God isn't Grateful...

Here is a blog that really caught my attention and perhaps it will catch yours as well. How to see the Love of God NOT through human eyes...

Enjoy this link HERE

Let me know what you think... Yes? No?

JP

I am Second

Check this out and let me know what you think...

iamsecond

JP

p.s. it is heavy flash and has videos and stuff so it might take a bit to load... but enjoy!

Pray to the Lord of the harvest...

"And He said to them, 'The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray ernestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest." ~ Luke 10:2

Luke 10:2 is an oft quoted passage of Scripture used to encourage people to go to the mission field because there are too few workers and the fields are ripe and bursting for harvest...

Unfortunately, I think the emphasis is misplaced in the context of this verse. We ABSOLUTELY should consider our place in GOING... but I'll come back to that in a minute...

The challenge Jesus is giving is to prayer. "Pray to the Lord of the harvest..." Not just pray to the "great farmer" but to the one who rules over the entire harvest... from seed to fruit and everything in between! Can we ask and Trust that God will raise up those who will fulfill His purposes in specific times and places?! YES!

But... Too often we pray a cursory prayer and then get to work making connections and trying to mobilize people for the task at hand. Don't get me wrong, we need to network and ask challenging questions to people, encourage them to step out of their comfort and consider God's calling to those who need Jesus... but the emphasis here in Luke 10 is prayer and asking God to raise up workers for HIS harvest.

Would you join me in prayer for a team (that God will raise up) for Puebla Mexico March 12-23 2009? Over the next week I am committing to praying for this team that God would raise up those He would choose to fit together on this team for this work.

Oh... and about the challenge that you and I should always consider to go... remember this... you or someone you know MAY be part of the answer to the prayer you pray!

When in doubt... go to the wall!
Jake

For more information about the team going to Puebla Mexico or to download an application you can visit Bethel's Outreach Website HERE (click on "go teams")

~

Quote of the week!

Because I won't likely have a 'quote of the day' every day for the rest of this week... this is the quote of the week... and fitting as a great example of Grace and our need for Thanksgiving (the attitude... not the holiday)...


"Every good deed we do in dependence on God does just the opposite of paying Him back; it puts us ever deeper in debt to His grace." - John Piper

Blogging... sin... and other things...

Of the now 4 people who at least semi-regularly read my ramblings here on this blog, you may be wondering why it is that, so often, I am merely posting "some other guy's thoughts"

There are two answers to that:

The first is that I haven't been giving myself the time to write my own thoughts in response to what I am learning, what the Lord is showing me, the conclusions to which I am coming...

The second is that in my journey I am finding these choice nuggets of teaching and ideas and Truth that I seem to desperately need and so, instead of just sitting on this or that and thinking to myself, "that is a nice thought..." I put it here as both a reminder to me to not allow myself to get "too busy" to reflect on what the Lord is teaching me AND I think these things can be helpful to my fellow brothers and sisters on the journey too!

With all that... A quote from C.S. Lewis from "Mere Christianity" that gets to the root of any sin issue. Not to minimize the fleshly sins... as terrible as they are... but seem to be symptoms of deeper spiritual realities that my view of God is very low...

~~~~~~~

"The sins of the flesh are bad, but they are the least bad of all sins. All the worst pleasures are purely spiritual: the pleasure of putting other people in the wrong, of bossing and patronising and spoiling sport, and back-biting; the pleasures of power, of hatred. For there are two things inside me, competing with the human self which I must try to become. They are the Animal self, and the Diabolical self. The Diabolical seft is the worse of the two. That is why a cold, self-righteous prig who goes regularly to church may be far nearer to hell than a prostitute. But, of course, it is better to be neither." (-C.S. Lewis - "Mere Christianity" - pp. 94-95)

1 John 2:12-14

Gospel Perspective in Politics

Below is a link to a blog from a Pastor of whom I have great respect.
Mark Driscoll posted this blog yesterday but I believe its content is JUST as pertinent today (one day after our national election) as it was yesterday.

I would love your thoughts.

Jake

In God We Do Not Trust