back home

mexico city was a blast. God is doing some amazing things down there. i really hope our team of students and leaders can bring the enthusiasm for people coming to know Christ home with them. over 1600 people came to know Jesus as their Savior on the missions trip.

it was my first missions trip so it was definitely a great experience and i had an awesome time connecting with God and our team. now, all we gotta do is put it into action hear and stay in tune with what God is doing in charleston and be ready for him to put us to work here. the task of missions and evangelism is to important not to go all out for God. we are on the frontline where life or death is decided and where heaven or hell is determined. this is the place where people have their eternity and their forever determined. if we don't sound the horn (Ezekiel 33) their blood is on our hands.

list making mode

i made a bunch of lists tonight and i felt as though tonight was a very productive night. i made a pros and cons list which was very beneficial and i made a ministry goals list for the rest of 2008. i like typing something when thinking about goals because you are more likely to take inventory if you actually type/write them down.

ideas in my head

if an idea comes into my head about something adventurous then i usually want to check it out. i don't really know how this idea came into my head but i definitely want to try it. i want to sleep outside for the entire month of july. i probably won't follow through with it but i really want to give it a go. why not?

what does peace look like?

i woke up with the question, "what does peace look like?" on my mind. The Scriptures say that we are to let the peace of Christ rule in our hearts (Col. 3:15). so if we let His peace rule our hearts, i can only imagine what that would look like.

i love the fact that we serve a God that is so passionate about His creation and at the same time He is so peaceful in His revolution.

i think peace looks like love. and when we show people love we show them Christ in us.

my prayer is that the Holy Spirit would mold me into a man that is directed by the peace and passion of God because out of those two actions come His love.

trust. move. love.

i spent the majority of the day yesterday at the hospital visiting my grandfather (better known as Papa and that's PAA-PAA not PAW-PA). he's doing much better. thanks for the prayers and support. he got the tube taken out and he is breathing basically on his own with a little help from an oxygen mask when he needs it. the main difficulty was getting the CO2 out of system. he is still struggling a bit to do that so please continue to pray.

it seems like for the past 2 months or so God has really been placing this idea of the burden on my life and purpose of my life both on my heart. i know i have a burden to bring the youth of america to know christ and change their generation but God is birthing something huge inside of me. i feel he is placing this burden for the poor and the oppressed in my heart but i feel as though i don't put myself in enough situations to encounter those people. there are so many opportunities to invest in the lives of those who are less fortunate that us but i feel like we overlook so many of those opportunities. i don't want to let those opportunities pass by anymore.

Mother Teresa once said, "It is very fashionable to talk about the poor. Unfortunately, it is not fashionable to talk with them." the burden is there in my heart. opportunities are all around. The Spirit of the Lord is here to guide me along the way. all i have to do is trust, move and love.

dreamer, yet realist

alright, the idea about sleeping outside for a month doesn't really make sense but i just cling on to ideas sometimes. one thing i do know is that God is calling me to live a radical life for Him. i do not want to get stuck in a 9-5 for the rest of my life and just live paycheck to paycheck. that is so scary to me. sure if you live a radical life for God you may not know where your next bit of money will come from but at least you know in whom you have believed. and isn't that more important?

i cannot waste my life. i just can't. God has given us all this amazing gift of life and i think He really wants us to see the importance in the life we are given. somehow society has brainwashed us to think a "career", a piece of property, some acquired materials and money is all that life is about. what do most people worry about? those things i just listed. that is not what life is about.

there's more to it. my prayer is that God will guide me along this journey called life and that i will not waste this precious gift by conforming to the world, rather that God can use me to change people's hearts and draw them close to Him.

peace.

clear your calendars for june 6, 2009!

we set a date for the wedding! june 6, 2009 at old santee canal park in moncks corner, sc. i am so excited to marry allison. allison and i have this connection that is so remarkable. we have been dating for about 2 years now and it feels like i've known her forever but at the same time when i see her i have the same excitement i had when i saw her when i picked her up for our first date. i thank God so much for her because it is so amazing how He places people in our lives at times only He can understand. God's fingerprint has been on our relationship from the beginning and my prayer is that our marriage can be a reflection of the love of Christ.

i am committing to blogging at least 3 times a week! please help me out by revisiting my blog and leaving comments and encouraging me to continue blogging.

also, please continue to prayer for my grandfather (lungs) and my family. thanks.