Africa Revolution

It has been too long since I have posted a little somethin, so I thought I would make a comeback by givin a shout out to my guy Allan. He just started a new ministry venture called Africa Revolution. You can check it out by clicking on the link in the right margin.

Its purpose is to connect churches in southern African with churches in the States in authentic relationships in order to learn from one another, serve one another, and to work together in the fight against the AIDs epedemic, and to care for orphans. The method used to see this happen is year long internships for students from the states in which they live incarnationally in African communities/cities and work alongside churches there who are engaged in holistic expressions of the gospel in their communities. Another huge piece of this internship is to gain a deeper understanding of God's heart for the poor, the oppressed, widows, orphans, justice, and racial & cultural diversity.

Allan recently left a very secure position at another ministry in order to launch this ministry he feels God has called him to. He is in the process of raising funds, and is praying and working through the details of what God intends for this ministry to be. As I think about what Allan is doing I am reminded of something that I read this morning in "Spiritual Leadership" by Oswald Sanders. He states, "The greates achievements in the history of missions have come from leaders close to God who took courageous, calculated risks (p 127)." The wife of Archbishop Mowll said, "The frontiers of the kingdom of God were never advanced by men and women of caution."

I pray that I won't succumb to "comfortable American Christianity." I pray that God will give me the boldness to be a risk taker as I follow Him.

Amazing Grace

The following story was in a devotional book called Seeking Him that our staff is going through right now. It really made me think about the amazing grace of God...

If a young man is killed through some random act of violence, and his father tracks down the guilty person and kills him, we would call that vengeance. If, however, the father calls the police and the murderer is arrested, tried, convicted, and executed, we'd call that justice. If, at the trial, the father pleads for the guilty man's life to be spared and the judge and jury consent, we'd call that mercy.

Now imagine this: in addition to pleading for the guilty one to be spared, the father actually appeals to the judge to release the offender into his custody and care. Miraculously gaining approval, the father takes the young man into his heart and home, adopts him, and raises him and loves him as his own son...that would be GRACE!

Ephesians 2:1-9
And you were dead in the tresspasses and sins in which you once walked... and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.
But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ...so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.
For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.

Big Willie Style

No this is not "my lovechild from my former marriage" - this is my nephew Wilson. He will be 3 on April 2. He is a future football and basketball star. You can just sense it at a young age. He is also a future missionary of the gospel. I am not sure if he will end up in urban America like his uncle, but I am praying that he will one day come to know and love the Lord.

The Basics

At a recent Phat Friday service I was challenged by a Christian hip hop artist by the name of Tedashi on "the basics." He started with a sports illustration...Every great team does the basics well. For example a good football team blocks, tackles, and runs the ball well. He then flipped it to the spiritual side and challenged us with the reminder that in order to live victoriously as Christians, and to make an impact for Him we need to focus on the basics. The basics are...
(1) Prayer - talking to God
(2) Reading the Word
(3) Sharing our Faith
(4) Fellowship
He reminded us that God has not made it hard or complex, he just asks that we focus on the basics.

A Beautiful Thing

During the month of December some things happened in my life and in my parent's life that reminded me of the beauty and the blessing of the body of Christ when we work together and care for one another. First of all, my dad was recently diagnosed with prostate cancer in November. As soon as we got the news, brothers and sisters in Christ both in Michigan, Illinois and all over the place began praying for my dad. Not only that but several couples from my parent's church who had gone through the same thing in their lives (meaning prostate cancer) either called my parents or went and met with my parents to encourage them and to give them wise council when considering the treatment options. Throughout this time my church here in Chicago has prayed for my dad and mom. Then, the night before my dad was to leave for Detroit for his surgery some close family friends from my parent's church came over and prayed with me and my parents. Someone else made us a food basket to take to the hospital. Several people called my dad as he was driving to Detroit to tell him they were praying for him. Two of my uncles and one of my aunts came to Detroit and stayed in the hotel and were there for the surgery. My parents have felt the love and support of the body and it has been a beautiful thing to watch.
Then during the month of December I got support gifts from several different people unexpectedly. God's timing always amazes me with these gifts, and people's generosity always amaze me with these gifts. Living on missionary support has definitely been a growing experience for me. It has been amazing to see God time and time again provide just what I need, at just the right time, and often times using His people, the body of Christ, to do it.
I have been reminded of 1 Corinthians 12, and I have been thankful for the body of Christ. Though as members we all have our issues, when we work together and encourage one another, it is a beautiful thing.

The Necessity of Humility

I am currently doing a Bible study called "Seeking Him: Experience The Joy of Personal Revival." This is my second week working through it, and it has proven to be very convicting so far. This week's study was entitled "Humility: Coming to God on His Terms." Honestly, when I began the study on Monday I was thinking to myself that I was a pretty humble guy. I mean I am not one of those loud arrogant people. It hasn't taken long this week for God to convict me of my own pride and self-focus. CS Lewis once said, "If anyone would like to acquire humility, I can, I think, tell him the first step. The first step is to realize that one is proud...If you think you're not conceited, it means you are very conceited indeed."
As I looked at various Scriptures this week one thing was clear is that God is not a fan of pride. Psalm 10:4 says the pride keeps us from seeking God. Proverbs 8:13 says that God hates pride and arrogance. Proverbs 16:18 warns that pride goes before destruction. Obadiah 1:3 tells us that our pride deceives us. James 4:6 states that God opposes the proud. The authors of the devotional I am doing states that, "pride is a roadblock to revival." They later add, "Pride blinds us to our true spiritual condition and causes us to think more highly of ourselves than we should. ... Pride keeps us at a distance from God." Pride hinders our intimacy with God and keeps us from truly seeking Him because it leads to a faulty self-sufficient and self-righteous mindset. When pride creeps in we are less likely to humbly seek God in repentance and brokenness and neediness before Him.
God is drawn to humility. Isaiah 57:15 says, "For thus says the One who is high and lifted up, who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: I dwell in the high and holy place, and also with him who is of a contrite and lowly spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly, and to revive the heart of the contrite." 2 Chronicles 7:14 states, "If my people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land." God responds to humility. We can have intimacy with the God who "inhabits eternity" when we come in humility.
I have got to get to the office so I will leave with one last quote to think about. Jonathan Edwards once said "A truly humble man is sensible of his natural distance from God; of his dependence on Him; of the insufficiency of his own power and wisdom."

Love & Basketball

Scene-ario 1
The 1995-1996 season was my senior year of high school basketball. I had looked forward to my senior year of high school basketball for a long time. I had lifted, ran, shot a lot of jumpers, and played pick up games year round for several years in preparation for my senior year of basketball. When I was in grade school I even dreamed about playing varsity basketball. When the fall of 1995 finally came I was anticipating a good year both personally and as a team. The leading scorer from our rival high school had transferred to our team and the juniors that were coming up to the varsity team were very talented. On paper we had the perfect team. We had size, we had shooters, we had ball handlers, we had it all... on paper. On paper we should have went undefeated. On paper we should have won the conference. We should have contended for the state championship...on paper. However, we were missing something. We were missing "it." We didn't have the right chemistry. We were only good on paper.
Relationships are sometimes the same way. We prepare for them. We are excited about them. And sometimes they look and feel really good... on paper. We have a lot in common, we have similar interests and passions, we even have mutual friends. We seem to be perfect for each other...on paper. But maybe we're just missing something. Maybe we're missing "it." Maybe we didn't have the right chemistry. Maybe we were only good "on paper." You feelin me?
Scene -ario 2
My senior year in high school one of my good friends that I had went to school with and played basketball with since 5th grade got cut from the team as a senior. He had always been our point guard, but our senior year he got cut from the team. The thing that made it hard was that he pretty much thought it was a given that he was going to be on the team. I mean he had the talent and the ability. Again, on paper he should have made the team, but he got cut! He was frustrated. He was angry. He even cussed.
Sometimes in relationships we "get cut." We thought it was a done deal. We thought we were "on the team." We thought we had what it took, but we got cut. It seemed great on paper, but we got cut. We get frustrated. We get angry. We even cuss. You feelin me?
Scene-ario 3
Sometimes after you "get cut" you don't want to "play the game" any more, at least for a while. You kind of need to take some time off to regroup. You put yourself "on the bench" so to speak. You "watch the game from the sidelines." The time of this "off season" varies, and often coincides with how sure you were that you were "on the team." After a while you get the urge to get back in the game. Sometimes it takes a call from "another team" inviting you to try out. Or sometimes a talent scout tells you you're once again "good enough" to "make a team." But regardless of what it takes, most athletes want to make a team. They want to finally be on a winning team with one special teammate. And that is what keeps them motivated to "stay in shape." You feelin me? Can I get an Amen?

A Logical Question

A co-worker of mine has a 2 year old son. He and his wife recently potty trained him. He was getting the #1 thing fine, but he was having a harder time using the toilet to do #2 (poop, for those of you who are not familiar with the number system). So they had to come up with some type of incentive in order to encourage him to poop in the toilet. So what they did was start giving him candy every time he "dropped a successful deuce" in the toilet. Ever since then he is quick to share with visitors, "I poop for candy."
This past weekend they were visiting family out of state. The two year old was in the kitchen with his grandma. He noticed that she had a bag of candy on top of her refrigerator. He asked if the bag of candy was hers. She told him that it was. He then asked her the very logical question, "Do you poop for candy?"

Spark The Movement

Today I drove from Chicago to Paw Paw (where I grew up). On the way to Paw Paw I listened to a new mix cd that I recently made entitled "Mega Mix." One of my favorite songs off of the cd is entitled "Spark The Movement" by the South side's own Outworld. The first verse is my favorite and it goes like this,
Verse 1
"It's been a long...long time comin
But change gon' come cause we aint gonna run
We gonna stand up strong, standin' against all wrong
A new generation of Martin and Malcolms
We'll do more than sing We Shall Overcome
We gonna take it by force, read Jeremiah 1
Starting in verse 1 but especially verse 10
We're called to be over the kingdoms and nations
To pluck up break down, destroy, and overthrow will
Be the predecessor to building and planting still
Remembering our past so our future is healed
Like digging up the casket of Emmett Till
I'm asking will my young people stand up strong
The task is real not fun people round up all the like minded
Who believe this world is strange and won't find it too weak to bring this world some change
Chorus
Let's pray
Let's change
Let's stand
Let's march
Let's walk
Let's talk
Let's start this off
Let's learn
Let's teach
Let's earn
Let's reach
Let's share
Let's care
Let's live in peace
Spark the movement! You, Spark the movement!
Spark the movement! You, Spark the movement!

This song really inspires me. I turned it up real loud in my van, and I was really feelin' it as I was driving to my parent's house today, until I realized I was in rural Michigan and that I had better turn it down (just playin). I think one of the main elements within "sparking the movement" is to stand for justice or to do justice. I just retruned from the CCDA conference in Indianapolis, and the theme for the conference was "Taking it Back - Radical Redemption of our Communities." And the one word or theme that was in every message was JUSTICE. I'll admit that this is a relatively new concept for me. For the first 22 years of my life I never remember hearing a message or sermon or Bible study on Justice. It wasn't until I went to Moody Graduate School and was shown Biblical passages (and lots of them) that make it very clear that God is all about justice. It is who He is. Dr. Fuder's life verse is Micah 6:8 - "... to do justice and to love mercy and to walk humbly with God." Right now I am thinking a lot and asking what it means to "do justice (or Spark The Movement)."

Check back soon as I continue to think about this...

Leaving the shallow end...

This is it. My procrastination is over. Due to the inspiration of a great man who grew up in Zambia, lived in South Africa, and now stays in a suburban urban neighborhood in Chicago, I am now beginning my blogging journey. Although I am a bit scared... I press on. I am going to work on designing my template tonight, but check back soon for my first official blog.