God is...

God is...
There are a million words I could use to fill in that blank. Think about the word or words you might use to finish the sentence. Unfathomable. Omnipotent. Omniscient. Great. Awesome. Faithful. Wonderful. Holy. Omnipresent. Amazing. Fun.

Yes, fun. I think God is fun! It only makes sense to me He must be. Think about Jesus. When he was here on Earth, he attracted HUGE crowds of people. Literally thousands would flock to hear him, touch him, and see him. People loved to be around Jesus. Numerous times in the New Testament, we find him escaping from the throngs of people in order to regroup, pray, and rest. I think he must have been so much fun to be around, because most individuals I know don’t want to hang out with boring, grumpy, Negative-Neds or Nancys. They want to be around people who are fun! And if you listen to different pastors and evangelists speak - typically the most popular are really quite funny. I think Joyce Meyer is hilarious and Brad Powell - pastor of Northridge Church - he cracks me up!

When I read about the things Jesus taught and how he taught them, I think he was pretty hilarious himself. The visual which comes to mind of a person with a huge beam coming out of his eye while trying to swipe at a small speck in someone else’s eye must have really brought down the house (See Matthew 7:3). And he would look the Pharisees, who were the high and mighty, revered religious leaders of the day and say things like, “you brood of vipers!” (Matthew 12:34) when he called them out for how they failed to represent God. I think even though the audience might have hidden it, they were laughing inside when he said that. I have known people who were horrible representatives of God and they set themselves up over others in positions of authority and I would laugh if they were called a brood of vipers. The God Who created us knows how our minds and hearts work - and He made us with a sense of humor. Most people respond positively to humor. I think Jesus was fun.

And I think God is fun and I think He has fun blessing us. Think about Sarah and I - praying about The Torch and asking God to show His love for others through us. And then we had it in our heads it could be three years or so down the road before the ministry began. We never received a tax-exempt determination letter from the IRS, so had no idea we were approved when we called on December 31, 2012. We were surprised, stunned, delighted and overjoyed when we learned we had received our tax exempt status in less than two months! I think God was delighted and joyful to surprise us like that. He makes life so much fun because you just never know what blessing is coming next.

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As I told you a few blogs ago, I have been searching for a job for the past three years. Over the course of those years, I spent many hours praying and seeking God’s will for my life. I have gone on numerous interviews, always hopeful and ready in case the job I was interviewing for turned out to be the one God was going to provide. I sent out hundreds and hundreds of resumes and applications - always accompanied by prayer and hopeful thinking. I have been disappointed dozens of times and even cried in frustration over a few missed opportunities. But in the end I always found myself right back in prayer believing God had a job for me and figuring I just hadn't found it yet. 

On Thursday  April 18, 2013, I received an email from Cleary University stating they had my resume and would like to set up an interview with me. I scheduled that interview for Tuesday, April 23. I arrived early, as I always do, so I could pray before the interview. I have had a painfully sprained ankle, too, and I’ve been wearing my walking shoes to school along with a wrap and tight socks for extra support. I needed time to remove all that and put on my dress shoes, as well. While I was struggling through that task - I was rehearsing in my head all the wonderful things I could say about myself which would convince them I was the one for the job! I made my way inside the building and learned they were running slightly behind, so I took a seat in the lobby and prayed some more. 

The interview was beyond anything I imagined. As the two interviewers were looking over my transcripts and resume they kept exclaiming over all my experience and qualifications. I literally did not have to say a word about myself. They asked a few questions - mostly about whether or not I thought I could teach an orientation class and English classes - and I was hired! They also told me about other opportunities I would have based on my resume and transcripts. It happened so fast I was left in a daze. I walked out of the school in shock and I went and sat in my car for a long time as the realization dawned on me and I began to cry tears of joy and to praise God and feel His loving Presence washing over and around me! It was amazing and awesome and inspiring and spiritual and an experience I will never forget.

I think God loves to surprise us with blessings - because he is fun and He understands surprises can touch us deeply

Recently, a Negative-Nancy expressed doubts to Sarah about our ability to raise the funds, purchase and license the food truck, and move forward with The Torch. She clearly has no concept of what faith can do. Or what a fun God we serve. Can you imagine when we actually drive into a neighborhood and park our truck and begin cooking? How much FUN is THAT going to be? Watching people smile and eat as we reach out to them? Fun. Even fundraising with the truck at a fair or carnival or other community event? FUN! Many of you have offered to help. Have you seriously thought about how much FUN it is going to be? When CT SCAN is up and running again and we have children and teens who are cooking, cleaning, developing leadership skills and learning about faith and service together - that will be FUN! 

God has already shown up unexpectedly and blown us away so many times as we have moved forward in faith for The Torch! I think He loves to do that - and I think there are many more surprises and blessings to come. That Negative Nancy who doesn't think The Torch is possible is going to get a surprise visit from us in the food truck. We will cook her a hot dog - and it will be FUN!

Because God is...   FUN!