God is good.

I've had a lot of frustrating and joyful moments in the past month or so since my last post.  A month ago I didn't know if I'd ever get enough funds to make it to Houston.  I had many of my wonderful friends encourage me and support me in the setback I was experiencing, but there was one thing I kept hearing in their voices, and it's something I've always know deep down.

God is good.

And all of the sudden money started coming in.  I don't know if it's that people realized I was short or what, but money started coming in.  Then the missions committee at Westark found some more money that they could give me.  Just a few nights ago, I sat in the living room of an amazing young family listening to their ideas to raise more funds for my work at Impact, and that they want to give me 200 a month.  Today I sit across from my own flesh and blood, who intend to support me as well. 

So today on this Christmas Eve, I anticipate the birth of the Christ, the same Christ who calls me to be like him in this world.  And I remember that God is good.

Grace and Peace to you all.

Quick the Vampires are Coming!

       This past weekend Dan Bouchelle from the Missions Resource Network guest spoke at Westark.  I really enjoyed what he had to say, especially his Parasite vs. Bone marrow analogy about how missions is viewed by churches. 
      
       He used the idea of parasites feeding off a body, I'll use the idea of vampires, because I need to be hip since I work with teenagers.  Now vampires are invited in just like missionaries sometimes are, and in some places are probably treated like such.  Almost as if the missionaries suck away from blood or life from the church, and then go out and somehow go out and take life to non believers?  That doesn't make a lot of sense.  Bloodsuckers just kill period.

       Now, Dan may have blew some minds on Sunday, when he continued his metaphor by talking about bone marrow.  I know my ears perked up when I heard him say bone marrow.  Partly because it's a strange phrase, and that dislodged bone marrow once put me in a coma and almost killed me.  If that last sentence is the first time you've heard of bone marrow, I'd like to add that it's not supposed to kill you like vampires.  Bone marrow is the stuff that produces more red blood cells which keep you alive.  In the same way, missionaries like myself are sent out to produce life and goodness in the places that we go.  We carry the resurrection of Jesus that has shaped our lives so much out to the places we go.  In fact, all the church is supposed be like bone marrow, otherwise how will it grow?  

      

Runaway Fields, Oxen, and Brides

        I've just returned from a week of recruiting interns for our upcoming summer.  We traveled to Searcy, then St. Louis, and then finished off in Oklahoma City.  Every time I go off to recruit I get excited because I get to talk to people about Impact, and try to get them to come intern for a summer.  Sometimes people are easily convinced, and it makes my job easy, and then they come intern.  Other times people listen to our spill about Impact, and take some information, and leave and never come back. 

       There is a third group I often encounter and it is a fascinating group to deal with.  This group doesn't ignore me, or just take my free stuff and leave.  This group listens about Impact, and sees that there is something good and holy happening in Houston.  Yet they start coming up with different reasons to not come and intern.  The two most popular excuses being, "I need to take classes," or "I need to work this summer."  Both of which make me want to vomit.  I've done both of those things, and they're horrible.  There's also the favorite church answer, "I'll pray about it."  This frustrates me quite a lot, because I don't think you need to pray about joining in what God is doing.  You may need to decide about where you should join God's work. 

       It makes me think of this story in Luke 14, where someone says "Blessed is the one who will eat at the feast in the Kingdom of God," to Jesus.  Jesus goes on and tells of a master who is having a great banquet and invites many guests.  When the servant is sent out to tell the guests everything is ready, they begin to make excuses.  The first says I just bought a field and I must go see it.  As if the field is going somewhere.  The second says I just bought some oxen and I need to try them out.  What?  Shouldn't you try them out before you buy them?  The third says, I just got married.  Which may be the most reasonable excuse given.  Well the master doesn't like it and tells the servant to bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame. 

      It makes me think of this one instance while recruiting last week.  Josef and I were talking to this kid about interning, and once he had heard enough and seem interested, he was leaving.  As he left we offered him a shirt. His response was, "I need it in a small."  Which was weird since he was about my size, and me and Josef shared a look that said, what a weirdo. 

      Turns out, this kid is the only one who returned an application that day.  Which humbled me, and got me to thinking about Luke 14.  Often times the smart kids, talented bible majors or youth ministry majors get invited and pushed towards our "feast" at Impact.  But those guys usually go somewhere that they'll get paid, so I'll take the guys who are a little weird, because everyone that works at Impact has to be a little weird.  To all the weirdos out there like me, please come intern, even if you wear tight shirts.  Because you'll probably be really good.   

Are We Zombies?

       I don't really like zombies, but I'm often times intrigued by our American culture's fascination with zombie movies.  I wonder if it's because we fear that we're becoming something that resembles a zombie.  Maybe we are a little like zombies in that all we do is try to satisfy our need to consume relentlessly, whether that be food, sex, things, money, or an array of other things.  The other part of it is that zombies are manifestations of our apcolyptic fears.  Hollywood knows that we feel vulnerable in a time where terrorism, war, and disease are nightly news stories.  We don't want to become zombies, we want to be alive and free to do whatever we want!  Sometimes I feel that our worship has turned us into zombies, going through the motions and giving our time to God only on Sundays.

     Last weekend I went with the Lions for Christ on their Fall Retreat to Mount Sequoyah in Fayetteville.  The theme of the retreat was centered around this question, "What does it mean to be a resurrected people?"  Which is a intriguing question to me, because I'm not exactly sure what it means.  My boss from Impact, Dennis, was the speaker and he did a great job of speaking about and presenting discussions about this idea.

        My take on this thought is that we are a people who have entered into the resurrection with Jesus, and because of that we're supposed to live differently.  I had somewhat of an epiphany on this retreat, when we discussed a few of these questions and ideas.  The first being a combination of two questions, "How do we as resurrected people, treat non-resurrected people, and resurrected people?"  The other being a look at the the text from Isaiah 58, seen below.

¹ "Shout it aloud, do not hold back.
       Raise your voice like a trumpet.
       Declare to my people their rebellion
       and to the house of Jacob their sins.
 ² For day after day they seek me out;
       they seem eager to know my ways,
       as if they were a nation that does what is right
       and has not forsaken the commands of its God.
       They ask me for just decisions
       and seem eager for God to come near them.
 ³ 'Why have we fasted,' they say,
       'and you have not seen it?
       Why have we humbled ourselves,
       and you have not noticed?'
       "Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please
       and exploit all your workers.
 ⁴ Your fasting ends in quarreling and strife,
       and in striking each other with wicked fists.
       You cannot fast as you do today
       and expect your voice to be heard on high.
 ⁵ Is this the kind of fast I have chosen,
       only a day for a man to humble himself?
       Is it only for bowing one's head like a reed
       and for lying on sackcloth and ashes?
       Is that what you call a fast,
       a day acceptable to the LORD ?
 ⁶ "Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:
       to loose the chains of injustice
       and untie the cords of the yoke,
       to set the oppressed free
       and break every yoke?
 ⁷ Is it not to share your food with the hungry
       and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—
       when you see the naked, to clothe him,
       and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?
 ⁸ Then your light will break forth like the dawn,
       and your healing will quickly appear;
       then your righteousness will go before you,
       and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard.
 ⁹ Then you will call, and the LORD will answer;
       you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.
       "If you do away with the yoke of oppression,
       with the pointing finger and malicious talk,
 ¹⁰ and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry
       and satisfy the needs of the oppressed,
       then your light will rise in the darkness,
       and your night will become like the noonday.
 ¹¹ The LORD will guide you always;
       he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land
       and will strengthen your frame.
       You will be like a well-watered garden,
       like a spring whose waters never fail.
  
 When I think about how to treat resurrected and non-resurrected people, and Isaiah 58, I see the same answer in each situation.  My answer is that mercy trumps judgment.

Mercy trumps judgment when the wicked prosper.

Mercy trumps judgment when my faith is slandered.

Mercy trumps judgment when people take advantage of my kindness.

Mercy trumps judgment when people don't like the way I worship.

Mercy trumps judgment when when I see a homeless alcoholic.

Mercy trumps judgment when I see the hungry and hopeless.

Mercy trumps judgment.
      
       When we encounter people in darkness and their death in this world, it may not always be good, yet we still bring the resurrection which is mercy to them.  In our communities of resurrected people, when strife and differences arise, grace will bring us together and heal, not judgment.  When we choose to take care of the oppressed and the stranger, instead of pushing away, and judging, our worship becomes true as we see in Isaiah 58.  In some ways our worship is resurrected, brought from death to life, and from darkness to light.  When all these things happen our lights will rise in the darkness, and our night will shine like the noonday.

Between two trees

      One of the coolest things I've noticed about the bible is that it begins and ends with trees.  In Genesis, we find a lot of events surrounding the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil.  In Revelation, we are told that those whose robes are washed, are going commune around the Tree of Life.  So in some way we live between these two trees, and I like that.  Not just because I like trees, and they're fun to climb, but because it means that it all things are going to be restored to how they were. 
  
      There are these televangelists I used to see on Daystar sometimes, talking about the end of the world, and how it's all going down.  I don't really care about how close we are getting to the Tree of Life, or how we'll end up there.  I'm more with how many people we can get to that point.  I have a real existential angst about a lot of things in life, I don't really want to make money, and I don't get excited about a lot of things that people do.  I think the only thing that matters is bringing more and more people into the kingdom of God.  In the end, it's really all that's going to matter. 

      I think we should all have an eschatological vision that excites us for heaven, and drives us to bring more and more people along for the ride. In Matthew 19, Jesus speaks about renewing all things, and sometimes that means leaving everything you know, and all your family, because as he says, it's worth it.  It's too bad we don't do this more, I wonder what it would be like if we did sell all our possessions and just follow Jesus.  If we redacted the bible I'm not sure we wouldn't start with that passage. 


Anywho, in my opinion, there's very little that matters in relation to what we do between these two trees, unless it expands the kingdom of God.  I'm excited to speak a bit about the renewal of all things tomorrow when I preach about Jonah. 

What is Impact?

     Over the past month or so while fundraising, I've been asked this question in various forms.  I honestly don't believe I can describe in words what Impact is like.  To really know you would have to come see for yourself, but I'll attempt anyway. 

     Impact is a place where the hungry are fed and the naked are clothed.  Our distribution center at Impact serves as a place where thousands of people can come and receive food and clothes.  David, who takes care of everything there, is a man who seeks to live out what Jesus said in Matthew 25, and push me to be the same way. 

     Impact is a place where the homeless can feel at home.  Everyday of the week, Impact's kitchen is open and many of our homeless, or outdoorsmen, as we call them, come and fed.  Along with food, they have the opportunity to shower and wash clothes.  They can also receive their mail at the church, and can get help in finding a job and a way off of the streets. 

     Impact is a place where people of all races and languages come to worship.  Any given Sunday you can people from all walks of life at Impact.  From doctors and lawyers to abused and neglected children, all come to worship the same God, and to share a meal together afterwards. 

     Impact is a place where the unloved are loved.  Whether it be a neglected child from a horrible situation, or a wheelchair bound elderly individual stuck in a nursing home, both are cared for and loved at Impact.  Many of our ministers go to assisted living and nursing homes every week, to seek out the forgotten children of God in these places.  Just as we as a youth team, seek to love our kids and help them grow as people, and equip them to love others as Jesus loved them. 
    
     Impact is the place that I have been called.  I've been called to work with the youth, specifically the high school, and to show them more about the reality and way of Christ.  Honestly, no matter how many cool trips, lessons, and small groups I do they probably will not grow and learn from what I do, nearly as much as I will grow and learn from being in their presence.


"When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne.  Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.  And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left.  Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.  For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.'  Then the righteous will answer him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink?  And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you?  And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?'  And the King will answer them, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.'
Matthew 25:31-40

Now they were bringing even infants to him that he might touch them. And when the disciples saw it, they rebuked them. But Jesus called them to him, saying,  "Let the children come to me, and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God.  Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it."
Luke 18:15-17

My journey to Impact...

Five years or so ago, I decided to stick around Fort Smith and attend the University of Arkansas-Fort Smith.  Partly for the campus ministry that I knew would grow, but also because it was free.  That spring our new campus minister Shane Hughes took us to a campus ministry conference at Oklahoma State University.  There I met my future boss and youth director Dennis, who told me all about interning at Impact during the summer.  My first summer in college I was forced to stay and take summer classes, which was dismal and boring.

Another year passed, and I knew I needed to something related to ministry just because I'd always considered doing some sort of ministry.  Spring Break that year, we went to Abilene on a Spring Break Campaign to work with the New Life Church in Abilene.  New Life is a church that is similar to Impact, and working with them only increased my excitement for the summer. I couldn't wait to get the summer started after that trip.

My first summer at Impact I worked with middle school, which made me hesitant at first knowing that middle schoolers were impossible.  We got to take the kids to New Mexico to work with a church, and to one of my favorite places, Camp of the Hills.  In the weeks we were in town, we spent time doing small groups, service projects, attending area wide youth events, and other fun things around town.  It was a rewarding and challenging summer, I had moments of joy when a kid would just be like Jesus standing in front of me.  Other times, I would have to break up a fight, or discover one of my kids was pregnant.

The past two summers, I have worked with our high school group at Impact.  Which is the group I will primarily working with full-time in the future.  In the summers, we take our kids to camps like Camp of the Hills, Wilderness Trek in Colorado, and to work with another inner city church in Tulsa.  We do many service projects and small groups throughout the weeks that we are in Houston.  Our high school is such a fun group to be with, and a group that serves and loves each other deeply, and I am blessed to be a part of it.

I am excited to continue working with my kids at Impact, and showing them more and more about Jesus and what it means to be a Christian in the world they live in.  In doing this I know that I will be the one who discovers Jesus probably more than they will.  I have seen and will continue to see Jesus in their eyes and in the hearts.

Grace and Peace,

John