Posts
Above all else You are
Breath of life on earth
Creation groans in anticipation
Desperation reviles our cities
Eternity starts at a climactic choice
Freedom will test our love.
Grant us favor sovereign maker
Hear the prayer of sinful man
Illuminate what remains unseen.
Justice will prevail once again
Kingdoms will shudder and dissolve
Liberation will await the perseverant.
Mark your chosen by wisdom
Negate our blatant folly
Oppose our oppressors.
Promiscuity for the promiscuous
Quarrels for the quarrelsome
Righteousness for the redeemed.
Sustain our blessed hope
Teach our hands to serve
Unite our passion to love
Vindicate our lives to live.
Watchmen will mark nightfall
X will mark our treasure as He descends
Yahweh in glory will bring:
Zion, with proclamation of her King
Saturday, March 29, 2008
Monday, March 10, 2008
And the award goes to....
As part of my Global University studies I started my Old Testament class this month. I have completed 13 courses with GU and with only 6 left I can apply for licensing with the Assemblies of God. I’ve learned a lot to say the least, when you allow the Spirit to lead it’s not just a bunch of doctrine or theological right and wrong, it’s the encouragement of the heart, the increase in knowledge, and a deeper love for the Word and standard God has blessed us with to live by; a blessing that reaches far beyond the pages of any textbook or commentary.
I have to be honest when I say I was NOT looking forward to my OT class. The textbook is a monster with 800+ pages and also with a strong recommendation to read the Old Testament as you go along. I could see it already, me sitting with my bible and this behemoth of a text book for months and not understanding a single word. However, this class has been just the opposite. I have learned so much and it has been really worth the reading. Studying the patriarchs, the character of God, and history and geography of the Holy Land has been mind blowing. It’s also not taking as much time as I thought it would be.
The thing that has stood out the most though is God’s precision. From creation in Genesis to the blueprints of the Tabernacle in Exodus, God’s precision and organization is truly out of this world.
In India, organization is like pulling teeth, there are stoplights that serve as suggestions rather than commands, and a six o’clock meeting is mostly always at least an hour later or cancelled because of a last minute stop for tea. With that in mind, believers here tend to think that God is a kick-back God also, and that time or efficiency really isn’t a big issue. God is put in the box of their own cultural understanding.
In the states we live with the blessings of an organized economy (for the most part)
efficient service, the highest quality technology, and 3 second-out-the-door microwave pop tarts(that’s for you Ang) If the service isn’t good enough we want our money back, and if it takes too long then forget it, someone else can do it faster. Now this might hurt, but is that our expectation of God also? Do we place God in the box of our culture?
I’ve given two extreme sides of the spectrum and I have to admit that I get caught up in the 3 second pop-tart view all the time. I expect God to be on it, hear my prayer and within three seconds I should be out the door with what I want. I am learning God doesn’t always work that way…with Nehemiah he said a prayer, and gained almost immediate favor with the King of Persia, with Abraham it took some time to finally get his promised son Isaac. In each instance God’s precision was evident, his timing perfect. So many questions we have…why, when, how God?!?! Biblical history shows God was always on time and his word is always fulfilled, no matter the circumstance, person, or cultural influence. The God that worked with Abraham, Moses, and David is the same God that works with us today.
Today’s revelation: We serve a perfect God who is precise and he holds the all-time perfect attendance and punctuality award…
I have to be honest when I say I was NOT looking forward to my OT class. The textbook is a monster with 800+ pages and also with a strong recommendation to read the Old Testament as you go along. I could see it already, me sitting with my bible and this behemoth of a text book for months and not understanding a single word. However, this class has been just the opposite. I have learned so much and it has been really worth the reading. Studying the patriarchs, the character of God, and history and geography of the Holy Land has been mind blowing. It’s also not taking as much time as I thought it would be.
The thing that has stood out the most though is God’s precision. From creation in Genesis to the blueprints of the Tabernacle in Exodus, God’s precision and organization is truly out of this world.
In India, organization is like pulling teeth, there are stoplights that serve as suggestions rather than commands, and a six o’clock meeting is mostly always at least an hour later or cancelled because of a last minute stop for tea. With that in mind, believers here tend to think that God is a kick-back God also, and that time or efficiency really isn’t a big issue. God is put in the box of their own cultural understanding.
In the states we live with the blessings of an organized economy (for the most part)
efficient service, the highest quality technology, and 3 second-out-the-door microwave pop tarts(that’s for you Ang) If the service isn’t good enough we want our money back, and if it takes too long then forget it, someone else can do it faster. Now this might hurt, but is that our expectation of God also? Do we place God in the box of our culture?
I’ve given two extreme sides of the spectrum and I have to admit that I get caught up in the 3 second pop-tart view all the time. I expect God to be on it, hear my prayer and within three seconds I should be out the door with what I want. I am learning God doesn’t always work that way…with Nehemiah he said a prayer, and gained almost immediate favor with the King of Persia, with Abraham it took some time to finally get his promised son Isaac. In each instance God’s precision was evident, his timing perfect. So many questions we have…why, when, how God?!?! Biblical history shows God was always on time and his word is always fulfilled, no matter the circumstance, person, or cultural influence. The God that worked with Abraham, Moses, and David is the same God that works with us today.
Today’s revelation: We serve a perfect God who is precise and he holds the all-time perfect attendance and punctuality award…
Monday, March 03, 2008
The Day I Died
"….he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus." (Philippians 1:6)
I think it was about five years ago, at the altar of a youth winter camp that I knew God was calling me to full time ministry. I remember seeing these twenty-something guys on stage, full of passion for youth ministry, and leading us in worship. I remember thinking if there was anything in the ministry worth doing it was being a youth pastor. Over the next few years I experienced tremendous growth in the Lord, I was becoming "that guy" that I wanted to be. I was the guy in the youth leadership team and worship team, I was the guy in Crimson Innocence, a band me and my close friends and brother started, I was the guy that started the Christian club at school. Things were good, I was growing in the Lord and praying that whatever I would become in this world was only because of what He chose to do through me. But somewhere in the middle of my senior year, that prayer was answered and God really messed me up.
God was directing me to go to a missions based training internship through Global Passion….something that was definitely God and not me. You see I was never the guy at conventions or church meetings that raised his hand because he felt God wanted him to go overseas. I knew being a missionary was a great sacrifice, and at that time in my life it was something I wasn’t willing to do. All I wanted to do was to have my own youth ministry, lead worship in a church somewhere, find a good looking girl, and live the All-American "Christian" Dream...lol. But when Pastor Steve, Pres. of Global Passion, came to my church and spoke at our missions banquet, I knew without a doubt that this internship was where I needed to be….for the first time in my life when the invitation came "with every head bowed and eye closed, if you feel God is tugging at your heart to go to the mission field, I want you to lift up your hand"…my hand was heavy, weighed down with every doubt and thought of fear the enemy could muster, reluctance to give up my dreams of youth ministry, the chance to lead worship, and the worry of EVER finding a girl if I was supposed to live the missionary life.. But by my willingness, and God’s strength my hand went up. It was more than an answer to an altar call, it was the moment that I decided that I would leave every dream, desire, and anything that was of my own understanding, it was the day I completely gave up my life. It was the day I died.
That was February of 06‘, six months later I joined Fuel, the internship of Global Passion. The sacrifice started, I sold my truck (may she be blessed wherever she roams…lol) and worked as much as I could at my job and fundraising to pay for my year. I arrived to find all the other interns with a passion for the mission field, I didn’t have much in comparison, I just was there because I knew God wanted me to.
God had given me a passion for youth and music, how could I be at Global Passion?!!? I had to continue to let go of myself and my preconceived ideas of what God’s purposes were. The more I did this, the more he was able to work and reveal HIS will according to HIS purposes, not mine. Soon enough my heart began to break in greater measure for the lost of this world, especially in those regions where Christ is unknown or of little influence. I was being stretched in new ways and forming habits that would shape the rest of my life. Through study, accountability, discipline, ministry experience, travel and a new love for God’s word, my life was changing yet again. I was happy with what I was becoming and truly believed I was in the middle of God’s will. Later in the year, God began to stir in me a desire to go to India to complete my second year of the internship. After much confirmation through divine appointments, prayer, and God’s word; I accepted it as His will. Again, out of God’s faithfulness the money would come in, and a year later I was on a plane to India.
God is faithful, not just in provision but with the desires of your heart. See I thought I was giving up my passions for youth and music to go to the mission field, but instead God was just showing me where those passions would be most effective. You see, through Fuel I was able to function in the area of my passions and talents with the ministry and with our home based church in Napa. I was able to work with the youth and worship team, and I was able to make friends with some of the greatest people on earth. I met an amazing woman whose passion and life reflect her calling and love for the Lord, one day i will the have the privilege of calling her my wife. I thought I was giving up my wheels…but God blessed me with a vehicle that was GIVEN to me, and it fit all of us interns and our equipment perfectly…many miles, coffee stains, and good times we wouldn’t of had otherwise if I didn’t sell my truck.
Even now in India, everyday I work with teenagers, I pour out my life for them each day so that they too may influence this country for the cause of Christ. I have the chance to lead worship services and have been writing many new worship songs since my arrival.
I used to look at my life with my limitations, praise God that He knows no limitation. His ways are so beyond our comprehension. Sure there has been sacrifice, with any great thing in life there will be. But I am living a dream that I never thought possible, and it is all because of God’s grace, power, and faithfulness. All it takes is our obedience, saying yes to the seemingly impossible, and walking by faith in that God knows what He’s doing. EVERYTHING that I thought I was giving up has been given back, but is being used in a greater measure than I ever thought possible. The greatest thing is…it’s just the beginning!
I write this blog to say that sometimes we have to give up our dreams, let go of our plans and pursue God’s will no matter what our human thinking says. As humans we only see part of the picture, part of the grand scheme of things, God sees our beginning and our end. He sees how He can make the most of our time here on earth and how to get us from point A to point B in the most effective way concerning His kingdom.
You may be reading this at a fork in the road in your own life. Will you choose what you want, what your friends or parents want? Or will you give it all up for the sake of Christ, taking the road less traveled in pursuit of God’s perfect plan? As soon as we are willing He will help us make the commitment; but first we must let go of the norm, the comfortable, and the security of our own thinking, planning, and check-book. He is faithful, God never sets us up for failure but only for the best. Let this encourage you in whatever decisions you may be facing today.
"Therefore, I urge you, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices holy and pleasing to God-this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not confirm any longer to the patterns of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is- his good, pleasing, and perfect will." (Romans 12:1-2)
I think it was about five years ago, at the altar of a youth winter camp that I knew God was calling me to full time ministry. I remember seeing these twenty-something guys on stage, full of passion for youth ministry, and leading us in worship. I remember thinking if there was anything in the ministry worth doing it was being a youth pastor. Over the next few years I experienced tremendous growth in the Lord, I was becoming "that guy" that I wanted to be. I was the guy in the youth leadership team and worship team, I was the guy in Crimson Innocence, a band me and my close friends and brother started, I was the guy that started the Christian club at school. Things were good, I was growing in the Lord and praying that whatever I would become in this world was only because of what He chose to do through me. But somewhere in the middle of my senior year, that prayer was answered and God really messed me up.
God was directing me to go to a missions based training internship through Global Passion….something that was definitely God and not me. You see I was never the guy at conventions or church meetings that raised his hand because he felt God wanted him to go overseas. I knew being a missionary was a great sacrifice, and at that time in my life it was something I wasn’t willing to do. All I wanted to do was to have my own youth ministry, lead worship in a church somewhere, find a good looking girl, and live the All-American "Christian" Dream...lol. But when Pastor Steve, Pres. of Global Passion, came to my church and spoke at our missions banquet, I knew without a doubt that this internship was where I needed to be….for the first time in my life when the invitation came "with every head bowed and eye closed, if you feel God is tugging at your heart to go to the mission field, I want you to lift up your hand"…my hand was heavy, weighed down with every doubt and thought of fear the enemy could muster, reluctance to give up my dreams of youth ministry, the chance to lead worship, and the worry of EVER finding a girl if I was supposed to live the missionary life.. But by my willingness, and God’s strength my hand went up. It was more than an answer to an altar call, it was the moment that I decided that I would leave every dream, desire, and anything that was of my own understanding, it was the day I completely gave up my life. It was the day I died.
That was February of 06‘, six months later I joined Fuel, the internship of Global Passion. The sacrifice started, I sold my truck (may she be blessed wherever she roams…lol) and worked as much as I could at my job and fundraising to pay for my year. I arrived to find all the other interns with a passion for the mission field, I didn’t have much in comparison, I just was there because I knew God wanted me to.
God had given me a passion for youth and music, how could I be at Global Passion?!!? I had to continue to let go of myself and my preconceived ideas of what God’s purposes were. The more I did this, the more he was able to work and reveal HIS will according to HIS purposes, not mine. Soon enough my heart began to break in greater measure for the lost of this world, especially in those regions where Christ is unknown or of little influence. I was being stretched in new ways and forming habits that would shape the rest of my life. Through study, accountability, discipline, ministry experience, travel and a new love for God’s word, my life was changing yet again. I was happy with what I was becoming and truly believed I was in the middle of God’s will. Later in the year, God began to stir in me a desire to go to India to complete my second year of the internship. After much confirmation through divine appointments, prayer, and God’s word; I accepted it as His will. Again, out of God’s faithfulness the money would come in, and a year later I was on a plane to India.
God is faithful, not just in provision but with the desires of your heart. See I thought I was giving up my passions for youth and music to go to the mission field, but instead God was just showing me where those passions would be most effective. You see, through Fuel I was able to function in the area of my passions and talents with the ministry and with our home based church in Napa. I was able to work with the youth and worship team, and I was able to make friends with some of the greatest people on earth. I met an amazing woman whose passion and life reflect her calling and love for the Lord, one day i will the have the privilege of calling her my wife. I thought I was giving up my wheels…but God blessed me with a vehicle that was GIVEN to me, and it fit all of us interns and our equipment perfectly…many miles, coffee stains, and good times we wouldn’t of had otherwise if I didn’t sell my truck.
Even now in India, everyday I work with teenagers, I pour out my life for them each day so that they too may influence this country for the cause of Christ. I have the chance to lead worship services and have been writing many new worship songs since my arrival.
I used to look at my life with my limitations, praise God that He knows no limitation. His ways are so beyond our comprehension. Sure there has been sacrifice, with any great thing in life there will be. But I am living a dream that I never thought possible, and it is all because of God’s grace, power, and faithfulness. All it takes is our obedience, saying yes to the seemingly impossible, and walking by faith in that God knows what He’s doing. EVERYTHING that I thought I was giving up has been given back, but is being used in a greater measure than I ever thought possible. The greatest thing is…it’s just the beginning!
I write this blog to say that sometimes we have to give up our dreams, let go of our plans and pursue God’s will no matter what our human thinking says. As humans we only see part of the picture, part of the grand scheme of things, God sees our beginning and our end. He sees how He can make the most of our time here on earth and how to get us from point A to point B in the most effective way concerning His kingdom.
You may be reading this at a fork in the road in your own life. Will you choose what you want, what your friends or parents want? Or will you give it all up for the sake of Christ, taking the road less traveled in pursuit of God’s perfect plan? As soon as we are willing He will help us make the commitment; but first we must let go of the norm, the comfortable, and the security of our own thinking, planning, and check-book. He is faithful, God never sets us up for failure but only for the best. Let this encourage you in whatever decisions you may be facing today.
"Therefore, I urge you, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices holy and pleasing to God-this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not confirm any longer to the patterns of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is- his good, pleasing, and perfect will." (Romans 12:1-2)
Sunday, March 02, 2008
Shop Window Revelation
A few weeks ago I was walking to my friend Michael’s house. I passed an idol shop, full of statues, and pictures of animal gods and even people that Hindus worship. Among the idols and pictures of Mohammed and Buddha was a picture of Jesus. My heart broke because most don’t understand that He is THE one and only God, to the Hindu people he is just another man, another idol to burn their incense to. I see the devotion of the Hindu people each day, their different rituals and customs played to perfection. Each night I hear the children of neighboring villages chant their mantras and sing their songs. In the city they parade with music and dancing, words are spoken, but in hopes of what? I’ve seen men with their hands clasped together in front of their hideous idol in the temple, crying, shouting, hoping that this clay image will hear their request. Lost, these people are lost and their only hope is stuffed in a shop window with thousands of other so called deities.
Each night I pray for the church to rise up, I pray for the believers in each village to be full of boldness and wisdom in proclaiming their faith. I pray that Muslims and Hindus in India would lose hope in their gods, that their hunger would increase for truth and they would realize that their man made idols and beliefs are useless, only giving false hope. I pray for desperation in the hearts of all for the living God, and that all around this country people would cry out to the one called Faithful and True, and that He would answer their call in miraculous ways. I pray that God would continue to use me in equipping the ones I am around daily, and to continue to open doors to witness on the trains and cities. Not by wit or knowledge do we overcome evil in this world but "by the blood of the lamb, and the word of our testimony" (Revelation 12:11) Please pray for the believers as well as for the unbelievers in India and in our world. People depart this earth each day uncertain or in false hope of their eternity. Pray that His will be played out to perfection in each carrier of His Holy Spirit, to reach a lost and dying world.
May kingdom come, but may the Lord grant us more time to proclaim salvation.
Each night I pray for the church to rise up, I pray for the believers in each village to be full of boldness and wisdom in proclaiming their faith. I pray that Muslims and Hindus in India would lose hope in their gods, that their hunger would increase for truth and they would realize that their man made idols and beliefs are useless, only giving false hope. I pray for desperation in the hearts of all for the living God, and that all around this country people would cry out to the one called Faithful and True, and that He would answer their call in miraculous ways. I pray that God would continue to use me in equipping the ones I am around daily, and to continue to open doors to witness on the trains and cities. Not by wit or knowledge do we overcome evil in this world but "by the blood of the lamb, and the word of our testimony" (Revelation 12:11) Please pray for the believers as well as for the unbelievers in India and in our world. People depart this earth each day uncertain or in false hope of their eternity. Pray that His will be played out to perfection in each carrier of His Holy Spirit, to reach a lost and dying world.
May kingdom come, but may the Lord grant us more time to proclaim salvation.
Day One-Hundred and Twenty-Two
Sometimes I think this is all a dream. Walking down streets with a people unlike myself, in a culture that I have never experienced before. People selling fish, vegetables, and merchandise along the road, shouting prices and bartering with customers. The smells are free in India, and that can be a good or bad thing depending on where you are at in the city.
Eyes are always watching, in the train, in the rickshaw, on the street; the sight of a foreigner outside of the big city is rare. It’s an interesting feeling being such a small minority among the Hindus and Muslims. They are warm and loving but their hearts have gone astray, and my heart goes out to them. Such a vast display of faces, their eyes will tell their story.
My family and closest friends are thousands of miles away and we live a day apart. I dream of driving down the interstate to meet friends or just being in my home again. It’s the weekend, a cold Pepsi and a candy bar is the highlight of my day, and hearing the voice of loved ones back home confirms that a world goes on outside of this place I am in.
My brothers are now many, and we all try to deny that I am leaving someday. I have become a mentor to young and old and a friend to all. They call me Prem, which means love. For love is my ministry, a ministry of the heart. A love for this culture, a love for these people, and living my love for Christ.
Sometimes I wake up in the morning with the fresh revelation that I am in India, God’s will has never been so tangible, and each day must be surrendered or lost in time. Time management has never been more important. Listen to a clock tick, those seconds will never be brought back to life again. As fast as they come, they go, and we are responsible with what happens in between.
The truth is that this is not a dream but a reality that is of God and for God. It is the most incomprehensible thing ever. I never thought that this is where I would be in this stage of my life, but it is the most fulfilling, rewarding and most trying thing I have ever attempted. Allen Graham, missionary to Zimbabwe once said "I was born for days like this." I think I am beginning to understand what he meant. All I am was made for a time like today, every experience in my life has led up to this moment….
Day one-hundred and twenty-two....what will tomorrow bring?
Eyes are always watching, in the train, in the rickshaw, on the street; the sight of a foreigner outside of the big city is rare. It’s an interesting feeling being such a small minority among the Hindus and Muslims. They are warm and loving but their hearts have gone astray, and my heart goes out to them. Such a vast display of faces, their eyes will tell their story.
My family and closest friends are thousands of miles away and we live a day apart. I dream of driving down the interstate to meet friends or just being in my home again. It’s the weekend, a cold Pepsi and a candy bar is the highlight of my day, and hearing the voice of loved ones back home confirms that a world goes on outside of this place I am in.
My brothers are now many, and we all try to deny that I am leaving someday. I have become a mentor to young and old and a friend to all. They call me Prem, which means love. For love is my ministry, a ministry of the heart. A love for this culture, a love for these people, and living my love for Christ.
Sometimes I wake up in the morning with the fresh revelation that I am in India, God’s will has never been so tangible, and each day must be surrendered or lost in time. Time management has never been more important. Listen to a clock tick, those seconds will never be brought back to life again. As fast as they come, they go, and we are responsible with what happens in between.
The truth is that this is not a dream but a reality that is of God and for God. It is the most incomprehensible thing ever. I never thought that this is where I would be in this stage of my life, but it is the most fulfilling, rewarding and most trying thing I have ever attempted. Allen Graham, missionary to Zimbabwe once said "I was born for days like this." I think I am beginning to understand what he meant. All I am was made for a time like today, every experience in my life has led up to this moment….
Day one-hundred and twenty-two....what will tomorrow bring?
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