I experienced some sweet fellowship with other believers in the past few days. It was just a glimpse of what I think God intends for all Christ followers.
On Friday, I hung out with my cousin and his girlfriend listening to some bands play for a CD release and a fundraiser concert for a mission trip to Haiti. I didn't necessarily experience fellowship here, but I observed it. I saw Christians from, what I'm assuming are, different backgrounds worship and fellowship together. It was an encouragement to me not only to see the common bond present among then but also to see people pursuing Christ in a different city.
On Sunday, I went to the college group at my church. Besides a couple of people, we all attend different universities. It was wonderful to see people from different schools come together to study the scripture and worship. Now, most of us attend the same church, so we already have that bond together. But, I see how God can go beyond that.
This is where I want to see not only the college group at my church but also believers in Grand Rapids to grow. I want to see not only different schools come together but also different church backgrounds and denominations. I challenge you to imagine a community where no walls and boundaries are present between churches that bear different names. Imagine if no dissension was amongst Christians because our hearts were so enthralled and captivated with Christ that minuscule differences would not create the division that is currently present.
These things and so much are what I see, what I dream about, and what I hope and pray for the future. This is what keeps me awake at night and puts a fire in my bones.
God has been, is, and will always be moving and His Name will be glorified.
Philippians 2:1-3
"Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value other above yourselves."
Monday, March 7, 2011
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Interactions with Calvin College
In the past week and a half, I've had a few intentional interactions with students and staff at Calvin College. Last Friday I met with a gentleman from the admissions office, whose named I received through a series of connections. While he gave me a brief tour of the campus I shared with him my desire to unite the Christians in Grand Rapids and West Michigan.
He was very polite as I explained my vague and currently unguided ideas and thoughts, but in the end I clearly saw one reaction, hesitation. I'm not sure where this hesitation lies and where it originated, but I am praying that God will work in the hearts of those he wants to use to start this uniting process. I'll be honest, when I got to my car after we talked for only half an hour I was deflated. I had thought a door was slowly and politely shut in my face. That next day Satan was more than happy to chatter those words in my mind all day.
However, after what I experience tonight I think there is at least a brick if not more in that door. Calvin has a Sunday night chapel called Loft that is provided for students and anyone else interested in coming. Myself and two other friends decided to check it and see what it was like. Though Calvin's service was more traditional than Cornerstone's chapels usually are, I thoroughly enjoyed watching people worship Christ in a different way than I am accustomed to. Their chaplain, who's a women (woot woot), gave a powerful and thought-provoking message about the faith of the centurion and who our authority will be, Jesus or the things of this world.
The thought came to mt mind while she spoke about how so much disunity is created based upon worship or teaching (not referencing the recent Rob Bell frenzy). When we began worship and when the chaplain went up to speak, I felt this pretension rise up in me, almost like I changed from participator to observer. As if, because I didn't go to Calvin, the words of the chaplain didn't apply to me. Boy was I wrong, she challenged me to evaluate how and when I approach and trust God.
Do I only trust God when he fixes the smaller things in my life or do I go to him with the one thing that matters most to me in my life? The centurion, according to Jesus, had more faith than anyone in Israel. Do I have faith like the centurion? Do I go to Christ with the one thing I wish to cling to most?
God is moving, changing hearts and lives, challenging the complacent and the passionate, and His Name will be Glorified.
He was very polite as I explained my vague and currently unguided ideas and thoughts, but in the end I clearly saw one reaction, hesitation. I'm not sure where this hesitation lies and where it originated, but I am praying that God will work in the hearts of those he wants to use to start this uniting process. I'll be honest, when I got to my car after we talked for only half an hour I was deflated. I had thought a door was slowly and politely shut in my face. That next day Satan was more than happy to chatter those words in my mind all day.
However, after what I experience tonight I think there is at least a brick if not more in that door. Calvin has a Sunday night chapel called Loft that is provided for students and anyone else interested in coming. Myself and two other friends decided to check it and see what it was like. Though Calvin's service was more traditional than Cornerstone's chapels usually are, I thoroughly enjoyed watching people worship Christ in a different way than I am accustomed to. Their chaplain, who's a women (woot woot), gave a powerful and thought-provoking message about the faith of the centurion and who our authority will be, Jesus or the things of this world.
The thought came to mt mind while she spoke about how so much disunity is created based upon worship or teaching (not referencing the recent Rob Bell frenzy). When we began worship and when the chaplain went up to speak, I felt this pretension rise up in me, almost like I changed from participator to observer. As if, because I didn't go to Calvin, the words of the chaplain didn't apply to me. Boy was I wrong, she challenged me to evaluate how and when I approach and trust God.
Do I only trust God when he fixes the smaller things in my life or do I go to him with the one thing that matters most to me in my life? The centurion, according to Jesus, had more faith than anyone in Israel. Do I have faith like the centurion? Do I go to Christ with the one thing I wish to cling to most?
God is moving, changing hearts and lives, challenging the complacent and the passionate, and His Name will be Glorified.
Sunday, February 20, 2011
Remodeling and Renaming
Welcome back to blogger world for me! It's been a long 7 months without a post, but I've been starting my first year at college and adjusting to all the blessings and challenges that accompany it. I've done some remodeling to the blog, giving it a new name and such to fit its new purpose.
Let me explain what I'll be writing about for the next few months, or even the new few years. Since I've began at Cornerstone University, in Grand Rapids, MI, I've noticed an incomplete picture of the body of Christ among the students at the Christian universities in the Grand Rapids, West Michigan area. Sure, we compete against each other in athletic events, but outside of that I see no efforts from the schools to unite us together as one body of Christ. I want to change that. I want students from Calvin, Kuyper, Aquinas, Hope, Cornerstone, and others to come together as one body of believers to make God's name great. I want to see us grow in relationship to Christ together, serve together, sacrifice together, and give glory to God together.
As of right now, I have no idea what that may look like and where God is leading, but I am trusting that he will do something radical among the Christian universities in this area. I ask that you would be in prayer for this, that people's names and faces would not be the forefront of this movement, but rather the name of God. Also, that hearts and lives would be changed forever.
If you are a student in the Grand Rapids, West Michigan area, I strongly urge you to commit this to prayer and ask God what part he may have for you in this. God has great things planned for this generation.
"They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved." Acts 2:42-47
Let me explain what I'll be writing about for the next few months, or even the new few years. Since I've began at Cornerstone University, in Grand Rapids, MI, I've noticed an incomplete picture of the body of Christ among the students at the Christian universities in the Grand Rapids, West Michigan area. Sure, we compete against each other in athletic events, but outside of that I see no efforts from the schools to unite us together as one body of Christ. I want to change that. I want students from Calvin, Kuyper, Aquinas, Hope, Cornerstone, and others to come together as one body of believers to make God's name great. I want to see us grow in relationship to Christ together, serve together, sacrifice together, and give glory to God together.
As of right now, I have no idea what that may look like and where God is leading, but I am trusting that he will do something radical among the Christian universities in this area. I ask that you would be in prayer for this, that people's names and faces would not be the forefront of this movement, but rather the name of God. Also, that hearts and lives would be changed forever.
If you are a student in the Grand Rapids, West Michigan area, I strongly urge you to commit this to prayer and ask God what part he may have for you in this. God has great things planned for this generation.
"They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved." Acts 2:42-47
Friday, August 27, 2010
Feeding our Community and the World
In the last two weeks I have had the opportunity to serve in two events which provided food for the people in Hamilton County and the country of Haiti.
Monday, August 16th, Fred Knoll and volunteers from White River drove to Christ Community Church in Fishers to unpack a semi-truck full of food donated from LeSEA Global to three local food pantries. I wish I had a picture of all the volunteers and the sheer delight on their faces as they say pallet after pallet of food was removed from this semi. One of the White River volunteers teared up as she shared how much of a blessing this food was. She expressed that the shelves at the pantry were so empty and she just didn't know where more food was going to come from. God more than provided for the pantry that week, as he does each and every week.
This is just one story of many that comes from the food pantry. This is now my one minute plug for the food pantry. Semi-trucks of food don't come every week, but family just like mine and yours go to the grocery store every week. What if for every dollar you spend at the grocery story, purchase 10% more for food to donate to the pantry. Consider it, ask God about it. He says in Malachi 3:10 "Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this..."
The second event I was able to be apart was just last Sunday. The Jr. High and Sr. High, instead of our normal Sunday morning service, banded together to worship with our hand to pack over 10,000 meals for children in Haiti. I could write all day about how amazing it was to see all the youth sacrifice their Sunday morning for kids across the world that they don't know, but I'll let the pictures tell the story:
Jr. High and Sr. High working at the tables where they filled the bags with food. Did I mention that Jr. High students alone made 7,000 meals 1st service? We had to stop since we ran out of food. Image if they brought enough food for 30,000 meals!
Before filling the bags with food, we got to learn a little bit about LeSEA Global and the history of Haiti.
Some of the highschoolers working hard....or hardly working :)
Events like these you never forget. I'm sure the youth ministries will be doing this again, and when that happens, check Justin Fluhr's blog for his side of the story.
Question for my readers, if there are any...I'm still looking for a new name for this lovely blog since I finished my CIY challenge. Any suggestions?
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
The Finish Line
The race is done. The marathon is complete. Today, I finished reading the Bible through in a year. Yet, somehow I don't feel any different. It's like when you turn another year older, or even when you reach an important age like 18 or 21, you're still the same person as the day before.
Just because I read Malachi and Revelation 22 today, makes me no different than yesterday. However, I will say this; I am different than I was a year ago. Taking on this CIY challenge and being on this incredible journey has changed me. It has changed my view of not only the Bible, but of God, Jesus Christ, and the church. I fell in love with reading the Bible in the last 365 days. For those who have been reading my blog throughout the last year, I praise you for you patience during my occasional rants and tirades and I hope you've enjoyed, or at least got a few laughs from, my blog. In honor of completing my challenge, 66 Book in 365, I thought I'd run through a list of my favorite, and not so favorite, moments. (Cue video collage music, now)
Just because I read Malachi and Revelation 22 today, makes me no different than yesterday. However, I will say this; I am different than I was a year ago. Taking on this CIY challenge and being on this incredible journey has changed me. It has changed my view of not only the Bible, but of God, Jesus Christ, and the church. I fell in love with reading the Bible in the last 365 days. For those who have been reading my blog throughout the last year, I praise you for you patience during my occasional rants and tirades and I hope you've enjoyed, or at least got a few laughs from, my blog. In honor of completing my challenge, 66 Book in 365, I thought I'd run through a list of my favorite, and not so favorite, moments. (Cue video collage music, now)
- August began quite well in the gospels and Genesis/Exodus (I had no idea what was coming later on in the Pentateuch)
- Leviticus is most likely the driest book in the Bible, ick.
- In October, I got extremely behind and ended up reading all of Deuteronomy in one day.
- Romans was possibly my favorite book in the NT, and I cannot wait to read it today
- Going through the Kings, Samuel's, and Chronicles was an amazing history lesson of the Israelites
- God brought the book of Psalms and Proverbs to my reading schedule just at the time in my life that I needed encouraging reading
- With spring came lovely flowers, green trees, and the prophets. Now, some of the books were interesting reading, while others were like eating a brick
- When summer came, I knew I'd be done with my challenge soon, soon enough to start counting the days
- In July, I went to camp and got behind a week on my schedule, which was slightly stressing, but I finished. Here I am 365 days, with the Bible under my belt.
It's been a wonderful, stretching, hard, rewarding, frustrating, and enlightening year in God's word. The ways that God moved, even a thousand blogs cannot adequately describe. Like it says in John 21:25:
"Jesus did many other things as well. If every one of them were written down, I suppose that even the whole world would not have room for the books that would be written."
Though it's sad to think that this is my last post about my CIY challenge, this blog will stay. It's name and purpose may change a bit, but I will still be writing about my Savior and the things He does.
Friday, July 16, 2010
Bookstore Story
I waved my white flag, I claimed defeat, Ezekiel had gotten the best of me. Yet, from the distance, a light began to shine, a glorious beautiful light, chapter 48 verse 35 of Ezekiel. Yes, the last verse of the whole book. The other day, I read the final verse and I cannot tell you how excited I was to be finished with that book.
Yes, I understand it's the Word of God, and yes I should probably be a little more respectful with my words, BUT, right now I'm not. Someday, I hope to understand the meaning and purpose behind that book, but right now I have no desire to think about Ezekiel any longer.
Okay, the complaining portion of my blog is over. Today, 66in365 will be featuring a very special story time about how awesome God is:
This last week, my mother, a friend, and myself went to visit the school I will be attending in the fall(Cornerstone University). While we were driving around the Grand Rapids area, we decided to stop into a Christian book store to look around while I filled out an application.
After giving the app. to the young gal behind the counter, we started talking. She graduated from Cornerstone last year, and was super excited to know that I was attending there. She asked if I had found a church yet, and when I said 'no', she got this big ol' smile on her face. She began telling me about her church and the college ministry it has in the downtown of Grand Rapids. That really perked my interest, but here's where God just blew my mind.
I said I really want to find a church where I can get involved in their Jr. High. Believe it or not, they need youth sponsors at their church, and this gal who works at the bookstore also works part-time for the youth pastor! All I can see is God in this picture. The timing, the people, the circumstances, everything! It was all God!
God always provides. In every need, He always provides. God is reminding me of that truth in multiples areas of my life right now.
So, readers, where has God been providing for you lately?
What's your 'bookstore' story?
Yes, I understand it's the Word of God, and yes I should probably be a little more respectful with my words, BUT, right now I'm not. Someday, I hope to understand the meaning and purpose behind that book, but right now I have no desire to think about Ezekiel any longer.
Okay, the complaining portion of my blog is over. Today, 66in365 will be featuring a very special story time about how awesome God is:
This last week, my mother, a friend, and myself went to visit the school I will be attending in the fall(Cornerstone University). While we were driving around the Grand Rapids area, we decided to stop into a Christian book store to look around while I filled out an application.
After giving the app. to the young gal behind the counter, we started talking. She graduated from Cornerstone last year, and was super excited to know that I was attending there. She asked if I had found a church yet, and when I said 'no', she got this big ol' smile on her face. She began telling me about her church and the college ministry it has in the downtown of Grand Rapids. That really perked my interest, but here's where God just blew my mind.
I said I really want to find a church where I can get involved in their Jr. High. Believe it or not, they need youth sponsors at their church, and this gal who works at the bookstore also works part-time for the youth pastor! All I can see is God in this picture. The timing, the people, the circumstances, everything! It was all God!
God always provides. In every need, He always provides. God is reminding me of that truth in multiples areas of my life right now.
So, readers, where has God been providing for you lately?
What's your 'bookstore' story?
Thursday, July 1, 2010
35 Days....
It's July!!! which is an exciting month for me. In 3 days I'm leaving to be a counselor at church camp for middle schoolers for a week. Faith, Hope, & Love Week (a local mission trip with other churches) is in 3 1/2 weeks. Fellow students are leaving for CIY in 2 1/2 weeks. And lastly, it is my last full month of my CIY Challenge. In 35 days, I will have read the entire Bible in a year. It's excited to say, and even more exciting to think about.
I believe I should start a countdown or something until I finish. Well, this is a short post, but I thought I'd let ya'll know where I'm at with this challenge. Even though Ezekiel is most likely the driest and toughest book to read (I'm more willing to read Revelation right now that Ezekiel), I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. God's word is truly amazing.
So readers, what have you been reading in God's Word lately?
Where has his spirit been leading you in the scriptures?
I believe I should start a countdown or something until I finish. Well, this is a short post, but I thought I'd let ya'll know where I'm at with this challenge. Even though Ezekiel is most likely the driest and toughest book to read (I'm more willing to read Revelation right now that Ezekiel), I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. God's word is truly amazing.
So readers, what have you been reading in God's Word lately?
Where has his spirit been leading you in the scriptures?
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