A Thought On The Manger

2,000 years ago, the most incredible event happened in history! God stepped down into the world as fully flesh and fully God and was born into the world as a helpless babe and placed into a manger! We can read about this account in the gospel and just say, "Cool" and then move right on to His life and death on the cross. But, I would encourage you as I have myself this year to truly meditate on the account of God placing Himself into history! Jesus took himself out of a place of Glory and Splendor, a place where He and the rest of the Trinity shared a perfect, unblemished relationship and entered into the world as weak, miry flesh to offer something that would rock everyone's world! He exchanged a place of Sinlessness for a place that would be infested with SIN! He exchanged a place that is absent from brokenness, sorrow, grief, pain and hate for a place that possessed all of these things in fullness! The exchange that Christ made is an incredible mystery! Not one of us could ever understand the LOVE of God! We are so far away from such mystery, that we can only use experiences and relationships to try and understand the Love of God. And still fall extremely short! As we think on the historical account of the Messiah taking His place into the world to bring Salvation to all that would receive it, I challenge you along with myself to dwell on the exchange Christ made when He left glory to walk amongst us! I have been thinking about this incredible exchange and the more and more I dwell on such an incredible account, the more I am amazed and mesmerized by what He did for us! So as you recall the Shining Star, the Shepherds, the Angels, Mary and Joseph, the manger and everything that represents the Beautiful Christmas Story, don't forget to take time and dwell on the mysterious account in Jesus' exchange when He chose to become flesh and live amongst us! It makes me say, "Oh, What a Savior. Oh What Love, Oh What a Salvation, Oh What an Exchange!"

Merry Christmas,
Twiga

Opportunities in Evangelism

I am unbelievably thankful for the opportunities that God gives me to reach the nations with His gospel! I work at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and also a warehouse that processes cell phones. Since working at the warehouse I have had the privilege to share the gospel with two young muslim believers, that I felt received the news that I spoke to them very well and continue to pursue a relationship with me. Since those two encounters, I have been given yet another opportunity to talk about the gospel with a Catholic believer from The Ivory Coast named Sogo. This young man from The Ivory Coast really only knew that Jesus died for him and not really why! I was amazed that he knew Jesus died for him but somehow having no knowledge of why. So, we talked and I shared with him starting from the Fall of Man and continued to Jesus' death and resurrection. Sogo was very intrigued with the concept of grace and the revelation of eternal life.

So now I find myself with two wonderful opportunities coming up! This Thursday I will be in fellowship with Waseem, which is one of the young muslim believers, from India, joined by a few Christian brothers at an Indian restaurant. Please pray for me and my Christian brothers as we have a unique opportunity to not only preach the gospel to this young man but live it out right in front of him! Sogo, the young man from The Ivory Coast agreed to let me buy him a Bible! We are looking at the calendar to schedule an evening to get together and talk about the gospel over mexican food. He is very excited about receiving the Bible I am buying him and is very enthusiastic about our upcoming time of fellowship.

Now, this is where you as the reader can become involved! I need prayer! Please pray first of all for all three of the international's that I have encountered with the gospel. Nadal, that is from Kenya, Africa. Waseem, from India and Sogo, from The Ivory Coast. Please pray that The Holy Spirit will begin penetrating their hearts and preparing them for what will be said in the upcoming weeks as we fellowship together. Pray that God would bless me with down time that I can use to thread through scripture and invest in preparing for my upcoming fellowship with Waseem. Pray that I would be able to find the right kind of Bible for Sogo! Pray that Sogo would begin searching for questions that he can ask me to help him see the gospel more clearly! Pray for the upcoming Spiritual Warfare that will be ever so present as I try to take advantage of the time I have with these two young men outside of the work place! And pray that I would become closer to the Lord as I look to The Spirit to guide me in Truth throughout these opportunities.

I want to thank each and everyone of you who have already invested time in prayer for these coworkers of mine! Your prayers are incredibly important and know that opportunities to share the gospel are increasing every time I step foot into that warehouse!

Seeking those in NEED of GRACE,
Twiga

Worship is Life. Not an Event!

Quick Update: Hey everybody! Just a quick update on job opportunities. A few months back I applied for an open staff position at a church in North Carolina. The position was for The Director of Communications. I was very honored to be considered and within the last few weeks I was a top candidate for the position. I found out the later part of last week that they chose to go with a current member of the church. It was kind of hard to take in at first because of the thought of being so close to my brother and his family, but I am thankful to a God that fills my heart with peace and I am assured that He has an incredible plan for the future. There are other doors opened at the time and I will update as I find out from those places.

Last night Highview Baptist Church had its Family Christmas Combined Worship Service. I am so grateful for my church here in Louisville and my church family! There are so many encouraging brothers and sisters that I find myself surrounded by! Last night was a true night of worship! It was an incredible picture of The Kingdom of God! The choir loft was jammed packed with people and even though it snowed last night, and the roads were slick, the church packed out even still! It was a full house last night as hands were raised and tears fell in the midst of sweet time of fellowship and singing. Highview also had a number of children come up to the front and help lead in worship! Last night I ran camera and as I panned and zoomed for selected shots, I saw pictures of Worshippers, looking to Jesus Christ as their solid rock!

As a part of the media team at Highview, it can be easy to feel as though I am working, rather than participating in worship but for those that have never looked through the scope of the camera lens, you can't realize the pictures that we breathe in Sunday from Sunday. I see tears, faces of joy, passionate faces that are bringing Truth to a congregation and a full scope of Worship to a God that is So Worthy to be Praised! As I panned left to right, zoomed in and out and focused in on faces last night, I couldn't help but think about what Worship entails for us in our lives! Worship is Life! Worship is not this event that we attend on Sunday's and Wednesdays in a building with others. We worship God in everything! We reveal our hearts in how we worship through our conversations. We reveal our hearts for how we worship when we are driving down freeways and highways. We reveal our hearts for how we worship when we are at work. We reveal our hearts for how we worship when we crawl out of our beds!

Sometimes, there are points in our lives where we don't feel like worshipping! We find ourselves in the depths of the valley and suppressed past the point of worship! It is in those times though, that God is at work the hardest in our lives! As Christians, we live by faith, which means that we aren't a people that are able to see a lot of things but must trust that God works these kind of times in our lives out for the good! Romans 8:28 says, "For He is working out the good of those who love God and are called according to His ultimate purpose." As Christians, we must believe that! We live by faith! Not by sight! It is those times in the valley that we must recall the goodness of God and say, "You are God! You hold all things together! I believe in You and know that You are at work in the midst of this valley right now!"

So make worship your life, not an event! Remember that He is making all things New! He is In All Things and Through All Things! We are deserving of His wrath but are instead given Grace, Freely! We are given The Holy Spirit to guide us in Truth! And We ARE a people created FOR WORSHIP!

Worshipping The Lord of Lords and The King of Kings,
Twiga

A Renewed Heart for The Nations and a Desire for His Glory

Hey everybody! I truly hope that you had an incredible time with family and friends during the Thanksgiving Holiday! I also hope that you took time to reflect on The Saviors love and what He did on Mt. Calvary, so that we might have life and become righteous through Him. For He is truly The ONLY WAY! I am so grateful for the place God has strategically placed me in my life right now! To be in the midst of people that Love God and devote themselves to the reading of His word is such a HUGE blessing! I am also very grateful for the atmosphere that I work amongst, where co-workers are working hard to reveal the glory and majesty of Jesus Christ!

God works in such mysterious ways! For those that do not know, I work for Southern Seminary as one of the videographers and also as Dr. Mohler's Podcast Engineer. Because of the way the economy is, they were only able to give me part time work hours and so, I have been on the hunt for extra work around the Louisville area to help with bills. It is so easy to look at something as to why only part time rather full time would be offer, when we need more in order to sufficiently supply all the funds per month. I got that answer 2 weeks ago! About 3 weeks ago I found a job opening at a warehouse here in Louisville, which opened quickly! I still found myself questioning why there were only part time hours when I needed more to support me in what I need to pay in bills but like I said, God is at work in EVERYTHING in our lives! Two weeks ago, I began a conversation with a girl named, Nadhal Gabreel, which is a Muslim believer. The following Monday, I found myself with an incredible opportunity to share the gospel! She received it better than I expected and agreed that she had fallen short of God's Commandments. Then, last night I found myself talking to a young guy that is in college. His name is Waseem. He is from India. I asked him what his religion was and he responded Muslim. After that he asked me what I was studying to be, because I mentioned that I was going to school as well. I shared with him that I am studying to be an evangelist/preacher to high school students. He identified with the term pastor and when I asked him if he had ever heard of the gospel, he responded yes. I then asked him, "Waseem, do you know what the gospel is?" He said no. I then asked, "Would you like to here the gospel?" He answered with a very confident, "YES!"

This is what Matthew 28:19-20 says:
[19] Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, [20] teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

I feel as if God has given me a renewed heart for this passage and placing it into the depths of my heart! As the church we can no longer fall into the deception and lie of excuses. The Devil has done an incredible job in convincing Christians into the deception of excuses.
Excuses:
1. I would love to go make disciples of nations but I don't have the money to go...
2. I am afraid that I won't know what to say...
3. What if the one that I am sharing the gospel with, asks a tough Theological question?...
4. I don't know enough about the gospel to share...
5. I don't know where to start...
6. I need to know as much as I can about other religions, before sharing the gospel with a person that believes in anything other than the gospel...

So many excuses that we share. But here is reality! We have been created to Know Him and Make Him Known! And if that is not our goal then why are we here? The very thing that stands as one of the ultimate conflicts for Christians today is also The Most crucial! Sharing the gospel with The Lost. The one's under the Judgment of God. The one's that are making their way to the gate that is Wide! We can no longer preach the excuse that we cannot go to the Nations! Because God has brought the Nations to us! The warehouse that I work in, holds at least 12 to 15 Muslim believers. The rest are carnal sinners that are living for the American Dream! The Nations have come to us! And yet we still make this excuse as if, we that are still in the States, working, have no access to the Nations! Please understand that I am preaching to myself as much as to anyone else!

Hear the words of Romans 10:14-17
[14] How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? [15] And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!” [16] But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us?” [17] So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.

We are the ones to tell them! I wanted to write this blog to encourage you as the church to take the gospel boldly and courageously to the lost! Believe that the Spirit will relay the gospel accordingly to those that find themselves standing against God! And use the free time that God blesses you with, to look through the gospel and find ways to make it most simple and concise to those that you encounter. Don't be content with only knowing the gospel but also to reveal it to others as well! We serve a Savior that has conquered death!

Romans 8:35-39 says
35] Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? [36] As it is written,

“For your sake we are being killed all the day long;
we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.”

[37] No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. [38] For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, [39] nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 8:32 also says
[32] He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?

Believe that just as God rose in victory, defeating death, that we as Christians, also share in that victory and that He will always be with us to help aid us unto telling His story to others! We are told that as long as we delight ourselves in the Lord, then He will give us the desires of our hearts! Our True desire should be to see the nations come to know the saving knowledge of the Lord, Jesus Christ! So be BOLD and be Courageous! Don't allow excuses to stand in the way. Instead, stand up and be an ambassador of Jesus Christ. Be a Light to the Darkness and don't just sit back and spectate! We are called to take the Good News to The Nations! And Praise the Lord, He has given the opportunity to be a part of His glory as we share the Good News with the Nations!

Seeking after His heart,
Twiga

A Time of Thanksgiving

With Thanksgiving right around the corner, I wanted to share a testimony that is priceless to me. I have shared this story with many people and I look forward to sharing it with several others when the opportunity arises.

It all began on Valentines Day, February 14, 2004. I was a Freshman in college attending at the time North Greenville College, which would become North Greenville University a few years later. I got a call from my father with very depressing news. My grandmother had passed away. I mean, who would want to lose a loved one on such a day as Valentines Day! I have never made Valentines Day a big deal because, well, I have never really had a serious relationship with a girl. But, losing my grandmother on such a day was very tragic and hard to deal with. I was very thankful to have my older brother and close friends that attended the college to surround me in such a time of hardship! This was only the beginning of what would proceed to be an incredible testimony of God's faithfulness and overwhelming grace!

Me and my brother left for Kentucky the very next day on Friday for the funeral. On the way in, we stopped by my parents house in Tennessee to pick up one of their cell phones to call and let them know that we were safely on our way. After stopping at our parent's house, 10 minutes later my brother called my father's cell phone and Brent, my father's brother answered. Jason asked Brent for my father and Brent then told him that everything was okay and that our father, mother, two brothers and grandfather were all in the hospital. Not exactly the type of news you want to hear on your way to attend your grandmother's funeral. It turned out that my grandparents house was filled with carbon monoxide, while my family was asleep in the house. My grandparents owned an old furnace, that apparently had a leak and filled the house with carbon monoxide! My Father, Mother, two twin brothers and grandfather all slept in a dangerous gas all night long! Carbon Monoxide has claimed thousands of lives! Now the very event that happened within the time my family found themselves asleep amidst this killing machine called carbon monoxide, God performed an incredible miracle! This is stuff that can only be of a mighty and Loving God!

This particular grandmother was my father's mother. While my family slept amidst this poison, my mom's mother had a vivid dream that same night! She dreamed that my mother walked into her house with a brown grocery bag. She asked my mother to be careful with the bag and gently lay it on the counter because there were eggs in the bag and if the eggs were rotten, then it would release an awful smell! Well... my mother missed the counter and dropped the bag on the ground and sure enough the eggs were rotten. Right after the dream my grandmother awoke with an incredible burden on her heart for my mother and the rest of the family! She proceeded to get up and frantically paced the floors of her house while praying vigorously for them!

Now.... taking you back to my family at the house consumed with poisonous gas, something my mother told me send jolts of chills through my body! During that night my mother woke up with a migraine. Now its not the migraine in itself that would give me chills but the very fact that she claimed that she smelled bad eggs when she woke up! I would also like to add that carbon monoxide does not have a distinct smell and thus the reason it has claimed so many lives! My mother proceeded to the rest room to douce her face into some cold water and find a way to decrease the pain of her migraine. Right after she entered the bathroom, one of my brothers walked in and claimed that he had an immense headache! My mother placed a cold wet rag on his head and sent him back to bed. As my mother left the bathroom, she then claimed that she felt like something grabbed her and put her against the wall just hard enough to wake my father. She claims it was an angel! And I believe her! My father then went into the hallway finding my mom's eyes rolling back and forth in her head. After my mom finally came to, my father contacted the neighbors and then were helped to the hospital.

The doctors were completely stunned that my family survived such a deadly substance. The carbon monoxide consumed 17 % and higher in each of their bodies! When my older brother and I arrived to the hospital, seeing my family all hooked up to gas masks and being treated for the poison that consumed their bodies, I couldn't help but weep because of the saving hand of my Savior! I also found out that my brother, Kyle, after the event, realized that he was not authentic in his surrender to Christ and went before the church proclaiming his repentance and faith in The Lord, Jesus Christ! Knowing that my brother would have spent eternity in Hell if he weren't to survive that tragedy brought me to even more tears, because God saved him from much more than a separation from his fleshly body but also an eternal separation from God! I cannot get over that!

I am so thankful to have my family alive and with me today! The whole experience was a reminder and eye-opening revelation of God's incredible Grace in our lives! Just as He guarded my family from assured death, God saves us from eternal death! I pray that if anyone makes their way to this blog and doesn't know the Lord; that they are deeply touched by this testimony! It's an incredible reminder and reality of our state without Christ! Without Christ, SIN, just like that carbon monoxide is killing us and we are on our way to certain destruction (death)! But its much worse than leaving our fleshly state! Its a spiritual death, that leads to an eternal state, separated from God! But there is Good News! God sent His son, Jesus, to die in our place, so that we might not spend eternity, separated from Him! If we confess with our mouth, that Jesus is Lord, believe in our hearts that Jesus died for our sins and rose from the grave, conquering death and repent of our sins. We will then be saved! I pray that it would be true in your life if you have not done so!

His Grace Still Amazes Me,
Twiga

A look at Genesis 10

I was asked a few weeks back to speak on this particular passage to my 7th grade class at church a few weeks back. The idea was to present Ancestry and our similarities. Well, you can imagine that this specific passage can very well present its challenges, knowing that it would be imparted to 7th graders. My first initial thought after reviewing this passage was, "How in the world am I going to make application of this scripture to a bunch of 7th grade guys!" And in all honesty, "How would one find a way to effectively apply this particular scripture to a bunch of adults?" So I am going to let you read the passage first, and then I will share what I realized, which is crucial to our understanding of our analysis of God's word! So here is the passage:

[Nations Descended from Noah]
[10:1] These are the generations of the sons of Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth. Sons were born to them after the flood.
[2] The sons of Japheth: Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, and Tiras. [3] The sons of Gomer: Ashkenaz, Riphath, and Togarmah. [4] The sons of Javan: Elishah, Tarshish, Kittim, and Dodanim. [5] From these the coastland peoples spread in their lands, each with his own language, by their clans, in their nations.
[6] The sons of Ham: Cush, Egypt, Put, and Canaan. [7] The sons of Cush: Seba, Havilah, Sabtah, Raamah, and Sabteca. The sons of Raamah: Sheba and Dedan. [8] Cush fathered Nimrod; he was the first on earth to be a mighty man. [9] He was a mighty hunter before the LORD. Therefore it is said, “Like Nimrod a mighty hunter before the LORD.” [10] The beginning of his kingdom was Babel, Erech, Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar. [11] From that land he went into Assyria and built Nineveh, Rehoboth-Ir, Calah, and [12] Resen between Nineveh and Calah; that is the great city. [13] Egypt fathered Ludim, Anamim, Lehabim, Naphtuhim, [14] Pathrusim, Casluhim (from whom the Philistines came), and Caphtorim.
[15] Canaan fathered Sidon his firstborn and Heth, [16] and the Jebusites, the Amorites, the Girgashites, [17] the Hivites, the Arkites, the Sinites, [18] the Arvadites, the Zemarites, and the Hamathites. Afterward the clans of the Canaanites dispersed. [19] And the territory of the Canaanites extended from Sidon in the direction of Gerar as far as Gaza, and in the direction of Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, and Zeboiim, as far as Lasha. [20] These are the sons of Ham, by their clans, their languages, their lands, and their nations.
[21] To Shem also, the father of all the children of Eber, the elder brother of Japheth, children were born. [22] The sons of Shem: Elam, Asshur, Arpachshad, Lud, and Aram. [23] The sons of Aram: Uz, Hul, Gether, and Mash. [24] Arpachshad fathered Shelah; and Shelah fathered Eber. [25] To Eber were born two sons: the name of the one was Peleg, for in his days the earth was divided, and his brother's name was Joktan. [26] Joktan fathered Almodad, Sheleph, Hazarmaveth, Jerah, [27] Hadoram, Uzal, Diklah, [28] Obal, Abimael, Sheba, [29] Ophir, Havilah, and Jobab; all these were the sons of Joktan. [30] The territory in which they lived extended from Mesha in the direction of Sephar to the hill country of the east. [31] These are the sons of Shem, by their clans, their languages, their lands, and their nations.
[32] These are the clans of the sons of Noah, according to their genealogies, in their nations, and from these the nations spread abroad on the earth after the flood.
(Genesis 10 ESV)

Now. As a student leader my goal is to find creative ways to share spiritual and theological truths to my students. Therefore, automatically I know that I must think on terms as a middle schooler! Obviously, this is not a privilege that gives me the right to dumb things down so that I can help them understand what the scripture says. I worry a lot about so many leaders in the church today because I see a lack of challenge to their youth and very little theological truth in what they teach. First of all, the youth that fill up our churches are NOT DUMB! They are very intelligent. The only difference between teaching adults and teaching youth is how we apply essential truths from the Bible. Okay. So, let me get off my soap box and share what I took away from this passage.

While I read this particular passage, I automatically thought about my analysis of a passage such as this when I was in middle school. My reaction then was, "What in the world is this about and why is it important for me to know about scripture with a bunch of names in it that I can't even pronounce?" So that is where I started with my 7th grade guys. And as I shared my analysis that I took away for passages such as this one, it seemed as the majority of the guys knew exactly what I was talking about. But this issue isn't just present in our youth today, it is very much a problem for us as adults! We read specific passages and just don't understand why its even there; so we move on. But as Christians, we must understand that everything that fills the pages in the Bible are important and essential to our lives! Even the hard ones that make us scratch our heads and leaves us confused. A few years back, I began challenging myself to engage such passages in the Bible. I did research and meditated on it. Even if it meant building camp and sitting on it for a little while. Maybe I would have to camp for 2 - 3 days or a week. Maybe even several weeks! So, what did I learn from this passage? Here it is:

If you go back and read chapter nine, we see that Noah, gets drunk and is found naked and passed out in his tent by his son Ham, which then went and told his brothers about what he saw. Now the scripture doesn't read this but based on what we read a few verses later, I would assume that Ham made a big spectacle of his father to his brother! After Ham shares this news with his brothers, the two brothers walk backwards and covers their father with some type of material. Noah finds out what his son, Ham did and then puts a curse on Canaan, which we know is the son of Ham.

[24] When Noah awoke from his wine and knew what his youngest son had done to him, [25] he said,

“Cursed be Canaan;
a servant of servants shall he be to his brothers.”

[26] He also said,

“Blessed be the LORD, the God of Shem;
and let Canaan be his servant.
[27] May God enlarge Japheth,
and let him dwell in the tents of Shem,
and let Canaan be his servant.”
(Genesis 9:24-27 ESV)

Now, why is all this important for what we will read in chapter 10? Well, as you read through chapter 10, you will notice some of the different geographical areas that are given through Canaan. Before I give these away, I would encourage you to read through chapter 10 one more time and see if you notice any of the areas that seems familiar to what you might have found throughout the Bible.

OKay. If you haven't figured these geographical areas let me give them to you: First you have Ninevah which we all know as a city that was incredibly evil! Of course we recognize this city most from the story of Jonah and his journey to Ninevah to give the good news to the people. Then we also have Calsuhim, which is the city from which the Philistines came. And we all know about the Philistines. If not look it up. It would be good for you to understand the roll of the Philistines. Here's a hint: It has something to do with a giant. Then we move to Sodom and Gomorrah. Which were both destroyed by fire.

So here is my initial thought and I might not be right on target with this but if Canaan is cursed through what Ham did to his father then there have got to be some consequences to Ham's sin against his father. I think that it is no coincidence that under Canaan these lands developed. This also reminds us that sin is not a small thing! Sin is serious and its effects are scary! I wanted my students to realize the seriousness of sin! We all need to realize the seriousness of sin. And I am not making the statement that if you disobey your parents that you will find yourself in the middle of a burning city. But, our sin does have consequences and one of those being shame that leads us away from God! When we sin, our shame is so heavy that we find ways to distance ourselves from God. This is a natural, fleshly trait. Now, I am not saying that we won't eventually come to repentance and long for a restoration in our relationship with God. That is the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives, praise the Lord, but our sin brings brokenness and hinders our pursuit in evangelism and even more importantly our walk with Christ!

Now, this isn't the main point of passage. I also talked with my students about how God called Adam to go forth and multiply and fill the earth. God is all about establishing His glory upon the earth and He has called us to do the same. We bring glory to His name when we go forth and multiply and raise our children up in the admonition of the Lord! I also explained to my students that they should never assume that lost people know who Jesus Christ is! I would say that a good number of people don't refuse to come to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ because they knew who He was but because they have never known! Now in Romans it talks about how the invisible attributes of God is known to all men and that we have all been given a moral compass of what is right and wrong but that does not mean that all men know about Jesus! We are called to take the good news to the nations!

I pray that we would fulfill the calling God has given! To fill the earth and tell of His glory and splendor! So keep reading and meditate on the passages throughout the Bible that seems difficult. And it never hurts to ask others if it comes to it. Just don't settle for, "I Just don't understand what it means!"

Seeking Him First,
Twiga

A little bit of everything

So its been almost a month since I last blogged. I am really trying to find a way to blog at least once a week. Hopefully I will accomplish that in the near future. So there has been a lot of transitioning for me in the last few months.

Engaging in a New Format of Media:
September began a new journey of opportunity for me to learn a new medium of media. Dr. Albert Mohler moved from his radio ministry to a format of podcast. He is recording both weekly and daily formats. The daily format is called "The Briefing", where he is tackling current news with an intelligent Christian approach to how we live amongst this fallen world. The weekly format is called "Thinking in Public", which is a longer format where Dr. Mohler selects certain individuals by way of interview, both in the Secular and Christian perspective way of thinking on key issues that are most common to us today. about 3 weeks ago, Dr. Mohler talked about the ever continuous growing practice of Yoga, which caused quite a stir amongst many people that listened to the program. Well... when you approach such a hot topic amongst the world with a Christian worldview, it is most likely people will become defensive of their views vs. what The Bible teaches. I'll tell you one thing: As people embrace secular world views and try to mix them together with The Word of God, we must stand firm on the solid rock and must not conform to a middle ground! We are called to Carry our Cross and Follow Him! Once we begin opting for small compromises, we soon find ourselves playing the part of the fool and stepping away from wisdom! And remember, "The beginning of wisdom is the fear of the Lord". If you don't understand the word "Fear", then you need to take some time and study what that means as a Christian! I am very blessed to be Dr. Mohler's podcast engineer! I am in charge of both editing and posting his daily and weekly podcast. I find myself challenged more deeply every day I post the podcast!

Picking up New Responsibilities at Southern Seminary:
Since August I have been put in charge of overseeing some of the video projects that are used as Resources for the Seminary. I have learned a lot about camera work, a further understanding of Final Cut Pro editing, Lighting for Film and multitasking. Projects that I have recently put together for the Seminary are The D3 Conference for Youth, The 2010 Fall Festival and The Southern Baptist Convention. I was also put in charge of a video for The Campus Church located on the campus of The University of Louisville. This is a church plant that has branched off of Highview Baptist Church. The video was a Christian Dialogue between The Campus Church Pastor, Dan Dewitt and a UofL student that is an Atheist. There is actually a webpage for this dialogue which has been active since the first of the summer. You can check this dialogue out at: thechristianitydialogue.com

Ministry opportunities at my Church (Highview Baptist):
I have been getting more and more opportunities at my church, located here in Louisville. I am one of the leaders over the 7th grade guys for Sunday School every Sunday. I am learning how ministry works within such a hard age to reach! I say this because 7th grade and well... even Middle School Ministry is very hard to figure out! There is this very awkward stage and being creative in how you teach this grade can be very challenging. Application of The Word of God to Middle School students is such a vital key! Not only the application but making sure you're challenging them Spiritually! I believe students can receive, Rich, Theological Truths! It is a challenge to arrive there but it can be done. Students really desire to be challenged but they aren't going to come out and beg for such a thing. It is up to us, as Student Ministers to invest Spiritually into the minds of our Youth! They can handle it. Trust Me! Another ministry opportunity has been The Campus Church at the UofL Campus. I have really enjoyed ministering to the students there and am challenged as well to be ever aware of opportunities to Evangelize through my interaction with these students! Of course I have to switch gears as far as how I reach out and evangelize to college students oppose to how I reach out to my Middle School students.

Things On My Mind:
I have really thought a whole lot about my Christian World View. Much of this reason is due credit to Dr. Mohler and his ever constant approach to secularism with the weight of the Gospel. As a student at this Seminary and as part of the body of The Church, I continue to see more and more, the weight of Sin, which is tearing away at the souls of men! Recently, if you haven't heard, a young man took a plummet from the George Washington Bridge because of a movement in Social Media that is sky rocketing right now. If you haven't heard or just know little about this tragedy you can check it out by reading about it on Dr. Mohler's blog at: http://www.albertmohler.com/2010/10/04/between-the-boy-and-the-bridge-a-haunting-question/
As a Christian with a passion for ministry to Students and combining that passion with the aide of media, this hits especially hard! Dr. Mohler asks the question: "Was there no one that knew Tyler Clementi? And rightly so.... This question has been haunting me! Then I thought, "Could there be a Tyler Clementi amongst us all?" I mean this isn't just a rare situation friends! We are living in an ever growing Social Media focused generation! We must find a way to engage this changing culture! We have a calling to reach the hurting and lost with the gospel. This a wonderful opportunity for us as Christians to step in the Social Media trend and reach a generation dependent on media with the gospel! I pray we engage this world with Christian Intelligence!

Final Thoughts:
I pray that just as Dr. Mohler challenges me to engage this fallen world with Christian Intelligence, that in light of what is going on around us, we all would look to evangelizing this changing culture with the gospel! We must be ready to engage with The Truth, with Love and with Vigor!

Engaging this fallen world with you,
Twiga

Hipster Faith

As true children of God we are called to bring glory to God and take the light to the darkness! Now I am all for taking care of the earth and doing my part because God created the world and I would not believe that He would have us destroy it, however, as Christians we must understand that we all live in a fallen world and we are very much a part of the problem! Also as Christians we must understand that this earth will not last forever. Christ will return and destroy every bit of what is left and create a new place for us to dwell with Him forever. Now I have no problem with people from different cultures and I especially have not issue with people that look different coming into the church! As a child of God I am called to take the light to the darkness and I am filled with joy when I see new people coming into the church! Now a problem I do have with however, is when people think that their preference of how the church should be run is pushed as an agenda because that is how they like it and any other way is just hypocritical! Now please understand! I am completely aware of a legalistic movement of how the church is run and I stand against it when it defies the glory of God and turns others away from the Savior but understand that we are called to OBEDIENCE in Christ! If I approach another member of the church and talk about the importance of obeying Him and following His commandments that does not make me legalistic! If my view points to salvation by my works and not by grace through faith then I am legalistic! But just because I might use scripture that would expose your sin and causes you burden over what you have done that is not legalism! I am exemplifying the love of Christ through challenging another believers walk and where their relationship with Christ stands. As long as I am not exposing another's sin in order to make me look higher in a spiritual then I am living as Christ has called me to live. And I will be completely blunt in saying that I will NOT, and I will repeat again, I will NOT be a part of a New Generational Revolution! We were not put on this earth to create a revolution but to surrender to Christ and follow Him! We are called to "Pick up your cross and Follow Me". So take care of the earth the best way you know how and love how Christ has called you to love but make sure your purpose is based solely on giving glory to God and glory to Him alone!

The Weight of Eternity

So, I have been really contemplating the very thought of The Weight of Eternity lately! I think about when Jesus said that the gate is Wide to destruction and the path to life is Narrow. The more and more I think about the very thought of spending eternity without my Lord and Savior, the more I find myself cringe! I mean we are talking about eternity... never ending... under His wrath! How does this impact our lives? Does our heart break for those that surround us in life that are on their way towards the Wide Gate? I can't imagine that if we find ourselves surrendered to the Lord and in full repentance, found under His grace and bought with the price of His blood that we are only to be concerned with our eternal stake and no one else! The scary thing to me is that its not even just the people that demonstrate a straight forward life of disobedience and hate for God but even possibly through many that sit in the church pews! We are living in an age where the gospel is being twisted and rearranged to fit the format of what the world would have it to be. Its not enough to just believe that there is a God... there is MORE! I was chatting with a friend of mine about how I believe that to appropriately come to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ is to first come to a realization of our depravity. I believe that we could never really understand the God who saved us by sending His Son on the Cross for our sins without understanding His right to bring full wrath to those who oppose Him and are His enemies! How could we ever believe that we can just live our lives in disobedience to Him and expect the blood of Jesus to cover us without full surrender to Him!

You know... Proverbs 1 reads, "The beginning of Wisdom is the fear of the Lord." I just can't believe that God would receive FOOLS into His kingdom, when He calls His true children to Himself for a beautiful, spent eternity! Therefore, the only way for us to be found wise in His eyes is through a fear of who He is! You see when we see God as the Sovereign and True King, we realize our desperate need of Him and our need of death to self! The question is: Have you thought of The Weight of Eternity and have you realized your need to die to self and turn to Him as your Savior? We really can't do anything to repay God for what has been offered to us! We can do nothing to gain it and we are completely disqualified to be called one of His own! But then that is where the incredible state of God's grace comes in action in our lives! If we choose to live in obedience to Him, dying to self and depending completely in Him, His promise of grace is TRUE!

The Weight of Eternity.... have you felt it lately? If you truly know Christ as your Savior, do you feel the weight mounting upon the world? Although we have absolutely no power to save any person from their state of separation from God, we can engage and help others understand the weight of eternity, a complete separation from God for eternity. And I pray, I pray, I pray... for the ones that do sit in the pews every week thinking that the blood of Christ doesn't come with a price, that they would wake up and realize that we are called to "Pick up our cross and Follow Him!" Its so much more than a belief unto God! There is a price and its our own lives! Its a transformation in Jesus Christ... Its a change of the heart... Its a surrender and a dying to the ways of the world and then a turning unto the Savior of the World!

Engaging the World with The One True Gospel,
Twiga

How Media is being conformed to the image of the World

I had such an incredible Laber Day Weekend! I made the trip back to my home town in Maryville, Tennessee! I spent the weekend with my parents and had a rare opportunity to spend it with my 3 year old neice as well. I really enjoyed playing different games and hanging out with Emma Claire Engle! The one thing that offset me this past weekend happened on Sunday morning. As my mom was getting ready for church, I hung out with my neice until she was ready, watching TV. As I scrolled through the different cartoon channels, I saw Scooby Doo! A childhood favorite of mine. I thought to myself, "I haven't seen Scooby Doo in such a long time! I was excited to relive a great childhood memory but it only took 2 minutes before I felt a blood vessel pop! No lie, 3 female characters on Scooby Doo had on haulter tops and very short skirts. Are you kidding me! This was not the Scooby Doo that I grew up with. Then it occured to me: immoral society is affecting the media, more and more! I fear the future of the young generations that will unfortanetly be affected by this movement in many ways. I am encouraged to pray for my future children! It is scary to know that a 12 year old boy can find his way into a pornographic website by a few simple touches of his cell phone. This is the society that we have found ourselves in! We live in a fallen world and the spiral continues to make its way down! So how do we engage such an immoral standard of living? Well, first it is vitally important for us to keep our eyes on Christ and keep our eyes set on His Word! Secondly, we simply engage it by implementing our Christian standards, revealed by the Holy Spirit, to the different avenues of media around us. Its not good enough to just make complaints all the time and leave it at that! We have to confront within the confines of The Spiritual level! Reading Proverbs, while thinking about how we engage everything is very helpful! I try to read a Proverb a day and it amazes me how I clearly see the foolishness that is written about on the pages of the most important book in history! We also engage this immoral culture, simply by not accepting it! Now I know that many people that might choose to read this post, have their favorite TV shows and I have mine as well, but I try to weigh each show according to its standards and its relevance to the scripture. I think we lose by allowing these immoral worldly standards to penetrate our way of thinking and living. I believe that the more time we give to the outlet of media (entertainment) and the less to Christ, we find ourselves on a uphill battle against the sinful flesh that enbodies us. I think about a specific passage that Peter wrote in 1 Peter chapter 1 verse 13, "Prepare you minds for action....and set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ."

I challenge you, just as myself! Engage the world with the Living Word of God! Don't settle just to know about Christ! Really KNOW who He is! Build your life on His instructions! And then when you are tempted to think according to immoral, worldly standards, you will find yourself engaging with The Sword of The Spirit and nothing holds higher and truer than that!

Engaging the world by the Sword of The Spirit,
Twiga

He works all things together for those who love Him and are called according to His purpose!

God just continues to amaze me by how He works in and through my life. I have now been living in Louisville, Kentucky for a little over year. God has taught me so much since my recent move. He has molded me in so many ways! I have experienced rough seasons and I have found myself on mountain tops. I now find myself employed at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and working with Dr. Albert Mohler through his new ministry in podcasting. I have had the chance to learn the Greek language and think it is so incredible in how this language brings the text of the Bible alive and reveals the truth in a much brighter scope. I have been in a lot of prayer lately because of the state of this nations economy and how it is affecting me. I am grateful for my job here at the school but it has not presented a full time employed opportunity. I have prayed for God to continue His work through my life and reveal His plan for what my future holds. Recently God has revealed an incredible opportunity at church in North Carolina located in the Wake Forest area. A church in that area is looking to fill a staff position, which is The Communications Director. This is a very exciting opportunity for me! Revealing the heart of the gospel through the means of media is a strong passion of mine and I am praying passionately for this opportunity to unfold for me. If all things were to work out and I find myself in North Carolina with this church, I would only be an hour away from my older brother and his family. I have so much to be grateful for here is Louisville! I have a great church family, the work atmosphere is fantastic and I have been blessed with so many friends. A big part of me would have a rough time leaving this area because of all the lives that have impacted me but I know that my life is HIS and wherever He calls, I'll go! Romans 8:28 is such a main factor in my life and I believe every bit of it! I am excited to see God's work in the midst of my life right now and I pray that I keep my eyes on Him through every avenue of life. I am so grateful for everyone that has been praying for me! Please know that I am deeply thankful for your support and love! I will keep everyone informed as things progress. I just ask that you would continue to lift me up and ask God that He would grant me wisdom and discernment in possible decisions to come.

A new creation in Him,
Twiga

In the Beginning.....

My church has begun a new series in the book of Genesis, focusing on creation. My mind has been consumed with picturing the event of creation. As I read through what God created each day, my mind stretches farther and farther, trying to picture the wonder, the glory of His creation! And then of course there is the whole... God has always been! I mean God didn't even move a finger! He spoke the world into existence! I am making it a goal at least once a week to go outside on my little patio outside of the condo I am staying at and just looking up at the night sky...... consumed with what creation would have looked like. After being consumed with such an amazing event in history.... before history.... how can we ever be anxious about anything in life? How could we ever worry about things working out in our lives. It breaks my heart as well, when I think about the fall of man. Genesis repeats several times... God saw that it was good. Now we find ourselves broken, when we were created to be whole. We find ourselves battling against a nature of evil, when we were created for good. We battle over our nature to hate, when we were created for love. What devastation befalls my soul when I think about what God created us for and yet we choose to live separate as the very one's that He created in the beginning. I challenge anyone that chooses to read this...... open your eyes to see God, as the creator of this world! Breathe in the beauty that was created by only speaking it into existence. I worship a God that I can only imagine a glimpse of because He is so huge! He is the creator of you and me. He chose to redeem us through His only son, so that we might share eternity with Him, in the state that He created us for!

Made in His image,
Twiga

The Gospel

One of the most important questions if not the most important question we can ask is "What is the Gospel"? Not only what is the gospel but how do we understand what the gospel is through the life of Christ while He lived amongst us? For a while, I really wasn't into reading a lot of books. You would be lucky to get me to read just one book when I was younger but as I made my way through college and now seminary, I love reading! In fact I have a bad habit at picking up a book, reading half way through and then picking up a new one before I am even finished with the one that I started before. For instance I am making my way through a total of 4 books. I know that is pretty ridiculous but it is something that I will have to work at. Anyways, one of the 4 books that I am making my way through right now is a book called "Hard to Believe" by John MacArthur. He incorporates the truth that there is no user-friendly, seeker-sensitive way to the Gospel! There are so many images of the gospel that are painted day to day. Prosperity gospel, turn or burn gospel, good works gospel, etc. For someone reason the world has such a hard time grasping the Real Truth. Obviously the biggest reason is selfishness! The idea that "Maybe if I take the core values of the gospel turn them to benefit what I want most in life and how it can benefit other people, then accepting the gospel would be much easier". People create huge concerns for how the gospel is being presented too harshly! Let's see. Last time I filtered through the word "Cross" on wikipedia, the result did not come out as a sweet, fluffy, non offensive process! People that accept the love of God but not the Cross, do NOT believe the gospel! Now the cross not only is offensive by the crucifixion of Jesus but because of the issue on WHY it had to be done! For all have fallen short of the glory of God! It all comes back to us as a society. In most cases people would choose to say that the cross is offensive because of what happened to Jesus but I bet many people making that case, really mean they are offended by the very accusation that they are the Problem! Uhoh.... We live in a world that teaches us that we are really good and that there is nothing wrong with us. We are strong and can live independently. We need nothing but ourselves. If this is true then the cross most definitely makes no sense BUT the Cross makes up the gospel! If it wasn't for the Cross, there would be NO Gospel! Because of what happened at the cross, both death and resurrection, we are offered Eternal LIFE! Here is the core message of the gospel: Die to Self, Pick up Your Cross and Follow Me. This means that any self motivating reason we might believe in, concerning the purpose of our life has to be destroyed! Because it is ALL about GOD! For many, this is Hard to Believe because deep down in our sinful flesh we want control and balance! We want our lives to reflect us and no one else. You might say, "Well, Eric that isn't true! I work hard to help others and bring them happiness." That might be true to a certain extent but deep down you know that through your good deeds, you are striving for others to see that you were the very person that exemplified the deed. God created us for good! God's purpose is solely for His Glory! Can we find joy in Him who saves? YES! Yes we can! But ONLY through Him! I could step around the harshness of the gospel and try to persuade you to believe but it wouldn't justify anything! As a believer, by the power of the Holy Spirit, I recognize my own ability to sin and screw up, but I am also transformed by the power of the gospel unto seeking the Lost and helping them see the Real Truth! If I fail to share the gospel in its entirety, I fail to bring glory to God resulting in leading others astray and unto a terrible eternal state, separated from God entirely!

Things I took away from the Albert Mohler Radio Program

God gave me an incredible opportunity back in January. I was on staff, as the radio audio engineer for the Albert Mohler Radio Program. I knew that the process that it took for things to work out, in order for me to take advantage of such an opportunity could only be supplied by the hand of the Almighty God that I serve! As many know now, Dr. Albert Mohler chose to discontinue his live radio show on July the 2nd, 2010. About 3 1/2 weeks ago, Dr. Mohler sat down with us in his formal office to break the news. I was absolutely shocked at first because well, I used to be a radio DJ in college and loved every minute of it. Now, I couldn't even comprehend the feelings that Dr. Mohler was going through in the fact that he has hosted this show for 9 years. When Dr. Mohler walked over to me, extending his hand to welcome me aboard as a part of the staff, I felt completely honored! I hold an incredible respect of Dr. Albert Mohler. He holds an incredible foresight of knowledge about the Word of God, a powerful conviction of apologetics and a firm grasp on ministry that represents the Truth of the Gospel. And all of these traits that Dr. Mohler exhibits are done so humbly! After being a part of the staff for several months, I have been incredibly convicted by the Spirit to understand the necessity of apologetics and a firm grasp on what my Christian Worldview should look like. Not to mention how incredible it is that I am most certain that God has given me a strong conviction in reaching the world with the Gospel through means of media. It truly is amazing to see what exactly God is up to when we find ourselves in places that we never expected to be in the first place. I am so blessed to have had the opportunity to have been a part of this ministry through radio. I pray that God would give me opportunities to mold my talents into what they need to be in order to present the gospel efficiently and effectively! It isn't surprising that I found myself in such an unlikely place! Because that's how God works isn't it? I read about David and other important people in the Bible that God uses, to which no one would suspect! Our Christians lives shouldn't be based on how well our talents might be presented to others but how willing we are to first hear from the Lord and then react by following His CALL! I think about the time that God has granted me in being a part of this incredible opportunity to serve on staff under the leadership of Dr. Mohler and know that I serve a God that chooses to use such a fragile vessel as myself in the most mysterious ways! So I challenge you with this! Do not look at how limited you are by comparing your talents and gifts with others. Concentrate on who it is that you serve. He has overcome the world! God isn't relying on our talents in order to be glorified. He is expecting our obedience and takes joy in using us for His glory and the proclamation of the gospel of Jesus Christ!

Joyfully His,
Twiga

Essential Truths about Student Ministry

I believe that many adults that fill the church today are very confused about how we are to approach student ministry. God has blessed me in giving me opportunities to serve as an Interim Student Minister at two different churches over the last 5 years. I have also had the unique opportunity to serve as a Voluntary leader for a ministry called Young Life. However, it has been the last three months in which I believe God has truly began to stretch me in my role to student ministry. I am now a serving member at Highview Baptist Church. I am encouraged and challenged by the pastors that surround me. I have been serving with the media team by running camera and also running the scopes for the cameras. About 4 months back I still felt an emptiness and knew it was my longing to serve in student ministry. As I talked with the head Student Pastor I found myself in a unique situation that I wasn't expecting. In my pursuit to serve with High School Ministry, I was actually asked to serve Middle School. I have had much more experience in the aspect of High School Ministry, so this concept was a little new and quite frankly a little scary.

You see, if you have never served in Student Ministry within the confines of the church, then you haven't realized the difference in what separates these two different sets of ministries. The difference is, I can sit down with High School guys and talk about life and they are content to do so but if I sat down with a Middle School guy that is a whole different perspective of conversation. You see Middle School guys aren't so quick to just sit down and have a one on one conversation about how life is going. They would rather talk about the latest high score they got on the Tony Hawk playstation game or someone who had gas in Science class the other day. Okay, I know that is a little rude to place within a blog but in all honesty it is the truth. Middle School is what I call the awkward stage ministry! I mean honestly if you think back to when you were in Middle School wasn't it the same for you!

Well this brings me to what this blog really entails. It is easy for people to view a common middle schooler as well, unintelligent and therefore we should be as simplistic as we can when we find ourselves teaching them. Even though this principle is true in a certain sense, I am still worried about this particular view of this particular place of ministry in the church. I have had the blessing and wonderful opportunity to teach the 8th grade guys at Highview in Sunday School three times now and even though I see a need to make the language of the Bible more simplistic for them, I do not hold the view that applying the principles of the Bible should be tame! What I have come to learn and find myself passionate about presenting with my 8th grade guys is that I expect them play their part! I will be the first of many to say that Middle School guys do have that awkward stage of life when you find yourself in the middle of the ministry but we are called to present truth to the one's that God has placed under our leadership. The Word of God is described as a double-edged sword! Even though these are students with a less maturity status when compared to the High School level we are still called to teach God's Word as it is. I do realize that some things that I teach these 8th grade guys can be hard pressed and tough to take and apply, but they are essential to bring them to a stage of humbleness which will lead to a more reliance on the Savior that loves them and knows what they need! Now I am not saying that every leader in the church that plays a part of Middle School ministry leadership are included in this burdensome challenge that I place before you and even I, but we must keep in mind that unless we challenge their walk, they will never realize their essential need for Christ as the reigning Head over their life! And don't get me wrong we do apply Love! Yes! We apply Love! It is essential. I apply Love so much to these 8th grade guys because they need to hear how much God loves them but they also must understand God's demanding of our lives and our obedience! I pray that we would be bold and courages in the task that God has placed before us as we play the part of leadership in the ministries that He has called us to!

Changed In HIM,
Twiga

Don't Waste Your Life!

One of the greatest questions we can ask is "What am I doing with my life?" We hear so many different messages on how we should live our lives from the world today. Live your best life now, gain everything you can while your still alive, it doesn't matter what you believe, as long as you believe in something, and on and on it goes. We live in a world that can easily be confusing. How as Christians do we respond to this question? How are we called to live our lives? God's Word is very clear on this crucial question on life! As Christians, we are called to DIE to Ourselves. John 15 tells that we are to abide in Christ, just as He abides in God the Father. We read in Leviticus we are called to "Be Holy as He is Holy." We are given the Ten Commandments as guidlines to what is right and what is wrong. Paul states that we are to "Pick up our Cross and follow Him." Okay, so maybe this isn't necessarily brand new to most that chooses to read this blog but here is the question. Do we really live this type of life? I hear more and more about how the Christian life is all about getting what we want from God and that God is all about making you comfortable. As I continue to grow in my faith and realize what life in Christ is all about, I see more and more a facade being put on by the church in the world today. I think about the words in 1 John that point out that there are false prophets surrounding us at all corners. I am appalled by how many different (Gospels) there are now in the world today. "Everyone goes to Heaven as long as they believe in something", "God is Love and He wouldn't send anyone to Hell", "God wants to prosper you according to all YOUR Wants", "Essentially, YOU are God" and it continues.... Anything that keeps people from being offended is acceptable and prefered! When is the last time you sat down and thought about the Cross? How can we look at the Cross, an incredible, essential truth within the context of the gospel and then say, "The gospel wasn't meant to be presented as to offend anyone." The Cross was used as a tool of destruction, torture, punishment and ridicule! So if we are to pick up our cross and follow Him then what are we to take from that? If we are to pick up OUR Cross, then the application of dying to oneself is already applied without Paul even having to point it out in the Bible! How are we living our lives? One of the most gruesome yet beautiful passages in scripture concerning how our lives are to reflect Christ is Galatians 2:20 which says, "I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me." When you have down time just look up the word crucify and you will get the picture if you don't already. As a man striving to live under the direction of God, I exhort you church! Don't Waste Your Life! Carry your cross and follow Him!Jesus Christ willingly stepped in our place so that the curse of sin would be defeated and we could have life victorious through Him by surrendering our lives to Him.

"Radical" by David Platt

David Platt recently wrote a book called "Radical". Platt discusses the void of radical lives that Jesus calls us to live within the body of the Church today. In today's generation of believers there has been a push for a reformatting of the Scripture. Many people in the church today have taken the words of Jesus and conformed them to what makes them most comfortable with. As the body of church we have found ourselves taking pieces of scripture such as "give up all of your possessions and follow me" and reformat them to say, "well, give up a few things and we can work the rest out". I know that I have found myself guilty of this very thing as well. As a student at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary I have been challenged to go deeper into the Word of God. I am most thankful that I have now completed the language of Greek that is required for my track at the Seminary, however I am persuaded by the power and influence of the Word to stretch my mind even more by taking advanced Greek language classes. I believe that David Platt has reached a crucial issue within the body of the church by stating that we have allowed the world to influence our application of the Word today. The Word of God states that the way is narrow to the kingdom of Heaven and Wide to the gate of destruction. We are called to live radical lives by Jesus in the gospel! If Christ called us to "die to self" and "pick up our cross and follow Him", then ladies and gentlemen we are called to a radical lifestyle that is very, very foreign to this World. There is no subtle way to apply something such as "die to self" or "carry your cross". These words mean exactly what is implied within the human mind. I am making my way through this book "Radical" and I hope to make more application as I continue through it. In the meantime I ask that if you claim that you love Jesus, live radical lives! The gospel is not an easy message to digest when one reads it but it does bring an eternal hope in the end! Jesus Christ, God the Son, is Savior and all that call on His name as Lord and turn from their depraved states in full reliance upon Him will inherit this precious promise that He gives!

The Beginnings of a New Semester @ Southern!

Well just this past week all of us Seminarians have officially begun a new semester of classes. I continue to enjoy the Louisville area and have met many new people since August, when I first moved here. God has done so much since my move to Kentucky! Everything from job opportunities opening up, meeting new friends, understanding the power of the gospel in a much brighter scope, rounding out more academically, and more opportunities for ministry involvement! Last semester I was working at Target and UPS. Both jobs were very rigorous and tiring! I prayed and asked the Lord to supply me with other jobs so that I could have more time to focus on my studies and opportunities for ministry work. He Answered!

I would also like to state how difficult the trials were for me last semester. Even though I had these two jobs, they were still very financially unsubstantial for me because of all the bills I had to pay. Honestly, I was as far back against the wall than I would have liked to be. I found an overwhelming sense of doubt and confusion to why all this was happening. Was I supposed to move to Kentucky for Seminary? Was I impatient on when I moved? Should I have waited a little longer before I made my way to louisville in pursuit of a higher sense of education for ministry and knowledge of the Bible? So many questions hit me left and right, I felt like I was running out of breath from all of the things I was battling with. I found myself completely depleted and unable to do anything else to encounter the situation with a resolution. I knew that the only thing that was left for me was, "Completely and totally trust in Christ for everything that I so desperately needed to be sustained!" I truly believe that this move to Seminary has been the epitome of what "True Faith" in Christ is all about! It's not that I haven't experienced what faith was in my life recent to my move to Louisville. It's just that I have never experienced such an incredible storm that would stretch my faith, personally and intimately to where I would find a full view of, "Eric Engle has absolutely nothing left to give in order for the situation to be sustained!." You see its not that I have never come to knowledge that I am completely helpless without Christ! It's just that I have never dealt with this revelation so excruciatingly, and yet so joyfully!

In full view of where I am now, I pray that such a blessing would be bestowed to as many other believers as possible. Now why in the world would I want that kind of thing to take place in other's lives? Well its simply this! We can find ourselves so consumed with how we can handle situations that we find ourselves doing everything within our power to make it work out right, all the while Christ is right at our side saying, "It doesn't have to be this way!" An illustration that comes right off to mind is: A father teaching his child to ride a bike. The child wants so desperately to make his father proud of him as he masters the art of riding his bike. The child falls off time and time again, while his father encourages him that his help isn't a thing that makes him weaker but stronger! The help is there to guide him, not put the child to shame.

You know, I believe we find ourselves in situations where we feel like we must prove ourselves to God by accomplishing things on our own strength, as if we need to find ways to make Him love us more. Now I am not talking about bringing honor to God by striving to "Be holy, as He is holy" but situations where we are filled with this internal instinct to strive for worth! When I sit down to read the Bible, I know that it tells me that there is no way to the Father except through Jesus Christ! When we find ourselves to strive for OUR accomplishments the questions basically comes down to, "Will God be glorified?" Hmmm.... Is this the essence of the gospel, that we would accomplish goals and etc. Or.... is it that we would accomplish the good work that God revealed through Christ by the way of the Holy Spirit?

These are two, entirely different ways to live life. When I was younger and growing up through school, I had a bit of a learning impairment. I would absorb certain things teachers would give me and then apply them backwards. I felt like I had to strive to make it through school. I did everything I could to accomplish a good education despite my disability. Now mind you, many other people have had disabilities that were way worse than what I encountered but I mention this because for a good portion of my life, I felt like I needed to prove to others that I could accomplish things no matter the obstacle. Now that doesn't seem like a bad thing to strive for when you first think about it but when we look at scripture, God didn't use people with disabilities or defects in order to help them see that they could accomplish things in order for their accomplishments to be mantled up on the wall so that all could see! He did it so that people could glorify and praise His name for all He IS in and through His people! We were not created in order that we would gain anything IN life! It's just the opposite. In fact Christ explained why we were created in just the opposite! He told the disciples, "If you want to gain your life, then you gotta lose it!" When we find ourselves confident in how our life is viewed through the scope that Paul did, then we find exactly what God has called us to. Paul stated, "I count all things (that I could possess from this world) as loss, and Jesus Christ as gain!" Of course I am paraphrasing with what is in the brackets but I think you can get the point.

If we delight ourselves in the Lord, then He will give us the desires of our hearts! But..... we must understand what that word DESIRE means! It's not a delight in things, money, cars, gadgets, people or even good moral acts! The delight is established in the LORD! We surrender our instinctive nature for stuff and place our hope and delight in Him! I plan on diving deeper into this idea of delighting in the Lord more and more as this semester continues! We must come to realize that any desire outside of Christ is evil! We were created to delight and be joyful in Him! Now this is a topic that I would have to blog about in another time but I encourage everyone that reads this to really think about what the gospel truly is and what role we have in how we present it to others!

Seeing Him more clearly,
Twiga

God being magnified through national television!

The NCAA National Championship Football game was played Thursday evening January 7, 2010. The game was Nationally Syndicated because it is one of the biggest sports venues there is during the course of each year! Alabama and Texas squared off toe to toe Thursday night in a fight for a National recognition as the King of football for the year 2009. For Texas, Colt McCoy (The quarterback) being a runner up in the race for the Heisman and Alabama, Mark Ingram (The runningback) the Heisman trophy winner were projected to be an incredible showdown for both offensive sides! Then the unexpected happened! With only a few minutes into the game, quarterback Colt McCoy received a very nasty blow from defensive lineman, Marcell Dareus #57. Colt McCoy left voluntarily, while favoring his shoulder to get an X-ray done to check for serious injury. I can't help but think what was going through Garrett Gilbert's mind as he was the next in line to take the feild to lead the Longhorn's offense. Gilbert is a Freshman mind you and with very, very little experience in leading an offense on a collegiate level, not to mention it was against practically the best Defense in the Nation! Garrett Gilbert was frazzled as he tried to find a way to gain confidence and courage to lead his team against an incredible stingy defense. As I sat and watched, I couldn't help but feel nervous for this kid because of the lack of experience he had and not to mention with all the eyes of the fans that paid very good money to come and see there beloved LongHorns to win a National Championship! It took several snaps for the inexperienced quarterback to get in any kind of rythym, however there were a few big key passes that were spot on, only to be dropped by the intended receiver! Texas began the game well but it was only a matter of time for Mark Ingram to take over as he did practically everything he wanted with the ball. Ingram showed incredible poise and reminded the Texas defense why he was given the Heisman Trophy Award! But then all of a sudden something happened that I didn't expect to see. Garrett Gilbert began to find some rithym! Before to long he was finding receivers to connect with and finding ways to get points on the board! As the game winded down Garrett Gilbert found himself within his own 10 yard line down 3 points with 3 minutes left in the ballgame. An opportunity was knocking at his door. The pressure of thousands of eyes fixed upon the freshman quarterback as a glimmer of hope was set forth. As Gilbert called for the snap and back peddled a few feet back, it was as if a dagger was placed right into the heart of the Longhorn faithful! Gilbert was clocked from behind and the ball found its way to the ground finding its way underneath one the Alabama defense players. Now I am not a Texas fan. I am in fact a Kentucky fan. I will not lie, I was rooting for Texas to win this game. I would probably get a lot of flack for that very fact because most other SEC fans would frown on my choice to go against the SEC but as soon as that freshman quarterback stepped on that feild and as the Senior Colt McCoy stepped off my heart sank for a kid with a shattered dream unfortunately not to be lived and for a kid that had an opportunity that most would hardly see in a dream! As most people know, Colt McCoy was unable to play the rest of the game. The coaching staff and medical crew were concerned for his opporunity in the pro's, which I don't blame them for. After the game ended, Colt was flocked by a wave of news reporters and in the midst of them a woman asked Colt McCoy a question that led to an answer in which I beleive would ring in millions of ears for a long time. The reporter asked Colt how he felt about losing the opportunity to play in a game that many others can only dream of and here is his answer!



God gets the Glory! Thanks for stepping up and making much of Christ Colt! I pray that your words will impact every ear that listened.

I must decrease so that He will increase!
Twiga

Joyful Noise by Flame featuring Lecrae & John Reilly

Featuring Lecrae and John Reilly
Psalm 95

Written by Marcus T. Williams-Gray, Lecrae Moore, Emanuel Lambert, Jr.
Produced by Chike Ojukwu for Renaissance Productions
Guitars by Tony Esterly for Tony Locar Music
Published by Project Issachar Publishig (ASCAP), Clear Sight Music (ASCAP), Reach Life Music (ASCAP), Renumind (ASCAP)

You know what it is
I love it
Let's talk about it

[VERSE]
Your boy's been a Christian, quite a few years
Victory and faith, but I failed in my fears
I heard a lot of words that have tickled many ears
That's why I praise God for the Word that we adhere
The Word became flesh, lived for thirty years
Died at 33, but after days reappeared
Jesus Christ anointed one ascended in the air
Or you can say the air where the Father made Him heir
Of all things the throne know it's more than a chair
But after our redemption yes He did take a chair
Greater than the angels name superior to theirs
This is Hebrews Chapter 1 if you cared
I'm leaning to the right
The light is where I'm running
I thought I wanted life, drunk, sexed out and blunted
But all I really wanted was the One who really won it
Fought death, beat it gave His life to the public
I love it!

[HOOK]
Angels surrounding His throne and
Worthy is the Lamb who was slain
The whole earth is full of His glory
All nations bow to His name
His majesty fills the Heavens
Our hearts give thunderous praise
Declare the Lord is forever
Make a joyful noise in this place

[VERSE]
Man I'm trying to lift Him high
Higher than the stars
I am not of this world like I'm from the planet mars
I love to preach Jesus you can read it in my bars
I'm pretty straight forward when I'm speaking bout my Lord
He paid the sin price being beat by Roman guards
But when He resurrected gave us life free of charge
Now me and my boys need to be in a psych ward
Cause we went crazy for God our lives was scared
Now in the Book of Life, our names have been written down
We're casting our crowns before His feet on the ground
It's such a holy melody and a heavenly sound
Hearing holy holy holy coming out of the mouth
Of the four living creatures by His throne all around
Can you picture the scene this this is how it's going down
You just need a little faith and a new set of eyes and a telescopic lens to look in and see God
I love it!

[HOOK]
Angels surrounding His throne and
Worthy is the Lamb who was slain
The whole earth is full of His glory
All nations bow to His name
His majesty fills the Heavens
Our hearts give thunderous praise
Declare the Lord is forever
Make a joyful noise in this place

[VERSE]
One day we gon' be out man, like three strikes
And home son like a homerun CHRIST
IS – KING – LION – LAMB – GOD – MAN – SIN CONQUEROR – GRAVE CONQUEROR – SATAN CONQURER
Can take a sinner, atheist sinner to God conscience
Can take nothing
Make creation and lives honor
The same God that came through a fetus as Jesus
Limited to breathing
Got believers singing

[HOOK]
Angels surrounding His throne and
Worthy is the Lamb who was slain
The whole earth is full of His glory
All nations bow to His name
His majesty fills the Heavens
Our hearts give thunderous praise
Declare the Lord is forever
Make a joyful noise in this place