The Shack

Well, I'm finally getting around to writting about the book that is sweeping the nation. "The Shack" is something that a lot of people have asked me about and I wanted to point out a few things about this book. First, whether you're a Shack fan or a Shack critic you need to read the authors blog. Go to www.theshackbook.com. I don't think I'll take the time to write about all the details in this book but here are some general things you need to know. 1. ALL of the book is made up. Every character, every event, the forward, the signal light, the jeep, the wreck, Mack, Missy, the camping trip, the shack, the weekend with the Trinity... EVERYTHING IS MADE UP! 2. The thought "I finally understand the Trinity" should never cross your mind while reading this book. If you want to learn about the Trinity I would recommend the Bible 3. The book was written for the authors little kids, it was not written with the intent of being published, nor as a theological book. For theological understanding I also recommend the Bible:)
Now, having said that I loved the read. It paints some great pictures of love, forgiveness and service. Also, it made me get into my Word and verify some things I'd been taught about the Trinity. So, the book taught me a ton... just not in the way I thought it would. I know this book is touching millions and for that I'm glad. It paints some beautiful pictures, but I think it must be read with the knowledge of those 3 things I listed above.

Service: The place, not the action

Service: work done by one person or group that benefits another.

Service: A place in which we must live in love, to love.

If this word service is defined as something that benefits another, then why do we consider how our act of service is going to affect or even benefit us? We do don’t we? On a conscious level we would ask ourselves the financial cost, emotional strain, time commitment or a variety of other things. If the cost is too great in our own minds, the act of service is then tossed out of our minds. Or, sometimes we subconsciously consider our own agenda first and act out in selfish ways. In other words, maybe we can get past the financial cost, the time commitment and all of that, but what if someone personally hurts us? It’s not easy to get past that is it? What if someone deeply wounds us by a word said or a betrayal felt… can we still serve them? Or what if their wrong and you can even prove it, can we still serve them? Take the other side of this too… you know the less severe. The side where we will serve someone if we feel they “deserve” it, but if not we won’t do it. The result is the same isn’t it? That result being the absence of serving our brothers and sisters.

1 Peter 4 would tell us to use our gifts to serve one another and that this would make us good stewards of God’s grace. Galatians 5 calls us to serve one another in love. Romans 12 tells us to let love be genuine. So, we are called to serve one another (1 Peter 4) but not only that, but to do so in love (Galatians 5) and to serve one another with a genuine love (Romans 12) and this is done through God’s grace (1 Peter 4, and yes I know it’s referring specifically to the giftsJ).

Another translation of the verse in Romans says let love be without hypocrisy. So do I genuinely serve others in love? Do I love others genuinely by serving them? Is my love laced with hypocrisy? Do I serve those who I need to gain some “brownie points” with, or do I serve everyone? Do I live in love?

To serve is to live in a place where we can let our love towards people be genuine. To serve is to love God more than I love the people around me. To serve is to love God more than I love my own life. To serve is to know that I am to be hidden in Him. To serve is to live in His grace. To serve is to painfully move past myself. To serve is to love. To serve is to live in love. Service: A place in which we must live in love, to love. Do you live in love?

A lesson from E-Man (ya, he’s 11)

The other day my cousin came down with his 11 year old son (Easton) to play in his first state all-star baseball tournament, and if we can remember back then in our lives… this is a big deal! So, I tried to make it to as many of his games as I could, but one in particular was incredible! We got there sometime in the 2^nd or 3^rd inning and watched intently as these 11 and 12 year olds tried their best to come back from a 7 run deficit. They really didn’t get much of a chance that day because of a huge storm (and when I say huge I mean ginormous!) that was rolling in. Now, in a situation like this you are faced with a decision: 1. Get to cover or 2. Wait it out to see how bad it really is. We ignorantly chose the latter and before I could even consider reverting back to option 1, we found ourselves standing and laughing in disbelief at how DRENCHED we were! If you know me you know I exaggerate, but this is no exaggeration! I have never been that wet, that fast simply by a thunderstorm! It was awesome! It was the coolest thing ever! My phone was ruined, shoes were filled, hands pruned and even the dollar bills inside of my wallet were soaked!

“E-man, come awn dude, lets go!” I yelled.

“owkay” he responded in his east Texas twang.

Now keep in mind that Easton has just run off of a field where he and his team are losing by 7 runs with not much of a chance to rally. The entire team sat in that dugout with frowns on their faces, but when that storm came something changed. When Easton came running towards me in that rainstorm he was smiling ear to ear! It made me laugh as the three of us piled into my truck, soaking every inch of the seats. Then we watched in awe as the lightning danced in the skies and politely touched down to say hi to us every once in while. It was tremendous! Truly an experience I will never forget for many reasons. So why is it that this simple little thunderstorm could change the course of our night and turn Easton’s world from glum to through the roof excitement? Is it the peaceful sounds it makes? Is it the calm darkness it brings over the sky? Maybe, but I think it’s much more than that. I promise I have a point, so hang on.

I don’t think Easton’s demeanor was changed because of the sounds it made or the darkness it brought… it was simply because this rain storm interrupted life. It forced Easton to retreat from the pain and stress that game of a lifetime was causing him. It caused him to realize that the game wasn’t as big as he thought it was. It made him sit back and view life from a soaking wet seat with no option of doing anything other than sitting back and watching the world go on around him. Whether Easton realized it or not, God was in control of his life and the entire world and he had no choice in the matter.

Don’t you sometimes wish that a massive thunderstorm would interrupt your life? Don’t you wish you could take a day and interrupt your normal routine and do nothing but watch the world turn? Don’t you wish you could simple sit at the feet of Jesus for no reason at all? So why don’t we? Guilt, pressure, success… to name a few. What if we were intentional in making time to do nothing? If we viewed our priorities through the lens and relationship of Christ then maybe we would not feel guilty about resting… rather resting in the grace of God. If we allowed ourselves to get “caught in a storm” we too might realize the “game” we are in isn’t as important as we think it is. We might be able to sit in a “soaking wet seat” and just watch the world turn around us. We might experience joy through the relationship with our Savior and not worry so much about being "7 runs down". Whether we realize it or not, God remains sovereign in our stress, in our work, in our pain and even in our rest.

Austria mission trip at a glance

Monday, August 4, 2008

Update #7

Well, Germany was interesting to say the least... however, we God taught us all many things, just in ways we did not expect. Tent city was interesting as well, I'm sure we are all looking forward to sleeping in our own beds. We had a great time reflecting on ETC and the conference with the Austrian team today and we all said our goodbyes. We are just about to head to the airport and start our journey home. God has taught us much more than we taught anyone else these past 2 weeks, but our hope and prayer is that we have left an impact, for His glory, on the lives of the Austrians we were entrusted to. Thank you for your prayers and support through all of this, these blogs do not give justice to even the smallest portion of the trip. Our personal stories might give a little justice, but I don't think we could ever fully communicate the challenges, surprises, joy and celebration that we faced and witnessed.

Tuesday, July 29, 2008

Update #6

Tonight ETC camp comes to a close and we move our team to Leipzig, Germany. We will be saying goodbye to about half of the kids here, but gaining more when we arrive in Germany. ETC has been extremely successful in so many areas. The gospel has gone forth, believers have been encouraged and equipped and we have been very intentional with our time here. I can't imagine having an internet connection in Leipzig, so this is probably the last update for a while. Thank you for your prayers, we covet them dearly. I hope you continue joining with us through your prayers. Also, please pray for Gorgi and Verana as they embark on new found relationship with Christ in a place where discipleship does not exist and they would die for just one Christian friend! I wish you all could see the incredible ways God is using this team for His glory.

In keeping with 1 Thes 2 I can truly say that we have done all we can to "share the Word and share our lives" with these kids this week. Our team continues to amaze me, I'm glad to be serving along side them in this situation.

you know what he did...? he excepted Christ!!

I've been good friends with a guy named Giorgi for two years now. This week at ETC I've really been intentinal with hanging out with him. Yesturday I asked him to have his quiet time with me. We found a place and started talking. I soon realized that we would definately need a translator if any "real talk" was going to happen. At that moment, a guy named Roland walked in. This guy is not only a stud, he knows english really well. It was totally God helping me out, not leaving me out to dry. After talking for a while I asked him why he thought he was a christian. He told me that when he was born his parents baptized him and so he thought that made him a christian. I told him that no one is born into christianity, that it took a personal decision to accept Christ into your life. We talked for a while and I finally asked him where he stood? He looked at me and shrugged. He look confused and told me he thought he was back at the beginning. I asked him if he wanted to make that decision now, and he shook his head yes. I started to pray and had him repeat in German. Giorgi accepted Christ and is now a fellow brother!!

~Keaton

Monday, July 28, 2008

God's goodness, plain as day

All yesterday I had felt very convicted to talk with one of the girls here at camp about God, but every time I set aside time to talk to her she either wasn't to be found or wanted to do something else. Finally, thanks to God, at about 10:45 I was able to get time with her alone. When I got around to asking her how she felt about God she told me that she believed He was real and that Jesus died for her sins, but that she was afraid to commit her life to God because she thought it would be very painful and hard, and also that she wasn't good enough yet. We were able to talk about some of her misconceptions and in the end she made the decision to pray to ask God to be her Savior. Her amazement at God's grace and forgiveness was an encouraging reminder of how good our God is. God's swift work in her life just amazes me; He is so faithful and gracious, and I am grateful to Him that I was allowed to be part of His work.
-Callie

Update #5

So today we had a wonderful lunch and that should have given us a hint. The hint that we would be having dog food soop for supper, only to be followed by a scrumptulesent looking 'pancake' with all sorts of 'I don't know what' inside of it covered with 'I couldn' tell you' that looked a little like yogurt and I'm sure a goat had something to do with its production at some point. Not to worry though, we are fully stocked up on the finest chocalate a euro can buy!
Today has been wonderful... almost normal, well almost. We started our 'hot topics' meetings tonight and many deep issues were discussed, but none ever seem to be resolved. They went well and got minds thinking at all sorts of levels, including our own. We are a few minutes away from our American team meeting and I have heard bits and pieces of some amazing stories through out the day. I know of one student who professed Christ as his savior today, more who had extremely deep conversations with our students, others who emotionally 'threw up' on our students but I don't even know all the details yet! However, if we get done with our day while it is still today, I will try and have some of our students post a little about their day.
To whoever is reading this we truly covet your prayers now more than ever. Parts of us hang by a thread and other parts of us can't wait for morning to come so we can go again. Pray for the Austria team and the American team that God would be our hope, our joy and our strenght. Pray that God would stretch our team inwardly as well, that we would return to the States different than when we left. Pray that our own personal relationships with Christ would not be put aside during this time, but embrased more than ever. Pray that God would do amazing things tomorrow as we continue relationships and have a special night of very honest and genuine Gospel presentation. Pray that God would be glorified in us and through us this week and that whatever happens He gets all the glory. Also, remember Russ Clowdus as he heads up this ministry here in Austria.

Sunday, July 27, 2008

Update #4

Today was incredible... the best day yet. I am so proud of our students, everyone here litterally looks to each of them just like they were adults. I can say that our entire team is being challened both inwardly and outwardly in ways that can only be described in spoken words. It is hard to describe the range of emotions that rage through our team, to see the grace of God move in a place like this and to take the hits from this warfare that we find ourselves in. We are learning to lean on Him more and more as the days go by and we are learning to trust one another more as well.
As far as the specific ministry goes we had a breakthrough with the muslim kids that are here. They are no longer apposed to listening to the gospel and the even sat through an evening talk and worship without sleep, leaving or talking the whole time! We sat around tonight and talked about these students by name and I was amazed listening to our students deeply discuss the hearts of these kids. They have busted into their worlds, served the heck out of them and earned their trust. We have also been talking about pulling some of these kids aside and pushing them to become leaders. Their is definately a lack of Christian leadership in Austria and we talked through a few kids here that have relationships with Christ and great potential to lead their peers.
I could not be more proud of a group of people as this to serve along side. Please pray that God would protect us from the evil one and that God would sustain us physically, emotionally and spiritually. Truly our hope is in Him.

Saturday, July 26, 2008

update #3

Today was our first full day of camp and it was fantastic! One of the goals we set early on is to find out (to the best of our finite knowledge) where each of these students are in their relationships with God. However, we usually do not get there until day 3... well this trip it started today! The spectrum is huge here... all the way from those who worship the Muslim god, to those who could be leaders at this camp. We have gained the trust and entered into a relationship with just about every kid here. There was one boy who was calling his dad to go home on the first day, but after spending one morning with the 'crazy americans' he was glad to stay the week. Our team has doubled in trust and relationship even since yesterday. At some level this must be what it feels like to go into battle with a group of people, this just a much safer scale of course.
To sum up this day I would say that we have opened this can of 'condensed ministry' and from here on out it is like drinking from a fire hydrant. Also this day marks the day that we have officially torn down their walls. Even the handful of folks who are utterly rebellious, sneaking out, not wanting to be a part of anything... I have a feeling they will tomorrow because of the genuine relationships we have established.
Our team has found joy in the fact that God's mercies are new every day. That they are not meant to last more than that day, but we hope in Him to supply us with enough mercy to get through the next.

Friday, July 25, 2008

update #2

First of all let me say that it is very frustrating to type on a German key board! I think it took me close to 7 minutes to find the @ symbol! Anyway, the whole camp is asleep now and we have said goodbye to day 1. The true colors of our team are starting to show and I am amazed at the team God assembled here! The Austrian team and the American team are some of the strongest I have ever been a part of. Overall, day one went well with one minor road block. The road block is that way more kids this year can't speak english at all and we do not have the ability to talk one on one with a lot of them. The good news about that is the root comes from a group of refugees who are mostly Muslim. It is exciting to be able to get into their lives and learn where they are coming from. So pray that God would simply eliminate this hinderance and allow us to boldy proclaim Jesus to all the people here.

-Jason

Thursday, July 24, 2008

Update #1

Well so far we have experienced no sleep for 33 hours straight, enjoyed the GREATEST hot dogs you have ever placed inside your mouth, toured a palace, ate schnitzel, met with the Austria team and now we are about 12 hours (it's 12:00 a.m. Vienna time) from boarding a train with all of the Austrian kids and head to ETC. WE have already learned a lot about ourselves and the depth of our team has increased dramatically, though we don't know it yet:). Tomorrow the "gloves come off" and we will begin to pour out all we got for His Name's sake. The excitement level of our team is almost through the roof, though I'm sure that excitement stems a little bit from being nervous:). Please pray for the unity of our team and the cohesion of our team with the Austrian team. Also, pray the we might be bold in proclaiming the gospel and intentional about getting in the lives of these students. Pray that we would be quick on our feet, patient in our minds and genuine in our hearts. Guten Nacht!

-Jason

Monday, July 21, 2008

Should God be our first priority?

What if I said I don't think God should be the first priority in your life? Would you label me a heretic? What if I re-phrased it then? What if I said it this way: God should not be the first priority in your life, He should be the lens and relationship in which you make your priorities. What if God was more than just a priority to us? Would it change the way we viewed and lived our very lives?
Think of some common priorities in your life: work, marriage, friends, ministry, girlfriend/boyfriend, school, pets, family, working out, etc. What makes one a priority above the other? Think of what those things require. All of these things require our physical energy, emotional stamina and in some cases spiritual outpour. Didn’t Jesus say that the greatest commandment involved loving the Lord your God with all you heart, with all your soul and with all your mind (Matt 22)? If God is merely a priority how can we do this?

So, what exactly is it that determines which of these is a priority above the other? Take a minute and think about the priorities in your life. Our minds race to try and compute what our priorities are by asking how much time do I spend with this thing or that person, how intentional am I with this or that, how much energy do I extend towards this group of people, how much do I value these different things? Maybe a better question is why do I do those things? If we are honest with ourselves we might start to think “man, my priorities are jacked up”. Why do I place work as such a high priority at the expense of my relationships with people? Maybe it’s because our work is all about us. Or maybe we would ask, why don’t I make him or her a greater priority? Maybe it’s because we don’t want to serve people that much. So where does God fit into all of this? Here is my point: we make these priorities as we see fit. We make them from our own judgment. Think about it, we place God as our #1 priority because we think He should be there, some even think we need to do this in order for our lives to be better. Then we start to make other priorities according to our own wants, desires or even from guilt. Kind of selfish isn’t it? My argument: what if we made our priorities through the lens of our relationship with God rather than through the lens of our own fallen minds? God would then no longer be our first priority, but He would be far above this box we call priorities. Maybe then He would be in His rightful place as Creator, Sustainer, Deliverer, Counselor, Lord and King. Maybe then our priorities might be in order, according to His will and not ours. Would our lives look different then? Maybe our lives would be filled with more love and service of one another. Maybe we would enjoy the messes of life just so we can help others clean them up. Maybe we would be anxious of nothing. Maybe we could trust Him more. Maybe we would no longer make God a simple priority in life, but be hidden in Him (Colossians 3). Maybe we could carry out the greatest commandment a little bit better. Maybe?