if you don't want to get exploded then keep moving forward.

So 2011 has been firmly established. It made sure to start with some pops and bangs. I suppose it didn't want to be "just another year." The funny thing is...as significant as some of those bangs and pops seem to be (sometimes they feel like nuclear warfare), a few years down the road it will probably become "just another year." Surely many important things have happened and will happen, but the numbers blend together. We don't know quite when it happened, simply that it did. The details blur and before we know it - the event itself isn't what's important anymore, rather, it's the change connected with it. We change with each pop. The explosions in our life propel us onward, shaping a path for our lives. It is often these moments that can significantly alter our existence. It is often these moments that block pathways to destruction and send us tumbling back to the path we were meant for. That's why in all things we can give thanks to God. For as Satan creates pitfalls, the Lord makes them slides. They aren't always a smooth ride, but when we begin to trust in him, we stop feeling so many bumps, instead we feel His steady pull. And we reach out to those we meet so they can join the ride.

I'm sure that by now you have come to see that life is a roller coaster. We go up, down, and around faster then we can keep up with. Sometimes going up can be terrifying because the higher you go - the longer the next drop may be. This is when it becomes so important to have the constant pull of God. When we have God's steady hand pulling us on, the high's and low's aren't what's important, instead we realize that we can simply keep moving forward. If you've seen Meet the Robinson's, a Disney movie that came out a couple years ago, you may remember the line repeated throughout the movie: "Keep moving forward." It's a beautiful line, but only if you are moving towards something beautiful. You can't keep moving forward to nothing. You can't keep moving forward towards destruction. But many do. Many move forward towards destruction-in-disguise. They move forward towards worldly, temporary things. What's the point? Why move forward towards something that will simply collapse beneath you? Often, it's because it's what we know. It's the only answer we see. A new house - that's the answer. A new car - that's the answer. More money - that's the answer. We keep moving forward to new goals. Each collapses beneath us. Or it raises us up so high that when it finally drops us - death is certain.

Tony has been moving forward towards success. Towards the normal life. Towards acceptance in the eyes of the world. He doesn't get very high up, but when things collapse, even the small drops are huge shocks that leave him grasping for escapes. Alcohol. Lust. These things have a pull as well, a downward pull. They are the anchors that keep him from climbing up. But he keeps moving forward. And we remind him that there is something beautiful he can move towards. There is something pulling him despite his anchors. Something interceding for him. Something that prays for him. Something that urges him to stop dragging anchors. Something that will bring him freedom. Or rather, someone.

It is so easy to forget. It is so easy to give up. It is so easy to let the anchors sink you. It is so easy to chase the world before you. It is easy. But it is also easy to surrender. It is easy to drop everything and allow Him to pull you instead. Or at least it sounds easy. It should be easy. But as we struggle to obey God, as we struggle to abandon sin, we realize that it's hard! It's hard to give it all to God. We see this paradox in scripture. We hear Jesus cry out - follow me, my yoke is easy, my burden is light. But then we hear him compare entering heaven to a camel passing through the eye of a needle. Why? Why is it hard? Because a rich man clings to his riches. Because a worldly man clings to the world. Christ would pull us out if we would only let go. He would rescue us if we would only take his hand. He would transform us if only we would turn to face him. Do we have that much faith? Do we have enough faith to let go? Do we have enough faith to give it up? Do we have enough faith to turn our back on the world and face Jesus? We don't know where he will take us. We don't know what that path will look like. But it won't look like the one we followed without him.

My path is beginning to look scarily similar to the path I once walked. I feel like things are resetting...back to where I began before God took my hand. I feel like I have gone in a circle. Not a pointless circle - there were definite purposes…but still if I don't do something, will I repeat it? I used to say that faith was like a spiral. Before, we were trapped in a circle, doomed to repeat the same mistakes in the circular design of this world - but when Christ saved us, we found ourselves in a spiral. There were still high's and low's, but not quite the same as before, for we weren't starting over, we were steadily getting closer. We were being pulled inevitably towards him, even in the darkest seasons. I hold to this.

I'm not exactly sure what's to come. I'm not exactly sure when the season changes. But I know that I have entered the spiral. Even in the darkest season, God is there to guide me through. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death I will fear no evil, for He is with me.

It's painful to live here sometimes. There are so many who walk through the valley of the shadow of death. They are dragging so much weight. They are tired, weary, scared, and broken. And enslaved. Many find freedom in Christ - and the transformation is truly miraculous...but so many crumble. They are in need of our prayers, our fellowship, and the message we have been entrusted. That's what we do at JSBC on a daily basis. We strive to pray, fellowship, and share the gospel with the homeless and hurting. Thanks for continuing to help make it possible. You play a vital part.