Falls Creek Update Wednesday, July 2

Hello again Parents and Church! We had a great day yesterday! Pastor Scott and Brian V. made it in yesterday afternoon. I am so grateful for our pastor...we are very blessed as a church to have Scott. Scott has always been so supportive of our students.

Parents, you will not believe this, but for us this is a first......drum roll please...........the guys won the Tuesday Edition of Dorm Wars! Not that it was perfect, but our guys won! Interesting enough you'll see the picture of the shrine of beauty products on our girls side....quite funny!

Our students played softball and volleyball yesterday afternoon.....our softball team played their hearts out, but lost. Our girls volleyball team won their first game!!! Wahoo!!

Our prayer this weeek is that students will "Be Still and Know that He is God". One of the ways is through teaching our students what a daily quiet time is. Please pray that
our students through this time will fall in love with Christ and His Word. Pray that the Word of God will bring refreshment and encouragement to the lives of our students.

Last night was a great night of worship! Darren Spoo, the speaker for our evening worship services challenged us out of John 1. He challenged us with the question: What kind of shoe are U in the context of your relationship with Christ? He brought out four pairs of shoes:
1. Fuzzy Slippers--fuzzy shoes are comfortable....are you tooo comfortable in your walk with Christ? Has it become just another thing to do?
2. High Heeled Shoes--high heeled shoes are tight and uncomfortable(not that I would know--but that's what the ladies say). Those who have a high heeled shoe relationship with Christ is characterized by being tight and uncomfortable--more about rules than a relationship.
3. Sunday Shoes--Sunday Shoes are shoes you wear once a week. those who have a Sunday Shoe relationship with Christ is characterized by an affair one day a week--your relationship with Christ is not a lifestyle but an hour or two.
4. Dress Up Shoes--he compared this to his children wearing his shoes for dress up. Dress up Shoes relationship with Christ is when you have not made your faith your own--you are living your parents faith.

So I ask, "Which one are You?" In our family group last night we added one more: Work Boots. People who have a Work Boot relationship focus so much on the doing that they rarely experience God. To be honest this is one I struggle with...I sometimes get so busy doing that I miss God, but I would say at the same time I also experience God through the serving....I see God change lives!

None of these shoes adequately describe or characterize what a true relationship with God looks like. The Bare Foot--no shoes is more of what a true relationship is---coming to Christ as we are with all of our imperfections and following Him.

God is up to something here. There are many students that are thinking. There are some students who know God in their mind, but not in their heart. Could you pray that would know in their heart that He is God?

We had a few students make decisions last night and I will share more either later today or tomorrow, but want to adequately follow up. God is doing work in the lives of our students and our adults.

Will try again to post pictures later today. Please pray for Pam V. as she makes her way here today to help cook! I love our cooks--it really is the hardest job of them all--Jennifer and Jana are wonderful! Thank you also for praying for Rachel B.--she is feeling better!

In Christ,
Mike


*Don't forget to also pray for our AWESTAR and China missionaries!
*Feel free to leave any comments and we will share those with the students!

China Update from Mandi

I just received this from Mandi who is teaching English as Second Language. Keep praying for her!

Hello! Thank you all so much for the emails and prayers! I started my first day of teaching today. I thought it went really well! It was pretty much a day to get to know the kids and lay down the ground rules. They are really cute children and most of them were very sweet. I only got through about half what I had planned, but I'd rather it be that way then run out of things to do:)

The Dallas Baptist students got here on Saturday. They are teaching elementary school this summer. There are about 25 of them. I have gotten to hang out with them and join in some worship services. They are all very nice and quick to include me. There are some very servant-hearted people in that group and I think I could make some good friends. I feel fortunate and humbled to be a part of such a great group. I am praying for a teachable spirit.

I don't think the DBU team is quite as adventurous in their eating as I am. They went out for pizza last night:) But a few of us stayed and went to a Chinese place nearby. The cafeteria food has been interesting, to say the least, but we're getting by;) Sorry I haven't been able to send any pictures yet. I don't have a place to hook up my computer to the internet, but hopefully I will soon.

Falls Creek Update-Tuesday Morning, July 1

Good morning parents and church! We had a great day yesterday--only one snag with the transportation--we had to switch our charter bus at our lunch stop--it was a very smooth transition. We arrived at Falls Creek around 1:45 p.m. and got a chance to sing Happy Birthday to Elizabeth--she was a presented with a gift--"I Would Die for You" by Brent and Deanna Higgins--the story of BJ Higgins(www.prayforbj.com) who gave his life for Christ. Elizabeth is new with us this year, so it was a great opportunity for everyone to get to know her.

The students had an opportunity to go swimming and to the different ropes courses before dinner. Each student is in a family group led by one of our sponsors. Would you pray that through these family groups each of our students get connected this week? We've got a great group of students!

Also, please pray for one of our young ladies, Rachel. She has a sore throat and is not feeling well this morning. We took her to the clinic yesterday, but the doctor was not there--we will try again this morning. Just pray that she will be back to normal this afternoon after getting some rest.

Please pray for focus. Last night there seemed to be some sort of spiritual obstacle , not from students but from the enemy. We had our cabin devotions planned out, but changed them due to a sense that the enemy was trying to keep us from focusing. Last night in our cabin devotions, our theme was EXAMINATION using the Scripture from Psalms 139:23,24, "Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life." So essentially through this Scripture and speaking it, we were giving the Holy Spirit permission to step on our toes--to reveal anything that offends Him. As Brian asked us to pray, it seemed to be the turning point for the evening.This along with the worship was a turning point to becoming focused.

We asked the students and I ask you, "What Kind of Sheep are U?" Everyone falls into one of these three categories:
a. You are a goat, not a sheep(Read Matthew 25:31-46 and John 10)
Do you know Christ as Lord and Savior--not just do you say it but do you live it? Has there been a point in time where you gave your life to Christ? Unfortunately, according to the Scripture, if you have not done this you will be cast into the eternal fire(v. 41)
b. You are a sheep, but not following Christ
This is a difficult sentence as we explained tonight because in our church culture it seems we can justify anything and try to fit everything under the heading of being a believer. Essentially are you following or not...He's either Lord or He is not--there really is no in between although in our American culture we have added a category to make us feel "safe". (Romans 6:1-2)
c. You are a sheep on the heels after Christ following diligently behind Him
Are you following Christ as best you know how? Is He the center of your life?

What kind of sheep are U?

After our worship time, the family groups met to dive further into these three points along with talking about how they are doing. It was a great time of sharing and praying for one another.

We got to bed about 12:05 p.m. Man, our guys did great in getting to sleep--so kudos to our guys.

We have an incredible group this week. Today is our first full day and will be eating breakfast shortly. We have two incredible cooks--Jennifer G. and Jana F.--Pam V. will be joining the team tomorrow!

I will try to post some pictures later today and may see if we can get a video posted as well. You can check out last nights evening service at www.skopos.org .....go to Falls Creek/Current Camp Materials/Evening Service.

Also, keep praying for our AWESTAR and China missionaries this week!

Jacob sends out a shout out to his family--Woot, Woot! Zachary says hi mom in Kansas!

Thank you for praying!
Mike

Falls Creek or BUST!

We leave in the morning for Falls Creek. If you don't know much about Falls Creek, it is the largest youth camp in the world. Each week, 5,000-7,000 students gather together to worship and seek God. You can check out more at http://www.skopos.org/ and go to Falls Creek. You can also listen to the evening worship services by going to the same website and clicking on Falls Creek/ Camp Materials/Listen to the Service

It's going to be an incredible week. I am hoping that we can provide you with daily updates to see and hear what God is doing through pictures, testimonies, and blog reports. The first update will probably be Tuesday morning--Mondays are always a hard day due to traveling and getting everyone on the same page.

Could you pray with us this week? Pray for those who do not know Christ to ask Him into their lives and for each of us as believers to truly seek God. The theme for the whole camp is GRAZE....our cabin theme/t-shirt is "Don't Just Do Something, Stand There." We've all heard at one point in our life from our parents or another authority figure, "Don't Just Stand There, Do Something." We want to challenge our students to simply spend time with our Messiah--simply to love Him--adore Him. Our desire is to "be still and know that He is God." Would you pray that our students would not be blinded by the misperceptions that is presented to them about who God is by the world? Pray that they would KNOW the real God and His deep desire to know and love them.

Parents, I pray that you will be refreshed this week! I will be praying for you as you prepare for your students return on Saturday.

Mike

**Also, while we are at camp....check out the AWESTAR updates of our missionaries in Peru(Mikayla and Aaron) and Chile(Bethany) among other trips @ http://www.awestar.org/ and to go trip updates. We also have another missionary in China(Mandy). We had a great opportunity to host the AWESTAR missionary leaders before they headed for AWESTAR University--what a great experience--so in essence we feel like all those who are going on AWE trips are part of our church family!

Freedom Celebration 2008

We just wrapped up another Freedom Celebration. Our Freedom Celebration is a great ministry to our community. We have FREE Hot Dogs, Ice Cream, Games, Pony Rides, and best of all a great FIREWORKS SHOW! I'm a little biased, but I would say one of the best around and it's all right in front of our church. I'm guesstimating that we had around 2,000 people.

Got to meet a lot of new people which is always a cool thing. Brian, Sherry D. and their team did such an excellent job of putting it all together. It's always thought through and done very well. Our desire as a church is for this to be a BRIDGE event--inviting people in our community to a non-threatening environment but creating the opportunity to BRIDGE them to Christ through simple conversation and Christ-like attitudes.

The WOW's of Student Ministry

It's a time like this, the story I am about to share, that you realize why we do what we do for those who serve as mentors in student ministry. Many times in ministry it seems we are deep in the battle, rescuing the perishing, caring for the wounded and it's times like these that through all the attacks of Satan, we can see the rewards.

It's also times like these that we realize that it's not us that causes the tide to turn, but it's God's grace and sovereignity that causes the tide to turn. Yes, He does use us as vessels, but it is ultimately Him that deserves all of the credit.

I had lunch today with one of my students, Alexander. I've sensed in the past few weeks God doing a work in his life and today our lunch confirmed that....a different young man than what I have seen in the past six months.

A few months ago, I saw the motions of a disciple....today I saw the heart reflections of a disciple as he spoke with conviction, humbleness, and repentance.

I've prayed many times for Alexander wondering what we could do better or what we weren't doing to reach this wounded student, but in time God's goodness through worship picked Alexander up and placed him on his knees in awe of who He is.

The beauty of a prodigal son returning to his first love Jesus is why I do what I do and today God gave me a glimpse of his incredible love and reminded me of what He saved me from.
Alexander, thank you for allowing me to see Christ in you. May God continue to do an incredible work in your life and may He use you to advance His kingdom!

MORE Gulf Shores Pictures!

Gulf Shores, Alabama Vacation Pictures

We just got back from Gulf Shores--what an excellent time with my family. It was just us--no schedule, I didn't wear a watch, I didn't have my cell phone with me--just me and Sarah and the kids! What a great vacation!

On the drive down we stayed overnight in Vicksburg, Missippi. We rode the ferry(car and all) from Dauphin Island to Gulf Shores--fed the seagulls and saw actual dolphins. The kids loved it! We stayed at the Gulf Shores Plantations which had six outdoor pools and one indoor pool(which came in handy on the day it rained). This was a great time to go because it wasn't crowded at all and most of the time our kids had the indoor pool to themselves.

This was the first time the we as a family went to the beach--what a great time. The temperature was great, we loved digging in the sand and playing in the water. We also caught us a jellyfish and saw some stingrays. The beach was about 100 yards from our condo.

On one day when it rained we went to the Naval Station in Pensacola, Florida. The kids got to see the airplanes and memorabilia. We didn't get a chance to see the Blue Angels, but the kids got a picture in one of their old planes.

On our way back we stopped overnight in Memphis and the next day went and got Elijah's build-a-bear! It was a great road trip for our family--one I think our kids will never forget.

Our family theme verse for our vacation--Psalms 33:6-9:

The LORD merely spoke, and the heavens were created.

He breathed the Word, and all the stars were born.

He assigned the sea its boundaries and locked ithe oceans in vast reservoirs.

Let the whole world fear the LORD, and let everyone stand in awe of him.

For when he spoke, the world began! It appeared at his command.

We challenged our children with this Scripture as we looked upon the ocean and fascinated ourselves with God's creation.

Happy 4th Birthday Elijah!!!

My youngest son, Elijah, turned 4 years old! What a day he had! He invited his friends Kira, Kien, Daniel, and Olivia for a great birthday party! I asked him what his favorite gift was and he said, "Everything!"

Elijah is my live wire--always hopping and ready to go! He is so fun at this age and is very smart for his age. Sarah and I are so blessed to be his parents!

Father/Son Camping Trip

Here are some pictures of our Father/Son Camping trip that Noah and I went on with a couple of other Fathers and Sons. We hiked about 8 miles--yes I said right--8 miles!!!!! Our boys did so well!

Our focus was Proverbs 3:5,6 and it came in handy many times as we applied to our situation as we hiked!

Should not our Love for Christ be Enough?

We hear a lot today about the 18-30 crowd vanishing from the churches. It is a staggering statistic that 75%-85% of college students leave the faith or vanish from the church after their freshman year in college. It is somewhat frightening especially when people lodge bombs at the church saying it is not doing enough to entice this crowd.
Now, as I write this, note that these are thoughts going in my head and so I would appreciate your confirmation or disagreement with these thoughts. I am trying to seek out the problem at hand:

1. Is the church really to blame or is the individual to blame?
I've seen countless students leave after youth ministry. I am perplexed by this. I struggle with this. I'm sure the church is to blame to a degree because in most cases entertainment is the focus in order to keep students in church, but it seems this method is not working.
But what about ministries who really challenge students in their faith and raise the standard--students still leave. I'm not talking about legalistic student ministries, but student ministries that strive and teach students to truly be a disciple for Christ.
My question is, "Is their faith really real?" Have they allowed the glamor of emotion to supersede their relationship with Christ? Have we as a church conditioned them to this as we go from event to event and it seems that God only moves only when there is emotion involved. Can God move outside of emotion?

2. Should our love for Christ be enough to finish the race?
I tell our students that I do not serve because I have to or to get something, but I do it--I go to church and serve because of the great love that Christ lavished on me.
Are students in love with Christ or just in love with the institution of church? Have we taught students and modeled to students what it means to really love Jesus and taught them to be? Above all, our love for Christ should compel us to finish the race--not events, not music, not preaching, not _______________(you fill in the blank)

3. Many abandon the church because they see the flaws and hypocrisy of those inside.
My question to those who abandon because of these reasons is, "Why not try to help the situation? Why give up?"

I struggle with these questions because we are challenged in the church culture to do more, plan more, do more events, etc. etc., but when will people be responsible and stand for Jesus even if they do not get anything? When will our selfishness be thrown to the side and we lay ourselves on the altar for His glory?

I am reminded of Scripture in which there were many who even after following Jesus for a time, left because I guess he wasn't hip enough or didn't want their toes to be stepped on.

I really don't know who reads this blog, but if you are reading it pardon my rambling-these are just thoughts that are challenging me. It's late and I don't know if this makes much sense. If it makes sense to you, let me know what you think.

*Our reward is not here on this earth, but in eternity with our Savior.

Are you a "Peculiar" Person?

A thought provoking blog by my friend, Brent Higgins. Check it out at: http://www.prayforbj.com/ on the Monday, April 14th. Just a glimpse:

Are we "peculiar?"
Have we come out from the world and been separated by our choices? Do the things we do really reflect well on our Savior? Have we become so comfortable with the world that we allow pictures of ourselves doing that which can only be construed in some sense to be "self-gratifying" because they don't point to Jesus, to represent who and what we stand for to the extent that we post them for others to see?

If who we are cannot be seen in brief glimpses into our lives, there is nothing peculiar about us. If we are truly following Him, if we have really come out from the world and been separated, then our peculiarity will be revealed in ways other than how we choose to eat our cereal.

Hannah Turns 10 Years Old!

I cannot believe, Hannah-my oldest, turned ten! Tonight, she had five friends over and they had pizza, birthday cake, and then went to the movies.

She is becoming a young woman of God--something that I have prayed for a long time. Hannah is very simple--much like her mother. She is okay with who she is. She's a great friend and loves people. She thinks of others before she thinks of herself. She loves to laugh. She does a great job at setting an example for her brothers and sisters for the most part. She spends time in the Word. She loves reading--for her birthday, she wanted a library card(can you believe that--how awesome is that?) to the Tulsa Library.

As I write this and as I said at the beginning of this particular blog, I realize how much she is like her mom. What a testimony of Sarah's faithfulness. It is true that our children watch us--I'm thankful for the great example Hannah has in Sarah.
I must say that for me as I reflect on these past ten years, I am blessed by my daughter Hannah. I pray that God continues to guide and direct her for the mission field.

Mad TV Bob Newhart Skit - Mo Collins - Stop it

Life would be easier if we could just tell people to "Stop It"...great stuff

Zered Brook

What in the world is Zered Brook? It sounds like someone's name. Actually Zerod Brook is found in the book of Deuteronomy 2:13,14:

"Moses continued, "Then the LORD said to us, 'Get moving. Cross the Zered Brook.' so we crossed the brook.
THIRTY EIGHT years passed from the time we first left Kadesh-barnea until we finally crossed the ZERED BROOK! By then, all the men old enough to fight in battle had died in the wilderness, as the LORD had vowed would happen."

This is the passage of Scripture that God is telling the Israelites it's time to get moving after 40 years of wandering through the desert. To me, Zerod Brook is a breakthrough, an obstacle overcome.
I've thought of my Zered Brooks in my life--breakthroughs in my life. I couldn't imagine going through 40 years of wandering. I've never wandered that long....I'm only 34, but there have been periods of time in my life that I have wandered. There was a period in my life that I wandered for about 2 years--in and out of a semi-depression and then one day after wrestling with God, I came to my Zerod Brook after confessing my pride. I crossed my Zerod Brook and it was similar to may salvation experience. It was amazing.

I can imagine what the Israelites thought once they crossed the Zered Brook-a sense of relief, a sense of a new beginning, a breath of fresh air.

Maybe you in are in a pattern of wandering. What do you sense is the cause of it. Could it be pride like it was for me? Pray for your Zerod Brook--your obstacle overcome. It will only come through serious soul searching and repentance. May you cross your Zered Brook and may there come relief, a sense of a new beginning, a fresh start.

A Great Birthday Present for All Guys!
If you ever desire to get me a gift for my birthday or Christmas, I would suggest the following:

Happy 8th Birthday Noah!
I can't believe that my Noah turned 8 today! We had such a great time! We went to Chuck E. Cheese and he invited his good friend Jacob. We had pizza, played games, and ate cupcakes!
For his birthday, Noah got a Jedi sword, Playstation II Game--Star Wars Legos, and a Nerf game. Afterwards we went to Mardel and he got a BibleMan video!

Arabia '08-Senior High Retreat

This past weekend was our Senior High Retreat! What an incredible weekend! Brent Higgins was our guest speaker. Check out Brent's website at http://www.prayforbj.com/ and http://www.awestar.org/. Brian and Melissa Shepard were our worship leaders. Check out http://www.brianshepardband.com/.

The Holy Spirit's presence was so evident. Brent shared about his son BJ--you can read more from his book called, "I Will Die for You". What an incredible story of a young man who was wise for his age and who lived a life devoted to Christ. Brent also spoke about how to hear from God and then on Sunday morning shared a message on Idol Worship.

Brian and Melissa did an incredible job of bringing us into the presence of God and preparing our hearts for the Word! I have heard great comments from our students. They were encouraged and challenged as well as I.

Planet Wisdom Conference

This is a picture of our Jr. High Group that went to the Planet Wisdom Conference! This next week we will be taking our Sr. High to Grand Lake Baptist Assembly for a retreat. Brent Higgins will be speaking and Brian Shepard will be leading worship for us!

This was a great weekend...our first official Jr. High Event. We are going to be doing more separate Jr. High and High School Events so we can better connect with each age group. Usually when we do all youth events, many of the younger ones won't come, so this weekend was a great time for them!

I love our sponsors! Thanks James, Jana, Megan, Jake, Aimee, and Sarah for spending time with our students!

Happy 6th Birthday Grace!

My Grace turned 6th yesterday! We had some of her friends over for an Italian birthday. Sarah made some aprons with all of the girls names on them, had them decorate a giant cookie that each of them took home and had cake and ice cream.

Grace is such a joy! She loves to sing, dance, and play with her dolls! She loves makeup and loves to paint her nails! She loves to pray! Sarah and I are soooo blessed to have Grace!