Perfect Imperfections

After having an argument with my girlfriend and then my roommate over pretty much the same issue, I guess it's time to change.

Not like I am just noticing it now, because it is kind of how I have been my whole life, but now I am beginning to realize that I need to change this specific characteristic or it is going to cost me friendships and relationships that I never wanted to lose.

I really know that I am called by God to be a pastor not just because pastor is a fitting title for my job description, but because pastor is what makes up the core of who I am. Being a pastor (and a young one at that) has some positive as well as some negative side-effects. One of those "side-effects," and the very issue I am talking about in this blog is the ever present feeling that I must be the one to better people. Scratch that. Not just better people, but actually make them perfect...at least whatever this perfection is in my eyes.

This is my biggest and most pressing flaw.

When at social events, I feel like it is my responsibility, albeit my duty to make everybody have a good time. If someone is not enjoying themselves I take it on my shoulders and allow their attitude to upset and frustrate me. When I put on youth events for my youth group, I work so hard to make the event perfect so that every student has the most incredible time, only to find out a couple of hours later that one or two of the students would rather be at home doing homework. If I don't allow these negative comments to upset me, I just blame it on the student and say its their fault for not knowing how perfect this fun is.

But when striving for perfection I am one-hundred percent guaranteed to fail. When pushing others to be perfect (once again, in my eyes) I set them up for failure. I set myself up for disappointment. I don't know where I get my sense of perfection from, maybe it is because I think too highly of myself. Whatever it is, I need God to work in me and change me.

It is good to strive for perfection in my own doing because these are things that I can control. But, I must know that when striving for perfection I won't reach it. I can get close but I will never be perfectly perfect and that is okay.

In trying to make others fit my "mold of perfection"...that is just ridiculous. Yeah, maybe there are some things that these people can alter for the better, and sometimes these things can be pointed out. But there is a right way to do it and a wrong way, and too often I pick the wrong way.

"God, help me figure out the line between counseling others to be better and pushing others to be what I want them to be. Help me to find right and peaceful ways to handle situations in which I feel people need to change. Help me to put aside any comment or action in each situation in which I need to say or do nothing. Show me balance. Show me patience. Show me kindness. Show me your perfection and I'll work towards that. Thanks. You are great."

AMP @ North Texas District Fine Arts

This past Friday I took a group of 20 students to Waxahachie, Texas, to compete in various Art, Drama, Music, and Communication categories against hundreds of churches across North Texas. These students were able to use their God-given talents and abilities in categories such as Worship Team, Christian Band, Graphic Design, Traditional Photography, Children's Lesson, Human Video, Drama Group, First Person Essay, T-Shirt Design, Instrumental Ensemble, and many others.

We hopped into multiple vans and loaded our clothes and equipment into the trailer and drove 35 miles to our destination.

We showed up at the college, unloaded into our rooms, checked into the festival, and immediately took off to get to our first competition.

The Story Sweepers were our group of girls who presented a Group Children's Lesson. These girls ended up winning the Merit Award for 1st Place in their category and were invited to Nationals in Orlando Florida.
Throughout the day on Friday we rushed from one event to the next with little time in between to rest. Olivia did her Children's Lesson, then the AMP Worship Team presented their two songs. Alanna performed her Children's Lesson and the Puppet Group their presentation. The AMP Players then presented their drama to a room full of hot and sweaty people. The building we were in had just lost air conditioning earlier that day and we were all sweating like pigs.

This is a picture of the hallway before we entered
the room to compete.

Sweaty.

The Human Video, iAMPi, then performed in a large gym in front of over 100 people, and we concluded the night with a stellar performance from Disciple's Hope in the Christian Band category.

Saturday was less stressful than the previous day. We woke up early and went to Alanna's Flute Solo and then straight to Jonathan's Drum Solo. Matt Briggs later performed a piece that he wrote for Keyboard Solo. We concluded the day with an incredible Flute Duet from Reedless.

When we received our scores we went into a secluded area and went nuts. Group after group received a "Superior with Invitation" - the highest award and an invitation to National Fine Arts in Orlando, Florida.

At the Awards Ceremony, we watched with anticipation as categories were called and the TOP 3 from each were announced to a room of over 2,000 people. When all was said and done, Alanna's Children Lesson, The AMP Players, Reedless, Alanna and Olivia's First Person Essays, and The Story Sweepers all made TOP 3 in their individual categories.

And topping off the entire trip, The Story Sweepers won the Merit Award for 1st Place Group Children's Lesson.

We will all be traveling to Nationals in three months. Keep AMP Student Ministries in your thoughts and prayers and we would love to have your support. This is fun and competion, but we want to use these talents and presentations that we have worked so hard on and use them to bring people into the kingdom of God.

The Incredible Exchange

"For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ."
-2 Corinthians 5:21

This verse is one of the most important verses in the Bible to help us understand the meaning of atonement and justification. Atonement refers to the forgiving of our sin through the death of Jesus Christ. Justification is the concept that we, as sinners, are made sinless before God - just as though we had never sinned.

So, according to this verse, God made Jesus to be regarded and treated as sin. That in our place, Jesus became sin for those who believe in Him. And when God placed all of our sins on Jesus, He placed all of Jesus' righteousness on us. There was this incredible exchange that happened on the Cross.

When Jesus said His final words on the Cross - "It is finished", the exchange occurred and Jesus paid the penalty for our sins and we were made perfect in God's eyes.

That is pretty incredible.

It is because of Friday, today, some 1,976 years ago, when Jesus voluntarily went to the Cross so that we would have any chance of having a mended relationship with our Creator. On Good Friday we celebrate the brutal murder of a perfect man, the God-man, Jesus Christ. And my prayers is that everyone come to understand this story and to believe in its main Character so that they too might receive that incredible exchange.

Questions and Waterfalls

Have you ever found that place that you knew was holy? I mean, some how, some way, the place was just different from the rest? I've gone my whole life without finding too many of those locations, but I've just recently came upon one.

We were traveling trails in Arkansas when we came upon a little river. We followed the river to the point where the currents were growing faster and faster and soon found, a little ways off the main path, this waterfall.

I guess there is nothing special about it at face-value. It is a relatively small waterfall, no incredible drop like Victoria Falls, no great mist like Niagara, but nevertheless, something holy. And when I say holy, I mean sacred, different, marked distinctly by God as His flawless creation. Holy.

Everyone else stayed on the path, my girlfriend and I stepped over the fence and made our way across the moss-covered boulders to get as close as we could to the pouring falls. Then, we just sat. For the next twenty to thirty minutes we sat in total silence with only the crashing water making any noise. Really it was impossible for me to talk - I was just in awe of what He had put together so perfectly. I don't know if Cara's experience was anything like mine, because although we sat right next to one another, I felt like it was just me and God.

So I talked to Him. Usually in prayer I find myself always asking. God, can you do this for me? God, will you show me what I need to do in this situation? Lord, please heal this person or protect these people. And where I don't think any of that is necessarily wrong, I have found that I often do that too much without expressing my thanks to God for who He is. So, for the next couple of minutes, I spent my time thinking about every incredible characteristic of God and thanking Him for being that way. I thanked Him for being in control of everything so I didn't have to be. I told Him how cool it was that He loves and forgives me every time I screw up. I thought about how caring He is to even those who hate Him. And I thanked Him for creating this waterfall.

And then the unexpected happened. He spoke to me.

No, not in some audible, earth-shattering way. This was just by some unexpected phrase that came to my mind and heart and wouldn't go away. (This is called the Holy Spirit by the way)

The words were "Dive in."

Weird, huh? Yeah, they confused me at first too. I was like, "God, please don't mean this in a literal way. I am fully dressed, it is a bit chilly outside, plus, I don't know how shallow this pool of water is and I could easily get hurt." But those thoughts are what cleared everything up for me.

I had all these questions and concerns: the water was too shallow, it was too cold, people would look at me like I was an idiot...I wouldn't be making enough money, people wouldn't understand, it really isn't logical, it might hinder a job in the future, maybe God had something different for me and I need to move on.

Questions and concerns.

But questions and concerns that I didn't need to deal with. God is much bigger, much more in control, and has a plan for my life that I just need to follow unreservedly. I just need to dive in and He will protect me and show me what I need to do.

Right now, Jeremiah 29:11 comes to mind.

"'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the LORD, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.'"

That waterfall gave me a peace that day. God is in control so I don't have to be. As long as I am in His pleasing and perfect will He will keep me safe, on the right path, heading towards the waterfall.

October Jones

I stopped at the gas station to fill the car up with gas before traveling back to the school. I had just spent the afternoon up at the church getting some work done and it was about 10:30pm. It was very dark outside and very downtown Fort Worth. Not the safest.

Just as I started to pump gas, October Jones appears out of the shadows with his right hand stuffed down into a black bag. My immediate thought - God, I'm going to die.

I didn't die.

October Jones pulled out three bottles of Dove shampoo and asked if I had a girlfriend. How nice of you October Jones, you want to wash my hair, kill me, then hunt down my girlfriend and kill her too. Rather, October Jones informs me that he wants to sell me these three bottles of shampoo for just $10. He said that he desperately needed this last ten bucks so that he could make the payment on his light bill.

I smiled at the man and awkwardly fumbled around with the gas nozzle as I tried to think of some excuse to not give the man my money. The thought was quickly replaced with something I had heard one of my professors say a couple of months ago. He was telling a story to our class of a time he had been at a restaurant with other ministers and a man walked in and made his rounds to each table handing out little ornaments with a card attached that read:

"I am deaf and mute and cannot get a job. Would you please purchase this ornament for $5 to help me?"

Each pastor at the table got one of these ornaments and the common jokes were made about walking up behind this person and screaming to see if they would respond in any way. My professor said his thoughts and comments were that this guy was a fake, or at the least he was a lazy deaf and mute that didn't try to get a job.

But my professor watched as one of the ministers at the end of the table asked all of the other pastors to pass their ornament to him. He took up all of the ornaments and as the conversation continued he quietly placed a twenty dollar bill on the ornaments and handed them all back to the deaf/mute man as he came back to collect.

My professor was shocked and later asked the pastor why he gave so much money to help that man buy his next beer or drug or whatever the addiction was. The pastor looked at my professor and quoted Matthew 25:35-40:

"I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me. Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?' The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'"

The pastor, with true sincerity said, "I would much rather take the chance of losing a few bucks and fueling an addiction than showing up in heaven and having Jesus ask me why I didn't feed him when was hungry, give him drink when he was thirsty, or clothe him when he needed clothes."

So, back to October Jones. I told him that I didn't want the shampoo for my girlfriend - she probably wouldn't even use it, but that I wanted to give him $10 anyways to help pay for his light bill. He didn't know how to respond. So I continued. I asked him if he had anything I could pray with him about (besides to light bill). October Jones told me that he is fine - he is a Christian and prays three times a day. I handed over the ten bucks and shook his hand telling him that I would pray for him tonight and he walked away.

Did October Jones use the money for his light bill? Maybe. Probably not. But when I go to heaven and Jesus tells me thanks for the ten dollars, I am going to smile.

Great Leaders Serve

For the longest time I have thought to be a great leader you have to have incredible leadership skills. I have thought that what is important is how creative or how organized I could be, and that this would make me a good leader. I am starting to realize that this is not the case.

There are 87 verses in the Bible that contain the word "leader".
There are 971 verses in the Bible that contain the word "servant".


"For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many."
Mark 10:45


Just recently I built a resume and had a whole section devoted to my skills and capabilities. Some of the things I listed expressed my leadership abilities rather than describing my passion to serve.

Jesus, the human-form of God on earth was the greatest leader of all time. Literally thousands of people followed him around just to hear the crazy stories he told. He never held a political office, never was Lead Pastor at a church, never served as Manager of a major corporation...no. Instead, Jesus (God) washed feet, healed the sick, raised friends from the dead, and then died for us, and all the time His life was marked by humility and love.

"God, I want to be a leader. In fact, I want to be the best leader possible. Help me to better understand that the true marks of an effective leader are Godliness, integrity, stability, humility, love, diplomacy, decisiveness, and vision. But most importantly, an effective leader is one marked by servanthood. Help me to be the servant you have called me to be. Amen."

The Rescue

Rescue is defined as "to free or deliver from confinement, violence, danger, or evil." Scripture uses the term many times to express God's incredible mission, sending His Son to earth in order to save us.


The Apostle Paul states:
"It's news I'm most proud to proclaim, this extraordinary Message of God's powerful plan to rescue everyone who trusts Him..."
Romans 1:16-17


God's "powerful plan" was sending Jesus to serve as our rescue! This is an amazing fact!

The truth is we are all morally corrupt people that need a rescue. We sin on a daily basis and nothing we could ever do could be perfect and holy enough to please God in order that He might just forget all the horrible things we have done. That is why God sent Jesus! Christ's death meets the requirements and demands of God's holy nature. That means that even though we fall short and mess up, even though we hurt God and hurt others regularly, even though we royally mess up our lives continually, we can be forgiven and made acceptable to God every time.

God has truly rescued us - freed us, delivered us - from confinement to sin and ultimately an eternity apart from Him.

Because of this, I feel that it is my duty as a Christ-follower to serve as a rescue for those who have not yet been saved by Jesus' actions. God freely gave this gift of salvation and there are millions of people around the world that have not yet accepted this free gift.

I want to be a part of the Church that God has called His people to be. I want to reach those who have not accepted Jesus as their Savior yet. I want to show them the grace and love that I have received through a relationship with Jesus. I want to serve people because the Master of all masters and the King of all kings served the least important people. I want to live a life dedicated to following God's standards and Jesus' life. I want to be a part of the great mission to "Go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone." I want to be a part of God's great mission to rescue every person in need of saving. And I believe that I will be a part of the New Reformation that will see the Church become all that they are suppose to be - The Rescue to our decaying world.