PJ's Journal

"Such confidence as this is ours through Christ before God. Not that we are competent in ourselves, but our competence comes from God. He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant - not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life." 2 Cor. 3:4-6 Confidence which leads to competence is important in almost everything you do. I remember playing basketball in high school on varsity as a sophomore, and the coach thought it was safe to put me in the game. I was the only white boy on the team and the only one in the gym for this game. At the time I played the number 2 guard (shooting guard) and 20 seconds into my entry into the game, I was given an opportunity to shoot a three ball. There was no one near me (or so I thought) so I pulled the trigger only to find my ball landing in the bleachers about six rows up. Out of no where, an opposing player featuring his 6'6" frame blocked my shot! That will do something to your

"But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of Him. For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are the smell of death; to the other, the fragrance of life. And who is equal to such a task?" 2 Cor. 2:14-16 Have you ever walked into a home where someone was baking and you became really hungry in a hurry? I am getting hungry just thinking about it. The aroma of what was being cooked could not be ignored. Paul reminds us that we are the aroma of Christ and God leads us to spread the fragrance of the knowledge of God everywhere we go. It's interesting that he does not say that your words are the aroma of God, but rather you are the aroma of God. I believe he words it this way because what people know about Christ goes beyond your words. It encompasses every part about you... your attitude, your reaction

"Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, set His seal of ownership on us, and put His Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come." 2 Cor. 1:21-22 Have you ever walked across or along a creek bed? Its an interesting experience because you never know if your next step will provide you with a safe place for your foot or not. The rocks sometimes move or are slippery and if your not careful you could step in a hole, finding yourself a little more wet than you expected. Its always more secure when we step onto something that is firm. Paul uses the security we find in our footing to make the point that, in Christ, God has made us stand firm ! Our security in this life is in the promises of Christ. He has anointed us! He has set us apart and called us His own! I don't know what you think about being owned by other, but it is perfectly ok with me that the Almighty God, who is maker of all... knows all... and holds

"Now this is our boast: Our conscience testifies that we have conducted ourselves in the world, and especially in our relations with you, in the holiness and sincerity that are from God. We have done so not according to worldly wisdom but according to God's grace. For we do not write you anything you cannot read or understand. And I hope that, as you have understood us in part, you will come to understand fully that you can boast of us just as we will boast of you in the day of the Lord Jesus." 2 Cor. 1:12-14 Trust! Wow, trust is such a big thing in relationships... something that is easily destroyed and hard to get back. I love Paul's confidence as he is basically saying to the Corinthian believers, "You can trust me and my buddies!" They know their motives and can say with a clear conscience that God has enabled them to conduct themselves in a way that is pure and genuine relative to their relationship with the people. This relationship is rooted i

"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God. For just as the sufferings of Christ flow over into our lives, so also through Christ our comfort overflows. If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer. And our hope for you is firm, because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort." 2 Cor. 1:3-7 It is difficult to understand this passage without understanding the context that Paul is in and his worldview on life. In the next passage, he explains to the believers in the church that he is going through an incredible amount of suffering... to the point that he and those with him despair life. He is clear about

Yes, I know I have not updated very much, but it has been busier than expected. We only get internet in certain places so I can only update in the afternoon, but haven't had time. OK, just to end the suspense of the blue food coloring... someone's mom told Josiah that he could use blue food coloring to dye his hair. So I am out in the lobby of our lodge and I see Josiah coming out of the bathroom with blue hands and a blue face. He tells me that he tried to dye his hair... I was laughing! He pretty much was a smurf all day until the color wore off. The students have been amazing! Chapels have been a highlight of the camper's day! You would not believe how much they love the puppets. David, Kelsey, Michael, and Josiah have all taught their lessons and they did a wonderful job! I will have to hold off on the pictures until I get home because I forgot my cable!!! sorry! The students have experienced the blob (a 40 ft balloon in the water that launches a person pret

Well, it was quite a day yesterday after we finally got to Scioto. Actually, we had fairly good time, but we stopped way too many times. We had to stop twice before we even hit Columbus! We got to camp about 1:30 after grabbing a bite to eat at McDonalds and settled in. He had an orientation meeting and I took them on a tour of the camp. They quickly realized that Scioto Hills was named after its lovely terraine. I keep telling them that we are burning calories! We then set up for chapel and practiced for Monday evening chapel. Chapel went very well! I was so proud of our students. There hard work and faithfulness is proving itself to be worth it! There are 90 campers here this week for New Frontier Camp. After chapel we went to a bonfire, had a team meeting, and went to bed... or at least some of us did. Many of the girls stayed up and talked till 2AM or so... I am showing no compassion to there complaints today about being tired! hahaha! The food here at camp is very goo

I challenged our adult youth leaders to think about what they would want a student to look like after they graduate from our ministry... what kind of person would they like to see our teenagers become! Then I shared my heart based on the idea that we have been called to love God and to love people. I would like to see students passionate about three things: 1. Obedience - because this is the way the you show your love for God. Jesus said it and John reiterates it. 2. The Truth - The truth is what sanctifies and transform us into the image of Christ. It reveals to us the heart and will of God! 3. Serving Others - The redeemed have been called to serve! This is part of our DNA as believers... we are servants! Jesus humbled Himself and became a servant. After washing the disciples feet, He told His disciples to go and serve one another. Here is the real question... How do we get there? God has been impressing on my heart that most of discipleship is caught not taught. Teac

Trip Report Well, I am back home today and its Tuesday morning around 5am. Got plenty of sleep last night so I hope that curves the jet lag a little. This really is the first opportunity I have had to blog about the last two days of the Philippines trip. If you had family on the trip I am sure you have heard all about our experiences, but here are a few highlights that stuck out in my mind. Saturday, we went to a beach resort on the Island of Lapu-Lapu, and it was very relaxing and fun. We invited those that volunteered with us throughout the week and the leadership of the church. We rented Jet-Ski's, a banana boat thing, and some went para-sailing. This was a once in a lifetime deal for those 16, 17, and 18 year old students who helped us out. Most, if not all, of the students have grown up in the church through the compassion ministry. They are very poor, but have faithfully been participating at MCBC and servign the King, so to do this for them was so much fun!!! They w

Trip Report Well, I am up late this morning (6:30), and just enough time to give you a snippet of yesterday. It was a good day of ministry and certainly a day that we began to mentally shift our hearts towards home. At least I can say that about myself. I certainly miss my family even though I can communicate with them often through Skype. I want to bring them over here sooooo bad! Jenny and I had our last day of camp! The students had so much fun playing games and spending moments together on the final day of camp. We had our closing program at 4 in the afternoon. 98% of the students came back for the experience and awards were given out. It was fun to watch them come forward for their awards and certificates. Affirming these kids is so important. We gave each person a basketball at the end of camp and I went outside with my sharpie ready. Student after student wanted me to sign their ball. It was quite fun! The students were teaching me some Cebuano today, and laughing a

"For He has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the son He loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins." Colossians 1:13-14 Devotional Thought When I read these few verses I cannot help but to reflect on my own rescue story! He rescued me from the dominion of darkness and brought me into the kingdom of His Son! It is Jesus who has redeemed me from my bondage to sin and death... it is Jesus who has forgiven my sin! I was 17 years old when I surrendered my life to Jesus Christ. God rescued me from a dangerous path in life and gave me a new direction. Honestly, growing up I had no desire for the Lord, and pretty much did what ever I wanted. I longed for everything the world had to offer. I sought after what the world had to offer, and yet, if I am honest with myself, all I found was bondage... nothing satisfied that emptiness I had inside. I had heard about Jesus before. I knew He died for our sin and rose from the

"For this reason since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of His will though all spiritual wisdom and understanding. And we pray this in order that you may live live a life worthy of the Lord and may please Him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthen with His power according to His glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light." Colossians 1:9-12 Devotional Thought What is it that we can pray for that has real depth and meaning. Many times when we pray, we pray for the sick and the hurting. If we are not sick or hurting we usually think we don't need prayer, but Paul had a different approach. His prayer for the believers in Colosse was intentional and very specific. It was focused on what

"All over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing, just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and understood God's grace in all its truth." Colossians 1:6 Devotional Thought Paul calls this gospel "the word of truth" ! It is the gospel that tells them about "the faith and love that spring from the hope that is stored up for you in heaven and that you already heard about..." It communicates to us God's perfect plan for salvation! It tells how God intends to rescue and restore an undeserving people (you and me)! It is the gospel that frees us from the bondage of sin and death! And it's this gospel that is bearing fruit and growing all over the world. Aside from the whole persecution thing, it would have been great to live during the days of Paul and watch how the gospel began to transform the world! People coming to Christ and experiencing a hope that is beyond words! The hope of experiencing life the way i

"And my God will meet all your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:19 Devotional Thought Paul was thanking the Philippian church for their generosity in supplying him with the things that he needed for ministry. Their kindness and gifts continued to allow him to focus on the ministry God had given him. He calls their gifts "a fragrant offering, an acceptable sacrifice, pleasing to God." With their generosity in mind, he encoourages them with this truth... "And my God WILL meet ALL your NEEDS according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus." He was reminding them that their sacrifice was an act of worship and faith, and that God would continue to meet all their needs. Two things come to my mind about this. First, this is a promise! Paul says God WILL ... this is a promise. Of course, he is simply repeating the words of Jesus in Matthew 6. The second thing is that the promise is that God will meet all our NEEDS .

"I know what its like to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through Him who gives me strength." Philippians 4:12-13 Devotional Thought What is Paul saying? Simply he is saying that he has been on both sides of the economic fence. He knows what its like to have a lot and he knows what its like to have nothing, but there is one thing that matters... Christ! Our circumstances in life don't matter when it comes to the strength God gives. He is all we need, so it doesn't matter what end of the social-economic scale that we are in. He is sufficient! Many times we will quote the verse Phil. 4:13 in a context of saying we can accomplish anything with God's help. Why that might be true, it is interesting that Paul uses these words in the context of being content with what he has. We need to be p

"Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your request to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:4-7 Devotional Thought: This passage is a promise! The promise is that the peace of God would guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. That sounds great to me! How often do our hearts wander away from God? How often are our minds dwelling on the things of this earth rather than on the things of God? We need God's protection! We need His help in guarding our hearts and mind! So how do we become recipients of the promise? Well Paul lays out three things: 1. Rejoice - There is much to rejoice about when we grasp the depth of God's love! His love and grace have taken me to places that I do not deserve. They have

"For, as I have often told you before and now say again even with tears, many live as enemies to the cross of Christ. Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is their shame. Their mind is on earthly things. But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ." Philippians 3:18-20 Devotional Thought So often we live our lives with our mind on earthly things. We have a hard time with things such as death, our social status, our circumstances in this life, and much more because our mind is on earthly things. What matters is eternity! Why? Because that is really our home! That is where our citizenship is as followers of Christ. I don't have to worry about such things as earthly success as defined by our world, or whether I have the latest and greatest stuff, and frankly if I die, because my view of life is not limited to the days I spend on this earth. This is not my home anyway, so wh

"For you are a people holy to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has chosen you out of all the peoples on the face of the earth to be His people, His treasured possessions." Deuteronomy 7:6 "But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are a people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy." 1 Peter 2:9-10 An understanding of God's grace is the single most significant thing that defines me as a person! I am "a people of God"! I have an identity that is rooted in the grace of God. The Deuteronomy passage is speaking of Israel and God's covenant love for them. He chose Israel to be His people above all the nations of people. He wanted to demonstrate His love, power, and presence among these people and called them His own. God cove

I don't know about you, but I fall into the trap of being too critical of people sometimes. This is especially true of those who are in the ministry. Because they don't do things like I would do them, I find myself being critical and judging their motives. This is not a healthy thing to do. Listen to what Paul says about this: "It is true that some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but others out of goodwill. The latter do so in love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. The former preach Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing that they can stir up trouble for me while I am in chains. But what does that matter? The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice." Philippians 2:15-18 Who cares! The important thing is that Christ is being preached! Paul could rejoice or the successes of others whose motives might not have been pure because

"Now I want you to know, brothers, that what happened to me has really served to advance the Gospel. As a result, it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ." Philippians 1:12-13 I think God's Word is incredible! Here you have a man of God explaining his own circumstances that may seem grim, undesirable, and depressing to the average person, but that was not the attitude of Paul. Paul was able to look at his circumstances and see how God was using it for Kingdom purposes. He had become a testimony to the greatness of God while in prison and people were taking notice. This testimony did not come about because of the circumstances but rather in spite of the circumstances. It was because Paul made a choice based on his knowledge of who God is and what life was all about. Paul knew his purpose and did not feel entitled to some happy, easygoing life! Not only was he a testimony to the palace guards, but his

The Philippian Church seems to be one of those churches that you would want to be in.  In Paul's letter to that church, he has nothing but good things to say and is encouraged by the faith of the people.  These are a people that cause joy to rise up in Paul!  That's the kind of church I would love to be a part of, but they certainly were not perfect.  What do you say to a church where the people seem to "get it"?  How about encouragement to keep on doing the things they have been doing!  In the first chapter of Philippians, Paul writes: "And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ." Philippians 1:9-10 What I find interesting about Paul's prayer is his connection between knowledge, insight, and love.  Today when we think of love we tend to think of how we feel about a person.  We have grown to understa

This blog is supposed to be authentic, and it is my desire to be a transparent person about my faith journey. I have not blogged since last month for several reasons...some good and some pretty bad! I have been struggling lately! I have allowed my heart to wander away from my God for the last three weeks. I have not been seeking the Lord in the mornings because of my heart's attitude. You know, I blogged about this last month. Our heart has a natural lean away from God because of our sinful nature and the Scriptures have told us to guard our hearts. Well, I have not guarded my heart very well. I have been very selfish and disobedient! I know that I desire God to be Glorified in my life, but at times I get caught up glorifying and gratifying myself. I spent some time talking to the Lord this morning. He is a Gracious God, and is able to bring about restoration after we have allowed our hearts to stray away. Over the last three weeks, I have known all the right things to

One of the most difficult questions as a believer revolves around the area of forgiveness. When do I forgive? Is there anything that needs to be done first before forgiveness can be offered? These are all great questions, but I think sometimes we make them harder because we begin mixing concepts. When I take a look at the parable of the prodigal son, I see a significant truth... Love is not the same thing as forgiveness. Consider with me the reaction of the Father. Upon seeing his son returning home, he could not contain himself and ran to his son, embracing him tightly. The father had no clue at this point that the son was the least bit repentant. As far as the father knew, he could have been returning to manipulate him for more. Who knows, but what we do know is that the father responded in love before he knew the son was repentant. It was only after the son was repentant that the father restored the son, which is what forgiveness does! Forgiveness always leads to restora

Most of the time we have a negative view of discipline, probably because we abuse that responsibility too often. We see instances when kids are disciplined because they are simply annoying their parents and the parents react. Some go over board and embitter or actually abuse their kids, and some don't do much more than a slap on the hand at best. However, we should never look at the Lord's discipline as a negative thing! Discipline always has the goal of restoration and that is God's ultimate desire. Why? Because He loves you as His own! "And have you forgotten the word of encouragement that addresses you as sons: My sons, do not make light of the Lord's discipline, and do not lose heart when He rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines those He loves, and punishes everyone He accepts as a Son." Hebrews 12:5-6 Discipline is a good thing, so do not lose heart. Instead, humble yourself and learn from your mistakes. Think about it this way...If you were t

Our walk with the Lord is certainly a journey with its setbacks! Sometimes you choose to let your guard down and pursue influences that cause your mind and heart to lean away from God. What do you do when that happens? Should you just give up? Hang your head in shame? If not, what do you do? Paul tells us in Philippians... "Not that I have obtained all this or already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining towards what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus." Philippians 3:12-14 Paul recognized that he had not arrived at perfection! He had setbacks in his journey just like us, yet he approached his journey with truth. Recognize that your not perfect, repent of your sin, and move on! Don't wallow in your sin and sha

What does it mean to live by the Spirit? First we recognize that the Spirit desires what is opposite of our sin nature and then we surround ourselves with influences that feed the Spirit and eliminate those that feed the sin nature. The second thing that is essential to living by the Spirit is in the area of your thoughts. Your thoughts are like a rudder of a ship...you will become as you think many times. "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind..." Romans 12:2 "Your eye is the lamp of your body. When your eyes are good, your whole body is full of light. But when they are bad, your body is full of darkness. See to it, then, that the light within you is not darkness." Luke 11:34-35 How we think is crucial to living by the Spirit, because the Spirit always guides us into truth! "But when He, the Spirit of Truth, comes, He will guide you into all truth..." John 16:13 If we think we can hid

So Paul makes the statement that if we "live by the Spirit we will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature." This statement is good news and it demands a look into what it means to live by the Spirit. This will probably take more than one post, as my goal is to throw out nuggets to be digested than to overwhelm the reader with too much at once. That being said, I would like to look at the rest of what Paul says in Gal 5:16-17... "So I say, live by the Spirit and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want." Gal. 5:16-17 It doesn't surprise us that the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, as a matter of fact, most of us would say, "ok, that's pretty obvious", but Paul's purpose seems to be painting a picture of conflict.

It is true that the natural leaning of our heart is toward rebellion, following the desires of our sin nature, but all is not doom and gloom for sure. If that were the end of the story, I would raise my hands up in defeat and scream "I give up!", but God provided us with a more powerful influence in our lives than our sin nature. Right after Paul describes the struggle he experiences with his sinful nature he goes on to ask a question in a tone of self-defeat... "Who will rescue me from this body of death?" It seems logical to ask that question because that is how we feel much of the time. We want to do right, but find ourselves doing the opposite and then we feel empty or even spiritually dead. Death means separation, which makes spiritual death separation from God. When you follow the desires of the sin nature and live outside the box, you put up a barrier between you and God. You don't feel close to God, as a matter of fact, you feel like God could ne

So obedience is absolutely essential to our purpose in life...to glorify God! We must become people committed to obedience, being intentional about living within God's will. But that being said, we need to explore our tendency to rebel against God. Paul, as he was writing the book of Romans, explains this struggle in chapter 7: "I know that the law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin. I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate to do. And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. As it is, it is no longer I myself doing it, but sin living in me. I know that nothing good lives in me, that is in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do - this I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but sin living in me that does it" R

For the last month, I have been thinking about and teaching about living within God's will. God's will provides boundaries for us to live and thrive within. Anytime you read God's Word and you see a command that applies to you, it is one of many boundaries that form God's will. Here is the kicker...I have been teaching that there is freedom when you live within the boundaries of God will. Conversely , if you live outside those boundaries you actually find bondage! At first glance you might think the opposite is true. You might say that living within a box (God's will) is bondage, but lets take a deeper look at it. What is the purpose of God's will? Is it to suffocate your life just so God can sit on His throne and watch you suffer? Some might think so, but no! Actually, the opposite is true. The designer of life (God) knows just how life is to be lived to its fullest from an eternal perspective. His will helps you to find the most joy and satisfacti

Often times it seems difficult to answer the question, "What is the very best way to give God glory?" I believe that giving God glory is directly related to loving God the most! What do the Scriptures say... Simple, Jesus says in the Gospels, "If you love me, you will obey what I command!" What are God's commands? They are based on God's character and design for life. God desires people to live life the way He intended for it to be. These desires are known as His will! God has stated His will for us in His incredible Word! We know how we ought to live, because the designer gave us the blue prints! Giving God glory is not just making Him look good, it is loving Him by living life the way He designed it to be lived...obeying His commands or living within the confines of God's will. Its really simple, live within the boundaries that God has set up and you naturally will give Him glory. So what does this mean. It means that I don't have to b