Headed out.

I will be back Saturday you all. I am headed to Jackson, TN to perform my brothers wedding. If you would like to see more information about the bride and groom check out his site :

http://www.taylor-hugheswedding.com/

You all have a great few days! Bye...

Got the crud

Well I have been feeling like junk for the last few weeks. I had no idea why but I just kept putting off going to the DR. With my brothers wedding coming up I decided to go to the Dr today. Come to find out I have a sinus infection that has moved fluid into my ears. Thus making me feel like a Mac Truck has ran over me. I am on 3 different meds and I am hoping to get better by the wedding date.

On a side note Buffy just went and got a spray tan. The process sounds similar to how the spray paint a car. I will say that she is tan and smells tropical. So I guess she is truly a Bahama Mamma.

Merry Christmas

I would like to wish you all a wonderful Christmas. Don't forget to celebrate the real meaning of Christmas. The greatest gift ever. Christ!!!

Here is some interesting facts:

Christmas is sometimes shortened to Xmas, an abbreviation that has a long history. In early Greek versions of the New Testament, the letter X (chi), is the first letter of Christ (Χριστός). Since the mid-sixteenth century Χ, or the similar letter X, was used as an abbreviation for Christ.

The word holiday has related but different meanings in English-speaking countries. Based on the words holy and day, holidays originally represented special religious days.

It sure is hard to take God out of Christmas...

"Joys of Heaven"

Reading this morning I came across an interesting verse. In Colossians 1:5 it says:

"You do this because you are looking forward to the joys of heaven---as you have been ever since you first heard the truth of the Good News"

First what were they doing? It says "You do this because..." In the previous verses show that the people in Colosse were trusting in the Lord and were exhibiting the love of Christ to the people. This at first seems like they are doing because they want something. Is there a motive they are showing love? Well if scripture has anything to do about it then I could say there is no motive except to serve the Lord. In the 13th chapter of Corinthians we see that love is not "self-seeking". So to show the love of Christ would no be something that was selfish. I see this as an overflow of their love for Christ. It is just plain natural for us to love in a Christ like manner if we are his.

Finally, what is this "joys of heaven" all about? After doing some research and letting the Lord lead me around his Word I see now what he meant. In 1 Peter 1:3-6 it says:

3 All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is by his great mercy that we have been born again, because God raised Jesus Christ from the dead. Now we live with great expectation, 4 and we have a priceless inheritance—an inheritance that is kept in heaven for you, pure and undefiled, beyond the reach of change and decay. 5 And through your faith, God is protecting you by his power until you receive this salvation, which is ready to be revealed on the last day for all to see. 6 So be truly glad. There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you have to endure many trials for a little while.

That joy is the gift of eternal life, God's mercy, our inheritance of heaven and his protecting our salvation. That is the joys of heaven. God tells us that there are times that we will go through trails and hardships. We are to just hold on the the joys of heaven and run toward the prize before us.

Christmas is just around the corner so I would like to say. Remember the joys of heaven and remember such joy is available just because of Jesus.

Gila Mission Day 5

On Day 4 in the evening we cut up onions, mashed potatoes, chopped nuts and prepared for our thanksgiving meal. This morning we got up and cleaned and decorated the fellowship hall. There were a lot of things going on at the same time. Some where cooking, some where cleaning while others decorated.

That evening we all were ready for our children, VBS and Revival. The kids began to arrive for the last night of VBS. The opening was great and the children excited. I will not write about one of the most scary and real events of the trip. If you would like to know about that please email me.

During that night my class just consisted of Darin (Girl) and Shaylyn. This night like most "Last night" events was an eye opener. Shaylyn and her cousin began to explain things about thier future and the life they live.

Darin - She lives in a neighborhood where she hears gun shots all night. There are sirens a lot that seem to follow the gun shots. She has no ideas for the future. When I asked her why she said "I don't worry about tomorrow because I may not be here tomorrow." My heart about sunk down to the floor when she said that. On the up side she liked to write poetry but it too was riddled with death, suicides and other issue she had seen.

Shaylyn - She is going to be putting her self into boarding school to get away from things at home. I think there was some abuse of some kind but she didn't say anything. She also has had friends that have committed suicide. A lot of her friends are in a gang (she was at one time). She keeps those friends for fear of leaving the gang. She was into cutting at one time. She showed me her arm and there were scars all over. She used poetry as an outlet too. Hers were just as disturbing as her cousins.

That night we did very little of our lesson. Me, Scott and the two youth just spent time talking. I can't say I wasn't shocked about all of this. We kept our cool and then when the went to crafts me and Scott looked at each other with the "I don't know what to do with all of this" look.

That night when it was time to leave Shaylyn began to cry. She didn't want to leave. I felt such a burden for her and her cousin. The group got together that night and discussed a lot of issues. We prayer walked the whole area, reading verses and singing. The Lord was there but so was Satan and his demons. When we had just about finished Woody pulled up and pray with us in Navajo. It was almost as the spirit of evil lifted.

The rest of the night the group just had a good time. We goofed off, ate and spent time in much needed encouragement. Oh yeah and the toilet stopped up for the 3rd time. I had to go in there and cast out the demons.

Gila Mission Day 4

Today we all got up and headed to North Pheonix to go to Sam's. This was to shop for groceries for our Thankgiving meal we will prepare for the church. We couldn't all go into the store so most of us ventured down the shopping center to the Starbucks. I was good to relax and sip coffee after minstering to children for the last few days. As a side note we all have Billy addicted to Starbucks now.

We also visited the Gila Indian Cultural Center. This was a great place to learn the history of the Pima Indians. It was a beautiful place with orange trees and a fountian. Inside there was a museum and place to buy Native Amercian crafts, jewelry and other items. I decided to wait to purchase the kids stuff until I had looked other places.

Orange Trees

We came back and unloaded the van and prepared for the nights VBS. It was going to be a big night. We had 28 children this night. We was a huge jump in attendance. Shaylyn and her brother Kevin came back this night. We all had a great lesson and I learned that Shaylyn wrote poetry. She promised to show me some of hers if we would write one ourselves for her to have.

Gila Mission Day 3

On this day we all got up and headed out to learn more about the Pima Indians. We headed out to the Casa Grande Ruins. It was interesting to know that the Pima had a huge irrigation system. I was similar to the Mayans. There was a "ball court" there which many believe they held some kind of sporting event. The ruins were not much to see it was neat but understand these are REALLY old.

After that we all returned back to the church to rest and get ready for the VBS and revival. This night Shaylyn had brought her brother Kevin. He seemed to be a good kid and he could draw equally as well. We had fun getting them to draw out the Scriptures. I figured that they would learn better drawing out what was in their mind.

This night Scott my youth minister buddy came in and we all had a good time in class. He had found a ball made by group publishing that was a great opener. Here is the picture of it.

The Dust is off

I was reading some scripture today in Matthew. I was reading the 10th Chapter and noticed a few things about dealing with people that won't listen. I sometimes am that person. Other times when witnessing or dealing with hard headed people I get frustrated and ill. God has shown me in this Chapter how to deal with it in a peaceful way. In verse 16 in the second part it says "So be as shrewd as snakes and harmless as doves." When speaking with people we must use a delicate balance of wisdom and vulnerability. It is often hard to do this it seems we use one or the other.

The next part is what is our message suppose to be to these people? In verse 7 I see "Go and announce to them that the Kingdom of Heaven is near". We are to announce the coming of Christ and how one can be ready for that time. The message is clear but we as humans always make the most simple things complex. We get hung on issues, doctrine, beliefs, interpretations, denominations and other issues. I see that I need to stick to the message.

Finally what about those that won't listen or those who continue to want to argue? It says in verse 14 "if any household or town refuses to welcome you or listen to your message, shake its dust from your feet as you leave." This message is for us Christians as well as those that are not believers. It is time we shake the dust of difference off our feet and enter the towns with the message of Christ.

Gila Mission Day 2

Day 2 on the mission to the Gila Indian Reservation began with a bang. I was to preach at a church in Santan. I really didn't know much more than I was going to a church to preach. So I get in the car with Dr. Cecil and Mary and head to Santan. Once we get there I see that the church is pretty much similar to First Pima.

I got there and realized that I had dropped the first page of my sermon notes. Luckily I had most of it memorized so all went well. The Sunday School was great and the gentlemen (Pima Indian) that lead the class was energetic and fun to listen to.

Once Church services were nearing people began filing in. I met mostly ladies with a few men and some children. Although the church was small it seemed like the spirit was large. The pastor was a great guy as well as his wife. The sermon went fine and the service was great.

Afterward we retired to the parsonage where I was offered something to drink and we went out on the patio. The breeze was blowing and the temps were in the 80's. It was a beautiful afternoon and relaxing. I learned about the pastor and his wife. He had been recovering from a gall bladder surgery (went bad). She has cancer and it didn't seem to phase her one bit. He works at Target to help supplement his income.

Later we had a great meal there. It was their Thanksgiving fellowship. I got to eat some traditional Thanksgiving items as well as a few Native American foods. The one thing I found interesting was the "Fry Bread"- "Pop over". This was some sort of pita thing but it was different. You wrap beans or meat in it. It was good!

The children played outside that afternoon and it was a joy to see kids of all ages playing a simple game of kick ball. I thought to myself how spoiled kids at our churches are with all the games, gyms and activities.

After the fellowship we headed back to Sacaton. Once there I had a little time to rest and prepare for VBS. The first night of VBS we only had 10 children. Not one of them cared to much for singing or doing hand signs. So we went to games and they liked that. I really started to see these children opening up.

Our lessons were great! We had the grades all divided out but that wasn't going to work that night. I want to mention that there was an 8th grade girl that showed up. Her name was Shaylyn. Se didn't talk at all. So I made it my mission to get her to open up before the night was over. That happened at craft time. She was a little to old to really care about the craft but we started to draw. All of a sudden get asks for a pencil and began to draw. She drew us a Indian Warrior head. It was good and she started talking to us. That night the kids left with great intentions to come back as well as our 8th grade girl. It was a wonderful night and I KNEW God was going to bring more.

I have made a decision.

In my past post I spoke of my thoughts on Calvinism. It seem to have sparked some people. I have decided to keep my post up but I have only answered twice. This can be unhealty spiritually for me to continue to refute and argue over something like this. It has already become some what of an anger issue with me. I can't be concerned about what other Christians believe. I must be concerned about those that need Jesus.

This post is here to allow those who would like to argue with me to see that I am finished. I have to focus on Christ and less on me and others. Thank your for your input and please respect my blog. This is like a personal diary to me. It shows a lot of my heart.

Gila Mission Day One

I decided to recount my mission trip to Sacaton, AZ. This was on the Gila Indian Reservation just south of Phoenix. So I hope you enjoy:

The first day I had to be at Mid Continent at 3:30 because we had a early flight leaving Nashville. Once we all go there we went through all the details one must go through to get to the terminals. As soon as we were at the terminal we waited.




Our first flight was from Nashville to Dallas Fort Worth. It was a fine flight as well as the flight to Phoenix. I was tired though due to the fact I didn't sleep that night since I would have to get up early anyway. Landing in Phoenix I began to see the temperature difference. We all had long sleeves on and I was sweeting. Dr Cecil and Mary met us there. We waited for our van from the Church we were going to be staying at. The drivers name was "Woody" and he was a Navajo Indian. We waited about 45mins in the heat so I made a dash for some water at Starbucks.

Once in the van we all headed toward Sacaton, AZ. The drive went quick and we all unloaded at the parsonage where we would all be sleeping. I have to say the house was much better than I had thought it would be. We all put our stuff up and waited for our ride to a Community Church. The church met in a community hall and we made up most of the congregation. There were four others besides us. The worship was great though and very uplifting after a day of traveling. We would make a stop at Wal-mart on the way back to get some food. I ate at a Mcd's that night.

After heading back to the parsonage we all put up the groceries and got ready for bed. That night we all rested fairly well. It had been a long day and I would preach the next.

*Sorry the first day really didn't hold much. I just wanted to set the stage. *

This verse must be missing in some peoples Bible.

I have recently had my fill with the anti-evangelistic, apathetic ideals that Calvinism teaches. There are many Christians that are turning closer to Calvinism and it's teachings. I dare not explain the whole Calvinistic theories. That is to long and drawn out and half of the Calvinist don't know what they believe. It all boils down to predestination. For you that are Christians Calvinism would teach you to be glad that God hand picked just you to be saved. It would also say that those that are not Christians could only hope that God has it in his plans to pick you. Finally for those that have no hope because you are not one of the elect sorry I guess I hate it for your luck.

What is the need for evangelism? If God has them picked then why bother...he will eventually lead them to himself. So this should take the Great Commission and shove it right out the door.

Why would we need to learn unconditional love? For by Calvinisms standards God has conditions to his love. One again when Jesus was trying to show Peter what AGAPE love was that must have just be for the elect.

What was the purpose of the Cross? I thought is was for ALL (whosoever) . Maybe I am missing some scripture there.

What was the purpose of the fruit in eden? That was a choice. Sin wouldn't have ever been an issue if that choice wasn't there.

Why does it say in Jonah that he "Changed his mind" ? If the city was going to be saved what was Jonah's purpose there? Why the whole big fish thing?

I could ramble on and on about this with scripture after scripture. Of course by some peoples statements in the past I probably don't have a complete bible. But for those with that comment I think theirs might be missing this one:

"The Lord isn’t really being slow about his promise, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent." (NLT)

"The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance." (NASB)

2 Peter 3:9

Be careful out there what you believe. Scripture warns us:

"Then we will no longer be immature like children. We won’t be tossed and blown about by every wind of new teaching. We will not be influenced when people try to trick us with lies so clever they sound like the truth." (Eph. 4:14, NLT)

For those who would like to refute this I would simply proclaim this verse to you about following incorrect teachings in which you have intrapped yourself:

11 There is much more we would like to say about this, but it is difficult to explain, especially since you are spiritually dull and don’t seem to listen. 12 You have been believers so long now that you ought to be teaching others. Instead, you need someone to teach you again the basic things about God’s word.You are like babies who need milk and cannot eat solid food. 13 For someone who lives on milk is still an infant and doesn’t know how to do what is right. 14 Solid food is for those who are mature, who through training have the skill to recognize the difference between right and wrong. (Hebrews 5:11-14)