It’s crazy to see how fast time has flown this year in the Future Leader Program. It’s now March, the month of interviewing new FLP’ers and preparing for the FLP Preview Weekend at the end of this month…the time has arrived to begin to plan for the new FLP class while the current class is figuring out what God is calling each of them to as this year continues to wind down. With that being said I’m now in the place of reflection…what has God taught me so far throughout this year in the Future Leader Program??? Well, honestly God has taught me A LOT but for the sake of time I’ll narrow it down. Before I drive into what God has taught me through this program you have to understand something about this program, some of us got placed in a ministry position where we asked to be placed, while others got placed in a position they didn’t request…and here’s the thing: it doesn’t matter where you get placed, what matters is what you do with what the Lord has given you to do for the year that you are here at MBC. Today our culture pounds into us that we should get our way, that we should get what we want when we want it and if not then just shrug it off…complain…or work only half hearted because it’s not what you wanted. That’s not the way of Christ. Christ will put you places you didn’t expect to be, he will give you circumstances you didn’t know would come your way, he will give you a job you didn’t expect…will you work with all your heart towards what Christ has given you? Or will you complain and only work half-hearted because it wasn’t what you expected or wanted? I’ve learned this year that no matter where you are, no matter what job you have, no matter what your surrounding circumstances are to always work with all your heart with what the Lord has placed before you. If we always get what we want how would we ever grow? How would we learn to depend and rely on God if he always gave us exactly what we wanted when we wanted it? I’ve learned that the Lord grows us the most when we are placed outside of our comfort zones, when we are placed in a position we didn’t see coming, that is when we learn how much we need Christ, when we learn new things about ourselves, when we learn new skills, when we grow more confident because of the amazing work Christ is doing in us because it’s nothing we could have done on our own…that is what I’ve learned. I was placed in a job I didn’t expect and it was the best thing God could have done for me this year. Was it out of my comfort zone? Yes. Was it hard? Yes. Did God show me I need him? Yes. Did I learn new things about myself, about ministry? Yes. Would I have learned any of this if I got exactly what I wanted…maybe…but it wouldn’t have been what I needed to learn this year. Every place in life God takes us grows us, changes us, transforms us to become exactly the man or woman of God he wants us to be and shapes us for whatever future he has in store for us. Give everything you got all the time for the Lord, because you never know what he’ll teach you but you can be sure it’s exactly what you need to learn.