I meant to write this last night, but by the time I got to it around 1:00 AM, decided that it would be better for me to salvage the few hours of sleep I could get and write it now, in my break before my horn lesson (ended up finishing it at lunch after my lesson). Last night’s Chi Alpha meeting was really good, especially because of the message from the guest speaker, but there were two parts that stuck out to me in particular. The student testimony was from a third-year who came to be a believer her first year of college. Somewhere in her testimony she brought up the fact that the joy we have as followers of Christ is much different from any happiness we find from earthly things. Not only is it deeper, but it is a constant, pure feeling that, so long as we have faith, never fades. I think I had heard that comparison, but I had forgotten it, so it was a good reminder.
The guest speaker focused his talk on the story of Jesus walking on water, comparing it to a particularly “stormy” story from his life. In the story, Jesus sends the disciples out on the Sea of Galilee at night, then walks out to them in the middle of a powerful storm. His followers are terrified at this point, both because of the powerful waves and wind from the storm and because they thought Jesus was a ghost or spirit. But in the midst of the chaos, Jesus tells, or more accurately shouts, them to “Take heart; It is I. Do not be afraid.” (Mark 6: 50) The speaker explained how the “It is I” is translated from the same vocabulary that is translated as “I AM” in the Old Testament. Jesus is subtly reminding them who He is, and that He is in control. The same thing still applies to us today. No matter what we face in our lives, God is always there, shouting to us that it will be okay.
One Hour Till Midnight 