For all the times I've been in Boston I've never ventured out to the beach where the ocean meets the land. I've only seen the Atlantic from a distance as I fly over it either coming or going from this city. Today, however, I rode the T (that's Boston talk for the subway system) out to Revere Beach and took in the wonder of the vast sea.
I definitely have a thing about the ocean - I don't necessarily like to swim in it but I love to walk beside it. I guess the reason behind that is because it reminds me of just how very big God is. The ocean goes on forever and God knows everything that's going on within it. There's no building to fence it in and no barrier to keep it out - it just flows on throughout the days.
I think my temptation is sometimes to think that God is just not capable of doing the things that I hope for when I stretch my hopes out from the safe little place I like to stand. I believe with all my heart that God can do anything in the lives of others but I struggle sometimes in believing the same of my life. A walk by the ocean reminds me every time that this God I serve is bigger than I can even begin to imagine and that the things that are important to me remain important to Him.
I'll never begin to understand how a God who made the ocean can look upon me and find me worthwhile but even as I hear the waves crash and look out all the way to an unmarred horizon, I know with all of my heart that He does. This God who made the vast sea cares about me enough to know the number of hairs on my head. This God is one who can exceed my wildest dreams and fulfill my greatest hopes. This God is the one who I gladly serve through all my days knowing that even as one small person, He gives me the ability to make a difference for Him. And that's why I love the ocean - it shows me how great my God is!
"I will praise you, O Lord, among the nations; I will sing of you among the peoples. For great is your love, reaching to the heavens; your faithfulness reaches to the skies. Be exalted, O God, above the heavens; let your glory be over all the earth." - Psalm 57:9-11
Monday, April 16, 2007
Sunday, April 15, 2007
Steps of the Saints
I spent the first part of Sunday morning standing in the cold, wet day handing out granola bars to some very surprised folks. I found more people willing to read the card and show appreciation for us being there today than I ever have before. Something about standing in the cold Boston wind makes people think twice about the reason behind you being there.
The second part of the morning was spent in the church service at Hope Fellowship. It was an amazing service with awesome worship and a great message from Curtis. However, the thing that really made me think was the reality that I was standing in the same spot where people have stood for almost 100 years worshipping the same God that they've worshipped over time. Through thick and thin this church on the corner has stayed strong, continuing to preach the Truth, and drawing worshippers to its pews. There is something about walking the path that you know others have travelled before that makes me stop and take notice. It greatly reminds me of the verse at the top of my blog which tells me of all those who witness what we do as we run this race. There are times when I'm just overwhelmed by the fact that my feet are able to grace the same wooden floors that the saints of the past have walked. It's such an encouragement to me to know that I'm running the race that so many others have run in the past and that as I press on I will be able to finish strong for the glory of God.
For those of you who have been to Boston, you know that the sanctuary here isn't spectacular; there are no stained glass windows or shiny wooden pews. The paint is peeling in places that it shouldn't and the floor is worn. However, in this little place, the spirit of God is felt as week after week, year after year, saints new and old gather to worship the one true God and seek His face.
"Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus." - Philippians 3:13-14
The second part of the morning was spent in the church service at Hope Fellowship. It was an amazing service with awesome worship and a great message from Curtis. However, the thing that really made me think was the reality that I was standing in the same spot where people have stood for almost 100 years worshipping the same God that they've worshipped over time. Through thick and thin this church on the corner has stayed strong, continuing to preach the Truth, and drawing worshippers to its pews. There is something about walking the path that you know others have travelled before that makes me stop and take notice. It greatly reminds me of the verse at the top of my blog which tells me of all those who witness what we do as we run this race. There are times when I'm just overwhelmed by the fact that my feet are able to grace the same wooden floors that the saints of the past have walked. It's such an encouragement to me to know that I'm running the race that so many others have run in the past and that as I press on I will be able to finish strong for the glory of God.
For those of you who have been to Boston, you know that the sanctuary here isn't spectacular; there are no stained glass windows or shiny wooden pews. The paint is peeling in places that it shouldn't and the floor is worn. However, in this little place, the spirit of God is felt as week after week, year after year, saints new and old gather to worship the one true God and seek His face.
"Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus." - Philippians 3:13-14
Saturday, April 14, 2007
Boston Tales
For those of you who might like to know more of what's happening on the Boston trip, you can check our web journal at:
http://www.prestonwoodyoungsingles.org/index.cfm/pageid/977/index.html
Have a wonderfully blessed day!
http://www.prestonwoodyoungsingles.org/index.cfm/pageid/977/index.html
Have a wonderfully blessed day!
Gift of Grace
I'm stealing a couple of minutes to let my loyal readers (those couple of you that there are :) ) know what's going on in Boston.
First, let me say that we sat on our plane on the ground for almost as long as we were in the air! However, God was awesome and let the bad weather that was plaguing the Northeast ease up enough for us to arrive safely. Since then things have been the typical whirlwind of activity with servant evangelism in the morning to Boston tours in the afternoons to game night this evening. It's been a wonderful trek to meet up with old friends and meet new people!
One story that I'd like to share with you occured while we were handing out granola bars to the rush hour crowd yesterday morning. Most people that you approach with a bar will accept it and carry on with their lives. However, one person's reaction stuck in my head more than most. I went to hand her a granola bar and she asked me to repeat what I'd told her. I said again that it was a free granola bar and then she grabbed it. It was her statement though that stuck with me and that was when she said, "There's not much in life that's free anymore."
I guess the reason that it made an impact is because she is absolutely right, there isn't a whole lot that you get for free. Almost everything in the world has a cost associated with it, whether its financial or physical or mental. This made me remember that what we're doing here in Boston by reaching out to people with nothing more than a kind word and a token granola bar makes an impact. We may not all be called to occupy a pulpit or serve as missionaries in Africa but we can make a huge difference to a world that doesn't see free things very often.
Of course, the other reason that I have mulled over her statement for the last day is because there is a free gift and it's free to everyone who might ask for it. That gift is the salvation that we can find when we place our trust in the Lord and begin to seek after Him. The gift of salvation is just that, a gift. One that we can do nothing to deserve and there's nothing that we can repay. We only have the choice to accept it for what it is and move on with our lives going in a different direction or we can leave it as it is and continue on in the same old paths. It's my prayer for all of you today that you'll remember the free gift that's available to you and those you know and seek after it with all your hearts!
Thank you for your prayers for Boston - they are appreciated more than you'll ever know!
"For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast." - Ephesians 2:8-9
First, let me say that we sat on our plane on the ground for almost as long as we were in the air! However, God was awesome and let the bad weather that was plaguing the Northeast ease up enough for us to arrive safely. Since then things have been the typical whirlwind of activity with servant evangelism in the morning to Boston tours in the afternoons to game night this evening. It's been a wonderful trek to meet up with old friends and meet new people!
One story that I'd like to share with you occured while we were handing out granola bars to the rush hour crowd yesterday morning. Most people that you approach with a bar will accept it and carry on with their lives. However, one person's reaction stuck in my head more than most. I went to hand her a granola bar and she asked me to repeat what I'd told her. I said again that it was a free granola bar and then she grabbed it. It was her statement though that stuck with me and that was when she said, "There's not much in life that's free anymore."
I guess the reason that it made an impact is because she is absolutely right, there isn't a whole lot that you get for free. Almost everything in the world has a cost associated with it, whether its financial or physical or mental. This made me remember that what we're doing here in Boston by reaching out to people with nothing more than a kind word and a token granola bar makes an impact. We may not all be called to occupy a pulpit or serve as missionaries in Africa but we can make a huge difference to a world that doesn't see free things very often.
Of course, the other reason that I have mulled over her statement for the last day is because there is a free gift and it's free to everyone who might ask for it. That gift is the salvation that we can find when we place our trust in the Lord and begin to seek after Him. The gift of salvation is just that, a gift. One that we can do nothing to deserve and there's nothing that we can repay. We only have the choice to accept it for what it is and move on with our lives going in a different direction or we can leave it as it is and continue on in the same old paths. It's my prayer for all of you today that you'll remember the free gift that's available to you and those you know and seek after it with all your hearts!
Thank you for your prayers for Boston - they are appreciated more than you'll ever know!
"For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast." - Ephesians 2:8-9
Wednesday, April 11, 2007
Boston Bound
Tomorrow I set off to spend a bit of time in wonderful Boston, Massachusetts! This will be the third time I've traveled there and it gets under my skin a bit more each time. The reason I've gone each time is to partner with a small church up there, Hope Fellowship, and help them out with whatever ministry they have going on at the moment.
This time we'll be working on reaching out to the community through handing out granola bars during rush hour, spending time with the college students, helping somehow with the Boston Marathon, and scoping out possible sites for the church to move to in the future. The thing about this trip though is that one can never know exactly how everything is going to happen - we have a tentative plan but I love the fact that everything is kind of free-flowing. We might switch things around or skip over things or do something completely different than we've ever done before. The whole trip just reminds me that in my life things are best experienced just by going with the flow and not fighting the direction things are moving. It's led to some great experiences in Boston in the past and I have no reason to expect this trip to be any different.
So, as I finish packing everything into my subway-friendly suitcase and get ready to fly four hours to the east, I'll just ask that you pray for our team as we go. Pray that we would have open hearts for the people of Boston, that we would meet them where they are and truly share the love of God with them in any way that we can. Pray for safety and guidance and health. Pray for unity and that God would work in mighty ways among our team and those that we come in contact with. Finally, pray for Hope Fellowship and the powerful work that they're doing up there as they seek to reach out and truly be God's hands and feet in a world where the Gospel is not popular and the people often feel that they don't need the Lord.
Above all else, our team covets your prayers as we go only to serve the Lord and seek to make His name known and we know that prayer is the requirement for success there. Thanks for joining us in prayer! All glory to God for what He will do!
"[I]f my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land." - 2 Chronicles 7:14
This time we'll be working on reaching out to the community through handing out granola bars during rush hour, spending time with the college students, helping somehow with the Boston Marathon, and scoping out possible sites for the church to move to in the future. The thing about this trip though is that one can never know exactly how everything is going to happen - we have a tentative plan but I love the fact that everything is kind of free-flowing. We might switch things around or skip over things or do something completely different than we've ever done before. The whole trip just reminds me that in my life things are best experienced just by going with the flow and not fighting the direction things are moving. It's led to some great experiences in Boston in the past and I have no reason to expect this trip to be any different.
So, as I finish packing everything into my subway-friendly suitcase and get ready to fly four hours to the east, I'll just ask that you pray for our team as we go. Pray that we would have open hearts for the people of Boston, that we would meet them where they are and truly share the love of God with them in any way that we can. Pray for safety and guidance and health. Pray for unity and that God would work in mighty ways among our team and those that we come in contact with. Finally, pray for Hope Fellowship and the powerful work that they're doing up there as they seek to reach out and truly be God's hands and feet in a world where the Gospel is not popular and the people often feel that they don't need the Lord.
Above all else, our team covets your prayers as we go only to serve the Lord and seek to make His name known and we know that prayer is the requirement for success there. Thanks for joining us in prayer! All glory to God for what He will do!
"[I]f my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land." - 2 Chronicles 7:14
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