P.U.S.H

Back at the beginning of June I wrote about an article, Justin John: A Legacy of Faith and Determination, that John had read in one of his Georgia magazines about a young man, Justin John, who loved the Bulldogs just as much as John does and became sick with a tumor in his leg. Through the article we see Justin’s marvelous example of how he used his adversity to glorify God by bringing others to Him through his sickness.

After reading the article John wanted the P.U.S.H bracelet that Justin John wore and gave to Rennie Curran to wear as well. P.U.S.H stands for “Pray Until Something Happens”. Rennie wore this bracelet during the bowl game against Texas A&M, and he told Justin that he would give him a special signal during the game especially for him.

Below are John’s and my bracelets. John also searched the recording of the bowl game until he found Rennie Curran’s special signal to Justin John.

These bracelets have been a constant reminder to us of one of God’s most difficult directions. “Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18). I say the most difficult because it is hard to be joyful always. And some days I feel like I am praying for the same things over and over with no answer from God. I feel like asking him, “Didn’t you hear me yesterday when I prayed this same prayer? Do I have to ask you over and over again? Just do it, please!” And the whole idea of giving thanks in all circumstances is completely foreign to who I am naturally. Why, how, do I do this?

The answer is at the end of verse 18, “in Christ Jesus”. There is no way that I, in my self, can be joyful, pray continually, and give thanks in all circumstances. However, in Christ Jesus, through the Holy Spirit, I can. When my life is surrendered to Jesus and I allow Him to work through me, I am equipped with everything He intended for me to be.

One of the ways I get to a place of surrender is by talking to God in prayer. God does not “need” me to tell Him what I want Him to do or what needs to be done. He already knows the depth of my thoughts and my heart. However, by continuously coming to Him in prayer, I am humbling myself before Him and giving Him the recognition that He is in control of everything I am experiencing and that I am not. This is how God teaches me about Him, His nature, and His mysterious truths that can only be discerned through the Holy Spirit. And this is how I can then do the things that God tells me to do in the Bible that are impossible and unnatural in my self alone.

Another key word in these verses is “continuously”. Each day when I get up, and throughout the day as I am presented with different circumstances, I have to make a choice. Will I rely on myself or will I surrender to the Holy Spirit? Will I go to God in prayer, continuously, over and over and over again, asking Him for the same things day after day, or will I just give up and try to handle it on my own? Some days I do give up. But I have found that when I don’t I get the gift of all the wonderful, seemingly impossible, emotions that God promises such as joy and peace in the midst of my trials. These are the emotions that turn heads and make people wonder, “How can she be joyful? How can she be calm? How does she have peace?” I can’t. It’s only though God’s grace through the gift of His Helper.

So each day I wear my P.U.S.H bracelet I remember to “pray continuously”, and I remember the brave young man who was an inspiring example of using his experience as a testament to God’s unfailing peace and security in his life.

This is Rennie Curran giving Justin John his special signal in the bowl game against Texas A&M. His P.U.S.H bracelet is blue.

This is our P.U.S.H bracelet. We like it because it’s also Georgia Bulldog colors!

And here we are sporting our inspiring bracelets!