overwhelm.

yesterday was awesome. i went into philly with some of my favorite people and gave the paintings we made last night to our friend George to hang up in his apartment. :) he was sincerely pleased with our art work and was more than willing to hang them up. (ok... maybe it took a little convincing, but eventually we got him there.)

i'd have to say that the highlight of my day was youth group. gosh i love that place so much. last night, one of our fellow youth leaders spoke. jessie jordan, former radio personality from q102, now dj-ing at b101 gave the testimony of her life before she was a big name. she shared 2 weeks ago about who jessie jordan is and what she went through as that persona. but... last night, we really got to know the person behind the stage name, the beautiful and incredibly inspiring Emily Sofia. emily shared with 100 youth students between 9th and 12th grade ages, what it was like to be living in the club scene for so many years. she know what it's like to be famous, and what it feels like to be surrounded by celebrities. she also knows that it feels like, in the midst of those surroundings, to very actively be pursued by God himself. for years, he sent people into her lives, to carry unexpected messages at just the right time. a woman named Emilia Maria (emily's name is emily marie) found her number some how and started calling emily and asking her if she had found a church family yet. for years she was like... "ok this is crazy. the woman found my number out of the blue, her name is EMILIA MARIA, and she wants ME to go to church??" i mean, lets be honest here... who wouldn't be a little freaked out?! emily was living the life of jessie jordan. the party girl, the girl who drank away the pain, and the one who had to pay the cost of that. in her bravery, she got the help and council she needed to be able to give up that lifestyle. and last night in her bravery, she shared with our kids about the dangers of trying to live in the fast life. it isn't what it's cracked up to be. yeah, clubbing and partying are fun in the moment... but you still wake up the same person, with the same struggles that you tried to drink away the night before. the glamor that is supposed to be ticketed in that life wears itself away because sooner or later... you loose yourself and who you are. em eventually found the Lord through her circumstances, and has been persuing a different life for years now. it's awesome to watch her grow. i've known her husband joel since i was 13 years old, so naturally, his wife becomes my sister. and together, em and joel have a beautiful baby girl named Eliana Rain, (i named her Eliana!) all that to say this... through our circumstances, beauty is born in our diliverance. if we seek hard after God and let him help us out of the gutter, he reveals himself to us and he pours his blessing on people who feel like they don't deserve it. that is the wonder of Him after all... his mercy is so strong that it overwhelms our emptiness. his beauty is so full that it overpowers our ugliness. and his love is so pure that it washes clean our dirty knees when we fall down and worship Him.

em, thank you so much for being brave. you opened up your heart to these kids, and because of your willingness to be vulnerable, lives were changed. our youth kids now see the importance of seeking after the right thing. they see how empty a life filled with worldy glamor is. and how beautiful a person is who comes to know those truths themselves... a person like you. you are a wonderful blessing in my life, and i love you very much sister!

God is good, and He is actively pursuing us. let him overwhelm you.

this has been--
meira... mostly.