It’s Finally Moving

Oct 17, 2011 | Faith

The events that took place leading up to the ANEW Fall Conference 2011, the planning, the expected and unexpected happenings, the anticipation for the number of attendees, the novel program format and content, gave the team a sense that this conference was going to be epic in more ways than one. And it was.

For the first time, after years of claiming that I’m a part of a campus ministry movement, I can finally say that I came home from an event having witnessed a true movement. Why?

Because now, it has become evident that the students are moving. Finally, after saying it over and over again in many conferences, the attendees understand that ANEW is them. ANEW is not just the leaders and not just the conference; it’s everyone in the network. Finally, students are taking up projects and running with it. The network is finally moving.

Perhaps it was just so obvious that based on the number of projects we set out to the network and the ridiculous goals we set ourselves to do, people just knew there was no way these things will get done by 8 people. And so what did they do? They jumped on to the bandwagon.

You know you have a movement coming along when at the end of the conference, people crowd around the leaders to get involved with the different projects.

You know you have a movement, when after saying “Canvassing will change your life… getting doors slammed in your face,” you have students crowding Eunice to sign up for the summer canvassing program.

You know you have a movement, when after Juan appealed that we need to know very intimately the message that we are to carry on campus – the Three Angels Message – the 3AM Project doubled in size.

You know you have a movement, when after pretty much saying “We’re broke, but we’re not going to stop doing things,” people raised up their hands to come up with ideas, and rushed to David and Erica to join the fund raising team.

The newsletter project, high school and young professionals project, caregroup initiations … This thing is more than a full time job.

Accomplishments? That word is the least fitted word to what has happened so far with ANEW. Our work has only just begun, because the movement has only started.

It’s time for a deeper dedication. It’s time to really sacrifice and weed out unnecessary things in life. It’s time to move.

A Song to Learn

Aug 29, 2011 | Faith

The fact that we are called upon to endure trial shows that the Lord Jesus sees in us something precious which He desires to develop. If He saw in us nothing whereby He might glorify His name, He would not spend time in refining us. He does not cast worthless stones into His furnace. It is valuable ore that He refines. The blacksmith puts the iron and steel into the fire that he may know what manner of metal they are. The Lord allows His chosen ones to be placed in the furnace of affliction to prove what temper they are of and whether they can be fashioned for His work.

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In the full light of day, and in hearing of the music of other voices, the caged bird will not sing the song that his master seeks to teach him. He learns a snatch of this, a trill of that, but never a separate and entire melody. But the master covers the cage, and places it where the bird will listen to the one song he is to sing. In the dark, he tries and tries again to sing that song until it is learned, and he breaks forth in perfect melody. Then the bird is brought forth, and ever after he can sing that song in the light. Thus God deals with His children. He has a song to teach us, and when we have learned it amid the shadows of affliction we can sing it ever afterward.

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Let us remember that while the work we have to do may not be our choice, it is to be accepted as God’s choice for us. Whether pleasing or unpleasing, we are to do the duty that lies nearest.

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He has reasons for sending us to the place toward which our feet have been directed.

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Our plans are not always God’s plans. He may see that it is best for us and for His cause to refuse our very best intentions, as He did in the case of David. But of one thing we may be assured, He will bless and use in the advancement of His cause those who sincerely devote themselves and all they have to His glory. If He sees it best not to grant their desires He will counterbalance the refusal by giving them tokens of His love and entrusting to them another service.

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God never leads His children otherwise than they would choose to be led, if they could see the end from the beginning and discern the glory of the purpose which they are fulfilling as co-workers with Him.

From Ministry of Healing, chp. 40, Help in Daily Living

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