patience.

Potiphar threw Joseph into prison while he was in Egypt; then Joseph interpreted the dreams for the baker and cupbearer who were also thrown into prison (why are people always "thrown?"); then the servants promise Joseph they will get him out when they are freed (and they forget); and Joseph waits TWO YEARS to be let out. Man. Then he goes on to be Pharaoh's right hand man at 30 years old! Whew. What craziness.

I don't know that it's super clear in Acts how long Paul studied and prepared for ministry before he began preaching/traveling, but I want to say it was a few years (3? would love if someone who knew for sure could correct me).

Then there's Jesus; He didn't start His ministry until His 30s. (Do I need to capitalize all those pronouns? I feel like I should).

Waiting is so not fun..but sometimes essential.

The Road of Life

On the road of life, there are passengers, and there are drivers.

And sometimes, there are friends who don't trust your map reading skills, so both people have to play both roles.

In this particular case, Lys and I were driving from the corner of South Dakota to the heart of Wisconsin. Now, to be clear, Jesus should always be in the drivers seat of the car (I think at this point in our journey, he was hanging on to the bumper). Lys needed me to take the wheel because she wanted to look at the map for herself. We can both be pretty stubborn, but I think this outcome was actually due to our silly-ness.

 

I could go down so many roads (haha) with this post, but I think I'll take it here: we need friends to have our backs, and we as friends need to have their backs. Volkswagen wants drivers, and I don't blame them. I want to drive my own car. I want my friends in the car with me, but I want to say where I’m going.

Sometimes, we need those friends in the car to say hey, your map is wrong, or hey, I don’t like this road you’re heading down. Sometimes the driver doesn’t listen, and we must decide, in the extreme cases, whether or not we want to go down that road with them.

a promise.

How's this for a legacy? (quotes from wikipedia)

"Nancy G. Brinker promised her dying older sister, Susan G. Komen, she would do everything in her power to end breast cancer forever.

 

In 1982, that promise became Susan G. Komen for the Cure, which is now the world's largest breast cancer organization and largest source of nonprofit fund dedicated to breast cancer.

 

Since its inception in 1982, Komen has raised over $1.5 billion for research, education and health services, making it the largest breast cancer charity in the world. Today, the Komen organization is recognized as the leading catalyst in the fight against breast cancer, with more than 100,000 volunteers working in a network of 125 U.S. and international affiliates.”

Un-learning

I'm having trouble finishing this post. I started it weeks ago, and I've been working on it here and there, but I can't seem to summarize my thoughts into a neat little package, so at this point, I'm going to use this as a chance to let you see the way my brain works. And my brain thinks in italics, which is handy, because I can set apart my thoughts from the things I decided to type out after the fact. So here we go: my thoughts, no filter:

I dream of a day when Christians are rightly known- by the things for which we (should) stand, not for the things we are against. The problem is not with those who wrongly label us. Quite often, they are correct. And the funny thing is, we don't radiate the one thing that's most important to us: Jesus. His attitude, His heart, His love. We are more (in)famous for what we are against than what we are for.



How do we as the Body of Christ clean up our behavior? How to we get back to the basics, back to what's most important instead of the things that subtly tend to seep into our lives and minds and hearts, things that made us what we are, which is oddly not a good representation of Christ. I don't like the word 'subtly-' or 'subtle,' for that matter. They are too hard to spell, too hard!

The things that seep in without our knowing can be good things, until they steal our attention away from the point of our lives, which is to point to Christ. Our pursuit of our dreams- but are they God-given, Christ-centered dreams, or are they Christian versions of the sought-after but sadly un-fulfilling American Dream? Our political views- we all have a responsibility to stay informed of the issues and vote accordingly, but why do we get hung up on differences (even in evangelical Christian circles!) in views on social and moral issues?

How does the church fit into helping Christians "clean up" their behaviors? Is it ever right for a church to be inwardly focused? In this instance, should it be the church's responsibility to serve its members in this way? Where else does the massive Body of Christ receive truth, biblical teaching, admonishment, encouragement, etc? (Besides just reading our Bibles and living according to what that says...)

But the problem with this is that the church is made up of imperfect people. We judge others. We are abrasive in political debates. We spend money on stupid things. When we sin, our natural inclination is to hide. We see that from the very beginning with Adam and Eve.

I read something once on a website, a parody of a verse from colossians I think: "be loud in the ways you act towards others; take each opportunity for granted, let your conversations always be abrasive, seasoned with aggression, so you will always be right."

How fitting for some of us. When did we start being aggressive and abrasive? Yikes!

A bible study at my church is studying concepts from Greg Koukl's ministry, Stand To Reason. In college I would always get clammy palms and a nervous twitch when I tried to talk to someone about my faith- even when I wasn't explicitly "evangelizing." At my former place of employment, I very seldom brought up spiritual things- not because I was afraid to, but because my coworkers would constantly bring it up in front of me. I think they just liked the fact that I listened to whatever they had to say and I didn't blow up at them for voicing their opinions. I never really knew what to say to them, so that was probably my main reason for not replying very much (that, and a general interest in and concern of their spiritual convictions).

Anyway, I love that we're doing this at Bible study. So far, we've learned how to use the concept of burden of proof in our favor. I started with limited information on and a small number of assumptions concerning Christianity five years ago- but here I am, how to not be abrasive and inappropriate concerning sharing my faith.

The fact that I must unlearn so much about my faith is a little sad. Even in Christian circles, there are a lot of misinformed and misdirected people. Very sad. Why do people think forcing their beliefs on someone is going to work? They are directing their passion to the wrong place.

And, what's with people not telling others about Jesus? If all the Christians in the world shared their faith with like 50 or maybe even 20 people, I bet that'd be it. Great Commission = done. Telling people about Jesus is an essential and normal expression of a mature, healthy relationship with Jesus. I'm serious here. If you don't have a natural inclination in your daily life to talk about Jesus, what He's teaching you, why you follow Him, how He's changed your life, then why do you believe in the Gospel? Why are you a Christian?

I think this post could go on and on and on, so I will cut myself off here, which did not happen soon enough! Forgive me if feelings are hurt or comments are inappropriate. But it's a personal blog on the Internet, so I highly doubt someone who would actually say something in major disagreement would come across it. Unless that's you, and you're reading this. If it is, comment away!

power and change

Hebrews 4:12 is commonly used to describe the Bible, and for good reason: "For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart." But why is the Word so special? Is it just another book, or is it something more?


I just looked up some verses about the word of God:
1 Peter 1:23 "...the living and abiding word of God."
Jeremiah 23:29 "Is not my word like fire, declares the LORD, like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces?"
1 Thessalonians 1:5 "...our gospel came to you not simply with words, but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and with deep conviction."
1 Thessalonians 2:13 "(the word of God) is at work in you who believe."
Ephesians 6:17 "the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God."

By no means is this an exhaustive list. But it makes me think about the reason the Word is so important in our lives.

Without the power of God behind it, the Word is merely the word- ink on paper, a collection of two thousand year old stories that have no real significance in our lives.

But the Word is a catalyst, and the more you read it, the most you know. The more you know, the more you apply it to your life. The more application that occurs, the more you change.

Sometimes, I don't want to get in the Word because I know that I'm wrong, and I'm pretty sure God will convict me of that wrongness. But, if you haven't guessed it by now, I'm all about change. Even when it stinks, I know I'll look back down the road and be glad I was made aware of my wrongness.

Even when I was a kid, I was into change. I wanted to know how tall I'd grown since the last time I was at the doctor. I wanted to know how many more words I could spell and define after surpassing another level in the Accelerated Reader program. I wanted to see how much farther I could shoot a basketball or hit a golf ball.

But the concept of emotional or mental lasting change is a bit more tricky. Real change comes not from legalistic rules, but from a change of the heart. And what better way to see your heart change than through meeting with the One who knows your heart? "Because of Christ and our faith in him, we can now come boldly and confidently into God’s presence" (Ephesians 3:12), through His Word, which begins us on a path to lasting change.

cavalier

Aside from the a model of a Chevrolet, the word cavalier has several meanings:

noun: one having the spirit or bearing of a knight; a courtly gentleman; gallant.
adj: disdainful, arrogant or supercilious.
verb: to be haughty or domineering.

I find it funny that the noun is much different from the adjectives/verbs!

the light-bulb moment

Do you ever had one of those AHA! moments? I love those. I just had one. They don't come often so I didn't really know what to do with it...

...so I'll blog about it. I was sipping a tasty caramel latte today, reading the current book my bible study is discussing. It held my interest very well, as the author was tackling a very confusing passage and concept from the Bible, when suddenly it clicked. I will end up blogging about this down the road, but for now I just want this post to actually be about this elusive "light bulb flash."



It was awesome. Do you ever have one of those moments where something you've been wondering about, literally for years, finally makes sense? In the last 5 years I've had to work my way up from a very elementary knowledge of the Bible. Generally I've just focused on learning whatever I could get my hands on.

I'm finally arriving at a place of understanding where I can research and study one area of Scripture on my own, and see it fit in with the bigger picture of the Bible. It's so, so exciting to me. I first realized this was happening a year ago, at new staff training with Campus Crusade. I was forced to research and study theological concepts and church doctrine, which is something I never really had an interest in doing. Up until that point, people were generally always helping me learn things- there was always a conference or Bible study leader or super-smart friend who would answer my questions.

Knowing this makes today's small 'light bulb flash' very important. This phenomenon doesn't only occur in cartoons. I now have a better understanding of a Biblical concept that will change the way I go about my day to day life, the way I think about God, and the way I feel about myself. That's kind of huge.

This happens a lot to a lot of leaders in the Christian sub-world. A few weeks ago I heard John Piper share a bit of his story concerning the way God lead him to different places in life.

Piper's big mantra is "God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him." This is his gem from Scripture, his insight the Lord impressed on his heart.

When you discover something like this, having your very own light bulb moment, God is going to use that in big ways.

That's why people are constantly saying "get in the Word." "Read your Bible." "Go to God, see what He has to say." When I was younger in my faith, I got so sick of hearing this. I didn't believe it could be that easy. It's maybe not as easy as I thought it was then, but it is simple. I have access to the One who spoke the earth into being, who spoke to Abraham, and Moses, and David, and the One who still speaks to people today. Without the Spirit of God, the Bible is just a book- just words on pieces of paper. His Spirit is available to convict and convince, to speak to us when we need it most, despite our knowledge of our need.

It's great to read Christian books about topics that interest us. Even to read and discuss them in "bible study" is ok from time to time. But it is so much more important to be in the Word of God on a regular basis, and daily, if it's not too much to ask. The Bible is the yardstick that we measure everything else against.

I don't think we really understand that we have a chance to enter into the presence of the living God at any time. Because if we did, our lives would change. I know mine would. If you're looking for the will of God in your life, or encouragement, wisdom, comfort, or hope- go to the very author and perfecter of our faith.

time.

Did you know it's 2010? Every time I write the date, I think I'm going crazy. A whole decade has come and gone. It feels like high school was just last month and college was last week. I swear I saw kids playing frisbee golf at the park yesterday, when in reality fall was months ago. I'm still living in my college town a year after graduation and I haven't met any of the goals, financial or personal, that I set for this point in my life. I'm trying to distinguish my life now from my life in college, but it's been hard to move on emotionally.

I was digging around in some old files a few months ago, and I found a program booklet from TCX '05. I reminisced about some good times while I paged through it. Inside I found the following quote: A changed life is assurance of salvation.

It's been months since I read that quote and I can't get it out of my head.

Has my life changed? How? Am I really different now compared to who I've been? I know there are obvious differences.. but is the change lasting?

I'll be candid (like I haven't been already); with the combo of this quote and my current inability to live in the present, I'm in a funk. On my own, I think I'm doing fine, but when I look around at the rest of the world, I feel like I'm moving in slow-motion.

That's the key, I guess. Comparison to the lives of others is never a good benchmark. Neither is conformity to the standards that this world says I should live up to. Goals can be a good thing, but meeting these standards won't bring lasting fulfillment. Having what others have is just going to make me more miserable.

Maybe I'll just go read the book of Ecclesiastes and call it a night.



Take heart, I have overcome the world. -John 16.33

flashback

Below is a part of a post I wrote back in Nov '09 about a realization that the Gospel is more than a one-time decision/prayer, which I brought up in my post from Jan 6 this year.

Last fall I read Francis Chan's book Crazy Love. It's great.

I recently listened to one of his sermons about living reverently.

His passage of choice was Philippians 2:12-13... Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.



Somewhere between Jesus' time on earth and today, somebody made the mistake that salvation is about a one-time decision made through prayer. He asks the would you get that from reading the Bible?

Salvation does come at a point in time; there is a moment when your eyes are opened and you understand that Jesus took your place on the cross. There is a moment of decision. But the rest of your life is you working out this salvation. The rest of your life is about following Jesus.

Midway through the sermon, Chan explained a great analogy with the decision making of a New Years' Resolution. The one-time decision is important, but the rest of the year is following that decision- changing what you need to do to act on it. Your actions will show how serious you were when you made that decision.

Paul wrote this letter from prison, and is encouraging the believers to work out their salvation in his absence. He is saying work out your own salvation. He isn't around anymore to help and encourage them. And they can't depend on him in the same way. And we can't depend on the people around us for our salvation. When it comes down to it, each of us will stand before Christ individually and have to answer for our lives.

Will He really tell you, well done? Are you a good and faithful servant? Or will He say "Depart from me, I never knew you. I know your parents, your grandparents, your pastor, your friends. But I don't know you."

Chan says he has "a responsibility as your pastor. I will probably be judged more strictly than you, according to James 2. I have a responsibility to try to lead you into the right place before God. At the same time, when you stand before God, you are not going to be able to blame me."

When I started walking with the Lord, my motives were shady. I had found great friends and a great social outlet. I always felt like I belonged. God started working in my life, and while I knew I had found something that would change me, I did a lot of things just because of the people.

I think that was ok, to begin with. It always amazes me how God can work through poor motives and irresponsible people. But had I continued to depend on those around me, I'm not experiencing a true relationship with God.

Would I follow Jesus despite all the believers around me? Am I making my salvation my own? A priority of my life?

Work out your salvation with fear and trembling. Chan says "I don't see a lot of fear and trembling in today's church. I see a lot of arrogance when people talk about God...like Scripture says, it's a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God."

We have no excuse to not work out our salvation. We have endless opportunities to serve our neighbors, give to the needy, support missions. We have never had so much knowledge at our fingertips to encourage and challenge us in our relationship with God.

Pray for Haiti

If you haven't already heard, last night there was a 7.0 magnitude earthquake in Haiti. The epicenter was located about 10 miles southwest of the capital city of Port-au-Prince.

My immediate thoughts on the event were the thousands of people that are unaccounted for. What a horrible tragedy. I've been learning more about Haiti and praying for the country over the last few months; I began supporting a child there through Mission of Mercy last year and hearing about a friend's medical rotation there (JB) also grabbed my interest.



Campus Crusade put out a staff update about the earthquake this morning. There are 2 staff families working in Haiti. The director, Rev. Esperandieu Pierre, and his son Nathan were in Trinidad for ministry training and are unharmed. As of last reports, Dianne Pierre and their 2 other children, Charissa and Lemuel, along with the other staff couple have yet to be contacted. Their blog, with updates, can be found here. There are also several teams from The JESUS Film Project® in the country as well.

Global Aid Network, the humanitarian aid arm of Campus Crusade, had previously sent a container of food and shoes to Haiti in case of a disaster like this and have supplies in place and ready to distribute. They also have plans to ship more supplies there in the coming days.

I know there are tons of organizations to give to who do and will do relief work in Haiti, but here are a few links in case you are interested in giving:

The American Red Cross click to give


Mission of Mercy: Haiti Earthquake Relief Efforts click to give
Funds will go to assisting relief efforts in communities where we work and to join efforts underway in Port au Prince.


Campus Crusade's movement in Haiti click to give
Nehemiah Vision Ministries
c/o Earthquake Assistance
P.O. Box 48
Westfield, IN 46074



Click here for an update on the outlook in Haiti

Top Six

The six most populous countries in the world, which make up 50% of the world's population are:

1. China - 1.335 billion, 19.65% of world population
2. India - 1.175 billion, 17.3%
3. US - 308 million, 4.54%
4. Indonesia - 231 million, 3.4%
5. Brazil - 192 million, 2.83%
6. Pakistan - 168 million, 2.48%

From Talk To Action

One of the overarching themes of the last year or two of my life has been discovering the true meaning of the Gospel. I'm sure that I will continue to learn about it for the rest of my life, as I'll never fully understand how it works and why God designed life this way.

Lately I've come to a much deeper understanding of the Gospel; it's more than a one-time prayer that I know I should pray. The Gospel affects our lives in eternity, but is also life-changing while we are on this earth.

Under this overarching theme lies another issue that has consumed much of my thinking: good deeds.



Just by reading the accounts of Jesus interacting with people in the Gospels, one can see that He wasn't only about truth, and He wasn't only about good deeds. He had a unique balance. The Great Commission and The Great Commandment were both important to Him, and they should both be important to us.

Why do we shy away from helping others when we see they are in need? Why do we justify our lack of action? Why do we make the excuse that they may use this money I'm giving them for booze!

"When a Christian sees someone who is physically hungry, a Christian feeds the hungry person. Why? Because hungry people can’t understand the plan of salvation? No. Simply because that person is hungry. That’s what Christians do. And if a person is spiritually hungry, a Christian becomes “one beggar telling another beggar where he or she found bread.” Why? Because that’s what Christians do" (Steve Brown).

Books like Crazy Love and The Irresistible Revolution have also fed my interest in this area, along with many articles from Relevant Magazine and Worldwide Challenge.

Nancy Ortberg was recently quoted about this in an online Relevant article: "Many churches I come in contact with have all kinds of programs for banquets, and teas, and Bible studies, which in and of themselves are not bad, but there is not an equal amount of serving the poor, and getting our hands dirty, and coming alongside people in need. The Church has to go to them. Many people started clamoring around Jesus initially because He was healing people, and then when they got close enough, they began to hear His message. And His message was, “The Kingdom of God is available right now.”

Shane Claiborne is also quoted in the same article: "People are hungry, I think, for a Gospel that embodies a social, political alternative to the patterns of our world. To me, that is the very essence of what spread within the early Church— they were caring for the poor, preaching another Kingdom and another emperor than Caesar’s. And it was absolutely magnetic because the faith people had placed in Rome was at an all-time low, so when they were saying, “We’ve got another Kingdom,” people were like, “Yes, we’re ready, because the world as we’ve experienced it is not working.” The beautiful thing is, people are saying the same thing now."

How much more credible are our lives when people see our loving actions, then hear about the love that motivates us?

Now that I know this, what do I do about it?

What action steps can I take this week, this month, this year, to move toward a better balance?

overseas missions & holy ambitions

Have you ever felt like a speaker or pastor in a huge crowd had prepared their message JUST for you?

Two weeks ago I heard John Piper, author and preaching pastor at Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis, speak at a conference (TCX). His two messages were about overseas missions and holy ambitions. In my opinion, he really hit the nail on the head. These are two topics that I think and pray about literally every day. I can't get them out of my head. (Well, technically his first message was about God's passion for His glory...but he talked about overseas missions a lot)



Piper's goal of his first message was to 'put ballast in our boats.' Conferences are great spiritual highs for so many, helping students to build a very tall mast. But the first time there's a strong crosswind (which always comes), the boat blows over and it's so massive you can't get it back up by yourself. If there's enough ballast (weight) in it, no crosswind can knock it over.

Piper claims that God's passion for His own glory is the ballast for our boats. He then went on to talk about trends in overseas missions. He had stats about the number of unreached and unengaged people groups around the world, the number of church goers around the world and patterns of growth and interest in world missions. Here are some highlights:

-formerly dominant Christian nations (European countries, the US) are becoming less interested in world missions
-the number of Christians in Africa and Asia are growing exponentially
-there are 16,000+ people groups in the world: 6,647 are unreached, 1,662 are unengaged

Piper urged us to do the research about world missions instead of relying on others for information. There are denominations out there (a-HEM evangelical lutherans) who are pulling back on the number of missionaries in the world, saying enough people have heard about Christ. There are people that are claiming it's more effective and efficient for native Christians to reach their own people (while this may be true for those crossing severe culture boundaries, foreign missionaries are actually more effective in many areas of the world).

Then came a variation of one of Piper's missions quotes, "Go, Send or disobey:" 'We are to be a passionate, sacrificial sender or a passionate, sacrificial goer. There is no other choice.'

Another Piper quote from the night: "Do not make the mistake that it's cheaper, more efficient and more effective to quit going overseas for missions."

There was much more to Piper's first message, but there is a segue in my mind right now that will lead me to my thoughts on his second message.

Probably Piper's most famous quote is "God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him." I first heard this my freshman year of college on a spring break trip and I thought it was a pretty cool idea.

Now, 5 years later, I see it in a different light.

Piper's second message was an admonition to find out God's 'holy ambition' for our lives. I think the above quote is a huge help in this assignment.

And here was the second topic that often consumes my thoughts and prayers. Those in the age range if 18-30 have a HUGE change to influence others for Christ. Piper talked about the current trend for 20-somethings to postpone adulthood to our 30s. "Adolescence" is a modern, 20th century idea- and now we are moving on to "Adult-o-lescence," the postponement of becoming an adult. Piper quoted a lot of sources and names here to back up his point, but I didn't even write any down. I've had this feeling for awhile now and often consider how I'm postponing adulthood in my own life, and whether I should or should not be doing so.

Then Piper told us the story about his personal holy ambition, the thing which drives him every single day in ministry, in relationships, in life. The element of ultimate glorification of God in our lives when we are satisfied in Him is Piper's holy ambition. This famous statement drives his ministry.

Paul of Tarsus had a holy ambition. His can be found in Romans 15:18-24.."It has always been my ambition to preach the gospel where Christ was not known, so that I would not be building on someone else's foundation." An important element of this point is that Paul doesn't talk about how God calls him to this holy ambition. The calling does not matter. Neither Paul nor God expects us to have the same 'calling' experience. However, I think it's safe to say that we will be lead to our own holy ambition through personally encountering Christ. How does that happen today? We probably won't get blinded on a road to Damascus (though I'm sure God does work in that way for others).

To move toward a holy ambition, we must immerse ourselves in God's Word. God can work in a lot of ways and through a lot of things, but I this is primarily how God speaks to us now.

While some may discover a holy ambition to preach where the Gospel is not known like Paul, there are other types of holy ambitions. Piper made the point of bringing up Timothy, who was to shepherd others and build up the church in Ephesus. Not everyone is a Paul, and not everyone is a Timothy. Maybe you're one of those. Maybe you're a

One more thought from Piper: It is a good thing to be controlled by a holy ambition. It does not/will not leave you with regret.

{not sure how long this link will last but you can download piper's sermons here}

validate or discredit?

As Christians, we aren't supposed to care what people think about us. We're supposed to live in the world but not be of the world- to go about our business above reproach and to honor God in what we do.

The Gospel is offensive. Only one way to Heaven? Jesus' claims as King, God, Messiah? And these are just a few examples.



Now compare this to the current views of our society. Tolerance, freedom from rules (meaning those that are there for our own good and the good of others, not legalism), the 'as long as you believe something you'll go to Heaven' mentality, 'the just do more good than bad' mentality... they all make the Gospel seem... outdated. Inappropriate. Unacceptable. No wonder people have negative views of Christianity.

True followers of Christ in our society walk a fine line. Negative feelings, words, actions abound due to our beliefs, actions, the basic way we live our lives.

Many are quick to agree that believers in America have it much easier than those around the world. Last Sunday's sermon on persecution humbled my "missionary pride" and admonished me to pray more than I do (which isn't much at all).

There's another facet to the negativity, and about caring about the way people perceive us.

Dare I say too often our political passions, moral issue opinions, inability to listen, desire to argue until we win and lack of concern for others hinders us from having an impact for Christ.

While we shouldn't base our self-worth or identity on what others think of us (a topic of which I have more questions than insights), there's a level of behavioral appropriateness. We are to treat others with respect, regardless of their opinions. Even if someone is a jerk, are we not to turn the other cheek? Believe me, I'm preaching to the choir here.

How do people identify the Christians in their lives? We are often known by the things we are against.

Our lives are a great testimony to the world when others see us as set apart due to our love for God, devotion to Him above all else and our love for and service to others.

The passage from 2 Corinthians 5:20-6:10 relates to/caused this post:

"We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God. God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

As God's fellow workers we urge you not to receive God's grace in vain. For he says,
"In the time of my favor I heard you, and in the day of salvation I helped you."
I tell you, now is the time of God's favor, now is the day of salvation.

We put no stumbling block in anyone's path, so that our ministry will not be discredited. Rather, as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: in great endurance; in troubles, hardships and distresses; in beatings, imprisonments and riots; in hard work, sleepless nights and hunger; in purity, understanding, patience and kindness; in the Holy Spirit and in sincere love; in truthful speech and in the power of God; with weapons of righteousness in the right hand and in the left; through glory and dishonor, bad report and good report; genuine, yet regarded as impostors; known, yet regarded as unknown; dying, and yet we live on; beaten, and yet not killed; sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; poor, yet making many rich; having nothing, and yet possessing everything." {NIV}

"Our work as God's servants gets validated—or not—in the details." {verse 4, The Message}

what is this for?

If I were the pioneer woman, I'd give one of these away to the first person to explain what this is. But I'm not, so you'll just have the satisfaction of helping me out.

iiiii

In the last two years or so I've been hanging out with a lot of med students (and one nurse- big shout out to cv! :). This has led to an increase in my knowledge of the medical field and a decrease in paid medical visits. I love getting free advice from my dr friends, not only because it helps them learn, but because it selfishly helps me

In the last two years I've had a swollen illiotibial band, heel spur, conjunctivitis, two-week long ear congestion, and now what I think is a subconjunctival hemorrhage. That's right- as if I didn't already rely on google too much for medical advice- I'm now pretty confident in my self-diagnosis abilities.

I have a bright red patch in the white part of the the left corner of my right eye. Aka red eye. It's (hopefully) just a (very) small broken blood vessel that bled into my bulbar conjunctiva (outside lining of my eye). It doesn't hurt/it maybe hurts a very tiny bit now that I've noticed it (I think my mind is just playing tricks on me). I had a pretty huge sneeze earlier today, so I think this led to the hemorrhage. I would use a less scary word for it, but I don't know one.

And don't worry, I'm going to the eye doctor on Thursday.

The Way Forward: Revolutionariness.

I had a conversation about the Internet the other day with my 50-something mother. As a child, she never imagined the possibility of going to one source to check the weather forecast, her bank balance and the final score of the Vikings game- at the same time.

We got our first computer in 1990 and as a four year old I loved playing spelling and matching games. Down the road I learned the timing of the spacebar-up arrow jumping move in Duke Nukem, and I felt more proud than getting an "A" on a spelling test. Then came Oregon Trail, and I was in love.

Well, what I thought was love. I was just a kid.

Then I discovered Google.

Technology brings us incredible advantages in business, science, government, medicine, law, finance- every field has seen an impact.

The Internet has also been greatly impacting the spiritual state of my generation. We've grown up getting any information we want, when we want it. Music, TV, news, video, all at our fingertips. Sounds like small things, but each has huge implications.

Today's 20-somethings have been propelled to a belief that life is about instant gratification, fulfilling our culture-created dreams, establishing our cookie-cutter lives, striving for a better life than the jones' while the whole time we are feeling deeply unsatisfied with what we've constructed and earned for ourselves.

To quote Ron Hutchcraft, "this is the most unreached generation in American history, yet the most reachable generation in American history. The things that have made them lost have also made them ready for Jesus, and they have never been more ready."

We all know the Great Commission. We may even think about it throughout the week, and consider how we're helping to fulfill it in our daily lives. If you just read the few lines of Matthew 28:18-20, you don't really notice the words between the lines. When you consider the Great Commission in light of the rest of the Bible, there's more to the command.

And it is a command. God in the OT and Jesus in the NT both commanded a lot of things. We don't commit adultery because God commands us not to. We love our neighbors because Jesus commands us to do so.

I think the 'more' to the command is this: He calls each of us to be revolutionary.

Dare I say the easiest and most thought of way to do this, to be revolutionary, is to leave your family, friends, comforts of home, cable TV and carmel latte's and go to another country to be a missionary.

When I hear people say You don't have to go to another country or even be in full-time ministry to be revolutionary, I want to hi-five them. I that's one of the biggest misconceptions for my generation. We accept the fact that we aren't "called" to full-time ministry somewhere, and we automatically assume we'll get a job, probably get married, finance a house and buy a dog. Those things are fine, but even those can be done in a revolutionary way.

You may be a lawyer, working crazy hours with limited time outside work. You may be a stay-at-home-mom, spending a large majority of your day with your kids, feeling cut-off from the world around you. You may be a college student, trying to figure out what you want to do with the rest of your life. You may be a barista at the local Starbucks, or a warehouse stockman or a firefighter. I don't know who's reading this. Ok, I can probably guess the 3-4 people that will read this. :)

My point is this: maybe God wants you right where He’s got you, and He wants you do live your whole life for Him in a revolutionary way.

It's probably time to explain what I mean by revolutionary. The dictionary says it's sudden, complete, or marked change; radically new or innovative; outside or beyond established procedure, principles.

I would say full-time ministry is probably revolutionary according to the way the world works. But it's the easy road. I know myself, and I know that God wants me to be in full-time ministry at this point. I do spend time trying to figure out what that looks like, but for the most part I pretty much know what I'm doing.

As someone in full-time ministry, I have the easy job. It's a lot harder for everyone else.

Our culture tells us what we need to do to be popular, successful, happy and powerful. When we compare what the world tells us and what Jesus calls us to, we notice a difference. And if we do it right, then we are revolutionary.

I'll leave you with another quote from Ron Hutchcraft (who isn't the only one I could quote here). "If we just keep doing what we’ve been doing, we will leave most of our generation unreached for Jesus Christ. We, as Christians, have gone as far as we can go safely."