On June 27^th, I received a text message that sent my mind into a tailspin: “A huge tornado just ripped through Tuscaloosa.  Lots of damage.”  Since I had lived and done ministry there for six years, the city of Tuscaloosa (and its people) are close to my heart.  Such news made my heart sink and seeing the devastation on the news in the days following, left me speechless.  A couple months later, in June, I had the opportunity to lead a team of high school students to Tuscaloosa to aid in disaster relief.

As we cleared debris and sorted through what was once a home, God opened our eyes to the work He was doing in the area. Just as the tornado had torn down the walls of these buildings, God was tearing down the walls of race, religion, and socio-economic status, and rebuilding a sense of hope and love for one another. People from all across the country were coming to help and to love on the people of Tuscaloosa.  What an incredible lesson it was for our team to see that, no matter what pain and destruction comes in life, the love of God brings life, healing, and hope.  Students are still telling me of all of the ways this trip has changed their lives.  Praise God.

I sat and watched hundreds of teenagers gather around a cross and pray and cry out that their lives would change and would count for something significant.  I was stunned at the authenticity of their prayers filled with the desire to see their generation affected by God’s love.  Two emotions were battling each other:  one was hope and the other was despair.  Hope that these young people would stand above the prevailing cultural trends calling them to waste their lives on things that don’t count.  Despair that they just wouldn’t make it and this  was just an emotional experience that they would vaguely remember in the years to come.  These were messed up young people, not the ideal candidates to lead a generation into purity, holiness, and radical living.  Things I had heard during the week like, “I have never seen my father,” “I don’t think I can stop smoking weed,” “When I go home I have to go back to jail for stealing a car,” were filling my mind.  These are the type kids that most adults think are hopeless.  Then it hit me.  God hasn’t given up on them, in fact, these are God’s favorites.  The marginalized, the downcast, the hurting – scripture is filled with stories of God transforming the lives of those that no one thought could change.  I have hope.  I have more hope than ever that God has plans that far exceed ours – to raise up a generation of young people filled with Jesus’s love and empowered to live for eternity!  Please take a moment and pray for this generation of teenagers. 

Vision is the key to our life having meaning.  Vision breaks the barriers of limits and opens up future possibilities.  I am convinced that people are more at peace and fulfilled when they are living for a vision beyond their own lives.  We consistently hear stories that confirm this.  I have recently been re-reading Henry Nouwen's Beloved, and was reminded of his story. 

     Nouwen, a Harvard professor, popular writer and leader, left all the prominence that those positions held and went to serve a handicapped community, L'Arche.   Why would Nouwen do this?  Because he had vision of a preferred future that changed the direction of his life toward better loving God and serving people. In an article in Christianity Today, Nouwen wrote, "Many people ask me, 'How can I help people? Or help the youth to come to Christ? Or preach well?'  But these are all basically nonissues. If you are burning with the love of Jesus, don't worry: everyone will know. They will say, 'I want to get close to this person who is so full of God.' When God's people get a vision of Him, we can't help but change and reorient our lives towards God's purpose!

     What is the vision you are living for?  When was the last time you encountered the presence of God that brought out the depth of His call on your life?

     At Youth For Christ, our vision is to reach every young person...one at a time.