I never realized the impact of the BackStreet Boys! This link was part of an email I received from a company I work with for LiveWorship. Enjoy! Here is the link!
I am still laughing.....but found myself singing along! I love the dramatic interpretation of the song!
Wednesday, February 28, 2007
Monday, February 26, 2007
thoughts of an 8 year old....
Alexandria was a great city! The streets were busy, full of people. It was sad to watch the city as we left to go back to Nazareth. I was excited as well, to see a new place. A place I would call home.
There was death and destruction; the countryside was out of control. We attempted to continue to move on our way to home, to be there in Jerusalem for Passover. Herod was dead and it was safe to go home... but was it? Unruly times these are, rogues running through the streets loitering and pillaging. I cried, what has the world done to itself?
It was the most beautiful place I have ever been, the colors were so vivid. Green trees and grass, oh I loved to lie in the grass and just close my eyes. I would breath deeply the smells. I could find joy in the Lord, while I close my eyes and take it all in.
I so wanted to see snow, I prayed within my heart for snow and it snowed. Why did an angel come to Mother? Why did an angel speak to Joseph? Why are these questions forbidden? Why does Joseph not talk about why we fled to Egypt? Did we leave because of me?
I so loved to listen to Rabbi teach, I longed to listen and ask questions in the synagogue. I longed to hear the stories, to listen to our native tongue.
It was raining, we all were miserable as we walked to Jerusalem. I so wanted the rain to stop, so did Little Salome. I asked God to make it stop raining. It stopped. Did my prayer cause this? Did my prayer bring sight to the blind man at the Temple? Did my prayer kill the young boy in Alexandria and then bring him back to life? Did my prayer heal Uncle Cleopus as he bathed in the Jordan? Did Herod demand that every boy be killed because of me? This birth in Bethlehem, what did it have to do with me? Why did these Magi come to see this young child? Why do they say my mother has not been with Joseph? Why did Uncle Cleopus say "one day we will rely on you for all of the answers"? How did I bring clay birds I had made to life? Why do I dream about the bad things that happen? Who is the virgin born son? Who is this Christ Child they speak of? Could it be me?
I think back to the things I had going through my mind as an 8 year old. I can tell you that all I thought about was baseball. I know Jesus was special, but how did he react to the knowledge of His purpose? How did he cope with knowing the prophecy? How did Jesus not loose his mind when he found out that He was the Christ, the Savior, and the true Son of God? How could an 8-year-old process the devastating news that one day he will die on a cross for the sins of the world?
This past weekend I finished reading "Christ the Lord: Out of Egypt" by Anne Rice. There are things I do not agree with, but it is a fantastic look at Jesus as a young child struggling with His destiny in life. He discovers piece by piece of his life's purpose. This was a very thought provoking piece of fiction for me. I hope you find joy in knowing that Jesus was human, with human fears, human temptations, and human thoughts, but He had an unwielding faith in His father that carried Him through until the end.
There was death and destruction; the countryside was out of control. We attempted to continue to move on our way to home, to be there in Jerusalem for Passover. Herod was dead and it was safe to go home... but was it? Unruly times these are, rogues running through the streets loitering and pillaging. I cried, what has the world done to itself?
It was the most beautiful place I have ever been, the colors were so vivid. Green trees and grass, oh I loved to lie in the grass and just close my eyes. I would breath deeply the smells. I could find joy in the Lord, while I close my eyes and take it all in.
I so wanted to see snow, I prayed within my heart for snow and it snowed. Why did an angel come to Mother? Why did an angel speak to Joseph? Why are these questions forbidden? Why does Joseph not talk about why we fled to Egypt? Did we leave because of me?
I so loved to listen to Rabbi teach, I longed to listen and ask questions in the synagogue. I longed to hear the stories, to listen to our native tongue.
It was raining, we all were miserable as we walked to Jerusalem. I so wanted the rain to stop, so did Little Salome. I asked God to make it stop raining. It stopped. Did my prayer cause this? Did my prayer bring sight to the blind man at the Temple? Did my prayer kill the young boy in Alexandria and then bring him back to life? Did my prayer heal Uncle Cleopus as he bathed in the Jordan? Did Herod demand that every boy be killed because of me? This birth in Bethlehem, what did it have to do with me? Why did these Magi come to see this young child? Why do they say my mother has not been with Joseph? Why did Uncle Cleopus say "one day we will rely on you for all of the answers"? How did I bring clay birds I had made to life? Why do I dream about the bad things that happen? Who is the virgin born son? Who is this Christ Child they speak of? Could it be me?
I think back to the things I had going through my mind as an 8 year old. I can tell you that all I thought about was baseball. I know Jesus was special, but how did he react to the knowledge of His purpose? How did he cope with knowing the prophecy? How did Jesus not loose his mind when he found out that He was the Christ, the Savior, and the true Son of God? How could an 8-year-old process the devastating news that one day he will die on a cross for the sins of the world?
This past weekend I finished reading "Christ the Lord: Out of Egypt" by Anne Rice. There are things I do not agree with, but it is a fantastic look at Jesus as a young child struggling with His destiny in life. He discovers piece by piece of his life's purpose. This was a very thought provoking piece of fiction for me. I hope you find joy in knowing that Jesus was human, with human fears, human temptations, and human thoughts, but He had an unwielding faith in His father that carried Him through until the end.
Sunday, February 25, 2007
a great night at Youth....
Once a month we plan to have a Youth service at our church. Our hope in the beginning was to open it up to the community of Waverly, but it seems these day in the kaios we call DownPool, we barely have time to fit a service into the schedule. Tonight was the night and I led worship and Eli helped thorugh a contemplative prayer. It was excellent! I attempted to keep the worhsip very calm and reflective. I sort of messed around with the songs a bit, but I think it went OK. I really wanted our hearts to be centered by the time we got to Eli's excercise. We spent about 40 minutes listening to Eli described how God sees us. He gave us words that describes His love for us, how special we are, he told us about Jesus's truth. I felt like the response was terrific. I felt like our Youth really took this time to reflect and understand that they are a child of God and they are special. As teeneagers, I think kids struggle with understanding themselves. They are spending their time trying to get through this awkward stage in their lives. We were reminded tonight that Jesus loves us, every aspect of our being, unconditionaly. Thanks for the reminder Eli.
Friday, February 23, 2007
if you ever get a chance....
Jen and I had the opportunity to visit the Grand Canyon via Helicopter last week. It was a little side trip we took in our spare time. If you ever get a chance to do this...you have to see the Grand Canyon this way! If you can't fly into the canyon and be in awe of God's majesty than there is nothing in the world that will impress you. It was amazing!
In response to a wonderful post...
A dear friend had a post on her blog that was awesome. So as I started to comment on her blog about how beuatiful it was, I was reminded of Teacher in High School that did an amazing thing for me...so my comment turned into a long story...I am reposting it here... Read Jodi's post here http://jodileeg.blogspot.com/2007/02/honesty.html
My response...
I use to have a study hall when I was in High School that was located in one of my mentoring teachers classes. Mr Griffith, was a great teacher for me even though I never had him for a class. He taught Special Education. He had the persona of being a very demanding teacher to us students. So on the first day of school as a Junior and Senior, Mr. Griffith came into the Study Hall class and pointed at me and yelled, "Ford, Why are you not in my class?" I gave the study hall teacher a bewildered look, and said, "I have no..." Then, he yelled, " You have 3 seconds to return there before I make this situation difficult for you." Again, a bewildered look towards Mrs. Higgins. "Mrs. Higgin's, you can expect Mr. Ford to not be present in the study hall the rest of the school year. I would like to know if he ever shows up again trying to hide from me!" Once in the hallway, Mr. Grifffith smiled and said, " You did not really want to be in that class did you? I need your help!" We walked into his classroom where about 20 kids that I would have placed the exact same label on as you described in your post. He said, these kids need your help, your example, your guidence, your friendship. I never was able to do homework in that study hall, I was never able to relax, I was never able just be a student in that study hall. Mr. Griffith taught me such a valuable lesson those two years. I learned that these kids are special not just because of their lack of potential for learning, no because of their bad home lives, behavioral issues or poor life choices. I learned they were special because deep inside they were beautiful kids. The only way I would have ever found that beauty was because I had a teacher who offered me a chance to get close to them, to befriend them, to teach them, to be taught by them, to experience for 48 minutes a day a small part of their lives. Once you are patient enough to get passed all of the troubles, you honestly see who they really are inside. I remember helping them study for spelling tests, math tests, drug tests ;), talking about bad breakups, fights at the bowling alley on Saturday nights, trying to break bad habits, anger issues, pregnancies, fathers that beat them, running away and so many more events that I can't even imagine. I remember how they looked up to me. They would give me high 5's in the hallway between classes, they would eat lunch beside me, and they would cheer me on at soccer games. The funny thing was, I always looked up to them. How they attempted to handle their life struggles, without parents, without popularity and without alot of hope. I never really thought about all of these lessons I learned until I read your post. Mr. Griffith taught me alot, I guess he probably saw something in me that might help these kids and he saw something in those special kids that might help me grow to be the man I am today. In all honesty, that might have been the beginning of my Youth ministry training...
My response...
I use to have a study hall when I was in High School that was located in one of my mentoring teachers classes. Mr Griffith, was a great teacher for me even though I never had him for a class. He taught Special Education. He had the persona of being a very demanding teacher to us students. So on the first day of school as a Junior and Senior, Mr. Griffith came into the Study Hall class and pointed at me and yelled, "Ford, Why are you not in my class?" I gave the study hall teacher a bewildered look, and said, "I have no..." Then, he yelled, " You have 3 seconds to return there before I make this situation difficult for you." Again, a bewildered look towards Mrs. Higgins. "Mrs. Higgin's, you can expect Mr. Ford to not be present in the study hall the rest of the school year. I would like to know if he ever shows up again trying to hide from me!" Once in the hallway, Mr. Grifffith smiled and said, " You did not really want to be in that class did you? I need your help!" We walked into his classroom where about 20 kids that I would have placed the exact same label on as you described in your post. He said, these kids need your help, your example, your guidence, your friendship. I never was able to do homework in that study hall, I was never able to relax, I was never able just be a student in that study hall. Mr. Griffith taught me such a valuable lesson those two years. I learned that these kids are special not just because of their lack of potential for learning, no because of their bad home lives, behavioral issues or poor life choices. I learned they were special because deep inside they were beautiful kids. The only way I would have ever found that beauty was because I had a teacher who offered me a chance to get close to them, to befriend them, to teach them, to be taught by them, to experience for 48 minutes a day a small part of their lives. Once you are patient enough to get passed all of the troubles, you honestly see who they really are inside. I remember helping them study for spelling tests, math tests, drug tests ;), talking about bad breakups, fights at the bowling alley on Saturday nights, trying to break bad habits, anger issues, pregnancies, fathers that beat them, running away and so many more events that I can't even imagine. I remember how they looked up to me. They would give me high 5's in the hallway between classes, they would eat lunch beside me, and they would cheer me on at soccer games. The funny thing was, I always looked up to them. How they attempted to handle their life struggles, without parents, without popularity and without alot of hope. I never really thought about all of these lessons I learned until I read your post. Mr. Griffith taught me alot, I guess he probably saw something in me that might help these kids and he saw something in those special kids that might help me grow to be the man I am today. In all honesty, that might have been the beginning of my Youth ministry training...
Tuesday, February 20, 2007
it is in the details...in the small things...
Let me first say...I miss my family. Jen is so awesome. She allows me to go on this weekend called Chrysalis. It is a 3 day spiritual retreat for High School kids that can be for some a life changing experience. It is three days away from Jen and the girls, but it is such a worth while experience. This weekend was just bad timing. I had a trip last week. I landed at 10 PM on Thursday and left for the weekend on Friday. Jen I am sorry. I missed you. I had a wonderful week.
The weekend was awesome. God is so good. We had 24 kids show up! They were amazing! I was able to really watch how God orchestrated the entire weekend. We had perfect talks. They were so timely. I think they really had a real impact on each kid in a different way. As the weekend progressed, these young men became closer and more open to what the weekend had in store for them. They truly became Brothers.
I know that these weekends are a safe haven for spiritual growth, they lend themselves to transforming teens lives right in front of our eyes. I find that it becomes a sprirtual renewal weekend for myself. There is so much focus on these young men, showing them God's love in the details, in the small things that I find having my heart focused on serving them that I get this amazing payoff. A closer relationship with Christ. Although my prayers, worship and silence are all focused on these young men, I still find joy for myself. I still find that I grow and learn on these weekends. I am always amazed by the God moments on a weekend. Those times when the presence of God is so evident, so intense, so loving. I long for those moments of intimacy with God. I pray that I can find them more and more as I grow in Christ. My worship is Christ centered. My walk, though rocky at times, is striving to be near to Him. I am learning everyday to look for God in the little things...in the details. It is in those small moments that I find true intimacy with God. It is a little easier to find God on a Chrysalis weekend, He is so in your face it is difficult to miss Him. Everywere you look you see God's love in everything from great food, awesome agape letters and clean restrooms. I challenge the young men from Flight #20 to not only see our Big God in the obvious big moments, but to search for Him in the little things...find Him in the details of life and then we will be in true worship of our King...
The weekend was awesome. God is so good. We had 24 kids show up! They were amazing! I was able to really watch how God orchestrated the entire weekend. We had perfect talks. They were so timely. I think they really had a real impact on each kid in a different way. As the weekend progressed, these young men became closer and more open to what the weekend had in store for them. They truly became Brothers.
I know that these weekends are a safe haven for spiritual growth, they lend themselves to transforming teens lives right in front of our eyes. I find that it becomes a sprirtual renewal weekend for myself. There is so much focus on these young men, showing them God's love in the details, in the small things that I find having my heart focused on serving them that I get this amazing payoff. A closer relationship with Christ. Although my prayers, worship and silence are all focused on these young men, I still find joy for myself. I still find that I grow and learn on these weekends. I am always amazed by the God moments on a weekend. Those times when the presence of God is so evident, so intense, so loving. I long for those moments of intimacy with God. I pray that I can find them more and more as I grow in Christ. My worship is Christ centered. My walk, though rocky at times, is striving to be near to Him. I am learning everyday to look for God in the little things...in the details. It is in those small moments that I find true intimacy with God. It is a little easier to find God on a Chrysalis weekend, He is so in your face it is difficult to miss Him. Everywere you look you see God's love in everything from great food, awesome agape letters and clean restrooms. I challenge the young men from Flight #20 to not only see our Big God in the obvious big moments, but to search for Him in the little things...find Him in the details of life and then we will be in true worship of our King...
Tuesday, February 13, 2007
at a Starbucks near you....
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