Drew Buell (Part 2)

As I look back over the course of my life I am stunned by the sheer number of blessings that God has showered upon me.  As a child, the single greatest blessing was certainly being born into the family that I was born into and having the privilege of hearing the gospel from an early age.  As a teenager, I believe that one of the greatest blessings in my life was the church I was a part of and specifically, the youth ministry that I was involved in.

My years in youth ministry at Riverlakes were full of wonderful memories that I cherish to this day.  My Youth Pastors (Ed Kelley and later Brian Murphy) are both godly men who made significant investments in my life and are still dear friends today.  It was during this time and under the care of these men that God began to call me to the ministry as early as Junior High.
God was working in my life in many significant ways during this time: teaching me about the church, leading worship, friendships, mission trips, etc.  If I were to put a single banner over the lessons that I learned during these years it would be how to have a “servant’s heart”.  One of our theme verses was Mark 10:42-45
–
And Jesus called them to him and said to them, “You know that those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them.  But it shall not be so among you.  But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all.  For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

Through mission trips to Mexico, to regular service projects, to student leadership teams and beyond God’s heavy emphasis upon servant-hood was impressed deeply upon my heart by godly men and women who loved me, often times in spite of myself.

For me, my High School years were much more about the church than the High School I  attended.   I loved South High but for me it was mainly a place that I had to go during the day to get an education.  My true love was fast becoming the church.  I suppose this is one of the reasons that I love Student Ministries so much, because it had such a profound impact on my life and my love for the church.

As I mentioned in my lat post, one of my hopes in this series is to draw attention to two great truths that I have clearly seen working themselves out in my life: 1) I am a great sinner, 2) Christ is a great Savior.  There is probably no better place in my life that I can testify to the truth of the first of these statements than my High School years.  The emotional turmoil of High School, the besetting sins of "lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the boastful pride" (1 John 2:16) continually haunted me and all stand as clear testimonies to my own sinful heart.  In spite of all this my great Savior was quietly calling me closer and closer to himself and developing in me a heart that would be sensitive to Him.