Let God Interrupt...

This weekend was one of those weekends at Cole, as happen every so often around here. The church staff has been in prayer the last couple weeks for one of our staff member's husbands who is in critical condition in the hospital with pneumonia plus swine flu. We are still praying, and invite you to follow his status at Caring Bridge. Then, Saturday night, a teenage girl in the youth group was in a car accident with her mom. Her mom was killed and the girl was in the hospital for a few days. Plus, the dominant news story for the last two weeks in Boise has been the disappearance of an 8 year old boy. Large searches, daily news conferences, ribbons, prayers, nightly vigils. And it appears that it was his body that was found yesterday floating in a local canal. Add that to broken marriages, lost jobs, other illnesses and surgeries, and hurting people, and it was a heavy weekend around here. 

Rodd preached on Sunday about the examples of Timothy and Epaphroditus, men whom Paul has planned to send to the people of Philippi. They are men who have encouraged Paul. Rodd used a quote from Bonhoeffer (who knew something about heavy seasons, ministering in Nazi Germany), from his amazing book on community, Life Together. "We must be ready to allow ourselves to be interrupted by God. God will be constantly crossing our paths and canceling our plans by sending us people with claims and petitions . . . we do not assume that our schedule is our own to manage, but allow it to be arranged by God." Rodd made the point that our lives are not our own, that we are to be people who let God interrupt, that God's leading us to love others is part of living in the heart of Gospel-Centered Community. 

In the midst of the heaviness of the last week, today those of us at the office got to see God interrupt. One of our truly wonderful office staff ladies, Chris, came leaping back to the offices this afternoon to tell those of us who were around that she had just led her mother to receive and proclaim Jesus as her Lord. Chris has been praying for and sharing Christ with her mom for over 30 years, and just felt moved to share with her again today. Chris let God interrupt her,  and the Spirit had prepared her mom, and today Heaven is rejoicing. When we let God interrupt us, whether we're feeling heavy or bored or comfortable or whatever, we allow Him to share something beautiful with others. Thanks, Chris for sharing with us what God did in you.

- Josh