everyone can have a second chance!

Wow! Do you ever have those moments when God just totally blesses you through the life of someone else? Well, that has happened to me this week over and over again. I am beyond impressed with the lives of the leaders of the Huddle Club: MJ, Amy, and Danny. They are the three students we have been working with this whole week at Huntington Park High School, helping them put on this "I Agree" campaign. They are probably some of the coolest high school students I have ever met.

To be honest, This week the Lord has totally changed my entire perspective of my role for this week. Without even realizing it, I had come into this week thinking I would help stir up these high school students, encouraging them in their walks with the Lord, and challenging them to take a firmer stand for Christ. But wow. I never expected to encounter three young people who loved the Lord as much as they do. Daily I am inspired by them. Daily I am challenged. Daily I am convicted at my lack of boldness for Christ...all through their own lives.

If you've ever stepped foot on a high school campus in Los Angeles you will know the incredibly hard mission field these students face on a daily basis. It is one thing for us to come in for a week, help them out, do evangelism and stand out as "outsiders" and then leave. We don't really face the persecution because we go home. But is another thing for them: They see these students every day for the entire year...and yet they still take a bold stand for Christ. As they have worn their "I Agree" shirts, they have had the chance to talk of God's saving power in their classes, they boldly walk up to their peers after school to do evangelism, they pass out tracks during school and at work, and have looked for every opportunity to make a difference. And they are so grateful for this campaign because it keeps opening more and more doors to share.

Where does this boldness come from? I have realized it is based in their wholehearted belief that the Gospel changes lives. As I have heard their testimonies, which they will be sharing with the school on Friday, and heard about the contrast from who they were before Christ and who they now are, I am amazed. God has changed their lives. All three live in non-Christian homes and have endured more than I can ever imagine. But beyond that, they want to share with their school of the drastic changes in their lives. They are sooo grateful for a second chance and can't but help to tell everyone in sight. They want to spare them from the hopelessness of the world and help them see the hope of Christ. Their life is a testimony for the Lord.

As I have spent time with them, I am challenged. I want to have the same passion and boldness. I want to have it flow out of me because I too see the power of Christ.
It's amazing how you can go on a trip thinking that you will help change the lives of the club members, and instead walk away changed yourself. I am changed by the lives of MJ, Amy, and Danny. I praise God for bringing them into my life. All I can say is that I too want to live sold out for Christ!