Overwhelmed for I am Never Alone

Slow down…

Pause…

Stop…

Reflect...

I have found that I need this for my soul… to remember.

Honestly, I believe we all do. It’s one of the reasons God gave us the command to rest. We need to take time for reflection. Without it, we never really truly realize the weight of all He has done for us.

Today, I’m recalling the past 6-7 years. For my life, that was when the whirlwind hit.

February 27, 2008 was the day my dad died…

May 26, 2008 was the day my husband’s dad died…

September 3, 2008 was the day our youngest daughter was born…

She was named with a purpose to remember and honor her Papa and Grandpa.

Our Girls September 2008

We brought her to church the next Sunday just as we did with both of her sisters. For our family, attending church on Sunday mornings isn’t optional. It’s what we do. It’s where we want to be.

A couple of weeks after her birth, however, our church moved out of the building we attended since years before our oldest was born. It was a big change… especially considering we were moving from a building that was within walking distance to a school (not far from the land that would someday hold our new building), about 15-20 minutes away.

And today is the last time we will gather together as a church family in that school. Christmas Eve will feel a bit like entering the Promised Land as we gather at our new building. I don’t want to miss this opportunity to reflect.

Our Girls September 2014

Last week, our family had the privilege to do the Advent reading at church. Each one of our girls surprised us and confidently spoke into the microphone just as they were asked to do. That was the start of my emotional morning.

Our children have had the experience of doing “church” in a way that doesn’t claim a building. They’ve had the experience of helping “set up” church. There is behind-the-scenes work that they’ve had a hand in. And this morning, I am grateful.

It hasn’t always been easy or ideal doing portable church. And yet, this season for our church family has truly been a gift. I pray that my girls will always remember this time in the school so that they never forget this: The “church” is the people. The “church” is not a building. If we, the people, do not actively participate… attend… serve… give… there is no church. I pray that our time at Channahon Junior High will be a memory to reinforce this in my daughters’ minds… in my mind.

2008 was a tug-of-war with my emotions. If it weren’t for writing, I don’t even know how much I would actually remember. And yet, last Sunday, as I held my 6-year-old on my hip, those memories formed in tears. She sang the words of the final two songs in my ear and I could hardly keep my composure.

The tears poured because God has done an amazing work not only in my church, but in my very own heart. Oh, how true these words are. It’s the message God wanted me so desperately to grasp. In all of it… my entire life… broken friendships; broken hearts; broken lives… I was never alone… “Never Once” and that leaves me “Overwhelmed”. It’s not about me. It’s all about God.

I don’t want to forget. I want to always remember.

Slow down…

Pause…

Stop…

Reflect…

And remember…

He did it all because He loves me. He loves you. If we could only all grasp His message this Christmas. This is what the world needs. That’s why Jesus is the greatest gift ever given.

Never Once by Matt Redman

"Overwhelmed" by Big Daddy Weave

Join us at Southfield on Christmas Eve at 4:30 or 6:00 (located on Route 6 in Channahon, across from Turnstone Drive). If you can't make it then, join us on a Sunday at 9:30 or 11:00. I'd love to see you there!