Mahatma Gandhi has been credited with saying the following, “I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.” After doing some research it doesn’t appear that he actually ever said this, but that is the paraphrase of some things he did say. As a Christian, it pains me when I see the way my faith is viewed by society. There are so many people who profess to be Christians who don’t live the way the Bible teaches and don’t see anything wrong with the way they live. There are also Christians who love the Lord and give up much of their lives to serving him. We’re imperfect. Human. I get it. One thing I find really interesting though is that a lot of people don’t have issues with Jesus and His teachings. Whether you believe He was just a man with some good teachings on how to love people well or you believe that He was God incarnate as man, He was real, existed, and is one of the most influential people to have ever walked on this earth. What did He actually teach though?
This is something I’ve been studying for years of my life because as a Christian (i. e. Christ-follower) it means everything to me. I believe that the Bible is inerrant, without error, and that means everything that Jesus said is the very Word of God spoken to me. My believing and non-believing friends alike think that Jesus taught a way of living that is good, but they don’t always realize the controversial topics he covered. I spent several weeks pouring over the first four books of the New Testament known as the Gospels. This is the part of the Bible where Jesus actually walked on the earth so we can listen to what He said directly. Over the next few blog posts I want to examine what He said because I think it’s relevant to everyone. These posts are going to be for Christians and non-Christians alike because I want people to critically think about what Jesus said and the implications that means for their lives.
A little background into the life of Jesus is necessary to understand where He’s coming from. There are 3 aspects of God: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. While each is independent of each other, they are also the same and equally important. This is kind of difficult for us to understand but think of it like water. Water can be liquid, solid, or a gas yet it is still water. God the Father is the part of God that is in heaven. God the Holy Spirit is the part of God given to Christians when they turn their lives over to God. It’s what empowers them to go through life. God the Son is the part of God that came as a human to earth and this is Jesus Christ. He came to earth through the virgin Mary and was part-God and part-man. God enabled this to happen to her because, well, He’s God and can do whatever He wants. He wanted to show us an example of how to live our lives in service to God so He sent part of Himself to do it.
The crazy thing is that the Jews were expecting a Jesus-like figure but couldn’t see it for what He was whenever He actually arrived on earth. They wanted a military figure that could lead their troops in battle and free them from the Roman oppression. Jesus was basically the opposite of that though because He came to establish a “heavenly kingdom.” He established a way for man to reach God without going through ritualistic sacrifices because He became the sacrifice needed for the atonement of man. That comes later though. I just wanted to show that Jesus was part-God and part-man and was born of the lineage of David because that is what was promised. Now let’s dig into the teachings.
Let’s start with why He came to earth in His own words. Jesus came to call sinners to repentance. “31 Jesus replied to them, ‘The healthy don’t need a doctor, but the sick do. 32 I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.’” (Luke 5:31-32) A sinner is anyone who has done wrong of any sort (they have sinned). If we’re being honest that means everyone who has ever lived, except Jesus who lived a perfect life. I definitely fall under this category. Jesus relates our situation as a sinner to be a sick patient in need of a doctor in which He has the cure. Our disease is sin which is part of being human unfortunately. Ever since Adam and Eve first sinned in the Garden of Eden (see Genesis 3 if you want more information) every person since then has done wrong at some point in their lives. Even after becoming a Christian I still struggle with sin daily. Thank you God for your forgiveness and mercy.
What is so bad about this disease “sin” though? Sin separates us from God is the simple answer. God is perfect and can’t allow sin into His presence in heaven so sin is what will send us to hell. When I talk about hell I’m not talking about a place where a horned devil is poking everyone with a pitch fork running around in fire. “49 So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will go out, separate the evil people from the righteous, 50 and throw them into the blazing furnace. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” (Matthew 13:49-50) Jesus and many other places in Scripture describe hell as a place where there is “weeping and gnashing of teeth.” It’s also described as a very dark place with intense suffering. The worst part about it is that the presence of God is not there. Hell is a reality whether you would like to admit it or not. So who are the “righteous” people mentioned in the verse above that won’t go there?
The righteous people are God’s people who have made Christ Lord of their life. You may have heard the Christian term “saved” and that’s where it comes from. It comes from the fact that their soul is saved for eternity because of a belief and trust in God (who is also Jesus). The incredible part is that this salvation is NOT exclusive though. “17 When Jesus heard this, He told them, ‘Those who are well don’t need a doctor, but the sick do need one. I didn’t come to call the righteous, but sinners.’” (Mark 2:17) Sound familiar? Jesus also had to repeat Himself often. He didn’t come just for all the people inside of a church building who claim to be a Christian. He came for the prostitute, drug dealer, murderer, businessman, stay at home mom, barista, and every other type of person you can think about. He came to rescue the sinners. He came to rescue you and me. That’s the beauty of the message of the Bible.
That’s the reality of the world we live in. Jesus came to earth as a man to rescue us from our sin so that we could spend eternity with Him instead of separated from Him. I’m going to try and not drag on in these posts because I know that will lose some people. I plan on releasing another post weekly until I feel like I cover enough material. One of the points of these blogs is to open a dialogue. I hope that Christians and non-Christians alike read these and are encouraged knowing more about the life of Jesus and what His teachings mean for us today.
In Love,
-Bill
Tuesday, June 14, 2016
Monday, June 30, 2014
A Mid-Summer Eval
I wanted to blog at the end of every week like I did two summers ago when I worked Fuge, but limited access to wifi has prevented that so this will have to suffice for now. For those of you wondering how things were going here's what's been going on!
A little over a month ago I flew out to Glorieta, NM where I met my new family for the summer. There's 37 full time FUGE staff here which makes us the third biggest camp in the country which means LOTS of stuff is going down. There's also 75 full time Glorieta staff here that help run this beautiful conference center site. Other camps use the facilities here throughout the summer too so there's never a dull moment. This is also my first experience with a combo camp which makes this an even more crazy place to be. I am a MFuge Bible Study leader so I take a group of kids from different churches into the city of Santa Fe to do mission work. There's also lots of Centrifuge, XFuge, and XFuge-on-Mission Bible Study leaders here which do similar work to myself, but we all cater to what the churches that come here need. You can ask me more about it later if you're curious about the differences.
Most of the sites the MFuge leaders go to are in Santa Fe, but the majority of the sites I go to are located near a small city named Espanola. I've gotten to go to two Boys and Girls Clubs in the area and the children I come into contact with are so special. There's a decent mix of home backgrounds for these children, but some of the home-lives of these kids just break my heart. I was eating lunch one of my first days on site and a kid just blurted out that his mom had died in a car accident a few years ago. It was just so random and matter-of-fact that it really just touched my heart in a particular way for these children. I've only actually worked two weeks of camp and I have this week off so I'm ready to get back to site and love on these kids some more.
I've taught Centrifuge before and grown up going to MFuge so I knew what to expect heading into this experience. It's still another thing to actually do everything you've learned/heard about and it's definitely a tiring experience. I'm using this week to catch up on rest and do things I haven't really had a chance to do yet. Leading kids on site is a unique experience and slightly terrifying if I'm being honest. I have a couple of adults to help me (thankfully), but I'm pretty much on my own out there and I really want my Bible Study kids to interact with my site kids and love on them. I'm teaching Games and Recreation so of course my focus is playing games which is easy. It's difficult being more of a facilitator than jumping right in and playing everything. I just try and make sure that everybody is interacting and things are running smoothly. God has proven time and time again that any worrying I do is pointless. I love seeing the work that God does through my Bible Study kids and in them.
I can't remember the exact numbers from weeks 1 and 2, but we had over 70 students accept Christ as their Savior last week which is incredible! Praise God for His redemption! That's my favorite part about camp and why I love Fuge camps. One of the mottos is "life change" and I get to see it every week. I know God has done a work in me through these camps and I hope that I can give back a portion of what was poured into me into these students. I'm looking forward to the grind of 3 weeks of MFuge and I can't wait to be utterly exhausted at the end of it. God is so good and I can't wait to see what else He has in store this summer.
"I am sure of this, that He who started a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. " Philippians 1:6
A little over a month ago I flew out to Glorieta, NM where I met my new family for the summer. There's 37 full time FUGE staff here which makes us the third biggest camp in the country which means LOTS of stuff is going down. There's also 75 full time Glorieta staff here that help run this beautiful conference center site. Other camps use the facilities here throughout the summer too so there's never a dull moment. This is also my first experience with a combo camp which makes this an even more crazy place to be. I am a MFuge Bible Study leader so I take a group of kids from different churches into the city of Santa Fe to do mission work. There's also lots of Centrifuge, XFuge, and XFuge-on-Mission Bible Study leaders here which do similar work to myself, but we all cater to what the churches that come here need. You can ask me more about it later if you're curious about the differences.
Most of the sites the MFuge leaders go to are in Santa Fe, but the majority of the sites I go to are located near a small city named Espanola. I've gotten to go to two Boys and Girls Clubs in the area and the children I come into contact with are so special. There's a decent mix of home backgrounds for these children, but some of the home-lives of these kids just break my heart. I was eating lunch one of my first days on site and a kid just blurted out that his mom had died in a car accident a few years ago. It was just so random and matter-of-fact that it really just touched my heart in a particular way for these children. I've only actually worked two weeks of camp and I have this week off so I'm ready to get back to site and love on these kids some more.
I've taught Centrifuge before and grown up going to MFuge so I knew what to expect heading into this experience. It's still another thing to actually do everything you've learned/heard about and it's definitely a tiring experience. I'm using this week to catch up on rest and do things I haven't really had a chance to do yet. Leading kids on site is a unique experience and slightly terrifying if I'm being honest. I have a couple of adults to help me (thankfully), but I'm pretty much on my own out there and I really want my Bible Study kids to interact with my site kids and love on them. I'm teaching Games and Recreation so of course my focus is playing games which is easy. It's difficult being more of a facilitator than jumping right in and playing everything. I just try and make sure that everybody is interacting and things are running smoothly. God has proven time and time again that any worrying I do is pointless. I love seeing the work that God does through my Bible Study kids and in them.
I can't remember the exact numbers from weeks 1 and 2, but we had over 70 students accept Christ as their Savior last week which is incredible! Praise God for His redemption! That's my favorite part about camp and why I love Fuge camps. One of the mottos is "life change" and I get to see it every week. I know God has done a work in me through these camps and I hope that I can give back a portion of what was poured into me into these students. I'm looking forward to the grind of 3 weeks of MFuge and I can't wait to be utterly exhausted at the end of it. God is so good and I can't wait to see what else He has in store this summer.
"I am sure of this, that He who started a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. " Philippians 1:6
In Love,
Bill
Friday, May 23, 2014
Belize: A Journey to Central America
I want to start out this blog entry by saying thank you to everyone who either supported me financially or through prayer while my team was gone in Belize. You got to be a part of the ministry that God is doing in Belize and I am very grateful for how you've supported me time and time again. God has been so good through this trip and now I get to tell you a little bit about it!
The journey to Belmopan, Belize began early Sunday morning of May 11 and we came home a week later on the 18. I know God was looking out for us because even the little things were taken care of. We had very short layovers to catch connecting flights and we made it! On the return flight we had to check all of our luggage in again since it was an international flight and out of the hundreds of bags on that flight our bags were the first to come through. God cares about the little things!
The journey to Belmopan, Belize began early Sunday morning of May 11 and we came home a week later on the 18. I know God was looking out for us because even the little things were taken care of. We had very short layovers to catch connecting flights and we made it! On the return flight we had to check all of our luggage in again since it was an international flight and out of the hundreds of bags on that flight our bags were the first to come through. God cares about the little things!
When I stepped off the plane I raised my fists in the air and exclaimed "Belize!" The ramp leading to the tarmac that I was standing on then proceeded to fall a couple inches lol. According to the people we were working with, it was cool for this time of year but it was extremely humid still. There's also no AC so it's like you're constantly sweating. The compound we stayed at was setup similar to a summer camp which was nice. I had a clean shower and as much water to drink as I would want so I was very thankful for that. We also had a "campus cook", Rubia, who made the most amazing food ever. I did not expect to eat so well while I was over there. You gotta watch for insects and wild animals though. That place is a wilderness!
The missionary we went to work with arrived Sunday night shortly after us and he is one of the most incredible people I have ever met. When you encounter Randy Gaither (yes, he’s one of THE Gaithers) you can’t help but come to know Christ better. Here is a man who lives out his faith as we all should, completely relying on God, and God is using him in mighty ways. Here’s a website for those of you who are curious about more of the work his family is doing: http://www.randygaither.org/index.html. He’s accustomed to teams coming in and serving alongside him so I was thankful for how he ran things during the trip.
A lot of the work we got to do in Belize consisted of assisting Randy or going out to the people and ministering to them in some way. Randy has a lot of different things he’s in charge of. Gaither Evangelistic Ministries literally spans the entire country. Through God’s power medicine has been standardized in Belize so medical teams can come in and be effective, over 20 churches have been planted, and more children are being educated since Randy’s ministry started over 7 years ago in Belize. Our team organized lots of things for Randy including clothes to be passed out to needy people and a container from which supplies are frequently used. We actually got to pass out these clothes to some locals and delivered some to churches so that they could distribute them to where there’s an actual need. When we passed out the clothes to the families, we got to pray with them too. I asked one man if I could pray for him, with the help of a translator (English is the main language there but there are many areas where Spanish or some Mayan dialect are more popular), and he ended up praying for our group. Talk about a change of perspective.
The missionary we went to work with arrived Sunday night shortly after us and he is one of the most incredible people I have ever met. When you encounter Randy Gaither (yes, he’s one of THE Gaithers) you can’t help but come to know Christ better. Here is a man who lives out his faith as we all should, completely relying on God, and God is using him in mighty ways. Here’s a website for those of you who are curious about more of the work his family is doing: http://www.randygaither.org/index.html. He’s accustomed to teams coming in and serving alongside him so I was thankful for how he ran things during the trip.
A lot of the work we got to do in Belize consisted of assisting Randy or going out to the people and ministering to them in some way. Randy has a lot of different things he’s in charge of. Gaither Evangelistic Ministries literally spans the entire country. Through God’s power medicine has been standardized in Belize so medical teams can come in and be effective, over 20 churches have been planted, and more children are being educated since Randy’s ministry started over 7 years ago in Belize. Our team organized lots of things for Randy including clothes to be passed out to needy people and a container from which supplies are frequently used. We actually got to pass out these clothes to some locals and delivered some to churches so that they could distribute them to where there’s an actual need. When we passed out the clothes to the families, we got to pray with them too. I asked one man if I could pray for him, with the help of a translator (English is the main language there but there are many areas where Spanish or some Mayan dialect are more popular), and he ended up praying for our group. Talk about a change of perspective.
One of the coolest parts of the trip was passing out some Operation Christmas boxes that hadn’t been passed out yet. I will never forget the look on the faces of the children when they realized they were getting something for free. It was pure joy and God was glorified in it. We also got to go to a couple pre-schools and run a typical Wednesday children’s service for them with a story, game, music, and craft. I had the opportunity to lead worship for children in a public school by playing guitar which blows my mind. I remember God telling me in 8th grade to play the guitar while I was listening to the worship at Fuge and it's so awesome to see how He's used that since then. The principal of the school took Randy aside while we were hanging out with the kids and was extremely grateful that we came to speak to the kids. He said it was something that they definitely needed and he was moved by what occurred. God was doing something special in that man's life. The Gospel was definitely shared throughout all of this.
We also had the opportunity to see much of the beautiful Belize. We went to the Blue Hole which has the bluest water I have ever seen. There's lots of Mayan ruins in the country as well so we checked some out and climbed to the top of Xunantunich. I could actually see Guatemala from the top of it. On our R&R day we made a trip out to Caye Caulker and went snorkeling! I shaved in the ocean and swam with sharks so I punched a couple holes in my man card that day.
I’ve been reading through my journal trying to comprehend everything God was trying to show me through this journey. The craziest thing about mission trips is that you go somewhere in order to serve and minister yet you come back changed feeling like you got more out of the ordeal than the work you did. God has shown Himself to me as more powerful than ever. He is God as much in America as He is in Belize and He is sovereign over ALL creation. When I begin to worry about things, He keeps telling me not to because He will take care of my every need. I am so thankful for a God who I can call my friend, who can demolish strongholds, and who loves me intimately despite my many shortcomings. May God be praised even more through the work that was done in Belize. I know that I will never be the same. “Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.” 1 Corinthians 15:58
I’ve been reading through my journal trying to comprehend everything God was trying to show me through this journey. The craziest thing about mission trips is that you go somewhere in order to serve and minister yet you come back changed feeling like you got more out of the ordeal than the work you did. God has shown Himself to me as more powerful than ever. He is God as much in America as He is in Belize and He is sovereign over ALL creation. When I begin to worry about things, He keeps telling me not to because He will take care of my every need. I am so thankful for a God who I can call my friend, who can demolish strongholds, and who loves me intimately despite my many shortcomings. May God be praised even more through the work that was done in Belize. I know that I will never be the same. “Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.” 1 Corinthians 15:58
In Love,
Bill
Saturday, March 29, 2014
The Homeless and the Hurt
I normally try and give a brief life update at the beginning of my blog posts and I am about 6 weeks away from completely finishing my undergraduate work and I am ready. A lot of what I'm doing now is just to get my degree and not really teaching me a ton so I'm ready to continue my education as a Ph. D. candidate. God has been so faithful in providing a way to do this and I'm excited to see how He's going to continue to use me as a grad student! Right after I graduate in May I will head to Belize for a mission trip with Thrive to help with some children's ministry and loving on some locals who have it pretty rough. When I get back from that I have about a week and a half then I'm off to Glorietta, NM where I will spend the summer as a Games-and-Rec M-Fuge track leader! These next 3 months are going to fly by so quickly and I am ready to do some worthwhile work over the summer.
I titled this post "The Homeless and the Hurt" because I got to spend part of my spring break in Columbia, MO working with Ben Hightower and Mitchell Neldon as they are planting a new church there. A lot of what I did over the trip worked with people who were homeless and hurt. I journaled throughout the trip to get a recap of what all actually occurred and I wanted to try and get a sense for what God was trying to tell me. I had a friend suggest an idea to me that whenever I go on a mission trip I should journal at night before I go to sleep and I would give you the same suggestion as well. It helps me remember what all happened and helps me sort through things myself later on.
This is my 4th year going with Thrive on a mission trip during spring break and I've always wondered what all I was "missing out" on for the typical college spring break. In high school you always hear how college spring break is basically the greatest thing ever by going to the beach and hanging out with all your friends. I'm not exactly a partier so that part wouldn't happen for me, but I do enjoy having a good time with my friends and beaches are pretty sweet. I've had a pretty good attitude about going on these trips and going for the right reasons, but there's a part of me that has always wondered what else was I "missing out" on. Every year God has shown me that the work done has been worthwhile with eternal consequences and He is not holding out on me. I have no clue why we believe this lie so often, "God is holding out on me." If you think that, He isn't. God has what is absolutely best planned for you even when you don't fully comprehend it yourself. Jack challenged us to dwell on John 15 during the trip and one thing that sticks out to me is verse 2.
"Every branch in Me that does not produce fruit He removes, and He prunes every branch that produces fruit so that it will produce more fruit." John 15:2
I think of how God has been pruning me over my college years and it sucks at times. He's been pruning me on these mission trips showing me the process of planting a new church and how difficult it really is. Love on your church leaders because they have a lot more going on in their lives than just leading their people spiritually. They have families and financial situations which are tough at times that they have to worry about too. God has also been pruning the pride and lust in me that's been buried deep inside. Verse 2 talks about how He does it so that I can produce more fruit and hallelujah for that. He's doing it for our better you guys! If He didn't want you to grow then He would just remove you from the branch.
The homeless part of this post comes from some of the things we did in Columbia. Ben wanted to equip all the people involved to do further mission work in the future so my group went to the store, bought all the necessary items to make a homeless care package, assembled it, and then found the homeless to give it to them. I literally drove around for a couple hours looking for homeless people haha. I've done some ministry with the homeless before, but not quite like this. I walked up to people who were holding signs and gave them a backpack full of useful supplies and just started a conversation with them. You hear stories about medical problems by a guy named Paul or how Amy has been hitchhiking to go to her friend's house in another state because they have work for her to do. Most of the time my attitude towards these people has been that it's their own fault and they don't want to work. Life is rough sometimes and just gets us beat down. I could have easily been lied to, but that honestly doesn't matter. As a Christian God wants me to love on these people unconditionally and serve them. That's what Jesus did and I want to be more Christ-like in my love.
I have no clue what sticks out to you in this post, but I know that I need to keep writing occasionally because God is moving in me and I do not want to be silent about it. Please keep Ben, Brittany, and Joey Hightower and Mitchell Neldon in your prayers as they continue to serve the city of Columbia, MO and start Summit Church there. It is extremely difficult to leave the comfort of home to start a church to a completely alien people but they are faithful in their calling. I would also ask for prayer as I enter this crazy point in my life. I'm super excited to see how God will continue to prune me and make me more Christ-like in my love. As always, if you have anything I can be praying for you about please let me know.
In Love,
Bill
I titled this post "The Homeless and the Hurt" because I got to spend part of my spring break in Columbia, MO working with Ben Hightower and Mitchell Neldon as they are planting a new church there. A lot of what I did over the trip worked with people who were homeless and hurt. I journaled throughout the trip to get a recap of what all actually occurred and I wanted to try and get a sense for what God was trying to tell me. I had a friend suggest an idea to me that whenever I go on a mission trip I should journal at night before I go to sleep and I would give you the same suggestion as well. It helps me remember what all happened and helps me sort through things myself later on.
This is my 4th year going with Thrive on a mission trip during spring break and I've always wondered what all I was "missing out" on for the typical college spring break. In high school you always hear how college spring break is basically the greatest thing ever by going to the beach and hanging out with all your friends. I'm not exactly a partier so that part wouldn't happen for me, but I do enjoy having a good time with my friends and beaches are pretty sweet. I've had a pretty good attitude about going on these trips and going for the right reasons, but there's a part of me that has always wondered what else was I "missing out" on. Every year God has shown me that the work done has been worthwhile with eternal consequences and He is not holding out on me. I have no clue why we believe this lie so often, "God is holding out on me." If you think that, He isn't. God has what is absolutely best planned for you even when you don't fully comprehend it yourself. Jack challenged us to dwell on John 15 during the trip and one thing that sticks out to me is verse 2.
"Every branch in Me that does not produce fruit He removes, and He prunes every branch that produces fruit so that it will produce more fruit." John 15:2
I think of how God has been pruning me over my college years and it sucks at times. He's been pruning me on these mission trips showing me the process of planting a new church and how difficult it really is. Love on your church leaders because they have a lot more going on in their lives than just leading their people spiritually. They have families and financial situations which are tough at times that they have to worry about too. God has also been pruning the pride and lust in me that's been buried deep inside. Verse 2 talks about how He does it so that I can produce more fruit and hallelujah for that. He's doing it for our better you guys! If He didn't want you to grow then He would just remove you from the branch.
The homeless part of this post comes from some of the things we did in Columbia. Ben wanted to equip all the people involved to do further mission work in the future so my group went to the store, bought all the necessary items to make a homeless care package, assembled it, and then found the homeless to give it to them. I literally drove around for a couple hours looking for homeless people haha. I've done some ministry with the homeless before, but not quite like this. I walked up to people who were holding signs and gave them a backpack full of useful supplies and just started a conversation with them. You hear stories about medical problems by a guy named Paul or how Amy has been hitchhiking to go to her friend's house in another state because they have work for her to do. Most of the time my attitude towards these people has been that it's their own fault and they don't want to work. Life is rough sometimes and just gets us beat down. I could have easily been lied to, but that honestly doesn't matter. As a Christian God wants me to love on these people unconditionally and serve them. That's what Jesus did and I want to be more Christ-like in my love.
I have no clue what sticks out to you in this post, but I know that I need to keep writing occasionally because God is moving in me and I do not want to be silent about it. Please keep Ben, Brittany, and Joey Hightower and Mitchell Neldon in your prayers as they continue to serve the city of Columbia, MO and start Summit Church there. It is extremely difficult to leave the comfort of home to start a church to a completely alien people but they are faithful in their calling. I would also ask for prayer as I enter this crazy point in my life. I'm super excited to see how God will continue to prune me and make me more Christ-like in my love. As always, if you have anything I can be praying for you about please let me know.
In Love,
Bill
Sunday, January 12, 2014
The Plunge
Tomorrow morning I begin my last first day of classes as an undergraduate student! I think back to the past 3 and half of years of my life and realize just how far God has brought me. I look at all the decisions I've had to make and realize that God had a plan throughout all of it. In case you didn't know I really focused on two universities that I wanted to attend as a senior in high school: the University of Arkansas and Vanderbilt University. I'm still not sure why I had such aspirations as Vandy, but I was disappointed when I didn't get in. I remember praying for God to make the choice clear to me where He wanted me to go and I don't think it could be made clearer when I was only accepted into one school haha. God knew exactly what He was doing putting me here though.
Thrive, the student ministry I'm involved with, took hold of me before classes even really started and I was glad to be around a group of friends who loved Jesus and would push me to do the same. Before I got to school I pictured that my education would be the biggest thing I would take away from college. Man was I wrong. While I am receiving an excellent education (plug for the U of A cuz I love it!), the most important part of me that's grown over these past couple years is my faith. For anybody still in high school or just beginning your college journey, if you haven't noticed it yet, you don't have to live out the faith you've been raised up in your life when you reach this stage. Maybe some of you understand that and now you're just apathetic towards your relationship with Christ because it's what you did while you lived back home. My prayer is that this is the time you take your stand for believing in something, not because your parents believed it, but because you believe it and it is the truth. Now is the time to live out your faith on your own. The habits you develop now will most likely be the habits you continue after you graduate college too.
I say a lot of this to point you to the fact that God desires what is absolutely best for you! A lot of times we think that God is holding out on us. When I didn't get into Vandy, I was disappointed in myself honestly. I thought that I wasn't smart enough to get in. I could get into a pointless conversation about how can you really measure someone's intelligence, but what I want to focus on is that God had my best intentions in mind through it all. The Father's heart looks like this: He wants to lavish His mercies on you. He wants His lost and broken child back.
"When Israel was a child, I loved him,
and out of Egypt I called My son.
2 The more they called them,
the more they departed from Me.
They kept sacrificing to the Baals
and burning offerings to idols.
3 It was I who taught Ephraim to walk,
taking them in My arms,
but they never knew that I healed them.
4 I led them with human cords,
with ropes of love.
To them I was like one
who eases the yoke from their jaws;
I bent down to give them food."
-Hosea 11:1-4
We don't often know how God is working in our lives until He decides to reveal it to us and that's OK. The Israelites had no clue how God was healing them and watching out for them. In all honesty, we will probably never completely understand God's Will. (Notice the completely) What we are called to do is obey and walk in His ways and there is joy in that. Something that took me awhile to understand is that God often doesn't care about our actions as much as He does the attitude of our hearts.
“'I wish one of you would shut the temple doors, so you would no longer kindle a useless fire on My altar! I am not pleased with you,' says the Lord of Hosts, 'and I will accept no offering from your hands.'"
-Malachi 1:10
The priests didn't have the right attitude when they made their offerings to God and He didn't even want them sacrificing if they weren't going to do it with the right heart. God doesn't NEED us to accomplish His Will. He's God after all. What He desires is our hearts to love Him, to depend on Him, and to want Him because He desperately wants us. I'm working on being more transparent because that's what this generation of Christians needs and that is why I blog. When we waste our efforts on rituals and behind metaphors that sound nice but don't actually mean anything to us then the Enemy wins and I don't want to see that happen. Every day I understand more and more how lost I am without Christ and my prayer is that you depend on Him because He has your best interest at heart. Give Him your heart and not just your actions. As I take this "Plunge" into the semester, I pray that you understand your need for His presence as I know I'm lost without it.
In Love,
Bill
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xhM87eFRqpk
The Pursuit
Jesus Culture
Thrive, the student ministry I'm involved with, took hold of me before classes even really started and I was glad to be around a group of friends who loved Jesus and would push me to do the same. Before I got to school I pictured that my education would be the biggest thing I would take away from college. Man was I wrong. While I am receiving an excellent education (plug for the U of A cuz I love it!), the most important part of me that's grown over these past couple years is my faith. For anybody still in high school or just beginning your college journey, if you haven't noticed it yet, you don't have to live out the faith you've been raised up in your life when you reach this stage. Maybe some of you understand that and now you're just apathetic towards your relationship with Christ because it's what you did while you lived back home. My prayer is that this is the time you take your stand for believing in something, not because your parents believed it, but because you believe it and it is the truth. Now is the time to live out your faith on your own. The habits you develop now will most likely be the habits you continue after you graduate college too.
I say a lot of this to point you to the fact that God desires what is absolutely best for you! A lot of times we think that God is holding out on us. When I didn't get into Vandy, I was disappointed in myself honestly. I thought that I wasn't smart enough to get in. I could get into a pointless conversation about how can you really measure someone's intelligence, but what I want to focus on is that God had my best intentions in mind through it all. The Father's heart looks like this: He wants to lavish His mercies on you. He wants His lost and broken child back.
"When Israel was a child, I loved him,
and out of Egypt I called My son.
2 The more they called them,
the more they departed from Me.
They kept sacrificing to the Baals
and burning offerings to idols.
3 It was I who taught Ephraim to walk,
taking them in My arms,
but they never knew that I healed them.
4 I led them with human cords,
with ropes of love.
To them I was like one
who eases the yoke from their jaws;
I bent down to give them food."
-Hosea 11:1-4
We don't often know how God is working in our lives until He decides to reveal it to us and that's OK. The Israelites had no clue how God was healing them and watching out for them. In all honesty, we will probably never completely understand God's Will. (Notice the completely) What we are called to do is obey and walk in His ways and there is joy in that. Something that took me awhile to understand is that God often doesn't care about our actions as much as He does the attitude of our hearts.
“'I wish one of you would shut the temple doors, so you would no longer kindle a useless fire on My altar! I am not pleased with you,' says the Lord of Hosts, 'and I will accept no offering from your hands.'"
-Malachi 1:10
The priests didn't have the right attitude when they made their offerings to God and He didn't even want them sacrificing if they weren't going to do it with the right heart. God doesn't NEED us to accomplish His Will. He's God after all. What He desires is our hearts to love Him, to depend on Him, and to want Him because He desperately wants us. I'm working on being more transparent because that's what this generation of Christians needs and that is why I blog. When we waste our efforts on rituals and behind metaphors that sound nice but don't actually mean anything to us then the Enemy wins and I don't want to see that happen. Every day I understand more and more how lost I am without Christ and my prayer is that you depend on Him because He has your best interest at heart. Give Him your heart and not just your actions. As I take this "Plunge" into the semester, I pray that you understand your need for His presence as I know I'm lost without it.
In Love,
Bill
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xhM87eFRqpk
The Pursuit
Jesus Culture
Saturday, December 21, 2013
Rejoice
Another semester is in the books and I only have one more left for my undergraduate work! I'm pretty excited about this because I know that a bunch of questions will be answered in regards to my future once I get into my graduate work and I can't wait to see what future God has planned for me.
Christmas Break is really special for a college student and is drastically different than summer break. You have a much longer time for summer break, but you are usually doing something like more classes, an internship, or serving somewhere. Winter break is the college student's dream of being a complete bum, eating lots of food, sleeping forever, and being around friends and family. Christmas break is also a special time, for me personally, in that it's when I celebrate the birth of my King (Not that you shouldn't always celebrate, but this is a special time and you get the point).
The holiday season is always filled with busyness for some reason. Everything has to be a "certain" way at this time of the year because it's either A) How we've always done it or B) We have a fanciful view that everything has to be PERFECT for the holidays. I love the decorations and the music and the food. Oh my goodness, yes, the food haha. Many times we try and buy the perfect gift for someone and I'm not usually a very good gift giver. I think practically for the most part and it's difficult for me to get gifts that people will actually use. Everything mixed together can add a lot of stress though, especially if you're preparing for lots of family/company to come over. Often, we miss one of the most important aspects of this time of the year though, rejoicing.
I just finished reading a book titled "Praise Habit" by David Crowder and I love the way he reads the Psalms. He rewrites certain chapters in Psalms using grammar the way he thinks (which is awesome btw) and relates them to things about his life. You get the point really quickly that there is so much Christians have to be thankful for. We serve a powerful God and I don't mean just barely more powerful than the things around us, I mean POWERFUL. Stop for a moment and just think and pray on how big God is (seriously, do it). We get so wrapped up in the now, temporary things and they don't even begin to compare to the scheme of eternity and the plans that God has for us. That's something I've always kind of struggled with is the plans God has for me.
Many Christians could give you a reference of some sort to Jeremiah 29:11 "'For I know the plans I have for you'--this is the Lord's declaration 'plans for your welfare, not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.'" This is something that's easy for us to find comfort and security in knowing that God has something planned that we could never imagine. We often skip over the next couple of verses though which are just as important. "You will call to Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart. I will be found by you..." Jeremiah 29:12-14a In order to experience the full joy that God has to offer us, there is a bit of searching on our part that is required. He isn't trying to hide from us though! He says "I will be found by you." What an incredible promise from someone who is so powerful!
Maybe you're in a place right now where you are wondering where God wants to lead you. I often wonder about the plans God has for me. I wonder when God will place my future spouse in my life and how that relationship will blossom. Something that God's really taught me is that His timing is always perfect and I can't wait for Him to work out whatever He has planned. I remember in 8th grade at M-Fuge I really felt God telling me to play guitar. I had no clue why, but I knew He wanted me to do it. I picked it up off and on for a couple of years, never really being that serious about it. I tried picking it back up before I went off to college. When I got to the U of A and involved with Thrive I finally understood why. He opened up an opportunity for me to help lead worship and it has been an absolute joy for me to do so the past 3 years of my life as I've grown with my friends. I also know that God wants me to play in a worship band later on in my life when I settle down somewhere for my career. God's plans are perfect and we don't have to understand everything that's going on, but we can find joy in knowing God is in control.
Rejoice my friends for the time we've been given on earth. It will be short-lived and then we will go to be with our Father in heaven for eternity. That is, if you've accepted Him as Lord of your life. If you haven't and you're reading this, please contact me and I would love to share with you the reason I have joy and the reason I can give praise to something that is far greater and bigger than I will ever be. Accepting Christ as my Lord has been the greatest decision of my life and my relationship with Him is a constant work-in-progress. Whatever you're going through right now, know that God is there. He is fighting fiercely for us with His furious love and He is always faithful. "If we are faithless, He remains faithful, for He cannot deny Himself." 2 Timothy 2:13
In Love,
Bill
Christmas Break is really special for a college student and is drastically different than summer break. You have a much longer time for summer break, but you are usually doing something like more classes, an internship, or serving somewhere. Winter break is the college student's dream of being a complete bum, eating lots of food, sleeping forever, and being around friends and family. Christmas break is also a special time, for me personally, in that it's when I celebrate the birth of my King (Not that you shouldn't always celebrate, but this is a special time and you get the point).
The holiday season is always filled with busyness for some reason. Everything has to be a "certain" way at this time of the year because it's either A) How we've always done it or B) We have a fanciful view that everything has to be PERFECT for the holidays. I love the decorations and the music and the food. Oh my goodness, yes, the food haha. Many times we try and buy the perfect gift for someone and I'm not usually a very good gift giver. I think practically for the most part and it's difficult for me to get gifts that people will actually use. Everything mixed together can add a lot of stress though, especially if you're preparing for lots of family/company to come over. Often, we miss one of the most important aspects of this time of the year though, rejoicing.
I just finished reading a book titled "Praise Habit" by David Crowder and I love the way he reads the Psalms. He rewrites certain chapters in Psalms using grammar the way he thinks (which is awesome btw) and relates them to things about his life. You get the point really quickly that there is so much Christians have to be thankful for. We serve a powerful God and I don't mean just barely more powerful than the things around us, I mean POWERFUL. Stop for a moment and just think and pray on how big God is (seriously, do it). We get so wrapped up in the now, temporary things and they don't even begin to compare to the scheme of eternity and the plans that God has for us. That's something I've always kind of struggled with is the plans God has for me.
Many Christians could give you a reference of some sort to Jeremiah 29:11 "'For I know the plans I have for you'--this is the Lord's declaration 'plans for your welfare, not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.'" This is something that's easy for us to find comfort and security in knowing that God has something planned that we could never imagine. We often skip over the next couple of verses though which are just as important. "You will call to Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart. I will be found by you..." Jeremiah 29:12-14a In order to experience the full joy that God has to offer us, there is a bit of searching on our part that is required. He isn't trying to hide from us though! He says "I will be found by you." What an incredible promise from someone who is so powerful!
Maybe you're in a place right now where you are wondering where God wants to lead you. I often wonder about the plans God has for me. I wonder when God will place my future spouse in my life and how that relationship will blossom. Something that God's really taught me is that His timing is always perfect and I can't wait for Him to work out whatever He has planned. I remember in 8th grade at M-Fuge I really felt God telling me to play guitar. I had no clue why, but I knew He wanted me to do it. I picked it up off and on for a couple of years, never really being that serious about it. I tried picking it back up before I went off to college. When I got to the U of A and involved with Thrive I finally understood why. He opened up an opportunity for me to help lead worship and it has been an absolute joy for me to do so the past 3 years of my life as I've grown with my friends. I also know that God wants me to play in a worship band later on in my life when I settle down somewhere for my career. God's plans are perfect and we don't have to understand everything that's going on, but we can find joy in knowing God is in control.
Rejoice my friends for the time we've been given on earth. It will be short-lived and then we will go to be with our Father in heaven for eternity. That is, if you've accepted Him as Lord of your life. If you haven't and you're reading this, please contact me and I would love to share with you the reason I have joy and the reason I can give praise to something that is far greater and bigger than I will ever be. Accepting Christ as my Lord has been the greatest decision of my life and my relationship with Him is a constant work-in-progress. Whatever you're going through right now, know that God is there. He is fighting fiercely for us with His furious love and He is always faithful. "If we are faithless, He remains faithful, for He cannot deny Himself." 2 Timothy 2:13
In Love,
Bill
Tuesday, November 19, 2013
Rejoicing in the Face of an Enemy
Hey guys, just wanted to give a general life update before I begin sharing what's been on my heart. I recently found out that I have been accepted into Graduate School at the University of Arkansas Fayetteville so I will be here for another two years working on my Master's in Computer Engineering. I'm pretty excited about this opportunity and I get to focus on some research which will be cool. Hopefully some topic just really catches my attention and I can pursue a career in that area one day. I also got placed in Glorieta, NM to be an M-Fuge staffer this upcoming summer! I can't tell you how excited I am to get to work camp again and be a part of something that God really used to shape my life through.
One thing that amazes me about being a Christian is that no matter how long you've been one or how "strong" you think you are, there is still SO much more room to grow daily. The moment we become complacent is when the Enemy will slip in and feed us a lie or cause us to stumble in some way. A few Scriptures have been running through my head recently and a passage from John 10:10 really sticks out. "A thief comes only to steal and to kill and to destroy. I have come that they may have life and have it in abundance." One thing I never really thought about before I got to college was spiritual warfare and how vicious it is. What exactly do I mean by that though? I mean that there is something in this world set against us, whether you are a Christian or not. Satan, demons, etc are real and if you fail to recognize that then you've already lost the battle. They are the enemy of our souls because they are the thief described in John 10:10 that has come to "steal, kill, and destroy." They are hellbent on doing anything they can to stop God's will from occurring because they are jealous of God and know that their time is limited before He completely seals them away.
This isn't very fun to think about, but it's true and unless you recognize the Enemy for what it is you can't fight back. The second half of John 10:10 is why I love this verse so much though. "I have come that they may have life and have it in abundance." That is why Jesus came. God Himself came as a man and did more for me than I could ever do for myself. He offers us LIFE and not just any life at that, a life full of abundance. Christians are the worst at times about walking around like we have the weight of the world on our shoulders, myself included. We have more reason to rejoice than anybody else though!
"4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5 Let your graciousness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. 6 Don’t worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses every thought, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. 8 Finally brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable—if there is any moral excellence and if there is any praise—dwell on these things. 9 Do what you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you." Philippians 4:4-9
This is what the Enemy doesn't want you to do. He wants us to believe the lies that we aren't worth it. We are not worthy of the gift we have received, but Jesus has made us worth it. God has taken away our guilt and shame. "For godly grief produces a repentance not to be regretted and leading to salvation, but worldly grief produces death." 2 Cor. 7:10 We are loved far more than we could ever ask, forgiven far more than we ever deserve, and we have a future that Christ has destined for us specifically. He wanted us in our sin and calls us back to Him daily when we turn our backs on Him.
I don't know where this hits you, but one lie I refuse to believe is that God desires anything less than life for me. My future is taken care of whether that be my career, a relationship, or my family. Rest in that security He has to offer you. I like to blog because it's easier for me to get my thoughts out this way and I want the conversation to go on. We can't grow if we don't talk about what God has been doing in our lives and I would love to hear how He's working in yours!
In Love,
Bill
One thing that amazes me about being a Christian is that no matter how long you've been one or how "strong" you think you are, there is still SO much more room to grow daily. The moment we become complacent is when the Enemy will slip in and feed us a lie or cause us to stumble in some way. A few Scriptures have been running through my head recently and a passage from John 10:10 really sticks out. "A thief comes only to steal and to kill and to destroy. I have come that they may have life and have it in abundance." One thing I never really thought about before I got to college was spiritual warfare and how vicious it is. What exactly do I mean by that though? I mean that there is something in this world set against us, whether you are a Christian or not. Satan, demons, etc are real and if you fail to recognize that then you've already lost the battle. They are the enemy of our souls because they are the thief described in John 10:10 that has come to "steal, kill, and destroy." They are hellbent on doing anything they can to stop God's will from occurring because they are jealous of God and know that their time is limited before He completely seals them away.
This isn't very fun to think about, but it's true and unless you recognize the Enemy for what it is you can't fight back. The second half of John 10:10 is why I love this verse so much though. "I have come that they may have life and have it in abundance." That is why Jesus came. God Himself came as a man and did more for me than I could ever do for myself. He offers us LIFE and not just any life at that, a life full of abundance. Christians are the worst at times about walking around like we have the weight of the world on our shoulders, myself included. We have more reason to rejoice than anybody else though!
"4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5 Let your graciousness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. 6 Don’t worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses every thought, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. 8 Finally brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable—if there is any moral excellence and if there is any praise—dwell on these things. 9 Do what you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you." Philippians 4:4-9
This is what the Enemy doesn't want you to do. He wants us to believe the lies that we aren't worth it. We are not worthy of the gift we have received, but Jesus has made us worth it. God has taken away our guilt and shame. "For godly grief produces a repentance not to be regretted and leading to salvation, but worldly grief produces death." 2 Cor. 7:10 We are loved far more than we could ever ask, forgiven far more than we ever deserve, and we have a future that Christ has destined for us specifically. He wanted us in our sin and calls us back to Him daily when we turn our backs on Him.
I don't know where this hits you, but one lie I refuse to believe is that God desires anything less than life for me. My future is taken care of whether that be my career, a relationship, or my family. Rest in that security He has to offer you. I like to blog because it's easier for me to get my thoughts out this way and I want the conversation to go on. We can't grow if we don't talk about what God has been doing in our lives and I would love to hear how He's working in yours!
In Love,
Bill
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