Josiah Road

ALL THE COLORS OF THE…HAIR?

posted by Mike Blackaby 28Jun

The year was 2002 and I was in grade 11. My high school and junior high years had been an unpredictable road, filled with trials and tribulations. I was in a constant struggle with the powers of self-doubt that threatened to engulf my entire world. Many battles were waged behind daunting school walls, but none were as fierce as the ever-growing desire to be cool. Then one day, inspiration hit me.

In my attempt to be accepted and admired, I had made many changes in my life: I switched my clarinet for a set of drums; I replaced my mushroom haircut with a “spikier” one; I started buying jeans instead of sweat pants; and I traded in my Star Wars books for…uh…harder-to-read Star Wars books.

I thought I had tried everything, but still the ladies took no notice of me! I thought I had run out of options when I got an idea…an awful idea…I got a wonderful, awful idea! I would dye my hair! The best way to get girls to notice me was to drastically change my appearance! But not just any careless moderation of the tresses would do. My hairdresser worked her magic, and when she spun my chair around, I gazed at the masterpiece she had created. The sides and back were my natural brown, the top was bleached blonde and the bangs in front were a bright fire-engine red. It was perfect! However, the room in the hairdresser’s studio was rather dark, and when I stepped into the light I realize that it was not so much red as…oh please no…PINK! I HAD PINK HAIR!

Horror struck me as I realized I had to face my classmates in less than 15 hours. In desperation, I called my cousin Anita and made her buy every hair dying kit she could find and rush to my rescue. We decided to bleach the pink out and leave the top blonde, but after five different attempts to strip the color from my locks, the pink was still visible. To make matters worse, somehow word made it to my school before I did, and I had been dubbed “Mike Pinkaby.” On the bright side, people DEFINITELY noticed me the next day.

As Christians, do people notice us? Do we stand out in a crowd? If so, is it positive recognition? The sad reality is most Christians are known for what they don’t do rather than what they do; people know what they are against but have no idea what they are for. Matthew 5:16 says, “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.” When people look at me, I want them to see Jesus. I want everything I do to point towards the God who saved me. I don’t want people to notice me; I want them to see God. God is the light in our lives, but how bright is that light shining?

Seeking God: Part 4

posted by Kaylan Christopher 27Jun

In 2006, God broke me—but I asked for it. I lost my job. I was poor—in spirit and my pockets. My grandfather died. I began to slip again spiritually. And God told me to leave my family and friends in Dallas—my comfort zone—and go to serve him at a suburban church just southwest of Houston. All within the first six months!

I remember my second interview with the south Texas church very well. I was resentful toward God for even asking me to show up. And afterward, in my hotel room, most of the rest of my evening was filled with wailing, weeping, rending of clothes, gnashing of teeth, and my frantic pleas, begging God not to make me go.

In my spiritual growth journey, one thing I have learned is: trust and obey. Yes, that’s the title to an old hymn you might recognize and words that I continue to live by today. So I did just that. In July 2006, I left my homeland and ventured, by faith, to a land unknown.

If you’re waiting for me to share a land-flowing-with-milk-and-honey kind of ending here, you won’t get it. That’s not exactly what happened over the next year. Without my dependencies, I was alone like never before, so the only person I had to turn to was God.

I thought: A-ha! I knew this was going to happen. He fooled me. He did all of this just so He could get me alone with Him?! Wait. He wants me all to Himself? He doesn’t want me to focus on anything or anyone other than Him?

This realization didn’t immediately cure my loneliness. I spent much of that year in the same position I was in at the hotel during my second interview. Countless nights, I lay facedown on the living room floor of my apartment and cried myself to sleep. But I soon realized that my sessions of sorrow had turned into intense times of praise and prayer. I still wept in a fierce way—but I never felt God’s closeness in a more real way than I did then.

I spent that year searching for Him, and I found Him. He didn’t shout out the answers. There were no clouds that parted or lighting bolts that struck me. There was no burning bush. But He was definitely present. I talked. He listened. He talked. I listened. The distractions in my life had masked His presence in my life.

After that year, God said, “OK. You’re time is over here. Let’s move you on to the next place.” That’s where I am today. I can’t say that I still don’t get frustrated in my walk or confused by what He’s trying to tell me. I do all the time. And I’m still seeking His kingdom and righteousness, but, over time, our relationship has grown into something spectacular.

My dad once said to me, “God is weaving the experiences of your life together into a tapestry. But you’re looking at the canvas on the backside. You can’t understand how it could make any sense when it looks like a mess. Just turn it around, and you’ll see that He’s working behind the scenes to create a beautiful work of art. Keep seeking Him, following Him, trusting and obeying Him—and, as time goes on, you’ll begin to see the big picture come together as He intended.”