Update

It has been great being out here in California at Bible College this semester. God has truly been blessing and growing me this semester. I can’t wait to see you all again and be able to share with you what God is doing out here face to face, but I guess an email will have to do for now. I have been really busy with school work and such and that is why I have been long in writing to you, but I want you all to know that I am praying for you and for the New England area. I truly believe that God is desiring to do a work in the New England area and what a blessing it would be if God chose New Hampshire to begin that work. Jeremiah 15:16 says Your words were found, and I ate them, and your words became to me a joy and the delight of my heart, for I am called by your name, O LORD, God of hosts. We are all called by God and He has given to us His word in which we can study and meditate on in order to know exactly how God is calling us. I am so excited to be out here and be able to set some time aside and delight in the words of the LORD, and I want to encourage all of you to take some time to set aside to spend with the Lord in His word. Again in Jeremiah 10:23 O LORD, I know the way of man not in himself; It is not in man who walks to direct his own steps. We cannot walk in our own steps and be able to walk in a straight line, I think we all know this, but if we are, as Jeremiah was, to meditate on the Word of God we can then be guided and directed in His steps and not our own. It has been a great semester thus far and I am looking forward to seeing what God has in store for the rest of my time here. It is amazing to think about how fast time goes by, it seems as though a couple of weeks ago I was with you all, and now half of my semester is over and already looking to returning to the great state of N.H. You know, I am studying the book of Revelation this semester, and as I look at the different prophecies regarding the end times it appears that we are in the last days of the Church. It would seem as though the age of the Philadelphia faithful church is ending (Rev 3:7-13) and the age of the Laodicea apostate church is here (Rev 3:14-22). The Lord is at hand and I believe He is coming to rescue His church from this lost and dying world. More and more of the open doors in ministry are closing even as whole countries are closing their doors to missionaries; we are truly coming to the end. One thing that I am convicted by and burdened by is all the lost souls that are going to have to suffer the effects of the Great Tribulation. I do not want to write you guys a depressing letter but rather to encourage you guys that we are living in a tremendous time period and that God has chosen us, He has chosen this generation that is alive today, that is you and me, to minister to His people. God has called us to reach this world for the Kingdom of God and bring in a great harvest of souls before He removes His Church. Friends I hope we can see the importance of the calling that God has given to us. Jeremiah was given a ministry by the Lord in which he was to go and preach to the nation of Israel even when God told him that they would not listen to him, and he was obedient to the call of God when he knew his ministry would be fruitless. How much more should we be obedient and be willing to answer as Isaiah did Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying: "Whom shall I send, And who will go for Us?" Then I said, "Here I! Send me." Have you heard the voice of the Lord? Are you willing to be sent? How about if it is in your own backyard? What if it is to your own family, your friends, co-workers, will you go? Let me ask you a question, what church are you from? Are you part of the Philadelphia church or the Laodicea church? Read Revelation 3:7-22 and ask yourself what church you are a part of. I pray that you are a part of the Philadelphia church, if not it is not too late to change churches and become a member of the Philadelphia church. Philippians 3:13b-14 but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead,I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.We have been called, and that call comes from above! Scientists were doing some studies on the Norwegian wharf rats. They took the rats and placed them in a tub of water and continued to spray the tubs so that the rats could not roll over and float. The rats ended up dying after just seventeen minutes of swimming. The scientists again took another set of rats and repeated the experiment only this time after sixteen minutes as the rats were about to die they removed them and dried them off, placed them in their cage and fed them. They let the rats recover for a few days and allowed them to live a normal life again. Then after some time had passed the rats are put back in the tubs of water only this time the rats swam for more than thirty seven before they died. The scientist concluded that the reason for this extended life spam was that they had a salvation experience and they were for a repeated salvation. The rats were able to swim thirty seven hours instead of seventeen minutes because they had hope. They have the hope of salvation. We as Christians also have this same hope of salvation that is given to us because of the cross of Jesus Christ. We need to apply this to our ministry, as we are swimming through this difficult world, are we clinging to the hope we have is Jesus, are we trusting in His guiding hand as we minister in our homes, and our work places. Or have we given up, has the body of Christ just rolled over in the tub and died? I fear too many Christians and even whole churches have just simply given up on ministry. I pray this is not the case with you dear brothers and sisters. May you be encouraged today and be willing to step up and make a difference in your community. Will you be the difference in your church? We need men and woman to be willing to be raised up as leaders in this fallen world as Isaiah willing to be (Isaiah 6:8). Let me just pray for you right now and I would encourage you to join me in this prayer as you are reading it.

“Lord I hope not. I pray that you would renew in my brothers and sisters a passion for You oh God! I pray that you would prolong your coming just a little bit longer, I ask You to allow us to minister to those who mean the most to us. I ask You God to grant us the boldness we need to be Your ambassadors and fulfill the ministry that You have put us in. Give us the heart that You gave Your apostle Paul, give us the boldness that he had to minister to those who You have already called into Your Kingdom. But first and foremost God, renew our fellowship with You. Help us to take time to make time and just seek your face. Your Son Jesus Christ sought you on a daily basis early in the morning, and if Jesus needed to seek You, how more do we need You! Draw us close God! Speak to us, and grow Your Church, not just in numbers God but also in passion. Lord we no longer want to be complacent Christians, our desire is to be obedient, I ask You God to make our desires Your desires and that every decision we make will be one that is conformed to Your perfect will. Revive Your Church Oh God I pray, Revive Your Church, Please God keep us from apostasy and bring us into the shadow of Your wings where we can become complete lacking nothing! God I commit these things to You and I pray these things in the name of Your precious Son Jesus Christ.

Jesus comes to the DOGS!

Mark 7:24-30 24

From there He arose and went to the region of Tyre and Sidon. And He entered a house and wanted no one to know it, but He could not be hidden. 25 For a woman whose young daughter had an unclean spirit heard about Him, and she came and fell at His feet. 26 The woman was a Greek, a Syro-Phoenician by birth, and she kept asking Him to cast the demon out of her daughter. 27 But Jesus said to her, “Let the children be filled first, for it is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the little dogs.” 28 And she answered and said to Him, “Yes, Lord, yet even the little dogs under the table eat from the children’s crumbs.” 29 Then He said to her, “For this saying go your way; the demon has gone out of your daughter. 30 And when she had come to her house, she found the demon gone out, and her daughter lying on the bed. (NKJV)
We read here that Jesus is departing into the city of Tyre a popular port city of the day. Tyre became a Jewish city during the conquest of Joshua as the nation of Israel came into the Promised Land, you can read about this in Joshua 19:29. Now as Jesus is now entering this city it is no longer a Jewish city, we see it first taken into Gentile hands is in Isaiah 23 where Nebuchadnezzar lays siege to the city for a total of thirteen years before it is completely overtaken, and then later in 333B.C. Alexander the Great lays siege to the city for seven months after building a causeway using debris from a city earlier seized to gain access into the city. Because of Israel’s disobedience the city is given over to the Gentiles and continues to be under Gentile control. So we see here the Jewish Messiah going to this Gentile city in order to seek some alone time, no doubt He was tired and eager to escape the pressure of the Jewish crowds thronging Him. However the text here says that even though He seeks to be hidden He is not able to find it for the Son of Man cannot be hidden, even in a Gentile city. His fame has traveled far and wide even among the Gentile cities.
Is Jesus just seeking refuge and rest from His ministry? Or is there a deeper lesson here? Let’s take a minute and go back to the beginning of chapter seven. Jesus rebukes the Pharisees for their putting the traditions of men above the Word of God. I effect He tells them that it is not the exterior that is defiled and unclean but rather the inside the defiles us. Jesus teaches an important message here and then we are going to see Him take it a step farther by putting into practice that which He teaches. We see Him here in the city to Tyre that I have already showed to be a Gentile city. Now to understand the meaning of this we must know that the Gentiles are considered unclean by the Jewish community. Jesus is here seeking apply His own teaching by going to this “unclean” and ultimately healing a Gentile woman’s daughter. Jesus is here teaching us a very important lesson about the grace of God.
An unnamed Gentile, specifically Syro-Phoenician, woman comes to Jesus. She has a daughter who is also unnamed, but her condition is one of great concern and trouble. This woman has a daughter that is demon possessed which can be a very difficult and even dangerous affliction. This woman has found no remedy for her daughter and she is now seeking Jesus the one who the Jews have been following and receiving many miracles by Him, no doubt word has gotten to her about Jesus’ miracles and she is seeking Jesus for this same miracle. Demon possession is nothing new to the New Testament, nor is it anything new to Jesus’ ministry. In Matthew’s gospel chapter 15 verse 22 we see a couple of interesting things about this account. First we see that her daughter’s state of possession is severe showing the woman’s urgency in seeking Jesus’ healing power. Second we see that she calls Him by His Messianic title “Son of David” showing her knowledge of the Old Testament prophecies and gives us some insight on where her faith is coming from as she seeks Jesus for this healing.
This woman knows who Jesus is and appropriately falls at His feet in reverence for who He is and how desperate she is. She knows that she has no business being in the presence of the Jewish Messiah nor does she deserve the healing that she is seeking for her daughter. As she is crying out to Him according to Matthew’s gospel He didn’t answer her pleading, and we see the heart of His disciples who are telling Jesus cast her away. Jesus’ disciples are showing us how the Gentiles are viewed by the Jews at this point, “just get rid of her, we don’t need these Gentiles following us too.” Oh how this may have discouraged her as she is hoping for deliverance for her daughter and is looking to Jesus in desperation. She knows that she is not worthy of what she is asking for, but how often when in a state of despair we will cast out all barriers and differences in hopes that those you are seeking help from will do the same. This Gentile woman is at that point where she is willing to step over the line of “proper” in order to see her daughter saved.
Now Jesus gives her an answer in which she may have expected. “Let the children be filled first, for it is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the little dogs.” Ok let’s break down what Jesus is saying. The children mentioned here are clearly the Jews for they are often referred to as the children of God and the Messiah came for the Jews to reach the Jews, so we can clearly understand that He is referring to the Jews here. “Be filled” is interesting to note, it is not just “fill” but to fatten or to gorge, the children are to be fully filled as seen in the Greek. Now Jesus adds in this very important word that can often be overlooked, it is the word “first”. It is as if Jesus is saying first things first, He is not eliminating all hope but rather stating His priority. Jesus was to go first to the Jews and then later to the Gentiles. We do know that Jesus came for the Jews and it was after their rejection of Him that He is then brought to the Gentiles or in this case the Greeks.
Jesus calls her a dog, or literally a little dog. Now it was common for the Jews of that day to call the Gentiles dogs, they were the children of God and everyone else is nothing more than a dog. It was a very derogatory term of the day and here Jesus uses this term in reference to this Syro- Phoenician woman. Now there are two Greek words for dog, the first is kuōn which means dog, the other is kunarion meaning little dog or puppy. Jesus uses this word meaning puppy. So here is the picture, Jesus has just taken this Greek woman who is normal outside as a kuōn dog and He has brought her into the house as a kunarion puppy that is part of the family. It is not good for the puppy to “take” the break of the Jews says Jesus. Jesus is seeking to remind this woman of who she is and in which to keep her humble, she has come to the Promised Messiah and she need not forget her place. It is important to be humble before Jesus, and we will see that this woman is just that, humble.
Her response to this statement is fascinating. This Syro –Phoenician woman knows exactly what Jesus is saying to her. He is speaking allegorically and she picks up on it. She also responds allegorically. “Yes, Lord, yet even the little dogs under the table eat from the children’s crumbs.” She understands her place, she knows she is nothing more than a little dog that is under the table that the Jews are eating off from, and she is not seeking to “take” the bread that they are eating, but rather, she is hoping to receive a crumb that might fall from the table. Here is Jesus who came to the Jews and has spent most of His ministry in the Jewish cities, He is now in a Gentile city and this woman seeking by faith to receive what has just fallen from the table of the Jews and what she seeks she views as only a crumb. She knows that it is nothing for Jesus to heal her daughter, it is but a crumb, and as a puppy under the table she is satisfied with only the crumb.
Jesus hearing her response and seeing her faith, even though she is a Gentile He heals her daughter. It is interesting to note that no word of healing is said by Jesus, but just that her daughter is already healed. This healing happened at some distance showing that Jesus does not need words nor does He need to be close by to heal and have power over the Spiritual realm. The demons know who Jesus is and they know His power and authority and with just a thought they flee.
We see in this story the day in which Jesus came to the Gentiles, the dogs. Here Jesus is expanding His ministry to not just the “children of God” but also to the dogs as well. Jesus will no longer seclude Himself to the Jews only; He is now available to the Gentiles as well. This is very important us because we are Gentiles and this shows us that we too have the ability to call upon Jesus and seek His power and authority in our lives. We have been graphed into the family of God and can now receive the same bread that the Jews are eating. The day Jesus came to the Syro-Phoenician woman is the day Jesus came to you and me. Galatians 3: 28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

How Big is our God?

Just a quick note, I was doing some studying and I stumbled upon something amazing so check this out.So this picture is a diagram of a protein molecule called Laminin. What in the world is Laminin right? Laminin is a molecule that really is the base of all internal organs. What it does is the three short arms will attach themselves to other Laminin molecules while the longer arm will ancor itself to a cell in which it will form a sheet that lines our internal organs. This specific protien molecule truly is vital to holding together all of our bodily structures. Do you think it is a coinincidence that it just so happens to be in the form of a cross? NO! absolutly not! Our Creator knew exactly what He was doing when He created us, and we truly are created in His image (Genisis 1:26). We know that Jesus Christ was the active agent in creation as John 1:1-3 tells us, so as we are created in the image of Jesus Christ and that which holds us together is a cross, which was the primary work of Jesus Christ in redeeming man. So I ask you how big is your God?
Colosians 1:15-17 15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together.
I would encourage you to watch this short 8 min video of Louie Giglio explaining this:



____________________________________________________________________
_________________________________
This next picture is accually a galaxy that was taken from the Hubbel telescope. This galaxy is called the wirpool galaxy and can accually be seen by amateur astronomers. This galaxy is located about 23 million light years away and is accually one of the most popular galaxys observed by astronomers. As you can clearly see the cross in the center of the of the galaxy which is formed by two dust rings created by the black hole in the center. I find it facinating that God would put the cross of Jesus Christ all through His creation, whether it is 23 light years away in the vastness of space or under the microscope of molecular biology to hold our bodies together. How Big is Your God? Mine is big enough to put His signature in places that can't be seen by the human eye without help.