Unto One Of The Least Of These

Jesus said:  "I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me."  Matthew 25:40.

I was reminded of this verse on Wednesday as I met a young man by the name of Jay (named changed to protect his identity).  The way I met Jay was what some people would call disturbing and disrupting their day.  To be totally honest that is exactly how I felt when our church secretary came to my office and said, "ok we have a problem - evidently there is a homeless man hanging out in the parking lot asking people for help."  My initial response was not near as wholesome as it should have been.

However, I knew the situation must be tended to as we had people arriving for a funeral service along with the fact that we have a Daycare on our campus and several of our teachers were coming in from Breaks and expressing their discomfort having seen him in the parking lot.

Once outside I saw a young man from "Different Eyes."  I felt as if God was saying to me, "Exercise Grace and Mercy...He is my child."  I walked up and said, "Hello - how can I help you?"  Jay was a young man with a puppy and a broken heart because his girlfriend had been arrested the night before. He shared that he needed a blanket. I asked him where he was staying.  This is where the story gets a little more heartwarming.  He said that he was staying down the street in the woods.  I told him that he really needed to go to our Shelter that we have in town.  He said he could not go there due to the puppy and he said he had tried to give the puppy away during the day but there was nobody that wanted him.  I shared with him that we could provide him with a sleeping bag - but we would have to go and purchase it at Wal-Mart.  

Long story made short our youth pastor had borrowed my vehicle so I called him to stop by Wal-Mart and get a sleeping bag and when he returned having known the story now about Jay - he brought him not only a sleeping bag but also a loaf of bread and some bologna and ham.  Our Daycare Director had fixed up a back of snacks, juices and food she had for him.  We inquired with Jay about his relationship with Christ (he said he was a Christian), prayed with him and gave him a Bible and told him we could not allow him to hang out on campus that he would have to take this stuff and leave now.

Jay has plans to get  a job and continue to seek to improve his situation.  The lesson I learned was that Jay could have come on our campus and left with one of two impressions.  1).  That place is truly a Light House and a Missional Outpost where he could see Jesus or 2).  I went there with a need in my life and they asked me to leave and ran me off.  I do not share this to brag or to pat ourselves on the back but I share it to say - that we must listen to that "Still small voice" and ask God to give us wisdom on how to handle these situations and ask for discernment.  I think Jesus would have actually said something like, "Come on Jay - I am going to your place for tea - or in this case - "Come on Jay you are going to my house for dinner."  There is so much to learn as we seek to be Missional each day and follow the example of Christ."

We hope to continue to reach out to Jay in the next few days.  Our plan is to take him for a meal and get him a change of clothes and perhaps work out a way for him to get a warm shower.

Pray for discernment along this journey called life and live a life that reflects the love of Christ as you go.

Being On-Mission

I am so excited and amazed each day about the things that the Lord shows and teaches me.  Over the past several months The Lord has been showing me what it means to live in "Total Abandonment" to Him and His call upon my life.  Most recently I have read two books that I would highly recommend to anyone to read.  Radical - written by: David Platt and Crazy Love - written by: Francis Chan.  I am currently in the process of reading another book entitled:  Sun Stand Still - written by Steven Furtick that has been highly recommended to me by my daughter and several others.

What I have been realizing is the power of impact and the question:  "How Does God Want To Use Me To Make An Impact?"   One way that I have found resolution to this question has been the great heart that the Lord has given me for Kenya.  I have had the opportunity to be involved in Partnership Missions with Kenya now for the fourth year in a row.  Since 2008 I have traveled to Kenya two times.  The First trip I took to Kenya in 2008 my oldest Daughter accompanied me along with several other team members.   In 2009 my youngest daughter accompanied our team.  This made these trips even more special to me to share them with my daughters.

I have seen the Lord do great and mighty things through the two teams that our church has helped to sponsor for Kenya.  I will have to opportunity once again in July 2011 to travel to Kenya with a team of 9 people.  I am so excited about what I feel the Lord will do through this group of dedicated people who have made a commitment to follow His call.

Several highlights of this partnership to name a few have been seeing a new church start known as Kambirwa Church established and impacting their community where once there was no church at all.  Seeing Kiamara Home Bible Fellowship Commissioned into a church family.  Our team in 2009 was able to baptize more than 12 believers and commission them as a church known as Kiamara Church. Many preaching points, Pastor's training school, orphanages visited, Visiting in their schools, etc. This is a very small snapshot of what the Lord is doing among this wonderful group of people.

As we travel there once again in 2011 we hope to see the completion of the Sanctuary for Kambirwa church, conduct another Pastor equipping Seminar, Work with the children, and lead in worship at various "Preaching Points."

Muranga Town Church is the Sponsoring church in Kenya.  They are on facebook if you would like to add them as a friend or visit their wall for more information.

The Lord is also showing me things to be involved in right here in our community known as Statesville.  I am a firm believer that missions begins right in our back yard.  Being On-Mission must become part of who we are as a Disciple of Christ in our everyday walk.

Please pray for me as I seek to be the Follower of Christ I believe He has called me to be each day of my life.  It is my prayer that He will direct my paths and guide me each day!

Welcome To My Blog

Let me welcome you to my new blog.  Several people have encouraged me recently to consider the world of Blogging.  I must say that this is definitely a new world for me.  The first challenge to blogging was deciding what to name my Blog...After a little thought from my wonderful wife and my daughter we decided that "View From The Hilltop" would be a great title for such a blog.  It is my desire to write about humorous things that happen to me along my journey in life - to offer a word of inspiration from time to time - to offer words of encouragement - and simply to have a place to record and capture my "View From The Hilltop."  I will be working over the next few weeks to get this blog up and running!