Driving a Forklift with a Master’s Degree

That’s right. I have a Master’s and I’m driving a forklift. Well at my part-time job that supplements my missions gig. But I absolutely put the suc in success, as Joel put it, at driving a forklift. Can missionaries say suc (suck)? I nearly knocked a whole rack of pallets down today.

I’ve known this for a while, but my job in the warehouse painfully seems to confirm it daily. I am fairly far below average when it comes to mechanical intelligence. I was always picked 1st or second on the playground when my buds from the neighborhood scrounged up a football game. But if we were to have some sort of competition involving driving forklifts or mechanical dealings, I’m sure I would be picked last.

My job has not been great for my personal pride. But the Lord works in mysterious ways. Maybe that’s His plan. Maybe I needed to be knocked down a notch or two. I mean I lead teams of Doctors and professionals to India and oversee church plants and pastors.

Positives: Whatever His plan, He’s provided a good and flexible job for me with decent pay. And I’ve picked up a few things here or there that I wouldn’t have otherwise. I admire the guys’ skills at work. I work with some great guys that aren’t just looking after themselves. I have a great boss in Mark Green and well, I think its good that I’ve been humbled a bit.

The Lord works in mysterious ways.

Stories from the Mission Field: It Really Works!

Of course I believe in what I’ve been doing these past three years with e3 (that is church planting in India if you didn’t know yet): sharing the love of Jesus with those who’d never even heard of Him, gathering those new believers together to plant fresh new churches where they can grow and finding persons of peace in the villages (Luke 10:4-8) to lead these new gatherings. Its biblical. Its excellent strategy. But does it work?

The answer is of course, yes! At least I always know that in my head where I’ve been trained heavily in theology and bible. But sometimes you have to experience the reality before it goes from your head to your heart. And that’s why foreign mission trips are an excellent way for God to get those “do right biblical ideas” into your heart. They provide excellent environments to not only get away from our tvs, air conditioned cages and instant meal machines, but also opportunities for us to be dependent on God in ways that seem difficult to depend on Him here in the west. When you’re out in the field talking to strangers, who might not only reject your message, but actually gather a lynch mob to beat you, you tend to get real close to God. And those ideas we’ve been taught about in the pulpits become actions in real life. Thoughts about God in our minds become connections to Jesus in our hearts.

In August of 2011, we returned near the district from the trip before. Blessed to visit some of the past churches we planted and persons of peace God sent us during our last expedition in January, we reunited with “Das” the new (person of peace) leader of a small church in this small remote village near the train tracks. So we anointed “Das” with oil, prayed over his family and worshiped with this small, but fresh six month old church.

We also worshiped with an existing church that helped us to plant other churches in their area. In January we prayed for the husband of a young woman who’d come to Christ and whom we had the honor to baptize. Her husband’s name was Srynu (Sree-noo). He WAS an alcoholic. Syrnu was there when we showed up at the small little church a few miles away from Das’ church. Something phenomonel had occurred. He gave his life to Jesus three months before we showed up. His wife’s life must have been contagious. So at the end of our campaign he wanted us to baptize him! So along with seeing over 100 people make professions of faith in Christ and planting 4 churches that August, we saw the fruit of our past labor. Indians in Andhrapradesh are coming to Christ, churches are being planted, leaders are being developed and life change is truly happening! It really Works!

Stories from the Mission Field: College student has a miraculous dream

There we were on a train. By the way, its very rare for westerners to ride trains. They aren’t exactly, well… luxurious. But time to relax it was. We’d seen 250 people make professions of faith and we planted 5 churches. Our hard work? Finished. So we shared a few laughs and joked around, not really paying the Indians all around us much attention. We were tired of doing ministry. At least, I was (can’t believe I’m admitting this). Yet, across the aisle from us a young woman smiled and seemed to join in on our jolly mood. We soon found out that she, Sai, spoke english very well. So we invited her to sit with us. “Do I know you? On facebook or something?” she asked Jason, one of our team mates from Texas. Of course Jason didn’t know her. 

Through our conversation we find out that she’s from the Brahmin caste. The highest caste in Hindu culture. If you know anything about the caste system in India, you’ll know Hindu priests come from Brahmins and they’re the most resistant to the message of Jesus. Why would they choose to give up everything and follow Him? Everyone holds Brahmins in the highest regard for their dedication to the Hindu gods. They look to the Brahmins for spiritual guidance. 

We felt prompted to share the gospel with her none-the-less. While sharing the good news, I used the evangecube, a tool that presents the gospel in picture form. When I turned the cube to the picture of Jesus, she gasped. “I’ve seen a vision of Him before. I was only eleven. But when I saw that exact face, He came to me and said, ‘This bread is for you’. Everything is about to change for me,” she said. You should’ve seen our expressions. We were in awe. 

She continued on, “You see. We’ve been on this train for ten hours already. Two hours before you boarded  and I had a dream. In my dream Americans, who look like you, came on this train and sat right next to me. They, well… you told me ‘we have news that will change your life forever’. So when I saw you all enter our coach, I almost couldn’t believe it! I’d shared the dream with my mother and it shocked her to see you here as well. And now you’re sharing the news!”

She and her mother decided to give their lives to Christ that day. I’ll never forget that day and neither will our new sisters in Christ. It is a reminder that we’re not taking Jesus to India. Jesus was already there seeking those who would call on his name. The one true God is in India!  

From January 2011

Seasons and God

Ahhh… Spring has arrived. The dead is gone and a new breath of life has come. Beautiful flowers… The buzzing of bees… The birds instinctually  play the nature dance in the air and light breezes caress your skin with its moderate pleasures. Ahhh… Spring.

Oh and don’t forget the migraines and the dizzying episode of sneezing 52 times in row. The aching sinuses. And the feeling that your whole body is going to explode because of the onslaught of that deadly yellow dust they call pollen. Arrghh… Spring has arrived.

Really its a mixed bag for me. But I actually cherish the beauty that blossoms for two weeks. It trumps my allergies by leaps and bounds. This is going to sound out of place, but it reminds of Autumn. Why? Because I actually suffer no allergic side effects during the Fall. I can enjoy the two week collage of oranges, yellows and reds without consequence .

But I have a question for God. Why only two weeks? These seasonal artistic strokes painted by our Savior and Creator usually only last for two weeks. That’s four weeks out of 52. Then its back to what seems to be a more monotonous tone of same colors… Greens in the Summer and brown and grays in the winter. Yeah, I know there’s beauty to be found even in the hum drum. But give me the bright and the extravagant.

I feel the same way about life. I cringe at the idea of working a clock-in-job at a warehouse (which is where I work at my part time job) or an office cubical (where many of you work 8-5). Give me the adventurous, the exciting and the rare (that’s why my primary job is taking teams to India).

But there’s something to be learned in comparing those inspirational seasons of brilliance to the more frequent and common seasons of  ”same-ole-same-ole”. I’m sure we’ve all experienced both. But why does that incredible football game, incredible  opera performance or date with our dreamgirl/dreamguy only last four hours, then we have to drudge through a week of  the mundane?

If you’re thinking “its our perspective that determines how often we observe great things”, then you are indeed correct. We have the divinely given ability to find the good even in the darkest times if we choose to seek it. But I wanted to take it a different route.

Maybe the 4 weeks of the year that visually take our breaths away is something that God is whispering to us. Maybe this is what He’s saying, “Look at extravagance I want to bestow upon my creation! This wondrous Spring is only glimpse of what I have in store for you. But this earth is not your permanent home. It is broken. Your home is ultimately with Me, ‘The Great I AM’ “

All things New

Read the scripture below…

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband; and I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling of God is with men. He will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself will be with them; he will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain any more, for the former things have passed away.” And he who sat upon the throne said, “Behold I make all things new.” Also he said, “Write this, for these words are trustworthy and true.” And he said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give from the fountain of the water of life without payment. He who conquers shall have this heritage, and I will be his God and he shall be my son. But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the polluted, as for murderers, fornicators, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their lot shall be in the lake that burns with fire and sulphur, which is the second death.”

Revelation 21:1-8

Holy smokes! These are some very serious verses concerning the favor of God and His wrath. You’ve probably heard a couple of pastor’s or very uncouth Christians talking about how folks who don’t have God will fry like a sausage. And for the most part I believe that the church has moved away from the turn or burn mentality. But do these scriptures support such a philosophy.

Or some people take these verses to mean that all folks will be made new (they mean to include Atheists, Buddhists, pagans, etc…) So from their interpretation, taking Christ as their savior is not necessary because God “will make all things new”.

I know what I’ve learned and experienced. But what are your thoughts on this?

Or how about this, what has God made new in your life?

I will type a few of my own thoughts, if I can get some folks to respond.

Oh yeah, I haven’t added to this blog in over a year. I guess that you could say that this is practically a new blog. Or just view it as something that was old, obsolete and non-engaging to something that now breaths life, humor, passion and love again. God makes all things new. Including this blog. Glad to be blogging again. I’m going to try to post a thought or two every day.

If you were God?

Interesting title to a blog eh?… Hoped it might get some discussion pumping. Ok, I know that some of you think that this question is very important because you really think that you are God (sarcastic joking occurring during this very sentence) or you really do think that you are god (this last statement would be of the not so jokingly statement variety where you literally/theologically believe that you are god or at least a part of it {i.e. pantheism or pan-antheism}). Deep Breath…

1) So if you were God/god, what would you change or do to make the world better? (DO NOT LOOK AT OR ANSWER THE QUESTION BELOW BEFORE YOU ANSWER THIS ONE)

 

 

 

2) (The harder question) Why do you think the real/legit/biblical God of the universe isn’t changing what you would change right now or even possibly ever?

 

 

 

 

I’m back…

Hey guys and gals,

I’m going to attempt to start blogging on a consistent basis. For those of you who are fiction fans you might enjoy this link: http://edgychristianfictionlovers.ning.com I’ve joined the group and hope to network with other writers and readers of fiction.

NOVEL UPDATE: If you didn’t know it, I’ve written an epic medieval speculative fiction novel. I’m still in the process of looking for an agent. I have one looking at it, but she has about 300 other submissions that’s she’s going through. So in the midst of waiting I’ve queried a few other agents with little success. So I’m in the wait and pray mode right now. Did I mention that I’m not very patient! Say prayer for my book. I pray that it gets published and speaks to both Christians and non-Christians alike.

Many Blessings,

Scott

Following God is Mystical

“Somehow Christianity has become a nonmystical religion. It’s about a reasonable faith. If we believe the right things, then we are orthodox. Frankly whether we ever actually connect to God or experience His undeniable presence has become incidental, if not irrelevant. We have become believers rather than experiencers. To know God in Scriptures always went beyond information to intimacy. We may find ourselves uncomfortable with this reality, but the faith of the Scriptures is a mystical faith. It leads us beyond the material world into an invisible reality. We become connected to the God of eternity. Who you are at the core is spirit. God is Spirit. To walk with God is to journey in the spiritual realm. ”

-Erwin McManus

“The Barbarian Way”

OU beats Tennessee!

OU Beats Tennessee!

1968 ORANGE BOWL

Oklahoma   26
Tennessee 24

A 43-yard field goal attempt by Tennessee’s Karl Kremser with seven seconds left sailed wide right, leaving Oklahoma with a narrow 26-24 Orange Bowl victory over Oklahoma.

The miss saved Oklahoma first-year coach Chuck Fairbanks from being the game’s goat after he made a coaching miscue minutes earlier.

Facing fourth and one from his own 43-yard line with 1:54 left, Fairbanks gambled and went for the first down. The ball was given to tailback Steve Owens, who was met by blitzing Vol linebacker Jack Reynolds before he could take a step. The Sooners, after watching a 19-0 halftime lead disappear, turned the ball over to the Volunteers on downs.

Tennessee, which scored all 24 of its points in the second half, worked it into field goal range before Kremser missed.

Oklahoma’s offense came out steaming in the first half, getting three touchdowns on a 7-yard run by MVP Bob Warmack, a 20-yard pass from Warmack to Eddie Hinton and a 1-yard Owens’ run.

Tennessee came alive in the third, ignited by Jimmy Glover’s 36-yard interception return for six points. That was followed by a 5-yard Fulton scoring run and a Kremser field goal that closed it to 19-17.

Oklahoma’s Bob Stephenson briefly broke the momentum with a 25-yard interception return that made it 26-17, but Tennessee countered with a late 1-yard run by Dewey Warren.

GAME STATISTICS

Oklahoma Tennessee

First Downs                  18                  18

Rushing Attempts          50                  44

Rushing Yards              203                172

Passes Attempted         18                  24

Passes Completed          9                   12

Had Intercepted            2                    3

Passing Yards              107                160

Total Offense              310                332

Punting/Avg.             5/47.0             2/32.0

Fumbles/Lost               0/0                1/1

Penalties/Yards           2/10               4/27

SCORE BY QUARTERS

Oklahoma          7          12        0            7        26

Tennessee        0           0        14          10        24

SCORING SUMMARY

OU: Warmack 7 run (Vachon kick); OU: Hinton 20 pass from Warmack (kick failed); OU: Owens 1 run (run failed); UT:  Glover 36 interception return (Kremser kick); UT:  Fulton 5 run (Kremser kick); OU: Stephenson 23 interception return (Vachon kick); UT:  Kremser 26 FG; UT:  Warren 1 run (Kremser kick)…MVP: Bob Warmack (Oklahoma)

God is not a quick Fix

God is teaching me something. He has been for the past… well, 40 years. I’m just a little stubborn and hard headed to retain it and practice it in my life. I think this is one reason I blog. When I write it down it helps me retain it. So in our microwave-fast pace culture of “I want what I want and I want it now” we have to realize that God does not work this way. God is not a Genie in a bottle. He doesn’t always give us the quick answer, wish or quick fix. I used to always think that it was weird when Jesus spoke in riddles. I used to think, “why does he make things seem complicated or am I missing anything?” Now I think (emphasis on “I think”) “Jesus spoke in riddles and complex analogies. And I don’t suspect that it has to do with us or teachers knowing the Greek or biblical background better (though I’ve had 2 years of Koine Greek and several biblical background classes). But God speaks to the common man, even the one with out an education. What Jesus is saying is, “…seek and you shall find. Knock and the door will be opened.” (Matt. 4:7-8) OR “But if from there you seek the LORD your God, you will find him if you look for him with all your heart and with all your soul.” (Deut. 4:29). You have to seek. It is interesting because in Romans 3 it says something to the effect that “there is no one who seeks, there is no one who does good.” And this is also true. So how can both be true. Well no one can seek enough and no one can do good enough to reach God on their own. But if we’ll just run with the little voice in our head that says, “just read a sentence in my Bible today… just put aside 5 minutes for Me (God) in your busy day. Just be open to hearing my voice no matter where it comes from. Just seek me in the way that you currently can right now… just do something going towards me… just go .0001 percent of the way toward me. And I will go the rest of the 99.9990 percent of the way toward you…” “Come near to God and He will come near to you…” (James 4:8) Oh and for you strict Calvinists or Reformed folks (I used to be one), just in case you are thinking that I left out the biblical theological idea that it is not up to us, but God loved us first. I didn’t. God’s sovereignty in all and through all is biblical and true. If it were not the truth, there would be no way that we could even go .0001 of the way toward God. God gave us the ability to do so. So even when we have freewill it is God’s doing that we even possess freewill. But this is a process. This is a painful process. It is about having a relationship with the living God of the universe! And relationships are always messy. Not because God is messy, but because we are messy. And there are always ups and downs. And there is no “love at first sight-happily ever after” with us toward God. We doubt. We get hurt. We blame God. We look for other gods when things are going well or not going well for us. This seems to be human nature. And sometimes God doesn’t rescue us from the trial. And sometimes we don’t get what we want. But God often allows us to go through the trial because we grow and understand what really matters with out getting the quick fix or answer. We become more desperate for Him and dependent on Him. Then we’ll know what it means “to know Christ and the power of His ressurection and the fellowship of sharing in His sufferings, becoming like Him in His death, and so somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead” (Philippian 3:10-11). Then you can “consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance” (James 1:2-3). So seek Jesus with all of your heart and He will show up through the thick and the thin! Scott