A Lofter's Life

Fishers of Men

2008-12-13T12:14:00.001-06:00

George Mwangi, a History Maker in Kenya, in a recent devotional to young HM leaders worldwide said:

"As Jesus walked beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will make you fishers of men.” At once they left their nets and followed him.

Going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John. They were in a boat with their father Zebedee, preparing their nets. Jesus called them, and immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him." (Matt 4:18-21)

Long ago Jesus called some simple fishermen and offered to give them a course in soul winning. The disciples followed Jesus gladly, learning from Him the power, the message and the methods of evangelism. They learned from him how to pray, teach, preach, heal the sick, feed the hungry, and to help sinners find God.

A fisherman goes where the fish are. No one knew this better than Peter and Andrew and the two sons of Zebedee, James and John. They were professional fishermen. But Jesus taught them how to fish for souls. He took the gospel to the people wherever they were. He showed the disciples by example how to seize every opportunity and share the good news. He did so by using whatever facility was available to help sinners find God. Whether it was a borrowed boat, a home, a courtyard, on the streets or by a village well. He never tired of teaching them how to ‘catch men’.

They learned not only from His methods, but also from His attitudes, His love for God and man, His dedication, zeal, faith and commitment to the will of God. He afterwards filled them with His Spirit and sent them out to be His witnesses beginning from Jerusalem even to the uttermost parts of the earth (Acts 1:8). He promised them His abiding presence as they set out to obey His command. (Matt 28: 19-20)

His command and His promise are just the same today. Indeed, the Spirit and the bride say, “Come! “ (Rev 22:17a)

So, here's the deal Lofters worldwide......

How about an attitude check? Are you passionately seeking to share the gospel to everyone who comes your way?
How about a 'love' check? How are you passionate about loving others?
How about a dedication, zeal, faith and commitment to the will of God's check? Are you bi-polar when it comes to your spiritual life?

We are almost at the end of 2008. How are you really doing in your spiritual life? Thanks, George, for the terrific devotional.

Selah

P.S. - History Makers are impacting the world. Check out the Movin' On blog for another story of History Makers in action.

A Spirit of Excellence

2008-12-06T09:56:00.001-06:00

Joanna Puslecka, co-director of History Makers, recently challenged young emerging leaders who are participating on a HM Journey with the following:

Joyce Meyer once said, "Excellent people exceed expectations." In other words, they go the extra mile, they do more than is asked, and they take extra steps to ensure the highest quality.

Daniel exemplified this spirit during his service as a highly regarded administrator in a secular environment. The Scripture says that "he distinguished himself among the administrators . . . because of his exceptional qualities" so much so that "they could find no corruption in him, because he was trustworthy and neither corrupt nor negligent" (Daniel 6:3-4).

Excellence does not necessarily mean the absence of mistakes, but it does mean the presence of faith and determination. To be excellent at whatever God has called you to do you must first ask for His strength to accomplish the task, and then secondly, His endurance to complete it. Daniel met with obstacles in his endeavor to serve the Lord wholeheartedly, but he remained steadfast to the course of action he believed the Lord had set for him to take.

Are you still excited about your vision? Are you still searching after it? Or are you at exactly the same point you were last year or two years ago?

Maybe God is calling you higher? Are you willing and obedient to follow Him to the higher standards of life that often come with the vision He provides.

Just a short paragraph to remind you about the importance of vision and the need for excellence.

Vision, establishes a standard of excellence.

A vision serves a very important function in establishing a standard of excellence. In fact, a good vision is all about excellence. Tom Peters, the author of In Search of Excellence, talks about going into an organization where a number of problems existed. When he attempted to get the organization's leadership to address the problems, he got the defensive response, "But we're no worse than anyone else!" Peters cites this sarcastically as a great vision for an organization: "Acme Widgets: We're No Worse Than Anyone Else!" A vision so characterized by a lack of striving for excellence would not motivate or excite anyone about that organization.

Vision bridges the present and the future.

God’s vision will get you out of the present, and focus you on the future. It's easy to get caught up in the crises of the day, and to lose sight of where you were heading. A good vision can orient you on the future, and provide positive direction. Do the things you need to do today the best you can; see them as little steps or big leaps that will bring you closer to accomplishing your vision. And most of all do not forget that it is God’s vision for your life. He is committed to you and is calling: ‘Friend, come up higher!’

"You can run into mediocrity accidentally but you have to purpose to be excellent."

Some thoughts----how about it Lofters? Are you pursing excellence...in your career; your marriage; all your relationships? Let's drill down a little deeper....how is your pursuit of excellence going in spiritual things; how about God's vision for your life?

Maybe....just maybe God is calling a lot of us Lofters higher? What do you think? Will 2009 be the year you take the leap?

Selah

What's Your Passion?

2008-11-07T15:05:00.001-06:00

I've reprinted below a e-devotional by Martin Durham recently sent to participants in History Makers journeys around the world.

Gary Neville, of Manchester United, is frequently described as being passionate about his football, and particularly, passionate about his team. But where does this passion come from? Does he plan before a game to be passionate? No, something ignites within, something almost uncontrollable; something that sets him ablaze, that propels him in a certain direction.

AD61 (ish) and a letter being penned to the Church at Philippi... In many ways a beautiful letter, with an overriding theme of triumphant joy, and a very clear testimony – “I will rejoice!” It is somewhat intriguing then, that Paul is in prison at the time of writing this letter!

And we see from the first chapter that Paul is in prison for the sake of the Gospel, because of his testimony of Jesus. And if we read on we come to these incredible verses: "For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labour for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know!" [Phil. 1:21-22].

Here we get an insight into what it means to be passionate. Oh, that we would live life with that struggle! That the fires would be burning so brightly that we truly become one with Him!

Paul had had a real encounter with Christ…and it had transformed him.

Persecutor to preacher…if you think God is not able to save certain people, then think again! Paul had moved from death to life, and this had altered his understanding of life – only in Christ does he have life.

Is this the understanding of your reality?

“For to me… my whole being, what I’m about, everything within me, heart, mind, soul to live Christ… – There is no “is” in the Greek… a sense of being alive, alive to Christ! Paul did not live for fame or celebrity status (an easy trap for the minister of the Gospel today, and the lure so tempting!)

I remember reading of a young girl named Cassie Bernall. Gunmen entered Columbine High School shooting known Christians and those of an ethnic minority. They came to Cassie and held a gun to her head, asking whether she believed in Jesus. “Yes” was her reply. The gun went off and Cassie was dead. I remember reading of Wilson Fazal, a Pastor in Pakistan, who received death threats saying that he would suffer the consequences if he didn’t stop preaching about Jesus. Wilson continued, and one morning as he was on his knees praying, gunmen burst into the church and shot him dead.

…and to die is gain” – the Greek understanding here is not death in itself, but rather the consequence of dying – continuous fellowship… absence on earth – presence with Jesus!

“He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep, to gain what he cannot lose.” (Jim Elliott)

In his mid twenties, this young missionary Jim Elliott did just that in Ecuador. Slaughtered by a tribe he was trying to reach, Jim Elliott laid down his life for the cause of Christ. Jim had a passion to reach this unreached tribe. But first and foremost, his passion was for Jesus.

*** There is no passion for the harvest without passion for Jesus ***

In my dreams I want to be like Cassie Bernall, or Wilson Fazal or Jim Elliott. But I’ve never had a gun to my head or had a non-believer thrust a spear my way. But, as Cassie’s Mum would say, it wasn’t about Cassie saying “yes” on that horrific day. It was the fact that every morning as she awoke, she said “yes”. Laying down my life, my rights, doesn’t begin with a gun at my head…it begins now. It is Jesus who kindles the fire within, the Spirit of God who fans the flames into a blaze of love for the King of kings, and brings me to that place, no matter what my circumstances, of saying “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain!”

That’s the birthplace of PASSION!

Martin Durham, HM International

Lofters, want to know more about History Makers and it's mission? Visit www.history-makers.org.

Selah

Storms and Skies

2008-10-10T15:17:00.001-05:00

Jimmy Cullingford, History Makers journey participant from Wales, UK contributes these thoughts for Lofters worldwide. Visit the History Makers web site for details about the ministry.

One thing have I asked of the Lord,

This is what I seek:

That I may dwell in the house of the Lord

All the days of my life,

To behold the beauty of the Lord

And to seek Him in His temple.

When there are storms at sea, some say that whilst there is white water and the waves crash down, 20ft beneath the surface it is calm. Beneath the surface, the hidden currents move unhindered by storms, like the Atlantic Gulf Stream.

Or, look to the skies, and see the buzzard or the eagle. When they see oncoming storms, they lock their wings, hit a thermal and rise above the storm, sometimes going so high they have ice on their backs.

Intimacy with God allows us to go deep or ride high. Both routes can seem scary and foolhardy for the uninitiated. But for those who know the way, these places are where they, quite simply, meet with God. In these places you experience God speaking directly to your hearts and souls, encouraging, nourishing, guiding, strengthening, comforting. Intimacy with God – letting God love you, teach you, heal you, redirect you.

And these places? Where are they? People call them “thin places” or “thin silences”. These are physical/tangible places where God’s presence is tangible. You feel at home. For me there are 2 places: St David’s, Pembrokeshire, Wales and Skirrid Mountain, Abergavenny, Wales. When I go to these places I know I am going to meet God. And I go because of this.

Often when my life has gone off course, I go there to be earthed by God, to be refocused back to HIS vision for me. I go seeking, angry, bewildered, fearful, questioning. I run, I shout, I cry, I walk, I crawl, I go as I am. And in a bird song, or creaking tree, or the blindness of fog, or silence, God speaks to me.

“Thin silences”/”Thin places” are where you find God. It could also be an activity which you do, or a memory of when God’s presence is so tangible. For both pray into the activity/memory and thank and praise God, and ask HIM to meet with you again.

Thin places, Thin silences, allow God to be intimate with you. And they can seem scary or foolhardy, because you are allowing God to love you, as Love is meant to be done. As humans we know what it is to love and to be loved. But God’s love is so intense, so far reaching, so encapsulating. Intimacy with God, wow!

A place where you can be yourself with God, no matter what is going on in the surface of your life, a place where God can Love you, and move you in the hidden ways.

Some thoughts for you:

Where can you go to hear God?
Where is your spiritual home?
Where is your “thin place/silence”?

Read Psalm 139. Reflect on David’s thoughts about God’s knowledge of us.

What does it mean to you?
How does it make you feel?

Many of us grew up believing that every time Jesus is close to us, He wants us to do something: read your Bible more, pray more, share your faith more, go to church more, etc.

How would it change your view of Jesus if you believed HE doesn’t want you to do anything – HE just wants to be close to you?
Is your life filled with too much noise to hear God?
What are some things you could do that would free up some space to breath deeply again?

Calm me, O Lord, as you stilled the storm

Still me, O Lord, keep me from harm

Let all the tumult within me cease

Enfold me, Lord, in your peace

Selah

Aftermath of Hurricane Ike

2008-10-03T12:56:00.001-05:00

When I heard about September Serve, I never imagined this happening. I posted two pieces on my blog Left of Self Center. In these posts, I talked about how a hurricane can change everything.

Little did I know that Bolivar Peninsula would become an island and that all the towns on it would be virtually wiped off the map. One of the other things I mentioned was that a hurricane can change the pace of our lives. Anyone who has lived the past week in Houston has definitely had the pace of their lives changed. Yet despite all the hardships many of us have had to endure at the hand of this powerful storm, I find that so many good things happen in the wake of these storms. Yet I won’t use my words to describe it, I will share with you the words of my brother, Chet, in an e-mail blog he was sending to his friends when he came in from San Antonio to weather out Hurricane Ike with me.

“It was an exciting adventure. We lost power around 5:00 Am It was only really bad for a few hours, but it was intense. The next day we went driving around and there were trees down all over the place. It was like someone took a shredder and sprayed leaves and limbs over every yard and street. Afterwards we got 12" of rain, and there was flooding everywhere. Phones were out, electricity, no TV, or computers, and no cell phones. The instant communication, information, and comfort were gone. It felt marooned with no travel, no communication. Y'all knew more about what was happening than we did. All stores and restaurants were closed. No gas stations could pump gas because they didn’t have electricity.”

One incredible thing was once the rain slowed, everyone came outside, talked, and they all started helping each other clean up their yards and reestablish order. Everyone was laughing and men helped the single moms move branches, and several kids had brooms and were sweeping the streets. Wow it really showed me how much modern technology has damaged our communities. People turn to each other when nothing else exists.

I could not imagine 3 to 4 weeks in Houston heat and humidity with no electricity. Now that is pure drudgery. Well I was there for my family and the adventure of experiencing a hurricane, not drudgery. So after extending a invitation of air conditioning and electricity at my home, I decided my career as a eyewitness reporter in the destruction of Ike was over. It was time to go home. I could not get home quick enough. I am now in my cool home, with lights all around me, lap top in my lap, remote in my hand, cold beverages from my refrigerator, despising my neighbors who I have talked to maybe once or twice in 7 years. I am just glad I am not in Houston any more, but I will be forever moved by the destruction I saw, the fun I had, the drudgery I experienced, and the community and humanity I felt.”

Point is this. Adversity brings people together. Adversity makes our faith stronger. The helping hands I saw being extended between people proves this.

Many of the people in the picture above go to either The Loft or attend services at TWUMC. We jumped out and worked to clean up the street and the neighborhood and help out our neighbor. It why I made many 140 mile round trips to Bryan/College Station to get people gas, ice, food, and information for those who couldn’t get it for themselves. We find out what is truly important when we lose things we put our reliance on: Electricity, Technology, Convenience, and so many other things that just aren’t important. My brother felt what being a Christian is really about. He felt what humanity is all about: a relationship with our God and one another.

By the way, my brother is the good looking guy in the blue shirt in the middle of the picture.

Brett Marko

It's good to be around believers

2008-09-05T19:31:00.001-05:00

Patti Parks is a member of Riverbend Community Church a vibrant missional (go and do) church in Ormond Beach, in central Florida. She is part of the greater Daytona crew that regularly visits Romania during each summer. I’ve hooked up with her on Facebook through mutual friends I met at History Makers.

Although Patti, I’m sure has never been to The Loft, she typifies LofterMax. She loves Jesus; says her religious views are “Bible believer” and political view is Philippians 3:20—But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there. Patti is single, she loves children and serving her local church and “has been saved by the Grace of God for almost 11 years. TeamLoft in Houston...do you agree that she is LofterMax?

Patti’s a great writer and encourages me; she writes a blog I read often. Oh yeah, she has Ductal Carcinomal cancer, a common form of breast cancer, but not for someone her age. Patti was diagnosed about six weeks ago.

Her blog is called The Gospel and Cancer: The Chronicle of Life. Straight forward and simply put (as our mutual friends testify about her life), she says she writes her blog because others ask her how she is doing and she wants to let friends know how she is. In her August 5^th blog, she says “the good news of Jesus outweighs the bad news; I pray that this cancer never becomes the focus of my life.” Her treatment plans call for finishing up chemo in Florida and then surgery at Sloan-Kettering in New York. In my professional career, I worked as a consultant in healthcare and I know how rare it is for Sloan to accept a patient as young as Patti.

Lofters, I wanted to share Patti’s story with you; I don’t know her personally, but she is a member of my Christian family connected through mutual friends (2^nd degree if you follow the theory of six degrees). Here’s the deal...we have all had loved ones, friends or acquaintances that have or have had cancer as part of their life. It’s simply amazing how most Jesus Followers I know respond in time of personal crisis---always more concerned with others than themselves. Do you find this to be the case also? I’d say most Lofters do.

Lofters worldwide; we are community; we support Patti in her journey as we do others in time of need for healing. In fact, Lofter, Staci Brady, is in training now for the upcoming cancer walk in honor of her mom.

As Patti ends her post for August 25^th, “It’s good to be around believers.” AMEN...none of us have anything to add.

Do you want to be an encourager today? Visit Patti’s blog and drop her a line and tell her Lofters worldwide are praying for her.

Selah

Why I Greet

2008-09-05T17:23:00.001-05:00

By Brett the Lofter......our teddy bear (aka John Goodman)

After my first two blog pieces for A Lofter’s Life and as we move into September Serve, I thought about one of the ways I serve. As I was writing some piece in my own blog www.leftofselfcenter.com, I thought about why I greet.

It wasn’t too long ago, when I spent my Sunday mornings tiptoeing through minefields blindfolded. It didn’t take too long for something to blow up. I can’t say it was anyone’s fault in particular; Sunday mornings seemed to be the Devil’s playground. No matter what I did, something always seemed to go awry when trying to get to church. Fights avoided during the week erupted on Sunday. Kids obedient during the week, dug in their heels on Sunday. People, who woke up a 5 – 6 am all week, struggled to get to church by 9am or even 11am. We arrived at church late, only to find other problems awaiting us such as finding a parking spot or finding seats. Throwing up our hands in exasperation, we’d wander off to Denny’s as some sort of consolation prize. Sometimes, we got to the front door, decided we were too late, and went home.

When I found my relationship with God, greeters put me at ease and facilitated my going into the church. I have attended a lot of churches over the years and it really reflects on a church if you encounter welcoming people. Not just on the front door, but in the chairs and wherever you go. Being new and making the long walk into a church is hard enough but then you come up to an information desk where the people look at you and then look at one another as if saying, “You talk to them, it’s your turn now.”

So why do I greet? Maybe it was because I was a straggler. Maybe it was because I was the one who gave up on going to church because I thought I was too late. I can relate with everyone who has ever had a trying, challenging and even horrible Sunday morning. I have been that person.

I see you coming, holding the hand of your child who is half walking, half being dragged. Herding a gaggle of grumpy kids who were lucky to get on a shirt and drag a comb across their hair. I see the people who have been fighting in the car, sniping at one another for being late yet again. I see the frustrated people who had to trek almost a mile to get to church because they had to park out in the “back 40”. These are the reasons I greet. I think to myself, if I can be the smile that encourages, the one waiting on the straggler. I notice that when I get a child to smile, the parent lights up too. I am there to help and assist in any way. I want to notice and welcome the new person and says “I’m glad you’re here; let’s help you find a place here.” I try to know everyone’s name and know a bit about you. If you are like me you like to know that you are a part of the church. You want to know you are loved and important and missed. I just know that as greeters we set the tone for those entering the church. I want that to be a loving and reassuring tone.

I get asked “How are you today?” a lot. I usually reply, “We get paid in smiles, Thank you very much.” I really mean that. There is nothing more satisfying that the occasional hug I get from a little kid who is glad to see me. There is nothing more rewarding that helping one of our “rocking grandmas” to her seat because she can’t see in the dark very well. I jokingly call my greeting, my “straggler ministry”. I greet because once I was that person and those people need the encouragement and greeting the most. So when you see me still out there when Andy has begun to preach, it’s because I am waiting on you because you’re important.

Hey Lofters in Houston, give Brett a teddy bear hug when you see him! Thank him for his straggler ministry. Bob

If you have stories to share, let me know. My contact information is available on the blog or through the TeamLoft web site.

Selah

GodTube.com - Search Engine

2008-09-03T16:53:00.001-05:00

I just had to share this video with you from GodTube.com; it's so Lofter! Enjoy.

GodTube.com - Search Engine (Select video 1 - parody on the Mac/PC ads).

Sometimes, we just gotta have fun, don't we. This one is especially for Andy.

Selah

Seeking Approval

2008-08-31T22:03:00.001-05:00

Hi Guys,

I've been working my way through the Gospel of John (again) in my daily Bible study. You know how I am about Spiritual Disciplines. "Any who", I've been in John 12 this week and this thought leapt out...again..."You think God is speaking to me about something?"

John 12:43 said that they Pharisees would not confess their faith because they loved praise from men more than praise from God. Us Jesus Followers in the trenches know exactly how difficult it is for many we share with to "hear" the Holy Spirit's call...just because of the pressures they face in the world. But, we often (or shall I say) I often simply let opportunities pass by with believers and non-believers alike because...I want to be liked or what the praise or be felt highly of by others. How about you?

Don't get me wrong---there's a right place and a wrong place...sometimes. But I believe that there's also the Holy Spirit's place. Here's a simply test...

When was the last time you kicked yourself in your fanny because you didn't say something you should have? Lofters want to make a difference...Lofters are making a difference! Sometimes...I think in spite of ourselves.

I don't know about you; sometimes I need just a quick kick in the you know what. Aren't you glad that Jehovah speaks to us?Selah

Preparing Your Heart for Service

2008-08-29T13:43:00.001-05:00

Last week, I talked about my testimony and my friend coming to Christ. What I didn’t tell you was that one of us stumbled very badly after all these events had occurred. Often when great things happen in our lives, we have a tendency to stumble. I know I do. Recently I have lost a lot of weight and have gotten a lot of compliments about it. Somewhere in my mind, I tell myself, “I am looking good now” and I forget what it took to get where I am. I find myself believing this self talk and falling away from the things that allowed me to lose weight in the first place. It works this way on our spiritual walk too. We take our eyes off the prize of our being in relationship to God through Christ, and begin to look back upon ourselves.

The story I told in last week blog caused a tremendous stir in the church I was attending at the time. I was asked to give my testimony to others in the congregation. The small groups’ pastor presented it as God working in our church. The head pastor interviewed me in front of the congregation. It was very obvious that God was working in the events that had unfolded but I was proud of my role in it. I was too proud. The more I told my testimony, the more I found myself taking credit for what had happened. I was relegating God to a back seat. I was the hero of this story and spoke with a “look at what I have done” mentality. I have to say that my walk with the Lord suffered greatly because of my usurpation of the responsibility for God’s action.

In my scripture reading, I recall an instance where something like this occurred as well. We all know Moses of Ten Commandments fame. God considered Moses as a special friend who he talked with day after day. Here’s a trivia question: Why was Moses not allowed to lead the Israelites into the Promised Land?

Moses took credit for something that God did. Moses disobeyed God’s directive. If you look at Numbers 20:1-13, you see the story of the waters of Meribah. God asks Moses and Aaron to speak to the rock in front of the Israelites, so that water would flow from it. Instead Moses does this:

…and Moses said, “Now listen to me, you who turn against God! Do you want us to bring water out of this rock?” Then Moses lifted his hand and hit the rock twice with his stick. Water began pouring out, and the people and their animals drank it. (Nb: 20:10-11 NCV)

Moses took the credit for the working of God in the life of the Israelites. God rebukes Moses for this and tells him:

But the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, “Because you did not believe me, and because you did not honor me as holy before the people, you will not lead them into the land I will give them. (Nb: 20:12 NCV)

In everyday life, it would be like taking credit for work done by your co-worker at the office and passing it off as your own. So often we can get so wrapped up in what’s happening that we forget who is doing it. As we move into September Serve, I believe we need to prepare our hearts for serving God. We must remember who is responsible for the things that are going to happen. We must remember the source of the miracles we will see is. We must honor God as holy before the people which means he comes first.

We all can do good things in the world for the wrong reasons. That is what happened to me in my case. Paul refers to it as “puffing up”. It comes down to the nature of our intentions for doing the things we do. It’s the why behind our actions. I personally was seeking approval and recognition not honoring God. The choice is clear, we either honor ourselves or we honor God. Where our heart lies determines the path we will travel. That is why the examples of Moses’ failing at Meribah and my failing in bringing my friend to Christ are good illustrations of we place our hearts. I discuss a bit more in a post on my blog called “Shadow Mission.”

I will leave you with some scriptures to reflect on regarding your upcoming service and putting your heart in the right place as we prepare for TWUMC's September Serve or any other service or missional role:

Don’t praise yourself. Let someone else do it. Let the praise come from a stranger and not from your own mouth. (PRV 27:2 NCV)

Be careful! When you do good things, don’t do them in front of people to be seen by them. If you do that, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. (MT 6:1 NCV)

On the last day many people will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, we spoke for you, and through you we forced out demons and did many miracles.’ Then I will tell them clearly, ‘Get away from me, you who do evil, I never knew you.’ (MT 7:22-23 NCV)

I (Paul) planted the seed, and Apollos watered it. But God is the One who made it grow. So the one who plants is not important, and the one who waters is not important. Only God, who makes things grow, is important. (1 COR 3:6-7 NCV)

Thanks, Brett, for sharing your Lofter's life experience in this blog. I only add this for Lofters to consider: is your heart really prepared for service?

Until next time, Selah

Lofters International

2008-08-28T12:03:00.000-05:00

We have many members at TWUMC and The Loft who are active with Living Water International and its mission to provide water resources around the world, or as they put it "to provide a cup of water in Jesus' name." They've been involved in over 5,000 water projects around the globe. I will provide some TWUMC "insider" stories about how we are involved with LWI with a later post.

Today, I wanted to focus to two organizations affiliated with LWI. First, is ONE. I'm sure you've seen the recent advertisements with Jason Bourne (aka Matt Damon)...they are powerful. One's goal is to help make poverty history and their campaign of over 2.4 million people (and growing) represent every state and over 100 of the best known and well respected non-profit humanitarian organizations. ONE is fighting, not only to eliminate AIDS and extreme poverty, but to provide basic needs like health, education, clean water (through LWI) and food to the world's poorest countries. I encourage Lofters to join their cause...because it is a go and do cause.

Secondly, check out One Million Witnesses. It is also affiliated with LWI and OMW tag line is "the ultimate faith experiment." They have set out to find 1,000,000 Jesus Followers who will testify to God's work in their lives. Participants add their faith testimonies to the website's wall and make a donation to help fund LWI wells in desperate communities. Join me and give up a lunch and make a contribution to OMW. What a terrific concept...how Lofter International.

We TWUMC and Lofters Jesus Followers are already involved with LWI. I hope you are planning to attend the LWI Houston Gala 2008 on Friday, September 26th. If you can, sponsor a table, but at least purchase a ticket. We are go and do people.

As an aside, I want to thank my Facebook friends who have joined my cause for LWI...you guys are great!

Selah

Intent of not only talking the talk, but walking the walk

2008-08-27T16:21:00.001-05:00

Hey Guys,

I asked Todd Shelton to share on our blog. Todd and I are Facebook buddies. He is a student at Southwestern OSU in Ardmore, Oklahoma and is active with the young adults of The Loft. Both he and his Mom, Marianna, are active Lofters in Houston.

A new season of change has occurred in the lives of many whatever the situations bare. For some of us we are reaching new heights in our lives, but others are still within the same chapter of their lives. One thing still hasn’t changed and that is things begin grow more and more complex, Our lives begin to become more and more simplistic and whole.

This wasn’t the must easy concept for me to grasp. The answer to the world around us speaks to us with the idea that we can fix even the most damaging things with little effort if we really want that quick fix. This verse might seem very simple, but I sort of think we struggle with keeping our eyes on Christ just as Peter did. We as Peter begin to do things we only dreamed as impossible, and now its reality. “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”.(Matthew 14:31). As I look at the life that Peter lived, I realize that is one of those moments in his life that laid the groundwork for his ministry.

For those of you that are already in doubt, I like to use the example of how Jesus took the bits and fragments of leftovers with 5 full loaves and multiplied that to feed 5,000 +. The whole point is very simple. That God gives each of us different abilities and gifts, but without using our gifts for the Kingdom of God how are we going to feed those lost souls that lack nourishment. With this mind set we can be that generation that makes an impact.

Christ was a full loaf of bread indeed. He understood that he wouldn’t have done as much good without being broken and multiplied for all of us and our transgressions we commit each day. My own personnel ministry is to love God and Love others. Sure, this sounds like a simple concept, but I realize on a daily basis I still fail to do that adequately. Besides being involved in the two campus ministries I serve in, I make a personal effort to really make time and reach out to those who don’t really know Christ. Sure, we might tell someone about Jesus, but are we loving them as Christ would? I think sometimes I see others that are a lot less fortunate then some of us in The Woodlands, and I forget that I fall short just as they do. For once in my life I make myself vulnerable and slowly share how God has changed my life through my actions.

In closing I want to leave you with a quote I wrote down from one of Andy’s sermon I think it was from the Jonah series, but regardless it will stick with throughout my life. “you have to ask yourself are you really someone that in your heart is kingdom minded, and do the things I spend my time and surround myself with and the life that I'm living sorta mesh into something that I can feel the presence of the Holy Spirit in my life"? I think if we really examine that then perhaps a light has went off in our heads.

The past comes, goes, and reappears : By Todd Shelton

Not so proud memories flow through my mind every day.
Yea, some fun, others not so great.
Maybe you think this is kind of lame.
If you think that, then close your eyes and hold on tight.
Maybe you remember a time when things weren't so grand.
A time when you went out and now you don't feel so proud.
We all think different.
What is rock bottom for me, might not be for you.
To realize how low one's self really is we must all hit our own version of this.
Once this happens a spontaneous combustion occurs.
Those memories change, shape, and mold us.
Our hearts never to be the same again.
A not so pretty figure of a blackened heart.
Then over time the light shines through and the scorn awful bitterness begins to disappear.
Those memories are entrenched in your mind.
Hard to forget them yes, but one thing you might try perhaps.
Maybe a buzzer just went off, the heck I know.
It's called self forgiveness.
Maybe you should try it sometime.
It takes the world off your shoulders.
Move on because well... I have:)

My life a complex mess then turned upside down with simplicity: By Todd Shelton

Before I really knew you my life was considered a mess.
I was one lonely dude always in distress.
Long nights of drinking away.
Nights of being so wasted I don't even know why I did it.
Sure, I could get the girls, but it never mattered.
In the end I got flushed down the toilet like a dead gold fish.
For you see, I wasn't the loveable snack kind either.
Before I really knew you, I tried to feel my life with this crazy world.
Now I look around this world, and am just truly astonished by the beauty.
Kind of like now I just like to see that inner beauty in a young women.
A girl that pursues after God with all her heart, and loves me the way she would love God, now that's greater love.
So God what did I do to deserve this?
One day all I did was wake up and ask God to take me as I am.
He will change you from the inside out.
Now I live life without doubts.
He turned my life inside out.
Now he has given me this joy that you can't toy with.
It's for keeps and there are no weeps.
Well, maybe only internal tears of joy.
When I thought I was going to die, you were there.
Not all these so called friends.
I want to live out my days for you until the end.
I finally understand what so many complex things looked like, but now are so simple.
For you see, it isn't hard any longer.
Just make the decision inside your heart.
Allow him to poke a little hole and let that light of his shine on threw.
Now as a dove takes flight you are made brand new.
Thank you for this Love O God.
For I will sing of your love forever, not could.

Well done, Todd. Lofters, do you think Terence's young adults are doing pretty well? Todd serves in two student ministries and shares Christ with those that are placed in his wife. How about you?

Until then, Selah.

Fueling the Passion

2008-08-25T14:47:00.001-05:00

We Lofters who are lucky enough to be in Houston and attend Loft Church are getting hammered pretty good these days. Have you noticed Andy and Terrence really fueling our passion?...I don't think it's just me. (around the world catch it on i-tunes.)

So, I paused for about 20 seconds last night and mused about the "fuel" a little. I'm a simple guy and I can easily sum it up this way...I'm passionate about finishing strong....I'm much further along to the finish than at the starting gate; you have to roll me out and down a hill in the morning to get me moving.

That said..here's some scribbles about focusing on living a purpose-filled life. These eight precepts (core values, if you will) are what drives International Leadership Institute to be who they are and do what they do in 60 countries around the world. These are the core values that form the foundation of ILI leadership training.

Intimacy with God - Romans 8:15 - The recent Organic Spirituality series at The Loft brought this home loud and clear.
Passion for the Harvest - Matthew 9:35-38 - Two-thirds of the world (including many here in The Woodlands and in our own sphere of influence) have not responded to the gospel.
Visionary Leadership - Proverbs 29:18 - Using the transforming power of Jesus...Lofters are catching it by going and doing through----
Cultural Relevant Evangelism - 1 Corinthians 9:19-27 - in all places, all peoples, all cultures...Lofters, those who catch a just purpose, cause and calling beyond themselves, are rising up and challenging others by the ---
Multiplication of Leaders - II Timothy 2:2 - we are seeing amazing purposed-driven people rise up at TWUMC and grow their passion organically and by God's design.
Family Priority - Ephesians 5:22-6:9 - Ouch...let's covenant together that our first priority after seeking God is caring for our family (wife, children and extended family; my are so precious to me and I'm so proud of them) through---
Stewardship - Matthew 25:14-30 - Of our time, our talents, spiritual gifts, abilities and, yes, our money. We are all responsible for using God's gifts and graces to us for achieving maximum impact for the Kingdom.
Integrity - II Timothy 4:1-7. Want to finish well; start strong. Integrity provides the moral authority...not service...not leadership skills...not desire to serve others, but personal integrity.

Think these eight precepts will preach? They real question is will we catch it...and be it until Jesus comes.

Now some practical scribbles...it's fine to know and understand these precepts or core values, but to live it? Here's how God is calling me to live it.

I old as dirt and not in the best of health...some ministries and mission activities are beyond my reach...oh, I'm passionate about serving the orphans in Costa Rica, building a new church or helping dig a water well somewhere in the world; yes, I'm passionate about putting in long hours at a community clinic and so many other areas of service----check out TWUMC's September Serve---it is so neat and thanks John Hull----but much of that is a little beyond my grasp now...so, I encourage others.

I encourage others globally through writing, blogging (three going to five), participating worldwide in partnering and coaching church planters and speaking in leadership conferences...oh yes, and developing new small group materials for Jesus Followers who want to live a purpose-filled life. Not to forget that I am the Facebook guru around the globe building and encouraging a social network of like-minded, passionate, sold-out, Christians who are cause driven and focused on others---that's what TeamLoft is all about.

Don't get me wrong, you'll see me serving others locally as I can. I still pick up trash or dishes after a meal, teach a Sunday School class, pour coffee, greet others in the alley and at the dome when I can go there...and I can make some really "mean" meals. I can still make pretty good conversation on airplanes when I'm not sleeping.

Lofters and TWUMC folk practice what they preach...we go and do. This, dear friends, is what floats my boat. Chow for now, I have work to do.

Selah

Life at the Loft

2008-08-25T09:47:00.001-05:00

Hey Lofters, here's a blog from our fellow Lofter and friend, Brett Marko. He writes a remarkable blog (far better writer than I) Left of Self Center --- check it out.

This is Brett's story at The Loft...

I once heard Steve Sample, the president of the University of Southern California, say in a seminar, I have been an Episcopalian for 44 years and a Christian for 25 years. This statement holds true in my life, too. For years, I believed that I was a Christian, yet my life did not show it. If you looked at how I ran my life, the decisions I made, and how I interacted with other people you would have noticed that I was centered on one thing: my self center.

My life centered on looking out for myself. In my drive to get what I wanted, my wake was littered with the bodies of hurt, destroyed, and damaged people who had come in contact with me. Loyalty, Compassion, and Love for anyone were only given if it coincided with what I wanted, needed, and desired. I was an intelligent, talented, personable and savvy person, but eventually my actions caught up with me and my life fell apart. In a hole of my own making, I was alone and without help. I reaped the harvest of what I had sown, and now I sat down to this bitter meal. I now hold onto Jonah 2 as a reminder of my desperation especially verses 7-9.

When my life was ebbing away, I remembered you, LORD, and my prayer rose to you, to your holy temple. "Those who cling to worthless idols forfeit the grace that could be theirs. But I, with a song of thanksgiving, will sacrifice to you. What I have vowed I will make good. Salvation comes from the LORD."

The Lord found me and I began to understand that it wasn’t about religion and doing religious things, it was about a relationship with God through Christ. I found myself reluctantly selected to lead a small group. It was ironic; the man who knew the least about fellowship and relationship was called to lead the fellowship and by doing so learned more about fellowship than he even dreamed. I only agreed to do it because of a man nearby believed in me and said I should. God was going to call me to be minister to this man a few weeks later.

Early on, the severe difficulties in this man’s life were obvious. We saw them play out before our eyes. I told him we needed to talk to a pastor and planned it out for Sunday. The Friday before, I got a frantic call that he was being evicted and had to move. He would call me Saturday and let me know where he was going. The minor details he gave consisted of the subdivision name, that it was east of Conroe, and the house was on a corner. No call came. Saturday passed. Sunday came and there was no word and he didn’t answer his phone. Something deep inside me told me to go find him. My mind screamed, “Don’t get involved, it’s not your problem.” But still I felt the compulsion to go. I set off to find this man with no real clue as to where he lived. With guidance along the way, I walked up to the door and the man answered with tears in his eyes saying, “I knew you would come”. We saw the pastor that night and he accepted the Lord for the first time in true relationship. I had the privilege of baptizing Brian with our pastor a couple of months later.

I have been at the Loft from the beginning and I guide my life on the premise of seeking out the hurting and seeking out the lost and helping them to find relationship with God. I once was lost, but now I seek the lost in Christ’s name. I once was in darkness, but now I bring light to those places where the light seldom goes.

I greet people now because once I was the person that come up to the door of the church and then turn around and go to Denny’s because I was late. I come alongside other men and walk with them in their walk because God supplies tremendous people to come walk alongside of me, even today. I write and share the stories of my desperation, my sinful life, my focus on selfish pursuits, my meeting needs in inappropriate ways, and my weaknesses and trials to show that if God can love and save a wretch like me, that no one is beyond his reach. I preach a gospel that God seeks all of us to be in relationship to Him. All we have to do is accept his invitation and walk with Him.

Go Brett Go.....Lofters go and do.....

Selah

History Makers in Romania - Part V

2008-08-20T21:38:00.002-05:00

As I reflect back on my visit to Sibiu, I remember Paul's word's about Timothy's report found in 1 Thessalonians 3. Paul said it was an "encouraging report" (v. 6) as he brought "good news about your faith and love." So, it is my dear friends and prayer partners at TWUMC, The Loft and in the Houston area, I also bring encouraging words from Romania.

I am encouraged by:

the steadfast faith and reliance in Christ Jesus I see in the lives of the HM leaders I met---Mark, Petry, Ionut and Scott are now great friends and Jesus Followers; they are filled with humility and a passion for the harvest. The same can be said by Pastor Nistor Popa in Sibiu. I am proud to call each friend and fellow Christ-Follower.
the men and women I met at Pastor Popa's church who love him, care for him and are fellow humble servants of Jesus. It still amazes me that the men of his two churches are so in tune with Nistor's vision of doubling the number of believers in Sibiu this next year that they pray and fast three times a week.
the young people (ages 15 -early 20's) I met at Nistor's youth group that are beyond committed Christ followers....they demonstrate missional living by "going and doing" every day for their family, in their school and community. They are mighty young warriors for God willing to stand at town center five days a week and sing and pray.
the young women I met at the History Makers conference. I appreciate the clarity of their vision, their shared commitment to Christ and to one another, and their tireless energy and excitement about spiritual things.
the young men I met at the conference. Their willingness to embrace the "old guy"; to include me in their small accountability groups; to pray with and for me; to open up about their concerns, family members and friends who are lost, their futures and their vision for ministry.
the stories and testimonies I heard all week; the dreams I encouraged; the hurts we discussed; the fun we had together; I was particularly touched by the prayer life of the young people and their passion for spiritual things.
the impression I left with and still have today (as many of us have kept in touch through Facebook and email) that these young people are "His Story Makers" in the making; they are committed to the eight core values taught in HM and maintaining a life of spiritual disciple measured by a long life committed to personal integrity.
Those HM'ers who told me the last couple of days that they attend "camp" 8-10 weeks each summer working on mission projects, VBS, etc., yet this week meant more to them in understanding God purpose for their life and the necessity of going deeper with Him than any other experience they have ever had. The tears we shared together when they said thanks "Uncle Bob."

Finally, I am thankful that I am part of a community of faith at TWUMC/The Loft who believes in and encourages "organic spirituality"---passionately seeking where God is working and joining Him there." I realize that how we are "doing life" may seem unconventional to some...but our leaders know that it is Kingdom work...so thank you.

For me, my passion is post-Christian Europe, as I've mentioned before. Others in our faith community are called to ministry primarily in The Woodlands, Conroe, or Houston; many others are called to minister in Jesus name all over the globe....children, youth, adults and our older generation (me included). Our leaders have encouraged us to embrace our passion, follow the Holy Spirit and "do good works." Those of us who "sign on" for a missional life can claim a purposed-filled life; one that we can run and not grow weary. So, as Paul did to the early church, I ask and urge each of us in the Lord Jesus to do this more and more (4:1).

Thanks again Church. Selah

History Makers in Romania - Part IV

2008-08-19T22:51:00.001-05:00

Hey Prayer Partners and Friends,

I wanted to continue my thoughts about two additional History Makers in the "making" in Romania. They are the sisters Serb...Magda, who attended the HM conference and Aura, her younger sister. They also live in Fagaras and are active at Bethany Baptist Church where Kyle and Petry Groza are involved with the youth. I met so many fine young people from BBC---special blessings to Pastor Petru Groza and his ministry team. Visit Bethany Baptist Church for information about their ministries.

Here's a picture of Kyle and Petra at their baby Miriam's dedication.

Magdalena is very concerned about teenagers whose parents leave Romania for work abroad leaving their children with relatives to raise and care for them. I've chronicled that over 40,000 are orphaned each year in Romania; Magda and I talked a long time about the growing problem of absentee parenting. She is determined to offer some help to teens facing these difficult and trying times without parental supervision; Magda calls them orphaned teenagers with parents. She will be forming support groups of Christian teens in major cities in Romania to offer spiritual and emotional support as a first step. We talked a lot about similar support groups in the U.S. for displaced workers, U.S. military on active duty and parent support groups for expatiate Americans.

Aurelina Serb Magdalena Serb

During the week, Magda mentioned her younger sister, Aurelina, who was just finishing high school. Aura has been praying since she was seven for Africa....that's right, Church, on her knees praying for the children of Africa for eleven years.

I became interested in her story and Aurelina wrote me saying, "It was Sunday evening, 11 years ago. I was sitting on the second row in church watching black and white colored slides my cousin Dan Serb, a missionary from South Africa, was presenting. One thought came into my mind as I was watching the tragedies and sorrow of the African people in the pictures: “When I grow up, I will be a missionary in Africa”. in 2007, she had the opportunity to go to Africa with her cousin and, again in her words "Yes, I want to go back. I am to be more helpful. I want to teach there. I love children and they are in so much need of teachers. “Oh Lord, make me an instrument of Your love wherever You will send me.

Aurelina is one of four I was privileged to meet during my trip that has dedicated their life to full-time foreign missions. First, Aura is on to another adventure...college...and yes, it is a big challenge as well. Although as an excellent student she qualified for a full scholarship in Romania, Aura feels that she is being called to attend college in the United States. She's been accepted at California Lutheran University on a scholarship and is trusting God to raise the additional $6,500 she needs to begin this Fall. At last count, she was almost there with her miracle.

I'll share more about her remarkable adventure with God at a later time in A Lofter's Life.....needless to say, the sisters Serb are His Story Makers in action.

Tomorrow, I will end the five part story of History Makers in Romania with some thoughts from my devotional time with 1 Thessalonians during my stay there. As did Paul have for Timothy, I, too, have some encouraging words for the History Makers I met in Sibiu.

Until then....Selah

History Makers in Romania - Part III

2008-08-19T10:33:00.010-05:00

Today we will be taking a quick look at some of the young "His Story Makers" in Romania I had the privilege of meeting and learning beside in Sibiu, Romania.

First, Lucian and Estera Groza are a young couple living and working in Fagaras. Lucian is Petry's brother and he and Estera are very active in Bethany Baptist Church in Fagaras. Lucian is committed to culturally relevant evangelism and understands the importance of "being" Christ in the workplace. He is personally committed to sharing Christ in every opportunity.

Estera was part of our teaching team in Sibiu as both she and Lucian had previously attended another HM conference. We spent a lot of time together discussing her vision of starting a new Christian-based high school in Romania. In addition to the typical core subjects that would be required for all (including the Bible), Estera wants to develop an elective system whereby students may further education following what they are passionate about...whether it be teaching children, biology, engineering, or a trade like woodworking, plumbing, etc. These options, readily available in many regions of the U.S., is not part of the standard curriculum processes in Romania. As a result, many students do not do well in school, and as a result, can not further their education beyond high school. They are often ill prepared for "real world" jobs. She is beginning the process of determining the legal steps for approval for a private school in Romania and researching the various options now available in the U.S. like academic studies and vocational training programs.

Radu Pop, another of the teaching team and previous attendee of HM, is finishing his academic education at the university. His passion is evangelism and is committed to bringing the claims of Christ to all he encounters. As Radu taught one of the evangelism sessions, he gave a particularly poignant testimony of a missed opportunity while riding a bus where he did not share what God had laid on his heart.
Radu also calls Fagaras his home and is active at Bethany Baptist Church.

Camelia Nistor lives in Bucresti (Bucharest), which is the capital of Romania and the largest city (about 2 million). Camelia works for Habitat for Humanity-Romania. I didn't know that Habitat had been active in Romania for ten years---isn't that a great link to our own mission heart at TWUMC? Camelia is passionate about seeing more believers become involved in the political process, in management positions within the government, presidential administration and in important, high profile private section companies. She commits a daily time of prayer to those she knows and others to reach influential positions of leadership in Romania. Camelia is active in networking in her sphere of influence encouraging others to aspire, continue their studies and become passionate about reforming Romania. She is active in the Sfanta Treime Church in Bucresti.

Pretty good start...I would say for our young emerging leaders in Romania...stay tuned for two sisters stories tomorrow.

History Makers in Romania - Part II

2008-08-13T16:32:00.001-05:00

Hi gang...this is Part II of my trip to Romania in July 2008. I wanted to jot a few scribbles about the HM leadership I met. In future "A Lofter's Life blogs, I'll take more time exploring each of these History Makers life and ministry.....for now.

Mark Williamson, London, England. Mark is the visionary behind HM and co-director of History Makers for ILI. When he isn't off leading History Makers conferences around the world (now in 20 countries and growing), he's part of the leadership team building a new generation Methodist church called Cafe Church located in the Raynes Park area of London; Mark is also a Worship Leader and way too good looking for his own good; I usually keep his pics sideways just to keep him in line.

Meet Ionut Corlan and Petry Groza History Maker's co-National Leaders for Romania. HM will be holding their fourth HM conference in September; they are trying to secure funding for three more HM conferences next year. Ionut's vision is to have 200 HM'ers in place, trained and beginning to multiple by the end of 2009. AMEN.

Ionut is founder/Pastor of Smirna Fellowship in Drobeta Tumu Severin, Romania, and President of Vista Ministries, a youth evangelistic ministry in partnership with Christ The Rock Community Church. See more about Ionut's ministry at Foundation Vista; in addition to the church plant, Ionut provides skill programs for older orphans, children’s ministry, humanitarian projects and discipleship; by the way he is coordinating a Living Water International water well project due to start soon in his area. Interested in going to share Christ with the team?

Petry is Ionut's "partner-in-crime" for Romania. Their connection with Christ The Rock Community Church runs deep as the church is also involved with Petry's ministry Horizon of Hope. He leads the music and is involved with the children's and youth ministry along with his much better half, Kyle, at Bethany Baptist Church in Fagaras, Romania. A number of the young adults I met came from BBC with Petry for the conference. Much of Petry and Kyle's time is spent with children of area villages teaching them about God's love. Kyle also spent time teaching in Garland, Texas.

Another connection....both Ionut and Petry "better halves" are "cheese heads" from Wisconsin. oh boy.....

Ionut Corlan and his SUV....it was a wild ride through the mountains!

Petry is not to be overdone...after all Fagaras, in the Transylvania region, links to Romania from the 13th century, I didn't want to scare you with his Count Dracula pose.

Finally, meet Scott Dunn. Scott is the most recent member of the HM team in Romania. The Dunn family (Scott and Paula and two children) are serving Christ in Romania via Free Methodist World Missions in Arad, Romania. Their web site is www.thedunnsinromania.org. Be sure to visit his web site; it is impressive; The Dunns are connected with the Partners is Missions ministry.

Scott (an Asbury Seminary Graduate) is a super guy and we hit it off right away with the same "church plant" speak and he became a Lofter when I was there. Based in Arad, Scott is providing leadership and mentoring support to Emmanuel Church-Arad and the Free Methodist missions efforts in Romania, Hungary and Slovakia called Carpathian ministries. As is the case for many pastors and ministry leaders, Scott also assists orphans and children and youth in Arad. Scott led the HM session on the family core value.

Dunn's official picture is far too good; I chose the "needing a shave" pic pose while he was teaching "family."

Finally, what did I do you ask? Besides helping pick up after the meals (most of the above did not always help :), I found time to lead sessions on biblical leadership, cultural relevant evangelism (Loft style and second generation church), spiritual gifts, the core value of integrity (as the oldest by far in the group led the session on "Finishing Well") and the spiritual discipline of meditation. I think they got their money's worth....:)

Again, thanks again Church for supporting History Makers and the opportunity to serve along side some great examples of His Story Makers making a difference in post-Christian Europe. This picture of me was taken on Friday, July 25th, when the crew surprised me with a Birthday cake and song...I turned 39 again.

Selah---until the next installment. Uncle Bob - out.

History Makers in Romania

2008-08-11T16:34:00.002-05:00

Hi gang, Uncle Bob here. I will be scribbling about my ILI History Maker's (see www.history-makers.org for details) adventure to Sibiu, Romania in July 2008 over five blog posts.

First, thanks again church (www.twumc.org and www.loftchurch.com) to allowing me to go and receive this blessing! I am committed to "finding out where God is moving, and joining him there" as our friend Henry Blackaby challenges us.

Beginnings....I was met by Nistor Popa at the airport after almost 20 hours getting to Sibiu from Houston. Nistor and I were to become fast friends in the Lord over the next two days. His testimony and his life (truly living a life of purpose) is awe inspiring.

Just a few highlights...Nistor is 27, engaged to be married (I don't understand how he has the time) and a Baptist Seminary Grad. Let me see if I can remember all of his ministries: pastors two churches part-time (about 160 average attendance each) in the Sibiu area. Both are rural churches about 20 km from Sibiu itself; he is responsible for the young adult study at Zion Baptist Church (not his church), an adult study group meeting at another church and is also "full-time" at the Christian Center, a relief agency in Sibiu, to boot. I couldn't keep up....

God is moving in his heart...he is fully devoted to Kingdom work and there is much to be done in his Jerusalem. Sibiu, the 2007 Cultural Capital of Europe, has about a 175,000 population. Officially all of Romania is about 85% Orthodox (mostly by tradition); Jesus followers tell me there are about 3.7% Romanians of 20 million population are classified as evangelical; currently there are about 1,500 to 1,700 in Sibiu---primarily Baptist, Brethren or Pentecostal---that's about 1%.

So why is Nistor Popa a History Maker---one who is committed to "His Story Maker" (Jesus Christ) be known to all? Many reasons...I'll share one this time.

Nistor has mobilized his 25-30 young adults to meet five days a week at 6:45 am before work, school or whatever to meet him in the Old Town Square for prayer and worship as their witness to their Jerusalem. No wonder men in his two churches are fasting three days a week (water only for the entire day) for their pastor.

Desired outcome? Nistor and his gang of believers want to see 1,500 added to the Kingdom by the end of 2009----that's right...to double the number of Kingdom people in Sibiu.

Friends, let's pray for Nistor; for his upcoming marriage (he asked me to pray specifically for him and his fiance), his ministry...his mission---for he is already a History Maker in my book.

Coming next....a look at what God did in young adult hearts in Paltinis in the History Makers retreat. (www.history-makers.org)

Selah for now. (Look for four more blogs in the series; you might want to add this to your RSS feeds.

New Look---A Renewed Purpose

2008-08-05T14:06:00.006-05:00

Hey Lofters---

Bob East here (or Uncle Bob as I am called sometimes)...We followed some of the teaching series for The Loft last year; now---it's time for a fresh beginning. Let's explore together how Lofter's are carrying out their vision for Kingdom Building. We are Jesus Followers whose focus is "being on mission." One of my favorite quotes is taken from Henry Blackaby who challenges us to "Find out where God is moving and join Him there." Let's do that together, shall we?

Also, I'll add some scribbles about what's happening at The Loft. For some amazing reason, we have followers literally from around the world come visit us in suburban Houston, Texas. (Through The Loft's Facebook, anyone can join us at any time.)

Sooo...are you ready to begin. A Lofter's Life----beginning Friday, August 8, 2008. Join us and be ready to comment; be ready to add your journey story of where God is taking you.

Visit me on my Facebook. Selah.

The Wonder of Worship

2007-11-13T17:27:00.001-06:00

Sunday, November 18^th, ends the teaching series Blue Like Jazz with a look at Worship. I like what Miller says in Chapter 17, “Too much of our time is spent trying to chart God on a grid, and too little is spent allowing our hearts to feel awe. By reducing Christian spirituality to formula, we deprive our hearts of wonder.” (p. 205)

Worship has two dimensions private and public; it’s in our private time of worship that we devote our hearts to God and it’s in our public/communal worship where we demonstrate our hearts to others. Remember whatever we value close to our hearts and spend the majority of time in we become. For me, I don’t spend enough time in private worship of God---how about you?

Oh, don’t get me wrong, I do worship. I worship certain television programs, sports, getting together with friends---some noble entreats...some not so noble. Yet, there is that nagging truth...”whatever we value...spend the majority of time in we become...”

I muse a lot these days about spiritual things and like Miller often my mind doesn’t understand, but “my heart feels wonder in abundant satisfaction.” (p. 205) One of the key “Millerisms “that struck me in BLJ came from this chapter---“there are things you cannot understand, and you must learn to live with this. Not only must you learn to live with this, you must learn to enjoy this. And so it goes....please believe me; I’m trying to learn this thing called humility. How about you?

This I Believe

“At the end of the day, when I am lying in bed and I know the chances of any of our (my) theology being exactly right are a million to one, I need to know that God has things figured out, that if my math is wrong we are still going to be okay...I don’t think there is any better worship than wonder.” (p.206) God does have things figured out. Amen, Mr. Miller....and Selah

Grace,

Bob

Another Look at Love

2007-11-13T17:23:00.001-06:00

This past Sunday (November 11^th) Andy challenged us with some Donald Miller’s words from Blue Like Jazz. In Chapter Thirteen, entitled Romance, Miller mused, “I’ve had about fifty people tell me that I fear intimacy. And it is true. I fear what people will think of me, and that is the reason I don’t date very often. People really like me a lot when they only know me a little, but I have this great fear that if they knew me a lot, they wouldn’t like me. That’s the number one thing that scares me about having a wife because she would have to know me pretty well n order to marry me and I think if she got to know me pretty well she wouldn’t like me anymore.”

Love is a little scary, isn’t it? Miller was afraid of “being found out” and so are we. If you love God, have you ever found yourself hiding from God? Andy challenged us to allow love to grow into willing to sacrifice...a sacrificial love. Innately we all want to love and be loved; to know and be known. But it is scary. The funny thing is that this love thing gets even stronger when we find out about another’s warts and all.

The Jesus Way

How did Jesus practice love? As the saying goes...let me count the ways---one way is to step up living a life of service; our needs at The Loft are simple---greeters and connection point at 9:29 and pouring Loft Java at the Café---any takers?

A second way is encouraging others to live life in community. Do you know someone who needs to be connected to a core group---after all, that’s where Lofters deepen their experience of expressing and receiving God’s love. Do you have friends who need to attend “Speed Dating”?

A third is giving. Who can’t get involved in helping feed Costa Rica kids this Christmas during the “Stuffed” teaching? And...a secret---we gotta pay for the electricity, lights, staff and stuff. Love is consistent giving of self including finances.

Finally, another way is to be bold and become an investor in Kingdom work and invite those unattached to a faith community to The Loft...muse on this for a moment.

It’s been said that the investor/inviter is the one who’s responsible to help their guest navigate the experience. That seems simple and easy enough...want to try it? Let’s commit to practice this love thing a little and invite someone apart from God to come to The Loft with you during the Static series beginning Nov 25th. Who knows...it may be a little scary to do that, but that’s what love demands.

What about it? Are you an inviter and investor toward those you meet along the way? How are you doing in ways that Jesus practiced loved? Need to step up living a life of service, encouraging others to be involved in a core group, simply give more and often? When was the last time you invited someone? Love is, indeed, a little scary. Selah

Grace,

Bob

God's Romance

2007-11-08T10:04:00.001-06:00

This Sunday, November 11^th, we will look at Chapter 13 of Donald Miller’s book, Blue Like Jazz. Miller learns from his friend Paul that marriage is so much more than he ever thought it would be (p. 146). “One of the ways that God shows me He loves me is through Danielle, and one of the ways that God shows Danielle He loves her is through me.” He goes on to say, “We learn that we are lovable or unlovable from other people...that is why God tells us so many times to love each other.” Pretty good stuff...it’s worth musing about a minute.

Dictionaries usually defines love something like this "an intense affection for another person based on familial or personal ties". Often this "intense affection" stems from a sexual attraction for and strong emotional ties toward that other person. We love other people, or we say we love other people, when we are attracted to them and when they make us feel good.

Notice that a key phrase in the dictionary definition of love is the phrase "based on". This phrase implies that we love conditionally; in other words, we love someone because they fulfill a condition that we require before we can love them. People also love based on feelings and emotions that can change from one moment to the next. A couple may go through a rough patch in their marriage, and they no longer "feel" love for their spouse, so they call it quits.

Can anyone really comprehend "unconditional" love we learn about in Scripture? Many use the example the love that parents have for their children is as close to unconditional love as we can get without the help of God's love in our lives. We continue to love our children through good times and bad, and we don't stop loving them if they don't meet the expectations we may have for them. We make a choice to love our children even when we consider them unlovable; our love doesn't stop when we don't "feel" love for them (i.e., angry, detachment, disappointment). This is similar to God's love for us, but God's love transcends the human definition of love to a point that is nearly impossible for us to comprehend.

God is Love: It is truly Unconditional
God is Love, and His love is very different from human love. God's love is unconditional---it's not based on feelings or emotions. He doesn't love us because we're lovable (doesn’t this relate well to BLJ) or because we make Him feel good; He loves us because He is love. He created us to have a loving relationship with Him, and He sacrificed His own Son (who also willingly died for us) to restore that relationship. (John 3:16)

The Bible tells us that "God is Love" (1 John 4:8). When the Scriptures say, "God is love," they aren't telling us that God is some vage, warm fuzzy feeling of love. The writers of Scripture weren't saying that in our limited form of human love we will find God. Not at all -- in fact, when we read that God is love in the Bible, this means that God defines love. And when we say that God defines love, we don't mean that He defines it like the dictionary might define something -- we mean that God is the very definition of love itself. There is no such thing as love without God. As hard as we might try, we cannot define love outside of knowing God..yes—now love is beginning to make sense and so is Chapter 13 of BLJ!

God is Love: True Love Only Comes Through a Relationship With Him
God is Love! As such, true love -- God's love -- can be summed up 1 John 4:7-11: "Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God, and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. “

God’s romance is pretty powerful, uh?

Muse on this a moment: I guess if I really want to know this love - true love – more and better I need to get to know God more deeply. If I don’t or don’t place this as the priority of my life, what does that say about me? Selah

Grace,

Bob

Confession

2007-11-04T14:41:00.001-06:00

We cannot leave the subject of confession without musing about The Great Confession of Peter (or at least I can’t). When Peter made the confession to the ultimate question that was asked by Jesus it started a radical movement. His confession was more than lip service; it was demonstrating faith in action.

I guess part of my BLJ confession booth exercise really needs to be asking myself: Is my confession lip service or one of action? Visit and reflect on Acts 6:3-15; 7:51-60.

It is so easy to be caught up in what is commonly called “legalism”---a do and don’t checklist. Yes, correct decisions and behavior, albeit, I admit, sometimes a struggle, is a demonstration of what the Holy Spirit is doing in a Christ-followers life---a call to holiness. This thing Peter experienced seems to be much more....a calling to a fully devoted life of following the Christ; one that calls to demonstrating faith in action. Peter’s confession changed everything about Peter’s life and all those who choose to follow Jesus. I don’t know ‘bout you, but I think Donald Miller of Blue Like Jazz fame and I need a “gut check” every once in a while to make sure that we are putting “first things first.”

...and that gut check will (aka confession), as Andy mentioned this morning, “will create space for God to work.” And that, dear friends, is really something special. So...how’s the confession booth thing working for you?

Finally, I really like Miller’s confessions to the Reedies (p. 123). I mentioned these in an earlier muse this week (e.g, not doing much about feeding the poor and healing the sick; lashing out at those when he felt threatened, mixing politics and spirituality). Miller focused on those things that seemed to get in the way of the central message of Christ.

You Know What?

I think that’s a great illustration of putting “first things first.” If we are willing to commit to do more (act) then Jehovah is glorified and we’ve joined God where He is working in the world. I’m trying to practice this more and more in my life and guess what....my decisions are getting better, my behavior and attitude is self-correcting and my do and don’t checklist is decreasing. Simply amazing---no simply grace. Selah

Grace,

Bob

Some more thoughts about confession

2007-10-31T21:49:00.001-05:00

Check these out:

Anonymity is sometimes a sanctuary for truth. So a Oklahoma church discovered when it created mysecret.tv as a sort of anonymous internet confessional. Set up just a month ago, the site has already received more than 150,000 hits and 1,500 confessions, says LifeChurch pastor Craig Groeschel. Though "Absolution is not part of the bargain, just the beginning of release... We confess to God for forgiveness but to each other for healing... Secrets isolate you, and keep you away from God, from those people closest to you.”

Don’t believe me: visit http://www.mysecret.tv

Groeschel said he knew the handshakes and smiles each weekend probably hid a lot of personal pain. But he has been stunned by the weight of the confessions: molestings, abuse, secret affairs. Because the site is anonymous, the church has no immediate way of reaching out to any who responded.

And...

Man confesses to 1953 hit-and-run
February 25, 2007

A man received a suspended jail sentence after confessing to running down an elderly churchgoer with a car, then leaving the scene more than half a century ago.
Verlyn Brady, 77, pleaded guilty yesterday to reckless driving in the 1953 hit-and-run death of George Lewis Dalton in this small, southwest Virginia town.
Brady said he wondered for years whether it was a deer or a person he struck one October night. He waited until last summer, just before he underwent open heart surgery, to contact authorities.
Dalton, 74, and his wife were crossing a road in front of their home about 3 kilometres south of Hillsville on their way to church when he was killed. The driver disappeared into the darkness.

We should allow God to search our heart and life and to allow the Holy Spirit to bring brokenness and repentance.

Perhaps this explains why “newbie Christians” are often the most effective evangelists. They are still vividly aware of their need for grace, readily admit their weaknesses, know they are still in process, and have yet to put on their pious mask.

This is a hard muse...but keep truckin’

Confession shines the light of truth on our brokenness and invites others to join us in our struggle. But, what is God’ purpose for brokenness? Muse a time on 2 Samuel 12:18-24 to discover three. That I may:

· Recognize God’s sovereignty (vv. 18-19)

· Discover that recovery is critical (vv. 20-23)

· Receive reassurance from God (vv. 24)

As we complete our time together musing about Miller’s confession booth, one may have some more questions about brokenness. I think we can examine the lives of many biblical characters for some insight and guidance. For example:

· Peter and Broken faithfulness toward Jesus (John 18:12-27; 21:15-17)

· Paul and Broken health (2 Corinthians 11:30-33; 12:1-10)

· Jacob and Broken relationships (Gen 27:30-41; 32:9-12; 33:1-11)

· Moses and Broken behavior (Exodus 2:11-25; 3:1-10)

· Rehab and broken morality (Joshua 2:1-24)

· David and broken fidelity (2 Samuel 12:1-31)

· The Demoniac and broken emotions (Luke 8:26-39)

Before we get too depressed---remember....grace...grace...grace...His grace is sufficient!

Have you ever been placed in a situation that seemed too much to handle? How has God handled your brokenness or choices in life to affect someone else? What broken area(s) of your life is God challenging you to deal right now?

Join me Lofters and rejoice in SonicFlood’s song:

Stir in me, a fire that the world can not explain
I come to worship you.
Stir in me, a passion that my heart can not contain
I come to worship you.
Chorus:
Hold me, break me, mold me and make me more and more like you,
I come to worship you.
to love you, fear you draw ever near you as I worship you,
I come to worship you, oh Lord

Miller is right; confession is good for the soul; it was liberating for him ‘cause he was out of the closet---a real Christian. Selah

Peace,

Bob