public profession

in the town of pulaski, ny there is a theatre. i have to drive by it everyday as i head to and from work. it is an old duplex that is not used anymore. the sign however is now used for public announcments and advertisments. this morning jenny told me that when she was driving by it last night she saw a "public profession." sure enough when i drove by it this moring it read, "kathy, i am so sorry. please forgive me. john w." i am pretty sure i do not know either of these people and even more positive that i do not know what john did. but this i do know

it is hard to apologize to someone you hurt. hard, but essential. if there is no sorrow and no apology then there can be no forgiveness. with no forgiveness there can be no reconciliation. no to make an apology puplic that takes real guts. and it shows how sorry one can be to go through the length that he did to make it knowledge to everyone in town that he was in the wrong. i am positive somebody in town knows the situation and possibly more people then kathy were hurt during this event.

this might be a cheesy transition but forgiveness is out there for us all. all we need to do is apologize for our wrongs (sin) to the one (Christ) who has the ability to forgive. we are wanting that connection and reconciliation with a savior but without the repentance it is impossible.

every one of us knows when we are doing wrong. we have a thing called a conscience and with this guilt can creep up inside of us. hopefully this guilt turns us repentance rather then running away from what we know is right and can save us. this guilt can turn us into someone who believes that no one would ever save him, because he is so awful. the awesome thing is this guilt can be outweighed by grace. grace is always there for us. we have to reach out and grab it.

toys r us kid

it seems to me lately that i have responsibility. i get up every morning at the sound of an alarm clock, making me realize that i have somewhere i need to be. other wise i wouldn't use an alarm clock. i wake up in order to go to my job, a job that i love, but yet still a responsibility. i go to this job (youth pastor at pulaski wesleyan church) for more than a paycheck. although the paycheck is necessary. i need it to pay the bills. another responsibility. this past december i took 22 teens to boston and i was responsible for there welfare and to bring them back alive. i am married and need to be there to take care or annd respect my wife and love her as Christ loved the church. a responsibility that is hardest for me not because i do not love my wife but because Christ had a perfect love.

im starting to realize i am not a toys r us kid anymore. even though i still like some of the toys. i am realizing my parents are not going to be the ones to purchase the toy for me anymore. i am not sure why i am realizing this now, because for the most part i have been on my own the last 6 1/2 years. what i am realizing though as much as i have grown and changed i am still a kid.

think about it though. i think adults are just kids in a bigger harrier body. we still enjoy games. in fact it seems that i play more games now then i ever did when i was a kid. we still love to be the center of attention. admit it, deep down inside you really want to be noticed and appreciated. we still get jealous and complain about another indivual if they are the ones receiving notice. we still jump to conclusions before we know all the facts. we become emotional when things are not going our way. we are selfish, greedy and prideful. we cannot control our desires even though we know it is possible.

now along with the bad side of a kid there are some good things that i hold onto about being a child. i like being carefree, not always being weighed down by a watch. remember when you were a kid and the day just passed so quickly and before you knew it you were late for dinner. now i am never late for dinner. kids also dont mind asking questions. they dont care if it will sound dumb or that they didnt know the answer. it is just common place for them not to know the answer. they admit when sorry and are very forthcoming about what they think.

all these can be good and bad. but i wonder what actually seperates us from being a child. is it the idea of responsibility or is it more the idea of age. is there any limit to when we have to stop being children. or is it just when you have become old enough that you have a hard time pretending anymore. it was so easy pretending to be in the nba or fighting a war. but things change and the pretending has become more of a reality for us. we realize that we have bills to pay and children to feed (well you have children to feed.)

we talk about having a child like faith and making belief so easy. but now as adults we have gotten into theology and apologetics to prove to us God is in a fact real. faith is not what it used to be, but it hasnt changed, we have. faith has now become more about perserverance rather then hope. sure we still hope but now it is more along the line that we have enough faith at times that we know it will happen and yet at others we hold onto just enough of the basics where we become a child again and just believe

capital punishment

i am sorting out my views on capital punishment. please let me know what your views are?

knowing what we belive:homosexuality

The Wesleyans stance is this on homosexuality.

Human Sexuality. The Wesleyan Church abhors the trend to
ignore God’s laws of chastity and purity, and vigorously opposes public
acceptance of sexual promiscuity and all factors and practices which promote
it. The Wesleyan Church maintains a biblical view of human sexuality which
makes the sexual experience, within the framework of marriage, a gift of God
to be enjoyed as communion of a man and woman, as well as for the purpose
of procreation. Sexual relationships outside of marriage and sexual
relationships between persons of the same sex are immoral and sinful. The
depth of the sinfulness of homosexual practice is recognized, and yet we
believe the grace of God sufficient to overcome both the practice of such
activity and the perversion leading to its practice.

I am sure everyone at least knows one, or is affected by it somehow. We see it on the news almost daily. We discuss it with our friends and we try to “love the sinner.” Somehow “this sin” is ugly and disgusting. Somehow we label this one of the most detestable sins. I wonder with this stigma of homosexuality if we really love the sinner.

If we (Christians) talk about it like this we are probably turning away the individuals who are living this lifestyle. I wonder why we have chosen to chastise the homosexual, and instead of loving the sinner why we just cannot love the individual.

We know scripture. We know that Leviticus 18:22 says it is a detestable sin. But I wonder how many sins are not detestable in God’s eyes. Is there any sin that God says, “that is okay. I do not care if you disobey me and my authority.” In 1 Cor. 6:9-10 it says, “Don't you know that those who do wrong will have no share in the Kingdom of God? Don't fool yourselves. Those who indulge in sexual sin, who are idol worshipers, adulterers, male prostitutes, homosexuals, thieves, greedy people, drunkards, abusers, and swindlers--none of these will have a share in the Kingdom of God.” In the same line with homosexuals there are thieves and greedy people, drunkard and abusers; which none of these will share in the Kingdom of God. It is not separated but yet they sit beside each other in the same phrase condemning both. Not one is right; in fact they are all sin and tear us away from a true relationship with our Father.

I am not trying to advocate homosexuality; the word says it is wrong. But the word also says that greed is immoral. Do we point someone out as being greedy and going to hell? Well some of you might, but I do not see it happen near as much as I would hear a homosexual condemned.

So how do we as Christians accept the individual without condoning what they do? How do we not just accept but how do we love the one we know who is in the wrong. Personally I am a sinner. I know I am in the wrong and mess up a lot. I know people have accepted and love me as I have wronged God. Everyone wants grace but not the first to give it.

knowing what we believe: military service

in high school i considered military service for a lot of reasons. i even met with representatives from the army and navy but for some reason i opted not to join the armed forces and went to college instead. at iwu i met many people who served in the national guard. when i graduated i went to what is the "real world" and it seemed the majority of people i came into contact with was or had served in one of the military branches.

while i was in my junior year of college 9/11 happened i felt a longing to serve my country as som many had before. for some reason i didnt. while i saw a few friends go over to iraq and afghanistan, i longed to be apart of something bigger then myself. i wanted to help. but didnt know how i could.

a good friend of mine is now back from iraq after serving a year there as a captain in the army. he was awarded several medals showing his bravery and leadership during the war. i sit and think about the brave men and women over there serving and wonder what if that were me. i couldnt join because i have a condition called scoliosis. i have a crooked back.

i love my country and would join in a minute if i could but i also know on top of my back God had some control in me not going over there. he knew that he needed me here serving as a youth pastor and that was more important (for myself) in being a part of His kingdom serving being in something bigger then myself.

the wesleyan church takes a a stand on peace and military service and i just wanted to bring it to your attention what they do believe.

(2) Peace. The Wesleyan Church, knowing that war results in great
suffering for the bodies, minds and souls of men and women, staggering
economic loss with its legacy of debt for future generations, and the
unleashing of the baser passions of life, urges that persons and nations seek by
every legitimate means to avoid armed conflict among the peoples and nations
of the world. The Wesleyan Church also urges that holy people everywhere
pray earnestly for those in authority, so that peace may prevail (1 Tim. 2:2),
and for the quick return of the Prince of Peace.
(3) Military Service. The Wesleyan Church teaches respect for
properly constituted civil authority and the proper loyalty to one’s country. It
recognizes the responsibility of the individual to answer the call of government
and to enter into military service. However, there are those within the
fellowship of The Wesleyan Church who believe that military service is
contrary to the teaching of the New Testament and that their consciences are
violated by being compelled to take part in such. The Wesleyan Church will
therefore lend moral support to any member who asks and claims exemption
by legal processes from military service as a sincere conscientious objector and
who asks to serve one’s country as a noncombatant.

just to analyze it real quickly twc believes
1. "urges that persons and nations seek byevery legitimate means to avoid armed conflict among the peoples and nations of the world."--peace is obviously the best answer. no one wants to go to war. it should be avoided.
2. "urges that holy people everywherepray earnestly for those in authority, so that peace may prevail" we can never do this too much. we need to pray for everyone involved that peace may prevail.
3. " teaches respect for properly constituted civil authority and the proper loyalty to one’s country." i think this is one of the hardest for us. we have trouble respecting others in the idea that we are always second guessing their authority. so many people are attacking bush as if he is doing a horrible job. but i wonder what would of happened if someone else were president. we would just be complaining about him. one reason this country is not headed in a good direction is because we are not united and until then we will never go forward. and then there are others who have more loyalty to the country then they do Christ. just ask yourself where you might be.
4. "However, there are those within the fellowship of The Wesleyan Church who believe that military service is contrary to the teaching of the New Testament and that their consciences areviolated by being compelled to take part in such. " conscientious objector will always lean toward peace. and personally as much as i want to serve my country i think i would rather do it in a peaceful setting. these guys take a stand in their faith and show what they believe.
i wonder everyday if i had not had scoliosis what my life would have ended up like. but i do know i am where i am supposed to be. today if you got anything from, get this, pray for our leader, pray for our military. they need to know we are supporting them in what they are doing.

knowing what we believe: abortion

a few weeks ago i starting teaching a lifestudies (cool term for sunday school) on current events and what the bible has to say about them. since the whole alito confirmation thing is going on and 75% of the question asked of him by the senate had something to do with abortion and sunday was the 33rd anniversary of roe vs. wade i thought it would be a great time discuss the idea of abortion.

well we all know jeremiah 1:5 "before I you were born i set you apart and appointed you as my spokesman to the world." scripture talks about how God cherishes us in the womb and had a plan for us. so easily we can assume the importance of life and to keep this sacred.

along with scripture i wanted to see what the wesleyan church had to say about abortion. this is a direct quote from the 04' discipline:

The Wesleyan Church— seeks to recognize and preserve the sanctity of human life from conception to natural death and, thus, is opposed to the use of induced abortion. However, it recognizes that there may be rare pregnancies where there are grave medical conditions threatening the life of the mother, which could raise a serious question about taking the life of the unborn child. In such a case, a decision should be made only after very prayerful consideration following medical and spiritual counseling. TWC encourages its members to become informed about the abortion issue and to become actively involved locally and nationally in the preparation and passage of appropriate legislation guaranteeing protection of life under law to unborn children.

now to break it down.

1. "seeks to recognize and preserve the sanctity of human life from conception to natural death"--this i believe we can all agree with.

2. "however"--whenever however is added after a statement you know it is going to go in a different direction.

3. "it recognizes that there may be rare pregnancies where there are grave medical conditions threatening the life of the mother, which could raise a serious question about taking the life of the unborn child."--the church taking a stance like this makes believe that they are pro choice. which is kind of interesting because a lot of people in my denomination voted for bush on the sole reason of him being pro life. i wonder how critical the situation with the mother does have to be. many people i have talked to says they know someone who was told by a doctor that it would cause complications and might even hinder the life the of the mother. but these mothers carried the baby full term and there was not one complications. but by the wesleyan standard it would be seen as okay if they had chose to end the life. by trying to appease everybody the wesleyan church has made few happy by this comment.

4. "In such a case, a decision should be made only after very prayerful consideration following medical and spiritual counseling."--at least they do add the idea of prayer and counseling.

5. "TWC encourages its members to become informed about the abortion issue and to become actively involved locally and nationally in the preparation and passage of appropriate legislation guaranteeing protection of life under law to unborn children."--the church then adds this comment to show that they want to protect the life of the human child.

please do not read me wrong i like the wesleyan church and have decided to stay within the denomination to pastor but i am wondering how many wesleyans actually know this is the stand that their church takes on abortion. i wonder if parishioners would be happy about this. i wonder if this should be discussed at the next general conference.

i was wondering how many of you knew what the jewish faith says about abortion. i came across this statement the other day that the "jewish law not only permits abortion but requires it if the mothers life might be in jeopardy." they view the child as a "potential human life until the mojority of the body has emerged from the mother.

what does your denomination say? what is your view?

the goldent globes and my ignorance

the big winner is brokeback mountain. i am not sure how many times i heard this movie announced as a winner for different awards on monday night but it was definately an interesting night in my eyes as a movie pushing the gay agenda won multiple trophies.

now maybe i am ignorant, because i havent watched the movie and i really do not know any homosexuals. maybe it was a beautifully written script and had great acting. i have tried many times mot to write a blog on this movie because i hadnt seen it but after monday i feel that i have to voice my concern. for a very small percentage of the u.s. population to be able to get this much air time in the news is disturbing.

the other big winner of the night was transamerica. a movie about someone going through the sex change process. and i wonder how this is affecting the culture. many times before i have mentioned tolerance has changed who we as christians have been observed. but i wonder where tolerance will take us in the future. for something like this to be accepted is absolutely crazy, not just for the moral implications but because of the physical and emotional health. (yeah i know these same things are issues also in hederosexual relationships as well.) so this article is really not just singling out homosexaulity as wrong but the pushing of
relativism in our society.

who are you to tell me i am wrong? it might be okay for you but for me its not right. who is to say there is only one way to the Father? this is the idea that i get from our society and even friends of mine saying we need to be more tolerant and allowing of people to live their own lives.

i guess it is not for me to push my views on someone else. because most do not want to hear it. or do they really want to hear about the truth? what is absolute in our world. what is right for me as well as you to believe?

who knows? maybe it is just my ignorance?

why

many times i look at things and wonder how they were made and how they work. i wonder how a small microchip can hold so much information. i wonder how an ipod works and how such a small device can hold so many songs.

i also sit back and look at creation and wonder how, how did God create us? did he create the world literally in a week and rest on the seventh day or did he take six different days as periods of time and create us in human terms thousands or even million year apart?i wonder how scientists know the world is millions of years old and can date back a bone that far? i wonder how conservatives can prove that the world is only 6-8000 years old?

i wonder how God thinks of time. we know the bible says a thousand years are like a day and a day like a thousand years. so then i wonder how much asking of how is even relevant?i believe in intelligent design as a fact. for me this is an absolute because the word says "in the beginning God created the heavens and the earth." for me this is a simple belief. if the word says it then it must be truth.

for me the question the past few days has turned from how to why. for me the how is not important because it does not really matter to me how. sure God could have used science to create but i do not know how exactly he did. i believe that he did create and that is enough for me. the question is now why?

why did God create the heavens and the earth? why was it so important that he created us?

worship?
love?
obedience?
serve?
relationship?

what is it that you believe?

home from vacation

in a trip where we thought jenny was going to be able to visit home on vacation, i think we realized the all to familiar phrase "we cannot go home again," what it actually meant. it is not that you cannot go and visit, but in reality it is not your home anymore. we have settled here in pulaski. with as much fun as we had, i have seen how much our lives have really changed in the 1 1/2 we have been married. things have changed. we have changed. we have grown together in to who we are and where we now call home. indiana is now a place where she grew up, a place where we met in college and the place where we came together as one. but it is no longer our home.we were able to have a great time in indiana and today was my first day back to the church for office hrs in which at least seemed like forever. but really it has been two weeks. after logos, jenny and i made the trek out to indiana to visit friends and family members. it was a fun time as we were able to see titus, steve and michelle mowat's six month old, for the first time. we were able to see all the changes on the iwu campus. (it really seems very big now.) we visited with college friends mike and manda light.we were able to visit with family and really for the first time in 6 months, relaxed, watched a lot of football. but when it came right down to it. i missed being in pulaski. i wanted to be able to go back and share life with the teens. i wanted to be there for youth group. i wanted to watch the patriots game with some one else who cared.i very much enjoyed the vacation. it was much needed time away and time together with family. but what i am trying to say, is that is nice to have a new home. a place to experience life. a great place to be involved in a growing ministry. i love this area despite the 24 inches of snow a day and the distance from our immediate family.God really has brought us to this place, that already holds a special place in our hearts. i am only looking forward to seeing what will happen in the future. but i really am home now from vacation.

logos5:the good and the band

like a lot of youth ministries throughout the wesleyan church. it was time for logos5. it was an amazing time of growth for the group of 22 that went. 2 teens of which that made first time commitments to follow Christ. we bonded more then the previous 5 months that i had been there. i saw people stretching themselves because they knew that is where they needed to go rather than the emotion pushing them to where they were not quite yet ready.

the speakers could not have been better. maybe someone reading this went to grand rapids or orlando and you tend to disagree with me but i feel strongly that they wasnt more appropriate speakers to speak. at least to my group. efrem smith brought the word by talking about the word, hence the idea of logos in the first place. dwayne hotten talked about relativism which every person needs to hear these days. anthony graham brought truth like he always does in a gentle but in your face manner. tim elmore brought images into illustrations of our life.

the concert that was put on at logos was another story. the opening band was the worst band that i have ever heard in my life. out of the six songs they did 3 of them were covers. (the blur song "woohoo" and does anyone remember "shout, let it all out" and of course they also covered a song by the band they were opening for, pillar. this from a band who is not yet signed. when grand rapids gets three quality bands.

during some free time we hopped on the t to check out cambridge, harvard square and of all places a thrift store. (the teens found it on line and unanimously voted to go there, so we did.) we also took in a tour of the fenway park. i say the because it is unique. there is nothing quite like it. the smallest and oldest park in the major leagues. i remember growing up and going there every summer. this time however it looked even smaller then it had each previous time i was there.

it really was a good time. overall it took about $5700 plus food to go. it sounds like a lot of money which was one of the things that worried me about taking this trip in the first place. but after all is said and done sometimes it takes sacrifice to see change within the lives of the teens that you spend your life pouring into. pray with me as these teens take these commitments into the new year.

christmas past

december 25th has come and gone. it seems for the past month that i was looking forward for christmas to arrive but yet i was not prepared for it when it came. this year it just did not seem like christmas. with all the anticipation and excitement that one can build, there seemed to be something missing.

everyone around me it seemed were enjoying the holiday season as they talked about shopping and putting up decorations but i guess somehow i missed christmas. i blinked and it was gone.
as much as i could listen to christmas tunes and see the christmas pageant there seemed to be something missing. the harder i tried to make it feel like christmas the less it actually did. even with the world around me covered with snow, i just felt like "it was always winter, but never christmas."

i think i talked and wrote about churches canceling services and others saying happy holidays that i myself misdirected the anticipation of what christmas was all about to turn it into an even that needs to be celebrated the same way by every christian.

each year christmas becomes more commercialized and i complain a little bit more. while i do this i take my focus of the Christ born of a virgin and placed in a manger. so even though christmas has past i think today of the humility of Christ placing himself in the hands of a couple. even though he was God he cried and placed his every need in hands of someone else to provide the food and care that he needed.

one allowing himself to do this is obviously more humble then i. it was never about himself. he cared more for others then he did of himself. i pray even if i "missed christmas" that the incarnation will affect my life this year and hopefully the idea that God came to this earth to die will affect all that i come into contact with.

just a quick thought

i heard it mentioned last week that the vote in iraq was titled the "national unity vote"

why can't the u.s.a. have a vote like that?

a new low

this year we have experienced as a country some change due to the christmas season or should i say holiday season. i am not so sure. somehow the christmas tree has become the holiday tree and we are not eating christmas cookies. somehow the tolerance we had for other religions is starting to change how we celebrate one of our holiday's.

it is bad enough that in the past few years we have seen christmas become x-mas. which i read a few weeks ago an article in relevant magazine on "debunking christmas" and how it is okay to use x in the place of Christ. their reasoning for this is that the first letter im the greek word for Christ is chi. in the roman alphabet x is the symbol of chai. because of this they say x-mas is justifiable.

so let me get this correct x and Christ is the same understanding, oh wait, backing up to what they said is that it is the first letter of Christ. so in reality it should be merry c-mas. but even if x stood for Christ, most people in the christian world would not know that so how does the rest of the world see it. it is all about tolerance. letting people of the world control how we as christians celebrate our holiday.

and now of course we have this whole thing with churches canceling services on christmas sunday. so we can take time and be self absorbed underneath the christmas tree opening up our christmas presents with our christmas sweaters and sipping eggnog in front of the fire place. i do not mind the idea of spending christmas with your family but what is so wrong about making Christ the center of what christmas is about. it is named after him.

but today in the world christmas is all about presents, pleasure and pride. yesterday while driving in to work i heard this on the radio. this is the new low. it was an advertisement for "adult world-- where we put the x in x-mas."

this is where our tolerance has placed us. where we have no say is our own religious holiday.

37%

the last few weeks i have been thinking on the line of politics, in general, george w. and the war in iraq. i have been astounded by many news reports and blogs attacking bush. every now and then a poll comes out and shows what percentage of the american people are in support of bush. the last one i recall hearing was at 37% (this is how many people think bush is doing a good job.)

if you watch the news it seems that everyone wants to pull out of iraq. save the american lives. everyone of course except the american troops. sure they want to come home and get out of harms way. they want to be able to see their families and play with their children.

last night we had a marine surgeon speek. he showed pictures and video. he had a picture of each person who died in combat while he was over in iraq from his fort, with names and dates on each one. he said this "the overwhelming majority of military overseas want to continue in the fight in iraq, in order to achieve the goal. the goal of which to bring enough freedom so that when they do pull out, there will not be a civil war."

obviously they have a job to do, and to pull out now would only be hazardous to everyone in iraq. we talk about feeding the poor and rescuing africa from aids. but i ask what about the human life. when we can help stop many people from death. why are so many americans not willing to see the need in iraq.

and anyways where do these polls come from? i have never been asked. have you been asked?

the lake effect

for years i have watched news reports about 2 foot snows. i have felt pity for the people of this area and possibly thought to myself, " i will never live there." they get this much snow due to what is called "the lake effect." to read more on the lake effect go here http://www.islandnet.com/~see/weather/elements/lkefsnw1.htm

for the past two years of my life i have lived in south carolina. i havent even seen snow for two years. and have missed it. i miss the look of it (pure white), what you can do with it (snowballs) or what happens when a lot of it falls on a mountain (skiing).

this summer jenny and i made the move to new york. we can be at lake ontario in about 5 minutes. it is definately a beautiful site. but also with this move we now have the lake effect snow. two nights ago we had 12 inches. last night another 6 inches were added and is still falling right now.

there is something so fresh and new with snow. there are not too many people in the area more happy about seeing snow then me. i am sure eventually it will wear on me too. but for now this snow is nothing but beautiful.

united politics

it is really hard to for me to understand why it is republican vs democrat or conservative vs liberal. i sit on my couch as there are negative campaigns running in both direction. just this morning i saw an interview with john kerry and matt lauer. matt lauer asked him this question. "i read each of your briefs on troops exiting iraq, and it seems to me that they are saying the same thing." kerry fired back that "they are very different."

even christians do not agree with political issues of abortion, embryonic research, gay and lesbian marriage and adoption, capital punishment and war. i have been on blogs of friends and they are attacking bush. while others are patting bush on the back. personally i have never enjoyed a fight. it is just not my style. how far are we going to get when someone is going to disagree with someone just because he is a republican.

since the tsunamis a year bush sr. and clinton have teamed up. two people who have battled it out in a presidential race that got very heated working together for a common purpose. they did a such a great job working together they teamed up again to raise money for katrina victims. it seems to me that we do such a greater job when we work together. we get a lot more finished. we achieve the goal quicker then we could have if it were two individual former presidents.

it is time to come together. throw aside the things that we disagree on and concentrate on what brings us together. what is best for the u.s.? how can we best achieve this? is it possible to throw away all the titles of denominations... oh crap... i meant political parties.

in all reality the church needs to unify. not in the sense of dropping denomination ties. but in the sense of doing all we can to expand God's kingdom. eventuall denominations wont matter. why do they matter now? because for some reason we concentrate on the minors of following Christ rather then the core beliefs.

as far as politics the same needs to happen.

poverty?!

the other day i was talking to someone at church. he explained to me that he "almost did what i am doing. (meaning vocational ministry), but he could not take a vow of poverty." i really did not know how to respond.

there were however to reactions in my head.

1. am i living in poverty? i have everything i need plus stuff i could live without. i dont drive a mercedes. but even if i had money i would still drive a honda. even if some students do have a nicer car than i do. i dont shop at banana republic or wear other designer clothes. but i enjoy the clothes i have. sure i live over a garage. but hey it is a nice garage. and in a few months i will be moving into a 4 bedroom parsonage. i do shop at aldi's (a generic food store) but seriously is it any different then marsh or p&c?

im not really quite sure what poverty is. by this guys view i am living in it. but personally i really do not feel that i am . i am comfortable. i am clean (sometimes). i eat pretty well. and when it is all said and done jenny and i are saving money. in a couple month we will both have our college debts paid off. both drive nice vehicles that should last us quite a while (both honda civics).

i have viewed at least what the world views as poverty. i have been in villages where the houses are made with mud and the roofs with bamboo. i have been in their 1-2 room house. where if you had two rooms you were extremely fortunate. i have sat at their tables where they offer us enough food for them to live off the next week. i have seen and smelled the open sewer. this could definately be seen as poverty.

i have also driven around the area here in ny, and i see these houses that are falling apart and these small little trailers that have 10 people living in them and i wonder if there mom or dad used to work at the steel plant that was closed about a year ago.

i have been to a church down the road and see the poor, hurting crowd that attends there. and notice that they are doing samaritans purse operation christmas child and found out that they sent out about 300 boxes.

i have also attended care and share which our church opened up for people to bring in new and used stuff to share with the community (see blog below) and smelled the stench of the people there.

do i live in poverty? by all means no. am i rich? no.

2 i thought... did you feel called? did you run away from your call? ouch.

thanks

thankful- attitude in which one has gratitude

thanksgiving- action in which one shows gratiude

maybe this will be a typical blog for many this week. the showing of thanks that many people really skip over during the year to show their thankfulness during this time of turkey, pie and football. i know their are many who are thankful for the things around them. i get many thank you cards or words of thanks. but it seems that something significant has to happen to require those thank you's.

when one can go quite a while without feeling appreciated. it seems that during this week many people really show what they are thankful for. but why is it that we wait until this week to put our thankfulness into action by showing thanksgiving for lifes pros.

here is just a few things i am thankful for

1. religious freedom ( i do not have to hide what i believe.)
2. jenny (she keeps me somewhat level headed.)
3. family (even though they are a few hundred miles away.)
4. community (friends and a church where i feel at home.)
5. friends (all over the globe doing some amazing things.)
6. communication (internet, cell phone in order to keep in touch with 3-5.)

is there anybody else out there who is thankful? let's put some action to the thankfulness.

wesleyan conventions

in a month and a half i am leading a trip to go to logos5 (wesleyan youth convention) i have only been to one in my lifetime and that was back when i was in 8th grade. what i remember from this trip was skipping half the seminars and making fun of ray boltz. this was exalt 94 and some of you might remember this back in the day. obviously wesleyan conventions have come along way since then. instead of the slim pickings in christian music we have multiple good quality christian bands. the convention that we will be attending will feature pillar. we will also hear from efrem smith. i am looking forward to this convention. but i question to why they are so expensive? it will cost my teens about $300 each and we are only 5 hrs away from Boston. is it possible to throw a quality convention for less?

indiana wesleyan throws a youth convention every year and offers it for about $35.
bethany bible college has their booster for about the same cost.

now i am sure that the university offsets alot of the cost. but would it be possible for the wesleyan church to do the same with the youth convention.

i have mentioned barn bash ( a day long festival that our youth group sponsors.) this event takes alot of the youth budget for the year but we think it is worth it to have 1500 people come to this outreach and hear the gospel.

now what can we do about the cost before the next national convention in 2 years when it is in orlando? i realize these conventions are worthwhile. but is it possible to lower costs? what are your thoughts?

eternity

What must I do to inherit eternal life?

There are two times this question is asked of Jesus that I would like to specifically address.

The rich young ruler asked this question. Jesus answers this man. “You know the commandments,” and lists off some of the commandments. After this he tells the young man “there is still one thing you lack. Sell all you have and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come and follow me.”
The second is asked by an expert in religious law trying to test Christ. Jesus responds by “what does the law of Moses say?” With this asked the man answers Love you God with all your hear, all your soul, all your strength and all your mind. And, Love your neighbor as yourself. Jesus then tells the story of the Good Samaritan.

In another teaching by Christ he separates the people on the right and the left; the righteous from the unrighteous. He the talks to those on the right and says this “come you who are blessed by my father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you fed me. I was thirsty and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger and you invited me into your home. I was naked and you gave me clothing. I was sick and you cared for me. I was in prison and you visited me… These righteous will go into eternal life.”

All these stories revolve around eternal life. They also revolve around helping, goodness and gentleness to your neighbor. I wonder how much of loving your neighbor is important to attaining eternal life. I wonder why there is a lot of emphasis on this concept in the scriptures.

Of course I do not want to take away the factor of belief and John 14:6. That is essential first and foremost. In fact all of these stories address following Christ and loving the Lord. But I do also know that faith without deeds is dead. It is definitely important to help your neighbor. I also want to stress the idea of loving your neighbor. Sometimes we do these things out of duty and the commands put on us by Christ. Is that loving your neighbor or is it just out of obedience.

Thoughts?