God has done so much in my life in the last two years. I've experienced an undeniable transformation that has shaken me to my innermost being. As I reflect, I just sit in a state of thankfulness. Thinking back on how good my Father has been to me...I'm in awe. The best way I can describe it is by quoting Job 42:5-6 "I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you; therefore I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes"
I can look back on trials in my life and count it as joy. Hmmm...I am still however, trying to learn how to count it as joy in the midst of trials. Father, thank you for the process, the journey. Thank you for giving me the joy of discovering you little by little. Thank you for teaching me how to walk by allowing me to crawl and picking me up when I fall. Thank you for giving me the joy of taking a step, the experience of falling, and more than anything the comfort of a Loving Father. Thank You.
This blog was suppose to be some random thoughts that I've written down over the last year, but it went in a whole different direction. I hope it blesses those who read it. Amen to the process!
After roughly two days of travel across three countries in a
bus
without AC, we finally arrived at our destination in Dar Es Salaam,
Tanzania. We get
off the bus and we're greeted by the typical scam of
people offering to take our bags and then expecting us to pay them a
ridiculous amount of money. At this point, you just have to take a
deep breath and walk in grace. Every con artist in the area is drawn
to us because of our skin color and everyone knows that if you're
white, you're loaded. Oh yeah...Grace, sorry.
So I'm sitting down eating and I see a man with an
obvious limp. He
has papers in his hand and is initiating conversation with as many
people as he can. He slowly makes it over to me in obvious pain. He
tells me he suffers from a disease that eats away at his joints and
bones. He then shows me the paper in his hand and explains to me that
it is his medical papers. He needs a substantial amount of money to
have much needed surgery on his hip. So I ask him his name and then
introduce myself. He tells me his name is Muhammad and that he's
muslim. I ask to look at his medical documents to see if the name on
the form matches up with his, and of it course it doesn't. Oh well, no
worries, just grace. I start to ask him questions about the muslim
religion and at the same time used teachings from the Koran to share
Jesus with Him. It was the typical religious debate, until he asked me
for money. That's when I offered to pray for him instead. I explained
to Muhammad that it would be Jesus that would heal him and Jesus was
the only mediator between God and man. I kind of put Jesus on the spot
with a few people looking on in anticipation. I mean...it wouldn't be
me that healed him. You might think I could mess up Jesus' reputation
with this guy if he isn't healed. Maybe, but God doesn't ask us to
worry, he asks us to be courageous and faithful. So I made sure to
share with Muhammad the good news about the Kingdom of Heaven
and made
it even more clear that healing and salvation came only through Jesus.
Muhammad walked to me in obvious pain and walked away, not only pain
free, but also with a new found relationship with Christ. He accepted
Christ right after he was healed and I introduced him to a pastor at
the local church.
While talking with Muhammad, I was told a certain
man wanted to speak
with the leader of the group. I've come to understand that usually
means someone wants something. This man was apart of a local church
and was dressed really sharp. He begin to ask me a lot of questions
and at the same time explained to me the corruption of the government.
He was telling me how it is practically impossible to change things in
Tanzania.
So I tried encouraging him that he was able to make a
difference and that God expected us to be good stewards of what we're
given. I explained that God wants us to be faithful in the little
things before he trusts us with the bigger things. I gave him
practical things he could do in his community, but unfortunately he
was more focused on the problem rather than the solution. This whole
time, Muhammad is sitting with us listening. He just kept smiling at
every word, it was probably because of his new found joy in Christ.
While we're sitting down, a deaf man walks up to the table and hands a
note to the well dressed church member. The guy shrugs him off and
rudely waves his hands to let it be known that he didn't want him in
our presence. I asked the well dress church member what the guy needed
and told him I would be happy to pray for him. Sadly the man told me
he was a deaf marijuana smoker that wanted money and then asked me if
I pray for those people. Hmmmm.....that's when I understood what Jesus
was feeling when he rebuked the Pharisees. I began to assertively
explain to the guy that's exactly who we pray for.
Grace. God has shown me grace, so that I may be
graceful.
Unfortunately, Pharisees don't know they're Pharisees. I know I could
very easily be in that deaf man's spot if it weren't for the Grace of
God.
I leave team
Frontline's guest house at 8:30 A.M. My bus leaves Dar Es Salaam for Iringa at
10:30, but traffic is horrible, so I'm leaving early. I get on a took took and
head for the bus station.
I arrive there and I'm greeted by a crowd of aggressive
African men who want to "help me" and be my "friend". After weaving my way
through the crowd I make my way to the place where my bus is leaving, but find
out that my bus apparently broke down and will not be leaving today. This is
after arriving at the bus station the day before only to find out that all the
buses were full. Thankfully, I find someone to trade there bus ticket today,
with my bus ticket that will leave tomorrow. God is always providing.
I finally
get on the bus and will be at Team Calvary and Pneuma's location in ten or so
hours. I'm actually writing this on the bus ride as a large African man is
sleeping on me (notice not on side of me) and we're
following a bus with a huge picture of Barack Obama that
says "already family" plastered on the back of it. Every time I look to my left
there is a little girl staring at me, I don't think she's blinked once. She's
probably only seen a few white people in her life and is trying to take in the
experience for as long as she can. Only another nine or so hours on this
non-air-conditioned bus.
Hopefully this guy doesn't start drooling, that would
be too much...
(Hours later
and now standing up because I gave a woman and her kid my seat)
We just
entered the national park which is beautiful, but it just so happens to be on
fire at the moment. There's smoke everywhere. As the bus approaches the flames,
which are on both sides of the road, the driver decides to pass a semi carrying
petroleum. Ok...I made it! To the left of me is a don't feed the baboons sign and
right pass it is about thirty baboons. I'm caught off guard when I look to my
side and notice the lady besides me has decided to breast feed. I turn my
attention towards the window and see a bunch of giraffes, cape buffalo, and
acacia trees.
(A couple
hours later...still standing)
The bus
driver is FLYING around curves, I'm surprised we're still right side up. It was
quite the challenge to keep my balance, hold a lady up, and move out of the way
of the guy selling juice and cookies as the bus driver dodges traffic and
speeds around the curves!
(Thirty
minutes later)
I'm just
trying to stay on my feet as I prepare for this bus to flip. Dang it! The
ladies breast feeding again...note to self, the baby cries don't look! The little
girl in front of me just puked from the wild driving. It wasn't enough for it
to be a hot bus ride with just B.O. to deal with, now I have the wonderful
smell of puke lingering right in front of me. Just a few more hours to go. Six
hours and zero bathroom breaks! Thank you Immodium A.D. you are my friend. Just
stopped on side of the road to pick up about twenty school kids, I guess this
doubles as a school bus. Africa is the land of unlimited possibilities. Praise
God for memories!
I'm writing
this blog in order to raise some loot for our amazing Texas Squad Leaders! Yes...this
blog is about moolah, but don't get your chaps all tied up in a knot before you
read the whole thing. Our beloved Buckaroo's are in serious need of your
support. They need a heap of money in order for us to have one final roundup in
India. These are the same Buckaroo's that rode point at the beginning of our
track and lead us through thick and thin. We need to circle the wagon's and dig
deep into our pockets and under our cowboy hats to help these old Cowboys out.
We're hoping to have one big shin dig in India and we don't want them to miss out,
it's sure to be a hog killin time! So
get a wiggle on and fork out some dough for these old Buckaroos. It's time to
pony up and help these Cowboys reunite with their passe. It may be the last time we get to see each
other and spur each other on to bigger and better things.
Thanks for
the support and thanks for reading this far into the cheesiest blog I have ever
written. Below is the links for the three Squad Leaders in need of support. The
money you donate will be used to reunite them with our squad for the last time.
To Support our Squad Leaders please go to the websites below:
My life and way of thinking has changed so much in the last eight
months. God has broken me, built me up, turned me upside down, and
inside out. My mind has and is being transformed. I am no longer
satisfied with the so called normal Christian life. I refuse to live a
life void of faith and believe in a God that I have all figured out. I
don't want to say that I need God, but walk in a way in which I don't. I
can care less how smart I sound when I talk to people about Christ,
because if the power of God is not involved in an encounter it's just
based on my intellect and logic. I don't serve a God that limits himself
to my intellect. Thank You Jesus! There is more to God than our limited
theology. I believe Jesus didn't resemble a history teacher, he was
more like a shop teacher. I can't be just a talker, I need more. I use
to believe that salvation was the pinnacle, now I know it's just the
starting point to becoming who we really are. That journey is not
limited to knowing more, but to being more. I believe in the hope of
abundant life, and I don't want to die before I experience it.
I had a feeling Africa was going to be my favorite time on the race, and I have not been disappointed. The people of Kenya are friendly and hospitable. My first two weeks in Kenya, I was with team Crash of Love. We stayed with Rev Ayub and his family. They were probably one of the biggest reasons I have loved this month so much.
People here are so open to hear about God. They want to know more and they want to be prayed for. They are not ashamed of God. We went to a ladies house the other day without any notice. She not only invited us in, but she sent her daughter out to get bread for us. We just started talking about life and about half way through our conversation the Holy Spirit had me so filled with words that I couldn't help but open my mouth. We all shared and by the end of our conversation, she was confessing the vices in her life and wanted Jesus to come in and clean them up. She accepted Christ right there in her living room. Praise God.
Jungle Farm
I spent the second half of March on an organic farm in Malaysia with Team Pneuma and Team Raised. I have to say this farm was quite a bit different than the farm I was raised on. Although we couldn't directly see the fruits of our labor, we know God used our hard work to spread the good news of the Kingdom of Heaven. We were also blessed to meet some friends along the way that we were able to share our faith with. So here is a typical day on an organic farm in the jungle of Malaysia.
7:30- wake up and read/pray; Listen to People Get Ready by Misty Edwards.
We would dress in our work clothes, which by the way was pretty much the same clothes we wore everyday, because we had no way to wash them. When we tried washing, it usually smelled worse afterwards and would take days to dry due to the moisture in the air. We smelled like a bunch of rotten onions. So what did I learn from this: hmmmmm Thank you Lord for washing machines!
8:00- Off to work in our super cool van, which was a mix of a clown car and the mystery machine from scooby- doo.
8:30-5:00 Work; We worked alongside a group of amazingly hard working men.
Things we did: Cut down roughly an acre or more of trees, Satan vines(made this up, but you get the point), and grass. All with machetes that couldn't cut through hot butter. We beat the trees until they gave up and fell down. Then we took the trees that we beat down and put them in a pile along with the grass and Satan vines. Then we took the pile that we made and usually moved it from one spot to another. It was like moving furniture for an Ill-content, OCD, perfectionist. You don't understand why, but you don't ask questions because in our case we didn't speak the same language so we couldn't understand the answer anyway. We did all this while fighting off jungle creatures and burning leaches off our skin.
Last day of work: This was the best day because it brought me back to childhood memories in that I was able to till a field with an actual tractor. I also had the privilege to turn Allan into a real farm boy. He's a natural, so it wasn't hard. He already had the look, he just needed the skills to back it up. Now he has both and he may be unstoppable if he chooses to pursue a future in organic farming.
Lunch: Tuna and crackers was the main part of my diet, I usually ate it twice a day. Mmmmmmm; like my dad use to say, "eat to you bust".
Back at home: when we got back home we would settle in and take turns taking a bucket shower out of something that resembled a horse trough. I hear mud baths are expensive, but they were free on the organic farm.
After this experience, I don't feel called to do organic jungle farming.
The video below is a short clip from our time in Tent City. The young boy in the video is about three years old and living there because of a typhoon that wiped out his home. Everyone who lives there has lost everything and has been exiled from their homes to live in this community of extreme poverty. I, along with some other World Racers, teamed up with Kids International Ministry to provide food and medical care. It's one of those places that when you leave, if you're perspective doesn't change then you should check your pulse.
We drove into the community with two containers full of food and stopped near a canopy. Under the canopy was a water well, which was powered by a hand pump, and people were bathing and filling up water containers. As I looked out into the community, there were hundreds of tin houses lined up in an orderly fashion. For a second, I thought the locals would be embarrassed that we stopped right where they were bathing. They were not though. That would be prideful and these people can't afford to be prideful. Pride can lead to hunger in their situation. While we were feeding everyone, my heart was just breaking for all the people. It was hard to smile and play with the kids because I just kept thinking, what if this was me? What if I lived in Tent City and I had to live like this? How different would my life be, if my opportunities were limited as much as theirs are? I truly don't know what to think about the experience and I can't wrap it up in words.
I know life is not about material things and a life without Christ, is a life of vanity, however, these people have both physical and spiritual needs. Kids International Ministry is working with two local pastors in the community, but they can't do much because they're just as poor. The Pastors are struggling to feed themselves, much less provide for a whole community. It has to be hard to hear good news when you're stomach is growling and you don't even know if you'll get another meal. There are so many people in this world that have both spiritual and physical needs. We know it, but the more you see it, the more it changes your perspective.
As for my little friend in the video, I started playing with him towards the end. It seemed as though no one knew who he was. He was just a little boy wondering around looking for a meal. So I figured we would have a little fun together. I would have him jump off the back of the truck into my arms. It was funny because at first, he was really tentative and he didn't trust me. It took only a few jumps however, for him to begin to build trust in me. At first, he would go towards the end of the tailgate and stick out his hand to grab my hand before he would jump. As time went on he built up more and more trust and by the last jump he took a leap of faith and jumped directly in my arms. Wow, it was just one of those moments. It was such a moment, that it still affects me today. When it came time to go, one of the local ladies tried to take him out my arms, but he would have nothing to do with it. He cried and screamed refusing to let go of me. My little friend had to be pried out of my arms, kicking, screaming, and crying. I had to watch him slowly fade away as we drove off. His eyes were full of tears and his little hands were reaching for me in hope that I would come back. He never stop reaching and he never stop crying as I drove off out of sight. This was another moment we shared together and the impact I hope to keep with me for the rest of my life. I'm grateful, but I also feel a responsibility to do more.
At the end of our month in Costa Rica, Spencer, our 6:8 ministry contact was gracious enough to house all 64 S Squad members. We all gathered together for a mini debrief and the announcement of the new squad leaders and team changes. Earlier in the month our awesome Squad leaders approached me with the opportunity to step up into the Squad Leadership position. It was something that I felt God calling me to step into. However, I still continued to ask God and I wanted to make sure I embraced this opportunity in complete humility and submission to Him. I'm making the transition from leading 6 awesome men and women of God, to leading 60 awesome men and women of God. In this transition, God revealed some amazing things to me. One of them being the courage to ask God for anything and the trust all that He does is a blessing and is for our benefit. I always believed that I should be humble or patient, but not necessarily pray for either one of them. Recently while Cody was praying for me, he mentioned humility. I started to gasp thinking uh oh...but God spoke to me saying embrace what I have to offer you. There is nothing I will put you through that won't make you a better man. To shy away from anything I have for you is faithless, cowardly, and foolish. Embrace the patience and humility God wants to teach you and trust in Him completely. So I accepted the opportunity to lead God's people and I look forward to the hard times. God please grow me and shape me into the image of Christ. I do have the advantage to serve along side an awesome woman of God and my fellow squad leader, Shannon Ahola. I pray that God use us to guide this group of Godly people into a deeper and more intimate relationship with Him. We also had team changes. Lindsay and Cody were chosen as new team leaders and the teams had a few new adjustments. Team changes can be a tough time for a squad, considering you're just getting to know and love your teammates when they occur. It may have been hard, but the members of S Squad took the changes with grace and acceptance. It's a testimony of their character and their faith that God is in control.
This was another day that started in prayer, as we had no idea of what God had planned for us. We started walking around the local neighborhoods praying for people. We decided to walk towards the Helping Hands ministry houses. On our way, we came upon a man whose eye's were completely blood shot. It looked as if he had a bad case of pink eye in both his eyes. We asked him if we could pray for him and he said yes. So we started praying for him right there in the middle of the road. During the prayer one of the little kids in the neighborhood joined in. We asked God to heal this guys eyes and that's exactly what He did. His eyes were as red as apples before we prayed, but immediately after praying his eyes were completely white. Praise God! God is still in the business of miracles. We talked with the guy afterwards and he said he was apart of the same church as the Helping Hands organization. As we continued on our journey, God set up another divine appointment. We were walking down the road and we seen someone with blonde hair, so we called out to him assuming he was from the States. This is when we met Steve and he presented us with some more opportunities to serve Christ. He gave us some free tickets to an ice skating show to hand out in the local neighborhood. So we did that and talked with the parents in the neighborhoods in order to get their kids sponsored in school. Steve showed us around the local neighborhoods, as we handed out tickets and filled out sponsorship packages for the kids in order to get them into school. We were able to fill out 7 sponsorship packages for kids and with that they'll now be able to get an education thanks to 6:8 Ministries sponsorship program.
Some of the other things we did in Costa Rica were feeding ministry, we ran the 6:8 Ministries English classes, we remodeled the skate park ministry building, we assisted in a thrift sale, and we built a fire pit and benches and improved the wireless internet network at the ministry house. In addition, I'm confident that by the grace of God we were able to expand the 6:8 Ministries church through the relationships we developed in the local community.
I leave team
Frontline's guest house at 8:30 A.M. My bus leaves Dar Es Salaam for Iringa at
10:30, but traffic is horrible, so I'm leaving early. I get on a took took and
head for the bus station.
is a life of vanity, however, these people have both physical and spiritual needs. Kids International Ministry is working with two local pastors in the community, but they can't do much because they're just as poor. The Pastors are struggling to feed themselves, much less provide for a whole community. It has to be hard to hear good news when you're stomach is growling and you don't even know if you'll get another meal. There are so many people in this world that have both spiritual and physical needs. We know it, but the more you see it, the more it changes your perspective. 