Almost exactly 21 years ago, Mike came home from work with the good news that he had been promoted. He excitedly told me, a woman pregnant with twins on bedrest, that we were moving to Salt Lake City. You can imagine the response he got as I processed the information that after waiting for over three years to have those babies, I would immediately be moving away from my all my family and friends. I look back at that time now and remember thinking it was the hardest thing I would ever go through….hmmmm.
Living in Draper, Utah, was not what I had planned. I thought it was going to be the most awful, no-good thing that ever happened to me. I look back at that time now and smile. I cannot fully express how grateful I am for the personal growth that took place during that time. Most of that growth occurred because, through an act of God, Mike and I got connected with a group of folks who were following a call to start the first protestant church in town. Ironically, the leadership team of South Mountain Community Church were people that I had crossed paths with throughout my life in California. We had not officially met, but we were connected through friends and family in a supernatural way. Paul and Jini Robie and Mike and Joanie Bell are the real deal…
Jini Robie, to this day, holds a place in my heart as the most authentic, most challenging “pastor’s wife” that I have ever known. In my opinion, her efforts to minister to the women of our little community fostered a growth in that church that was nothing short of amazing. I look back at the time spent sitting in a circle, first with just a few of us, and then an increasingly larger circle, talking about God, about life, about being God-filled women…learning, loving and laughing. Many of us were new to the area; searching, or in need of friendship. I marvel at how Jini’s no-frills approach spoke to each of us in a powerful way. We grew in our relationships with one another, our families and, most importantly, with our Maker.
On one particular occasion, I specifically remember Jini talking about something she had recently read about persecuted Christians. She had heard of a family held at gunpoint, where the parents were asked to renounce their faith to save the lives of their children. I was a first-time mother of six-month-old twins, and at the time did not appreciate having to evaluate if I was committed to the Lord enough to give up my kids’ lives or mine. I did not want to think about what it would be like to have a gun to my head for any reason! But that conversation impacted me, and I woke up at 2 am just the other morning thinking about it. I do some of my best thinking between the hours of 2 and 3 am…
Recently, as many of you know, I have been put in a position to HAVE to think about serious life and death issues. I have been put in a position that I have to evaluate what is important to me…what legacy I want to leave….how I will invest in others…how I will spend my time… But before this whole thing gets overly dramatic, I want to stress that my prognosis is very hope-filled. I have a team of doctors committed to giving me the best of modern and naturalistic medicine. I believe I have MANY years to sit and contemplate…plus it is my plan is to be an over-achiever and defy all odds…but contemplate I will what it is to live fully in Christ and become all I am meant to be.
Most likely, I will never be in a position where terrorists invade my home and put a gun to my head. But I have a metaphoric gun pointed at my head, and I am strangely accepting of the position it puts me in. Maybe God loves me enough to force me to hurry up and get my health protocol ironed out so I can pursue my private practice more than ever, commit to my ministry with a sold-out passion, and invest in people intentionally and with a sense of urgency. Have I been too lackadaisical in my former approach to life?
What is it that you are called to? What passions do you need a nudge to pursue? Is there some physical or emotional baggage that you need to iron out in order to be the man or woman that God has created you to be? Maybe you would like to join me in living 2019 as if you have a gun to your head….
As always, let me know if I can help.
With love,
Sonia
I have wrestled with this “gun at your head” notion, and have always come up lacking. I fear there are things I wouldnt give up to follow Christ — my kids among them (heck, would I give up reality TV, ben and jerrys, Five Guys?) I pray if the time comes and I am tested, I will make the right and eternal choice. Thanks for this article and your vulnerability about your current situation. I have been praying that God would be glorified in this fight…let it be so.
I think your life has a lot of evidence of sacrificing for the Kingdom! Keep up the good work!