Monday, January 31, 2011
ONE
http://one.org/us/
This website is called ONE. ONE is a organization that fights extreme poverty and preventable disease, particularly in Africa, by public awareness and pressuring political leaders to support smart and effective policies. Their goal is to provide programs that save lives, help put children in school, and improve futures. This organization is really cool and is doing awesome things. If you go to the Issues tab you can see all the different areas that the organization deals with and read a little about each one. On the Hot Topic tab you can see the latest projects that ONE is working on. There is also a Blog tab where you can read what people have to say about the issues and you can also blog yourself. I really enjoy this website and this organization because they really are out their to make a difference. Money isn't their main goal, making people aware of what is going on in the world is. It's really interesting to see all the different places and issues that ONE is helping and supporting.
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Giving
In Matthew 25 Jesus is talking to the people, he says "I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me." The people responded by saying they never saw Christ in any of these positions. Jesus responded "I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me."
Jesus is telling us that we need to think of every person we come in contact to as Him. The two greatest commands he gave us where to love Him with all our heart, soul, and mind and love our neighbor as ourselves. So by loving others we are ultimately loving God. When you think about it this really hits hard. You never consider the people that annoy you or make you mad as Jesus himself. But as Jesus says in this verse whatever you did not do for them, you did not do for Him. It really makes you think about the way you treat other people.
In the same chapter of Matthew Jesus is talking to the people who did the right thing, they ask him when they saw him hungry and fed him, thirsty and gave him something to drink. He replies "I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me." In this verse he is saying that we can show love for God by caring for those who are poor or those who are suffering. We should be treating these people as if they are Christ himself. True love requires sacrifice, Jesus layed down his life for us on the cross and our love for him is shown by how we live our lives. One of my favorite verses is from James chapter 2, it says "Faith without action is dead."
Francis Chan tells several stories of people that gave to the poor and were blessed beyond compare. People that sold their home to buy a smaller one and people that gave more when the economy was terrible. All of them trusted God to come through for them even though they were sacrificing themselves. All of them were blessed more then they could have ever been with keeping it for themselves.
Jesus is telling us that we need to think of every person we come in contact to as Him. The two greatest commands he gave us where to love Him with all our heart, soul, and mind and love our neighbor as ourselves. So by loving others we are ultimately loving God. When you think about it this really hits hard. You never consider the people that annoy you or make you mad as Jesus himself. But as Jesus says in this verse whatever you did not do for them, you did not do for Him. It really makes you think about the way you treat other people.
In the same chapter of Matthew Jesus is talking to the people who did the right thing, they ask him when they saw him hungry and fed him, thirsty and gave him something to drink. He replies "I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me." In this verse he is saying that we can show love for God by caring for those who are poor or those who are suffering. We should be treating these people as if they are Christ himself. True love requires sacrifice, Jesus layed down his life for us on the cross and our love for him is shown by how we live our lives. One of my favorite verses is from James chapter 2, it says "Faith without action is dead."
Francis Chan tells several stories of people that gave to the poor and were blessed beyond compare. People that sold their home to buy a smaller one and people that gave more when the economy was terrible. All of them trusted God to come through for them even though they were sacrificing themselves. All of them were blessed more then they could have ever been with keeping it for themselves.
Thursday, January 27, 2011
This is a video of the orphanage that I help support and raise money for in Kenya, Africa. I got the chance to go to the orphanage twice and I fell in love with all of the kids. The kids are amazing and all have dreams to become doctors, teachers, pilots, and lots of other things. My goal is to help them reach their goals and most importantly show them God's love and acceptance because they orphans. It's the best feeling in the world to be able to help these kids.
Monday, January 24, 2011
Serving Leftovers
Poor, Rich People. Those words don't seem like they go together do they? How can you be poor and rich? In this chapter called "Serving Leftovers To a Holy God" the idea of being rich materially but poor spiritually is talked about.
Chan tells the story of a blind boy who lives in Eastern Uganda. This boy is not unique because of his blindness or where he lives but because of his love for Jesus. One of the first things you would hear him say if you met him is "I love Jesus so much, I sing praises to him everyday!" He has very little of what "counts" in our society but has so much of what matters most, God.
If you make $4,000 a month, you automatically make one hundred times more than the average person on this planet. Chan tells you that just by purchasing this book,Crazy Love, you spent what most people in the world will make in a week. Then he asks this question: which is more messed up-that we have so much compared to everyone else, or that we don't think we're rich? So many times people walk around saying they're "broke" or "poor." This is something that has always bothered me. And if it wasn't for my opportunity to go over to Kenya and see first hand the poverty and poorness that exists, I would probably find myself doing the same thing. But after seeing the way the people live their and how little they have, I would never go anywhere near calling my self poor. I would never call pretty much anyone that I know living here in America poor. Poor is not having a house to live in, not having a car to drive, not having food to eat, and only having one pair of old clothes to wear. That is poor and nobody that I know here lives like that. Francis Chan says "we are rich, filthy rich," and its so true, we are.
Although being rich is what a lot of people are after, the reality is that being rich is a disadvantage spiritually. Jesus said "How hard is it for the rich to enter the Kingdom of God?" He says it is as hard as a camel to go through the eye of a needle. That is impossible. But then he says "What is impossible with man is possible with God." Our materials, money, and desire for earthly things many times get in the way of our relationship with God and cause us to lose sight of the ultimate goal. Although it is extremely hard for the rich to enter the Kingdom of God, with God it is very possible.
Chan tells the story of a blind boy who lives in Eastern Uganda. This boy is not unique because of his blindness or where he lives but because of his love for Jesus. One of the first things you would hear him say if you met him is "I love Jesus so much, I sing praises to him everyday!" He has very little of what "counts" in our society but has so much of what matters most, God.
If you make $4,000 a month, you automatically make one hundred times more than the average person on this planet. Chan tells you that just by purchasing this book,Crazy Love, you spent what most people in the world will make in a week. Then he asks this question: which is more messed up-that we have so much compared to everyone else, or that we don't think we're rich? So many times people walk around saying they're "broke" or "poor." This is something that has always bothered me. And if it wasn't for my opportunity to go over to Kenya and see first hand the poverty and poorness that exists, I would probably find myself doing the same thing. But after seeing the way the people live their and how little they have, I would never go anywhere near calling my self poor. I would never call pretty much anyone that I know living here in America poor. Poor is not having a house to live in, not having a car to drive, not having food to eat, and only having one pair of old clothes to wear. That is poor and nobody that I know here lives like that. Francis Chan says "we are rich, filthy rich," and its so true, we are.
Although being rich is what a lot of people are after, the reality is that being rich is a disadvantage spiritually. Jesus said "How hard is it for the rich to enter the Kingdom of God?" He says it is as hard as a camel to go through the eye of a needle. That is impossible. But then he says "What is impossible with man is possible with God." Our materials, money, and desire for earthly things many times get in the way of our relationship with God and cause us to lose sight of the ultimate goal. Although it is extremely hard for the rich to enter the Kingdom of God, with God it is very possible.
Sunday, January 23, 2011
Lukewarm
Halfhearted, partially committed, safe, balanced. These are some of the words that Francis Chan uses to describe a "lukewarm" Christian. The definition of lukewarm is: Lacking conviction or enthusiasm. At first it may seem weird to compare the word lukewarm and the word Christian but after it is explained in this book, it makes so much sense.
Some of the things Chan uses to describe what the life of a lukewarm Christian who just is not fully into their faith or on fire for God are given in this chapter. A lukewarm Christian may attend church regularly because its the "right thing" or what is expected of them. They might give money to charity or the church as long as it doesn't hurt their way of living or make them feel uncomfortable. They desire to fit in and care more about what other people think of them then what God thinks of them. They do not do extreme things for good because those are only for the "extreme" Christians. They rarely share their faith because they do not want to be rejected or feel uncomfortable. They compare themselves to other people to feel satisfied about how "good" they are. They only give Jesus parts of their life and not all of it and do not love Him with everything they have. They think about life here on earth much more then eternity in heaven. These are just some of the examples that Chan uses to describe the so called "lukewarm" Christian.
He makes it very clear that he is not saying all these things to make people feel guilty or bad about themselves but simply to help people examine their own lives and see what they could change. He wants this to move people to not just be part way in love with God but fully, all out, deeply in love with Him and show it by the way they live their lives. Jesus says in the bible that he will literally spit out lukewarm Christians. Wow, thats pretty powerful. Again Chan says that this chapter is not to make people feel bad or judge the lives of others. We are all lukewarm in some ways and we are all sinners. Nobody on this earth is perfect. As I read through some of these things I related greatly. Some parts of my faith and walk with God are lukewarm and not where they should be. This helped me to evaluate myself again and think about how I could be pleasing God more by being on fire for Him and not lukewarm. I don't know about you but i surely don't want to be spit out of God's mouth! So I will do all that I can to live for him and love Him and others with all I have.
Some of the things Chan uses to describe what the life of a lukewarm Christian who just is not fully into their faith or on fire for God are given in this chapter. A lukewarm Christian may attend church regularly because its the "right thing" or what is expected of them. They might give money to charity or the church as long as it doesn't hurt their way of living or make them feel uncomfortable. They desire to fit in and care more about what other people think of them then what God thinks of them. They do not do extreme things for good because those are only for the "extreme" Christians. They rarely share their faith because they do not want to be rejected or feel uncomfortable. They compare themselves to other people to feel satisfied about how "good" they are. They only give Jesus parts of their life and not all of it and do not love Him with everything they have. They think about life here on earth much more then eternity in heaven. These are just some of the examples that Chan uses to describe the so called "lukewarm" Christian.
He makes it very clear that he is not saying all these things to make people feel guilty or bad about themselves but simply to help people examine their own lives and see what they could change. He wants this to move people to not just be part way in love with God but fully, all out, deeply in love with Him and show it by the way they live their lives. Jesus says in the bible that he will literally spit out lukewarm Christians. Wow, thats pretty powerful. Again Chan says that this chapter is not to make people feel bad or judge the lives of others. We are all lukewarm in some ways and we are all sinners. Nobody on this earth is perfect. As I read through some of these things I related greatly. Some parts of my faith and walk with God are lukewarm and not where they should be. This helped me to evaluate myself again and think about how I could be pleasing God more by being on fire for Him and not lukewarm. I don't know about you but i surely don't want to be spit out of God's mouth! So I will do all that I can to live for him and love Him and others with all I have.
Saturday, January 22, 2011
You might not finish this chapter...
I've gotten a lot farther in the book Crazy Love and am enjoying it just as much as the first time I read it, maybe even more. There is so much in this book that makes me think, sometimes it can be overwhelming. Every now and then I have to stop reading, put the book down, and really think about what I just read and how it applies to me.
The next chapter i started to read is called "You might not finish this chapter." Even though I have read this before, I could not remember what this one was about and so I was very anxious to know what Francis Chan meant by this title. So I read on and came to find that he was talking about how nobody knows how long they will live or when they will die. You could die tomorrow for all you know and today could be your last day. He tells a story about a 14 year old girl, Brooke Bronkowski, who was so in love with Jesus. When she was in middle school she started a bible study at her school. She spent her babysitting money on Bibles for people who did not have them. When she was 12 years old she wrote an essay which was written out in the book. As I read the essay I was amazed that a 12 year old wrote these things. She said things like "I will live my life to the fullest, I will tell others about Christ, I will be bold, I'll set an example for others, I will pray for direction, I will follow the footsteps of God, I will be one of those people who are history makers at a young age." Wow. That's all I have to say.
During her freshman year of high school, Brooke was in a car accident while driving to the movies, her life ended when she was fourteen. Nearly fifteen hundred people attended Brooke's memorial service. Everyone spoke of her love for God, her joy, and her great example. Francis Chan, the author of this book, did her funeral service and decided to share the gospel. There were around 200 students who stood up and for the first time accepted Christ into their lives. Brooke once said "I'll be one of those people who live to be history makers at a young age," and that she did. Her short life was not wasted, she led more people to Christ just by setting an example then most people do their entire lives. This story was just a reminder that we need to live every day full out for Christ because we never know when it could be our last. Brooke's story inspired me so much and reminded me of one of my favorite verses: 1 Timothy 4:12 "Do not let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity" Obviously Brooke did not let people look down on her because she was young, she definitely made an impact and changed so many lives.
The next chapter i started to read is called "You might not finish this chapter." Even though I have read this before, I could not remember what this one was about and so I was very anxious to know what Francis Chan meant by this title. So I read on and came to find that he was talking about how nobody knows how long they will live or when they will die. You could die tomorrow for all you know and today could be your last day. He tells a story about a 14 year old girl, Brooke Bronkowski, who was so in love with Jesus. When she was in middle school she started a bible study at her school. She spent her babysitting money on Bibles for people who did not have them. When she was 12 years old she wrote an essay which was written out in the book. As I read the essay I was amazed that a 12 year old wrote these things. She said things like "I will live my life to the fullest, I will tell others about Christ, I will be bold, I'll set an example for others, I will pray for direction, I will follow the footsteps of God, I will be one of those people who are history makers at a young age." Wow. That's all I have to say.
During her freshman year of high school, Brooke was in a car accident while driving to the movies, her life ended when she was fourteen. Nearly fifteen hundred people attended Brooke's memorial service. Everyone spoke of her love for God, her joy, and her great example. Francis Chan, the author of this book, did her funeral service and decided to share the gospel. There were around 200 students who stood up and for the first time accepted Christ into their lives. Brooke once said "I'll be one of those people who live to be history makers at a young age," and that she did. Her short life was not wasted, she led more people to Christ just by setting an example then most people do their entire lives. This story was just a reminder that we need to live every day full out for Christ because we never know when it could be our last. Brooke's story inspired me so much and reminded me of one of my favorite verses: 1 Timothy 4:12 "Do not let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity" Obviously Brooke did not let people look down on her because she was young, she definitely made an impact and changed so many lives.
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Rafiki
So i haven't explained the name of my blog yet so I thought I should do that now. Rafiki is one of the characters from the movie Lion King which is one of my favorites. Rafiki also means "friend" in Swahili, which is a language that I'm planning to learn one day, possibly in college. I have been to Kenya a few times and I want to become a missionary one day in some part of Africa so i think learning Swahili would be very useful. I already know a few words in the language....Jambo=Hello, Habari=How are you, Asanti=thank you, Tafadali=Please, lalasalama=goodnight, Rafiki=Friend. I know a few more and I hope to keep learning!
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