This morning, as I sat in the darkness of the living room, these beautiful words came to me.

“Though sorrows befall us and Satan oppose
God leads His dear children along
Through grace we can conquer, defeat all our foes
God leads His dear children along”—Selah (Christian artists)

Sorrows, Troubles, Struggles, Trials, So much comes upon us as we walk through life, but we are reminded through God’s Heart-Song that He will continually lead us along.  Nothing can come upon us that will strip away God’s amazing grace.  We are already victorious—in Christ Jesus!

“Some through the waters, some through the flood
Some through the fire, but all through the blood
Some through great sorrow, but God gives the song
In the night season and all the day long”—Selah (Christian artists)

While there are several stories I could share, walk with me today into the lives of a few students.

She sat on the other side of the computer screen, miles away in distance, but near me just the same.  She spoke of her home, her struggles with her dad, the little sister she wanted to stay connected to, and the way her life seemed to be falling apart.  Her eyes revealed her heart-song.

He paused, and I waited.  There was so much I wanted to say about his “lack.”  I was so ready to speak about his missed assignments, his wavering focus within the classroom, of his poor attendance, and even of his (what seemed to be) thousand times late arrival to class.  There we sat:  he and I, in the silence.  Even though he physically sat over one hundred miles away from me, still I could sense the depth of his emotion.  He was not a slacker;  his mom’s life was in turmoil, and that consumed his mind.  The silence in the room revealed his heart-song.

On the other side of the teacher’s desk that sat between us, I could sense his sadness.  It was if I could hear the words inside his head:  “Ms. New, you just don’t understand,” and maybe I truly did not.  His struggles were not mine; his burdens were possibly heavier than my own.  As a student-athlete living thousands of miles away from the comfort of his own home, living apart from the climate and culture he knew, and living what may have seemed “all alone” on a college campus—It was there where the slump of his body loudly sung his heart-song.

As an instructor, it is so easy to see my students’ grades and cast judgment on them.  Yes, I can allow myself to see them as “idlers” & “lazy” & “uncaring.”  If I pause in my judgment, pausing to see them through the eyes of Jesus, then I find how I can see them as people with struggles, trials, and burdens—far beyond the demands of my class assignments.  How many times have we found ourselves wrong about someone, when we have misjudged them & their motivations?  How many times have we responded with dissension rather than sat in silence, listening, patiently waiting, and then responding with encouragement?  God gives His children a heart of discernment, a way to “really” see as Jesus wants us to see.

We are reminded of the way God desires for us to care for those people who surround us, who have been entrusted into our care.  This reminder remains readily available on our coffee tables, on our phone apps, and really everywhere.  This reminder of “who we should be in Christ” is God’s Holy Word, & through Scripture, God reveals to us numerous biblical narratives detailing how Jesus cared for others. It is there (in our Bible) where we are reminded how we too must care for those we have been given.  See with me what our heavenly Father gives us to do.

The world of people surrounding us are waiting and watching and even reacting to the conviction of the Holy Spirit of God’s call to salvation based upon the Bible they read in our words, in our actions, in our reactions, and in our love.  I wonder what they see when they look at me.

Are We REALLY Listening to Their Heart-Song?

Jesus Himself understood what we daily face in this world where we walk, for He too walked among us.  That is why He told His disciples as the time of His betrayal came close—

As we study God’s Word, we see how the apostle Paul knew the burden of trials.  He knew the pain as the one who afflicted others before his salvation experience on the road to Damascus.  Then after his salvation, after his conversion, Paul knew the burdens people carry as he became the one who was afflicted and eventually killed.  While walking through his life as a believer, Paul spoke through a letter to the believers living in Thessalonica.  God gave Paul these words: