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.

to reflections...

so during my quiet times with adriana, we are going over a study called 'down pour' by j. mcdonald. good stuff.

here's where i'm at. there's a few things that i've noted and been convicted of.

-i truly don't realize how holy God really is...it scares me

-i don't spend enough time in worship of Him

-i need to start praying for revival

so with that in mind, i'd like for the blogopolis out there to consider these things with me and to take them to heart

what would it take to bring personal revival?

what would it take to bring revival to our cities?

i know it starts with prayer, what's next?

"I will pour water on the thirsty land, and streams on the dry ground" Isaiah 44:3

to insecure leadership...

so today, i thought i would throw out some different ideas that i'm gathering from 2 main sources - 1 samuel and the life of saul and johnny hunt, pres of the southern baptist convention. 

basically, being a good leader is tough -- there's so many easy ways to get caught up in the initial success. below are some thoughts that j. hunt came up with; i think this is what happened to king saul.

i hope that i never lose sight of the bigger picture.

-An insecure leader has a hard time giving credit to others. “Why should praise seem like an unrecoverable cost? It is a gift that gives back to everyone.” 
-An insecure leader keeps information from his staff. “When you release information, you convey trust and confidence to others. When you conceal it, you convey just the opposite: no trust, no confidence.” 
-An insecure leader doesn’t want his staff exposed to other leaders—people who may possess qualities you don’t, people who may have skills your staff wishes you had. “When one person grows the whole team grows….Give your people the best—even better than you are.” 
-An insecure leader is often a micromanager. “He’s a control freak.” Nothing can happen that they are not fully aware of. They fear things will fall apart without them. This kind of oppressive control can wring the life out of your team. 
-Insecure leaders are too needy of praise. “For this reason, more than perhaps any other, they can’t really be leaders. When someone needs his followers to always be telling him how wonderful he is, he works in direct opposition to the heartbeat of leadership, which is: building into other’s lives.” 

-Insecure leaders don’t provide security for those they lead. “If the mood and environment in the office is one of fear, second-guessing, and self-doubt, you can be sure an insecure leader is in charge.” 
-Insecure leaders take more than they give. Instead of validating and encouraging others, they are focused on receiving it. 
-Insecure leaders limit their best leaders. “Insecure leaders cannot genuinely celebrate the victories won by others.” 
-Insecure leaders limit their organization. “Not only does insecurity throttle down the horsepower of individual team members; it results in putting restraints on the whole church or organization.”

what do you all think? 

let me know

to american idol season 8...

i can honestly say that i've never really been into a.i., ever. tonight i saw the last episode where the final 2 contestants sing. 

it's really not about talent, it's about popularity. i think it's easy to see who's the most talented of the 2.

i've been reading about the life of david and i find it really similar. popularity vs. talent. pretty incredible when you think about saul and dave. popularity vs talent. 

i'll be sharing a bit more about this in a few weeks at cf dt. i'll be teaching there for a couple of weeks in a row. i really feel good about the 2 messages

to priorities...

it's funny how consistency with God thru quiet time really yields results. besides the sweetness of being with HIM, the blessings that come out of it are incredible. i don't have more stuff nor have i received a raise at work (wanted to clarify). it has to do with personal fulfillment and personal accomplishment.

i think that i've come to grips with myself on a few different things; one of them being priorities. i always  make the time to do the things that i want to do. there's no reason that God should not be in the picture.

when i refocus on my priorities, everything that i should/shouldn't be doing becomes obvious.

what are some priorities that need to be priorities?

to serving...

so this morning, despite the hour change, i was at the caring place (downtown cf missions dept) working with an incredible group of dedicated volunteers (you all are amazing - i'm honored to serve with such incredible people

the task was beautiful...serving the under resourced and under privileged of the downtown community. 

among those present were homeless men and women, recently laid off people with gifts and talent, transexuals, hung over guys, and the 2 or 3 guys that everyone is scared of.

then tonight, at cf palmetto bay, i got to teach 401 - connect to the world. 

i was reminded in the middle of the session why we do what we do

God's priority isn't those present - it's those that aren't present (we call them the lost)

Luke 15 talks about...

-lost sheep

-lost money

-lost son (family)

all of them valuable, all of them equally lost. 

today i was able to serve genuinely. not for show and definitely not because people were watching. i'm happy to be able to say that. in the past, my motives have been mixed. but not at 7  in the morning after a hard hour change and poor night sleep.

yet i've had more than enough energy today to do what matters most. worship God, love my family, and serve other. 

how are you serving where you are?

what are you doing to add to the kingdom in you community?

let me know

to slum dog millionaire...

besides the fact that the movie is a good one, even great one (if you haven't seen it, it's a good one to watch -- much thanks to our friends at fox for the home preview)

something that happened while i watched...i sensed God stirring, yet again.

i was reminded of perspective. over 90 million people living on less than $1 american, per day. this weekend alone i went out to eat twice and spent about an average of $10 per plate -- for one meal.

i know that life here is different. i get that. but knowing that life here is different doesn't change the fact that life over 'there' (wherever there is) is still going on; regardless of me being there or not. 

so i wrestle with stewardship...

-my resources

-my time

i realized that while i'm busy here doing great things for God, i've forgotten about those out 'there'... He still cares deeply for them.

that's what i'm wrestling with...and it hurts.

to saying thanks...

so as i was reading this morning, i came across this passage that made me think. 

in summary, 10 marginalized men needed physical help. Jesus helps all 10 of them, but only one of them comes back to say 'thanks.' His response is 'where are the other nine?'

am i really thankful for all the blessings that i receive; both big and small?

have i really done a good job saying 'thank you' to God and those that He uses to bless me?

i found my self going thru today's events and realizing that there is a bunch of stuff to be thankful about, but unless i would have stopped to reflect on it, i probably would have gone about my regular business and not saying thanks.

have you stopped to say thank you to God or others that He has used to care for you?

has anyone ever stopped to thank you?

let us hear about it

to a busy week...

it's been a week full of adventures and opportunity

so here's what i'm learning...

1. opportunity in difficult times is a blessing and reaffirms what one is doing, whether the opportunity is taken or not

2. i'll have an opportunity to work with Disney from now till the end of feb as an area publicist for a some stuff that they are promoting among the faith community in miami

3. ministry organization will lead to ministry sustainability and longevity

4. working with like-minded people makes life so much easier

5. contract negotiations are always a challenge

6. people will always be people

to my kidneys...

so i've been in the hospital since monday with an infection of the kidney AND i have been fortunate enough to also have a kidney stone develop at the same time....yeah me!

so todays special blog goes out to the twins behind the scenes, tom and jerry as i like to call them. besides doing what they do everyday, my kidneys have been troopers through the last 4 days, 8 vomits, 2 doses of morphine, and the flavorless soup that they've been fed at the hospital. 

in case you didn't know it, you need your kidneys...at least one. they filter all liquids that enter your body and then they work to get the liquid out; especially the bad liquids. so to all of you that are about introducing harmful things into the body, watch out, it will get you.

hopefully i'll be leaving the hospital todays as i've been able to recover nicely thanks to the folks at south miami hospital. 

to my kidneys...the ultimate digestive warriors. 

to compassion and action...

tonight i read about compassion...luke 7. it's always incredible to read that Jesus cares and then he shows you how. he not only sees needs, he works to meet them.

lots to learn here. we can pray, which is good. but faith is a verb. something that needs to be placed into action. 

we can offer God to people and they may even choose to follow him, but that does not change their situation, whatever it may be. 

for example, a hungry person trusts in God and we pray. they will still be hungry right afterwards.

an illiterate person begins to follow God, they still can't read.

a person suffering from illness confesses Christ, they are still ill.

help me understand...what is the role of those who call themselves Christ followers?

how far are we to go? what are we supposed to do?

i know we are to pray. but then what? what does one do next?

help me out. 

to learning...

so it's been about 7 months since i began my current role at my job...i've learned a lot.

needless to say, with that learning comes responsibility and opportunity. one of which i will be executing tomorrow. 

it has to do with addressing fellow personnel and talking with them about the hard stuff; evaluation, reflection, suggestions, and then sometimes, it means letting the wrong folks go in order to get the right folks in.

"it's not you, it's me" doesn't work in this arena.

needless to say, i'm learning and i'm sure that i will keep learning. the best teacher, "on the job training."

what's the greatest lesson/principle that you've learned in 2008?

the heart

so i've been doing some thinking on the heart and what the WORD has to say about it. the heart is truly messed up - implication, all of us with hearts are messed up. out of the heart, the mouth speaks. it's crazy some of the things i'm capable of saying, let alone thinking. 

there's gotta be a way of not only filtering the heart, but actually working with God to change the heart and the messed up that it is. 

as of recently, i've been exposed to how wicked and great the heart can be at the same time. i've seen it in the life of others and experienced it personally. 

what i've discovered is, what you project unto others is a reflection of what is found inside. it's the exterior reflection of the inward.

just where i'm at.