a bible and a gun

During my time in New Orleans, Rudy told me a story of the lowest time he had. It was at this point that he sat with nothing. He had lost his job and was unable to get enough money from insurance. He felt that he had nothing. So he sat with a Bible in one hand and a gun in the other. The Bible was his last hope and the gun his last choice. He turned the Bible to what he needed most which was a job. As he read through Job he felt that if this man was able to recover from losing everything than I can do it to. He put the gun away and turned to his last hope.

In life we reach these moments. Some people call it their darkest hours. When we reach these moments I pray that you might be able to find hope in the one that came to this earth and conquered death so that the love of Christ might transcend through all. Don't ever give up there is hope. May the peace of God reign in you lives.

all I got

After living in a FEMA trailer for so long Rudy was in a McDonald's restroom. His son turn and looked at him after finishing and said "Daddy can we get one of these for Christmas." His son was looking at a freaking toilet. All Rudy could do was throw water in his face to hide his tears.
It's amazing how much we take for granted the little things in life. I would never think to appreciate the nice toilet I sit on until it is taken away from me. All over New Orleans all you see is a bunch of FEMA trailers. These trailers were meant to be there only for 6 months to a year and now they have been there for over 2 and a half years. To make matters worse these trailers were not designed for families to live in them for such long periods of time. The formaldehyde is now at dangerous. These trailers are very similar to the people that live in them. They are tired of being stuck and want to get out. They lack the quality that people in the US have gotten used to. Both have given all that they have and are at the ropes end. What can we do to help?

1. Listen and tell their stories
2. Build a team to help the rebuilding process
3. Send resources
4. Pray
5. Pray some more

ch__ch what's missing? You Are

In John 10 we hear the story of a hired hand and a good shepherd. The good shepherd stays with the flock and the hired hand runs when the wolf comes.

After Katrina, the town was devastated. the population dropped 50,000 people which made it so many churches were and are unable to opperate.
This means that pastors and priests have left the area. Many of the locals feel that the priests and pastors have left their people like a hired hand. This is a sad reality when visiting in the St Bernard Parish. These people who grew up with the same pastor or priest no longer have someone to go to. Even worse some of the ones that remain are tired of hearing the complaints.

I look at this scene and feel God's heart break for these people. I understand the numbers game and why there are no pastor there but that does not make it right. My questions are: how do we help these people who feel abandoned by the church? How do we let them know that Christ loves them when the people who are supposed to be God's mouthpiece have left? What will be the impact on this culture?

the lack of news

We think it's done but is it. When I went down to New Orleans I was expecting to see a lot of work done. I thought many areas would be finished. Instead it looked more like a ghetto ghost town. Destruction is still around. Most industries have disappeared including most big franchises like Walmart, McDonald's, and more. Complete strip malls still look like they did after the storm.

It's a crying shame. What do we see on television? The French Quarter is back and Jazz fest is happening. The Saints are able to play at home. The person we were helping felt that the US was more behind the Saints than people from New Orleans. These people have been living in filth for three years now and now people are forgetting about them. Don't forget these people deserve a lot more.

the broken heroes

I think of all of the stories I heard the story of the broken heroes will be with me the longest. During the hurricane, many people stayed behind. Some should have left some were told to stay. After the hurricane the waters raised and raised and raised. Rudy watched as the water raised 15 feet and had to put his children in the attic to keep them out of the water. His wife was stuck on an armour. He stayed and waded in the water. As he was left in this predicament he thought about his neighbors. He swam across to his neighbors house. He stood on the roof and could hear his neighbors who were in their 90s knock in desperation. At that point, he had no way to get into the house because he had no tools. He looked up and prayed to God please send me help. At that point he saw a 2X4 floating his way. He reached and grabbed it and then proceeded to break the ventilator off his neighbors roof. By the time the ventilator was off, all Rudy could see was hands as his neighbors gasped for breath. He pulled them out and saved their lives that day. In fact, Rudy saved a lot of people that day.

What was his reward? Sickness. Later he found out that the bacteria and parasites in the water got him sick and he lost a lot of energy. He not only lost energy but lost the feeling in his body from his neck down. It took two weeks for him to walk again but during this time his wife exhausted from the process started to lose her teeth. Rudy is not the only one to suffer. Some people have had it worse. Some had parasites so bad that the only choice was castration. Some have been affected in their brains. Some are no longer with us because the pain has driven them to take their own lives.

To think I had the honor of helping someone who saved lives. I have never felt more humbled in my life than to see what has happened to them. They fought for others to save peoples lives and now in their moment of need we turn our heads. We don't listen to their stories much less pick up a hammer to rebuild. I came to New Orleans thinking why don't they just move. I left New Orleans wanting to move their to help and be with the heroes that gave everything to save others. Nothing will break you heart more nothing will humble you like a person who has given everything only to lose it all. I pray that these families will experience a better life once the rebuild is finished.

I found comfort in reading Isaiah 61:

61 The spirit of the Lord God is upon me,
because the Lord has anointed me;
he has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed,
to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim liberty to the captives,
and release to the prisoners;
2 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor,
and the day of vengeance of our God;
to comfort all who mourn;
3 to provide for those who mourn in Zion—
to give them a garland instead of ashes,
the oil of gladness instead of mourning,
the mantle of praise instead of a faint spirit.
They will be called oaks of righteousness,
the planting of the Lord, to display his glory.
4 They shall build up the ancient ruins,
they shall raise up the former devastations;
they shall repair the ruined cities,
the devastations of many generations.
The Holy Bible : New Revised Standard Version. Nashville : Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1989, S. Is 61:1-4

the experience

Over the next few posts I will delve into my experiences while I was in New Orleans, LA. This was a very humbling experience and I feel that I went in with expectations that we would help someone that was unable to rebuild their home because they were too old, poor, helpless. Instead, I found myself working for a man who was perfectly healthy and told to stay during Hurricane Katrina but because of the effects of the dirty water he has become sick. He is fortunate to still be alive. The Lord has protected him and his family even though he was on the verge of calling it quits he has persevered.
I ask that you remember to pray for all of the work that needs to be done down there. I feel committed to send teams down there until the job is done. This may take several years but with each team there is a family whose life might be change for an eternity. These people have been through hell and some are still living in it. Their way of life has been about family and sticking together, some generations growing up with in a 5 minute walk of four generations. Imagine people telling you to move when the only life you have know has been that of one surrounded by family. To think that they should move is insensitive and we ought to respect their desire to be where their families grew up. These people hate to ask for help but have no other choice but to ask. To give them grace is to love them. They need to tell their stories and we need to hear them. They have seen some rough things and if they can't tell anyone then it will stick with them. So these next posts are mostly the story of one family. But this family's story is the story of many others. I write to remind you that the work is not done yet and that you might hear their stories.
Where we were http://www.stbernardproject.org/id182.html

New Orleans or Bust

During this week I'll be off to New Orleans on a mission trip... Please be in prayer for me and my wife who will be stuck taking care of our little puppy. Cheers!

Being a Chaplain for the industry

John Wesley had a heart for the lost and he felt that his ministry was called beyond the four walls. He encouraged ministers to reach out to orphans, prisoners, and to the different industries that were in his area. He developed small groups to help people to develop accountability. It was the Methodist movement that stands as one of the largest sweeping Christian Revivals in history.
One of my favorite things about my job is that I am not confined to a desk (all the time) and I get the opportunity to share God's word in different places. Currently, I am building a Chaplain Ministry by the name of Team Philip. I have been very involved with one company by the name of PESCO for awhile now. Every Thursday afternoon, I get to go there and do a Bible study with these guys. I get to hear their stories of triumphs and trials. I feel so blessed to be around people that earnestly seek out God's will for their lives on a daily basis. They have a heart for the Lord and I get to share and counsel with them.
Recently, I was talking to them about Eph 4 which states that "we should live our life worthy to the call that were called to..." When asking them about their callings they felt like they did not know yet. I got to encourage them by letting them know that they were in fact living out their calling. It was an amazing experience because one never felt like they were really that special. The fellowship I get to share with these men is such a blessing. On one occasion a man in his middle 40's mentioned that he had never owned a Bible before. Without a second thought my brother Jose took his leather bound engraved Bible that he carries with him everyday to work and slid it down the table and said "here." The lessons I learn from these men are vast. Each has a different story of how God has changed and is changing their lives.
It's times like these when I feel so blessed and humbled to be in the position that I am. I gave up a beautiful ocean in California and looking in the eyes of these men I can now say that I have no regrets. I am thankful for where I am and look forward to watching the many breakthroughs for myself and others.
Cheers,
Lance

Worship conference: I am the best and Labels

This weekend we hosted a Worship Conference at our church. We being the conglomerate of UMCs around this area of the four corners. During the conference, I got a lot of things out of it. I realized that I need to work on my personal time with God and drawing others into commune with God. We also had a fun seminar on the emergent movement which made me think more about my generation/worldview.
I also had some frustrations during this conference. That I would like to see turn into a discussion.
One was the main speaker seemed to be full of herself. It felt condescending at times the way she would speak. Granted she spoke a lot of truth but I felt robbed because she left some of the truth out. It felt like she was saying "I am the Best" over and over and over. I am glad she has an awesome ministry but I missed the authentic trials and tribulations she faces. I like to call this hero preaching style. It's like she was throwing herself up on a pedestal saying look at me look at me. I pray to God that I may always remain humble in my preaching style. I feel that our lowest points are our best preaching points. Some people say you should never address yourself in a sermon and rather should focus on a text. And then we have the example of Hero preacher. What is your style? How often do you talk of you triumphs and trials? What do you like the best?
The other thing that happened at the conference lasted a short paragraph in a book but still managed to annoy me. When speaking on emergents the speaker went political. She was talking about liberals and fundamentalists. This is typically fine with me until she used the word evangelical like the media always does to define conservatives. I am an evangelical and proud of it. My political views are not tied in with liberals or conservatives. Evangelicals can have their own thoughts. The core meaning of an evangelical is someone who wants to spread the word of God by word and deed. They don't always have a political agenda. Come on!! Think don't fall in with the media and use their ignorant terms to describe people that want the word of God to flourish. Our agenda is that unbelievers would turn to believers. Have you ever experienced this? What are your thoughts?

Irresistible Evangelism (breaking the mold)

I recently read Irresistible Evangelism by Steve Sjogren, Dave Ping, and Doug Pollock's take on evangelism. I found this read to be a lot better than the typical evangelism books. I get so tired of cookie cutter routines that don't take into account that people have feelings and brains so they are not always easily manipulated by tricky ways to present the Gospel message to them.

This book breaks people up into four different areas and gives multiple ways to share the message. They talk about servant evangelism which is going out and loving people that you may not even know by giving them free stuff like soda cans, a free car wash, or mulching their lawns. When people ask why your response should be "I think Jesus would have done this if he were still alive today." People have been so jaded by Christian pushing their views on them to have someone do something nice without an expectation of conversion is amazing.

Next they talk about developing friendships with unbelievers. The thought is that through friendship you can model Christ love to people. As they become more comfortable you can share about your trials and triumphs and listen to theirs.

Then he goes on to talk about Active Wondering this was a little knew to me. they have outlined many different questions that you can ask people to know them better and to get them to think about how God can make an impact in their lives. It's great to see a list of questions that does not included "if you were to die today would you go to heaven or hell?"

Finally, the authors discuss the final step of sharing the Gospel with unbelievers that allow for them to understand conversion from old self to new self.

I found this book to be a good read and very practical in the different ways that we can share Christ's love with people. I didn't care for the Golf analogy they use for each step because it seemed to get away from their point of not making people objects. The thought of hitting people reminds me of Bible thumpers. The other thing I didn't like much was the usage of the word PreChristians to describe unbelievers. This seemed condescending to me as well.

Overall, I appreciated This book and would recommend it to anyone seeking better ways to share Christ with others. Which leads me to a question and that is how do you actively share the Gospel with people?

Treasure Hunting (geocaching)

After leaving the beautiful ocean I have gone through some withdrawal pains from surfing. I still find myself turning on surf videos and getting as close to our TV with a balance board in tow. The sounds of the ocean hitting the shore and feeling of gliding down a wave are such amazing feelings. What can I say other than I miss it. I have realized that I need to start doing more activities to challenge my mind and enjoy nature.

So I starting Mountain Biking which is fun but it is continuous and you miss out on the beautiful nature while dodging, ducking, and diving. this has led me to develop a new hobby. I am excited to start treasure hunting also known as geocaching (check out more http://www.geocaching.com/). This is a fun activity/hobby that involves using a Hiking GPS to find different things people have left in wierd areas sometimes their backyards or on top of a mountain. Some people try and send things across the country like the pony express with different drop off points. So this is exciting for me. I like to find stuff and then go and setup a slackline and sit back and enjoy God's creation minus the beautiful waves.

The Emmaus Walk

I recently spoke at one of our sister churches in the Four Corners area where my wife and I live.
While I was preparing for this sermon I found myself surprised to read in Luke's Gospel account in chapter 24:21-24
But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel. Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since these things took place. Moreover, some women of our group astounded us. They were at the tomb early this morning, and when they did not find his body there, they came back and told us that they had indeed seen a vision of angels who said that he was alive. Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said; but they did not see him.”
I had always thought that these disciples left when Jesus was crucified. Can you believe that these disciples heard all of this and still left?
My mentor used to always tell me that "unmet expectations leads to depression." As I read through this passage I began to think about all of the times that I have expected Christ to redeem different situations that I have been through. I remember longing for Jesus to redeem people who were sick, help in relationships, or just to give me a sign that he was around. It is interesting that I would always expect Jesus to fix things in the way that made the most sense to me. When things fell through I would begin to question myself, others, even God.
This passage is exactly what we go through in our lives when we don't face situations seeking God's perspective. These poor disciples don't even recognize Jesus when he explains the scriptures to them. It is not until Christ breaks the bread that their eyes are open.
I currently try to approach things with an open mind. I always pray for fruit and ask for God's will to be done. I feel that as I seek to be more in sync with the will of God and try to understand the whole of scriptures that I become less likely to expect God to do things a certain way but can always expect that the presence will be along side me as I seek to glorify God.
As we look at these disciples, I also feel reminded of the importance to understand and explain scripture and listen to people. These guys not only heard but saw everything that happened in those days. They still did not get it. We have to be patient and wait for the Spirit to move inside these people's lives. Always caring and rooting for them.