Remembering- Take 2

Last year on December 26th I had a post I titled Remembering.  Today I revisit part of that post with a few updates and additions.  I hope you all had a most blessed Christmas!

Not a day goes by that I don't miss youth ministry. Some days I miss the late night phone calls, the romantic dramas and the petty disputes between youth. Some days I miss the energy and the creativity that student ministry brought to my life. Some days I miss the planning and the programs and the events. Most days I miss the teaching, the counseling and the worship. Every day I miss the students and adult volunteers who were such a huge part of my life over the years, and I miss sharing life together with those dear friends and Jesus.  I miss something every day. Most days the memories are a blessing. Some days I miss it so badly that it hurts. Today is one of those days.

The week after Christmas was always a big week in my ministry, and as I sit here today with nothing on my schedule and Marilyn and Will headed for NC, I miss it. I think back to Winter Camp at Quaker Lake in the old days. I remember Youthquake '88 in Denver, and Youthquake '91 in Vermont. I remember Youth Tremors at QLC on many of the in-between years. I remember ski trips and square dancing and Winter W.O.W. (Week of Wonder) and spending time with so many special people.  Today I remember all of these things, although I would rather not.  Tomorrow I can tell you funny stories about 28 years worth of youth ministry.  I can focus on the happy times, the amazing events and the students who found Jesus.  Tomorrow I will once again rejoice- but today it hurts.

It hurts because I cannot have it back. My sins have been forgiven by the grace of Jesus Christ, but forgiveness does not always mean there are no consequences for our sins. Grace is free, but it is not cheap. Jesus died for our sins. There is nothing cheap about that. On days like this I remember the consequences of my own actions and praise God that He chooses to love me anyway.   This year has brought me a number of opportunities to serve God through writing, and I pray that He will continue to lead me to where I need to be in order to best serve the Kingdom.

And over this past year many of you have shown me grace as well.  Through your support of this blog, your encouragement on Twitter or Marilyn's Facebook,  your e-mails and even visits you have shown me love I do not deserve.  But it is a love I am most thankful for.  And it is your kind words and caring actions that often keep me going on days just like this one.

Sometimes remembering hurts. But the good news- no, the GREAT NEWS- is that every day people sin, and every day those who profess Jesus as Lord and Savior are forgiven. God loves us every single day! And that is really something worth remembering...

Because of Jesus,