Here I Am...

As I look back and reflect on why I support and give my commitment to Trinity UM Church, it is based on my faith and trust in God.  Trinity has been here through the good things and not so good things of life. I believe that life is like a roller coaster with all of its ups and downs and loops upside down, but with God at the controls, everything works out.  I pray frequently and often to God hoping he will guide and direct me in my daily living and I know that I don’t always hear him because I am a little bull headed being born under Taurus the Bull and it is very hard for me to let someone else run my life.  I recently shared with the stewardship Bible Study group at our house that I even went so far to ask God to hit me over the head with a 2 x 4 so I would get his message.  Well, fortunately I did not get hit over the head with a 2 x 4, but instead God used the people around me to serve as this “2 x 4” and let me know what he had planned for me if I will only trust Him and have faith in Him. Since I just retired in August, I have been doing more praying than ever before because I am in a completely different financial situation than I have ever been before. Let me tell you, it is scary.  I have always had a paycheck coming in twice a month but now with retirement, that paycheck is substantially different. My financial giving to support Trinity reflects completely on faith and trust in God. My dad always told us kids that if you truly believe in something, then support it however you can or it just might go away.  Well, I truly believe in Trinity and what this church stands for. I rely so much on the power of prayer that I pray many times a day asking for God’s guidance and direction. I probably pray even more now since I drive a school bus for LSC, and trust me, there are days I need all the guidance and help God can give me. Those kids are placing their complete faith and trust in me getting them safely to school and then back home in the afternoon. I didn’t think too much about it, but God is like our life bus driver every day taking all of us on all kinds of journeys. Yes, he puts up with our good, bad, and ugly things we do, but we are human and he goes right along with all of our shenanigans. So when I started thinking about my commitment to Trinity, I know that He has great plans ahead for Trinity and he wants me on board. We serve as His disciples/ambassadors to this community to help fulfill our vision of service and if we don’t support what we have here, I believe we will leave a big void in this community. One of my all-time favorite hymns is on page 593, “Here I Am.” This song is based on the book of Isaiah, Ch. 6:  Verse 8 with these words:  “I then heard the voice of the Lord saying:  ‘Whom shall I send?  Who will go for us?’  and Isaiah said, “Here I am, send me.” 

Will you answer as Isaiah, giving your complete faith and trust in God, and say “HERE I AM”?  

-Bruce Delaplane

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