The Update

  A little housekeeping to take care of, a new health form is required for every student each ministry year. That means it is time for the 2008-2009 health forms.
These forms serve as a reference for medical information and emergency contact information as well as a permission slip for all NSL Events over the next year. There are places where both students and parents must sign.
You can download the health form here.
Bring the completed form to Sunday Mornings, The Table, or The Gathering. Otherwise you can mail the completed form to:

Thanks!

Inspired by this morning’s lesson @ NSL, we are starting a new weekly feature here on The Update.

This morning we talked about the importance of having meaningful connections with one another. We also talked about how spending all your time talking about trivial stuff tends to create weak bonds, and that making the effort to find out what people really think about relevant things in their life is a good way to build each other up and grown deeper bonds to one another.

We’re hoping we can help out with that by posing a question each week here on The Update. The questions will be a little more serious than the “What’s your favorite food group?” ones you used to find on the NSL Homepage, they are meant to get you thinking.

So when we post a question, then you go ahead and respond by leaving a comment below. Just click where it says “0 comments” or “4 comments” or whatever the number is. It’s a great way to share what you think and get to know what others think to.

And remember, you can always head to the NSL Forums for even more in-depth conversation.

So that’s the deal with the “Question of the Week.” Let’s get started. This week’s question is…

“If you could ask God one question what would it be?”

Last night at The Gathering we talked about creating a masterpiece.

The conversation was from Ephesians 2:10 which says, “For we are God’s masterpiece. He created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.” (NLT)

A paraphrase would be, “You are an example of the best work of your Creator. He took the mess and junk in your life and painted over it, so now you are free to start a new picture, full of the colors and shapes that God likes.”

I had the opportunity to watch a guy paint a picture once. He started making marks here and there, large bold splatters of paint as he dipped his bare hands into the paint can and used them in place of his brush.

As he kept painting, I struggled to figure out what he was making, what it was going to look like when it was all done. I couldn't tell if he was painting a person or a place or just making abstract smears across the canvas.

He kept going, and with each mark I thought the picture would come clearer, but instead I just grew more confused. Soon, the entire canvas was covered and I still had no idea what this guy was painting.

Then, in the course of about 30 seconds, he took some black paint and drew a simple outline around the different groupings of color he had made, and then, as clear as could be, I saw the face of Jesus. A crown of thorns, a cross to carry, and a hauntingly simple expression of painful determination.

It was all clear.

My life works like that. There are smears of color going all over the place. I make an effort to follow God each day, but at the end of those days I am often confused by what exactly it is we are painting. I'm pretty sure that I was working with God, but I can't tell what it is we are making. There are bright colors from fun things that I enjoyed, dark smudges from difficult things that made the day seem darker. Shapes of times I knew what I was doing and scribbles from times that I was confused and unsure about my steps.

And you end up with this big chaotic mess. A mess that doesn't make sense. A mess that reminds me of all that has happened without answering the giant, "WHY?" behind it all.

And then, every once in a while. God comes in and takes the black paint and draws a simple outline around the different groupings of color we have made. And clear as could be, I see the face of Jesus.

The black outlines come in different ways, times of crises in my life or times when a friend discovers their own relationship with Jesus or times of sitting and reflecting on all that has happened. I never know when it will all finally become clear, so I just have to keep painting.

And once I see that face, it is time to hang that particular picture in the gallery of my memories, a reminder of how everything in my life still came together to show the beauty of my Artist. Then we pick up another canvas and start smearing bright colors all over it as we paint the next masterpiece.

Wednesday nights are back. The Gathering (the midweek meeting for Junior High students) starts tomorrow night!

We are meeting at our new location, the Cases’ home in Maple Grove. We meet from 6:30pm – 8:30pm each week for great conversations and a bit of a ruckus. It’s a blast!

For directions to the Cases’ and more information just head on over to The Gathering website,
northwoodcc.org/thegathering