HEY TRIBE!!!

It was great to see you guys again last night.  I missed you over the break.  I hope you had a great one.  First off, I just got back from Camp Eagle yesterday and it was incredible!  The student ministries team went and had a blast.  We went hiking, mountain biking, and traversing across a cliff.  Some of us went kayaking and canoeing.  It gets me so PUMPED about camp!  If you are excited about camp, you need to sign up ASAP because it won't be long before we run out of spaces. 

Last Wednesday Kyle did an amazing job of talking to us about pain from the outside.  The story of Joseph is so full of examples that we can apply to our everyday lives.  One of the things I love most about the Bible is that it isn't full of perfect people or perfect circumstances.  Joseph was abused by his brothers and imprisoned for years (Genesis 37).  Yet somehow, he managed to continue to love God and follow him wholeheartedly.  As a matter of fact, he was able to say at the end of the whole experience:

 "As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive." (Genesis 50:20)

 There are many of you reading this blog right now that have been through a lot.  If this statement is true of you, let me first say, I'm sorry that you are going through what you are going through.  I can't even pretend to know why you are going through it or what it feels like.  What I do know is that God is there even in the midst of suffering.  It doesn't always feel like it but He is.  He is waiting for you to call on Him in prayer to help you through it (Psalm 34:18). 

He also wants you to find other followers of Christ to talk to and share the burden of this problem (Galatians 6:2).  God can heal your scars.  It doesn't matter what they are.  He can not only begin the healing process but He is so powerful that He can heal others as a result.  All you have to do is trust Him and call out to Him in your pain.  

In Christ, 

Matt