...that most, including myself, don't have. The problem is that most don't know it's a skill and don't try to develop it as such.
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Every Friday there is a young adults bible study at the church I go to when I'm in NM. I was really disturbed by the study last night. There have been a lot of changes since I left. Which is good, except when change is bad. It's good to have a relaxed Bible study, but it is God's Word after all. And I feel that there is a blasé atmosphere among most. There are a couple into it, but it just feels like no one expects anything to happen. And this is not even what disturbed me.

What bothered me was something that is all over the church, but I just noticed it last night. There are certain phrases people use that sound great but have no real weight in their life. Last night we talked about worship a little bit. If a discussion comes up on worship I can predict exactly what people will say. First they will talk about it not being just a song like most people think (but everybody says that so obviously nobody thinks it's just a song). Then they will bring up different catch phrases to describe worship "as a lifestyle". "For me worship is pointing to Christ in everything, praising Him in everything, etc" You get the point.

Alright that's great. But so what? Did anyone leave the study last night thinking about how they are going to do that? Phrases like that have a certain dissociating quality to them. It's a way of connecting spiritual truths to one's life without letting it change anything.

Why aren't there answers like these?

"For me worship is giving the homeless guy who asked for spare change my last 20 bucks because Jesus said, give to those who ask."

"For me worship is sitting across the street of an abortion clinic offering to help the moms who have no option."

"For me worship is celibacy."

"For me worship is having a huge BBQ every Saturday for any homeless people who want a lunch."

"For me worship is seeing that prostitute as a mom and asking her how I can help."

"For me worship is going to gay bars and talking to guys about Jesus."

"For me worship was skipping church last Sunday because I saw a teenager who obviously slept on the street. So I took him out to breakfast instead."

"For me worship is building the church a decent website and keeping it current."

"For me worship is dropping every tenth cigarette in the offering plate."

"For me worship is protesting war."

"For me worship is turning my iPod off and listening to the wind."

You get the point. Comments like these would get people thinking about worship in a way that would change how they live. But how is the worship-is-pointing-to-God-in-everything attitude going to draw anyone closer to God? It won't change any actions. And it's what we do as well as what we believe that will build this love relationship.


For me... worship is...

Service. Every season of life tends to have it's themes. Before I came to Bible College I was an intern at my church. That season the Lord taught me service. Being a servant to all.
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How often do we question God? Question His power, question His motives, His authority, basically everything. As a people we even question His existence. But concerning Christians all this doubt has to come from somewhere.
( Read more... )

I wrote a new song because salvation has been a rediscovery for me this last month. I have been praying for salvation to come to people and I have seen those people get saved. It's amazing, pray big,

I wrote a song about it and just started a vox for my music and pictures... though I fear I may move there for everything. We will see.

Listen to it.

Yeah, he's here in Okinawa doing his festival thing. After I get back from Korea may write about it more. There are several things that I don't like about the whole thing. And to be blunt if I were in control of it I would change pretty much everything. Like I said I would change a lot, but even though I think there is a lot wrong with his crusade/festival thing God still uses it. A lot of people got saved tonight. I think one of my friends parents might have too. So that's good.

One of the musicians there was supposed to be all amazing and stuff. His name is Dennis Agajanian, maybe some people have heard of him. Not me. They introduced him as "the fastest flatpicker in the world." And I was not really too impressed. He was fast, but honestly he wasn't much faster then Pastor Dave and Charlie back in York. Maybe he wasn't pushing it, I don't know. But for that introduction he should have pushed it. And also, something happened to his voice because people said he had a good singing voice but it was just bad. Maybe because he's getting old. But, whatever.

The following things about me surprise people.

• I have a disciplined life in general.
• I'm a good student.
• I'm always ahead on my homework.
• I wake up early.
• I like to read.
• If I'm in control I'm never late.
• I don't play video games on my computer, I study.
• I take long bike rides for fun. Yes I'm actually athletic.
• I'm not stupid!

I only know a few people that have not been surprised by every one of these thing about me. All because of how I dress and how I act. Words cannot explain my frustration at how people treat me because I don't fit my stereotype. People think I'm lazy, irresponsible, and stupid. I hate that. I'm underestimated in everything I do. Which is good in a way because I never let anyone down. But it also means that people expect nothing from me. And who wants to do anything when everyone expect them to do nothing? It drives me to better things most of the time, but would it push me harder if people actually expected me to be something other than a failure? I'm not sure

Why couldn't God have just made me like everyone else. Then I could be happy with a comfortable mediocre life. I could just got a job and been happy with the standard "american dream." Nice wife, a couple kids, a house, whatever. Why do I have to want to change things? I wish I could just kick back and let everyone else be right about me. But I would rather die then let other people be right about me.

If I do nothing great in life than I have done nothing at all.

I guess I just have to rest on Gods promise when He said, "For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart" (Jeremiah 29:11-13).

The last three days I have been helping out with a mid-high camp for Okinawa Christian School International (OCSI). Most of the kids aren't Christian so don't let the name fool you. A lot of people send their kids there so that they will learn english better than in a Japanese school.

The camp was loads of fun. We went up north, near Nago, for the first two days and spent the third day down on a beautiful beach. Aaron got to give a message around the camp fire the last night. It was really good. He wanted to talk about love but the theme of the camp was perseverance. He reconciled this by making a message called true love perseveres. He talked about how much Christ persevered for us and how that kind of perseverance is impossible without true love. It was so good. I couldn't believe how much God was doing that night.

I know the kids in my group were really touched by Jesus' love for them. One kid said through teary eyes, "I knew all the right words, I knew what He did, I knew it all, but I never realized how much it cost. How much He persevered. Just for me." I was almost crying when I was talking to my kids.

The prayers for the camp were definitely heard by God, and answered in great ways.

...walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour.

— ephesians 5:2