God Is Truly Awesome!

Life is a trip. God has put me on the road to service in the Navajo Nation. To see how the whole story began click here. Let me tell you about Jerrod. Some of you have already heard me tell my story of God's sense of humor. I was complaining that I didn't feel very useful here sometimes. I expected to be helping to relieve people's burdens and that didn't seem to be happening. God laughed. For the next two weekends, I delivered pew cushions to two of our small, isolated churches. In just a few hours, I relieved the burdens of a hundred people! After helping me to laugh at myself, God got serious. He gave me Jerrod. The Navajo Nation has a funded, summer youth opportunity program. Young people are helped to be placed in jobs at which they can work 100 hours over several weeks. Pastor Coleman was approached about having one of the young persons placed with the church. She agreed and got a 14 year-old young man. After only a day or two, it became obvious that she just didn't have the time to supervise him. I was asked if I minded taking him under my wing and, of course, I agreed. When I met Jerrod, I was favorably impressed. No piercings. No tattoos. No flashing underwear. He spoke without mumbling and shook hands with me. I know. I know. I'm being judgmental. But Jerrod made a very good first impression and had nothing obvious to overcome with me. He works hard and doesn't have to be told every little thing to do. He will even look for work sometimes. Although he wasn't wild about having to get rid of the dead mice we found when cleaning out church closets, he did it without complaint. We carry bags of trash and dirty diapers from the day care center. He tries to work and hold his nose at the same time, but he does work! Jerrod is lucky. He and his sister both live with their father and mother and his father is employed as a truck driver. He lives almost into Colorado, out in the high desert. No running water. His mother keeps the house immaculate and keeps Jerrod and his sister the same way. The whole family is a joy to be around. They accept life as it is and work around any bumps in the road - a lesson for Christian and non-Christian alike. The family, including Jerrod, is not Christian. In fact, they are in the process of building a new ceremonial hogan on their grounds now. Oops! God, did you really mean for Jerrod to be assigned to me? I don't have any experience working with non-Christian young people, You know? Jerrod and I talk sometime and sometime we just enjoy each other's company in silence. I invite him to church functions (none yet) and answer any questions, and he has had a few, as simply and truthfully as possible. We are building a bridge of trust between us. Yesterday, we were confronted by two very drunk Navajo men as we were leaving the mission compound. It got serious, but not especially dangerous. It provided me with the opportunity to give him my carefully prepared "grandpa's speech #3". That's the one where I told him that he was a better person than those men and that, however he perceived the god that he worships, that god would be greatly disappointed in him if he followed the drunks example and that my God loved him and would be disappointed too. I told him that his family worked hard to make him the person that he is today and that they would be terribly disappointed as well. I ended up by telling him that I expected to attend his high school graduation (class of '13) and that, if I heard that he was drinking, I would come back to Shiprock early and personally kick his butt all the way back to the Colorado state line. We ended up laughing together at that image, but he knew I was serious about considering him a fine person and continuing to be one. He leaves me Friday. I'll miss him. I don't intend to forget him or even let him go. He likes to fish and I'm going to find time to take him. He doesn't care much for football, but hey, everyone has some little fault, and together, we can overcome this one. I'll stay on him about his grades and find some way to acknowledge his accomplishments. He may become the only grandson I ever have and I want him to grow into a man I can respect. Last Saturday, I drove north through the Rocky Mountains. I visited some of the old mining towns: Telluride, Placerville, Rico, Ouray, Durango, that today are high-end winter sports and tourism sites. The views were truly awe inspiring. Except maybe for the fact that I should probably have been taller and smarter, God doesn't make mistakes, and He certainly didn't with the Rockies. I cannot begin to imagine what the first man to view them must have thought. I saw rivers that ran crystal clear and rivers that ran gold from the minerals in the rocks. I saw waterfalls tumbling hundreds of feet and waterfalls stepping down the mountainsides in baby steps. I saw aspen groves and towering pine forests. At times, I don't believe that I could have been more in tune with God had I been in the world's greatest cathedral. If awe is worship and wonder is prayer, I spent about 6 hours in the most meaningful worship service ever. I will be going back and would like nothing better than to be able to take all of you with me. I love and miss all of you, Ross