Tag Archives: faith

May 15, 2013 · 7:59 AM

Participating in the Impossible

I had some extra time before dinner yesterday, so I went down to the bay side in Pensacola. I climbed over some rocks so I could get away from the road, people and noise to be close to the water. As I sat there, I decided I wanted to read some scripture of when Jesus was by the water. I went straight to John 6 where Jesus was on a hill overlooking the Sea of Galilee. There were thousands around Him hanging on His every word. It was evening and the people were hungry, much like it was for me.

Jesus asked one of the disciples where they could buy food for so many people. Andrew came over and said, “There’s a young boy here with five barley loaves and two fish. But what good is that with such a huge crowd?” He had everyone sit down, blessed the bread and gave it to the disciples to distribute. Later He had them go pick up the leftovers.

I know you’ve heard this story a thousand times. I have too. As I was reading, I started thinking about how He made the disciples distribute and pick it up. Jesus had the ability to perform the miracle by Himself, but He involved the disciples. I wonder what went through their minds as He said, “Go give this to the people.” That wasn’t enough food for the disciples, let alone thousands of people.

I believe their obedience activated the miracle. It’s Just like the widow who used her last bit of oil to make bread for Elijah. It was her obedience that activated that miracle. When she poured out the oil to make him bread, there was more in the bottle for her and her son. Another instance was when a widow approached Elisha for help with her debts. He told her to borrow as many jugs as she could, fill them up with what little oil she had, sell the oil and then pay her debts.

God does not need us to perform miracles, but He chooses to allow us to participate. Our acts of faith allow us to be a part of His plan. When He asks us to do the Impossible, He’s really looking to see if we’re willing to believe or are we going to question. The disciples took the food from Him and started distributing it. I imagine as they went from person to person, their grin and their faith got bigger.

Then Jesus went a step further and asked them to pick up the left overs. They went from not having enough to feed twelve to feeding thousands and having leftovers. Our God does exceedingly more, above and beyond all we can ask or think. He has the ability to meet the needs you face today. He has the desire to do more than you can even imagine. Do you have the faith to believe? Do you have the courage to step out in faith to participate in the impossible?

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May 13, 2013 · 8:12 AM

Death of a Dream

Yesterday at church, we did something that we haven’t done since I was a kid. We had people share their testimonies. It wasn’t like it was back then either. I remember as a child sitting on the pew as people would get up and share what The Lord had done in their lives. This wasn’t quite like that. This was a pre planned time of testimonies built into the sermon that went along with it. I thought it was very good.

The sermon was about people in the Bible who’s dreams were crushed, changed or died. We can relate because we’ve all had dreams in our lives that have met similar fates. It’s hard not to get discouraged when that happens. We often think we’re the only one who has dealt with the death of a dream. We feel alone and isolated. Defeated.

That’s where I think testimonies are the biggest help. It shows people in the church that there are others like them who have gone through something similar. It builds a point of connection. It shows that the church isn’t full of people who have it all together. It shows we’re human. It also helps us to overcome. Yes, overcome. Scripture says that we overcome by the blood of the Lamb and the word of our testimony. It’s when others hear what God has done for us that they can become encouraged to keep fighting.

Yesterday, I heard stories of parents who raised their kids in church and how they have quit going. In tears, these parents poured their hearts out to the congregation telling them the struggles they faced during those times. Some had returned while others had not. After reaching the point in believing the dream was dead, God revived the dream and there is hope again.

Another shared of the struggles of expecting to be married by a certain age. They shared about their feelings of worthlessness and that no one wanted them. They shared that they had to let their dream of what they wanted for their life to die, so that God could show them His dream. When we release our dreams and embrace His dreams, we don’t have those feelings of worthlessness and failure anymore. We learn to depend on Him for our sense of worth and not what someone else says or does.

I got to share my own dreams that died. Dreams of a picture perfect life where I had it all. I was poised for a comfortable life and had laid the foundation for a bright future for myself and my family when suddenly it was all taken from me. I shared how there was no hope, no joy and no future. But God, in His mercy, came and met me in that dark place and replanted a dream in me of who He wanted me to become. He gave me hope and restored my joy. I came back from the brink of suicide and murder to a place where He can use me.

Where are you? What dreams have died in your life that you are holding against God? It’s time to let go of them so you can embrace His dream for your life. We can become bitter when we look at Jesus like Mary, the sister of Lazarus, and say, “Lord, if only you had been here, my brother (my dream) would not have died.” It’s when we release those broken, crushed and dead dreams that God can plant a new one in you. It will be greater than the dream you had before. When you look back, you will be thankful he let that dream die because the new one is so much better. I can say that with confidence because I’m there right now.

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May 9, 2013 · 7:12 AM

You Are Not Forgotten

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I was talking to a friend last night at church about how he was doing since returning from our trip to Haiti. He, like many of us who went, has had a hard time readjusting to life here. He said, “In the first few days back, I kept trying to process the poverty and devastation that I saw there. It was overloading my mind and I couldn’t take it. I finally had to quit trying to process how people just like you and me live in that devastation and still get up, get dressed in a shirt and tie and go to work.”

He’s right. I’ve been to a lot of third world countries and seen poverty. Haiti was somehow different. I don’t know if it was the worst I’ve seen or that it just seemed like the worst because most people there seemed to have no hope. The unemployment rate is above 50% and the ones that do have jobs only make between $2 and $5 a day. Most of us make more in an hour than they will all week.

With hopelessness comes the thought that God has forgotten you. People here experience that. I know I have. You probably have to at some point in your life. If you are there right now, you’re not alone. Not everyone has been in your exact circumstance, but plenty have felt that they’ve been forsaken by God. Jesus felt that way too. When He was hanging on the cross, he cried out, “My God! My God! Why have you forsaken me?”

I’ve never given much thought to Him saying that on the cross because I knew what was going to happen 3 days later. He wasn’t forsaken and neither are you. He had to go through that so that He could identify with us when we feel forsaken. I Peter 4:1 says, “Since Jesus went through everything you’re going through and more, learn to think like Him.” He knows what it’s like to think you’re alone in this world and to even be forgotten by God.

Since He knows what you’re feeling, He won’t leave you in that place. What I learned in my own life is that had I not gone through that time of thinking He had forgotten me, I couldn’t fully rely on Him now. Psalm 139:7 tells us that there is no where on this earth that we can go to get away from God’s presence. Even if you can’t feel or see God, He’s there with you in that dark place. He has not forgotten you. He has not forsaken you. Rest in the hope that He will bring you out of that valley and bring you into His marvelous light. He did it for Jesus. He did it for me. He will do it for you.

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May 6, 2013 · 7:51 AM

The Paradox of Christianity

One of the great paradoxes of Christianity is that we’re to learn to be satisfied with what we have, but not with where we are. Our human nature wants that to be backwards. We like to have the comfort of routine, but are never satisfied with what we have. I’m in that awkward state of making the switch from my human nature to what God wants. I’m learning to be satisfied with what I have, but not where I am. There’s this uncomfortableness inside that says, “There’s another level to go to.”

I think that’s where Abraham’s journey started. God told him, “Get up and go to a land that I will show you.” I’m sure he loved the comfort of where he was. He had everything he needed. He knew the land and the people. But that’s not what God had for him. He asked him to move away from those things that held him down. He challenged him to pick up his roots and to move.

It had to be confusing too. Where was he going? What land was he going to be shown? How long would it take to get there? Would he ever be coming back? When God makes you uncomfortable with where you are, He doesn’t always answer those questions. He expects you to trust Him and His plan. If we knew the details, we’d probably try to alter the plan. I know I would.

So where does that faith come from that allows you to just pick everything up and move? How do you spiritually pack up and move to a deeper walk with Him that requires more than you think you have to give? I don’t know how to get there, but I do know that it starts with just one step. One act of obedience. One decision to make a change. It’s not the easiest thing to do. I think that’s why so many Christians wander in the wilderness and rarely make it to the promised land that God has for them.

Our fears and doubts keep us from experiencing all that God has. Our logic wants to see the whole path. Our faith doesn’t need to see it. We get to choose which of the two we listen to. When spying on the Promised Land, Caleb and Joshua chose to believe their faith. The other spies chose to believe their logic. Because of their choice, an entire generation was kept out of where God wanted them.

So what’s my choice? What’s your choice? Do we continue to go with logic that says we should stay where it’s comfortable and where we feel secure? Or do we go with faith that tells us there is more and is making us uncomfortable in this place? That’s the beauty of who God is, He gives us that choice. He allows us to decide whether we pack our things and walk by faith or stay in the wilderness and camp where it’s comfortable.

As for me, I’m going to pack my bags, pull up my tent stakes and start walking. I don’t know where the path is heading. I just know that I can’t stay here in this place. I’m being drawn into a deeper commitment, a deeper relationship and a deeper walk with God. He is making me too uncomfortable with where I am. He is pushing me out of this place that I’m in. I don’t know where He is leaving yet, but I choose to go with my faith instead of my sight.

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May 3, 2013 · 7:39 AM

How Many Nets Are You Casting?

Yesterday I mentioned a pastor who left the Philippines 18 years ago to work in Haiti. He’s only left Haiti a handful of times in those years to return home. In Haiti, he runs an orphanage, a school for def girls, a bakery, a bottled water facility, a feeding center for poor children, a church and more that I can’t think of right now. One of the people with us asked him, “Aren’t you wearing yourself too thin to be effective?” His response was, “I was called the be a fisher of men. The more nets I cast, the greater chance I have of catching.”

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The truth is that each of us are called to be fishers of men. We all have different streams, ponds, lakes, seas and oceans to fish in. His response is still resonating in my mind. Have I only cast one net? Worse yet, have I only cast a line instead of a net? When I think about all he is doing for the Kingdom, I think he is a less famous Mother Theresa. He is doing quiet work for the Kingdom to the least of these. He’s not seeking recognition from man. He’s seeking honor from God.

I started to compare how little I do for the Kingdom with what he does, but God stopped me. Im not to compare myself to others. I’m to compare myself to what God has specifically called me to do. If I’m to be a fisher of men in a stream instead of an ocean, I’m called to be faithful to that place. My role in the Kingdom is just as vital as that of someone who was given an ocean to fish. God is looking for obedience to that which He has called only me to do.

I can, however, adopt Pastor Gnada’s mindset in my calling. I can cast nets instead of a net. I can expand my ability to reach my territory and increase my odds of being more effective by how I approach what God has called me to do. I think that starts with a recognition that I can do more. Once that happens, I begin to look at what I’m doing currently and how I’m doing it. Are there more effective ways? What other nets can I cast? What am I doing that’s working and not working?

When we ask ourselves the hard questions, we see how our ministry and testimony can be more effective. We see growth in our lives and in our faith. Too often we ignore the hard questions and tell ourselves that we’re doing enough just so we don’t have to do more. I know because I do it. I constantly try to find ways to justify standing still in my faith and ministry. God has not called us to be stagnant. He has called us to advance. He has called us to love.

Pastor Gnada has great love for the people of Haiti. It’s what drives him to do more each day and to not be satisfied and to say he’s done enough. May each of us catch a glimpse of that kind of love for others around us so that it compels us to do more than we’re doing today. Mother Theresa said, “We can’t all do great things, but we can do small things with great love.” Wherever and whatever God has called you to do, be satisfied with it and do it with great love. When you’re faithful over that, He can take you to the next level.

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May 2, 2013 · 7:32 AM

Counting the Cost

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I saw a headline yesterday from the USA Today that said the average cost to feed a family of four. I had never really paid attention to anything like that before. In March of 2013 for a family being very thrifty, the cost was $146.40. For that same family, if they were on a liberal plan, the cost would be $289.40. Those prices are for a week of food to feed four people. What I saw in Haiti was completely different.

I mentioned before that we went to a feeding center in Roboto, Gonaives, Haiti. One of our partners runs that feeding center. There are about 150 children who come there six days a week for what may be the only meal they get for the day. It’s not an extravagant meal. It’s rice with some beans on top and it’s warm. We asked Pastor Gnada how much it cost to feed those children each day. He said, “It costs about $30.” That’s $180 a week to feed 150 malnourished kids. Just barely above what a thrifty family of four pays here.

I realize that costs here are way different than there. I’m not making the argument that we should be more thrifty or we need to feel bad about the blessings God has given us. I’m thinking what if we could give a dollar a day to something like this. How many more kids could be fed? How many more could be rescued from the brink of malnutrition? The missionary that took us to this site pointed out the orange in a few kids hair. He told us that orange hair is a marker for malnutrition. He also pointed out that it was now on the tips of their hair and not at the root.

As these kids came and ate regularly, their bodies got the nutrition they needed and normal hair began to grow. Where there was once starvation for kids living in the poorest area of Gonaives, now they were not only receiving physical food, but spiritual food as well. Before the kids eat each day, the Gospel is shared with them, songs are sung with them, games are played and a prayer is given. I believe that since that center has opened, the signs of spiritual malnutrition are going away.

I was talking to a pastor friend of mine who went with us and runs a church in our inner city. I asked her what her thoughts were about the feeding center. She said, “You know, Chris, we spend so much time and effort in the church trying to get a program ‘right’ before we launch it. We disregard all the good we can do while we argue over how to make it work. This is simple and effective. The things we do don’t have to be complicated. We just need to start them and make them better as we go.” I couldn’t agree more.

What has God asked you to do? What excuses have you given to prevent starting it? While we try to get things right and to make it a success from the get go, people are starving spiritually all around us. If God said, “Do it,” then it’s time to do it. If you wait until it’s perfect and fool proof, it will never begin and you’ll miss so many opportunities. Today is the day of salvation. Begin the steps of putting into motion what God has called you to do. Don’t delay.

If you’d like to give to the organization that feeds these kids and houses the orphans we visited, you can go to www.coreluv.org/donate

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May 1, 2013 · 7:06 AM

Shoveling Through a Mountain

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I haven’t been able to get this image out of my head. What you see is the same picture, but one is a close up. That is a man shoveling through that mountain one spade full at a time. We encountered him on the road from Port au Prince to Gonaives on our second day. Ever since then I have thought about him and the work he is doing. At first I felt sorry for him. Tackling a mountain with a shovel is a huge task. He may never get through it, but that isn’t stopping him from shoveling.

Each of us face mountains in our lives. Few of us have the faith it takes to say to that mountain, “Move and be thrown into the sea.” So we sit in the valley and wait. We lack the strength or courage to go over it. So we don’t accomplish what God has for us to do. We make our home in the darkness of the valley. We forget what life in the light is. We forget what joy is. We loosen our grip on our faith and wonder where God is.

Not this man. He looked at that mountain and said, “I may not have the strength or ability to go over you, so I will go through you!” He picked up a shovel and started digging. I imagine it has taken years to get this far. For him, the first few shovels, the first week, first month and year may not have seemed like he was making progress. I’m sure all he could see was that mountain and not what he’d moved.

Recovery doesn’t come quickly. Healing is a process that can take years. There will always be scars from our past. We can choose to embrace them or we can keep them hidden. Jesus didn’t choose to hide His scars, so why do we? In fact, He encourage others like Thomas, “Put your finger here, and look at my hands. Put your hand into the wound on my side. Don’t be faithless any longer. Believe!” Others find hope in your scars. They find faith in your wounds.

If God has brought you through a mountain of pain, share your story to help others believe they can make it. If you’re shoveling through your mountain right now, don’t give up. You are making progress that you may not be able to see from your perspective right now. If you are camped in the darkness, looking at your mountain thinking, “I’ll never get through this,” there is hope. God’s Word is your light in that dark place. Speak scriptures out loud. Look in Psalms and read there. David went through some dark times too.

Your life is precious to God and others. Don’t let that mountain block your vision of what God has for you. He is greater than that mountain and if He is with you, what can stand against you? Certainly not that mountain! Let hope arise in your soul today. You are a child of God made for victory. You’re going to have to pick up that shovel though and start digging. It takes time and effort. You can do this. You can shovel through this mountain.

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April 30, 2013 · 8:15 AM

True and Undefiled Religion

On day four of our trip to Haiti, we got up early because we had a lot to do. We ate breakfast and split into two groups. One group would head to the market for an experience they’ll never forget and the other went to the hardware store to buy the supplies we needed. All around us were a sea of people who continuously walked by like waves coming on shore. Busses, taxis, motorcycles, trucks and cars added to the madness as they weaved in and out of the people.

Upon arriving at the orphanage, we said our hellos to the staff while the kids were in school. It wasn’t long before word got out that we were there. Kids and locals started showing up quickly. We began to work on the things that needed to get done. Not long after, it was time to go to the Roboto feeding center. We packed up and headed over knowing what we were going to, but not understanding what we were about to experience.

As the trucks drove through Gonaives, it was clear we were moving into an area that was so poverty stricken that it made the place where we were working look like a good part of town. Houses were no longer built out of concrete and mortar. These houses were built from scrap wood, tarp and tin. People stared at us as we slowly made our way through the broken roads.

When we arrived at the feeding center, the sound of children singing filled the air. You could hear the joy and anticipation in their voices. The building was simple, yet sufficient. We walked in to see around a hundred children piled on top of each other. Many were seated at a long table while others were stacked three and four deep around the table against the walls. They were excited, but patient as they waited until it was time to eat.

All of the children bowed their heads as the prayer over the food was prayed. A shout of “amen” came from the children and the food began to be distributed orderly. Plates with nothing more than beans on top of rice were handed to the kids. They quickly ate and made way for the next group of children to eat. Children with their brothers and sisters fed their siblings first even if they never got a bite. This could be the only meal most of these kids would eat that day.

We headed back to the orphanage with our hearts full. We finished building a cabinet for the kitchen, leveled a table in there too, built a stool, poured a slab of concrete in the stairwell and did various other maintenance. At the end of the day, it was time to say goodbye to these children who had captured our hearts. We gave them pillows, food, supplies and new underwear as we left. The ride back to the guest house was full of tears.

God was able to do exceeding and abundantly more than we thought we could on this trip. I’m not sure whose lives were changed more, theirs or ours. We saw God move and plant seeds on this trip. We got a taste of what God calls true religion. It’s hard to go back to religion as we knew it. This was pure and undefined religion we experienced. Anything less simply won’t do.

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April 29, 2013 · 12:44 PM

Spiritual Poverty

On day three, we went to a remote area outside of Gonaives. After traveling down a dirt road for a while we finally arrived at Myan. We hiked a small hill that allowed us to see the entire area. One of the first things that hits you is the stark contrast between the beauty of the land and the extreme poverty that almost overpowers it. As we began to pray over the orphanage being built at Myan, several locals hiked up to meet us.

After praying we went down, got a quick tour of the orphanage being built and then started helping out where needed. They were pouring the footings and part of the foundation on the third building. I saw a guy carrying two 5 gallon buckets full of water. I took one from him and hauled water the rest of the day. Some of the other men moved mounds of dirt and others moved rocks.

As all of that was going on, the rest of the group disappeared into the cactuses that surround the property. A couple of hours later, I went to check on them. There were more than 30 kids from the community around them singing songs and hearing the Gospel preached. Different members from our group would get up and share from their heart about God’s love for the kids. One of our drivers, Kinson, helped with the translating.

The workers at the site wrapped up around 2 since it was a holiday. With nothing more to do there, we went to the other orphanage in Gonaives to love on the kids. We also worked on a plan for the next day to get a lot of the maintenance that needed to be done. We got a list of what supplies we needed and went back to playing with the kids and the locals. After wrapping things up, we headed back to the guest house for dinner and devotions.

God came down and met us that night like only I’ve experienced a few times in my life. We had a powerful time there on that balcony that attracted a crowd of people who wanted to see what was going on. Each of us called out to God on behalf of Haiti that night. We warred for the lives of those orphans and for the people of that country. When people live in poverty they often think that God has forgotten them. We want them to know that God loves them and has not forgotten them.

I’ve learned that even in a land of plenty, there is spiritual poverty. There are people all around us every day that are suffering from spiritual malnutrition. That malnutrition leads to the belief that God has forgotten them too. It’s our responsibility as Christians to show them God’s love. We need to be the channels that spiritual change comes through to those who cross our paths every day. Just as we met the physical needs of the children in Haiti, we need to meet the spiritual needs of those around us.

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April 24, 2013 · 7:00 AM

Faith’s Roller Coaster

When I was a kid, my parents took us to Six Flags Astroworld often. I always remember the anticipation of getting to ride the Texas Cyclone. My dad, who understood physics, always had us ride in the back seat. The ride would pull out of the station, my heart would start to beat faster. The ride pulled to the left and started the ascent up the first hill. Click, click, click. The smile on my face was so big my cheeks hurt. Click, click click. It went up so slowly that it seemed like forever to get to the top. Click, click, click.

All of a sudden I could hear the screams from the front car as they reached the top. Click, click, click. As I saw the hill approaching I would raise my hands. The suspense would kill me. I knew the rush that was about to come from going over the top. Click. I took a deep breath. Click. And suddenly, we were off on a set of twists and turns, peaks and valleys. The joy of getting thrown around side to side was too much. I was both laughing and scared at the same time as my stomach would come up to my throat.

I’m there in my life right now. I’m on my way to Haiti today to help build an orphanage. For the past six months the anticipation was much like waiting to go over the top. One month to go. Click, click, click. Passports ready. Click, click, click. Doing fundraisers to help raise the money needed. Click, click, click. Final check lists done. Click. Bags packed. Click. Arriving at the airport. Click. It’s time to take a deep breath and hang on for the ride.

I’m excited and nervous at the same time. I know God has something good in store, but there are so many unknowns. I can worry and scream about what’s coming or I can smile, throw my hands up and prepare for the ride. When I got in the car, I gave up my right to control what happens. It’s in control of going where the tracks lead. When I gave my heart to Christ, the same thing happened. I gave up control. My life is heading where His tracks lead.

I’m not sure why I get so nervous about the future. Jesus said in Matthew 6:34, “So don’t worry or be anxious about tomorrow.” He’s got the future, your future under control. There’s no sense in worrying about it. Just like on the roller coaster, you can’t always see what’s next. You may be able to see the mountains and valleys and turns coming, but what’s right in front of you is often a mystery. That’s the beauty of a roller coaster. That’s the beauty of life.

You aren’t in control. God is. Let Him worry about tomorrow. Give it over to Him. Smile. Throw
your hands up. Scream. Enjoy the ride. It will end before you know it. When you give up your life to God and allow Him to control it, you gave up the rights to a boring life. You just got on the Texas Cyclone! Your stomach might be in your throat some days. You might be out of breath on others. But when the train pulls in the station, you’ll be glad you got on the ride and want to do it again.

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