I want to take a moment and let you know what has been on my heart….

So I have been re-reading this book, “The Vision and the Vow” and I have been thinking about what the vision challenges us to be… and how much I desire to be this way….

Excerpt:

“What is the vision?
The vision is holiness that hurts the eyes.
It makes children laugh and adults angry.
It gave up the game of minimal integrity long ago to reach for the stars.
It scorns the good and strains for the best.
It is dangerously pure.”

I sit here and I think to myself… at what cost in my own life would the status of “holiness that hurts the eyes” apply to me…. I feel like it shouldn’t be a foreign concept but at the same time I feel like I am distant from that. I love the idea of being so close to Jesus that it upsets elders that are so tied to religiosity… Not to say that I live a life of minimal integrity by any means… but I just don’t want to get to the place where I am comfortable with my level of integrity, always giving excellence in everything I do…. I don’t currently… I don’t give excellence in everything, but that is my hearts desire… Thats the first thing that’s on my mind…

the Second thing is this….

Excerpt:

“With blood and sweat and many tears, with sleepless nights and fruitless days, they pray as if it all depends on God and live as though it all depends on them.”

That last part is the Challenge I am excepting for my life…. To pray everyday as if everything I do depends on God, and living every moment, as if it all depends on me…. Because so many times, that is the case. You might be the only Bible someone ever reads…and who am I to misrepresent that. I am not sitting here putting unrealistic expectations on myself… I know that I have moments of doubt, I know that I am not(nor will ever be) perfect, but as a Christ follower I desire to be as close to the Father as I can..not just skating by to get into heaven, but living a life that people will see that I am a follower of Him….

My sister told me something that I will never forget… She told me that as a leader, and as someone that understands the heart of the Father… I need to be at a place where I love people unconditionally…. I need to put my heart there knowing it is at risk, because that is what God does with us everyday…. People are looking for people that will take a risk and love them regardless…unconditionally forgiving them despite their shortcomings….

(P.S.-My sister is one of the wisest people I know… )

I sit here and get frustrated over the most ridiculous things in the world and I yet God has to put up with me undermining his very exsistence… it puts things into perspective for me.

So to those that I have hurt, spoken harshly to, or otherwise offended for irrational reasons, I apologize…. It is just something that has been bugging me lately….

This past week I had the privilege to be apart of an event that saw around 100 people give their hearts to God. The event took place at Life Fellowship Church (Where I work)….

UP: The Movement is a 6th-12th grade student ministry, and they hosted a event called BIG. To say that is was big would be a disservice to what it was…. Everything there was enormous… food, entertainment, music, all of it. But that wasn’t what made it so big…. With over 500 students in attendance, we got to tackle the subject of the Bigness of God’s love. As Michael shared with the students about how much God loves them, we started to see something happen…. I saw a shift… a part of a movement towards being closer to God…. When the alter was opened up, we saw a massive amount of students chase after the love the God has for them…. It was definitely a highlight of my year. One student at a time we are winning the students of Desoto County for Jesus…. I couldn’t wait to share this with you all….Up is not a group, they are not a church…. they are a movement…end beginning of story…Photos from big are coming up later.