Jeremy reflects on a week of ministry in Nashville:
Wow! What a week! I cannot even believe how much I learned about and grew with the Lord. It was simply amazing. Nashville was the perfect city to do God’s work. We came with open hearts ready to serve, but had no idea what God had in store for us.
We began the week deep in prayer, training ourselves to really listen to God’s words. As we began our journey at the Nashville Rescue Mission, more lessons were learned.
Thomas, the warehouse manager, showed us how important it is to love with your whole heart and fully trust in the Lord. His lively personality was contagious as we could only help but smile. He told us his story, which broke our hearts and introduced us to the many wonderful things that the mission does for the homeless of Nashville.
I felt truly blessed to come with this wonderful group of individuals and strengthen my relationship with God.
There are few moments in our lives when we truly whole-hearted mean the simple redundant phrases we use on a day-to-day basis. We constantly utter clichés like, “Man, you gotta try it, it will change your life…” but I can honestly say that coming to the music haven of Nashville, TN changed mine. I saw so many faces this week that just made the mysterious power of God so real to me.
One of the most amazing things I have encountered in vivid color this week is God’s voice. I am a chronic blabber, I can chat with the best of the best, but it is amazing to me how clearly you can hear the gorgeous voice of God when you simply listen.
I came into to this week with one goal: to see Jesus more clearly. As I squinted throughout the week letting the glorious image in front of me gain focus, I realized something so amazing. Jesus was everywhere I looked. He was in the eyes of the man that held the door for me, he was in the eyes of the musicians that bellowed ballads on Broadway St., and he was especially in the eyes of those who reached out with a hungry heart and empty belly.
I expected to find a spark within myself this week to help the least of these and found a fire. I love loving, and this week, God showed how to love with everything I have. It is in one simple lesson: love like he did.
From the stories of warehouse managers who came from nothing to the other end of the spectrum in helping his homeless comrades to a man still striving to find a dollar to feed his friends and not remembering the last time he slept under a roof, Jesus was everywhere. I learned that as long as I see Jesus around me that I should love with every fiber of my being, and knowing the heart of Christ tells me that I am going to be loving like him for the rest of my life.
