Seeing Hearts Awakened

    Teenagers can be so challenging. You never know what you’re going to get with them. They are moody. Their choices and direction in life can turn in a moment with little or no notice. I have always been a kid person and have found teenagers really difficult to work with. However, the teenagers in Nicaragua have held a special place in my heart since I first set foot in this beautiful nation in 2008.  

    Cadence and I work with a large group of teenagers between the sponsorship program and our youth Bible study in Candelaria. Honestly there are days when they can frustrate me so much, but they also make my life so fun and give my heart hope. I really love them in all their punkish playfulness and teenage angst.

 

    This year we have walked through extremely hard situations with so many of our teenagers. We’ve seen hurt over families splitting apart, dealt with depression and suicidal thoughts, walked through scary medical crises, watched kids drop out of school or run off with boyfriends, seen young girls become moms way too soon, and cried alongside rape victims. Sometimes it is absolutely heartbreaking and it’s hard.

 

    But we’ve also gotten to see something incredibly beautiful this year. We have seen the Lord stirring in some of our youth. We’ve seen teenagers that have come more fully alive. We have seen their hearts and giftings awakened. We have watched them serve with such love and joy. We have seen them step out of their comfort zones and push themselves to more. We have celebrated with their academic successes. We have cheered them on when they get up and dust themselves off after falling. We have marveled at their strength to overcome.

    This year I have seen the Lord moving among some of our teenagers. I loved watching them step out of their comfort zone as they served in Leon. I sat one Wednesday night and listened in awe as the small group I was leading began to talk about all the ways that they could step out in their spiritual gifts to serve their community and to bring the love of Jesus to their school. Their hearts became more and more excited as they thought of ways that they could use their own gifts, ways that they could have a part in building the Kingdom.    

    One of our teenage boys had started to develop more of an attitude. Suddenly it felt like we were having to call him out on that almost every week. Then in May we offered training for anyone who wanted to become a Sunday school teacher and he came to every session. When we interviewed the teens individually about their level of interest in teaching, he surprised me by how passionate he was about wanting to teach the Bible to children. I talked with him openly that if this was an area in which he wanted to serve then I needed to see him be a leader in his attitude among the youth as well. The change was immediate. That same week at youth Bible study he was attentive, responsive and went out of his way to help. He had found a passion and was willing to step up in leadership to take on that position. 

   One of our girls has had an incredibly difficult year. She has faced some major struggles. She has fallen to temptations and picked herself back up. The thing that has always amazed me about this girl is that no matter what has been going on, when she gets into the Lord’s Presence He always meets her there. She has one of the bravest, strongest hearts that I’ve ever encountered. She can meet with Jesus and then keep moving forward. Her life testifies to the verse in Romans 8:28 that says, “No, in all these things we are more than conquerors, through Him who loved us.” I have seen her, and continue to see her, overcome every obstacle in her path. She is a conqueror and an overcomer. 

   One night another one of our guys asked if he could talk to me. In one of his classes at school they had been debating about the creation of the world. He wanted to talk through and find more resources on different theories of creation. He doesn’t want to just push aside questions or doubts that he has. He wants to wrestle and search out answers because he longs to have faith that is deep and firmly rooted. I loved that he trusted me enough to share his questions and doubts. I invited him to wrestle with hard questions before the Lord and assured him that God is a God who loves to reveal truth to His children. He promises that we will find Him when we seek Him wholeheartedly. 

    Another of our girls sprints up to me in the middle of Sunday school as she travels from one class to another. She comes running up with a huge smile across her face and exclaims, “I LOVE teaching Sunday school! I never knew how much I would love it, but I do.”  She hugs me, smiles again and then she joyfully bounds off to teach another group of kids. Her joy is contagious. And it is beautiful. 

    I feel like I am always finding new reasons to love these beautiful teens. They can drive me completely crazy sometimes, but they also amaze me with their strength, courage, joy and kind hearts. I love to see at least some of them begin to walk with the Lord in real ways this year and to see their hearts coming more alive in Him. Pray that they will fall completely in love with their God, that they will know their identity in Him, and that they will walk in holiness and love.