I Still Miss You

The title of this post comes from Hawk Nelson's "I Still Miss You." This song lays true in many instances. In the last year (within about 6 months) 4 faithful servants of God were lost to various illnesses and ages. Some of these men I knew very well, some I didn't know. Nonetheless their deaths have not only affected me, but my family. In scripture we are told by Paul in Romans 6: 23 "For the wages of sin is death, but but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." I know that each of these men is living in heaven with their Lord God and savior His son Jesus Christ.

First early in the year my cousins Troy and Faith lost their grandpa Mike. Now I didn't know Mike very well. I know I met him once or twice, but never knew him as they did. In our celebration of his life Faith told us about his absolute LOVE of food and music. Some lessons that we can all take away from Mike's legacy:

1. Always enjoy the food you are eating and eat as much as you can. Leave your plate clean
2. When you are in the car and a song comes on that you enjoy ALWAYS wait until it is over before getting out, even if the song just started as you pulled into the destination.
3. Be thankful always for your family and have relationships with them. Love them and they will love you in return

Mike had certainly taken to heart the scripture of: 1 Thessalonians 5:18 "Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you." Mike you'll never be forgotten by those who loved you and we'll see you again in glory with our savior Christ Jesus.

In late May only a few short months after Mike had passed away my grandpa Pete passed away after various medical complications and months of testing. He made the decision that he didn't want any more surgeries and was ready to meet his maker. This death was a lot harder for me as I knew my grandpa very well and had really connected with him on subjects such as Twins Baseball and Gophers Football. Although relationships with my grandpa had taken a hit recently and things were never really the best between him and his kids it didn't mean we didn't love him and won't miss him. We do miss him and we do love him. I know he's always watching over his beloved Minnesota Twins and probably still never misses a game. Some things I learned from my grandpa are:

1. Be a fan of your sports teams and never give up on them, even through the losing seasons and bad decisions. Part of being a fan is being one through the good and bad.
2. Family is more important than sports. Even though he loved to watch the Twins he always was willing to let us use the TV when we stayed over as kids and never thought twice about it.
3. Take joy in the small things. He always folded up his Taco Bell wrappers in perfect squares just to throw them away. One thing that was special between Him and my brother Tom was puzzles. Even though he finished most of the puzzle during the week when Tom wasn't there he always saved the last piece for Tom to put in.
4. Let nothing stop you from having a relationship with God. Even though he had his problems one thing Pete never did was miss church. He was there every Sunday without a doubt.

One verse that really helps to illustrate my grandpa Pete's life is 1 Peter 3:15 "But in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it in gentleness and respect." I love you a lot grandpa. Things might not have always been the smoothest in the family relationships you had, but you were still loved very much and we can't wait to be with you in Heaven with God and our Savior Jesus Christ.

Shortly thereafter in July two great men were welcomed into the kingdom of God. Tony was the grandpa of my cousins Neil and Gina, and Reuben was a mentor and friend from mission trips I had gone on.

Tony was another greatly faithful man. In life he had 3 main priorities: His faith, His family, and His Travels. First of all his faith was extremely important to Tony. Not only was he always at mass without a doubt, but he was always early, usually saying the rosary. He was always willing to help out at church, and was friends with anyone and everyone in his community. Secondly his family.

Tony LOVED his family. He was always a sure thing at family events. He rarely missed a sporting event of his niece and nephews. He was always willing to lend a hand or word of advice when needed, and was never afraid to ask his family for the same. Tony was devastated at the loss of his wife Ann, but I know they're together again in God's arms.

Last but certainly not least Tony always loved to travel. He and his wife Ann saw much of the world together. He had visited all 50 of the United States and parts of Europe as well. One thing you could be sure about his travels was that he would have his camera. Thousands and thousands of pictures exist from Tony's travels, and many many hours of video. He was always so thankful for the opportunities he got to travel.

Two days after celebrating the life of Tony we celebrated the life of Reuben Jr. Reuben passed on to our Father after a long grueling battle with cancer. Of all the people mentioned Reuben had the biggest impact on my faith. If there is one thing that I know for sure it is that I'm going to see Reuben along with the rest of these guys when I enter the Kingdom of God. In their song Hawk Nelson mentions that "I know that Jesus has the answer / And He's way bigger than the cancer in you. / But I still miss you." This is so true and really hits me hard. I know that Jesus has the answer and I know Reuben knew it as well. I'm excited to be reunited with Him in heaven, and I know he was happy to be reunited with his wife Connie who had passed a little over a year before.

Reuben taught me many things and most importantly he always reiterated the verse that Jesus spoke in John 14:6 "Jesus said to him, 'I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." He knew that the way to Heaven was through Jesus and made sure that others knew it as well. About a week before his passing some friends and I had the opportunity to visit with Reuben. He shared many things that I want to pass on to as many people as possible:

1. There are zero people in hell who won't have had their sins forgiven, but millions who didn't accept it
2. If you feel called to lay your hands on someone and heal them in the name of Jesus Christ, do it and DON'T limit God
3. Faith is the one true gift you need. Without faith you can not speak with God and have no relationship with Him.
4. Everything in this world was created for you by God. You must remain humble and be thankful for it all
5. God's messages are there all the time. They are subtle, you have to seek them out and interpret them
6. Spend time with older Christians. They have things figured out because God has been working through them for a long time.
7. Become involved and build strong relationships. These relationships will be there for you if you are ever in need of a handout
8. When at all possible offer a hug not a handshake.

There are also two stories that I'd like to share with you. The first story takes place in West Virginia. Reuben and a group from our church were there serving on a YouthWorks mission trip. One night for the night activity the group was to go on a nature walk, but the rain was so bad that they were thinking they'd have to cancel. Reuben asked one of the staff if they really wanted to go on this walk. She of course replied "Yes." Reuben then proceeded to walk around the building where he could be alone with God in silence. He offered up a prayer saying "Jesus if it be your will stop this rain." He then walked inside and returned to the front of the building where the group was waiting. By the time he got there the rain had stopped and the staff member was in sheer awe.

The other story relates to the number 8 lesson I learned from Reuben. Reuben was a big guy, but he was honestly just a giant teddy bear who gave the best hugs. This poem is a poem that Reuben's wife Connie wrote, but transmitted to Reuben when she was sick and couldn't talk. The words were sitting in his head and he couldn't get them out until he wrote them down. He knew they had come from Connie. The poem is called All in Just a Hug

As I reach my arms around you,

I'm giving you a hug,

It's your spirit that I reach for

and to give your soul tug.

I'm sending out forgiveness

for any wrong you've done,

And seeking back from you, the same.

All in just a hug.

So when I come to greet you

and you just extend a hand,

I guess I'll have to shake it,

It's a custom made by man.

But think of what a blessing

that we could have shared,

The warm embrace of spirit

to show how much we care.

All in just a hug.

I miss Reuben and the rest of these men of faith a lot. All of them had such a great influence on my life with the lessons they shared. I'll always remember their lessons and take them true to heart. I hope that others can learn from their lives and the lessons we pass on. They were all great men, and I know I'll see them again in heaven.

Lord,

Thank you so much for the opportunity to spend time with many of these men and for the lessons that they pass on to future generations. Lord I ask that you help us to take their lessons to heart and learn from them. Lord I ask that you continually bless their family and friends as the grief will go on and we continually miss them. Help us to remember all the wonderful memories of their lives and to cherish the time we had to spend with them. Lord I ask you to welcome them all in your warm embrace and that you watch over those they left behind. I ask that when we come into your kingdom you have them their to welcome us. Lord we love you and we thank you for their lives and ours. We thank you for your son Jesus Christ through whom we have been saved and have been welcomed into your kingdom. Welcome us into your kingdom when the time comes God, and let us all live in peace and harmony forever. We love you so much God and in the name of your son Jesus Christ we pray forever and always.

Amen

Livin' the Life

Today's song is "Livin the Life" by Group 1 Crew. In this song the group speaks of how they used to act and live life thinking it was just a joke or a game and not really caring about their actions. Things all change when they decide to answer God's call. "I can't believe where you're taking me / you give me hope to believe now I'm living the life."

Now that I've done my usual song plug I'd like to write about what has been going on in life and maybe you'll figure out why I chose this song. As you can probably tell I haven't written anything on here in FOREVER! I always told myself "alright you're going to write today" or "Wow a lot has been happening and you can totally write about this" but I haven't. Why? I'm not really sure. Things got really busy and a lot of things happened. In this post I'll stick to the positive things that happened as I'll be writing a tribute post next.

Since my last time posting I've had a lot of changes and experiences. During the last week of June I got the great opportunity to serve the members of the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota. This mission trip was put on by YouthWorks!, an amazing organization based out of Minneapolis, MN who puts on mission trips for youth around the US, Canada, and Puerto Rico.

There are many scripture verses that talk about serving others. 1 Peter 4:10 says "As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God's varied grace" This verse really speaks the truth and encourages me to want to take Peter's words to heart and serve. We have all been given gifts by God. We are called to use these gifts, whether they be writing, strength, athletic ability, speaking skills, or compassion for others. God gave you these gifts to serve his people. Now that's not to say you can't use your gifts for your profession as well. If you are a gifted speaker, use that in your professional life, but also use it to give back to God by serving those who need it.

In my week of serving the people of Pine Ridge I truly saw Peter's words come to life. Each and every one of us were using the gifts we had been given to serve God. I saw it through everybody using the strength they were given to continually work to paint the house even in the hot sun. I saw it in the students who played basketball with the kids at Kid's Club as well as the students who sat and listened to what the kids wanted to do and who read with them. Seeing everyone serve really brought to mind Paul's words in his letters to the Romans. Paul says in Romans 12: 1 "I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.

Each and every adult and student (and the YouthWorks staff) gave up their lives and their bodies that week to be servants of the Lord. They gave themselves up as a sacrificial worship to God for the good he has given them in their lives. We worshiped him in song, in devotional time, in the reading of his word, and in our serving the Pine Ridge community. Each day we must offer up our day to God. This can be as simple as praying: Lord I thank you for another day on Earth and another day to serve your people (whether this be by example or literally getting your hands dirty). Please Lord use me today. Take my day and make it yours. For it is you alone that I worship and you alone that I give my praise. Use me, take me, and guide me. I love your Lord. In your son Jesus' name I pray, Amen.

Paul Says in Romans 12:6-7 "Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in accordance to our faith; if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching." Our gifts are different from everyone around us. Alone we can use our gifts to serve others, together we can serve an even greater amount of people using the gifts given. Think of it this way. One person was given the gift of speaking in public, but isn't sure what to say. Another is given the gift of writing, but is afraid to speak them to the public. Alone they can serve others, but together their serving can be greater. Through our serving, and taking the opportunities to serve that God presents us we can truly be "Livin the Life"

Lord,

Thank you for all the wonderful opportunities to serve you and your people. Help us to recognize these opportunities and those who need our servings. Help us to say yes to the opportunities you give us. Lord we thank you for the gifts you have given us. Help us to use them to serve, and to know what they are. Lord please bring us together to serve so that we can serve the greatest amount of people. Your love for us is so great God and you are worthy of our praise. Help us to take time to worship you and to remember that we are serving not for our own sake but to give you glory. Help us to offer our lives to you and to let you work through us. Take us, move us, make us a part of you. We love you so much God, Father. In the name of your son Jesus Christ we pray,

Amen.