Last Saturday over 200 people from Clovis Hills and El Encino Baptist joined arms to serve the neighborhood. It was an amazing thing to witness and be a part of God’s work. I’d like to share a little of what happened from the perspective of one of the leaders:
I personally want to thank each and every one of you who participated in one why or another with Faithful Feet this year. Every record was abolished, we had approx 450 pairs of shoes, 65 volunteers at the tie party, more then 200 at the event and El Encino registered 220 new families. Can you just believe it? I cannot help but get God bumps just thinking about it.
PRAISE GOD!
Team Picture of some who were able to stay the whole morning…it’s a great looking team of la familia!
It’s Wednesday evening and there are only a few of us in the office at this time so I “pick” T’s brain. Just so you know…T works in the Communications department helping Aron help us improve communication and they do an awesome job! Now T - a.k.a. Thilani is always willing to engage in conversation about better ways to promote stuff, etc. So, I thought I would ask her about my blog. I want to change it up a bit but don’t really know in which direction. T says: “Why don’t you just ask people to share with you what they want to read about?” EXCELLENT idea! Why didn’t I think of that?!? So…indulge me with your thoughts and ideas…
“What do you want to know about serving?”
“What would you like to read about regarding ministry?”
“What do you want to know about missions?”
“Is there anything else you would like to read about?”
I’ll start with these questions for now and see what kind of responses I get. I can’t wait to read your comments!
In July I posted a video about the song “healer” titled missions exists because worship doesn’t. Since then the video has been removed because the author of that song, who claimed to have cancer, turned out to be a fraud. Unfortunately he lied about having the disease for over 2 years - to his wife, family, church…everyone. I am saddened for him certainly as he is in bondage however, I am also saddened because the song is powerful. In fact, I believe, it speaks to the power of prayer and how the Holy Spirit works in our lives. So, my prayer is that God can still be glorified through this unfortunate circumstance. Also, I pray that the author can experience the true redeeming grace that God has for each one of us.
Here’s his apology and more of how all of this happened.
This weekend was a time to reflect on how God is working through Clovis Hills on mission. Kids, youth, adults, families, and growth groups stepped into the “zone of the unknown” serving on local and global missions. If you were not able to attend service, check out the podcast to hear what Pastor Steve had to share about compassion…the Father’s compassion. A highlight video was shown and it also featured a song written and performed by our own Paul Haugen…it’s awesome!
Following the video Pastor Kimberly led the prayer of commissioning for the Faithful Feet, India & Christmas teams who will be serving this Fall…stay tuned for those highlights!
It’s been a few weeks since my last post…the week before vacation was busy getting ready to be out of the office. Then I was out of the office then I returned this week and it’s been all about catch up. Hence the delay in posting.
Well, based on the title you can guess that my vacation last week was everything but restful. The truth is I had planned for it to be a week of rest considering that I would be resuming classes at seminary this week. So, my intention was to lay low prior to the busyness of school, work, personal life and family. NOT! Actually, it was not a bad thing - it was just my plans changed. If you read my prior posts about family…you may recall that my mom has a chronic lung disease and is on oxygen 24/7. Recently we realized that the 19 year old carpet in my house was probably “residence” to many dust bunnies hence we decided that now was the time to rip it out! My mom as of late has increasingly had more difficulty breathing thus the renovation began. Well if we were moving most everything out of the house…it seemed to me that painting was in order. Also… I never liked the “cottage cheese” ceiling in my house sooooo now was a good time for that to go too! The result: a COLOSSAL home improvement project!! Yikes! But now…that it’s over…it feels like I’ve moved into a new home AND my mom is breathing a little easier and that makes it all worth it!
Shirley Kayajanian just shared this story with me and although I’d heard about it…I had not seen the video. It’s pretty compelling and though you may have also heard about it…it’s worth seeing. We don’t often hear or see such unselfishness but really it’s the kind of compassion Jesus modeled - it’s about love.
I went to Kentucky Fried Chicken yesterday to pick up dinner for my mom and myself. I don’t normally frequent KFC but it’s my mom’s favorite and of course one can’t pass up the Tuesday Special! An important side note: mom was buying so she gets to pick!
Anywho, so there I am placing my order by talking to a speaker. Well the sound was pretty bad and I could only hear every other word so I went directly to the pick up window to finish placing my order. As I get to the window the gal is obviously not having a good day - in fact, she is pretty much beside herself. So, I acknowledge that her day is not going so well and she agreed. I smiled and reassured her that things would look better soon. She gives me my change and it falls outside my car. She is disgusted with herself and breathes a deep sigh. I tell her don’t worry about it and that I would get it…no problem. (She caught me on a good day!) So I get out of my car and pick up my change. In the meantime she is gathering my order. She then returns with my order, a smile, a wish for me to have a good day AND some extra BBQ wings!! I believe it was her way of showing appreciation and I enjoyed it too!
Truth is usually I’m in such a hurry that I don’t stop to notice and respond like I did yesterday. Yet there are so many people having “bad days” and all it takes is a few extra minutes to share a smile and a few kind words. I think this is an example of what Jesus was referring to when he said:
“What you’ll get is the Holy Spirit. And when the Holy Spirit comes on you, you will be able to be my witnesses in Jerusalem, all over Judea and Samaria, even to the ends of the world.”(MSG)
The Holy Spirit did something between us at KFC…and I trust him to continue working in both of our lives. This is My Life Mission…sharing Jesus wherever and whenever. It’s not always easy but it is simple. May you experience your Life Mission soon…
Orphans are unfortunately a reality in our world today. There are times that many of us feel helpless to do anything about it. Really, what can we do? There are many ways for us to begin helping. The most important is PRAYER…we must not underestimate the power of intercession for these orphans as well as many other needs. Another tangible way to help is to partner in the effort by getting involved in our “Africa Container” mission. This is a partnership with Heart for Africa and they have a goal of furnishing 3 different orphanages in Swaziland. Prayerfully consider how God wants you to participate and then see what He does on this mission. It’s an amazing work of the Spirit!
This is an exciting study of how we can learn more about participating with God in fulfilling his heart for the world. Check it out for your Growth Group and/or family study time!
John Piper has been known to say this about missions and I have to say that I agree! The truth is that in the world today our mission is about loving God first and foremost which is manifested by our love for others. Also if you think about it…in heaven missions will cease and a whole lot of eternal worship will continue! My friend Paul, who I admirably refer to as “Pablo” has just posted a video about worship that just basically gave me “God bumps”! It really speaks for itself…go ahead, check it out and join us in experiencing the amazing power of the Holy Spirit! God ROCKS!
