Africa Continued...

The Best Day….8/19/09
Today may have been the best day. Team Brazil (my soccer team) won the championship game. At the end of regulation time the score was zero to zero so we had to end with a penalty kick shoot out. We were undefeated all week. I helped coached a teenage soccer team to win an entire soccer tournament and I couldn’t even speak their language! The team hoisted me up on their shoulders with the Brazilian flag. The day could not have been more story book. I think we should make a documentary tv show or something to share the awesomeness of this camp to the world!....Trent, Chris, and I gave our testimonies today. That was a big step for Chris. He was not excited about it but I know it was good for him. He has grown a lot this week. It’s been awesome to watch him. Other things that happened today; I gave my soccer shoes away, I lead worship, all of my boys on my team accepted Christ, I washed the feet of one of the Abisha leaders (discipleship leader/evangelist), I prayed over a Muslim convert and prayed that the Lord would soften his wife’s heart and that she would come to know Christ , almost got attacked by a pack of baboons, and Trent performed the greatest impersonation of riding a motorcycle in front of the kids.

Unity…..8/17/09
I learned my boys names today; Zackarus – 15, Elimiu – 14, Solomon – 15, Emanuel – 16, Itara – 15, Elliesus – 32, Ashinave – 26. We did soccer drills out on the soccer field today. It felt like freshmen year soccer tryouts…it was awesome! The boys went swimming in the lake today. It was like taking a child to Disney World or six flags. They had the time of their lives in three feet deep water with life jackets on. Team Brazil (my team) dominated the soccer field today….today was a winning day…..After the night service UCF circled up to pray for the boys. We stood on the path that is between their cabin and the shintabate (bathroom). As we were praying, all of the boys walked by to go shower. It was incredible because my group was being shady and just did not want to go over by the boys cabins to pray because they didn’t want to be seen. When we were trying to be invisible in our prayer the Lord threw us out in the open for all to see what we were doing. Many of the boys may have never been prayed for before this week. As we stood in that circle on that path I prayed that EVERY boy attending this camp would come to know Christ. After I ended that prayer the boys began to sing a song. They spoke in Amharic so I did not know what they were singing but it sounded beautiful. At that moment I felt the peace of God came over me and I knew that one day we will all be sharing in worship together in God’s Kingdom…

Africa Continued...

A Full Day in Addis Abbaba…. 8/15/09

This day may have been the single most incredible day in my life. I’ve been to Hawaii, I’ve slept in the White House, I’ve sang the National Anthem for the nascar race at Bristol, I’ve driven a racecar, I’ve scored the winning goal in a soccer game, and none of those days compare to this one. I woke up this morning to the sound of Muslim men worshiping at their temple that is just two blocks from where I am staying. They were obediently worshiping Allah just as the Qur'an requires them to do. Never before have I been in a place where Muslims openly worship. And what is so incredible to me is that here in Addis Muslims and Christians are neighbors. After Breakfast and a quick debrief meeting we traveled to Brihanus’ wife’s school. God gave her a vision to start a Christian based elementary school in one of the poorest areas of Addis. UCF supports Brihanu and his wife in this ministry. She gave us a tour of the school and told us her incredible testimony. Our team brought clothes for her kids, books for her library, and two microscopes. She panicked with joy. It was awesome! The government does not allow there to be a “Christian” school so this ministry reaches out to the unknown, and the lost. She told us that the majority of boys that come to the school don’t have beds to sleep in and they never have a guaranteed meal. A couple of people within UCF started a ministry to support this school. That ministry raises money to support 105 children to have lunch at school everyday they attend…….From there we drove to the Akacki Christian Church. They are a congregation of 750 people and growing like crazy. They are the only church in Addis who has an HIV/aids relief program, the only church that welcomes HIV positive people. UCF started a ministry with the Akacki church to help provide medicine and care for HIV positive families. We were able to walk through some jacked up “neighborhoods” and visit two of the families which we support. The first house was one mother and her one 12 year old daughter. The husband/Dad died 10 years ago from the HIV virus. The mother and daughter currently attend the Akacki Church and receive counseling and HIV medication. The second family was a mother, 2 daughters, and a baby boy. They too attend the Akacki Church.

We then spent the afternoon at the Mother Teresa Aids Orphanage. It’s the home to hundreds of boys and girls who’s parents died from aids and/or they are HIV positive. These kids can NEVER be adopted because of this. They will never experience a loving mother or father for themselves. After spending a good 20 minutes picking up boys, spinning them in circles, being jumped on and my hand held, I decided to take a break from being a human jungle gym, I went into the infant room. Just as I walked into the room there was a table to the left of the entrance. On top of that table sat six children less than a year and a half old. At first I had to do a double take because they looked like dolls sitting on top of a dresser. These babies were set out on a table for people like us to just come and hold, and love for a while. They had snot running out of their noses, stains on their clothes, cuts on their faces, and diapers filled to the brim. I picked up one little girl and held her for a good 10 minutes. (I am currently crying as I write this) We played with a whinny the poo bear for a while cause that seemed to put the biggest smile on her face. We then spent time over by the window so that she could watch the big kids play football (soccer). After that 10 minutes she began to get heavy in my arms so I placed her back down on that table and walked away from that innocent child, that child that God loves just as much as He loves you and I. When I walked out of that infant room two boys grabbed me by the hand and gave me the grand tour of the orphanage. They showed me where they eat, sleep, learn, and play. After that we strolled over to the soccer field where I sat with the two boys. I then retreated to the van and departed with the rest of the team. We had dinner at Paradise restaurant. It sat on the third floor of a very nice building. It had a balcony that looked out over a residential section of Addis. I say residential I mean 15, 000 people living in 7,000 glorified sheds. The team and I ate a delicious meal while the community below found there one meal of the day in the local city dump. That just didn’t sit well with me……..Once we returned to the SIM guest house I went straight over to the piano to unwind for a bit. After that I picked up the guitar and practiced through some worship songs which somehow turned into Trent and I writing a song about Trent’s love for Macchiatos. My face hurts from laughing so hard. After the laughter died down Chris, Lee, Mike and I went for a little stroll through the city streets of Addis at 10pm. Our 2 plus mile walk ended at the Hilton hotel which randomly enough was hosting the Miss Ethiopia beauty pageant finals…..very random….but very cool. We then jumped in a cab and went back to the SIM guest house….Thank you God for your love, mercy, and grace. I am yours.

The Africa Experience

Connection Flight…. 8/13/09

As I write this I am in seat 48G on a plane in route to Frankfurt Germany. Two seats to my left sits a man who is reading (out loud) what looks to be the Quran. The seat directly in front of me sits a man who is diligently reading a newspaper that is written in German. I find myself feeling extremely vulnerable and out of place…..and I love it! Never before have I engaged culture in the way that I am about to in the next ten days. I feel extremely molded and shaped by the American culture and in a way it makes me feel awkward and inexperienced. I so badly want to experience life in a different way. I want to be a part of a culture that doesn’t focus on “self.” A people group that is not concerned with careers, cooperate ladders, dollar signs, 401 k’s, and stuff. My mission trip to Costa Rica in 2006 gave me an incredible perspective change on life. For one week I was immersed in a people group who had nothing, but yet had it all. They lived in homes made out of debris and trash, placed on a small river bank that was filled with more trash and thousands of tadpoles. My American dream theology told me that these people were broke and miserable. But the joy and happiness that they outwardly expressed showed me otherwise. They had all they needed. They had their family and they had Jesus Christ as their foundation. That’s all they needed and no one could tell them anything different. All of that to say, I am excited to be on this trip. I’m excited to be the minority. I’m excited for stinky clothes and cold showers. I am excited to engage people who have never owned a pair of shoes before. I am excited for the Lord to break my heart for Africa. I am excited to get closer to my Creator, The Creator.

Psalm 119:29-32

The Texas Conclusion

4/16/09

Not just another group:

Not going to lie, today was a beast. We rolled up to the work sight at 8:35am and we rolled out at 8:20pm. The group at the other sight worked until 6pm. They rocked it out. They dominated their project. Good work guys!

Me and four other freaks (KB, Katy, Mel, Danielle,) stayed at Steve’s house until we finished sheet rocking the entire house. It was great. Steve is one incredible man. He really taught me what a truly selfless, humble person is like. Steve was so real, so thankful, and extremely laid back. Seriously, he had middle school boys and high school girls building on his house and it didn’t faze him!

Before we left, Steve wanted to make sure that he got our e-mail address so that we could stay in touch. Steve and I hugged four times within the last ten minutes that I was there. It was great! As he walked the five crazies, who spent their spring break rebuilding his house, to the van he continued to thank us. As I gave him my last hug he teared up and couldn’t finish saying thank you for the last time. That right there tells me one thing; we were not just another group who came to Bridge City Texas. We impacted a life for real. Not just a smile and a helping hand but hopefully a spiritually altering, eternally lasting impact. I know that I can close this day out in confidence that this group from UCF reflected Christ to the fullest of their abilities and Steve, John, Pastor Bobby, and the others saw what it looked like to be a follower of Christ. Don’t get me wrong, we still had our slip ups, and I know that I didn’t do perfect dry wall work, but I do know that the people we served saw an incredible reflection of Christ.

“Dear Lord I thank you for using us this week. Thank you for including us in your tool box and allowing us to partake in your plan. You are good. Thank you for Steve and his life. Lord I pray that he draws closer to you than he has ever been before. Allow him to feel you love, grace, mercy, joy, and peace. I pray that you bring healing to John. He is sick Lord. You know what his body needs and I pray that you place your healing hand upon him. I pray for the work that we completed. Keep those walls up and allow them to create an intimate, comfortable setting for whatever community may take place between them. You are truly awesome God! Thank you for teaching me and using me. Amen.”

Texas Mission Trip Day One

The Texas Mission Trip: 4/13/09

Devon, Jerad, Sam, Ryan, Robert, Mike, Erik Anderson & Kari, Don Z., Nate, KB, Paige, Katy, Melissa, Danielle, Stephanie, Megan Foster…….and B. Todd.

Today was the first day on the work sight. It was a pretty typical day one. We rolled in to a church, stood around in a room for a while, waited for instruction, and then we got the move on. Me, KB, Devon, Robert, Jerad, Mel, and Danielle were sent to an individual house and the rest of the group stayed at the church.

The house: owned by a man named John. John is in a wheel chair. John’s house was flooded with 4 ½ feet of water from Hurricane Ike. John’s brother Steve is awesome. Steve is staying with John and is helping to get his house back to a livable state again. Steve has this glow about him. Even though his house was mangled, he really didn’t care, he just takes life as it comes. I’m thankful to have met Steve.

So here is what stumped me today. Steve was telling me the story about how his house was flooded, and how insurance covered nothing, and then he began to talk about all the past groups that had come to help. He said a 7^th day Advent group came, a Korean church, A Buddhist community, a Baptist group from Arkansas….and so on. And hearing that just crushed me. This made me question some things. Who are we? What are we doing? What do we represent? Are we just another church group that goes down in the books of Nehemiah’s vision?

The Challenge of the Day: As a group we sat down after dinner and debriefed the day. We went around and shared our rocks and Rubies. After that I closed the night with the challenge of the day. I told everyone what Steve told me about all the other groups that came before us. The challenge is this. The challenge is to look deep down inside of ourselves and figure out what is driving us on this trip. Are we here to just be “another” group that was “nice” and came to serve? If we are truly focused on reflecting Christ and His love then there is no way we can just slip through the cracks and just be another group. If we are reflecting Christ to the best of our ability then I truly believe that the people who cross our path on this trip will never forget us and more importantly, what we are all about…..J.C. They will never forget the authenticity of our faith. The challenge this week (and every other day of our life) is to reflect Christ to the fullest extent.

Birds and the Bees

Birds and the Bees: 4/1/09

I went to Charlotte One last night and they are in the middle of a relationship series. The talk was an absolute home run. We broke down the difference between virginity and purity. Never in my life had I separated these two terms before but they are sooooooooo different. Virginity ends at marriage. It’s the act of sex. It’s just about me and my physical state. Virginity is just a classification. Purity is a continuous pursuit. It’s for life. It is everything about you. It continues through marriage. Purity is allowing God to lead you.

“God blesses those whose hearts are pure, for they WILL see God.” (Jesus) Ma. 5:8

Your sexual activity is such a small piece of your over all pursuit of purity. Those who are truly saved shall see God. These are the pure in heart. Their lives have been transformed by the grace of God. They are not yet sinless but their position before God has been changed. They have the new birth, saving faith, and holiness. The process of sanctification is a continual transformation of them to the image of Christ.

“Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results.”

James 5:16

When you want to be healed, you need to name the places that are broken. You need to be honest, transparent, and open. James recommends telling someone about your struggles. And so do I. I carried around a lot of pain and hurt throughout different times in my life and it wasn’t until I told somebody about all my junk that I carried that I felt relieved and burden less. At the least be honest with God. He knows you. You can’t hide your junk from Him. Just get it all out there on the table with Him. Authenticity, that’s what He wants. Psalm 139 is a good prayer to pray.

Birds & Bees continued with the GF.

Oh my what a great sermon to sit through with a girl who I’ve been dating for 5 days. God, way to just throw the tough conversations right in our face! Thanks though, I appreciate it. Honestly, there has been no conversation too tough for Em and I. We are both very up front and ridiculously transparent, it’s great! It is so obvious that Em is in such an intense pursuit of Christ that it makes no conversation hard because really, we both have a take it or leave it philosophy. “This is who I am, this is how Christ calls us to live, if you don’t like it then that is just too bad.”

Windy Gap

March 18, 2009

Windy Gap:

It seems it is always the trips that I get least excited about are the ones that change my life forever….funny how that works.

Today I arrived at the Young Life Windy Gap camp. I’m up here for the UCF first annual staff retreat. This place is absolutely mind blowing; Mountains, lake, water sides, diving boards, zip lines, cabins, big fire places, sand volleyball, no cell phone service, 70 degree weather, oh and did I forget to mention……….awesome people. David, Mendy, Keri Burns, Paula, Mitch, Nate, Lindsay, Gray.

On this day I experienced the greatest hour of my entire life. From 2:47-3:55pm I laid out in the wilderness on a bench with my arms spread and my feet crossed as if I was on a cross. My mind has never been so clear. I had an out-loud conversation with my Creator. I commanded the Holy Spirit to dominate my body and take total control. I want nothing more than to be lead by the Spirit and do whatever is necessary to carry out the business of The Kingdom. I’m tired of getting in the way. I’m tired of my flesh slowing things down. If I maintain the Spirit as the conductor of this body, true productivity will acure.

I cried today……a lot. It felt good. I was over due. I cried when I prayed for David and Mendy. I cried when I explained the overwhelming experience that I had with my Creator from 2:47-3:55pm. I cried when I talked about my brother. I cried when Mitch talked about his sons. I cried when I closed out our man time with prayer. My eyes are pretty dry right now.

As I lay there, in the wilderness, in the shape of a cross, I tried to experience the thought process of Christ. Every time I felt my heart beat I imagined more of my blood forced out of my wounds. I thought about the point of no return. The point of no return is when they drove the nails through His hands and feet for if for some reason someone was to stop the process at that point, and the nails were pulled back out, the feet would not work right ever again and the hands could never function correctly. As I laid there I wiggled my fingers and wondered what it would have felt like doing that with a nail through the center of my forearm bone. When I move my fingers I can feel ligaments moving, and I considered the thought of how that would actually work out with a nail being ran straight through them. Oh what an indescribable pain that must have been. Along with that, being spit on by the mockers, stared at by your family and friends with pity and sorrow on their minds. I do not know pain.

I got a little star gazing time in as well. I laid down and stared up at the never ending vastness of space. Out of all of that creation, who am I to be called God’s masterpiece? As I laid there I began to say out loud, “God, I would sure love to see a…..” and sure enough, a shooting star bolted across the sky. It lasted about four seconds and then it was gone. The odds of a piece of space debris entering the earth’s atmosphere over this part of the world at that exact moment are…..well, lets just say the odds were not really favoring the accurance. But you know what, it happened.

Again, as I laid in that cross formation I saw a bird fly over. Was the purpose of that bird’s entire life to fly over me at that moment in time? If it was raised and hatched by its mother three years ago, received a proper diet and stayed alive just so we could cross paths? Is that how God works? No other human being may ever see that specific bird except me. Did God create that bird to just remind me of Him and His awesomeness? Cause if that is the case, then it worked. Thanks for the reminder God!

BT