Blessed to bless

“I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth. Because you say, ‘I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing’---and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked.”
Revelation 3:15-17

Do we ever stop and ask ourselves why God allowed us to be born in America? Having travelled extensively it always amazes me how unique America is when compared to other countries. For lack of a better term, America is the ‘Disneyland’ of the world. We have wealth, medical care, clean water, food, policemen, a military, televisions in every home, gaming consoles, iphones and ipads, job opportunities, and the ability to move vertically within social class systems—we have it all. But, what we consider a blessing may be exactly what is producing the greatest depth of spiritual apathy seen in recent Christian history.

Read more in the original January 2015 newsletter

Charis missions trips

“He who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. If anyone serves Me, let him follow Me; and where I am there My servant will be also. If anyone serves Me, him My Father will honor.”
John 12:25-26

Do you love your life? When you love something deeply, everyone knows it. When people see your wife happy, provided for, healthy and in love, the love that you are providing is obvious. When people look at your life is the love that you are providing it obvious? Big homes, manicured lawns, big televisions, designer clothes, 80 hours a week at work climbing the corporate ladder, etc., all reveal a love of life due to your passion, concern, and enthusiasm for it. So what’s wrong with this, and why does Scripture say that loving life will result in losing your life? To answer this question we must ask another one—Does your life draw people to you, or does it draw people to Christ? This is the only question of relevance for Christians, and the answer, if you love your life, is obvious—your love for your life will draw people to you because “where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Matthew 6:21). 

Read more in the original November 2014 newsletter

What happens on the field?

“Christ, the work He has given us to do — the evangelization of all the unevangelized. Christ wants not nibblers of the possible, but grabbers of the impossible, by faith in the omnipotence, fidelity, and wisdom of the Almighty Savior Who gave the command. Is there a wall in our path? By our God we will leap over it! Are there lions and scorpions in our way? We will trample them under our feet! Does a mountain bar our progress? Saying, ‘Be thou cast into the sea,’ we will march on. Soldiers of Jesus! Never surrender!”
C.T. Studd

The evangelization of the unevangelized—this phrase encompasses living obedience to Christ. What were Christ’s last, and therefore very significant, words to us before he ascended back into heaven? “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:18-20). Now that we have this command from Jesus fresh in our minds, allow me to continue with another passage of Scripture, “Why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord’ and don’t do the things I say.” (Luke 6:46). This question is relevant isn’t it?

Read more in the original September 2014 newsletter

Has your faith taken flight?

“If we have put our hope in Christ for this life only, we should be pitied more than anyone.” 
1 Corinthians 15:19

I have read this verse many times, but recently the Holy Spirit stopped me as I read it and when I meditated on it, the truth became startling. This life that we are all living in America is created by our worldly obligations. Careers, school, shopping, eating, exercising, etc. dominate our time that is divided into segments of minutes and hours—every increment of time being scheduled and accounted for in an effort to perform optimally in a world that demands our best. With this in mind, let’s turn our attention to Paul’s words in this verse. As Christians we have put our hope in Christ. What does this mean? It means that we believe in the birth, life, death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus Christ. He died as He placed all of our sins upon Himself, and when He rose from the dead He defeated Satan, death, and sin. So now we know, that through belief and relationship with Jesus, our sins are forgiven and thus the deserved wrath of God is erased from our current and future reality—since the blood of Christ covers our sins.

Therefore, we know that upon our mortal death, we will be carried to heaven by angels and spend eternity in heaven with our Creator! It is this hope that Paul is referring to in this verse. This means that in this life—through all of its trials, tribulations, diseases, suffering, and pain we look towards heaven—hoping in the reality of our eternal resting place where death is swallowed up by immortality and perfection. This hope creates power within Christians, and we see this in the Bible. Paul, Peter, John and the other disciples and followers of Christ don’t concern themselves with worry over persecution and trials. In fact, as in the case of Peter and the other apostles getting flogged for spreading the gospel, they fall on their knees in absolute joy as they praise God for being, “counted worthy to suffer shame for His name” (Acts 5:41). In Acts 16, we see Paul and Silas singing hymns of praise in prison as they sit shackled with fresh wounds from the beating that tore their backs open that day. How is this possible? It’s possible through hope—the hope that they placed in Christ and heaven.

Read the original July 2014 newsletter

Commitment that thins the ranks

"...choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve.” Joshua 24:15

In the United States a very unique milieu exists in which one can live as a Christian. We are not persecuted, we can freely worship, we can purchase Bibles at will, we can evangelize without fear of death, we have any Christian educational material that the world offers available to us, we are wealthy, and we can travel whenever we want and wherever we want without visas because we have the highly coveted American passport.

With that said, American Christians will travel on their paths of life and inevitably reach a spiritual fork in the road. One road is wide open and paved with gold. As you look down this road you see a comfortable home, multitudes of friends, your church and your pastor, endless sporting events to watch for hours, a two week vacation to Europe, and the summer church BBQ. There is, in fact, so much great stuff going on down this road that you can’t see what or where it leads to, and obviously you can’t focus on what you can’t see—so you focus on what you can see—and who can deny that this road looks great! How could it be anything but the right path when most of the Christians that you know are standing there and asking you what you’re waiting for?

Then you turn and look down the other path. It is very narrow and looks lonely. There are very few people on this path and you can see why—it’s difficult with thorns and a multitude of trials, and comforts are nowhere to be seen. You can’t see anyone’s face who is on this path because, unlike the open comfortable path where everyone was focused on you, everyone on this narrow path is focused on the journey’s end, and thus you can’t get any of them to look back. As you look at the end of the narrow path you see a paradise that is beyond your imagination—but the road to get there is full of sacrifice and hardship. 

Read more in the original May 2014 newsletter

Family prayer sponsorships

“And the Lord said, ‘Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you.” Luke 22:31-32

Prayer! I often ponder on the things that must sadden God as He considers us, His creation. He is constantly present, He is always listening, and He sees everything. If we could allow ourselves to grasp this truth we would live a lot differently as Christians. What would you think if you married the love of your life, a person that you would die for and have vowed to care for forever, and he/she never spoke to you—or, only spoke if they were in trouble and thus limited their verbal interaction with you to self-centered requests. That would be completely unacceptable, but this is how God must feel when we don’t put prayer in its proper place in our lives. God wants us to speak to Him constantly about all aspects of our lives, good or bad. He longs to be an active, daily part of our life through continual conversation. The power and importance of prayer is something that we, in Western society, have long denied and ignored. As a result, we struggle to discern the voice of the Holy Spirit within us, and, in failing to pray more, we reveal our lack of faith in God to handle our successes, failures and trials in life. 

Read more in the original April 2014 newsletter

Building blocks

“Coming to Him, a living stone—rejected by men but chosen and valuable to God—you yourselves, as living stones, are being built into a spiritual house for a holy priesthood to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.” 1 Peter 2:4-5

As I sit and watch our dedicated construction crew erecting our second school building in Haiti, this verse from 1 Peter entered my mind. As I pondered it, the Holy Spirit created a degree of sadness in my heart considering that we, as Christians today, fail to appreciate, and further, are not taught, our role as “living stones”. As I watch the school going up one cement block at a time it is very evident that if a block were to be left out, a hole would result in the wall making it incomplete. This is directly analogous to our position on this earth as Christians. Each one of us are “LIVING stones”, according to Scripture. If we were meant to just fill a position in a wall than there would be no need to place the adjective, living, as a descriptor of the stone. Therefore, Peter is telling us that we are to be alive and active as Christians, fulfilling Christ’s direct commands to us found throughout Scripture, especially in the gospels. 

Read more in the original February 2014 newsletter

Missionary life (Joyfully sanctified)

"They who dive into the sea of affliction bring up rare pearls." - Charles Spurgeon

Suffering. Due to a worldly standard that places a negative connotation on this word, we are taught to avoid suffering at all costs. As a result of our unwillingness to suffer as Christians,the world suffers! In our journey through our ministry in Haiti, which is currently in its infancy, I have been surprised by both the level of suffering and the reliability of its almost daily reality. Since initiating this ministry in Haiti we have personally experienced real hunger due to lack of food, have witnessed babies and young children die due to starvation, we have lived in 135 degree temperatures with no relief for days, I have had severe illnesses, experienced demonic attacks, curses have been placed on me by vodou priests, death contracts have been placed on my translator and I as we witness to the vodou community, I have been abandoned by friends and deceived and slandered by leaders and this is all within the first year of our ministry! Many reading this could fairly ask the question, "why would you continue?" The answer is readily available in the Bible.

Read more in the original January 2014 newsletter

Centurion Initiative

As 2014 is upon us and we look forward to a new year of walking obediently with the Lord in Haiti, we anticipate the awesome work that God is going to perform through all of us. The letter that follows is a call to action, faith and growth. If you are receiving this correspondence you should join with me in feeling honored! Honored by the fact that we have been divinely recruited by God to be a member of this team that was put together before time began for a lofty purpose--this purpose culminates in the salvation of Haiti. This assignment requires a corporate effort and if we remain faithful in prayer, support, and performance of this work, I have complete faith that we will witness a total defeat of Satan on his playing field in a country that he has controlled for over 500 years. I am proud to be a part of this team, and you have my promise, as the founder of this organization, that my life is fully dedicated, in complete surrender, with an overwhelming sense of urgency, to the work of the Holy Spirit in Haiti. I write the following letter in humility before God and as your brother in Christ.

"For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them." Ephesians 2:10

Read more in the original December 2013 newsletter

A tour of our schools

"But God said to him, "You fool! This very night your life is demanded of you." Luke 12:20

Prior to moving to Haiti, I spent summers and falls playing men's 12 inch softball. I was friends with many of the players, and even though I refrained from going out with them after games to drink at bars and stay out most of the night, I was still respected by my team mates who saw me as a family man who had standards that existed as a result of my Christianity.

This week I received an email stating that one of my team mates, who was in his early 40's, was found dead in his home. As I read these words and began to process this, the Holy Spirit pierced my heart with great force. This man, my team mate, was dead, and he was not a believer. Unless he had responded to God's call since I last saw him, his soul is now eternally lost, forever separated from God in hell. This is not a topic that we like to talk about but it’s about time that we do.

Read more in the original November 2013 newsletter