Psalm 118:6 Dear Lord, Thank you so much that you are always with me. Thank you for reminding me that I don’t need to be afraid because you’re there, watching over me. Thank you that you are far greater than anything that could happen to me in this world, and I need only trust in you. Amen 詩篇118:6 親愛なる主よ、 あなたがいつも私と共にいてくださることを心から感謝します。あなたがそこにいて、私を見守っていてくださるので、恐れる必要がないことを思い出させてくださりありがとうございます。あなたはこの世で私に起こりうるどんなことよりもはるかに偉大な方であり、私はただあなたを信じるだけでよいことを感謝します。 アーメン
My Christian contemporary romance, Single Sashimi , includes some of the wilder tales from my and my husband’s stints as youth staff workers at our church. The Steven character in the book is actually the same Steven who’s the associate pastor and youth group leader at our church now, since I wrote Single Sashimi when he was still in youth group. :) He’s a young man in his late twenties (maybe early thirties?), and he’s full of great ideas and lots of energy. On one particular Saturday, my husband and I were at youth group as usual. Steven had bought a tug of war rope—the really long, thick kind that looks like it belongs on a sea trawler. The opening game for the kids was, of course, tug of war. Then we came indoors for a three-song worship set. After worship, we usually split up into Junior High and High School for lessons, but this time Steven had an idea: “Okay guys, we’re going to have a tug of war--staff versus kids. If you guys win, we’ll ditch the lesson and go out t