Growin' Up Gregory

This morning was one of the more emotional worship services I've been a part of in recent memory.  It's hard to quietly explain to a newly turned 6 year old that sometimes, everything's okay when people are crying.  I could venture guesses as to why this day was special, but really want to share the thoughts that came to mind as many different things seemed to come together today. Our Sunday school lesson was on Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead.  I'll keep drawing on this story so if you want more depth, read John 11.  If not, the super short cliff notes version is this:  Lazarus's sisters sent word to Jesus that their brother was sick.  Jesus eventually made his way to their home, but He was too late.  Lazarus was dead.  Then Jesus did what the Son of God does, He raised the dead! I was super excited about this lesson for several reasons.  One, it was good lesson with a lot more to it than I had previously noticed.  Two, I heard ...

How's your faith?  I'm willing to bet that if most of us are truly honest, our faith is often times "iffy" at best.  We make statements like: -  God, if you'll give me a child, I promise I'll dedicate him/her to you. -  God, if you give me good job or a raise, I'll be more generous with my giving. -  God, if you give me a prominent position, I'll talk about you more with people. And while we've all probably made "deals" like these with God before, they are not how our faith should operate.  God listens, but He doesn't negotiate.  I believe that He hears our prayers and that He is compassionate to our concerns and our hearts, but I also know that ultimately His will will be done. Rather than having if, or iffy, faith, perhaps we should focus on having EVEN IF faith: -  Will you trust God EVEN IF your child becomes deathly ill, develops some severe condition, or worse dies?  Will you still trust His purposes for that child in y...