The Gift of Now--Wesley Foundation E-Letter (Methodist Campus Ministry)

Dear Friends,

 

Hope all of you are having a great day, and staying warm!  The weather changes so fast around here.  Before you know it we will be in heavy coats! 

 

Here is fun stuff coming up:

 

Thursday night is our regular meal and program at 6:30pm.  This will be your opportunity to share what the Wesley Foundation means to you with members of our Board of Directors.  It will also give them an opportunity to ask questions about your experience here as a student.  We will also spend some time getting ready for our Outreach program that we will do on Sunday afternoon.

 

This Sunday is our annual Thanksgiving Banquet and Outreach Program.  Please invite your families.  We will be eating a meal together as well as sharing a message of God’s grace that centers around the story of the prodigal.  Meet at the Wesley Foundation at 3:30.  Our meal will be potluck style featuring soup and appetizers. 

 

Each Christmas the Wesley Foundation takes on a project that supports a special need in our community.  This year we will be adopting the Pregnancy Support Center as a way of helping out new mothers in difficult circumstances.  Here is the cool thing:  Next week bring $5 - $10 to the Wesley on Thursday night.  We will pool everyone’s money and go shopping for baby items together!  During dinner a representative from the Pregnancy Support Center will be sharing with us about the ministry they provide to new mothers who need help, and we will have a time of prayer for this ministry and those lives it touches.  This is a wonderful way to celebrate Jesus’ birth by bringing a celebration to those who wouldn’t have one otherwise!

 

Now For Sami’s Ramblings About Jesus:

 

As I was running this morning I couldn’t help thinking about the last few months at my house.  Slowly I have been letting go of, giving away, all of the accumulated baby stuff from Noah and Isaiah’s first days and months.  I gotta say it has been hard.  Each time I would load something up, my heart would hurt.  Each box has been one more reminder that a season, a very special season, is over. 

 

But something else has been happening with every box that leaves.  We have more room in our house.  And I am finding that something significant is happening spiritually that mirrors what has happened physically.  Relinquishing the physical reminders of the past has made more room in my heart to embrace what is now.  This morning as we were watching “Cars” for the millionth time, Isaiah just reached over and hugged me.  I relished that precious moment.  And in a split second I realized that there would be a time when I would long for today, just as I sometimes long for those baby days.  It made me want to really be present to this “today” moment, and let nothing, not even fond memories of the past, hinder me from living it fully and joyfully now.

 

I think this is such an important principle for college students.  In this life you live so much is happening so fast.  And every six months your day to day circumstances change with your class schedule.  It can be so easy to wish for days gone by, or to long for days to come.  If you aren’t careful you have wished and longed your whole college career away without really enjoying any of it.  But when you really relish each day, soaking up the gift that it has to give, I believe the special-ness it has to impart stays with you a long after the moment is gone.

 

This is one of those foundational truths that apply everywhere.  Even in ministry.  God’s in-breaking presence is so constant that every moment is a new moment to connect with Him.  And Jesus continues to incarnate Himself (that is to become flesh) every day through brothers and sisters in Christ who allow Him access to their lives.  Truly His followers make Him manifest over and over again, every moment.  And so, while it is good to remember what God has done in our midst before, to learn from it and allow it to make us wise, we cannot become so enamored of the God thing that was that we miss the God thing that is. 

 

This is what it looks like for me in those quiet moments that I share just with Him:  I offer Him my heart, here and now, just as I am.  I ask Him to make me aware of where He is today, and that He would order my steps in this day so that I am a part of His Life unfolding within mine.  I just don’t want to miss Him.  He is everything to me.  And I trust that where He leads is definitely a place worth going.

 

So my dear friends who are also a part of His Life unfolding within you, I want to challenge you to be present to the God thing that is now.  Appreciate what has been, learn from it, cherish it, and let it be held in God’s hands.  But keep your own hand free to receive the gift of today.  You will be so happy you did!

 

This is me trusting,

 

Sami

 

 

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Sami Wilson

Campus Minister/Director

WKU Wesley Foundation

United Methodist Campus Ministry

270-842-2880

sami.wilson@wku.edu