A Profile Focus on Obamacare

Loosely Based on a True Story

Beep. Beep. Beep. The sound of the alarm jerked Micah out of a deep sleep. Struggling to find the button that would quiet the wretched noise, he tore himself from his dream of the car accident he had caused the previous day. He shuddered remembering the words of the uniformed officer, “You’re a lucky guy. If you had been going any faster, you would have most likely been placed in the hospital”. Putting on his grey Coke uniform, he imagined the hospital bills that would have been added to the bills he already had: car payments and insurance, school bills, and now a ticket.  As he walked to his car in the 3 am darkness, a word his dad usd the night before popped into his head: Obamacare. As he drove to work, he recalled the conversation from the previous evening. His upset dad had said sarcastically, “Well, next year because of Obamacare you won’t have to worry about being uninsured.” Micah had dismissed the conversation, not wanting to discuss it then. “Obamacare. I wonder what it’s all about,” he thought to himself arriving at Wal-Mart to stock his Coke products. “If it’s going to affect me like dad implied, I should probably look into it”.

After finishing a 12 hour work day and working on some homework, Micah remembered his decision to discover what Obamacare was all about. As he strolled past his sister, Abi, on his way to the inviting, red couch in the living room, he asked: “Have you heard about Obamacare, Abi?”.

“Yeah, it’s one of the discussions in my political science class.” she replied.

“Do you have any idea where I should start in my research?” he asked.

“Well, it’s really complicated; so start on the individual mandate. That might actually affect you since Coke won’t provide you with health insurance”

“Ok, thanks!”

Micah relaxed on the couch and began to research the described mandate. To begin his research, Micah considered the actual law. Luckily he found it online(GPO), but understanding the 906 page bill proved difficult. After glancing through it, he studied a few articles that translated the bill.

From what Micah read, he discovered that part of Obama’s reform, the individual mandate, required individuals to be under a health insurance plan by 2014.  If the individual’s employer does not provide coverage, the individual must buy it. If the individual cannot afford coverage, then the government may offer assistance. As he read further, he also realized that when an individual refuses to purchase a plan, he will be taxed- $695(or 2.5% of income) after the third year(Blodget). “So if I refused to purchase the coverage, I would be taxed $540 according to my wage. But according to the rule, I would have the pay the tax since it’s higher than 2.5% of my income. Wonderful.”

After Micah retrieved a cold Coke from downstairs, he persisted in his research. He discovered next that for those who couldn’t afford the mandated coverage, subsidies would be available. Micah then realized that he would qualify for a subsidy since he earned less than $45,960(Luhby) “But how much assistance will I get?” Micah discovered that, “the lower your income, the larger your subsidy. For instance, those making $17,235 a year will pay no more than 4% of income, or $57 a month.” “Alright, this gives me a few choices: buy a health care plan on my own, buy one with a subsidy, or pay the penalty. It’s still not fair; in my 18 years of life. I have never used health care and won’t use it as long as possible. So why should I be forced to purchase something I don’t need right now? How does my getting health care play a part in the whole reform?”

On his day off the following day, Micah decided to form an answer to his last question. After comparing sources on the internet, he understood. “In order for premiums to lower and for the government to provide subsidies, extra money must come from somewhere,” he said to himself. The young and healthy Americans, like himself, would purchase health care, but would likely not use it because of good health. Hence, his unused money would be put into a pool. This “extra” money would indirectly lower premiums and allow the government to subsidize. “Basically, I will be paying for other people to receive health care.”

He read: “If enrolling in coverage through the state exchanges is too expensive or too confusing, uninsured individuals might choose to skip it and pay the fines instead. That could lead to fewer healthy people enrolling -- which would make coverage in the exchanges more costly for everyone, since they would become populated primarily by people with greater medical needs(Luhby).” “Ok, I understand why it’s necessary. But it seems extremely unfair. This law seems to benefit only the sick. I wonder if it’s even legal!” he muttered to himself in frustration(Thoma).

Although late and Micah had to work early the next morning, he continued researching to find an answer to the probing question. He discovered that though there had been much questioning as to whether the mandate was Constitutional,, the mandate proved to be legal labeled as a tax(Constitution).i

“I do remember reading that some parts of the mandate were unconstitutional though.” Micah thought. He remembered correctly. Micah’s brother-in-law, Luke, worked for “The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty”, which had been defending individuals and groups in court against a first amendment violation. “How does this relate to the individual mandate though?” Micah wondered.

He found out that the government now requires all insurance companies to offer contraceptives, even pills that cause abortions, in all their plans(Becketfund).i “Ok, so not only am I putting money into the health care system, of which I will rarely take a part in, but my money might provide abortions for people.” This fact really hit Micah emotionally due to the fact that abortion, the murder of a child, was completely against his beliefs. “The first amendment states that it is unlawful to force someone to act against their religious convictions. But the government will be forcing me to act against my religious morals in this way.” Micah said, slamming his laptop shut as the realization of how deeply this new mandate would affect him surfaced.

The next evening when Micah was sitting with his family eating dinner, Abi asked him how his research was coming.

“Well,” Micah began, “I have three options as a healthy, American individual. I can purchase healthcare coverage on my own, use a government subsidy to help pay for coverage,  or I can refuse coverage and be taxed. In all three cases, I will be putting my money into a health care “pool”, my money will help pay for the health care of other individuals who actually need health care, since I won’t be using the coverage. In addition to this, my money will be paying for contraceptives that provide abortions for people using the coverage. Basically I am being forced to pay into something that I will rarely use and that provides options for people that I am morally opposed to.”

“Can you do anything to oppose the mandate?” asked Micah’s sister, Susanna.

“That’s what I am going to figure out next. There has to be something I can do to stop this injustice, not just for myself, but for other American individuals as well.”

And that began Micah’s next research project. He, like many other individuals, is not satisfied with the mandate that is being forced upon him. Therefore, he will attempt to find a way to stand up to it.

Works Cited

U.S. Government Printing Office. Public Law 111–148. 23 Mar. 2010. Web. 23 Mar. 2010 (http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/PLAW-111publ148/pdf/PLAW-111publ148.pdf )

Blodget, Henry. “How Much is The Obamacare Penalty Tax?”. Business Insider. Business Insider, 2012. Web. 2 July. 2012.

Luhby, Tammy. “What You’ll Actually Pay for Obamacare”. CNN Money. CNN Money, 2013. Web. 21 Aug. 2013.

Thoma, Mark. “Why We Need an Individual Mandate for Health Insurance.” Economist’s View. Economist’s View, 2012. Web. 28 Mar. 2012.

Article 1, Section 8 of the Constitution.

Becketfund. Becket Fund for Religious Liberties. Web. n.p.

Grace in a Different Light

          Grace is not simply a religious term, a feeling, or a word. Grace is God's unmerited favor. This means that such favor cannot be earned; we as human beings do not deserve this grace. Yet this unmerited favor exists in every waking moment of my existence, of your existence, of the world's existence. You must look for it.
           Grace can be found in a little child contentedly whispering stories to her plastic horse, Black Beauty. Grace can be seen in alluring sunsets over the Great Salt Lake which cause you to pull off to the side of the road in fear of driving off the road because your graze is fixed on the gorgeous sky. Grace can be noticed in wispy clouds floating in front of a full moon. Grace is everywhere, however, we as human beings are too used to it or take it for granted.
         God did not solely display his grace as he gave up his sinless life as a payment for mine. This grace was not shown only as Jesus experienced every bit of pain, grief, evil, sorrow, loneliness, anger, insecurity, jealousy, pride that I have experienced and ever will experience. Grace didn't start and stop there. It continues to flow from the Father.
         This kind of love blows my mind. What kind of God showers his children with boundless blessings despite the fact that they choose to glorify themselves day after day? What kind of God enjoys giving good gifts to his beloved creation? What kind of God never stops choosing to love his people even after they stop loving him? It makes no sense, especially in this world of fake love and cheap grace. But it's true, and I am understanding it more and more.
          I challenge you to look for and find grace. When you make the choice to do so, you will be blown away by the love of the Savior. It will begin changing the way you see and interact with God. It's so freeing.
          Look for Grace.

Romans 8:32 "He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? 

Ephesians 2:1-9 "As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath. But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.  And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast."

Fighting for Life

It seems to me that since God creates life(Genesis 2:7), loves life enough to sacrifice his son in order to offer eternal life(John 3:16), and sustains life(Hebrews 1:3) that God is pro life. It also seems to be pretty clear that a follower of Christ, who is indeed God, that follower should be pro life. It doesn't seem like there is a way around this. God is for life. So must I be for life.

Abortion is wrong, an evil, murder...This I know very well. I read articles on abortion and share those articles. I give my money to pro life causes. I claim to be pro life. 

Today I read that in 2011 a baby was aborted every ninety five seconds. Today I also listened as Obama, who will continue to let these abortions continue, was inaugurated into office. Today I realized that I need to do something.

Sometimes, like today, I will realize the state of the world-the evil, the suffering, the brokenness, the poverty, the injustice, the hunger, the death, the sadness, the pain- and become overwhelmed and discouraged. I will throw up my hands and say, "What am I supposed to do? I'm only one person. How can I fix this mess?" Today is different. I didn't give in to the discouragement. I decided to do something, instead of focusing on what I can't do.

My purpose as a follower of Christ is to be used by God to make things right, to restore things back to how God initially created them. Even in ways that seem insanely small, I want to be used to put the things in this world back into their places.

Today I decided to become a greater part of the fight for life that is taking place or needs to take place in this world. I asked God to soften my heart to the cries of the unborn. I begged him to haunt me with their screams. I don't want to simply read the articles and move on with my life, like I have been. I want to FIGHT for their lives. God has been opening doors for me: from the nagging feeling that I should be doing something more to the extra time that I now have been given to the need of help at my local pregnancy center. 

I am doing something. I am going to start volunteering at the pregnancy resource center. It's small, it may seem weak in comparison to what other people are doing. But God's strength is made perfect in weakness. I urge you to do something, if you have been convicted like I have. It may be different than volunteering, it may be lobbying or writing articles or teaching others about what abortion really is. Depending on who you are, what kind of time you have available, where you live, what your gifts are, the options for fighting this fight are probably endless. And if you don't know where to start, find your local pregnancy center. I bet they need volunteers like mine does. Do something.

God is fighting for life, and I am joining him. Will you?

It Really is ALL About Jesus

"I hear the Savior say,
Thy strength indeed is small;
Child of weakness, watch and pray,
Find in Me thine all in all."

For a while now, a wise friend has been telling me that Jesus needs to be the focal point of my life. No matter how much time I spend reading and thinking, blogging and journaling,  working and playing....Jesus must be my all in all. I realize now that I did not pay attention to how important that fact is. Now I am understanding as the Holy Spirit convicts me.

Every once in a while, I become completely exhausted because of doing "stuff". When I step back and question why I'm doing the "stuff", I answer, "because I need to be doing it". This is where the Holy Spirit convicts me, because all my attempts at living a godly life to honor God are worthless if Christ is not at the center of all that I do. He must be behind every motive, every action, every thought, every word.

Without Jesus, there is no purpose in life. Just think about it. Christ died to be the redemption of sin. But his death would not have mattered that much  if he hadn't risen from the grave. If he had just died, he would have been like any other dying  man. But his resurrection, his conquering of death, made all the difference. By conquering death, He gave us, the human race, hope for a future beyond the grave. Think of it: life is lived and in the end, you die. That's all. If all that occurs in the end is death, a body lying in the grave, then why not live this life to the fullest, selfishly enjoying all the pleasures it has to offer without caring about consequences.  But because Jesus conquered the grave, there is something beyond our bodies decaying in a cemetery. Jesus gave us something other than ourselves to live for: Him. By living godly and holy lives on this earth, we have something to hope and long for, a perfect and pure relationship with God for eternity, exactly what we were made for in the first place. So because Christ died, saving us from our evil, sinful hearts, and then conquered death, He gave us a purpose, a reason for doing "things", for doing "stuff", but for Him.

When from my dying bed,

My ransomed soul shall rise,

"Jesus died my soul to save,"

Shall rend the vaulted skies.

Understanding that then, all that we do from day to day should be centered around Jesus, since he gave us the meaning of doing  all "things". If we lose focus of Him, then our purpose becomes blurry and we wander around aimlessly wondering why we do the things we do. In order for the purpose to become clear again, we must draw near to the One who gave us that purpose, that hope for which to live. " 

And when before the throne

I stand in Him complete,

I'll lay my trophies down,

All down at Jesus' feet.

When I came back home from my schooling at Rivendell Sanctuary, the youth group I help lead was focusing on a series of lessons called, "It's All About Jesus". When it was explained to me by one of the leaders that doctrine and theology do not matter as much as Jesus, I think I was fairly shocked. At that time I had just finished up a semester focusing on theology and philosophy, and was holding theology in pretty high regards. Now that I think more about it, I realize that the leader was right. Developing one's own theology is important in order to develop a logical defense for one's beliefs, in addition to many other important practices and studies; however, if Christ is not at the center of those studies, what's the point? Why develop a study of God, theology, without focusing on Christ, the very Son of God?

So yes, acquiring wisdom, developing relationships, working hard, and enjoying life's pleasures are to be done, but they must be done with Jesus as the focus. So do things, but only do those things if they are being done for the glory of God. "Whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God." 1 Corinthians 10:31

And when you get exhausted of doing things, as I often do in this hectic life, step back and question yourself as to why and for whom you are doing these things. Are you trying to be productive and accomplish much to feel valuable, to pay off some sin, to appease a guilty conscience, to please God, or to repay Christ for what he's done for you? If so, draw near to God and repent. Then be filled up in Christ so that you may continue pouring out Christ until that time when you grow weary again. Fill up, so that you may pour out. 

Jesus paid it all,

All to Him I owe,

Sin had left a crimson stain,

He washed it white as snow

Lyrics from Jesus Paid It All by Elvina Hall

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NntEuGCsWwM

Musings from Mexico

Leaving Mexico last year left me with the same doubts and questions I had at the beginning of this year concerning whether I belonged in Mexico and whether our efforts were making any difference. Instead of spending the year brainstorming about new ideas for Mexico or figuring out if God really wanted me there, God took me to Summit Semester and Rivendell where my attention was focused in a different direction. Despite this, throughout the weeks there, God really answered my prayers in surprising ways.

First of all, he reminded me to live moment by moment, instead of trying to figure out the future in one day. For the past couple years, I had it set it my mind that I would be doing youth ministry and missions long term. Whether this really is God's plan for my life doesn't really matter at the present moment since I will never know my future. My goal is not to figure out God's plans for my life, but to live lovingly and obediently every day, to take captive every moment he has given me, and to remember that each breath I take is a gift from the One who sustains my life.

Second of all, God gave me an answer to my doubts about whether or not VBS was worth the time and money and whether it was actually making a difference in the lives of the children we ministered to each year, God truly showed me our efforts are worth it. Because of my family and church's many years of missions work in Mexico, relationships have grown, and I really saw the fruit of that this year. One of these fruits was Josue, whom I have known since my first year in Mexico, eleven years ago. He has gone from a childish boy to a young man strong in his faith and zealous for his Savior. He traveled with us to many of the VBS's leading music, teaching lessons, moving felts, and using a microphone to draw children in. He is only fourteen and stands up for his beliefs despite his peers opposition to his beliefs. Despite his age, he is such an example to me, and God really used him to show me that relationships there are worth the effort. Josue is worth the effort. Oh, how I love that boy. It was so hard to leave him this year.

 New relationships also are beginning to flourish, and through this, new ministry opportunities are presenting themselves through God's great plan. This was also encouraging to discover. 

 Kids would come up to many of us asking if were were going to make the salvation bracelets or if they would be given t shirts to color or whether we would be having a water balloon fight again. The children remember that we come down every year and they remember what we do with them. My prayer is that they would remember the love of Christ that we try so hard to share with them and that seeds would be planted in each of their little hearts so that in years to come, they would look back on their childhood and remember, not us but Christ in us and that that would make all the difference. 

In two locations, Santa Cruz and Cuitaca, I found two little children to whom I devoted my attention. They were both sweet joys in the daily struggle of doing something I did not have the desire or strength to do. It seemed as though my heart was not involved with the work during the week of VBS like it had been in past years. I really think God used those children in my life even as I may have been used in their life. As I showed them kindness since those around them were ignoring them, He showed me that even through my efforts that seem insignificant to me, He can do great and mighty things. God works in beautiful ways.

Through these happenings, God helped me realize that my work as a follower of Jesus is not about the results that I see within people, but that my focus should constantly be on being a light in this dark world. I can do this by being an example, by sharing Christ's great love in all that I do and say. 

Thirdly, God revealed to me a spiritual gift(administrative: 1 Corinthians 12) that he has given me. I have always loved scheduling and organizing things. This year I was able to do a lot of that from writing schedules for girl's camp and the VBS week to assigning people to different teams to writing fliers and menus. Most people seem to look at challenges like that and get thoroughly confused, but I find great joy and satisfaction in the challenge. I was also able to lead a few of the meetings we had, which was pretty crazy. In previous years I would have been extremely nervous doing something like that, but God gave me the strength and courage to use the gift he has given me. Knowing of this gift and how practical it is gives me great joy and really excites me to see how God will use it in me.

When I decided to go to Mexico this year, despite only returning home after five months of being away, I had no clue God had all these lessons in store for me. The two weeks there were incredibly challenging and difficult, but focusing on my source of strength and joy gave me the perseverance to push on. I am so glad he kept challenging me, otherwise my character would not be sharpened like it is today. These lessons learned do not solely affect me in Mexico, but affect me daily here in Utah.

"Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have obtained our introduction by faith into this gracein which we stand; and we exult in hope of the glory of God. And not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope; and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us." Romans 5:1-5

Attempting to Disciple Eighteen Girls

This year's girl's camp, held in the dormitory in San Lazaro, Mexico, lasted from Sunday, July 1^st until Thursday, July 5^th. The team from Utah consisted of Rich and Wendy(my padres), Lisa Evans and Cathy Craner( two women from my church body), Samantha de la Cruz( a young girl from another church body), Mary Kate(my sister), and myself(that's me!).

All the girls and leaders

Day One-Sunday Night

Although it began differently than expected with groups arriving at times different than the allotted time, and most of the girls being disobedient and not sleeping the first night, we tried to give our expectations of the week to God to do according to His will. Since most of us knew that things would not go according to our schedules having the previous year's experience to compare, we welcomed God to change our plans according to how He desired to move. Despite this, it was still a struggle to be flexible and not frustrated when things changed because of our human weakness in wanting things to go our way.

Day Two-Monday

The majority of the “dorm dwellers” began the day exhausted due to lack of sleep. A different strategy tried this year(compared with the previous year) were the three small groups led by Samantha, Mary Kate, and Deborah, a young woman from Nogales. Discussions focusing on the theme, “Su Vida En Cristo” or “Your Life in Christ” lasted about an hour. Because of the girls' fatigue(one girl even asked if it was time to sleep), the discussions lacked responses causing a bit ofdiscouragement for the leaders. As a lesson in consequences for disobedience(referring to the previous night), siesta time replaced game time. I became discouraged at that point due to an increase of disrespect because when I put effort into fixing a problem, I assume that the problem will be fixed right away. This was not the case with these girls; although, it did lead us to realize that respect is an issue that needs to be dealt with especially in these girls.

After lunch, a second siesta, the actual scheduled siesta, was pronounced. In the words of Samantha to the girls, “Siesta time is necessary. If there is no siesta time for the leaders, they will die. We don't want dead leaders.” Because of the continual disrespect, we gringos decided to take time to give the issue to God asking him to work in the hearts of the girls, especially the troublemakers, and that He would use this time to change all of them. My prayer was that even if we did not see a change in the girls right away or even in a few years, that they would eventually look back at their time at the girls camp and be reminded of what they learned; that somehow our efforts in discipling them would be used for God's glory in their lives.

We attempted to show the girls creation science videos led taught by Ken Ham. That attempt failed, sadly, because of their boredom and fatigue. It was a good lesson to learn though that they are not usually made to do things that they don't want to do: another “problem to be fixed”. Samantha and Deborah taught “worship dance” to the girls in which they used their streamers made during craft time. It seemed as though they really enjoyed that.

Deborah

Let me take a moment to share with you about Deborah. She came as a leader last year, and we enjoyed getting to know her heart and character and seeing her leadership qualities. It's not often that we come into contact with leaders in the relationships we make in Mexico(or maybe anywhere). In my eyes, Deborah stands out and deserves acknowledgment for her faith and her zeal for Christ.

Beatrize teaching

Following the nighttime teaching led by Beatrize, a woman from Sinaloa( the state below Sonora, where the dorm is located), a new tactic was tried. Because of the many cliques developing, we decided to break those up by dividing the girls into four different teams to play games involving team work. This caused the girls to get to know those outside of their circle, to communicate better, and to work together to accomplish a certain goal. Laughter erupted constantly, shy girls spoke up, those left out were included, and those in charge were joyful in the success of the game.

At lights out time, Samantha and I walked up and down the hall checking the rooms. Every single light was off and all the girls were sleeping quietly. We hoped it was due to the lesson on disrespect and disobedience we had tried to instill within them, though I think they were thoroughly exhausted.

Day Three- Tuesday

Compared to the previous day, Tuesday was grand. They enjoyed breakfast(happiness filled my mama's heart) and most of the girls responded well and paid attention during small group. Focusing on grace, faith, and salvation, Mary Kate(I was in her group as a helper), made the discussion personal by asking lots of questions. And instead of letting them get away with typical, “Sunday school” answers, Mary Kate asked, “Porque? Ok, pero, porque?(Why? Ok, but, why?) many times. I was surprised, yet encouraged, by their honest answers and questions. An hour passed by quickly as we discussed the biblical doctrines.

Meeting together

Beatrize taught again after small groups. All of us gringos were so thankful for her presence at the camp. Instead of lecturing the girls, she engaged them with questions and didn't constantly shush them. Throughout the day I saw her sitting down with different girls asking them about themselves and also pitching in to help with cleaning and cooking. She truly displayed a servant's heart throughout the week.

Despite being behind on schedule(something that usually bothers me a lot), the day went incredibly smoothly. The girls were more respectful, ventured out of their cliques and made new friends, and loved when we played games with them during their free time.

In the afternoon, the gringos had the time to sit down with Beatrize, inquiring about the problems in the church and culture in Mexico. We asked questions regarding the early pregnancies in young girls, the great disrespect issue we had discovered in the previous days, etc. The answers we got were discouraging in that we realized the problems were greater than we had thought, but simultaneously encouraging because it gave us new thoughts and ideas of how we need to work on fixing those problems through God's grace and strength in the coming years. New ideas about future girls camps were discussed and also about starting boys and girls camps in Beatrize's village, in addition to maybe beginning a parenting conference the following February. The whole discussion greatly encouraged me. Although the problems became bigger and more evident, I realized how much easier they would be to try to conquer because of the developing relationships we have, especially the new one with Beatrize. I could tell that she really cared about the girls at the camp and about the youth in her village as she gave us new ideas and ways we can reach them.

Day Four-Wednesday

The respect and kindness of the girls seemed to increase as the days went on, to our great surprise. The morning small group had great interaction and lots of sarcasm and joking from Mary Kate to lighten the mood. It was really funny to watch them interact with her especially the faces they made when they couldn't figure out if she was being serious or not.

After a combination of all the small groups(also known as gigantic group), we sat the girls in front of an actual movie, Pilgrim's Progress, instead of a lecture based video. My dad made his famous popcorn for them which they thoroughly enjoyed, and after giving it to them, we told them they could not come back into the dormitory until dinner time due to a surprise. See, the girls were famous for having to go to the bathroom or for needing a drink of water during the “attention grabbing” movies we showed them. I did not know that in order to get a drink or go to the bathroom, one girl had to take three other people with her.

As they watched the movie, we women decorated the room with balloons, tablecloths, place settings, and prepared dinner and dessert. Once the preparations were complete and the movie finished, we announced to the girls that they could finally enter the dormitory. As soon as we told them, they raced out of the church building into the dorm and screamed with delight. Their reactions were hilarious as they grinned, shouted and posed for pictures with each other!

To finish off the night, Samantha, Mary Kate, and I told our testimonies of how God had changed our lives and hearts into new ones and what our lives looked like in Christ(Su Vida en Cristo). The girls were attentive and most seemed to relate to at least one of the testimonies. We “allowed”(no, we really wanted them to!) the girls to stay up later because it was the last night at camp. Because of this, some of the girls really opened up to us about themselves. We found out that some really enjoyed reading, which was great since we were beginning a reading program the next week.

Day Four-Thursday

Before the girls departed for their homes, we all gathered in the church building for the girls' testimonies. Each of the girls stood up and described what they had learned during their three days at the camp. Surprisingly and thankfully, most of them talked about how they learned to respect each other and that faith was very important, the two things we really desired them to take away from their time there. Other things mentioned were staying abstinent, being yourself, loving one another, obeying parents, and spending alone time with God. Hearing these testimonies were encouraging to us  all and made our efforts worth it.

I think despite the fatigue of us leaders and the disobedience of the girls at first, the days were spent well. Perhaps we will never know if we actually did make a difference in the lives of each of the girls. I know that we pray and plead with God that seeds were planted and that those seeds would be watered and would begin to flourish. And I know that the goal should not be to see the reward, but to obey Christ's command to go and disciple. I think in a small way we did disciple these girls, and we have received new ideas and techniques for how to better disciple the girls in the coming years. I am so thankful to be a part of the miracles and transformation that God is doing in the lives of the Mexican girls.

If you would like to partner with us( my family and Oasis Vineyard Church) in reaching the teenage girls of Sonora Mexico or being a part of the Vacation Bible School team that occurs annually in July, post a comment. God is truly working in the hearts of our brothers and sisters in Mexico, and help is always needed!

A Story to Be Lived

We, the human race, are a people that love stories. From childhood and adolescence to adulthood and old age, stories consume our lives. A few moments ago, I was sitting with my niece as she listened to and watched a story be played out on an I-pad. Fascinated, she couldn't take her eyes off the screen and eagerly asked for another story once the previous one had finished. My niece is only three. The prevalence of children's books, in addition to many movies and TV shows, indicate how stories are a major part of a child's life. For adolescents and young adults, the longing for stories is satisfied in books, but especially in movies and TV shows. The happiness in telling their own stories is fulfilled in many ways, such as status updates on Facebook, blogging, photography, texting, writing poetry, and making music. I assume that this continues onto adulthood, though I have not studied adults as much. Those in the category of old age probably find fulfillment in some of the areas mentioned above, though TV, movies, and books are probably most popular. The elderly also love to tell stories; stories from when they were children, stories from growing up, stories of encouragement, and stories of warning.

Stories obviously are an incredible part of every person's life, but why? I remember in the past year hearing an explanation of this either from a book or a lecturer. We love stories because we are involved in the greatest story of all time. God created the characters-all human beings-, the setting-earth-, and the plot-creation, the fall of humans, redemption, and restoration. He created each of us to play a part in the greatest play ever written. What a great privilege!

My question then, is how are you playing your part in this story? Are you following the script you've been given, the Bible? Are you acting in accordance with what the director desires? Or are you ignoring his voice as he directs you to where you belong on the stage? In Crazy Love, Francis Chan talks about how life is like a movie, but instead of you or me being the main character as we constantly think, God is the main character. Are you living your life in such a way that God is the main actor, the most important part of the movie, the star, the one whom everyone loves? Or are you living as though you are the main actor who gets all the credit, who should get all the attention and affection, who deserves all happiness?

The most recent book I have been reading, A Million Miles in a Thousand Years( by Donald Miller), discusses this idea in a different way. The book's emphasis is that your life is a story, and the author proceeds to tell about how boring and pointless his story was and how he changed that. I love how Miller explains what a story is. To sum it up, a good story should be one that involves conflict, overcoming fear, taking risks, loving, and enjoying the beauty God has given us. A good story is also one that should affect others in a positive way, one that changes lives for good. Every day is like another page that God writes according to how we act out the story. Each day brings us closer to the ending of the story. What's your story like? Is it impacting the lives around you, or is it focused inwardly? Is your story a story of sacrifice or a story of selfishness? Does your story involve risk taking or is it consumed in fear?

I urge you to live an amazing story, one that God would read again and again, like we do with a good story. Be courageous; love; act sacrificially; be humble; serve. Act just as all the heroes in the best movies act. As a character in the greatest story ever written, act your part as though the greatest play writer in the world were watching every move you made, because He is.