Toronto Mission Trip

Wow! Our mission trip was amazing. We were able to interact with people in ways that i didn't think were possible. I think if someone came to my town and told me they were here to help me I would be very resentful, especially if they were a lot younger than me. Throughout our trip, though, the people we came in contact with were very willing to open up and share their lives with us. I definitely came away from our trip with a better understanding of how we are supposed to love others like Jesus.

One aspect of the trip that changed the way I think about service to others was the kind of work we did. Normally, when you think of a mission trip you think of building or painting or something similar to that work. But we didn't do any of those. We made-up beds, cleaned kitchens, served food and help teach kids who couldn't afford to go to school. Simple things, things that were done by others before we arrived and after we left. We didn't leave a building for people to remember us by. We left a reminder of hope, hope in the person of Jesus Christ. Hope to the homeless who were hungry or thirsty to whom we gave food and water to. True, they probably won't remember us individually. But the little bit of hope we might have given them is what they will hold on to. And that is something I will never forget.

On a different note, college is starting! I'm so excited about this school year and being in college. I can't wait to see what God has in store for me and all the opportunities I will have to serve others on campus and to share about being a disciple of Jesus Christ. I hope y'all have an awesome school year and continue to serve others...even in simple ways

until again,
Brian

Summer Mission Trip 2006

Hi everyone! I’m getting ready to go on our summer mission trip with my church youth group. I’m so excited, and very nervous. I’ve never been on a mission trip before, so I’m not 100% sure what to expect. In our youth group we did a book study on “Can You Drink This Cup” by Henri Nouwen to prepare ourselves for the trip. In the book he talks about drinking the cup that Jesus drank. He breaks it into 4 parts: the question, holding the cup, lifting the cup, and drinking the cup. Basically Nouwen asks everyone if they even understand the question, if they understand that Jesus’ cup is not just a cup of life but of sorrow. He asks if we can hold the cup and look into it and see all that it has to offer and how everyone’s cup is filled with different amounts of joy and sorrow. If we can lift the cup, proclaim it and bless others with it by drinking it in community. Sadly, I missed the final session when we talked about drinking the cup because I was on vacation, so I don’t know what exactly Nouwen talks about in those final chapters, but I when I read it I will give you an update on it.

The part that struck me the most about the book and through our discussions was the aspect of holding the cup. I usually tend to grab “the cup” and lift it right away, without even looking in it. In other words, I feel led to do something or change something I’m doing and I respond without fully understanding what I’m responding to. I realize in some cases we can’t understand what we are responding to but I’m referring to the times when we can. Such as the mission trip I’m about to go on. Up until yesterday, three days before we leave, I hadn’t even thought about it. All I knew is that I should go because I’ve never been on one and because everyone always says that you grow closer to God on mission trip. So I said ok, and was all set to grab the cup of mission trip and take a swig, that was until yesterday. When I finally looked at what I was getting myself into I became a little nervous. I had always looked at a mission trip as going somewhere else and fixing something so that someone else can have a better life, which is not a bad thing. But the more I thought about it (aka looked into the cup), I realized that we aren’t going to help people have a better this or that, we are going to help PEOPLE. The actual persons we come into contact with. It's something we could do at home but don’t, either because we are comfortable in our familiar culture or because we are afraid. The thought that we are going to interact, bless and be blessed by other people somewhat scares me. My thoughts of mission trip equaling “I help them, I feel good, God is pleased” had to be reconsidered. I’m going on this trip to not only share with others about Jesus but also Jesus in community. Personally I’m a bit of an introvert, so I’m nervous for that reason alone. But the idea of telling some one about Jesus because I only have a short time with them scares me, too. All the different “what if's” pop into my head, but I know the Holy Spirit will help me. I think the fact that we only have a short time is why we are willing to share. When we are at home we think we have all the time in the world because we see so and so everyday.

The other part that scares me though is that I might have to change because of this trip, that I might encounter something so profound and transforming that I will have to respond and either deny Jesus by refusing to grow, or I will have to change…and everyone hates change. I will let you know how the trip turns out/

Please pray for me and my youth group to allow God to work through us.

Until Again
Brian

Doing Gods Will For Me

Wow, this month has been crazy. Sorry I haven’t updated in a while. I had finals and graduation. And then I immediately started working 40 hours a week and the time has flown by. I just got back from Branson, Missouri, where my youth group took our senior trip. We had a blast! We spent one day on the lake tubing, skiing, and cliff jumping. The next day we went around Branson eating, shopping, and racing go carts. It was a great time as one of our final events together.

In our D-group, we have started reading Velvet Elvis by Rob Bell. It is a really cool book that is helping us in looking at and discussing the Christian faith in new ways, as well as helping us not to be afraid to ask questions about our faith. It's interesting to hear what Brady, Jeff, Mickey and I discuss and share each week.

Something that has come up in our discussions and kind of been weighing on my heart is the idea of doing God’s will. For a long time, I have said that I want my comfort zone to be God’s will. I say that because if I am not doing God’s will, I don’t want to be comfortable. But the more I think about that I realize I have to know God’s will in order to act on it. In my everyday life, I know certain things that are wrong and right. Unfortunately, there are far more things that I want to ask God about. For a long time, I thought the Bible would clearly tell me what was right and wrong in every situation, and that it would be exactly the same for every person.

For instance, if I felt that it was wrong for me to listen to a certain kind of music, and that the Bible said it was wrong, then I thought no one else could listen to that kind of music. The first problem with that idea is that I was using the Bible to support my ideas, which can be done for almost any argument. Another problem is that not every one is the same. For some people it is perfectly alright to do something I feel I shouldn't because they aren’t affected in the same way. So, there isn’t always a clear cut standard for what we should do and should not to do in these somewhat insignificant things. Don’t hear me wrong. I’m not talking about murder or idolatry or lying. I am talking about things that are considered grey areas; things that we weren’t given specific instructions on. But what I have found is that in those areas, God has given us instruction that He said to love Him. If it is hard for me to love Him while doing what I’m unsure about, then I probably shouldn’t do it.

So when I am questioning something, the first thing I ask myself now is whether or not this helps me love God or hinders me from loving God. As soon as I figure out God’s will, then, I still have to act on it, which can be harder than knowing God’s will sometimes. But through prayer, I know God will help me understand it better.

Until Again
Brian