WE GO
Submitted on behalf of Macie Moseley (my beautiful and talented daughter in-law).
1 Thessalonians 2:8, “We loved you so much that we shared with you not only God’s Good News but our own lives, too.”
We are each His beautiful vessel, called to pour out the light and love of Christ; therefore, WE GO...
I was introduced to the ministry of Young Life in the Fall of 2009, when I was a freshman in High School. If you aren’t familiar with the organization of Young Life, I’ll give you some context.
Young Life is a parachurch organization who describes their work in this way:
“We invite kids to follow Christ, care for them regardless of their response, and change lives in the process.”
Essentially, Young Life is a ministry that isn’t associated with a specific church or denomination, but instead is based on relationships. Young Life leaders volunteer their time and energy to build friendships with High School kids; they go to their sports games, show up at their lunch period and invite them to hang out. Young Life leaders build relationships with kids and develop trust by “earning the right to be heard,” ultimately sharing the good news of Jesus Christ with kids.
Young Life changed my life in High School. I grew up going to church and had a personal relationship with Jesus from the time I was 9 years old, but it only went so deep until my Young Life leaders invested in me and told me the way the God viewed me: as His beloved, chosen, treasured daughter.
Young Life showed me what exactly it looked like to have a life like the one Jesus talks about in John 10:10 when He says, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” Young Life introduced me to the person of Christ, ultimately changing my life.
The ministry of Young Life is a huge part of my story, and my husband’s story for that matter. We both know Jesus because a Young Life leader cared enough about us to pursue us and tell us how much Jesus loved us and longed for us to live with Him and for Him.
In 2013, I found myself at the University of Tennessee in my Freshman year. It was during that year that I felt the Lord calling me to GO and pursue High School kids the same way that I was pursued as a high school student. Excited and nervous, I answered His call and got placed as a Young Life leader at Farragut High School in Knoxville, TN in Spring 2014.
My calling as a Young Life leader is this: to go after kids… all of them. The kids who have it all together, the kids with broken homes, the kids with free and reduced lunch, the kids who make straight As, the kids who get drunk and high on the weekends and the kids who are Holier than thou. Jesus loves every single one of those kids, as He made evident throughout the Gospels when He invited spiritually and physically sick people to hang out with Him… and because He loves them, He calls me to love them too.
I’ve led Young Life for 5 years now, and am finishing up my first year leading with my husband, James, in Charlotte, NC at Charlotte Latin School.
What does answering this calling on my life look like for me? It looks like… … showing up to Young Life events on my Monday night after a long day at work … losing an hour of sleep to spend time in God’s word with kids on Friday mornings at 7 A.M.
… using 40 hours of paid time off to take girls to Young Life Camp (a taste of Heaven on Earth, where kids experience life to the full) … being vulnerable with high school kids as I share my struggles with them … risking awkward moments to build relationships with kids who ignore me, or never talk to me again … inviting kids into my day to day life to show them they are cared for and valued (1 Thess. 2:8) Ultimately, my calling to be a Young Life leader is this: to enter into the lives of high school kids on their best days and their worst days and to love them the way Christ loves me.
Even when it’s hard, even when it’s inconvenient, even when it’s scary: we are called to GO.
More Scripture:
Isaiah 6:8, “Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?” And I said, “Here am I. Send me!””
Luke 15:4-7, “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.”
Dear Lord,
Thank you for the calling you have placed on each and every one of us to GO out into the world and share the love you’ve so kindly lavished upon us. Lord Jesus, we praise you for your loving kindness. You value each and every human life and desire to be in relationship with your creation. Give us your eyes and your heart to faithfully pursue those around us. Help us to sincerely build relationships and earn the right to be heard with those around us. Help us to be bold and fearless as we engage with others who don’t know you. We love you so much. Amen.
