this morning at CF DT

this morning at CF DT, i was given the privilege to teach; both at the leaders service and the regular attendee service.

the gospel was shared and people gave their lives to Christ.

i'm always amazed and humbled that God chooses to work through such a messed vessel like myself

the best is yet to come

i would have to say that the best for ministry and city work is yet to come. i can't really say why, other than God is doing incredible things and i'm just grateful to be a part of it.

the best is yet to come.

reload conference miami

today i was given the privelage of sharing the little of experience that i've gained with the brightest folks serving in south florida.

today at Christ Fellowship DT, we were able to host the RELOAD conference; sponsored by the Urban Training Network, Youth For Christ, First Priority of South FL, and Family & Children Faith Coalition.

There were about 275 folks there for the same reason. to learn how to be better in serving and ministering to their communities.

I'm inspired by the great things that God is doing through so many folks. I'm also humbled because I realize after gatherings like this one, I am not needed...thank God.

i want to be faithful

Hosea 3

¹ The LORD said to me, "Go, show your love to your wife again, though she is loved by another and is an adulteress. Love her as the LORD loves the Israelites, though they turn to other gods and love the sacred raisin cakes."² So I bought her for fifteen shekels of silver and about a homer and a lethek of barley. ³ Then I told her, "You are to live with me many days; you must not be a prostitute or be intimate with any man, and I will live with you."

how many times are we to keep loving someone who doesn't love back? as i read this, i'm struck by the word "AGAIN." i think this is an incredible description of God's love toward us. He loves us again and again and again and again...of course this is God teaching man to honor his wife. but the comparison is clear that God does this with his people the same.

in verse 2 it describes to us hosea's payment for his wife. i know it's weird because it's not american currency. bottom line, it's a lot of money. love is not cheap and there will always be a price to keep it, bring it back, and if necessary redeem and restore it. again, God is the one who leads by example (matthew 27, mark 15, luke 24, john 19) as i glance over the cost of love, i can't but help stop and breathe deeply...because it hurts. to know that i have been the cause of such great pain. how many times has God told me "I'm your God, don't do that because it displeases me." or maybe "You are cheating on me with your time, your money, your resources, your life; stop it."

incredible that God would use hosea in such a way. we honor these men of the scripture, but this is one guy i would not want to be. i can't imagine the difficulty of raising a family without there mother because she's out prostituting herself. hosea is hardcore because he buys her back over and over again - because GOD tells him to.

i want that kind of obedience, i just don't want that kind of trial. i think it's part of the territory however.

i want to be faithful to my God.

that which matters most

so it's been almost 2 months to the day that i last blogged.

lot's of incredible things going on. so much so that it's easy to forget that which matters most. i appreciate this pick that was taken by a buy attending Imago Dei, out in portland oregon; cool cat.

it reminds me most of all that in the middle of life and it's clutter, it's important not to forget the sacred; that which matters most.

what matters most and is it reflected by your time, money, and actions?

life. money. hope.

this weekend at CF we started a 2 part series by dave ramsey. good stuff. lots of insights.

above all, he mentioned this one piece of info that was so true

20% is head knowledge

80% is actual doing

knowing about over spending is easy to understand; not overspending is the tough part

the same thing could be said about all the stupid things in life that we do

we know it's stupid and would never recommend anyone else to do it and yet we somehow end up doing it ourselves

it's the 80% that's tough

to the Don...

tonite i had the cool opportunity of being with a pastor friend of mine, noel lozano (aka The Don) to celebrate his 10 years of ministry. myself along with a few others laid our hands on he and his wife; prayed for their church, membership, future, and God's will

pretty cool time. please continue to pray for him and his family; most people have no idea how hard it is to be a pastor/pastor's wife/pastor's kids

to reading...

been reading about sin lately; what it is and how it works. also been getting ready for a message that i will be sharing at CF DT next week, it has to do with sin.

in the mean time, i'm trying to implement what i'll be sharing. it's easier said than done.

my sin is very real and alive. it reminds me of my past, which stinks.

which is why i'm thankful for God's word; it reminds me of my future, which is incredible. 

can't wait to share with CF next week.

proceed with caution...

so this is what i'm learning about...

God is holy

I am not

i know it doesn't sound like much, but when one begins to understand who and what the essence of God is like, anything in comparison is pitiful; especially me

knowing how screwed i already am and can potentially be helps me reframe my thoughts and my position when i approach God

He's holy...proceed with caution and reverence

"holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts. the whole earth is filled with His glory" - Isaiah

to the sexy prayer...

so i was thinking about guys that lead worship. some cool, others not so much.

either way, when they get into, there's almost always that pause or break in the middle where you can sense that something cool is going on. it's at that point that the sexy prayer begins.

passionate words are uttered. hand gestures are used. it even becomes emotional. 

the catch is in the tone. the voice and feel changes. it's...well, it's sexy.

am i the only one that thinks so?