Called Out

This morning I found myself praying a familiar prayer. I'm going to try to meditate and reflect on this one today. It was penned by a man known as St. Francis of Assisi. I truly believe that if we were to pray this prayer with genuine desire, amazing things would happen in our lives.

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred . . . let me sow love
Where there is injury . . . pardon
Where there is doubt . . . faith
Where there is despair . . . hope
Where there is darkness . . . light
Where there is sadness . . . joy
O, Divine Master,
Grant that I may not so much seek
To be consoled . . . as to console
To be understood . . . as to understand,
To be loved . . . as to love
For it is in giving . . . that we receive,
It is in pardoning, that we are pardoned,
It is in dying . . . that we are born to eternal life.

Amen - so be it.

So, I got to thinking this morning whether or not it is wise to be planting churches in an "uncertain" financial climate. After all, when the financial picture is uncertain, how could you possibly dream of trying to raise extra funds to support this type of effort?

But, as I thought more and more, I began to think that perhaps this is a perfect time to be planting churches. We are in the midst of the "Great American Dream" being exposed as a lie. In our times of financial prosperity (even if it was built upon perceived equity instead of stable assets), we (as a society) began to buy into the lie that we could have it all, do it all, be it all: right now.

Of course, if we were to step back and analyze that ideal, we would quickly realize that the "Great American Lie" (as I like to call it) is simply not true. Unfortunately, for many people, the fallout of this massive unveiling of the lie is a sense of despair, hopelessness, pain, worry, and doubt.

Isn't this the very essence of the human condition that Jesus came to bring healing and redemption to? Consider the words of Psalm 121:

I look up to the mountains—
does my help come from there?
My help comes from the Lord,
who made heaven and earth!

He will not let you stumble;
the one who watches over you will not slumber.
Indeed, he who watches over Israel
never slumbers or sleeps.

The Lord himself watches over you!
The Lord stands beside you as your protective shade.
The sun will not harm you by day,
nor the moon at night.

The Lord keeps you from all harm
and watches over your life.
The Lord keeps watch over you as you come and go,
both now and forever.

The church is God's chosen instrument of grace and reconciliation in the world. Isn't this the perfect time for us to be looking to our neighbors, and offering them a relationship with the One who can bring hope, purpose, confidence, and peace?

Perhaps this is the perfect time to plant a church. Perhaps this is the perfect time to plant a whole network of churches.

What do you think?

So God has been drilling a lesson into my life over the past week. But, to grasp it, I probably need to back up a bit.

Last week, I had the privilege of attending, Velocity, a conference put on by CMA that was held at Indian Creek Community Church. Two of the presenters, Robin Wood and Gary Kendall, shared powerfully about being who you are, faults and all, even when you're leading.

As a recovering people pleaser, these are challenging words for me to hear. After all, how can anyone possibly love and respect me if they really knew me, right? I know that's a lie, straight from the mouth of the enemy, but it often feels so true. In the two sessions of the conference, I decided that this was a journey that I was not only going to go on, but fully engage in. I decided that I would find ways and times to share my broken story, not to manipulate any situation, but just because that's who I am: a broken, desperate person daily in need of the grace and mercy of our Heavenly Father. Though I don't live every day in a desperate place, I fully acknowledge that my life would be a mess without Christ.

In the days that followed, I read posts by Luke Kendall and Carlos Whittaker that continued to add fuel to the fire of what God was speaking to my heart. They both challenged and inspired me.

Then, I spent some time with God yesterday morning, and He absolutely pounded it home. I was spending my normal time in the Word, and today took me to 1 Corinthians. In 1 Cor. 2:3, I stumbled across these words from Paul, "I came to you in weakness and fear, and with much trembling."

I don't think I've ever noticed these words before. So, I popped open my journal (as I normally do), and I penned these words. They're not refined, but they are the expression of my heart. And, I felt compelled to share.

As I read your word today, Lord, it has become obvious to me that the current, on-going theme for my life is "authenticity". Which is appropriate. So often in my life I have projected an image that was a distortion of my true self. I have acted weaker, more humble, and less perceptive and intelligent than I am. On teh same hand, I have hidden my true weaknesses, faults, hypocricies, and failures. Your message (through Your Spirit) is loud and clear: just be me. After all, when the Lord comes again "he will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men's hearts." (1 Cor. 4:5) Father, find me clean. Purify me. Cleanse me from all unrighteousness. Bring to light in me the secret things that are hidden. Expose and disclose them in ways that lead to wholeness and life. Help me to delight in my weakness, for Your power can be made perfect in that. I want to delight only in You and Your ways, Your wisdom, Your power, and Your providence.

I celebrate Paul's words in 1 Cor. 3:9:

"For we are fellow workmen (joint promoters, laborers together) with and for God; you are God's garden and vineyard and field under cultivation, [you are] God's building."

I am a work in progress . . . forever in this lifetime. There is no end. As a vineyard/garden, there is always more work to be done in me. And some times, when I am a mess, I'm exactly where the Gardener wants me to be. Shape me, mold me, teach me, prune me. I want to bear much fruit for you. But, there's the beauty of this verse, even as I am a work in progress, You have invited me in to be a joint laborer, a fellow workman, a co-creator. I dont' have to be perfect, or know it all, to be useful in Your Kingdom. Just faithful, available, and teachable. Give me the courage to follow in the footsteps of Paul. In 1 Cor. 2:3, Paul writes, "I came to you in weakness and fear, and with much trembling."

This is PAUL!!!

As I move forward in my life, this is my calling card. I come with weakness, fear (in 1 Cor. 2:3 this could be translated as "dread"), and great trembling. But, I come all the same, because You have called me. And I come in boldness because I truly believe that You are responsible for the miraculous work of life change. I can plant seeds. I can cultivate soil. I can water. But, as 1 Cor. 3:7 says so well, "So neither he who plants is anything nor he who waters, but [only] God who makes it grow and become greater."

Father, only you can transform lives. Start with mine. Help me to lift you up, that all might be drawn to you.

After an early start and an uneventful morning, we are back on American soil. Off to Fort Worth!

Hello from Croc!

Sorry it has taken me so long to get a post out here for you guys to read. I thought my cell phone would work in Monterrey/Croc, but it doesn't . . . at all. So, it's been absolutely impossible for me to get a post on here.

However, I finally snuck away from the group tonight to make a quick post.

Things are going INCREDIBLY well! For all of you parents out there, you should be proud of your kiddos. They have inspired me every day with their serving spirits. Whenever we're looking for volunteers to do something, there are almost always more hands than we need. (Even for doing dishes!)

On top of that, they have been simply amazing with the local kids. No matter how hard we work during the day, they always have time and energy to play with the little ones. Whether it be jump rope, tag, soccer, or some random game, they have been engaging incredibly well.

Last night, we had the opportunity to split into several different groups and have a conversation with a local family. From the reports that came in, that was one of the highlights of the week! Our groups shared life with the locals, and even had the opportunity to share about the God we love. One of the families that we're serving this week doesn't know Christ yet. We're hoping that could change before we leave. We're going to spend the night eating and hanging out with them tomorrow.

It's hard to believe that our time here is quickly drawing to a close. Tomorrow (Sunday) is a day of rest. So, we'll be going to church, traveling to a nearby swimming pool, and then celebrating the dedication of work completed with some local families.

One final story . . . this week, we've been serving in an area of Croc known as Parcellas. Just five or six years ago, we didn't take students to that part of town. You see, even in a community that battles poverty, there are still those who "have" and those who "have not". Parcellas had not. On a couple of occasions I joined other missions leaders in a prayer walk of the Parcellas area, and it was obvious from their glances as we walked by that we weren't welcome.

Now, fast forward to 2008. We are serving 3 different families in the Parcellas community. And it's going GREAT!!! Not only are they willing to interact with us, they are opening their lives to us. Only God can do that! That is the transforming power of the Gospel right here in Croc!

Every time I come here, I am excited for what God is doing in this community. It feels like such a privilege to be a part of it.

Please know that even with as great of a time as we are having, you are greatly missed. We look forward to seeing you soon!

Much love from Croc!

~Ben

On our way again. Please keep praying.

Please pray for us once again. Moments after crossing the border, our van died again. We are currently evaluating our options.

Due to our late night yesterday, our schedule got pushed back. Hopefully we'll be sweating to the Mexican beat by 9 tonight!

Please be praying for us around 5 or 6pm as we cross the border. Specifically, pray for a smooth acquisition of vehicle permits and visas, and a uninterrupted crossing at the checkpoint.

I will try to send a really quick post when we arrive.

-Ben

Hey, at least we made it...

If Mark Martin had any question as to why he came on this trip, they have been answered. His mechanic skills saved us countless hours and hundreds of dollars.

Yea God!!!!

No worries, everyone is safe. However, we could use your prayers for us here in Texas.

Ahhh...Texas Motor Speedway. If we traveled at Nascar speed, we'd only have an hour left...but, we're not. We hope to be in Austin in 3 hours.

Yeah, that just about says it right there.

Are we there yet?

Bye-bye Kansas, Hello Oklahoma!

Sorry for the blurry pics...what else can you ask for with a cell phone camera?

Nothing like a little Brahms & Mickey D's action to get the love flowing amongst the group!

Bring it on Texas, you're next!

Final trial. If this works, I think we're good to go! Off to Mexico we go!

Now I want to try to post via text message from my phone.

Did it work?

This is my official test to see if I can update my blog by just sending it an email.

Did it work?

You know, being productive is kind of fun. I know, I run this risk of sounding completely old here, but I've absolutely mowed through things on my "To Do" list today. Feels great!

So, I've discovered that I really suck at the world of blogs. I just do. It takes a concerted effort to post on a regular basis.

All that being said, I think I'm going to try to get back into this thing. After all, it's a place for me to jot my thoughts. If someone else wants to take a look, sweet. If not, no worries on my part.