Every night of training camp, after the heat had died down and we’d washed off the Georgia Red Clay, we would come together to worship and listen to some amazing speakers. One night Don Rock, director of the Ambassador program, shared about The Emotional Bucket. He explained that the things that happen in our life, and our reaction to those things, fill up our emotional bucket. We get hurt – be it big or small – and we stuff it down inside of us, not wanting anyone to know the pain we experienced. Because of that hurt we begin to feel angry at the people who hurt us… then we feel guilty for the anger… then false guilt… then condemnation… the list goes on and on and on… and our bucket fills and fills and fills… and eventually spills. And the people who are around us begin to slip in the junk spilling out of our lives. Unless we let the Lord deal with the hurts that happened in our lives. Let the Lord empty out our hurts and our pains and fill us with His love, joy, peace, patience… etc, etc.
After he finished Don opened it up for anyone who needed ministry… And then the Holy Spirit arrived…
As worship began participants began to stand, grab a leader, and walk out to pray and deal with all that God was doing. One girl came to me and we talked about the things God was speaking to her. As we finished I heard it… “Go find Joy” (we’ll call her “Joy” for privacy’s sake). I looked up and searched the audience… and she was no where to be found. Knowing that God would bring about whatever He wanted to accomplish, I waited for Him to bring her to me. I walked to another girl and prayed over her for the freedom God wanted to bring. As we finished, I looked up again and there was Joy, standing in the back with a fake smile plastered on her face. “Okay, Lord… here we go.”
I walked to Joy and smiled. Not knowing what God wanted to do, I just did what I always do: Hugged her. As I wrapped my arms around her, she started lightly crying… then weeping… and then just broke in my arms. We walked together out to the field and I just held her while she cried and cried… emptying out years of all she had bottled up. Eventually the tears began to subside and we sat down together. With a smile I said “So… God told me to come find you. What’s up?” For the next few hours she shared with me some hideous hurts… hurts no one, especially not a beautiful young woman who loves the Lord, should have to endure. They aren’t unique hurts… but they were deep. Together with another staff member we walked with her through all that had happened.
And then we began to discuss freedom… discussing what it means to empty out those hurts… to forgive those who hurt you… and walk without chains. And God brought the most amazing moment… She said Yes. She wanted freedom. She wanted to empty out all that she had carried. And we began…
We dealt with the lies Satan bound her with… replacing what she had always believed about herself with His truth about who she is. And then we entered into the sins she had committed herself. We explained the process of confession and repentance and invited her to pray out loud and release these sins from her life.
As Joy began to pray I listened, trying to have one ear for her, and one ear for what God wanted to say. Something in me began to stir… something not right… so I listened closer. And I began to hear “Help me not to do these things anymore.” … “Let me do better next time.” … “I promise I’ll never…” And God spoke up, by His grace, through me.
“Wait, wait, wait… Joy wait one second. You know there is no right or wrong way to pray… and it’s not important to say the right words… but I needed to stop you for a minute. Do you understand what forgiveness is? It’s not making yourself better. It’s not cleaning yourself up. Jesus did all of that on the cross. You just need to go to him and say ‘I messed up. Please forgive me.’ You don’t have to make yourself better first. Like I said, what words you say aren’t important… but try this. ‘God… I confess that I (fill in the blank). Please forgive me. Thank you Jesus for the forgiveness You give me. Lord I choose to walk in Your ways’.”
Joy was shocked. I believe her jaw literally dropped! She looked at me and said my new favorite phrase… “It’s that simple?!?!?!?”
Yes… the Gospel is that simple. So many times we complicate it, adding our rules and steps so we’ll be good enough to come before the Lord. Sorry Charlie, that ain’t ever gonna happen! Instead we just bow before Him and say “Help.” And then He does! It’s that simple…
It was such a privilege to walk with these girls into all that God wanted for them this summer. “Joy” is just one story… many many more found out just how simple it is:
Jesus loves me
This I know
For the Bible
Tells me so
How simple and how beautiful.
What a great reminder – thank you!
your sis
What a cool story:)
I miss you!
~Amanda~
eish. hardcore. rock on girl.
amazing when God uses us.
More amazing when we actually let Him even with all our stuff…
you are inspiring people and changing lives so dont stop now
love b
ok so i am at work and i am reading this and i get so excited and start to tear up! OH if i wasn’t at work right now i probably would have burted with tears of joy and then jumped around the room, rest easy don’t worry i will for sure be doing that later though! i love you laura! oh and you too corey!