of ARC attenders as well as impact on the community and the world.

What is stopping us from fully embracing this proven method for growth?  The biggest excuse we all have is lack of time.  The problem with that excuse is that it works off of the assumption that God is calling us to ADD life groups to our already busy schedule.  Remember when Jesus called the disciples to leave everything and start a life group that eventually changed the world?  They cleared off their entire schedule to make that work!  I don’t think God is asking us to do that, because many of the activities in which we engage will be our open door for missional outreach.  However, God may be calling us all to sacrifice one or two things that will not be as eternally significant as being in community with other believers and seekers.  Will you make a sacrifice in faith that God will use your life group to change you and the world?

This fall we will launch the “Grow and Go” campaign at ARC which will give you a great opportunity to join or lead a life group.  I believe God is planning great things for us.  Begin praying now, ARC!

Cory Grimm

 


Was Mr. Rogers a Pioneer of Missional Discipleship?

I’ve known for a long time that Fred Rogers, famously known as Mr. Rogers on the children’s show, “Mr. Roger’s Neighborhood,” used to be a Presbyterian minister, but I never knew why he chose to leave that calling and go into children’s television.  This is the answer Wikipedia gives:  Rogers stated, “I went into television because I thought there (must be) some way of using this fabulous instrument to nurture those who would watch and listen.”

Of course everyone in my generation and the one before, and maybe even the one after, would be familiar with the show.  Remember how he would come in singing the theme song and manage to change shoes and exchange his jacket for his cardigan without missing a beat?  I’m sure that’s not as easy as it looks!  And who wasn’t fascinated by that trolley?  Where did it come from?  How did Mr. Rogers understand what it was saying?  How did it travel to the “neighborhood of make believe” where all the puppets lived?

There is a central theme that runs through that show that we might not have caught because it was mentioned so often that it was easy to miss.  Mr. Rogers would always ask, “Won’t you be my neighbor?”  He was all about knowing the people in his community and inviting in everyone else to join the group.  He had a powerful way of making you feel like you were special and you had value and could be his neighbor no matter your background.

Remember the man who asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”  We know that was a very important question because Jesus came back with the famous parable of the Good Samaritan.  Theologians will tell you that the man probably wanted to find out who wasn’t his neighbor…i.e. the people whom he wasn’t required to love.  Jesus of course confronts that type of thinking and essentially teaches that we should see everyone as a potential neighbor.

So that gives us some challenging questions to think about this week:

Was Fred Rogers Missional?  (Missional:  being a missionary to your circle of influence)

He was eventually ordained as an evangelist by the Presbyterian Church, but would you agree with that designation?  He never mentioned Jesus in a broadcast, so is teaching and modeling the ways of Jesus enough to lead people to faith?

Do you think Mr. Rogers made a greater impact on the world with what he did, or should he have remained a minister in a church?

Do you think Christians should infiltrate the mainstream media, television and movie production, and other mediums of communication in similar ways as Fred Rogers did, or should we continue to have our own separate outlets?

In what ways can you use Mr. Rogers’ example in your current situation?

Some might say Mr. Rogers left “the ministry” to work in television.  Others might say he simply expanded his role as minister to include a larger circle of influence.  It is easy to see both views on these questions, but I think they are good conversations to have as we continue to seek to impact our world for Christ.

Mr. Rogers: You always make it a special day for me. You know how, don’t you? By just your being you. Whether you’re in kindergarten, or third grade, or no grade at all, or ANY grade at all, I like you just the way you are. I’ll be back tomorrow. Bye.

Cory Grimm

 


Here or There

After announcing our decision not to go to Haiti and to remain serving ARC in Luverne, I have truly appreciated the outpouring of love and support from you, our church family.  A common comment was, “I’m sorry you didn’t get to go to the mission field, but selfishly I’m glad you are staying!”  I totally understand and appreciate the sentiment behind that type of comment, and it parallels what we have been experiencing.  It is as if God took something away from us, and yet gave me and my family so much more in return.

The last couple of months have been a sort of roller coaster of emotions as I wrestled with that decision, and I learned many lessons about God and myself.  One lesson I learned is that God will stop at nothing to get us to a place of complete dependency on Him.  II Cor. 1:8b-9 has been speaking to me:

“We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired even of life.  Indeed, in our hearts we felt the sentence of death.  But this happened so that we might not rely on ourselves but on God…”

Paul was able to attribute all of the persecution and other sufferings in his life to the simple purpose of being forced to rely completely on God.  If that was the case for Paul, should it not also be happening to us?  What if we looked at every difficulty, hardship, suffering, disappointment, conflict, or trial as a blessing from God designed to draw us closer to Him?  (See James 1:3-4, Rom. 5:3-5)

The result of these types of thoughts has been a renewal in my heart and mind of understanding the jealous nature of our God.  Ex. 34:14 – “Do not worship any other god, for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God.”  Not only is God a jealous God, but HIS NAME IS JEALOUS!  Again, He will stop at nothing to get us thinking about Him, whether through trials or blessings.  This reminds me of the Nirvana lyric, “I don’t care what you think, as long as it is about me…” and the modern maxim often applied to public figures like Donald Trump, “All press is good press.”   Don’t forget Revelation 3:  “I wish you were either hot or cold.  Because you are lukewarm, I am about to spit you out of my mouth!”

As someone with the spiritual gift of evangelism, I’ve noticed that people who are angry at God, and even will curse God or Christians, are usually closer to accepting Christ than people who just don’t care.  Similarly, people going through hard times tend to be more interested in Jesus than those whose lives are progressing nicely.  Any pastor will tell you that hearts are much more receptive to the Word at a funeral than at a wedding.

There is something we all must be reminded of…this life, this world, this existence we have been graciously given…it’s not about us.  It’s about God and His magnificent glory!  He is the main character of this story and the hero.  He is the King, the Queen, the Bishop, the Knight, and the Rook.  We are all just pawns, and we should consider ourselves fortunate to even be that!  God will receive all the glory.  The only question that remains is whether or not we will be the ones to give the glory.  The great news is that when we aren’t generating much glory, God in His mercy will send any diversion necessary to get us back on track.  He commanded Abraham to sacrifice his son!  After that is any object lesson out of bounds?  So I’m glad He allowed us to accept and later give up the call to Haiti, because the result has been a renewed passion for His glory and for service to His people.  Our Jealous God is Mysterious and Amazing!

Cory Grimm

 


Helping or Being Helped?

One of the challenges and privileges of working full-time at church is that you get to be there when people wander in looking for help in some form or other.  Erin shared last week about Judith, who happened to stop by church during the Winter Retreat and ended up joining us for most of the day, adding a lot of interesting insights to the small group discussions.  A few weeks ago another interesting character presented himself at church, looking for some spiritual guidance.

Mr. Jackson first of all called church to see if there was someone to talk to about a problem he was facing.  Erin talked to him a little bit and said he was welcome to come in.  Mike wasn’t around at the time, but I was there working on some music.  He showed up and Erin directed him to the sanctuary.  She had asked him if he needed financial assistance, and he answered, “No, I just need someone to talk to.”

Mr. Jackson appeared to be in his early thirties, though his hair was thinning and grey.  He wore cowboy boots and was nicely dressed.  His southern accent jumped out and announced the fact that he hadn’t grown up around here.  We began talking and it was very clear he was agitated about something.  Without much prodding he began to open up and share that he and his wife, who was in the car outside in the parking lot, were having a disagreement about money.

About a year earlier Mr. Jackson’s father had died in a farming accident in Arkansas.  He didn’t say a whole lot about that incident other than the fact that it caused him to inherit quite a bit of money.  Sadly, the extra funds had become a source of strife in his marriage, mainly because his wife’s parents began to ask for money on a regular basis.  As Mr. Jackson described the situation, they (the in-laws) had tried to retire early, in their early fifties, but hadn’t taken into account how much tax they would pay on their withdrawals from a retirement account, so they were in trouble with the IRS and were asking for help from their kids.

So Mr. Jackson described how he had helped them several times with bills and with a couple of larger loans, but nothing had been paid back on the loaned money, and now they were asking for additional funds.  He had finally put his foot down and said they needed to work it out on their own, especially since recently the parents-in-law had reupholstered their pickup truck, not to mention buying a new camper.  Mr. Jackson was fed up, but the breaking point was when his wife went behind his back and wired several hundred dollars to her parents despite his wishes.  So he had blown up at her while they were staying at a motel in Luverne (while passing through on a trip from Colorado to Minneapolis…this was one of those nights when we had ice on the roads), and now he wanted to talk to someone before talking to his wife again.

We talked through the issues he presented, but at one point I felt the Holy Spirit guiding me to ask him about his father.  That was a turning point in the conversation.  It seems he walked away from God when his father died in the accident.  After that time he wasn’t sure if God was really a loving God or not, and he had been wandering spiritually ever since.  Now his lack of spiritual foundation was making it hard for him to deal with the situation with his wife in a loving and patient way.

Mr. Jackson asked if there were any books or other resources I would suggest for his situation.  Luckily, there was a book on “boundaries in marriage” in the library, something left over from some small group study someone did in previous years.  There were chapters in there on money management, which I thought would be helpful.  I gave him a copy, we prayed, and he was on his way, probably never to set foot in ARC again.

I’m not sure how much I helped him and his wife that day, but in the end the conversation helped me a lot.  I was getting a little bit bored preparing meetings and running copies of music, so it was a God-thing to have someone to talk to in such an open and authentic way.  I left the encounter thinking about how we “follow Jesus” for the sake of the world, but in the end we ourselves get even more from it than those we serve.

Cory Grimm

 


Relief or Development

I was excited to hear that one of our life groups is considering doing a study on the book, “When Helping Hurts” (by Steve Corbett), which is a standard text in the study of missions and outreach. The premise of this book is that helping people can actually do more harm than good if it isn’t done properly. For example, one of the key principles when administering aid to developing countries is to determine if the situation requires relief or development. When the 2010 earthquake hit Port-au-Prince, Haiti, over 200,000 people were killed, one million were displaced from their homes, and the entire region was without access to food and water. That is a great example of when relief-style aid is needed. Without an immediate influx of organized help and supplies, many more would have perished.

However, it is important to transition quickly from relief to development. If relief continues indefinitely, dependency is fostered and people become crippled in their ability to function as a self-sustaining society. One simple example of this is the donation of free used clothing to countries in Africa who are not in need of relief. When boat loads of such goods are offered to the public it undermines the local economy, putting out of business native shop owners who would seek to manufacture and/or sell clothing. Sadly, such situations are constantly occurring in developing countries, and many times at the hands of well-meaning American Christians.

All of that provides a backdrop to an important announcement we are ready to make. We feel God is directing us to conclude the work of H.I.M. (Haitian International Missions) in 2016. Our goal was to transition the ministries and individuals we supported from relief to development to long-term self-sustainability. In the case of the Deaf/Disabled School, when we became aware of its existence the director feared they would have to close soon. With some financial support and oversight from Zacharie (H.I.M. director), we believe we were able to solidify the ministry somewhat and allow it to begin to develop the program further and plan for the future. One unintended side effect of this support was a reluctance of parents to pay for their children’s tuition. We feel the time is right now to discontinue outside financial support and allow the school director to reinvigorate the commitment of parents to the program, which has been improved through our development efforts.

As for Zacharie, when we began a relationship with him he had recently lost his job as a director of a high school and felt a call to enter seminary, but had no funding to make it possible. In a sense his family was in need of immediate relief, but the salary we offered him not only allowed him to provide for his family’s needs but also to develop his skills by attending seminary. He also provided some oversight and mentorship to the Deaf/Disabled School and other young college students we were supporting. After 2016 Zacharie’s salary will also be discontinued as he will be better equipped to find a job as pastor or school administrator (or both which is common in Haiti).

Though it is difficult to make these decisions to discontinue financial support to leaders and ministries in developing nations, it is absolutely essential for their spiritual and leadership growth. The worst-case scenario would be to create permanent dependency on outside funding. As a general rule, we believe it is this type of “help” (addressing developing situations as if they need relief) that continues to hold Haiti back from thriving and taking control of its own future.   Both because we felt the ministries and leaders of H.I.M. were ready, and because we ourselves will be transitioning to a different role in Haiti, we knew the time was right to make this step of faith.

We want to thank all those who have supported this ministry for this season, especially those who sponsored the children in the school. Please continue to pray for them and know that your investment in their lives will continue to make a difference. Above all, know that the discontinuation of H.I.M. is not a failure! Just the opposite. Though it was by no means carried out with perfection, we believe this type of medium-term approach to international aid (RELIEF – DEVELOPMENT – SUSTAINABILITY) is backed by biblical principles and best practices in missions. Let’s celebrate what God has done and may we all quickly find the next place where He is leading us to serve!

Cory Grimm

 


Imitators of God

I recently read the 10th installment of Jan Karon’s Mitford series, “Somewhere Safe with Somebody Good.” (available in ARC’s library). Father Tim, an Episcopal priest and the main character of the series, wrestles with a hard question in this book: Can human beings truly extend unlimited grace to others?

Let me explain how he arrived at that question. At the time of this book Father Tim is now about seventy years old, but as he approached sixty God interrupted his tidy, structured bachelor life with some major changes: the onset of diabetes, the adoption of an enormous dog, a beautiful woman moving next door who eventually became his wife, and the adoption of a young boy who had grown up in the back woods of North Carolina with his abusive father.

All of these events and many other adventures are detailed in the previous nine books, and along the way it became known that Father Tim’s adopted son Dooley had several other siblings who had been scattered around the country through the substance abuse and neglect of his parents. Over the course of many years they begin the difficult task of trying to track down Dooley’s brothers and sisters, but in some cases finding them only made things more difficult. This was especially true of Sammy.

Even after Sammy was removed as a teenager from the custody of his drunken Father, he still wasn’t free. He was overcome by anger and self-loathing, and the result was an inability to accept love from Father Tim and others in the community. Sammy began to lash out, breaking the pool cue he was given as a gift, defying the house rules with regard to smoking and chewing and cussing, and finally taking the beloved Mustang convertible for a joyride without permission that ended in the complete totaling of the vehicle.

After the accident Father Tim isn’t sure how to respond, and for the first time he finds himself really angry at Sammy. How is he supposed to show grace in this situation? When you don’t feel like showing grace do you just go through the motions anyway? He thinks,

“Grace may be a no-brainer for God, but for him it was clearly impossible to deliver. If mock grace was going to bring anything to the table, the heart must be kept free of malice. But how? Yank out the bitter weed, and in a flash, back it comes, and more of it.”

Do you have someone in your life you have been showing grace, but it doesn’t seem to work? Have you reached the end of your ability to show grace without feeling “malice” toward that person? I think Ephesians gives something of an answer to Father Tim’s dilemma: “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. Be imitators of God, therefore…” (Eph. 4:32-5:1a)

It is always good to remind ourselves of the extent to which God shows us grace through the cross but also on a daily basis. If He can do that for us, we can do the same for others, even when we don’t feel like it. No, we aren’t God, but we can be “imitators of God” and over time his incredible love will become our own. In the end we may discover that God is just as interested in changing our hearts as the people to whom we are trying to model His grace.

Cory Grimm

 


Journey to Haiti

As promised a couple of weeks ago when we made our announcement, I want to use this space to explain a little bit more about what my family and I will be doing as missionaries in Haiti. First of all, I should apologize for the way some of you found out about this change. I explained it briefly in worship on November 29, but those who weren’t at church that Sunday found out either through the grapevine or by vague references in worship on following Sundays. That wasn’t an ideal way to spread the news, but hopefully after reading this article everyone will know what is going on.

Just to review a little bit, over the past year and a half we were in discussions with both the RCA and CRC World Missions departments about possibly serving in Haiti in the future. A couple of months ago a position opened up through the CRC, who have maintained a permanent presence in Haiti for over 25 years. One of the two families serving there will leave in the summer of 2016, and a replacement was needed. They invited us to apply for the position. After a lot of discussion and prayer we felt led by God to accept the position and begin raising missionary support at the start of the New Year. Our goal will be to move to Haiti in the summer of 2016, and I plan to continue working at ARC until that time while raising funds on the side.

Sous Espwa “Source of Hope” is the Creole name of CRC’s ministry in Haiti. From that platform the ministry partners with a network of Christian schools, Haitian CRC churches, Back to God publications and broadcasts, and several other new and existing programs. My role will be “Consultant for Leadership Development and Youth.” I will be involved in Timothy leadership training, organizing a national network of Impact Groups, “Street Psalms” (a cutting-edge urban ministry model), and various other duties as assigned. The main office is in Port-au-Prince, but my role will require some travel in Haiti and occasionally internationally for conferences, etc…

Our family will live and work in Port-au-Prince (population 3 million+ if you include the slums and suburbs), which will be an adjustment from the quiet little village where we once lived in Haiti. However, educational opportunities for our kids will be much stronger, and we look forward to interacting more with Haitian people who are national leaders in ministry and other sectors of society.   Lynn will focus mainly on bringing stability and direction to our home life, which is a big job in Haiti where daily tasks can be a bigger deal. She may also be involved at times in the ministry of Sous Espwa.

THE FUTURE OF H.I.M.- Right now we are weighing options regarding Haitian International Ministries, which is essentially a branch of ARC. We will bring a recommendation to the consistory soon and will keep you all informed of the future of that ministry effort. Please continue to pray for Zacharie as well as the leaders and students at the deaf/disabled school.

The next year will be quite a journey for us, but also for the ARC family, as this chapter in our lives gradually draws to close and a new chapter begins. We are so thankful for your investment in us as we have served here, and we look forward to continuing the relationship in the years ahead. We hope to see the adventurous ones among you come down to visit us some day, and we will return every few years to see all of you again. We know God has a great plan for all of us in the future, and we look forward to daily discovering what that will be!

Cory Grimm

 


Engaging Hard Issues with Love

After preaching last week I felt a little harsh in my assessment of Riverside, the church in our classis who submitted a petition to withdraw to another denomination. I did vote to deny their petition, but I will admit that some of the issues they brought up about our denomination are troubling, and it would be good for ARC members to educate themselves on these issues. This article will give you a brief overview of what is going on and a comment or two from me. These are the four main reasons Riverside wants to leave:

  1. The removal of the “conscience clause”- After women were first ordained as Ministers in 1979 in the RCA, a provision was made for other ministers and elders to refuse to participate in their ordination. This clause was lifted in 2013, and now it is expected that all other ordained people in the classis would participate when a woman is ordained in the RCA.

Cory’s opinion: RCA churches are not required to hire women as pastors unless they want to. They are free to approach this issue according to their collective conscience. Therefore, I believe this issue shouldn’t divide us.

  1. “Acceptance of Human Sexual Sin”- Riverside makes the case that as a denomination we are soft on homosexuality, because we fail to enforce our stated beliefs and some respected voices in the RCA are supportive of the movement to affirm LGBTQ people in their sexuality.

Cory’s opinion: This is the biggest issue of the four and could lead to a major divide in the RCA. Currently our official stance is that “homosexuality is a sin”, but that will be debated in April at the so-called “RCA Jerusalem Council.” After that time we will have a better idea of the future of the RCA. Until then churches have been urged to embrace a “season of restraint” concerning this issue. I.E. don’t petition to leave just yet!

  1. Concerns about the Belhar Confession– This document was adopted by the RCA in 2010, and it speaks on behalf of oppressed and minority peoples, suggesting that churches must take a role in embracing “the least of these” in order to be faithful to Christ. Riverside feels this shouldn’t be an official confession of the RCA and could be used to force us to see homosexuals as an oppressed group.

Cory’s opinion: I hate that this issue is lumped in with the others, because I love the ideas in the Belhar Confession and believe they are biblical. I strongly disagree with Riverside on this issue.

  1. Formula of Agreement– Since 1997 the RCA has been in “full communion” with the ELCA, PCUSA, and the UCC. We are allowed to exchange ministers with these denominations. Again, this goes back to the homosexuality issue as these other groups all ordain homosexual pastors, etc… Riverside argues that we will be led in the same direction by partnering with these denominations.

Cory’s opinion: This is a worthwhile argument to consider. However, like #1 above no RCA church is forced to hire any certain pastor they don’t want. The bigger issue to me is the general influence of these groups on us.

Summary: I encourage everyone to pray about these concerns and educate yourself from Scripture about the truth of the matter. Also, I believe we have to treat “withdrawal” from the fellowship as a last resort, only necessary if we absolutely believe God is leading us in that direction. Above all, when people are engaging in these debates with hatred and anger, may it not be so with us. ARC will engage hard issues with love!

Cory Grimm

 


Carry Each Other’s Burdens

The Lord said, “I have indeed seen the misery of my people…     I have heard them crying out…and I am concerned about their suffering. Ex. 3:7

Last week Saturday I had the chance to lead the chapel service at the Union Gospel Mission in Sioux Falls. This ministry offers beds and meals to homeless people, as well as other services such as life-skills training, employment leads, Bible studies, addiction support, etc. They still hold to the traditional format of offering an evening meal after you have listened to a required chapel service, and ARC leads that service every 2nd Saturday of the even-numbered months (anyone from church is free to attend with me or whoever leads).

I got there early, set up my guitar and music, and then began to walk around the room greeting people as they came in. I wanted to put into practice the skills we are learning in Experiencing God, so I stood by the kitchen at the back of the room and began to survey the crowd, asking the Holy Spirit to guide me to the place where He was working, that I might join Him there. I wasn’t hearing anything specific, but I did notice there were tons of children there that night.

“Surely He took up our pain and bore our suffering…” Is. 53:4

The chapel service began and I introduced myself, led a couple of songs (a loud version of “Soon and Very Soon” and a country version of “Victory in Jesus”) and then had the feeling from God that I should call the kids up for a children’s message. I went with that impulse and they all gladly and boldly came forward and encircled me. I asked them if they knew any songs about God or Jesus, and one 10-year old boy said, “Jesus Loves Me!” We began to sing together and it was clear the majority of the kids were unfamiliar with the tune. However, after singing through it twice they were beginning to learn. It was clear the adults appreciated the extra attention given to the kids.

I shared a short message based on a conversation I had last week with someone who was battling suicidal thoughts, and I encouraged people to not give up and to discover their purpose for life. We talked about Paul, who would have rather been done with this life on earth and go be with Jesus, but was willing to stay for the sake of the people who still needed him a little longer. Then I suggested that everyone in the room had someone out there who needed them, and that was a great reason to press on in this life and to follow Jesus, not just for our own sake but for those around us.

After the service was over and we all sat down together to eat, I enjoyed several meaningful conversations with the people there, but one stood out. There was a couple not much older than myself, probably early 40s, and they had a 3-year-old girl with them. They told me that when I mentioned suicide in my message, the little girl started to cry because a year ago her daddy killed himself. Naturally I was touched by that and asked more questions about their story. The couple was the child’s grandparents, and it was their son who died. The mother of the child is not in the picture as she is caught up in the partying lifestyle, which only got worse after the suicide.

“Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.” Gal. 6:2

As I drove home that night I found myself wondering how we can get more ARC members into meaningful relationships with people who find themselves in the midst of challenging circumstances. In our culture people tend to withdraw when they are in crisis: major financial issues, loss of family members, divorce, drug/alcohol addiction, etc. Yet these are the times when a heart may be most open to the tender and loving voice of Christ. Traditionally church people have kept their distance from those whose lives are in disarray, but may it not be so with us.

Cory Grimm