Who's in charge?

Another week in God's Kingdom has come and gone. Hope it is was a good week for all of you. It was in our part of the world.

Tim and Scott continue their visits from the Hope House on Saturdays. Brad is under the bridge. Does not look good. Robert has left. Other than that, the others seem to be ok. There was a big game of kick ball at the center on Saturday. Adults, kids and animals were present. Not sure who won, but it was exciting to see and hear! Work continued in the garden. Sprinkler system seems to be almost working?! Gardens, are the prettiest I have ever seen. Rickey continues his mastery in plantings, weeding and watering. Every afternoon you will find him working there. Ardis continues her bread run. What a blessing.

Easter Sunday, we had a full crew helping hide God's lvoe in the form of Easter eggs in the neighborhood. We had young and old participating this year. What a joy to see all our servants in action for God.

Following our adventures, Benny and Shelly had our first celebration in the chapel. We gathered for song, dance and praise. Our Common Ground dancers performed for the first time. We got to meet new friends and see some long time friends gathering to worship. Then everybody was treated to a delicious meal. No better way to celebrate the morning of resurrection.

Monday and Wednesdays continue with our homework help. School is winding down, but our enthusiasm for studies has not.

Tuesday evening has become a bee hive of activity around the center. Our ladies Bible fellowship is getting off to a great start with Shelly and Abbie. Our mens Bible fellowship continues to grow and become an important part in the men's lives.

Wednesday, Beth Ackerman was in Baton Rouge sharing her story of the uninsured. Thanks Beth for your willingness to stand up for those who do not have a voice in our society.

Wednesday evening, Joey and Rickey hosted our family gathering. Good food and fellowship. Always a good time. We all got to talk with William.

Thursday was another special time. We had a long time friend join us in chapel. Spencer lead our singing. Our friends from Cypress Baptist provided the meal. Abbey and Vickie did their magic to pull it all together. Old friends from our nursing school were there. Everybody working together, a joy to see.

Prayers for Lomax. He will be traveling back home this coming week. He will be spending time with his family in Houston and then making his way back to us. Can't wait to hear all about his adventure. Prayers for William as he continues to find his way back to us. For those of you who can not be at the center, your prayers are needed and appreciated. Please pray for us as we seek God's guidance in our paths.

Who is in charge? Who are we working for? Spent some time with my sister driving to Lake Charles a couple of weeks ago and all she talked about was the end of times. How everything in this world is going to hell. She is worried about everything. The wars. The earth quakes. The floods. The fires. The wars. She prayed to God to let her get home to Tennessee so she could plant tomatoes to stock them up for the rapture. She goes to her phone every moment she can, to check the news headlines to see what is happening in the world.

You see news reports and read the newspapers and all the news is bad or at least 99% of it is. Killings, stabbing's, wrecks, shootings. If you watch all of these reports. If you read all the articles, I would guess you would say the world is coming to an end. Is there any good happening in this world? Surely, death and destruction is not the norm?

At some point I asked my sister, who is in charge of this world? Who do we pray to every day? Who sent His son to die for us and take away the sins of the world? We all know God is in charge.  God lvoes us. God wants only the best for us. God will protect us. God is God! Nothing greater than God. So why fill up your day with worry about all the negative stuff of the world. God is lvoe. Shouldn't our lives be filled up with that! 

We can fill our community with lvoe every hour, every day, every week, every month, every year. Not our love, but God's lvoe. For many months, in all our studies, the word lvoe has kept coming up. Lvoe the Lord your God with all your heart, mind and soul. Then lvoe your neighbor as yourself. God is lvoe. We should be about lvoe. Very simple. Uncomplicated. Lvoe! Amen.

Hope you all have a great week. May we all lvoe others today, next week like there is no tomorrow. Wonder how that would look if our world did that?! See you around the center.

Holy Friday

Another special week in and around the center. God's beauty shining through in the flowers and trees magnificently.

Saturday mornings are none stop with action. Scott and Tim are busy making their rounds to the camps. Join them at the Hope House one Saturday at 9 to experience the lvoe of Jesus. Matt, Vicki, Ardis, Shelly, Benny share their lvoe with the children as they work in the kitchen, the clothing room, the garden, around the neighborhood, in the chapel. Great to see young lives being changed through the lvoe of Jesus.

The same can be said on Mondays and Wednesdays. Young lives are being taught by our young leaders the special lvoe of Jesus through words and numbers. Awesome to see.

Tuesday evenings are no exception. Both the men and women's Bible fellowships are a place where the community can come together and share how God is working in their lives. Strong bonds are being formed, not just between each other but between God.

Thursday evenings are special. You all go out of your way to make it special. Through our time in chapel, with Ms Abbie playing the piano. An Easter banquet, I imagine just like Jesus had at His last meal. Ham, turkey and all the trimmings, doesn't get any better than that. Abbey, Shelly, Vicki, Gabrielle, Allison leading the children in the making of Easter cookies and finding Easter eggs all over the grounds. What an evening.

Prayers continue for my wife. She got a good doctor's report, but has more healing to do. Another doctor's visit in 3 weeks before they decide on future plans. William as he continues to recover from his addictions. Joey as he travels back home today. Prayers for the direction of our community as we move forward.

Don't forget, this Sunday, Easter Sunday, no better way to experience the resurrection than to gather at the center and walk the neighborhood spreading the lvoe of Jesus through the hiding of Easter eggs. A long tradition of ours, starting at 6:30am. If you have additional eggs you want to bring please do so.

We will have our first celebration time in the chapel on Sunday starting at 10am. Benny and Shelly will be leading our worship. Come and enjoy.

Holy Friday! Hard for me to say good. Definitely good for us, but not so good for Jesus. His journey on earth was coming to a close, but He had one last act for us, to die on a cross. He died for all of us, those that lvoe Him and those who don't know Him yet. Max said in a devotional this week, like the two thieves who were with Him, we have a choice. We can accept Jesus or reject Him, it's our choice.

Jesus died, so when we see God, God will not see us, but see the face of Jesus. Isn't that amazing! Jesus died for me a sinner. Can't be possible. Doesn't make sense. Not logical. But it is true. In spite of what we do, what we think, who we are, Jesus lvoes us. Jesus took away the sins of the world, on this very day, many years ago. Wow and I complain I have a scratch on my finger.

I am not worthy of such a sacrifice. It humbles me to think the creator of the heavens and earth, wants nothing in return other than to lvoe Him. Our time on earth with be magnified with blessings beyond our comprehension if we do. If only we do. If only we realize to let go of our egos, our pride, our stubbornness. Jesus did on the cross. He let go because He knew where He was going. Can't we do the same?

Hope you have a glorious Holy Weekend. Let's try together to live lives worthy of the sacrifice Jesus made today. Allowing our communities to see the Light of the Holy One in each one of us, glowing so bright, they will say to us, I want you have!  He is Risen! Amen!

Passing through

It doesn't get any better than this! God has created His wondrous canvas of beauty for us to enjoy after our long, cold, wet winter. Hope you are getting out and enjoying it all!

Saturday brought us lots of adventures in and around the center. Tim and Scott kicked off our first outdoor friends visits, leaving from the Hope House. Scott said, it was good to see some old friends and meet new ones. Lots of places to go and people to meet! Lots of activity around the center. Unpacking our new freezer, wrapping bread, working in the garden, picking up trash in the neighborhood, Bible study, visiting Smokey, hanging clothes. enjoying each other's company, a good morning.

Monday and Wednesday were busy with our afternoon studies. Wednesday, we took the afternoon off and enjoyed the pretty weather. Kick ball and other games were calling us to the outside!

Tuesday evening, we had our first ladies Bible fellowship. Ms Abbie reported all went well and everybody had a good time. She and Shelly will continue to invite the ladies of the community to come and enjoy the fellowship. 

Matt led our men's discussions reading from Matthew chapter 6. Jesus telling us to help others and not boast about it. To pray to God but not for show. Humble our selves before the Lord, hard to do at times.

Wednesday evening, Momma T hosted our family time.

mr brian was out of town on Thursday, so others will have to share with us how things went. Abbey was hosting our first, grocery shopping experience for the community. The groceries were laid out on tables, allowing the community to choose items they would eat. We had students from Centenary there to help us through the process.

Lift up William as he continues to regulate his medicines and get back on track with his life. Ginellen, as she continues to recover from her surgery. Prayers her doctor's report this coming Wednesday is a good one. Prayers for my brother and his family in the passing of his wife of 53 years, their mother and grandmother. Prayers for Joey and his buddies as they travel to Atlanta for some relaxation and fun this coming week.

Lomax has done a good job in sharing his adventures with us. Please go to his blog at:

http://amorlinguaomni.wordpress.com/ for the latest news.

Attending a funeral, especially a family member, humbles you. Seeing family members who you have not seen in many years brings back old memories of your love one. You reminisce about the good ol' days. Marvel at how the children have grown. Speculate about the future and what it may hold. Seeing my sister-in-laws casket being carried by 5 of her grandsons changes you. The many pews filled with family members,celebrating their mother, sister, wife, grandmother puts a different perspective on life. I am left to think about on my drive home, what is this life all about?

We go through life trying to do the best we can, trying to follow the will of God, for the good of our community. We strive to achieve goals, obtain wealth, keep healthy. Is there more to life than that? We celebrate the life of our love one on Thursday and go back to our lives and routines on Friday. Is there more to these lives we live? Is God trying to tell us something?

In my sister-in-laws obituary, the family shared the different occupations she obtained. What church she attended. Her hobbies. Her passions. All very nice. We all could do the same about our lives. But is that what is important in life?

For the most part, the pews were filled with family and friends, not her career bosses. We heard about her hobbies, but they did put people in the pews. It was her heart and lvoe for others that filled the pews. The priest talked about her loving character and her lvoe of the Lord. That lvoe, has been passed on through her daughters and now it is being passed on to their children.

We talked about on Tuesday evening, Christ wants a relationship with us. That relationship takes work on our part. We often get so busy with stuff, we forget to calm our souls long enough to hear the quiet voice of Jesus talking to us. We must not allow the busy ness of this world to drown out the voice of God. Are we doing all we can to help our children with their relationships with Jesus?

Reflecting on my sister-in-laws celebration of her life, relationships are the most important asset we can develop as we go through our journeys. It starts off with our relationships with God, being grounded in the Lord allowing us to share that lvoe with others. We must show that lvoe to our families, encouraging them to do the same. We must share the Light of Christ with our community, giving them hope and peace in their lives. Then when it comes time to celebrate our lives, the cathedrals will be filled with family, friends and community full of peace, joy and lvoe! Amen.

Hope you all have a glorious week. May the peace of God go with you all this week.

Obey and sacrifice

Hope your weather this week as been as good as ours. Special time of the year, when the cold, wet rain turns the trees and plants into beautiful colors of the rainbow. God is a pretty good artist!

Saturday was a busy day for us. We had bunches of students from Centenary joining us to help around the center for their Big Event happening. Some walked the neighborhood picking up trash. Others painted the center and sanctuary. Some hung clothes. A few bag groceries. We had some in the kitchen wrapping bread. And some in the garden. Later in the morning Benny and Matt led Bible study. Good times were had by all.

Scott and Dawn made our last outdoor friends visit. Some drama in the camps but for the most part all went well. Starting this Saturday, April 5th, Tim will take over the leadership roll in this area. All walks will begin at the Hope House starting at 9 am and then another walk around noon. Tim has been preparing for this ministry for many months and we are blessed to have him take this role. If it's been awhile since you have been on a walk, try to go by and support Tim and the Hope House.

Monday and Wednesday, we continue to have great success in helping our children with their homework. Amazing to see the lvoe being shown to our children through those who come and help out. We can always use more help if you want to come and join in.

Monday, one of our friends, following God's calling and left us for awhile. Dawn is now in Florida, gone but not forgotten. She will be with us through email. You never know, one day we may see her again!

Tuesday morning, Lomax left us for his adventure in Lebanon. He will be gone for a month, traveling and seeing things we have no clue what is going on in that part of the world. He will be mainly supporting a new friend in a school based environment. But knowing Lomax, he might venture off into un chartered waters?! Please keep him in your prayers this month.

Tuesday evening, another special night of the men of the community coming together sharing their hearts on how God is changing their lives. Ricky led us in reading from 1st Samuel chapter 15: 19-24. God talking to Samuel about it is more important to be obedient in the eyes of the Lord, than to make sacrifices. Are we following the will of God in our lives or are we trying to "look good" in the eyes of others?

Thursday in chapel, we were treated to songs and words from our friends, Heather, Derek and Richard. They always tell us, being with us in chapel is the highlight of their week. We are blessed by their faithfulness. Benny and Shelly treated us to barbeque chicken for our meal, with the help of Ms Abbie and her kitchen crew helping with the sides. A good size crowd for the evening, enjoying everything God had to offer.

For the next few months, Lisa will have a Board meeting on the first Thursday after our meals. If you want to bring anything up to her, send an email to her before the meeting so she can share it with the Board. Highlights of the meeting. We are working towards a fundraiser for sometime in September at Centenary. Plans are still being worked out. Plans are underway for housing our interns for the summer. Isn't that cool! New floors have been sealed and waxed. Ricky did a great job. Discussions about opening up the sanctuary. Safety concerns were brought up to address before we can move forward. 

As Hat reported, William is back on his medication and doing better, moving to Dallas for the moment. Continued prayers for him. Saw on Face book, Sarah and Scott will become parents in the near future. Prayers for them and their little one. Continued prayers for my wife. Her first check up was good, still a ways to go for full recovery.

"To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of the rams". Samuel told Saul this in verse 22. Why do we do what we do? Why do we go to church on the weekends? Why do we go to Common Ground during the week? Do we "do" religion because that is what we have always done? Have we become complacent in our attitudes and our actions? Are we obeying God's will or showing up because we want to look good?

We talked about folks this time of year making sacrifices for the Lenten season. I gave up brussel sprouts for lent. What a sacrifice! I did it to look good, not because I was obeying God's will. Many folks make New Years resolutions. Why, not because they are obeying the will of God but because that is what you do in January. God wants us to obey His will, not to make a sacrifice to look good.

Why do you do what you are doing for the Kingdom? A hard question. In verse 23 . . . arrogance like the evil of idolatry. You start doing things out of the ordinary and your friends say to you, man you sure are doing great stuff. Or they might say, sure wish I had time to do what you are doing.  Our chests start to puff out, our egos start to inflate and before you know it, it becomes about us and not about God.

We have to constantly work on our pride and remember it is not about us but about God. We need to check our hearts. We need to check our egos. We need to check our pride and ask ourselves, what are we doing and why are we doing it.

The last part of verse 22, says . . . to heed is better than the fat of rams. God wants us to follow His will, obey His commandments. We will blessed beyond our imagination if we do. Even though we might not see those blessings today or tomorrow, but He says they will come. And if God says they will come, they will come! Amen.

Hope you have a great week. Hope you are able to get out in the sunshine and enjoy the majesty of God's canvas. May we all obey His will in our lives this week and enjoy the blessings of His Kingdom.