What’s Your Story?
In Acts, Jesus sends his followers out into the world to bear witness to the ways in which they’ve seen God at work both in their lives and in the world around them. They aren’t asked to be persuasive or compelling. Instead, God simply asks them to go tell the stories of what they’ve seen and experienced. And as they do, incredible things begin to happen. One story leads to another and another—opening up a world of endless possibility.
So what’s your story? How have you seen God at work in your life?
I am thankful for my fiance. Maybe a decade ago I met a boy in Jr. High school and fell in love with him. We dated off and on until one day he did something that broke me in a way I felt could never be fixed. Shortly after I met my fiance. He accepted me, broken heart and all. Together we rediscovered God and started going to Mars hill (I’d been there earlier in life with my dad but I’d stopped going). Without God I don’t think we’d have ever met. We met while I was shopping at meijer for a mother’s day gift. Any other employee could have helped me but my fiance just happened to be working in the Garden Center on that day at that time and a quiet voice told me to look for something a little harder to find that a potted flower. I thank God every day for bringing him into my life. Among many more things that make my life whole including the strife life has thrown my way. Without it I wouldn’t feel as thankful for the things that I have.
I am incredibly humbled by and grateful for receiving a job in the field I hoped to pursue right after college. Many recent grads are in the position of struggling to find employment anywhere, let alone in the field they want to work in and I feel unbelievably blessed.
I’m thankful for so many things, it’s hard to choose just one! I have amazing friends, a great family, a good education, a well-paying job, a cozy house, more than enough food, and of course, God’s gracious love and generosity for me as a sinner.
I am thankful for every blessing I have been given. My children, my family, my home. I an thankful for the amazing scenery we get to see everyday when we walk outside. I am thankful for my health and the joy I have been given. God Bless
Thankful for endless possibilities everyday!
I am very grateful for a church family that focuses on changing the world we live in, that is focused “outward”. Serving together is a joy!
I’m thankful for a son who keeps me laughing!
I am so grateful for the refugee family God brought into our lives through Mars Hill’s Refugee Ministry. They have become family to my husband and I and we love journeying with them! As their lives became interwoven with ours, their joy is now ours.
Eric and Jen struggled with a familiar sentiment at Mars Hill: the difficulty of finding a sense of place and responsibility in such a large community. With over 5,000 regular attendees, it’s easy to come weekly for years and still be surrounded by strangers. For some at Mars, a no-pressure sanctuary of worship, learning and healing is exactly what they need. For Eric and Jen, it wasn’t enough. They wanted to see a difference in world and to spread God’s love to those who need it most. That’s how they got involved in the Refugee Ministry.
It’s difficult to appreciate the absolute confusion and isolation of being a refugee. Despite the obvious cultural barriers of new languages, customs and technology, there’s also the frustration of eroded identity and pride. The Refugee Ministry at Mars Hill is closely tied in with Bethany Christian Services, and together they seek to soften the blow of being dropped into a foreign land. The approach is simple: pull together a team of caring individuals, each with a focus on specific needs like health, education, employment, finances, tutoring, and journeying. Then, help the family in any way possible.
Jen and Eric are tutors for a Bhutanese family, refugees from a Nepalese camp at the foot of the Himalayas. The family’s been here for several months, and Jen and Eric have been helping the parents learn English once a week. To say the experience is frustrating at times would be an understatement. One thing they did not expect was that the parents did not know how to hold pens nor did they understand the concept of a structured class or lesson. They were learning English from the ground up.
Jen was struck by the significance of these limitations. “It really opened my eyes to how vulnerable these refugees are.” She was also impressed by how they overcame their barriers, especially the kids. “The kids have never had a place to call home because they’ve been refugees their entire lives, but yet they’re so resilient and positive.”
While the tutoring has Eric and Jen outside of their comfort zones right now, they look forward to the day that frustration will go away. God has been teaching them patience in this experience. Jen especially feels that she can be selfish of her own time, and that this is program is helping to break that. Both are glad to have jumped in head first in the Refugee Ministry at Mars Hill and are eager to encourage others to follow suit.
“It’s great, especially if you’re interested in other cultures,” commented Eric. “It’s extremely rewarding. Whatever your fears are, just go for it.”
You can check out the opportunities available here.
I am thankful for God’s provisions for my family and everything we have been blessed with. I am also thankful for a healthy pregnancy and the sweet baby girl we will hopefully hold in our arms in February!