My Lifesong

And it’s gonna be awesome!!!

I want to wish my beautiful wife Nicole a very happy birthday today. She is the best thing God has blessed me with here on this earth. She is so patient, loving, caring…you get the idea.

To honor her, I dedicate this song to her:

I am flabbergasted with the home we had to finish today. To put it bluntly, the team that built it didn’t care about their work. They were concerned with checking off the “Mission Trip” box on their checklist instead of doing the work that God has commanded to do. I won’t go into detail, but it’s suffice to say that I was embarrassed by the structure that we discovered. It couldn’t even be called a home since the windows and door were never installed. We did the best we could to give the family the home they expected. I hope it is enough.

I was called selfish because I referred to this trip as my mission. Maybe I am, but if I don’t have the passion for this trip, then what good am I? Without passion, my work would be crap. If I am to be effective, I need to be on fire for God. I want to do what God wants me to do. If that’s selfish, I’m ok with that.

Today was rough. We turned the keys over to the family, and my heart broke. I didn’t want it to end…I didn’t want to leave. I spent a lot of time with the family getting to know them, and it was hard to see our time together come to a close.

Our homeowner – Chela – was determined to get picture of the team. Her intent is to frame the picture, hang it in her living room, and tell people about the group that built her home.

Her son, José (great name, right??), even presented me with a bracelet today. I didn’t have my camera today, so I had someone take a picture of José and I. I’ll post it when I can.

It’s amazing that God could use us to make an impact like that. Simply amazing

We’re at Spanish Landing in San Diego. The large group is being picked up at the airport. I’m anxious. I love being back and reconnecting with family. It’s like the year never happened. We are back. But we aren’t home. We are aliens here. And we have work to do.

Allons-Y!!

This past weekend, I was fortunate to meet my little brother Roy. He’s 14-years old. And I met him for the first time last week Wednesday.

It’s not his fault. It’s partially mine. Partially our father’s. I don’t have a relationship with my dad. We rarely talk. I haven’t seen him in at least 16 years. When he left, he left. I tried to have a relationship with him…but it seems to be a one-sided notion.

Don’t get me wrong. I’ve accepted the situation and I’ve moved on. I have a Heavenly Father to whom I turn to, who holds me and loves me. God has placed friends and family in my life to let me know how much He loves me.

Don’t get me wrong, I do love my father. We just don’t have a relationship.

And because of that, I’ve never considered my little brother or sister. Roy is 14, and he is the spitting image of me. Some of his habits and mannerisms are the same. It’s uncanny. And I’ve yet to meet Vivi. She’s 4 going on 5. And I’ve stayed out of their lives. Not maliciously. Not to hurt them. Just didn’t think I was wanted.

Roy changed all that. He let my older siblings know that he wanted to meet me. To have a relationship with me. So I called him. Started the process. We talked. Connected on facebook.

And last weekend, we met. Our older brother – Chuy – came up to visit our sister Linda. They stopped by here a few days before heading north. Roy stayed with me through Saturday and we drove up to Beecher to meet up with everyone else. It was a fun time. I think we connected well. And I hope it’s the start of some healing that I need.

You see, in my efforts to stop the hurt and the pain, I shuttered some things deep inside of me. Even though God has redeemed me, I still carry this around. I never realized the extent until this happened. And all I can do is turn it over to God, let Him have it, and wait for Him to work on me some more.

I think this all happened before the trip for a reason. God has broken me down for a reason. Again. Cause every year, He does this to me. And I’m good with that, cause I know that in the Potter’s Hands, I’m alright.

We leave for Mexico on Saturday. I am excited. All these months of planning, praying, and preparing for this week are coming to fruition. God has been busy breaking me down in getting me ready for the trip, and I know He is going to rebuild and restore me.

We’ve faced obstacles. We’ve been told not to go. I’ve even received a few emails from people that were somewhat negative of my views.

The Enemy was on full assault…because he is scared. He knows that when we are the Body, we advance the Kingdom.

And he’s failed. This trip is important because it is what God calls us to do. It’s important because we learn a lot about ourselves, our friends, and most importantly, God.

We will be blogging during the trip. Please, follow along with us, as well as all the other Traders Point trips at http://servingtheworld.org.

As the good Doctor would say – Allons-Y!!

How I need to live this life….

I received this month’s Amor enewsletter. This is the letter from Gayla Cooper Congdon, Founder and Chief Spiritual Officer of Amor ministries. Please read.

The Power of Our Words

“But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and it is those things that make a person unclean.” Matthew 15:18

“The Church ought to live out love. Woe to her if she does not do that! Woe to her if by her silence and by all sorts of dubious excuses, she becomes jointly guilty of the world’s outbursts of hatred! Woe to her if she adopts words and slogans that originate in the sphere of hate.”

This is an excerpt from a letter by Pastor Walter Hochstadter, a German pastor and hospital chaplain in France during the Second World War. He secretly sent a letter with this in it to 1,000 German soldiers at the Russian Front.

We all have heard “sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me.” And we all know that isn’t true. Words are powerful and when spoken with anger and a mean spirit they can leave an indelible print on someone long after a bone has healed.

Long before the shootings in Tucson and the discussion it created about our national rhetoric, I had been thinking about some of the most surprising things that have been said to me these past two years, especially in reference to Mexico. Rhetoric from fellow Christians that I have come in contact with while traveling and representing the Ministry.

Imagine how I felt when a couple of years ago I was sitting with a pastoral staff and church leaders discussing their church’s upcoming trip to Mexico when one gentlemen informed me that there were people in the church that just hated Mexico and Mexicans! In my most diplomatic voice – and those of you that know me know that I don’t really have a diplomatic voice – I spoke very softly and told him that given the words of Jesus to “love our neighbors” hating Mexico and Mexicans is just not an option for Christians.

I have honestly been appalled at how many folks have taken it upon themselves after I have spoken at their church to tell me what they think about Mexico, immigration issues, gun control and even our president. And the anger in their voices belies an attitude that borders on the hate that Pastor Hochstadter speaks of in his letter.

You can imagine my shock when once a complete stranger walked right up to me after the service and told me that they would never go to that “Godforsaken country of Mexico!” Why would someone feel a need to say that to me?

Last fall Chuck Colson and Jim Wallis came together to create a “covenant of civility” for those in the Church to express differences in a kind and thoughtful way that would reflect respect for one another. Many well known pastors signed it.

As bothered as I am about our national rhetoric, I am more concerned about what is being said in the Church. This passage in Matthew really speaks to the fact that what comes out of our mouths is a true reflection of what is in our hearts and I’m saying that some of it is just not good or acceptable.

In Proverbs this is an important topic. There are references to words, lips, mouths, tongues that appear about 150 times in the 31 chapters. Why? Because our tongue is moving all day long and it tells the story of what is going on in our hearts at the moment. And what we say is not always in harmony with the holiness of God. I also believe that this is a spiritual problem we all face, some more than others, in that we all have problems with our mouths!

Years ago when my friend Mike McClenahan was the youth pastor at Moraga Valley Presbyterian Church, he started making the yearly trip to Mexico each spring with his group. Our staff loved eating with them because they had become well known throughout our Ministry for their delicious meals. But what affected me most was how he and the other leaders created an intentional atmosphere of kind words and encouragement with over 100 students.

As the students lined up for their food you never heard, “ugh I don’t like that” or anything derogative about what was being served. Their thankfulness to the servers as well as for the food was so evident and it had such a positive impact on their group as well as those of us that came in contact with them. After eating you always walked away fed and with more than just food!

My challenge to all of us during this season of Lent and Easter is to use words that genuinely reflect Christ’s nature and his character of love. Let us remember the power of our words. And may those of us in the Church be unified in civility towards one another in spite of differences. It is my prayer that those who are marginalized in our world hear and see the love of God in the power of our words and deeds! That is why Amor Ministries exists.

“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.” Psalm 19:14