I didn't want that beautiful moment to end.

I don't write about my youth leader days as often as I think about them. I was a youth leader for 8 years, & it was one of the most fulfilling times of my life. I believe I grew as much spiritually as I hoped the kids did. I was always searching for meaningful lessons to share with them. Teens from many avenues of life came through my door. My goal was to love each of them. I know I sometimes failed, but it wasn't because I didn't try. The reason I grew so much spiritually during this time is because I was frequently placed in situations where I had to ask my Heavenly Father to guide me. Of course, He always did. Sometimes words came out of my mouth that I knew could only be of Him.

I learned to rely on God during this time. After all, I was qualified to be a school teacher, not a youth leader. I wanted the kids in my youth group to always have something to look forward to. Every time we met, I tried to include as many of the following elements as was appropriate for the gathering: worship, Bible, prayer, food, fellowship, & a good dose of fun. I took the top 6 impacts on a teens life & tried to thread them regularly through my lessons. I wanted them to learn to apply the Bible to their lives. I wanted it to have meaning. I wanted them to grow in their faith. Most of all, I just wanted them to feel loved.

I am blogging about my youth leader days today because something happened which gave me a big flashback. I would be remiss if I didn't take a moment to reflect... A few days ago, one of my former youth, a young lady, sought me out through FB & said she missed me & wanted to get together before school started. I was honored & promptly found a date. Today was that day.

I picked her up (much as I used to when I was her leader). She came into my life as a 6th grader. Now she is about to embark on her Junior year of high school. The minute I met her, my heart melted for her. Little did I know, what a special little girl she would become in my life or the time I would spend with her. Sadly, this past year of my journey separated us. So... catching up with her was a dream come true.

The minute she got in my car, we hugged. Our smiles were radiant, pure joy to see each other. My joy only increased as we visited. Her faith was bubbling out of her. Her eyes sparkled. Her hair was fixed with a little twist & looked so pretty. Her smile was contagious. We reminisced. I told her I always "cut to the chase with her," & based on today, that is always how it will be.

This young lady has spent a lot of time evaluating her youth days (both the happy & the sad times). She has learned from them, & I believe through them, she has decided what kind of person she wants to be. She has good goals (realistic & wonderful), & she has made good decisions & friends. We both admired God's mighty hand in her life. As our time came to a close, we hugged, & I wanted to hang on for dear life. I didn't want that beautiful moment to end. We both kept shouting, "I love you."

Dedicated to:  Meagan Higgins