C2 Challenge???

Well for lack of anything really really profound to say today, I have decided to issue the following challenge to all of the bloggers in our growing community:

If you choose to accept this mission!

The challenge is simply this. We need to reach out in our sphere of influence, along with some good detective work and track down some of our brothers and sisters who came through what used to be known as Campus Connection and get them blogging. Couple of examples of folks I am looking for.

1. Robert "Dwayne" McDonald
2. Steve Motsinger
3. Micheal Croce
4. Bryan Hall
5. Amy and Bryant Knowles
6. Tara Estes ( even though I believe she is married now)
7. Reed and Tab Thomas- Sorry Reed but only posting comments does not count :)
8. Adam Carr- Caroline this is your project because you are better at giving instructions than me.
9. Scott and Andrea Hix

etc.

You get the idea. Find those folks and lets reconnect with some of these great people who were a part of all our lives for a brief period of time on that mountain.

check'em out now: New Life Campus Ministry

Long Look Back!!!

When I think about the people in our ever growing blogging community, I am amazed how God fit us together in such a unique way. I feel as if I have known many of you all my life to the point I can't remember how we met. I recall meeting Waxy at Cubbie's house and not liking her at ALL. But then God did something super natural and He formed a covenant friendship between Waxy, Cubbie and myself. We would sit in Cubbie's room for hours and just pray and intercede. Those two people won't believe it but it was those times that they taught me through their example of how to press into God's presence. They were the ones who helped lead me into receiving the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Thanks.

Rodney and Kim, I met through C2 and grew to love them even more on our Missions trip to Mexico. You guys were our partners in crime all over that country. APASCO RULES!!!
Kim even had the spiritual maturity to bring correction in my life and do it with love. Now all you know I received that word.... Right! NOT!!! And she was still gracious enough to accept my apology and year(or so) later. You got a good one Rodney!

RJ- A warrior in the natural and in the spirit. The perfect help mate to C and she is to you as well. Looking forward to going to war beside you my friend.

My Bride- What can I say that has not already been said. You are more beautiful to me now than when we first were married. You have spoken into my life more than I care to count. You love me with all my many faults. YOU are more precious to me than gold. Truly this man can call himself blessed because God gave you to me. LOVE YOU!

To all you numerous others friends who happened to wonder through Appalachian State ( 2 time National Champs) and intersect at a Church called Watauga Christian Center and be a part of Campus Connection, I say that I am blessed to know that God set me in the middle of a group of people who loved the Lord and desired to find His will for your lives. You blessed me then and you bless me now because I can look back, those many years ago and know that I am a better man because of those times/people in my life.

Spinning out of control

This whole blogging thing has taken on a life of its own for me. I am talking to people I haven't seen since college. I would have never thought that it would have grown like this. Funny how things work out...

Saint or Sinner

Donnie McClurkin has a song that he remade from another Christian artist whose name escapes me right now. The song is titled "We fall down". The chorus states "that a saint is just a sinner who fell down and got up".

I had a dream the other night that was quite strange and I did not realize the spiritual significance till later that morning. In the dream I was fighting these people/zombies with a sword. Some of my adversaries I was able to kill with one fatal blow. At times during the dream I was fighting multiple enemies, dividing my attention between them all but the result was the same. Defeat for my enemy. During those fights it became apparent that in some cases it required multiple strikes for me to defeat them. I don't recall ever receiving any injuries during my battles, but my final enemy during that battle did not come at me with an aggressive stance, but with beauty and cunning. I understood that this foe still needed to be defeated. I struck it multiple times in the neck expecting as before for its head to fall off. Unfortunately it did not. I had inflicted what could considered fatal blows but this foe was still alive. Holy Spirit revealed to me at this point that even though I have made progress in this area of my life, I have not yet cut off the head of the oppressor. I believe it serves as a warning and encouragement to me to not let my guard down for one moment.

So whether I fall or stand, run or walk, I will be the saint who was just a sinner that fell down and got up. Hope this makes sense. It is not often that the Lord speaks to me in dreams, but I felt it was significant enough to share.

There is a Friend...

Yes I know 2 posts in one night. Lots on my mind today. Need a place to express them. I am part of a writer guild at our church and I was looking over some of the things we did in a free write and this jumped out at me. My brother RJ is talking about going into warrior mode so this should fit quite nicely... I hope.

There is safety in numbers, never travel alone. A 3 fold cord is not easily broken. It is good to have friends because if they are true, they will walk through hell and back for you. We ask, how can I endure or how can I push on? If you want victory then you must take all other options off the table. Refuse to fail, refuse to be defeated. Find out what you are made of when your breaking point is exposed... Then go past it, exceed it and overcome it. Place me where the fight is the hottest and most difficult. I want the land where the giants walked... Bear down and break out for the through the dessert is the promised land and the weak will not get there unless they are willing to be transformed through the fire.

That is the kind of Warrior I want to be. I am not there yet. But I am headed in that direction.

Perfection

How do you define it? How do you achieve it? To whom do you ascribe this standard? I am in awe of how much I don't know about the Lord. My preconceived notions of what I thought was gospel and what actually is, has been blown apart. Which brings me to the title of this post. I can define perfection as being mistake free, without error or blemish. In my humanity I have sometimes placed that label of perfection on people I respected in the church. In my flawed thinking, if I could just be more "spiritual" like them then all my problems would be solved. Truth is, that was unfair of me to place such high and unattainable expectations on those people, because at the moment they failed to measure up, I was setting them and myself up a huge disappointment. It is my belief that we(I know I'm not the only one) have place these standards of perfection on our pastors and leaders in the church. And when they let us down it gives us the excuse to cut and run because we got our feelings hurt.

What makes me think that if I can't achieve perfection in this body that anyone else could. As church folk we have been real good at shooting our wounded. It is no wonder that the world doesn't want to be a part of the body. Why would anyone in their right mind want to be a part of something that is loving and encouraging one minute and shooting each other in the back the next. I admit it, I am guilty of doing the exact thing, which qualifies me to speak with authority on the matter.

So I have decided that as long as you and I can agree on Christ's death and resurrection and what that blood did for us, then the rest is not that important. I see through a glass darkly and I only know part of the story. There is power in my words and I choose to use them to speak life. God has convinced me that He knows what He is doing and that while He appreciates the advice :) He can handle it just fine. I am done making the gospel complex and unappealing. I am looking to the author, creator and finisher of my faith to perfect in me what I could not and would not do on my own. I hope this makes sense, I hope it brings comfort to all who read it. I've just made up my mind that it is time to start destroying the enemy and not those who labor beside me.

To be continued....

...And again I say rejoice!

Rejoice in the Lord always.... What does that mean? It has been a long week and I must say, 5:00 can't get here fast enough. Should I rejoice in that? Should I rejoice when we receive an unexpected financial blessing? Should I rejoice when someone gets healed or set free? To all those things the answer is a hardy YES! But what about the flip side? How about when there is no money to put food on the table or gas in the car? What about when a loved one is still lost in their sin. Or how about in the wake of the tragedy at VT? We, as Christians are commanded to rejoice in the Lord at all times and in every situation. The word rejoice means to take delight in, be glad or to be joyful. It also means to spin about. In other words when times are difficult we need to stand to our feet and rejoice( spin about ) praise Him with our bodies and make war in the heavenly realm. I have always been one who when things did not go my way, I would get into a serious funk and I would be difficult to be around. I am learning that at all times and in each challenge of life to rejoice and praise.

Sometimes God delivers us from the storm and sometimes He delivers us out of the storm. So we had better be prepared for both possibilities. Either way deliverance is coming.
Psalms 24:7-8

7 Lift up your heads, O you gates!
And be lifted up, you everlasting doors!
And the King of glory shall come in.
8 Who is this King of glory?
The LORD strong and mighty,
The LORD mighty in battle.

Broken

As I write this post, I find myself grieving for the families of the students killed at Virginia Tech yesterday. I must confess it did not sink until today. Senseless acts like this cause me to take stock of what is important in life. I look at my own kids a little different today. Wondering in part if they will be forced to experience something of this magnitude in their young lives. I don't want to create an atmosphere of fear in them. I want them to live with all the confidence that is in them. I also don't want to walk in a spirit of fear concerning them either. I trust and know that the Lord has them in His hands and that He will keep and protect them. I guess my prayers are for the families of the victims that God's will, will still be accomplished in the lives of those affected the most. I declare what Satan meant for harm and destruction, God will turn and bring about the salvation of many because of the actions of one man.

I know that the effective and fervent prayer of a righteous man accomplishes much. Could this have been prevented if more people were praying for our nation and its safety. I know I am guilty of not doing so. I know that I need to be much more faithful to pray and especially praying in the spirit. It is time to stand in the gap for this country, its leaders and especially our children.

Chiseled

This is a rare thing when you get a double post from me in one day so hang on.

There is a painting/drawing that I have only seen in the pages of one of Max Lucado's books. I may still have it. But it depicted an image of a Black male with his head down and arms by his side, above him there is a chisel, a hammer and the pair of hands holding those tools. If memory serves there are some sparks coming up has the refining process is going on in this man.

The point is, that is us. God is knocking off the rough and hard edges to make a beautiful sculpture. It would hurt considerably to be hit with a hammer and chisel but the point remains. God reminded me of this picture as if to say "Hey this is were I have you, it may feel uncomfortable for a while but the finished product will be worth it" Related to my early post, Stand Still. This sculpture is made of flesh not stone, so I have the option to jump off the sculptor's table if I choose. His word to me remains, Stand still!

Moving on, moving up!

Standing Still

Just finished reading my latest post for the 10th time. And yes I am still frustrated in my current place and situation. I can also still honestly say that I have not given back an inch of ground that God reminded me of on Sunday. I still wage war daily over my thoughts, deeds and actions to the point that I have begun to feel numb in the fight. Just a Warrior swinging his sword hoping to strike something, anything that will turn the tide. It is here that Jesus simply says Stand still. Lost for what else to do this seems like a simple request from my Lord. It becomes clear to me that by standing still, even though I am not advancing, I am not retreating either. Standing still and holding my ground, pausing for rest, recovery and when necessary a change in marching orders. What has me standing still and thus frustrated??? In no particular order.... My marriage, my ministry(God's call on my life), my children, my finances and my health. In other words am I doing enough to excel in any one of those areas. I can say that in times past when any one of those areas were out of sorts, it would serve as an immediate excuse for me to retreat into the safety of sin. The logic being if things weren't going right for me then this leap from grace won't make it any worse. All it accomplished was the addition of another hardened place in my heart that God would have to fix.

I am done with that mind set but the fight still remains because as we all know, the flesh does not give up that easily.

So I am standing still, armor on and sword at the ready. I am looking for my next set of orders from my Lord and waiting to hear the call to advance. This fight is not pretty or poetic. It is dirty and harsh. But I am still here and sometimes especially in times like these that is enough. I am fighting to win at any cost and my enemy will not win the day. Jesus has already proclaimed me victorious, I just need to raise my hands and remind myself.

H & C-- thanks for the encouraging words.

Frustration!!!

What is it? What causes it to raise its ugly head after a powerful encounter with THE LIVING GOD! It appears that the target on my back has grown a little larger. The enemy has marked me for defeat once again. But I am afraid that this time and in this season I must tell him HELL NO, NOT TODAY! I am incomplete, unfinished and still in need of repair. Yet this cracked and often broken vessel, God still chooses to pour Himself out of. Frustrated I want to rise up in anger and lash out at the world, but I can't, because I nailed to the cross yesterday. I desire to return to the pig pen of past sins and generational curses, but I can't, for I hammered them to a tree yesterday. My flesh wants to say I QUIT! But I can't for victory was already purchased for me. I am uncertain whether I have anything of value to offer a lost world. Not sure of what the end will look like or if I will even make it there. You could read this and conclude that I may be caring on like a man who has no hope, no promise of what is to come. But I do and that is what keeps me coming back ONE MORE DAY! That is all I need for God to show Himself faithful to me.

Pressure and time is what is needed to turn a lump of coal into a diamond. God has all the time He needs. Am I willing to endure the pressure and time it takes to become a priceless jewel. I can opt out and remain a piece of coal that is only good for being burned in the fire, or I can endure and become a precious stone to be worn in the crown of a King.

Redeemed

Is there anything too hard for the Lord? Is His arm too short or is His hand not strong enough to save? Today we had a powerful representation of the crucifixion of Christ. Our pastors had setup a 10 foot tall Cross made of old railroad lumber and they also had some addition pieces on the steps in front of the stage. Pastor Ron's message quite simply was that Christ took everything from our sickness to our sin, to our weakness and the generational curses spoken over us and nailed them to the cross. At the conclusion of the service we were given an opportunity to take a black piece of paper and write on it whatever sins or shortcomings that we wanted to be free from and nail them to that cross on stage or on one of the other pieces of lumber. Hammers and nails were provided and the congregation filed up to the front to nail those things to the cross at which time they would then take the communion elements that were there also and have communion. What freedom was given we may never fully know but I can assure you of this. Some things in my life and in the lives of others were put to rest and the doors were sealed as we declared it is finished.

Have I been saved so long that I have forgotten the joy of my salvation? Has my theology become so restricted and regimented that I believe there are some people that are beyond God's redeeming power? I must confess yes, I have looked at some in the world and thought they are beyond His saving grace and that they should be removed from public spotlight because of their actions. The thing of it is, is that Jesus died for them just like he did for me and to Him they don't look any different than I did before He saved me. I heard it said once that Christianity would be a fine religion except for all the Christians. I am afraid that I would agree. In many ways we have made Christ unappealing to the masses because they feel like they must meet a certain standard before they can be accepted into the Kingdom. God did not place that on us. It strikes eerily similar to the Jewish Christians requiring the Gentiles to be circumcised before they could really be considered a follower of Christ.

There was a time when I felt like the direction our church was going did not make sense, because it seemed as if we were abandoning some of the deeper spiritual truths for the basic salvation message. As a result many who had been in our church for years up and left because it was not what they wanted. Fact of the matter is, is that we who were more mature should have been able to feed ourselves. The more I look around our church the more I see new faces and I realize that God is bringing these people here and that the fundamental truth of salvation is what we really need.

The things that have dogged me for most of life, I nailed to the cross today and declared it was done. What are you holding on to, not letting go of, or not giving Jesus the opportunity to set you free from? One final note: Pastor Ron said today that "God had to treat Jesus like us so that upon his death and resurrection He could treat us like Jesus."