CYUAG

So last night, I went to CYUAG which stands for Christian Youth United for the Advancement of the Gospel. (I think). It was a really cool experience. It was for Free Worship night which was an interesting concept where you just come and worship. I was blessed by God last night in many ways. One of the things I loved was that all the people there were so friendly! So many people approached us after the service and just talked to us and asked about our lives and such. They kept asking us to come back Sunday and in the future. It was something that I loved and due to their friendliness, I hope to go again in the future.
Last night, I got to thinking however, about the church and how friendly it was. I thought it was kind of sad that I was surprised by how friendly they were, but that's the truth. Many churches don't go out of their way to make newcomers feel welcome. Even within InterVarsity, it can be hard to make new friends because people already have their groups of friends and don't often go out of their comfort zone. I've had conversations with people who say that they try to arrive after the service has started in order to avoid the awkwardness of being alone. But last night, even before we entered the main area of the church, we had people asking for our names and welcoming us in. I loved it!
So if you're ever at church and you see somebody new, go up to them and talk to them. Make them feel welcome. It's something I hope to be able to work on in the future.

Pain

I finished reading The Problem of Pain by C.S. Lewis a few weeks ago. It's a book I recommend as Lewis talks about why humans go through pain and how God uses it to grab our attention. Lewis says that pain is God speaking through a megaphone telling us to approach Him and give our all to Him.

Right now I'm going through a tough time emotionally and I'm feeling a lot of pain in my life. They say that God has a plan for everything and everything always works out for the best, but when you're in pain, it's hard to see that. When you're in the midst of the storm, it's hard to see the sunlight waiting on the other side. I understand that God has something better out there, but when I'm in the midst of pain it's hard to fully comprehend that. As humans we love to live in the here and now. We're all about gratifying our immediate desires. As a result we often find it hard to fully understand the big picture. Like Job, sometimes God puts us through a troubling situation in order that we emerge from that troubling time with more blessing.

Psalm 34:18 says that the Lord is close to the brokenhearted and that's a verse I've been clinging onto for the past several days. That's the beauty of Christianity. When it seems like everything is dark and meaningless, we have hope to cling onto. No matter what we're going through, we have the hope of Jesus Christ and the Comforter that is among us, the Holy Spirit. God has promised to always be with us and God never goes back on His promise. Jesus himself went through much pain in his earthly life so Jesus can identify with our pain. He knows what we're going through. But by the grace of God, we have the Holy Spirit, our link to God's presence to comfort us through everything that we go through. Although it can be hard to want to worship God in the midst of pain, that is when we should worship Him the most. Sometimes God has to put us through the fire in order that we emerge as refined gold. And though the pain may hurt, God will never put us through something that we won't be able to bear. And we must always remember that in the midst of pain, we have the Lord of the universe at our side in order help us through the tough moments. So don't be afraid to cry or to get angry. Embrace your emotions. Let the tears come. Let the anger show. But never forget that God is still there by your side.