Giving Thanks with Broken Hearts & Open Hands

Acts Chapter Two Stuff... going down here.

Our LORD, God, I come to you tonight in thanks.

I thank you for our brokenness.

That's a really strange reason to give thanks,

but we're all here in our brokenness.

I give You thanks for this because I realize now that we 

are all here lying broken together. 

You have brought us here for our separate reasons of brokenness,

but you have brought us together to walk your path in this place.

I give you thanks for our brokenness because it is this brokenness

that allows us to be: discipled, trained, and 

reformed by the Master's hand. Reshaped again

for our created purpose.

And so now I ask that you take our broken state and allow us: 

to see You, to see others how You see them,

and even to see ourselves how You see us. 

God, we invite you to encounter us on the road.

Meet us in ways that we do not expect, teach us along the way.

Let us have those bread-breaking moments when 

You are suddenly and unmistakably in the midst.

Change us. We give You thanks for our brokenness.

We ask you to use it so that we seek 

and find more of You. Make our hearts

burn within us along the road.

These were just a few words spoken tonight during our time together tonight, after spending our first day when everything just seemed to "click" into place. Our time with the children felt natural, effortless, and meaningful. David slew Goliath, we sang praise, we played games, and we thrilled the kids with a giant parachute. 

We shopped at the market, learned how to bathe at the cities' natural thermal spa (the only hot water available), participated in the worship service, and had wonderful authentic Guatemalan meals together around a shared table. 

Tonight, for the first time, the group asked to have a closing devotional. It surely was the Spirit, it had been on my heart as well. We have been serving together for a week, and it was like a giant dam bursting as emotions found words and hearts realized that they were not alone.

Some healing began tonight in the lives of us all. We shared hopes, dreams, and struggles. Tonight was the night when we became brothers and sisters. Things got real. 

We closed with a simple song, sang by Cameron, called "Nothing To Hold On To." It beautifully summed up our day. Sometimes the message that God sends just comes at you in waves. Today we talked about Abraham and His total faith in God even though God's commands seemed so strange. Then later in our devotion led by Jacob, the faith of Abraham was again mentioned.

And then... this song, speaking of those hard times when we have to climb up the mountain in obedience even though we don't understand why we must make the effort. Even in the trying times of life, God can and will use His children... because He formed us, He made us, He breathed His breath within us to give us life. He knew us before we were born.

He is the God that pursues us. And so, with hands wide open, we give Him praise for our brokenness that allows us to fully receive Him as we make our way... along the road.

We are exhausted, and yet we rest with a new found peace. This is probably a good thing, because (6) 5 gallon buckets of paint await us for the morning!