What Is CCDA?

This past weekend I attended the CCDA conference for the 6th time in the last 8 years. CCDA stands for the Christian Community Development Association. It is an association that gathers ministry/church leaders and staff from around the country (and increasingly from around the world) who are committed to Christ-centered, wholistic ministry in under-resourced communities primarily in rural and urban areas. CCDA seeks to inspire and equip people to do the work of the ministry. I am always so inspired and refreshed at the CCDA conference. It charges me up to be with like minded people who love Jesus, and are committed to ministry to the poor, racial reconciliation, justice, etc.

I am still unpacking much of what I took in at the conference, but let me try to articulate some of the key things that I gleaned from my time there this past weekend...

I was greatly inspired by the life and legacy of Dr. John Perkins. At 79 years old, his life speaks. One of my favorite parts of the conference ever year is the morning Bible study time with Dr. Perkins. It is evident as he shares the Scriptures that he loves the Lord, loves the Word, and loves people. I received his challenge to make sure that my relationship with Christ, and time spent enjoying Him, is what fuels all ministry service for Him. Since getting saved some 50 plus years ago, he has devoted his life to Christian community development and to racial reconciliation. It was amazing to hear and see the fruit of a life lived to make disciples. I thank and praise God for his example and for how God has used him in my life.

I love the both/and emphasis of the conference. Meaning the emphasis of the Biblical mandate to "do justice" AND "do the work of an evangelist." In other words we are to reach the lost and serve the poor with equal integrity and fervency.

I was reminded afresh of the importance of life and ministry balance. Personally, I must be diligent (by God's grace) to carve out "unhurried" time to spend with God each day - reading the Word, praying, and listening to Him. I also need to keep exercise a regular part of my week, even if it means "scheduling" it in. Finally, I have to make sure I am not neglecting "social outlets" - ie time with friends, and just having fun.

Overall, I am just grateful for the opportunity to attend CCDA again this year!

Knock Knock

Psalm 68:5 = A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows,is God in his holy dwelling.

Bring Me What You Have

I am almost finished with the book "The Hole In Our Gospel" by Richard Stearns. It has been a sobering read, a thought provoking read, and a challenging read. I definitely recommend it. The chapter I most recently finished, entitled "How Many Loaves Do You Have?", really resonated with me. Several of the earlier chapters of the book brought to light the complexity and the immensity of global poverty. The concluding chapters are an encouragement and an exhortation to action. It is a reminder that when the challenges we face seem too big, God takes what we have and what we can give, and accomplishes the supernatural.

Here are a few of the quotes/highlights from this chapter...
"If the gospel is to be proclaimed, poverty defeated, racism overcome, the tide of AIDS turned back, or injustice challenged, it will be done by...ordinary people like you and me."

"But the very good news for those of us who ant to follow Christ and be part of God's plan for our world is that He uses what we have to offer, not matter how unimportant we think it might be."

The author, Richard Stearns, reminds us of the feeding of the multitudes recorded in all four gospels. In those passages, the disciples and Jesus saw the same scenario through two different lenses. "The disciples saw only a large problem (Mark 6:35-36). But Jesus looked at the exact same situation and saw an opportunity (he had compassion which led to action)...When we see poverty and sickness, hunger and famine, cruelty and abuse, do we see them as problems, or do we, like Jesus, filled with compassion, see their human faces and immediately begin to respond." Jesus then asked them "how many loaves they had?" The disciples responded that a boy had five loaves and two fish. Jesus told them to "bring them here to me." In other words, "bring me what you have." Those of us familiar with the story know that Jesus took what they had, multiplied it, fed the multitudes, and even had some left over. I like Stearns' insight on what happened here. He states, "Can you see the real miracle at work here? Confronted with an overwhelming problem, Jesus did not ask the disciples to do the impossible; He asked only for them to bring to Him what they had. He then multiplied the small offering and used it to do the impossible. The principle is so very important for those of us who are overwhelmed with the immensity of human suffering and need in our world: God never asks us to give what we do not have...But He cannot use what we will not give." (pp 250-253)

In recent days the challenge of youth violence in Chicago has been on my mind. There are thousands of hurting young men in our city, battling hopelessness, looking for identity. Sadly, Chicago now ranks as the youth homicide capital of the U.S. I am also a board member of a ministry called Africa Revolution. It partners with local churches and ministries in southern Africa to minister to those infected and affected by the AIDS crises. That AIDS statistics are staggering there! An honest look at both of these scenarios can be overwhelming. I am thankful for the timeliness of this reminder from Scripture and this book, that God Almighty takes what we offer, and uses it to do things that only He can do. I am reminded that His heart breaks for the young people who are being gunned down in Chicago. His heart breaks for the orphan who has lost both parents to AIDS. Bob Pierce, the founder of World Vision, used to pray "Let my heart be broken by the things that break the heart of God." We need to pray this, and ask God to give us the grace to respond with compassion and courage.

Song Time At Summer Blast - Please Sing Along

This past summer I was the song leader at Summer Blast, our day camp for 7 to 11 year olds. On the final week, I did a near 9 minute medley of all of the "favorites." You may find yourself singing along, and if you are able, feel free to join in on the motions as well. I dare you to try and sing these songs and not smile!

A Balanced Political Perspective

The health care debate seems to have highlighted our nation's political divide. I continue to get emails, see facebook status updates, news reports, etc. - that make me cringe. Especially as Christians, I wish we could agree that the health care system is unjust. There are too many people who simply cannot afford quality health care. What saddens me in this is the ongoing ASSUMPTION that low income families and those who cannot afford health care are lazy. Where does this "I work hard for mine" and "they don't" mindset come from?! There is so much self-righteousness and so little grace in spoken and unspoken sentiments such as these. So whether we approve of a government run health care system or not, we should all agree that major health care reform is needed.

There are two blogs that I read frequently that recently posted write-ups on politics that I think are on point, well thought through, and gracious. Joel Hamernick at his blog entitled City Grace, wrote a post entitled "The Church Caused (and could undo) Big Government." Pastor Lance, at his blog entitled Blaque Tulip, wrote a post entitled "Divided By Politics."

I would love to hear feedback on these posts if you decide to check them out.

Praise Report For Friday

First of all, thank you for joining in prayer for the event that took place this past Friday in Washington DC. I got an email update from one of the ministry leaders that traveled to DC. (Note: He asked that I not share his name or the name of the ministry. He is a dear brother, and they are definitely working "in the trenches.") Here is what he had to share...

"Thank you for praying for the outreach efforts at the Muslims’ Jummah prayer at the Washington, DC Mall on Friday, September 25th. The leaders of the event advertised that they expected 50,000+ Muslims to attend. The real number of Muslims who attended was between 3,000 and 8,000 at its height.

One person estimated that about 75% of all the Muslims that were on the mall on Friday were offered either the Jesus DVD, the More than Dreams DVD, or other Gospel materials (another person estimated that every Muslim there was offered Gospel materials at least once, and many had multiple opportunities). Our outreach director also thought that at least 60% of the Muslims accepted these Gospel materials, some with great joy and gladness. The More than Dreams DVD (www.morethandreams.org) was particularly well received, sometimes even sought after by Muslims. We, and those we worked with, distributed over 2,500 packets of materials.

Among those our team worked with, and others too, there were more than 90 believers reaching out to the Muslims at this event with an appropriate attitude. Beyond the passing out of Gospel materials, there were many good and Christ-centered conversations with Muslims. Many on our team ended their day extremely excited about how they felt God was at work through their efforts among the Muslims. Truly, God heard your prayers. THANK YOU FOR PRAYING!"

I am thankful for ministries, churches, and missionaries that are burdened to see Muslims come to know Christ! Let's continue to lift these ministries up to the Lord!

An Opportunity On The Washington Mall - Be In Prayer

This Friday September 25th, there is going to be an Islamic prayer event on Washington DC mall. It is anticipated that there will be 50,000 Muslims praying there and the website promoting the event says, "Our Time Has Come."

In light of this event, a Chicago based ministry (that we partner with) sees this as an incredible opportunity to reach Muslims with the gospel of Jesus Christ. They are driving a van and an SUV full of people to DC for this occasion and are giving a copy of the Jesus Film DVD to as many Muslims there as will accept them. These DVDs are in 16 of the most commonly spoken languages among Muslims. There are other Christian ministries throughout the country who will have a similar effort going tomorrow.

I recently received an email from a ministry staff person sharing the following prayer request. "Please, sincerely pray for this outreach on Friday. There will be another group of people there who are planning on rudely inciting Muslims' anger and we don't want to be associated with these people - surely this would be counter-productive. I believe that evangelism is a high form of spiritual warfare and we intent to be fully engaged. Again, please pray for all those working to get the message of Jesus Christ to the Muslims in DC on Friday."

This event is yet another in a string of recent events that has brought the religion of Islam into greater media attention. Just to keep things straight, Islam is the religion. Muslims are those who follow Islam (In the same way Christianity/Christians). Sadly man of us here in the US, and especially Christians, do not understand Islam. Like most things we don't understand, we fear it. Therefore we not only fear the religion, we fear Muslims (if we are honest in most cases). However, we must keep things in perspective. As followers of Jesus Christ we should hate Islam, but we MUST love Muslims. In other words, we must hate the religious system that keeps people in spiritual bondage and distracts them from the true message of Jesus Christ. At the same time, we must love Muslims and must be intentional about building relational bridges in order to share the liberating message of the Gospel.

For years in our churches we have prayed for the "1040 Window." The 10/40 Window is an area of the world that contains the largest population of non-Christians in the world. The area extends from 10 degrees to 40 degrees North of the equator, and stretches from North Africa across to China. Many of the nations and people groups within the 1040 Window are Muslim. These nations have been "closed" to the gospel, making Christian missionary activity illegal. We have been praying that God would open doors and allow missionaries to enter these places. I now believe that God, in His Sovereignty, is bringing these nations to us in the US. Acts 17:26-27 speaks to God's Sovereignty over the movement of people. It states, "From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us." In light of this verse, could the fact that we now have an ever-increasing number of "Muslims living among us" be in His Sovereign plan. I think this is the case.

So then the question becomes, do we view this as an "opportunity" or as a "threat"?

Romans 10:14-16 states, "How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written, "How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!"

This is not the time to send emails that evoke fear. This is not the time to work towards tighter "border security." This is not the time to retreat into our "Christian bubbles." This is the time to dig into the Scripture and to know what we believe and why we believe it. This is the time to live intentional Christian lives. This is the time to be the Church.

(I know that someone is asking/thinking, "but what about Jihad?" What about Muslims that view us - Christians - as the enemy? Should we not consider them our enemies?" My response would be to remind them that Jesus gave us instructions in how to deal with "enemies." He commanded us to love them!)

Thoughts? I really would like to have discussion on this!

Would You Still Seek Jesus?

Recently I have been reading through the book of Psalms. I have really been enjoying it! I love the transparency of David through all of his ups and downs. I also have taken note of His exalted view of God. He was a man who in spite of his issues and in spite of his circumstances truly sought after God.

It has reminded me of a message that Dr. Fuder gave at a CCDA conference a few years back. He asked a challenging and thought-provoking question to those of us serving in positions of spiritual leadership, those of us actively working "for Jesus." Here is what he asked, "If God (hypothetically) told us that (1)when we died we would go to heaven (eternal security/salvation) and (2)I will never use you again on earth, WOULD YOU STILL SEEK AFTER JESUS? Would you still seek to know Him? Would you seek His face? Would you still worship Him and to enjoy Him?" My response: Whew!

He then reminded us that Henry Blackaby defines spiritual leadership as bringing followers (those whom we influence & serve) into face to face encounters with Jesus. He exhorted us that "if we are going to take people deep into the things of God, it means that we have to be drinking deeply from that well." For those of us in spiritual leadership positions, we cannot call anyone to what we ourselves are not about.

In Psalm 43 David said that God referred to God as his "joy and delight." I have really been thinking on his words. Does my heart echo this? Does yours?

The thing that really challenges me is this. I know that I love to do His work, but I don't always love (and treasure, and cherish, and delight in)HIM with this same passion and devotion. By God's grace...

$3 Worth Of God

I have a subscription to Voice Of The Martyrs magazine(I highly recommend it!). Each month the magazine highlights various stories of Christians throughout the world who are facing persecution because of their faith in Jesus Christ. In the August 2009 issue, the opening article contains a quote that I thought was worth sharing. I am not familiar with the author or the historical context during which it was written, but I think it is relevant to us as Christ-followers today. Especially in this day and age within the American church where we have made comfort an idol. Here it is...

"I would like to buy $3 worth of God, please. Not enough to explode my soul or disturb my sleep, but just enough to equal a cup of warm milk or a snooze in the sunshine. I don't want enough of God to make me love a black man or pick beets with a migrant worker. I want ecstasy, not transformation. I want warmth of the womb, not a new birth. I want a pound of Eternal in a paper sack. I would like to buy $3 worth of God, please. - Wilbur Rees

13.1 Mile Reflections

This past Sunday morning I competed/ran in my first half-marathon, the Chicago Half Marathon. I don't remember when exactly I decided to run, but it wasn't that long ago. I began training on August 13th, just after returning from our annual Montana trip. I began lifting and running on a much more consistent from that day up until the race. I actually really enjoyed the training, even though each "big run" was "the longest run of my running career."

I was nervous the morning of as I woke up at 5:50am. I couldn't believe how many people were there when I got to the start line - 20,000 runners. People had told me that the day of the race, "I would run on adrenaline," and they were right. It was really encouraging to see so many spectators out there cheering us on. The first part of the race felt great, but when I hit the 9 mile mark, things got tough. Thankfully, I was able to press through, and when I hit the 11 mile mark, I felt like I got my second wind. I finished with a time of 2 hours, 4 minutes, and 29 seconds. Out of 20,000 runners, I came in 2,989th place.

I am thankful for everyone that prayed for me! I am also thankful for everyone that made generous donations towards Sunshine Gospel Ministry's youth outreach programs.

Here are a few race memories/thoughts...

Most Memorable Sign: About 2 miles into the race, someone was holding a sign that said, "The Kenyans Are Behind You!" - classic!

Most Memorable Interview: I have to give a shout out to Brittney Rost and Nikki Blodgett for the live interview that they did as I ran.

Favorite Running Song In My I-Tunes: "Turning Point" by J'Son

Most Interesting Running Outfit: There were three guys that ran in a group that ran in "running skirts." These were not "kilts," these were skirts. Nuff said.

Devotional/Spiritual Thought: Throughout my month of training I was reminded of Paul's words in 1 Timothy 4:7-8 where he says, "Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives' tales; rather, train yourself to be godly. For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come." Over the course of my month of training I disciplined myself to so many runs per week, and so many lifts per week. I changed my diet. I got up early for some runs, and others I carved out times in the evening. I was challenged during this process by the question, "am I training myself for godliness just as hard?" By God's grace, am I diligent and disciplined in my pursuit of Christlikeness? That is a convicting thought.

I am grateful to God for the health and the strength to run. I hope to continue to stay in this "half-marathon shape" and compete in future races.

Eleven Poorology Principles

I thought I would pass these on as I am working on a session for some trainings I am teaching this week. I have to give a shout out to my guy Dr. Fuder!!

Eleven Poorology Principles
Compiled by Dr. John Fuder – Moody Theological Seminary


1)God has special concern for the poor and neglected
-Psalm 146:7-9 = who executes justice for the oppressed, who gives food to the hungry. The LORD sets the prisoners free; the LORD opens the eyes of the blind. The LORD lifts up those who are bowed down; the LORD loves the righteous. The LORD watches over the sojourners; He upholds the widow and the fatherless, but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.

2)The needy are seeking and receptive to God
-Isaiah 41:17 = When the poor and needy seek water, and there is none, and their tongue is
parched with thirst, I the LORD will answer them; I the God of Israel will not forsake them.

3)Scripture expects and commands us to help those in need
-Zechariah 7:9-10 = Thus says the LORD of hosts, Render true judgments, show kindness and mercy to one another, do not oppress the widow, the fatherless, the sojourner, or the poor, and let none of you devise evil against another in your heart."

4)Ministry to the needy is the basis in Scripture of true religion
-James 1:27 = Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.

5)Poverty, or the poor, is a testing ground for Christian love to be shown
-Matthew 26:11 = For you always have the poor with you, but you will not always have me.
-Deuteronomy 25:11 = For there will never cease to be poor in the land. Therefore I command you, 'You shall open wide your hand to your brother, to the needy and to the poor, in your land.'

6)We show our love for the Lord by the way we treat those in need
-Matthew 25:40 = And the King will answer them, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.'

7)Ministering to those in need is the very basis of knowing God
-Jeremiah 22:16 = He judged the cause of the poor and needy; then it was well. Is not this to know me? declares the LORD.

8)We should respond in ministry to the poor knowing that we could have been born poor ourselves
-Deuteronomy 24:17,18 = "You shall not pervert the justice due to the sojourner or to the fatherless, or take a widow’s garment in pledge, but you shall remember that you were a slave in Egypt and the LORD your God redeemed you from there; therefore I command you to do this.

9)God will bless and reward those who care for the poor
-Psalm 41:1-3 = Blessed is the one who considers the poor! In the day of trouble the LORD delivers him; the LORD protects him and keeps him alive; he is called blessed in the land; you do not give him up to the will of his enemies. The LORD sustains him on his sickbed; in his illness you restore him to full health.

10)We may end up poor ourselves if we don’t help those in need
-Proverbs 21:13 = Whoever closes his ear to the cry of the poor will himself call out and not be answered.

11)We will be judged for not helping those in need
-Malachi 3:5 = Then I will draw near to you for judgment. I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, against the adulterers, against those who swear falsely, against those who oppress the hired worker in his wages, the widow and the fatherless, against those who thrust aside the sojourner, and do not fear me, says the LORD of hosts.

Reflecting on my Re-birth on my Birthday

From the time I was born up until about the 4th or 5th grade, my family was very active in our church – First Baptist Church of Paw Paw. My parents were youth leaders for a few years there, my dad ministered through music, and my mom was active in women’s ministry. I was faithfully in Sunday school and church. We also went to AWANA club (A Bible club for kids) every Thursday evening at the local elementary school. Church was very much a part of my life, and for the most part I enjoyed it. I loved the Bible stories. I liked the challenge of memorizing Scriptures. My life was impacted by several of the adult leaders at the church. I heard the gospel of Jesus Christ often – that He is God who became a man, lived a sinless life, and willingly died on the cross for my sins and for the sins of the world, and then raised from the dead 3 days later. I loved that story as a kid, and I understood that Jesus was the way to heaven (I wanted no part of hell.). At the age of 6 (approximately) I prayed a prayer of salvation, acknowledging that I was a sinner, accepting Jesus for who He was and his payment on the cross for my sins, and inviting Him into my life. My Sunday school teachers assured me that I was saved. However, in the next 2 or 3 years at a couple of different youth events – when they gave an invitation for salvation, I went forward again just to make sure that it had “stuck.”

Then in about the 4th or 5th grade the church we were attending “split.” There were sexual molestation accusations made by one family against another family. What was once a growing, healthy church was now split in half. Our family left the church. We began going to church in a neighboring town, but we never really got connected like we had been at our last church. If fact, our attendance became very inconsistent to almost non-existent at times. As I entered into junior high, although I considered myself a Christian, my faith in Christ had no impact upon my life. The things I cared about the most were sports, trying to fit in, and getting good grades – probably in that order. Those priorities carried over into high school. I had “hoop dreams” as I envisioned myself playing college and potentially even professional basketball some day. Then as I began playing high school football, I began to develop college football aspirations as well. I worked very hard, lifting weights, conditioning my body, working on my game(s) with a lot of intensity. I dedicated my high school summers to preparing for the football and basketball seasons that lie ahead. In the classroom, I pushed myself just as hard. At the end of my high school years, I had earned student and athlete of the year honors at Paw Paw High School. Those are great accomplishments. However, the problem was that my whole identity was wrapped up in who I was primarily as an athlete and secondarily as a student. God really didn’t fit into my equation. Oh sure, I thanked him after a good game and I prayed to him before a big test, but that is pretty much the extent. I had placed God in the backseat of my life, and only turned to him during emergencies. In spite of my distancing myself from God, I wasn’t necessarily living a “crazy, immoral lifestyle.” I was trying to be the “good kid.” However, I wasn’t trying to please God, I was trying to please my parents, my teachers, my coaches, etc. Truth be told, I was dead in my sins. I thought I was self-sufficient, I was giving into my lusts, and I was enslaved to people pleasing.

I headed to Albion College in the fall of 1996. The summer leading into that fall, I decided to give both basketball and football a try. I worked hard to earn a spot as a quarterback on the roster, only to have my position changed and to have a place on the “scout team.” In basketball, I came off the bench on the jayvee team (at Div. 3 Albion). In the classroom, I was challenged like never before and feeling very average. My high school girlfriend and I broke up. I gave the “party scene” a brief stint, but that just wasn’t me no matter how hard I wanted it to be or tried to make it to be. I even got caught with alcohol in my dorm and got placed in social probation first semester. I was broken and humbled and I was asking one main question, “who am I?” This is where God made the move on me. I believe that God in His Sovereignty removed the things in my life that I had elevated over Him. He brought me to a place where my notions of self-sufficiency were crushed. In the midst of this, he put key Christian brothers in my life. The guy across the hall named Donny really impacted me. He was a football player too. He could be found reading the Bible in the early morning, and sometimes in the late evening. He would also play his guitar and sing worship songs. In the football locker room he modeled integrity and character no matter what was being discussed. He was my same age, but he loved Jesus, and he lived for Jesus, and he stood out on campus.

I was at a crossroads. It was either time to truly follow Christ for myself, or to simply live for me. The faith of my grandparents and parents wasn’t going to cut it. My faith had to become my own. Jesus had to become real to me. That freshman year of college, Jesus rocked me. I didn’t do anything to earn my way to God, Jesus did it all for me. I began to learn that my true identity was “in Christ” – 2 Corinthians 5:17. My life has not been the same since. It has been an adventure. Jesus is so much more than a ticket to heaven, He is what makes life worth living. He has become and is becoming my life. He came down, He died for me, He forgave me, He raised me up, He adopted me as His son, and He has given my life purpose and joy (Ephesians 2:8-10).

I am thankful today on my 32nd birthday for all that Jesus has done and will continue to do in my life!

Professor Rah Interviews John Perkins

I am looking forward to this year's CCDA Conference in Cincinnati to hear both of these brothers preach and teach. If you have never read any of John Perkins books, I strongly encourage you to do so! I would start with his biography "Let Justice Roll Down." I also recommend "Beyond Charity," "Restoring At Risk Communities," and "With Justice For All."

Soong-Chan Rah, who is now a professor at North Park University here in Chicago, recently wrote a very important book for the Church here in America entitled "The Next Evangelicalism." I highly recommended it. It is a challenging and thought provoking read.

Christ-Centered Preaching

One of the blogs I follow is "Pure Church" by Thabiti Anyabwile. He recently had a post where he shared quotes by various men of God on Christ-Centered preaching. Here are a few that stuck out to me...

Martin Luther: "I preach as though Christ was crucified yesterday, rose from the dead today, and is coming back tomorrow."

Charles Bridges: "Let Him be the diamond in the bosom of your every sermon."

Charles Spurgeon: "A sermon without Christ as its beginning, middle, and end is a mistake in conception and a crime in execution.... When we preach Jesus Christ, then we are not putting out the plates, and the knives, and the forks, for the feast, but we are handing out the bread itself.... [Let us] preach Christ to sinners if we cannot preach sinners to Christ.... I wish that our ministry--and mine especially--might be tied and tethered to the cross."

For more, check out the rest of Thabiti's post.

Consistent Positive Pressure

This summer Pete and I went to visit a 13 year old young man in the hospital who had been shot in the stomach during a drive-by shooting. The gang violence this spring and summer has been challenging throughout Chicago. It is one of the unfortunate realities of both our neighborhood and our city. There is an epidemic of hurting young people who are hurting other young people. In communities where gangs are prevalent, as Pastor Phil Jackson puts it, “hopelessness and resiliency co-exist.” In other words, “the future looks grim, but I am going to be strong in the midst of this hopelessness.” Too many young people have been either directly or indirectly affected by violence. Too many young people have lost family members and friends to gun violence, some have even witnessed it. Young people are hurting, they are looking for direction, and they are looking for a place to belong. I recently heard Pastor Wayne “Coach” Gordon quote notorious former gang leader Jeff Fort saying, “We (the gangs) will always have the youth because we make them feel important.” That is a profound and troubling statement. Those are challenging words for those of us doing youth ministry in the city. Those are challenging words to the Church! Phil Jackson said this, “the only way you can really change it (the challenge with urban youth) is through consistent positive pressure for a long period of time.” We, the body of Christ, must give our lives to applying this “consistent positive pressure.” It will take much prayer. It will take intentionally investing our lives into the lives of young people. It will be hard. It will be messy. It will be worth it.


During our recent Montana visit I was reminded of 1 Thessalonians 2:8. It reads, “We loved you so much that we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well, because you had become so dear to us.” Paul was saying that he not only shared the message of the hope of Christ, but through relationships and doing life together, he shared the love of Christ in tangible ways. Pastor Danny Lopez recently shared that one of the best practices for youth ministry is this, “practice loving God, then practice loving kids with the love of God, and watch God do a miracle.” Whether you live in Chicago, or Paw Paw, or Bozeman, or Mamelodi, or anywhere in between, let’s give our lives to Christ-exalting life on life ministry!

Running For The Youth

Believe it or not, on Sunday September 13th I will be running in the Chicago Half Marathon on behalf of Sunshine Gospel Ministries. Specifically, I am seeking to raise money for our Youth Outreach Programs.

I am looking for people to sponsor me. If you are interested, you can either sponsor me per mile (it is a 13 mile race), or you can simply donate a specified amount. Lord willing, I will finish all 13 miles!

To donate, visit our web site at www.sunshinegospel.org Click on the “donate” link on the left margin. Please make sure that you specify “Clark - Half Marathon” on your donation. If you prefer to send in a check, you can make it out to Sunshine Gospel Ministries. On the memo line write “Clark - Half Marathon.” You can mail your check to:
Sunshine Gospel Ministries
P.O. Box 377939
Chicago IL 60637.
*If you need a receipt/tear off portion to send with the check, I can email one to you.

As the race draws closer, I will try to give you "training updates."

Montana Quotes

During our time in Montana, I had the privilege of staying with Dave and Sarah LeVea. One of the highlights of our time with them was our nightly gathering around the kitchen table. On our first evening there, Dave introduced the "quote of the day" journal. Each night he would ask us for the quotes of the day from whatever adventure we had been on that particular day. I thought I would share some of them...

On Monday, when Dave let Baby T borrow his study Bible, Baby T thumbed through the pages and smelled the Bible and then exclaimed, "it just feels Holy, Ahhhhhhh!"

On Tuesday night during the devotional session, Pastor BJ stated, "you never know when God will call you out of the pool."

On Wednesday, at the half way point of the fishing trip, when asked how many fish I had caught...I responded "our boat has 2 fish." I was attempting to hide the fact that I once again hadn't caught any fish!

On Friday as a storm was moving near, Devonta said, "I saw thunder."

During the Sunday morning service, Pastor Aaron Roy stated, "God doesn't take kindly to hustlers."

Finally, the guys and I throughout the week began to notice a common trend among men and women who have lived in Montana for a number of years. They all have PHENOMENAL calves, or as we call them "Montana Calves." You will notice the picture of the sample Montana Calves!:)

The Montana Experience

This coming Sunday at 6am we will load the Sunshine van with 7 men and their luggage and head west to Bozeman, MT. This will be our 8th summer doing this trip. I have been blessed to be part of all 8 of them. Each year has been memorable in it's own way. God has done amazing things during this interchange as leaders and young men from urban Chicago connect with host families and church members of all ages from rural/mountain Montana. The relationships that have been built over the years have been a beautiful picture of what the body of Christ was intended to be as young and old, black and white and brown, rural and urban have learned from one another, prayed for one another, and shared laughter and tears.

For this year's trip I have undertook a "Montana Trip Alumni Project." I have tried to connect with every young person (many of whom are now young adults) who has been on the trip asking them questions about their current age, job/school, how the Montana trip impacted them, and what message they would give to the church in Montana. I thought I would share one of the responses from a young man who traveled to Montana with us in 2002 and 2004. Here is what he shared...

Name: Timothy Purdis
Age: 25

What are you up to now? U.S. Army - Combat Engineer currently returning from my second tour. Operation Iraqi Freedom

How did the Montana trip impact your life? Going to Montana with Sunshine Gospel Ministries gave me a chance to connect with Jesus in a different way, a different environment and a chance to build new friendships with people outside of Chicago - and keep it going over the years. I got a chance to go mountain climbing, fly fishing and float in a river, if I'm not mistaken.

If you could send a message to the church in Montana, what would you say? Springhill Community Church thanks for the prayer and support throughout both of my tours in Iraq - Spc (P) Timothy Purdis


1 Thessalonians 2:8 = We loved you so much that we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well, because you had become so dear to us.

Unexpected Appointment

As I mentioned in a previous post, whenever we host a Friday Night Lights outreach I ask the Lord to give me (& us) divine appointments (in other words, God-orchestrated opportunities to share the love of Christ with people). This past Friday night was no exception. God once again honored my request and provided me with opportunities to speak about Jesus in conversations. However, what made this Friday unique was how one of them came about.

It was about 10:30pm or so when a man named Tony approached me and asked me if I could give he and his wife and son a ride to 55th and Wabash. He explained that the neighborhood gangs were about to start shooting, and that he needed to get his son to his grandmother's house. I told him that I could give them a ride, but I was a little skeptical of his "the gangs are about to start shooting" comment. He then told me he was going to get his wife and son, and would return to our lot in a few minutes. About 5 minutes later he returned by himself. He told me that his son was embarrassed to have his friends see him get into my van to be given a ride somewhere. He asked if I could pick them up from the store up the street so that his one would not be embarrassed. The scenarios just seemed "sketchy" to me, so I told him that I was more than willing to give them a ride, but that they were going to have to come to the lot where my van was. He once again told me they would be back in a few minutes. At this point, I didn't think I would see Tony again. I was both skeptical and a bit cynical at this point. However, a few minutes later Tony returned with his wife and his son ready for the ride. It turned out that I knew his son from Sexton school, and that my previous roommate (J. Harvey) had built a friendship with Tony during his stay in Chicago.

I dropped off Tony's son at his grandmother's and allowed his wife to run him in. Tony and I had a few minutes alone in my van as we waited. I asked him what his faith background was. He told me protestant, and then added, "well just Jesus really!" He quoted a couple of verses. I shared another verse. He quoted another one. I shared one, and we went back and forth. It was such an encouraging conversation. He encourage me to continue to be a positive role model to the young people, and emphasized that they need the hope of Jesus. As I dropped he and his wife off, they thanked me and we exchanged numbers.

In spite of my cynicism, God provided a divine appointment. I am praying that God gives me the opportunity to connect with Tony and his family again.



Friday Night Lights Update: Although we got "lightninged out" at about 11:30pm, FNL was once again a huge success. We praise God, for the opportunities to connect with neighbors, to proclaim the love of Christ, and to make Peace happen!

Divine Appointments

On Friday night we hosted our second Friday Night Lights outreach. (For more information on Friday Night Lights check out my previous post entitled "Friday Night Lights.") I have greatly enjoyed both of these Friday nights. God has blessed us both nights with clear skies and decent weather. We have had a good team of people working together - working the grill, serving food, holding Peace Campaign signs, meeting and greeting people, ministering through music, "dj-ing", and setting up/cleaning up. We have also been blessed with a good turn out of neighbors. We have met neighbors whom we have never seen before, we have strengthened relationships with others, and we have discovered brothers and sisters in Christ. I give God all the praise for all of the above.

Going into this Friday night I told the other summer staff that I was going to pray that God would give me (& us) divine appointments on Friday night. I told them that I am convinced that when we ask God for opportunities to speak to others about Him, He always honors those requests. We just have to be ready and available to open our hearts and to open our mouths to share the love of Christ and the message of His love. He definitely honored my request for divine appointments this past Friday. Let me explain. Our ministry building contains a Community Technology Center that offers computer classes to adults & teens, and an internet cafe that provides access to computers. Over time, I have gotten to know some of the more "frequent" internet cafe visitors. Some of them I get to know by name, and others by face. I try to speak to everyone who comes into the office. On Friday afternoon I invited two of these "frequent guests" to come out to Friday Night Lights. They both took me up on it. During the course of the night I was able to have a separate conversation with each of them, Kevin and Anthony, about their faith background and about the person and work of Christ. Both of them were very open to conversing about Christ, and they come from diverse faith backgrounds (Catholicism, Islam, & Jehovah's witness influences). I am now praying that I might have an ongoing dialogue with them about the love of Christ when I see them and have an opportunity to interact with them at the center. God is good!

Another man came to the lot because he heard the music, and after listening to it intently discovered that it was gospel rap that was coming out of the speakers. A good friend of mine, Pastor Jay, had the opportunity to speak with this brother. He shared with Jay that he used to be a member of a gospel rap group, however he had left the group and had been living in "the far country." He recently came out of a drug rehabilitation program, and he asked Jay to pray for him that he would get back on track with the Lord and continue to live a life for Him. I watched, at around midnight, as Jay hugged him over the chain-link fence and lifted him and his family up to the Lord! That's God!


All of these conversations happened after 11pm, on a Friday night, in an empty lot, in what many consider to be "the hood." It is just a reminder that God is actively at work! The amazing thing is that He invites us to join Him in what He is doing. Let's continue to ask God for divine appointments, and then let's keep our eyes and ears open for how we might join Him in His Kingdom work.