April 2011
46 posts
March 2011
61 posts
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The Story isn't Done →
A few weeks back, I wrote a post about Lazarus and Jesus and a promise that was raised from the dead.
If you remember, Lazarus ended up getting sick, very sick, and his sisters send word to Jesus asking Him to come and heal their brother. He makes a promise that the sickness won’t end in death and, a few verses later, Lazarus dies. It seemed as if Jesus lied, didn’t keep His word, or...
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God With Us →
Yesterday I shared a powerful story of what God did on the Ignite Encounter Retreat when I led a session about God with Us. Below is a snippet of that discussion, edited to fit the blogging platform:
At the end of Matthew’s gospel, we see this powerful promise Jesus gives His disciples after He had resurrected from the dead:
“And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the...
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Encountering God →
This past weekend was the Ignite Encounter Retreat and, I have to say, God moved beyond my expectations.
Ignite has been putting together these retreats for a few years now, as a way for students to get off campus, disconnect from their classes and homework and jobs and friends and their cramped dorm rooms so they can focus on God and, hopefully, encounter Him. It’s why we even named them...
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Getting to Know You! →
This past weekend, I was busy at the Ignite Student Ministries Encounter Retreat – so I didn’t have much time to write something up for this morning’s post.
I’ve wanted to do one of those fancy “I ask you questions” type posts for a while now, and thought this would be the perfect opportunity. So instead of me rambling on today about my life or ministry or something I found cool in scripture...
http://picfor.bildero.net/0014988E4/jula%27.jpg →
“The devil is a better theologian than any of us and is a devil still.”
– A. W. Tozer
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A Privileged Call →
This weekend is the Ignite Encounter Retreat and, while it is one of the highlights of each semester, I have to admit, there’s a lot that goes into it:
I will give up my comfortable, full sized bed to sleep in a sleeping bag on a plastic mattress.
I will sit in uncomfortable chairs, on fireplace hearths or on the floor while leading discussions.
I will have to wrangle 14 college...
Watchstillamongmen:
We Were Made For You-Aaron Gillespie
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The Dreaded Question →
There’s a question God asks me from time to time that tends to make me a bit nervous:
Do you trust me?
I’d like to think I’m the kind of guy who genuinely trusts God. I know that He’s a God of His word. I know that when He gives me a promise, when He says He’ll take care of me, He will come through. I know that He holds the universe in the palm of His hand and, at...
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What's Your Mission...Statement? →
A few weeks ago, I wrote a post on outlining some of the steps I am doing to writing a great story with my life - things like coming up with a bucket list, listing out my goals, finding a coach, and trying something new each week.
I haven’t done so well on those.
But there’s one step I have done, one step that has shaped me, focused me, and pushed me more than any of the others:
...
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Walking in HIS Will →
During the last nine years working with college students, there’s been one question that has creeped up time and time again:
How do I find out God’s will for my life?
These students are making decisions that could impact the rest of their lives - picking a college to attend, declaring majors, determining what organizations they should be involved in, who they should date, what...
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The Single Man vs The Matchmaker →
If you’re a guy, and you’re in your 20s or 30s and are still single, chances are you have one.
The Dreaded Matchmaker.
You probably won’t recognize them at first. They like to assume the shape, voice and characteristics of your nearest and dearest friends, family members, co-workers, fellow students…even minor acquaintances. They can pop up anywhere.
You’ll know...
A white woman, about 51 years old, was seated next...
gummyplops:
(via denisethebookworm, m1llion)
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Resurrecting the Promise →
The other night I was reading through the story of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead, and ran across a verse that leapt off the page at me:
“When he heard this, Jesus said, ‘This sickness will not end in death. No, it is for God’s glory so that God’s Son may be glorified through it.’” - John 11:4
I’m sure you know the story.
Jesus was out by the Jordan River,...
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Living as if Hell Doesn't Exist →
Since the launch of the promo video for Rob Bell’s new book, Love Wins, there has been a lot of talk about Hell.
Not only are Christians adamantly debating this topic on both sides (going as far as calling each other heretics, false teachers to close minded and limited in their view of scripture), many secular news stations have picked up the topic as well. There have been interviews,...
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The Single Man vs The Chicken Quesadilla →
As a single guy, I’m always on the lookout for quick, easy-to-make meals that are both delicious and health
Enter the Chicken Quesadilla (and not the one you can get through the drive-thru).
Not only is it cheap to buy (about $15 and I can make close to 10 meals out of it), but it’s also quick to make, which is perfect for someone like me who is usually busy on weekday nights and...
dietmortik0 asked: Hey, thanks so much for your words about the job search thing- it's definitely tough but I'm glad to hear that it can be worked out. I'm definitely considering applying for unemployment; it could be a good option right now. Hopefully you get a turn around soon!
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“Ambition! We must be careful what we mean by it. If it means the desire to get...”
– C.S. Lewis
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God is Bigger. →
Last night, I had one of my patented freak out moments.
We hit another snag in planning our trip to Czech.
Apparently, the TSA has this new rule for international travel - you have to provide your passport number and expiration date in order to buy your plane tickets. It’s something I didn’t know about (I didn’t need my passport number to buy my ticket in October of last...
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But, God... →
This past weekend, God blew me awa
As most of you have probably read in my previous post titled Facing Doubt, I am leading a missions trip this summer to the Czech Republic with some of my college students and ministry staff members. This will be my 7th trip to Czech, my third leading a missions team working with the youth, young adults and university students in the city of Cesky Tesin, on the...
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I'm not telling you it's gonna be easy... →
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You dont have a soul... →
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jarridwilson:
Religion says “work work work”. Jesus says “love love love”.
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Loved by the King →
While I was journaling the other night, God posed a question to me that I can’t seem to get out of my head, and I posed it yesterday on this blog for you:
What does it mean to be loved by the King?
I’ll be honest, it kind of threw me for a loop.
I am a Christian. I know the answer to this question. I know that God loves me, that He sent His son to die for me, that He desired me...
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Lenten Encounter →
I have a confession to make.
I seriously considered breaking from some of my Lenten fasting from and living to last night.
I got home from small group later than I anticipated, forgot to get some bread out of the freezer to make today’s lunch, had to sit down and figure out my finances (since every penny matters right now), and had generally just been a little stressed and out of it all...
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My Lenten Experience →
Today starts the season of Lent - those 40 plus days where many Christians take time to reflect, fast and prepare themselves to experience and celebrate new life in Christ on Resurrection Sunday - and I have to admit…
I’m pretty excited about it.
The last few years I have done my best to craft a deep Lenten experience for myself - choosing to fasting from various distractions in my...
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Taking Jesus at His Word... →
A few days ago, I was reading through the book of John and ran across a verse that made me stop in my tracks:
“The man took Jesus at his word and departed.” - John 4:50
You probably know the story. Jesus is traveling throughout Galilee with his disciples and decides to return to Cana, the same place where he turned water into wine. While he was there preaching and healing the sick,...
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The Single Man vs Meatloaf →
This past weekend, I made meatloaf.
It’s easily one of my favorite meals to make. Not only is it amazingly tasty and incredibly easy to make, it also is versatile enough that I can enjoy that meatloaf all week, pairing it with other side dishes, and not have the same meal twice.
A huge benefit when you are single.
READ MORE…
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DAY 03: YOUR VIEWS ON DRUGS AND ALCOHOL
I’ve never really been much of a drinker. I drank twice in college and then didn’t have any alcohol again until I was about 24. I just never really liked the cheap beer most college students drink, and absolutely hate that “not in control of my facilities” feeling that comes with being drunk or high.
Now I will have a drink once in a while in a social setting. I believe...
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DAY 02: WHERE’D YOU LIKE TO BE IN 10 YEARS.
To be honest, I’m really not sure…and I don’t know how I feel about that. I always had this idea of what my life would be like and, so far, none of it has really happened. Life has definitely taken me down a much different, much more difficult path than I would have expected. I definitely have goals I’d like to see in the next 10 years, but I try not to solidify them in my...
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Changes to the Blog
Since right before the start of 2011, I’ve made an effort to post regularly on this blog. I’ve taken time to find inspiration in my everyday life, crafting my words to effectively communicate what I’m thinking, responding to comments, trying new things, finding my “voice” and figuring out what I actually like writing about.
It’s been an amazing start to this...
