What I intend to share with you over this next series of blogs comes from a place of urgency! Urgency because I believe it to come from the very heart of the Father and because it is the key that will open the door through which the Kingdom of God will flood this earth! This message resides at the core of who God has made me to be and the mission to which He has called me. I want to talk to you about sonship and the pivotal role sonship plays in bringing God's Kingdom. So, here we go-
"You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have now clothed yourself with Christ...If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise...Because you are sons, God sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, "Abba, Father." So you are no longer a slave, but a son; and since you are a son, God has made you also an heir." I write this out of a place of seeing (and experiencing for myself) the immense amounts of brokenness that so many of God's people continually walk in. There is a slave mentality (the same slave mentality that consumed those people who wandered the desert for 40 years) that is consuming the Bride of Jesus. So many of His people are living out of places of constant defeat and dissatisfaction, not understanding their own identity as sons and because of that, denying the power, authority and calling that the Father has placed upon their lives. This slave mentality is the single most detrimental reason that the Kingdom of God has not yet come in it's entirety. The Kingdom of God is only truly revealed in and through those people who have been brought into their intended glory and who realize who they really are, sons of the living God! You see, we are no longer slaves (in the line of Ishmael), but we are the promised sons (in the line of Isaac and Jesus) and as sons we are heirs to all of the promises of God! Heirs of eternal life ("Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent."), and heirs of the Kingdom ("Then the King will say to those on His right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world').
Scripture tells us that, "The creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed." And there is a huge reason that all creation is standing on edge, which I'll talk about in the next blog. For now, we will focus on how these sons of God will be revealed. First of all, they will be revealed by being brought into glory (Heb. 2:10-11, Rom. 8:18). By God's grace, we are brought into glory through intimate encounters and experiences with Him. Moses asked the Lord, "Now show me your glory." The next day, God called him up to the mountain and allowed His full glory to pass before Moses. Moses was never the same, because through that intimate encounter with his Father, he was brought into glory (so much so that his face was radiant and the people were afraid to come near him). Jesus went up onto a mountain as well for an encounter with his Father and he too was brought into glory, "His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became white as snow." These are physical manifestations of that glory, but there are also internal(spiritual) manifestations that occur in our minds, wills and emotions. The way we think about ourselves, others and God changes when we come to the realization of who we are. A son doesn't have have to do anything to be a son, he just is. But it's not until he realizes his sonship that his thoughts and actions will reflect it. Thankfully, He has sent us His Spirit, and "The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children." Through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit and our abandonment to him, our minds will be transformed into the mind of a son (the mind of Jesus). The Holy Spirit reveals to us the very thoughts of God (1 Cor. 2:10-12) and testifies to who we are in Him. As a child of God you are unconditionally loved by Him, you are completely righteous (the righteousness that comes through faith in Christ), you are totally free in every way (from the power of sin and death, from the law, and from slavery to the flesh), you are without condemnation of any kind (whether from yourself or any other source), you are not a slave to fear or worry, you have been given authority to trample over all things of the enemy, you are called and commissioned to bring His Kingdom to this earth, you are (if you have been filled with the Holy Ghost) empowered and anointed to be God's witnesses, and I could go on and on! We must stop viewing ourselves as slaves, as the old creation, because that is not who we are. You are no longer a sinner, because now you are a saint completely saturated in God's grace (If I hear someone say "I'm just a sinner saved by grace" again, I might just throw up. Grace doesn't modify you, it completely transforms you!); you are not insufficient, but you are fully equipped to achieve every great thing that God has called you to; you are not unworthy, but you are of so much worth that your Father choose to give His Son for you before He even created you (1 Pet. 1:20); again, I could go on.
But the thing is, it's possible to hear these things a thousand times over and still not get it. This is not something we can just will ourselves to understand. We need a revelation of sonship! We need to walk in step with the Holy Spirit, so that we can hear Him testify with our spirit that we are God's children! We need intimate encounters with the Father through which our glory will be revealed! All creation is groaning and standing on edge to see this happen, because it yearns for freedom and it yearns to see the Kingdom of God come! And this will only come to pass when the sons of God are revealed! Sons and daughters of God be revealed for who you are- in Jesus Name!! May the Lord of Hosts receive all the Glory!!
So I kind of hinted to what I am going to talk about next time - Why it is so vital that the sons of God be revealed. I love you all and hope that in some way, the Father spoke to your heart. Jesse
So I'm back in Gainesville, for a few weeks anyway! Peru was amazing and like always, God moved in so many ways. In ways that I've come to expect Him to move and ways that I never really imagined He would. Again, He brought our team to new places of freedom and intimacy with Him. He opened our eyes more to the hurt and hopelessness that is found in a world that lives apart from Him, but also to the hope of redemption and life that every person can find in Him. There were times when we felt victorious and times when we felt defeated, but no matter how we felt, God's faithfulness was so undeniable! His love and grace continued to abound exceedingly every where we went and in every situation we faced. I have so many stories that I could tell you that testify to this, but there are too many to write in this blog, so I'll just share the first one that came to mind.
It happened in a town called Requena. Requena was the first town that we came to along the river (and the same town that I saw God heal people in last summer) and it took us an 18 hour barge ride to get there. After being on the barge for so long and having some down time, I was really excited to go out into the town and meet some people. So a few of the guys and I decided to do just that. As we were walking, one of the guys spotted a monkey on a boat(for some reason he really likes them, but I think they are disgusting!). They really wanted to go see the monkey, but I was more focused on going to meet people. I finally relented (with a sarcastic statement of "fine maybe we can minister to the freakin monkey") and we headed down to the boat. When we got to the boat, we saw that in addition to the monkey, there were two people on it as well. They invited us onto the boat and after talking for a few minutes, the man pulled out a Bible. He began to tell us how much it meant to him and how he loved reading it. What he said next blew my mind! He told us that just that morning he had gone to a church so that someone could lead him to receive Jesus, but the church was not open! Was this a coincidence that we found ourselves on this boat with a man that was wanting to surrender his life to Jesus, but wasn't sure how? I think not! This was God directly intervening in order to bring one of His children home! We talked to him about what it is to truly believe upon and surrender your life to Jesus and that it was between him and God, not him and man. And right there on that boat He gave his life to Jesus! It was awesome the way that God lined everything up and didn't need us to do anything but be there. He had taken care of everything and allowed us to be a part of what he was already in the midst of doing!
I am convinced that the lives of the students that go on these trips will never be the same, because they have been completely wrecked for the "ordinary" of this world. Once you've seen the injustice and hurt that people are experiencing, it's really hard to continue turning a blind eye to them. And once you've experienced the power of God's love in those situations, it changes you forever!
I feel that after not being able to communicate with any of you for the majority of the summer, I have so much that I need to share (like what's next on the agenda, what God has been revealing to me and what He wants me to share with His people), but I don't want to overwhelm you with too much to read at once! This just to say that I will be posting a few new blogs over the next couple weeks and I hope that through them, God will speak to
So, we have been here in Iquitos, Peru for 10 days now and so far it has been absolutely amazing! So far our main ministry has been at the prison and we are the first American mission team to go into the prison. I had many preconcieved notions going into it, but none of them actually fit. The men there recieved us with open arms and open hearts. They were excited for us to be there from the get go and wanted to hear everything we had to say (they really needed to hear that there is hope and purpose for their lives). The first day we introduced ourselves and told them why we were there and then the Holy Spirit began to take over! There were many times of praying over the men where the Spirit began to move in them and bring them into places of brokeness and repentance. But those times always led into places of restoration and celebration (this all made sense being that we talked a lot about the prodigal son). There were also so many times of praising God that just led to all out worship parties (including dancing and lots of yelling)! God is continually doing so much in the lives of the students we are leading! I see them continually coming into new places of brokeness, freedom and empowerment. Please pray for them as I know that God has so much more He wants to do in them and through them. We are leaving for the jungle tomorrow and will be there for the remainder of the trip. I have so much more that I would love to write in detail about, but we just have so wuch to due over the next two days. While we are in the jungle, our only method of communication will be by satellite phone to the AIM base, so I will not be able to post any updates for around a month. I love you all and look forward to telling you more when I return! His Kingdom is coming and nothing can stand in its way!!!
So life here in Gainesville is going very well. We never ended up making it to Haiti due to the fact that they were only allowing medical supplies onto military transports. We ended up getting the van onto a ship that transported it and the supplies that were with it down to Haiti. Since getting back from Florida, a lot of different things have been going on. I have continued to interview students that are applying to go on Real Life trips (like the trips I have led in the past) and I have been working on projects around the AIM office in order to get it ready for the summer (when we will have multiple training camps). I have also been given some opportunities to teach. We have had two different college groups that have come up to AIM from Georgia Southern University to go through a weekend of training. We focused on surrender, identity, freedom and spiritual activation (the power of the Holy Spirit in their lives). God really blessed our time with them and did some awesome things in their lives!
The Father has been teaching me so much! I hope to share some of the things He has been doing in me in some of my upcoming blogs. For now, I ask for your continued prayers. I have some important decisions that I will need to make soon. Thank you so much for all the support and prayers you have sent my way! I know that without them, I would not be able to do what I am doing. I am still in need of monthly supporters, so if God puts it on your heart to share in this ministry with me, then please let me know. I want to leave you with this word from Revelation, "To Him Who loves us and has freed us from all our sins by His blood, and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve His God and Father - to Him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen." Remember, we are freed to be God's kingdom and we are called to bring more of His kingdom into this world. So where ever you go, may you go in freedom and with power, for the glory of our God and Father!
Hey everyone, I know it has been a while since I have posted a blog. And being that I am about to leave for Haiti, I while have to make this one brief. Since being back from Uganda a lot has happened. I traveled back home for the holidays and two days after Christmas I found out that I had a severe strain of malaria. Six days later I was released from the hospital and in another week I was fully recovered. I am now officially living in Gainesville, Ga with three roommates and an unbelievable community of brothers ans sisters. While I have been here, I have been helping at training camps and interviewing students that are applying to go on mission trips. This is a great season of getting to know the people here and listening to the Lord to see what He wants me to do next.
So, yesterday I got news that AIM was looking for some one to do some setup and take a van down to Haiti. I had been feeling that God was leading me there before they even needed someone, so I volunteered to go. So how do you ask will we drive a van down to Haiti? (Being that that is an impossible task, we are getting some assistance). Myself and my friend Steve will be driving a 15 passenger van full of supplies down to Miami where we will be loaded (along with our van and medical supplies) onto an Air Force transport plane headed for Haiti.
All of this is coming together pretty quickly, but there are still a lot of details that need to be figured out. So this is the part of the blog that I ask for your prayers. Please pray that all the details would come together according to God's will (we do realize that us stepping out in faith is part of His plan), for safety during travel and as we are in Haiti, health being that Haiti is a typhoid and malaria hot spot and I sure don't want that again (yes I am on malaria meds), that God would lead us to the contacts we will need in order to mobilize more teams to Haiti, that we would have opportunities to share the gospel and bring hope to people in a seemingly hopeless situation, and of course for the people there that continue to suffer and grieve the loss of those they loved. I love you all and will update you as soon as I get a chance. (Check out http://haiti.adventures.org where we will be posting updates and pictures of what we see and experience while we are there)
Why is it so hard to get passed our own
minds? Why do we have to always try to get things figured out? Why
can't we just step out in faith and be obedient to what Jesus has
called us to? Granted some things that He calls us to do take some
time to prepare for, but a lot of things just don't. Most things He
calls us to don't require us to know all the details or have
everything planned out, they just require obedience. As a matter of
fact a lot of times our detailed plans do nothing but get in the way
of what God wants to do. You see, God sent us His Holy Spirit for
many reasons and one of those reasons is that He will guide us and
show us what to do once we step out in faith. Jesus was given the
news of the death of His friend Lazarus; then He said to His
disciples "Let us go back to Judea." "But Rabbi," they said,
"a short while ago the Jews tried to stone you, and yet you are
going back there?" Jesus answered, "Are there not twelve hours of
daylight? A man who walks by day will not stumble, for he sees by
this world's light. It is when he walks by night that he stumbles,
for he has no light." You see, the disciples concern about what
might happen kept them from wanting to do what was needed, I'm sure
they wanted to plan a safer way to do things. But Jesus knew what
needed to be done and He knew there was no time to waste, so He
stepped out in faith, knowing that His Father would lead Him. That is
exactly what we are called to do. Let us go at once and walk by day
being led by the Holy Spirit to do what Jesus has commanded us. We
don't need to sit around weighing all of the pros and cons,
thinking about how we will make it (as if it depended on us in the
first place). If we do, we may find ourselves walking in the dark
stumbling the whole way. A while back I was talking to a man about
the missionary training center that is in Mexico. He was telling me
about the students who go through training there (training can be one
of those things that we are to go through in order to be prepared).
He said that the students feel called to a certain country and when
they are finished with training they go. Many times when they finish,
they don't have anything, including a plane ticket or visa. They
truly believe, that if they are called to something and they step out
in faith, that God will provide. And that's exactly what happens,
the things they need "somehow" always come through. It is a life
of total dependence on the Father, exactly the kind of life Jesus
lived and has called us to live (not that we are all called to go to
another country, but that we are called to be completely dependent on
God). It doesn't all depend on our intelligence and planning, it
all depends on God's faithfulness and He is always faithful. "Faith
is not intelligent understanding, faith is deliberate commitment to a
Person where I see no way."-Oswald Chambers. Jesus said to another
man, "Follow me." But the man replied, "Lord, first let me go
and bury my father." Jesus said to him, "Let the dead bury their
own dead, but you go and proclaim the Kingdom of God. Still another
said, "I will follow you Lord; but first let me go back and say
goodbye to my family." Jesus replied, "No one who puts his hand
to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the Kingdom of God."
Luke 9:59-62. This is a hard but very clear word. If Jesus calls us
to something and our response is anything but stepping into it by
faith, then we are not fit to serve in the Kingdom! If Jesus is
calling you to a particular place or service, don't let your "but
first let me" (whatever that is) keep you from being fit to serve
Him. Step out in faith and He will provide for you (when you ask for
bread, He won't give you a stone). The joy of walking in obedience
and fulfilling His call on your life will always far outweigh your
hardships. If you belong to Him, then He has called you to something.
And I would be willing to guarantee that He has called you to
something incredible! Step out, don't let the burdens of this world
keep you from what God has prepared for you!
Hey everyone! Sorry about the confusion, for some reason the site sent out alerts on all three of my new blogs at once. Didn't mean to overwhelm you, they were suposed to come out 5 days apart. So I'm reposting this one and I'll repost the other later.
On Monday, we went out to a small village to visit one of the bush churches. We loaded our gear on the back of our bikes, hopped on and an hour later we were there. When we arrived, we received a very warm greeting filled with shouts and dancing. The rest of the day was composed of door to door visits and a service at night. At the end of the day I felt very uneasy about how the day went. I didn't like the fact that we were being rushed from one person to another just to throw the gospel at them in a very mechanical way and then leave abruptly. It felt to me as though the people were being treated as objects to convert and not like the people who Jesus loved enough to give himself for. We stayed in tents that night and didn't get to sleep until about 2am (due to loud music and videos being played. It was a treat for the people to get to experience those things and they kept asking them to play some more). The next day we woke up at 6am to a baby crying and then were expected to be at an early church service. I still didn't feel settled, so I did the only thing that made sense, I skipped the service and went to spend time with Jesus. I took my concerns to Him and He quickly filled me with peace and gave me a word to speak over the people there (religion vs. relationship). I became very excited for the extended amount of time that we were about to have to go share Jesus with the people. But this time, we had to be led by the Spirit and not a schedule. So we went and at the first house we visited, God did something huge! We met four people there; an older woman named Agness (she is the woman next to me), an older man named Luke, a younger woman named Christine (she has on the orange shirt), and a boy named Daniel. We got to know them a little and then we felt led to share the gospel with them. The Lord put some things on my heart to speak over each one of them individually. After hearing about Jesus and how much He wants them to know Him, the whole family decided to put their faith in Him. We prayed for them and as we were praying the Holy Spirit came upon us. Agness was overcome by the Spirit and she fell over, the whole room full of people were praising God! Then we prayed for healing for Agness and one of the children. We invited them to the service we were going to have that night and then we left. The next three families we visited were Catholic. The first lady we talked to didn't want to hear anything we had to say at first, but the Lord softened her heart. By the time we left, she said that the things we had told her were sweet to her ears and that she wanted to continue thinking about them. The next two ladies we talked to we very enslaved by a religious spirit, to the point that their eyes were glazed over and it almost looked like they were in a trance. The spirit of religion is so very strong here and it has so many people under it's control. After the last two visits and some of the experiences I had the previous day, it became very clear why God had put this word against religion on my heart. When the service started, there was Agness and Christine! Both of them looked like totally different than when we first met them. They had huge smiles on their faces and they were singing and dancing. I shared the message and I believe that some of the people got it. Please join me in praying for the people here. Pray against the spirit of religion that holds people captive. That they would understand the love of Jesus and the power of His grace!
The internet decided to work well today and I was able to upload some pics. So these are my fellow Real Life leaders (from left to right) Tana, Me, Becca, Erin, Blair, and Brittany. This was taken in Texas a week before we left for Africa. Becca and Blair are leading teams in Swaziland and South Africa. Brittany and I are leading together in Uganda.
On our way to Uganda we had an 11 hour layover in Dubia, U.A.E. So we decided not to stay at the hotel and went out to see the city. It is crazy to see a city filled with skyscrapers (one of which is now the world's tallest building) in the middle of the desert. Oh the things you can do with unlimited funds (thanks oil reserves).
On the left is the Atlantis Hotel, it is located on Palm Island (the largest man made island in the world and it just so happens to be shaped like a palm tree). On the right is a giant aquarium located inside the hotel (it had a whaleshark in it!).
This is just some crazy looking hotel that is shaped like a sail. Apparently, the cheapest room is $5,000 a night. We were told that President Bush stayed there for a couple days. Another fine example of our tax dollars hard at work!
So, now to some of the fun things we are experiencing here in Busia, Uganda!
So what we got here is one of the lovely made in India bikes that we have the get to use as our main mode of transport. Fortunately, only one or two parts fall of during an average trip. They keep breaking, I keep fixing. One of my Ugandan friends suggested that I move here and open a bicycle repair shop:) And this is how we do laundry. A bucket full of water, some soap and a lot of elbow grease (this is the reason we wear our clothes not until they are dirty, but until some one makes a friendly comment on how they smell). And last but not least, these are our toilets. We call them squatty pottys, of course because of the fact that you have to squat to use them (sitting would just not be a good idea, although I do know of a few individuals who tried it out in Peru:(
Hey, stay tuned, I will have an update coming soon on our time at the bush church. I hope you enjoyed the pics, peace!
As I sat outside smoking a Cuban cigar
staring at an African sky full of stars, I began to talk to Jesus. I
told Him about my concerns and I asked Him a few questions. Soon I
found myself thinking about the countless things that I have to be
thankful for and the fact that without His grace I wouldn't have
any of it! I can't even begin to realize all that I have to be
thankful about, but in this moment I decided to write down some of
the things that were running through my mind. I know that I'm only
gonna hit the tip of the iceberg, but here it goes (in no particular
order): I am thankful for cigars and the conversations that they
bring (whether a little bit of bathroom humor with friends or an
intimate talk with Jesus), the sky and the countless stars that it
holds (how it testifies to the majesty of its Creator), friends and
family who love me and who I have the privilege to love, people who
believe in me and in what the Lord has called me to do (so much so
that they are willing to pray for me and support the ministry that
God has appointed to me), a mom who would do anything for me and is
one of my closest friends, a dad who loved me enough to work his butt
of year after year to support his family, brothers who love Jesus and
are two of the greatest men I have ever known, a God who loves me in
such a way that He will not allow me to get stuck in a place of
complacency, the fact that I have been entrusted with the
responsibility of carrying the message of reconciliation to the
nations, African kids who shout Mazungu (white person) and ask me
"how are you" everywhere I go, toilets that you can sit on and
actually flush, God's perfect will which places us where we are
supposed to be at exactly the right time, the possibility that there
is an amazing woman out there that may one day be my wife, that fact
that I can be content even if that never happens, the numerous
brothers and sisters I have that (most of which I've never met, but
one day will have the honor to meet), washers and dryers, a Great
High Priest who can identify with all my struggles, African fruit
(I'm not sure I will be able to call that stuff they have in the US
fruit anymore), my calling (I can't imagine giving my life to
anything else but the kingdom), peanut M&Ms and sunflower seeds
(they keep me awake on road trips), the hope that I have that extends
infinitely beyond this life, the fact that I'm not alone and never
will be, the Spirit of God who lives inside me and enables me to be
His witness, ice cubes, the rush of wind which brings me a much
needed embrace from my Daddy, the immeasurable power of grace which
is extended to me every second of every day by a sacrifice that I may
never be able to fully comprehend, a good book that you can get lost
in, people that are different than me (whether by looks or culture or
personality), laughter, the fact that God has taken care of
everything and left no room for boasting, and the most excellent way
on love (Love is the Way, because God IS LOVE!). Like I said this is just the tip of the iceberg, I could go on and on. Please pray for us
as we go to a bush church to share Jesus with the people there. I
love you all! Grace and Peace to you and your family!
Well, here I am in Africa once again and I can't tell you enough how grateful I am to be back! After a very long journey (24 hrs on plane, 22 hrs of layover time, and 8 hrs on a bus) we finally arrived. Our first day here, Richard (our missionary host) took us around town and brought us to a shop to pick up our bikes (our primary mode of transport). We then attempted to ride our bikes back home, but found that to be a difficult task, being that half of the bikes broke (all part of life as a missionary:) When we got home, we sat down with Richard and he told us about some of the things we will be doing. He said we will be teaching some English lessons, starting a men's and a women's bible study group, going out to the "bush churches" to preach and teach, planting new churches in the bush, working with groups of orphans and helping teach at a Pastor's conference. Needless to say, we are all very excited about these amazing oportunities! So yesterday, I got to spend the day fixing all of the brand new bikes that had already begun falling apart. It was a little annoying at first, but the Lord quickly reminded me that I was doing it for Him and the team. And it turned out pretty sweet because two of the Ugandan guys came over to help me out. For about six hours Moses, Powell and I had a great time laughing at each other while we basically took 14 bikes apart and put them back together. When we were done, I took them up to the store to get some Cokes and then went back to kick the soccerball around for a while. They are really awesome guys and I look forward to spending more time with them. That night I was invited to go speak about unity at an overnight youth (ages 10 to 25) service. So at 11pm, I went and spoke for a while about being united by one Spirit and that by that Spirit we are brought into a brotherhood with one another. It was pretty simple, but they seemed to get alot out of it. I stayed as long as I could (they were preaching and singing and dancing, I wish you all could experience a chuch service in Africa, it is crazy awesome), but had to leave when I found myself fading at 1am. Times almost up, gotta go. Thanks so much for all your prayers, I will continue to keep you updated. May the grace of our Lord Jesus be with you always!
What I intend to share with you over this next series of blogs comes from a place of urgency! Urgency because I believe it to come from the very heart of the Father and because it is the key that will open the door through which the Kingdom of God will flood this earth! This message resides at the core of who God has made me to be and the mission to which He has called me. I want to talk to you about sonship and the pivotal role sonship plays in bringing God's Kingdom. So, here we go-
So life here in Gainesville is going very well. We never ended up making it to Haiti due to the fact that they were only allowing medical supplies onto military transports. We ended up getting the van onto a ship that transported it and the supplies that were with it down to Haiti. Since getting back from Florida, a lot of different things have been going on. I have continued to interview students that are applying to go on Real Life trips (like the trips I have led in the past) and I have been working on projects around the AIM office in order to get it ready for the summer (when we will have multiple training camps). I have also been given some opportunities to teach. We have had two different college groups that have come up to AIM from Georgia Southern University to go through a weekend of training. We focused on surrender, identity, freedom and spiritual activation (the power of the Holy Spirit in their lives). God really blessed our time with them and did some awesome things in their lives! 
and proclaim the Kingdom of God. Still another
said, "I will follow you Lord; but first let me go back and say
goodbye to my family." Jesus replied, "No one who puts his hand
to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the Kingdom of God."
Luke 9:59-62. This is a hard but very clear word. If Jesus calls us
to something and our response is anything but stepping into it by
faith, then we are not fit to serve in the Kingdom! If Jesus is
calling you to a particular place or service, don't let your "but
first let me" (whatever that is) keep you from being fit to serve
Him. Step out in faith and He will provide for you (when you ask for
bread, He won't give you a stone). The joy of walking in obedience
and fulfilling His call on your life will always far outweigh your
hardships. If you belong to Him, then He has called you to something.
And I would be willing to guarantee that He has called you to
something incredible! Step out, don't let the burdens of this world
keep you from what God has prepared for you!
Hey everyone! Sorry about the confusion, for some reason the site sent out alerts on all three of my new blogs at once. Didn't mean to overwhelm you, they were suposed to come out 5 days apart. So I'm reposting this one and I'll repost the other later.
The internet decided to work well today and I was able to upload some pics. So these are my fellow Real Life leaders (from left to right) Tana, Me, Becca, Erin, Blair, and Brittany. This was taken in Texas a week before we left for Africa. Becca and Blair are leading teams in Swaziland and South Africa. Brittany and I are leading together in Uganda.
Hey, stay tuned, I will have an update coming soon on our time at the bush church. I hope you enjoyed the pics, peace! 
As I sat outside smoking a Cuban cigar
staring at an African sky full of stars, I began to talk to Jesus. I
told Him about my concerns and I asked Him a few questions. Soon I
found myself thinking about the countless things that I have to be
thankful for and the fact that without His grace I wouldn't have
any of it! I can't even begin to realize all that I have to be
thankful about, but in this moment I decided to write down some of
the things that were running through my mind. I know that I'm only
gonna hit the tip of the iceberg, but here it goes (in no particular
order): I am thankful for cigars and the conversations that they
bring (whether a little bit of bathroom humor with friends or an
intimate talk with Jesus), the sky and the countless stars that it
holds (how it testifies to the majesty of its Creator), friends and
family who love me and who I have the privilege to love, people who
believe in me and in what the Lord has called me to do (so much so
that they are willing to pray for me and support the ministry that
God has appointed to me), a mom who would do anything for me and is
one of my closest friends, a dad who loved me enough to work his butt
of year after year to support his family, brothers who love Jesus and
are two of the greatest men I have ever known, a God who loves me in
such a way that He will not allow me to get stuck in a place of
complacency, the fact that I have been entrusted with the
responsibility of carrying the message of reconciliation to the
nations, African kids who shout Mazungu (white person) and ask me
"how are you" everywhere I go, toilets that you can sit on and
actually flush, God's perfect will which places us where we are
supposed to be at exactly the right time, the possibility that there
is an amazing woman out there that may one day be my wife, that fact
that I can be content even if that never happens, the numerous
brothers and sisters I have that (most of which I've never met, but
one day will have the honor to meet), washers and dryers, a Great
High Priest who can identify with all my struggles, African fruit
(I'm not sure I will be able to call that stuff they have in the US
fruit anymore), my calling (I can't imagine giving my life to
anything else but the kingdom), peanut M&Ms and sunflower seeds
(they keep me awake on road trips), the hope that I have that extends
infinitely beyond this life, the fact that I'm not alone and never
will be, the Spirit of God who lives inside me and enables me to be
His witness, ice cubes, the rush of wind which brings me a much
needed embrace from my Daddy, the immeasurable power of grace which
is extended to me every second of every day by a 
sacrifice that I may
never be able to fully comprehend, a good book that you can get lost
in, people that are different than me (whether by looks or culture or
personality), laughter, the fact that God has taken care of
everything and left no room for boasting, and the most excellent way
on love (Love is the Way, because God IS LOVE!). Like I said this is just the tip of the iceberg, I could go on and on. Please pray for us
as we go to a bush church to share Jesus with the people there. I
love you all! Grace and Peace to you and your family!