Real Transformation

I have no way of predicting what God is going to do, particularly in the hearts and minds of youth.  As such, life is full of twists and turns that can leave me on the edge of my seat with bit of high blood pressure! 

I guess I just need to trust that the Holy Spirit knows what it’s doing.  For instance… a while back we took a group of senior high youth on a weekend trip.  On the way we stopped at a well known Canadian attraction for a bit of fun and soon discovered that one of our guys was acting strangely.  It became clear that this student was, well…stoned.  Now common practice for many youth workers would result in “said stoner” taking the next Grey Dog home, but upon prayer and reflection, we sensed that God had big plans in store for Him.  We challenged this guy to be open to all that God had in store for him on this trip.   During one of the large group sessions this infamous youth speaker fellow invited students to take a step towards God.  My jaw dropped as this kid came forward and surrendered his life to Jesus.  He communicated to us that something in him had changed, that he met God!

Upon arriving home from our trip, far away from the excitement of the weekend, I was unsure of just how real this whole experience was.  As the weeks went by it became clear that real transformation had taken place.  It was a beautiful night witnessing a changed young man standing in a baptismal tank full of freezing cold water, declaring to his family and friends that his love for Jesus was indeed real.

In spite of the uncertainty of life, I am slowly becoming sure of one thing: God is good!  I’m learning to trust in that.