The Blessing in the Bus
By Lexi Cole
“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”
Hebrews 12:1-2
I sat in the back of a yellow bus, parked in front of where we were staying for our missions trip in Tijuana, Mexico, 2006. Our team had spread out for individual time with God that night. We had devotionals to do, but I sat there sobbing. I was angry at God. One year before, I had been in Tijuana, “heard” the Spirit speak to my heart, rededicated my life to Christ, and was baptized in the ocean that week. Here I was, one year later, confused about where God’s presence was and where His guidance was in my life. I was furious God seemed to be silent when I needed Him most. I missed the spiritual high of the last year – the certainty of knowing what to do and the comfort of feeling God’s arms around me during a really difficult time personally. I mentally screamed at God, wondering where He was, why wouldn’t He show up, what He was doing?
Tears streaming, I realized I needed to do…something. Reluctantly, I grabbed my Bible and opened to a random passage. I read the first thing I saw on the middle of the page: Hebrews 12. I remembered that this passage follows Hebrews 11, a passage about men and women in the Old Testament who lived by faith, not by sight or by emotion. As I read the first part of chapter 12 over and over again - - just what I needed at that moment - - I realized something huge for me. Absolutely, the Holy Spirit does speak to us directly at times, like He had the previous year to me, but He uses other ways to speak to us, too.
It wasn’t that God wasn’t present; it was that I was limiting the way He could communicate with me. I liked the “spiritual high” and if it wasn’t there, then I decided God was silent. That night, I learned God truly interacts with us through His Word. I realized that deciding God wasn’t there just because He wasn’t showing Himself to me in the exact same way as last summer was ridiculous. We serve a Big God, and the beautiful thing about being on this journey called “life” is that God intimately knows us, and He meets and stretches us in different ways. He spoke to me so intensely and personally through His Word that night on the bus and, for me, it changed everything!
GOING DEEPER:
1. Think about the different ways God has spoken to you.
2. Are you allowing God to speak to your heart through the Bible? Any changes needed?
FURTHER READING:
Hebrews 11-12
Lexi is an Elementary Education major at Bethel University. The last two summers, she’s been the Children’s Ministries intern at Oakwood.
