Vitality Update 11.01.19
Posted on November 1, 2019.
Below is a testimony from Therese Racklyeft.
"Each of us on the Vitality team has been challenged to tell why we are serving on this team. I have so many thoughts I would like to share, but here’s my offering:
Recently, I read the book of Hosea. This verse stayed with me:
Hosea 7:14
They don’t cry out to me from their hearts, but wail on their beds.
I so want to get rid of what’s weighing me down. Or do I? Maybe I like wailing about things rather than truly calling on the Lord, calling on Him “in truth” (Psalm 145:18).
More and more, I feel very much the call to just focus on what’s important.
Sometimes, when teaching the kids on Wednesday nights, I will stop and say to them, Listen, here is the most important thing you will ever hear in your life. Are you listening? Nothing is more important. Here it is:
Jesus came and died on the cross so that our sins can be forgiven.
Every day, I think of the people who live in those lofts to the north, past the viaduct. Who are they? How can we talk to them?
I’ve been very influenced by stories of missionaries. Amy Carmichael, missionary to India, rescued temple children from a life of sin. People criticized her for wasting her time! Mary Slessor went to Calabar and lived with unbelievable terror as she worked with the people there. But first, she tried to reach the people in her own town- some of them vicious gang members who threatened her. When she didn’t back down, they respected her.
What are we doing here? It’s beautiful to sing sacred and contemporary songs together. I love worshipping with the Body of Christ on Sundays. Heartfelt worship is one of the markers of a healthy congregation. Yet, I wonder what we are really doing here. If we are just trying to preserve the status quo, and aren’t sticking our necks out some, even a little, can God be pleased with us?
I have been teaching the children upstairs for over 35 years. Sometimes, I get a little tired. I’ve been working with Charlotte Mason school for over 17 years. I wasn’t looking to be on any more committees or to take on more work. But, when asked to be part of the Vitality team, I knew I would say yes. I knew that I wanted to be part of taking a good hard look at myself and what I’m doing, and at what we are doing together as a church. It’s not comfortable or easy. I just know that Jesus is not going to stand for my wailing about things, but expects me to cry out to Him in earnest to be united with Him in whatever it is He wants to do here."