cop out...

in john 12 it says that during Jesus' entry into town, his presence was a bigger deal than the actual celebration that was taking place. as i shared at the movement tonight, i questioned the students on how excited they are to celebrate the biggest Jesus party in the world - to think that for a weekend, believers world wide unite in celebration, remembrance, and victory. i compared the fact that the police concert sold out in 15 minutes; jonas bros in about 8, hannah montana in about 4. 

where is the line to celebrate Jesus?

are we inviting anyone to his party?

for a man who raised the dead, healed the sick, cured the blind, forgave all sin, and resurrected from the dead - i'm sure that he'd have no problem filling up any venue. yet why is it so difficult to grab the attention of those who don't know Christ?

could it be that i'm not inviting anyone to the greatest celebration on earth?

could it be that i'm not celebrating Christ in my daily lifestyle?

could it be that i truly don't believe that what Jesus did then, he can do now?

these are the questions i posed to the students. as i thought about stuff later on, i thought it fair to ask myself and the rest of the 'grown up' blog world - why aren't we inviting others to Christ more often?

i thought to myself that perhaps its because... 

of what they might here or see. cop out.

of what they might like or dislike. cop out.

of what they might understand or not understand. cop out.

the reason they are a cop out: whether the church experience is right for them or not, you and i have been placed there intentionally to clarify the matter. it's just easier to not invite anyone - there's less work on my part that way and i can pass the blame. it's a cop out, again. 

let me ask: why?

why don't we invite others more often?

why don't we reflect this celebration more often?

why do we choose the easy route and blame others instead?

help me out. why?

it's not Him, it's me... seriously

there's a pattern that i'm seeing in life. things that i want. things that i can't have. things that i can't have now. things that i shouldn't want. and then, again, there is this thing called "WHAT GOD DESIRES." a.k.a - God's will, God's plan, God's preferred plan, God's sovereign plan, whatever. pick anyone of those titles and if you're like me, you wrestle with the why's of life and the why not's of life. 

see, the problem is that i'm not always satisfied with His choices in my life. i'm not always satisfied with my choices in life either, but i think i give God more beef because He's perfect - and because He is, i guess when He doesn't do what i want, somehow, i seem to fool myself that he's less than perfect - which he's not. hear me clearly, HE'S ALWAYS PERFECT and RIGHT!

it's part of that pattern that i was mentioning to you. i discovered the problem in the formula. it's me. it's always been me and what i want. major problem. it's not Him, it's me. it's not Him, it's you and me. it's not Him, it's us. seriously. i know it sounds like a bad break up line, but it's so true. 

amazing, that as cheezy as my excuses seem to be, even to me, he doesn't break up. i'm sure that it bothers Him. but He's slow to anger and quick to forgive - me and my stupid patterns. it's in this that i take satisfaction. it's in this that i find joy. even though i'm me, He's still Him. that's enough for me and us all.

happy birthday...

just wanted everyone out there to know that today is adriana's birthday. she's hot and my wife; one the greatest blessings that God's ever given me. give her a call or drop her an email and let her know that you love her.