My Mind: Fully Loaded. (Good Night)

I can't go to sleep right now! I have so much rolling around in my mind. There is so much I want to do for others that I can not contain myself. The fact that more and more people that I am growing to know are getting closer to finding out who Jesus is, what He was all about, and why He died makes me so excited. As the Pentecostals would say, "I'm gettin' fired up". So, trying to go to sleep right now is proving to be a hard task. So, in efforts to release some of this excitement from my system I'm going to just blurt out some of my thoughts-- because I really need to go to sleep here.

There is so much exciting developments underway within the Families Ministry @ Genesis Church that it makes me want to just boast for all the wisdom that God has bestowed upon many leaders in today's church planting movement. Normally, I'm not the boasting type but in this case I can't help but boast in God's infinite faithfulness and wisdom. There is so much that can be learned and taught in today's modern church. (Modern may be a poor term to use but it's right before midnight for me right now, just bare with me)

The fact that there are growing numbers of churches working hard to make it easier for more and more people to gain access to the gospel of Christ makes me want to do nothing else but join in their efforts. I love people. And I love to see people loved and pointed in the right direction (towards a genuine relationship with God). The fact that Christ called you and me to simply love and NOT to change people (because that's not our job) makes me happy. Why? Because I'm capable of that. It's in my WIRING!! I can't change anyone, if I tried then I would make one "Hell"-of-a-mess. If that was all I tried to do with everyone then no one would want to be my friend except for the perfect Christians in my life (I call them my "Imaginary Friends Who Don't Exist". I always try to compare myself to them. As psychologists always say, "You are your own worst critic") After all, Love is easy....especially when there are no strings attached. (Strings can be found within the track record of most Christians...me included)

As a closing statement, before I get too random in my thoughts, I am just thrilled to be in a position to grow. To grow in my personal life and to grow in my vocational life. I have grown to love learning. I have grown to love reading and writing. As a matter of fact, I am growing extremely tired just by thinking about it. My eyelids are growing havey and I don't tink I'm gonna finish this senten

Let Your Love Shine.

Tears will be cried as the children are numbered.

Pain will befall as little lives are all murdered.

But let this song ring to the left behind mothers,

That love is still here somewhere in your bride.

Oh, let your love shine. Oh, let your love shine.

When no one else cares that your truth is made known.

Lord, give us the strength to go where others won’t.

Cause this life that we live was bought from your right hand.

Lord, help us take back what was stolen from you.

Oh, let your love shine. Oh, let your love shine.

When will your bride pay the price that it takes to follow?

Lord, help your church chew what it is we can’t swallow,

For there is work to be done that can’t wait for tomorrow.

Oh, let your love shine. Oh, let your love shine.

The explanation.

I am a part of a Nonprofit Organization called The Magdalene Project [MAG] that is working to fight human trafficking worldwide. But right now we are focusing all our energies toward one location, Guatemala. As a matter of fact we will be going this July to deliver supplies and One Hope Bibles to a halfway house where women and children live. It will be mine and my wife's first trip to Guatemala and we will be exposed for the first time to the horrible conditions that sex trafficking has made in the high poverty zones. We don't know what to expect but by what we've been told it will be a sobering experience.

As the poem mentions, genocide is used as a means of keeping the homeless population low enough so that the government can proudly say that homelessness isn't an issue. This process does not exclude women or children. They are actually the prime victims of genocide.

http://www.facebook.com/MAGProject2011

I've heard that the culture in Guatemala is so jacked up that even the "Christians" who live there don't even notice the problem with human and sex trafficking. They don't understand that the Christ that they worship on Sundays is the same Christ that taught about love and taking care of the widows and orphans.

I don't know where you are in your faith, or that you even believe in God, but know that there is a responsibility that falls on the church. The responsibility of presenting the gospel of Jesus Christ to all people no matter who or where they are and that love is the number one message that needs to be portrayed in that presentation. When Jesus gave the disciples a new commandment during the last supper He told them to love one another. He explained that this is how everyone would recognize that they are His disciples. So, if we want the world to know who Christ is we have to start loving one another. And right now Guatemala needs to know who Christ really is. They need love and hope. And the only one who can mend what's been broken for them is Christ's love through us. Yes, the church has dropped the ball in this area a lot but now is not the time to sit around and point fingers, it's time to act. So act.

If you're interested in getting involved with The Magdalene Project please feel free to visit the above facebook page.

More posts to come about [MAG]

Open Eyes

I close my eyes and I see home, the place where I grew and the people that I knew.

I open my eyes and I see home, a new place where I grow with people I’m soon to know.

I close my eyes and I see my Mom and Sister, the women who made me this person I am

I open my eyes and I see my wife, the woman who absolutely loves this man that I am.

I close my eyes and I see my Dad, the man who showed me the way.

I open my eyes and I see myself in the mirror,

So much like my father, oh how I see it clearer.

So much I want to do to show that I understand

I am only here by the love and grace that I found in your hands.

I am who I am for many good reasons.

If not for love, life would only be time filled with seasons.

I open my eyes and what do I see but a future worth living as the man that I am.

Thank you to my Mother and thank you to my Father

I’ve made it this far but just you wait I’ll make it farther.

To my wife who’s the best of me this is what I know,

You said that you’d follow me no matter where I go.

The love that you give fits me perfectly.

Only God would have known that it was you that would complete me.

To the life that we’ll have in the years to come, just knowing that you’re mine gives me peace that overcomes.

To my family and my beautiful wife, thank you for all your love.

Hope: More Than Just Our Wishful Thinking

Have you ever stopped to think about the word hope? And how much we use it? It's a interesting thing to think about. Whether it is through the spoken word or simply in our thoughts we use it constantly. I have caught myself multiple times hoping for various things ranging from a small "I hope I have enough change to get a sausage dog on the way to work" to a big "I hope I don't loose my job today." Regardless to how big or small our hopes may be to us or other people, it goes to show how much we are all wired to act and think along the terms of hope.

The important thing to realize about hope is that it is crucial to have when we are facing big, real life situations. But it can't just be any type of hope--it has to be a hope that is durable, long-lasting and strong. What would it look like if we didn't have that type of hope? Well, here is a true story that will shine some light on this issue.

Major Harold Cushner was a POW – a Prisoner of War – in Vietnam.  He was describing the hopelessness that happens in prisoner of war camps.  Specifically, he was talking about this one 24-year-old marine.  This marine, when he was captured, he decided that he was going to give in to the Viet Cong.  He was going to cut a deal.  So this 24-year-old marine said this, “If you promise to let me go, I’ll do whatever you want, and I’ll cooperate with you.”  They said, “It’s a deal.”  This young marine did everything to cooperate.  He was a model prisoner.  He was even a leader in the camp’s thought-reform program.  But after a while it, became clear to him that they were lying to him.  They were never going to let him go.  Major Cushner described what happened to him next.  He said, “This young Marine became a zombie.  He refused to do any work, and he rejected all offers of food and encouragement.  He simply lay in his cot, sucking his thumb.  In a manner of weeks, he was dead.”  He goes on to say, “If there was one word, a one-word cause of death of this young Marine, it was hopelessness.” 

The fact that we need hope is okay but the point is that we do not need to create or allow a false hope to influence how we cope with your circumstances. It's just that we need to depend on a hope that will never leave us and will never run out. Luckily for us, that type of hope exists. And it can be found in God. The cool thing is God isn't going anywhere. He is for you and not against you. He wants you to have hope. As a matter of fact, He is hope.

In Paul's letter to the Roman church, "I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit." (Romans 15:13)

So, if we need hope and God is hope then what does that say about our nature? That we instinctively need God? or what?

It's just a thought to think about if you haven't already thought about it. I just know that hope has to be more than just wishful thinking, ambitious dreams and optimism. The reason being is that when we desperately need hope it has to be based off of something more than our own thoughts. Perhaps hope should be based more on the One whose thoughts are higher than our own.

It Would Still Be Far From Perfect...But At Least We Wouldn't Be Acting A Fool

It breaks my heart to see how dark and hateful Christians can be towards people. It almost makes me not want to be one. The acts of picketing and protesting that I see from Christians on television and YouTube are the exact opposite of what Jesus taught in the New Testament. It’s no surprise that those who are not a part of the Christian community are skeptical about us. I don’t blame them. If I were not brought up in a Christ-centered home and had no clue of what Christianity was really about, then I would be skeptical too. Absolutely! But the truth is I have been brought up in a Christ-centered home. I have been taught what Christianity is all about—unconditional compassion. So it breaks my heart when I see Christians “acting a fool”.

In Matthew 5:43-48 it says, “You’re familiar with the old written law, ‘Love your friend,’ and its unwritten companion, ‘Hate your enemy.’ I’m challenging that. I’m telling you to love your enemies. Let them bring out the best in you, not the worst. When someone gives you a hard time, respond with the energies of prayer, for then you are working out of your true selves, your God-created selves. This is what God does. He gives his best- the sun to warm and the rain to nourish- to everyone, regardless: the good and bad, the nice and nasty. If all you do is love the lovable, do you expect a bonus? Anybody can do that. If you simply say hello to those who greet you, do you expect a medal? Any run-of-the-mill sinner does that. In a word, what I’m saying is, grow up. You’re kingdom subjects. Now live like it. Live out your God-created identity. Live generously and graciously towards others, the way God lives toward you” (MSG).

Jesus is challenging those who proclaim to be God’s children to start acting like it. He goes to the extreme and hits us where it hurts the most—“…love your enemies.” Okay, well how should people who do not associate themselves with God or Jesus take these words? I’m sure they would feel quite offended by the term “enemy.” And that’s okay, I would be offended too. If I were in their shoes I would ask, “Hey, time out! What did we do to you guys to mark us as enemies?” Well, uh….nothing. The fact that Jesus used the terms “enemy” and “friend” does not necessarily mean that he was alluding to the terms “believer” and “nonbeliever”, he was just simply teaching his followers how to treat people who are either from the friend side of the spectrum or from the enemy side of the spectrum. If anything, these verses should build a new sense of expectancy about Christians. It would give those who aren’t associated with the Christians the knowledge necessary to detect which Christian community is “full of it” and which one that is doing a much better job living out what Christ died for.

To be blatantly honest, if every single church community on the face of this planet were focusing on what truly matters about the gospel of Christ we would be living in a completely different kind of world. It would still be far from perfect but at least we would be getting just a little bit closer to hitting the mark. And that mark is to know Christ and to make Him known in a genuine and loving way all throughout the world.

It breaks my heart to see how dark and hateful Christians can be towards people. The very people who need love the most.

That's Life

On Saturday December 17^th 2011 I graduated from Florida State University with a B.S. in Family & Child Science with a minor in Religion.

As I sat there among the hundreds of graduates I said to my self, “Self, you are ready for anything!” Then I said to Life, “Life, bring it on!!”

The remainder of the day will be shown through a timeline to show you what Life brought my way.

11:30---ceremony ends

12:30---lunch with family and friends

1:30----still having lunch with family and friends

2:30----in the ER with my wife

You might have asked yourself, “What on Earth happened?”

The appropriate answer would be that Life decided to “bring it” that very day.

Apparently, Ashley and all of her coworkers attracted a virus from work last week that hit them hard over the weekend. I don’t know what exactly happened to them but I do know what happened to Ashley. She ended up vomiting just about everything there was to vomit from her system. She became extremely dehydrated, experienced intense abdominal pain and eventually began to hyperventilate. The nurse put it simply, “Her nervous system is going haywire” and that is exactly what was happening. We ended up being in the ER until 10pm that night. It was a terrifying thing not knowing what was wrong with her. The doctor took a blood and urine sample to figure out what was happening. Luckily, it was a virus that already started to die down. After all, she had already cleaned out her system.

Most people will tell you that Life can happen at any moment. I know that to be true because it sure didn’t try giving us a rain check on behalf of our plans for that day. Don't get me wrong, I’m not complaining in any way. I am just relieved that my wife is doing a lot better now. As a matter of fact she has returned to work today and has made a complete recovery.

It’s a sobering thought to realize that sometimes we have no control over what happens to us. It’s during times like these that we are reminded of how frail we are and how much we need one another. In a way, I am glad that Life did not wait until later to do what it did. Yes, it was my graduation day. The day was supposed to be a day full of joy and celebration but it wasn’t—and that’s okay. That’s Life. I’m glad that God allowed the timing of the event to happen when it did because it taught me two valuable lessons.

1.)   Life never takes a holiday.

2.)   Life never considers yours.

Graduation (In Its Full)

Graduation is next weekend and I have no idea what the future holds for me. Of course I have a plan immediately afterwards but it is only temporary. Hopefully it will lead me closer to the career that God has clearly made known to me. The thought of being done with my undergrad seems so unreal that I have to pinch myself from time to time just to remind myself that it's really happening. It has been a long road. A road covered with stress, frustration, disappointment, change.......but all along the way it has been a journey of self discovery. I learned that I have what it takes to better myself intellectually and that with a little bit of planning skills I can accomplish multiple tasks within a demanding time frame.
I have overcome many obstacles throughout the past five and a half years and I am thankful that I am coming out on top. After high school I thought that I wasn't cut out for college....that I would not be able to keep up...but I did. I thank God for never letting up and never allowing me to walk away. I know because of his faithfulness that I was made for a purpose--as we all are--but I know that I have a specific purpose that only I can fulfill.
The one subject that I will never forget from my college experience will be......me. I learned exactly what I am. I am a man who was made to love and care for people of all ages, especially teenagers. I thank God for not granting my wish of going to Southeastern University because if he had I wouldn't be where I am today. I have the best wife a man could ever hope for, friends that so happen to be the best people on this Earth, and a church family that truly grasps what it means to be the body of Christ. All of these relationships have played a crucial role in the development of my adult character and I am blessed to have them.
God, thank you for believing in me and giving me all the tools necessary to have gotten this far. I know that your love and faithfulness will never leave me or forsake me. I know without a shout of a doubt that after graduation you will turn my life upside down with something I will have never expected....and I'm okay with that. To live a life under your purpose is to live a life in its full.