Freedom 4-24

Just recently Brentwood (my church) launched a campaign of sort called Freedom 4-24 (www.freedom4-24.com). The mission is to reach prostitutes in Thailand through a ministry called Beginnings. $24 pays for a night where the girls are taken to a safe place and told of an alternative means of survival.

One of the things that struck me was that a huge amount of the men who come to defile themselves through the use of these girls come from the United States. We live in a fallen world.

Mark 7:20 ". . .That which proceeds out of the man, that is what defiles the man."

Wait . . . there is hope! Some of us won't be able to go to Thailand and fight there - fight here! Fight with donations, support and prayer - but fight another way.

Fight with the Truth!

Fight because there is a better way. Grip the sword here and let everyone know that we serve a God of love, grace and mercy. We serve a God of justice, truth, and righteousness and what it is that those men seek from Thailand won't be fulfilled because there is a way that is right and that way leads to true joy and satisfaction.

Donate, go, talk, wherever it is that you feel the Holy Spirit leading you to be involved, but make no mistake you are involved. It takes sharing Christ to the people around us to a whole different level, not just about the person but about the world! On www.freedom4-24.com it states, "the end must begin somewhere."

Let it begin here
Let it begin there

Let it begin.

"Best & Brightest"

Several days ago some major bonuses were given out to executives in a business that has caused a huge uproar. Part of the justification for this by the company was they needed to retain the best and the brightest. This captivated my thoughts, wasn’t it these same “best and brightest” that put the company in that situation?

How many of Jesus disciples were the best and the brightest? Most of them had been kicked out of “seminary.” These men were called to follow, not the guys you would expect, not top of their class. The majority of people that Jesus called and that followed Him were the bottom in man’s eyes but they were passionate and committed.

My whole life I’ve been picked close to the bottom, close to last. I have failed more than can possibly be imagined and delayed from pursuing and fulfilling my calling for 12 years now. I don’t know why, I don’t care. What I do know is that Christ is after the Holiness of my soul and has given me a passion for His local church that cannot be extinguished.

Matt 5:6 – Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied

Hunger and thirst, not full and quenched. It seems that the only thing Christ wants to do with the full & quenched is show them that what they have gorged themselves on is not righteousness. Interesting that it says shall be satisfied, looking toward the future, a future hope, a hope for the future.

So for us failures, us weak, us who are no where near the “best and brightest” there is still a calling on us, for us, a passion that burns inside aching to escape and a commitment to truth that will lead us to be satisfied . . .

. . .but in the words of the slave from Gladiator, “not yet, not yet.”

Just His Ways

Mark 8:27-33
"Who do you say that I am?"

What a scene this must have been. Jesus and the disciples, between gigs, walking down the road. I can see Matthew telling some stories of stuff he had "taxed", John pushing James into a bush as they walk by it. Peter is probably picking up rocks and throwing them at cacti or something.

Then Jesus says, "Hey guys, what's the word on who I am? What are people saying?" They answer with what they heard from the crowds. Then He says, "What about ya'll? Who do you think I am?"

Of course Peter declares He is the Messiah! To which Jesus starts telling them about the rejection and beatings and bleeding and death that is coming. Well Peter calls Him aside and says, "Look man, I just vouched for you, You're the King, You can't talk like that, You're gonna rule and we are going to be there with you!"

This was about Peter having glory and not being embarrassed that His King would die and not rule and have a place in the court for him. This was Pride.

We want Jesus to come only where we want Him to go.

We don't want Him to go to the cross, to poverty, to pain & suffering, to cancer, to death because we are going with Him!

We are told in detail of Peter's later denial, but don't forget John 21, where Jesus brought him back, broke him down, built him up, and sent him out! It was through these things that Christ brought Peter closer and closer to Himself.
This will not be easy and we will fail but He will bring us back, break us, build us up, and send us back out.

This life is not about us, it is about Christ being glorified through us, not His ways before ours . . . Just His Ways!

Don't Let Go!

Last night my beautiful wife was out at a birthday party so it was just me and Linc. It was getting close to bed time and he continued to want me to pick him up. When I would he would put his head on my shoulder (a pretty rare occasion as my child is always looking for something to do or climb on.)

We went up stairs, got ready for bed, drank some milk, read a book, and prayed, just like every night. On this night though he wasn’t ready to let go. He grabbed my neck and wouldn’t let me put him down. He squeezed tight, so I squeezed tight and he laughed. We did this a couple times then I sat down with him. We rocked for a while and I tried to put him down again, still he held.

He then began to move my head around like I was a GI Joe (not a doll) or something. He would turn my head, I would turn it back, he would laugh, repeat! He continually looked at the door, I think he was looking for his Mama. I wanted to just take him to bed with me but he wouldn’t stay, he’s just too curious and outgoing for that anymore. Thank you, God, that sometimes Lincoln just doesn’t want to let go.

In the Beginning

I have had many hesitations in the past regarding starting a blog, not the least being that I have uttered many un-educated and ignorant things that have vanished into thin air because the were not written, now any incoherent utterance can be re-read or printed.

Not that I really expect many people to read this, there is not much call for a warehouse manager / Real Estate Agent in the world of blogging but I have all these things rattling around in my brain that need to come out and this seems the safest way.

So here it is, this is the view "Into My Life . . ."