For What It's Worth

Let Us Glorify God for the Greater Thing

2011-07-27T11:58:00.003-04:00

People often gave glory to God when Jesus healed their disabilities:

When Jesus healed many: And they glorified the God of Israel (Matthew 15.31).
When Jesus healed a blind man: And all the people, when they say it, gave praise to God (Luke 18.42).

It was right for them to do so! God himself was performing miracles in their presence.

But, like us, they sometimes confused things — giving greater glory for gifts they could see rather than the gifts that are eternal.

The Paralytic Man in Mark 2

We see it in the story of the healing of the paralytic in Mark 2:1-12. . .
Four men bring a paralyzed man to where Jesus was staying, vandalize another person’s property, and lower him down through the roof. They do all this to make sure this man is brought to Jesus.

And Jesus does the greatest thing ever: He forgives this man’s sins! Think of the many benefits Jesus instantly gives him:
• Right standing before the perfect judge of his soul who could cast him into hell;
• The assurance of increasing measures of joy with Jesus for eternity;
• The incredible opportunity to tell others about this Jesus.

Yet the three accounts of this miracle do not say that the next response was spontaneous bursts of praise. Actually, the opposite: questioning (Mark 2.6), and accusations of blasphemy (Matthew 9.3; Luke 5.21). The crowd did not glorify God until after Jesus heals the man's paralysis (Mark 2.12).

This physical healing is tremendous, but it only lasted for a short season. That man has been dead for nearly 2,000 years. And if he had died in his sins, all he had to look forward to, for eternity, was wrath.

But that wasn’t this man's story. Jesus says to him, “Son, your sins are forgiven.” From what the Bible tells us, God gave this man the best gift ever.

And it's this event of God giving this man the best gift ever that convicts me over what I rejoice in. I find I must temper my criticism of the scribes in Mark 2 because I also do not easily believe a profession of faith in Jesus. Like the Pharisees, I like to see evidence.

The Dark Places of Must-See

That desire for evidence can take us into some very dark places. In its most cruel form it is known as the health and wealth prosperity gospel. Under that wretched misapplication of the gospel, those with “real” faith never experience the hardships of poverty or disability.

But, of course, that implies that Jesus isn’t really enough. It implies that things on this earth that will eventually end, like wealth and health and even life itself, have equal standing with the blood-bought forgiveness of sins that brings us the holy God (2 Peter 3.18). This is wrong. Unbiblical. Unhelpful.

God may or may not offer physical healing in this present age. Even during His earthly ministry, Jesus walked through the multitude of people with disabilities in John 5.2-17 only healing one man. I’m grateful God provided that example, because my sinful heart continually draws me toward the desire for comfort in this present age.
But thankfully, we can live under an entirely different, biblical, joy-filled promise, including all who will live a lifetime with disability (and those who love them!). That promise is this: God’s love as expressed through the perfect sacrifice of Jesus and His triumph over sin means that all sins can be forgiven and we’ll get to be with Jesus forever!

And being with Jesus, obviously, is a greater gift than anything we can experience today, even a life free of disability. So let us first rejoice in that! And if God provides healing, then we'll give glory to God alone for His marvelous, secondary, gifts!

original post by John Knight @ Desiring God

Is it Okay for Christians to Believe in the Doctrine of Hell But Not Like It?

2011-07-27T11:11:00.002-04:00

It takes a certain courage to look at what the Bible teaches, not like it all that much, and still believe it. I am thankful for brothers and sisters who believe in hell or believe in complementarianism or believe in election and reprobation or believe homosexuality is a sin despite their internal protestations. It’s a good sign when we take our stand on the Bible even when we’d prefer to take our stand somewhere else.

But it’s a better sign when we take our stand on the Bible and learn to love where the Bible stands.

Take hell for example. Should Christians rejoice in the doctrine of hell? That’s a loaded question that does not allow for a simplistic answer. On the one hand, if God does not want any to perish, neither should we (2 Peter 3.9). Paul has great sorrow and unceasing anguish in his heart at the thought of his Jewish brothers falling under God’s curse (Rom. 9.1-3). It is natural and right that we should be sad to think of people we love suffering in hell. So in one sense it is appropriate for Christians to say “I don’t like the idea of hell.”

But be careful. It’s never safe to dislike the truths God has revealed. We should actually like what the Bible teaches. We may struggle to get there–we may not immediately resonate with the hard parts of the Bible–but the goal is to get to the place where we can. The law of the Lord should be our delight. We should tremble under the word of God, not begrudgingly accept it. Hell is a hard doctrine to embrace, but God sends people to hell for his glory. The punishment of the wicked in hell vindicates God’s honor (2 Thess. 1.5-12), avenges the persecuted church (Rev. 6.10), exposes the utter sinfulness of sin (2 Peter 3.11-13), upholds divine justice (Rev. 19.1-2), and makes known the riches of His glory to vessels of mercy (Rom. 9.22-23).

To admit that God says hard things is admirable honesty. But to profess our dislike for what He does or wish that He were a different kind of God who did things in a different way–even if we come around to accept these ways in the end–is not the right kind of humility. It’s one thing to say to unbelievers and skeptics, “I struggled with the same questions you’re asking.” It’s another to throw God under the bus, admitting “I don’t like hell anymore than you do. I’d take it out of the Bible if I could. But it’s in there, so I can’t deny it.”

God is good and His ways are always right. It is a measure of our maturity that we not only affirm the truth of God’s word but rest in the goodness and rightness of it. Christians should have anguish in heart at the thought of eternal suffering, but we should also see the glory of God in the Bible’s teaching on eternal punishment.

Sorrowful, yet always rejoicing is one way to put it (2 Cor. 6.10), even with the doctrine of hell.

original post by Kevin DeYoung

The Giver Gets The Glory

2011-07-18T11:04:00.002-04:00

Taken from John Pipers blog 7.18.11
Only a few things have gripped me with greater joy than the truth that God loves to show his God-ness by working for me, and that his working for me is always before and under and in any working I do for him.

At first it may sound arrogant of us, and belittling to God, to say that he works for us. But that’s only because of the connotation that I am an employer and God needs a job. That’s not the connotation when the Bible talks about God’s working for us. As in: “God works for those who wait for him” (Isaiah 64:4).

The proper connotation of saying God works for me is that I am bankrupt and need a bailout. I am weak and need someone strong. I am endangered and need a protector. I am foolish and need someone wise. I am lost and need a Rescuer.

"God works for me" means I can’t do the work.

And this glorifies him not me. The Giver gets the glory. The Powerful One gets the praise.

I just completed a series on Twitter (@JohnPiper) celebrating some of the texts that express this truth.

Here’s the summary list. Read and be freed from the burden of bearing your own load. “Cast your burden on the LORD, and he will sustain you” (Psalm 55:22). Let him do that work.

1.“No eye has seen a God besides you, who works for those who wait for him.” (Isaiah 64:4)

2.“God is not served by human hands as though he needed anything, but he himself gives life and breath and everything.” (Acts 17:25)

3.“The Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45).

4.“The eyes of the LORD run through the earth, to show himself strong for those who trust him.” (2 Chronicles. 16:9)

5.“If I were hungry, I wouldn't tell you. Call on me, I will deliver you. You will glorify me.” (Psalm 50:15)

6.“To old age I will carry you. I have made, and I will bear; I will carry and will save.” (Isaiah 46:4)

7.“I worked harder than any, though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me” (1 Corinthians. 15:10).

8.“Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain.” (Psalm 127:1)

9.“Whoever serves, let him serve by the strength God supplies, so that in everything God may be glorified.” (1 Peter 4:11)

10.“Work out your own salvation, for it is God who works in you, to will and to work.” (Philippians 2:12–13)

11.“I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth.” (1 Corinthians 3:6–7)

Here Comes Trouble

2011-07-17T22:18:00.001-04:00

"In this world you will have trouble, but take heart. I have overcome the world." – Jesus

I’m still feeling great loss from my brother’s suicide back in January. The all-consuming, overwhelming, debilitating sadness has passed. What’s left is an ongoing, dull, residual pain and sadness that seems to lurk around the corners and hide in the darkness. I find myself continually replaying those tragic events that led up to my brother’s death. And although death is as much of a reality as life is, it still seems completely surreal at times and difficult to fully comprehend.

This past week I learned that one of my cousins has terminal brain cancer. He’s 47 years old with 3 kids and 2 grandkids. One of his daughters found him laying in his office, incoherent a few days ago. He was most likely there for 2 days before she found him.

He was immediately rushed to the emergency room. Within hours, they had discovered his brain was full of tumors. His brain cancer is so pervasive that he has been given just a couple of weeks to live.

This morning our pastor told us about a dear woman in our church who has been diagnosed with cancer as well. Her cancer has invaded all of her major organs and she too will likely die from this within just a few short weeks.

This weekend a young man was at football practice and was run over by a Gator utility vehicle. He is in the neuro trauma unit here in our town fighting for his life.

Life happens, doesn’t it? And when it happens, there really are no guarantees that the storms that rage and the tornadoes that wage war against our very lives, won’t hit us just as hard as they seem to hit others.

As a matter of fact, there ARE some guarantees in life. Jesus actually said, ”in this world you WILL have trouble.” He Himself warned His followers that they were not exempt from the trials and hardships in life.

But His warning also came with a promise. What is the promise, you ask? The promise is this – I HAVE OVERCOME THE WORLD! That’s right. In the face of excruciating pain and extraordinarily difficult circumstances, the promise we can cling to is that Jesus is bigger than all of that. As much as it feels like life has us pinned against the wall with its hand on our jugular, we can rest knowing that it’s really just the opposite. Jesus is the One who has pinned the circumstances of our lives up against the wall, and He is the One who has guaranteed the victory.

For me personally, it’s sometimes difficult to live that reality when life feels like I’m in the middle of a vortex that’s threatening to end me. So, even though I don’t understand much of what God is doing and I often times feel like my faith is pretty puny and pathetic, I am learning to just trust Him. I can’t always trace His hand, but I can certainly work on trusting His heart.

Truthfully, I get a bit uptight when I listen to the proponents of the prosperity gospel and they say I don’t have enough faith and that I just need to believe harder. And if I believe harder, than those “bad” things wouldn’t be happening to me.

When I hear all that crap and think about all the suffering just in the lives of those in my little world, I can’t help but think to myself “well then, what are all these people doing wrong? Would they be spending the night in their own beds tonight if they just had more faith?” I mean, can it really be that simple? OR is pain and suffering a natural part of life that should just be expected?

I fall into the later of those 2 categories. I read Scripture and it tells me that suffering, excruciating suffering and unbearable pain, is an integral part of life on planet earth and should be expected by both believers and unbelievers alike.

“God makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.” Matthew 5.45

Scripture is full of references about personal pain and suffering. For instance – Romans 8.17, 1 Corinthians 12.26, 2 Corinthians 1.6, Philippians 1.29, 1 Peter 4.19, 1 Peter 5.10, Romans 5.3, 2 Timothy 1.8 and Colossians 1.24…just to name a few of the places in Scripture that make mention of the pain we are certain to face in this life.

Jesus plainly stated in John 16.33 that His followers WOULD have trouble. It WOULD find them. There was NO escaping the traumas and tragedies in life.

But, He also equipped His followers with an unshakable promise of hope and certainty. Jesus promised that no matter how big, how nasty, how painful, how invasive, how debilitating, how crippling our pain is, He is bigger. He isn’t only bigger, but He has conquered. His death and resurrection doesn’t exclude us from the excruciating pain in life, but instead attaches a promise to our pain that He is there with us in the midst of it and He hasn’t abandon us to the devises of the Enemy. Jesus Himself has conquered and overcome.

If trouble has come knocking on your door, don’t be naïve enough to think you just need to believe harder or trust more, and when you can do that, then the trouble will go away. It doesn’t work like that. What you can do when trouble comes after you is tighten down the hatches, be sure you’re buckled up, and trust that the Author and Perfector of your faith is working in you and around you and you are not alone.

He has indeed overcome.

God's Great Name - Malachi 1

2011-07-12T12:05:00.002-04:00

A little background about Malachi:
It was written to Israel by Malachi.
He called people to repentance in regards to:
The priesthood, which had become corrupt
Worship, which had become routine
Divorce, which had become widespread
Social justice, which was being ignored
Tithing , which was being neglected

Here's what was going on in some of these verses....
6-9
Priests are not honoring God. Instead of sacrificing the perfect, pure, spotless, animals, they were giving Him the lame, blind, blemished animals. God was getting the leftovers. He was getting the runts of the litter.

10
God’s response: “O that there would be ONE who would do the right thing.”
ONE who would stop compromising
ONE who would stop following the crowd
ONE who would stop listening to the masses
ONE who would be willing to make necessary sacrificesfor the sake of
obedience
ONE who would say No to the allures of the world and Yes
to the voice of God

11 “From the rising of the sun to its setting, My name will be great among the nations….My name will be great among the nations.”

3 OBSERVATIONS FROM VERSE 11

1. It is a STATEMENT OF FACT. Absolute truth. “My name WILL BE GREAT among the nations”

2. We agree with it and it becomes for us a DECLARATION OF FAITH “God, Your name WILL BE GREAT among the nations.” This is not “name it and claim it”
God said it, I believe it, and I’m declaring it to be true.

3. It is a PROVISION OF FREEDOM Freedom FROM all the trivial pursuits of life
Freedom TO invest the whole of your life making God’s name great among the
nations.

Malaise is a mercy that feels yucky

2011-06-17T11:34:00.002-04:00

Malaise is that feeling you get when you’re getting sick but you don’t quite know it yet. It’s a vague sense of dis-ease. Your energy is draining. You just want to lie down. Emotionally, you might feel discouraged, irritable, depressed, or cynical for no identifiable reason. You ask yourself, “What’s the matter with me?”

Precisely what you’re supposed to ask. Malaise is the early warning system God designed for the body. It’s telling you something destructive is attacking your bodily systems. It’s a messenger running ahead of an invading enemy alerting us to get our defenses in place.

The soul also has its diseases and they are more deadly than the body’s. Soul diseases attack our belief systems. Corrupted beliefs can be very serious if left untreated. They grow and spread, wreaking destruction in us. And when contagious, as they frequently are, they harm others. Such diseases can result in soul-death.

Mercifully, there is a malaise of the soul. I’ll bet you know what I mean.

Because hope is to the soul what energy is to the body, soul-malaise manifests itself as a flagging hope in God. It’s a vague, doubty, spiritual discouragement. You wouldn’t describe it as a crisis of faith. You might avoid talking about it because it’s hard to describe. You just feel spiritually sluggish. You don’t feel like doing anything spiritually significant. You ask yourself, “What’s the matter with me?”

Precisely what you’re supposed to ask. This malaise is the early warning system God designed for the soul. It’s telling you something destructive is attacking your belief systems. It’s a messenger running ahead of an invading enemy alerting us to get our defenses in place.

So what should we do when we experience soul-malaise? Similar to bodily malaise, we pray and get prayed for, get plenty of rest, seek to identify the source (what is draining my hope in God?), head to God’s pharmacy (the Bible) for some meds (promises) and if needed (as it often is) we get some help from soul-physicians (friends or pastors) who are skillful at treating these diseases.
It’s not wise to ignore malaise. Left unchecked you will get sicker.

Keep a close watch on yourself and on the teaching (1 Timothy 4:16)

This is a re-post from John Piper and DesiringGod.org on 6.17.11

A New Kind Of Church

2011-06-09T10:22:00.003-04:00

Truth is, I’ve been struggling for the past 10 years. Not with drinking or drugs, but with something much more destructive. Before you write mean letters or post anonymous comments on my blog, I should first explain that I know the bible says we should be content in every situation. It was the Apostle Paul who said he learned to be content when naked or clothed. He also learned how to be content when he was hungry and when his belly was full. It was Paul who said, godliness with contentment is great gain. I know what he was talking about. And I couldn’t agree more. Honest.

I’m not one of those Christians who pick and choose what verses to believe and which ones to omit. I believe the bible is the inspired, infallible, inerrant Word of God, useful for teaching, correcting and training in righteousness so the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.

I have strived to practice this type of contentment that Paul was talking about. I pray often that God would take away my lust for more stuff. I plead with God to make my heart yearn for Him and not the things of this world. I don’t want to spend my money on things that will ultimately be burnt up. I long to invest the resources that God has entrusted me with, on things that will grow the kingdom of God. I genuinely desire that God would teach me this type of contentment that the world does not know. I have such a long ways to go though.

But I must confess, I am still very discontent in a certain area. I have a good friend who calls this a “holy discontent”. I’m not discontent with the house we live in, the car we drive, or the clothes we wear. We don’t have super nice stuff, but I’m incredibly aware we live better than 95% of the world’s population. Over 1 billion people live on less than $1 a day. More than 2 billion people live on $2 a day. Nearly half of the world’s population of 7 billion people live on less than $2 a day. So, by all accounts, I am a wealthy man. By American standards, maybe not so much. But like I said, God is teaching me how to be content with what He’s entrusted me with. And He’s also teaching me that He measures my generosity, not by how much I give away, but by how much I keep.

However, I am deeply discontent in the area of the American Church. I’m by no means pointing fingers at any one person, pastor, church or denomination. But for the past 10 years, I’ve become more and more discontent with my “church” experiences. I understand no church is perfect. And more than a couple of people over the years have told me that if I ever find a perfect church, I shouldn’t join it because I’ll ruin it.

The more I study the Word of God and the more I fall in love with Jesus, the more He conforms me into His likeness. I believe it is this process of transformation and sanctification that allow me to be painfully aware of some of the things that grieve the heart of God when it comes to His corporate body. He’s also showing me the types of things that bring Him pleasure.

For the purpose of this blog entry, my attention is turned to the things that grieve the heart of God. I know that Jesus said that His church WILL prevail and that the very gates of hell will not deter His kingdom purposes from being sovereignly fulfilled.

We would be foolish though to think that there aren’t things we can do to miss the mark. We’d be naïve to think that God hasn’t given us a very clear model of what He wants His church to look like. Arguably, most bible scholars and pastors would direct you to the book of Acts for an overview of what a local, New Testament church should look like. Specifically, most of us would direct you to Acts chapter 2 for a very specific and detailed portrait of what the first church looked like and by all accounts what our churches should look like today.

I’ve been reading through Acts for the past couple of months. I’ve also been meditating on and studying Acts 2.42-47. I read this passage and I hold it up to the average, American, evangelical church. It would be good for all of us to take a good, hard look and use this Acts model as the litmus test to evaluate whether or not we’re anything like what a New Testament church should look like.

Here’s a brief description of the church outlined in Acts 2. The church was characterized by:
1. Devotion to the Apostles teaching
2. Devotion to the fellowship
3. Devotion to breaking break
4. Devotion to prayer
5. People were filled with awe
6. Apostles were doing extraordinary things through the power of the Holy Spirit
7. Believers were united
8. Believers had all things in common
9. Believers sold their possessions and belongings
10. Believers pulled their resources to help those who were in need
11. Attended the temple together
12. Broke bread in their homes
13. Grateful hearts for food and provisions
14. Hearts that praised God
15. Favor with the people
16. Numeric growth

For the sake of time, I cannot address each of these characteristics. However, I think it’s wise and fair for us to take a thorough look at this list and ask ourselves if we’re a part of a New Testament church that is committed to following the model set up for us, or have we somehow been duped and persuaded that church is more about the nice buildings, tailor made ministries, comfortable pews (or chairs), polished music and a gifted speaker? Isn’t it true that we’ve become a very self-centered, consumeristic church as opposed to a giving, sacrificial, disciple making, gospel taking, darkness penetrating church? My fear is, most churches across our country today aren’t even close to doing what God has outlined and mandated us to do – namely, to proclaim the glory of God to the nations of the world.

It seems painfully obvious that the way we evaluate and grade the effectiveness of our churches has little to do with how effectively and obediently we are adhering to two things: 1. the mandate Jesus gave us to make disciples of all nations, and 2. the church model the early Christians gave us in Acts 2.
Instead we evaluate our churches based on trends, church growth techniques, baptisms, building campaigns, vibrant AWANA programs, and our preference for music and our style of speakers.

As passionate followers of Jesus Christ, we should be committed to ensuring that our churches are adhering to clear biblical principles and mandates. And when they aren’t, we should be willing and courageous enough to speak with our church leadership about it.

Can I ask a question? If we’re following the Acts 2 church model described above, how can it be that in the same church, we have pastors barely making minimum wage while other pastors are making 6 figures living in luxurious homes? I understand corporate America. But, the church is not corporate America. The church is a very unique entity marked by the life of a sacrificial Savior who came not to be served but to serve, and who came to turn the world upside down as it relates to EVERYTHING.

If we are co-laborers in the gospel, and if we are committed to following the model set up for us to follow, why do we have wealthy people in our churches on one pew and desperately poor people just a few feet down the row at the other end of the same pew? How can this be? How can the same church justify paying a senior pastor a lucrative salary with retirement, insurance and all the perks that typically come along with the position of senior pastor, while his co-laborers are on food stamps? Isn’t there something inherently wrong with this paradigm that we’ve created? It certainly is not the model Jesus created for us and it most definitely isn’t the model the early Christians set up for us.

But, it is our model. It’s the one we’re most comfortable with. It’s the model that ensures we don’t have to make any huge, crazy sacrifices as we climb our way up the comfortable ladder of American Christianity.

I have so many questions about the church. I wonder if I’m just too idealistic sometimes. Or, could it be that God has raised up some men and women who will be courageous enough to cause us to question the status quo that we’ve blindly accepted for so long? Could it be that God Himself is sounding the alarm to awaken within us a sensitivity to His spirit that we’ve been missing for so long?

God is ready to mark us with a fresh move from on high. God longs to use His bride as a unified instrument to declare the glory of God to the nations of the world.

If we’re ever going to have the kind of impact that we were designed to have on the world, we will not do it by being lone rangers on the field of Christianity. We will do it as the bride of Christ takes seriously the mandates in Scripture and is willing to lose our lives, abandon our comforts, and lay down our entitlements for the sake of the elect.

As radical as it might seem, I’m ready to join an Acts 2 community. Are you?

Is God Glad Osama Bin Laden's Dead?

2011-05-03T09:53:00.002-04:00

God’s emotions are complex—like yours, only a million times more. Right now, your emotions about bin Laden are not simple, i.e. not single. There are several, and they intermingle. That is a good thing. You are God-like.

In response to Osama bin Laden’s death, quite a few tweets and blogs have cited the biblical truth that “God does not delight in the death of the wicked.” That is true.

It is also true that God does delight in the death of the wicked. There are things about every death that God approves in themselves and things about every death that God disapproves in themselves.

Is God Double-Minded?

This is not double talk. All thoughtful people make such distinctions. For example, if my daughter asks me if I like a movie, I might say yes or no to the same movie. Why? Because a movie can be assessed for its 1) acting, 2) plot, 3) cinematography, 4) nudity, 5) profanity, 6) suspense, 7) complexity, 8) faithfulness to the source, 9) reverence for God, 11) accurate picture of human nature, etc., etc., etc.

So my answer is almost always “yes, in some ways, and no in other ways.” But sometimes I will simply say yes, and sometimes no, because of extenuating circumstances.

Here is why I say God approves and disapproves the death of Osama bin Laden:

In one sense, human death is not God’s pleasure:

Have I any pleasure in the death of the wicked, declares the Lord God, and not rather that he should turn from his way and live? . . . For I do not pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Lord God; so turn, and live. (Ezekiel 18:23, 32).

In another sense, the death and judgment of the unrepentant is God’s pleasure:

Thus shall my anger spend itself, and I will vent my fury upon them and satisfy myself. (Ezekiel 5:13]

[Wisdom calls out:] Because you have ignored all my counsel and would have none of my reproof, I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when terror strikes you. (Proverbs 1:25–26)

Rejoice over her, O heaven, and you saints and apostles and prophets, for God has given judgment for you against her! (Revelation 18:20)

As the Lord took delight in doing you good . . . so the Lord will take delight in bringing ruin upon you and destroying you. (Deuteronomy 28:63)

We should not cancel out any of these passages but think our way through to how they can all be true.

God is Not Malicious or Bloodthirsty

My suggestion is that the death and misery of the unrepentant is in and of itself not a pleasure to God. God is not a sadist. He is not malicious or bloodthirsty. The death and suffering considered for itself alone is not his delight.

Rather, when a rebellious, wicked, unbelieving person is judged, what God has pleasure in is the exaltation of truth and righteousness, and the vindication of his own honor and glory. (For further discussion of God’s heart in judgment see the section in The Pleasures of God called “How Is God Like George Washington?”, pp. 147–149.)

When Moses warns Israel that the Lord will take pleasure in bringing ruin upon them and destroying them if they do not repent (Deuteronomy 28:63), he means that those who have rebelled against the Lord and moved beyond repentance will not be able to gloat that they have made the Almighty miserable.

God is not defeated in the triumphs of his righteous judgment. Quite the contrary. Moses says that when they are judged they will unwittingly provide an occasion for God to rejoice in the demonstration of his justice and his power and the infinite worth of his glory (see also Romans 9:22–23).

A Warning

Let this be a warning to us: God is not mocked. He is not trapped or cornered or coerced. Even on the way to Calvary he had legions of angels at his disposal: “No one takes my life from me; I lay it down of my own accord”—of his own good pleasure, for the joy that was set before him.

At the one point in the history of the universe where God looked trapped, he was in charge, doing precisely what he pleased—dying to justify the ungodly like you and me.

(Adapted from The Pleasures of God, pp. 66-74.)

original post by John Piper - May 2, 2011

My New Book - The Cost Of The Disconnect

2011-04-28T04:04:00.003-04:00

It probably goes without saying that having your first book published is a pretty cool moment in time. Not the coolest moment in time, but it certainly ranks up there somewhere on the top 10 or 15 things I can think of.

This past weekend Julie and our kids and I went to my brothers ranch in Florida for a few days to enjoy Spring Break. While there, we swam with the camels, camped out in the coolest Moroccan tent in the world, and.....hunted alligator. And I must say, taking a small boat back into a dark, gator infested swamp was amazing. Words fall short to describe that experience. Two days later, I have some pretty wicked pictures, a freezer full of gator meat, and some incredible memories of that night. Something my boys and I will remember long into old age.

But the book is different. It'll be around forever. Well, technically speaking, the Word of God will last forever. But, as long as non-canonical books are around, my book will be around. And there's something pretty special about that. I wrote this book about Biblical discipleship because it's what my heart beats for. And it has since I first made the decision to run hard after Jesus. For the past 22 years, God has graciously allowed me to be discipled by some incredible men. And I've had the awesome opportunity to disciple some pretty awesome guys myself.

I love God's Word. And I never cease to be fascinated, as I read through Scripture, with the high cost that Jesus attaches to His call on our lives. And I love helping people understand what all that looks like. My intention was to do that in the book.

My deep and earnest prayer is that I succeeded and that God will speak to His bride clearly through the pages of this work. You can decide for yourself. THE COST OF THE DISCONNECT can be ordered from our website at www.2911.org The retail price is $15.99 plus $4.00 shipping. If you live outside the US, shipping rates are different. Please email me at dirk@2911.org for international shipping rates.

I hope you'll consider ordering a copy or two. I also hope you'll consider buying a copy for your pastor(s). We really do believe that the message of the book is one the church needs to hear. She may not want to hear it, but she needs to hear it. IF the church is ever going to be radically and passionately faithful to God's Word and IF we're going to be used by God to make disciples of the nations, I believe the message in my book is crucial.

Please join us in praying that God will use The Cost Of The Disconnect far beyond anything we could ask for, think of, or even imagine. All for the sake of His name among the nations.

To see a short PROMO VIDEO for the book, visit my facebook page @ www.facebook.com/dirkydirk

Not One Of, But the ONE

2011-04-21T17:36:00.002-04:00

There is one foundational question each of us must face. By “foundational” I don’t mean it is the only question we must answer. What I mean is that this question is so important that if you get this one wrong you are going to get most everything else that really matters wrong. The foundational question is found in all three synoptic gospels. It is the famous query Jesus posed to the disciples at Caesarea Philippi: “Who do you say that I am?”

It may be surprising to some that Jesus even asked this question. The foundation question for Jesus is not “who are your parents?” or “are you openminded?” or “what will you do for me?” The foundational question concerns what you believe. Jesus is interested in faith. He begins with doctrine.

Not too long ago while walking across a bridge near our church I spotted some graffiti underneath the overpass: “I don’t need religion. I have a conscience.” I can only guess what this spray painter was trying to say, but my guess is he (or she) assumes religion is just a trick for getting people to line up and behave. Religion for him is nothing but a moral code for doing good. And who needs a religious code with all its ritual and institutional trappings if you have a conscience? But the graffiti sloganeer has grossly misunderstood Christianity. The foundational question for Jesus is not “what do I want you to do?” but “who do you say that I am?” Everything flows from a right understanding of Jesus. Not just what he taught or what he did, but who he is.

Initially, Jesus asked the disciples “Who do people say that I am?” (Mark 8:27). In other words, “What are you guys hearing about me? What’s the word on the street?” They give three responses. “Some are convinced you’re John the Baptist. Others figure you’re Elijah. And then there are those who aren’t sure, but think you are one of the prophets.” That’s pretty impressive company. The crowds recognize Jesus to be a man who teaches the way of God, a leader who calls people back to God. They know he does miracles like Elijah, speaks with authority like the prophets, and has a following like John. Not too shabby. To call Jesus “one of the prophets” after four hundred silent years following Malachi is quite a statement.

And yet the crowds are dead wrong. Jesus is not one of; he is the One. Jesus is not a pointer like John, Elijah, or one of the prophets. He is the point. It sounds very lofty to call Jesus a prophet, or a popular teacher, or a wonder worker, or a good man, or a brilliant example, or part of a long line of enlightened figures. But all of these descriptions miss the point. Because in all of them you are saying Jesus is one of (see v. 28). And if you say Jesus is only one of and not the One, you haven’t understood him. You don’t see who He really is. He is the Christ, the Son of the living God (Matt. 16:16).

You may think you’re saying very complimentary things about Jesus when you call him one of the prophets, a great man, an enlightened teacher, but you’re not actually complimenting him at all. It’s like saying the sun is one of many lights we use to illuminate the house, or that Michael Jordan used to throw the ball around for the Bulls, or that Barack Obama owns a home in Chicago. Those statements are all true. But they are also all false because they don’t say enough. The sun is the star in our solar system. Michael Jordan is the best basketball player ever. Barack Obama is the President of the United States. If you don’t say those things you’re not saying what really matters. By not saying what is most important and most unique you’re actually saying something very misleading.

When it comes to identifying Jesus, partial truths that miss the biggest truth end up telling a lie. True, Jesus is a prophet (Mark 6:4; Deut. 18:18). But he is not like John the Baptist. He is not another Elijah. He is not merely one of the prophets. He is the one to which all the other prophets were pointing. So to call him a prophet and nothing but a prophet is to misunderstand at the profoundest level who this man is. If you were to describe your wife as “a beautiful woman among many beautiful women in the world,” or “an individual I deeply respect” or “the last, in a long line of women I have loved” would your wife be pleased? Obviously not. You’ve damned her with faint praise. You’ve insulted her by demeaning her uniqueness and describing her in terms so much below what she deserves.

So away with all this nonsense that Jesus is like Mohammed or like the Buddha or like the Dali Lama or like Ghandi or like your saintly grandmother. He is not like anyone else. And so we will not pretend to be impressed when others call Jesus a good man or an enlightened figure or one of the prophets. He is not one of, He is the One.

(this entire blog was taken from Kevin DeYoungs blog - DeYoung, Restless, and Reformed)

When Will It Be Morning?

2011-02-13T17:14:00.002-05:00

Not sure how this will work. I feel like I’m totally consumed with the difficult and numbing process of grieving, and yet I know if I wait until it all makes sense, I may never write again. Here is my attempt to put some words to the horror of my life.

I am the youngest of six children. I grew up in a highly dysfunctional family. Both of my parents were alcoholics. My mom and dad divorced when I was seven. As I grew up, I saw my dad for a few weeks out of the summer. By all accounts though, the relationship between us has always been skewed at best. My earliest memories consist of my dad cussing at me while telling me how worthless, incompetent, flawed and pathetic I was. I have few positive memories as they relate to my younger years with my father. As much as it pains me to write those words, they are true.

My five older siblings and I all grew up with our own twisted self image and deteriorated sense of value. From our earliest days, we each had a common heart condition – it was that we believed that we somehow did not belong, were completely inept and therefore were not worthy to exist. An accurate assessment would be that we each found different ways to attempt to anesthetize this enormous pain and heartache that we lived with each day of our lives.

As I mentioned, I am the youngest of six kids. I am forty and my oldest brother is fifty three. Each of us were affected by our home life differently and we’ve each responded to it and compensated for it in different ways. But, if you spend any significant amount of time with my family you’d quickly see where the fractures are and the affects of growing up in this kind of destructive environment.

Unfortunately though, the affects were more obvious and more devastating for two of my brothers. For one of my brothers, Dwight, I cannot count on one hand how many times I remember seeing him sober. He was by all accounts a functioning alcoholic. His life was ruled by his desire and consumption of alcohol. Our family gatherings were all greatly affected by his presence because he was always acting under the influence of whatever liquor he had consumed that day. It was heartbreaking to watch him waste so much of his life trying to drink away his pain.

Darin was the brother I was closest to and is five years my senior. I’ve spent more time with him than probably all of my other siblings combined. Because we were closer in age, our lives intersected more as we were growing up and thankfully our bond continued through adulthood. When my parents divorced, my mom moved away with me, Darin, and my only sister Denise.

From the time I was about 8 or 9, I remember Darin going out and coming home smelling funny. I didn’t know what pot smelled like back then. His recreational pot use later turned into a recreational use of alcohol and cocaine. Into his adult life, his frequent use of drugs and alcohol seemed to invade and disable his desire to live a normal, healthy, functional life. Darin would have days, weeks, sometimes even months where he would live without the influence of drugs. But, early on a pattern developed. He seemed to be caught in a vicious cycle somewhere between (clean and functioning) and (abusing and emotionally/physically MIA). This too was incredibly painful to watch. Countless efforts to help and intervene by many of those involved in Darin’s life would bear only temporal results. It wouldn’t be long before the destructive and devastating cycle of abuse would repeat itself, each time yielding greater consequences and deeper pain and turmoil to Darin and those closest to him.

Five years ago my brother Dwight killed himself by an overconsumption of drinking liquor. For several years the doctors told him that if he didn’t stop drinking it would end his life. One year before his death, his doctor reiterated this critical warning and told Dwight that if he didn’t stop drinking he would be dead within a year.

I’ll never forget the phone call. I was working outside in the yard with some college students. My brother Darin called and told me that Dwight was bleeding internally and that he was being rushed by ambulance to the hospital. I ran to the airport and hopped on the next flight to Ohio. I arrived that evening only to find that my brother was already on life support.

For two long weeks we watched as the machines did for him what his body was unable to do for itself. From time to time, he would respond to verbal commands to squeeze our hands. Throughout the two week 24/7 vigil we kept in Dwight’s ICU room, there were several times that the doctors told us that his internal bleeding had started again and they would need to perform surgery to tie off the bleeding. This happened three or four times during the two weeks Dwight spent on life support.

One evening we left for dinner, which was a rarity because we really never left his room. This evening, we left to head home to clean up and grab dinner. Our plans were quickly altered by a phone call from the hospital telling us that we needed to make our way back immediately. We all had a sense of what was happening.

When we arrived, the doctors told us that Dwight had more internal bleeding and that they would not be able to do anything to stop it. We were left with two choices - we could let him bleed to death which the doctors told us would probably take about 24 hours. Or we could turn off his life support machines and end his life immediately.

After a short, emotionally charged family conference, we decided to turn off the machines that were keeping my brother alive. We did our best to process the events that were unfolding around us, said our good-bye’s and stood by his bed and held his hands as the machines were turned off and his body stopped breathing. Four days later I performed Dwight’s funeral and later that day we buried his body.

Those were three of the most difficult weeks I’ve ever lived through. I cannot even begin to tell you what it was like. If you’ve lived through something similar, you understand. If you haven’t, then you probably don’t and perhaps can’t understand. I remember coming back to my home in North Carolina and having what amounted to a physical, emotional and spiritual meltdown. I just found the pain and sadness consumed the entirety of my life. That lasted for several months before God eventually lifted the consuming darkness that had enveloped me.

Three months ago I got a phone call that my brother Darin was missing. He had gotten his hands on several thousand dollars. So, after twenty four hours and lots of detective work it was discovered that my brother had had contact with a local drug dealer and was more than likely alive, but had consumed an incredibly large amount of crack cocaine.

As I was making my flight preparations to get to Ohio, I got the call that Darin had been found. He somehow ended up at a local hospital and they were currently holding him in the emergency mental health wing for assessment. The story of what unfolded during the following week is long, convoluted and incredibly painful. One I plan on sharing someday, but not now.

For now, you should know that after many years of watching my brother weave his way through the destructive cycle of his addictions and mental illness, most of my family agreed that the only thing we could do for my brother to help him was to encourage him and help him get in-patient and long term therapy in some kind of treatment facility.

The short version of the story is, our efforts failed. My brother decided that he didn’t need the treatment and was going to make another attempt at getting his life together, making better decisions, keeping his medications regulated, attending AA meetings, etc , etc, all without the help of any outside agency or medical supervisor. He was in essence going to make this work on his own, a futile effort he had made countless times in years past.

On Tuesday January 25th at 11.30 a.m. I received a call that will be etched into my memory for the rest of my life. My oldest brother’s wife was calling from my mom’s phone. When I answered it, I was expecting to hear my mom’s voice. Instead, my sister-in-law said “Dirky, it’s Sue. Darin hung himself.”

I cannot even begin to tell you how instantaneously dark things got. I fell to the floor and wept for what seemed like an eternity. I could not escape the haunting images in my mind of my brother hanging himself and I was unable to process the incredible depth of sadness that my heart was feeling. All I could do was weep and wail.

It hasn’t even been three weeks yet. Some days I feel like it happened yesterday, other days I feel like I’ve been walking through this hellish pain for years. And perhaps in some ways I have. I don’t know.

What I do know is this – God has been preparing me for this season of pain, sadness and suffering. I don’t feel ready for it, but I’m confident that God has been working on my heart to equip me to process it and respond to it in ways that will ultimately make much of His sufficiency and greatness.

I must say, I love my family deeply. Each of my brothers and my sister are incredible people. Dwight and Darin were two extraordinary human beings. Of course, like all of us, they each had their own junk to manage and navigate through. But, aside from all of that, they were amazing people. Huge hearts, creative, talented, generous, gregarious, great golfers, one was an introvert while the other was an extrovert, but both were the life of the party. If you walked into a room, you’d just need to listen for the most noise. Wherever the most noise was, there you would find both of my brothers. People around them were laughing and enjoying a moment that would no doubt be etched into their minds for years to come. That’s just the type of people my brothers were.

But, they’re gone now. There are no more parties. There is no more laughter. The noise has all been eclipsed by the deafening sounds of sadness and grief. This road marked with suffering is indeed a painful one, but one I know must be walked in order for there to be a triumphant display of the magnitude of the grace and glory of God.

For months now, I’ve been praying that God would allow me to experience a degree of suffering that would deepen my understanding of His sovereignty and also better equip me for the ministry He has called me to. And here I am.

Some days I can’t quite figure out how to get my clothes on the right way. Other days I don’t even have the desire to breath. My heart aches. It hurts. Not just emotionally but it actually hurts physically. I’ve cried more than I thought was possible. I fall asleep thinking about my brothers and wake up thinking about them. Most of my days are consumed with thoughts of the final hours of Darin’s life. It’s hard to escape those haunting images as I learn to process this grief and sadness.

I have great friends who I know are praying for me. They’ve delivered food, sent cards, emails, texts, left messages, visited, etc. I also have an amazing wife and seven really sweet children who are also very sad. In their own ways of course. It seems it’s been significantly less debilitating and easier for them to “move on” than it is for me. I don’t know exactly what “moving on” looks like, but it doesn’t feel as if it’s on the immediate horizon for me.

So, why am I blogging about this? Truthfully, I’m not sure. Most days I feel like I don’t have anything of value to share with anyone. My heart seems awfully achy and incapable of doing much for others at the moment. Some day, I believe this story will be told and it will be clear. And I believe that God will use it to minister to others, either those walking through their own misery or those living with the aftermath of the tragedy of suicide and loss.

But, today is today. I honestly don’t really feel like I have much to offer. What I’m writing I hope will prove to be therapeutic for me. I also hope the pain and chaos of my life can somehow help you find hope and healing with what you might be walking through yourself.

From the first moments that I could put words to my pain, I was saying…’God, I am very weak. But You are strong and Your power is made perfect in weakness. Your grace is sufficient for today and Your mercies are new every morning.’ That really is about the extent of what I could muster up on most days.

I have few answers, but the Scriptures that God has been leading me to are:
Psalm 119.27 ‘My soul melts away for sorrow; strengthen me according to Your Word.’
Psalm 119.50 ‘This is my comfort in my affliction, that Your promise gives me life.’
Psalm 119.68 ‘You are good and what You do is good.’
Psalm 56.3 ‘When I am afraid, I will put my trust in You.’
Psalm 56.8 ‘You have kept count of my tossing’s, put my tears in Your bottle.’
Psalm 56.12-13 ‘I must perform my vows to You, O God; I will render thank offerings to You. For You have delivered my soul from death, yes my feet from falling, that I may walk before God in the light of life.’
Psalm 91.15 ‘When he calls to Me, I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will rescue him and honor him.’

I usually fall asleep listening to Steven Curtis Chapman’s CD Beauty Will Rise. I resonate with Steven’s heart when he sings:

“I don’t even want to breathe right now, all I wanna do is close my eyes, but I don’t wanna open them again, until I’m standing on the other side. I don’t even wanna be right now, I don’t wanna think another thought, and I don’t wanna feel this pain I feel, but right now pain is all I’ve got. It feels like it’s all I’ve got, but I know it’s not, and I know You’re all I’ve got…and I will trust You, I’ll trust You, trust You God I will, even when I don’t understand, even then I will say again, You are my God and I will trust You.’

Shameless Frauds

2011-01-24T20:44:00.003-05:00

My book is about finished. Part of it details a bit of an expose' of the health, wealth, and prosperity gospel. While writing, I came across an excellent article written by John MacArthur. I'm posting a portion of the article. For more, check out www.gty.org/blog/B091207

“Someone needs to say this plainly: The faith healers and health-and-wealth preachers who dominate religious television are shameless frauds. Their message is not the true gospel of Jesus Christ. There is nothing spiritual or miraculous about their on-stage chicanery. It is all a devious ruse designed to take advantage of desperate people. They are not godly ministers but greedy impostors who corrupt the Word of God for money's sake. They are not real pastors who shepherd the flock of God but hirelings whose only design is to fleece the sheep. Their love of money is glaringly obvious in what they say as well as how they live. They claim to possess great spiritual power, but in reality they are rank materialists and enemies of everything holy.

There is no reason anyone should be deceived by this age-old con, and there is certainly no justification for treating the hucksters as if they were authentic ministers of the gospel. Religious charlatans who make merchandise of false promises have been around since the apostolic era. They pretend to be messengers of Christ, but they are interlopers and impostors. The apostles condemned them with the harshest possible language. Paul called them "men of corrupt minds and destitute of the truth, who suppose that godliness is a means of gain" (1 Timothy 6.5). Peter called them false prophets with "hearts trained in greed" (2 Peter 2.14). He warned that "in their greed they will exploit you with false words" (v3). He exposed them as scoundrels and dismissed them as "stains and blemishes" on the church (v13).

Those biblical descriptions certainly fit the greed-driven cult of prosperity preachers and faith healers who unfortunately, thanks to television, have become the best-known face of Christianity worldwide. The scam they operate ought to be a bigger scandal than any Wall Street ponzi scheme or big-time securities fraud. After all, those who are most susceptible to the faith-healers' swindle are not well-to-do investors but some of society's most vulnerable people—including multitudes who are already destitute, disconsolate, disabled, elderly, sick, suffering, or dying. The faith-healer gets lavishly rich while the victims become poorer and more desperate.

But the worst part of the scandal is that it's not really a scandal at all in the eyes of most evangelical Christians. Those who should be most earnest in defense of the truth have taken a shockingly tolerant attitude toward the prosperity preachers' blatant misrepresentation of the gospel and their wanton exploitation of needy people. "But we don't want to judge," they say. Thus Christians fail to exercise righteous judgment (John 7.24). They refuse to be discerning at all.”

To Love Is To Do

2011-01-12T16:19:00.001-05:00

This could possibly be one of the most exciting times over the past twenty years of ministry for me. My first book is in the process of being published. A project I am very proud of and one I believe has the potential to catapult followers of Jesus Christ into a clearly defined purpose and strategy for living the remainder of their days.

The book is about biblical discipleship and the great chasm that exists between professed Christians and the mandates we find in Scripture that pertain to those who’ve aligned themselves with Jesus.

Most would concede the body of Christ (namely the church) is lacking severely when it comes to faithfully fulfilling the mandate to take the gospel to the ends of the earth and making disciples of all the nations. The church does a lot of things, and even does many things well. But in evaluating the landscape of churches around the country, we can only conclude that we spend a vast majority of our time and resources on initiatives, programs and ministries that have nothing to do with sharing the gospel with unregenerate people around the globe and making radical disciples of the nations.

This all comes at a great price. What is that price? Well, that’s part of what my book is about so I hope you’ll buy a copy and read it.

Much of what we find about the mandate to invest our lives making disciples comes from Matthew 28. This morning I was reading it again and several interesting details surfaced.

1. When Matthew describes the scene when the angel of the Lord showed up and moved the stone away from the grave, the angel’s clothes are described as being white as “snow”. I never thought about it until now, but how would Matthew think to equate white with snow? Of course, we would use the illustration of snow in describing something white, only because we’re very familiar with white snow. But Matthew? In ancient Israel? How in the world would he know what snow was? – verse 3

2. When the angel appeared, the guards fell over like dead men. That seems pretty significant. They weren’t actually dead, just speechless and perhaps incapacitated. In any case, it’s interesting to note that the angel never talked to them. Matthew only records that the angel spoke to the two Mary’s. Apparently the angel just totally ignored the men passed out on the floor beside him. Or maybe he was just smart enough to know that speaking to unconscious men would prove unprofitable. – verses 4-5

3. The soldiers were paid off to lie about what they saw. Jesus had indeed been resurrected and was walking around with blood flowing through His veins and with air in His lungs. When news of this reached the religious leaders, they paid the guards to lie about what happened at the tomb. They didn’t want the truth to get out about Jesus. In other words, two thousand years ago people were propagating a false doctrine purely for financial gain. Seems not much has changed in two thousand years. The world is filled with people who have fabricated a perverted gospel, void of truth, in order to line their pockets and profit themselves. – verses 11-15

4. And of course when Jesus gave the disciples the directive and mandate to make disciples of all the nations, He told them to teach people how to obey….all that He had commanded. Therein lies the heart of discipleship. We teach people how to obey. We don’t just preach. We don’t just lecture. We don’t just provide ministries to keep people busy. We are given the mandate to undertake the arduous task of making passionate, biblically literate, selfless, committed followers of Jesus Christ. This indeed is a lifelong endeavor that requires a far greater investment than mere attendance and acceptance of the status quo. It requires that we know the Word of God and that we commit the whole of our lives to teaching it to others. Plain and simple, biblical discipleship is teaching people how to obey the commands of Jesus (namely the Word of God) – verse 20

5. I think what most of us miss seeing here is the correlation between obedience (Jesus commanded us to teach people how to obey) and love. Love, as we know, is demonstrated not by lip service or simple confession. Love is proven valid only by actions. God the Father and God the Son are not looking for fans, They aren’t looking for moralists, They aren’t looking for religious people. They are looking for people who love Them more than life itself and whose lives authenticate the confession they make with their mouths.

May we be those people!

Fleeing Quarrels and Correcting Opponents

2011-01-03T12:12:00.002-05:00

Fleeing Quarrels and Correcting Opponents
(originally posted by www.desiringgod.org on January 3, 2011)

2 Timothy 2:22-26
‘So flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart. 23 Have nothing to do with foolish, ignorant controversies; you know that they breed quarrels. 24 And the Lord's servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, 25 correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, 26 and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will.’

God’s word warns us that some controversies are foolish and ignorant. They breed quarrels. We have been freed from sin and death—we ought not to be quarrelsome but kind to everyone. Instead of looking for a fight we ought to flee these sorts of vain disputations.

Does this mean that we should not correct our opponents? To the contrary, in the same passage where Paul warns against foolish controversies he also commands Timothy (and us) to correct his opponents with gentleness. Correction of false doctrine is commanded, and so is gentleness.

It isn’t arrogant to correct our opponents, gently. God may grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth and escape the snare of the Devil. Without correcting them, this would not happen. The implication is that it must be done gently for God to grant it to them. Note that God is sovereign in this transaction—he “grants” repentance. We are called to trust that God blesses his own means of grace.

What happens if we do not correct gently?

Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted. (Galatians 6:1)

If we do not correct gently, it is probably because of pride and a lack of long-suffering. We leave ourselves wide open for temptation. Instead of running toward temptation, we ought to flee it and pray for protection from it (Matthew 6:13).
We need to return our eyes again to the cross, remembering that we were once enemies of Christ, dead in our sins. Our pride and short-suffering wranglings are not in keeping with the gospel . . . what do we have that we have not been given (1 Corinthians 4:7)? We might be correct in our argument, but if sin motivates our hearts rather than “faith working through love," it is worthless (Galatians 5:6; 1 Corinthians 13:3).

So let us flee foolish controversies. But when we must correct an opponent, let us do it gently, “by faith working through love,” in order that God might grant repentance.

Good Bye Elizabeth

2011-01-01T00:00:00.004-05:00

Today marks a very sad day in our home. We received notification this morning that a dear friend of ours in Liberia, Africa passed away.

As most of you know, we’ve adopted four children from Liberia. Elizabeth Johnson is the birth mother of our youngest son Ephraim. We met Elizabeth on the beach in May of 2007 when we were in Liberia adopting Moses and Nana.

Elizabeth had walked for days looking for someone who would take her son Ephraim. He was sick with malaria, malnourished and very ill. Elizabeth followed us from the beach back to the place where we were staying. She had been carrying little Ephraim on her back for many days and had already traveled a very long distance. Elizabeth just wanted someone who would take her son and care for him, something she realized she was not able to do.

Long story short, Julie and I decided to adopt little Ephraim in March of 2008. I went back to Liberia in August of 2008 to pick Ephraim up, along with another one of our Liberian sons, Ezekiel.

Since our first encounter with Elizabeth and Ephraim on the beach in May of 2007, we were connected. We had no idea what God was purposing to do, but looking back we can clearly see how He was working through all of the details to make it possible to bring Ephraim into our family.

Throughout the past three and a half years, we’ve been able to watch God do a great work in Elizabeth’s life. She enrolled in school, excelled in her academics, and transferred to a nursing program last year. We were honored to walk alongside of her during these past few years.

During the summer of 2010, Elizabeth was afforded an amazing opportunity to travel to South Africa with several other honor students to participate in a nursing program. Again, we walked with her through this season and celebrated each step along the way.

On each of my trips to Liberia, I always get to see Elizabeth. Both Dawson and Cassie have also been able to meet Elizabeth when they've been in Liberia with me. And this past summer, while Julie was in Liberia for three weeks, Elizabeth had her over to her small little home and cooked a very special meal for her. Julie and Elizabeth had a great time making memories and sharing their hearts together. These two beautiful women have had a very intimate bond through this special little boy we call Eph.

In mid December, we were notified that Elizabeth had become ill and needed serious medical attention. It would take nearly $2.500 to transfer her from South Africa to Ghana where she could receive the proper medical attention she so desperately needed.

This is the note we received from Elizabeth on December 18th.

Hi mom and dad,
kindly help me towards my medical fees. Am seriously ill and need advance treatment now. Mr joeseph is here with me now and he have tried 2 raise some amount from friends and my mother pls am begging u 2 do something 4 me aleast this coming wk. 2day i manage 2 seat up 4 a while.
How is Ephraim doing? pls take goo care of him.
Can't say much pls am on my knees begging u 2 do something.

Urs Elizabeth

Unfortunately, we did not have this amount of money to send. Instead, we prayed and trusted that God would do what only He could do in caring for Elizabeth.

Over the course of this past week, we were notified several times of her condition. She emailed and texted us on numerous occasions and her school mates also notified us of her condition. Feeling a bit paralyzed because we were not able to send any money, we simply prayed. The truth is, Julie and I contemplated how we could raise money to help, but our past efforts to raise money for dire needs in Liberia have not been successful, so we decided our efforts would again be in vain. We did nothing.

Unfortunately, on Friday morning, December 31, 2010, at 9 a.m. we were notified that Elizabeth had passed away.

For both Julie and I, our hearts broke. Not only are we saddened to have lost someone so special and dear to us, but we also immediately felt like we could have done something to prevent this from happening, but didn’t. And because we didn’t, Elizabeth is now gone.

So many things have been on my mind and my heart today. I feel bad. We both feel bad. We feel guilty. We wonder if we could have somehow raised the money and sent it, would Elizabeth still be alive. We’re wondering how to tell little Ephraim about his mom. He talks so much about his “Africa mom”, as he would affectionately calls her.

God has been gracious to remind me of His truth today. Several things continue to come to mind:

1. God holds the keys to life and death. He ordains man’s life and every day is accounted for in His book before one of them ever comes to be.

2. God’s plans and purposes cannot be thwarted. He will do what He has purposed to do, and nothing I do or don’t do will change that. It doesn’t mean I don’t have my part to play in His design. It just means He is sovereign and will accomplish what seems good to Him.

3. There is so much work to be done in Liberia. In the past two weeks we’ve been presented with a myriad of opportunities to be a part of helping people. And although it seems like we have failed in our previous attempts to raise funds for our work in Liberia, we will continue striving to raise the awareness of the dire conditions in Liberia, and we will continue investing in people’s lives, for the glory of God.

4. Each day that slips by, I’m continually reminded that we can live with much less. And the more we purpose to live below our means, the more we’ll have to invest in the kingdom and the less we’ll be hoarding for our own indulgences.

5. The body of Christ here in North America has an enormous opportunity and incredible privilege to be a part of God’s redemptive purposes around the world. We really CAN make a difference in people’s lives by our giving and by our going.

6. In spite of the economy, in spite of certain friction with the Liberian government, in spite of our separation from our Liberian contacts, in spite of our prior inability to raise sufficient funds for our Liberian projects, we will continue running hard after the Lord and doing what we can to intercept lives, preach the gospel and make disciples.

7. You can join us in this work. To give a financial contribution to help send people to school, care for orphans, dig wells, and projects like these, just go to our website (www.2911.org) and click on the DONATE NOW tab. Your tax deductible contributions allow us to continue investing in people’s lives and making a lasting difference for the glory of God.

We know Elizabeth loved the Lord Jesus and was purposing to know Him and make Him known. And although we are deeply saddened by her passing, we know her lungs are filled with the aroma of heaven and she has joined in the anthem of heaven declaring the worthship of Jesus. She will never tire of saying “holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty. Who was and is and is to come”

For the first time, she now sees, with unveiled face, the glory of God in the face of Jesus. She is alive. She is whole. And she can clearly see her life and momentary trials were nothing in comparison to seeing Jesus face to face.

I look forward to joining her. Because for me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.

Our Prayer...

2010-12-28T10:30:00.002-05:00

I'd like to encourage you to join me in praying this prayer.

I have seen You in the sanctuary and beheld Your power and Your glory, and because Your love is better than life, my lips will praise You. I will praise You as long as I live and in Your name I will lift up my hands. My soul will be satisfied as with the richest of foods.

You are God and You alone stand worthy of our worship. You alone cause the sun to rise and the sun to set. By the power of Your word, You created each star and then flung them into space. You even know their names. You created the wind and the waves and hold the keys to life and death. Not a single snowflake or drop of rain fall from the sky without Your knowledge.

Salvation belongs to You and You alone and we trust that You will be faithful to save Your elect. You have purposed to use Your people in Your plan to redeem the world and we are awed by that. We stand humbled before You that You would choose to redeem our lives, pull us from the mire and muck of our world, set our feet on solid ground, reconcile us to Yourself and then entrust us with Your message of reconciliation. We are indeed Your ambassadors so please supernaturally empower us to live as such.

For years You have patiently endured our foolish pride and arrogance. It is true, over the years, we’ve adopted and embraced only part of Your gospel. And in embracing only part of Your Word, we have nullified the entirety of it. By not accepting and embracing the whole counsel of God, we’ve fabricated an entirely new gospel, which is really no gospel at all. We have not personally embraced the hard claims of Jesus and are therefore unable to beckon others to abandon the totality of their lives for the sake of the gospel.

Our hearts have been deceived. Our eyes have been blinded. Our ears are often deaf to hear Your voice. Jesus, You said that Your sheep hear Your voice. You know them and they follow You. If we really are Your sheep, teach us to recognize Your voice above the voices of the world. We are bombarded by lesser gods vying for our allegiance. Instead of drowning out all the competing voices we hear, teach us to willfully treasure You, love You and choose You above these other gods.

We stand guilty before You of embracing and perpetuating a horribly perverted form of the gospel. We have set aside the costly endeavor of following Jesus and instead have encouraged people to look to You as Savior with little or no thought of explaining that You are first and foremost Lord. And as Lord, You have demanded that we repent and come to You. Your call is not a benign, safe, alluring invitation to come and find security. Rather, Your call is a dangerous one to lose our very lives. You’ve beckoned us to come and die, take up Your cross, render ourselves dead, crucify our flesh, and commit our lives to making much of Your name and renown in the world. Forgive us for lessening Your radical call on our lives and forfeiting the blessing of the life altering discovery that You are the Treasure worth living for and worth dying for.

We know You are able, so for our good and for Your glory, would You purge our hearts of anything and everything that would compete for our total alliance to You? Because of Your great kindness, would You lead us to repentance? And because You do all things well, would You please continue to conform our hearts and transform our lives to the image of Jesus?

We confess to You and You alone that we stand before You guilty. We’ve elevated gift above Giver. We’ve elevated health above the Physician. We’ve elevated full bellies above hungry hearts. We have indeed cheapened the glory and grace of God by ignoring the depth and magnitude of our own filthy sin. When we ignore our sin, we presume our innocence and minimize the vast expanse of Your mercies that are new every morning.

Forgive us God for all the years we’ve spent embracing a cheapened version of the gospel while minimizing the high cost of following Jesus. We’ve traded what it means to give our lives away for Your name and renown, in order to secure our seat in Your eternal kingdom. We’ve wrongly assumed that praying a prayer to escape the tortures of hell is the same as embracing a life devoted to the high cost of following Jesus.

You’ve made it clear in Your Word that what we have doesn’t belong to us. You are the rightful Owner of it and You’ve loaned it to us, with the expectation that we will steward it well and invest it in building Your kingdom. Oh God, we must confess that we’ve hoarded our material possessions and we’ve not learned to give sacrificially. We’ve given out of our excess, with very little or no cost involved, and then asked You to bless it. What a mockery we’ve made of what it means to be a radical disciple of Jesus Christ and an extravagant giver of all that You’ve given.

We know that You are indeed most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in You. We’ve embraced a perverted gospel which teaches us to look for Your handouts instead of looking for You. We’ve wrongly assumed that You are somehow appeased when we are busy playing church. Instead of learning how to treasure You above all else, we’ve learned to seek after and treasure the things You give us and the things You do for us.

Because our souls are not satisfied in Christ alone, our hearts go in silent search of other lovers. Forgive us Lord for being adulterers. We have indeed embraced other lovers along the way. At times we’ve been discontent with You and attempted to fill our hearts with the affections and pleasure of gross substitutes.

You’ve warned us that You are indeed a jealous God and You do not share Your glory. We stand guilty of ever so subtly attempting to overthrow the glory that belongs to You and take it captive for ourselves.

We confess our heinous sins before You with a full understanding that our sin grieves Your heart. We know our sin is not small, as we like to think. We’re fully aware that we cannot hide anything from You. You see our sin, You see our hiding and You are fully aware of the games we play.

Thank You God for Your glory. Thank You Father for Your mercy. We bless You because Your grace is sufficient. We are enamored by the wisdom and the beauty that You behold.

We long to be faithful to the high calling we have to be sons and daughters of the King. Help us to faithfully represent You well to the world. May our message be pure. May our hearts be ignited. And may the totality of our lives be spent preaching the gospel to the world and making radical, passionate, God-honoring, Christ-exalting disciples of all the nations.

We love You and the glory of Your name.

Through Jesus we pray, Amen

Friends and Supporters

2010-12-27T11:29:00.001-05:00

Dear Friends and Supporters of 29.11,

It is a great honor to be alive today. And not just alive, but filled with the abundant life that Jesus came to bring us. I’m learning that abundance doesn’t come by way of more things, nicer homes, bigger cars, more toys or healthier bodies. Abundant life comes to those who willingly die to their own lives, pick up the cross and embrace the life Jesus purposed for us.

The abundant life Jesus promised those who follow Him can be had. And it can be had when our health fails us. It can be had when our finances are in shambles. And it can be had when persecution is abundant.

In short, the abundant life Jesus promised His followers can be embraced and enjoyed when we learn how to crucify our own flesh, settle in our minds that to live is Christ and to die is gain, and when we purpose to walk in conformity to the revealed Word of God.

I’m grateful that God has indeed poured out His grace and mercy in my life, and His grace to me was not without affect.

As I reflect over the past year and imagine the year to come, I am quietly reminded that all that there is exists for God’s pleasure. All that I have, I have because of God’s riches. All that I am becoming is possible simply because of the mercy of God.

As I look out my office window I can see the darkness as it gives way to the morning light and I am reminded that though the earth may give way, though my heart may fail me, though my finances may crumble, though my future is uncertain, the Lord is my strength and my portion forever.

Amen. Amen. Amen.

This morning as I work to bring this book project to completion, I keep replaying over and over in my head my decision from several weeks ago. I decided we were not going to ask people to support 29.11 this month. I desperately want to be a part of the sovereign work of God watching Him do things that only He can do. And I want to have faith that He can indeed make provisions for His work.

Having said that and continuing to desire that, I’m now wrestling with how much of what I said was by faith and how much was couched in pride. I would like to think I made those decisions out of a deep desire and longing to honor God with the whole of my life. And although I am committed to not asking people to support 29.11, I do want to make the needs known and give you the opportunity to make an end of the year contribution if you’d like. Not asking, simply making the needs known.

The past two months have been our most difficult financially. Because the book project has consumed all of my time, and coupled with a family emergency that had me out of town this month, we have fallen behind significantly in our support.

We know a lot of people who live on support like we do. One guy in particular posted an invitation on facebook for people to give to his ministry. And he listed the stats of the number of people he spoke to, the number of decisions they had recorded, how many people were baptized, etc.

Over the past few years God has convicted me of sharing such facts. We cannot possibly stick a dollar amount to a life. And as soon as we begin quantifying our work and attaching dollar amounts to it, we’re seriously off course.

In short – 29.11 exists to make much of God’s name and renown. We invest our time and resources in preaching the gospel around the globe and making disciples of the nations. Sometimes we do that here in the States and sometimes we do that in other countries around the world. Sometimes I travel alone and other times I lead groups. Sometimes the fruit from our labor is obvious, other times it’s hardly recognizable. Sometimes I come home after these trips feeling like I just climbed Mt. Everest and other times I come home feeling like I just went 10 rounds with Evander Holyfield. Either way though, I am eternally grateful to God for His call on my life and how He supplies the needs to accomplish His work. Most days I just stand in awe of the whole thing.

If you or someone you know would like to partner with us financially as we do this, we would be honored. And your end of the year contribution could not possibly come at a more pivotal time.

You can either send a check to:
29.11 Ministries
69 Briarwood Rd.
Asheville, NC 28804

Or you can go to our website and make a donation via Paypal. Just go to www.2911.org and hit the DONATE NOW tab on the left side of the home page.

Thanks in advance. I know many of you pray for us. And those who can, often make financial contributions to equip us to preach the gospel and make disciples. On behalf of my wife and kids, thank you. Thank you for entrusting us with some of what the Father has entrusted to you. Your faithful stewardship of those resources make it possible for our ministry to continue.

1 Peter 2.9-10 “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.”

Dirk

A Bitter Harvest?

2010-12-15T23:10:00.000-05:00

A blog from www.desiringgod.org on 12.15.10

The Bible is very clear about three things:
1.God's way is always the best way (Psalm 119:160).
2.God's way will not always seem the best way to you (Proverb 14:12).
3.What you plant, you will harvest (Galatians 6:7ff).

In every relationship, every day you harvest what you previously planted and plant what you will someday harvest. When division and acrimony take place in a relationship, we aren't experiencing mysterious difficulty. No, sadly, we're harvesting what we have sown.

In this fallen world, where we are always sinners in relationship with sinners, one of the most beautiful and protective things God calls us to is forgiveness. But forgiveness doesn't always look beautiful to us. Sometimes holding onto a wrong seems to us to be a better way. Isn't it amazing that we who rest in and celebrate the forgiveness we have been given, find forgiveness often difficult and unattractive!

Forgiveness and unforgiveness are not neutral; each plants certain seeds and each produces a certain kind of harvest. So, it is important to consider the relationship-damaging stages of the harvest of unforgiveness. I am deeply persuaded that many, many people are in some way following this path and many of them do not know it.

1) Immaturity and Failure
Not only are all people in relationships sinners, but most of us live in our relationships all too casually and naive. Often we really do have an immature attitude toward the relationships in our life. Because of this we do dumb, selfish, sinful things—things that none of us thought the other would do. In our surprise and hurt, we give way to accusation, blame, judgment, and punishment rather than to honest confrontation, confession, and forgiveness.

What we fail to realize is that not only are we responding poorly to the present moment, but we are beginning to set the direction of the relationship. Each selfish act followed by a bitter response damages the affection and loyalty we have for one another and the unity and respect we are meant to enjoy.

2) Falling into Comfortable Patterns
Since confrontation, confession, and forgiveness are all hard work, it is easier to give way to lower urges. It is easier to harrumph and walk away, to rehearse in your mind the other’s wrongs, to compile your list, to yell in anger, and to level a threat. So many people allow themselves to fall into comfortable but relationally destructive patterns. Meanwhile, the affection and respect between them is weakening, and the distance between them is widening.

3) Establishing Defenses
Rather than hope and courage growing as the result of a healthy relational lifestyle of honesty and forgiveness, many people learn how to construct walls of defense against each other’s irritated accusations. And we soon learn that the best defense is an offense, so we tackle the increasing criticism of the other by reaching into the list we have compiled and reminding the other how imperfect he or she is and, therefore, how difficult it is to have a relationship with them.

This combination of self-righteousness (convincing ourselves that we are not the problem) and accusation (telling the other person that he or she is the problem) precludes relationship. We are not standing together seeking to defend this relationship against attack. No, we are viewing each other as adversaries and throwing up walls of defense against one another.

4) Nurturing Dislike
Because we are allowing ourselves to meditate on what is wrong about the other rather than celebrating the good God has done in and through him or her, our perspective becomes increasingly negative. Since human beings do not live by the facts of their experience but by their interpretation of the facts, this globally negative assessment becomes the interpretive lens through which we begin to see all that the other person says and does. So what we once would not have seen as negative, we now interpret as negative.
I have counseled many people, who once had great appreciation and respect for one another, who simply don’t like one another very much anymore. If fact, I have had people say to me that it is hard for them to look back and remember when the relationship was peaceful and good.

5) Becoming Overwhelmed
At some point, being in a relationship with someone you don’t like very much and feeling the need to daily defend yourself against attack becomes very exhausting and discouraging. The same offenses are taken and the same accusations are leveled over and over again. The same debate over who is the harder to relate to happens again and again. You come to the point of dreading seeing the person and you avoid it if you can. You walk on eggshells, wondering when the next bomb will drop and shatter what little peace is left.

6) Envy of Others
It’s hard when you live like this not to look over the fence or across the room and envy relationships that seem to have everything you don’t. And when you do this, it's tempting to doubt God’s love and wisdom when you feel that you have been singled out for difficulties that others aren’t facing.

Comparing your relationship to the distant, airbrushed public persona of another relationship is always dangerous but particularly destructive to a relationship where day after day you're already not giving yourself much reason to continue.

7) Fantasies of Escape
If kept alone, unforgiveness always seems to lead here. You are angry, hurt, and overwhelmed. You don’t really like the other person very much, and you don’t look forward to the times when you are together. You feel overwhelmed and smothered. You tell yourself that you are the daily victim of the other’s sin. You can’t imagine that the other person is really going to change. It all seems impossible, so you begin to fantasize about escape.

At first, it’s just the unrealistic daydreams of the tired, but it becomes more than that. The road between fantasy and obsession or fantasy and resolve is often not very long. You are in a place of being very susceptible to walking away, allowing this relationship to be yet another casualty in your relational history.

You may be thinking, “Wow, Paul, that is a very bleak picture!” Well, I would ask you this: do you have a relationship in your life that is moving or has moved down this pathway?

The God of forgiveness and grace enables you by his forgiveness and grace to live in relationships of forgiveness and grace. By his grace you can plant seeds of forgiveness that grow relationships of appreciation, respect and love even though you're always in relationship with sinners.
By God's grace you don't have to lug yesterday's hurt into today's relationship. Jesus died, not only to forgive you, but by his sin-conquering death, to enable you to forgive others. By his grace reconciliation and restoration really are possible. He really is the Prince of Peace.

Where should you start? You start by admitting your sin and your weakness. It is only when you admit your need that you will then get excited about seeking his forgiveness and power.

When you do this something else happens; you remember that the other person is not the only sinner in the relationship. This makes it possible for you to admit that you are more like the other person than unlike them. It is then you begin to realize the only way two sinners can forge a relationship of respect, appreciation, and peace is when they are relying on God's grace and are committed to give grace to one another.
By his powerful grace you really can avoid the sad pathway and the bitter harvest that is the condition of many relationships this side of eternity.

A Holy Discontent

2010-12-06T23:54:00.002-05:00

Truth is, I’ve been struggling for the past 10 years. Not with drinking or drugs, but with something much more destructive. Before you write mean letters or post anonymous comments on my blog, I should first explain that I know the bible says we should be content in every situation. It was the Apostle Paul who said he learned to be content when naked or clothed. He also learned how to be content when he was hungry and when his belly was full. It was Paul who said, godliness with contentment is great gain. I know what he was talking about. And I couldn’t agree more. Honest.

I’m not one of those Christians who pick and choose what verses to believe and which ones to omit. I believe the bible is the inspired, infallible, inerrant Word of God, useful for teaching, correcting and training in righteousness so the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.

I have strived to practice this type of contentment that Paul was talking about. I pray often that God would take away my lust for more stuff. I plead with God to make my heart yearn for Him and not the things of this world. I don’t want to spend my money on things that will ultimately be burnt up. I long to invest the resources that God has entrusted me with, on things that will grow the kingdom of God. I genuinely desire that God would teach me this type of contentment that the world does not know. I have such a long ways to go though.

But I must confess, I am still very discontent in a certain area. I have a good friend who calls this a “holy discontent”. I’m not discontent with the house we live in, the car we drive, or the clothes we wear. We don’t have super nice stuff, but I’m incredibly aware we live better than 95% of the world’s population. Over 1 billion people live on less than $1 a day. More than 2 billion people live on $2 a day. Nearly half of the world’s population of 7 billion people live on less than $2 a day. So, by all accounts, I am a wealthy man. By American standards, maybe not so much. But like I said, God is teaching me how to be content with what He’s entrusted me with. And He’s also teaching me that He measures my generosity, not by how much I give away, but by how much I keep.

However, I am deeply discontent in the area of the American Church. I’m by no means pointing fingers at any one person, pastor, church or denomination. But for the past 10 years, I’ve become more and more discontent with my “church” experiences. I understand no church is perfect. And more than a couple of people over the years have told me that if I ever find a perfect church, I shouldn’t join it because I’ll ruin it.

The more I study the Word of God and the more I fall in love with Jesus, the more He conforms me into His likeness. I believe it is this process of transformation and sanctification that allow me to be painfully aware of some of the things that grieve the heart of God when it comes to His corporate body. He’s also showing me the types of things that bring Him pleasure.

For the purpose of this blog entry, my attention is turned to the things that grieve the heart of God. I know that Jesus said that His church WILL prevail and that the very gates of hell will not deter His kingdom purposes from being sovereignly fulfilled.

We would be foolish though to think that there aren’t things we can do to miss the mark. We’d be naïve to think that God hasn’t given us a very clear model of what He wants His church to look like. Arguably, most bible scholars and pastors would direct you to the book of Acts for an overview of what a local, New Testament church should look like. Specifically, most of us would direct you to Acts chapter 2 for a very specific and detailed portrait of what the first church looked like and by all accounts what our churches should look like today.

I’ve been reading through Acts for the past couple of months. I’ve also been meditating on and studying Acts 2.42-47. I read this passage and I hold it up to the average American evangelical church. It would be good for all of us to take a good, hard look and use this Acts model as the litmus test to evaluate whether or not we’re anything like what a New Testament church should look like.

Here’s a brief description of the church outlined in Acts 2. The church was characterized by:

1. Devotion to the Apostles teaching
2. Devotion to the fellowship
3. Devotion to breaking break
4. Devotion to prayer
5. People were filled with awe
6. Apostles were doing extraordinary things through the power of the Holy Spirit
7. Believers were united
8. Believers had all things in common
9. Believers sold their possessions and belongings
10. Believers pulled their resources to help those who were in need
11. Attended the temple together
12. Broke bread in their homes
13. Grateful hearts for food and provisions
14. Hearts that praised God
15. Favor with the people
16. Numeric growth

For the sake of time, I cannot address each of these characteristics. However, I think it’s wise and fair for us to take a thorough look at this list and ask ourselves if we’re a part of a New Testament church that is committed to following the model set up for us, or have we somehow been duped and persuaded that church is more about the nice buildings, tailor made ministries, comfortable pews (or chairs), polished music and a gifted speaker? Isn’t it true that we’ve become a very self centered, consumeristic church as opposed to a giving, sacrificial, disciple making, gospel taking, darkness penetrating church? My fear is, most churches across our country today aren’t even close to doing what God has outlined and mandated us to do – namely, to proclaim the glory of God to the nations of the world.

It seems painfully obvious that the way we evaluate and grade the effectiveness of our churches has little to do with how effectively and obediently we are adhering to two things: 1. the mandate Jesus gave us to make disciples of all nations, and 2. the church model the early Christians gave us in Acts 2.

Instead we evaluate our churches based on trends, church growth techniques, baptisms, building campaigns, vibrant AWANA programs, and our preference for music and our style of speakers.

As passionate followers of Jesus Christ, we should be committed to ensuring that our churches are adhering to clear biblical principles and mandates. And when they aren’t, we should be willing and courageous enough to speak with our church leadership about it.

Can I ask a question? If we’re following the Acts 2 church model described above, how can it be that in the same church, we have pastors barely making minimum wage while other pastors are making 6 figures living in luxurious homes? I understand corporate America. But, the church is not corporate America. The church is a very unique entity marked by the life of a sacrificial Savior who came not to be served but to serve, and who came to turn the world upside down as it relates to EVERYTHING.

If we are co-laborers in the gospel, and if we are committed to following the model set up for us to follow, why do we have wealthy people in our churches on one end of the pew and desperately poor people just a few feet down the row at the other end of the pew. How can this be? How can the same church justify paying a senior pastor a lucrative salary with retirement, insurance and all the perks that typically come along with the position of senior pastor, while his co-laborers are on food stamps? Isn’t there something inherently wrong with this paradigm that we’ve created? It certainly is not the model Jesus created for us and it most definitely isn’t the model the early Christians set up for us.

But, it is our model. It’s the one we’re most comfortable with. It’s the model that ensures we don’t have to make any huge, crazy sacrifices as we climb our way up the comfortable ladder of American Christianity.

I have so many questions about the church. I wonder if I’m just too idealistic sometimes. Or, could it be that God has raised up some men and women who will be courageous enough to cause us to question the status quo that we’ve blindly accepted for so long? Could it be that God Himself is sounding the alarm to awaken within us a sensitivity to His spirit that we’ve been missing for so long?

I believe God is ready to mark us with a fresh move from on high. I believe that God longs to use His bride as a unified instrument to declare the glory of God to the nations of the world.

If we’re ever going to have the kind of impact that we were designed to have on the world, we will not do it by being lone rangers on the field of Christianity. We will do it as the bride of Christ takes seriously the mandates in Scripture and is willing to lose our lives, abandon our comforts, and lay down our entitlements for the sake of the elect.

As radical as it might seem, I’m ready to join an Acts 2 community. Are you?

Jesus and Karaoke

2010-12-04T08:11:00.001-05:00

Last night was an interesting night. Partly depressing. Partly convicting. Partly enlightening. Please let me try to explain.

I’ve been in Ohio this past week taking care of some family issues. While here, I’m trying to make good use of my time. When I’m not working on the issues that brought me here, I’m trying to invest my time with some other extended family that I unfortunately don’t see often enough.

My cousin Wendy and her husband Steve own a steak house in Twin Lakes, Ohio called the Rusty Nail. Wendy is a recovering addict. She was bad off. Really bad off. Ten years on the streets using and abusing drugs and alcohol. During the most critical time of her years on drugs, months would go by without anyone knowing if she were alive or dead. Needless to say, those were ten excruciatingly long, painful months for her family.

In any case, the family emergency that brought me to Ohio was a brother of mine who blew through an enormous amount of cocaine in an effort to end his life. However, it didn’t work. He was missing for 4 days and ended up in a hospital. Long story short, we’ve spent this past week trying to help him get his life together. We’ve done everything we know how to do in an effort to help him understand his desperate need for counseling and treatment. My hurt grieves today because those efforts have been entirely futile...again. Unfortunately, this is not our first rodeo with my brother.

Earlier this week, I thought it would be a good idea to get my brother together with my cousin Wendy. Her story and how her family showed her tough love, could possibly help Darin understand the severity of his own issues and need for help. Well, the other night my brother was planning on going with me to talk with Wendy. Our plan was for me and my brother to have dinner with my cousin and then talk about her story. All of you former addicts reading this now won’t be surprised to hear that my brother backed out at the last minute. Seemingly more concerned about my brother than he is, I decided to go anyway. Alone.

Not surprisingly, Wendy and I had a great time talking. Our conversation soon turned to spiritual things and we talked into the wee hours of the morning. My cousin Wendy is my age, and I’m ashamed to admit, I’ve never sat down and had a significant conversation with her. But it happened this week and it marked me. It was no doubt a bright spot of my time in Ohio.

Tonight, my mom and I went back out to my cousin’s restaurant to have dinner and to give Wendy a few books I had purchased for her. In addition to a couple short Piper books, I gave her a Couples Bible and the book Radical by David Platt. Both of which I believe will be instrumental in her life as she gets to know the Jesus of the bible and discovers His redemptive and salvific plan for her life. I can’t wait to see all this unfold.

Well, tonight my mom and I sat in the bar area and enjoyed a great meal. It’s Friday night and Friday night at The Rusty Nail is Karaoke Night. We watched for an hour and a half as aspiring singers gave their all. Some were able to carry a note…others…well let’s just say, they should stick to their day jobs. The last time I sat through Karaoke was back in the late 80’s and truthfully, I was not sober that night. This night was different. I was one hundred percent sober, lucid and had all my faculties together.

I like to think of myself as a professional people watcher. I understand people watching is not a spiritual gift and I doubt Jesus will ever ask me how I used that passion to make Him look good.

As people watching goes, tonight was no exception. There were plenty of interesting people to watch and listen to. As I sat watching and taking in all that I was seeing, my heart began to break. My heart broke as I watched people sit at the bar and drink. And then I started adding up all the money they were spending on their alcohol. It’s significant. Very significant.

This was the part that was depressing. Incredibly depressing to watch all these people waste so much of their time and money sitting at a bar. They’re looking for something to ease the pain, minimize the stress, and allow them to enjoy a night with their spouse or significant other uninhibited by the realities of the daily grind of life.

I also left tonight feeling enlightened and convicted. I was reminded that by and large, I was surrounded by lost people. Not judging, just making an educated assessment. Certainly these are not the people that have the abundant life that Jesus came to bring us. These are not the people who are enthralled by the glory of Jesus. This bar didn’t seem to be occupied by people who have experienced the depth of the grace of God.

And I was struck by this not-so-deep-but-eternally-significant thought. If this is the place where people who are estranged from God hang out, why wouldn’t I spend more time hanging out in places like this? Why are my days filled with safe places and safe, relatively clean people? Why don’t I make more of an effort to go places where Jesus would go? You’ll remember Jesus went to a wedding in John 2. Not only were they serving alcohol, but Jesus Himself MADE wine. This was indeed His first recorded miracle – turning water into wine. In John 4 we read about Jesus intentionally walking through the town of Samaria – which was a definite no-no for Jews. And to top it off, he actually even talked to a woman in Samaria. A double no-no! In John 8 we read about his interaction with the adulteress brought before Him for stoning. Perhaps in our culture, we would avoid this situation all-together. After all, being seen with a known hooker or promiscuous woman could seriously destroy our professional and personal reputation. In Matthew 8 and Mark 1 we read about Jesus’ interaction with leper’s. That doesn’t mean much to us in our culture, but perhaps hanging out with a leper would be the equivalent to hanging out with someone who has AIDS. Lepers were ban from town and by and large ban from interaction with the general population. Being seen with a leper wasn’t exactly what you did to win friends and influence people. In Mark 3 and Luke 6, we read the account of Jesus healing a guy with a jacked up hand…on the Sabbath! Again, a spiritual and cultural taboo. In Luke 5 Scripture says Jesus invited a tax collector named Levi to join His small band of followers. Tax collectors were not the most popular or liked guys around. Jesus once again showed His defiance for hollow and hypocritical religion void of truth and compassion.

The reality is our cushy, conservative American churches frown upon church members frequenting bars and pubs. They most certainly don’t encourage pastors to spend time in those establishments either. Our plan is – let the lost, spiritually estranged, hell bound sinners come to us. Let’s spend all of our time and invest all of our resources on our big buildings and fancy “outreach” ministries. But for the love of God, DON’T GO TO THOSE SHADY PLACES WHERE OTHER CHURCH MEMBERS MIGHT HAPPEN TO SEE US, WRONGLY IDENTIFY US AS ONE OF THOSE “SINNERS” AND START THE HOLY HUDDLE RUMORS THAT WE’VE TAKEN A HARD FALL FROM GRACE.

So, tonight I had a revelation. I need to get my butt off the pew and plop it down in a bar stool. And I need to do that often. Intentionally. Vigilantly. With great compassion and with a clear conviction that Jesus has indeed called me to infiltrate the darkness. He didn’t call me to ask the darkness to find my light. He has commanded me to take His light into the dark places of this earth.

Will you join me in abandoning all the foolish and naïve manmade church rules we tend to hide behind in an effort to escape the clear command from Jesus to go into all the world, and will you join me in getting radical and vigilant by spending our days impacting the darkness instead of continuing to waste our time trying to light up the light. We’ve wasted far too much time doing that, while the lost people around us are heading to hell.

Keep in mind that Jesus Himself has called us to abandon our lives for the sake of the gospel. So…find a bar. Pick up a microphone. Join the karaoke. I’m convinced these are the people that Jesus referred to as ‘harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.’ They need Jesus and we have Him.

"God Bless You and God Bless America"

2010-12-03T16:10:00.000-05:00

“God Bless You and God Bless America.”

Sounds innocent enough. Even sounds spiritual, right? I think it’s subtly masked in spiritual jargon and we’re too often guilty of drinking the cool-aid without a second thought. I’m usually a bit cynical though, so my take on this might be a little different.

I just saw a news clip of President Obama on a surprise trip to visit our troops in Afghanistan. And like any good President would do (and most have done), he concluded his comments by saying…”God bless you and God bless America!” Cue the applause.

I’m wondering though…are we really that naïve to think that God has any reason to bless a country that systematically denies His existence? Should we be so presumptuous to think that God will bless a people that have turned away from worshipping Him and have chosen to worship other gods?

Perhaps you don’t agree with my assessment. Maybe you’d join millions of others who think we are a “God fearing” nation. Maybe you have the mindset that we, as a country, care about God’s name and renown. You might even think we’re really not that far off the mark anyway.

I was reminded this morning as I heard President Obama’s closing comments in Afghanistan, and thinking back to interviews he’s done talking about his faith, that we as a country have defined God in so many different ways. And the truth is, the God revealed in the bible is NOT the same God that we talk about when we throw God’s name around and ask Him to bless our country. The God of Scripture, contrary to popular opinion, is NOT the same as Allah. God, as He is described on each of the living pages of both the old and the new testaments, is not the same God we ask blessings from at mealtime and bedtime.

Jehovah God, the God outlined from cover to cover of the bible, is different. Radically different. What makes Him different is significant. So significant that it cannot be overlooked. What sets God apart as God and proves we are not all talking about the same God, is the fact that Scripture teaches that God is a triune Deity. He is not just God. He is God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.

I wonder if, when President Obama encouraged the troops with those words “God bless you and God bless America”, he was referring to the same holy God who sent His perfect Son to bear the wrath of sin for the world. I wonder if the God President Obama is referring to is the same God that sits enthroned in heaven and sovereignly causes the winds to blow, the ice to fall, starts and ends life, and holds the planets and stars in place throughout the universe. I wonder if the God Obama is referring to has a Son who claimed to be one with God and also holds an exclusive claim to be the only way to God the Father. Jesus Himself declared that He was THE way, THE truth, and THE life and that NO ONE could get to the Father, except that they go through Him. I don’t think we’re talking about the same God here.

It also strikes me as a bit odd that Obama is applauded for declaring the blessings of God on the American people, but our teachers are forbid from teaching anything about Him and are prohibited from pointing to the one authoritative book we have that defines God and His salvific work throughout recorded history. Obama can call down the blessings of God on our troops, but we can’t teach our students that the God detailed in Scripture is also responsible for bringing us into existence.

We don’t seem to recognize that this God is also worthy of our worship and worthy of our lives. We’ll use Him at our convenience to rain down His blessings on us, but we are not motivated and convicted to live our lives under His lordship and authority.

I hope I’m not the only one alarmed by the seeming contradiction and hypocrisy that abounds in the “God fearing” nation in which we live. Be alert. Be aware. Be vigilant.

“Be sober minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith…” 1 Peter 5.8-9

A Radical Jesus - Part 2

2010-11-29T18:49:00.002-05:00

Can I just pick up and continue to share some quotes from David Platt’s book RADICAL? Good, because that’s what I’m going to do.

I continue to be deeply convicted while I read Radical and I’m more and more convinced I have spent far too many hours, days, weeks and years playing church…..with a whole lot of others who have also bought the lie. For me, those days are over. I desperately long to be faithful to the Word of God and be radical as I apply these truths to my life, my family and my ministry.

Read. Re-read. And join me in banning together to be the men and women we were created to be, in order to maximize the glory Jesus will receive from our lives.

Here are some quotes from Radical:

“Jesus Himself has not merely called us to go to all nations; He has created us and commanded us to go to all nations. We have taken this command, though, and reduced it to a calling – something that only a few people receive.”

“Every saved person this side of heaven owes the gospel to every lost person this side of hell.”

“We have subtly taken ourselves out from under the weight of a lost and dying world, wrung our hands in pious concern, and said, ‘I’m sorry. I’m just not called to that.’”

“Regardless of where we live – here or overseas – our hearts should be consumed with making the glory of God known in all nations.”

“Jesus has invited us to join with Him in the surprisingly simple journey of spreading the gospel to all nations by spending our lives for the good of others and the glory of God.”

“The megastrategy of Jesus: make disciples.”

“Making disciples is not an easy process. It is trying. It is messy. It is slow, tedious, even painful at times.”

“Disciple making is not a call for others to come to us to hear the gospel but a command for us to go to others to share the gospel.”

“Today, more than a billion people in the world live and die in desperate poverty. They attempt to survive on less than a dollar per day. Close to two billion others live on less than two dollars per day. More than twenty six thousand children today will breathe their last breath due to starvation or a preventable disease.”

“Anyone wanting to proclaim the glory of Christ to the ends of the earth must consider not only how to declare the gospel verbally but also how to demonstrate the gospel visibly in a world where so many are urgently hungry. If I am going to address urgent spiritual need by sharing the gospel of Christ or building up the body of Christ around the world, then I cannot overlook dire physical need in the process.”

“If there is no sign of caring for the poor in our lives, then there is reason to at least question whether Christ is in our hearts.”

“If our lives do not reflect radical compassion for the poor, there is reason to question just how effective we will be in declaring the glory of Christ to the ends of the earth. More pointedly, if our lives do not reflect radical compassion for the poor, there is reason to wonder if Christ is really in us at all.”

“Regardless of what we say or sing or study on Sunday morning, rich people who neglect the poor are not the people of God.”

“No teaching (including Jesus) in the New Testament ever promise material wealth as a reward for obedience.”

“God’s people are told to be the temple – the place of worship. And their possessions are to be spent on building, NOT A PLACE WHERE PEOPLE CAN COME TO SEE GOD’S GLORY, but a people who are taking God’s glory to the world.”

“We have money and possessions, and we are building temples everywhere. Empires, really. Kingdoms. We call them houses of worship. But at the core, aren’t they too often outdated models of religion that wrongfully define worship according to a place and wastefully consume our time and money when God has called us to be a people who spend our lives for the sake of His glory among the needy outside our gates?”

“Jesus never intended to be one voice among many counseling us on how to lead our lives and use our money. He always intends to be THE voice that guides whatever decisions we make in our lives and with our money.”

“We just don’t believe our wealth can be a barrier to entering the kingdom of God. We are fine with thinking of affluence, comfort, and material possessions as blessings.”

“Our perspective on our possessions radically changes when we open our eyes to the needs of the world around us. When we have the courage to look in the faces of brothers and sisters whose bodies are malnourished and whose brains are deformed because they have no food, Christ will change our desires, and we will long to sacrifice our resources for the glory of His name among them.”

“God has given us excess, not so we could HAVE more, but so we could GIVE more.”

“What would happen if together we stopped giving our scraps to the poor and started giving surplus? What if we started giving not just what we are able to give but beyond what we are able to give? What if we gave like this because this kind of giving is actually what the heart of Christ in us both demands and desires?”

“I don’t want to pursue stuff – even stuff in the name of Christianity or stuff in the name of the church – and in the process miss Christ and the pleasures He alone gives in a life free from bondage to the possessions of this world.”

“The way we use our money is a barometer of our present spiritual condition.”

“Orphans are easier to ignore before you know their names. They are easier to ignore before you see their faces. It is easier to pretend they’re not real before you hold them in your arms. But once you do, everything changes.”

“You and I both have a choice. We can stand with the starving or with the overfed. We can embrace Jesus while we give away our wealth, or we can walk away from Jesus while we hoard our wealth.”

I'm praying that God would make it clear to me what He is asking me to do from here. Certainly, we cannot come face to face with truths, and live like we've always lived.

TRUTH DEMANDS A RESPONSE. I will respond. Will you?

Thank You God For Turkey And Cancer

2010-11-25T11:18:00.002-05:00

Over 300 million American’s will celebrate Thanksgiving today. And of those 300 million people, nearly 270 million people will eat turkey for one of their meals today. That’s an estimate of 50 million turkeys that were sold in preparation of today’s feasts being held all over the country.

And as families gather around their dinner tables, many will give thanks. I’m guessing the list of “thank you’s” will no doubt include being thankful for things like friends, families, jobs, food, houses, pastors, teachers, etc. etc. etc. And we should definitely be thankful to God for those things.

I’m wondering though, will God hear any Christ-followers giving thanks for things that might not make the Thanksgiving top 10 list? For example: I’m wondering if God will hear us saying thanks for some not-so-obvious things like:
Our elbows
Our kidneys
Our legs and feet
Ears to hear
Eyes to see
Mouths to speak and eat
Soldiers who fight to keep us safe. And others who died so that we could live

And I’m wondering how many of us understand the sovereignty of God well enough to thank Him for:
-The cancer that took the life of our mom this year
-Leukemia that ripped our son out of our arms this year
-A job loss that caused us to lose our home
-The earthquake that claimed the life of so many in Haiti this year
-The fact that even though tens of thousands will starve to death today, millions more will survive
-His sovereignty in allowing us to live while so many others die
-His wise election in choosing us to believe and follow Him
-His wisdom in allowing Satan and evil to continue to reign on this earth while He holds back His divine judgment
-The truth that one day we will join all of heaven around His throne were we will forever declare His worth without hesitation or reservation
-Our enemies who have worked diligently to hurt and wound us
-The painful events and circumstances in our past that He’s used to mold us into the people that we are today

The list is long. If we would take the time, our Thanksgiving list could (and should) be pages long. If we’re not mature enough in our faith to praise and thank God for the things above, then I submit to you we are nowhere near where God wants us to be in terms of our maturity and our faith in Him.

Believing in Jesus demands that we not only believe He died on the cross to purchase our salvation, but that He is the Author and Perfector of our faith and that He ordains all things that come to pass, and that none of His plans can be thwarted, and that He alone is ultimately responsible for the wind and the waves and He alone gives life and takes away life, and that He alone is the One who chooses some to believe in Him while appointing others to eternal destruction. Are we mature enough and do we believe in this Jesus who sovereignly and wisely controls everything that happens in this universe?

As passionate followers of Jesus Christ, let us make it our aim today to exalt the name of Jesus as we acknowledge that all things were created by Him and for Him and through Him, and in Him we all live and move and have our being. He is before all things and in Him all things hold together. Should He choose to remove Himself from what we see and what we know, the universe would immediately implode and we would be no more.

Thank You Jesus for being all that we need. Thank You Jesus for being much more than we could ever imagine or ask for. Thank You Jesus for being all together worthy of all that we are and all that we will ever be. Thank You Jesus for being sufficient. With David, I will say....I have seen You in the sanctuary and beheld Your power and Your glory. Because Your love is better than life, my lips will glorify You. I will praise You as long as I live, and in Your name I will lift up my hands. I will be fully satisfied as with the richest of foods; with singing lips my mouth will praise You. On my bed I remember You; I think of You through the watches of the night. Because You are my help, I sing in the shadow of Your wings. I cling to You; Your right hand upholds me.

And my declaration today will be “Yours, O LORD, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, for all that is in the heavens and in the earth is yours. Yours is the kingdom, O LORD, and you are exalted as head above all.” 1 Chronicles 29.11

A Radical Jesus

2010-11-24T12:36:00.003-05:00

Most of you don’t know this, but I’ve been working on writing a book for awhile. I’m excited for the day when it comes to fruition and it’s sitting on my bookshelf. Until then, I will continue to labor.

I have so many thoughts and ideas that seem to run against the grain of so much of mainstream, American Christianity. Some days I hear myself talk and wonder if people think my teaching is so far out in left field, that it falls on deaf ears before it has any chance at all of taking root.

In any case, for months now people from all over the country have encouraged me to read “Radical” by David Platt. Some have even said it sounds like we wrote the book together. I wasn’t sure whether to be honored or insulted. After finally picking up a copy yesterday, I’m convinced the suggestion that perhaps we wrote this book together was quite a heavy compliment.

I’m only a few chapters in, but with just about every line I hear myself saying…’I think this guy has been reading my journal and somehow knows how to read my mind.’ I mean, this is good stuff! The kind of stuff that we should already be familiar with. The tragedy is, his words will no doubt sound foreign to so many church attenders, who have assumed all along that they belong to Christ.

I believe Radical is a ‘must read’ for anyone and everyone who walks through our church doors, and anyone who’s walked away from the traditional American church that by and large continues to propagate a false doctrine of cheap grace and easy “Christianity”. Pick up the book. Read it. Digest the truth contained in it.

I’m ready to start an Underground Church service in Asheville, NC. No joke. I’m ready and hungry. And I know there are a few others out there who are too. Not a tradition church, just a time set aside each week where we can intentionally and with passion study the Word of God, eagerly awaiting His revelation and transformation that no doubt will come as we….hunger and thirst after righteousness.

Can I just share a few excepts from Radical? In the event you can’t get the book right away, let me share a few things I’ve highlighted.

“Jesus wasn’t interested in marketing Himself to the masses. His invitations to potential followers were clearly more costly than the crowds were ready to accept, and He seemed to be okay with that. He focused instead on the few who believed Him when He said radical things.”

“Somewhere along the way we have missed what is radical about our faith and replaced it with what is comfortable. We are settling for a Christianity that revolves around catering to ourselves when the central message of Christianity is actually about abandoning ourselves.”

“We have started to redefine Christianity. We are giving in to the dangerous temptation to take the Jesus of the Bible and twist Him into a version of Jesus we are more comfortable with.”

“We are molding Jesus into our image. He is beginning to look a lot like us because, after all, that is whom we are most comfortable with. And the danger now is that when we gather in our church buildings to sing and lift up our hands in worship, we may not actually be worshipping the Jesus of the Bible.”

Diettich Bonhoeffer said “the first call every Christian experiences is ‘the call to abandon the attachments of this world.’”

“The price of our non-discipleship is high for those without Christ. It is high also for the poor of this world. Consider the cost when Christians ignore Jesus’ commands to sell their possessions and give to the poor and instead choose to spend their resources on better comforts, larger homes, nicer cars, and more stuff. Consider the cost when these Christians gather in churches and choose to spend millions of dollars on nice buildings to dive up to, cushioned chairs to sit in, and endless programs to enjoy for themselves. Consider the cost for the starving multitudes who sit outside the gate of our contemporary Christian affluence.”

“The cost of nondiscipleship is profoundly greater for us than the cost of discipleship. For when we abandon the trinkets of this world and respond to the radical invitation of Jesus, we discover the infinite treasure of knowing and experiencing Him.”

“For the sake of more than 1 billion people today who have yet to hear the gospel, I want to risk it all. For the sake of 26,000 children who will die today of starvation or a preventable disease, I want to risk it all. For the sake of an increasingly marginalized and relatively ineffective church in our culture, I want to risk it all. For the sake of my life, my family, and the people who surround me, I want to risk it all.”

“No sound system. No band. No guitar. No entertainment. No cushioned chairs. No heated or air-conditioned building. Nothing but the people of God and the Word of God. And strangely, that’s enough. God’s Word is enough for millions of believers who gather in house churches around the world. His Word is enough for millions of other believers who huddle in African jungles, South American rain forests, and Middle Eastern cities. BUT IS HIS WORD ENOUGH FOR US? (emphasis mine).”

“What is it about God’s Word that creates a hunger to hear more? And not just hear the Word but to long for it, study it, memorize it, and follow it? What causes followers of Christ around the world literally to risk their lives in order to know it?”

“We have a dangerous tendency to misunderstand, minimize, and even manipulate the gospel in order to accommodate our assumptions and our desires.”

“We are afraid that if we stop and really look at God in His Word, we might discover that He evokes greater awe and demands deeper worship than we are ready to give Him.”

“We are not ready to give God what He asks for because our hearts are set against Him.”

“Our understanding of who God is and who we are drastically affects our understanding of who Christ is and why we need Him.”

“We have taken the infinitely glorious Son of God, who endured the infinitely terrible wrath of God and who now reigns as the infinitely worthy Lord of all, and we have reduced Him to a poor, puny Savior who is just begging for us to accept Him. Accept Him? Do we really think Jesus needs our acceptance? Don’t we need Him? I invite you to consider with me a proper response to this gospel. Surely more than praying a prayer is involved. Surely more than religious attendance is warranted. Surely this gospel evokes unconditional surrender of all that we are and all that we have to all that He is.”

Read, re-read, and re-read again pages 38-39.

“The gift of grace involves the gift of a new heart. New desires. New longings. For the first time, we want God. We see our need for Him, and we love Him. We seek after Him, and we find Him, and we discover that He is indeed the great reward of our salvation. We realize that we are saved not just to be forgiven of our sins or to be assured of our eternity in heaven, but we are saved to know God. So we yearn for Him. We want Him so much that we abandon everything else to experience Him. This is the only proper response to the revelation of God in the gospel.”

I’d like to just retype out the entire book for you. I’m thinking it would be a much better use of our time if you’d just spend the 10 bucks and buy a copy. If you can’t afford it, let me know. I’ll get it for you.

A Defiant Liberia

2010-11-22T18:03:00.009-05:00

The adoption crisis in Liberia continues to baffle me. To say the Liberian government and a select few individuals have hijacked international adoptions in Liberia would be a gross understatement.

Lydia Sherman and Joseph Geebro, who work for the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, have both been very aggressive and intentional to see to it that adoptions stop happening. For reasons unknown to anyone, they are both seeking to keep orphaned kids in Liberia and are not willing to allow them to be afforded the same types of privileges that those two enjoy. Lydia is a Liberian, yet her kids live here in America. So, they are entitled to an American standard of living where they eat three meals a day, have access to quality medical care, and of course are able to attend whatever school they choose.

It seems quite paradoxical that, while Lydia's kids are enjoying the American dream, she is working diligently to prevent Liberian children from being adopted by North American families. As I said, this whole thing baffles me.

Having watched this crazy adoption crisis for nearly two years now, I've recently become a bit more vocal about this. I've taken this corruption to every major news outlet in America. I'm praying that one day soon, a camera crew will show up on the steps of the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare in Liberia and give Lydia and Joseph a chance to explain their actions.

And today, I spoke with the US State Department, Adoptions Office. After speaking with Erin Stott in that office, it became abundantly clear to me that Liberia will not be held to any level of accountability for what they've done and what they continue to do to prevent international adoptions from taking place.

In short, the US State Department has been working with Steve Harper at the US Embassy in Liberia. The State Department is privy to all the documented corruption that has taken place over the past few years. They know who the major players are. It seems they understand the gravity of the situation.

Unfortunately though, at the end of the day, Liberia can do whatever they want to do, with little or no recourse.

Erin assured me that this is being approached diplomatically. But, once the diplomatic channels have been exhausted, the Liberian government is actually entitled to do whatever they want. They can hold up this process indefinitely. And they can choose to block adoptions from ever happening again, and it seems as if no one can do anything about it.

Families continue to walk through this frustration and corrupt adoption process. They continue to hold out hope, where there seems to be so little hope. They continue to invest thousands of dollars to help move the process along, but only to find out that Joseph and Lydia continue to manipulate the system without any consequence.

At the end of the day, it helps to know that the heart of the king is in the hand of the Lord and He directs it like a watercourse, wherever He pleases.

I praise God that NONE of this has taken God by surprise. He is aware of what is happening in Liberia. He promises that vengeance belongs to Him and that He will indeed repay.

Join me in praying that Jesus would be glorified and exalted while He allows Satan a short leash to wreak havoc. Lest I get myself all worked up, I need to be reminded daily that all this is happening under the mighty, sovereign hand of God.

Living Simply

2010-11-21T22:14:00.000-05:00

Considering all things are relative, let me explain where I’ve been wrestling lately. This is in NO WAY an attack against anyone, nor am I pointing fingers at any one individual. Having said that though, I realize some will still be offended and take this personally. Please resist that urge because that is not my heart here.

I took my family to visit another church this morning. Some of our friends from Liberia were here to share their story, and we wanted to be there to hear it and support them.

As I was leaving this megachurch here in Asheville, NC I was made painfully aware of the millions and millions and millions of dollars that were represented by the vehicles in the parking lot. We saw Hummers, Mercedes, Range Rovers, BMW’s, Lexus’s, etc, etc, etc.

Keep in mind, I had just spent the previous hour with my kids listening to this precious pastor from Liberia talk about how he survived the war in Liberia, how he kept himself alive for many months hiding in the forest, how God saved him, and what the current status is now with their adorable little baby. It was because of this little baby that they were here in the US to begin with. On November 22, 2009 Grace was born with her intestines on the outside of her body. Through a series of God ordained circumstances, they came to America to have a much needed surgery for baby Grace.

This morning my dear fried David shared about his ministry in Liberia. He pastors 4 churches and is the principal at a school with nearly 400 students. The vast majority of these students cannot afford to come to school. Most of them are orphans or partial orphans, and their families cannot afford to send them to school. So, David allows them to come free. He only has a few teachers for all 400 kids. And most times, he cannot afford to pay the teachers because they simply lack the financial resources to do so.

My heart is already burdened for our friends and partners in Liberia. We’ve seen the dire circumstances in which they live. And as a family, we’ve already committed a large portion of our income to invest in many of these families in Liberia. And we’re honored to be able to do that. It is with great joy that we share our lives with them, as we believe that what we do for them, we are doing for Jesus.

So, as I left the parking lot this morning and saw all the money tied up in these vehicles, I was struck by a series of thoughts. Can I share them with you?

1. We are called to live simply, so others can simply live.
2. I know many wealthy (and not-so-wealthy) people give a lot of their money away. However, before we get all self-righteous about how much we give away, we all need to keep in mind that when Jesus talked about money, the focus wasn’t on how much people gave away. The heart of the issue was always how much they KEPT.
3. I never want to compare myself and my giving habits with others. I want to ensure I’m giving more than I’m keeping, and that I can help others understand sacrificial giving by modeling it for them and not just talking about it.
4. As a leader, I cannot possibly encourage generous and sacrificial giving, while I hold on to and pursue ‘treasure that will rust, corrode and fade.’

If you’re a teacher or preacher of the gospel and you’re reading this, consider the message we send to people when we surround ourselves with excess in terms of expensive vehicles, luxurious homes, exotic vacations, etc. Paul said everything is permissible, but not everything is beneficial. I’m not suggesting that God is a kill joy and that He doesn’t want us to enjoy life. Quite the opposite actually. I’m confident God wants us to find pure and lasting joy, and to find it as we lay up for ourselves treasures in heaven, as opposed to the ones we stack up here on earth. Perhaps it’s permissible to live in excess. But, it certainly can’t be beneficial to do that when so many people around the world are dying for lack of the very basics of life. How can we hold out the gospel and encourage sacrificial giving and living for the sake of the gospel, if we ourselves keep far more than we need to satisfy our material lusts?

It’s certainly not my ambition to judge others and how they spend their money. Nor am I suggesting that people live by my convictions. I’m simply saying – It seems rather paradoxical to claim to be a follower of Jesus Christ and adhere to His commands as found in Scripture, while feeling entitled and deserving of all the excessive creature comforts that my salary and financial portfolio may afford.

What if, just what if, as believers, we all made a conscious effort to give away more than we keep? What if we all decided we could live with much less, so others can simply live? What if we all chose to abandon what we think we’re entitled to, and embraced a life of sacrificial giving?

I can only imagine how many lives would be intercepted and transformed should we choose to adopt the life Jesus has called us to. It can start with us.

The Mystery of Suffering...

2010-11-10T10:56:00.002-05:00

I just left the hospital. No, I’m not sick. There’s a student at the school where I teach who is in ICU. Long story short (and to protect his identity) let’s say his name is Dallas and he’s in middle school. He is confined to a wheelchair. Nearly a week and a half ago, his wheelchair tipped over and he fell out. A trip to the ER confirmed nothing was broke and he was sent home. The following day, Dallas was having difficulty breathing. Because of his condition (MD), he is already super susceptible to the sicknesses and viruses that most healthy bodies would fight off. The day after his trip to the ER, they discovered that Dallas had pneumonia. So, for over a week now he’s been in the pediatric ICU.

I just left there. What I saw broke my heart. He is hooked up to machines , cords, hoses, and cannot speak because he’s on a respirator. He is incredibly uncomfortable, but cannot communicate what the problems are because he has a tube down his throat to drain the excess fluids from the pneumonia.

His mom and grama were right there, one on each side of the bed. They didn’t miss a beat. But, as hard as they tried, there were still things they could not understand, because Dallas was unable to articulate what he was distressed over.

Inside, I wept. I cannot even begin to imagine what it would be like to be the one caring for my own child like this. I am sometimes overwhelmed with this feeling that someday I will know the grief and despair that so many parents feel. I am certainly not a martyr, nor do I aspire to be one. However, the more God is revealing to me, the more I realize that only those who have walked the deep valleys of darkness and pain, can fully sympathize with others who are walking through their own dark and debilitating situations. And I desperately long for God to maximize my life on earth, so there are times when I find myself praying….”Lord, do what You need to do so that the depth of my life and the scope of my ministry is maximized. I would selfishly choose to bypass the pain Lord, if that were an option. But, I know it’s not. So, let it rain. Let it rain. I know that You are enough. You are sufficient.”

I long to be a faithful minister of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Not just a preacher of John 3.16. I desperately want the beauty and majesty of the Sovereign Lord to be the predominant catalyst for my ministry and evident in what I teach, what I preach, how I live and how I love. And I’m becoming more and more convinced that that simply cannot happen to the fullest unless I am willing to join Paul in saying…”I want to know Christ and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in His sufferings…” If I must suffer with you Jesus, teach me to suffer in a manner worthy of this high calling to….walk as Jesus did.

Truth be told, my life is usually relatively pain free. Oh, don’t get me wrong. We have our share of problems. Life is by no means a cake walk. But, our pain and suffering is minuscule compared to that of so many others.

I know the crippling pain caused from divorce, I understand the deep and lasting wounds inflicted from careless and unmeasured words. I am all too familiar with the pain of watching a mom struggle through life, just to make ends meet. I lost a brother 3 years ago to alcoholism. I remember the decision to turn off his life support. And I remember holding his hand as he took his last breath. That day will haunt me for the rest of my life. So, to some small degree, I understand pain and suffering.

My “suffering” doesn’t even show up though on the scale of global suffering. Today, there are thousands of Christians around the globe who are locked in a dark prison, due to their unwavering allegiance to Jesus Christ. There are those alive today, who have had their tongues cut out of their mouths, because they would not recant their faith in God. Thousands, no doubt millions of God followers have walked this road marked with genuine suffering, and breathed their last breath giving honor and glory to the Lord Jesus. I’ve read accounts of followers of Jesus who were unwavering in declaring their love for and trust in God, as they were being burned alive. I’ve known parents who have had to bury their child. I worked with a woman who ran over her own daughter. Days later I attended the funeral and watched her mother weep. I’ve been face to face with dear friends in Africa who have lost loved ones to AIDS. I’ve spent time with young men who had to move dead bodies out of polluted, bloody puddles in order to find water during the times of war in Liberia. I’ve walked alongside of parents who have spent their entire lives caring for their mentally and physically handicapped children. I’ve wept over my own siblings who have not been able to embrace the glory of the gospel and who continue to be plagued by the pain of our past and the consequences of life altering decisions they’ve made in an effort to ease their unbearable pain.

My “suffering” is not worth comparing though. It doesn’t compare. The genuine suffering of others makes my “suffering” look like child’s play. And by all accounts it is child’s play.

Indeed, Paul must have had a myriad of his own bazaar thoughts about suffering when he uttered words like….

“For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in Him but also suffer for His sake….” Phil. 1.29

And “I count everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For His sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish….” Phil. 3.8

And “that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and may share in His sufferings…” Phil. 3.10

“I consider my present sufferings not worth comparing to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.”

What is it that is so glorious that even the depths of pain and suffering cannot compare? What Treasure did Paul find that enabled him to say…”whether by life or by death, may the name of the Lord be praised.”?

I think it was this – the unwavering belief that there is a Sovereign God who is worthy of all worship from all people in all places and who is currently seated on His throne in heaven, working to the ends that all the nations will one day, in the not so distant future, see His immense worthship clearly, fall before Him in utter humility, and declare with their lips that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

That day is coming. And for those of us who are believers, we can take great courage in holding out for that day. And today, we can rest knowing that…our present sufferings are not worth comparing to the greatness of knowing Christ Jesus our Lord.

May the Lamb receive the full reward of His suffering, in our living, in our dying, and in our suffering.

*I did not include anything from Piper's book Desiring God, but for a thorough explanation of suffering, read the chapter on suffering from Desiring God. It will revolutionize how you process your own suffering, and the suffering you see in the lives of others. It is a MUST READ for those who truly wrestle with a loving God inflicting or allowing the suffering that exists in the world today.

November is Adoption Awareness Month

2010-11-02T19:27:00.002-04:00

Not only is November Adoption Awareness Month, but this Sunday, November 7th is Orphan Sunday. It’s one Sunday set aside when churches around the world can sound the trumpet to the global epidemic of motherless and fatherless children.

Did you know there are 15 million kids around the world that have no father or mother? Not 15,000 or 1.5 million…but 15 million! That means fifteen million kids are going to bed tonight without a mom and dad.

Have you also thought about the reality that if we, the body of Christ, don’t step up and respond to this global call, kids will die without knowing the love of the Father and most of them will never understand the heart of God, which means....and please get this....they will NEVER give God what is rightfully His - THEIR WORSHIP! They will miss out on the amazing opportunity we've been afforded to worship the King of the universe, and God will miss out on receiving their worship.

We can change that! We can! Together we can make a difference. Together we can intercept an orphans life and change their world...and change our world too.

Many of you reading this would respond by saying…"we’d love to adopt, but we just can’t afford it." And my response would be to say "Great! Thanks for being honest about that. But that's not a good reason to walk away from adopting."

There are several great agencies and organizations out there to help make adoption possible for those who don’t think they can afford it.

First, let me remind you that God owns the cattle on a thousand hills, AND He owns the hills too. Although the US may be experiencing a recession, God is not. His Word is still very much alive and active. And His truth has not been hindered because of tough economic times.

There is an organization called Abba Fund. They exist to provide financial solutions for those considering adoption. Their website is www.abbafund.org Please check them out. You can also check out Steven Curtis Chapman's adoption ministry called Show Hope. Their website address is www.showhope.org They also provide assistance to families who believe God has called them to adopt. One of Show Hopes 4 Core Commitments is this - A Kingdom Reality: God is on the move. Ultimately, this is about His Kingdom. Through our actions we show the love of God, and through our message we proclaim the truth of the Gospel of Jesus. In view of the love God has lavished on us by adopting us as His children, let us go and Show Hope to the world. That's powerful stuff right there!

On top of the other assistance available through the avenues above, our government is actually providing significant financial assistance to those who are adopting. Starting this year, you can now receive about a $13,500 tax refund for each child that you adopt. I’m not a CPA, but I know that in years past the government offered a tax credit. So, if you owed the government money at tax time, they would credit you a certain amount per child. This credit only benefited those who owed money each year. This year, the tax REFUND will help ALL families who are adopting. Check with your local CPA for more info about this.

The bottom line is this – MONEY SHOULD NOT BE THE REASON YOU WALK AWAY FROM THE MIRACLE OF ADOPTION AND THE CALL TO ADOPT.

May we not neglect to understand OUR call as Believers.
We are called to -
Defend the cause of the fatherless - Isaiah 1.17
And keep in mind that -
To love an orphan: is pure and faultless religion – James 1.27
To love an orphan: reflects the heart of God – Deuteronomy 10.18
To love an orphan: is our joyful response to the loving Father who sought us when we were orphans – 1 John 4.19
To love an orphan: is to love Jesus Himself – Matthew 25.40

They need you. You need them even more.

Together, we can respond to the call of God on our lives to be Jesus to the world. It starts with us. You and me.

Serving: A Distraction to Listening?

2010-11-01T14:11:00.002-04:00

‘Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.’ (Luke 10.42-42) Jesus’ gracious rebuke to Martha haunts me.

'Martha was distracted with much serving' (Luke 10.40). But Mary 'sat at the Lord's feet and listened to his teaching' (Luke 10.39). Distraction is the enemy of listening. For Martha, at that moment, serving was a distraction. Serving became the enemy of the real good.

But that's not how it felt to Martha at the time. She thought she was doing the right thing. That's why she appealed to Jesus to exhort Mary to get off her rear and get busy serving. Martha was tired of carrying the load herself.

She was shocked to hear that Jesus didn’t value her serving as much as Mary’s listening.

A constant battle we face is letting the fragmentation of urgent demands distract us from the good of listening to Jesus. There is so much to do. If we believe things will change when we get on top of things, that we’ll finally have the time to listen more to Jesus after we’ve plowed through these demanding tasks hanging over our heads, we’re likely being deceived.

We tend to value the volume of things accomplished, and call that "productivity." God values the importance of things accomplished, and calls it "fruitfulness" (John 15.5). And here’s what’s important to God: that we listen to and believe Jesus. 'This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent' (John 6.29).

So beware of your perceptions. Listening often doesn’t feel like doing. But it might just be the most important thing God wants you to get done today.

*posted on www.desiringgod.org blogsite November 1, 2010

HatsForDads.com

2010-10-26T19:33:00.003-04:00

Well, in an order to help underwrite our ministry, we started a small home-based business called HatsForDads.com

We embroider hats for new dads (and moms!). Not just any hats. These are really cool, hip, personalized hats proudly displaying the baby's name, birth date and birth weight on an oval on the front of the hat. And we embroider the last name across the back of the hat.

So, each hat is a unique, one-of-a-kind creation. Every proud mom and dad wants the world to be aware of their beautiful little blessing that's come into the world. And proud grandparents are no different!

If you order today, your hat will ship Priority Mail tomorrow and will end up on your front door step within 2 or 3 days.

This really is a very cool, unique and practical gift that will be the buzz around town and will be sure to get worn.

Check out www.hatsfordads.com for more info and to place your order. We'd love to serve you and your purchase will help us take the gospel around the globe.

Pimping a False Gospel

2010-10-25T12:18:00.004-04:00

I've spent a few minutes this morning watching some videos about the Prosperity Teachers. And now I'm sick to my stomach.

You should watch them. Seriously you should!

I'M ENTITLED - by Benny Hinn

Benny justifies why he deserves a private jet and why he has mansions littered across the country, watch this....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cEkCbfgpbIU

GOD IS STUPID - by Jesse Duplantis

Jesse Duplantis says that when God created animals, He didn't even know what they were. God is so ignorant, He needed Adam to help Him understand what He made.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-mFSUzhdJms

LIVING BIG GIVES ME CREDIBILITY - TD Jakes

The more I hear, the more nauseated I become. So many people like TD Jakes, and buy and read his books. Is he a legit proclamator of the gospel of Jesus Christ, or just another peddler of the prosperity gospel. In this video, he justifies his lavish lifestyle saying...his excessive lifestyle and living the American dream gives him credibility.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=omLJT73j6MQ&feature=related

Literally, I'm sick. I'm sick of watching these posers peddle their twisted version of the Word of God, mixed up with just enough truth to deceive people into thinking it's the pure gospel. And my heart hurts that so many people seem to follow without ever giving it a second thought.

My heart truly does hurt. But, I'm encouraged by the words I find in Scripture...

'If anyone teaches a different doctrine and does not agree with the sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ and the teaching that accords with godliness, he is puffed up with conceit and understands nothing...those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction.' 1 Timothy 6.3-10

'Now the Spirit expressly says that in the later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons, through the insincerity of liars whose consciences are seared.' 1 Timothy 4.1-2

I am motivated by 2 Timothy 4.2-5 '...preach the Word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching. For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths. As for you, always be sober-minded, endure suffering...'

Don't be deceived by false teachers - well dressed, good looking, charismatic people who are wolves among sheep. Watch out for them! 'Such men are false apostles, deceitful workmen, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. So it is no surprise if his servants, also, disguise themselves as servants of righteousness. The end will correspond to their deeds.' 2 Corinthians 11.13-15

The Deception of the Bogus Prosperity Gospel

2010-10-25T11:29:00.002-04:00

Everyone has an opinion about the prosperity gospel. I'm not sure what your take on the health, wealth and prosperity gospel is, but when I hear preachers peddling this garbage, there wells up within me a fiery anger. I hope it's a holy anger, and not something of my own fickle emotions.

I just heard a prosperity gospel teacher by the name of Jesse Duplantis say that God wants everyone to be successful in every area of their lives. And he's got 12 keys to finding that success. If you'll send him $25, he'll show you what those 12 keys are. And when you are successful, you'll have more than enough. After all, God is the God of more. And you can have that new house, new car and new wardrobe you've been wanting. And he said you don't have to be "just a janitor anymore...you can have your own janitorial service!" THAT would define success.

He said...and I quote....."It's worked for me, that means it will work for you too."

Hmmm...it sounds great! And if we didn't have the Bible to use as a guide to knowing Truth, than this crap would be incredibly attractive and believable.

But...we DO have the Bible and nothing about the prosperity gospel lines up with the true gospel. Nothing!

Jesse Duplantis, Benny Hinn, Kenneth Copeland, Joyce Meyer and the rest of those peddlers of putrid heresy, CANNOT take that message to the remote villages in the middle of Africa and sell it there. IT WILL NOT WORK! You cannot take this message up the tributaries of Peru and sell it to the unreached people in the tropics of Peru. IT WILL NOT WORK THERE.

And if the gospel doesn't work there, it is not the gospel. The thing about ABSOLUTE TRUTH is that it is truth for all people, in all places, for all time. And this heresy does not work in all places and it does not work for all people.

For those of us who claim to be passionate followers of Jesus Christ, let's wise up to the deceitful tactics of the Enemy! Be on your guard. Know the truth. Reject the false claims of the prosperity gospel and gladly embrace the hard truths of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

For a powerful, 2 minute video about the prosperity gospel, watch this....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PTc_FoELt8s

God is MOST glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him.

It Would Be My Pleasure

2010-10-21T11:05:00.002-04:00

We don't eat out much, but one of my all time favorite restaurants is Chic-Fil-A. I feel deep sorrow for those folks who don't live near a CFA restaurant. Granted, they didn't invent the chicken, but their chicken sandwich invention is no doubt unparalleled and could easily rival the invention of electricity or the automobile.

At every visit to CFA, I'm always floored by these 5 simple words...."It would be my pleasure". When I walk up to the counter and order a #1 without pickles with a Coke to drink, they respond by saying...."It would be my pleasure".

When I go back up to the counter to ask for a refill, the overly polite CFA attendant will respond by saying...."It would be my pleasure".

Truth be told, when I'm traveling, I cannot always find a Chic-Fil-A. Sometimes I'm forced to eat at Micky D's or Burger King. Nothing against those fine folks, but I have NEVER had service from either of those restaurants that even comes close to the kind, servant oriented, service found at Chick-Fil-A. It's the kind of service that makes me want to go back each time I'm looking for a quick meal on the go or a fine dining establishment to celebrate a milestone wedding anniversary.

In preparation for a speaking engagement I have this weekend in North Dakota, I've been reading 2 Corinthians. This past week I was struck by a little verse, often overlooked in Chapter 5. In verse 9 Paul writes - "...So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please Him." There are lots of rules and guidelines in the bible to follow. Lots of "do's" and "don'ts". And lately, I've been talking to a group of high school seniors about some of those more grey areas in Scripture. You know the one's I'm talking about - Tattoo's, drinking a glass of wine with dinner, smoking cigars, dancing, wearing jeans to church on Sunday, etc. etc.

We can certainly get bogged down with trying to conform or working hard to jump through all the right hoops. Somehow though, my fear is we annihilate the gospel of grace and pick up the faded glory of the Law, and in so doing, we become professional performers as opposed to passionate followers of Jesus Christ.

When I read God's Word and hear Him speak to me, I want my heart to say..."Lord, it would be my pleasure to..." I desperately long to be faithful to God and His Word. I realize I am more often than not a miserable failure though. I need the Spirit of God to work in me and change my heart so I will gladly respond to His voice, because I love Him, not because I'm trying to perform or be "good".

Today, I will make it my ambition to say, without hesitation, "Yes Lord, I will. And it will be my pleasure to obey You."

A New Chapter

2010-10-20T16:45:00.002-04:00

Many of you who read my blog know that my wife Julie and I have been involved with Liberia, Africa since the day we stepped off the plane the day we landed to pick up our kids.

During the past 3 and a half years, we've traveled to Liberia many times, led Mission Trips, adopted 4 kids, helped others adopt kids, invested our time and resources in discipling pastors in Liberia, etc, etc.

Over the past few months, Julie and I have both been restless with our involvement with WACSN. Maria Luyken is the founder of WACSN and Julie and I both have deep affections for her. We always have and we still do, to this day.

For a number of significant reasons, Julie and I have both decided to step away from our involvement with WACSN. This has been an incredibly painful process, because of our love for Maria and our deep desire and call to be involved in addressing the physical and spiritual needs of the Liberian people.

Change doesn't come without a high cost. And this change is no different. Our resignation from our involvement with WACSN has caused deep hurt and pain to some. This was certainly not our intent. Some of those associated with WACSN have taken this personally, and therefore are lashing out in vengeance.

We certainly do not want to play that game. And we won't. We did want you to know that we've decided it would be best to partner with another organization in Liberia as we move forward. We will continue to invest our time and resources in being advocates for orphans and also in discipling and training pastors in that country.

There are many details over the past 8 months that have factored in to our decision to step aside from WACSN. If you have specific questions pertaining to any of this, please direct them to either Julie at julie@2911.org or myself at dirk@2911.org

For more information or questions about WACSN, you can contact WACSN's Country Director Francis Nyepon at fnyepon@gmail.com

We will continue to pray and ask God to use Maria and her organization to effectively impact the spiritual lives of those in her country. And we'll continue to pray that people in Liberia will stand up and defend those harassed and helpless children who have no voice...even when that comes at great cost.

Just Do Something!

2010-10-13T17:50:00.002-04:00

You know as well as I do, sometimes we just make it far too difficult to know and do the will of God. And who hasn't lost sleep wondering what God wants you to do? Most of us have.

Kevin DeYoung's book "Just Do Something: A Liberating Approach To Finding God's Will" packs a punch that should help all of us when we struggle to find and do God's will.

Kevin writes....

"Simply put, God's will is your growth in Christlikeness. God promises to work all things together for our good that we might be conformed to the image of His Son (Romans 8:28-29). . . . God never assures us of health, success, or ease. But He promises us something even better: He promises to make us loving, pure, and humble like Christ. In short, God's will is that you and I get happy and holy in Jesus.
So go marry someone, provided you're equally yoked and you actually like being with each other. Go get a job, provided it's not wicked. Go live somewhere in something with somebody or nobody. But put aside the passivity and the quest for complete fulfillment and the perfectionism and the preoccupation with the future, and for God's sake start making some decisions in your life. Don't wait for the liver-shiver. If you are seeking first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, you will be in God's will, so just go out and do something."

Simple enough? So, let's purpose to get off our butt's, roll up our sleeve's, and walk forward. No, not walk...RUN!

What Do Our Souls Eat?

2010-10-12T10:05:00.002-04:00

Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God. (Deuteronomy 8.3, Matthew 4.4)

When our bodies need energy, we know that we need to eat. So we eat a variety of foods, some better and some worse sources of energy. Our body then digests these foods and converts them into energy and we can keep going. No food, no energy. No energy, no going on.

This physical phenomenon mirrors a spiritual reality. Our souls also run on a kind of energy, and so require a sort of food that they convert into that energy.
So what do our souls eat?

Before we answer that question, let’s first ask this: what is the energy that animates the soul? Answer: hope.

Our souls are hope machines. We consume hope every day. And when we run low on hope we start feeling discouraged, even desperate.

All the wonderful things that have happened to us in the past will not fuel our hope if our future looks bleak. We can be grateful for the past. But we must have hope for the future in order to keep going.

But what about faith? Isn’t faith what keeps us going? Well, yes, because you really can’t have hope without faith. They are inextricably linked. But faith is distinct from hope (1 Corinthians 13.13). Faith is the confidence we have that our source of hope is trustworthy (Hebrews 11.1). Hope is the energy of the soul.

When we’re hopeful, the world is full of wonder and possibilities. We have drive and curiosity. We don’t want to waste our lives. We take on challenges and see adversity as something to be overcome.

But when we run low on hope, the world becomes a fearful, threatening place, full of chaotic futility. Hopelessness saps us of desire and drive. It robs us of interest and appetite. We just want to curl up and protect our souls.

Today, we call this experience depression. The Bible diagnoses it as hopelessness. Note the psalmist’s prescription for his depression: Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God. (Psalm 43.5)

Hope in God. Okay, so how do we do that? If our souls run on the energy of hope, then what do we feed our souls in order to hope in God? We feed them promises.
A promise is a pledge of a good or better future for us. God’s promises are what he pledges to be for us, do for us, and provide for us. That is what the writer of Psalm 43 is exhorting himself to do: remember and believe (eat) God’s promises. Here is a powerful example of a promise God uses to feed his saints: For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. (Jeremiah 29.11)

The Bible is a book of promises—a storehouse of soul food—as well as stories of God making and keeping promises.

This all begs the question…what are YOU eating today?

note: most of this came from a desiring God blog post.

True Religion....To Care For Orphans

2010-10-08T18:06:00.005-04:00

In my last entry, I said I would see to it that Joseph Geebro and Lydia Sherman of the Liberian Ministry of Health would both be held accountable for what they are systematically doing to disrupt and derail international adoptions in Liberia.

I sent them both an email earlier today. They have not responded to me personally yet, but word is, they have already made their way to the US Embassy and other offices in Liberia, claiming that I have threatened Lydia's life. Which is comical, really.

I did promise to make sure they were exposed. And I am committed to doing that.

I sent the letter below to every major news organization in America today. If you know someone who has political power, please pass this on. If you know someone who works for a radio or TV station, or someone in the print media, please pass this on.

We need to work vigilantly to ensure this information gets out and those responsible for destroying the system of adoptions in Liberia are stopped.

Below is the letter that was sent today....

My names is Dirk Helmling. My wife and I have adopted 4 children from Liberia, Africa since 2007. I travel to Liberia 4 times a year to work with pastors, churches, and orphans. We are heavily invested in this war torn third world country.

In March of 2009, the Liberian government raided several orphanages in Liberia, taking by force, all the children in those homes. I was there at one of the homes when this happened and we had a group of 50 Americans there in Liberia with me. We all witnessed this hellish, illegal raid instigated and carried out by the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare. Needless to say, this was incredibly traumatic for all of these fragile children.

After the raids, the Liberian Government immediately placed an illegal moratorium on international adoptions.

There are many American and Canadian couples who have legal and finalized adoption decrees. The Liberian children actually now carry the last names of those who are adopting them.

The problem is, the Liberian Government is holding these children hostage. There is an American family there in Liberia now. They’ve been there for 3 months, trying to get their kids home. Unfortunately, those who work in the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare have their own agendas and are not supportive of international adoptions and they are doing everything they can to hinder this process. Unfortunately, they have hijacked the judicial system as it pertains to international adoptions and are making it IMPOSSIBLE to get these kids out of Liberia.

Lydia Sherman and Joseph Geebro are the 2 individuals who work in the Ministry of Health who are the ones primarily responsible for this hijacking. They are the culprits who are singlehandedly railroading the system that should be helping needy and desperate children get adopted by North American families. Instead, for their own greed and political egos, they have systematically made it impossible for these American and Canadian families to get their children out of Liberia.

THESE CHILDREN LEGALLY BELONG TO THE FAMILIES WHO HAVE THE ADOPTION DECREES. The Liberian Government cannot legally hold these kids hostage and prevent the American and Canadian families from bringing them home. But, that’s precisely what the Liberian Government is doing.

Lydian Sherman and Joseph Geebro are the two individuals who are spearheading this endeavor. For reasons unclear to us, they have been able to get away with this for the past 18 months—while children die waiting to get out of Liberia.

There are more than 30 families stuck in this battle. There are in excess of 50 Liberian kids waiting...while many of them suffer and die. Speaking as a representative for each of these American and Canadian families, we are now saying “ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!”. We will no longer sit back and wait any longer for the Liberian Government to do the right thing. We will expose what is corrupt and vigilantly fight for these children. We will be a voice for those children who have no voice.

PLEASE HELP US! Do the research. We’re confident you’ll come to the same conclusion that we have come to, namely the Liberian Government is indeed illegally holding our kids hostage. They MUST be held accountable. Someone MUST expose their corrupt and illegal behavior. And we must do it NOW. Children are suffering and dying while we sit by and do nothing.

Would you please help us expose this? On behalf of the families impacted by this, would you please step up and help us expose the corruption and get these kids home? PLEASE! We desperately need your help.

I can be reached at 828.691.2911 or dirk@2911.org On behalf of all the families waiting….and on behalf of the Liberian children waiting….THANK YOU!

Sincerely,

Dirk Helmling

That's the letter that went out. Please help us pass this on. THANK YOU!

"True religion is this - to care for orphans and widows in their distress..." James 1.27

A Hijacking in Progress...

2010-10-06T19:42:00.004-04:00

Ahhh....this continues to happen. My plans to blog regularly continue to fail. But, I am committed to try again.

2 quick things....

One - we've started a small embroidery business to help underwrite 29.11 Ministries. Check it out at www.HatsForDads.com We're excited about the possibilities of making money to help underwrite our work overseas.

Second - as many of you know, our good friends, Brady and Barbara Dodd have been in Liberia nearly 3 months now, trying to get their kids home.

One broken promise after another by those involved with adoptions in Liberia, and still, the Dodd's are stranded in Liberia, while their son Jeremiah is being held hostage by the Liberian Government.

Steve Harper is the US Consul at the American Embassy in Liberia. I just sent him an email assuring him that Deputy Minister Joseph Gebroo and Lydia Sherman at the Ministry of Health would both be held accountable for what they are doing.

It is now my mission to make sure every major news organization in America is made aware of what these 2 people are single-handedly doing to hijack international adoptions in Liberia. They are corrupt and are personally responsible for doing unspeakable things to keep the adoption process from moving forward.

If you know someone that has a way to contact the major news organizations here in America, I would sure appreciate that information.

More soon....

Barnes and Noble....A Devastating Visit To A Local Bookstore

2010-08-21T13:58:00.004-04:00

A few nights ago my wife and I had a date night out. Thanks to a couple of sweet young ladies from South Dakota who flew half way across the country to spend a few days with our family. Woohoo!

On their last night here, they sent us out for dinner. Well, they didn't actually 'force' us to go, but they did give us a really sweet card with a gift certificate to....of all places...OUTBACK!

Julie and I went and enjoyed a spectacular dinner. After sharing this fine dining experience together, we made our way down the street to spend some time at Barnes and Noble, a favorite growing bookstore in cities all across America.

While I was making my rounds to find the area I was looking for, I walked by the New For Teens section, prominently located at the top of the escalator. As soon as the escalator makes it to the second floor, you walk off and BAMB! there it is...right in front of you. So, missing it would be as difficult as crossing the Mexican/US border with a trunk-full of pot.

Devastating would not be an appropriate description of what I was feeling as I read through the titles of the books on this New For Teens section. My heart was so grieved. During my short time standing there, God reminded me of the war we are in for the hearts and minds of our kids. And it IS a war. Satan is not wasting time or effort in this fight to pull our sons and daughters into his dark side.

Should you think I'm overreacting to the books I saw at Barnes and Noble, have a look for yourself.

A few of the titles read:

WTF (that's the title, which obviously stands for What The F_ _ _)
Deception
Vampire High
Fangs For Freaks
Love Sucks
Beach Blonde's, Tan Lines, and Spring Break
Fat Vampire
Lies
Hex Hall
Witch and Wizard
Still Sucks To Be Me
Betrayal

Does that nauseate you the same way it nauseates me? I can't say I'm shocked that we live in a society that seems to be so hardened and far from God. I'm not surprised. I guess I'm just alarmed by the depth of depravity that seems to exist and that is surrounding our kids.

Why would a teenage boy or girl want to read something about having a God honoring world view, or a book about what biblical discipleship looks like, or a good read on the sufferings of the millions of passionate followers of Jesus whose lives have marked the landscape of Christianity around the globe? I mean, why would a kid read those kinds of books when book shelves are littered with books about the occult, witchcraft, demons, blood sucking vampires, and sensuality?

I don't think the solution is to find a remote island off the coast of Mexico and move our families there. I'm just saying we need to guard our families against the sly and penetrating forces of darkness that seem to permeate our culture.

The writer of Proverbs says to 'guard your heart, because it is the wellspring of life.'

Our kids are often times not able to guard their own hearts vigilantly. That's where we come in. Part of our job as parents is to help protect the hearts of our kids and help them guard their hearts against the subtle and not-so-subtle influences of the world where we live.

And next time you're visiting your local bookstore, check out the New For Teens section and use it as a teaching moment. Take your teenage son or daughter with you and talk with them about the books, the titles, and why this stuff is so incredibly dangerous.

Parents - keep in mind the Thief comes only to steal, kill and destroy. Make no mistake about it, we're up against a formidable foe. Be aware.

Students - keep in mind you've been bought at a high price and you have an amazing opportunity today to honor God with your worship, which includes the books that you read.

It's the Posture of the Heart, Not the Size of the Gift

2010-08-15T18:52:00.003-04:00

2 nights ago I was reading a story from Luke 21 to my kids. Short story with only a few characters. Some minor characters, one major character.

Here's how it's told.

Jesus was in the temple and while there, was multi-tasking. Not sure what His primary task was this day, but certainly He made time to notice what people were doing. And of course, not just what they were 'doing' on the outside, but made note of the inside and how the outside really was just an overflow of what was going on inside their hearts.

Hmmm...not much has changed in 2,000 plus years. We are still a people who focus most of our attention and energy looking at the outward appearance, while Jesus focuses His attention on our hearts.

On this day, the rich people were putting in their big bills. It's assumed they were proud of there heroic deeds. After all, where would the church be if the big hitters stopped stepping up to the plate?

After the wealthy made their way through the receiving line (I mean, giving line) a poor little widow made her way up to the boxes on the wall. They weren't passing plates like we do today.

The little widow put in 2 small copper coins. The value of these coins was incredibly insignificant. However, Jesus was quick to note that He was impressed NOT by the size of the gifts, but by the posture of their hearts. He condemned the large gifts given by the rich, but elevated the meager gift given by the poor. Seems the application is obvious.

But humor me anyway....

Recently I've been thinking about our church fundraisers, church auctions, church rummage sales, etc. I'm guessing the people putting these events on all mean well and good. I've been to them. I don't have it out for Christian fundraisers. But here's my thinking....

We go to these fundraising events and spend money to buy things we want and the profits go to the church or the youth group or the para church organization, etc. Granted, these events often rake in tens of thousands of dollars and how can that be a bad thing since that money is going to all these good causes? All the while patting ourselves on the back noting how much money we raised for charity X.

What if, I mean, what if Jesus is more interested in us giving sacrificially and joyfully, when there is NO obvious return, no obvious benefit, no instant gratification, and what if we trusted Him to multiply those sacrificial gifts to meet the needs of the ministry?

Short term, doesn't seem to be a good idea. Long term...I think this is a home run! Jesus honors those who give cheerfully and sacrificially. How sacrificial is it when our "giving" is really just a cover so we can accumulate more stuff?

Not saying we should walk away from the fundraisers....or wait a minute...maybe I am....

Luke 21.1-4
"Jesus looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the offering box, and He saw a poor widow put in two small copper coins. And He said, "Truly, I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all of them. For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on."'

Vanderbilt Hospital Comes Through!

2010-08-15T18:46:00.001-04:00

For those of you following the story about Baby Grace, I’m jazzed to tell you that Vanderbilt Hospital in Nashville, TN has officially agreed to take Baby Grace’s case. Grace and her mom and dad are scheduled for their pre-op appointment and surgery is already scheduled for sometime in late October.

It goes without saying that this is a very big deal. To get Baby Grace and her family here so they can get the proper medical attention they need is huge! The vast majority of kids in Liberia are never afforded this amazing opportunity and most of them die waiting for help.

Thanks to all of you for praying. Thanks for the networking you did to try to find a hospital that would take this extraordinary case.

We are still in the process of raising money for their airfare. If you’d be interested in helping with this, please let me know. You can email me at dirk@2911.org

A Christian Response To Homosexuality

2010-08-15T18:35:00.003-04:00

Recently a friend of mine posted some of his thoughts on his blog about homosexuality. He asked me to read it (and the comments) and let him know what I thought. I did that and I'm also posting it below.

Interesting topic and debate that has ensued for decades...no doubt centuries. It's easy to get caught up in the peripherals of the topic.

Having said that however, it seems there are many aspects of this topic that need to be talked about and addressed, both from a secular perspective and a “Christian” perspective.

For me, the question isn’t whether or not people are born gay. It seems obvious to me that people are in fact, born sinful and have certain hard-wiring that causes them to bend a certain way. For instance, children of alcoholics are more prone to be alcoholics themselves. Were they “born” an alcoholic? They obviously didn’t come out of the womb drinking Mike’s Hard Lemonade, but they could have and most likely DID come out of the womb with a greater propensity to drink then those whose parents aren’t alcoholics.

My point? I believe people ARE born gay. I believe the entire human race is born with a crooked and depraved heart. Whether you are a liar, a thief, a homosexual, a tyrant, it doesn’t matter. How you are wired doesn’t justify your conduct. Just because no one taught me how to lie and I grew up lying because that’s how I’m wired, doesn’t justify my behavior.

Just because someone is born with an attraction to the same gender, doesn’t justify the attraction. Sin is sin is sin is sin, no matter how hard we try to justify or rationalize it. So, the argument people use to justify homosexuality by saying they were ‘born’ that way and can’t help it, doesn’t satisfactorily argue the case. It instead, only further confirms the truth that all of us are born sinful, depraved, with sicked and deceitful hearts, and separated from a holy God.

God has made a way for our hearts to be transformed and altered. Once a person is genuinely converted, that doesn’t ensure they will no longer struggle with lying, stealing, homosexuality, etc. What it means is, our hearts have been changed, our sin has been forgiven and we are no longer SLAVES to sin. We are now slaves to righteousness. And once that happens, the desire to live a life that pleases and honors God becomes more important than living out the base desires that reside in the dark areas of our hearts.

I said earlier that for me, the question isn’t whether or not people are born gay. The real question is, what are WE doing to help people walk in the freedom that Jesus died to bring us? What are WE doing to help people find the abundant life Jesus offered those who are willing to crucify their flesh and live according to the Spirit? The real question is what in God’s name are “Christians” doing with those who struggle, that would bring honor to Christ and help fulfill His purposes for us on earth?

There are a myriad of other good, thoughtful questions I believe we should put on the table as well. How should the church approach this? What do our churches do with those struggling? What is a Christ-like response to those we disagree with? What are the real issues in the hearts of those struggling with homosexuality that we need to identify and address? Is it just the sin of the behavior that God hates, or are there other, less noticeable pieces to this that we more often than not overlook because we’re too busy trying to “fix” the obvious behavioral issues associated with this lifestyle. These and other such questions are worth wrestling with and dialoguing about.

Jesse….thanks for getting the ball rolling.

This Is Our SOS!!!

2010-08-02T21:30:00.005-04:00

Not sure where to start with this one. I have a ton of verses on my list here. Some of them pertain, some don't. Some can be explained in context, others I could take out of context and stamp on this blog. Part of me wants to say something funny and make light of things, the other part of me knows how dire it really is, so making a joke would almost be sacrilegious. I said "almost". haha

We started 29.11 Ministries in 1999. Since then, I've either been traveling full time and raising support or working on staff at various churches. In either case, we never had extra finances, but God always made provisions and somehow we always got through. God is faithful. I believe that.

Today is August 2nd, and things are a little different. I am not currently on staff at a church. My primary "job" is working for my own ministry, 29.11 Ministries. The bulk of my ministry has been in Liberia, Africa recently. I'm also taking speaking engagements again.

We recently moved back "home" to Asheville, NC. Our church (New Life Community Church) is a great place to be based and we've already talked about the possibilities of what it would look like for us to join in ministry together. We're praying about that and exploring some different options.

When I was in ND a few weeks ago speaking at a camp, I was introduced to a ministry called STEER inc. They exist to come alongside of ministries like ours to support the work of the gospel ministry. I've been in communication with them, and will be submitting our application to them soon. Should they accept us (after looking at our brochure and website, they preliminarily told us we were a good match for them), they will provide as many steer as we can find homes for. So, we approach ranchers and farmers to see if they will feed these cows, and STEER inc provides the cattle, free of charge. When calves are born and sold, our ministry benefits directly from those funds. This really could be the tool we've been praying for for over 10 years now. We are hopeful it is.

But today is different. We have not had time to send out newsletters recently. We do not have a strong support base. We don't have big businesses and corporations that underwrite our work. We do have a lot of people that say they appreciate what we do and a host of folks who tell us they are praying for us. Many have said they admire our work, but they don't think they have what it takes to live on faith the way we do. The truth is, we know this is the work that God has called us to and although walking away seems very appealing at times, we know it is just not an option, no matter how difficult it gets sometimes.

We were so blessed back in February. A friend of mine received our newsletter and called me. He and his sweet wife said they felt led of the Lord to support us by covering my salary for 6 months. 6 months! I couldn't believe it. When he called, I actually hung up on him and had to call him back. I was just beside myself. Totally floored. Words could not have expressed how I was feeling. I was so humbled and grateful that my heart just wept. Literally wept.

Julie and I and our 7 kids are TOTALLY AT THE MERCY OF GOD TODAY. We know that. Because we feel like we're there every day. Literally.

But as I write this, Julie is in bed sleeping off her jet lag. She returned late last night from 3 long weeks in Liberia. Her body is trying to recuperate from 3 weeks in a foreign land. My body and heart long for the day when I'll step into a Foreign Land and take up my residency worshipping around God's throne in heaven. But until that day comes, I'm here. Trying to do ministry, and struggling with how to raise support. The reality is, I'm just not a good fund raiser. I stink at asking people for money. It's hard to sell yourself. It's always easier to sell a "well" or "education" or "rice". People are eager to jump on board with physical, tangible projects like that. Raising personal support isn't so easy to sell.

So, in an effort to conserve your time, I won't try to sell myself.

But, I would like for you to know we are humbly asking you to prayerfully consider jumping on our support team for the remainder of this year. Would you and your family or business or church pray about coming alongside of the Helmling's, supporting our ministry, so we can continue to DO ministry?

I wish I had some cool tricks up my sleeve or some big hitters I could approach. But I don't. I just don't run with rich people. Nor do I spend my time with famous people. I am a commoner among commoners.

If our ministry is going to go forward and if we're going to have any sort of impact on the people of Liberia, we're really going to need your partnership now more than ever.

Would you please pray about joining our team? It's so easy. You can just go to our website and click the DONATE NOW tab. That's it. It's really that easy. If you prefer, you can send a check to:

29.11 Ministries
69 Briarwood Rd.
Asheville, NC
28804

ALL GIFTS ARE TAX DEDUCTIBLE. Before the year is over, you'll get a receipt from our office for your contribution.

It's really that simple. And your gifts will make it possible for us to continue investing in lives here in America and in the lives of those in Liberia.

I'm humbly asking you to consider helping today. Please don't wait. We desperately need you now.

Bless you,

Dirk Helmling

"Father God,
Your Word makes it clear that it's all Yours. It came from You, was made through You, was made for You, and You are the rightful owner of everything. Please teach all of us to live with that mindset as we make decisions about our futures and our finances.

Thank You for loving us God so that we could in turn love You. We bless You and praise You, simply because You are God.

Jesus, we pray this for Your names sake. Amen"

The Sound of Life

2010-08-01T08:05:00.003-04:00

Many of you know back in 2007 we adopted 2 kids from Liberia, Africa - Moses and Nana. They were 4 and 6 years old at the time and their family lives in a Refugee Camp called VOA. This camp is home to hundreds of some of the poorest families in Liberia. Needless to say, Moses and Nana have a life now that they would never have been afforded had they not been adopted. The harsh reality is, kids at VOA don't attend school. Food is very difficult to come by. Work is scarce. Most of the kids are running around barefoot and in clothes that don't fit. We remind our kids often of where they came from. Because it's really only in appreciating the severity of where you came from that you can appreciate the One who rescued you.

While we were on our first trip to Liberia in May of 2007 to pick up Moses and Nana, we met some people that would have a significant impact on the rest of our lives. We met Elizabeth and her tiny little son.

Elizabeth was standing on the beach one day, watching us play with our kids. She was carrying a very small, sickly little boy on her back. She followed us back to the children's home that day and asked if we would take her child. Her child was sick. Very sick. Among other things, this little boy was suffering from malnourishment and malaria. He was incredibly weak and fragile looking. His head seemed grossly misshaped and his belly was extended.

I sat in on the meeting that took place between Elizabeth and those at the children's home. I assured Elizabeth that we would find a family in America that would adopt her son and take good care of him. To be honest, adopting this little boy was not on my radar. My wife and I had 3 biological kids of our own and were there in Liberia adopting 2 more kids. So, bringing another child into our family at that time certainly did not seem like a viable option.

Fast forward 3 and a half years....Julie is in Liberia working hard on the adoption front lines. She's been there for over 2 weeks now and we're way past ready to have mommy home again.

Yesterday, in an effort to kill time (haha) we made our way to a local play place. It was there, at that moment, that I came to really appreciate in a deep way, the sound of life.

Long story longer, as God would have it, WE ended up adopting that little boy. And that little boys name is Ephraim. Ephraim couldn't be more full of life today. He has more energy than all 6 of our other kids combined. He has a smile that won't turn off. He seems prewired with a vocabulary that's a few years ahead of other 4 year olds. He knows how to walk, but he prefers to skip or jump or hop or run or bounce from one place to another. He thinks walking is for people who can't keep up with him.

Watching them play at the play place yesterday and listening to the sounds of life reminded me that short of someone adopting this precious little boy, he would most likely not be alive today.

And there are MILLIONS of other little boys and girls that are eagerly awaiting a family like yours or like mine to embrace them and welcome them home.

Setting religion aside, and ignoring all the verses in the Bible that show us that the Fathers heart beats for adoption, it's just the right thing to do.

Adoption isn't for religious people or rich people or white people. Adoption is something that all of us should get involved with. If you simply can't adopt, support a family that can. If you can't adopt, rally around others who are.

Together, we CAN make a difference and save lives.

I'm in....are you?

Amy Who?

2010-07-20T18:25:00.002-04:00

Most people reading my blog would have no idea who Amy Carmichael is. She's not talked about much. But her work as a missionary in India was a catalyst for many others who have committed their lives to mission work around the globe.

While serving in India, Amy received a letter from a young lady who was considering life as a missionary. She asked Amy, "What is missionary life like?" Amy wrote back saying simply,

"Missionary life is simply a chance to die."

Dang! Can you imagine being so captivated by the worth of Jesus, that you'd be willing to commit your life to....well, dying?

I've been reading Jim Elliot's journals lately. This guy got it. I mean, he REALLY got it.

Taken from page 95 of his journals:

"From Betty's last: 'Lord, do Thou turn me all into love, and all my love into obedience, and let my obedience be without interruption.' (quoted from thirteenth century by Amy Carmichael)."

Turn my love into obedience and let my obedience be without interruption. What a great thing to pray. I long for God to rip out anything in me that prevents me from passionate and ruthless obedience to Him and His Word. The more I think about where I am spiritually, and where I should be, I'm grieved that I didn't start praying that prayer years ago.

Bless you on your walk with the Lord. I hope He is taking you deeper and deeper in your love for Him and your hunger for His name and renown.

The Saga Continues

2010-07-19T12:16:00.003-04:00

Many of you have inquired and are interested in what is happening with Baby Grace. A quick recap for new folks - Baby Grace was born 7 months ago with much of her intestines and organs on the outside of her body. The bottom line is this - she desperately needs medical attention now that she cannot get in Liberia. We need your help!

We were contacted by a hospital in Denver, Colorado that heard about Baby Grace. After sharing her medical report and her pictures, it initially seemed hopeful that they were considering taking on her case.

However, I just received a call from one of the surgeons in Denver. He said that because Baby Grace was running a consistent fever and has blood in her stool, she cannot be considered at the moment. The risks are simply too high.

Baby Grace's parents cannot get her to the hospital until tomorrow (Tuesday, July 20). Once we find out what the current problems are, we'll pass that info on to the hospital in Denver for them to re-evaluate and reconsider this case.

In the meantime, we really need your help. There are several VITAL areas where YOU can get involved.

1. If you know of a doctor or hospital that would consider looking at Baby Grace's case, would you please pass on this info to them? We really are running out of time.

2. We need to prepare now to get Baby Grace and her mom and dad here to the states for this surgery. Airline tickets are the biggest cost. Would you please consider helping underwrite this expense? We're looking at $7,500 to cover airfare for Baby Grace and her parents.

We've had gracious folks here in the states who have offered housing and transportation once they get there. But getting them here is the hurdle. And like I said, each day is critical.

Please consider helping! Get the word out. Send this blog to as many people as you know. You never know who they might know who would be willing to help. And if you're able to write a check, please do it. $50, $100, $500, $1,000, $5,000...whatever you can do to help will be greatly appreciated.

I knew before today that Baby Grace and her family needed help. But today I'm feeling it in a big way. They are incredibly poor Liberians, and without our help, they have no way of getting Baby Grace the medical attention she so desperately needs.

We can do this! Together, you and I can save this precious little girls life.

You can either send a check to:
29.11 Ministries
69 Briarwood Rd.
Asheville, NC
28804

OR you can donate online. Just go to www.2911.org and click on the DONATE NOW tab.

THANKS!

Dirk

Julie's Update from Liberia

2010-07-18T07:37:00.001-04:00
Julie was planning on leaving for Liberia on Tuesday morning. Long story short – the weather was bad in New Jersey so she couldn’t get to NJ in time to catch her flight to Brussels. Which means she wouldn’t have made it in to Liberia. The short of it is, we got her home for a few extra days on this end but she’s staying in Liberia a few extra days on the back end.

She arrived in Liberia (with all her luggage and adoption updates!) Friday evening about 4:30 p.m. Liberian time, which is 12:30 p.m. our time. Just enough time to get back to the compound, have some dinner, grab a quick shower (or bucket…haha) and then try to catch some sleep.

Unfortunately (or fortunately) though the Minister of Justice was flying back from another country on Saturday and was not able to make the much anticipated adoption meeting. So it’s been postponed until Tuesday morning at 10 a.m.

On the surface, that might seem like a stall, or that someone isn’t organized, or that she just doesn’t want to deal with what’s coming down the pike, or perhaps that some people just don’t care that folks cleared their schedules at great financial cost and traveled half way around the world to be at this meeting.

However your wired to chalk it up, the bottom line is this - it is what it is.

Our response to this minor hiccup really helps others see what’s truly in our hearts. My suggestion is, meditate on Scripture before writing your hate mail. I’ll definitely read, read and re-read before I send mine. Opps! Did I just say that?!

Here are some of the verses of Truth that help me put all this into perspective. Maybe they will help you too.

John 3.27 ‘A person cannot receive even one thing unless it is given him from heaven.’
Rom. 8.7-8 ‘For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God…’
1 Cor. 1.18 ‘For the Word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing.’
1 Cor. 2.14 ‘the natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to Him, and he is not able to understand them, because they are spiritually discerned.’
1 Sam. 2.6-8 ‘The Lord kills and brings to life; He brings down to Sheol and raises up. The Lord makes poor and makes rich; He brings low and He exalts.’
Ps. 135.6-7 ‘Whatever the Lord pleases, He does…He it is who makes the clouds rise at the end of the earth, who makes lightning’s for the rain and brings forth the wind from His storehouses.’
Job 12.23 ‘He makes nations great, and He destroys them; He enlarges nations, and leads them away.’
Prov. 21.1 ‘The king’s heart is a stream of water in the hand of the Lord, He turns it wherever He will.’
Dan. 2.21 ‘God changes times and seasons; He removes kings and sets up kings…’

Those are a few of the bedrock passages of truth that help give me proper perspective as I process all that is happening on the Liberian frontlines.

All in all, Julie is very excited about being there and is making it her goal to minister to every person she comes in contact with there. She’s already been able to have several meetings with Maria and Francis to talk about adoptions, WACSN, 29.11, waiting children, etc, etc, etc. It’s been really good.

And to top it off, she got to meet Shadrach! And she loves him! Just like I do. So then, it’s official…WE LOVE SHADRACH!!! Our prayer and desire is that God would allow us to bring him home. But several HUGE things would have to happen. Basically, God would have to step down out of heaven, show up in person and scoot people around. He’d also have to sell a few of his cattle (or a few of His hills) to cover the huge costs in all of this (well, huge for us, but not huge for Him). And finally, He’d just have to start our hearts pumpin' again once He does it all.

For you and I, those things could NEVER get done. And least for Julie and I they could never get done. However, we’ve been crucified with Christ, nevertheless we live, yet not us, but CHRIST lives IN us. So, we are 100 percent totally at the mercy seat of God and aside from Him pouring out grace upon grace upon grace upon grace, Shadrach will never make it to our home.

PLEASE JOIN US IN PRAYING FOR GOD TO DO WHAT ONLY HE CAN DO IN MAKING THIS WORK! Thank you for joining us and praying about this with us. Can’t wait for you to meet him!

And thanks for praying for Julie. I know she’s encouraged by that.

Thanks for your partnership in the gospel. We are so grateful!

Julie & Dirk

Oprah Called Us!

2010-07-16T09:05:00.000-04:00
As most of you know, Oprah started an all girls school in South Africa several years ago. From all reported accounts, the school is incredibly successful.

It's my honor to share the news with you...Oprah's people called and said she wants to help us start a school in Liberia! Can you believe it?! It sounds too good to be true, doesn't it?! Her people will meet with our team early November to begin construction January 1st. Construction should be complete in time for students to start school for the 2011-2012 year. It sounds dreamy, doesn't it?

Yeah, well, unfortunately it IS dreamy. And it IS too good to be true. As a matter of fact, it's not true at all. Well, I mean, I've dreamed about that phone call coming in. I've anticipated how loud I would scream if someone from Oprah's Empire really did call to make that commitment. Wow! Can you imagine that?

Who knows, maybe someday that will happen. One of our kids was actually born in Bong county in Liberia, which just happens to be the same county that Oprah's family is from in Liberia. Hmmm...maybe that would connect us one day.

Until then though, there are 2 things I wanted to share with you. #1. We've identified land in Monrovia to start working on our Children's Village. Plans for that should be available to you soon.

But for now....#2. There is a school we're connected with in Liberia, several hours away from Monrovia. It's called Christ Primary Community School. They have about 400 students. Get this - are you ready? For $7,000 we can send all 400 students to school for the entire year AND pay salaries for teachers, cooks, janitors, etc. That works out to $17.50 per child for an ENTIRE YEAR!

Most of these kids are so poor their parents cannot even afford to pay this nominal fee of $17.50 for the entire year. That's less than $1.50 a month! And they can't afford that. This is where we come in.

We can help send these kids to school for pennies. Literally.

Would you prayerfully consider helping us underwrite the operating costs of CPCS this 2010-2011 school year? I'm sure there are many of you reading this that would be willing and able to write one check to cover this entire expense. Would you consider doing that? Or perhaps you can underwrite half of the year ($3,500) or a quarter of the year ($1,750).

Can you picture 400 kids going to school this year, with paper and pencils in hand? And WE can be a part of making that happen! YOU AND ME!

So, let's do it. Let's show the love of Jesus to these kids and to their parents.

1 John 3.17-18 says "If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need, and has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him? Let us not love in word or talk but in deed and truth."

God In The Chaos

2010-07-15T08:29:00.000-04:00
I know many of you read this looking for news on our home front. And we appreciate your interest in our lives and in our ministry. We are so grateful that God redeemed us and set us apart for Himself. And we know that we (you and I are His body!) are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

On the home front, Julie was scheduled to take off for Liberia on Tuesday. We got to the airport to send her off. She boarded the plane. The plane actually taxied out. A few minutes later it taxied back in. New Jersey was experiencing bad weather delaying all planes in and out. Her flight was delayed for 3 hours. Just long enough so that she would have missed her connecting flight into Brussels, which means she wouldn't have been able to make the Brussels flight to Monrovia, Liberia.

In short, that just means that mommy got to be home with us for 2 extra days. So, her ticket has been re booked and she leaves this morning (Thursday) around 11.45. If all goes according to schedule, she'll land tomorrow night in Liberia...JUST IN TIME FOR THE BIG FORUM SATURDAY MORNING AT 10.00 A.M.!

In all of this, here's what I'm thinking....Daniel 4.35 says 'God acts according to His will and no one can stop Him.' And Psalm 115.3 says 'He does all that He pleases'. Furthermore, Psalm 135.6-12 says He does what He pleases in whatever He does.'

We are confident that all things work together according to His perfect plan and purpose. We recognize that much of the time, it doesn't go according to our plans, but we're learning how to rest knowing that He is working, even in the chaos, to accomplish His kingdom purposes, for His own name sake.

"Father God, thank You that You rule and reign. We can walk confidently through life as we trust Your heart, even when we can't trace Your hands. Thank You Father that You work all things together for our good and for Your glory. Forgive us for the times we stress and fret over trivial things. Big at the moment, but trivial in light of eternity. Grow us and mature us so we look like Jesus and so we will honor Him in our attitudes and in the posture of our hearts. WE LOVE YOU JESUS! Thank You for loving us. Amen"

Let's Make It Happen!

2010-07-14T18:26:00.000-04:00
So, here's the latest on Baby Grace and her family. We have one hospital in Nashville, TN that is looking over her case. And although they are willing to consider Grace's case, they will not make their decision for at least 6 weeks.

I got word that today there is a hospital in Denver that is looking over the case...as we speak. There is not nearly as much red tape to get through, and they will most likely make their decision tomorrow, July 15th.

In the meantime, we really need your help. In order to get this family here to America so we can get Grace taken care of, we need to fly them here. That means 3 airline tickets!

Right now, airline tickets are about $2,500 each. That's a total of $7,500. Which is totally and completely crazy! I know raising $7,500 is impossible for us. I'm not a fundraiser. I stink at fundraising! So, if this depends on me, they'll never get here. Thankfully this all depends on God moving and working. But, He wants to use us. That's why I need YOUR help.

If you know anyone in the airline industry that you think could help pull some strings to get some free tickets, please pass along Grace's story. Or, perhaps you're reading this and you can write a check to cover this expense. Would you please prayerfully consider underwriting this?

We still need to figure out housing and transportation while in Denver, but right now, the biggest hurdle is getting the tickets covered.

Can you help with this? Will you help with this?

Just this morning I was reading Proverbs 3 - 3.27 jumped out at me..."Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, when it is in your power to do it."

I know there are so many families and businesses out there that would be more than willing to help with this, but I don't have connections with all those people. Maybe YOU do. If you do, would you please be willing to pass on Grace's story?

Perhaps your church would be willing to help underwrite this expense so we can get this family here.

Unfortunately, Grace's health is declining at the moment. She has been running a constant fever, her belly is swollen and she has blood in her stool. All in all, we need to move quickly to get her the help she needs to save her life.

Can you help us save Baby Grace? Her life depends on us helping her.

And we are so grateful for all those who have read, inquired, and been willing to help us find a hospital and surgeons that would be willing to consider taking on this case. We believe God has a place and a team of surgeons who He's already hand picked for this amazing task. And we're hoping He's going to make it clear to all of us very soon who these people are. Praise God for that.

Perhaps you've just recently been introduced to Baby Grace and don't know her full story. If you have questions or want to know more, please email me directly at dirk@2911.org or call my cell @ 828.691.2911.

Thanks seems like such an understatement. But...THANKS...

On The Frontlines Of Adoption

2010-07-10T14:40:00.000-04:00

Many of you know, there has been a ban placed on international adoptions in Liberia. By and large, with only few exceptions, children are not leaving Liberia. Needless to say, it's been incredibly difficult for the families caught in the middle of this political mess. What it means on a practical level is, families here have children that they've adopted in Liberia, but have not been able to bring them home. In short, their kids are being held hostage by the government of Liberia. Sounds extreme and harsh, but those are the cold, hard facts.

Next week, on July 17th, the Minister of Justice is holding a very important forum to discuss the topic of international adoptions. My wife Julie has committed to attend the meeting and help represent North American families who have a stake in all of this.

She flies out Tuesday July 13th and returns Saturday July 24th. We bought her ticket completely on faith, believing the Lord wanted her to be there. And we still believe He does. However, we have not raised enough money yet to cover her ticket. We are still $700 short of what we need.

If you feel led to be a part of her support team, we'd be so grateful. You can either send a check to

WACSN
69 Briarwood Rd.
Asheville, NC
28804

OR...you can donate online. Just go to my website at www.2911.org and click on the donate now tab. Just let us know it's for her trip.

I can't thank you enough for considering helping with this. Julie and I are both grateful. And we know her time in Liberia will prove to be instrumental as this forum on adoption takes place.

Peace!

Saving Baby Grace

2010-07-07T12:30:00.001-04:00
I first posted information about Baby Grace about a week ago after I returned from Liberia. I’m not sure what I was expecting in terms of people responding, but several people HAVE responded. We’ve had offers to help raise money for tickets, and we’ve had several doctors from around the world offer to help. It would be great to report that we have a plan in place and we’re ready to move forward. But, the reality is, we don’t yet. We’re just wading through the information and trying to decide what is the best course of action. And we’re also waiting for official word that a hospital has agreed to underwrite the costs.

Finding a surgeon that would be willing to offer his or her services is huge. And we’re trusting that God already has appointed someone to this task. We’re just waiting for God to show us who it is. Finding a hospital that would be willing to underwrite this is an entirely different animal. This will no doubt require a lengthy stay at the hospital while Baby Grace undergoes her needed surgeries and recovery.

I read Philippians this morning. I’m encouraged again to be reminded that Paul suffered much for the sake of the gospel. He endured more suffering in a few short years of ministry than most of us will endure in our entire lives. And at the end of the day, Paul said “It is GOD who works in us, both to will and to act, according to His good pleasure.” Phil 2.13

I am confident that as we walk forward with Baby Grace and her family, praying for God to raise up doctors and hospitals who will come alongside of us to save this little girls life, that it is indeed GOD who is willing and working in people’s lives, according to His good pleasure.

At the end of the day, I can either choose to be anxious as we await the unknown, or I can choose to put my trust in the One who called me, Who promises that He will complete what He has started, and the One who holds the hearts of the kings in His hands. I choose to trust the One who is faithful. I choose to trust the One who is working, in unseen ways, to bring honor to His own name.

And while I am waiting and trusting, I will continue sharing Baby Grace’s story….so please pass this on.

Thank you. On behalf of Baby Grace and her sweet family…THANK YOU!

An Oil Spill and A Civil War

2010-07-03T16:48:00.000-04:00
I just watched the Weather Channel, of which I never do. But, there was a special about the oil spill in the Gulf. Specialists from a variety of different areas were commenting on the damage that the oil spill is having on the Eco system and the habitat of a variety of different wild life.

I'm as much a lover of wild life as the next guy. No really, I am! I love nature. I love to watch animals. I grew up on the beach in Florida and I still love the beach. It's one of my favorite places to be.

While I have 2 feet firmly planted here on planet earth, I recognize that there is a whole nother world out there, a spiritual world that we cannot see with our eyes. And this spiritual world is even more amazing and beautiful than the beach and the birds and the wild life that lines the Gulf Coast. And it is the principles that rule this other world, that allow me to be gripped by something greater than an oil spill.

I just returned from Liberia, Africa. I spend a great deal of my time in Liberia. And I've seen poverty that is literally off the charts. Suffering that is unimaginable. A country ravished by senseless war that has left nearly all of its 3 million residents suffering.

Most do not have electricity, clean water, sanitation, access to education, etc. They are in a vicious cycle of poverty and suffering that seems to beget poverty and suffering.

Here's my dilemma. I'm listening to the BP Execs pledging 20 BILLION US DOLLARS to help those most affected by the spill. 20 BILLION dollars. I've seen thousands and thousands of good citizens of the US step up to the plate to offer assistance to help clean up oil off the beaches, off the ocean, clean up wild life, etc etc etc.

And listen, I'm all for this kind of "all for one and one for all". It's encouraging to see my fellow Americans stepping up and offering to help with such a cataclysmic catastrophe.

I guess where I'm struggling is...Liberia is suffering much worse from a cataclysmic catastrophe than our Gulf Coast is. It's not just birds and wild life that are dying. PEOPLE ARE DYING! KIDS ARE DYING! PEOPLE ARE SUFFERING NEEDLESSLY!

What would happen if the United States ponied up half of what BP is pledging? As I drive the dirt roads of Liberia and see flooded huts & suffering kids, I wonder what WE could do to change the landscape of Liberia.

What if we spent money to relocate those who live in the flood planes? What if we built schools and began educating those young children that will otherwise grow up without an education? What if we helped some Liberians start their own small businesses so they can begin taking care of themselves and their families? What if we built some children's villages across the country where orphans could be cared for, educated, fed and clothed? What if.....

Is this an easy solution? Of course not. But can it be done? Of course it can! It's far too easy to walk away from this because the size of the task is just too enormous. However, if we are committed to our fellow human beings and are committed to making a difference in Liberia, and if we're primarily committed to living the principles outlined in Scripture, I'm convinced we CAN have a significant impact.

Imagine if we rallied together to build a few schools, relocate some families, build a few villages. Can you imagine what that would look like? I can! And I'm excited about seeing God bring this to fruition.

An oil spill and one month later? The Federal Government and thousands upon thousands of volunteers have stepped up to make a difference.

Several wars and many years later? Liberia is still in DESPERATE need of our assistance.

What do you say? Are you in?! I'm in! I hope you'll join me.

A Voice For America

2010-07-03T09:28:00.000-04:00
As many of you know, there has been a tremendous war on adoption when it comes to Liberian International Adoptions. The past 2 years have been long, difficult years for those adopting from, or considering adopting from, Liberia Africa.

Without boring you with the details, I just wanted you to know that a very important FORUM is coming up on July 16th in Liberia. This will be a time when adoption agencies and adoption organizations in Liberia, and all those affected by adoptions in Liberia, will have the chance to voice their concerns to the Minister of Justice.

This will be a public forum where the TRUTH will be heard. It will be very difficult for those who are dishonest and corrupt, to keep the lies straight. The truth WILL be brought out and people, for the first time, will get to hear firsthand what has transpired over the past 2 years pertaining to Liberian Adoptions.

This is where we need YOUR help! I know many of you are concerned. And I'm sure many of you would like to go. And if you can, that would be great. But, for those of you who are concerned with the plight of Liberian Adoptions and would like to come alongside of those on the front lines, would you prayerfully consider sending my wife Julie to Liberia for this meeting?

Her presence and voice there would be incredibly beneficial at this time. However, I just returned from Liberia and there is just no way we would be able to swing it financially. And Julie doesn't like asking for money (haha...neither do I!) but, we're not asking for money. We're giving you an opportunity to come alongside of us as we fight this war on adoption and giving you the opportunity to be a VITAL part of this.

Her ticket would cost $2,500. And we'd need to book it very soon. Please pray about being a part of this. YOU can be a vital part in helping Julie as she prays about representing American families at this forum. The American families need to be represented and heard. But as you can imagine, most people are just not able to make this trip. But...Julie can!!! And she's willing.

If you're interested in being a part of this, please email me at dirk@2911.org so I know what you're thinking. If we have enough pledges by Monday, July 5th, we will move forward and book Julie's ticket. And please keep in mind your contributions to 29.11 Ministries ARE tax deductible.

THANKS for praying for us and thanks for your consideration in helping with this. We are grateful. And I know her time in Liberia for this forum will have a positive impact on all of those families who have been affected by Liberian Adoptions.

Bless you and thanks for your partnership!

Dirk

Baby Grace

2010-06-30T16:53:00.000-04:00

When I was in Liberia in January of this year, I met a very special pastor named David Durbor. We met at one of the conferences where I was teaching. After our time together, he shared with me some of the things that God was teaching him and how what he was learning was changing his heart. Needless to say, it was very encouraging.

Well, on this trip I just returned from, I spent some time with David and his sweet wife and their 7 month old daughter Grace. Grace has some very significant medical issues that need to be taken care of. And with YOUR help, I think we can help David and his family in a very significant way.

Baby Grace was born with her intestines on the outside of her body. That would be a significant problem here in the states where we have outstanding medical care. Imagine being faced with this same problem in a war torn third world country.

Short story - when Grace was born, the hospital didn't know what to do with her, so they just left her organs on the outside of her body and wrapped them in cause. It didn't take long before it got infected. Soon afterwards, a Chinese doctor was able to preform surgery on Grace and put her intestines back inside of her body. However, the surgery preformed was not sufficient to take care of the medical issues Grace is facing. She really needs a doctor here in the States who can address her medical issues and help Grace so she can grow up to be a healthy young lady.

All the medical "professionals" who saw Grace when she was born encouraged her parents to throw her away. Literally. They said she was not a human being and was cursed. Their suggestion was to throw baby Grace away. Praise God her parents have a clear understanding that God is the Author of all life and He was the One who purposed this little girl to be born and He has a plan for all of this. They are trusting that God will bring honor to Himself through her life and through their witness.

The reality though is simple, aside from finding a doctor here in North America who would be willing to look at Graces' medical file and consider preforming her surgery as a charity case, Grace has little or no hope. Her very survival depends on getting this help. Without it, she will not survive.

Her parents are poor Liberians. They have 5 other children. We desperately need to help her family. And we can! There are doctors and surgeons all over North America that would be willing to look at her case file. The problem is, I don't know any of them. But perhaps YOU do!

Would you prayerfully consider sharing Grace's story with medical professional friends that you might have? Maybe, just maybe, God would use YOU to help this family get the care that they so desperately need.

I am very much aware that there are thousands and hundreds of thousands of suffering children around the world who need help. I understand that. I also understand that we can't possibly help all of them. And that's very true. We can't help all of them. BUT, we CAN help baby Grace. We CAN be a part of her life and testimony. We CAN be the people who rally around this little girl and her precious family to be Jesus to them.

Would you be willing to make a few phone calls? Send a few emails? Would you be willing to share Grace's story with others so that we can get Grace the help she needs? I'm posting some pictures here so you can see just how serious this problem is.

Should you know someone who's interested in helping us as we help Grace and her family, please have them contact me. I can be reached at dirk@2911.org or 828.691.2911 I am eternally grateful for your willingness to join our efforts to help Grace and her family.

A couple of verses that help me as I try putting this into perspective and pray about our involvement:

"Whoever despises his neighbor is a sinner, but blessed is he who is generous to the poor." Proverbs 14.21

"Whoever oppresses a poor man insults his Maker, but he who is generous to the needy honors Him." Proverbs 14.31

Meet Shadrach

2010-06-30T16:16:00.000-04:00
While we were in Liberia, we met Shadrach. Shadrach is 12 years old. His mother passed away in 2007 from Typhoid B. His father took off the day Shadrach was born. He has an older brother who has been raising him since the death of his mom.

From the moment Cassie and I met Shack, we knew we had a special connection to this little boy. He won our hearts over.

It's not like I went to Liberia looking for more kids. The truth is, we LOVE each of our kids and we would adopt 10 more if we could swing it financially. But, the reality is, God has not blessed us with large bank accounts. He's blessed us with big hearts, but not big check books. So, our ability to adopt is limited.

But....Shadrach found a special place in my heart. How can you meet kids like this and then just walk away? I'm not sure. But I do know that is not an option for us.

It's challenging to do anything at this time because of the unlawful moratorium the President has placed on adoptions in Liberia. In terms of making anything "official", we can't. But, we are committed to Shadrach and are praying that God will direct us and make supernatural provisions for us to be able to bring Shadrach into our home.

Please join us in praying. And if you have a heart for adoptions but aren't in a position to adopt yourself, we would welcome your assistance with adopting Shadrach. (yes...that was a shameless plug for help!)

A Couple Snapshots Of The Liberian Landscape

2010-06-24T21:08:00.000-04:00
This morning I took my daughter Cassie and the three boys for a walk. From the third floor of the WACSN compound, you can see a good distance in several directions. In all directions what we saw this morning was water. Water, water, and more water. It was obvious, homes were flooded. So, we decided to take a walk to see up close what these families were dealing with.

I can tell you, it wasn’t pretty. As a matter of fact, it was disturbing and heartbreaking. We walked for nearly a half mile and saw house after house ravaged by the high water. I took pictures, but because internet service is so slow here and it isn’t realistic to download pictures, I’ll wait to post these pictures until I return to the USA. I can assure you, what you see will break your heart as it did mine. I came back to the compound feeling rather devastated. Part of me just felt like the problems here are so extraordinarily huge. How in the world will we ever make a dent in anything around here? Not sure if that was the Enemy playing with my mind, or just a large dose of reality. Either way, I honestly considered just walking away from all this.

The truth is, the problems around here are entirely overwhelming. It’s impossible to know where to even start. And once you do start, the question then becomes, will this really make any difference at all? And the reality is, probably not. I mean, it probably won’t make a difference for the landscape of Liberia. Not everyone will be changed. But some will. And that’s a good reason to press on.

Can I give you a couple snapshots of what I’ve seen?

Yesterday a lady came by WACSN. I won’t share her name. But I can tell you she’s already given up children who were adopted by some people in America. Unfortunately, this lady was pregnant again last year and lost her baby at birth. Now, she’s 7 months pregnant...again. She came by WACSN yesterday looking for help. And my daughter Cassie and I just happened to be there.

What do you do for someone like this? I certainly can’t “fix” her problems. It took her many years to get into this situation, and will probably take some considerable time to get out of it. In the meantime, it sure would be easier just to walk away from her. Out of sight, out of mind. After all, she’s just one of many, many people around here who need help and we certainly can’t help all of them.

However, the Holy Spirit would not allow me to take that road and accept that as a viable solution to this situation. I stood with her while tears rolled down her face. Maria and I encouraged her. We chastened her. And we reminded her that things can be different. She really can start making some better choices so she doesn’t keep ending up in this same situation.

I offered to buy her a cooler. If she has a cooler, she can sell water. If she sells water, she can make about $5 a day, enough to take care of herself and feed her baby. It will also give her a sense of self worth, something she lost along the way.

A cooler costs $80. That’s a lot of money. Well, I guess that’s relative isn’t it. $80 is a lot of money to me because I didn’t come to Liberia with much cash. And $80 is actually a lot of money for a family of 9 that lives on support. I could go on. But I trust you understand what I mean. $80 really IS a lot of money.

However, it’s nothing when you consider that $80 will give this young lady the ability to start over. $80 will help her start her own business. Something she can be proud of. $80 will afford her an opportunity to care for herself and her soon-to-be newborn baby. Yes, $80 is a lot of money. But considering what this $80 cooler will do for her, it’s really just pocket change.

Can I tell you another story? My new friend Chris is a guy I will not soon forget. I have some friends in Canada who hooked me up with Chris. I got to meet him today and spend a few hours with him. And what a treat it was!

I asked Chris a million questions about his life, his ministry, in what ways my Canadian friends are helping him, etc etc. I have been to Liberia many times. And one of our goals is to come alongside of pastors here in Liberia and help support them and encourage them. To be 100% honest with you, it’s been difficult to sell this in America. Part of that is because I’m a really horrible salesman. However, the reality is, American’s want “projects” to give to. They want to dig wells, build houses, and more tangible stuff like that. And I kinda understand where they’re coming from. Not that I agree, but I understand.

Chris helped me “see” with my own eyes what it looks like when a Liberian gets “adopted” by some North Americans. Not adopted like a kid gets adopted and brought to Canada or America. But adopted like supported. My Canadian friends are doing just that – they have committed to come alongside of Chris to support him and his kids. I’m sure they do more than I’m aware of, but after running the numbers, I figure that for about $200 a month, they are able to feed this man, pay his rent, send his kids to school and help him have a life that he would otherwise not have.

Sure, you can argue that it’s not our job to do all that for these people. Yep, you CAN argue that. But you’d be wrong. Dead wrong. It is ENTIRELY our job to come alongside those who need help and be the hands and feet of Jesus to them. And this is EXACTLY what my Canadian friends are doing with Chris. (Canadian Friends: Thanks for raising the bar for the rest of us and being an example worthy to follow!)

Will it change the country of Liberia? Probably not. But imagine if they continued to support Chris and my wife and I were able to support a “Chris” or 2, and you took up the challenge to find a “Chris” in Liberia to support and some of your friends decided they could cut back a little this year on some of their “fun money” and start supporting a guy like Chris.

Are you imagining what Liberia would look like 5 years from now if North American Christians started to take seriously the mandate to lose our lives for the sake of the gospel? Can you imagine what kind of a difference we could make on Liberia? We really COULD change a country. And not only would we be actively serving like God has called us to serve, but we’d be bringing pleasure to His heart as well.

Would you prayerfully consider joining us as we find more Chris’ and commit to come alongside of them? Or maybe you'd consider helping us buy some coolers? You and I really CAN make a difference and change the face of Liberia.

I DARE YOU TO JOIN US!

The War on Adoption

2010-06-24T12:21:00.000-04:00
Can I just lay out my disclaimer up front? I know that the heart of the king is in the hands of the Lord, and He directs it like a watercourse, wherever He pleases. I totally believe that God is the One (and only One) who appoints people to office. We may hold elections and cast our votes (and we should!), but God is ultimately the One who raises people up and casts them down.

For many years I’ve heard people whine and complain about our elected leaders. If you’re a Republican, then you probably didn’t vote for Obama. Nor would you have voted for Hillary. If you’re a Democrat, then chances are good you didn’t vote for McCain and you won’t vote for Sarah when she runs in the next election.

Having said all that, we need to continue to remind ourselves that God is the One who appoints men and women to office. It is Him, not us.

Okay, so here’s the situation. We’re in Liberia, Africa as I write this. We were introduced to Liberia about 5 years ago as we were praying about adopting kids from Africa. Upon arriving in Liberia for the first time in May of 2007, it became clear that the government here is corrupt. Most people think our government is corrupt in America, and it probably is. But the deep seated corruption here in Liberia is nauseating. And for good reason.

I’m not going to give credit to those leaders here in Liberia that I think are behind all this, but suffice it to say, I am no longer surprised when I hear the newest and latest information about the war on adoption. And it is just that, a war on adoption.

It’s difficult to pinpoint with any degree of certainty where it started, but it’s certainly easy to see where it is today. Politicians are greedy for power and money. And their greed is at the helm of this adoption ship that’s run aground on shore.

Reminds me of the journey Paul took in Acts 27 when he was locked up and taken from one city to another, by way of boat. The weather turned nasty, and Paul advised those who would listen that they should not travel. But his advice and warnings were not heeded. Instead, the captain decided to sail anyway. And before it was over, he lost everything he had. Except his life and the lives of the others who were on board.

Before this ordeal took a turn South, God told Paul that no life would be lost. And even though Paul’s warnings to the Captain were not heeded, he knew God could not be unfaithful to Himself. He knew that somehow God’s sovereignty intermingled with mans choices would cause His perfect, sovereign will to be accomplished.

Not much has changed in 2,000 years. God has made some promises. Men and women in leadership are not heeding the advice of godly men and women, about this issue of adoption. The result? Well, we can say with certainly that the end result is much worse than losing some cargo and a boat. We’re talking about the lives of countless little boys and girls.

While the President of Liberia turns a blind eye to the gross corruption that is taking place on her watch, and while politicians are jockeying for power, kids are being forgotten and abandoned.

Just yesterday I met my new friend Shadrach. Shadrach’s mom passed away in 2007. His dad took off to America. Shadrach is left with a 24 year old brother who spends most of his time going to school. In all reality, Shadrach is left to raise himself. It’s heartbreaking, but unfortunately it’s an all too common reality here in Liberia – kids raising themselves.

Just today I met with Steve Harper, the US Consul at the American Embassy in Monrovia. Among other things, I wanted Steve to hear about Shadrach. Unfortunately, after many months of negotiations and months and months of ‘he said she said’, it doesn’t appear that this war on adoption is anywhere close to being over. The Ministry of Health has in leadership a seriously corrupt woman who is making it nearly impossible to process and finalize Liberian adoptions.

And who suffers? The kids are suffering. Kids who would be adopted in a New York Second are being left behind because corrupt politicians here in Liberia are vying for power and money. And in an attempt to show people whose more powerful, kids are being forgotten.

When will someone in power stand up and say ENOUGH IS ENOUGH?! When will someone be bold and courageous enough to call sin sin, without concern about not being re-elected?

I can tell you this – people from all over the world have weighed in to give their opinions about this war on adoption. And there are a lot of people out there who know much more about politics than I ever will. And certainly there are people out there who have more clout, more power, more money, etc etc than I do. But here’s the deal…

We must soon realize that this war on adoption is not about politics. Voting this president out and pushing around the stooges that are causing all the problems isn’t the solution. Maybe the President SHOULD be voted out. And certainly the jokers who woke up this morning thinking of ways to prevent Liberian kids from being adopted should be held accountable and their sin SHOULD be exposed.

However the war on terror, at its core, is really just an assault on the character of God. It has little to do with politics, although politicians are the visible main players in the chaos at the moment. It has more to do with the condition of men and women’s hearts. This is all really about people, like those described in Romans 1, who God has given over to their corrupt hearts. We must remember that our hearts are wicked and deceitful. And apart from Christ reconciling our hearts and changing our nature, we will certainly act on the corrupt and depraved nature that is ours. As evidenced by the politicians here in Liberia.

The solution? As simple as it sounds I believe the solution is to pray. Yep, that’s right! Pray. Pray that God would have mercy on us and would spare us from what we rightfully deserve. Pray that God would do in the hearts of these politicians what He has graciously done in our hearts, that is, He has given us new hearts. We should thank God that He cares for these homeless, helpless, suffering kids here in Liberia far more than we ever could. And He is a father to the fatherless, faithfully drawing people to Himself, in spite of the circumstances in which they find themselves.

Instead of looking for ways to be vindictive and to even up the score with these people, lets commit to pray that God would do what only He can do – that is, to change their hearts and give them the mind of Christ. It appears that they are currently being controlled by the god of this age. So we should intercede for them and pray for God to capture their attention and their affections, and bring their thoughts into captivity to the obedience of Jesus Christ.

I’m sure that won’t insure that every child that needs to be adopted will get adopted. But it will help us to look more like Jesus as we walk in obedience to the example He set for us. And we can rest knowing that in the end God will be faithful to accomplish His purposes. And the powers of hell can’t stop that from happening.

Row, Row, Row Your Boat

2010-06-24T12:17:00.000-04:00
Yesterday was an interesting day. We were supposed to meet with the Pastoral Leadership Team to map out the next year of our work together. However, we’re in the rainy season here in Liberia. And when it rains, it really rains. The night before last and last night, it rained harder and more constant than I think I’ve ever heard. There was a consistent torrent of rain coming down. Violent rain. And the rain causes all sorts of problems. Peoples houses get flooded. Roads get flooded. And it makes it nearly impossible to travel.

I had an appointment yesterday with the US Consul at the American Embassy in Monrovia. We left the compound heading in that direction. We didn’t get far before I realized something just wasn’t right. I’ve sat in Monrovia traffic before, but yesterday was something different. We sat and we sat and we sat. When we finally made it to the area that was causing the problems, we saw vehicles completely covered in water. We watched people wading in water chest high, trying to salvage things from their homes. It certainly wasn’t anything like Hurricane Katrina that hit the Gulf Coast several years ago, but for these Liberian people, it was just as hellish.

I realized then why these pastors didn’t show up for our meeting. To say they couldn’t get to us is quite an understatement. It just wasn’t possible. As a matter of fact, one of the pastors we work with, in whose church I preached in January, had a church under water yesterday. And last night the rain did not subside. It was just as bad, if not worse. Looking around the compound and seeing the flooding just within walking distance of where we are, leads me to believe today will be much like yesterday.

I will wait on the Lord. Trusting that His plan A is good, even if it’s not my plan A.

Can We Build It? Yes We Can!

2010-06-22T19:00:00.000-04:00
I’ve heard it said before that if you want to see God smile, then just tell Him your plans. Well, it wasn’t like I woke up this morning and said “good morning God, here’s what I’m going to do today”. But, it might as well been like that.

We had plans today to meet with the Pastoral Leadership Team, but that didn’t really turn out as I had anticipated. As a matter of fact, the meeting didn’t happen at all. It was postponed until Wednesday. So, Cassie and I got up this morning and had a small breakfast. And then we took Zeena, Kona and Shadrack to the beach. We had a blast playing in the waves. And today there were definitely BIG waves. Actually, the biggest waves I’ve seen at this beach. We didn’t venture out far, but really, there was no need too. Watching Cassie and the boys jump in, through and over the waves right as they were breaking on shore was a real treat. Unfortunately though, I forgot my camera so I wasn’t able to capture any Kodak moments on paper, but we’ve got a lifetime of memories in our hearts.

This afternoon, we spent some time with Maria and then we hung out with the boys and another boy from the children’s home named Bill. They call Bill Bay boy . Bay boy was actually in the children’s home back March of ’09 when the government came in to take the kids away. Fortunately or unfortunately, I was there with my group from South Dakota to witness that whole nightmare. Anyway, Bay boy came by today to say hello and we snapped a few pictures of him so we could email them to his family in Canada who are adopting him. He also started tying a letter on my laptop to our son Ezekiel. He and Ezekiel were good buds in the children’s home together.

Had a little nap this afternoon and a late dinner by candlelight. Not by choice, but by necessity. The generator broke this afternoon and so we sit here now in the dark. Which isn’t a big deal really. Candle’s are nice. But, since the generator isn’t working, that means they can’t make ice because the freezers are powered by the generator. And so tomorrow is looking pretty bleak as they anticipate not being able to sell ice. No generator tonight means no ice tomorrow. No ice tomorrow means no income tomorrow. You’re smart, you can do the simple math and determine what it means for all those Liberians who work with Maria whose livelihood is dependent on selling ice.

It would be easy (at least for me) to sit around sulking about what could be. Or maybe what should be. But the reality is, it is what it is. And what it is is, this. We say TIA – this is Africa.

Whether it’s good to admit or not, I’ll admit that I like the new show called Royal Pains. Not time now to explain the whole premise behind the show, but the bottom line is, this concierge doctor practices in a very exclusive area called Martha’s Vineyard. And when they show clips of the houses and estates on Martha’s Vineyard, something in me cringes. In a perfect world where everyone shares the wealth, maybe it wouldn’t rub me in such a raw way. But, in a world where so many wealthy people have such an abundance while others, like people in Liberia, are just trying to survive, seems rather appalling.

This is why I’m entirely committed to finding the ‘haves’ to help the ‘have-nots’ – it’s really that simple.

Funny thing – when Cassie and I were getting ready for this trip, we both sent out letters trying to rally support to help cover the cost of the trip. Some folks were very gracious and generous to give so that this trip would be possible. And we’re very grateful for that. Others? Well, let’s just say we heard just about every reason under the sun why people just couldn’t help. I don’t want to list the actual reasons here because then this would become personal. And it’s really not personal at all. My point is this – we live in the wealthiest country in the known world. We have far more than most people alive today. And yet, surprisingly, we still don’t seem to have enough. We still think we need more. We need more cars, bigger houses, more clothes, better retirement plans, etc etc etc. We have this insatiable desire for more, while many on the continent of Africa will die today, simple because they didn’t have a bowl of rice (about 5 cents) or medicine to prevent malaria (about $1).

How is it that we can be so consumeristic while so many die because they simple don’t have the very basics to survive. And how is it that we can continue to turn a blind eye to all this, as if someone else is going to take care of it? Or as if if we don’t think about it, then we don’t have to be responsible to do anything about it?

The harsh reality is – everyone reading these words, including the man writing them, will be accountable for what we did with this life we’ve been given. The bible says, ‘to whom much is given, much is required’. And ‘whatever a man sows, that will he also reap’.

I could write a book about all this, and maybe someday I will. But for now, I will simply continue to ask you to be a generous giver. Will you consider simply giving so that others may simply live?

We can all do something. And I’m sure many of us do. Maybe we tithe, or maybe we occasionally feed the homeless or maybe we cleaned out our garage and donated our old stuff to Good Will. I don’t know. But what I DO know is this – we can all do more! Including me and my family. We can all do more.

Can I humbly ask that you pray about what God would have YOU and YOUR FAMILY do to come alongside of us so that we can continue ministering in Liberia. There are so many areas that you can give to. So if there is something specific you’d like to give your money to – we can help with that.

We are training and equipping pastors here in Liberia so they can be effective in the pulpit and effective disciple makers. This is the key to bringing about sustainable, eternal transformation to Liberia. You can help!

We are in the beginning stages of building a children’s village where orphaned kids will be cared for, fed, educated and discipled. You can help!

There are several young men I know that really want to go to college so they can do something with their lives. They are motivated and eager to learn. But, they are poor and have no resources. We can send them to college to a few hundred bucks. You can help!

We have a single lady who we’re already sending to school. However for $900 she can start her own business and begin to support herself. You can help!

There are thousands of kids that we have access to here that need a simple education. For pennies a day, we can send these kids to school. You can help!

So you see, it’s not much. We’re not trying to send a man to the moon. We’re not doing a fundraiser to raise money for a bigger church building or a better lighting system. We’re just appealing to your heart, asking for you to give, so that we can TRANSFORM LIBERIA.

It can work! And YOU can be a pivotal part of it all. Your generous giving can make it possible for lives to be changed.

Won’t you consider giving today? For more on this, please visit www.2911.org and click on the DONATE NOW tab on the left side of the home page. It’s that simple!

Wheels Down in Liberia, Africa

2010-06-21T18:19:00.000-04:00

Welp, Cassie and I made it to Liberia. We arrived alive! Had a rather interesting trip getting here, but got here none-the-less.

Started out from Asheville Sunday around noon. Flew to Newark, NJ and had a four hour layover. As we were walking around the airport, we noticed out one of the windows what looked like New York City. A quick investigation confirmed that what we were seeing was IN FACT NYC. We quickly decided we needed to see it up close and personal. So, we asked an airport employee how long a trip would take. She said we could get there in 15 minutes by train. Doing a little math led us to believe we could be there and back with time to spare. So we headed towards the train. Once there, we asked an officer how long he thought it would take to get to NYC, he said "with traffic and all, you're looking at about 6 hours for a round trip. What!? The first lady said 15 minutes and now this guy is saying 6 hours. Holy discrepancy Batman!

We decided that it wasn't worth the risk of missing our flight to Liberia so we just hung out in the airport and read, journaled, talked, laughed and shared some Ben and Jerry's.

It came time to head from Newark to Brussels. Boarded the plane and was underway before we knew it. Here's where things get rather interesting. We were about halfway through our flight and I headed off for the rest room. Came back a few minutes later to find a lady sitting in my seat next to Cassie. And this lady was somewhat hysterical. It didn't take long to realize something was up. She started explaining to me (and everyone else within a 5 row radius) the reason she was in my seat. In a nutshell - the guy sitting next to her exposed himself to her on the plane and she totally freaked out! As would any of us, I'm guessing.

Once people heard the news, the entire row got reassigned seats. I saw a male flight attendant walk over to the guy and talk with him for a few minutes. I had no idea what he said to him, I just know he talked with him. A few hours later, we landed in Brussels and I was wondering what in the world an airline does in a situation like this. And wouldn't you know it?! The guy gets off the plane just behind us. Like he's literally the guy walking off the plane directly behind us. We step off the plane and right there waiting were the Brussels police. We walked by them and immediately heard them ask the man for his passport. And before you know it, he was nabbed. I'm not sure what they did with him, but I'm certain he wasn't making any connecting flights. So, needless to say, the first leg of our journey was very interesting.

We had a few hours in Brussels, so we took a quick train downtown and walked around town for a few minutes to take in some sights. Cassie and I shared an authentic Belgium waffle together. It was mouth-wateringly delicious. Way to make a waffle Belgium!

Arrived Liberia around 5pm tonight and actually got all 4 of the bags we checked. Which rarely happens with me. Somehow I usually end up a bag or 2 short. No joke.

We were picked up by the Queen, the Bishop and Willet. It's always great seeing everyone. Next, we spent a couple hours with Senator Williams talking about, among other things, land for the Children's Village we're getting ready to start working on. He's going to take me to see a few different plots of land on Wednesday. That's pretty cool! Because once we secure our land, we can start building the village! And once we get the village underway, we can start taking care of kids and changing the lives of families all over Liberia.

While we were sitting at the restaurant with Senator Williams, a reporter that works for the President of Liberia approached us and asked Maria if he could interview me. She assured him he could. So, he's coming Wednesday to the Pastors Training Session I'll be leading and is going to interview me for this international magazine he writes for. Not sure what it is or who his audience is, but if he works directly for the President, I'm guessing more than a few people read it, especially with an international distribution. Needless to say, I'm grateful and excited about the opportunity to share my heart about discipleship, orphans, adoptions, and the call that God has given us to invest our lives in Liberia.

On a side note - while we were sitting at the table with the Senator, a pastor came over to me and said "Pastor Dirk, I want you to know, that since the time you were here in January, we have been taking to heart the things you have been teaching us. I also want you to know it has revolutionized our ministry. And you should also know that since you were here, no one has been sitting on the platform." Now, granted, this would make much more sense to you if you knew the things we talked about in January. Suffice it to say, these guys really ARE learning. The time we spend teaching them the Word of God really IS changing their lives and their ministries. I realize many of you like tangible projects to support and it's much easier to round up support for projects like houses, new roofs, wells, rice bags, etc, and we have plans in the short term future to tackle those projects and more. But you should also know the time and investment we're making in discipling these pastors is definitely bearing tangible, visible fruit. Praise God for that!

Once we arrived at the compound, we received such a warm welcome from our dear friends who work with Maria. What a great team of people she has here who truly do have servants hearts.

Not long after we got to the compound we ran into Zeena and Kona - 2 sweet boys who are being adopted by our good friend back in SD, Susan Olson. It was great seeing the boys again. We've already made plans to play some soccer tomorrow, hit the beach for a few minutes and then watch a movie tomorrow night after all my meetings are over.

All in all, it's GREAT to be back. I feel like this is my home away from home. And it's always great to be home.

Please pray for us this week - that God would do the unimaginable! Far above what we could ask for, think of, or even imagine. Thanks for investing that time before the throne on our behalf.

More tomorrow night...

Come On Down...You're The Next Contestant On...

2010-06-17T18:28:00.000-04:00
If memory serves me right, the oldest game show in TV history has a huge audience of college students. Everyone wants to hear their name called..."Cheryl Billingsly...Come on down, you're the next contestant on The Price Is Right!" Well, as thrilling as it would be to stand on stage with Drew guessing the price of a new car, or playing a crazy game of Plinko, I've got a better game show for you.

It's not really a game show, per se, but it DOES have some really cool prizes.

My show is called Transforming Liberia! Wanna play?! It's simple to do. Just go to www.2911.org and click on the DONATE NOW tab on the left side of the home page. From the comfort of your home, your office, your dorm room, your apartment, or some waiting area in an airport, YOU can be incredibly instrumental in helping us transform Liberia.

Presently, we've got several "projects" we're working on. A big project we're getting ready to launch is a Children's Village. A 5 acre place where orphaned kids can live, learn, grow, and ultimately become disciples of Jesus. More about that later.

I leave Sunday for Liberia. I'll be on the ground for 8 days. We've got several strategic projects we need YOUR help with before I leave.

There are 3 young men we want to send to college. For about $400 per semester, we can send all three of these guys to college. Each of them are eager to learn and make something of their lives. And YOU can help with that.

We're also trying to send 100 school age kids to primary school. For about $2 a month, you can send a Liberian child to school. So, for about $200 a month, we have the amazing opportunity to change the lives of these 100 kids.

Can I ask you to join us in our effort to TRANSFORM LIBERIA? You can make your tax deductible donation on line right now. Just click here www.2911.org and look for the DONATE NOW tab.

I can't say thanks enough for your thoughtful consideration of this worthy project. On behalf of those 3 young men and the 100 kids awaiting our help...THANKS!

Once I return from this trip to Liberia, I'll share more about the children's village and strategic ways you can be a part of that project.

Until then....

Oh yeah...the game show prize! I bet you're wondering what it is. Okay, so it's not really a "prize" like Drew would give away. I mean, we don't have a new piano or new car of big vacation to give away. But, God promises a reward for those who...'give to the least of these'. I'm not entirely sure what rewards He has waiting for us as we sacrificially give to His kingdom, but I know it's a certain reward. So, come on down, you're the next contestant on...TRANSFORMING LIBERIA!

Can't Buy Me Love

2010-06-17T01:37:00.000-04:00
Did you see that movie? I did, a long time ago. And maybe have even watched it again a few times since then. If you haven’t seen it, rent it.

It’s what came to mind the other day when my wife took me to dinner for my birthday. We live in Asheville, North Carolina. Which is a beautiful city in the mountains of Western North Carolina. A great place to live, and a beautiful place to vacation. So beautiful, in fact, that the President of the United States and his wife came to Asheville a few weeks ago to spend the weekend. They stayed at a historic inn near downtown Asheville called The Grove Park Inn. My family and I love visiting the Grove Park Inn during Christmas. Beautiful decorations fill each room and each year they have a ginger bread house contest. It’s a pretty big deal by all ginger bread standards. A few years ago, my son Dawson even entered one of his ginger bread creations.

Most presidents over the past 100 years along with most famous Hollywood actors have stayed at the GPI. A few years back, they built a 30 million dollar spa. I think it went in the record books as the most expensive spa in the country. Needless to say, this place rocks. Literally! The entire outside is faced with rocks…giant boulders. It’s an architectural masterpiece, no doubt.

Anyway, my wife surprised me by taking me to dinner there for my birthday. An all you can eat seafood buffet. What a treat! It’s a seafood paradise, if there is such a thing.

When we pulled in, I noticed a very large and expensive Rolls Royce parked in a specially marked off parking spot, roped off from anything that might even get close to this piece of automobile gold.

As we walked in, I noticed an entire line of high rolling riders. 7 Ferraris and 4 Rolls Royces, to be exact. Initially, I was wowed. I must admit. There’s something pretty staggering about seeing 2.5 or 3 million dollars worth of vehicles parked together like that. However, I quickly was brought back to reality where most of us regular people live. Hondas, Chevys and mopeds. I walked by these cars initially enamored by their sheer beauty and outrageous price tags. But, then I started thinking of all the kids in Africa that we could feed, clothe and educate with the money tied up in these cars. You could feed a small country for a year for what these cars cost. And then I started thinking of the people who are actually writing checks for these cars. Who are these people that can afford cars like this? And why in the world would anyone in their right mind waste that much money on a car?! These cars cost more than an average single family home in America.

So there I was, trying to process all this as we’re walking in to stuff our faces with a seafood buffet fit for a king. And I’m sure dropping $30 on dinner might not be any better than dropping $300,000 for a car. But, this isn’t about me and my gluttony, it’s about the cars!

I couldn’t help but think of the warning Jesus gave us about storing up treasures on earth where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal. And His encouragement to store up treasures in heaven where moths don’t destroy and where rust cannot corrode and where thieves can’t break in and steal. Treasures that would bless the Fathers heart.

Can I ask you a question? Are you investing the resources that He has graciously entrusted to you in treasures that will last, or are you wasting them on imitation treasures, that only satisfy for a moment? Can we all do a little introspection and check to ensure we’re stewarding our resources well and not squandering our inheritance on pig slop? I’m definitely re-evaluating my bank account and checkbook and I hope you will too. If adjustments are needed, well, adjust! You’ll be glad you did. And more than that, God will be pleased and honored that you chose to treasure Him above the allures of this world.

Oh yeah, the movie! Well, instead of me trying to explain the parallel, just watch it and see for yourself.

Wondering About Noah

2010-03-23T19:02:00.000-04:00
This will be short. As many of you know, we're in the process of getting 29.11 back off the ground. Most of what we do centers around discipling pastors in Liberia, West Africa. Seems there aren't many people wanting to drop their vacations to head to Liberia these days. I can't imagine why! (okay, that was sarcastic. sorry).

In "selling" our mission to others, it seems there is a common response. It goes something like this: "wow, Liberia? That's a long ways away, isn't it? Why do you have to go all the way to Liberia to minister to people? Can't you do that here? And it's so expensive to get there. Who's got that kind of money? Who pays for all this anyway? Maybe it would be easier if you got a real job and did this on the side. And what makes you think what you're doing in Liberia is going to work anyway. Those guys seem to be doing alright on their own. Can't we just send them money or bibles or something? Boy, it sounds like too much to me. Isn't Liberia just like every other country in Africa? Well, what you're doing is noble. I'd love to help but you know how the economy is right now - tough times for everybody. This really isnt' a good time to be raising money. But good luck with it all anyway."

Okay, so those aren't verbatim statements, but pretty dog-gone close. I get mixed feelings when I hear what people say. Part of my gets frustrated. Sometimes I even get angry (inwardly, but smile on the outside, of course). Sometimes I feel sorry for people. And sometimes I actually have the maturity to say "thank You Lord!" that You use the foolish things of the world to shame the wise and the weak things to shame the strong. I wish I was mature more often.

In all of this, I often wonder what kinds of things Noah heard as he started collecting wood for his boat. And year after year of hard work and tireless nights, I wonder how many nights he fell asleep discouraged because so many people just didn't get it. They couldn't see the bigger picture.

I must resist the urge to sulk and be discouraged. Instead, I will raise my head high and keep my heart in tune with His heart. Knowing that there have been many thousands upon thousands of passionate God followers who risked it all, while the world stood by and mocked them. I will continue to believe that discipling people isn't just a noble idea, but a mandate from my Lord. And we will continue making people aware of those less fortunate children in Liberia, known only to the Western world as "orphans".

What I'm Learning

2010-03-22T09:47:00.000-04:00
Last week a friend of mine asked me what I was learning. Hmmm....I realized I like asking that question, but I don't like it as much when people ask me.

Anyway, here's what I'm learning, struggling with, realizing...

I'm often times a big jerk.
My flesh is hungry for sin.
God's love for me is staggering. The depths of which I cannot grasp.
There are a lot of really messed up people - hurting beyond comprehension.
"Christians" can be really stupid and annoying.
I'm often times privately hyper critical of "Christians" who have a lot of fancy, expensive, excessive stuff. It's hard for me to reconcile a radical gospel with a comfortable lifestyle. I'm working on it, but I've apparently still got a long ways to go. It's probably entirely wrong, but I think it would be better to put an ichthus (you know, the little fish symbol) on your forehead instead of your Lexus.
I say I love God but often times miss the vital connection between my love FOR Him and my obedience TO Him.
My heart aches for the people in Liberia.
Political people who put their own twisted, selfish interests above the interests of those they are serving, shouldn't be in office.
I've read a bunch of hateful blogs and emails this week from "Christians". Wow - no wonder lost people run from us.
I have a beautiful wife and 7 really amazing kids and I need to do a much better job of taking care of them.
I'm tired of showboat Christianity. Is there even such a thing as an Acts 2 church today?
The other day God asked me if I trusted Him. I said 'Yes God'. He said, 'Then trust Me.'
Right after that, He asked me if I loved Him. I said 'Yes God.' He said, 'Feed My sheep.'
Therein lies the tension. But, I'm working on this.
Spring is showing signs of life around our place. The cold, dark, dormant days of winter are over. I'm praying there will be even greater signs of life in my heart after a long, seemingly dreary spiritual winter.

This Is One Jacked Up Administration

2010-03-22T08:55:00.000-04:00
Okay, so I'm not much of a politician, nor have I ever claimed to know the first thing about politics. I vote. That's about it. And the truth is, I usually vote more on someones position on the sanctity of life, as opposed to how financially stable they promise to make our country. Call me shallow. Perhaps I am.

I didn't do so well in Social Studies, World History, Geography, and classes like that. If you were to pull my report cards from high school, you'd wonder if I even attended those classes!

And sadly, today is not much different. To be brutally honest, I watched a bit of Fox News and CNN yesterday, March 21, 2010 to see if I could follow what was going on with the Health Reform...uuggg...stuff. Yep, I sat there and listened, and watched the numbers on the screen and even listened to the commentators. But, I'm not sure I know much more today than I did before the weekend. It seemed more of "he said, she said" than anything else.

Here's what I DO know though. I do know it all sounds rather political. I do know that both sides think they're right. I do know that politicians sure sound like professional liars and manipulators to me. I do know that when both sides are so adamant that they are right, someone must be entirely deceived. I do know that this issue is probably way more important than I realize, seeing as how my wife and I have 7 kids and not a week hardly goes by that we don't need something that relates directly to the health care status in our country. I do know that this Administration has yet to impress me. I do know that it ticks me off that the President smokes, and someone is paying for his health care, and that someone is you and I. So when he develops lung cancer, my tax dollars will pay for his cancer treatment. Even more than that though, I do know that I am rather disgusted with the leadership in Washington, DC. I have to explain to my kids that people can be as sexually irresponsible as they want, and daddy's hard earned tax dollars will help pay for them to have their unwanted babies murdered. Might sound a little extreme, but isn't that the bottom line? There is a growing epidemic of unwanted and unplanned pregnancies in this country, which leads to murdering our unborn, and grows an even larger culture of death around us. The bottom line is this - our tax dollars are being systematically used to support the murder of the unborn! And shouldn't that grieve our hearts?

Would I like a President that can turn our economics around to help ensure my kids and my grand kids will have some kind of hope for the stability of their country for the future? Of course I would.

But I'd rather live in a poor country where the value of life is celebrated and valued, than a rich country that excuses and supports the murder of millions and millions of innocent and voiceless children.

May God have mercy on us and forgive our, for we know not what we do.

Hope for the Hopeless

2010-02-24T12:24:00.000-05:00
“Our faith must change how we live and how we respond to the needs of others – or it will be a faith that James insists is ‘dead’”. (The Poor Will Be Glad by Peter Greer and Phil Smith)

It’s far too easy to change the channel or throw away the newsletter asking for money. We’ve seen enough pictures and videos of malnourished African kids with extended bellies. So much comes at us that we actually see those pictures and videos and are by and large unmoved. We’ve become calloused and desensitized to the growing epidemic of needy people around the world. Our material excess makes it incredibly easy for us to enjoy our creature comforts without giving a second thought to those suffering on the other side of the globe.

Those of us here in America, Canada and Europe will probably never face certain evils and injustices that are the daily reality for hundreds of millions of children in the world. Before you walk away, let me paint a picture for you….

My kids will not go to bed hungry tonight, unless they refuse to eat the food we put before them and my wife and I are trying to teach them important lessons about gratefulness and appreciation. There are nearly 850 million people who will go to bed hungry tonight.

The probability of our kids losing a sibling before they reach middle school is slim. In Africa and other third world countries, one in five children die during childbirth. Worldwide, eleven million children die every year before reaching their fifth birthday. That’s thirty thousand children a day who die from hunger and preventable disease. Listen…that means that one child dies EVERY THREE SECONDS!

Although my kids have several areas in our home where they can find drinkable water, twenty percent of the world has no access to clean water. Millions more walk very long distances to carry every drop of water to their homes.

Our kids have access to indoor plumbing and would consider diarrhea a temporary and annoying inconvenience. In third world countries like Liberia, diarrhea kills between 1.6 million ad 2.5 million children every year.

My kids have several options when it comes to education. Our country offers free public education to nearly every single child in America. In Liberia, most kids will grow up illiterate without even a basic ability to read or write.

Although our kids hate routine shots provided by their doctor, more than half of all Africans do not have access to modern health facilities. Which means ten million people in Africa die each year from the four most common preventable diseases: diarrhea, acute respiratory illness, malaria, and measles. In most of these cases, one simple shot could save a life.

I could go on. There’s much more to share. But I know you get the point. So, the question becomes…
WHAT NOW?

What, if anything, can we do to make a difference? Can we even make a difference or is this a helpless, hopeless cause?

I choose to think we CAN make a difference. A difference that will impact the kingdom of God and bring pleasure to His heart. Luke 12.48 says “From the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.”

So we’ve gotta start asking ourselves what we’re doing with our material blessings. How has God called us to serve the poor? Like you, I am deeply concerned about the physical and spiritual poverty in the world. And like you, I am searching for ways that followers of Christ can effectively serve and minister to the poor. And I really believe Scripture has much to teach us in regards to this. That’s why we’ve chosen to invest our lives and resources in ministering to those in Liberia, Africa.

Stay tuned for how YOU can make a difference in the lives of those suffering and dying…

Not Just Another Day At The Beach

2010-02-13T10:55:00.000-05:00
While I was in Liberia, Africa with my two friends Tony and Lucas, we took a short walk to the beach to enjoy some sun and surf.

As it is, not many Liberian's swim. They prefer to watch. This day however, was a bit different. Tony, Lucas and I had been swimming (uhhhh...more like jumping up and down in the waves, but that sounds whimpy so we'll go with "swimming") about 50 yards out from shore. Much further out than most Liberians would feel comfortable venturing.

We noticed not long after we waded out into the water, a small group of onlookers gathered to watch the crazy white men drown in the ocean. To their amazement, we survived the constant onset of crashing waves.

When we made our way back to shore, four of the guys in the group took a liking to us. We briefly shared information about ourselves, as did they and we made our way down the beach to check out the field we normally play soccer on.

As we were walking and talking, I was struck, not so much by what I was hearing from these guys, but from what I WASN'T hearing from them. I've made many trips to Liberia over the past 3 years and have encountered many people. Although their lives are all unique, their stories seem very similar. Every person we meet in Liberia has been affected by the senseless war that ravished their country. They are all severely affected by insurmountable poverty. And before long, you're sometimes seen as the "rich white American" and shortly after that identification is made, they ask if you'd be willing to help them get to America or support them in some way, shape or form. The difficult thing is, each of these people really DO need help and you know it's not at all possible to help everyone. So, you offer to pray for them and you try to encourage them to trust the Lord with their lives. It's easy for the white guy from America to toss those cliches out there. I understand it's a different matter entirely to be the one living through this day in and day out. I pray my cliches really aren't cliches at all, rather genuine words of concern from a guy feeling rather overwhelmed by what he sees around him.

This conversation was different though. These four guys never asked for anything. They each have a unique story of war, survival, poverty, hunger, etc. but they were not looking for handouts from us.

This is what drew me to them. They weren't begging for anything. They genuinely wanted to know the three of us and were interested in starting a friendship with us.

I asked if we could walk them home. They politely agreed. After arriving to their home, we sat and talked for about 30 minutes. I wanted to know about each of their futures. How they got to where they were and where do they go from here.

Each young man had his own story. And each of them long to attend school. Here's the thing, for $200 per year, we can send one of them to college. $200 per year!

So, I've committed to helping find a few of my American friends who would be willing to help these guys get an education so they can find a job and have some kind of future in Liberia. Without an education, poverty and suffering is unavoidable. Before we left their house, I prayed with them. I couldn't help but weep. I prayed that God would raise up some people to come alongside of these guys so they can go to school and become the men God designed them to be. Maybe YOU are the answer to that prayer.

Would YOU prayerfully consider joining me in helping secure funds to get these guys to school? You can simply make your check out to WACSN and send it to PO Box 511 Mars Hill, NC 28754 Please include a short note with your check with the word "college" on it. We'll be sure these guys get enrolled and start classes as soon as possible. And if you'd like, you can get updates from them directly. I'm sure they'd be honored to connect with you.

I asked each of the guys to write a short biography of themselves. I also asked them what size shoes, shirts and pants they wore so I could take some clothes over in March when I go back. I am attaching their emails below, and have not done any editing to them.

If you are not able to help us send these guys to college, would you please add them to your prayer list and commit to fervently pray for them this year? They will be grateful.

Thankful for this trip to the beach,

Dirk

HELLO MR,DirK
BY WAY OF INTRODUCTION MY NAME IS LEMUEL N. TENWAH.
LEMUEL WAS BORN ON TO THE UNION OF MR,MRS FRANCIS W. TENWAH IN THE 1986 JULY 10 ,LEMUEL IS A HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATE OF THE SINKOR ASSEMBLY OF GOD MISSION SCHOOL AND A STUDENT OF WEST AFRICAN COMPUTER INSTITUDE OF TECHNOLOGY ,SINCE I GRADUATED FROM HIGH SCHOOL I HAVE NOT BEEN OPPORTUNE TO ENROLL AT THE UNIVERSITY LEVEL OF LACK OF FUNDS IT HAS BEEN MY PARYER THAT ONEDAY THAT GOD WILL TOUCH SOMEONE SOMEWHERE TO PLEASE HELP ME WITH MY EDUCATION PROCESS.

AS GOD COULD HAVE IT ONEDAY MY BROHTERS AND MY SELF WENTV ON THE BEACH TO SWIM AND WE CAME ACROSS MR,DIRK BRO.LUCOTT"S BRO,TOMMY WE ALL MAKE FRIENDS ON THAT DAY WE TOOK THEM AT OUR HOUSE ,AFTER THAT MR,DIRK ASK US WHAT WE WERE DOING FOR LIFE AND I EXPLIAN TO HIM THAT I AM STUDENT MR,DIRK TOLD ME THAT HE WILL HELP FIND ME A SPONSOR WHO WILL HELP ME WITH MY EDUCATION WITH GOD ALTHINGS AER POSSIBLE OUR ALL MIGHTY GOD VERY VERY GREAT , I DO NOT KNOW THE WHERE ABOUT OF MY FATHER SOME OF HIS FRIENDS TOLD ME THAT HE WAS IN THE UNITED STATE SINCE FIVE YEARS I STOP HEARING FROM HIM AND MY MOTHER IS A VERY POOR WOMAN ,SHE WAS OPPORTUNE BY HER CHURCH TO GO TO THE UNITED STATE BUT THINGS ARE NOT FINE WITH HER TO HELP ME WITH MY EDUCATION PROCESS ,MR DIRK GOD WILL CONTINUE TO BLESS YOU AND YOUR FAMILY AS LONG YOU LIVE,PLEASE TILL BRO, LUCOTT'S AND BRO, TOMMY HELLO FOR ME .MY SIZE IN SHOE IS 10 AND THE HELF AND MY SIZE IN TROUSER IS 38 ,PLEASE DO NOT FOR GET ABOUT THE READING BOOKS AND BALLS .

LEMUEL N. TENWAH

HELLO DIRK,
GREETINGS COME TO YOU IN THE NAME OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST.
BY WAY OF INTRODUCTION I AM PRINCE WILSON, BORN TO THE UNION OF PETER Y WILSON AND WENWU WILSON.I WAS BORN ON THE 5TH OF AUGUST 1988,I AM A HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATE.I LOST MY FATHER DURING THE PERIOD OF THE LIBERIA CIVIL WAR HE DIED FROM DIABETES DUE TO LACK OF MEDICATION.I LIVE WITH MY MOTHER WHO IS A WIDOW.SINCE I COMPLETED HIGH SCHOOL I HAVE BEEN UNABLE TO ENROLL INTO THE UNIVERSITY DUE TO LACK OF FINANCE.MY MOTHER CANNOT AFFORD, THIS IS BECAUSE THE BUSINESS SHE IS DOING IS TO FEEL US IN THE HOME,THAT IS FROM HAND TO MOUTH.THERE IS NO SUPPORT FROM ANY WHERE ELSE.IT IS ONLY BY THE GRACE OF GOD WE ARE SURVIVING.MY WISH IS TO EXCEL IN MY EDUCATION AND HAVE A DEGREE.I AM ASKING GOD TO PLEASE TOUCH THE HEART OF ANY ONE THAT WILL READ THIS TO HELP ME GET A BETTER FUTURE AND I PRAY THAT GOD BLESS THEM IN ABUNDANCE.SINCE MY FATHER DIED WE ESCAPE TO GHANA ON A REFUGEE CAMP CALLED BUDUBURAM,THERE WAS WHERE I COMPLETED MY HIGH SCHOOL EDUCATION.AFTER A FEW PERIOD WE COULD NOT HAVE A BETTER LIFE THERE,THERE WERE SICKNESSES KILLING PEOPLE AND ALOT OF RITUAL KILLING.AFTER THE 2005 ELECTION,MY MOM DECIDED FOR US TO RETURN HOME.BUT SINCE WE RETURN BACK TO OUR COUNTRY IT HAS BEEN THE WORSE EVER IN OUR LIVES.IT IS SO HARD TO EXPLAIN.
I THINK I WILL STOP HERE FOR NOW DIRK.GREETINGS TO YOU AND THE FAMILY.
I WEAR SIZE 41 IN SHOE IN TROUSER I WEAR 30.HAVE A NICE TIME,I HOPE TO SEE YOU AGAIN DIRK,I MISS YOU SO MUCH.MAY GOD RICHLY BLESS YOU AND GIVE YOU LONG LIFE.GOD BLESS YOU.

PRINCE WILSON.

Google Earth - Liberia January 2010

2010-02-10T11:10:00.000-05:00
Honda or Ford, Polo or Tommy Hilfiger, Ivy League or technical school, blue ribbons or last place, padded pews or folding chairs, shag or Berber, pan or thin crust, McDonalds or Burger King, coach or business, and the list could go on indefinitely.

I just returned from an amazing trip to Liberia, Africa. And I can’t help but think of all the people I saw on this latest trip, that will never know the difference between Dell or Apple, Home Depot or Lowes, paper or plastic, Levi’s or Wrangler’s.

The myriad of faces that come to mind are people just trying to survive. We know the reality is that many of them will not. Those children that beat the odds and actually survive past their fifth birthday will most certainly grow up hungry, poor, illiterate and chronically sick. When they die, they will leave this planet completely isolated from the Western world. And although most of us will never meet them, we can be certain that the God of the universe knows their names, understands their pain, and stands before them as the sovereign King of kings and Lord of lords, the Author of life, the One through Whom, to Whom and for Whom all things were created. Pause…we’ll come back to this…

We also got to spend significant time with pastors from all over the country, who came and met with us to learn the Word of God. Men (and women) that God has called to preach the Word, who are hungry for a deeper and clearer understanding of God’s Word. They came hungry and left full. It’s hard to describe what it’s like to see men and women hear the Word of God, understand it, and wrestle with how they will implement this into their own lives and ministries. Unfortunately, all too often it’s a rare occasion when we see this happen in America. But, it’s happening in Liberia. And we praise God for this!

One of our target areas of ministry in Liberia is with the pastors there. Our goal is to effectively disciple hundreds of Liberian pastors so they in turn will be able to disciple their own people. And as we take seriously the Great Commission found in Matthew 28, whether we’re American’s or Liberians, evangelism will naturally flow from our understanding of and obedience to the Word of God. The reason so many of us are comfortable leaving evangelism to the “professionals” is because we have a warped understanding of the hard truth that God has called us to be Ambassadors who will deliver His message of reconciliation to a lost and hurting world.

Push play now….

Our mandate to disciple pastors isn’t just so they will be better preachers or so that we’ll feel good about some ‘mission’ work we’re doing in a third world country. Our goal in discipling people (in this case we’re talking about pastors in Liberia) is first and foremost to be faithful and obedient to the Word of God. Matthew 28.16-20 makes it very clear that Jesus’ final command before He ascended into heaven was for us to make disciples, teaching people how to obey His Word. Second, we believe that as these pastors are effectively discipled, they will in turn effectively disciple their own people. And an overflow of this will be evangelism that flows from a heart that understands redemption and the awesome responsibility that we’ve been entrusted with to be the ones who carry the message of the cross to people from every tribe, language, people and language. What an amazing privilege we have to partner with God in His redemptive plan to rescue the world. And Scripture is clear that whoever confesses with his mouth that Jesus is Lord and believes in his heart that God raised him from the dead, will be saved (check out Romans 10 for more on this). But…

How will they call on this King to rescue and redeem them if they don’t first understand the gravity of sin and the consequences of being separated from a holy God? And how will they know Him if no one tells them about Him? And who will go to deliver this message? You probably remember Paul laying out his case in Romans 10 about this very thing. The world can be saved if they will call on the name of the Lord. But how will they call on One in whom they have not heard, and how will they hear if no one tells them, and who will tell them if they are not sent, etc, etc. Remember that?

On this trip to Liberia, we visited some remote areas of the interior regions of the country. It would be a gross understatement to say my heart felt depths of despair in ways it has not before. We walked to areas where no vehicles have ever been. Our feet stepped in villages of men and women, boys and girls that have never seen a white man. The world is big, I know. But even in this small country of three million people in Western Africa, there are unreached areas where people are dying without understanding the ramifications of sin and the treasure that Christ is to the world.

As a matter of fact, while we were there, a young man fell sick and died. People in his village crafted a hammock-like stretcher and walked him for hours to the nearest clinic. Only to discover that the one doctor who works at this clinic was too tired from the previous day to see this young boy. They carried him back to their village and within a few short hours this young man stepped into the corridors of eternity. We grieved with the women in this village while the men were out digging the small hole in the ground that would serve as his grave. We saw the body wrapped in cloth, awaiting a final washing from his mother before his burial. These people will never experience the bedside manners of a doctor or nurse in a hospital. They will never fill out applications for college. They will never buy clothes at Wal-Mart or jewelry from the mall. You don’t know these people, I know. But even so, our hearts should break for those that God’s heart breaks for. And certainly these people would qualify as ‘the least of these’ and what we do for/to them we are doing for/to Him.

If I told you that what I saw didn’t feel completely overwhelming, I would be lying. Looking at this through the eyes of a natural man would most certainly lead us to the conclusion that it would just be easier to walk away from it all. The needs are arguably monumental. The work before us is no doubt a God sized assignment. And just to be clear, we’re not playing in the sand box anymore. We’re taking our place on the front lines of the battle field. And I can’t think of any other place in the world I’d rather be than fighting the forces of darkness on the battlefield in Liberia, Africa.

I’m praying you will join us.

For more on how YOU can get involved, please email me at dirk@2911.org or call 828.691.2911

The Great Adventure

2010-01-20T17:27:00.001-05:00
Geesh...my intentions to write more often have failed, miserably. For those of you who read this, I'm sorry I'm so delinquent. We are in a new season now, and my hope is that this new stretch will provide more time to write and share. That's the desire deep in my heart anyway.

A quick update...

I resigned from the church where I was serving in SD. My last day was December 15, 2009. I accepted a position as the National Director for the organization we adopted our four Liberian children from, WACSN (West African Children Support Network). So, Julie and I are on a new venture.

We also recently moved back to the mountains of North Carolina. That wasn't our original intent, but when we came home for Christmas, we realized my wife's parents needed help. So, we headed back to SD, loaded up a UHAUL and made our way back 'home'.

To say we're sad to leave so many that quickly became our family in SD would be an understatement. We miss them tremendously. But we know our place is here in NC caring for our family. So, we'll get ourselves settled in and hopefully start moving forward soon.

6 of our 7 kids started school yesterday at North Asheville Christian School, and absolutely loved it. They miss all their friends and teachers from SD, but are excited about making new friends here and getting reacquainted with old friends too.

I leave tomorrow for Liberia. Talk about stress off the charts! We are in the middle of what we're calling, the Great Adventure. Walking with God has been anything but boring. Each day seems like a new adventure. Some people might call us crazy. But for us, this is life. And we wouldn't trade it for a million bucks.

I hope you'll join us as we take this Great Adventure. Not literally, on our adventure. But on your own! Each day is a gift, and God is calling you. But don't for a second think that He's calling you to the mundane, boring, take it or leave it life. He's calling you to live life on the edge...following hard after Him. And once you do, you'll never go back to normal.

Join me in Africa!

A Great Adventure

2009-11-14T08:57:00.000-05:00
This week I resigned from the church where we've been serving here in Huron, South Dakota. I am taking a position with WACSN (West African Children's Support Network) and will be the National Director here in the US. My last day of employment at Bethesda Church will be December 15, 2009.

WACSN is the ministry through which Julie and I adopted our four Liberian children. Which is also the ministry that I've been working closely with to disciple pastors in Liberia since May of 2007. Maria Luyken, a native Liberian, founded WACSN and has invested most of her adult life in bringing relief to suffering people in Liberia. Her efforts are also directed at making disciples of the pastors in Liberia so they in turn will effectively make disciples of their people and through that effort, the nation of Liberia will hear the true gospel and God's purposes of redemption and discipleship will be fulfilled in that country.

In part, Julie and I feel a bit like Abraham. We know God is calling us and we even have a large amount of clarity about our partnership with WACSN. But, to some degree, this is a new 'land' we're venturing in to. And God hasn't given us all the details. We know enough though, that if we don't change courses and pour the whole of our lives into the ministry of WACSN, we'd be disobedient. So, here we go!

This new, full time partnership has the potential to bring about significant transformation to that country - and into the lives of millions of people right here in America. Among other things, I'll be responsible for creating an infrastructure for WACSN which will result in a variety of ministry opportunities that you and/or your church can get involved with. We're working now to identify people around the country who are interested in partnering with us. Folks who will help us raise funds, lead mission trips, support families who have adopted or are going to adopt, help raise orphan awareness and raise funds to impact that epidemic, identify pastors who are willing and able to join me in discipling pastors in Liberia. The list is long, but the items I just mentioned occupy the top slots on the list.

Julie will be facilitating all adoptions through WACSN, so anyone interested in rescuing a little boy or girl will work closely with her - from start to finish.

We're both incredibly excited about this new direction God is leading us in and can't wait to see what He will do as we continue to yield ourselves to His Lordship in our lives.

Here's where YOU can get involved.

1. If you'd be interested in taking a Mission Trip sometime over the next 12 months, let me know. If you've got a youth group, college group or adult group that would be interested in a 7-10 day trip to Liberia, we could taylor make a Mission Trip just for your group! The cost of the trip will be primarily determined by airfare costs at the time we book your trip.

2. If you or your church have an interest in Liberian Adoptions, we'd love to talk with you personally or we could set it up so I could come speak to your entire church about adoptions and how WACSN could be a part of that life changing process.

3. We will also spend a significant amount of time and resources to help raise awareness about Orphans, so if your church is interested in learning more about how they can get involved in feeding, educating, and supporting an orphan in Liberia, we can help with that.

4. We obviously need your prayers. Would you please join us in praying for God to do what only He can do in and through this ministry? No doubt lives are at stake here and the gospel is the primary conduit that God is using to bring about transformation into peoples lives. However, addressing spiritual needs while ignoring the dire physical needs would be entirely hypocritical. Pray that God would provide an enormous and effective team of people who will passionately join us in our efforts to meet the physical and spiritual needs present in Liberia.

5. If you or someone you know sense that God is leading you to contribute financially, we would be honored. WACSN is in desperate need of funds so this restructuring process we've just started will actually produce fruit. Of course, my family and I are living 100% on support now, so your tax deductible gifts will make it possible for me to invest the entirety of my efforts in WACSN. You can make your checks out to WACSN and send directly to us at: WACSN PO Box 5 Huron, SD 57350

Will you please pray about joining us? We desperately need your help. And we'll be praying that God shows you exactly what He wants you to do to join Him in what He is doing here. Let me say 'thank you' in advance for your prayers and support. We value both!

1 Chronicles 29.11,

Dirk

PS - There's so much more to share with you. And as soon as we have that information available, we'll pass it on. In the meantime, I wanted you to know how you can get involved and how you can pray.

Changing the Tide

2009-11-14T08:29:00.000-05:00
This past week I spent much of my time speaking to middle school and high school students at Mitchell Christian School. It was a great week and I enjoyed every minute of it. Well, let me retract that a bit. Thursday afternoon I was hovering over a garbage can ready to hurl, so that wasn't so enjoyable. But, aside from a couple nauseating hours Thursday afternoon, the week was really good. I was able to take a few guys with me during the week from Huron - Monday I took Lucas, Tuesday I flew solo, Wedenesday I took Reed, Thursday I took Julie, and Friday I took Dawson. The windshield time alone was worth it.

I started out the week with the students by saying the banner that we were going to hang over our time together was 1 Chronicles 29.11 - It was all His and it was all about Him. Then, we talked about God - misconceptions we have about Him and who He really is. We talked about man and some misconceptions we have about ourselves and who the Bible says we are. We also talked about the misconceptions out there about Jesus, and who He really is.

I wanted to challenge them to think long and hard about these things, because wherever they ended up coming out on this, would radically change the rest of their lives. And if what we were talking about was true, then Why Wouldn't We choose to surrender our lives to His Lordship and passionately live for His name and renown?

No one is arguing the discouraging statistics that about 85% of churched high school students leave high school and never darken the doors of church again. They don't just walk away from church though, they walk away from their 'faith' or whatever it is they think they had in high school. Those results should alarm all of us, in a big way. I certainly know they are burdensome to me and I want to do everything I can to help people reevaluate where they are with God to see if they really have biblical faith or if they've been dooped by the Enemy into thinking that their 'faith' is legit.

Every person sitting in churches around the country should be having this same conversation. We should all check to ensure that our faith truly has brought about a transformed heart as Paul talked about in 2 Corinthians 5.17.

I shared a little about John Piper and his amazing ability to write and preach in such a way to provoke deep, changed thinking in my life. I encouraged them to pick up one of his books. I even gave a few books away - 50 Reasons Why Jesus Came To Die.

The students at MCS are talking about and considering starting some d groups on campus. I was able to talk with the Seniors about that and look forward to seeing how God moves in peoples lives there and creates in them a conviction that discipleship is at the heart of God and we must become passionate about being and making disciples if we're really going to honor the Lord with our lives and be about what He is about.

All in all, a very exciting week. Can't wait to go back to Mitchell Christian School! Thanks to Brian Held and all the teachers who readjusted their schedules so we could have our times together each day. I'll be praying for you guys and look forward to seeing you sometime soon.

Catching Up

2009-10-13T17:11:00.000-04:00
Geesh...where do I start writing again after...umm...FOUR MONTHS! What's the point in having a blog if I'm never gonna use it? Great questions, glad you didn't ask them. lol

My new goal? To write more, but less. Should I explain? Well, I'm thinking I keep putting off writing because it takes a long time and where in the world am I gonna get the time for this. But, what if I don't write as much, but I write more often. Hmmm...I'm thinking that's a good idea.

So, let's try it.

Lately, I've been thinking a lot about my view of God, how skewed it sometimes is, how frustrated I get with preachers who distort the Word of God for their own selfish gain (or just because they're blind). Anyway, I wanna get it right. I know I won't always get it right, but I wanna get it right more often than not. So, I've been reading a lot lately. Wanna know what books? What Jesus Demands From The World by John Piper; Desiring God by John Piper; The Complete Book of Discipleship by Bill Hull. The stack on my desk is towering, but those are the ones I'm carrying around in my briefcase at the moment. The one on the back of the toilet? The Dangerous Duty of Delight by John Piper.

I've also been thinking a lot about discipleship and the guys I'm investing in right now. Wondering where they will be in 5 years. Wondering about the guys from years past. Where they are, who they've discipled, who the people that they've discipled have discipled, who they might have won to Christ and discipled, etc etc. Also wondering why more people in the church don't understand biblical, God honoring, Christ exalting discipleship. Where did the church get off track?

It was a tiring summer. Exhausting really. Not long ago I hit a wall of some sorts. Thankfully, the smog has cleared, my joy is back, my energy is being sustained and I'm ready for whatever God is doing and calling me to. Right now, it's to be faithful to feed His sheep, right here in Huron, SD. Never thought I would be in South Dakota, but here I am. And trusting God with the details. All of them. You can too. All the details of your life. He's already been to tomorrow, so He's got it covered.

Well, short enough? Join with me in saying...'Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless His holy name.'

Golf and Godliness

2009-06-19T23:33:00.000-04:00
Once in a lifetime (okay maybe twice), I get to stay in a house that is actually ON a golf course. It’s quite an experience. Even if you’re not a golfer, it’s still pretty spectacular. This vacation house we’re in is on a golf course. A beautiful one at that. The course is lined with majestic, century old oak trees. There’s enough undulation on the greens to make even Tiger Woods nervous.

In any case, I was thinking of all the golf I’ve watched and played over the past twenty some years. I’ve played with some pretty amazing scratch golfers and even played with someone who accidentally hit the ball backwards once. No kidding. And this was NOT on purpose! I shouldn’t tell you it was my brother-in-law Brad, because that might embarrass him.

Yesterday I was sitting on the back porch reading and writing…and watching the golfers. And really, if you remove yourself from anything you might know about the game, and pretend like you’re from a country that’s never seen golf before, you’d have to admit it’s a pretty peculiar game. A bunch of people, often times dressed rather odd, taking a bunch of silly looking sticks and pushing a little white ball all over a nicely manicured patch of grass. Strange really. Almost comical. Well, unless I’m playing. Then it’s certainly comical.

So I was thinking of the futility of those who play golf who really don’t know what in the world they are doing. It’s funny to watch. Frustrating to no end, especially if you’re playing with them. But, funny to watch none the less. And then you have those who play with such consistency and rhythm, you’d think they were born with a putter in their hand. These people just have the look. They line up their shots like the best of ‘em. Their practice swings are magical. And when they hit the ball - wow! They’re always hitting the ‘sweet spot’ and their balls always blast off in the right direction and land in the desired location. Or at least incredibly close to it.

Whether you’re part of the group enjoying each of the various sand traps encircling the green (like the guy I watched yesterday. I’m telling you, he definitely got his money’s worth because he played the green from every possible angle struggling to find the hole), or you’re like those who play the course rightly and make few, if any, mistakes along the way.

In either case though, much of golf can be attributed to several factors. Natural ability, quality of clubs, and how many hours you’ve spent on the practice range. For those who’ve invested the money necessary to get good, it often times shows up on the course. For those of us who play ‘at’ golf, rather than actually play golf, well, you can tell who we are.

So what does any of this have to do with spiritual things? Well, maybe nothing. But as I was watching these people yesterday I couldn’t help but think of some of the things that Paul penned about salvation two thousand years ago. ‘It is by grace you have been saved, through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is a gift of God, not as a result of works, so that no man can boast.’

I suppose as boasting goes, some people are probably entitled to at little boasting. On the golf course that is. I mean, you know some people are just stinkin’ good and have worked noticeably hard to get there. Okay, any sort of boasting is a tad obnoxious, but at least it would be somewhat understandable on the golf course, right?

In real life though, as our spiritual life goes, there is absolutely, unequivocally NO room for boasting. Period. Truth is, none of us would be where we are were it not for God’s grace and mercy. None of us would be able to taste salvation were it not for God’s sovereignty and His desire to draw us to Himself. None of us would be anything apart from Christ. And to dig a little deeper, our righteous acts (apart from Christ) are like filthy rags in God’s sight. ‘Filthy rags’ was a term used to describe a woman’s cloth used during her menstrual cycle. Enough said about that. You get the point though. Scripture is often times overtly graphic because God wants to make sure we don’t miss the point. This would most certainly be one such place.

Anything we might put on our ‘righteous list’ of things we’ve done or gifts we have or natural talent we possess or…. count as nothing when it comes to merit or earning salvation. Take the Tiger Woods of spirituality and he doesn’t hold a candle to Christ’s righteousness. Not even close.
None of us do. We’re all paupers in great need of salvation. And once we get it, we’re still continually in great need of mercy and grace and forgiveness. None of us need it any less. We’re all desperate. The only difference is some of us know how desperate we are. Sadly though, some of us seem rather oblivious to our depravity and continual need for Christ. Truth be told, it’s too easy to point fingers at everyone else with our spiritual megaphones up telling all the ‘sinners’ around us how bad they are. And when we get caught up doing that, we’re too distracted and preoccupied to see the wickedness in our own lives.

Today, let’s purpose to live our lives positioned in humility and gratefulness for who He is and what He has done. And let us keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, the Author and Perfector of our faith, who for the joy set before Him, endured the cross, scorning its shame and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Autographs and The Lamb’s Book of Life

2009-06-14T10:44:00.000-04:00
Last night my wife and I took in a show. Is that how you say it? Well, that’s not really how we would say it. What we’d say is…”Last night we went to this really cool place and watched this really neat thing with lots of different people and stuff and, you know. Stuff like that. It was really cool. You should go see it.”

We’re in Branson, MO on vacation and seeing shows is what folks do around here. At least the tourists! My in-laws bought us tickets and offered to watch all seven of our kids so we could go on a date. Wow! What a gift of grace that we cherished and certainly enjoyed last night.

Anyway, while we were at the show (front and center by the way) we noticed at halftime (actually, in ‘show language’ they call it intermission) the main dude was stage center down on our level hammin it up with us regular people. He was taking pictures and signing autographs. Not sure an autograph would mean much. This man’s originally from Japan and his name is really hard to pronounce, let alone read a signature on. I’m smiling. His security people and show bouncers only let a few people get close to him and had obvious restrictions on how many pictures he’d take. After that, they started fending people off is mace and tazer’s. That alone was worth the price of the ticket! Not really, they didn’t use either of those. His body guards were ninja warriors so mace and tazer’s weren’t really even needed. They could take down two rows of older people with one swift ninja warrior swirl kick.

Focus here – back to the real story. I was thinking about the whole ‘autograph’ thing. Why is it that we clamor to rich people or famous people or notorious people? What drives that? Why would it matter if I had my picture taken with some famous person that doesn’t know me from Adam? What would a signature really mean to me anyway? Why does my heart race faster when I get close to someone the world has branded as famous?

Is it ‘fame by association’? Is it that someone like that noticed me, and they’re really important so if I get my picture with them then I’m really important too? Or is it that if one of these famous people see me, then I’m important by default? Seriously though, have you ever really thought about this? I’m guessing not. But you should! You definitely should!

I’m really not trying to be funny, I’m actually being serious. These are the stupid things that run through my mind in situations like this. Sadly, last night wasn’t the first. It happens EVERY time. It really does. At this point in time, perhaps you’re thinking of not reading my blog anymore, huh? Don’t let this deter you from visiting (and yes, reading!) my blog. Please. I have far more annoying idiosyncrasies that would drive you away from the blog. Don’t let this silly little thing be the wedge between us. (I’m smiling again and I hope you are too!)

I have a couple ‘famous’ friends. 2 guys I knew back in the day. Well, I still know them but we lived in the same town, went to the same church and occasionally played golf together. I actually taught one of their kids for a few years too. Both of these guys were pro baseball players a few years back and then went on to be announcers and commentators for a few of the big networks.

One day the three of us were playing golf together. If I told you how these guys were treated, you wouldn’t believe me. Honest. It was actually a bit uncomfortable. People tripping over themselves to get close and be noticed by the famous guys.

All this brings me to this….does it matter? I mean, does it really matter if a famous person signs a CD for me or if I have hanging on my wall a scrap piece of paper with someone’s signature on it? I’m thinking it really doesn’t matter…at all. But, what does matter is knowing the One whose name lasts forever. What does matter is not whether or not I have His signature in my autograph book, but whether or not He has my name written in His book of fame. Does my name appear in the Lambs Book of Life? Is my name included there - written not with a pen or pencil, but written in blood -the blood of a pure, spotless, perfect sacrifice. Blood that purchased our redemption and freedom and liberty and salvation. Is your name there? Can your name be found somewhere in the Eternal Book of Life?

I don’t think it should really matter to me whether or not I know famous people or that famous people know me. What does matter is whether or not I’m singing my praises to the God who brings redemption to the nations, whether I recognize Him as the only One in whose presence I should long for. The One to whom every king and prince and princess and president and senator and famous rock star and talk show host and prime time news anchor and author and movie star and drop out and drug addict and televangelist and pastor and doctor and homemaker and golf course superintendant and professional basketball player and principal and janitor and lifeguard and astronaut and CEO will one day bow before. That’s the One I want to get excited about. Being in the presence of the Famous One. The Uncreated One. The Unending One. The Worthy One. The Star Breathing, Universe Making God.

“Father, would You enthrall me in Your presence? Would You cause my heart to skip a few beats knowing that I have access to Your throne room of grace? This isn’t a back stage pass to a Kenny Chesney concert or an invitation to the White House to have lunch with the President. It’s a living, breathing, unheard of invitation to know and be known by You, the Creator of heaven and earth. An invitation to join those already encamped around Your throne to declare that You are altogether worthy, forever and ever. And to this invitation I say YES and AMEN!”

Persecution With A Purpose

2009-06-13T17:29:00.000-04:00
It’s been twenty years since God sovereignly pulled me out of the muck and mire of my world, drew me to Himself, and gave me a new heart. Some day I’d like to write a book about this journey. I would. Not just to write a book, but to stick a magnifying glass on the Sovereignty and Supremacy of God. Because truthfully, that’s all I can attribute anything in my life to. Not just the ‘nice’ stuff, but the junky stuff as well.

For twenty years I've sat under a variety of different pastors (Jack Graham and Keith Thomas were amazing!) and have of course, listened and learned from many others as well. I’m grateful for technology that enables me to listen to, read, and watch guys that I’d otherwise never have a chance to meet in person. My walk with the Lord and my effectiveness in ministry has been greatly enhanced because of this.

Lately though, I’ve become increasingly critical of those I suspect have warped theology and are propagating bad doctrine. Call me a cynic. Call me judgmental. Call me what you want. I’m just being honest. I’m certainly not setting myself up as judge and jury. At least that’s not the intent of my heart. I’m simply making assessments based on what I see, hear, and read. I believe we’re all called to do that. Otherwise we’d be blind followers. And certainly the Light of Christ has enabled us and equipped us with His Spirit to ensure we aren’t following misguided teachers or savage wolves.

Truth be told, I was recently accused of being a savage wolf myself. Yep, I’m not kidding. There’s a group of guys in Oklahoma who have taken their stand against me. Guys I don’t really even know. We’re more acquaintances than anything. I’ve met them and spent a cumulative total of a small handful of hours with them. In any event though, their appointed spokeman for the group called me the other day to let me know they’ve determined I am a wolf in sheep’s clothing.

Maybe you’re nodding your head back and forth in disbelief. I find myself doing that as well from time to time as I think about this. It’s disheartening for me to believe that so called “Christians” can and do act like this. And to top it off, it's all in the name of Christ. I’m not surprised so many unregenerate people are turned off by the ‘hypocrites’ they find in churches across America.

Well, this certainly isn’t a suitable courtroom to hash out my arguments against these Oklahoma dudes, nor do I believe that would be profitable. After talking with each of them at length about our ‘differences’, I believe the most profitable thing I can do is disengage from any further dialogue with them and pray that God accomplishes His salvific purposes in each of their lives. As I’ve told each one of them, I love them and don’t harbor any hatred towards them. The bottom line is, I believe God wants to change their hearts and multiply their affect on the kingdom.

Throughout this ordeal over the past 8 months or so, I’ve come face to face with the realities of the content contained in First Peter. And as it is, our church is preaching through First Peter right now, so I’ve been trying to absorb myself in this book each day - asking God to wash my heart and my mind with the Truth of His Word. I pray it’s working.

Peter talks a lot about persecution. The kind of persecution that could cause you to lose your head. Literally. I don’t think he’s talking about the kind of persecution you might get if you were to wear your ‘Christian’ t-shirt to work or to school and hear a few people behind you snickering about it. Or the kind of persecution you might face if you were caught bringing your bible to church with you. Or perhaps even the type of persecution you might receive from your friends because you’ve decided you’re telling your kids up front that there is no Santa Clause. No, no, no, not that kind of persecution. I’m talking persecution for living a righteous, holy, upright, uncompromising life, committed to the Lordship of Jesus and the absolute authority of His Word. A life that unashamedly proclaims the hard truth of the Gospel, even in the face of certain ridicule and persecution.

The people Peter was writing to were just those kinds of people. They were facing certain hardships and persecution from the Romans and pagans around them. Following Jesus wasn’t popular. And often times it led to certain death. Peter’s expressed purpose in writing his epistle was that his readers would stand firm in the true grace of God (5.12) in the face of escalating persecution and suffering. Peter wanted his readers to live triumphantly in the midst of hostility without abandoning hope, becoming bitter, losing faith in Christ, or forgetting Christ’s second coming. He wanted his readers to know that when they are obedient to God’s Word despite the world’s antagonism, Christians’ lives will testify to the truth of the gospel (2.12, 3.1, 13-17).

I’m certainly not facing this type of persecution. I doubt you are either. Unless you’re reading this from someplace like a cold prison cell in China or a remote jungle in Peru. My guess is the persecution you face is much like the persecution I face. Hardly worthy of even calling persecution.

My prayer is that I would gladly welcome trails and hardships. That I would learn to welcome and embrace persecution. Real persecution. The kind of persecution and suffering that develops perseverance and ultimately proves the reality of my faith. I long to treasure the infinite value and worth of Jesus more than anything else, and I’m realizing this most likely isn’t going to happen just because I’m a pastor or because I read my Bible and have a few verses memorized. It's not going to happen just because a few dudes in Oklahoma have it out for me and aren't afraid to say as much.

This will only happen as I’m faced with the hard realities of choosing Jesus over my comforts. And as I’m forced to heed Christ’s call on my life as opposed to walking through the wide gate and taking the broad road that many others seem to be choosing. It will happen as I embrace persecution and begin to see it as a necessary means to a desired end. The end of course being, that I look like Jesus.

The more I learn the Word of God, the more convinced I am that God chose us in Him before the foundations of the world, that we might fearlessly declare the glories of the Exalted One. I am humbled beyond adequate words.

New Eyes To See

2009-06-13T17:24:00.000-04:00
We’re on a much needed vacation this week. And one of my favorite things to do on vacation is…of course…lay out by the pool and soak up as much sun as humanly possibly without landing in the E.R. with first degree burns or sun poisoning.

Seriously though, I do enjoy the sun. I’m praying I learn to enjoy the Son even more. It’s certainly not happening over night, but there is a marked progression in my love of our Redeemer. And I’m excited about that, mindful that it is Him who works in us, both to will and to act according to His good pleasure.

As I was laying out this afternoon in the hot, blinding sun, I noticed there was not a single cloud in the sky. It was a perfectly blue sky with one single white jet streak making its way across the atmospheric landscape. The sky seemed mostly empty. Empty except for the blazing hot sun that continues giving light and heat to this little place we call home. You know the sun is one million times bigger than planet earth? And not only that, but it’s 10,000 degrees on the surface of the sun. I burnt my fingers this morning on a pan in our 400 degree oven. A bit like comparing an ant pile in our back yard to Mt. Everest. No real comparison.

While I was enjoying the rays of the sun turning by body a darker shade of whatever color I was before, I couldn’t help but open my eyes, albeit only for a split nano second. I should also tell you I was listening to my new favorite song, Revelation Song, sung by Kari Jobe. And upon opening my eyes I was struck with this daunting vision (not a real one, just an image in my head) of what it might be like in heaven one day soon when we gather around the throne of God. The uncreated One, the Maker of heaven and earth, the Imagineer behind this thing we call our universe. The Architect who breathed the sun into existence.

I’m imagining the worthy One, upon my entrance into heaven, will equip me with brand new eyes that will be fully equipped to gaze upon the Bright and Morning Star. Eyes fit for an eternity of fixing my eyes on Jesus, my fully realized Redeemer and Sin Bearer. I can hardly imagine what that will be like. But, I’m excited about it anyway. Humbled, honored, awe struck, sometimes speechless. It seems too much to take in, really.

My much anticipated new heavenly eyes made me think of something else though. What about now? What about my eyes here and now while I’m still fumbling my way around planet earth? Wouldn’t it make sense that God would want to give me a new set of eyes here? Not so I can glare at the sun without burning out my retina’s. A new set of eyes so I can see people the way He see’s people. I new set of lenses so I can see needs the way He sees those same needs. Fresh new eyes so I’m able to look at the pain, difficulty and circumstances of life, both mine and those around me, and see His redemptive purposes in all of them.

I’m convinced God is looking, roaming back and forth throughout the earth, for men and women, boys and girls, who would yearn and long to have a heart like His. A bi-product of having a heart that beats like God’s heart beats would be eyes that see people the way He seems them and eyes that see circumstances and heartache the way He does. These same eyes would be able to more clearly see His redemptive and salvific purposes in what we see on the evening news.

Let’s begin anticipating the new eyes God will give us as He ushers us into heaven. And let’s start praying now for new eyes to see what He is seeing, so we have a proper, eternal perspective on this short life we’ve been entrusted with.

Spectacular Sins...

2009-06-10T23:47:00.000-04:00
Are you a ‘reader’? What I mean is, do you like to read? Are you currently reading anything worth passing on? I am and I want to share it with you. It’s a book by John Piper called Spectacular Sins. The title is misleading. Unless of course you know what the book’s about. And then it makes perfect sense!

Without giving the entire book away, the premise of the book is simply this – God’s plan from before time even began included Satan’s fall from perfection and Adams choice of rebellion in the garden.

For many years I’ve heard people talk about God’s prefect plan and God’s sovereign plan. As if God had in mind accomplishing Plan A, but somehow failed in that endeavor and is now working out His back-up Plan B. It’s as if we’ve messed up His initial, perfect, sovereign plan and He had to go back to the board room with Jesus and the Holy Spirit and come up with a creative alternative plan since His original plan slipped through the cracks and went berserk .

I, on the other hand, do not believe we are living out Plan B. I believe what we are living out right now is God’s perfect, all glorious, sovereign Plan A that He developed before there was time. Which just happens to include the fall of Satan from his perfect place among the other angels and Adam’s deliberate choice to eat the fruit he was forbidden to eat. I haven’t read any books about this (until now), but have firmly believed it for a number of years.

The fact is, the more I read the Word and the more the Spirit of God changes my mind and my heart, and the more I wrestle with real life questions about sin and suffering, and God’s omnipotence and omniscience, the more I am utterly convinced that God’s master plan of redemption was willed by a perfect, holy, loving God long before there was a need for salvation.

I digress. Back to the book at hand - Spectacular Sins. As the title denotes, it is simply a book about the spectacular sins, namely of Satan and Adam that have put the glory and majesty of Christ on prominent display for all the world to see. They are indeed spectacular not because they are somehow better than other sins or because they deserve special recognition as sins that are somehow elevated above other sins. They are spectacular because by their very definition they have directly worked to fulfill God’s eternal plan of rescuing sinners and illuminating the glory of the Uncreated One and making much of his grace, mercy, splendor, majesty, forgiveness, and complete ‘otherness’.

I can’t give a high enough recommendation of the book. As a matter of fact, you can click the link below and it will take you directly to CDB’s website where you can order the book yourself. It’s a spectacular book with a spectacular title making much to do about a spectacular God who stands alone as worthy of everything. www.cbd.org

The ballast each one of us need for our boats is the solid and rich doctrine of God’s sovereignty. From there we can build lives on a sock solid foundation with beliefs and convictions that will lead us to live lives worthy of our calling.

It’s not all deep theology. The goal of the book is that people would take this theology and incorporate it into their everyday lives. The practical application for me here is this – God is perfect. He doesn’t have nor does He need a back-up plan. He will be faithful to accomplish His sovereign purposes in my life and in the world. I might not like the ramifications of this and I might even have a difficult time swallowing the hard truths of Scripture, but that doesn’t make any of it any less true. This holds true from simple things like my birth order and the job I have, to more profound events and circumstances like the holocaust, Saddam Hussein, the tragic events of 9/11, birth defects, abortions, etc. etc. I desperately long to see God as He is. Not as I’d like Him to be. And this book has me sitting in the Optometrists office getting the right lenses so my eyesight is clear.

I’m learning to walk in a keen awareness of God’s sovereignty and longing for God to plant His Word deep inside my heart so that I will be able to live a life of faith, honoring and pleasing to my Father. Won’t you join me in endeavoring to divide the Word of God properly so we can live it rightly?

May the Lord Jesus Himself empower us to proclaim the excellencies of Him who called us out of darkness into His marvelous light. 1 Peter 2.9

Where is God When It Hurts?

2009-05-04T11:04:00.000-04:00
The past 24 hours have been quite the whirlwind. I got word that a close friend was taken to the hospital and wasn't doing well. I flew into Minneapolis, MN last night to be with him at the hospital and to be close to his two daughters. Unfortunately though, I didn't make it in time. My plane landed about the same time he passed away.

When I arrived at their home, there was such deep pain and despair. Cries and weeping could have been heard halfway down the block. This friend who died wasn't just a friend. He was John Luyken. John is Maria's husband. Maria Luyken has fast become one of my dearest and most treasured friends. Maria is in Liberia, Africa and was not here when John passed. As she heard the news late last night her heart broke. She wept and wept.

My heart breaks for this dear family. And while all of this in happening, I can't help but wonder...where is God when it hurts so badly? Where is God when people are sitting in the pit of despair? Where is God when hearts are so badly broken they feel like they will never be healed.

I'll tell you where He is. He's weeping with them. He's hurting with them. His heart is breaking as their hearts break. That's where He is. He couldn't be any closer to the hurt and pain that each one of them are experiencing.

As the Creator of life, He grieves when His people grieve. Because He is our Wonderful Counselor, He hurts when His children hurt. Because He is our Great High Priest, He knows full well what this family is going through and feeling.

Where is God when YOU hurt you might be asking? Well, He's there with you. He grieves with you. When your heart breaks, His heart breaks. This is the God who has redeemed us and purchased us and adopted us and made us into His sons and daughters. He is near. Nearer than most of us can imagine.

If you're reading this blog, will you take a minute to pray for my friend Maria and her two beautiful daughters Nikita and Katarina? Each of them will walk through a very difficult season of grieving and pain over the next few weeks and months.

I'm honored to be there with them right now. And I'm fully aware that God works in and through our pain and suffering to bring about His redemptive purposes. Will you pray that many people will come to know Jesus as their Lord as this family walks through this painful time? Pray specifically that Maria will know and walk in the deep truths of the Word of God and that God will guard her heart from anything the Enemy would want to do to distract and discourage her? Will you pray that Kita and Katarina will know with certainty that they belong to a God who is faithful and good and that He is a Father to the fatherless. He is close to the brokenhearted. Pray that they will experience this.

Thanks for your interest in the ministry of 29.11. Let's purpose to make much of the One who stepped out of heaven so we could know the Father and be reconciled to a Holy God.

Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me. Bless His holy name!

Pregnancies and Sovereignty

2009-04-10T09:44:00.000-04:00
There are tons of books on the sovereignty and supremacy of God. None of which, in my opinion, exhaust these subjects more than some of John Pipers works. John is an incredibly wise man with deep insight into the Word of God and has a unique and powerful ability to communicate and teach God's Word to others. I am blessed by his work and his words.

For many months now, I've been wrestling with what this actually entails - God's sovereignty and His supremacy. I still don't feel like I've even begun to scratch the surface, but I'm confident God is changing my heart and arresting my mind, so that my thinking is more in conformity to the Word of God. I don't want to ever lose sight of the truth that it is God who works in us, both to will and to act according to His good pleasure. He is working in us, for Himself!

I recently met with a young lady, a senior in high school. Incredibly talented in many areas, known throughout this region for her outstanding athletic abilities. Several months ago, this young lady found her world crashing in around her. So it seemed.

I'll call her Missy. Missy comes from a strong and stable Christian home, attends a reputable Christian school in the area, and from all outward appearances really had her Christian walk in tact.

In our first meeting, as streams of tears poured down her face and in between weeping and mourning, she recounted for me how she got to the place she found herself in - several months pregnant, athletic future stripped, finishing her senior year of classes...from home.

We talked for well over an hour. And if you could have heard this young lady share her heart, you would have sobbed too. It really is a heart-wrenching story of the allures of sin, the promised pleasures of the Enemy, the consequences and price of sin, and the Hound of Heaven working in many unseen ways to pursue the heart of His child, in order that His mercy, grace, forgiveness and glory might be displayed to the nations.

In talking with Missy, I was reminded that God has our days numbered and planned, yes even ordained, long before we're even conceived. Actually, our days were measured and accounted for even before the foundations of the world were laid. What a priceless and life changing truth! The God of the universe is not surprised by our sin, isn't caught off guard by our weaknesses, doesn't squirm when we mess things up. He's already been to the future. Our lives (past, present and future) have been redeemed.

Living in the knowledge that God doesn't waste anything is a great place to live. It certainly removes a large amount of fear and anxiety of the unknown and even of the known. Think about it....God doesn't waste a war, He doesn't waste a tear, He doesn't waste an abortion, He doesn't waste a seemingly senseless death of a starving child in Ethiopia, He doesn't waste a single hit of heroine. He is faithful and good and chooses to redeem all things for His own purposes.

You and I may not know what tomorrow holds, but we certainly know Who holds tomorrow. There are days when we can't seem to trace God's hand, but His Word teaches us that we can trust His heart. When life is upside down and we can't seem to get our bearings, we need to be reminded that God is the Author and Finisher of our faith. He is the One working all things together for good to those who love Him and to those who have been called according to His purpose.

My heart aches when I see pain and suffering in the world. I'm grieved over my own heinous sin and the sin I see in others. I often wonder how God uses the 40,000 kids who starve to death every day for His own sovereign purposes. I think I would cease to be human if this were not the case. However, at the end of the day (and even during the day) I choose to trust the Word of God and the God of the Word, even when I can't explain it and especially when I don't understand it.

One Small Corner of Africa

2009-04-08T16:34:00.000-04:00
This last trip to Liberia was, like the others, unique. In and of itself, it was completely worth the trip. I was able to take along 22 people with me. I told each of them before we left 'even if nothing goes the way we planned, the trip will be worth it. Stepping off the plane, smelling what you'll smell, seeing what you'll see, experiencing what you'll experience, will be worth the trip.' And now more than ever, I'm sticking by those words.

Nothing seemed to go quite as we had planned. We got used to saying (affectionately of course) - TIA...This Is Africa. Some things in Africa are unique to Africa and that's part of what makes Africa unlike any other place in the world. It's Africa!

There's far too much to journal here, so I'll hit some highlights and hopefully put some spiritual application to it. Several people in our group are adopting from WACSN (West African Children Support Network), the same agency in Liberia that my wife and I adopted four of our kids from. Needless to say, each of them were excited about seeing the kids they're adopting and eager to bond with them. The rest of our team was fully prepared to spend several days doing VBS with the kids in the children's home and also just loving on them. Each of the times I've been over the past year I've either taken water balloons or just had water fights using the well on the compound. It's the most fun I've had in a long time and the kids absolutely love it! There's something about sneaking up behind someone with a bucket of water and dumping it on their head. So our team was all geared up for a giant water fight with the kids....

Unfortunately though, our first trip to the children's home was not what we had planned, and it just so happen to be the morning after we arrived in Liberia. By the time we arrived at the WACSN children's home the police were there, a WACSN employee was handcuffed to a truck and was being beaten, newspaper and radio reporters were littered all over the property, and to top it off, officials from the Ministry of Health and Welfare were there to forcibly remove the kids from the home. Words would fail to express the emotion and pain each of us felt as we sat by helplessly as kids were being interrogated and questioned and then herded out like cattle and loaded up in the back of vans and trucks. There were a million and a half things racing through my mind as this was unfolding before me. In my flesh, I was prepared to engage in some physical altercations and hurt those responsible for this. Maybe not entirely stop what was happening, but at least leave some bruises and gashes on those behind it. In my spirit though, I knew fighting was not a God honoring solution. I asked God to give me His eyes to see what He was seeing and His heart so that I would know what He was feeling.

Before arriving at the children's home, I reminded my group (more myself than them) that the battle we fight is not against flesh and blood (things we can see), but it's against rulers and authorities and powers of this dark world (things we can't see). Satan is our real Enemy, not other men and women. And as difficult as it is to live that truth, as passionate followers of Jesus Christ we must live what we say we believe.

The 2 hours that followed our initial arrival at the children's home were unlike anything I'd ever seen before. I couldn't for the life of me understand the rationale behind the decisions to remove the kids. Hearts were broken, kids were confused, all the while I kept reminding myself that Satan only has the authority that God has given him. Not an ounce more and not an ounce less. So, nothing was taking place that morning that wasn't totally authorized by the Sovereign God that we belong to. And as it turns out, the theme of the crusade we went over to be a part of was called "How Big Is God - Celebrating the Sovereignty and Supremacy of God". This was our chance, and not our only chance, to live what we were getting ready to proclaim. I pray God found us faithful to that opportunity.

The crusade went on from Friday through Sunday. It didn't turn out anything like what we had planned or anticipated, but it was exactly what God had planned, and for that I'm grateful. I'm honored that our group was able to be a small part of it and partner with Maria and WACSN in their efforts to declare the worthship of God to the people of Liberia. It was quite an amazing three days of praise and celebration!

There are definitely a couple things I will walk away with. First, as I was watching the kids being taken from the home, I was thinking about Jesus, the Suffering Servant, being led to His own slaughter. He was free of guilt, had done nothing wrong, falsely accused, and yet led away like a common criminal. I imagined what it would have been like to have been there, watching and listening. Thinking of the last hours of Jesus' life and His final journey to Golgotha helped put the incident at the children's home in proper perspective. That doesn't make it any less painful or frustrating, it just helps me put it into a right perspective. And it reminds me that we have a faithful High Priest who has lived the life that we're living and knows our every heart ache. He has experienced it first hand Himself. We have a faithful Savior who has conquered life and death and is aware of our pain and sorrow.

The other thing I'll walk away with is knowing that no matter how people twist God's Word or manipulate it to cater to their agenda, God's Word will NEVER return void. He will always do with it what He wants. And as frustrated and angry as I get sometimes when I hear 'preachers' taking God's Word and teaching it out of context or twisting it to suit their appetites, I must remember that it remains our job as believers to correct error when possible and teach God's Word faithfully - whether it's to the masses or to the guy in the cubicle next to yours at your job.

For me personally, I pray that my mouth will faithfully proclaim the pure gospel of Jesus Christ, no matter what. I don't ever want to be guilty of preaching a popular and diluted 'gospel' to appeal to the multitudes to amass for myself the acclaim that rightfully belongs to the Author of the gospel Himself, namely Jesus Christ.

I pray that God finds us hungry to be His radical followers, in the good times and the not-so-good times. And may He find the whole of our lives committed to being disciples and making disciples of people from every tribe and nation and people and language, for His names sake.