Safe House

Safe house, when you hear that word what comes to mind? For me I think of place that is safe and somewhere you can receive not only what you need but even things you didn’t think you needed. Pretty generic I know but that’s what comes to mind for me beside of course gangster movies that mention safe houses where they keep all their stuff. This week I had the opportunity to experience and see a point of view that is so often overlooked. I was able to serve at safe house in Atlanta and see what so many of us in the church may never see or hear about and that’s the stories or lives of our brothers and sisters that are homeless or poor. This was the first time I had ever done anything like much less even thought about that Jesus loved these same people just as much as me and that he was going to totally open my eyes to what he meant when he spoke about the poor and helpless in the Bible.

I meet Pastor Joe who I believe was the man in charge of Safe House and the first thing I noticed was that he loved what God allowed him to do and never one time did I ever hear him call it a job or complain when he shared with us what exactly safe house does or what they were all about. They second thing I noticed was how Pastor Joe knew just about every person by name that walked through the gates of safe house which was very impressive considering that on any given night he could have anywhere from 50 to 100 people show up for service.  The reason that hit me so hard was because today many churches (not all) are all about big attendance numbers and when that happens people and lives seem to get lost or go unrecognized. But not with Safe House and Pastor Joe each person had a name and each time food was served during dinner, breakfast, or even walking the streets late at night handing out food if you listened or if you cared you would meet a person that just like you had dreams and plans but somewhere go lost along the way. People that just like us needed to hear that Jesus loved them and cared for them and had not lost them or forgot about them. People that get overlooked or pass over because of how they look or where there forced to live because of whatever the circumstance.

People like George who the whole time I was there always had a smile on his face and laughing and was so thankful that people cared enough to sit down and talk with him. People like little Davis a young kid that lived with his mother who knows where but was so happy just to hang out and play basketball with a flat ball and a broken basketball goal. People like little Michelle that as father made me want to adopt her and take her home. She was a little girl probably no older than 3 that had no clue what was going on or why things were the way they were she was just content to have people play with her and I’ll never forget the smile and laughter she had that day as she dance around on stage. People just like this women who I wasn’t able to catch her name but she asked could she get on stage and sing and if you took a look at her you probably would have wrote her off but I promise you she had voice better than most church worship leaders today. People like our tour guide Matt that was a manager of his uncle’s multi-million dollar company and decided that since Jesus loved him so much that he wanted to go live with the homeless just so he could share the same love and savior that had rescued him and when I say go live with the homeless he actually lived on the streets with the homeless.

Now I’m not campaigning to find your local safe house or run out and feed a homeless person to make yourself feel better I’m talking about taking Jesus at his word and creating a culture or a lifestyle that is recognizing and doing all we can to help those around us who maybe took a bad turn or made a bad choice and that just like us if given another chance or given the opportunity could turn things around and become another person brought into the family of believers instead of another statistic. All around us are hurting people that have stories and just need someone to talk too or someone to listen but some many times we allow things of no value to replace things of great value like the life of a human being and the changing of a family’s generation all because were too caught up in doing the church thing. As I learn this week the church is more than a building and it’s much more than 2 services a week it’s a relationship with Jesus Christ that changes everything the way we live, the way we view things, and the way we do things because if the love of Jesus is in us we can’t help but love the way He does and love those who He loves. I’ve included some pictures from my few days at Safe House I hope God stirs something inside of you that changes just being ok with living a so/so Christian life.

-Lance

When It Gets Dark, God Doesn't Sleep.

 

The Lord your God is in your midst,
    a mighty one who will save;
he will rejoice over you with gladness;
    he will quiet you by his love;
he will exult over you with loud singing.  

 Zephaniah 3:17

So I have to admit I saw this picture and it sparked something in my spirit and heart. But first I have a disclaimer to make. Blogging is a new thing for me and I believe I have finally found the balance in blogging and preparing a message, odd I know but that’s just me so please forgive me. OK back to the picture it was this week when I saw it and I was like that is awesome and as I reflected on what the picture could mean I felt The Lord send me in a direction that I had not thought about.

 Now that direction oddly enough is something we all experience or we think about and that is the times or seasons in our lives when it is completely dark and cold and it feels like God is nowhere to be found or like the picture alludes to we might ask the question or think God where are you at or are you asleep? It took me back to a picture that my mom had in our bathroom that I read many times as a teenager and that was before you go to bed give your troubles to God, because he will be up all night anyway. So the first thing we can agree on is God never sleeps and he never leaves us. OK well maybe you’re not yet convince so let me hit you with a few verses from the bible to cement it for us Deuteronomy 31:6 or check out Zephaniah 3:17. Now since God can’t lie and the Bible is his word we see that no matter how we feel or how dark it seems God is right there with us.

Now my Pastor preached a message a few Sundays ago about seasons and how they have a beginning and they have an end and sometimes we might hold on or try to stay in a season long after God says it’s over or you might do the reverse and refuse to enter a season because it’s not what you want or how you think it should be. Long intro I know but I’m going to give you what this picture means to me. If you didn’t know David is one of my favorite people in scripture so I use him many times as a reference. But many times in his life even though it’s never recorded I wonder how dark it felt to him as he constantly found himself running for his life from Saul because Saul wanted him dead because God had chosen David as the king to replace him. I wonder how he felt those many of nights living in caves being driven far from home all because God had put a call on his life to be king.

 I wonder how he felt those many of times that he had opportunities to end it all by killing Saul and taking his place as king only to show Saul mercy and have Saul lie and break covenant with David. You see even in the midst of all the running and all those nights in caves and all those millions of question I’m sure David had, God knew exactly what he was doing and I believe he constantly showed David things throughout the journey letting him know he was right there with him and in control. See for God everything is timing and preparation and for David that whole season of living in caves and going through the things he did prepared him to be king. I believe a great gift being given at the wrong time can produces the wrong thing, for David becoming king earlier or later then he was supposed to would have produced bad results. Now dark seasons as we label them are not always fun and not always easy but I’m so thankful that we serve a God who can turn dark into day and take what was intended for bad and turn it into good.

Just like winter gives way to spring and night to day there is always an indication that the seasons are changing for spring it’s when it begins to get warmer and flowers begin to bloom, for daytime it’s when the sun begins to rise and the dark skies turn to blue, and for David it was when the crown of Saul was brought to him and put into his hand. So no matter where you find yourself today I pray that you know a few things God is alive and well and he is very aware of your situation, he’s not asleep nor has he forgotten about you. His timing is perfect and at the right time your dark night will give way to his beautiful light. The question I want to leave you is how will you respond? Will you focus only the darkness that surrounds you or will you look for the for the Son to rise?

Lance.

Who am I?

I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well. Psalms 139:14

This might sound strange to you but I struggle with being ok with who God has called me to be. I know you might not struggle with this same thing but I do. I find myself many of times feeling like I don’t quite measure up to what the world or people classify as a man of God or this image I see portrayed as to what a Christian must look like or sound like. Now once again I know this might not apply to you but it’s something that God has addressed in my life this week. The crazy part about this way of thinking is that it’s not something I believe God intended for us to feel. I mean it says in the book of Acts that there is no condemnation to those that are in Christ Jesus so why do I feel this way then. 

If you want my personal opinion I believe it is the enemies way of limiting are impact or influence for Christ. I mean if you can’t stop someone you at least limit their ability to do the very thing you do not want them to do right? So that brought me to a very important crossroad in my faith this week and that was do I believe the verse above that I am fearfully and wonderfully made? To answer that question honestly until last night it would have been no. There have been times I found myself feeling like I didn’t belong or that I had to do something that I didn’t have in me or that I wasn’t capable of doing because that’s what God needed me to do. But here is the kicker God never told me that, as a matter of fact he did just the opposite which was he asked me what in the world was going on. That’s when I discovered my actions and my way of thinking was limiting what God was able to accomplish with me and my life. 

 

Now don’t misunderstand me God is God and he can do whatever he wants whenever he wants and I can be used to accomplish what he wants even without knowing it because that’s how God rolls he doesn’t need my ok or my approval he just does God. But I believe there comes a point in our life where we try to change the very things that God loves about us, we get into a state of mind where we change who we are and who God has called us to be. I love Pastor John and Drew but I’m not like either one of them and that’s ok because that’s not how God designed me and he has given me gifts and abilities they don’t have just like he has given them gifts and abilities that I don’t have and that’s ok to. I’ve learned that God gets the most glory when we allow him to use and unleash who we are and what we have versus us trying to do something we can’t and being something were not. Just like me you are fearfully and wonderfully made, you are just as important as that person you think you want to be.

 I want to leave you with a couple things God used someone to share with me today that and I believe it nails this point home. Acknowledge that God has set you apart and made you different, accept that God has given you different gifts and abilities and that you’re not like anyone else and that’s ok, and finally celebrate that God loves you enough that you’re not like anyone else and that without what God has given you or how he made you. God wants us to living celebrating who we are and I pray today is the day that you give everything to Christ and celebrate the gifts and calling God has given you because nobody else can do and have the impact that God designed you to do.

Lance

All God needs is all you have.

In the book of 2 Kings chapter 4 we see the story of a widow who comes to Elisha asking for help. Just a little background into the story, the widows husband had taken out a loan to help support his ministry. Now the husband had passed and the creditors had to collect and had vowed to take the widow's sons as slaves if she didn't pay the debt. So she came to Elisha seeking help and the crazy part about the situation is you would expect this great prophet to do something miraculous or offer some encouraging words but instead we find him asking her an off the wall question.


Now that question has everything to do with something I believe God is asking us and something he wants to teach us as well. See the question he asked was what all do you have in you house? Now for many of us we find ourselves needing or wanting God to do something in our lives but we feel like the widow does and that is that we don't have what we need to get done what we need done and we feel we need someone else to help us. But just like the widow found out that day all God needed was what she already had and the willingness to do the things he told her to do.

The next part I believe is key to the whole deal and that was the widow response. She answered Elisha question with your servant has nothing more then a little jar of oil not knowing that's all God would need. Next comes the obedience part which is where I believe many of us including myself may fall short. See after we ask God for help usually He tells us something we need to do, how we respond to that is the key. Elisha told the widow to borrow jars from all her neighbors and then go home and shut the door behind her and then have her sons and herself pour the oil into all these jars and when one was full set it aside. It wasn't until she did what she was told to do that she got unexpected results and saw God do the amazing that day. You see that one little jar of oil filled up all the empty jars and in that same story it says that the oil didn't stop flowing until there were no more jars. The best part of the story is the widow was able to sale all the extra oil to pay her debts and even had extra for her sons and her to live off of.

The thing that God showed me this morning that I want to share with you is that we already have all he needs to accomplish all that we need in our lives. Now the question he is asking is are we willing to do what he is asking us to do? Are you will to collect empty jars and take very last thing you have and put it in God's hand? Are you willing to take him at his word even if you don't understand what He is asking you to do? or if it doesn't make sense? I believe when we can get to the point where will do what God is asking us to do we will see the overflow of oil in our lives that we have been longing to see. So I pray today that you take confidence in knowing that all God needs for your life you already have. I pray your encouraged to do the things that God has called you to do and know that once all the pieces are in place you will see the impossible done in your life just like the widow. Let the oil flow.

Lance

Who has your heart?

My son, give me your heart and let your eyes observe and delight in my ways? Proverbs 23:26 AMP

As I thought about what to share and with Valentine’s Day being today I felt the Lord whisper to me a question, and that was who has your heart? Now Valentine’s Day is a day where people go above and beyond to show and express their love towards someone they consider to be special and important. Every February stores fill there selves with candy, flowers, candles, and etc. for people to purchase and give away to someone they consider worth it. Along with the items they purchase they proceed to give something of even more value away and that is there heart and love. Our hearts and love to me is probably our most precious asset and I believe that’s something that should not just be giving away at random or by chance. It should be giving to someone who will take care of it and not break it.

It seems we live in a world that’s obsessed looking for love and acceptance in things or someone. It could be in possessions, people, status, power, or money, you name it, were searching for it. Once we believe we have found it we instantly without hesitation or thought attach our hearts and love to it, and just like many things that this world offers it fails or doesn’t last and our love is used and abused and our hearts are broken. The reality is instead of learning our lesson and become wiser and smarter about it we continue to do the same thing over and over again until finally one or two things happen and that is our hearts become hard and cold or we become someone that does the heartbreaking. A lot of times past hurts and failures cause us to become hard and cold to truth and to a real love an thing something happens where were unable to receive love or give love.

Everybody loves a good story and I know ladies especially enjoy a good love story because everybody in there heart of hearts wants to be loved and feel loved. But what If I told you there is a Valentine’s Day story that’s hardly ever told much less hardly ever believed or thought about. Jesus Christ the ultimate gift giver and the ultimate Valentine, has proved over and over again just how much he not only loves you but how much he wants your heart. Being the ultimate Valentine means you have all the experience and knowledge of the heart and all that goes along with it because since the beginning of time the heart and love was your idea. Jesus has never once broken a heart nor has he ever found a heart that once truly given to him that he can’t repair or make brand new. Jesus looks past mistakes and failures and simply says give your heart to me and watch what I can do, He has proven it time and time again. So if this Valentine’s Day you find yourself feeling lost, hurt, or lonely or maybe even feeling like your heart is not even worthy of being given away I believe Jesus's reply is “Be Mine”.  So I want to ask you that same question he asked me who has your heart? It’s my prayer that today you take Jesus up on his offer and give him your heart because he knows exactly how and what to do with it. I can tell you from experience if your heart is not with Jesus it’s going to take a lot of bumps and breaks. This Valentine’s Day I challenge you to unwrap and accept the perfect gift of Jesus Christ the ultimate Valentine and yes he will be yours too.

-Lance

It’s not over.

Mortals make elaborate plans, but God has the last word. Proverbs 16:1 MSG

There is a song that has been on my heart for about two weeks and I absolutely love it. Every time I hear I find myself feeling emotions and feelings that seem to touch places of my heart that I didn’t even know existed. The song is called “It’s not over” By Israel & New Breed. This song speaks to the difficulties and challenges that we all face in life and how that no matter what is going on or what happens in our lives that God has the final say. It means so much to me because I find a peace and reassurance knowing that God is current in my situation and he has it under control and no matter what someone else or myself feel the end result should be or what should happen God doesn’t need my input or help. Now I really don’t need to say anything else because that should be all we need to hear to keep pressing on but I realize if you’re anything like me it’s a lot easier said than done.

So I want to do the same thing for you that the song has done for me and that is to give you hope and encouragement with God’s word and what he has shown me. I’ve shared before that we all face many trials and hardships in life and sometimes it just seems like there is no way out and no end in sight and I believe that’s because we choose to focus more on the problem or the issue more than we do the problem solver (Jesus). Whether you received a bad report or you just have someone tell you that there is no hope or no way out just remember this truth that: God has the final say. Just like In Proverbs 16:1 the message version it says “Mortals make elaborate plans, but God has the last word. So no matter what a report says or how bad it looks God has the last word.

In Deuteronomy 31:8 it tells us that “The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Another important thing I want you to remember and hear is just like this verse says the Lord goes before us and he never leaves us or forsakes us so it’s a guarantee that he is there with us no matter what we go through and that he is in complete control and knows what he is doing. I don’t know about you but it is a huge comfort that when I encounter something that’s seems to be very overwhelming and out of my hands to know God has gone before me and that he has a plan and purpose for that exact moment because he is it with me and because he has gone before me  this very situation has not caught him off guard and he knows exactly what to do and when to do it. Trusting in his timing is not always easy but it’s essential to getting the result we need. It may not always be the result we want but you can be sure it’s the one we need.

The last thought that comes to mind and I just feel this in my spirit it is simply we care burdens and worries that we were not meant to bear and that we cannot carry. Think about this God has already told us its coming, trials and difficulties are going to happen. In James chapter 1 he goes on to tell us to count it all a joy that the trials happen. So if we’ve been told that there coming and to count it all a joy because they’ve happen then we got to know that God has the final say and that he works everything together for our good. It is my hope that you feel encouraged and take heart that no matter what going on today or tomorrow it’s not over until God says so and that he has the final say. Here is to letting God be the final and absolute authority in our lives not just when things are good but even in the most difficult times of our lives. God you are it for me.

-Lance