Wow. It has been a while hasn't it? It is amazing how easy it is to go months without sitting down ande valuating what God has been doing in your life for other's entertainment, but I will try to make it short and sweet for you!
God is good. All the time.
Since moving here in January, I have seen God do some awesome things. No I have not seen thousands come to Christ, yet... but I have seen God be faithful to answer my prayer requests. God is faithful to answer things according to his timing and His will, even when I feel like they should be done a bit differently (ever been in that situation?)
Since my last update the ministry has continued to grow spiritually. We are finally finding ourselves with a small group of people committed to the BCM, and I am seeing God shape those people's lives more toward the image of His Son Jesus Christ. I see my students taking opportunities to share the Gospel with their friends and classmates. It is a humbling experience. It is humbling because I know that I have nothing to do with it. If there is anything I am learning in my adventure in Boise, ID is the fact that I am utterly incapable of taking any credit for what God has been doing. It is amazing to see how when I feel like I am at my lowest point or my teaching is not that strong, that is when God decides to speak to the hearts of others. However, when I am prideful and arrogant as I teach (sure that because of my wisdom it will change my students lives) is when I don't get to see God's hand as much (even though I know He is still faithful to keep working). This is so antithetical to what the world teaches, "Make a name for yourself, success is found in large groups who adore you."
I am thankful for Jesus Christ, who chose to use 12 men, several of them uneducated fisherman who would constantly not understand the teachings of Jesus, as the vessels through which He poured out His truth to a dying world.
"God does not call the qualified, He qualifies the called."
Our free lunch is going well, with attendance somewhere around 55-60 each week. We have seen several students deepen their relationship with Christ through this ministry, but I would ask earnestly that you would send more workers into our ministry to talk to those who come to free lunch (some who would have never set foot inside of a Baptist church) and develop intentional relationships to share the Gospel.
I love international students. As I was driving in Meridian, ID I began to think of how I could reach out to this people group on campus who are often overlooked and I began to earnestly pray that God would equip me to form relationships with them and show them the love of Christ. God is so faithful to answer your prayers when they are in accordance to His Will and good pleasure. The next week I was bombarded with a host of international students that I met in the most random of places, and I have been able to use the gifts and experiences granted to me through Christ to reach out and start forming relationships with them, mainly in the form of ping pong (give me 2 more months and I will be a champion ping pong player). I love the different cultures and the openness to discuss spiritual matter with many of them. I look forward to continuing my friendship and ministry to them. God is faithful to answer the desires of my heart.
God has also been faithful to provide the beginnings of a BCM men's bible study. One of the things I have been lacking is the lack of Godly men to encourage and sharpen me, as well as just have fellowship with other guys. I now have those things, and I look forward to seeing what God will do in that ministry, as we challenege each otherto be the men of God that God has called us to be.
Tangent time.
What does it take to be a man?
It means stepping up and leading your wife and children.
It means loving your wife as Christ loved the church.
It means bearing the responsiblity for your family.
It means fleeing from sexual temptations.
It meanst fighting against the schemes of the Devil with the weapons of the Holy Spirit.
It means discipling other men.
It means taking young men under your care and showing and teaching them what it means to be a Godly man.
It means dying to yourself to serve others.
It means interceeding for the lost and broken.
It means stepping up to serve in the churches.
It means being someone that a woman can respect and see the Savior in.
It means being a protector.
It means being committed to God.
It means so much more, and many men are turning into sissies who would rather fulfill their own selfish desires than be accountable to the God who created them.
End Tangent.
I have also blessed to be intentionally discipled by a dear friend a few years older than me. This time spent with Chris has blessed my life in so many ways, especially in my relationship with Casey and what it means to be a man after God's own heart. It is yet another assurance of how extremely important discipleship is in the life of a believer.
Now the big news...
"Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.”- James 4:15
This is a verse that every Christian should hold fast to. Since moving to Boise, the truth of the importance of praying and living in God's will has become so real to me. I have realized that God's ways are so much higher than my own, and that it is complete stupidity to try to force my own will in my life.
Tangent.
Let's think about this, if God is the author and creator of Salvation, knows all His plans for you, and is a good Father, then it would make complete sense that everything He sends my way in regards to my future is glorifying to Him. I want you to notice something, I didn't say that it would be a pleasure filled road. Sometimes God sends people to places where they will be killed for their faith. This idea that you are "safest when you are in the center of God's will" is often misunderstood. Thousands of people have died for being in the center of God's will, but God constantly works good from what we have seen as evil. For example, the death of Jesus Christ was the ultimate fulfillment of being in the center of God's will, yet it has brought hope and salvation to so many people. Being in God's will is stretching, but the thing we can remember is that we can have unmeasured joy because we know that God is allowing us to be a part of His amazing plan for the world. We must not buy into this worldly philosphy that if you follow God in His wil that everything is going to easy, but we must buy in to the truth that we can have joy knowing that the God of everything loves us, never forsakes us, and gves us joy and peace in the midst of the hell of this world. All that to say, we are safest in God's will, but in a very different way that so many intrepret it.
End Tangent.
Three weeks ago, I sat in a leadership conference with a pastor from Ada, Oklahoma. Pat Kilby is a good friend and I have been very blessed to get to know him as well as his brother Ryan, who actually was the guest speaker at our retreat this past weekend. Pat spoke of expecting God to do great things in your ministry if you will trust Him enough to do the big things. During this conference, I kept thinking about how excited I am to move back to Lubbock and get this solid teaching and discipleship in the Bible Belt once again. I kept thinking how awesome it would be to move to Ada, Oklahoma and work under Pat and Ryan Kilby and be back in my comfort zone of the South, in a place that preaches straight up truth and the Gospel. I began to daydream of how through them, I would become a great leader. I wanted my plans to be fulfilled, even though I had been trying really hard to pray that God's will be done in regards to my future place of residence.
Then God spoke to me. No, not audibly, but that still small voice that only the sheep of God can recognize. It said this...
"I want you to stay in Boise."
That's it. Nothing else, no explanation, just a command.
Instantly I knew what this implied. I must forsake all the plans that I had, and trust God that His will is sovereign, good, and will glorify Him.
I said "Ok God, I'll do it."- simple words, but life-changing.
God has called me to serve in Boise, ID for quite a while, until He tells me to go somewhere else. I will finish school most probably at Boise State, and then wherever God wants me to go for seminary. I am excited and at peace about God's will. I know that He will do great things through it! There is the obvious sadness that comes along with the fact that I will not get to see my family and friends in Texas near as much, but I love God more than I love them, and desire to serve God more than I want to serve them. This may seem harsh, but it is the way that we are supposed to think and act, that is the whole premise behing Luke 14:26, “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple."
I love all of you back home in Texas, so much. But that pales in comparison to the love I must have for the God who stepped down into time, lived a perfect life, was hated, mocked, beaten, whipped, and died a sinner's death, raised from the dead three days later, and is now the living Savior for all mankind. I love God, even when I must be taken out of my comfort zone. But don't worry! I will come home and see everyone over the holidays...and you can come see me!
I am still dating my wonderful woman Casey Sharp, and she has been completely supportive of my ministry and obedience to what God has called me to do (trust me she was really looking forwards to being a Texan once again). In two days we will celebrate our 7 month anniversary, and I am such a blesed man to be pursuing a Godly woman. Be sure that on the next blog update I will touch on more personal things, not just the ministry.
I love you all, and I am thankful that we share the same Father in heaven who has adopted us out of our sins to be saved and sanctified through His Son Jesus Christ.
In Christ,
Phillip
God is good. All the time.
Since moving here in January, I have seen God do some awesome things. No I have not seen thousands come to Christ, yet... but I have seen God be faithful to answer my prayer requests. God is faithful to answer things according to his timing and His will, even when I feel like they should be done a bit differently (ever been in that situation?)
Since my last update the ministry has continued to grow spiritually. We are finally finding ourselves with a small group of people committed to the BCM, and I am seeing God shape those people's lives more toward the image of His Son Jesus Christ. I see my students taking opportunities to share the Gospel with their friends and classmates. It is a humbling experience. It is humbling because I know that I have nothing to do with it. If there is anything I am learning in my adventure in Boise, ID is the fact that I am utterly incapable of taking any credit for what God has been doing. It is amazing to see how when I feel like I am at my lowest point or my teaching is not that strong, that is when God decides to speak to the hearts of others. However, when I am prideful and arrogant as I teach (sure that because of my wisdom it will change my students lives) is when I don't get to see God's hand as much (even though I know He is still faithful to keep working). This is so antithetical to what the world teaches, "Make a name for yourself, success is found in large groups who adore you."
I am thankful for Jesus Christ, who chose to use 12 men, several of them uneducated fisherman who would constantly not understand the teachings of Jesus, as the vessels through which He poured out His truth to a dying world.
"God does not call the qualified, He qualifies the called."
Our free lunch is going well, with attendance somewhere around 55-60 each week. We have seen several students deepen their relationship with Christ through this ministry, but I would ask earnestly that you would send more workers into our ministry to talk to those who come to free lunch (some who would have never set foot inside of a Baptist church) and develop intentional relationships to share the Gospel.
I love international students. As I was driving in Meridian, ID I began to think of how I could reach out to this people group on campus who are often overlooked and I began to earnestly pray that God would equip me to form relationships with them and show them the love of Christ. God is so faithful to answer your prayers when they are in accordance to His Will and good pleasure. The next week I was bombarded with a host of international students that I met in the most random of places, and I have been able to use the gifts and experiences granted to me through Christ to reach out and start forming relationships with them, mainly in the form of ping pong (give me 2 more months and I will be a champion ping pong player). I love the different cultures and the openness to discuss spiritual matter with many of them. I look forward to continuing my friendship and ministry to them. God is faithful to answer the desires of my heart.
God has also been faithful to provide the beginnings of a BCM men's bible study. One of the things I have been lacking is the lack of Godly men to encourage and sharpen me, as well as just have fellowship with other guys. I now have those things, and I look forward to seeing what God will do in that ministry, as we challenege each otherto be the men of God that God has called us to be.
Tangent time.
What does it take to be a man?
It means stepping up and leading your wife and children.
It means loving your wife as Christ loved the church.
It means bearing the responsiblity for your family.
It means fleeing from sexual temptations.
It meanst fighting against the schemes of the Devil with the weapons of the Holy Spirit.
It means discipling other men.
It means taking young men under your care and showing and teaching them what it means to be a Godly man.
It means dying to yourself to serve others.
It means interceeding for the lost and broken.
It means stepping up to serve in the churches.
It means being someone that a woman can respect and see the Savior in.
It means being a protector.
It means being committed to God.
It means so much more, and many men are turning into sissies who would rather fulfill their own selfish desires than be accountable to the God who created them.
End Tangent.
I have also blessed to be intentionally discipled by a dear friend a few years older than me. This time spent with Chris has blessed my life in so many ways, especially in my relationship with Casey and what it means to be a man after God's own heart. It is yet another assurance of how extremely important discipleship is in the life of a believer.
Now the big news...
"Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.”- James 4:15
This is a verse that every Christian should hold fast to. Since moving to Boise, the truth of the importance of praying and living in God's will has become so real to me. I have realized that God's ways are so much higher than my own, and that it is complete stupidity to try to force my own will in my life.
Tangent.
Let's think about this, if God is the author and creator of Salvation, knows all His plans for you, and is a good Father, then it would make complete sense that everything He sends my way in regards to my future is glorifying to Him. I want you to notice something, I didn't say that it would be a pleasure filled road. Sometimes God sends people to places where they will be killed for their faith. This idea that you are "safest when you are in the center of God's will" is often misunderstood. Thousands of people have died for being in the center of God's will, but God constantly works good from what we have seen as evil. For example, the death of Jesus Christ was the ultimate fulfillment of being in the center of God's will, yet it has brought hope and salvation to so many people. Being in God's will is stretching, but the thing we can remember is that we can have unmeasured joy because we know that God is allowing us to be a part of His amazing plan for the world. We must not buy into this worldly philosphy that if you follow God in His wil that everything is going to easy, but we must buy in to the truth that we can have joy knowing that the God of everything loves us, never forsakes us, and gves us joy and peace in the midst of the hell of this world. All that to say, we are safest in God's will, but in a very different way that so many intrepret it.
End Tangent.
Three weeks ago, I sat in a leadership conference with a pastor from Ada, Oklahoma. Pat Kilby is a good friend and I have been very blessed to get to know him as well as his brother Ryan, who actually was the guest speaker at our retreat this past weekend. Pat spoke of expecting God to do great things in your ministry if you will trust Him enough to do the big things. During this conference, I kept thinking about how excited I am to move back to Lubbock and get this solid teaching and discipleship in the Bible Belt once again. I kept thinking how awesome it would be to move to Ada, Oklahoma and work under Pat and Ryan Kilby and be back in my comfort zone of the South, in a place that preaches straight up truth and the Gospel. I began to daydream of how through them, I would become a great leader. I wanted my plans to be fulfilled, even though I had been trying really hard to pray that God's will be done in regards to my future place of residence.
Then God spoke to me. No, not audibly, but that still small voice that only the sheep of God can recognize. It said this...
"I want you to stay in Boise."
That's it. Nothing else, no explanation, just a command.
Instantly I knew what this implied. I must forsake all the plans that I had, and trust God that His will is sovereign, good, and will glorify Him.
I said "Ok God, I'll do it."- simple words, but life-changing.
God has called me to serve in Boise, ID for quite a while, until He tells me to go somewhere else. I will finish school most probably at Boise State, and then wherever God wants me to go for seminary. I am excited and at peace about God's will. I know that He will do great things through it! There is the obvious sadness that comes along with the fact that I will not get to see my family and friends in Texas near as much, but I love God more than I love them, and desire to serve God more than I want to serve them. This may seem harsh, but it is the way that we are supposed to think and act, that is the whole premise behing Luke 14:26, “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple."
I love all of you back home in Texas, so much. But that pales in comparison to the love I must have for the God who stepped down into time, lived a perfect life, was hated, mocked, beaten, whipped, and died a sinner's death, raised from the dead three days later, and is now the living Savior for all mankind. I love God, even when I must be taken out of my comfort zone. But don't worry! I will come home and see everyone over the holidays...and you can come see me!
I am still dating my wonderful woman Casey Sharp, and she has been completely supportive of my ministry and obedience to what God has called me to do (trust me she was really looking forwards to being a Texan once again). In two days we will celebrate our 7 month anniversary, and I am such a blesed man to be pursuing a Godly woman. Be sure that on the next blog update I will touch on more personal things, not just the ministry.
I love you all, and I am thankful that we share the same Father in heaven who has adopted us out of our sins to be saved and sanctified through His Son Jesus Christ.
In Christ,
Phillip
