Tuesday, March 18, 2008

Leprechaun O'Bama

I wouldn't resist:

Sunday, March 16, 2008

Hail Yes


Last summer I worked in Juarez, Mexico with YouthWorks!.  We had US and Canadian high school students come for a week at a time while we gave them places to serve by building homes and spending time with children.

Each night we had a club time, which typically began with singing.  We had decided to do worship outside on the steps that led up to the church.  We concluded with the song "Grace Like Rain".  We had heard that a storm was on the way, and the signs of the storm started showing up in the desert sky.  

I attempted to make a joke that it looked like we were going to get some grace tonight, and that we would have to move inside the sanctuary area for the rest of club time.  Being the only resident man on my staff, I was the one whose job it was to go shut all the windows and prepare for the storm.  

Long story short, I got stuck in the little tool shed area (bodega) in a different part of the property that was about 50 yards away from the sanctuary.  The rain was heavy and cold, then the hail came.
The ice cubes pelted the tin roof above me.  

I grabbed a seat on a bucket and rested in not being in control of the situation.  I started to sing "Grace Like Rain", but quickly realized that I couldn't even hear my own signing.  I sang as loud as I could, but the hail was louder.

God will do anything to help me realize how much he loves me.  Grace sometimes has to hurt to get it.  Grace drowns out all of my imperfect praise while at the same time inspiring it perfectly. 

Hallelujah!!