On Friday, May 23rd, I left Atlanta with 16 other folks that I barely knew and flew to Sofia, Bulgaria via Frankfurt, Germany. We were met by members of the local church upon our arrival in Sofia and whisked away in their cars to a small, quiet hotel in Sofia. Riding in my new Bulgarian brother Nicky’s car, I sat back and took in the vestiges of Communist rule. Bulgaria became a People’s Republic after World War II, an Eastern bloc country that became one of the Soviet Union’s biggest allies. I’ll only be 30 this year, but I grew up fully in the shadow of the Cold War, watching Reagan and Gorbachev go back and forth in speeches and jingoistic nationalism run rampant through America & the USSR. I remember watching the famous Reagan speech, “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down that wall!” If Reagan could do anything, he could deliver a line. Anyway, with this in mind, it felt like a gray pall was cast over everything in Bulgaria…the overcast day helped with that, but I felt like everything I saw, the plain block apartment buildings, the cars, the streets, etc were holdovers from everything I ever saw or read regarding Communist countries as a kid. Following the revolutions of 1989, Bulgaria switched over to Democratic rule in 1990. That was 18 years ago…18 years of Western companies slowly moving in along with our “culture”.

After a good dinner and a night of sleep, we attended church in a theater in the middle of the city within walking distance of Alexsander Nevsky Church. After church, we ate with the Pastor and his family at “Happy Bar & Grill”. You guessed it, the Bulgarian equivalent of Applebee’s, TGIF, Ruby Tuesday’s and Chili’s all rolled into one, complete with kitschy decor, pop culture “art” and overpriced food. Most Bulgarians only have a Hollywood view of the west; fashion, attitudes, expressions, ideology, all derived from what they’ve watched in movies or television from the West. It was interesting to catch myself and other snickering at this caricature of American culture and then realize: this is how we are perceived…we created this image, this idea of the West…we are really laughing at ourselves. My own country is deteriorating…we are the warmongering, self-serving, self-absorbed, ignorant bullies of the world with no moral compass. We use a bully pulpit to push everything from our brand of drink to our brand of Christianity on the rest of the world.

The city I live in has less than 250,000 people yet over 600 churches. Bulgaria has maybe 6 or 7 evangelical churches to serve the entire country. I looked around the church that Sunday morning and later that night in Samakov and realized that we are materially rich in America, but spiritually bankrupt…we store Christians away in great warehouses full of inward looking people, warehouses we call churches. We get so absorbed with our own lives and our own petty needs that we fail to fulfill the Great Commission…go into all the world and preach the Gospel, baptizing in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Ghost. We’ve become fat, lazy, apathetic Christians, content to be fed and coddled until we can’t even tighten our spiritual belt…we’re wearing the stretchy elastic pants of Christianity. Why aren’t we missional as the body of Christ in America? Why aren’t we attacking the enemy, being everyday radicals in a world full of hate, war, poverty, sickness, oppression and an enemy on the prowl that has been exploiting our weaknesses as sinful creatures since the beginning of time? We should be seeking radical transformation in the lives of others on a daily basis! Is Jesus at the center of your “church” or is He just someone nice to have around? My heart is breaking for the church in America…no longer do I feel I need to go to a foreign country to be a Christ-like radical, evangelizing and infiltrating the enemy, I can go down to my local bar or coffee shop or library and see the lost, the hungry, the impoverished on a daily basis. If Christ had come to earth in the 21st century, I have no doubt He’d be dining with homosexuals, having radical, redemptive conversations in bars and nightclubs, maybe even hanging out with real sleaze like politicians. Christ didn’t come to heal those who are well, He came to save the lost. How can you join in the radical work Christ is already doing? How can you be an everyday radical, overcoming your ingrained ideas of what it means to be a disciple and truly taking up the cross and following Him?

Listen to the still small voice, listen to Him. Step out into the world LIVE in the world…It’s said you cannot truly live unless you’ve learned to die…Our sin, our flesh was nailed to the cross with Him who saved us. The day we chose to follow Jesus, we died…Christ didn’t come to condemn us, He came to kill us, to kill our flesh and our sin. Every day beyond the day you chose Jesus is a day of true life…are you living? Are you seeking out true community with your fellow man or are your hiding behind the walls of your church and trying to stave off an attack that isn’t coming? You see, if you’re apathetic, if you’re content to look inward and feed yourself week after week, the devil need not attack, he’s already won…you’re on the bench, out of the game, not in the battle…insert metaphor here. The Bible says God is dangerous…He’s good, but He?s dangerous…we have a dangerous, bloody, scary faith. Take a risk, put EVERYTHING on Him and step out there in the middle of the battle. You’re not alone…the war has been won…come along side the Saviour and join in the battle He’s taking straight at the enemy. Be the light, be the seed in the world…take as many with you when you go…

Tighten the belt, hang up the stretchy pants, pour yourself into others, LIVE every moment, quit settling for spiritual mediocrity.

I leave Friday for Bulgaria and Greece. We fly Lufthansa from Atlanta to Frankfurt and from Frankfurt to Sofia, Bulgaria. We’ll be in Bulgaria for approximately 3 days before heading to Thessaloniki.

Please keep the team in your prayers!

“So, friends, take a firm stand, feet on the ground and head high. Keep a tight grip on what you were taught…May Jesus himself and God our Father, who reached out in love and surprised you with gifts of unending help and confidence, put a fresh heart in you, invigorate your work, enliven your speech.” – 2 Thessalonians 2:15-17 The Message

I think this can be said of anyone ever born on this earth, but life doesn?t come easy for me. Neither does Life. I know, you?re asking, huh? Considering only our flesh, we struggle against responsibility, career, finances, government, even traffic on a day-to-day basis. But that struggle is not the true battle. ?Life? on the other hand, is a gift given freely to us through the mercy of the Cross, yet sometimes we as Christians fight so hard against the true source of Life, help, confidence, etc. We?re in a massive spiritual war, fighting against darkness and evil (The Bible says so!) I have suffered from severe self-esteem issues for many years…I?ve sought various forms of approval, acceptance and acknowledgement from many worldly sources whether person or object. Yet, God is my true Father. He loves me because HE made me. To break it down Georgia-boy style, God don?t make no junk! Where do you seek your fulfillment or confidence? I?ve taken the wrong turn so many times yet, God continues to walk down the straight path, telling me that His yoke or His way is easy, the burden is light.

Seek your fulfillment in Him, seek your confidence and self-assurance in Him. Your earthly father may have been a great or terrible, but there is only one true Father that loves you unconditionally.

As a side note to fathers, there is no more important relationship your children can have than with their fathers. You are to be their earthly picture of the heavenly Father. I never understood this fully until I became a father myself. I struggle day-to-day to be the Father my son and daughter need me to be. I cannot imagine loving anyone more, yet the heavenly Father loves them even more…and He loves YOU even more than your earthly father possibly could. Try to fathom that…a loving hug or pat on the back from your Dad…That?s what God offers you constantly, without fail or fatigue. He is ever present, ever faithful…I don?t know about you, but that is an amazing comfort and relief.

On May 23rd, myself and 18 other team members from Christ Community Church will fly to Thessaloniki, Greece to work with Mike & Maria Long (blog) in their mission field there. We will be doing construction and repair of their property they use for a ministry center in Thessaloniki. Most importantly, we will be surrounded by Greeks, Albanians and Bulgarians constantly…numerous opportunities to share God’s love by simple interaction with our fellow man.

Later in the week, we will journey to Bulgaria to work with the Roma gypsies. Bulgaria has a huge gypsy population who are historically one of the most persecuted, downtrodden and impoverished ethnic groups in the world. Ethnic persecution is still common in the former Communist country of Bulgaria. We will be working with a gypsy population of approximately 10,000, providing humanitarian aid. My friend Pastor Bill Shorey will also have the opportunity to speak to the church of 800 there.

I’ll admit, I have some trepidation about the upcoming trip. I’ve never been on a missions trip, let alone to the European continent. I have serious misgivings about leaving my wife and children for 8 days, but I know God called me to go on this trip and serve as His vessel and that any doubts or fears are the work of Satan, not my Lord. Please pray for me from May 23rd to June 1st, that I may be a loving witness of the saving power of Jesus. Pray that I am able to share the Gospel merely through my the love and friendship I can offer the people I interact with. Pray for my wife and children, that they will be safe and sound.

I may take my MacBook with me to blog while I’m there, but I haven’t decided. Watch this blog for more updates.

What makes you unique? What separates you from the person next to you? Are we all just plodding along, cogs in the great machine of life?

Uniformity is exemplified in my work environment. Row upon row of cubicles, telephone here, computer screen here, requisite stapler and tape dispenser here…I have a social security number, driver’s license number, employee identifier, employee payroll identifier. I’m a number, a blip, a spec.

Yet, God made me special and loves me for me. He gave me qualities that distinguish me completely from each and other human being ever created.

Long story short, are you accepting a repetitive, meaningless existence or are you seizing the opportunties God places in front of you and running forward without fear? God created humans to be in motion, moving forward, not backward, not standing still. Are you moving forward? Are you living by faith and not being ruled by the fear of the unknown? Are you living your life according to His plan and not your own? You were created to worship Him, to serve Him…what priority have you placed before that? Don’t like these questions? Neither do I, yet I have to face them…I’m completely guilty of not living out His plan and purpose for me.

I’ve lived in fear of the things I can’t control and have shown little faith in my Creator that His plan is perfect and beyond my understanding. He wants good for me and my family and if I will only trust, He’ll be my sustenance. This way of thinking goes against my flesh, my sin nature, the very stain on my soul that shapes my day-to-day existence, yet God provides hope and deliverance from mediocrity. I WILL seize the opportunities God puts in front of me and WILL trust that He is the ONLY source of security and sustenance. Any security I believe I have through my own actions is false security and false hope, a veil of ignorance if you will, set forth by Satan to hide the Source of Life from all men.

Here are my notes for today’s sermon by Dr. Keith Cowart at Christ Community Church.

References: James 5:16, Mark 9:29

Do we truly believe that prayer is powerful? That it makes a difference? That it is effective or powerful?

“Is any one of you in trouble? He should pray. Is anyone happy? Let him sing songs of praise. Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven. Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The Prayer of a righteous man is a powerful and effective. Elijah was a man just like us. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years. Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops” James 5:16

“The effective fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.” James 5:16 (KJV)

“The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much.” James 5:16 (NASB)

James is saying that when we pray, something WILL change. Elijah was a normal man, just like you and I, but when he prayed, God did something.

The Bible is a book of examples, not exceptions… (John Eldridge)

When we read the Bible and see miraculous answer to prayer, we should ask “Why don’t I see that happening in my life?” God not only moves in the miraculous but in the ordinary.

Let him pray in faith and God will move.

Conditions for prayer:

1. Righteousness

• One who is in a right relationship with God
• We are called to live in righteousness by daily submission to God.
• Connection between your life and the power of prayer. The way you live matters tremendously…He is a holy God and cannot have fellowship with unholiness.
• Must live according to the will of God, must PRAY according to the will of God.

2. Fervency

• Scripture indicates that the heart of God is moved by the fervent, passionate, desperate prayers of His people. The challenge is to not turn this act into a work. Seek him PASSIONATELY, not casually.
• Elijah prayed 7 times before it stopped raining. He was persistent, he never gave up.
• When he prayed for it to rain again, it took 3 times before he saw a small rain cloud.
• Anna prayed for 60 odd years (20’s to 80’s) for the coming of the Messiah and after 60 years saw the fruit of her prayer.
• In the garden of Gethsemane, Christ prayed so fervently, he sweated drops of blood.
• The disciples were waiting for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit and prayed constantly, corporately for the Holy Spirit to rain down on them.

“So He said to them, ‘This kind can come out by nothing but prayer and fasting’” Mark 9:29

“When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show men they are fasting. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash our face, so that it will not be obvious to men that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you” Matthew 6:16-18

Fasting…we fast when we want to submit and give over total control and dependency to the Lord. Giving up total and complete control of your well-being to Him. You are so hungry for Him that human food cannot satisfy. We have gotten away from this as His Church.

Complete and total dependence on God…no plan B, only His plan…rely on Him completely.

Simply pray…

So…another blog…I know what you’re thinking: He won’t publish anything to this one either…well, you’re wrong. I plan on keeping this blog updated with my own personal journey through life and my walk with Christ, adventures with my friends and family and thoughts I find significant enough to share with you. So, stay tuned, it should be fun.

If you’d like to see the blog I started in 2004, please visit dippity dew