The Blessedness of Possessing Nothing

"Father, I want to know Thee, but my cowardly heart fears to give up its toys. I cannot part with them without inward bleeding, and I do not try to hide from Thee the terror of the parting. I come trembling, but I do come. Please root from my heart all those things which I have cherished so long and which have become a very part of my living self, so that Thou mayest enter and dwell there without a rival. Then shalt Thou make a place of Thy feet glorious. Then shall my heart have no need of the sun to shine in it, for Thyself wilt be the light of it, and there shall be no night there.
In Jesus' name.
Amen.

--A.W. Tozer - The Pursuit of God

Home Again

It was an amazing summer in North Carolina...Met so many great people. I’ve never had the opportunity to work with such dedicated, talented, quality people. All serving Christ and with one goal in mind…to make the camp a little piece of heaven for the kids that came during the 6 weeks.

I feel the kids gave me so much more than I gave them. I just hope and pray that they saw Christ in my life and that they know how important & special each of them are. I may not see any of them in this life again but my prayer is that they will choose to dedicate their lives to Christ and live for Him.

Here’s to the campers & staff of Walter Johnson!

In Christ Alone

You have faced the mountains of desperation
You have climbed, you have fought, you have won
But this valley that lies coldly before you
Casts a shadow you cannot overcome

And just when you thought you had it all together
You knew every verse to get you through
But this time the sorrow broke more than just
your heart
And reciting all those verses just won't do it

Instead of asking why did it happen
Think of where it can lead you from here
And as your pain is slowly easing, you can find
a greater reason
To live you life trimphant through the tears

When answers aren't enough, there's still Jesus
He is more than just an answer to your prayer
And your heart will find a safe and peaceful refuge
When answers aren't enough, He is there

When answers aren't enough, He's still there.

--When Answers Aren't Enough; Scott Wesley Brown

"And I am convinced that nothing can ever seperate us from his love. Death can't, and life can't. The angels can't, and the demons can't. Our fears for today, our worries for tomorrow, and even the powers of hell can't keep God's love away." .:Romans 8:38 NLT

"My gracious favour is all you need. My power works best in your weakness...Since I know it all for Christ's good, I am quite content with my weaknesses and with insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I weak, then I am strong." .:2 Corinthians 12:9-10 NLT

Spend today as if it were your last

"Faith is a lot like hiking on a trail at night, guided only by the beam of the flashlight."

God has been stretching my faith to the limit and is continuing to do so as I head out in faith to the unknown. Sometimes I forget I still have the beam of light to guide me and stumble around in darkness, but it's not long before He sets me in the right direction. It's amazing the opportunities He provides when we trust in Him and set our minds upon Him. I will give Christ all the praise for the work He is doing in my life and the blessings He has in store for me.

O soul, are you weary and troubled?

No light in the darkness you see?

There’s a light for a look at the Saviour,

And life more abundant and free!

***

Turn your eyes upon Jesus,

Look full in His wonderful face

And the things of earth will grow strangely dim,

In the light of His glory and grace.

***

His Word shall not fail you—He promised;

Believe Him, and all will be well:

Then go to a world that is dying,

His perfect salvation to tell!

Let the Peace of God Reign

With Hillsong United coming to St. John's tonight. I was browsing through my CD collection and came across this beautiful song by Hillsong. It seemed to fit in well with where I'm at in my own Christian journey...

Father of life draw me closer
Lord, my heart is set on you
Let me run the race of time
With your life unfolding mine
And let the peace of God
Let it reign

Oh Holy Spirit Lord my comfort
Strengthen me hold my head up high
As I stand upon your truth
Bringing glory unto you
And let the peace of God
Let it reign

Oh Lord I hunger for more of you
Rise up within me let me know your truth
Oh Holy Spirit, saturate my soul
And let the life of God
Fill me now
Let your healing power
Breathe life and make me whole
And the peace of God
Let it reign

In these last few days as I've hungered for Him and saturated my mind with His truth, He has brought peace to me from the trials of this world. A peace that passes all understanding. I don't understand it, but as Paul states, if I must brag of anything, I will brag of Jesus Christ and bring glory to Him.

"Faith assures us of things we expect and convinces us of the existance of things we cannot see." -Hebrews 11:1

Sand Castles

"The gift of ourselves in total submission to God is a sacrifice in which, far from losing anything, we gain everything and recover, in a more perfect mode of possession, even what we seem to have lost. For at the very moment when we give ourselves to God, God gives Himself to us." -Thomas Merton

Jim Elliot, a martyred missionary who brought the gospel to the remote jungles of Ecuador is quoted as saying "He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose." He was certainly right there. Either you live for the things you cannot ultimately keep, or you live for the things you can never lose. That is one truth I must always be mindful of. To give oneself to God in total submission and place our hope in Him alone. I don't know why it is so hard to do. Perhaps, it is because the enemy knows once that occurs the power of God will manifest itself so real in your life that you can't help but to share the gospel of Jesus Christ to those around you. And more so your light will shine brighter and you will live your life in such a way that people can't help but take notice!

By placing our hope in our careers, relationships, money, etc...We are like people building sand castles. Spending all of our time and effort into making this amazing sculpture while oblivious to the fact that the tide is coming in quickly and will wash it away in the blink of an eye.

The Bible tells us "Our days on earth are like grass;like wildflowers, we bloom and die. The wind blows, and we are gone—as though we had never been here..." (Psalm 103) Praise the Lord that His word endures forever! By placing our hope in Him we will not be disappointed. The righteous will persevere and He will uphold them through all circumstances.

Brokenness

"Have mercy upon me, O God,

according to Your loving kindness,

according to the multitude of Your tender mercies,

blot out my transgressions.

Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity

and cleanse me from my sin.

For I acknowledge my transgressions,

and my sin is always before me.

Against You, You only, have I sinned,

and done this evil in Your sight that

You may be found just when You speak,

and blameless when you judge.

Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity,

and in sin my mother conceived me.

Behold, You desire truth in the inward parts,

and in the hidden part You will make me to know wisdom.

Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean;

wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.

Make me hear joy and gladness, that the bones

You have broken may rejoice.

Hide your face from my sins,

and blot out all my iniquities.

Create in me a clean heart, O God,

and renew a steadfast spirit within me.

Do not cast me away from Your presence,

and do not take Your Holy Spirit from me.

Restore to me the joy of Your salvation,

and uphold me by Your generous Spirit.

Then I will teach transgressors Your ways,

and sinners shall be converted to You.

Deliver me from guilt of bloodshed, O God,

the God of my salvation,

and my tongue shall sing aloud of Your righteousness.

O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth shall show forth Your praise.

For You do not desire sacrifice, or else I would give it;

You do not delight in burnt offering.

The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit,

a broken and contrite heart -- these O God,

You will not despise. Do good in Your good pleasure to Zion;

build the walls of Jerusalem.

Then You shall be pleased with the sacrifices of righteousness,

with burnt offering and whole burnt offering;

then they shall offer bulls on Your alter."

-Psalm 51