Peace of Mind

Peace of Mind... If there is one thing that this world cannot offer, it is peace of mind!

You can have a big house,
You can have a bottomless bank account,
You can have a family and children,
You can have a nice car,
You can have nice clothes,
You can have world fame,
You can have high grades,
You can have trophies and titles,
You can have everything this world has to offer but it means nothing if you don't have peace of mind! Only one person can offer that but he offers much more! Jesus!

John 14:27
"Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid."

John 16:33
"I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."

JC in San Quenin

JC is in San Quenin Penitentiary! Good all Jesus is doing the things that we least expect. Introducing the God of the Universe haning out with all the low lifes, the rejects, the geeks, the jocks, the cheerleaders, the rich and poor alike and not to mention the religious and the sick... He isn't as shallow as us but sees people for who they are. His beautiful children. And you know what, we age but we still act like children at times!

Anyway, enough incoherent ramblings and rabbit trails. I just watched Johnny Cash sing some beautiful songs to these criminals in San Quenin Penitentiary. Boy his music is insane. He starts off singing about all the carnal desires that wage war against his soul. He even tell us his first run in with the law. It was a beautiful day and he went out to pick some flowers. Than a police car pulls up with its sirens and lights ablazing! The policeman comes asks him what he is doing? Johnny says his just picking flowers. The Police man said that was against the law! There was a fine. I guess he couldn't pay it so the next thing you know it, he is spending the night in jail! Ha Ha ha!

The prison erupts in laughter! 'Sometimes the world is against you!' he says (or something like that). The prisoners love him! Here is this dude plucking his guitar and singing some folks songs! Than they'd cut into these testimonies from these criminals. They are just speaking thier mind. Here's one, "You know it used to really bother me when I saw people stabbed or murdered. But now... I just don't really care that much now."

Oh, there is more but I recommend you see it yourself. I hope I peaked your curiosity! Well, anyway Johnny is doing his thing and he has the prisoners on the edge of their seat. They are in the palm of his hand. They are hanging on his every word. They can't help but love him! They were looking into the eyes of a man who could relate with them. Someone who can identify with them! Someone who could walk a mile in thier shoes. He knew what it was like? He's been there! He actually understands! He was on thier level!

You might be able to recognize the person. Maybe you saw him before! He might have come in your life. If not, would you like to meet him? His name was JC! Jesus Christ! (Not Johnny Cash silly!)

"Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted (Heb 2:18)."

"For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet was without sin (Heb 4:15).

JC starts changing gears and starts to sing about a miracle maker who turns water to wine. He sings about a time of peace where the lion and lamb lie together. Such beautiful songs with such a beautiful message about peace and hope. Yeah, life could change. Things could be better. There is more out there than this stupid prison. Just ask Joseph? God changed him and is circumstances! He could do the same for us! He's the God we worship!

I loved one of the last scenes they had on the show. They show a pic of Jesus with a cool message, on top of a Bible. Than they show a stack of records and another stack of gospel hymn books.

"Remember those in prison as if you were their fellow prisoners, and those who are mistreated as if you yourselves were suffering (Hebrews 13:3)"

Organisms or Organizations?

The face of churches in modern North America are changing dramitically! The latest 'mega churches' take on the blue prints of malls. You got church, bookstore, library, coffee shop, restaurant, gym, fellowship hall, offices, etc. etc. etc.

Even the leadership dynamics of churches are changing as well. Jesus describes the church as his body. A living and breathing organism with thoughts, emotions, a soul and spirit and flesh and veins and bones and organs and arteries all packaged in a nice, neatly wrapped organ called the skin. Jesus even says that when on part of the body hurts the whole body hurts, and when one parts is honored, we all rejoice together (1 Corinthians 12:26). The church functions as this growing body. We mature together, share hurts and rewards together, weep together, laugh together, repent together, worship together, honor each other and love each other and of course grow together in love and peace and in all the fruits of the Spirit!

But most modern churches have actually moved away from that vision. There is this movement away from seeing the body of Christ as an organism to a vision of the body of Christ as purely an organization. I have heard these horrow stories of church board members and leadership teams that play a nasty trick on their pastors and congregation. What they'll do is if they don't see any tangible growth, usually in numbers, in the church they'll put the blame on the Pastor. They'll even go as far as make the Pastor go on a probationary period. If the Pastor can't produce the numbers or the results the board wants, than he's FIRED! Ouch!

It sad when we think that the Great Commission only applies to the Pastor and not to all of us! It's sad when we see a house turned against each other rather than on the kingdom of Darkness! It's sad when leaders feel so paranoid and faithless that they forget the tenets of the church to release Disciples into the world and to poineer a new work. This well actually cause the Church to shrink in numbers but grow in Spirit. Just read Acts! It's even sadder when churches feel like they are competing against each other for numbers! Self-ambition is rapant in this kind of vision for the church and do you know the fruit of it?

" For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice. (James 3:16)."

What an evil and twisted and decietful vision. We need to pray against it and remember that we are a team, or family, all in it together and that we all are responcible for the maturity of the church! It doesn't just belong to our Pastors! It is to all of us!

I want, I want, I want...

I want meaning

I want value

I want direction,

I want fulfillment

I want peace in my life

I want to know that I’m not alone

I want security

I want comfort

I want healing

I want to know that my life means something to someone.

I want to know that I’m making a difference

I want intimacy

I want love

I want attention

I want trust

I want truth

Have you heard anyone say this to you before? Have you said this? This is the cry of many people. This is the cry of the lost.

All of these longings are like a hole in our soul

We try to fill it.

Some fill it with a career

Maybe it could be a boyfriend or girlfriend.

How about achievements like trophies, awards, medals

It could be a degree or high grades.

There is nothing wrong with these pursuits. Oh, no, not at all.

Than when we do these things or get them, it’s not enough.

It didn’t give us the fulfillment we wanted.

It left us still empty inside, alone, unfulfilled

It doesn’t give us the feeling of ecstasy we thought would come..

All these pursuits try to fill the longing in our soul.

But it doesn’t fill it and we think it could.

Life feels pointless.

Life seems lifeless.

But that can all end.

“Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. On him God the Father has placed his seal of approval (John 6:27).

Jesus Christ offers us life and life more abundantly (John 10:10).

Jesus Christ is the way, truth and the life (John 14:6)

Do you want life?

Have you experienced life to the fullest?

You can’t until you know Jesus.

There’s only one thing that separates us from Jesus.

SIN!

The wages of sin is death (Rom 6:23).

Jesus paid the penalty with His death.

He invites us to turn from sin and come to Him.

Stand up and Close your eyes and call him in!

Than you will experience life like never before!

Special Needs Workers

I just want to tip my hat to all those special needs workers out there. They are unsung heroes (kinda like Sunday School teachers)! I saw a couple of special needs workers with a person with autism at a swimming pool. They were showing this young girl an awesome time of fun and excitment swimming. She was having a good time to until...

Well the workers put her up on this slide and I guess they let the young girl go a little earlier than she expected. Luckily the other worker was at the bottom and caught her! When the young girl got up and caught her bearings, she grabbed hold of one of the workers head and started to squeeze the life out of her! The worker's head got beat red! The other worker managed to get her grip off her partner and after a couple of minutes, the girl let go. Both the workers and the young girl were fine! They continued to play like nothing happened.

Than a few months ago, I was with the folks at a restaurant. There was another situation where this young autistic girl was quietly sitting when all of a sudden she just flipped out! She started yelling and banging the table and screaming. Her special needs worker was there and she was quietly and patiently calming her down. It took maybe 15-20 minutes which felt like an eternity! I was amazed at the worker! She showed so much love and compassion and patience and concern for her. She didn't even raise her voice or get angry or frusterated! She stood there and showed so much understanding and comfort.

What would you do in a situation like that? I get frusterated when my brother doesn't get out of bed on time to go to church! Oh, but you should see him when I forget to refill the tiolet paper!

I don't know where they get the patience! I know most people who would have quit the job at that second. It takes alot of long suffering and compassion and love to take on a job like that! I don't even know whether the workers were Christians or not! Could you see Christ in these events? Well, I give them my respect and I just want to commend those workers. You are a God send and may God grant you the peace and favor and grace to carry on! May Jesus Bless you abundantly!

P/S You are beautiful!

Shallow Comments

I've been going to a number of weddings in the past couple of years. I get a kick out of the kinds of comments that come out of the mouths of shallow people who are at these weddings. Here are some examples:

"She's to dark for him."
"He's to short for her."
"She is not as educated as he is."
"He is not one of 'our' people. What a disgrace!"
"She gained a lot of weight."
"He does not have a good job."
"She shouldn't have rushed into it but looked for someone better, you know some one with the same level of income as herself."
"He's to young for her."
"What an ugly dress."
"That is a tacky suit."
"It's all just a show."
"She should have gone home and got some."

OUCH! That stings. Give it a rest folks. They're in love and love is not as shallow as you! Be careful. They are created in the image of God and you mock God's image with some of your comments! What God has put together let no one seperate. Be careful not to mock God's desighn and order.

Rules w/ Relationship = REBELLION

It is true you know. Rules without relationships equal rebellion. I'll add more later!

Counter Attack

So me and some buddies decided to do some prayer and fasting. Man, I can't tell you how much I have been in a funk since we started! Bad dreams, bad sleep, paranoid thoughts and irrational fears, fighting and bad communication! We must be making a difference!

Good Morning

What a wonderful morning. I had an unusual one to say the least. I got a phone call the some guests are coming over today. So my bro suggested I go and get some groceries. We thought of the different places. I suggested going to the store down the road which is a few footsteps from my house. But for some reason we went to another place which was further way. He would drop me off and I would walk by foot back home in the chill (nothing compared to living in Thompson Manitoba where I was born). It would be a further walk than our initial choice.

So off we went. I got my goods and started my trek home when I found this old man crawling out of a bush! He was calling out to some people on his hands and knees. I was shocked. He called out to me and I came to him. He asked me to help him up! He was walking and he blow out his knee. I tried to help him but he couldn't stand at all. I guess he thought he would be able to walk if I helped him on his feet. Then these two ladies came by and thank God they were nurses. They suggested calling the ambulance but the man refused. Funny, he said that it would cost him $80 to get an ambulance to take him home. We ended up calling his neighbors who later came to pick him up.

Isn't odd how God works? He orchestrated everything this morning so that old man would have a little help to get him home. Here I am in my little world thinking about myself and all the things I have to get done while God is up in heaven working out a plan to help and old man get home! I don't know why he wanted to use me and the nurses and neigbor in the grand scheme of things? It happened right behind this church and I knew that there had to be some other Christians nearby to help. So I began to wonder and ask God the old question, "Why me?"

You may not know this but I'm going through a real different season in my life. My faith has been really challenged in the past while. I can't get into all the details but God is reassuring me of those timeless, elementary, sunday school truths. He provides! The little and the big things! It may seem trivial to you but wait till you go through some heavey duty trials!

I've made some real blunders in the past while now but please don't get discouraged. I hope you don't beleive the lie that Pastors and Church Leaders don't have problems or challenges or trials and temptations. Jesus did and he even wept and sweat blood (Luke 19:41;Luke 22:5) He was %100 obedient to God. It was no bed of roses for him. More like a bed of nails (the cross). But God has been reassuring me that he is not traumatized by our mishaps and failures! He even uses us in spite of our weakness and mistakes! Actually, God's power in made whole in weakness (2 Cor 12:9). What a reassurance and timeless truth.

Even for that old man with the blown knee. God made all the events of this morning work together to help him! Check out the birds and flowers! They niether toil or labor or sow or reap and they are all provided for! That includes us!

Freedom of Expression

Our God is a big God. You can handle our emotions and our expressions of them! He can sympathize with our pains, frusterations and fears and doubts and laments. Just read the Psalms. Have you read Psalm 88. It is the darkest psalm in the entire collection of books. It doesn't say a single nice thing about G0d. The funny thing is that God wrote it! The Holy Spirit was the author who inspired these writings. Have you read what Jesus said about the Palms? Let me refresh you memory:

"He said to them, "This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms (Luke 24:44)."

Wow! Jesus Christ was the living embodiment of all the expressions in the book of Psalms. Most people know Psalms as the collection of cool thanksgiving writings. It's actually %70 lament! What is lament you say? Well, here are some synonyms: complaining, complaint, dirge, elegy, grieving, jeremiad, keen, keening, lament, lamentation, moan, moaning, mourning, plaint, requiem, sob, sobbing, sorrow, tears, threnody, ululation, wail, wailing, weeping. Hope that covers it.

What does this tell us? God is not offended when we hurt or express our true inner most feelings! He's not so hyper sensitive like humans. Jesus went through it all. He even quotes the Psalms. Check out Psalm 22:1: "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, so far from the words of my groaning?" Have you read the whole Psalm? It's all about Jesus! It is very prophetic! You'll love it!

On top of that, the Jews used the book of Psalms as there manual for worship! All these expressions in the book are all forms of worship! Isn't that incredible? Well, he gave us these emotions so what so wrong with expressing them to him? Maybe this is what it means to worship God in Spirit and Truth. Well, let me leave you with some expressions I've picked from the book. I must warn you that they are graphic, vulgar and you might be offended. Here we go!

"8 O Daughter of Babylon, doomed to destruction,
happy is he who repays you
for what you have done to us-

9 he who seizes your infants
and dashes them against the rocks. Psalm 137.

I call to you, O LORD, every day;
I spread out my hands to you.

10 Do you show your wonders to the dead?
Do those who are dead rise up and praise you?
Selah

11 Is your love declared in the grave,
your faithfulness in Destruction ?

12 Are your wonders known in the place of darkness,
or your righteous deeds in the land of oblivion?

13 But I cry to you for help, O LORD;
in the morning my prayer comes before you.

14 Why, O LORD, do you reject me
and hide your face from me?

15 From my youth I have been afflicted and close to death;
I have suffered your terrors and am in despair. Psalm 88

But now you have rejected and humbled us;
you no longer go out with our armies.

10 You made us retreat before the enemy,
and our adversaries have plundered us.

11 You gave us up to be devoured like sheep
and have scattered us among the nations.

12 You sold your people for a pittance,
gaining nothing from their sale.

13 You have made us a reproach to our neighbors,
the scorn and derision of those around us.

14 You have made us a byword among the nations;
the peoples shake their heads at us.

15 My disgrace is before me all day long,
and my face is covered with shame

16 at the taunts of those who reproach and revile me,
because of the enemy, who is bent on revenge.

17 All this happened to us,
though we had not forgotten you
or been false to your covenant.

18 Our hearts had not turned back;
our feet had not strayed from your path. Pslam 44

"Fear and trembling have beset me; horror has overwhelmed me. Psalm 55:5

Actually if I were you, I'd read the whole Psalm!

Smug Preachers

How about those smug preachers and their smug sermons. Let's give them a round of applause everyone! I was just thinking of some classic sermons. You know the one about Peter who performed the miraculous walking on water bit. Man! Wow! Way to go dude! Give it up for this man of God! Intense! Out of Sight! Smashing! Impressive! But than there are those smug critcs. Some of them can be a real kill joy! They go home to there square houses and sleep in square beds with square blankets. I'm talking about those preachers who come down a little to hard on my home boy Peter. They say, "Oh, he took his eyes of Jesus and fell in the water. If he didn't take is eyes of Jesus, he wouldn't have fell! He would of kept walking!"

OH! COME ON NOW! Hey, I'd like to see you walk on water! Have you done it? Have you? NO! Well, than who are you to criticise Peter? If you got what it takes then step up to bat pal and show me what you got! Let's see you walk on water! Go on! What are you waiting for?

Gosh, and these smug preachers come down a little to hard on my buddy Moses. So he hit the rock in anger and you know the rest. Hey! Have you walked a mile in his shoes? Do you know what it is like to lead an entire nation through a desert to the promised land. Especially a nation who is complaining, and whining, and murmuring and all the rest? Guess what!

And you know what? They didn't have Reboks, or Adidas or Nike! Also, they didn't have a BMW or a Hummer or a stretch Limo? Nothing! Have you walked in Desert? No? Yeah, I didn't think so! Gosh! I don't know how God puts up with us at times!

Truth

The Word of God tells us what truth is! Our experiences and circumstances do not. Can you think of the danger in thinking that our experiences dictate truth? God, I wish we would revere your Word more! I wish we would measure peoples opinions and messages against the inspired Word of God! Give us a Biblical worldview. We need it!

Digging up the Past!

How real it is. The devil loves to dig up our past and use it against us! He loves to remind us of the shameful deeds and the guilt and hurt and pain of our past sins and throw it in our face. I'm even more repulsed at the amount of professing Christians who seem to take up his work. What a great way of stealing our freedom. I've met people who cannot shake off the trauma of their past but live in it and it robs their future! It's quite sad.

Let's take a look at our dear friend Paul, also known as Saul. What a man of God! He was single by the way! A bachelor till the rapture! What an inspiration. Is that a sin? I'll leave that to another blog. Let's get back into Paul. Have you ever taken a look at his past? Wooo Weee! He would call himself the cheif of sinners (1 Tim 1:15)! Hi Cheif! And right fully so. Just look at what he did:

"When they heard this, they were furious and gnashed their teeth at him. But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. "Look," he said, "I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God."

"At this they covered their ears and, yelling at the top of their voices, they all rushed at him, dragged him out of the city and began to stone him. Meanwhile, the witnesses laid their clothes at the feet of a young man named Saul. And Saul was there, giving approval to his death. (Acts 7:54-8:1)."

Let me put that one in context for you! This is where Stephen starting sharing the message of Jesus and the people were so offended that they stoned him to death. Our friend Saul is standing there and watching the whole thing. Little did he know that he'd be serving the very God Stephen was preaching about and had witnessed the first martyr. He didn't protect Stephen or defend him. He saw the whole thing and didn't wince but approved of it!

"Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord's disciples. He went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem (Acts 9:1-2)."

Wow, he was a zealous one (Phil 3:6)! He was called a 'Christian Killer' by one preacher. But wait there is more. Here is a testimony from Ananias about Saul:

"Lord," Ananias answered, "I have heard many reports about this man and all the harm he has done to your saints in Jerusalem. And he has come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on your name (Acts 9:13-14)."

Oh, it doesn't stop there because there is more:

"All those who heard him were astonished and asked, "Isn't he the man who raised havoc in Jerusalem among those who call on this name? And hasn't he come here to take them as prisoners to the chief priests (Acts 9:21)?"

AAAaand one more:

"But Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house to house, he dragged off men and women and put them in prison (Acts 8:3).

Well, I think that you get the picture.

Not to sound insensitive but Saul was one bad dude! Gosh, I'm starting to sound like those merciless and graceless professing Christians who love to bring up the past and use it against people. Don't get me wrong. I'm not one of them. You'll undertand what I'm getting to in a moment.

Later Saul would be converted and called Paul. But I have often wondered one thing? Sometimes I wonder if Paul ever struggled with his past? He admits that he was one bad dude.
Just here what he says:

"Even though I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man, I was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief. The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst. But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his unlimited patience as an example for those who would believe on him and receive eternal life (1Tim 1:13:16)."

Here is a marvelous manifestation of God's incredible power and love. Isn't this awsome? This is a further proof that God's hand is not to short to save (Isa 59:1). It's proof that God desires none to perish but all come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9). It also prooves that if we confess our sins, our God is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us of all unrighteousness (1John 1:9). What marvelous perils of truth. Anyone can be saved!

Our past doesn't have to dictate our future. Shallow, pioused, self-righteous, merciless professing Christians will not determine our eternal destiny! Whoa! Whoa! Whoa! Wilson your forgetting something. Oh, I remember, "For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms (Eph 6:12)." Wow, my battle isn't against those shallow, pioused, self-righteous, merciless professing Christians! It's the against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms! And I have been given the fullness of Christ who is head over every power and authority (Col 2:10). Yeah! Preach it Preacha!

But I love here Paul's zeal. This is how he deals with his rough past:

"Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus (Phil 3:13-14)."

YEEH! Press on Paul! Press on brother!

Well, I'll end with this: "I can do everything through him who gives me strength (Phil 4:13).

Thanks Paul. I guess you can identify and relate and offer hope for us little people down here! Only a repentant sinner can ever appreaciate the grace and mercy and the love of Christ!

Dig up the past on me! Hey, I got an idea! What you don't you dig up Jesus' grave! Oh! Guess what! He rose from the dead! You won't find him there. His blood cleanses of all sin, "This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins (Matt 26:29)!" Let's give out a SHOUT OF PRAISE!

Marriage Advice

I guess we were following the advice of Benjamin Franklin who said, "Keep your eyes wide open before marriage and half-shut afterwards."

Greg Laurie and his wife about marriage!

Okay, so that was a bit shameless of me. I'm taking it way out of context... Here's the whole message:

By God's grace, I have had the privilege of being married to my wife Cathe for 31 years now. Prior to getting married, we courted for three years. We wanted to really get to know each other, so I guess we were following the advice of Benjamin Franklin who said, "Keep your eyes wide open before marriage and half-shut afterwards."

Unfortunately for a lot of couples, that advice gets a little misconstrued. They seem to go into marriage with their eyes half-shut. Then they are opened afterward. Tragically, we are living in a time in which a family staying together is becoming more and more of a rarity. And a flourishing marriage? Well, that is a downright oddity. But it doesn't have to be that way. God can—and wants to—bless marriage. Let's not forget that God invented marriage, after all. It was His idea. He knows how to do it properly. Without any hesitation, I can say that marriage God's way-next to salvation itself-is the most fulfilling and wonderful thing that I know on this earth. That is why the Bible says, "He who finds a wife finds a good thing, and obtains favor from the Lord" (Proverbs 18:22 NKJV). Having a strong and healthy marriage is no accident. God has given us clear principles in His Word on how to have a strong marriage. But we need to first know what those principles are. And then we have to ask Him, by the help of His Holy Spirit, to enable us to obey Him. Trusting Him for every season,

Sound Ministry Advice

So I received some sound ministry advice from an old Seminary Prof. He was one of those people he really believed that there was a hope for Pop culture. Gee, some of us Christians think that holiness is staying away from mainstream media and entertainment.

Little do we sheltered and ignorant Christians know that we can actually gain a greater burden for the lost if we have an open ear and heart. Have you heard some of the music and seen the movies? Some express all kinds of yearnings. We can hear longings for love and hope and freedom and peace and joy from people captive to hate, and despair, and sorrow and depression. Well, what do you know? Jesus offers freedom and all of that good stuff and more. Hey, it’s the sick that need a doctor not the healthy! But anyway, back to the main thrust of what I was going to say.

The ministry advice goes like this… Well going to seminary and having a call of God in your life is not like pursuing a career. Most people pursuing a career go to school, take up the practicum, make some contacts and get the degree and settle into a cozy job and coast to heaven. Not so for those with specific and real callings (not to say that he former don’t have specific or real callings…). The prof said, “Don’t assume that you’ll leave here with a wonderful ministry and be set to sail on your way! It’s not like that. It may take months, years and even decades before you get your feet of the ground. It is a real journey your on! Enjoy it and watch God use anything to conform you to his image first.” Okay so I added some stuff but you get the point right? Maybe not… Well I said my piece, let God do the rest! Hope I have your wheels turning.

True Friends

We are so blessed in the body of Christ. We have true friends who genuinely care and take an interest in our well being. Not many people in the world can testify to that. It is important to have the right friends. The Bible even says, "The righteous should choose his friends carefully (Proverbs 12:26a)" Do you know the difference between true friends and false flakes?

Well the false ones always have something to prove. You know the type. They are the ones who always boast and parade themselves. They talk about their glowing accomplishments and the great things they have done. They talk about themselves and take little interest in you. And the true reason and motive they have for boasting is to make you jealous. They just want you to covet what they have and envy them. They want to be the object of all your affection and attention. Basically they love the thrill of being worshiped.

They even take delight in comparisons. They would love to have you compare your accomplishments with their own. And they feed of your feeling of inadequacy when you can’t live up to their shallow standards. You can hear them say, "No, but the degree you have isn't from a credible institution..." or, "Our school was a private one and not some heathen invested public one...," or "But my job offers health benefits and yours doesn't..." But what a contrast to true friends. Do you know the difference between the true and the flakes?

Well, the true friend is quite different with the false flacky type. The true friends are there for you when times are tough unlike the flakes. Sure you may have been there for for the flakes but not the other way around. One of my good friends described the true friend as the one who didn't leave you in times of crisis. They stay and listen to your words and offer comfort and encouragement and sometimes solutions when it is appropriate. They will even weep when you weep and rejoice when you rejoice as it declares in Romans 12:15. God bless those friends.

They go the extra mile for you (Matt 5:42). They come to your aid when there is a crisis and even if it means that they must make a personal sacrifice. Reminds you of Jesus? The sacrifice can be anything like time, money, a shift at work, driving in the opposite direction of your destination, taking on the inconvenience. Do you know these type of people? Then you are truly blessed. (Did you notice the Bible reference? It actually refers to how we should treat our enemies or deal with evil people. Some of us won't even go the extra mile for a friend let alone an enemy?)

True friends allow you to be vulnerable. You can show your hurts to them. But so many people hide behind a mask or a plastic smile. They can't show any type of weakness because they were trained to put on a front or a face that says, "Don't know the true me! I have hurts and pains that you can't even imagine. I feel so ashamed of them. I don't think there is any hope of getting healed and freed from them so I'll pretend they don't exist. Buy my smile?" You can see it in their eyes. It's a sadness or an emptiness from a longing to be loved and valued. Well the true friend allows you to be open and honest and frank. You don't have to put on any fisades or fronts. They accept you just the way you are and do you know why? Because they love you!
"A friend loves at all times (Proverbs 17:17). I loves these kinds of friends.

It is sad that most people do not have these kinds of friendships. They don't even know what it is like to have a true friend. So what is the solution? Well, let's take a look at what the Bible has to say:

"A man who has friends must himself be friendly, But there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother (Proverbs 18:24)."

Well me must be a friend in order to have friends. Funny, someone might be reading this and think, "Boy, I'm really going to give it to my friend for not living up to these principles..." No, not at all brother. For every finger we point, there is three pointing back at us. We must set the example. We are not without sin so why should we throw the first stone?

"He who loves purity of heart And has grace on his lips, The king will be his friend (Proverbs 22:11)."

Grace is getting what you don't deserve. An example would be receiving God's love when we don't deserve it. We should excercise that same love to others. Than the world will know that we are Christ's disciples (John 13:35). Wow, isn't that outragous? Well, that is how I came to Christ. It was through a friendship where I recieved some good philo love. I didn't earn it or deserve it, it was freely given to me!

"He who covers a transgression seeks love, But he who repeats a matter separates friends (Proverbs 17:9).

Be a forgiver. We are all forgiven so it makes sence to forgive others. The grace example above covers this principle. But there is more. Forgiveness means that you don't use previous transgressions against a person. You don't bring up the past hurts and used it against the person. If you do, seperation will come. There goes the unity and before you know it you will be feeling alone again. I noticed that the most loniliest people I have met are the most bitter. The hold grudges for years and not address it in the love of Christ. They don't have any friends and they don't know why because they are blinded by unforgiveness. It is quite sad...

Well everyone. Here are just somethings to think about in our friendships. I hope this has been as enlightening for you as it was for me. I love the Word of God and I love God and God is love. Let's seek to conform to God's image and fulfill the most important commandments to love God and our neighbor. AMEN!

Back Talkers

How about those pesky gossipers? Don’t you hate it when people talk about you behind your back? It has happened to all of us at one point or another. Someone says something about you and than you find out and feelings are hurt and anger builds and resentment comes and before you know it friendships are broken. And maybe there was just a misunderstanding and what you heard was a groose exaggeration of what was actually said. Maybe what that person said was not what they meant or maybe words were twisted. But the Bible has some interesting things to say about gossipers.

“ The words of a gossip are like choice morsels;
they go down to a man's inmost parts (Prov 18:8).

“A perverse man stirs up dissension,
and a gossip separates close friends (Prov 16:28).”

“A gossip betrays a confidence;
(Prov 20:19a).”

“Your tongue plots destruction;
it is like a sharpened razor,
you who practice deceit (Psalm 52:2).

So what are the prescriptions? What are we suppose to do with gossipers? Got any ideas? Should we tell them off or tell them where to go and volunteer to take them there? Got any other suggestions? Well the Bible has some interesting words. Listen to this:

“… Avoid a man who talks too much (Prov 20:19b)

“Without wood a fire goes out;
without gossip a quarrel dies down.

As charcoal to embers and as wood to fire,
so is a quarrelsome man for kindling strife (Prov 26:20-22).”

Sometimes gossip can bring a lot of interpersonal conflict. Do you know the Bible’s prescription? Let’s take a look:

"If your brother sins against you, go and show him his fault, just between the two of you. If he listens to you, you have won your brother over. But if he will not listen, take one or two others along, so that 'every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses. If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, treat him as you would a pagan or a tax collector (Matt 18:15-19).

Funny, it doesn’t say that if your brother sins tell 800 other people to put him to shame and smile and shake his hand the next day like nothing happened. It doesn’t say to burn with anger and load you gun and cap him one. It doesn’t say to give him a piece of your mind and break down their will leaving them no room for repentance!

It says to show the fault privately. The best kind of correction is giving in a spirit of gentleness and love and in a way the restores the repentant believer with more confidence that they can overcome the sin. We need to empower and restore those who receive correction. It’s sad that some of us believers can become smug and self-righteous and offer no grace or mercy to those who might have fallen and are genuinely repentant.

We need to walk a mile in each other’s shoes and realize that we all are products of God’s grace. But there are those who love little. They are those who actually have been forgiven little (Luke 7:47). In the Bible, people who were in God’s presence were first aware of their own sinfulness. Isaiah says, "I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the LORD Almighty." We need to spend time in God’s presence and realize how much we have in common with each other. We need to offer the same grace and mercy to each other that God gives to us. Remember, “For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins (Matt 6:14-15)”

About 2000 Years...

Gosh. Sometimes I feel a little ashamed... Can you imagine that we Keralites have had the gospel for almost 2000 years. I've met frusterated beleivers who will come up to me and ask, "But what have you done with it in the last 2000 years? If your people have really responded to the call and great commission, all of India would be evangelized!" OUCH*** That stings... We didn't have the gospel for a year or tens of years or hundreds of years but thousands!!! That's a long time.

So what do I say? How do I respond? We don't have much of an excuse. I'm speechless. I feel the frusteration to. It's odd! I knew tons of bible thumping, born again believers who knew me as a non-Christian and didn's say a thing or mention a word about the greatest news on earth! I was perishing in my sin and taking the fastest route to a path of destruction. Than a caucasian Canadian comes in my life to shares the greatest news on earth with me. I to can sympathize with those frusterated by us Malayalees.

I met one who Malayalee admitted, "Yes it is true! We haven't even shared this news with our neighbors..." It's crazzy, I was reading the Lonely Planet about Kerala and only 20% is Christian. I guess we've haven't done much to reach home either? The other 20% are Muslim and the 60% are Hindu.

Well, I want to be different. I want to pursue the calling no matter what the cost! Sure I'm already a fool for Christ! Sure, it would be easier to just pursue the career, and settle down in a nice comfy home and build up all my security in this life while I watch this world sink into oblivion and reap all the benefits of having a saved soul! I know so many who are! But what about that narrow path? But about that cross? What about the saviour who reaches out to help me with his nail peirced hand? What about the blood that was spilled for my sins! Oh the sacrifice. And you know what, he calls us to sacrifice as well.

I know many Keralites doing breakthrough work for Christ. I hear about how the south Indians are leading most of the work to reach the north. I recently met a Malayalee who spent 30 years of his life translating the Bible into a Tribal language in India. Oh but it gets better! The tribal group he works with has no script or alphabet! He's teaching them to read the Bible and write as well. Thank you God! And there are others who are going to Bihar of all places. This is the missionaries graveyard! The lawless place! Who can forget those who have been imprisoned and beaten and mocked! I've met some Malayalees who have been.

I'm grateful for those who have responded to God and are in our hospitals and courts and even government! They have the titles, careers and money but most of all they have a burden for the lost. They are fueling ministries who are on the front line and are doing all they can do. These people are amazing. They are not so shallow as to beleive that only the world famous laborers are effective but all true laborers are making a difference. And they make substantial sacrifices to help! Instead of a personal get-away home, they build orphanages. Instead of the Lexus, it's the Camry and the church building project; instead of the Mansion, it's a middle-class neighborhood and the soup kitchen; instead of the swimming pool, it's the leper colony... But you should see the sacrifice of those who have little to nothing. RADICAL!

But than there are the others. I've met some who have the titles, careers, and $$$ like you wouldn't beleive. But they admit that they've done nothing in there sphere to reach the lost! ABSOLUTELY NOTHING! They're are blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavenlies and yet nothing... It reminds me of the story of the rich man and Lazarus. But all that can change today if they want it to. My God is merciful and a God of restoration! He can change us if we are willing.

But the cut goes deeper. We are known as the educated and the ambitious in India. We have the highest literacy rate if all of the country. We are truly blessed. Maybe the most blessed enthnic group in the world! Than there are those who say that if we Malayalees had as much zeal and passion for the lost as we did for the degrees and careers and titles, the whole world would have been saved! OUCH*** OHH! The pain!

Well, I don't know what to say! Don't get me wrong or misunderstand. These are just some things worth looking into. I hope that we don't fall for a hollow and vain life. Read Revelation and see the vate of those who are lost. Spend time with those who have no hope and don't know what hope is. It will put life in a much broader perspective! There is so much we can do if we want to! I hope we won't loose site of the goal! I hope not!

What did you like about GU?

So I just came back from this wild Christian conference the other day. It was great! Awesome preaching and worship, workshops for pastors for a change, times of prayer and even healings. I thought I'd ask some folks what they liked the most about the event. I got many varied and different responces but one stood out: "I love Benny Perez! He was so funny! I loved his jokes! It was great"

What's interesting is that there was a prayer made for healing and many got healed. One girl was healed of loopis. Another guys ankles or feet got healed. Than there was that lady who had a body brace from a skiing accident I beleive (... or was it a car accident?). She took off the brace because she was healed. Than there was this poor, sweet, innocent girl who said that she was healed of a disease she got when she was raped. She is a human being with feelings and emotions and a heart and a pulse and a conscious. She was someone's daughter and someone's sister and cousin... What a world we live in huh? A mix of emotions just flowed from her testimony. Anger against the one who did this to her and releif that she was healed. Can you imagine.... Vengance belongs to God! It is his to repay!

Well anyway, I loved Benny Perez and the Mexican Judo. I loved the zeal and enthusiasm and humor but most of all I'm glad that some people got healed. It would be great if more people would say, "Yeah praise God for the healings and the change in people's lives. Yeah, I got the most out that this weekend!" or even better, "Praise God for the ones that made a decision for Christ! It's great to see that they have an eternity filled with hope and peace and they don't have to go on it this life feeling alone and in dispair and fear of tomorrow! Praise God that they won't have to share and eternity with the unbeleivers and the vile! Praise God that they will have meaning and purpose and direction and fulfillment in life...." PRAISE GOD! PRAISE GOD! PRAISE GOD! The greatest healing is in the relationship between us sinful children to the most loving, caring and righteous Father! Praise God for that one huh?

10 Timbits!

Here is a little something I found the other day.

1. God wants spiritual fruit, not religious nuts.
2. There is no key to happiness. The door is always open.
3. Do the math, count your blessings
4. Laugh every day, it's like inner jogging.
5. If you worry, you didn't pray. If you pray, don't worry.
6. Blessed are the flexible for they shall not be bent out of shape.
7. The most important things in your house are the people.
8. When we get tangled up in our problems, be still. God wants us to be still so He can untangle the knot.
9. A grudge is a heavey thing to carry.
10. He who dies with the most toys still dies.

He uses your full potential; Remember, God doesn't call those qualified -- He qualifies those he calls.

The People God Uses...

It is quite interesting to see the kind of people God uses. According to 1 Corinthians 1, God uses the following:

"26Brothers, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. 27But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. 28He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, 29so that no one may boast before him."

Can you think of some of these foolish and weak examples? Here are some:

Noah was a drunk
Abraham was to old
Isaac was a daydreamer
Jacob was a liar
Leah was ugly
Jospeh was abused
Moses had a stuttering problem
Gideon was afraid
Samson had long hair and was a womanizer
Rahab was a prostitute
Jeremiah and Timothy were too young
David had an affair and was a murderer
Elijah was suicidal
Isaiah preached naked
Jonah ran from God
Naomi was a widow

Job went bankrupt
John the Baptist ate bugs
Peter denied Christ
The Disciples fell asleep while praying
Martha worried about everything
The Samaritan woman was divorced... more than once
Zacheus was to small
Paul was to religious
Timothy had an ulcer (I didn't know that)
AND Lazarus was dead!

No excuses now. God can use you to your full potential.
Besides, you aren't the message, you are just the messenger.

Yes, it is a known fact that sinners love Jesus. They are in our churches asking for forgiveness and a new beginning. It is the sick that need a doctor and not the healthy. But do we play the Pharisee and compare there sin to our self righteousness and reject them from our fellowships? Many stubbling blocks may come but woe to them who they come from! We need to be inviting sinners to repentance and a new way of life with the love of Jesus and not the pride of the Pharisees! AMEN!

USA and beyond!

Welcome to the USA. It is the home of the biggest economy in the world. It doesn’t matter what part of the world your in, you can see the influence of America almost anywhere. Did you know that they have embassies in almost every country in the world? I went to Paris and London a couple of years ago and was shocked at the influence and presence that America has in these foreign nations. Coke was rampant. Just down the road from the world Famous Arc de Triumph was a McDonalds where we had couple of Royals with cheeses. I checked out the theatres and there you have The Passion of the Christ as well as Van Hellsing. Just before Paris, we actually swung over to London. When we passed the American embassy we were shocked at the amount of people trying to get American visas. They were lined up outside and around the block. When we reached Trafalgar Square where the world famous American evangelist, Billy Graham preached, we saw the Canadian embassy, which looked quiet and vacant. You could almost here the Crickets chirping and owls hooting. You get the picture. Even hit American TV shows Friends and the Simpson’s are quite popular in England as well. The locals at London would go to pubs just to watch Friends. It was this social phenomenon.

These are just some things to know about the USA. Everyone has their idea of America. Some people know the USA as the country who put a man on the moon.

Others know it as the home of Playboy and Penthouse. Others know America is the home of Charles Manson. Oh and don’t forget the doomsday cults like Heaven’s Gate and David Coresh. Than there are those who are aware of the NRA. The last time I was in India, Bill Gates was really popular and the Indians loved him. Microsoft was huge there and India was becoming the home for many call centres of American computer companies. I recently saw an article in Time Magazine with Bill Gates visiting a slum in New Delhi. I heard he was investing millions there.

Who can forget the mayjor cities? Remember New York, the centre of Wall Street and the United Nations. It was also the home of the World Trade Centres. No one well ever forget September 11. Than you got to the west coast and find world famous Hollywood movie companies. You’ll find the homes of Tom Cruise and Mel Gibson and all those other crazy Hollywood actors.

And than there is the music from America. Rock n Roll is from the States. My generation knows Metallica in San Francisco and Jimi Hendrix and Kurt Cobain from Seattle and Puff Daddy. Is he from New York? But don’t forget the ‘Big Wigs’ like Madonna and Michael Jackson who are almost worshiped in different parts of the world. They’ve toured the globe and everyone knows them. Apparently MJ is huge in Germany! I saw this documentary where these kids were nearly fainting at the site of ‘the king of pop.’

Oh and don’t forget American Sports? Who can resist Major League Baseball? My bro is a Jays fan so occasionally we catch a game and even go to Seattle to see them. Than there is the NBA. I remember the glory days when the Chicago Bulls would clean house. How about the dream team who would dominate the Olympics. America has even penetrated Canadian sports. Have you heard of the NHL? It is the National Hockey League? Is it Canadian anymore? I heard that all the players get paid in American dollars. And when was the last time a Canadian won the beloved Stanley Cup. What is ironic is that hockey is barely viewed in the States. Bowling and synchronized swimming get higher ratings! It is considered suppose to be a Canadian Sport and some of the best Canadian players are on American teams.

Well, despite all these impressions or opinions of America, I personally fall in love with the nation. I just came back from a youth Christian conference there and I was really inspired by the passion of the their youth. People were cramming the doors, just waiting to get inside and worship God. There was singing, shouting, chanting, screaming, dancing, jumping, running, walking, preaching, guitar slinging, drumming for the glory of Jesus. It reminded me of Psalm 150! It had elements of a Rock Concert but without all the sin. It was like the Christians took a Rock Concert and baptized it and used it to glorify God. The missionaries would call it contextualization. Some would be offended by it. I wasn’t! I found it quite exhilarating. I really enjoyed the spotlight on the rad guitar solo from the Japanese dude. I heard that the guitar was actually invented in India and here is this Japanese dude wailing on it at an American Church. Jesus said his house would be a house of prayer for all nations. And it is becoming like that! This is such a great hope for the USA! I’m excited about this generation of Americans. They are a country at war and there is sin in the nation much like Canada to. But I love the fact that there are vibrant Christians standing in the gap and crying out for God to have mercy and knowing that they can do great things for God!

I felt sad for my country of Canada. The churches as a whole are shrinking all across the nation. There are people dead against Christianity here that are moving in places of influence in our government. Hopefully Stephen Harper and his Christian founded Conservatives can do something. It is scary. I always meet missionaries from South American and the USA who come up here and are so disappointed. They say the churches are idle and dead and lifeless compared to there home countries. They seem eager to go back where there is a difference and a momentum. It breaks my heart. I want to tell them not to leave. It is easy for you to be a Christian down there. But the need and the challenges are here! Don’t leave without making a difference here! We need it! Throughout the weekend I was letting people know that there are small pockets of revival is parts of Canada. The transformation video about revival covered the breakthroughs in the Arctic. It is a video I would totally recommend! Still we Christians are shrinking as a whole. I was so happy to see the help the Americans were giving. I met many who came to Princeton and Kelowna BC to see things change. I just met another missionary who left beautiful California for a rural place in Canada to minister. Thank you! I just heard about Franklyn Graham who is going to do a crusade in Winnipeg and recently did one in the East Coast. Thank you! Thank you America for sharing fire. We need it! We once were a sending Christian nation but now we have gone in reverse and have the need to receive. God have mercy on this nation.

But still there are other countries that are worse off. North Korea is the most persecuted country in the world. Millions died of starvation in the 90’s and not many people know about it. There are rumours that another one is on the way. Recently the leader of North Korea visited China, an old communist ally. The news report suggested that Kim Il Jung (I think that is his name), went to China in hopes of finding a solution to a possible famine in his land… Who knows? Well I gotta run. I feel tired and sleepy. Until next time.

GU 2006 and Kerala Church.

Thank you so much Lord for the amazing weekend. Thank you for the revelations and love and words of hope. You are amazing. Thank you Lord for Ashish and Beni and the extra mile saints and all the love and hospitality. Thank you for GU and the folks at PBC and the friends at the Kerala Church. It was and exciting and charged weekend. Thank you for opening my eyes and spirit and the path to restoration! You are the BEST!

Up in Smoke.

Just in case your hut's on fire...

The only survivor of a shipwreck was washed up on a small, uninhabited island. He prayed feverishly for God to rescue him.

Every day he scanned the horizon for help, but none seemed forthcoming.

Exhausted, he eventually managed to build a little hut out of driftwood to protect him from the elements, and to store his few possessions.

One day, after scavenging for food, he arrived home to find his little hut in flames, with smoke rolling up to the sky. He felt the worst had happened, and everything was lost.

He was stunned with disbelief, grief, and anger. He cried out, "God! How could you do this to me?"

Early the next day, he was awakened by the sound of a ship approaching the island! It had come to rescue him!

"How did you know I was here?" asked the weary man of his rescuers.

"We saw your smoke signal," they replied.

The Moral of This Story: It's easy to get discouraged when things are going bad, but we shouldn't lose heart, because God is at work in our lives, even in the midst of our pain and suffering. Remember that the next time your little hut seems to be burning to the ground. It just may be
a smoke signal that summons the Grace of God.

(I got this on an email. Now back to work)