… an incomplete account of our journey through life.
What was bad news yesterday is good news today.
It is all about perspective and surrendering to the Lord.
After sleeping on it… and praying and talking to my wife about it today I have a deep peace. I know that God is in control and that He actually spared me of something. God is good. So good.
What does it really mean to surrender?
It is not about giving up … or quitting. It is more and less than that. Certainly different.
It means acknowledging that in our own strength we will not get there.
The problem with surrendering is that often times we say we are … but then we don’t. We continue as we were.
If I know that God is asking for something… and I want to give it to Him… how do I do this? How do I do this without taking it up on my strength a few days later?
How do we give it all up and not look back?
(These are just some thoughts for now… thinking out loud).
(Did You Know?/Shift Happens, Versión en español)
There is a longing in my heart,
And in yours too.
For eternity
And for Him.
Many times it aches. And it hurts.
We want more, we yearn… God has placed eternity in our hearts. The longing for more… The desire to be connected to Him. Together with that longing comes an understanding deep in our hearts that there is more.
More to be had.
More than just this (whatever ‘this’ is).
The answer to that constant, never ending question in your heart is found in only one place. It is not a cause, or an ideology… It is not a theory or a belief. It is a person. He placed that yearning in your heart… for eternity,
…and for Him. His name is Jesus. I call Him Saviour and Lord.
Posted from Press On
We just returned from visiting a small Spanish speaking church in Mexican town (Detroit). My brother-in-law serves as the Pastor there and we are helping out for the next 2 weeks since he and his family are on vacation. …it is a small congregation in an area very close to being considered a ghetto. Or perhaps it is a ghetto (I am just not an expert on this and would hate to offend anyone). As is to be expected due to the area and the people around it the services are frequented by folks who are either iilegal, newcomers, or in some type of transit (are passing by, just came in through Canada …or waiting to get into Canada). It’s an interesting group of people who are part of a small yet lively new work in a very tough and scary neighborhood. One of the guys who is a regular told me today that he may be moving to Canada. Apparently his daughter lives close to Toronto already. The problem is that he is being ‘advised’ by someone to lie on his application into Canada; to claim that his son was being forced into a gang back in his country. He told me he wasn’t feeling right about it but that he didn’t see another option. This is where the idea of right foundations comes into play… That’s what I told him, that if he wants his move into Canada to be blessed he needs to be honest in his application. Simple for most of us, yet very hard for him. In his mind the lie could mean coming to Canada… And the truth could mean staying in Detroit and its depressed economy. I explained to him that building his application on a lie and by extension his new life in Canada on a lie would block God’s blessings. God is not free (due to his pure, perfect and holy nature) to bless a lie.
He told me wasn’t feeling comfortable with the lie. I told him that was God not letting him be comfortable about it. I think he’ll make the right decision and lay down the right foundation of truth. What about you?
Are you building on truth?
Are you building on Jesus?
Posted from Jose’s posterous
If there is such a need for individuality how come everyone tries to be the same? How come we like to stand out but only on our terms?
We don’t mind standing out when we excel at something that everyone else does… But we certainly don’t want to stand out for being different or for going against the flow. That’s when the mocking begins. That’s when it gets difficult.
Yet inside of us we still crave to be different … to be unique. That’s the way we were wired. We want to be considered special for being different; we want to be loved for our uniqueness.
And we are different.
In fact we are unique.
And we can be loved for it.
But society doesn’t want that.
We do.
God does.
Just saying.
There… I have said it!
Now you know what I think about butter. Imagine if I were to really open up and tell you what I think about white bread.
White bread and butter.
As the airplane took off I noticed all around me. Almost everyone was reading something. Almost no one was looking out the window. Except of course for the child behind me – who had stopped kicking the back of my seat long enough to lend her full attention to what was going on outside her window. At what point in our lives do we stop enjoying those small things? At what point do we stop being awed by the beauty in simplicity? When do we lose our ability to enjoy the mundane?
I was reading too, but I stopped and decided to enjoy what was going on outside my window.
Everything was becoming smaller. People began to look like ants. The airplanes on the tarmac, the cars on the busy highway and the trucks at the warehouses looked more and more like my old toycars. The trees and the grass all began to blend into a beautiful mosaic of greenery.
The clouds are looking more and more like white frosting. Yummy (and probably low fat too).
Oh wait, now they look like a field cotton balls. Perfect to jump into. And play.
And play with Daniel and Nena.
How I miss them even on a short day flight.
To think that one day we can all jump and play in those clouds.
With Jesus.
Strange, the child behind me stopped kicking my seat and slamming her tray onto my seat.
It is all quiet now.
All quiet inside.
Me twinkling…
Relaxing at Lake Ontario (Oakville)
My friends the robots (Mommy helped me to build them)
At the Alton Mill Gallery - “I am sitting on a bench… Who am I?”
My son Noel in between the rocks
A frog on water (but it’s actually a table)
My Son Umbi
Valentine’s Treasure Hunt Cards (by Mamma for Daniel)
