In just 2 hours we will be hosting block parties for our city in two main parks.  This week we have been at every door in Hamtramck praying with people and handing out flyers.  Who knows who will be at these block parties?

I know that last year – 3 students were at our block party and choose to follow Jesus with their life.  And those 3 students are now serving as leaders among their friends at church and at school.

I’m so grateful that God sees the world-changers when we see a crowd.  And if we listen to His voice in it all – then we might hear Him leading us to them to share how much he loves them and has a plan for His life.

I want to listen well today – so I can hear who God is calling out.

God has really been working in our city and in our lives this week.  He’s even been changing things in my life!  I’m so thankful.  I think one of the things He has been challenging me in – is to desire being with Him even more than the heroes of the faith I’m surrounded by this week.  Sometimes I can desire being around them so much and hearing what God is working in their life – that I push God to the side.  Weird, isn’t it?!  I want to hear what God is doing in someone else’s life, so I ignore Him trying to get me alone.

Jesus is center stage!  I want to keep Him in the spotlight of my affections.  I gotta work on this.

How about you?  What has God been teaching you lately?

Hundreds of students from all over the United States are arriving today for War Week Detroit 2009.  Over the next 4 days we will be going door to door to share Jesus’ love with people and serving our community through service projects.  This is such an important week for us as a church as we will reach MANY in our community.  A few of our student leaders right now, were saved at a War Week block party last year.  It’s important to have weekly discipleship times, but it’s also important to have big event times when you go all out to reach the people of your community.  That’s what we’re doing this week.

• Would you pray that MANY choose to follow Jesus this week through door to door evangelism and block parties?
• Would you pray that God would do a miracle for our church and give us a building in Midtown Detroit (we’re believing this is the week!)?  http://www.1realchurch.com
• Is there something we could believe with you about this week?

God IS GREAT!  Nothing is impossible with God!  Detroit will be different this week and Jesus will win!

I’m just really challenged by this proclamation today again. I want to live this.  Check it out…

“I am a part of the fellowship of the unashamed.  I have Holy Spirit power.  The dye has been cast.  I’ve stepped over the line.  The decision has been made.  I am a disciple of His.  I won’t look back, let up, slow down, back away or be still.  My past is redeemed, my present makes sense, and my future is secure.  I am finished and done with low living, sight walking, small planning, smooth knees, colorless dreams, tame visions, mundane talking, chincy giving, and dwarfed goals.

I won’t give up, shut up, let up or burn up till I’ve preached up, prayed up, paid up, stored up and stayed up for the cause of Christ.  I am a disciple of Jesus.  I must go till He comes, give till I drop and preach till everyone knows.

And when He comes to get His own, He’ll have no problems recognizing me…my colors will be clear.”

I wrote on Twitter this last weekend, “Pride is like a whack-a-mole game. You just gotta knock it down when it rears its ugly head.”

If you’ve ever played the game you know that those maniacal little critters will heckle you and pop out of the hole at different unexpected times.  It’s the same way with pride – I can’t just sit back and let it keep popping up in my life without doing anything about it.  Here’s one way I try to win against this pride thing.

I give my wife and accountability partners the big smooshy mallet. This weekend my wife pointed out to me how I was being prideful in certain ways.  Though it hurt a little to hear it – I had to admit she was right.  As you know, if two people go at the game together – you have a much better chance of catching the little moles. Sometimes I’m just too slow to catch it.  I need their help to WIN.

Obadiah 1:3 – “You have been deceived by your own pride.”

…but with Jesus’ help, we CAN’T lose!

I just can’t stop thinking today that so many of us settle for so much less than we want or what God wants for us.  That quote by CS Lewis always bothers me, “It would seem that Our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us…”

Why do I settle for so much less so often?  I love God, I love reading His word and talking to Him.  But why do I settle for the set time I have set aside for “devotions”, instead of giving Him more time?  Why do I believe that when I’m looking for a house here in Hamtramck, I need to settle for something less than what would make me happy?  Why do we as Christians set a status quo that people should live average lives and then get into small groups and talk about how bad they suck and need Jesus?  Why don’t we have groups where we can say that we’re actually doing well, taking ground, and desiring to conquer more in our minds, hearts, and lives?

I’m just sick of settling.  I want to conquer more.

Satan fed us Nyquil and we fell asleep.  We made excuses like “I’m so tired from working for God, I can take a little time off.”  Or we say, “Someone else will pick up my slack again this time.”

But the fact is that we fell asleep and Satan continued to check on us in bed – making sure we were comfortable and if we needed anything.  Then every 4 hours he would bring us more Nyquil to help us sleep better.  When Satan’s comforting you, instead of fighting with you – be afraid.

Because the more we sleep the more atrophied our hearts, hands and feet become.  He knows an army that’s asleep, is an army that can be attacked.  So let’s,

WAKE UP!

Romans 13:8,11-12

⁸ Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law. ¹¹ And do this, understanding the present time. The hour has already come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. ¹² The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light.

2 Samuel 6 tells the story of how David was bringing the Ark of God back to the city.  However David makes one HUGE mistake to start off with – he puts the Ark of God onto a rolling cart instead of having it be carried by his men.  But when the Ark starts to fall off the cart, poor Uzzah puts out a hand and tries to stop it from tipping over.  God strikes him dead.  David gets angry about God doing that, and then he gets afraid.  But then later on, David finally has his men carry the Ark of God and David stops after a few steps to sacrifice to the Lord.

This tells me a few things about leading God’s people…

• If we don’t care about God’s holiness, others won’t either.  It may kill some people.  This is why we must have standards by which we lead them.  I’ve heard it said before, “People live the unedited version of our life”, in other words, they’ll usually live a step below where we live.
• If we care about God’s holiness, we can encourage or inspire others too as well.  We must lead the way in sacrifice and exuberant praise.  People will follow a joyful, in awe of God leader who makes holiness something that others want to live through sacrifice.

The next time I try to just roll God along – I need to stop and pick up His yoke (it’s easy remember) and live what I know to be right.  And exuberant praise will be in our church and city.

Since becoming a full time teacher last February, I’ve been learning a lot about teaching kids.  I’ve been realizing more and more how much these students need to learn about the world around them and the subjects we are trying to teach them.

I’ve found myself getting frustrated at times trying to explain simple multiplication problems which were followed by a blank, confused stare from a child.  Or getting impatient when one student takes much longer to get something done that the rest of the class has been done with for a while.

But I keep reminding myself that they can’t remember what they don’t know.  It’s a daunting and privileged position to literally start from scratch and teach kids the basics of how the world works.

Tabula Rasa is a Latin word for blank slate.  For many students I work with, we’re starting with a blank slate.  But I need to be up to challenge of writing the right things on the chalkboard of their minds and hearts.

Even as Christians, when we work with children and teens we must realize the awesome privilege it is to write on the “Tabula Rasa” of the way they view God and the world that surrounds them.  If you’re up to the task, there’s a generation hungry for God to write His name on their hearts and minds!

This was a great weekend – so much to be thankful for and so much to digest.

1) On Saturday I officiated my first wedding.  It was the wedding of Brandon and Sheena Bialas.  It was a beautiful outdoor wedding in a tent – and it was a James Bond theme.  I tried to convince them to let me wear an eyepatch while I did the ceremony, but they refused.  Oh well, now they’re married and they get to start their new life together!  Here’s a picture someone took that day…

2) We had a great service on Sunday morning.  Pastor Chilly challenged us that God has been patient to this point, wanting us to seek His face and really know Him, not just what he can do for us.  We talked about the story of Jacob wrestling with God, and how our sinful nature wrestles with God, but we need to let Him change our nature.  Salvations happened.  Deep change is happening.  Can’t wait to see what’s ahead!

3)  Then last night in REPO we had a great night with 30 students and 6 new visitors.  This was the result of a small group of our student leaders who spent the week praying every day for the service and reaching out to one person to disciple.  God can move in people’s hearts, but it’s up to us to get people to places where they can meet with God as well.  10 students gave their life to Jesus at the end of the night.  So exciting to see new faces as God broke them out of their sin and set their hearts free.  We have one of the greatest student leader and adult leader teams around.  I’m honored to serve with them.

That’s it!  More blogs to come this week.  How bout a little insight into what’s been happening in your life this weekend?