Paul said for Timothy to not let folks despise his youth, for God was with him. Age seems to be one of those things where we automatically assume it brings wisdom, due, certainly, to the experience it generates. But sometimes God just shows up in places we don’t expect Him, and speaks through younger folks. Regardless of age, we would do well to listen for the Voice of God, and recognize Him when He talks to us.

On June 3rd we had the privilege to hear from God, through a high school sophomore. His assigned text was Romans 5, and it can be a bit technical for even the most intentional Bible student. As the “covering” pastor I told Jason Ross to just let the Bible speak to him, and to tell us that. I encouraged him to not worry about the academics of it, but to share the “unction.”

You decide if what he told us speaks to your heart:
1. Speaking about the topic of “faith,” he said, “if you don’t believe, you don’t have it.”
2. About “joy” he said, “It’s knowing that you are working for the Master.
3. Concerning our “identity” with others: “Jesus Christ is our ‘Letter of Introduction.’”
4. When addressing in his own soul a great sorrow, and whether he was trusting God through it all, he discovered that “The love I had for God was based on a choice.”
5. The tragedy of another person spoke to his heart, as this person awoke in a hospital bed, after a car crash and missing some limbs, to declare: “Wow. What has God done?” The emphasis was on the new adventure of faith, not the so-called loss.
6.For his closing, he told us of a “word” God said to him as he was feeling downcast. Jason then prophesied to us as well: “You’re too focused on YOUR problems.”
7. Finally, a little story about how our problems are like facing an Elephant. So we ask:
“How does one deal with an Elephant?”
“You eat him one bite at a time.”
“But, HOW does one eat an Elephant?”
“One bite at a time.”
“Aw, c’mon, how does one even cut up an Elephant?”
“LET GOD CHOP UP YOUR ELEPHANT”

As the “covering” pastor, it was my joy to adjourn our “meeting with God” and proceed to fellowship time …