Sunday, April 12, 2009

He is Risen!

“On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. While they were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them. In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, “Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; he has risen! Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee: ‘The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.’ ” Then they remembered his words.
When they came back from the tomb, they told all these things to the Eleven and to all the others. It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the others with them who told this to the apostles. But they did not believe the women, because their words seemed to them like nonsense. Peter, however, got up and ran to the tomb. Bending over, he saw the strips of linen lying by themselves, and he went away, wondering to himself what had happened.” Luke 24:1-12

Wednesday, April 8, 2009

Snow Like Mercy, Fall on Me

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"Come now, let us reason together," says the LORD. "Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool." Isaiah 1:18

Can you believe it?!? Today is April 7, 2009, just 5 days before Easter and it's snowing! The weather here is crazy. It was in the low 70's on Saturday, and now the snow is falling! However, our God is in control of it all, and as Good Friday approaches I can't think of a better time for it to snow! What an amazing reminder that "while we were still sinner Christ died". He takes our dirty lives that are nothing but filthy rags and makes us white as the purest snow! Wow! I have been a Christian for almost 20 years, but I still have a hard time understanding that. Almighty God, creator of the heavens and the earth loves me! He is intimately involved in every single part of my life! He even knows the number of hairs that are on my head! Not only does he love me, but he desires an intimate and real relationship with me. He desires for me to know him and spend time with him. He wants my life to be a reflection of Him so that he will be Glorified. However, there was a problem. Sin got in the way of my relationship with Jesus.

Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Camp: It's So Much More

According to wikipedia.com, summer camp is a supervised program for children and/or teenagers conducted (usually) during the summer months in some countries. I believe that it is so much more!

I grew up attending a camp for two weeks every summer with my brother. My parents would drive to the mountains as my brother and I sat in the backseat, giddy with excitement. We would pull though the gates, hop out of the car, and breathe in the fresh air. You may have heard people say “There is no place like home”. For me it was “There is no place like Camp”. After two amazing weeks my parents would return to pick me up. However, leaving was much different than arriving. I would cling to my counselors and friends as tears streamed down my cheeks; I simply didn’t want to leave. Once home, my parents would endure weeks of endless camp stories; how I hit the bulls-eye in riflery, or dressed up as an Indian for an evening activity. They knew the names of each girl in my cabin. They patiently listened as I told them all about my amazing counselors, and the nightly devotions that they shared. I’m surprised that my parents didn’t invest in a good set of ear plugs as I spent my waking moments belting out camp songs and cheers!

Camp friends are the kind of friends that you don’t find everyday. They are life long friends. When I arrived at camp, I was free to be me. I didn’t have to wear the right clothes, or say the right things. Camp helped me to tear down walls and be myself. It was ok to wear mismatched clothes and act silly. It was ok to sing off key. My camp friends knew the real me. They continue to be friends that I can depend on to love me unconditionally just as I am. They are my family. They are the reason that camp felt like home to me.

Camp didn’t just stay with me for a few weeks or months or even years. Camp impacted my life for eternity! My walk with Jesus began on the front row of the chapel as I made Him the Lord of my life. Camp taught me the importance of scripture memory and accountability. My experiences at camp gave me the self-confidence to step out of the box and truly live.
My life is proof of the impact that camp can make. My parents weren’t wealthy. They didn’t have extra money to send me to camp. However, they saw the difference that first summer made in my life. They made many sacrifices so that I could experience all that camp had to offer. I will never be able to thank them enough for allowing me to go.

I know that in today’s economy camp may seem like an easy thing to scratch off the ‘to do’ list. However, don’t underestimate the lasting impact that two-weeks at camp can make. It made an impact on mine, and I can’t imagine my life without it!

Monday, January 12, 2009

Christmas in a Backpack 2008

"And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased" Hebrews 13:16

I love how God works! In 2002 I was teaching at Westminster Christian School when I first met Ken and Tracy Grindle. They began Net India Ministries in 2000 and in December of 2002 held their very first Christmas in a Backpack. It was during that first trip that I knew I would one day be apart of a Christmas in a Backpack team; however the Lord would not open the doors for me to go until 6 years later! What an amazing trip it was. I serve an amazing God who holds all things in the palm of his hand!

After more than 20 hours of flying we landed in New Delhi, India. From New Delhi we flew 2 hours to Ranchi. From Ranchi we took a 4 hour train ride to Rourkela. From Rourkela we traveled 2 hours by taxi to the village of Thumpabella! Whew! Boy were we tired when we finally arrived at the home of the local pastor and only known Christian in that village!
The following morning we woke early and began packing 1800 backpacks! Each backpack was loaded up with a wool blanket, towel, comb, mirror, toothpaste, toothbrush, soap, hair oil, candy, and most importantly a Bible in the language of that village! Packing took us the entire day! Just after nightfall we loaded 900 backpacks into a trailer being pulled by an old tractor. They were transported to the distribution site where we unloaded them under a tent so that they were ready for the festivities of the next morning!
After waking up the next morning we were soon greeted by several of the local villagers. They were dancing and playing the drums as they welcomed us to their village. They lead us though the village until we arrived at our distribution site. We sang several songs, told the people about how much Jesus loves them, and gave a backpack to every boy and girl there. All in all we handed out 400 backpacks the first day and saw over 200 people accept Jesus as there personal Savior and Lord! After the ceremony we provided all that were there with a hot meal and were able to spend some time just hanging out with the precious Indian people.
The next day we awoke early to prepare for the final 2 distribution services. The first service began at 11:00am and there were approximately 800 people in attendance! The service was similar to the day before and we saw an additional 400 people give their lives to Christ! God is so good! As we were preparing for the second service some local priests arrived and were angry about what we were doing. They demanded that we leave and give them all of the remaining backpacks. In order to avoid any danger we decided to leave the backpacks with the local pastor for later distribution and then packed up and left at nightfall a day early.

After spending the night in Rourkela we woke up early...4am...and headed to the train station. We took a fast train to Ranchi before boarding a flight to New Delhi. After arriving in New Delhi we took a 4 hour bus ride to Agra. We took a short nap at a hotel before waking up the next morning to visit the Taj Mahal! What an amazing place! The Taj is a mausoleum of an Indian king and his favorite wife. It is made completely out of white marble and has semi precious jewels inlayed throughout the walls! We hired a tour guide who told us all about the king, his life, and the Taj. We then told him about Jesus and his life, death, and resurrection. As a result this precious man is now my brother in Christ.
God is doing some amazing things in the nation on India. He is at work there! Please continue to pray for the believers in the village of Thumpabella as well as the believers in the Indian state of Orissa. There are many persecuted Christians who truly know what Paul meant when he said "To live is Christ and to die is Gain". I'm so thankful that the Lord called me to go to India and participate in the Christmas in a Backpack project. I'm also thankful that I am apart of the Strong Rock Family, and that they allowed be to be obedient to God's calling!