Just A Hug

Have you ever had to put on a “happy face” even though you were torn up inside? Did you ever wish you could share what was going on in your life, but felt like no one would understand? 

I don’t think there is anyone who can honestly say they have not been there.

But it is so encouraging to know that even in those difficult times, God sees us.

Meet Aaliyah
Aaliyah had a normal childhood, growing up in a single parent home with her mom and brother who is 12 years her senior.  Although she and her brother were not close in age, her mom was “mom” to many kids in her community so Aaliyah felt like she had many siblings.

Her mom was a Christian and Aaliyah grew up in church. She gave her life to Christ at an early age and was baptized. Although she grew up in church and believed in Christ, it would be years before she would intimately realize that it was her sins that nailed Jesus to the cross.

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In July of 2013, Aaliyah attended Kids Across America, a Christian sports camp for inner city students. As the weeklong experience was coming to an end, the camp leaders shared the gospel story with the campers. They call it Crosstalk. Check it out.

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We hear that often, “sharing the Gospel.” We hear that the Gospel is the good news. So what does that really mean? Well, the Gospel is the good news that Jesus came to earth as a child. He took on the body of a human and lived among us. He lived as a human, but without sin. And then he was crucified on a cross. He was crucified, not because of what He did, because He was without sin, but He laid down His life in exchange for ours. 

Jesus knew what He was getting Himself into when He came and yet He came. He came to die for the very ones who sought to kill Him. He knew that our sin had written a check we could not cash. We were in debt. You see the wages of sin is death. But God wanted to live eternally with us and since He is a holy God and we are sinful people, that would not be possible without payment for our sins. So it took the slaughter of a perfect Lamb to die in our stead. The perfect Lamb is Jesus. He took our place. He died so we might have a right to life.

But that is not the end of the Gospel. That is not the whole story of the Good News. Jesus died, yes, but it was not over. On the third day He rose and now, because He lives, we too can live.

All we have to do is admit that we are sinners in need of a Savior. Believe that Jesus died for us. And confess our sins and ask Him into our lives as Lord and Savior.

KAA shared that Gospel with the campers and wanted them to have a clear grasp of the Good News. The leaders wanted each student to know that the nails Jesus took to His hands and feet were because of each of them; because of each of us. It has to be personal. We have to be able to say that He hung and died on that cross because of me. We also have to be able to say that the pounded nails into a wood cross were pounded into His hands and feet because of me. We have to acknowledge that Jesus chose to die so we might live, even for those who were yelling to release Barabbas, a known and convicted criminal.

It was at that moment, during the re-enactment of  the death of Jesus, that Aaliyah didn’t want to be the one who was asking for Barabbas to be released. She didn’t want her sins to be the reason he was dying on a cross.

So she knew what she had to do. She knew that it was her sins that caused His death, but she was going to live in the freedom that had been given to her at such a high price. She believed Jesus died for her, she repented of her sins, and accepted Jesus as Lord and Savior of her life

It is not until we are able to see Jesus in His holiness that we are able to see our own unrighteousness and a need for a savior. ​

​That night, in her heart, she saw a man/God who was guilty of nothing and yet He was crucified to save her life. And she has been seeking to live for Jesus ever since. She says it has not been perfect nor easy, but it has been worth it.

​She said, “I began living according to His purpose and not according to my flesh.”

And the Holy Spirit that lives in her has truly changed her from the inside out. It has caused her to see people through the love of Christ. 

And as much as she loves God, she knows He loves her more. God loves her. It doesn't matter the number of people on this earth, she is not just a number, she is Aaliyah. God knows her name. He knows her desires and He gives her just what she needs when she needs it.

This was very clear to her when she was hurting, trying to put on a brave face and just get the next thing done. But God reach out and gave her a hug. A literal hug to one of His servants. This woman, stopped in the middle of a speech and looked directly at her and asked her to come to the stage because she needed to give her a hug.

It is Aaliyah's desire that we live in a world like that. One where we are attentive to the Spirit and when God looks and sees one of His children hurting and He chooses us to give them a hug, we, without hesitation do it.

She knows personally that God sees those who are hurting and she wonders and what it would be like if we lived in a world where everyone looked at one another, through a lens that looked deeper than the surface. Through a lens that saw those who were hurting and loved them as Christ did.

Check out the full interview.

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