Rejoice in the LORD always and again.....

Yesterday was one of those days where I just wanted to throw in the towel and give up. I was frustrated by the way the students were treating eachother and the way that they were treating me. I was frustrated with urban culture in and of itself. All the violence, sex, drugs, and gangs that are so prevalent on TV, music videos, music lyrics, and all the other things that these students see everyday. It was just so foreign to me and so frustrating to see and hear. Then, in God's great ways of bringing this that challenge me, I was lead to an article in the Kansas City Star about KU freshman point guard, Sherron Collins. Collins grew up on the west side of Chicago and went to Crane high school. The article talked about his family background and everyday life on the streets. It mentioned how the local Boys & Girls Club is what saved Sherron from following the path of his father and his older brother; one filled with gangs, prison, and murder. Sherron has blossomed as the sixth man for the Jayhawks and it was such an encouraging article to read.

I was struck at how the article directly related to how I was feeling; of just wanting to give up and quit and move to someplace that was comfortable. This article encouraged me to press on and be a beacon of light for these students. Be the teacher that speaks truth, encouragement, and love to these students, for they may need this place just like Sherron needed the safe haven of the Boys & Girls Club.




I've also been taking the time to read and study the book of Philippians. The overarching theme that I have been gathering is summed up in Phil. 4:4 "Rejoice in the Lord always, and again I say rejoice!" It's also been interesting to read in chapter 3 how Paul is praying that he 'may know Christ in the power of His resurrection and share in the fellowship of His sufferings' (3:10). Verses like that seem to always sink in deep in my heart because I think of how I pray for things to be easy or good, and overlook the suffering . Not that I want to pray that I want to suffer, but being open to realizing that one of the very core issues of the Christian faith is suffering. How do I respond when things are tough and hard? How do I respond when..............? Do I respond with an attitude of rejoicing and praise? O Lord, may it be so in my life.....