Opening Ourselves to God

Sarah McCune—1st year seminarian at the Graduate Theological Union and Director of Children’s and Youth Ministries at Aldersgate UMC

I was baptized in a Birmingham, AL United Methodist Church on June 3, 2012 and the next day I was speaking at the West Florida annual conference about my calling to the United Methodist Church. By all accounts it was a fast discernment process, but I have been actively engaged in discerning what it means to be a faithful Christian since I was ten years old. The UMC has always been in my backyard, I grew up minutes from Epworth by the Sea on St. Simons Island, GA. However, it was not until after my baptism that I visited the Wesley Memorial on the island for the first time. A few weeks after that I was a camp counselor at a UMC affiliated summer camp in North Alabama and had a tattoo of the flame and cross healing. The kids in my camp family provided me with constant reminders as to why I feel called to the United Methodist Church. We talked about topics like if a tattoo was not treating the body like a temple, how trees reflected God’s blessings, and had an intense conversation about bullying. Each of these discussions were deeply spiritual and theological and most of the time I could ask a question like”where do you see God?” and the kids would have the most eloquent of answers.

I provide this context because all of these parts of my life happened prior to my arrival to California. I honestly was scared to move out here from Birmingham, AL to follow a calling that I could not fully articulate. At times the tattoo on my foot spoke louder than any words. I had been in my graduate program for two weeks when I applied for the Director of Children’s and Youth Ministries at Aldersgate. I knew it was where God wanted me to be, but I was fearful that perhaps I would not be an ideal candidate for I do not know all the Wesley factoids or even the best approach for teaching young people scripture. I knew that youth allowed me to open myself up to learning and that they would teach me as much as I was expected to teach them.

If I had to pick one lesson my youth have taught me in six months or so we have been together, then it would be to open myself up to learning. It is when we open ourselves up to listening for the first time that we can discern the voice of God. My youth embody the vision in Genesis 15:1, “After these things the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision, "Do not be afraid, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great."  They teach me to not be afraid to ask questions of my faith and community, they teach me to be respectful of others, and they teach me to see the world from a young person’s eyes. They are full of hope for the future and yet know how to live in the present moment.

Indeed being a youth minister has moments of fear and doubt, but the rewards are very great.  It is my hope for this season of Lent we all find moments to be like a child and be inspired by the mysteries of God’s grace.