My Christmas Blog

Update on the Trip.

Update on the trip:

Fundraising for the trip is well under way. Thank you for your prayers and your support, I greatly appreciate it! You can send any amount at anytime for fundraising purposes between now and the departure time in May to the church that I am partnering with.

 The church's information is:  Euless First Church of the Nazarene
                   801 Midway Dr., Euless, Texas 76039, United States 

If it is a check, you should write it out to the church, and put it for Ghana Mission Trip. You will be able to receive tax deductions.

Another important notice:   

Chick-Fil-A has gracefully agreed to donate a percentage of their earnings on the 29th of December, and we need as many people as possible to go to that particular venue ( in Hurst) to buy and eat as much chicken as possible on that day. You can order whatever you want but it is VERY IMPORTANT that you tell them that it is for The Ghana Mission Trip.

The address to the Chick-Fil-A is:  Chick-fil-A at Hurst

                                460 Grapevine Highway, Hurst, TX 76054

Remember, you have to tell them that it is for the Ghana Mission Trip otherwise we will not receive anything for your purchase.

Eat lots of chicken! And if you have any questions, you can message me. 

Thank you very much, and God bless you!

Let all the earth rejoice.

I am very excited about this opportunity to go to Ghana and share the gospel of Jesus Christ. I am also enthused about the relationships we have here in the United States and also the relationships that we have and are going to make while in Ghana. Please pray for the many people we will come into contact with. Pray that we we will be sensitive to the culture and the people, and that we will be fully observant of the leading of the Holy Spirit. Pray for the country, the whole continent of Africa. Pray for the children who are are crying right now as you read this because of many things including starvation and disease. Pray for the parents who refuse to sleep at night because they fear that their children might be captured and enslaved to fight in a war. Pray for the many who are dying because of lack of basic necessities. Pray for those who are rejecting the truth and have fallen into the many traditional beliefs. Please pray for the many who do not know the gospel of Christ Jesus. I pray for you right now, that God may open your eyes and heart to the realities of this world and that you may know that the hope that we have in Jesus Christ is the hope of the world. 

Hope.

I have come to ponder on that word these days. So many believe that the world today is without hope. So many believe that somehow, we are inevitably trapped in a world where no good exists and will never exist. Rather than joy, hope, and love being the structure of our relationships in life, they believe confusion, doubt, and hate is all that there is to life. Day after day we are faced with harsh circumstances and situations that leave many not only pessimistic about life but empty and bleak about the future. We are forced to cope with  questions in life that seem never to be unanswered. As Christians, we believe that we have been given an answer to the larger problem of instability and evil in the world. We believe that that answer is not some work of an institution, organization, nor a government. We believe that the hope of the world is Jesus Christ, God himself who has given himself freely as a gift to be the hope of all mankind and creation. And that hope is not some mere optimistic view about reality but is an invitation into the glorious kingdom of the Almighty God. That hope in Jesus Christ is the only hope in which all the earth receives genuine joy. The world we live in currently is imperfect, but there is a perfect God who has a plan to make all things perfect at one  coming point. As you are living your life for Christ, be mindful of those around you who may feel as if all is lost, and tell them about Jesus!

Update on the trip:

Fundraising for the trip is well under way. Thank you for your prayers and your support, I greatly appreciate it! You can send any amount at anytime for fundraising purposes between now and the departure time in May to the church that I am partnering with.

 The church's information is:  Euless First Church of the Nazarene
                   801 Midway Dr., Euless, Texas 76039, United States 

If it is a check, you should write it out to the church, and put it for Ghana Mission Trip. You will be able to receive tax deductions.

Every tribe… Every tongue… Every people… Every nation!

GHANA TRIP 2012

Every tribe… Every tongue… Every people… Every nation!

“May God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face shine upon us, that your ways may be known on earth, your salvation among all nations. May the peoples praise you, O God; may all the peoples praise you. May the nations be glad and sing for joy, for you rule the peoples justly and guide the nations of the earth. May the peoples praise you, O God, may all the peoples praise you. Then the land will yield its harvest, and God, our God, will bless us. God will bless us, and all the ends of the earth will fear him.” Psalms 67 (Underline added)

“After this I looked and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people, and language, standing before the throne, and in front of the Lamb… And they cried out in a loud voice: ‘Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the throne, and to the Lamb.” Revelation 7:9-10 (Underline added)

Thy great Name we praise.

It has been a while since I have blogged anything. There is a lot to tell about but that will happen another time. Now, I just wanted to share a hymn with you, another one that I cherish. It's a bit contemporary and I like it, but most of all, I hope the words mean the most to you. Be blessed!

O Church Arise!

O Church Arise

by Keith Getty & Stuart Townend 

O Church Arise and put your armour on
Hear the call of Christ our Captain
For now the weak can say that they are strong
In the strength that God has given
With shield of faith and belt of truth
We’ll stand against the devil’s lies
An army bold whose battle-cry is Love
Reaching out to those in darkness

Our call to war to love the captive soul
But to rage against the captor
And with the sword that makes the wounded whole
We will fight with faith and valour
When faced with trials on every side
We know the outcome is secure
And Christ will have the prize for which He died
An inheritance of nations

Come see the cross where love and mercy meet
As the Son of God is stricken
Then see His foes lie crushed beneath His feet
For the Conqueror has risen
And as the stone is rolled away
And Christ emerges from the grave
This victory march continues till the day
Every eye and heart shall see Him

So Spirit come put strength in every stride
Give grace for every hurdle
That we may run with faith to win the prize
Of a servant good and faithful
As saints of old still line the way
Retelling triumphs of His grace
We hear their calls and hunger for the day
When with Christ we stand in glory

A little encouragement.

Regarding Christianity, I do not think the question has mainly been "Will you live for Jesus?" but rather "Will you die for Jesus." In the Christian culture we live in today, most commonly called "American Christianity," it is too easy to "live" for Jesus, matter of fact, there is no Christ in the practice of some of those who call themselves followers of Christ. "Living" for Jesus now means listening to the Christian radio stations, talking about Jesus with your Jesus friends, reading those new "everyone is talking about it" Christian books, posting those really comforting Scriptures almost everywhere in your house (also on Facebook) without any intentions of actually memorizing them, going to church to be informed instead of transformed, and the list goes on and on and on and on. But my intention here is not to say all of these things are necessarily bad, nor is my intention to be one of those Christian "Christianity attackers" who sits back and insults everything there is about the practice of Christians in America. There are many wonderful and great things that God is doing through the Christians in America, and I am amazed at most of the stories I hear of the work of God through many organizations and church congregations and associations. What I am aiming for here is towards the direction of getting people out of there comfort zones and stepping out of the way things are, or the way this culture is and be willing to die for Jesus.


So what does it mean to be willing to die for Jesus?

Answer: It means to be willing to die for Jesus.

It also means that Christ will be the core importance of our life and our only aim and purpose in life no matter what the cost is will be to tell others about this Jesus who transforms lives not only in the future but in the here and now. It is a big task, but not a task of one individual but a community of Christians all around the globe. Be like Christ. Be willing to do the Fathers will even if it means death. Be willing to be the salt and light in your environments. Be willing to forgive quickly. Be willing to go with someone an extra mile if they want you to go one. Be willing to love your enemies and those who persecute you. Be willing to turn the other cheek. Be willing to give all that you can to those in need. Be willing to intentionally stay in prayer and fasting for all the saints. Be willing to be obedient, faithful and pure in heart. Be willing to be merciful and humble. Be willing to put on the full armor of God and fight sin, temptations and evil powers. Be willing to stand firm. Be willing to take up the shield of faith. Be willing to take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit. Be willing to die for Jesus.


"Grace to all who love our Lord Jesus Christ with an undying love." Ephesians 6:24



-Kingsley

Be Thou my vision!

 I cherish this old hymn!

Be Thou my vision, O Lord of my heart
Naught be all else to me, save that Thou art
Thou my best thought by day or by night
Waking or sleeping Thy presence my light
Be thou my wisdom and Thou my true word
I ever with Thee and Thou with me, Lord
Thou my great Father, I , Thy true son
Thou in me dwelling and I with Thee one
Riches I heed not nor man's emptly praise
Thou mine inheritance now and always
Thou and thou only first in my heart
High King of heaven my treasure Thou are
High King of heaven my victory won
May I reach heaven's joys, O bright heaven's Sun
Heart of my own heart whatever befall
Still be my vision O Ruler of all

Christianity and Social Order

A recent social debate is concerning the curriculum change in Texas public schools from elementary to high school. On March 12, 2010, , the Texas Board of Education in the capital buildings of Austin agreed on a change to social studies curriculum that placed a conservative stamp on history and economics textbooks in most Texas public schools. The vote was 10 to 5, with all the Republicans on the board voting for it, claiming the change to be “stressing the superiority of American capitalism, questioning the Founding Fathers’ commitment to a purely secular government and presenting Republican political philosophies in a more positive light.” “In past years, the Texas Board of Education members have been battling between conservatives who question Darwin’s theory of evolution and believe the Founding Fathers were following Christian principles in building the nation and Democrats and moderate Republicans who have fought to preserve the teaching of Darwinism and the separation of church and state.” Their justification for the change was that they were just adding balance in textbooks.

William Temple’s two-fold method of the Church’s impact upon Society includes first, making Christian principles known and second, equipping members of the Church to reshape the existing order on the basis of these principles. How I am examining this issue of the curriculum change by Christian conservatives in regards to the two-fold method of Temple is that the social order of the citizens or the students in this case is to be influenced by Christians who should be living out the kingdom of God in their environments, but this has to be done in a responsible way in which faith is not coerced; meaning it should not be done through a pressurized political agenda. I believe Christians are to remain faithful and obedient, always showing forth the love that God has opened to all mankind. In doing this (faithfulness), I believe unbelievers will come to know Christ Jesus, the Risen and Saviour Lord that lives in the hearts of those who call themselves His followers.

-Kingsley

You're the King of the World!

For this blog, my task was to walk around somewhere praying and trying to notice as many things as I could about God’s fascinating creation. For example, observing the individual blades of grass, insects, blooming flowers, the sway of tree branches, and the surrounding interactions. For my walking experience, I walked to the pond on campus; I stayed there and walked around for a few minutes, and noticed the little fishes in the pond, and the ripples on the surface of the pond caused by the swift wind. Sometimes, I almost do not want to stop and ponder upon God’s creation because I am reluctant of how much my mind might be put into a maze of how incredibly awesome God is to have created every single little thing, and each single little thing serving some kind of purpose. It baffles me! Yet at those moments when my mind attempts to grasp how God created everything, I am most aware and appreciative of how great God is. Because if it is God, the Creator of the Universe, the Almighty, the Alpha and Omega that has created all things, then definitely a small mortal  insignificant being like me should certainly not be able to grasp all there is to God. Therefore I rejoice all the more! 

Oh, back to my experience on the walk. The birds…wow! They were all singing their own songs; I imagined they were singing praises to the King of the World. I then walked through the woods behind the pond because I saw an open gate. I walked to the soccer field, sat down under a hut and watched the shadows provided by the clouds above to keep the ground cool. This also marveled me, concerning how there are layers and layers of protection including the clouds that were keeping God’s creation cool or in good condition. My prayer to God during my walk was for him to help me trust him entirely because He is the Creator, the King of the World; why not trust Him completely?! How I might grow in the area of learning to see others and the world more clearly is to see them as the King of the World sees them… His good creation.

Pray the Scripture

Madame Guyon’s approach to praying scripture is first, to choose a simple message, second, read it slowly, third, try to sense the heart of each verse before moving on, and lastly turning into a prayer whatever strikes as particularly meaningful.

My task was to attempt Guyon’s approach and to reflect on it. I have been reading in James for my personal devotion so I spent some time in verses 13-18 of the third chapter. What I learned particularly in this passage is the two kinds of wisdom.There is one kind that comes from God and another that does not come from God. The wisdom that comes from the world is full of selfish ambitions and envy while the wisdom that comes from heaven is pure, then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. I also learned that if we are to be considered wise and understanding, then we are to show it by our good life by deeds done in the humility that comes from the wisdom that comes from God. I pray that God would give us (and also me) the wisdom that comes from him only; the wisdom that does not seek selfish gain but instead is first of all pure, then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere.

Grace of Humility

In Jeremy Taylor's work, The Rule and Exercises of Holy Living, he explains the rules to understanding the humility that is much needed in our lives today which involves a realistic opinion about ourselves, doing good things in secret, never being ashamed of who we are, reflecting praises back to God, vanity and pride, the whispers of the Devil, the desire to disparage others, focus on strengths of others and yourself. Also not making excuses for our mistakes and imperfections, focus on what is most important to God, increased humility by exercising it, and confessing our sins often to God for increasing the grace of humility.

All of these rules are great exercises I believe that will help us reflect the community that God intends. Out of all of them, I believe the one rule that appears to come easier for me is to never be ashamed. Taylor states that we should never be ashamed of our birth, of our parents, our occupation, our employment, or the lowly status of any of them. He notes that when there is an occasion to speak about them to others, to not be shy but speak rapidly with an indifference to how others will regard to the news. The one rule that I believe comes harder to me is to not listen to the whispers of the Devil. Taylor warns not to entertain any of the devil’s whispers of pride. Sometimes I catch myself dreaming of greatness and imagining having great wealth, and Taylor writes, “Although there is nothing directly evil in it, it is the offspring of an inner evil and has nothing whatsoever to do with obtaining of humility.” My prayer is that God would give me the humility of his son, Jesus who had the kind of humility that he made himself obedient and made nothing of himself while taking the very nature of a servant.

-Kingsley

Let us Live and Die

From television, to the music we listen to, the things we read (even this), our relationships with friends, family, and the clothes we wear all are contributions to influence and shape the way we think, feel, and behave. Some are good influences (like this, I hope) while some are very disturbing; and there are probably a lot more to add to the list. The environment in which we live in expects us to act and think in a certain way, and with the media and its attempt to make everyone think and act the same, we have the assumption that we have to live like what we see and hear on the television. I know it may vary from person to person so I am going to reflect on how this world is trying to conform me to its attitudes and actions and the ways in which it has succeeded and hope that it would be both an encouragement to you and also to me as we walk together and draw nearer to the Lord. First, I would say that the television has had an influence on the way I think and behave. For example, (and this might be a small one) I remember when Randy Moss was on the Minnesota Vikings a few years back, and during a game against the Green Bay Packers he scored a touchdown and for his celebration he pretended to pull his pants down to show the crowd his behind. The next day at my football game, I thought it would be somewhat entertaining if I imitated him after a play so I did. 

Most of us find ourselves doing something we see on the television and we do not even notice it sometimes. There are lots of ways in which what we see on TV infiltrates our thoughts and actions. I was going to continue listing other ways in which this world has penetrated my behavior and mind but I think I’m going to leave it at that one example. Rather than to continue listing the world’s influences on me, I would like to reflect shortly on how our mindset ought to be as Christians. Paul writes to the church in Philippi to have an attitude the same as that of Christ Jesus (Phil 2:1-11). Jesus lived a life of humility and obedience to the Father, and he calls us to deny ourselves and pick up our cross daily (Luke 9:23). John Calvin writes in his work The Joy of Self Denial that, “If we are not our own, but the Lord’s, it is clear to what purpose all our deeds must be directed… We are God’s own; to him, therefore, let us live and die.” We must die to ourselves, forgetting our selfish interests, unrighteousness, ungodliness, disobedience, and vain desires. And we are to live to God, with righteousness and godliness, do all things for his glory, be obedient, and be full of humility like our Saviour  Christ Jesus. 

International Missions Board

I believe the importance of Baptists working together for the purpose of furthering God’s ministry is displayed this video because it illustrates how cooperation can be a constructive tool for missions and reaching out to the unbelievers of the world. Individually, there could not be a lot of work done, but together people are able and willing to go to villages in Africa, Asia and so on to share the good news of Christ Jesus.

 Here is the link to the video: http://www.gowestafrica.org/media/videos.php?mvid=4800&mvidext=flv

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Education & Discipleship

For this blog, I will be reflecting on various things I found on the Baptist General Convention of Texas website: Link is provided below.

The five main areas in which the Baptist General Convention of Texas operates is Evangelism/Missions, Education/Discipleship, Advocacy/Care, Executive Leadership, Partners in Ministry. The one area I specifically chose to reflect on is the Education and Discipleship part. The kind of ministries that are included in this branch include ministries that assist in church growth such as Baptist Way Press , bible study, discipleship, church administration and growth, educational institutes, music and worship, and various ministries that reach out to age groups, genders, and ethnicities. An example of some of these ministries and their purposes is how Baptist Way Press provides low-cost and no-cost Bible study materials. And also how the ministry of Bible Study provides a wide variety of online Bible-study tools and resources to assist in weekly preparation & study, and which can be shared with others to assist them in becoming discovery learners. What surprises and encourages me about the ministries included into the work of the Baptist General Convention of Texas is how they are attempting (and doing well) at all the aspects of the Christian life, whether it be missions, small group bible study, or church leadership, the BGCT has some sort of group established to help assist churches in whatever their needs may be.

http://texasbaptists.org/education-discipleship/

-Kingsley

Baptists Working for Peace in India

For this blog, I will be reflecting on an article. Link is provided below.        

The article begins with mentioning the calling of Baptist leaders all around the world for global prayer for peacemaking efforts and for churches and communities affected by ethnic strife in northeast India. This article was interesting to read because first of all, I have not heard at all about any conflicts in India and is apparent that this is a big issue as the story describes many villages being burned down and 12,500 people being homeless. This story is important because it informs us about our brothers and sisters in Christ in India who need our assistance. As a global community of Christians, I believe it is beneficial to be knowledgeable of the environment and condition of other believers around the world. That is also why I believe ministries like the Baptist Standard are relevant to our culture and context today; they keep us up to date on current news and events such as this around the globe.

http://www.baptiststandard.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=12107&Itemid=53


-Kingsley