Workers in the vineyard

I love this parable in Matthew 20. Jesus says heaven is like.... A bunch of people got hired to work, one at 9, one at 11, one at 1.. When the time came to pay them they all got the same pay. Some thought that because they worked longer they should get more pay. Rather they all got the same pay as the man who worked the longest. Jesus replied, " I can do what I want with my money, are you stingy that I am generous."

This is paraphrased but you should read it yourself. This just affirms that it is not by works that we are saved. He gives us divine favor just because He loves us! What a wonderful life!

Night owl!

In recent years I have been a night owl. Many times I tried to break that habit! If I go to bed early I can wake up early and get a better start on the day. But the problem is (like tonight) when I try to go to bed on time I cannot sleep. You may have heard me say, "well Im gonna go home, do dishes and fall asleep with my computer on my chest." The thing that drives me is vision. I have so much vision for what can be. When I try to go to bed early vision passes through my mind and I am restless! I find it is easier to work until I cannot stay away. Then I just fall asleep. As usual I wake early for the kids. To much sleep in my case is futile. I know that sleep is important, but how important? I have too much to do. Vision burns in my chest. I loathe the word,"board!" A person with purpose with and vision for life can never be board! There is just to much to do for Christ! Catch vision for Christ! He has good things for you!

Martin Luther

This morning I read the "Ninety-five theses on the power of indulgences". In Martin Luthers theses he in short, points out the error of the Roman Church. As I read this I was greatly inspired. I was stirred in my passion to live the Faith as God intended. What if Martin Luther was alive today. Would he feel the need to write another thesis about the current condition of the Church today? The thing that really got me about Martin Luther is that no one but the Holy Spirit and the Word of God taught him. So he was a man, just like myself. Today I am going to examine my faith and teaching.

Here is a link to Martin Luthers Thesis

God sees

Today I saw the reflection of a plane flying over in the car window that was outside the building I was in(hope it didn't confuse you with that). I thought what are the odds of that. Will I ever see that again? It reminded me that God sees everything. He will hold me accountable to every word I say. It reminded me of how important my actions are. When I die and stand before God I want to be reminded of all the awesome things I did not the naughty things. I might forget yesterday and what happened in it but God does not.

God hasn't convicted me yet???

Recently I have run across many friends who pirate software, movies, songs, whatever they can. Before I go on let me say, I am not perfect and don't claim to be so. I am trying to be like Christ and when I identify sin in my life, with Gods power I take it captive and do it no more. So recently my friends say pirating in not against the law and it is not a sin. They following is the part that bothers me:
1) They defend what they do by asking questions of me like, "have you ever sped on the hwy this week, have you taken candy into the movie theater.......". This seems to be a wide spread way of justifying their actions. As if my sin negates theirs.
2) They say, "Judges will not punish users of pirated software. They only punish those who produce it for other to use." Does this make pirating ok? Pirating is so wide spread that law authorities have to target the dealer rather than the consumers. This also must make pirating ok.
3) They say to me, "different people have different convictions, God hasn't convicted me yet." This I don't understand. When did God need to convict us not to steal when the Bible says, "do not steal."
I hope I don't sound hostile but this topic bothers me. I wish it was okay not to pay for stuff I wanted. Someone please convince me its okay. Oh yea, one more thing. If you are going to profess the name of Christ and you are openly declaring that pirating is okay, please please find some less embarrassing reasons for justifying what is wrong.

Remote villages

I am getting a little behind in my blogs so I will try to catch up. Two days ago we traveled to a very remote village. The dirt road just kept winding and winding. Eventually we arrived. Because of the slope of the mountain rain would make it impossible to drive out that day and we would have to stay the night. We prayed for the Lord to keep back the clouds and he did. People pray for the rain in the stated and I think they are silly, but I prayed. The Lord did keep back the rain and we were able to minister. We passed out shoes, food and toys. Kent did a illustrated message for the kids. While Kent was doing that many of us hiked up to the location of the new church building. They have the property and skeleton up but no roof or concrete floor. In the mountain it rains absolutely every day so this is a necessity. Once again we could make their dreams come true for just a few hundred dollars! Praise the Lord that it didn't rain and we made it to the hotel safely. Until next time.........

Sorry family

Sorry to everyone at home whom has not received a phone call. Every time we actually get a chance to brave the crazy streets to call it just happens to be the middle of the night for you. We love you all so much and our hearts are breaking to see you again. To continue off the last blog..... The second place we went to feed we meet a very needy village. There was a lady pastor there who has faithfully been ministering for 30 years. This lady possessed passion and anointing that only Sister Ruth had. She need a parsonage for her to stay there. It will only cost $200. When we said we would help her get it she broke into tears. For so little money we can bless them more than we could ever know.  When we asked for prayer needs they all said health, long life and strength to carry on with life.  When we do feedings the kids get portions that are so big it makes you happy. Please send money to Valley River Assemble of God, 900 Robin Hood Ave. Eugene, OR 97401. We would use it greatly for the kingdom. Ida can put it on our debit card and use it right away. Oh, gotta go pastors just showed up. To be continued......

BUSY BUSY

Sorry about the delay in communication. We have been very busy. Two days ago we drove for 7 hours to get to a bible college where we taught the students and ministerd to them. Then we stayed in the hottest hotel on earth and started a very busy day. First we went back to the bible college for a giant breakfast of rice and eggs. Then we started our journey into the mountains to minister to 3 different churches. They were native villages meaning that they have very little contact with the outside world. The first village we went to we needed to ride on a boat for 45 min. By boat I mean canoe with outriggers and a beat up old motor. We feed the children and taught them. Our hearts were broken for them. Kent suggested we do a sports camp for them. They have none of those awesome things we have in the states. We also want to buy a house church for the pastor there. He has been there for 4 years and has no church. For 2000 we could meet their need. A need that could only be meet in their wildest dreams. Then we went to the next village to feed and minister also.  I gotta go now. To be continued.

Speechless

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Gods grace was upon us today. The day started with us ministering in the school. (read more about it in hollys blog) This is my passion. I look forward to ministering to whole school assemblies next time we come! We don't have to invite them back at 7. We can preach the gospel right then and there! Next we spent time with Pastor Kevin when he arrived. His plane arrived early so he had to wait at the airport all by himself. He had no phone number so he just waited for hours hoping we would come. He was a good sport about it. Pastor Kevin and Kent went to perform a funeral and a birthday blessing (people got saved and touched by God at both). They always want us to encourage in the faith and preach the Gospel. Meanwhile Holly, Tori, Grace and myself were at the hotel with the pastors and workers dividing all the supplies we brought in our suitcases. These supplies will be going to the very poor churches we will be visiting soon. They say they are the poorest of the poor. They made us split everything 6 ways. Even the pills. The need is so great they cannot afford the wealth to be split uneven. Next Grace and Tori went on the streets handing out tracks and evangelizing people around our hotel. Holly and I went to a youth service to minister through preaching and drama. The passion in the youth service was unprecedented in my experiences! The power of God was so strong as we ministered. God showed up. I cannot use words to share what I saw. The students wrestled with God! Tear drops covered the floor. So much that you could have slipped on them. I cried so hard wanting to see this in the states. Why are we so lazy? It was like all my dreams and passion for Gods kingdom were already happening here. I got to see with my eyes what Spirit promises will come at home! God is awesome!  

Day 3

Today we just realized the weight of what is happening.

We have tons of services to minister in through

preaching and teaching. It suddenly got really

quiet as everyone began to study. It has been

such an awesome expearence! We turned on some worship

music and began to seek God. Some reading, some praying, some writing but all honoring Gods presence in our room. We are so passionate about the future

of this partnership. We look forward to bringing 

many of you with us next year!

Day 2 (I think)

Hello friends and family,

What a long journey! 10 hour drive, 15 hr flight, 9 hr layover and finally

 a 2 hour flight and we are here! We arrived at our hotel at 1:00 a.m. 

American time. And do you think they let us rest? No! They shipped us

straight to church. And guess who was preaching to 100? Us! We hit the

ground running. What an amazing expearence. When we arrived at our destination

we were in tears unbelieving what we saw. How can we preach to these people

when we eat from the silver spoon? They eagrly desired to hear the message 

we had to share though. We so look forward to what the future here holds.

We were to busy to get good pics so here is the best I got. These people

are in a bulding project. They are pouring a second story in their vaulted 

cellieng church. The pic is hard to make out but it showes a big

hole they still have to fill. They had the date set for the concrete truck to arrive

but needed $3000 still. They were believing for a miracle and moving as God 

Prompted them. It reminded me of a little church I happen to know.

Love you all! 

Day 1 of missions trip

Hello all,
Today is day one away form home. We are so excited about what God is going to do. We already feel our hearts being torn out for those we are going to minister to . We anticipate that our lives will be changed as well.
We left Eugene yesterday at 5:00 p.m. and began our long journey to San Francisco. We made one pit stop at the In and Out Burger. One memory that we will never forget! We arrived in San Francisco at 2:30 a.m. We are staying with my aunt and uncle who have been VERY hospitable. Today my uncle will be taking us on a tour of the sights in San Francisco. Our flight leaves at 9:00 p.m. tonight.
Thankyou for your support and prayers!

Philippines!

We will leave on Sunday at 3 Pm to the Philippines. That is only 4 day away! We will drive 8 1/2 hours to San Francisco.  We will stay the night at my aunt and uncles, Gary and Kathy's house.(thanks guys, I will be sure to wear my jail shirt :) This will give us a whole day to rest and explore San Francisco before we catch our flight. Our flight leaves at 9:05 p.m. Monday the 3rd. The flight will be 16 hours! We will arrive in Manilla, Philippines only to wait 6 more hours for our next flight. Then we will fly to Cagayan De Oro and the fun begins. We will be visiting many Churches each day, encouraging and ministering to them. We will do many crusades where we feed children, present gospel via Bible stories and ballon animals.  We look forward to visiting the Churches that we funded last year. Last night we packed our suitcases with supplies we are giving to the churches. It tore my heart out. I am ashamed that I haven't done more.  I desire to be changed by God as we are there. I know my perspectives will change and my heart will be broken. Please pray that God will use us to be a blessing and produce fruit. Thank you.

Proud Husband

I Love my wife! She was created by God just for me. She challenges me daily to be the man who God has called me to be. She is skilled in everything that she does and constantly gives me the run for my money. She is willing to be used by God and God blesses her. He gives her new opportunity to minister and she takes them. She knows what she wants and is a passionate defender of that. She doesn't worry but trusts in God and listens to His voice. She encourages me when I am weak and when we fight, making up is the best. I love you baby!

Worship

I had to repent today. I sat in a worship service with my hands in my pocket. I had good motives and planned to enter in to his presence. I was just waiting for him to move me, for me to get energy, to get the distractions out of my mind etc etc. Then I realized, why don't I run to him. Why do I withhold worship from him. Why am I so controlled by the way I feel. God is God and demands my worship. Worship that is "all in". Feelings aside. Pure desire to please Him and be with Him. 

Today I am changed forever. This moment is one of the moments I will never forget. From this day forward I give my all, all the time. No more being sleepy in prayer. Today I mean business. I will worship the One who changed me, the One who saved me, the One who loves me more than I could ever love back. Today I will worship the King of Kings.

Extraordinary!

Tonight during worship God reminded me of some awesome things that changed my life. When the music started to play I was reminded of how I fall short of who God is calling me to be. A small voice in my head tried to tell me, "don't beat yourself up, God loves you no matter what." Then a rebellion to this voice rose up in me and said,"No, you can afford to fall short but everyone around you will pay the price." This fire rose in my heart as God challenged me to be EXTRAORDINARY! God reminded me that I don't have to be lazy and half hearted. I can be great and do great things for Him. He gives me the power to do it. Why sit back and dream all the time. Its time to get out there and be the amazing person God is always telling me I can be! So today I declare it over my life "I am going to be extraordinary today, I have the greatness of the King in me and I will be a world changer today! Its time to rise to the occasion and be the man of God that I see when I worship, to be the man God is asking me to be!"

My motivation

Last night I went to a prayer meeting at our church. I walked in sooooo tired and empty. I just had no passion. I just felt burned out and over worked.  I laid on the chairs and attempted something that we call prayer. I laid there for about 15 min before I remembered what I taught our youth students yesterday.  Enter your time of prayer with praise. So I stood up and began to praise the Lord with much difficulty and pride. But I press in harder and let down all my defences. Soon I found myself burning with passion for him. Like my insides were on fire for Him. With new vision and direction! Im so excited about life. There is so much God has for us and I want to live every minute for Him!

Missions trip

We just bought our plane tickets! Im so excited about our trip. We have raised $7000 dollars so far and $6000 to go. We just spent 4 days replacing someone's roof for a decent $2000. I look forward very much to the fruit that this trip will bring. Our desire is to build and equip churches for service. I am currently working on ways to equip and educate new pastors. There are some very good discipleship programs for pastors who can't go to a formal school. This is very exciting because it makes it possible for people to fulfill Gods call on their life easier! Especially when we buy it. Thankyou everyone for your prayer and support. I look forward to the testimonies that this trip brings!

missions trip

We are up to $4500.00 for our trip to the philippines! Only 9 grand to go. We will get it though. We got a roof job this week that will bring in $1800.00.  And a photo fundraiser that should do about the same. We are so excited and believe that God is going to do such awesome things! Thank you to all who are praying and supporting us!

gas station

Today I had to borrow my friends truck. While I was using it I decided to get some gas for it. I didn't have the money though. All I could afford was $10.00. So I swiped my card and said to the attendant "ten please." I got back in the truck and I was overwhelmed with the feeling that I needed to fill his truck all the way up. I thought to myself, "thats alot of money, Im not gonna have gas for myself." I also thought, "I already swiped my card and I don't wanna inconvience the gas attendant. The feeling persisted. All I could think is that my friend would fill my tank in a heart beat and believe God to provide for him. "I need to do it" I thought. Just then the gas attendant says, "sir, how much did you want?" I looked at the meter and it said $17.00. I then told him to fill it up. As I drove away I felt good but wondered how I was going to make it the rest of the month with out the money. A little while later I arrived at a nice old ladys house. She was donating things to the church and I was using the truck to pick it up. After I loaded everything she handed me an envelope and said there was gas money in it. I tried to refuse but she insisted. When I looked in the envelope it was almost enough money to cover the gas I had just bought. "God, you are so faithful" I whispered quietly to the Lord. But, I know you God. You didn't pay me back all the way. You still owe me $10.00. I said that because God always pays me back. I put it in gear and started to drive away when I heard the lady yelling "wait, wait!" I stopped the truck and she came running up to the window and said, "here, I made this meatloaf for you!" As I drove away I was amazed once again at Gods faithfulness!