YoungLives

Saturday morning, December 11, 2010, I worked at YoungLives, a refuge for teen mothers run by YoungLife. We held a Santa's Breakfast for the mothers and their kids. We served them Breakfast and took pictures of their kids with Santa, read stories and let the mothers pick out Christmas presents from a room of toys that had been donated especially for these mothers at YoungLives. It was so satisfying to see that these mothers and their kids were going to have a blessed Christmas because of what we had provided for them. Alot of the women had no families that they could turn to for Christmas, so without YoungLives the kids and their mothers would not have any presents at all. I was nervous at first when I arrived at YoungLives. i was affraid the girls wouldn't feel comfortable around me, and i was right to some extent. Because they knew I came from Houston Christian High School a lot of the girls probably thought I was there to judge them or something, because they didn't really know what to expect from me, but all I did was serve them the whole time. I would play with their kids, help them pick out presents, carry all their toys, help them 'check out' (all the stuff was free, but they still had to give their stuff to some other people to have it wrapped). I would try and have normal conversations with them so they would feel less awkward around me, and it worked. They all love talking about their kids, so if you ask them about their kid, they automatically feel comfortable around you. This experience was so rewarding for me because I love Christmas and I love kids!!

Waodoni People

The story about the Waodoni People is very touching because it is a story of God's love and forgiveness being manifested between two people with a tragic history together. One man killed the father of another man, but the son of the man who's father was killed, forgave the murderer. This showed me the extreme case of God's love in action. You hear about how you are supposed to forgive people no matter what sin they committed against you, and we take this lesson and keep it in the back of our heads, but if someone killed my mother or father, and I met the person who did it, I probably would not forgive the murderer. It requires knowing the command from God that we should show EVERYONE love and forgiveness no matter what sins they have committed, just like Jesus did for us. No matter what sins we commit, Jesus will forgive us. By doing this to others, forgiving them and loving them unconditionally, we can witness to others without saying anything. This reminds me of the quote by St. Francis of Asisi "Preach the gospel at all times, when necessary, use words."

Unit 1 Review

Chapter 1
The Bible from Genesis to Revelation tells the story of God's purpose
The Bible is where Christians get their entire data base of knowledge about God and how to live their lives according to His will. But from this chapter, I learned something about the bible i never knew: the Bible acts as the story of God. It is a story of suspense, adventure, rebellion, violence, drama, but it is mostly a love story. It is a love story about His love for us. God is the main character of the story. This means to me that He doesn't just know what is going to happen, but He has an active role in the events that take place. He is not some petty god that ists back and watches without involving himself into the lives of the other characters. The story God tells in the Bible is about the history of the world. To me, this is crazy because to us, part of the story is the future, but to God it is the past. The coolest part is by reading the Bible we can see the future God has blessed us by giving a guide to the future so we can know that in the End we will win the spiritual war.

Chapter 2
God's purpose is relationship, redemption, and reconciliation
We, as God's children, crave his redemption, relationship and reconciliation. Because God made us, we have a God-shaped hole that only he can fill with these things. without them we struggle through life, something I have learned through experience. God wants to know us on a personal intimate level! what other god from other religions wants that? This excites me because now I can be confident that I will never be alone, I will always have a friend. from the bible we can see His relational nature by His interactions with His children. God wants to redeem us through Christ. This allows us to have a relationship with Him, something He desires so much, He let His Son die a brutal death. We are reconciled with God because of Christ, which means we are renewed, strengthened, and sustained. All of those things (relationship, redemption, and reconciliation) are vital to Christianity.
Chapter 3
God invites us to participate in His purpose; He blesses us so that we can bless others
God desires all His children to be reconciled and redeemed, so He can have a relationship with them all. This can only happen if we spread His message and let them know there is a God who desires to know them. This is our immensely important job. God's call is a missional call to all of us. He blesses us in many ways so we can bless others. We should use our blessings for missional and selfless purposes, not for selfish purposes. I have taken this bit of truth and thought a lot about it because i am hugely blessed. To me, this means i can use the money I am blessed with to donate to worthy missional based causes. Also i am blessed with the spiritual gift of teaching, so i could be a Sunday school teacher and teach underprivileged children about God. God instructs us to keep an eye on His plan when we read the bible, not on our own desires and pictures of purpose. sometimes this is hard because I use the Bible for personal comfort.

Chapter 4
God's story is unfolding as we see and participate in God's Kingdom throughout the earth
The Kingdom of God is a real and present Kingdom on earth right now. I never really thought about this until recently, it is hard for me to always be aware of spiritual warfare and God's Kingdom when it isn't exactly visible accept through the Church. Even then it is hard to remember/see. Tight now, our progression with spiritual warfare is that Satan's kingdom is currently ruling. But I have learned that we shouldn't be afraid because Jesus will come back and His Kingdom will be re-established. This gives me great relief, because Satan's kingdom does horrible things. The church is one way Christians can help fight awful things that devil does. Every time we get more people to convert, the closer the Jesus' return we are getting. THis is encouraging to me. The church's purpose is to gain more territory for God's Kings=dom. Once we have the most territory, we will win.

Chapter 5
The spread of God's Kingdom takes place in the context of warfare with Satan
I have learned through chapter 5 that this war is just a civil war. Satan used to be good, but went bad, and created his army to try and rival that of God. one day, God's army will defeat Satan indefinitely and His Kingdom will be whole once again. ways to battle the kingdom of Satan include first, receiving the Holy Spirit's empowerment, defend ourselves and God, and to rescue people from the Evil One. To me, receiving the the empowerment of the Holy Spirit is to hear his calling and arm myself for battle through truth and scripture. The armor of God would help me do this. The armor of God actually helps with defending ourselves and God, and rescuing people from the Devil. i never really understood that this was the purpose for the armor fo God until I looked at it in the context of spiritual warfare.

Let the Nations Be Glad by John Piper

John Piper wrote an article called "Let the Nations Be Glad" and we read it in missions class on Friday the 29th. I really loved this article because it really put the calling of God into perspective for me. In missions class we have been harping on missions and the missionary calling of God to all people, but this article reminded me that the church's, and consequently our, main purpose and goal in life is to worship and praise Him all the time. Missions should be a response to our constant worship and praise to Him. it should be the product of our excitement and on fire attitudes toward God. Piper boldly states that "Missions is not the ultimate goal of the Church. Worship is." Piper goes on to say that we only have missions because we have praise and worship to God. the Bible, especially psalms, commands and encourages us to worship God. We should worship Him when we are happy with Him and when we are angry with Him, because He works all things out for the good of those who love Him. Piper even goes to the extreme when he calls for a diminishing of missions and a "magnifying of God." I thought this was interesting because it seemed like he was saying there is too much missions and not enough God worshiping. this could be true, I personally don't know. It seems to Piper, and to me, that people do things because they see it in the bible, like going to church and praying occasionally. The dame thing happens with missions. People see/hear that God want people to spread the good new of His Son, and so they do it without their heart really being in it. They do it without praying about it and without being led by the Holy Spirit. This kind of missions needs to stop. We need to go back to the heart of worship, as the famous song says, and refocus our thoughts on Him so that when we tell others about God we know it is Him telling us to do that and not us doing it on our own accord. This way our hearts are truly in t and we are not just doing it because we want to be good cookie cutter Christians.

The Kingdom of God

The Kingdom of God is a tricky concept for any Christian, no matter how far along in the faith you are. i never understood this difference before, but the Church is not the kingdom of God in and of itself. the Kingdom of God does not even have a true physical form, yet it still exists, which is totally mind-blowing! the church is simply an agent of the Kingdom of God. God sometimes chooses to use the Church in His plan, and sometimes He acts outside of the church. the church's true meaning is a gathering of believers. but they have other functions. the church spreads the Word of God and helps the community in general.
Sometimes it is really hard for me to see the Kingdom of God on earth because i am more aware of the negative things happening in the world, so i don't see the positive things. i definitely see how the Kingdom of God is at war; a spiritual war. God has really brought spiritual warfare to the forefront of my mind lately, so that is one way i am starting to see the kingdom of God. think about it this way: whatever you do that is not directly and clearly for God is against God. no exceptions. if you are not helping Him you are helping the Devil. i have recently learned that there is no middle ground with God. this encourages me to be on fire for Him.

1st quarter reflection

so it's October 19th, the second day of the 2nd quarter. i have successfully survived my first 9 weeks of Senior year. Missions class has been such a blessing to me through out the whole time. it has been a nice break in my day where i can learn more about God and enrich my spiritual life.
through the past 9 weeks in this class, God has been teaching me 2 main things: not to be lukewarm, and that i should not let my blessing of money ruin my spiritual life. i have always loved God for as long as i can remember, but i God has recently shown me areas in my life that i have been lukewarm in. one of those areas is reading the Bible everyday. i go through fazes where i read everyday and then i get lazy. it takes 30 days to create a habit, and one day to break it. i break the habit of reading everyday very easily, and God doesn't like it. so i am trying my hardest to read on a daily basis once again. also God has brought it to my attention that He hates lukewarm Christians. because i am lukewarm in areas of my life, He hates that, and i could go to hell for being lukewarm. this scares me, so i am desperately praying to God that he will correct this in me.
the other important thing He has revealed to me through missions class is that it is very hard to be rich and go to heaven. this also scares me because i am rich. living in America makes me rich, and on top of that, i am in the top percent of the middle class. people like me don't easily get into heaven. i have been trying to be more compassionate to the poor and weak. those who help the weak will be blessed (psalm 41:1-3). i do love God, and i want to go to heaven, so i am trying my best to make God pleased with me through how i live. i am trying not to be lukewarm in any area of my life, and i am trying not to let my wealth ruin my relationship with God.

Everything is Spiritual by Rob Bell

Rob Bell made the statement that man is a physical and spiritual being. This means that humans have spirituality, so they will constantly be searching for something to fill the God-shaped hole in their lives. God has both a physical form and a spiritual form, and humans have both. We, as creations, are hard-wired to search for the thing that created us, and only some of us find it. It is our job as Christians who have found our creator to pursue a life that is based on spiritual rewards, not rewards of the world. This is a huge struggle of mine because everything in the media speaks against that belief. The media tells people to gain worldly things, and to satisfy your needs immediately. The teachings of Jesus, however tell people to store up treasures in heaven, not on earth, and to be in the world, not of the world. This truth is forgotten among many teenagers such as myself, and will continue to be forgotten. We should remember it tho because God is almighty and He created the heavens and the earth and you and me. Who can argue with or disobey someone who created the universe? We are all sinners and fall short of the glory of God, and have all turned our backs on God or turned a blind eye to God as we knowingly sin. But we must remember that because we are spiritual beings as well as physical beings, we must live to satisfy our God who created us and everything else.

Let's Not Be Selfish With Our Blessings

In missions class A3 we talked and read about how God blesses people for the purpose of blessing others. This is a new idea to me. I have been a Christian for as long as I can remember, but I still learn new things about God and about the faith. This new knowledge changes my view of the value we place on material goods. Our American culture is driven by success and the American Dream. This success includes gathering worldly things and having lots of money. Often times we think we have gained all of these possessions all by ourselves, but really God bestowed this blessing upon each one of us. He did this for a specific reason and it is not just to make everyone happy and to reward them for doing good things. In fact, we don't deserve it at all, but he gives theses blessings to us anyway because He has a greater purpose: to bless others, especially those who go without. Our culture does not idolize this however. It does not idolize generosity and selflessness, which is what God calls us to be as Christians who are blessed.
In order for me to apply and live our what I have learned, I should give more to the poor and spend more time with them, helping them. As a blessed person, I can give time and money to the less fortunate. In James chapter 2, the bible says to take care of the poor and to treat them equally and love them as your neighbor and as you love yourself. God has been really trying to speak to me about this because this is the 3 or fourth time this topic of helping the poor has risen in conversation, at school, and in chapel. I will make an honest effort to be a doer of the word and actually do what GOd's will is for me to do.

SEW-Spiritual Emphasis Week

This week at my school we had spiritual emphasis week (SEW). SEW is a week where we have chapel everyday and there is a common theme addressed by a speaker and usually a really awesome band comes and leads worship. this year is was a really great time for the whole school. in the past it was always kind of a pain in the butt because we got out of school late and it interfered with the schedule and blah blah. but this year it was so so SO amazing for me personally and for everyone else. i know of a few people who officially came to Christ because of SEW. We had guest speaker Greg Speck and guest band Dutton! they were so awesome and so close to God and so entertaining. This week God really spoke to me through Greg Speck. I need to have no fear because 'if my God is for me who can ever stop me'!? A quick fact about myself: Im pretty paranoid in general, ask any of my friends and they will tell you. I carry around pepper spray on my keys and i walk in parking lots with my finger on the little spray button and i literally run into my house from my garage after getting out of my car because one time i though there was someone stalking me in my garage, and i always check my backseat before i get into my car alone. needless to say, being a girl in a big city today can be frightening, and i like to take precautions. But in SEW, Greg Speck reminded me that surrendering my life to Christ means that i should have NO fear because 'if my God is for me, than what can stand against me'? He reminded me that Satan is out there and he wants to stop me and scare me and ruin my life because i love God, but he also said that i should not be afraid because Satan is like a huge 7 foot tall man who comes up to me in a parking lot and tries to scare me off by threatening me, but God is like a massive 10-12 foot guy who loves me more that Satan hates me and is like my personal body guard willing to beat Satan up if he lays a finger on me. because of Greg Speck's analogy i will remember God's love for me when i feel frightened. also Satan tries to ruin our lives by doing bad things to us, like when i injured myself this week. i had a performance coming up the following day and one on the following Tuesday, but now i can't do either of those things and i feel like i have let my other dancers down and i know that this is one way Satan is attacking my life. but my friends who were with me reminded me that Satan is only 7 feet and God is 10 feet tall, and i should not be afraid. it was so awesome to have my friends there encouraging me with uplifting thoughts about God. I LOVED SPIRITUAL EMPHASIS WEEK! i got so much out of it and i feel like God got Hid message across to me through Greg Speck.

Freddie Gage "Tears for Souls"

Recently in Missions class, we watched a sermon by Freddie Gage called "Tears for Souls". It was incredibly convicting as is any sermon that addresses how we are not acting the way you should. "Tears for Souls" addressed the fact that Christians have become selfish and secluded. We don't care any more about wining souls for Christ. We are too busy worrying about ourselves to care about the mass amounts of people who are not saved and do not know Christ. God was definitely telling me something about this because that is not the first time this topic has appeared in my life recently. One of my best friends is struggling with trying to win a specific soul for Christ and she is so very passionate about her mission! Whenever she talks to me about this person who she is trying to reach, lets call him Rob, she gets so emotional and it makes me feel equally as passionate. All Christians should be like my friend who care so much for others, including myself. I am so absorbed in my own life and so invested in my own well-being that I forget about the souls of those who are wondering around lost in the dark. I need to get over my selfishness and shyness and win souls for Christ. All I have to do is introduce myself and tell them about God. If hey ignore me, at least they had the chance and maybe I planted a seed of curiosity. Wish me luck!

God's purpose for us is to ultimately bring Him glory. He does things that bring Him glory in the long run that we might not understand now (in the short term). For example someone you know dies without knowing Christ, and this sets a fire in you to make sure that you do everything in your power to make sure everyone you know and care about knows and loves God. Your friend's untimely death would be the tragic part that we cannot understand, but ultimately, God gets the glory in the long run because your friend's death caused other people to know and love God.

Knowing that my purpose in life is to bring God glory is very encouraging to me. I love him so much and I want others to understand and share that love too. Knowing God's purpose for me gives me direction in my life and even stability because as a high school student, the pressure is on to figure out what i want to do with the rest of my life, and i think i am too young to know what i will do with the rest of my life, so knowing what God's general purpose for everyone is, is reassuring and stabilizing.

Satan is very evident in society and he is trying to stop God's children from doing what God's purpose for us was, which is giving Him glory and spreading the word. I see this in peer pressure and 'mob mentality' within friend groups. there is peer pressure to do what everyone else does and to be the same, and not stand out/be different. this stops many people rfom speaking to their friends about God because they want to fit in and not say something that someone may not agree with.

knowing God's purpose for my life-bringing Him glory- changes the rest of my life because it lets me know that i serve a higher purpose with a higher plan that i cannot understand. this puts me at ease and i can relax alittle more as i go thru life. also knowing this lets me take the focus off of myself and serve others, especially Christ. i hate when i become all about me. i get sick of myself eventually, and knowing that there is a higher plan that does not revolved around me is comforting.

My reflections

Which relationships do you turn to first when youʼre looking for guidance and support? Does your relationship with God have the same sort of dynamic interaction as some of your other relationships? Should it?
When i first need guidance and support, for things not concerning boys, i usually go to my mom. another person i go to is my best friend Clare, but she doesn't live near me, so i don't consult her as often. unfortunately last on the list is God. i usually become really desperate before i consult Him. but once i do talk to Him, i truly feel at easy in a way that a friend or my mom could never make me feel. this process of 'going thru people' usually doesn't take me even all day, so if i have a problem in the beginning or middle of the day, usually by the afternoon i have prayed about it and asked God's advice. my relationship and interactions with God have a friend-like quality and it has a parent/authority-like quality at the same time, which is a relationship that can only be experienced with God and Jesus. the things about my relationship with God that make it more like a FRIENDship are the fact that i can be casual with God. i don't have to carefully word my thoughts and opinions so that God can relate. God already speaks my language and totally can relate to what i am feeling and experiencing because he knows exactly what it is like to be a teenager today because He is all knowing ect. also it is like a FRIENDship because with really close friends i can be completely honest and i can be myself, which is how i act with God. My relationship with God is similar to my relationship with my mom because she gives me advice that is based on prior experience and knowledge and she always genuinely has my best interests and safety at heart, like God. i believe that my relationship with God SHOULD be similar to my other relationships but it should also be SO MUCH MORE than that. it should be something that i cannot experience with someone else, and that is one of the things that should make that relationship appealing.

Would you describe yourself as someone who seeks reconciliation, whether for yourself – reconciliation between you and God or between you and other people – or for others whom you help to reconcile with God? What are some situations you see in your world that could use reconciliation?
i do not see myself as someone who seeks reconciliation because that requires that i confront the person that i am at odds with, and i hate confrontations of ANY kind. i do however often seek reconciliation with God a lot because i know that that is what i am called to do as a Christian. also it is a lot easier to reconcile with God because i know that no matter how many times i am at odds with Him he will always want me back and He will always love me no matter what i do, which is not always the case with friends because love from one's friends is usually conditional. our world could use reconciliation between countries as a whole, which is obvious, such as between America and the middle east, specifically Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Iraq.

What is the importance of relationships – both vertically with God and horizontally with others? Why do you need both? What are you doing in response to Godʼs purpose?
relationships are important because one cannot get through life on their own. you need reaction between humans to survive, and that is a scientific fact. also because you cannot handle life alone, you need the advice and guidance of other people. humans are designed to need love to function and feel happy, and the main way we get this love is thru relationships with people, therefore because love is necessary to survive, and relationships provide that love, relationships are necessary for survival. we need both kinds of relationships-relationships with friends and with God-because friends cannot ultimately fulfill us. we are designed to know love that is unconditional, and the only way we can get that is through knowing God. i know this because every girl is born with the need for the perfect guy who will love her no matter what. She will never find this guy who fits all the qualities she needs on earth, because the only person who is perfect and capable of satisfying us and the only person who truly fits her standards is God. so when women and men search for love, they are searching for God.

Community Service Oppertunities!

Boys and Girls Country:
1) Boys and Girls Country is a Christian Home, providing children from families in crisis with love, security, a sense of self-worth, and opportunities to prepare them for a successful life. They serve the community by providing a home for children from a broken home.
2) This organization works for the mission of God by showing His love and compassion to His children by taking care of them and showing them the love and safety in a Christian home.
3) The organization needs volunteers to spend time with the children, mentoring and showing them God’s love for them. They also need money to improve housing and food for the children living at Boys and Girls Country. They also take household furnishing, personal items, and gift donations for the children.
4) This organization impacts the lives of the children who would otherwise be living in broken or dysfunctional families. The program provides safe, loving, and Christian living conditions for kids who desperately need to be show the love of Christ.
5) If this organization did not exist, children all over the Houston area would be living in dysfunctional homes or on the streets. Boys and Girls Country takes kids who need a safe place to live and gives them a home.
6) I think we could very easily partner with Boys and Girls Country as a class throughout the year. I personally have volunteered at Boys and Girls Country through NCL many times and they are always very grateful for our help. Whether we are setting up Christmas decorations, mentoring and tutoring the children, or running their carnival fundraiser, there are plenty of
opportunities for us to contribute to the organization.

Young Lives:
1) Young lives is an program organized by Young Life to mentor and help teen mothers. Young Lives provides a safe place for young moms to escape the pressures and demands of life as a mom. This organization serves the last, the lost, and the least, by serving young women who are often times ignored or shunned by society and providing them a Christian environment and showing Christ’s love for them.
2) This organization fits within the mission of God by showing young mothers that God loves them despite any mistakes they may have made in the past. By providing teen moms a place to hear about God while their children are cared for by babysitters, Young Lives shows the girls how God loves them in all circumstances.
3) This organization is in need of volunteers to babysit the children of the young mothers while they participate in the Young Lives club activities.
4) This program impacts teen moms by helping them get their lives back on track and providing them Christian advice and guidance in their daily lives. This outreach program impacts the lives of young moms who feel helpless and need the love of God.
5) Without this program, many young mothers would not be involved in Young Life at all and may never hear the word of God. Young Lives provides a fun environment where young women feel free to be themselves and hear about the word of God. For many teen moms, Young Lives is the only time they are in a Christian environment and the only place where Christian advice is available to them.
6) I think we, as a class, could easily contribute to this organization. Young Lives meets once a month on the second Thursday of every month and is in need of students to volunteer as babysitters for the teen mom’s children. There is no real age limits for babysitters so all high school age students could easily volunteer.
Brookwood Community
1) What is the goal of this organization? What are they doing to serve the lost, the last, and the least in our community? The goal of Brookwood is to provide a safe Christian place for functionally disabled adults to live, love, play, and contribute to society in their own unique ways. Brookwood allows disabled adults to have supervised independence that most disabled adults do not have the privilege to experience. They give the credit to God in everything they do, and encourage the faith of the members who live there.
2) How do this organization's efforts fit within the mission of God? Brookwood’s efforts fit in with the mission of God because Brookwood give God the glory He deserves. They acknowledge the fact that God gave them the means by which they can help these adults and they also hire Christians so the members who live there are exposed to the Word of God. Also they have church every Sunday and on major holidays.
3) What needs does the organization have? Resources, volunteer shortages, etc...
Because the organization is volunteer based, they are always in need of helping hands. They are always doing something, from selling pottery that they made, to putting on a production, and need people to help out.
4) What impact does this organization have within our community? This organization has a huge impact on the community of disabled people in and around the Houston area because it offers disabled adults a place where they can be independent. Also they make things, like Christmas cards, pottery and ornaments that are sold at churches and Brookwood stores in and around Houston.
5) If this organization did not exist, how would the community be affected? Without Brookwood, disabled adults in the Houston area would not be able to be independent adults and they would most likely be abused or mistreated, or they would lead lives with out a point because they would have no where to participate in a community because they would not be able to have a job. Also a lot of these adults would not know Christ if Brookwood did not exist.
6) As a class, can we realistically partner with this organization throughout the school year? Yes because the football team, cheer team, and dance team partner with Brookwood every year and help out. They also have really flexible hours and the members there love to see young faces helping out.

Christian Community Service Center
1) What is the goal of this organization? What are they doing to serve the lost, the last, and the least in our community? The mission of CCSC is to serve the poor, hungry, disabled, and otherwise needy while respecting their religious, ethnic or cultural differences. They have a clothes resale shop, a food pantry, and classes to help jobseekers opened to the people in the area that are financially struggling.
2) How do this organization's efforts fit within the mission of God? CCSC was created out of faith, and founded in the belief that we are called to help all God's children heart to heart and hand in hand. The organization fits with the mission of God because in Matthew 25:37-40 Jesus makes it known that serving the poor is a way of serving of Jesus. This organization believes this calling and the volunteers are filled with God’s love. In return they love on the people that come in and give them food, clothes and offer special classes that can help them get a job and start supporting themselves.
3) What needs does the organization have? Resources, volunteer shortages, etc... This organization needs volunteers, food donations, clothes donations, and computers(for computer training classes to help jobseekers).
4) What impact does this organization have within our community? This organization impacts the homeless, and financially struggling individuals in the Houston area by providing food, clothing, and counselors. CCSC has provided many homeless people with food, saving them from starvation. Also the CCSC has loving volunteers and that enjoy talking to the people coming in.
5) If this organization did not exist, how would the community be affected? The community would be affected because the homeless would not have easy access to food nor loving volunteers they could talk to for help. Also CCSC represents Christ, and shows the community how accepting Christ changes your life to focus on others, which can encourage others to be interested in Christianity.
6) As a class, can we realistically partner with this organization throughout the school year? Yes, I volunteer every Saturday morning and they welcome group volunteer groups. There are several options for volunteering: working in the food pantry, working in the clothing store, or being a translator.

Ronald McDonald House
1) What is the goal of this organization? What are they doing to serve the lost, the last, and the least in our community? The mission of Ronald McDonald House Charities is to create, find and support programs that directly improve the health and well being of children.
2) How do this organization's efforts fit within the mission of God? Ronald McDonald House fits within the mission of God because they are serving God by serving others. They are serving others by improving the lives of children and their families by providing programs that strengthen families during their most difficult or challenging times.
3) What needs does this organization have within our community? Financial donations, volunteers, toy and food donations.
4) What impact does this organization have within our community? Ronald McDonald House is important to the community because it provides a safe, caring environment for kids and their families as they go through difficult health problems.
5) If this organization did not exist, how would the community be affected? The community would loose an organization that provided families with free housing, food, and essential supplies. The community would loose an organization that has been comforting families and changing lives for 35 years.
6) As a class, can we realistically partner with this organization throughout the school year? It would be realistic to volunteer at the Ronald McDonald House because they always have things for volunteers to do and they always have kids that need cheering up. Also the location is helpful because there is one in the medical center in downtown.

God's narrative, the bible, encourages me to be apart of the mission for God because God used little people, who were generally unimportant, in big ways. I am a little person who is not a president or queen, or influential in my surroundings, but through reading the bible, i can be encouraged that God will use me to do important things that i cannot yet understand. when i am feeling unimportant the bible reminds me that i am important to God and i can be used to do all sorts of things. for example, Mary Magdalen was an unimportant 15 year old girl who God loved and decided to use. i am reminded of the bible verse that says not to be discouraged because of your youth. this also encourages me to join the mission for God even though i am young. 
If i approach the bible as one story of the history of man, i see history in a different way. i see history as God's plan and i also see the future as God's plan. One idea that is new to me is the idea of our lives being apart of the history of the bible and the future story that God has in story for us. i am apart of His purpose, to spread the Word of God, and i am as much apart of the bible as it's main characters because i as spreading the Word also.

The LOVE of Money is the Root of all Evil.

In my Missions A3 class on Friday we watched a video of a sermon by John Piper called "Proclaiming the Excellencies of Christ, Not Prosperity, Among the Nations." This Sermon was mainly talking about how we, as American Christians, sometimes think that becoming rich is what is most important in this life and that the one way to get rich is to believe in God, and believe that He can make you rich. This way of thinking is so wrong. In fact, the bible says that the love of money is the root of all evil. Piper goes on to boldly state that no one who is rich can be a good Christian. I personally disagree with this statement wholeheartedly. I know lots of rich people who have committed their lives to Christ and are living a life that pursues Him in all things. Also I believe that God has blessed certain people with money so they can use it for good, such as funding missionaries/mission trips, providing money for churches, donating money to Christian organizations ect. Without money in the Christian world, many outreaches would never get done because of lack of funding. However on the other side of that argument money is a huge temptation to those who already have it and to those who desperately want it for the wrong reasons. It is impossible to say that everyone who has money is bad, and they cannot be a true Christian who actively loves God. It all depends on how one responds to having money.  Do they give portions away to churches, charitable organizations, or missionary ventures? Do they crave more money and more stuff? Do they horde it all for themselves? If they do the later, they love money, and God says that the LOVE of money is the root of all evil, but he does not say that MONEY is the root of all evil. Therefore I hold my opinion that one can be rich and a good Christian as long as they are in love with God and not their money and stuff.

Best Friday Night I Have Every Spent

Two days ago the assignment for our Missions A3 class was to go to a Christian Community Center and help out wherever we were needed for a required time of 2 hours. We arrived at the Community Center having no idea of what to expect, what we were going to be doing, who was going to be there, or who we would be helping, so needless to say I didn't really have any expectations about it at all. As we pulled up in the parking lot we saw a group of African American boys playing basketball (THEY WERE SO GOOD) and I have to admit I felt really out of place and intimidated because pretty much for the first time, I was the minority. We checked in and entered the Community Center and all eyes were on the out of place white kids (us). After we were instructed on what to do (kitchen work, coloring with kids, cooking, ect, which was all scheduled to happen later), we split up and started to meet and interact with the kids that were already there. A friend and I walked over to a row of kids sitting on the edge of a skate ramp and introduced ourselves. We shook all of their hands and at first we were all a little uncomfortable, but soon we became relaxed when a girl (who's name I am struggling to remember) and I challenged each other to try riding a skateboard with the other kids. As we were having fun and connecting over how bad at skateboarding we were, one of the African American kids whose skateboard I had borrowed mentioned how he had never seen so many white kids at this church before. I simply responded with "Well, there is a first time for everything!" and smiled so he would see that I wasn't offended, because he looked a little uneasy after he said it and realized that I heard him. This particular indecent made me realize how I had never been a minority before, and how theses kids probably felt we were intruding on their territory, which made me feel even more threatened. This feeling of being threatened was replaced with a wanting to show these kids, who probably had not had too many positive experiences with white rich Christians, that not all of us were bad, racist, selfish people. So that became my mission for the night: to get to know as many kids (of a different race) and show them we are not too different from them.
Each time I introduced myself to someone I was always a little nervous, worried about what they were going to think of me, but after the night was over I never regretted introducing myself to anyone because all the kids were nice and pretty accepting of strangers like me. I absolutely loved meeting the younger kids because they were so young and close to Jesus that they were blind to race. They didn't know about our differences or anything, they just  knew we were there to play with them, and they LOVED IT. This reminded me that Jesus wants us to love like little children because they are oblivious to differences such as race or ethnicity or political preference. It was extremely refreshing to experience this oblivious, race-less love because I am so used to having a conservative, old-fashioned black and white view of life influencing me.
Later on, after I had served on kitchen duty, my best friend and I walked over to a girl about our age and started a conversation with her about the church/community center. She was really sweet and easy to relate to and talk to so we got into a deeper conversation pretty quickly. (I wasn't there for this part, however I really wish I could have been, I was talking to and connecting with a younger girl) She admitted to my friend, unashamedly, that she thought us rich white kids were going to be super stuck up and spoiled and rude and she wanted nothing to do with us, but we had proved her wrong. She said we were pretty cool, and to that, I would say MISSION ACCOMPLISHED.
Almost all of my class ended up staying for almost 5 hours at the community center/church instead of the required 2 hours because it was so much fun and so rewarding. I was originally planning on going to the community center for the required 2 hours and then hang out with friends right after I was able to leave, but I decided that giving my time to underprivileged kids to help them realize not all white rich Christians are rude, stuck up spoiled and racist was a better use of my time and MUCH MUCH more satisfying.

"Israel's Missionary Call" by Walter C. Kaiser, Jr.

Why is it important to ME to grab hold of God's challenge of having a "mediatorial role in proclaiming His name among the nations" (Kaiser 16, Perspectives)
It is important to me that I spread the Word of God to people  around the world because of two things: First, God put us on the earth with the purpose of bringing Himself glory by all peoples of all nations knowing and praising Him, and secondly because I love God so much, I know that He is real, and I don't want people to miss out on the life of love they could lead. Kaiser, the author of the article "Israel's Missionary Call", asserts that we, as Christians, should bless others by showing God's love and grace o them because he has been so loving and gracious to us. This relates to my second reason, that I want to spread the Word of God because He has done wonderful things in my life, and I don't want others to be left out of this wonderful opportunity at a heavenly eternal life. In that same way, God doesn't want ANYONE to miss out on knowing Him, and He doesn't want to miss out on knowing ANYONE. He desires all of us, weather we are 'good people' or 'bad people'; beautiful or not beautiful; smart or dumb; screw ups or perfectionist. Therefore it is important to me to spread the Word of God because it will bring Him more glory, and because I love Him so much, that I think everyone should get to know and love Him too, so they can be happy and live happily FOREVER after.

"The Living God is a Missionary God" by John R. W. Scott

The other day in Practical Missions class A3, we read a chapter entitled "The Living God is a Missionary God" by John R. W. Scott from a text book called Perspectives. This text discussed how God is on a mission to bless us, all of us, all of His children. In the discussion following the reading of this chapter it was stated that "we should be Global Christians of a Global God. Not 'American Christians' of an 'American God'. We are all believers of the same God." To me this means we as Americans and coincidentally Christians (but not 'American Christians') should reach out to Christians in other countries and help them, care for them, and have community and contact with them because we are all children of the same Father, and He has no denomination, therefore we do not either. This fact can be hard for us to swallow because we tend to think that God is just like us and we give Him humanly qualities, but God is really indescribable. We are incapable of comprehending what He is physically like. Therefore, because He is not like any certain people group, we are not entitled to discriminate or exclude any group of people from God's love. With this in consideration, we can begin to feel the true brotherly and sisterly bond with all Christians and we can begin to be Global Christians of our Missionary God.
         This passage form Perspectives helped me to see that I can trust God to lead my life. Scott explains the promises God made to Abraham, one of them being that he and Sarah would have many many children even though they were very old (like 80) and Sarah was never able to have children in the past. Abraham believed God despite all the odds stacked up against them. Abraham and Sarah trusted that God knew what He was doing, and eventually God delivered His promise. He blessed Sarah and Abraham with many children and they both lived to be even older. The lesson from this deliverance of promises is that God fulfills everything He says He will do, but He will do it on His own time, and in His own ways.

Psalm 96:1 "Sing to the LORD a new song; sing to the LORD, all the earth."

Today in Practical Missions A3 we analyzed Psalm 96 and Isaiah 58. Psalm 96 really stood out to me, particularly verse 1 and 2 "Sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord, all the earth. Sing to the Lord praise His name." This passage challenged me to think: Is the 'song' that I am 'singing', the life that I am living, praising God? I would like to be able to say of course! But unfortunately some of the things I do are contradictory to what I should be doing or should be acting. For example, I am having particular trouble with forgiveness, patience, and prioritizing my life (putting God/The Word first). Not so much forgiving, as forgetting. This passage can be read as King David worshiping and praising God, but it can also be taken as a passage that causes one to reevaluate one's life. Everything I do in my life should be a reflection of my heart, which loves God and knows all the teachings of His ways, yet as a Christian I forget how I should act. I am taking steps to help me better prioritize my life. For example, I just recently established an accountability partnership with one of my best friends. Hopefully this partnership will help my 'song' become a praise and worship 'song' about God.

Spread the Gospel and When Necessary Use Words

I am creating this blog mainly because it is a class assignment for my Practical Missions class but also to record my experiences in my spiritual life through the way of performing and studying mission work and community service. Things you will find in this blog include the matters which God places on my heart through out my walk with Christ this year. Hopefully the things I discuss can relate to those who read this. Other things you will find on this blog include things I learn in my missions class that I think are interesting, or my opinions about what I have learned.
Missio Dei translated means the "mission of God". To me that translates as the mission of spreading the Word of God, the good news about Jesus Christ. There are many different ways to accomplish this mission, but my favorite way can be summed up in a quote by St. Francis of Assisi "Spread the Gospel and when necessary use words". I like this quote because I am often a shy person and I feel awkward just striking up a conversation with someone about God, Jesus and their salvation; I am more comfortable serving someone out of love for them and showing them Christ through my actions and everyday life. Eventually, people will notice that there is something different about me, something different about the decisions that I make, the way I treat people and the way I act in situations. This way people end up asking ME about my faith and God, which makes me feel more comfortable. Also this way, they are more receptive to what I have to say, because they are truly curious and want to know what the deal is, instead of me forcing them to listen to my preaching. The problem with this is that I don't feel like I am making that much of an effort to spread the Word, because I am not feeling proactive, I am not taking myself out of my comfort zone just because I am afraid of rejection, and that seems selfish and cowardly. The up side to this method is that my actions can at least plant a seed in a person, and God can take it from there. I am by no means a christian who has it all figured out, and spreading the Gospel is one thing that I have struggled with my whole life, maybe this class will help me.
My expectations for the Practical Missions course is to learn about missions taking place in the world today, some famous missionaries of today and from the past, mission work happening in my immediate area, and how i can get involved in mission work today. Also I hope that I can benefit spiritually from this class and to gain experience in the mission field.