The Ones Who Fall Through The Cracks - Feb 19

Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. (2 Timothy 2:15)

On Sunday we had the pleasure of hosting some people from Teen Challenge Ministries. We heard testimony from two men who have successfully completed the year long program for drug and alcohol abuse rehabilitation. These men shared how they were in and out of jail. How they did anything to get their next fix. How they hated themselves for it, and knew they needed help. How they turned to Teen Challenge Ministries in their last moment of desperation and were taken in, counselled and saved, both physically and spiritually. Teen Challenge Ministries has a 70% success rate for their drug and alcohol rehab program. The stats are so high because it is a Christ centered program. These men come out of this experience cleansed and made whole on the most fundemental of levels. They truly are made new in Christ. Praise God!

But sitting there, listening to this I thought of how these men had gone from sheer darkness and despair to a place where they were surrounded by the perfect love of God. Don't get me wrong, it is amazing how changed they are, but I thought of the people who fall in between the two extremes. People who are caught up in the life of drugs, alcohol, sexual immorality and partying....and loving it. Those are the ones God has put on my heart. They have no idea how much they need God because they haven't hit rock bottom. Some of them never will. They will go on to get married, have children, maybe get divorced, manage to rise in the business world and live a reasonably functional life. These are the ones who slip through the cracks. These are the ones who never think they need help, therefore never reach out, and ultimately are lost. So often in life we forget there are only two sides. If you are not in God's kingdom, then by default you are in Satan's. There is no middle ground. Not believing in Satan doesn't make him any less real. As a matter of fact, the Devil's best cover is to have people not believe in him. If we doubt he exists, then we will not be looking for the ways he tries to destroy us and seperate us from God.

In light of this, I ask you to pray for those people who live their lives in the gray area that is every bit as much Satan's kingdom as that black emptiness. Pray for God to open their eyes to see the truth. There is only one way and one truth and one light. We all need Christ. Those party people who think they are happy, only think this because they have never experienced the true joy that Christ offers. Let's pray that God will give them something to compare their version of 'happy' to.

Faith Girl