MOVE…its all in the name
I just got back from 5 amazing weeks traveling across the country for Christ In Youth’s MOVE event this summer. I helped coordinate two MOVE events at Fort Lewis College, and 3 events at Lee University.
I find myself moving a lot. I’m not talking about packing up my life and moving across country; I am talking about always being on the go. I am sure every youth minister in the country can relate: your schedule seems to go from a blank canvas to something like a piece of plywood on a paintball course. Do you know what I am talking about? The 8×10 piece of plywood has been barraged with every color in the rainbow, and there’s not an inch that hasn’t been covered. That’s my Outlook calendar for the months of June, July and August. Yet, over and over again this summer I was bluntly reminded that the Israelites moved around the desert for 40 years. They were constantly picking up their things and moving everyday, never getting comfortable, and relying upon God to provide for them. We’re talking over 1 million people moving all of their stuff from one place to the next every… single….. day. I have a hard enough time moving my laundry from the dryer to my room once every few weeks.
Funny story about moving: While at Fort Lewis College (during CO1) we had a slight moving issue. Due to some information not being updated, Pantano Christian Church had to move all of their male students to a different residence hall after they had gotten settled in and at ease. I spoke with Brian Goodall, their Youth Minister, after the incident and he was surprisingly positive. Here’s why: their yearly theme was “THRASH YOUR COMFORT ZONE.” Moving residence halls isn’t comfortable, it isn’t exciting, but it was what they had to do. What was cool about the situation was how the students didn’t complain, they didn’t get angry, they just did what was asked of them. It was actually quite impressive. It was just like the Israelites in the desert.
With the help of the book of Exodus, and Pantano Christian Church, I realized that being out of my comfort zone was okay. I realized that being busy was okay. That praying with one more student was okay. God is always calling us. To borrow the tagline from MOVE’s publicity this year, “God is leading…are you following?” Following God may get busy, but it’s abundant, and well worth it.