Tag: People

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Don’t Waste Your Suffering

Gear Shift Neutral

Some people allow their suffering, pain, hurts, or problems to produce paralysis and throw their life into neutral. Paul gives us a different outlook in Ephesians 3:1-2 where he says he is a prisoner “on behalf of you Gentiles”. He continued, “God’s grace was given to me for you”. Paul realized his suffering was beneficial to others; he understood God’s grace would sustain him & help him endure his difficulties. In this life we all suffer, we all deal with wounds, we all have pain & problems, but what if those things were not intended to paralyze you, but rather to benefit someone else, by allowing them to see Jesus in you…to see God’s grace sustain you….to see God’s mercy strengthen you….to see God’s love expressed through you? Don’t waste your suffering by allowing it to paralyze you; use it as an opportunity to point people to Jesus ‪#‎ForGodsGlory‬ ‪#‎DontWasteYourSuffering‬

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Jesus Heals the 10 Lepers…the Story Continued

Luke 17:11-17 (NLT) Now on his way to Jerusalem, Jesus traveled along the border between Samaria and Galilee. 12 As he was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy met him. They stood at a distance 13 and called out in a loud voice, “Jesus, Master, have pity on us!”

14 When he saw them, he said, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went, they were cleansed.

15 One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice. 16 He threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him—and he was a Samaritan. 17 Jesus asked, “Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine?

If this story took place in modern Christianity, the story would continue something like this…

Then Jesus asked, “Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine?” The Samaritan replied, “My Lord, don’t you know….?”

  • The second leper was upset by the style music you were humming
  • The third leper did not like the “disreputable” friends you like to hangout with
  • The fourth leper felt like the other lepers were excluding him
  • The fifth leper didn’t like the color of the rug you were standing on when you healed him
  • The sixth leper didn’t like the way you healed him, and thought he could probably heal people better
  • The seventh leper didn’t think you were dressed like a proper priest
  • The eighth leper thought you were asking WAY too much of him after healing him from leprosy
  • The ninth leper thought it was too far of a distance to travel to come back and worship you
  • The tenth leper said he may come back and thank you when it’s convenient, but you know, he has a lot going on right now

…three of the lepers stayed home and continued living life the way that was most convenient for them and the other 6 lepers went and joined another church where they could complain about the methods Jesus was using to heal people of their leprosy.

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At Least Thirty Two Reasons to Hate Red Kettles and Bells

It’s that time of year again!

All would be okay in the Christmas season if it weren’t for a little red kettle and a tiny annoying BELL! Oh, how I hate you tiny little bell.

You can’t enter your local mall, Wal-Mart or favorite grocery store without the constant ringing of the tiny annoying bell. Not even Quietus can cure the constant ringing from everyone’s despised Christmas bell. Therefore I’ve compiled a list of reasons to hate this Red Kettle and annoying tiny bell!

32 Reasons to Hate Red Kettles & Bells at Christmas:

  1. In 2012, at least Sixteen (16) men in the Augusta, GA CSRC (residential substance abuse rehab) Program placed their faith in Jesus for Salvation.
  2. In 2012, Sixteen (16) men graduated the Augusta, GA CSRC Program. Many of which now hold jobs, have reconciled with their families and have received a new start in life. That’s an increase of 267% from 2011.

At least 32 lives transformed through one program in 2012.

See. These bells lead to no good!

It’s all the bells and kettles fault! Ridiculous! All of the donations they receive by annoying people with ringing in the ears directly funds programs like the Augusta, GA, CSRC Program.

The CSRC Program is a gospel-centered, nine month residential substance abuse program for men. We do not receive government funding for this program, we only receive private financial support because we will not teach that hope is found in a “higher power,” rather we teach that hope is found in Jesus Christ alone. In order to keep the teaching of the gospel at the center of all we do, this program at the Salvation Army is funded 100% by private finances. So, when you endure the Christmas bell from Hell and you give a generous gift in the Red Kettles, you are directly involved in these lives that have been transformed and created anew in Jesus. You are helping do that!

More Reasons to Hate the Red Kettles and Bells 🙂

  1. Seasonal Employment: The Salvation Army is able to provide seasonal employment to individuals who are in financial need including the homeless and transients who are being provided some of the many Salvation Army services. Who are you impacting with your donation in the Kettle? Look at your bell ringer. You may be providing him the money he needs to extend his nights at the Emergency Shelter. You may be helping a single mom put food on the table for her children.
  2. Nightly Emergency Shelter for Transients and Homeless: Men who need shelter can receive 8 free nights in the Salvation Army’s overnight emergency shelter. After their 8th free night they can continue to stay for $7 per night (includes dinner through the soup line and breakfast). When you donate through a Red Kettle you are helping fund the shelter and when the bell ringer is a homeless or transient individual, you may be providing him an extended stay in the emergency shelter through his paycheck. The Augusta, GA shelter has an in-house professional counselor available to the men who frequently stay in the shelter to help assist them in getting off the streets and back into normal society again.
  3. Women and Children’s Shelter: The Salvation Army provides shelter for “in need” women and children and/or abused women and children for approximately 30-45 days. Social workers through the Salvation Army work tirelessly each day to help these families obtain permanent housing.
  4. Project Share and Other Social Services: The Salvation Army partners with Georgia Power, the United Way and other local agencies to help assist families who are struggling financially with utilities and rent. As the winter season approaches and utility bills go higher and higher, these services help assist families keep their power and heat on to provide a safe environment for their children.

So,  yes, those tiny bells can be annoying and we all get tired of fundraisers, but this is one opportunity that presents itself one time a year that you can look and see a difference. You can touch the difference through a handshake or a hug from a life that has been transformed. You can hear the difference in the voices of men who have overcome addictions and now teach Bible classes or in women who have come from the depths of despair and now live in a safe home with their children. The impact can be experienced through services provided by men who were once homeless but now are back on their feet and contributing to society once again.

It could be coins one day, a dollar the next; some have given large amounts and others through checks. With modern technology today gifts are given online, no matter how one chooses to give one thing remains true, people are different because of you!

*This is my personal blog. The views, opinions, and statements made within the blog do not reflect the views or opinions of the Salvation Army, they belong to me!*

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It’s More than Just a Sermon

At New Passion we have been in our Source Code: A Journey through Acts series for a little over a year now. We took a couple of short breaks and picked back up where we left off a couple of months ago.

Today, I preached out of Acts 16, there are several important things that take place in this Chapter, but the best thing about this post is what happened today AFTER I preached this chapter, so keep reading:

  1. Acts 16:6-10 – The Holy Spirit does not permit Paul and Silas to go where THEY want to go. He prevents them from going to the province of Asia and into the north region of what we now know is Turkey. Instead Paul receives a vision from Macedonia and there God would start the church of Philippi through his efforts.
  2. Acts 16:11-35 – God starts to build the church of Philippi with a business woman, Lydia; a (formerly) demon-possessed girl; and a prison guard.
  3. How did God do this? Well, first with Lydia it began by God not giving Paul his way. He closed doors and took away what some would say were opportunities to share the gospel. Paul instead followed the leading of the Spirit, took the time to invest in Lydia, share the gospel and then she believed; Secondly, with the demon-possessed girl, God allowed Paul to be annoyed and frustrated by the demon constantly proclaiming that they were there to preach the message of salvation, through his frustration, Paul casts the demon out of the girl; finally, with the prison guard, God allowed Paul to be arrested for doing God’s work. Through Paul’s example of true, selfless Christianity, the guard believes and is saved. Paul could have looked out for his own neck, but instead he stayed in prison so the guard did not have to lose his.

Here was my point to our people this morning and where my story comes in this afternoon. Who is it that God wants you to stop, take time with and share Jesus with them? That’s your Lydia. Who is it that God is allowing to annoy you? You know that pesky neighbor or co-worker or the aunt you can’t escape from. Maybe he is frustrating you so you’ll share the love of Jesus with them so they might believe. That’s your demon-possessed girl. Finally, and this is where my story comes in today. What situation do you find yourself in where you feel like you are in prison or like your world is falling a part? Who has God surrounded you with in this moment of your life that you can display true Christianity to, so that they might believe and be saved? That’s your prison guard.

Today, I received a tweet from a young man that I have only met once, but got to be with during a week long camp in Jackson, SC, last Summer. I wrote about my experience at the camp in an earlier post, it was amazing! Here’s what his tweet said:

That made my day! I had the privilege of preaching in the service where Noah placed his faith in Jesus for salvation. That in-and-of-itself is awesome, but what makes this story even greater is the fact that I was going through my own “prison experience,” although it was without the orange jump suit and the jail cell.

I was fired (“laid off”) from my job a week before having the opportunity to go speak at this camp. Needless to say, I had a lot on my heart and mind at the time, tons to worry about with a wife, three kids and bills. I didn’t get my way, God closed a door and allowed me to be placed in a very difficult position, but God placed me in that position at that time for his glory and for the salvation of Noah and anyone else who placed their faith in Jesus for salvation during that week of camp.

Sometimes I wonder if Christians think sermons are just a bunch of fancy talk, but can’t really be applied in their own life and in their specific situations. I think some people get excited to hear a different take on Scripture to bring out a point that they’ve never seen, but by the end of the service, the whole point of the message is lost. Today’s sermon was more than “just a sermon” for me, it was real life, it was my life just a year ago. I am privileged to have had the opportunity to lose my job which freed me up to prepare for a camp where a young man, plus others were saved. Noah, is my modern day prison guard. God used my difficult situation to share Jesus with him. Life is not about me, my job or my comfort; it’s about people seeking and feeling their way towards God to find him (Acts 17:26-27). I want to be a part of helping them find him. Thank you, Shane Padgett for allowing me to be used in the middle of a difficult season and thank you for having such a huge vision for students through PHAT Camp.

What situation do you find yourself in right now? Does it feel like Prison, maybe even Hell? Look around you, those are the people watching you to see how you will respond and how you will act. In the middle of living your faith out, you will have the opportunity to share the answer for your hope. Will you take that opportunity? It’s more than just a sermon….

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Some Gave All

“Go and sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” Mark 10:21

A lady asked to talk to me in private after service today, that always leaves a pastor a 50-50 chance that we are about to receive bad news. Thankfully, it wasn’t bad news at all. She informed me that she wrote New Passion into her will and that she was leaving EVERYTHING to the church…of course when she dies…which we hope is a long time from now 🙂

I know, I know, this happens all the time to churches all over the place, but its never happened at New Passion, so I am celebrating what God is doing with our church (We’ve had people give us property and generous financial gifts, but not everything they own). Why is she giving everything to the church? She mentioned last week’s message, Setting Limits, where we talked about some issues that she said she has never, ever heard a pastor or a church talk about. Because she’s bought into our vision to lead people to a passionate relationship with Jesus. When we say people, we mean all people, and that’s what our Make War series has been all about. What’s the church’s role in issues like poverty, sex trafficking, human slavery, dirty water, illiteracy, malnutrition and other issues affecting people all around the world. She said she’s never been a part of a church that cares about people like New Passion does…so…way to go New Passion, keep loving people! It’s awesome to be a part of a church where people are willing to give what they have so the gospel of Jesus can be advanced!