This past week Jonny Nelson, four riders and I embarked on a road trip down to Kansas City for some wakeboarding and get in touch with our primitive nature by camping out at Hillsdale state park. The motto for the trip was the saying, “This is it!” Every time we moved onto the next activity or arrived at the next event we all chanted, “This is it.” This saying also pushed many of the riders to go and try new tricks at the cable park. Not only did this little motto become a sense of encouragement when the riders were preparing to try something new, but also became a challenge.
On the last night of the trip we were reading John 4 in our Bible study. John 4 is the story of the woman at the well. In this passage Jesus quickly connects with the woman’s heart by presenting her with her ultimate desire, which is to enter into a relationship with God that quenches all of life’s thirsts that sin so desperately tries to cover up with an immediate, but short lasting remedy. After reading this passage Jonny and I looked at the campers and said, “This is it.” Jesus walks up to the woman and changes her life in one moment. But, in order for this change to take place the woman had to allow Jesus into her personal life. The trip ended that night with a challenge. Jesus is Lord yesterday, today, and tomorrow, but tomorrow is not a guarantee. Our challenge was to make Jesus Lord of your life and continue reading the rest of the gospel of John.
I do not know if any of these kids accepted Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior, but the little motto we created on this trip sure made it loud and clear why they need Jesus and what the penalty for not obeying Jesus is. Not only was this message tailored to a non-believing audience, but also was a good reminder for me as well. Sometimes we Christians forget what life is all about, and lose our joy in the struggles of life. This little motto, “THIS IS IT,” brings hope to me and helps me see how much I need Jesus when I feel comfortable. Join with me as I continue to pray for these riders as 3 out of 4 of them are planning to head off to college for their freshmen year and 1 is battling at home with family struggles. What a privilege it was to spend a week with all of these guys. I have learned a lot from them. But, the Bible makes it really clear that Jesus is all that is and was and will ever be. We at JSAW stress this point because Jesus is it! It is what we live for and what we want to share with the rest of the world.