Ambassadors

Not too long ago, I received an email congratulating me, because I had been selected to serve as a Howard College of Arts and Sciences Ambassador. I was excited. After all, this sounded big. So I attended the information meeting to learn just what exactly this was about. 

The Howard College of Arts and Sciences is the largest school at Samford University, named after English prison reformer John Howard. In order to attract incoming freshmen and undecided students to our school, the department chairs choose students to represent their departments as ambassadors. I represent the World Languages and Cultures department. I was chosen to present the image of a world language major at Samford. I was honored and humbled to have the chance to represent the classes, professors and programs I've come to love. 

The next day was a mandatory meeting at the library I work at. Near the end, my boss thanked all of the student workers and said, " even when you're not working, people watch you and know you represent the library. You are our ambassadors."

All week long, that theme was on my heart, and finally it hit me. And on Thursday after sharing with my friends, what had hit me was affirmed in scripture.

2 Corinthians 5:20-21 ESV

Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

Upon becoming a Christian, we become ambassadors of the Kingdom of Heaven, representing Christ Jesus our King. Just as I should attract students to Howard College, we ought to attract others to the Kingdom of Heaven. Just as people see me and see the library's great service, people ought to see our God's great love.

Unfortunately, this role is one I've failed at many times. Sometimes, we don't want to represent. Sometimes we fail. But God forgives us through His son Jesus, reminds us of His promises and lets us try again. That's reconciliation.

Let's represent the Kingdom together. Let's show the world the love of God. Let's be Good Ambassadors. 

Back in the Ring

You guys! It's been so long!

...

Sorry about that.

Last week, I had the pleasure of going to North Greenville University in Greenville, South Carolina.  I went there for Missions FUGE.  Now, this blog was born as a result of MFUGE last year at Mississippi College.  Like last year, MFUGE this week was all out incredible.  I was in the social track this year, so my track group sorted food at a food pantry that serves Greenville's hungry, and we visited nursing homes and played music for them in addition to talking to them.
That was great.
BUT.
This was like last year.  Was I just going through the motions? In fact, there was a friend I was talking to prior to leaving for FUGE who asked me if I thought I would really be challenged.  I was concerned.
God answered me on the first night.  Last year, our whole youth group was broken by the conviction of the Holy Spirit on the last night.  Forced to face our sin and the unbridled love of God, we rededicated our lives- or accepted Christ for the first time- that night.

Me and Dave.

However, God moved at camp this year starting at Day 1. Each night, the camp pastor Dave Edwards delivered God's word in simple, universal and profound messages.  The most impacting messages were on Wednesday and Friday.  I'll go deeper into these in later posts, because I'm going to post more often now ( yaaaaaaaaay!!!!!!).

However, These sermons I felt were for me.  I felt God directly talking to me.  God forcing me to face the fact that I had fallen away from Him.  The fact that I was living my life trying to balance between a "Christian life" and a life of the world.  The fact that I had nothing but frustration and that I would have nothing but frustration and conflict if I didn't come back into His presence.

So, I've decided to relocate my life into Jesus' presence.  I noticed that I stopped posting here gradually as I drifted into sin.  By God's grace, I'm back and I pray never to leave again.  Now that I'm back and the emotions from camp are fading away, I need to keep my faith alive through mental conviction.  But more on that later.

I am happy.
I feel joy.
Like I know God is with me, and that with this awareness, I want to be with Him forever.

I want to be closer to my God.  I love you LORD.
_________________________________________________

You guys, please pray for me.  I love you guys too.  But not as much as I love my God.  Sorry.  no competition. :P

Anyways, yeah-- Delving into the Word, this blog's sister blog, will probably start up again too.

Until next time

Day of Praise

"and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ." - 1 Corinthians 10:4

Some of you really need this verse from God's word today. All of God's word is useful (2 Timothy 3:16), but I just know many of you because you've kindly shared, and I pray for the hard spots that are before you today. I suppose it's kinda poetic, but it's straight from scripture. So call it what you will.

Ok, here's the deal. This is what today's verse means for your day.

Picture this. You're walking in a wilderness. A very big, dry, hot wilderness. You've been walking in that very big, dry, hot wilderness for quite a while.

You're thirsty.

Very thirsty.

God says, "Hey, there's a rock. Speak to it, and it will pour forth all the sweet, cool, satisfying water that you could ever dream of."

But you're so thirsty and sweaty hot and tired and frustrated and irritated that your will asserts itself over God's word. So you strike the rock instead of speaking to it. Yes, water comes out, but it's bitter instead of sweet. It's hot instead of cool. And it's less than satisfying instead of totally satisfying as God had promised.

This really happened with Moses and Aaron long ago, as recorded in Numbers 20. The key 6 verses are included below after our traditional and heartfelt "Praise God."

And this is what it means for you.

Sometime today, maybe at the start of your day, you're going to reach your limit. Frustrated. Irritable. You'll be in the spot between the proverbial rock and the hard place. The hard place is, well, a hard place. The rock is Christ; (remember today's verse from 1 Corinthians 10:4, "that rock was Christ.")

God's going to say to you, "Hey, there's a rock. Speak to it, and it will pour forth all the sweet, cool, satisfying water that you could ever dream of."

What God means is this. Look at your hard place. Smile. Then look at Jesus, your rock, and then speak to him, (you don't have to yell at Jesus, which is tantamount to striking the rock). You calmly say, "Lord, you're the Lord. Please do something about this."

And he will.

Your job is to believe that he will, to watch him do something about it (in his time!!!), and to chuckle, saying, "Cooooool!"

As in "sweet, cool, satisfying water" like you never could imagine or dream of.

Because it came from a rock.

"and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ." - 1 Corinthians 10:4

Praise God!

Numbers 20:7-12 --
The Lord said to Moses, 8 “Take the staff, and you and your brother Aaron gather the assembly together. Speak to that rock before their eyes and it will pour out its water. You will bring water out of the rock for the community so they and their livestock can drink.”

9 So Moses took the staff from the Lord’s presence, just as he commanded him. 10 He and Aaron gathered the assembly together in front of the rock and Moses said to them, “Listen, you rebels, must we bring you water out of this rock?” 11 Then Moses raised his arm and struck the rock twice with his staff. Water gushed out, and the community and their livestock drank.

12 But the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “Because you did not trust in me enough to honor me as holy in the sight of the Israelites, you will not bring this community into the land I give them.”

Pastor Chris
"The gospel is the story of Jesus [what God's only Son has done for us that we can't do for ourselves], spoken as a promise." - Robert Jenson

1000 Views!

Thank you! This blog has recieved 1000 views! Hm. 1 follower, but 1000 views nonetheless!


I would like to thank Voguemind for her support!

I would like to thank any other readers who just haven't followed as well.  Follow so I can thank you properly!

I would also like to thank my family,
And I thank and praise my God!

Thanks!

Why?

If with Christ you died to the elemental spirits of the world, why, as if you were still alive in the world?

-Col 2:20

Training for The Wreath

As you know, tonight's the Superbowl.  So, at the Superbowl party tonight our new student minister led a devotional during halftime.  I wanted to share.

1Corinthians 9:24-27

24 Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. 25 Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. 26 So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air. 27 But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified.

It's fitting that our halftime devotional be about athletes! In this passage, Paul is using the illustration of a race.  Now, he notes that even though only one runner wins, they all run to win. While that doesn't mean only one of us will get to heaven, Paul is telling us we need to run as fervently as these athletes. Paul encourages us by pointing out that the athletes of the time competed and trained for a "perishable " wreath, but the Wreath we get is imperishable - that's company with our God,  that's Jesus.   So we have quite a prize in store for us!

In verse 26, Paul says he doesn't run aimlessly. Rather, he disciplines himself so that he doesn't disqualify himself from preaching. In other words, why should people not partake in underage drinking? Sure it's illegal but so is speeding.  Well, the reason why not is that when you drink underage, you disqualify yourself from being able to share Christ with others. So,  you need to discipline yourself in order to preserve your witness. 

In short, run to win. We have an imperishable prize. Don't disqualify yourself. Train for The Wreath.

-Special thanks to John Lambuth and the Apostle Paul.

What is a Man? Intermission

A friend shared this on facebook.  I think it's an interesting exposition between manhood and movies.