Lost

During our focus group on Wednesday I briefly described our meeting with the CM&A candidate representatives. I found myself fighting to keep the focus and direction that Sara and I both feel led. The struggle was not with convincing me of our direction, but it was convincing our interviewers. As I have time to reflect upon that meeting I feel terrified and even lost. I have no explanation for these feelings other than spiritual attack. Here are my challenges: The road ahead of us is uncertain and even treacherous. We are currently paying off my student loan and at this rate have at least 5-years. Sara is more or less required to complete a Bachelors and that will cost $16,000 plus my MA degree will cost around the same. Financially we can not make this happen in the time frame of 3-5 years! Our second challenge will be time; Sara home-schools, I work full-time and we should enroll concurrently! Where did my confidence from Wednesday go!? I think of Matthew 6: 28"And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' 32For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. and Matthew 19: 26Jesus looked at them and said, "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible." but it is still hard. Sara and I both would appreciate your prayers as god increases our faith. We want to be faithful and committed to the "race marked out for us." Stu

Affluent in America

A quote from "Jesus Freaks" from a Chinese man who has been arrested hundreds of times, beaten and otherwise been treated inhumane.

"Don't feel sorry for us. At least we are constantly reminded that we are in a spiritual war. We know for whom we are fighting. We know who the enemy is. And we are fighting. Perhaps we should pray for you Christians outside of Chine. In your leisure, in your affluence, in your freedom, sometimes you no longer realize that you are in a spiritual warfare."

I must thank the Lord for the mercy that He has shown in allowing us to live in a place of relative peace, but at the same time I must confess to the Lord that I have allowed that peace to cause me to forget that I am in a battle. It is time that we cloth ourselves with the spiritual armor.

For this upcoming week, I would like to spend some time in prayer for the Christians not only overseas, but for us. America is turning from God, and we as Christians need God's grace to allow us to stand. A closing quote by Ray Thorne, a missionary to the Persecuted Church. "If we Christians don't continue to share the gospel and push the envelope, the envelope will close on us. If we maintain a "silent witness", there will be no witness, and Christianity will die in America."

Three square meals

Here is a link to the article I briefly shared. The premise is child training, but the application is for everyone. Did you have your Bible today? God Doesn't have any Grandchildren

This Wednesday

Just a few reminders for tomorrows gathering...

First, remember to look over the questions Gary compiled and take some time to answer them.

Second, please continue for our groups direction, i.e: prayer, scripture, games, fellowship, and worship.

Third, and finally remember:

“Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.”- Romans 12:4-5

Here is a little picture from my hike:

Created Responding to Creator

This morning I started reading A. W. Tozer's The Pursuit of God as a part of my morning devotionals. Part way through the first chapter I found a quote which I think is crucial to evangelism: "Religion, so far as it is genuine, is in essence the response of created personalities to the creating personality, God." I like to try to remember as much as possible when talking about God to science-minded people that God is the origin of both nature (creation) and us (creatures). So for me it is no mystery that science works so well. God made nature to follow natural laws. And, since the human mind is also made by God, we can understand nature. Michael

A book for the complacent

Last week Michele (who I babysit for) told me there is an opening at the day care for Nathan. I'll have him for only two more weeks. This is bitter sweet for me, more time, less money, etc. The thing I'm thinking about a lot is how to speak into Michele's life in these last few days. She is in the habit of coming over on her lunch to hang out with me and see Nathan. She says she wants to keep doing this, but I'm not sure how long it will last, especially when we start school. Michele is an avid reader, so I'm thinking of giving her a book on Nathan's last day. I'm not sure what book though. I was thinking maybe C.S. Lewis, but the only books of his I have read are the Chronicles of Narnia (she has read these too). Can anyone suggest a book? Michele went to church with a friend as a kid and says she believes in God, she may even call herself a Christian, but she believes all good people go to heaven. She knows God is Love, but she doesn't understand God is Just. -Sara

Jesus Freaks

This afternoon I was reading the book "Jesus Freaks" by DC Talk and I really think that it would be an awesome book for our group to not necessarily read together, but be reading. There are so many stories in it, stories of triumph for Christ. The book has seemingly thousands of scripture references. One verse in particular hit me. I love the story in the bible, but this particular verse sticks out. The verse is from 1 Kings 18:21 and is spoken by Elijah. He says to the people, "How much longer will it take you to make up your minds? If the Lord is God, worship Him; but if Baal is God, worship Him!" Wow. I feel like I can never make up my mind. So maybe that is a prayer request, that I would know that the LORD is God, and that I would worship Him. But it is also a challenge to all of us. May we know that the LORD is GOD, and together worship Him. If you are interested in the book you can certainly borrow it from me, but if you wish to buy a copy, here is a link to get it for just a couple of bucks. Jesus Freaks I also liked this quote from Mother Teressa, "We weren't called to be successful, we were called to be faithful".

Nice Work!

Thanks Michael for taking prompt action on this blog. This weekend my little brother Kyle and I will be backpacking in the Trinity Alps. A previous conversation of ours turned very deep (spiritually) and I hope to continue on that topic during our hike. Kyle has been raised in the Church just as I but he lacks Christ. Please keep us in prayer; I hope to have a good report Monday. David, thank you for your input on Romans 12. I have memorized vs. 1-3; they have served as a life passage for me. I will be meditating on the entire chapter this weekend. Your co-heir in Christ, Stu

Romans 12 on Life Together in the Body of Christ

I've been memorizing Romans 12 in the NIV and verses 4-6a relate especially well to life in a Relational Group such as ours: "Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts according to the grace given us."

The thought that "each member belongs to all the others" could be scary to us individualistic North Americans, but remember that the analogy is that of the human body in which the members belong to each other in the sense that they are unified in a mutually supportive whole. It is the head that rules the body as we submit to him by his Spirit.

Paul then goes on in verses 6b-8 to list many of the spiritual gifts that the Spirit has placed in the body: prophecy, serving, teaching, encouraging, contributing to the needs of others, leadership, showing mercy, along with hints on how the different gifts should be exercised, perhaps fundamentally, as with prophecy, in proportion to our faith.

In the large Sunday assembly, only a relatively few members get to exercise their gifts because of the large number of members present, but in the relational groups everyone has this opportunity. And when this begins to happen, there is mutual blessing--and great joy.--David

Welcome!

Hi friends, You should get this post in your e-mail. ChesedRedding.blogspot.com. Let me know if you have any questions. Grace and peace, Michael Huster