The thing I will not miss.
I do miss Philly.
But I must remember this; we went to Philly with it as our project when little did we know that WE were the project. WE have had our eyes opened to the reality of God’s work here on earth, WE have had our ears opened to hear His whispers moment by moment, WE witnessed Him move among us and through us in a way we never dreamed, WE saw our lives for what they truly are, WE experienced love and community that others spend a life time trying to create, WE confessed the sin that had eaten at our souls for years, WE worshipped with abandon, WE prayed as we have never prayed before, WE went through an entire day asking God at every turn, "What next? Who should I talk to? What should I do? How should I pray?" WE were changed, WE were touched, WE were His project as much as any of those students.
My point? Wow, I miss Philly, I miss the kids, the people, but the things that God worked in US there on the streets of Philly SHOULD NOT BE MISSED. They are a part of us and we should be JUST as willing today to pray that scary prayer, "God, show me who to talk to" as we were there. We should be just as willing today to reach out with love and compassion to the lost and hurting. The community we experienced with one another there can be a reality here. The prayers you cried out there can be cried out in your bedroom, your classroom, your church. The confession that power washed your heart there can still be offered here. The love you experienced for people you weren't even friends with before you left can still be shared here.
We have left Philly and that truly is sad... but even sadder is the thought of Philly leaving us. That all those things God did in us and through us somehow "stay" there on those mean streets... that's sadder to me than anything. God changed us there so that He could change others HERE, He moved in and through you there so that He could continue to move in and through you HERE. If we forget and we return to who we were then we truly will have forgotten Vinnie because we've forgotten who God invited us to be while we were with him there on those streets.
May it not be so. May we be who we were called to be, love as we were called to love, pray as we were called to pray, and seek God’s presence above all things.
(My prayer is that our old selves and our old lives would be the ONLY thing that gets left in Philly. …and that I won’t miss.)
But I must remember this; we went to Philly with it as our project when little did we know that WE were the project. WE have had our eyes opened to the reality of God’s work here on earth, WE have had our ears opened to hear His whispers moment by moment, WE witnessed Him move among us and through us in a way we never dreamed, WE saw our lives for what they truly are, WE experienced love and community that others spend a life time trying to create, WE confessed the sin that had eaten at our souls for years, WE worshipped with abandon, WE prayed as we have never prayed before, WE went through an entire day asking God at every turn, "What next? Who should I talk to? What should I do? How should I pray?" WE were changed, WE were touched, WE were His project as much as any of those students.
My point? Wow, I miss Philly, I miss the kids, the people, but the things that God worked in US there on the streets of Philly SHOULD NOT BE MISSED. They are a part of us and we should be JUST as willing today to pray that scary prayer, "God, show me who to talk to" as we were there. We should be just as willing today to reach out with love and compassion to the lost and hurting. The community we experienced with one another there can be a reality here. The prayers you cried out there can be cried out in your bedroom, your classroom, your church. The confession that power washed your heart there can still be offered here. The love you experienced for people you weren't even friends with before you left can still be shared here.
We have left Philly and that truly is sad... but even sadder is the thought of Philly leaving us. That all those things God did in us and through us somehow "stay" there on those mean streets... that's sadder to me than anything. God changed us there so that He could change others HERE, He moved in and through you there so that He could continue to move in and through you HERE. If we forget and we return to who we were then we truly will have forgotten Vinnie because we've forgotten who God invited us to be while we were with him there on those streets.
May it not be so. May we be who we were called to be, love as we were called to love, pray as we were called to pray, and seek God’s presence above all things.
(My prayer is that our old selves and our old lives would be the ONLY thing that gets left in Philly. …and that I won’t miss.)