The Power of Friendship

This blog entry is dedicated to all the young ladies in the G180 Youth Group, I love you girls.

We often talk to young people about being cautious of who influences them but I want to take a different approach. Who do they influence?

My husband and I have been working with a young lady close to 5 years now that has her share of problems. She's been bounced around the foster care system, often times become self destructive/self mutilating and is constantly battling depression. For four of those five years we have done our best to include her in all youth activities and events but to her "Sis. Siena invites me and picks me up because its her job to do that". Roughly a year ago we started noticing a shift in our youth group. Our young people were starting to mature and have a burden for their peers. In the process our girls have really rallied around this one young lady. She's received the precious gift of the Holy Ghost, has a desire to get baptized and seems to no longer desire a self destructive path. She is just now starting to live for God, after five years.

So what changed? Did God's love for her change? Of course not but the love she felt from her peers did. We don't serve God because of friendships but friendships and disciplining is crucial in building a walk with God.

My firs Pastor would tell us almost every service "People don't care how much you know, until they know how much you care". Do we have the truth? Absolutely, without a shadow of a doubt. Will arguing doctrine with a single mother trying to survive let her know how much you care about the well being and salvation of her family?

I heard a message once of about a great army that linked their shields when they went into battle so that if someone stumbled or fell the soldiers to their right and left could support them. I pray that army be a model to our young people and to our church. You never know when a trial may come and you find yourself the unstable soldier in the middle. We are our brother's keeper, and sisters too.

Please pray for my youth group, I mean that with all sincerity. I know there are folks reading this blog that do not follow publicly but I am asking for your prayers. We have a lot of new young people looking our way and I pray that our youth can be used to disciple them. If you have a prayer request you'd like to have folks of like precious faith pray for feel free to leave it in the comments section or email me directly. You have my word that myself, my husband and our youth will hold it up before God in prayer.

In all sincerity,

Siena
vanheusenconsulting@gmail.com