How Should the "Good News" Be Given?

This is what I sharred this pastt Friday at Group...I'll probably add a little more to since this is a huge topic and needs lots of discussion to make lasting convictions. As I said in the meeting your personal conviction of this area could change the entire world...

1 Peter 3:15-17
15.
but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence ;
16.
and keep a good conscience so that in the thing in which you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ will be put to shame.
17.
For it is better, if God should will it so, that you suffer for doing what is right rather than for doing what is wrong.

Well...what is our motivation for giving the Gospel to others? Are we always sure that it is with the best intentions or do we have other motives for telling people a message of love? One thing is for sure though if we needed help form God to achieve salvation then we are most probably(I've been hangin around JJ a lot) are going to need his help in telling other people about it.
As men our hearts can be deceiving, Jeremiah 17:9-"The heart is more deceitful than all else And is desperately sick ; Who can understand it?" , we can not give the Gospel if our hearts are sick can we...we need God to work in our hearts to give the Gospel in the right way.
So as the verse in 1 Peter says we must sanctify Christ in our hearts. To sanctify means to set something apart and make it holy for sacred purposes. This is a process not a quick fix, this is a devotion to but Him first in your heart as soon as you get out of bed in the morning. True and meaningful grow takes time and effort, and it also might be painful for a time. This process is Jesus sanctifying our hearts so that in turn we can set him apart in our lives, without him cleansing you from the inside-out you cannot give the Gospel as he intended it.

On a side note, if you have not made a decision for Jesus Christ to be the Savior of your life then I beg you do so now. This will not really make sense if you don't and more importantly you need God's unmeasurable love in your life. If you pray to accept that Jesus paid for your sins and ask him to come into your heart then that will happen. This only takes less than a minute and the choice is yours....

Compare 1 peter with...Col 4:5-6
5.Conduct yourselves with wisdom toward outsiders , making the most of the opportunity.
you should6.Let your speech always be with grace, as though seasoned with salt, so that you will know how respond to each person.
...a big problem today in Christian culture is integrity. We say one thing and do another, which makes it hard for people to believe what we say is true. Before we go any further, remember that our God is one of grace and mercy...whatever you have done He forgives not matter what if you come to Him. Do not let the enemy confuse you, if you have believed in JC then you are His "adopted child" and have received His Spirit, he cannot reject Himself can he? (Eph1)
This is paraphrased from Ravi Zacharias-"If I were to take your clothes and rob a store would that be fair? When the police show up and see me in our clothes then go to your house and arrest you is that fair? We say someone wearing your clothes robbing the store and no one else they would say....we wear the cloak of Christ be careful how you live."
To my knowledge no one alive has physically seen Jesus so, when people want a tangible example of someone who is supposed to know him they look to Christians. We are the only example they have, if we don't have good integrity then we are lying to people about Jesus.
When giving the Gospel this issue comes up in being judgmental and angry towards people. On campus we have a group of people who use microphones to preach a message of hate to the campus. This is not the way Jesus wants his love to be told, and on the flip side "I don't need to tell people about God, I live my life as an example so they know I' a Christian," when you get down to it that is like the biggest cope out I've ever heard.
We are supposed to glorify God with our lives and our words. How does God feel when we don't and try to make ourselves look like something we're not?....
Numbers 20:7-13
7.
and the LORD spoke to Moses, saying,
The Water of Meribah
8.
"Take the rod ; and you and your brother Aaron assemble the congregation and speak to the rock before their eyes, that it may yield its water. You shall thus bring forth water for them out of the rock and let the congregation and their beasts drink."
9.
So Moses took the rod from before the LORD, just as He had commanded him;
10.
and Moses and Aaron gathered the assembly before the rock. And he said to them, "Listen now, you rebels ; shall we bring forth water for you out of this rock ?"
11.
abundantlyThen Moses lifted up his hand and struck the rock twice with his rod ; and water came forth, and the congregation and their beasts drank.
12.
in the sightBut the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, "Because you have not believed Me, to treat Me as holy of the sons of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land which I have given them."
13.
Those were the waters of Meribah, because the sons of Israel contended with the LORD, and He proved Himself holy among them.

0.

Because Moses tried to make it look like it was him who brought the water he was not allowed to go to the promised land. In what ways are you doing this in your life now?

I will post the rest later

I am the Workmanship of God

Ephesians 2:10 NAS

For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.

The definition of a workmanship according to Webster: 2: the art or skill of a workman ; also : the quality imparted to a thing in the process of making workmanship>

Like Mikey said, we are all made in the image of God and have value because of that. That cannot be redefined no matter what we do. If God has adopted us as children is there more for us ? There certainly is since we have to Holy Spirit to teach us and now God has direct access to our hearts(if we listen to him and are humble that is). So what is the deal about the verse saying that these works were prepared for us beforehand? Does that mean no matter what I do, I will always be within God's will?

No...of course not, that won't be until we're in Heaven with him. Secondly, what does that tid bit imply for your life? If there are people or circumstances that God has for you, what does that change for how you live your life now? Are you seeking to be the man God needs you to be/wants you to be? As I see it if you have a free will to do as you please whether it is God's best or not, and God has opportunities for you life to take hold of him and experience his best. The question being asked now is if I'm looking out for those opportunities today to find God's best.

You might ask," Well isn't God in control of everything in life and no matter what I do Heaven is still my ultimate destination right?" Yes...that is true but, why do I get the feeling that a justification is coming up for a habit that God would not approve of. I have never heard a statement like this come from person who is not falling in an area of character. A big issue with that question also is man's free will, does it matter what I do in light of God's sovereignty? Well ...I am not a very smart man but, it seems to me that I should changes the things I can and leave the stuff I am ignorant to or helpless to change up to Christ. If God controls all our actions then we are robots...if that were true then we would all be like Jesus in character, since that is not so, I'm willing to bet that we are not like robots. Generally speaking, this argument is brought up when someone is unwilling to let go of some secular habits. What sense does it make to say that prepared works means I can do whatever I want and still fulfill them? It doesn't, so we should realize that it is up to us to be humble and alert of opportunities to be more like Christ.

Guys please comment on this.

May God's Peace Rest in Your Hearts,

Kyle

"Sanctification" - Religion VS Relationship (Continued)

"It's NOT about making Jesus Christ Lord OVER my life, but about making Him Lord OF my HEART. Many do the first, but few do the latter." - JJ

Let me explain…

I believe that many well meaning Christians after trusting in Jesus Christ as their Savior begin to put a good effort into changing their lives. We go to church, we try to read the Bible every day, we try to obey the Bible, we try to get as involved as we can in "ministry" serving the church, and so on... This is all good, but I believe as Christians, we have neglected and lost focus in our discipleship of new believers in the most important area…

“But sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence.
- 1 Peter 3:15

Let me break down this verse and then continue to explain my thought above…

Step 1) Sanctify Christ as Lord in your heart (Surrender and brokenness before the Lord; total Surrender of all your life. Trusting God in all areas of your life, not just your eternal destiny)

Step 2) Be ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you (your testimony and sharing the gospel)

Step 3) YET with gentleness and reverence. (Showing love, compassion, kindness and gentleness, and demonstrating God’s love to others, not just “Bible Beating.”)

Ok, so what I was saying before… I believe that our Christianity has become all about religion and we have neglected the most important process of becoming truly broken before the Lord in total and complete surrender of our hearts (lives). When someone accepts Jesus Christ into his/her life, we quickly get that person plugged into the church, we start giving them Bible studies, we begin to train them in how to share their faith with others (Step 2,3) and we complete bypass the most important step, “Sanctification of Jesus Christ as Lord in our hearts.”

I believe that the church is doing great at sharing the good news of eternal life. The Great Commission is being obeyed. God’s church is growing, but I think that not enough real true, DEEP healing is occurring in the lives of those we disciple. Don’t get me wrong, I think the healing process is occurring. God begins that process the moment we open our hearts to Him and we accept Him as our personal Savior, but I think that the Healing process has been neglected when it comes to discipleship of new believers. Why do I think so, because of my own experience, because of this NEW place in my life of brokenness before my God and King, because of the amazing healing that has occurred in my heart, because God has been showing me what the process was in my life, because as my heart has been healed, and because I now can see past my own wounds and hearts. Before, I was neglecting “step 1” because I was wounded and hurt myself. I could not see past my own insecurities, sins, hurts, pride, etc. So as I gave of myself and shared my life with others, as a man who still needed healing, I could not help others in that process of healing in them. As I stand now, healed, I look about me and I see SO MUCH hurt within the walls of the church. Yes, church is a place for those who need healing, but I find the ratio of those who are healed enough to help others in that process to those who need healing to be way off! The pastors cannot do it all...

My prayer is that God continues to do the Miracles (as He has been doing in me) and that more believers may come to that place of 100% brokenness before Him. That they may be healed to the point where they can turn around and help lead those around them to that same place of brokenness before God.


Disclaimer: Don’t miss-understand, One ONLY needs to believe in Jesus Christ and put their trust in Him for eternal life in order to be saved (Titus 3:5, Eph. 2:8-10, John 3:16, II Cor. 5:21). I just think that God as our Heavenly Father wishes to heal our broken hearts, so that we may better serve Him. God wants to do great things in us and through us (Eph. 2:10). Again, we first need a Savior, we then choose to make Him our Lord. But we ONLY need to "Believe in Him." - If you do not know how you can be 100% sure you are going to Heaven the day you die, click here and find out how you could know. I serve God, not for my salvation, but out of gratitude for what He has done for me. I serve God because I love Him!...

Disclaimer 2: The growing process is on-going. God is still working in my life. Though I find myself in an amazing place of surrender before my Lord, surrender is something that must occur daily as we make choices and continue to grow closer to God.

“For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.” – Philippians 1:6

“Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us…” – Hebrews 12:1-3

Continuing: I know that for me, I continued to put a big effort into “growing in Christ” and I put a big effort into reading the Bible, and in serving, but in my heart, there were many areas that I had not surrendered 100% unto the Lord. I was trying to obey God, and I was giving Him most of my heart, but I had areas in my Heart that still needed healing and areas in my life that I was not putting my complete trust in God. I had desires I was not surrendering before the Lord. I did had a desire to serve Him, but in my own terms. I had insecurities that I was not surrendering to the Lord and trusting Him. I appeared “healed” on the outside. If you asked anyone, I have been a “model” Christian all my life, but on the inside, there was still much hurt, shame, insecurities, etc. and it took God a long time to heal me. I was “image managing” my life. Today, I am a broken person before my loving Heavenly Father. To quote Mercy Me’s song “No More No Less” …

“I'm not trying to hide anything
I wear it on my sleeve
I'm not trying to be something I'm not
This is all I've got
I'm not trying to re-invent the wheel
Just trying to be real
I'm not trying to say follow me
I'm not the one who leads

Let me introduce myself to you
This is who I am
No more, no less
I am just a man who understands
Because of [God] I'm blessed
No more, no less

I'm not trying to prove anything
It's all about the change

I hope you stare just long enough to see
The heart that's beating here inside of me
Beyond all the things you may think you know
I'm just a kid trying to make it home, that's it
No more, no less”

You know, the world does not need more religion. Most people (if not all) are religious in some way or another. This is what God calls pure and undefiled religion…

“…to visit orphans and widows in their distress…”

Religion is good, but God wants our hearts, not just our good deeds.

Friend, if you do not know where you are going the day your die, TODAY is a good day to find out. We do not know what tomorrow may bring, but I know beyond a shadow of a doubt, that the day I die, I will go to Heaven to be with God. You too can be 100% sure that you will go to heaven... Click Here and learn more. Don't wait till tomorrow, Today is the day you can put your trust in God as your personal Savior.

to learn more click here: www.jjsierra.com/theanswer

If you have any questions, if you don't understand something I said above, please feel free to send an email at: jj@coffeecupapologetics.com

I leave you with these last two quotes…

“We must give God and others their rightful place in our hearts.” – John Ortberg

“We trust God with our eternal destiny, but we have a hard time trusting Him with the rest of our lives.” - JJSierra

Religion VS Relationship

"It's NOT about making Jesus Christ Lord OVER my life, but about making Him Lord OF my HEART. Many do the first, but few do the latter." - JJ

An Old Man and His Smokes, The New Man and His Heart

Man...I have not blogged in a while...here is the latest on what God has been teaching me. And this past week I bought New Evidence That Demands a Verdict by Josh McDowell, and I am very excited to post in the future on what I will learn.

At one of our last meetings it was Pablo, Josiah, and me at a Starbucks in Canton right after our activity at a nursing home. It was just the three of us for the meeting and a couple new people came for the first time too.

First, watch the video here:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SLY7yI1xV-M

We read the entire Chapter of Romans 8, and talked about the Holy Spirit.

First, the Holy Spirit that raised Christ from the dead is the same one that lives inside us. We have the power to overcome the world at our fingertips everyday. The problem however is that these tents we live in are in the way of God's will and his love. Our sinful nature or default modes as Mandy says are hostile towards God. Paul said that the mindset of the flesh is death because nothing it produces can please God and lead to spiritual death. However we are in the Spirit...which means our minds are supposed to be on peace and life, this is what it means to bring every thought captive to the throne...that we humble ourselves and check our attitude to see if it falls in line with Jesus.

The Bible says that our flesh could be compared to an old man who is depraved and has sin written in his heart. Imagine a ragged old beggar who keeps bothering you just so you can buy him some smokes or a drink. This man can look as far as his next high, drink, etc. That is who we were before we came to Christ and accepted his love, however, that does not get rid of the old man inside or his addictions. When we are reborn then a new man is created to the glory of God and he is what will be raised up on the last day. I am not going to even attempt to describe the image of this man because it would be an injustice to the workmanship of God. This is the heart of peace and life that the Father has given us, its desire is to bring a sword to evil in the world and to bring light to the rest of the lost. This man is in a war with the old man from the moment of his birth and will be until he is raised on that day. So how does this man grow from being a baby to a warrior for God? Walking in the Spirit....

How can we know for sure if you are in the spirit or not?....Well, for starters have you accepted that Christ came down and paid for your sins with his very life, and then ascended to Heaven to be with you forever? If you have not made a sincere decision for Christ then you don't have The Helper AKA The Holy Spirit, so make that choice to accept that God chose to love you and everyone else despite who we "really" are on the inside. If you are having trouble understanding this then email me, you can also ask God to give you understanding then read THE GOSPEL OF JOHN ....If you have already made that choice then this next paragraph is for you.

If you have accept Christ...TERRIFIC...NOW WHAT? Well, if you have not looked at that video then do so now. Notice in the beginning that they energetic and are just going through the motions, much like religion asks us to do...to go through the motions. When they start singing it's a bunch of mumbles and weighted hearts. So what do they do, they go back to basics and just do exercises...isn't that a waste of time and even embarrassing? Well when the start singing again it was not embarrassing but amazing at all but beautiful.

The concept is really quite simple...you have to feed the new man inside you to over power the old man. Which ever one is stronger in the moment is going to be the one who wins. So we have to feed and workout that new so the old man does not have any opportunities to grow. Because how can something grow if it does not have the means to do so? It can't...so create those moments for the new man to grow and read God's word so that you have knowledge of the truth. Finally, it won't happen unless you decide for it to happen.

God Bless'
Kyle Howington

Faith in God

Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. 2 This is what the ancients were commended for.
Hebrews 11:1
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"Being sure" (convinced) is an intellectual state of being. When we are sure of something it will affect our emotions and eventually our actions. It is dangerous to reverse this process and allow our emotions to lead our intellect and our lives.
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But how can we be "sure" that what we believe is correct or that the One we are trusting in is Real and Trustworthy?
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All the faith-acts of the people in Hebrews 11 are based on their belief that God exists (He is Real) and that He is Good.
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And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.
Hebrews 11:6
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Therefore He is worthy of our Trust and Faithful obedience.
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How do I know He is Real? Should I just believe in Him like kids believe in Santa Claus or the ancient Greeks believed in their mythical gods?
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No, my God - the God who had revealed himself through the Bible - wants us to use our heads (our reasoning skills) to come to acknowledge his existence and goodness (Isaiah 44:6-19; John 10:37-38).
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Here is a very brief summary of why I believe in him:
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1) Nature itself cries out that the Creator God exists and is good. Side by side Creationism is a more reasonable explanation of the beginning of life on earth than evolutionary theories.
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2) Natural Law and Philosophy

• 2nd Law of Thermodynamics
• 
  
  Cosmological Argument - order and beauty in the world
• 
  
  Teleological Argument - design and purpose in the world
• 
  
  Law of Cause and Effect - "Every effect must have and adequate cause"

After we conclude that God is Real and Good, He expects us to follow his commands by faith, just like Abraham and the others did. Abraham considered God faithful (Heb. 11:11) therefore he humbly obeyed him (Heb. 11:8-11).

For me, there is enough reasonable evidence to believe in God, to believe in the Bible as his revealed thoughts for mankind, and to believe in Jesus Christ as his Son who died and rose again for the salvation of the world.

Mandy

Life, The Great Adventure!

I've been thinking about life, contemplating on my life...

I've been thinking about life... How it's simply a journey. Parts of this journey are beautiful, other parts are not, but ultimately, what makes this an exciting and adventures journey is the ultimate desitnation...

C.S. Lewis said this, "You have not met a mare mortal."

Click Here to read the rest of my Post at www.JJSierra.com/LivingTheDash

:: Brokenness, Humility And The Secret To Joy ::

:: The Secret To Joy ::
The secret to joy is gratitude that comes from a humble recognition of God's mercy and kindness! -- James 1:17 says, "Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow."

...Read the rest of this post at www.jjsierra.com/livingthedash (my personal Blog)

God is Awesome

This last month God showed me his faithfulness in a way I never expected. I was able to reconcile with my former stepsister Christie Shemwell, which seemed impossible to me beforehand. I mean we wanted to kill each other in high school and long before the divorce we were on bad terms, so when she asked me to add her on Facebook it came as a surprise. The first word to come from my mouth was "WOW", I mean this just doesn't happen with all the broken families in the country these days.
So...we began talking over Facebook and now we have both forgiven each other for the past and started anew. She told me that last year she accepted Christ as her savior and will be going to Colorado State in the Fall.
I'm proud to say that I have readopted her as my sister regardless of what happened in the past. God has healed this part of my life and I'm grateful that he showed his faithfulness to me.

This last month I have been reading UNChristian, a book solely based on research done by the Barna Group. They took three years to discover what our generation (16-29 year olds) thinks about Christianity, and what they found is a little startling. This book addresses how we try to reach out to outsiders yet, they are receiving an unchristian message from us. The top objections are the subject of five or so chapters, where they examine the problem and offer solution biblically speaking. From being formerly agnostic I could say it hits hard what kept me from coming to Christ sooner.
However, the lesson there is not letting people hinder your relationship with God or be afraid to go to him alone.
This book is surprising and at the same time not. It is surprising to look at the stats when compared to the Bible and what should be, and it is not surprising to see them because we know the fallen world we live in. The largest problem so far is image management and the attitude of pride it causes. The greatest commandment was not act as righteous in your own eyes as possible. Of surveyed churchgoers, 37% said leading a good life or avoiding sin was the most important thing to pursue as a christian, while 1% said family faith. And out of that sample in our generation of churchgoers out of the 65% who said their faith was an important part of their lives, only 1% claimed to have a biblical worldview!
I think everyone should read this to get perspective.

The lesson of this weeks meeting was that love is more important than knowledge.
1 Corinthians 8:1
"Knowledge ^(C)makes arrogant, but love ^(D)edifies."
John 13:34-35
34"A ^(AX)new commandment I give to you, ^(AY)that you love one another, ^(AZ)even as I have loved you, that you also love one another.

35"^(BA)By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another."

Our loves is what speaks to people not our spiritual knowledge. Without love we gain nothing.
Romans 12:21
21Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

We wil overcome the hate in this world only by letting go of ourselves in order for God to fill us with the power of his love.
God Bless you all.

Severity of Sin

G’evening all! I just got back from school, so it has been a particularly long day for me, but I hope you all have had great days.

Originally – this morning, in fact – I wanted to share something that had been on my mind throughout the past week: the dangers of compartmentalizing (lol, it sounds so boring as I write it here). But, I got this e-mail from Casting Crowns, which put a strong desire on my heart. It is a music video of the song “Slow Fade.” Please, if you have 5 short minutes, watch it!

http://youtube.com/watch?v=j0aBchNYxIM

This really got me meditating on the severity of sin, and our tendency to view sin so aloofly. When we are in the moment of temptation, we do not properly understand how much God detests sin and how strict the possible ramifications could be. It took a music video like this for me to be reminded of this. I see a man who has the potential to decimate his family because he wants to live in and seek out sin. Check out this verse: “For You are not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness; No evil dwells with You. The boastful shall not stand before Your eyes; You hate all who do iniquity. You destroy those who speak falsehood; The LORD abhors the man of bloodshed and deceit.” (Psalms 5:4-6, NASB).

I think, at least in part, that this is because we tend to define good and evil relativistically; we base it on the cultural standards, and not on God’s standards defined biblically. We see ourselves as “good,” so long as we are better than the secular of this world (whatever that means?). So, as society liberalizes and deteriorates, our morals and values take a plunge as well.

“Oh no, we are still good, though, because we are better than the world, and can still be an example.” LIES! All lies!

God’s standard is His standard. It is immutable and not contingent upon the morality of this world. We are subject to this standard (it was in the fine print of that little contract we signed to save our soul =P), whether we like it or not.

Nonetheless, we need to check our view on sin. Every defiance of God’s standard is considered sin, and it has stark consequences. No evil dwells with Him and He hates all those who do iniquity. We must realize this every time we on sin’s stoop. Remember, sin is punishable by death, we are exempt because we are gracefully redeemed by Christ. How dare we abuse the grace given us!

I felt led to share that, I hope some of you find it convicting and encouraging, I know I did when the Lord placed it on my heart this morning.

MTI

A Thought from Kermit the Frog

Let’s get to the chase, because I have a big headache and don’t feel up to typing too much =/

Ok, so you are frog. You are green, which can be difficult because you find that you are easily lost and forgotten amidst other nature. You are constantly being chased by an obsessive and violent pig, whom you actually end up marrying…

Lol, have you caught on about who I am talking about? Of course, it’s none other than Kermit the Frog!

Don’t worry, I haven’t (completely) lost my mind. It’s just that I read a very interesting quote from him, and I wanted to share it. He talks, in his book It’s Not Easy Being Green: and Other Things to Consider, about Family. He has this to say: “Yeah, well, I’ve got a dream too. But it’s about singing and dancing and making people happy. That’s the kind of dream that gets better the more people you share it with. And, well, I’ve found a whole bunch of friends who have the same dream. And it kind of makes us like a family.”

This really got me thinking about our Spiritual Family. What makes us a family? The fact that we are united by a common God, for a common purpose. While it’s not completely true that it gets better when you share it with more people, it definitely is a plus. Even from a secular perspective, we are a bunch of friends who have the same dream, like Kermit says. We have the dream to see others know Christ and grow in Him.

Although I wasn’t there Sunday, I am told that Freddy spoke of something similar to this. I heard this interesting quote which says that Christians comprise the only army that fights against itself. Isn’t that true though? We believe in the same God, the same resurrection, the same Trinity, the same Messiah, yet we differ in a minor theological discrepancy and we are ready to break off completely and form different denominations. We consider our church to be “non-denominational,” yet, that is a denomination in and of itself.

I know that I used a rather flippant way to introduce the topics, but nonetheless, that point remains. If we are ever to make an impact in this world, we must stop fighting against each other and unite to reach the lost of this world. Like Freddy always says “In the big things, unity. In the small things, liberty. In all things, Love (adapted from St. Augustine).”

C’mon, we are a family (according to Sister Sledge). Let’s start acting like it. If a frog and a soul singer can recognize it, so can we =)

Goodness me, I cannot believe that I alluded to both a frog and a soul singer to make a point. What is this world coming to?

Well anyway, this Friday’s meeting will be held at Walyce’s house. It’s going to be real nice to meet as a group again. I feel disconnected from some of you, so it’ll be great to reconnect and be united. I look forward to seeing you there.

Call me if you need anything. I am praying for you!

MTI

Ramblings of a hopeless ADD man

Hey guys I have not blogged in a while. I have felt empowered by God over the last week. Even though I lost my job, I still feel like his is working in my life with a purpose. This morning I might have been refreshed by a "truthful" dvd that happened to be left out on someone's desk. So, other than giving me a whole new perspective or I should say a cleared one on truth in the Bible, it gave me an epiphany on this scene in the Bible.

Think back to when Jesus met Pilate, the king of all the universe is before a man who is supposed to be a ruler over his people. And don't forget that he was before Herod after this. These were the examples of leaders the world had to offer for Jesus to examine first hand. The first, Pilate, was worried over his position and being a people pleaser. He was worried about a rebellion by the Jews if he did not handle Jesus the way they wanted they would threaten his position. When questioning Jesus he asked if He was a king. Jesus responded,"Is this from you, or did others talk to you about me?" In other words "Do you really want to know or do you just want to appease the people?" Jesus saw through to his heart and questioned him instead. Even more, when Jesus said that he came to "testify the truth", Pilate answered, "What is truth?" So he really did not care whether or not Jesus was who he claimed to be but, only wanted to know what he had to in order to shut up the Jews outside. Just imagine what Jesus is thinking at this point, I used to think that when this played out in movies that he was being conceited but now, I see he is disappointed. So, at first he sent him away to be someone else's problem. When Jesus was in front of Herod and was asked to perform signs for him. He did not even respond to him. This ruler wanted to be entertained by Jesus with no faith involved but he only cared in his own pleasure. Then he was handed over back to Pilate and he just gave him to the people to avoid responsibility. He washed his hands of the problem, because that's what leaders are supposed to do right.
By stepping back we can see that Pilate's problem was failure to stand and lead. Even though his opinion may not be popular it is the right thing to do. And his lack of strength and direction is one of the biggest problems men have these days. We just fade and let the world walk on us. Then the next example is Herod, the idiot who just wants to feel good. He does not care about his people, only how they can provide for him. He has pride and exalts his own pleasure above the needs of the people.
I think we could talk about this all day. Comparing them to leaders today in the world and comparing them to Jesus, who set the needs of the entire world above his own life.
This is an open forum to comment on, let's see how we can lead with the example of Christ in mind.

On my next blog I will sum up my last two blogs and their lingering thoughts.

May God pour grace and understanding into all our lives abundantly. It might also help for all of us to sincerely ask Him to do so daily. Later guys.

Wisdom Demonstrated

"Who among you is wise and understanding? Let him show by his good behavior his deeds in the gentleness of wisdom." - James 3:13

Check out my latest post in my personal BLOG: Click Here

Flawless Imperfections

" I suggest we learn to love ourselves before it's made illegal." -Incubus "Warning"

I've had to hear this song at least a million times and I never paid attention to the power of that phrase. We live in a world full of botox, silicone, and mountains of make-up. Companies make billions of dollars based on our insecurities. I myself find myself looking in the mirror with disgust. I say to myself " Wow, my teeth are crooked" or " Why are my biceps not big?" or my favorite " I'm ugly". Now as I grow in my walk with Christ, I realize that saying this is a MAJOR offense to GOD. How do I know? Well, initially, I look to Genesis 1:27, which says " So He created man in his own image, in the image of GOD he created him; male and female he created them". I doesn't take long to ponder about the fact that we are made in the image and likeness of GOD! What flaws can I find in myself if I'm made in the mold of perfection???

GOD didn't stop his work with our outer appearance. He went all the way. Psalm 139 13-14 says "For You formed my inward parts; You wove me in my mother's womb. I will give thanks to You for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Wonderful are Your works, And my soul knows it very well. Wow! I'm fearfully and wonderfully made!! Be insecure...for what??

Finally, if we do not love ourselves unconditionally, how can we love others in that same way? How can we go out and give the gospel if we're worried about unchangable parts that GOD has given us?

I'm simply saying love yourself. GOD made you wholly without flaw because he's flawless. So everytime you look in the mirror and you find an "imperfection" or flaw. Remember who made it. His imperfections are flawless.

-Dennis-

Being the "Acorn"

Just re-read Kyle's post... Can't wait to become the oak tree! ;) Phil. 1:6!

Read Kyle's Post: Click Here

Funk

Happy Wednesday to you all!

So let’s cut to the chase….

Lately, I have really been in a funk. (Seriously, I’ve been searching all week for the best word to describe it, and I feel that “funk” expresses how I feel quite nicely, lol.) A spiritual funk.

When about I think about it though, is God fundamentally different in His relationship with me now than with how He related to me when I was on a spiritual high? No. So the blame falls squarely on my shoulder. This “funk” is my fault; there is something that I need to learn, change, correct, or whatever. (Hebrews 13:8) Now I need to find out what it is and heed to whatever it is God has in store for me.

One thing that I have been learning is that I think too much. Is this a bad thing? Alas, I do not know. However, at times, it can cloud certain situations. Brother Andrew says that “it is through the paralysis of analysis that we fail to act.” You see, when we spend time thinking over ever possible scenario and searching for every intricacy, we tend to lose sight of what we already know.

You know what I am talking about… When you think and rethink and over-think a question on an exam, what happens? You rarely get it right; you either get it wrong or run out of time to answer it altogether. Well, I think this can transfer over to our spiritual life as well (Big surprise, huh?!).

We try so hard to discern God’s will. We wonder what He has in store for us. We attempt to discover where He wants to take us. But we try so hard; we search relentlessly. And all the while, His answer is right in front of our nose. In a manner of speaking, we need to forget about what Jesus would do and begin focusing on what Jesus already did! We already know the basics of the faith: we know God wants all to come to the knowledge of Him; we know God is going to continue working in our life; we know God will never leave us nor forsake us; we know; we know; we know… We know all these magnificent promises, yet we still don’t act! We hypothesize and theorize, and ultimately go nowhere.

We must act. Go! We already know what God wants. So what’s holding us back? I think that is a question only you can answer. Don’t worry about what could/would/should happen. Realize what God has already done for you and use that to fuel you now!

MTI

Wait - II

Ok, so, good morning? I am burning the midnight oil, but still want to spam out this e-mail so that you all can wake up and have it in your inbox.

For me, staying up late isn't too bad - I get a lot of my hilarious jokes and quirky statements at this hour (you can tell, huh? =P)

Allow me to take you on a journey into my mind:

I was attempting to fall asleep one evening up in Georgia, and a rather strange image bombarded my mind. It was of a infant. This child was laboriously jamming a square peg into a slot intended for a circular disk. I am sure you are familiar with those puzzle-type games. Now, as you know, the Lord has been showing and teaching me about waiting on Him; naturally, I drew a connection between this infant and my own life. Allow me to explain.

You see, a lot of times, we are that child. We get impatient with God. We know that God has a plan for us, there are countless verse that attest to this truth. However, we get antsy. We fail to wait on Him, and begin to take matters into our own hands. We take that square peg and jam it into the round hole. If we try hard enough, the jagged edges of the peg will soon dull, and I am sure that it could fit into the round slot. Two things happen at this point: (1) The square peg is out of place; it doesn't quite fit. (2) It blocks the originally intended piece from finding its niche.

I hope I am making sense... let me now relate this to our spiritual lives. When we fail to wait on God and take things in our own hand, we are missing out on the blessing! Recall that "waiting on Him" is the constant recognition of God's commitment to fulfill His promises and our active preparations to both invite and welcome His blessing. By waiting on Him, we are conceded control and letting Him call the shots. We no longer recognize His potency and distrust Him to keep His promise. You may be serving in the church, and you may be doing things to keep us occupied - but it is not what God has intended for you. You are merely filling a position; You are doing a job, a task. It will not be as fulfilling as what God has intended for you, based on the unique intricacies with which He crafted you. What's more, you will be stopping someone else for serving in the position that was intended for them!

My, oh my, I hope this is as clear to you as it is to me! Please, do not hesitate to contact me if you would like me to elaborate on an individual basis. Right now, I am the point where God cannot not teach me (knowledge) on waiting. I need to take the next-step and begin applying it: which is what I am trying. I'll tell you, it is difficult, especially with my nature. I want to control everything. But by waiting on God, and allowing Him to work, I am given Him authority over my life, and showing Him that His will is more important than my own (Read Proverbs 3:5,6)

Good night

MTI

Can You See the Sun Behind the Clouds?

This morning after working out with Armando, I went and got breakfast, and then I sat to read my bible. I've only read a little bit and will finish later but, this epiphany came to me and I could not pass writing on it.

So...today is very windy and cloudy here in Kennesaw, and it looks like a bleak, pointless day. I was staring out into the sky when it occurred to me that the sun was still shining behind the clouds. Just because I can't see the sun right now doesn't mean it is not there. So do I lose hope and stop believing in the sun?(I hope none of you think that way) No, of course not, the sun is still providing warmth and light to the whole planet but it is blurred by clouds at the moment.

I think this is very important to reflect on during Easter. When we were without a relationship with God this whole life appears shrouded in gray. Society tells us that because everything is gray that the most important thing is the moment. Embrace the moment for all the pleasure it's worth. And they say that there is no sun to warm our hearts to begin with.
And for those of us who have felt the warmth of the sun this is ridiculous, there is no use debating whether or not the sun is there. We have felt it and know it is there. And we can attest to that warmth in our lives. For it may appear that the sun is not shining for you at the time but it is still there and always will be. And that sun is a promise of something more.

So...can you see the sun behind the clouds?

Faith

... and just like that we are in March. I cannot believe that this year is going by so quickly. But then I stopped and think, "Don't I say this every year?" lol. That's not all, though.The worst part is that I devised a theory justifying why this happens; don't worry, that explanation is for another day (or not =P).

Anyway, on to something a bit more serious. God really convicted me, through another person, about how I spend my time in the car. It's not that I spend my time driving idly, however, I could spend it a more wisely. Normally, I would either be on the phone or listening to Casting Crowns, which, again, is not bad. Nevertheless, I realized that I need to spend that time feed myself a little bit more, so I downloaded some free sermons by James MacDonald (oneplace.com) and am now beginning to listen to those. The messages I downloaded were about Faith, so that is what I have been learning about recently.

What I gathered from his preaching was phenomenal. We must remember that God is not here for us, but rather, we are here for Him! That is where faith comes in: since we are here for Him, we must understand that He calls the shots, that He will lead us according to His will, and He will provide for our needs, as well as fulfill all the promises He set forth in Scripture. Ultimately, though, God does not merely reward our faith. He rewards the manifestation of our faith in drawing us closer to Him (Heb 11:6, Jas 4:8). I could have all the faith in the world, but if that is not drawing me nearer to God, then it means nothing!

This is a good test for faith: Does your belief of God outweigh your belief in God?* Namely, are your directing your life according to God's precepts? (*Wrap your mind around that one for a while)

Faith is the funnel through which all grace flows (Eph 2:8, 9). By it, we worship according to His Word, walk according to His way and work according to His will.

Ok, I may have jammed to much information into those paragraphs, sorry. But I've been learning so much, and I wanted to share in this area. Give me a call if you want to discuss it further! Maybe we can make some more sense of it that way

MTI

Question to Ponder I

If you are loved by God who is infinite, what more importance do you need? Really.

I'm reading the book by John Ortberg, The Life You've Always Wanted, that explores the characteristic of humility in chapter 7. It talks about how pride or self love is poisonous to our lives and others. The decision to put ourselves above others and God is only an effect from a root problem in our soul. That problem is your self worth. When you are unsure of your worth in this world it is confusing and lonely. As Christens we feel tend to become timid, depressed, and so on because we compare ourselves to others instead of going to God. We see others who are spiritually mature and desire that in our lives too. But desire turns into jealousy when we don't keep our relationship with God in order, and it goes downhill from there. A bad attitude and outlook on life replace the joyful peace of god in your heart, and that heart then becomes filled with doubt.

If you are in that place now pray sincerely and believe, then everything will be okay. Hope, Faith, and Love are what is most important.

The point of this is once you've lost your center, then everything else is thrown off balance. As a Christen, God is our hope and strength. The holy spirit is what moves us and makes us grow. So stop worrying and let go. LET GO AND LET GOD. When god fills you then you won't have to worry about yourself as much, then you can focus on loving others with an overflowing cup of sincere love, not needy love.

So, let's try from now on to draw strength and power from God, as He meant us to, everyday. And this will be challenged and tempered as you do this so, be prepared to face them this week. It is my hope that we could all learn to love this way.

So, if an all loving God loves you enough to die for you, how important do you have to be?

Mature vs. Maturing (an Update)

My, oh my...

This week has been one of the worst, for me, in recent memory. I feel like it should be nearing the beginning of next week; but no, it is merely Wednesday. As I write this, I am in the UM library (I will have been here for over 12 hours) exhausted from a huge Physics exam that I barely studied for. Mind you, I didn't study for it because of the myriad events that required and reverted my attention elsewhere, not because I felt prepared in any way. Nonetheless, that is over with. Now I can focus my efforts to finishing a project (haven't started - due tomorrow), completing an HW assignment, and studying for another exam Friday.

Now, this week hasn't been miserable because of all the school work (it's probably the opposite actually, school would barely scratch the surface), but because of multiple trials flung my way. I wish I could go into detail about these issues, but I believe God values men who wrestle with their struggles independently, without having to involve a ton of people. Rest assured, though, I am not keeping everything to myself; as a matter of fact, I have already spoken to various people about what is going on in my life and the things I've endured (I am probably over-dramatizing it, but it's still rather tough for me). Just watch, this is going to through you for a loop: The purpose of this e-mail is to encourage you! lol

Think back to last week. Do you remember what the e-mail was about? No? Ok, well I do -- and it was about being mature in Christ and exactly what that entails. I wrote this last week:

"If anything, true Christian maturity is being able to say 'Blessed be the name of the Lord' when your flesh desires to throw in the towel. It is understanding that becoming a man or woman of God is incredibly difficult, yet surprisingly refreshing when God graciously offers us His strength to make it through the day."

Isn't it amazing how God answers our prayers before we pray them?! You see, I never specifically prayed to be more mature -- but after learning what I did last week, and after what Freddy spoke about on Sunday, the topic of maturity was on my mind and heart. To make a long story short (too late, huh?), I think the Lord has been using these events in my life to develop me into a more mature Christian. You see, our concept of "mature Christianity" is skewed. Being "mature" implies a level of completion, almost as if there is no more growth to accrue. However, we, as Christians, understand that "mature Christians" do not settle for where they are at in their spiritual walk. They know that their lives are the result of constant self-denial. Instead, these "mature Christians" are, in actuality, better labeled as "maturing Christians," in order to reflect that ongoing process.

I am in the middle of this process -- this struggle, no less. And yes, it is very tough. But I know, when all is said and done, it will be more rewarding than it was tough. Materialistically, I may come out on bottom, but I will be closer in my relationship with Christ and I have faith that it will be more satisfying than anything of this world.

Ok, that's what I am going through. How are you all doing? I wish you guys would take some time to update us on your life and on how God is working in it. I would love to read it... really, I would!

MTI

PS - Throw up a prayer for me every now and then, why don't ya? lol
PPS- I guess I should throw this out there, why not? ... Happy Valentines Day!

What I learned at Faithwalkers

Faithwalkers for those of you who have not been, is a life changing experience that can not be expressed as anything but God's hand being but on your heart for three days.

I loved everyday of that conference because I was convicted to my core. God sharpened me to a great extent during those three days.
During praise and worship God gave me this scripture:
Ephesians 3:1-19

And then the second day he gave me the Entire chapter of Daniel 5. The King of the time had taken the cup out of the Lord's temple and used it in his dining hall for all his wives and guests. They dishonored the Lord by doing this. Using the cup for their own selfish desires instead of His glory. During dinner in the palace a "hand" appeared and wrote this on the wall: Mene, Mene, Tekel, Upharsin. Which was a prediction of the end of his reign. No one could translate this for him until they summoned Daniel. They offered to give him a purple cloak, a gold necklace, and then make him third highest in the kingdom. This is what he replied:
17Then Daniel answered and said before the king, "Keep your (AA)gifts for yourself or give your rewards to someone else; however, I will read the inscription to the king and make the interpretation known to him.
He did not care whether or not his efforts were recognized or not but that he would be faithful and true in his motives. He served the king because that was what he was called to do. Not praise himself. He translated the words for the king and told him straight up that he was in the wrong with God and was going to pay for it. Then he still was rewarded even though that is not what he valued. That night the king died and a new king took his place.
I felt God convicted me of this attitude of pride and what was my motivation for giving the Gospel. The cup in Daniel represents the cup of salvation God has given me. What is the purpose of that cup? That I may have everlasting life with the Godhead of course but is that all. No, let it never be for us alone. Correct me if I'm wrong but our cups are supposed to run over are they not? The cup of life that God gives to all is to be for his glory not ours. When love is given it is not love if you are looking to hear "thank you" from the other person. It is to see that you have loved and if they are willing, that the person given the cup drinks it.
Recently after going to that conference I realized that I had an unintentional attitude of wanting to receive praise for my efforts in apologetics and there was a underlying sense of pride for the knowledge I've gained. God showed me that my cup was meant to serve Him with and not on myself. and that my strength should come from his love and the Holy Spirit, not my will to succeed.My knowledge is useless without love and a purpose of edifying others with it. For this reason we bow our kness to the Father, that we may do His will for us on Earth. He gave us a gift, a cup of living water that is his love, his power, and his glory. And for those of you who read and do not know Him, ask him for this cup for it is given freely. It is meant for "you" to have and how can you use it if you don't accept it?
It is my prayer that all who have this cup that your's would overflow.

God Bless you all, Kyle.

My Savior My God

My Savior My God - Aaron Shust

I am not skilled to understand
What God has willed, what God has planned
I only know at His right hand
Stands one who is my Savior

I take Him at His word and deed
Christ died to save me; this I read
And in my heart I find a need
Of Him to be my savior

That He would leave His place on high
And come for sinful man to die
You count it strange, so once did I
Before I knew my Savior

Chorus (2x's)
My Savior loves, My Savior lives
My Savior's always there for me
My God: He was, my God; He is
My God is always gonna be

Yes, living, dying, let me bring
My strength, my solace from this spring;
That He who lives to be my King
Once died to be my Savior

That He would leave His place on high
And come for sinful man to die
You count it strange, so once did I
Before I knew my Savior

Faithwalkers!!!

I have not blogged in a really long time. I promise to blog on what God has been teaching me this winter sometime this weekend. Right now I want everyone who reads to go on to the site and listen to the free audio provided. I just went on to download all the sermons i liked and saw ten or more i wanted to go to but did not. So...if you want to be challenged to the very core of your heart then go listen to the meetings. If you want to keep living a easygoing, comfortable life instead of one as a disciple of Christ, then read no further. These meetings are life changing and will hit close to home in at least on area of your life. You will walk away a better man or woman by listening to these.
God bless you and bring His peace to your hearts.

Link: www.faithwalkersonline.net

:: The Law ::

Question: What is the purpose of the "law?"

Romans 3:20,27-28 -
20) because by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified in His sight; for through the Law comes the knowledge of sin.

-- Through the law comes what?... "Knowledge of sin"
-- Can following the "law" justify our sins?... "NO flesh will be justified..."
-- In who's sight do we need to be justified?... "in His [Jesus] sight"

Many people believe they are "good." The question is, accordng to who's standards? If we need to be justified "in His sight," then we're in trouble! Because who can live up to a standard of perfection?! Ha... But reading the rest of the chapter we find out that it is not by the "law," but by our faith.

2 Highlighted verses from Romans 3 --

27) Where then is boasting? It is excluded By what kind of law? Of works? No, but by a law of faith. 28) For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from works of the Law.

....So then that leaves the question of "faith in what" or more importantly, "faith in who?"

"Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ" - Romans 5:1

Here is more on "Faith" --
1) What then shall we say that Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh, has found?
2) For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God.
3) For what does the Scripture say? "ABRAHAM BELIEVED GOD, AND IT WAS CREDITED TO HIM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS."
4) Now to the one who works, his wage is not credited as a favor, but as what is due.
5) But to the one who does not work, but believes in Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is credited as righteousness...

-- To Be Continued... More thoughts coming soon...

Our FIRST News Letter - Dec. 2007

We finally finished our December 2007 News Letter. This is our first of many, God willing...

To Read (Download) The PDF of our News Letter click the link below...

CCA December 2007 News Letter (PDF)
File Name: cca_2007-12.pdf

Well, this is our first, if you have any comments, if you have anything you would like to share, feel free to write them here...

Psalm 119...
124) Deal with Your servant according to Your lovingkindness And teach me Your statutes.
130) The unfolding of Your words gives light; It gives understanding to the simple.

- God Bless

How I found the Lord

The Lord has been pressing this issue in my prayers for a while. At first I didn't want to because i guess it would make me appear to be weak or someone to be pitied. Well, JJ finally convinced me to put this out and be a little more broken in my walk with Jesus. So, after I write this do not pity me but understand the power and hope that is in Jesus Christ.



I started my life out in less than desirable circumstances. My parents divorced when I was one years old and along with my brother, I lived with my mother until I was fourteen years old. I do not know the official reasons for them splitting up, honestly it would not matter now. The past is the past, I can learn from it but not change it. Since my dad remarried when I was about three to Robbie, and my mom remarried when I was six to Darrell Poole. I have known that man since I was four. I didn't know that I had a broken family until I was older.
God has blessed me with a wonderful family that is always very loving. Both sides get along very well even after the divorce and i think that is a gift of God. But, I'm not saying that only being able to see your dad every other weekend and on the holidays was cool. Or having to constantly explain to other kids why I had two dads and moms was just the icing of my days. I won't go on and on about this, but if you have lived through this yourself then you would understand how it effects you. And if you have not then there is no way you can understand what goes on inside someone who has.

One thing i will go into about the effects living in a broken family is doubt, fear, and the feeling of acceptance. When you live in this situation you wonder why did this happen to you? I had a hard time being able to relate to anyone in my school. I also have a skin disorder called eczema, so I had rashes all over my body. It goes to say that i didn't have many friends. I had a huge problem with being accepted by others and felt like a loser because I was not a popular kid with a normal family. And to memory, I don't think I have ever heard the words " I hate you" come out of the mouth more authentically than those people. I made sure to hang out in any groups that were totally against that type of culture. That only lead to an attitude of hatred of others and myself growing up. When i went home the air was so thick it was hard to breathe if you know what I mean. But if it were not for Mom and Darrell raising me with Christian values ( even if I did not want them or understand them at the time) I would have done horrible things and ruined my life. I don't want this to look like I don't love my family because I do with all my heart.

I used to think that I had to be perfect for God to love me. Because all the kids in church seemed to have it together and their families never had any problems. Or at least that's what they put on. They were the biggest hypocrites I ever knew. I did not want anything to do with a church if that's what was accepted as a Christian. I knew God was there, but what he wanted from me was a mystery. Going to church with my parents I heard all the stories from the Bible but didn't believe because of a hard heart and the people I saw every week but never knew their name. Christianity was not personal it was only something you had to do to be socially accepted. Besides I thought that if I didn't live a certain way God would never love me. Sadly I let people dictate what my self-worth was and what kind of person I was.

When I was around nine years old my stepmother Robbie divorced my father. She had moved out six months earlier into a condo to "figure things out and her direction in life". I saw her maybe three times during that period. After that my dad told me she had left for good. To this day I have never heard from that woman and do not understand how it is possible for someone to do that. I cannot describe how much that hurt and the insecurity it caused in my soul. It is because of this that I had so many problems with getting approval from others as my sense of worth as I grew older. And I have difficultly trusting others as a result of what she did to my family and my father.

After this event in my life ,along with my lack of friends, and nothing I felt that was any worth in my life, I thought of killing myself for the first time. If so much crap could happen to me for no reason what so ever then, there was no point in me living through any more of it. This is the way I felt at the time and I can't logically explain why I felt that way when I had a good family to go to. I really thought if I were to share how I felt that others would try and fix me to be a person that was fake. I don't think you can explain the pain a soul feels in these situations anyway, logic doesn't hold sway to a spiritual hurt. I see now that God held me in his hand those years to hold on and not give up. I did not have the courage to take my life only because of the fear of the unknown. I knew God was and that there had to be a purpose for all this, otherwise it would not matter how much I hurt inside. So I held on to a slim hope that things would turn out differently one day and all the while I still hated myself and everyone around me. This is was an anger that radiated from my bones to people from behind a fake smile.

My father remarried again and that lasted around four years. This woman was crazy and I do not exaggerate on that. She was an alcoholic and is the only person I had the urge to strangle for real in my life. Me and my brother moved in with my dad after they got married and that was the worst experience of my life. During this time I started to hurt myself to get out the pain that could not be put into words. I have stopped that since I've come to Christ. I will honestly say that I had to force myself to get out of bed by telling myself lies to accept life as it was.

When I went to college i discovered even more that people are selfish and society can offer you no answers to eternity. I found that others just fall into cultures to belong to or hide in. I had a chance to become my own man and set my own standards for living. That was exciting but I still couldn't find real loving friends or self-worth in any system of belief. People who were all into enlightenment and such still were selfish and hypocritical in their lives. I did not think God cared about me anyway so it didn't matter.

Then Kelsey started to go to this small church by KSU. At the time I was going to CTC and worked in Marietta so I didn't have alot of time to see what it was all about. He spent so much time around them I thought it was a cult. Besides in my experience Christians were shallow people who judged everything you did. So until his baptism, I had not met any of these people.
After that I started hanging out with them out of pure loneliness. It was good too meet new people who would invite me into their homes no questions asked and on a regular basis.

It has been two years (three weeks ago) since I met everyone in the college group. I met my best friends in the world JJ, Danny G., Danny S., and Micky for the first time. Over the passing months i went over to that little apartment so many times i can't remember.
During this time I had made a decision that if God didn't show himself to me by February, I was going to kill myself by any means available. That was as serious I had ever come to doing it and it scares me how definite i was on going through with it.
As time went on I started attending service, which was addicting at the time because Mandy's words had a power to them like nothing I had ever heard before. Every time I went to the apartment, it was like a door was being opened in my heart. For the first time in my life I had five hour conversations with people and they actually let me sleep at their house. They barely knew me and I was so annoying at the time. I just didn't get why people would be so kind without wanting anything from me.I was talked into buying a copy The Purpose Driven Life and started to read it as soon as I got home. On the seventh Chapter it talked about accepting Christ as your savior and letting him into your heart. So I said a prayer that was not really serious but awakening. I felt like a little voice was finally talking to me but I didn't understand what it was I was asking for. I finally got worn down from caring a burden in my heart. After one sermon where Mandy talked about God never abandoning you, how he could take away all the sin in your life, and how he will always be with you got me pretty hard. We went to Sandra's house and did some praise and worship with the lights off. I do not remember a single word that was sung that night because I could only hear myself screaming out to God on the inside.
I told God that I finally give up. If your real come to me and take my heart, it is yours. I surrendered all that I was to the will of God at that moment. And I cannot describe what happened inside of me in that moment to its full beauty. I could hear a faint but massive choir singing and it felt as though a flood of light had entered my body. Then I felt my soul come to life. After singing I went to talk to a brother and confessed what had happened to me. I cried my eyes out and thanked him for loving me.

Four months later I moved in with Danny and JJ into our townhouse.

For those of you who read this remember, I ask that you don't pity me. Look at what God has done through me and PRAISE HIM FOR HIS GLORY. I use my life as a reminder of where I come from and that the only reason I am able to write this is because the Lord wills it. I know that God saved me from myself and has a purpose for me. I thank all you who help me on my journey to the cross and thank God for your love in my life. There might be some of you that out of my immaturity I have hurt or angered since you have known me or you believe that I feel mutually the same towards you. I asked that you all would forgive me of whatever it is I have done. I want you to know that I WILL ALWAYS LOVE YOU ALL NO MATTER WHAT. AGAIN I SAY I WILL ALWAYS LOVE ALL OF YOU. And through the strength of God I want that love to show more everyday. And the end of this I hope you can ask for yourself how great is our God! Fro those of you who have had similar experiences in life, I will tell you this, you have to step into the unknown person of God on his terms not your own. He is real and loves you tremendously. He is waiting for you to come to him and accept his love for you. While my heart was prepared by my life's circumstances to come to the cross, it only took a moment to make that decision. It is my hope that you can read this and understand that it only takes a moment for you to do the same.

God bless all of you who read this.

My psalm

Well this is from The Rock KSU Friday Night Meeting; we were told to write our own Psalm modeled after Psalm 136. So her it is...

Give thanks in all to God All Mighty,
His love endures forever.
Give thanks when walking in the light of the sun,
His love endures forever.
Give thanks when walking in the shadow of the storm,
His love endures forever.
Give thanks when leading an army against your host,
His love endures forever.
Give thanks if you have nothing but your robes and a staff,
His love endures forever.
Give thanks for the multitude of your kin,
His love endures forever.
Give thanks for a single child given to you,
His love endures forever.
Give thanks for a feast set before you,
His love endures forever.
Give thanks for the crumbs that are given to the dogs,
His love endures forever.
Give thanks for the time given to you,
His love endures forever.
Give thanks for your last breath of praise,
His love endures forever.
Give thanks for a voice to give praise,
His love endures forever.
Give thanks for your legs to dance in worship,
His love endures forever.
Give thanks for being with me always,
His love endures forever.

My Story

Well I've been encouraged to tell the story of what lead me to the Rock. I'm not going to say how I came to Christ because that's a little more personal. I say encouraged because my buddy's think it's pretty funny way God grabbed me. It's good example of answered prayer.

Because of finances, I had to choose a college with low tuition, Kennesaw State. Now most of my friends either got a athletic scholarship or went out of state, so I was left quite literally alone. Now I encountered God at a young age, but I never really committed to being a true follower. I was too afraid of being a religious nutcase so I never took a leap of faith, I always relied on my own strength and never in God. In the first week in my dorm I became aware that my relationship with God is in my hands alone.

So my first week in school I made a list and prayed over the following:1) Lord find me a church so that I may seek you, 2) that I may find a group of friends, 3) a Christian girlfriend. So I focused more on number 2 and 3 pursing them through facebook.com. I came across the profile of I girl and out of ego asked about her plans that Friday. She replied that she was already in a relationship, but she wanted me to come by and meet her friends. So I dressed up in a tight muscle shirt and jeans, and agreed to meet her at a friends house. I was greeted by JJ at the door and he had no clue who I was, he just asked, " You here for the meeting?" I replied," I guess so", I sat down in a circle of chairs and everyone around me pulled out a Bible and then I realized I was at a Bible study. This weight came off my shoulders that instant and a smile covered my face. I was convinced that God had lead me to this group, even though I was trying to hit on a girl, he used it to grab my heart. That year November 26, 2005 I was baptized and committed myself to serving the church. God was faithful to my request, I'm still waiting on 3, but that will come in time.

The verse to know is Philipians 1:6

On a Personal Note

WHAT AN AWESOME TIME we had this morning!...

After our confab at the Serene Bean this morning, The guys and I went to Family Christian Store to buy a pair of Apologetics Study Bible by Homan Publishing... I have never seen such excitement over God's Written Word the Bible in all my years. Kyle had been praying that God would provide him with the funds to buy the Bible and Today we were both able to get the Bible. God truly is awesome. I have never in my 20+ years of my christian faith felt so much excitement and hunger for the Word of God. God has been truly doing an amazing work in my life. If you want to learn more about how God is a part of my Personal Life, go check out my blog at www.jjsierra.com/livingthedash -- Part of the source of this excitement for God's Word comes from my Brother Kyle and Danny Garcia. What a blessing it is to have such friends who truly love the Lord with ALL their HEART, AND WITH ALL their SOUL, AND WITH ALL their MIND, AND WITH ALL their STRENGTH (Mark 12:30).

Anyway -- We are more then ever excited about coffeecupapologetics.com - We hope you can join us next time. Today we had the privilege of having Danny among us and he lead us through a solid study of what the Bible says on Salvation by Grace alone and not by works. We will be posting our study soon. We hope that as a result of the study you may come closer to an understanding of God's Love and Grace towards you and that you may believe in Jesus Christ as your personal Savior (if you have not done so already).

Andy, a good friend of ours also joined us today. It was great to be able to share that time with him also. I am on 5 hours of sleep, but I could continue to study God's Word all day. Once again, let me share with you Psalms 63 -- God, You are my God; I shall seek You earnestly; My soul thirsts for You, my flesh yearns for You... (Read Chapter)

May God Bless you today, and may he lead you to His loving arms and give you an understanding of His love, mercy and grace that is greater everyday (I can testify to that!).