What Would You Say?

On Saturday Cathy and I had the joy of traveling to the national tournament games for our women’s soccer and woman’s volleyball teams. The greater joy of this trip was seeing both our teams take their respective national championships. Mega congrats to these girls and their coaches.

The games were in Orlando just about 2 hours from our home. Along for the ride was CJ Johnson, a junior information systems major from Hutchinson, Kansas. If you know CJ you know that there were no awkward “what should I say next” moments. Cathy did a good job staying in the conversation even though her mouth was wired shut from her recent surgery.

During the drive back CJ asked me an interesting question. He asked “what would you suggest that I work on in my life?” After pondering this for a moment, I suggested that he work on maturing his faith in Christ so he will have the resolve to face challenging days the Lord has prepared for him. I encouraged him to anchor His soul to Christ, His Word, and His Grace. I reminded him of the value of life in local church community. I am sure all of us would have different but yet similar scripts to write for CJ. My response was motivated by some painful reminders of my own immature gospel-void responses to challenging situations. The gospel is so sufficient not only to save but also to sustain and to sanctify. I am grateful that it so wonderfully deals with our past, present, and future.