He Who Began a Good Work
“And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.” Philippians 1:6
Do the beauty and wonder of camp days seem far away right now? Does your heart long for the simple goodness of Greystone: the yummy food, majestic mountains, heartfelt conversations, laughter, the feeling that you belong and are known?
For many of us, time at Greystone softens our hearts, making us eager to learn, allowing us to look and listen for God’s work. We have the time and company to consider who God is and how kind he is to his beloved children.
So, what about now? As summer days have faded and we step into the thick of school and friends and demands that are bigger than we can handle, how do we hang on to the peace that we felt at camp, the peace that’s getting crowded out by everything else on our plates right now? Do you think God wants us to just hang on tight, grit our teeth, and hope that we’ll make it back to camp with a shred of the faith that we had last summer when we left? Do we spend these months fearing failure, fearing that we’ll disappoint him, afraid that we’ll give into the pressures and temptations around us?
In the book of Philippians, Paul tells us that God finishes what he begins in us. This means that the growth and faith that God brought about while you were at Greystone won’t be abandoned. The seed has been planted, and it is God who makes it grow.
The beauty is that our walk with Jesus is a lifelong journey. . . . God is so committed to you that he will grow your faith for a lifetime. Your heart may feel different now than it did at Greystone, but that doesn’t mean that God has given up on you. He will never leave you. Even when circumstances are difficult and life seems out of control, God, the one who made you, holds it all together by his grace.
As you go about your day, be reminded that God loves you dearly. When he sent his son Jesus to live here and die for our sin, he gave us a picture of his commitment and love . . . a kind, generous, selfless, and extravagant love.
“O Love that will not let me go. I rest my weary soul in Thee.”
For Further Reading: Isaiah 43:1-7