Stumbling Block

Scripture: I Corinthians 8:12 'And when you sin against other believers by encouraging them to do something they believe is wrong, you are sinning against Christ.'

Observation: Being a stumbling block involves more than just upsetting or offending someone. It is serious offenses that weakens another's relationship with Christ and makes their conscience unstable.

Application: So often we think that what we do will only affect us. But here Paul plainly states that when you sin against other believers you sin against Christ. Why? How we live, how we act, and how we represent Christ can either have a positive affect or a negative effect on another's life with Christ. That is why it is so important that we walk the talk. We don't say on thing and live contrary to it. We all have responsibility to represent Christ well and if we do not then we are in sin.

Prayer: Father, all that I say and do has an effect on who you are. I pray that the words and actions that I live would lift and edify who you are. Forgive me for the many times that I fail to represent you well, so that another might not stumble. Help me correct the areas in my life that are stumbling blocks to others. In Jesus Name Amen!

Final Thoughts on Nicaragua

Greeting from Denver! I am flying home and cannot wait to get there to hug and kiss my wife and kids. Yesterday I had the opportunity to attend the Global Leadership Summit in Nicaragua. The GLS is hosted by Willow Creek Community Church in South Barrington, Illinois. A few of their elders and staff were on the trip with me and that was awesome! The first GLS in Nicaragua was two years ago and they had 350 people there and this year there was 1000 people for leadership training. It was held at Hosanna Church with is one of the largest in Managua. This church was very different from the ones we toured with compassion.

As I reflect on the week, I went in thinking I had a pretty good grasp on poverty and the need to help fix it. I come home thinking I have no clue…but we must do a small part. I plan on working diligently to get my church involved with compassion and taking trips to Nicaragua to serve in any way we can! This will take week, perhaps months to digest and reflect what I took in. I praise the Lord that no one on our team came home sick or got sick while on the trip. We have seen some pretty devastating things the last few days…but God is still in control and He cares for the people of Nicaragua.

I did make an amazing contact with Davis Morales, an amazing Christian man. He is a lawyer, musician, sound technician, and professional basketball owner. I would not be surprised to see him speak at the GLS someday! We both are excited to see what God has in store for our connection with each other. There will be many pictures coming forth in the coming days. I will try to have a debrief session with those who would be interested. Thanks for following me in this journey. I will tell you I am a changed man and look forward to challenge others to get involved in Missions, especially with Compassion!

Nicaragua Day 3

Well greetings from Nicaragua…this is my last night here. Sorry that I have not posted until tonight. What I seen yesterday has taken me a while to process. Nicaragua is the 2^nd poorest country in Central America behind Haiti. And yesterday I saw it firsthand. We were able to go North to a church were the rain has completely washed the streets out and the holes in them cause the van to almost bottom out. We arrived at a Pentecostal church (in which I felt at home); shortly thereafter we were instructed that we were going to go to see the homes of where the Compassion kids live. Just to remind you Compassion International works through the local church…so everything is done through and at the church. We are in the neighborhood the church is in!

So we divided into three groups where we all went to different houses. Our group had the farthest to walk and we had a heavy box of rice, beans, and oil to take to the family. As we were walking I looked around to see that the houses were in ok shape, nothing us Americans would ever live in, but to them it was a great place to raise their family. The houses are made of wood…ran down, dirt floors, no windows, and it seems that all family members live in these houses. We continued to walk and it seemed as though we were going to a more difficult run down area and we were!

We then arrived to the family of Norman to whom this child is a Compassion Child. We walked into somewhat of a steel gate which keeps the gang members out of the house at night and on the weekends. We entered the gate to find the family eagerly awaiting us. So as I continued in I saw several shed, or what we would call sheds, which we would not even put our lawn mowers in. In fact we would tear the thing down because it was so decrepit. Inside the shacks were beds that maybe had a mattress on it, there was a crock pot, and about 4 plastic dishes that the family ate with. Just so you know 4 generations of family lived in the small area. They had a wood fire going outside where they cooked and a rooster running in the yard.

I continued to walk and I heard the voice of a women being very loud. Of course my attention was drawn that way and to my shock I saw that she was locked into one of the sheds. The family described her as crazy…my heart began to pound and the thoughts were immediately taken to the bible where Jesus healed people like this. I prayed for her to be healed at the end…but did not see any significant improvement. Another teammate of ours came over and looked into her eyes in which the gal responded 'I see Jesus in you,' simply powerful for my teammate!

Quickly the Compassion director got our attention to the children…and we they told us of their family situation and how compassion helped them out. After a long discussion and seeing picture of their sponsors and hearing the dreams of Norman, which is to become a professional, I began to see a child that matters to God and should matter to us as well. No one deserves to live like this.

As an American, we take so many things for granite. We are a blessed people and have everything at our disposal and yet we complain about everything! And to see this and say that the most happy people I saw on this trip where the kids, mom, aunt, grandma, uncle in this compound. As I set here tears are rolling down my face because of the arrogance and filthy pride I have. We must be about God's business and not our own. We must follow His example and sacrifice our time, talents, and treasure so that somebody else can have that opportunity to meet Jesus.

It is an amazing story of how people all over the world are sponsoring the children in need. The impact on the families and children's lives are beyond what anyone could ever imagine. Get ready church, you are going to be adopting children from Nicaragua and we are going to make a difference in this country!

 

Earthquake This A.M.

Wow…just experienced my first earthquake this a.m. The bed was shaking and I was thinking what the heck is going on? My roommate thought I was kicking his bed! It was quite the experience…according to the USGS it was 4.7 which is small…but man was it shaking our hotel. Now I can see how much power an 8.0 earthquake can have. Pretty Amazing!

 

Day 2 Nicaragua

Greetings from Managua! Today was a whirlwind of opportunity to see Compassion International at 1^st hand. We started off going to the Compassion National headquarters…this was quite the experience. We were able to see firsthand all of the work and effort that goes into making sure that every child that is sponsored is receiving the correct funding and care that is expected. Integrity is vital to an operation like this. Let me tell you Compassion is very well oil machine that is full of integrity. When you send you monies to sponsor a child…it goes to the child! Here in Nicaragua there are over 33,000 children enrolled in Compassion Projects and 26,000 of them are sponsored. They project they will have close to 100,000 children in the next few years. The need is great!

In the afternoon, we went to a Baptist Church where they have a compassion project. All of Compassion ministries is fulfilled through the local church, which get the church involved in the day to day operations. It is amazing to see…how they interact with the children. They have daily classes and they sing and play together. The elementary children only go to school from 7a.m. – 12 p.m. They then are free to roam the streets, while the parents are working the rest of the day. Also, the school does not feed them…so this presents a crisis for families. This is where compassion thrives. The start the projects in the afternoon and feed the kids. The church funds quite of the cost and then Compassion sponsors fund the rest.

The children performed a few songs for us and then read scripture…amazing. By the way 250 kids set still and pay attention during the whole service. I think we have something to learn in America! The first day we got here…we were handed a Compassion Packet to see how it operates from the stand point of a sponsor. In this packet was a name of a child, their picture, and a little about them. The one I was given was a boy by the name of Randy. I looked at the surroundings of the picture and saw that it had distinct features. Well yesterday we were at the building with the distinct features…and I had the privilege of meeting Randy. Talk about a God moment…of course I could not help but say I would be his sponsor for $38 bucks a month. He is 6 years old and his father is the only one that works. He brings in $25.00 a month. Pretty stunning to think that Randy lives on dirt floors and may get one meal a day at the project.

All this to say this…God cares about the poor, the hungry, and the lost. The question is do I? Do you? We have it so easy in America! Church it is time to rise up and see us do what we are called to do…reach 'one more!' Forgive me for grammatical errors…in a hurry but wanted to post. Be Blessed and I look forward to today!

Resurrection Power

Scripture: Mark 16:8 8 The women fled from the tomb, trembling and bewildered, and they said nothing to anyone because they were too frightened.

Observation: So Jesus is resurrected they go to the tomb and meet an angel. This angel tells them that Jesus isn't there, showed them, and then told them to go to Galilee.

Application: I would be freaked out too. Everything that Jesus had been preparing for them was now happening right before their eyes. Not only are they morning the loss of Jesus but now they are bewildered by the events of the Resurrection. I think often this is a great place to be. That when God says he will do something and does it, we are stunned…that we can't even put into words what we are experiencing.

Prayer: God I pray that there are many more moments in my life that all I can do is watch you work! Yes it may frighten me, I may tremble and be bewildered…but I pray for more of those experiences. I want to see miracles done with the Resurrection power. Thank you for this portion of Scripture.

 

Nicaragua Day 2

Good Morning! This morning we will head out into the city of Managua. It is a city of 1.8 million people, and poverty is that of Haiti. Managua is also known to be a rough city. In fact one of the travel guides simply said, "Watch Your Back!" So I am looking forward to going out into the city today.

Last night as I was flying over Central America, I couldn't help but notice the thousands of little towns throughout the region. I begin to think of how small we really are and how great our God is. The reason Jesus has not come back is because there are many of His people that have not been reached. I began to realize that there are more uttermost parts of the world besides Scottsbluff. My heart began to become heavy as I continued to see small town perhaps millions of unreached people. We got a job to do church!

This morning horns are honking and cars are jam packed on roads. We will be going to Compassion International home site here in Managua to meet pastors and children. It will be a good day. Pray that I will speak the words of the Holy Spirit…perhaps even some Spanish! By the way I am staying in a Hilton Hotel…and it is amazing. Doesn't feel like I am in a Third-World country right now, but that is all going to change in a few minutes!