Tyler- COURAGE to go against the tide

Let me tell you about my friend Tyler.  She is one of my favorite teens, a bit shy but very secure in her beliefs.  When she feels something is right, she is quick to defend her position but always in a quiet, soft spoken manner that makes you scrutinize  your own position as well as giving her ideas a serious look.  Very creative and talented , she has some very concrete  goals.  Most teens her age have no earthly idea what a goal is, yet when asked, she told me (I hope it's okay that I share this) "I wanted to be a published author by the time I reached 16."  She realizes that she has to stretch that out a bit but get this, she already has the book written !  She has written a book already, most young people her age are just trying to get by and figure out who and what they are.  I have no doubt that this very independent, talented, creative young lady will someday make a difference in a lot of lives, in fact she has already made a huge impact on me. Look out world, Tyler is coming!

P.S.   Did I tell you she has a great smile !

Noah - What a smart young man

Today I want to introduce you to Noah, only 9yrs old, he doesn't fit my definition of youth but definitely , without a doubt is a YOUNG PERSON WHO WILL MAKE A DIFFERENCE. Noah has always been smart, it use to amaze us when he was very young that he knew which car belonged to which person at our church. Well this weekend he earned the award for being a "Quizzing Champion"! He answered ALL of his questions at the AWANA Bible Quiz correctly . We are all so proud of this young man.

In order for Noah to go to the competition, he completed his first 4 discoveries in his book along with the start zone – that is approximately 60 verses or so that he has memorized – word perfect.  He has memorized 8 reasons “Why God gave us the Bible” with supporting Bible verses for each reason; 8 answers to “Who is God” and supporting Bible verses and approximately 30 Bible word definitions.

I think this is just the beginning for Noah and I can't wait to see the difference he makes!

Josh-- GET INVOLVED

Let me tell you about my good friend Josh.  A 22 yr  old with Williams Syndrome that I have known now for about four years. What a remarkable young man and inspiration to all those who have the opportunity to meet him.  He works, goes to college and takes drum lessons (I hear he's pretty good).  He's always smiling, always has something good to say to everyone.  He is singing in our choir and lovin it, he posts all the time that he can't wait to sing again on Sunday. Well he just found out yesterday that he has been elected President of the Jobs Club at Wake Tech. Here is what he told me about the club :"The jobs club is a club that we run to raise money for Wake Tech Compensatory Education Program . We do fundraising Activity like selling crafts and Baked Goods. As president I will be in charge of what happens in Jobs club. I will be in charge of the meetings and ideas such as community volunteering and stuff like that."  This young man WILL make a difference, he already has in my life, GO FOR IT JOSH!

YOU CAN ACIEVE GREAT THINGS

This morning I want  to tell you about a young lady I read about on the internet last week. Angela Zing is a 17 year old girl from California.  According to an article in the Wall Street Journal , she won a $100,000 scholarship for research that created a tiny particle she likened to a "Swiss army knife of cancer treatments" because of its precision in targeting cancer tumors. Now there's a science project that goes above and beyond!  It sounds like it was a lot better than my erupting volcano back in 7th grade.  At the end of the article were comments from readers and lo and behold one of my favorites (not) was right there at the top, "This is a neat story, but.......".  Someone out there always trying to take away what someone has done.  I get so tired of hearing young people being told "that is real good, but...", "you worked so hard, but..".  This is not new, in the Bible Paul told Timothy in his first letter   " Let no one despise your youth, but be an example to the believers, in conduct, in love,in Spirit, in faith, in purity" 1Tim 4:12, and also told him " do not neglect the gift that is in you,..." 1 Tim 4:14a.  Timothy's gift was prophecy, obviously Angela's gift is caring for the good of others as she is trying to find a way to help those with cancer.  They ARE our future and need to be ENCOURAGED!

Jessica- DON'T BE AFRAID TO CHANGE DIRECTIONS

 Here is another one that I have known for a long time...I have known Jessica before she was even a teenager I think. I watched her grow from a kid to the beautiful young lady she is today.  Her favorite line growing up was " Mr Rick, I'm bored."  No matter what we were doing, it was always the same, that's why it was no surprise to me when she told me about five years ago that she was going to apply to the Naval Academy.  She worked VERY hard to achieve that goal her last two years of high school and was selected, we were soooo proud.  Two years into the Academy she discovered that it was not exactly what she wanted and took the opportunity to leave without penalty as I understand it.  She entered college, got married to a great guy and is now using her talents to teach, I think I heard fourth graders, God bless you dear.  They are lucky to have her as a teacher because she will give it everything she has, and then some.  What do we learn from Jess?  It's ok to change direction.  Use your gifts to achieve what is best for you.  Too many people get locked in early to doing something they do not enjoy and for whatever reason just trudge along day after day.  They don't do anyone much good, they are unhappy and often let that make it's way into their personal relationships and life becomes very unrewarding.  I'm proud of Jessica and can tell every time I see her just how happy she is with the decisions she has made.

The Taylors

The Taylors are a local gospel quartet. They are brothers and sisters who all sing beautifully.  They range in age from 20-24 and deliver a beautiful message through both song and word. They not only sing, but always tell of an event in their lives that has brought them closer to God and offer an invitation to accept Him.  I feature these four this morning not because of their wonderful voices, there are a lot of good singers, but for the fact that they are not ashamed to speak out for what they believe.  They also, and I have said this in earlier posts, are using their gifts (talents) to reach others in a bold way.  As long as they continue to share these gifts, they WILL make a difference in people's lives.

Kenney - DOWN BUT NOT OUT !

Hello to all everyone who has stopped in today. This morning I am writing about a relative.  Ken is my nephew and had an incident last year that I think makes him a real inspiration story. Like many high school boys, Ken LOVES football. His junior year in high school he was injured,  he fractured his tibia late in his junior year. In most cases, no real big thing, cast it, let it heal and go on.  In fact, I have broken my right tibia twice.  With Ken that wasn't quite the case, he developed what is known as "compartment syndrome."  According to the A.D.A.M. Medical Encyclopedia, "compartment syndrome" is a serious condition that involves increased pressure in a muscle compartment due to swelling. It can lead to muscle and nerve damage and problems with blood flow.  Surgery is needed during which long surgical cuts are made through the fascia to relieve the pressure. The wounds can be left open (covered with a sterile dressing) and closed during a second surgery, usually 48 - 72 hours later. Skin grafts may be needed to close the wound. To make matters worse, he developed an infection in the wound which prolonged treatment. It looked to all of us that his high school football days had ended early, BUT it didn't look like that to Ken. As soon as he was able he began to work to strengthen the leg and rebuild the muscle. Over the next months he had several surgeries, skin grafts and extensive rehab.  In a quote from the Sun Chronicle  Mansfield coach Mike Redding said  "He never complained, just worked hard every day and never missed a practice."    Ken did play football last year and even made the final play that helped his team win the MIAA Division 2 Super Bowl.  He was selected for the 25th Annual Courageous Player Award by the Massachusetts High School Football Coaches Association this past April. When bad things happen, and they will, we can let them defeat us and take away our dreams or we can take inspiration from people such as Ken and work even harder to achieve them.  Way to go nephew...I am VERY PROUD!