A Prayer for Twenty-Seven Families

God, as more of the details of Friday have emerged my heart has broken for the families of victims. As I've read names and seen pictures of the children who were murdered. As I've seen videos of them and read stories of the final days and weeks of their lives I wonder how anyone could do this. As I watched an interview of a mother and father talking about their daughter who was taken from them, this has become more and more real.

I can't relate to their pain, and I pray I never will, but their pain is real. And it doesn't matter that I can't relate to them, because You can. Each child that was killed Friday morning was Your child. Each life that was ended was a life You had given, loved, and known everything about. The pain that these families are feeling is pain You are feeling with them. It is pain You understand more deeply than any human ever could.

Father, in Your love and compassion surround them. Help them to grieve, fill their minds with the joyful memories of the blessed years they had with their children. Guide them as they work through the anger. Surround them with people who will be quick to listen and slow to speak.

Above all I pray that You will fill them with hope. This is not the first time You watched Your child die. Nearly two thousand years ago you watched as Jesus, Your Son, was unjustly arrested, beaten, led outside of Jerusalem, and crucified in place of a criminal. But in His death there is hope and life for all. His sacrifice did not end in death, but in life, and because of Him hope and life are available for us as well.

This Christmas season as gifts remain wrapped and seats at the table are vacant, may they feel You all the nearer. May they know You are there with them, weeping with them. May they know that You are there offering hope, healing, and life. May their lives be filled with Your Spirit in ways that they have never experienced before. Father carry them through this time.

It is in the name of Jesus, the source of life and hope for the future, we lift these families up to You.

Amen

"I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging bread."

To God alone be the Glory!

Peace be with you

God with Us

God, I pray that You will be ever close to the families of the victims of the Connecticut school shooting. At this time of year when we focus on the birth of Christ, the focus is to be on Emmanuel, "God with us". I pray that is what these families would experience this Christmas season. And that in the coming weeks and months you would show yourself to be Jehovah-Rapha, "the God who heals" to all who have been affected by it.

Psalm 34.18, "The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit."

Charlotte Bacon, 2/22/06, female (age 6)

Daniel Barden, 9/25/05, male (age 7)

Olivia Engel, 7/18/06, female (age 6)

Josephine Gay, 12/11/05, female (age 7)

Ana M. Marquez-Greene, 04/04/06, female (age 6)

Dylan Hockley, 03/08/06, male (age 6)

Madeleine F. Hsu, 07/10/06, female (age 6)

Catherine V. Hubbard, 06/08/06, female (age 6)

Chase Kowalski, 10/31/05, male (age 7)

Jesse Lewis, 06/30/06, male (age 6)

James Mattioli, 03/22/06, male (age 6)

Grace McDonnell, 11/04/05, female (age 7)

Emilie Parker, 05/12/06, female (age 6)

Jack Pinto, 05/06/06, male (age 6)

Noah Pozner, 11/20/06, male (age 6)

Caroline Previdi, 09/07/06, female (age 6)

Jessica Rekos, 05/10/06, female (age 6)

Avielle Richman, 10/17/06, female (age 6)

Benjamin Wheeler, 9/12/06, male (age 6)

Allison N. Wyatt, 07/03/06, female (age 6)

Rachel Davino, 7/17/83, female (age 29)

Dawn Hochsprung, 06/28/65, female (age 47)

Anne Marie Murphy, 07/25/60, female (age 52)

Lauren Russeau, 1982, female (age 29)

Mary Sherlach, 02/11/56, female (age 56)

Victoria Soto, 11/04/85, female (age 27)

"I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging bread."

To God alone be the Glory!

Peace be with you

Israel Goals and Dreams

Once again, my apologies for all of my inactivity. I've found myself with too much time on my hands, and when that happens I tend to put a lot of things off. For about a month now I've been working on one of the assigments for the class I'm taking while my wife and I are in Israel. It's a paper that basically you just have to do it and you get credit, and it has taken me several weeks to get it done.

For whatever reason, today I'm going to post my paper. I don't know that I'm 100% done with it yet, but this is pretty close to the final draft. In this assignment we have to share our expectations, what where anticpating spiritually, how we will contributue to the group as a whole, place we are looking forward to, and how we'll bring it back. I think I've got it all in there.

Pre-Trip Goals and Dreams

I’ve started this paper at least a half of a dozen times. The past few weeks and months have involved so much, and I’ve been working through several emotions and situations. But with all of that, I think I finally have an idea of what needs to go into this paper.

As I prepare to return to Israel, part of me can’t believe that I finally get to go back. I’ve been waiting for this since we got back to America in January of 2009. Even though it has been four years, in some ways it feels like just yesterday. As I am working on this paper, I searched through some files to find the one I wrote for the 2009 trip. The first few paragraphs sound almost identical to what I’m experiencing now, but the rest I can’t believe I wrote.

A lot has happened in the last four years. I graduated college and stepped out into the real world. I’ve gotten married and begun this new journey of life with my best friend. I’ve been through two incredibly tough ministry assignments and taken several beatings from people in the Church. I’ve struggled with finding another ministry position and dealt with discouragement frequently. I’ve wondered a lot about my call, and why God is making it so difficult for me to do what He has called me to do.

In the past four years, I’ve thought about a lot of different things. My views of Church, ministry, and God have changed and matured. I’ve come to deeper understanding about God and what He is really like through the pages of Scripture and the wisdom of others who have served Him longer than I have been alive. I have begun to have my real passion in His service shaped and focused. And while all of that has taken place, I’ve had the chance to see just how un-Christlike, and far from God’s intent, the Church is at times. And it is with all of this very fresh on my mind that I prepare to return to Israel.

As I’ve been working through the reading for class, the biggest thing that has hit me is identity in God. It began with Exodus 19.17, “And Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain.” That phrase, “to meet God” has been on my mind since I read it. Moses, God’s messenger, has communicated the words of Jehovah to Pharaoh and Israel; he has been His instrument in bringing about the plagues, and he has led them across the wilderness and through the Red Sea to Sinai. Moses, the man who has spoken with God face to face, now brings Israel, God’s chosen people, to the foot of the mountain to meet Him.

They have heard about Jehovah for centuries as the story of Abraham’s faith and the covenant between Him and God has been passed down from generation to generation. They have seen His power time and again as they were delivered from slavery and traveled through the wilderness. But now they are going to meet Him. For the first time the children of Abraham are going to meet the God who spoke to Abraham and promised him the land they are moving towards. To receive the fulfillment of the promises of God, they must first meet Him and enter into a relationship with Him, He as their God and they as His people. The relationship is what it all hangs on.

Right now in my life I kind of feel like the people in Egypt, trapped in a situation that is less than desirable. In the back of my mind is this call from God into ministry. In my spirit, I have a burning passion to help the Church fall more in love with Jesus Christ, to help the people who make up the Church become more like Christ, and yet I find myself in slavery to the economy. I feel like I’m holding on to a promise, but the time of its fulfillment is uncertain, even doubtful at times.

On top of all of that, part of me feels like I have no identity. I know that men are defined by their careers, and I’m feeling very worthless without one. At the same time, I feel homeless. We’ve moved into my parent’s basement, just about the last place I want to be as a married twenty-six year old. I’m ready to be on my own again, in my own place that I have pride in, and a desire to improve. As Burge talks about in the opening pages of Jesus and the Land, “Land is potent…because it represents a place where we are rooted and can understand who we are… Each of us wants a place that we can call home, a place we may think of as our own, where familiar things are available, where old stories may be retold, where we experience some connection with a legacy that stretches out beyond us.” (p. ix)

I think in many ways I can relate to Israel, trapped, homeless and holding on to the hope of a promise. And just as the journey to the Promised Land required a stop to meet God, I feel that is what this trip will be for me. I don’t know how this is going to happen, but it has to. I am glad that I have a foundation to build on; it’s going to help me be more open and perceptive because there are things about the places that I already know, and I’ll be able to be more attuned to what God is trying to say.

I’m excited to go back and spend a few mornings by the Sea of Galilee; I’m ready to sit in the corner of Gethsemane again. I have a deeper appreciation for the Via Dolorosa and the Garden Tomb this time around. I’m looking forward to the new places as well, but for some reason Bethlehem has been predominantly on my mind recently. It might simply be because it’s almost Christmas, but maybe there is something else to it. It’s the city where God entered the world. He became homeless, with a painful future before Him, simply holding on to the promises of God. His identity was challenged; He was rejected by those who claimed to love God, and yet He endured it all, and was exalted to the highest place. And I am called to be like Him.

I hope to grow closer to God, experience Him in new ways, and return more like Christ than when I left. I think one way to do this is to help others work for the same thing. My wife and I are both on a journey of healing. The past year has been full of struggles and hardships, but we’ve made it. Now we have a chance to rest, to breathe, and to draw closer to each other, as we encounter God together in Israel.

With the college students, I’ve been where they are, and I’ve been where many of them will be in the next few years. I’ve experienced things that they are going to encounter both in life and ministry. One of the most important questions I’ve been asked is one I think I’m supposed to pass on to them, “Is Jesus enough?” Personally, I’m still working on being able to say yes daily, but I believe that’s also part of meeting God on this trip for me. The devotional I’m working on for the trip is focusing on the idea of meeting God because Jesus is enough.

Over the past few months, I have been asked this question almost daily. Honestly, I believe I’m in this phase of life to really understand and know that Jesus is enough. On this trip I feel that I’m going to come face to face with God in a new way. I believe that on this trip I have an opportunity to help others begin to answer the question, “Is Jesus enough?” as I answer it for myself. It is with great anticipation that I return to the Holy Land and the encounter with God that it holds.

As far as bringing the experience back, I honestly feel this is a personal time for my wife and me. I’m so glad God provided the finances for us to be able to share this together. Having been there once though, I know that you are affected by it, and you come back different than when you left. I do know that this experience will have an impact on our lives, marriage, and future ministry, especially after we find out what God has planned.

Since its 2012 still I can end with this, next year in Jerusalem.

"I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging bread."

To God alone be the Glory!

Peace be with you

The Book of Revelation

The book of Revelation is one that everyone seems to like to discuss and have an opinion on. Actually one of the first questions my in-law's asked me was what I believed about it. It's something some people refuse to read, and something others force down the throat of others as events that will take place in the next few weeks. And still others believe that the events of the book happened during the time of the first century.

But maybe all of our thoughts about it are wrong, or rather, maybe our focus with it is misplaced. This past Sunday my mentor, one of the wisest and most Christlike men I will ever know, shared some insights into this book, focusing on the question, "So what?"

Below is a link to the media section of the church's website. The date is 11/25/12, and it is titled, "Revelation". If you've ever wondered, if you've never read it, I invite you to listen, and see what it's really about.

http://bcn.org/social.php

Side note: Near the beginning he mentions a couple pieces of art. What happened here is he showed small individual sections of a picture, trying to point out that we can't see the whole painting in individual small sections. Then the whole picture is revealed.

"I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging bread."

To God alone be the Glory!

Peace be with you

Mankind, the Story of All of Us, Error

Last week the History Channel started a six part, twelve hour series about the history of humanity. I've always enjoyed history and so I've been looking forward to the series for the past few weeks. Today I'm watching the second part, and the beginning caught me by surprise. Part two began with the crucifixion.

As i think about it I don't know why I'm surprised, we're talking about a man who has influenced billions of lives over the last two thousand years, so it only makes sense that they would spend a few brief moments talking about Jesus. But all they talk about is his death by crucifixion, that didn't surprise me.

For the History Channel Christianity is the result of the crucifixion. Billions of people have committed their lives to a dead man who was brutally murdered. While martyrs do inspire followers of their cause, I don't know if any have continued to inspire almost two millennium after their death.

The crucifixion is an essential part of Christianity, but it is not the most essential part. It is important, but it is not the most important. Christianity does not hinge on the crucifixion, and Christianity is not based on the crucifixion. Because as the Bible tells us if all we have is the crucifixion, our faith is useless.

Even the early followers of Jesus had given up after they had seen Him killed. In Luke 24 we find two headed to Emmaus in defeat. Those who have stuck around in Jerusalem are hiding behind locked doors because they are afraid they are next. But then something happens that changes everything. Men who head home in despair return to Jerusalem to celebrate. Those who have gone into hiding begin to boldly proclaim the message publicly.

If Christ is dead that change isn't going to take place. If Christ is dead there is still no hope because the source of that hope was dead. If Christ is dead then faith is useless. The foundation of Christianity is not on the crucifixion, but in the Resurrection.

"But if there is no resurrection of the dead, not even Christ has been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is vain, your faith also is vain. Moreover we are even found to be false witnesses of God, because we testified against God that He raised Christ, whom He did not raise, if in fact the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins." 1 Corinthians 15.13-17.

The crucifixion is nothing without the Resurrection. The Resurrection of Jesus is what Christianity is all about. Christianity only means something if Jesus has been raised to live, because they ultimate hope of Christianity is new life with God after death. If Christ has not been raised to life, then there is no new life for any of us.

Christianity comes down to the Resurrection of Jesus Christ. Billions of lives have been transformed because God became man, died on a cross, and rose from the dead conquering sin, death, and Hell forever. It's all about the Resurrection.

The History Channel, to no surprise, left all of this out. And as I'm watching the rest of the episode their idea of the point of Christianity is mistaken. It isn't about people getting what the deserve, the wicked being punished and those who accept Jesus as Lord and Savior being blessed. It's about entering into a relationship with the risen Jesus, and in that receiving new life. It's all about the Resurrection.

"I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging bread."

To God alone be the Glory!

Peace be with you

The Older Brother

First, I want to apologize to those who read this blog. November obviously hasn't been a very productive month for me. There has been a lot going on and I've been dealing with both family and personal issues. There hasn't been a lot of motivation to write and the things that have been on my mind are too personal to post all over the internet. All of that being said, what I'm about to share is personal.

For several weeks, maybe months, now I've been angry. It's been something that builds, as anger usually does when it isn't dealt with. Part of the problem is there are things I've needed to say to people, but I can't say to them for one reason or another. There have been people who have hurt me directly, those who I have allowed myself to be hurt by indirectly, and for most of it I've blamed God, or more, questioned why God was allowing all of the hardships to happen.

I've written and thought a lot about the Romans 8 verse, "God causes all things to work together for the good of those who love Him." And the verse in Philippians 1 that states, "It is for Christ's sake that you will suffer." Hardships are part of the life of any Christ follower, and God will cause all things to work together for the good of those who love Him. But it seems, especially of late, like my life has a lot more suffering than some people I know. It feels like I've gotten the short end of the stick, while others who haven't worked as hard as I have have gotten all the breaks.

I know I'm not the only one who has felt, or is feeling, like this. I know that there are those out there who would trade their hardships for mine in a heartbeat. The point of this is not to evoke pity, but instead to put it all in perspective.

Yesterday in church, my mentor preached a sermon that hit me. I'm not usually one who gets hit by a sermon. I don't mean to sound arrogant, but much of the preaching I've heard has been shallow, hard to follow, or just really bad. Honestly, my mentor is one of the only people I can actually listen to. He's one of the few people that I get new and deeper insights from. I have a hard time sitting in Sunday services. But yesterday was a sermon that hit me. He gave a twenty-first century version of Luke 15.11-31, the Prodigal Son.

The message hit me because it spoke to exactly where I was. He pointed out after his narrative that there are three characters, the younger brother, the older brother and the father. That is obviously nothing new, but the way he presented the older brother was. And it all comes down to the fact that I am the older brother.

We have a story of a man with two sons. One wishes his father was dead and asks for his share of the inheritance. His father gives him his share and he takes off to live it up. The older son remains with his father, working hard and being faithful. When the younger brother's share is spent and his life is falling apart he returns home, and to his complete shock, is welcomed back by his father as his son. A celebration takes place, but the older brother is absent.

He refuses to join the celebration because in his mind it isn't fair. He has never betrayed his father, but has obeyed everything he has been told to do. He has worked hard and earned what is his. His brother has spent his share and deserves nothing more, and yet his father has welcomed him back, even after all the pain and worry he has caused him, and continues to pour out more.

I am the older brother. I have worked hard and been obedient. I've committed to things God has asked even though I had absolutely no desire to do them. And even with all of that, life has been harder than I ever thought it would be. In many ways, it's been harder than most of the people I knew in college and have met in ministry. Again, I know that others have it so much harder, and I am not in anyway trying to make this bigger that it is, simply showing the attitude I've had.

I graduated college with a 3.92 GPA. I was the only religion major in my class to graduate Summa Cum Laude. I've had a few incredible internship experiences in mega churches, I was on staff at a church when I was 19, and I am the only member of my graduating class to be ordained. I've put the time and work in, and in my eyes, I am the most deserving of achievement, I've worked hard and earned it. And yet I find myself living in my parent's basement, with no ministry position, and I couldn't even get a job stocking shelves at a toy store during Christmas.

I've had a bad attitude, and in a way I've basically said to God, "How dare you put me through this and bless them." I don't want to be the older brother, but I have to admit with embarrassment that I am.

So what happens now? Where do I go from here? Honestly, I'm still trying to figure that out. I don't want to have the attitude of the older brother, where I am "owed" blessings and favor for my work and effort. I don't want the attitude of anger, bitterness, and resentment when others receive the things that I've worked for instead of me. I want the attitude of the father.

We have a man who gives unconditionally and joyfully. He gave his youngest son his share of the inheritance and let him go his way. And even though the youngest son treated him as if he were dead, when he came home he ran to him, embraced him, and poured out more blessings on him as he welcomed him home. He went out to his oldest son. In spite of the sons anger he talks with him, he reaches out to him. That is the attitude I want.

I don't know how long this stage of life is going to last. Honestly, I don't know if another professional ministry position will ever open up for me. It's hard for me to say that, because it's the call that I have on my life and I've invested so much into it. Honestly, I don't know what else I would do with my life if the door never opens up. But I do know that no matter what happens, I want to pour out the love of the Father.

No matter where I am I can show the love and compassion of God. I can be joyful in spite of my circumstances because I am a son of God. Ultimately that is reason I am to rejoice. The only thing that matters in the end is that I belong to God, and that I show His love to everyone I come in contact with. That is the attitude I want, so God, I'm asking you to help me.

"I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging bread."

To God alone be the Glory!

Peace be with you

Two Thoughts

Yesterday I was able to spend some time with my mentor. As usual I walked away from the conversation with a good thought from him. We met at the local coffee shop but it was somewhat loud so we ended up driving around for a little while.

He took me to the local high school where he serves as the coach of character development for the football team. He introduced me to several players and the coach, and you could see their love and respect for him.

As he was taking me back to my car he said something, the thing that has stuck with me. "There is no batting practice in life." My mentor can find a sports analogy for just about every situation. He went on, "People live today as if it's preparation for the life they'll live someday."

I've thought about that a lot. I've seen that to be true in my own life. Right now life isn't at all like my wife and I thought it would be. We're living in my parent's basement, and I'm still looking for a job. We've had three interviews with churches, two we've said no to, and the third didn't give us the chance to say no. A few resumes I've sent out have either not been answered or have come back with the response, "We decided to go in another direction."

It's a really frustrating time. And in this time it's easy to think about the life we're hoping to have someday. In a way we treat this time like practice, something we have to go through in order to get to the game, or for me, the front lines of battle. But that's not how life works. In life there is no warm up, there is no practice, it's all the game, it's all battle. I don't mean that in a negative "Life sucks and then you die" way. What I'm saying is we only get one go at this, this is all real. All of this counts. All of this matters.

A few days ago I had a scary moment, we had a cancer scare. Everything is fine, it ended up being nothing, but for about two days as we waited to get into the doctor we didn't know. I remember that night just lying there holding my wife, fighting back tears, telling her it was all going to be ok, not knowing if it would be. And the only thought that was on my mind was, "Just hold her. Soak this all up because it might not be here forever."

Needless to say I was extremely relieved when everything came back clean. But it's put a lot into perspective for me. Reality has hit me that this moment is all there is. The life we hope for may never come, so don't waste this time preparing and holding out for what is never guaranteed. There is no practice in life, we born and its go time.

Thought number two hit me yesterday as I was driving. President Obama has been re-elected, and many are less than thrilled. I woke up Wednesday with a knot in the pit of my stomach. I am concerned about the future of my country. The change he's brought so far hasn't been for the better, and four more years really doesn't look good. It's a bit scary to think about the things he can do and say now that he doesn't have to worry about running for office again.

But as I wrote before the election, God is still in control. President Obama is just a man with no power except what God has allowed him to have, and he will one day have to stand before God and answer for how he used that power, just as all of us will.

As I've thought about some of the statements he's made, this thought came to my mind, "Sin legalized in the eyes of man is not righteous in the eyes of God." I realize that could come across as offensive, or attacking a particular view, but that is not how I mean it. I am focusing on sin in general, not one in particular.

Any law can be passed to make anything legal or illegal. The government can say that this is ok while this is not. But that doesn't change the truth and righteous standards of God. No governmental authority can overturn His standards. No one can take what God says is wrong and make it right. God is the final and absolute authority of holiness, and His standards are what all will be measured against.

As I conclude this I realize that these two thoughts tie together. We only have one shot at life, and there is only one standard of righteousness for us to live by. Let us live today fully in the moment. Let us commit ourselves to God, and strive for His righteousness. He sent Jesus to show us how to live, to die and rise again so that we could be righteous and holy. He sent His Holy Spirit to fill those who strive after Him so that they could live as Jesus modeled. We have one life, how will you live it?

"I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging bread."

To God alone be the Glory!

Peace be with you

Election 2012

Tomorrow American's who haven't voted early or by absentee ballot will head to the polls to cast their vote for the man who will lead America for the next four years. People have said this is the most important election of our time, which is also what they've said in the last three or four that I've been old enough to remember.

My vote has been cast already, and it's been based on more than the simple fact of I don't like the other candidate. I've voted based on who I believe will be the best leader for our current situation. But even as I voted I've remembered that no candidate has all the answers. No candidate can fix everything, no matter what they claim they will do.

Many people are anxious, some are even fearful about the outcome of tomorrow’s event. Part of me is worried for the future of my country. But as I think about all of that I'm reminded that the future of this nation and the rest of the world is not in the hands of any man.

No matter who is elected tomorrow, God is still in control. God knows who is going to win, and God knows what the next four years hold. God knows the trials that we are going to face. He knows the needs of the people. He knows the hearts of both men running, and God's will is going to be done. The results that we learn tomorrow will not catch Him off guard or by surprise.

And as we look at the future we must remember that no president or policy will be able to fix everything. There are problems that lie at the heart of man. Problems that can, and will, only be resolved by the transforming power of Jesus Christ. No matter who is elected our job is to pray for our leader (1 Timothy 2). Our job is to strive to become like Christ, to show the love of Christ to all people. Our job is not to worry, but simply to fall back into God's arms and trust Him.

The Bible says in Romans 8, "And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified."

All things work together for good, not just good things, but all things. God will use all that takes place in the next four years to work together for the good of those who love Him. All things that take place in the next four years will serve to make those who are striving after Him, become more like Christ. All things that take place in the next four years will serve to fulfill His purpose. Regardless of who is elected God is in control.

Ultimately, sin will be punished, evil will be destroyed, and God will be glorified. So for now, join me in praying for our leader, for our country, and for God's will to be done.

"I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging bread."

To God alone be the Glory!

Peace be with you

The Gospel and Baseball

I haven't really been a baseball fan since the late '90s. Back then the Cleveland Indians were one of the dominate teams in Major Legue Baseball. From 1995-1999 they had two World Series appearances, and were division champions every year. I'm not a fair-weather fan, the reason I stopped following them was because all the players began to be traded, or retire. It got to the point in the early 2000's that I didn't know who anyone was anymore, and lost interest.

I haven't watched much baseball in the last twelve years, but Sunday night I was flipping back and forth between Peyton Manning and the Broncos and game 4 of the World Series. After Peyton had secured the win with a 20 point lead and about a minute and a half left I switched and finished the world series.

The game was tied 3-3 and went into extra innings. The San Francisco Giants took a 4-3 lead in the top of the tenth inning, and as the Detroit Tigers stepped up to the plate trying desperately to stay alive something caught my eye. In the seats right behind home plate there was an individual with a bright green sign. In black letters it said, "John 3:16".

I didn't notice it until the final three batters stepped up to the plate. But as the series neared its conclusion the individual in the front row held the homemade sign high, and immediately a stadium worker went up to the person and had them lower the sign. I don't think it was because of the message, I think it was because it was blocking the view of the people behind him. But even in that you see the enemy trying to silence the message of the Gospel.

I don't know how many people are saved by signs like that, but my guess is that it isn't many. Part of me wonders why people try to evangelize with signs since there is no relationship with the people reading it. But regardless, the message is being put out there, and rather than giving the referance full of anger and condemnation, John 3.16 proclaims the love and salvation that God offers. And wherever the message is proclaimed, the enemy works to shut it down.

It might be someone telling an individual at a sporting event to lower a homemade sign. It could be filling a new believer with fear or doubt. It could be in hardening the heart of an individual over time so that when the message is presented to them they reject it out of bitterness. The message of the Gospel is the most crucial message that must be shared,

The words of the Gospel are the words of life, and the enemy doesn't want them to be shared. And he will do whatever it takes to try and stop it. The question is, will you persever and share them? Will you refused to be silenced and proclaim the essential message of truth?

It all begins with a relationship, and as we get to know people we have the chance to live the gospel out before them, sharing it with not only our words, but our actions as well.

"I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging bread."

To God alone be the Glory!

Peace be with you

Church, Meet God

In three months from right now I will be asleep in a hotel in Jerusalem after taking in the view of the Old City from the Mount of Olives, traveling the traditional Palm Sunday walk, sitting and reflecting in a corner of the Garden of Gethsemane, exploring an area of the city that contains the traditional upper room, and hopefully traveling to Bethlehem. I'm so excited. My wife and I are beginning to get everything ready for the trip.

Recently I've found myself with a lot of time on my hands, and I have been able to get a copy of the syllabus from my professor. I'm starting to get back into student mode. Right now I'm reading through the different Scripture passages for class as I wait for the final book to arrive. As I've been reading the text is hitting me in a new way. And I want to share a verse that I've been thinking about for the last few days.

Exodus 19.17, "And Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain."

Moses brought the people out of the camp so that they could meet God. He lead them from the safety and shelter of their tents, to the foot of the mountain where they would come face to face with God. The people are on their way to the Promised Land. At this point they haven't been sentenced to forty years in the wilderness for disobedience and lack of trust.

Right now this is simply them coming face to face with the God who showed His power in Egypt, and lead them through the Red Sea to freedom. Right after this Moses will receive the Ten Commandments. The people will learn God's statutes so that they can live in the way that He requires. But before they can begin to live as God would have them live, they must first meet God. And so Moses, God's chosen leader, His messenger before the people, brings them to the mountain to introduce them to God.

This past Sunday my grandpa said something that I haven't stopped thinking about. "The Church spends too much time trying to do the work of God, and not enough time teaching about who God is." I think that's true for most churches in America. Many of them are declining in attendance, some don't have the funds to continue operating for much longer. Most of them are made up of people who have been there for the past fifty years, which isn't a bad thing, but because those are the only people there church is done like it's 1962.

The Church is trying to do the work of God, but based on the results that are being seen, I think it's safe to say that it isn't doing a very good job. And the reason the Church isn't doing a very good job at doing the work of God is because the Church really doesn't know who God is.

As leaders of the Church we need to bring people to the mountain, get them out of the camp, and bring them face to face with God. Instead of trying to do God's work, hoping we get it right, let's meet God and focus on knowing Him. When we know God, we are able to join His work. But if we don't know God, there is no way for us to know how to get involved with Him.

The Church needs to refocus. If we want to take part in the work of God, it begins with knowing God. To know God, we must first meet Him. And when we do it might be a terrifying experience. The Israelites didn't want to hear from God directly, but wanted Moses to intervene for them. Francis Chan, in his recent Basic, Fear God, talks about how the fear of God is genuine fear. It isn't simply awe and respect, but as we see in Scripture, people are terrified when they come in contact with God. But when we meet God we see that there is nothing else to fear, and we are able to fear not because we belong to God.

As God's people we can take part in the work He is doing, but we can only join Him if we know Him. Our primary focus must be on knowing God. The Church needs to teach who God is, and as people come to know God their lives we be transformed. As lives are transformed the work of God gets accomplished. It all begins with knowing God. So, Church, meet God.

"I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging bread."

To God alone be the Glory!

Peace be with you

More Like Falling in Love

This morning I was driving, and heard a song I haven't listened to in a while. I may have written about it when I first started this blog, but I can't remember. It's a song by Jason Gray, one of Christian music's best kept secrets as I recently read. The song was the first one of his that I had heard, and it's called "More like falling in love".

Give me rules,I will break them
Show me lines,I will cross them
I need more than a truth to believe
I need a truth that lives, moves, and breathes

To sweep me off my feet, it's gotta be

More like falling in love
Than something to believe in
More like losing my heart
Than giving my allegiance

Caught up, called out
Come take a look at me now
It's like I'm falling, oh
It's like I'm falling in love

Give me words, I'll misuse them
Obligations, I'll misplace them
'Cause all religion ever made of me
Was just a sinner with a stone tied to my feet

It never set me free, it's gotta be

More like falling in love
Than something to believe in
More like losing my heart
Than giving my allegiance

Caught up, called out
Come take a look at me now
It's like I'm falling, oh
It's like I'm falling in

Love, love, love deeper and deeper,
It was love that made me a believer
In more than a name a faith, a creed
Falling in love with Jesus brought the change in me

It's gotta be

More like falling in love
Than something to believe in
More like losing my heart
Than giving my allegiance

Caught up, called out
Come take a look at me now
It's like I'm falling, oh
It's like I'm falling

It's gotta be

More like falling in love
Than something to believe in
More like losing my heart
Than giving my allegiance

Caught up, called out
Come take a look at me now
It's like I'm falling, oh
It's like I'm falling in love

It's like I'm falling
I'm falling in love
It's like I'm falling

(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GXHxpLvv2y8)

That's the beauty of Christianity. It isn't a set of rules to follow, or a list of facts to memorize, it's a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Religion simply makes us sinners that are helpless without grace. It doesn't set us free, but rather enslaves us to tradition and ritual. But a relationship with Jesus, brings grace, and with that grace comes freedom.

Christianity isn't something that can be figured out. No one ever would have thought this thing up. The idea of God becoming fully human, taking the punishment of humanity upon Himself, and then freely returning the reward of His suffering back to man is unique to Christianity.

But none of these comments will ever convince a skeptic. There is nothing I can say that will make anyone believe. There is no argument that I can make that will bring someone to conviction. The only way for a life to be transformed is through love. This thing called Christianity is not something to believe in to avoid hell, but it's falling in love and entering to a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.

This isn't about following the rules to avoid punishment. It isn't about seeing how close we can get to the line of sin without actually crossing it. This is about a relationship based on unconditional love. Love that has made the greatest sacrifice and would do it all over again if necessary. Love that transforms and redeems. This thing called Christianity is all about love, and therefore entering into it has to be more like falling in love than simply believing, more like losing your heart than pledging your allegiance.

I've pledged allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands more times that I can count, but I've lost my heart to my wife. My loyalty goes to my wife before my country, and my loyalty to her is stronger than any I could ever have for a nation. That's because there is a commitment stronger than any words I could ever say for my wife. There is love welding us together.

Marriage is the closest model we have of the relationship that Jesus wants with us, His Church. In marriage we see two people willingly coming together, loving and respecting each other, prepared to do anything for the other person. It's because they are in love. Love is the foundation, and so it's got to be more like falling in love.

"I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging bread."

To God alone be the Glory!

Peace be with you

Failure

For some reason over the last few days I've had a commercial on my mind. Back during the summer between my junior and senior years of college I had the privilege of serving as a counselor at teen church camp. This was the second time I had been a counselor and so there was a base relationship with some of the guy campers. I remember during one of the evening services there was one guy who pulled me aside and asked if we could talk.

We went out and sat on a bench and I listened to him talk. His family was moving out of state right before his senior year of high school. This teen camp would be his last district church event before the move. He was having a rough time with it because this is where he had grown up. So many of his friends were through church and church events, and now he was moving.

I don't remember what I said to him, but that conversation was the start of a friendship. I've since lost touch with him, I can't even find him on facebook any more. But for the rest of that summer we'd message back and forth frequently. It's been several years since we've talked, but one day he shared something with me that I've never forgotten.

The commercial I mentioned earlier was made by Nike, and it features basketball legend Michael Jordan. You see him get out of a vehicle, people take pictures and high five him as he walks towards a set of doors. As he walks you hear his voice sharing different statistics from his career. "I've missed more than 9,000 shots in my career. I've lost almost 300 games. Twenty-six times I've been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed. I've failed over and over and over again in my life, and that is why I succeed."

(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=45mMioJ5szc)

He doesn't talk about the games he's won, the more than 32,000 points he's scored, or any of the six championships he won. He doesn't talk about any of his MVP awards or All-star appearances. His two Olympic gold medals aren't talked about or any other records that he set. Instead you have one of the greatest basketball players to ever handle a ball talking about the many ways he's failed.

I read how after Jordan came back from his first basketball retirement the Chicago Bulls were struggling to make the playoffs. After he came back the team went 13-4 and made it to the semi-finals. The ended up losing in six games, but a big moment happened in game 1. Jordan was stripped of the ball from behind in what turned into the game-winning basket. The player who stripped the ball later said, "[He] didn't look like the old Michael Jordan."

He worked hard that off season, and the next year the Bulls went 72-10, the best record in NBA history. The reason Michael Jordan succeeds because of failure is that it drives him to improve. It is because Michael Jordan works harder because of failure that he is one of the greatest basketball players of all time.

How do you respond to failure? Does it serve as motivation to make you better, driving you to work harder? Or does it make you bitter and resentful? Do you turn failure into success, or stew in it, wasting the opportunity?

We are going to fail, but our failure is opportunity to improve. Failure shows us weakness, it shows us areas that need improvement. And because of failure we can become stronger and better. The Bible tells us that "God causes all things to work together for good for those who love God and are called according to His purpose" (Romans 8.28). All things, not just the good, but the hard, the times we fail, and the times we fall apart.

The purpose of God is for us to become like Christ (Romans 8.29). And Paul tells us in Philippians 1, that we will have struggles and face hardships for Christ's sake. But Paul declares in Philippians 3, that he will "Press on toward the goal, for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 3.14).

Through the hard times, through the failure, we continue to press on towards Christlikeness. We take the failure we face, and allow it to mold us more into the likeness of Christ. We allow God to use our failures, and cause them to work together for good.

You will fail over and over and over again. Will you succeed because of it?

"I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging bread."

To God alone be the Glory!

Peace be with you

In His Plan

"I am not skilled to understand, what God has willed what God has planned. I only know at His right hand stands one who is my Savior." It was some time early in 2006 when I first heard those words from Aaron Shust's song "My Savior, My God".

Yesterday was a bit of a rough day for me. As I was writing the blog post on daily bread I got an email letting me know that I didn't get a job I had applied for. A job that on the surface looked like my dream job. That's pretty much how my day started, and so it wasn't the best start to the day.

I sat at the top of the steps, called my wife, told her, and shed a few tears of frustration and defeat. At that moment part of me really felt like just giving up. Doors keep closing, and the doors that are open aren't doors I'm being led to walk through. And I as I sat I cried out to God, wondering what I'm supposed to do, what He wants me to do.

Honestly, I was a little angry, and part of me really didn't want to talk to God at all. Part of me felt like He didn't want me to ever really be able to use my gifts. Part of me felt like He wanted me in situations where I would struggle and be miserable forever. And part of me wanted nothing to do with any of that.

It was a rough day. And last night as I was laying in bed those words came to my mind again. "I am not skilled to understand, what God has willed what God has planned." You see throughout the day God showed me that He cares, that He loves me, and that he will provide.

I had shared the situation my wife and I are in financially with two friends here in Canal Fulton, and I found out that they immediately went to work to help us. And God provided for them to be able to do above and beyond the need that we expressed.

Something else happened that I cannot talk about at the moment, but it gave me hope again. Hope in my calling, hope in the potential for a chance to use my gifts and be able to live out my calling.

I went to bed last night in a better mood than when I woke up. I went to bed with more hope than I've had in a while. And this morning I woke up humbled and needing to seek His forgiveness. I know that God cares. I know that He will provide. I know that He has a plan for my life and my wife's life that will make full use of our gifts, passions, and talents.

I wish I didn't get so discouraged. I wish I didn't get so depressed. I wish I was stronger and had greater faith. I wish I could just trust and believe. But maybe that's the point of this experience. I shared a few weeks ago that the wilderness is a place of remembering. Hardships are chances for us to see God come through. When we face things that only He can overcome we see His power in action, and come to deeper faith in Him because we've seen Him come through first hand.

I know that all of this is faith building and hope enforcing. God is reminding me over and over that He does care, and that He has something better in mind than I could ever imagine. He will never leave me or forsake me.

"I am not skilled to understand, what God has willed what God has planned. I only know at His right hand stands one who is my Savior." God has a plan for my life, and though I cannot understand it, there is a Savior at His side who reminds me that I have a place the plan. That Savior will never leave me. God will not abandon me or forsake me.

And the same is said for you. I know how hard it is at times, but I'm watching God come through. I'm seeing God give hope. God loves you, don't give up. His plan is so much bigger and better than anything you could ever imagine, and you have a place in it. He will not leave you for forsake you. Keep moving, keep trusting, and keep watching Him as He comes through.

"I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging bread."

To God alone be the Glory!

Peace be with you

Give Us this Day Our Daily Bread

Recently I watched a DVD curriculum series by Francis Chan called "Basic". It's a series of seven short films that focus on the basics of Church and the Christian life, according to what the Bible says. All of them are incredible and challenging. Each one spoke to me, and I'm looking forward to really diving into each one in the next few weeks and months.

Today I want to share one brief thought on the disc entitled, "Prayer", and share experience with it. Taking the Biblical model of the Lord's Prayer, Francis Chan goes phrase by phrase to help us see what we're really praying, what we're really asking God to do or what we're really committing to as we talk to God. Honestly, it's a bit frightening when you begin to understand what is contained in the words many of us learned as children and can quote without thinking twice.

Eventually I'll look at each phrase, but I'm starting to see at certain stages of life different things stand out to us. I've shared that over the past three years God has given me a word of the year that everything has revolved around. I've started to notice that at certain moments in life different phrases stand out to me that people say.

For example, when I was ordained this past summer the General Superintendent quotes part of 2 Timothy 4, "I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction... be sober in all things, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry." The part that stood out to me, that I distinctly remember him saying, was, "endure affliction."

With what we were going through at the time, what was about to come, and most likely what is still waiting in the distance, that part is the only thing I clearly remember hearing that night.

And as I watched the Basic series I had a similar moment. All of it is incredible. All of it is thought provoking and challenging. But out of all of it the one thing that has really stood out to me most, the one thing that I haven't stopped thinking about is the statement made on the phrase, "Give us this day our daily bread."

I loaned my copy of the series to a pastor friend, and I can't find the full video online so you're going to get my best recollection of the quote. Basically Francis says, "If God really gave us our daily bread, I think most of us would be like, 'That's it?! That's all You're going to give me?!'"

Many, if not all, of us worry about the future. We wonder how we'll pay for things, when we'll be able to buy a house, how we'll afford college for the kids. We worry about tomorrow at the expense of today. We are told not to worry about tomorrow, not to worry about what we'll eat, drink, or wear, because God will take care of us. We are told simply to ask for our daily bread.

As my wife and I have been on this journey of one salary, not knowing how we're going to pay some bills, and in general just wondering where we're going to end up, I've been focusing a lot on that phrase, "Give us this day our daily bread." All I have is today, all that I have any right to ask God for is enough for today. And the thing of it is, God will provide that. Jesus told us to ask for it. God will provide what we need for each day. When He does we need to receive it with gratitude.

God will provide for our daily needs. Are we content to let Him do that?

"I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging bread."

To God alone be the Glory!

Peace be with you

Dancing in the Minefields

Just under a week after we got engaged my wife, fiance at the time, turned twenty-five. That year I set a bar so high that I'll probably never be able to come close to it again. I gave her a wooden box she had picked out, sort of like a treasure chest, that had different things in it. Notes I had been writing her, and not giving her, since our first date that had been recording everything we had done, pictures we had taken together, a small heart shaped rock I had picked up on the day we first said "I love you", some other small things, and what I referred to as, "The Ultimate Gift."

I believe I've shared this story on here before, but I'll recap briefly. My wife's favorite flower is the Love and Peace Rose. She had seen it once at a rose garden but she told me that no one had ever given her it. My plan was to get her a bouquet of them, turns out they're hard to find. No florist carries them. And then as I thought about it, that's really a waste, so I one-uped it. I decided to get her an actual rose bush of them so she could enjoy them all the time.

Turns out finding the plant is nearly as impossible. I searched several local nurseries, and no one had it. My cousin, whose husband is a landscaper, joined the search looking at their suppliers, none of them carried it. Finally I found one at a place in Grand Rapids, Michigan. I was waiting as long as possible to order it because of the high shipping costs.

One day I was driving past a different nursery, and felt a God led need to stop in there. Long story short, they had one left. Got it took some pictures, and put them at the bottom of the box underneath everything else along with the tag that was on the plant.

It was a good day for her, and she was happy. The flowers have given rise to my new gardening hobby, and I wonder what in the world I'm going to do for each birthday for the rest of our lives.

There was one other thing that didn't make it into the box. Over the years we have both been impacted by different songs. Songs that have chronicled our story as we had searched for each other. I had compiled them onto a CD and had planned to give that to her as well, the reason I hadn't is because she ended up getting it early.

We had had a rough conversation one evening, and at the end I decided to give it to her just to reaffirm how much I loved her. I had written out why each song had been chosen, and I think she got that on her birthday, but that night we listened to the CD together.

We got engaged, began planning the wedding, met some resistance, and ended up finding one more song that got added to the CD. It's called, "Dancing in the Minefields" by Andrew Peterson. It's the song that played during the recessional of our wedding.

Last night we had a different night. We were laying on the couch watching "Jumanji", and I fell asleep, that wasn't the different part. I woke up enough to walk up the stairs, brush my teeth, and fall in bed around 10:45. And then the different happened. We were both wide awake and unable to fall asleep. We've never both been wide awake. She said it under her breath thinking I was out and then I responded, "Me too." We talked for a few minutes and then decided to get up and go play backgammon downstairs.

As she was setting up the board I thought of the CD and loaded it onto the laptop to listen to as we played. Song after song and then we came to "Dancing in the Minefields."

Well I was nineteen, you were twenty-one
The year we got engaged
And everyone said we were much too young
But we did it anyway

We got the rings for forty each
From a pawn shop down the road
We said our vows and took the leap
Now fifteen years ago

And we went dancing in the minefields
We went sailing in the storms
And it was harder than we dreamed
But I believe that's what the promise is for

Well "I do" are the two most famous last words
The beginning of the end
But to lose your life for another I've heard
Is a good place to begin

'Cause the only way to find your life
Is to lay your own life down
And I believe it's an easy price
For the life that we have found

And we're dancing in the minefields
We're sailing in the storms
And this is harder than we dreamed
But I believe that's what the promise is for
That's what the promise is for

So when I lose my way, find me
And when I loose love's chains, bind me
At the end of all my faith, 'til the end of all my days
When I forget my name, remind me

'Cause we bear the light of the Son of Man
So there's nothing left to fear
So I'll walk with you in the shadowlands
'Til the shadows disappear

'Cause he promised not to leave us
And his promises are true
So in the face of all this chaos, baby,
I can dance with you

So let's go dancing in the minefields
Let's go sailing in the storms
Oh, let's go dancing in the minefields
And kicking down the doors.

Oh,lets go dancing in the minefields
And sailing in the storms
This is harder than we dreamed
But I believe that's what the promise is for
That's what the promise is for

(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Gs3fg_WsEg)

It was around 12:40 am when that song ended. I leaned over, kissed my wife, told her I loved her, and that I was glad we were together in this. This is so much harder than we ever dreamed it would be. But honestly I'm glad that I have her to dance in the minefields with.

As I shared earlier this week, the Bible says, "When he falls" not "If". We're going to go through the minefields, and some of them are going to go off, but we'll make it to the other side together because God is holding our hand and leading us through. And because of that, we'll dance.

"I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging bread."

To God alone be the Glory!

Peace be with you

When Not If

Psalm 37.23-24, "The steps of a man are established by the Lord,and He delights in his way. When he falls, he will not be hurled headlong, because the Lord is the One who holds his hand."

The Bible says that "When he falls", not "If", but "When". We're going to stumble, the wilderness is inevitable, hardships are part of being a follower of Christ. And for the past year I've been experiencing that first hand. I've shared some of the journey, and now I have to share part of where we are now.

A few weeks ago I was laying in bed, my back turned to my wife because I was fighting back tears. I had spent most of the day just feeling like God didn't care about me at all. Things just were piling up. People who I thought would be there for me weren't, and my wife and I just felt very alone.

Right now I don't know how we're going to make it. Things just keep hitting us from every direction. I don't know where we're going live in twelve days. We have bills that we don't know how we're going to pay. I'm wondering why God has given me a call that He isn't letting me do anything with. I feel like no is ever going to give me a shot, like no one is willing to take a chance on me.

Honestly, right now if God doesn't show up, we're not going to make it. If God doesn't open a door, I don't know what I'm going to do. But as I read the verse that says "When he falls," if have to focus on the rest, "he will not be hurled headlong, because the Lord is the One who holds his hand."

God is holding my hand. Even if I can't feel it, He is with me. He will come through, He always does. And as I type that I'm thinking, "Lord, I believe. Help my unbelief." God will come through, because right after that, Psalm 37.25, declares this, "I have been young and now I am old, yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken or his descendants begging bread."

I don't know what's going to happen. I know I have a wife who loves me and respects me. I know that the Bible says God loves me, that He will never leave me or forsake me, and that He holds my hand. God will come through for us. We will fall, but we will not stumble headlong because God has my hand. I will fall, but I won't land on my face in the dirt, because God has my hand.

I'm still working on believing that all the time. The reality is that there are still days when everything else builds up and it's hard to have hope. But over and over the Bible tells about how God came through for His people. The Bible is clear that we will face difficulties, but that God will lead us through all of it.

"I have been young and now I am old, yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken or his descendants begging bread." That will be my testimony.

To God alone be the Glory!

Peace be with you

Resistance in the Wilderness

About a month ago my mentor gave me a book to read during my wilderness journey. When he gave it to me he said that I could probably just read his underlines and get the message of the book. Initially that was my plan. It's a book that I actually have on my to buy list and I like to mark up the books I read. So I was thinking I would get a general overview of it, then read it all when it was my own copy to mark in.

But as it turns out the first several pages didn't have that much underlined. In the first chapter he had one thing circled. I didn't touch the book for a the next few weeks, but yesterday my wife had a four hour shift at work so I decided to go with her and so I grabbed the book to keep me company.

It's called Waking the Dead by John Eldredge (any surprise that it was on my to read list?). I've only read the first chapter, but just based on those pages this book is for me at this stage of life. And as I read I was reminded that we are at war. We live behind enemy lines, and are surrounded by danger and and the target of attack all the time. And so as we have looked at the blessings that are to be found in the wilderness, we cannot neglect the reality that there is also great resistance waiting for us there.

If we look at each of the Biblical men who were blessed in their wilderness experience we have to take note of the fact that almost all of them ended up in the wilderness because someone wanted to kill them. Elijah ran from Jezebel, David fled from Saul, Moses bolted from Pharaoh, Paul escaped the Jews, and I read that John the Baptist was taken there by his mother to save his life from Herod's mass murder of infants. With the exception of Jesus the choice was wilderness or death.

But just because Jesus wasn't there to save His life, it doesn't mean His time in the wilderness was trouble free. In fact of all the accounts His gives the most detail of the resistance that is faced in the wilderness. Matthew 4 records this account of Jesus' temptation, in verses 1-11:

Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And after He had fasted forty days and forty nights, He then became hungry. And the tempter came and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.” But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.’”

Then the devil took Him into the holy city and had Him stand on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down; for it is written, ‘He will command His angels concerning You’; and ‘On their hands they will bear You up, So that You will not strike Your foot against a stone.’” Jesus said to him, “On the other hand, it is written, ‘You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.’”

Again, the devil took Him to a very high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory; and he said to Him, “All these things I will give You, if You fall down and worship me.” Then Jesus said to him, “Go, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only.’” Then the devil left Him; and behold, angels came and began to minister to Him.

Jesus has just been baptized, and we saw that when He came out of the water the God spoke words of confirmation as the Spirit descended upon Him. After fasting for forty days alone in the wilderness Jesus is hungry, and at this point, when He is physically weak, Satan comes to Him and begins the attack.

The first thing that is targeted is Jesus' identity. The first two temptations begin with Satan saying, "IF you are the Son of God." Before any thing else Satan tries to raise doubt in who Jesus is. But right before this forty day wilderness experience began God not only said that Jesus was His Son, but His beloved Son, and that He is well pleased with Him.

The first thing Satan goes after is Jesus identity. If Jesus doubts who He is there will be the need to prove Himself. If he can make it seem like there is a division between Jesus and God then Jesus will be vulnerable to attack. And so Satan begins the attack by trying to plant the seed of doubt. But because of the affirmation at His baptism Jesus knows who He is. He knows whose He is, and He overcomes this resistance.

Secondly, Satan works to get Jesus to doubt His power. Satan tries to get Him to use His power for His own gain, to meet His own need. But again, Jesus knows who He is. He knows why He came. And He knows that His power is not to make His life easier, but to bring eternal life. And so this resistance is also overcome.

Third, Satan tries to discourage Jesus' trust in God. He challenges it, this time inviting Jesus to prove not only to Himself, but to the Jews, that He is the Son of God. But Jesus again, knowing His identity, knowing that there is a time and a place for God to display His power, refuses to give in. And because He knows God He trusts in Him. He relies on God's plan and timing, and this resistance is overcome.

Finally, Satan tires to bring depression to Jesus. He shows Him all the Kingdoms of the world, the world that Jesus has come to save. Perhaps this is an attempt to show the impossibility of one man's death to make any difference. But more than that it's an attempt to get Jesus to think there might be a way around the cross. Satan says "These are mine, and I am willing to give them to You. You can then save them or do whatever You like with them. All you have to do is bow down to me for a second and they are yours. Worship me for a moment, and avoid the agony of the cross."

But Jesus knows that He has a mission that must be done a certain way. He knows that sin demands death as payment. He knows that He cannot compromise and become like the world if He wants to save it. He must face the cross, with it's pain and humiliation, because that is the only way to really save the world. He refuses, again knowing that God has a plan and knowing that God will be victorious, and this final resistance is overcome.

We see that the devil leaves Him, and then angels come and minister to Him. There is rest and comfort after the battle. But we must be prepared for resistance in the wilderness. In the wilderness God wants to pour out blessings upon us, and after the wilderness comes great victories for the Kingdom, and Satan wants none of that. He does not want us to be blessed by God. He does not want us to help expand the borders of the Kingdom, and so he will do all that is within his power to prevent that. And where better to strike than in the wilderness? The times when we feel alone, abandoned, weak, and worn out.

A while ago on the blog I wrote about four weapons of the enemy, I've mentioned them here: division, doubt, discouragement, and depression. It's when we are in the wilderness that we face each of these. We feel alone, like no one cares. We believe that we are useless and don't matter. We get down and don't believe that things will change. We lose hope. But let me encourage you, these are lies of the enemy. We are at war, and he is trying to take you out because God wants to use you. You are a threat to what he is doing because you are a servant of God. That is why you are a target, that is why you face resistance.

When you look at it that way, the resistance really is a blessing as well. It confirms that we are on the right path, that we are making an impact for God. The fact that we're being targeted and attempts are made to take us out means that we are a threat the enemy has taken notice of. Be encouraged, and know that you are not standing alone.

Today in church we sang a song that said how the blood of Christ stands in our defense. We are God's beloved children. We will go through times in the wilderness, and we will face resistance from the enemy, but we belong to God, and He always wins. So be encouraged and find the blessings of the wilderness.

To God alone be the Glory!

Peace be with you

Blessing of the Wilderness, Remember

Part of the reason, actually most of the reason, I've been doing this series on the blessings of the wilderness, is because currently I find myself there. It hasn't been an easy couple of months. I've dealt with depression, discouragement, and doubt. As I've written about the wilderness my hope has been that if I spent enough time on the positives it would start to sink in.

In some ways it has. I feel more rested, but right now it's at the point of restlessness. I'm ready for what is next, and just wanting for God to open the door. I also feel that my wife and I have regrouped. In this we've felt very alone, but in that we've grown closer together. We've been amazed at how much we've learned.

As far as receiving goes, we've seen God provide. My wife got a raise, moved to full time, and was able to pick up benefits at work. I've been doing some side work for my uncle which covers the gas to drive up there and gives us few dollars, but more than that it gets me out of the house. My call in life has been refocused during this time as well. For a long time I thought I was supposed to be a lead pastor, and after this last experience I wasn't sure I really wanted to go that route anymore. But in this time I saw a job post that is focused specifically on my gifts, skills, and passions. I sent a resume and don't know if that door is going to open, but at the very least it's shown me where God is leading me at some point in the future.

I don't know that the revival part has happened yet. Yes I have had some good thoughts that have been shared here, (some haven't come out as well as they've been in my head), and God has really helped me to be so much for focused on simply building the Kingdom in whatever is next. And I've done some reflecting. Reflected on what I've experienced in this last assignment, reflected on a lot of the things that people have told me to affirm me over the years.

But for me the biggest thing that I've had to focus on is the wilderness as a place to remember. As I said I've been dealing with depression, discouragement, and doubt. I've wondered what the heck is wrong with me? Why do I keep getting stuck in these situations where I'm forced out due to a lack of finances? Why is God making it so hard for me to do what He's called me to do? It's rough at night sometimes, and other times it doesn't get any better when the sun comes up.

The last Sunday of August we were at the church my mentor pastors. His sister-in-law had passed away that week and he shared about being in the valley, something I can easily relate to at the moment. But the thing he said that has really stuck with me is this, "It is in the valley that our witness is the strongest. It is in the hard times that people see Jesus in us the clearest." It hasn't been easy, I haven't done the best job all the time, but I'm trying to trust Him. I want people to see my life and know that God provided, that God brought us through this.

And as I've journeyed in the wilderness these last several weeks, God has been trying to remind me who I am. There is a song I've been listening to a lot by Jason Gray.

When I lose my way,
And I forget my name,
Remind me who I am.
In the mirror all I see,
Is who I don't wanna be,
Remind me who I am.
In the loneliest places,
When I can't remember what grace is.

Tell me once again who I am to You,
Who I am to You.
Tell me lest I forget who I am to You,
That I belong to You.
To You.

When my heart is like a stone,
And I'm running far from home,
Remind me who I am.
When I can't receive Your love,
Afraid I'll never be enough,
Remind me who I am.
If I'm Your beloved,
Can You help me believe it.

Tell me once again who I am to You,
Who I am to You, whoa.
Tell me lest I forget who I am to You.
That I belong to You.
To You.

I'm the one you love,
I'm the one you love,
That will be enough,
I'm the one you love.

Tell me once again who I am to You.
Who I am to You.
Tell me lest I forget who I am to You,
That I belong to You, oh.

Tell me once again who I am to You.
Who I am to You.
Tell me lest I forget who I am to You,
That I belong to You.
To You.

(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eKyY8zfjBMQ)

No matter where I am, I am God's beloved. No matter what I go through in life, I belong to Him. Sometimes He has to take us to the wilderness for us to remember that. Sometimes He has to take us to the place where He is all we have for us to realized He is all we really need. The wilderness is a place to remember.

I know that I'm not the only one here. And I know that there are many who are dealing with doubt, battling depressions, and facing constant discouragement. Remember, YOU belong to Him. You are His beloved. Remember.

To God alone be the Glory!

Peace be with you

Blessing of the Wilderness, Reflect

In my post yesterday I mentioned a three day solo backpacking trip I'd like to some day be able to take each year. And in all reality this trip would provide almost all of the blessings of the wilderness (it's a bit hard to regroup on your own). I have thought about going with a friend but intentionally spending most of the day apart, in which case all of them would be obtained.

And while rest, regrouping, receiving, refocusing, and revival are important, part of getting to all of them is reflection. Part of life is reflection. And the wilderness provides a great time and place for reflection. There, alone with your thoughts, the results, and God, is time to simply take it all in. There in the wilderness, with no cell phones, no internet, no one else, is time of silence to focus on what has taken place and what is to come. And as we look at the Bible, I think Jesus is the one we look to for this.

At age thirty Jesus left the carpenter's shop, headed to the Jordan River, was baptized by his cousin, John, affirmed by God the Father, and then led by the Spirit into the wilderness. We know very little about it, but the facts we do have can be found in the Synoptic Gospels. We are told that Jesus was led and filled by the Holy Spirit to go into the wilderness. We are told that He fasted for forty days, and at the end of them became hungry. And we know that during His time in the wilderness He was tempted by the devil.

The Gospel of Matthew tells us that Satan came to Him after his forty day fast. What happened up to that point? I think there was a lot of reflection. Jesus has just been baptized, and Matthew 3.16-17 tells us, "After being baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove and lighting on Him, and behold, a voice out of the heavens said, 'This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased.'"

This is the first recorded time that God the Father speaks audibly to Jesus. This statement is a confirmation of who Jesus is, His identity. We see that the Holy Spirit descends upon Him, Luke's Gospel says that Jesus is full of the Spirit. He is empowered to do what God has sent Him to do. And with that He is led into the wilderness, I think in part for reflection.

When He leaves the wilderness Jesus will begin His final three years on earth, His most intense three years on earth. During this time He's going to face His greatest trials and adversity, He's going to fight His biggest battle, and win His greatest victory. But in preparation for that there is some time of reflection.

I think, (key word think, this isn't found in the Bible and I'm not saying this is fact), there alone in the wilderness Jesus reflected on the words He heard directly from the Father. His identity as God's beloved Son is what is going to get Him through the hardships that are waiting for Him.

I think, there in the solitude of the Judean desert, Jesus reflected on the power that was in His hands. John tells us that it is through Jesus, The Word, that all things were created. And it is that power that is about to begin recreating. He will open the eyes of the blind, make the lame walk, raise the dead, but most importantly live a perfect life, pay for sin, and pave the road back to God for all to walk upon.

Jesus has a mission, an identity to endure the resistance that will try to prevent it, and the power to overcome the obstacles that will stand in His way. I think there, alone in the wilderness, Jesus reflected on all that was in store. On the role He would play in the turning point of History and the redemption of creation. It would be a hard road, a costly road, but it would all be worth it.

He, the Son of God, would do all that was necessary. It was for this that He came to earth. It was for this that all of creation had been waiting. The moment was fast approaching. There in the wilderness Jesus reflected, and He emerged ready for all that was ahead.

The wilderness is a place for reflection. It is time to discover who we are, what we are called to do, and prepare for all that is in store.

To God alone be the Glory!

Peace be with you

Blessing of the Wilderness, Revive

I've often found that the times when I have the strongest desire to load up my backpack and go are the times when I'm feeling totally drained. It's during those times that I long for nature and the solitude of the woods.

In one of my favorite books, The Way of the Wild Heart, author John Eldredge talks about how every year he takes a three day wilderness retreat. I read it for the second time about a year ago, and since then I've been trying to figure out when, where, and how to go about doing something like that. That time to be really alone with God is something that I crave.

It's this time of personal revival that I really haven't been able to fully get. The short hikes at the Ledges help, but it isn't the same as a three days alone in the wilderness. And the reason that personal revival is so important is because it impacts our entire life. It empowers us to do what we are called to do, in emboldens us to say what must be said. And I think during this time of revival in the wilderness we are often given a message that we need to proclaim.

Enter John the Baptist, the man with one of the most important messages anyone has been entrusted to share.

Matthew 3.1-3, "Now in those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea, saying, 'Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.' For this is the one referred to by Isaiah the prophet when he said, 'The voice of one crying in the wilderness, "Make ready the way of the Lord,make His paths straight!"’"

Mark 1.4-5, "John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. And all the country of Judea was going out to him, and all the people of Jerusalem; and they were being baptized by him in the Jordan River, confessing their sins."

John is the messenger sent ahead of Jesus to prepare the people for the coming Messiah. John lived in the wilderness. The Bible tells us that he ate locusts and wild honey, and that his clothing was made of camel's hair with a leather belt around his waist. And it was in the wilderness that God prepare him for his mission.

In the wilderness John, filled and led by the Spirit of God, brings about revival. People are repenting and being baptized. They are being cleansed in preparation of the coming Messiah.

Because of the work of God in John's life he recognizes Jesus as the Lamb of God, and declares it publicly. Because of the work of God, John knows his place as the messenger and not as the Messiah. And it is only in the humility of a life that has experienced revival that a man can say, "He must increase, but I must decrease."

In the wilderness, with no distractions, and no one to depend on except for God, the Spirit can do great things. He can bring revival, and revival is contagious. When God is at work people are drawn to it, and we see that people flocked to John. It is in the wilderness that the greatest revival can take place, because it is then that we are most desperate for God.

John's life was a life marked by revival, and it was something that spread to the people. God was at work and was transforming people's lives as they prepared to receive their long awaited Messiah. And John's life is a model for us to follow.

Our lives are about the glory of God and exaltation of Christ. God brings about revival in our lives so that we are cleansed and empowered to do those things. And often it is when we are in the wilderness that He is able to bring about the greatest revival. When we are most desperate for God, God shows up. And when revival sets in it spreads.

Revival changes us and those around us. Revival comes from God and is used by God. Are you desperately seeking revival? The wilderness is a place for God to revive us.

To God alone be the Glory!

Peace be with you

Blessing of the Wilderness, Refocus

Sometimes life forces us into the wilderness. This is what we've seen in the first three cases. Elijah was sent there by God to survive the drought, and then forced there to save his life from Jezebel. David had to flee to the wilderness in order to save his life from King Saul. Moses was forced to flee to the wilderness after killing an Egyptian. These men had no choice it was the wilderness or death. But as we've seen the wilderness really wasn't a bad trade off.

We have times in our lives where we are forced into the wilderness as well. Sometimes things don't go as planned. Sometimes finances fall through. Sometimes people let us down. For one reason or another we find ourselves unexpectedly in the wilderness because of circumstances out of our control.

But at other times in life we make a choice to enter the wilderness. Sometimes we intentionally go there, as is the case with the next three men we'll look at, and we'll see the blessings they received from the time they spent in the wilderness.

In my life, when things don't go as I thought I often retreat to the wilderness. Recently my spot of choice has been the Overlook at the Ledges in the Cuyahoga Valley National Park. I've gone there with my wife, my dog, and alone. I've gone there to listen and simply to think. It's a peaceful spot, I'm able to sit and lean against a rock formation as I look out into the forest.

I've longed to pack my backpack and head off somewhere for a few days, but my wife doesn't have the time and at the moment we don't have the money for me to be able to go. So for now the Overlook will have to do.

Due to recent events in life I've been asking a lot of questions. With so much up in the air, not just with me but with the Church, there has been a lot of searching. And in this I've seen that the wilderness is a place to refocus. The wilderness provides time to rest, time to regroup, and an opportunity to receive, and I think all of that comes together to help us refocus. And when I look at the Bible I see a man who went to the wilderness to refocus.

In Galatians 1 the Apostle Paul shares about some time that he spent in the wilderness which refocused his life and ministry. Paul, by his own admission, was a Hebrew of Hebrews (Philippians 3). He was a Pharisee who persecuted the Church because he believed they were opposed to God. But while on his way to Damascus to arrest Christians he has an encounter with Jesus, his life is transformed and one of the Churches biggest opponents becomes one of its most passionate servants.

At first his ministry is to the Jews, but that isn't God's plan for Paul. Shortly after his encounter with Christ, God reveals to Ananias that Paul is His chosen man to take the Gospel to the Gentiles. During his encounter with Jesus Paul is struck with blindness. Ananias is sent to him to lay hands on him to restore his sight.

When his sight is restored he begins to preach to the Jews in Damascus. There is a plot to murder Paul that is discovered and the disciples lower him in a basket in an opening in the wall. He goes to Jerusalem where again there is a plot to kill him, and he is sent to Tarsus. At this point he is absent for a few years. But later in one of his letters Paul shares about his absence.

"For I would have you know, brethren, that the gospel which was preached by me is not according to man. For I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ. For you have heard of my former manner of life in Judaism, how I used to persecute the church of God beyond measure and tried to destroy it; and I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my contemporaries among my countrymen, being more extremely zealous for my ancestral traditions. But when God, who had set me apart even from my mother’s womb and called me through His grace, was pleased to reveal His Son in me so that I might preach Him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult with flesh and blood, nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me; but I went away to Arabia, and returned once more to Damascus." (Galatians 1.11-17)

At the end of this time Barnabas searches for Paul and finds him in Tarsus. After at least a year they set out on their first missionary journey to take the Gospel to the Gentiles.

Paul spent time in the wilderness of Arabia and in that time His ministry was refocused. His ministry initially was to the Jews, his own people, but it was God's plan to save the whole world, and to use Paul as an initial instrument in that cause. Paul's wilderness time with God, and the refocusing of his ministry resulted in the furtherance of the Gospel, two-thirds of the New Testament, and countless believers in Christ.

The wilderness is a time for God to refocus our lives onto His plan. It might be when we come to the end our our rope and end up in the wilderness by force that God helps us to see His plan and will for our lives. But we don't have to be forced into the wilderness, we can choose to go there and allow God to refocus us, as my mentor has said, "God open our eyes to what you are already doing."

In the wilderness God can refocus us onto His plan. And being refocused onto God's plan results in being greatly used by God for the expansion of the Kingdom.

To God alone be the Glory!

Peace be with you

Blessing of the Wilderness, Receive

I initially didn't plan for every blog post in this wilderness study to have a backpacking tie in. But since the idea has shown up in the previous two posts and I that it'll be in a few later posts I'm going to work it into all of them. The idea of backpacking is to load everything into a large backpack (unless you're into the ultra light thing) in order to hike and camp in the wilderness. So in many ways it really does fit.

I've only been on one backpacking trip so far in my life. Back in July 2010 one of my brothers and I went up to Sleeping Bear Dunes in the north west corner of Michigan's lower peninsula. We had planned to have three full days up there and to hike the 36 mile lake shore between two bays. We got up there a little later than we planned and then had to change our hiking plan because the only way from the end point back to the car was to walk, which we didn't have time for.

We actually ended up being there only a day and a half. We packed heavy since it was a short trip, but by the end of the second day we were both beat and ready to go home. The trip didn't go at all like we planned. The we had an idea about how we would spend three days, and nothing went according to plan.

And as I think about that trip my mind goes to the third Biblical man who was blessed during the time he spent in the wilderness, Moses. I don't think Moses ever planned to spend any time in the wilderness. In every movie I've seen Moses is portrayed as a pampered prince of Egypt. Scripture doesn't give us any details about Moses' time in the palace, but I imagine that he never expected what happened in his life.

After killing an Egyptian he is forced to flee to the wilderness where he spends the next forty years of his life. He is taken in by the people of Midian, marries a girl, settles down and has a family. My guess is that he planned to spend the rest of his life there. And then one day something catches his eye.

Up on the mountain there is a bush that is on fire, but not burning up. He turns aside to investigate this wonder, and then the voice of God begins to speak to him. He is told that he is God's chosen man to lead Israel out of slavery and into the Promised Land. He tries to talk God out of it, and God continues to equip Moses for the task, giving him signs to perform and sending his brother Aaron with him.

Moses then returns to Egypt, confronts Pharaoh, warns about the ten plagues, and finally leads the people out of Egypt, back into the desert he has spent four decades in. During this second forty years in the wilderness God works through him to part the Red Sea, provide water for the people, and deliver the Law to them. Moses speaks with God face to face, and is even allowed to see God's back. In the story of Moses we see that the wilderness is a place to receive.

Moses received a wife and sons in the wilderness. Moses received his call from God while in the wilderness. Moses received power to fulfill the mission God gave him while in the wilderness. Moses received blessing after blessing from God as he lead the people through the wilderness. The wilderness is a place to receive.

I think it is during time in the wilderness that the call on each of our lives is clarified. During the wilderness we have the opportunity to learn skills that will help us lead others in the wilderness later in life. During the wilderness we can receive a deeper intimacy with God than ever before.

What is God trying to give you? What do you need to receive during your time in the wilderness? Take advantage of the time that you have there, and use it to prepare for what is to come. When he left the wilderness Moses faced one of, if not the at the time, most powerful men in the world. He lead millions of people through the wilderness for four decades, and helped them learn how to trust and worship God.

God is trying to equip and focus you during your wilderness time. See it as the blessing, and receive all that He is trying to give you.

To God alone be the Glory!

Peace be with you

Blessing of the Wilderness, Regroup

One of the things I love most about backpacking is being with a friend. It's time just together, no distractions, no interruptions. It's a time to get closer together, to build memories and see some incredible places, that many people won't put the effort into getting to. It's a time of strengthening bonds, and preparing for the trials that are coming in life.

The wilderness is a time to regroup. When I think about regrouping my mind goes to battle and war. To soldiers reorganizing for another attack. And if we look at Biblical men of war, David is one of the first that I think of. And David spent time in the wilderness.

After being anointed King over Israel David has many victories in life. But all of his success and the favor he has with the people causes the first king, Saul, to become jealous of David, and eventually Saul tries to kill David. After being warned by Saul's son, Jonathan, David flees. The last several chapters of 1 Samuel we find David living in the wilderness.

We read in the Psalms that David had some of his lowest moments during this time. He was on the run from Saul who was trying to kill him. He was unable to assume the throne that God had promised him and instead lived in caves and among foreign enemies of Israel. He is refused help after freely giving aid, and even after sparing Saul's life, the mas still came after him again. The wilderness was full of hardships for David. But the wilderness also brought a blessing.

In the wilderness David was able to regroup. He gathered his forces, "Everyone who was in distress, and everyone who was in debt, and everyone who was discontented gathered to him; and he became captain over them. Now there were about four hundred men with him." (1 Samuel 22.2)

Together they fought battles. They delivered cities and saved innocent people. And during the time in the wilderness their loyalty to him deepened. They risked their lives as they followed David, but we see that David led them as God directed. Before attacking the Philistines he seeks God.

The wilderness is a time to regroup. People who are in similar situations come together to work together and survive. The wilderness is a place for us to draw closer to each other. It is a place for us to unite as we prepare to take on the enemy. It is a place for us to encourage one another.

Once David left the wilderness to assume the throne there were still battles to fight, and David's men were with Him. They helped him become king over all of Israel, and stood by him as he ruled.

As we saw with Elijah, battles follow our time in the wilderness, but because of our time in the wilderness, God brings victory. It is in the wilderness that Elijah rested, and in the wilderness David regrouped.

If you are in the wilderness, don't isolate yourself. Instead take this time and draw closer to the people who are with you. It is through the hardships of the wilderness that your friendship will be solidified in a way that only going through trials together can do. Take this time and regroup, the people who are by your side now will stand with you through all of the trials to come. Those who walk in the wilderness with you are the ones who will be with you through everything life brings.

It is in the wilderness that relationships are proven. In the wilderness fair-weather friends are separated from those who stick closer than a brother. Regroup, and get ready for what is coming.

To God alone be the Glory!

Peace be with you