Officially a week on Project

It's Tuesday!! 1 week down, I can't believe it!

I'm trying to have reflection time on what we've been learning here in Daytona. Last night Earl (our project director) talked to us at "Family Night" about our theme for the week; Going New Places. He taught us from Matthew 9 and told us about the 4 keys to revolutionary involvement: Going, Seeing, Praying, and Feeling. Enjoy!

Jesus shows us how to do these 4 things and displays great examples of each. Several times in this scripture it says "Jesus went." He stepped out of His "normal" life (well for Jesus I guess this was normal but you know what I mean) and actively went. What a great place to start the convicting. Comfort plays a huge part in this. I'm on a beach with warm weather where thousands of people gather for summer vacations. My whole purpose for being here is to lead people to have a personal relationship with Jesus. Ok..great..that's my job for 10 weeks (9 now). But what about when I go home? When classes start back up again and I have homework and projects and meetings. What about when I work and I have people to meet with and a small group to lead. Will I be too busy? I'd like to say no..but the truth is, I'll probably find an excuse. "I can't tell that person about Jesus because they don't have enough time." Please hold while I continue to blankly stare at you while you find a better excuse. A journey of a thousand miles starts with one step. I need to believe that statement a LOT more! My prayer for this summer is that my life will be changed by what I'm being taught here. Pray with me and for me for that. Where did Jesus live? I don't know. He was always on the go. Let's be more eternally focused. How much do you have to hate someone to not share the truth of Jesus Christ with them? Think about it.

So after Jesus went, He saw. So important. I think it's really big to remember that we have to be looking for people and opportunities that God provides. If we honestly live our lives not seeking out opportunities to be used by the Lord, we are going to miss SO much. I'm really realizing that. It's actually interesting, we have different ministry teams here, and one of them is the outreach team. They plan different ways to do outreach, and this weekend they planned for us to save our laundry and go to a local laundromat. We have to sit there to do our laundry anyway, so why not go out and find people to talk to about Jesus. What an awesome idea. That really is a great example of what Jesus was telling us, through HIS actions, to do. We have to see people but we have to look for those people too. Maybe it will involve spending a little unnecessary money. Maybe it'll be hot and humid in there like it seems to always be here. Maybe no one will walk in. Can we really live life like that? Love takes sacrifice, and if we're loving like Jesus, we'll be willing to do just that.

Then there's praying. Obviously we know that Jesus spent a LOT of time doing this. I think it's really important that we follow Christ's example of this because we tend to not give prayer the importance in our minds that it actually has. Jesus spent so much time in prayer. He sacrificed physical rest to talk to His best friend and Father. He prayed specifically and generally. He prayed for everyone and everything. He prayed when He felt scared, He prayed when He felt happy, it was a constant conversation with God. What a picture. Our Savior spending the majority of His time on His knees. What a humble man He truly was. Do we really believe prayer has the power to really do anything? I know I don't half the time. But from stories I've heard about the power of prayer, I know that it really can do wonders. We know how D.L. Moody prayed for food to give the children in his orphanage and then all of a sudden, a milk truck would break down in front of his door and, so not to let the goods go to waste, they would be donated. God sure does provide, but I know most of the time I don't think He really, truly has that power. I've heard stories of people becoming Christians because of years worth of prayer. Jenna, my best friend, is a perfect example of this. There were random people praying specifically for her for years and then, guess what God did? He brought her to Him because of His goodness and grace. Why do we doubt God's power like we do? We've all heard the miraculous stories of God coming through right when we think it'll never happen. We've all seen His hand in our lives. I say we follow Jesus' example of prayer and learn how to make our most comfortable place the place where we are on our knees in front of Him.

Lastly in the list of the 4 keys to revolutionary involvement is feeling. In verse 36 of Matthew 9, it says that Jesus had compassion on the people who needed healing. Wow. You know, I think I've heard this so many times but I wanted to really apply it so I thought about how it is in my life. I am so quick to judge people who are different than me. I so rarely really feel for people before I size them up in my mind. Sadly, I think while you're reading this, you're thinking the same thing. Who are we to do this? Garrett and I are reading the book "Facing Your Giants" by Max Lucado and we just read the chapter about how man looks on the outward appearance but God looks on the heart. I know for me, I don't even get a chance to see the true heart of a person before I put a label on them: "not worthy," "too weird," "the clingy friend." Gosh. God, I am sorry. Since I've realized this in my life, I've actually found myself being freed from it. It's only been about a day since this talk, but I'm learning that it's not us who judge the "degree" of love we are to show others. We are commanded to love always; purely and entirely. Now, I'll never get to a point in my life where I just love everyone that comes, but with God's help I know it is possible to grow in love. We love others because He first loved us, and oh, how He loves us! Also, in this, I think we have to let ourselves feel! How often do we put the "face" on and tell people we're ok when really we're not. Ok, so people will think we're always upset, but God created us with emotions..feel them! We all know that famous verse John 11:35 - Jesus wept..shortest verse in the Bible. Well I think God allowed that in scripture because He wanted us to follow the example. Guys, especially, I would encourage you to follow this. Worldly manliness will tell you to be strong, pound your chest, and laugh it off, but spiritual manliness tells you to practice humility in emotions. I encourage you to follow the example of your Savior in this. As for women, allow the men in your community to feel free to cry, and cry with them if the situation calls for it. We're more emotional, and sometimes we can use that to our advantage and really grieve or just feel with others. Just a side thought.

Well, that's all for my thoughts. Sorry that was a lot. I think this blog is going to be a good place for me to get my thoughts down and reflect. So by you reading and giving me your feedback I'm actually growing in my faith and hopefully you are too. I hope this summer will be huge for me. I really want to leave here and have my horizon expanded and my world shaken. I want to learn how to be creative in going and seeing people who need Jesus, and then constantly keep them in prayer and feel what they feel and allow myself to feel also. That's all for today BUT something very important!! Jenna, Kyle, Sarah, and TJ are all arriving at their summer projects today!! Pray for them as they trust the Lord in their new journey starting today. Praying for you guys! Also, one of the guys on our project had emergency surgery and doesn't know if he can come yet so pray for God's will in that. Another one of our guys here lost his grandmother a few days ago and I know that's hard, so keep his family in your prayers. Our last roommate, Sharon, gets here tomorrow so I'm really excited. She flies though so pray for her safety! Thanks, everyone, for your participation in this blog. I hope you're all enjoying it!! Have a great first day of June!! Jordan and Krystal get married in 25 days!! Wooo!!

Adios!