Giving hope

I am fairly sure that you are aware of the tremendous needs of people that are all around us. For many people the prospect of ever rising above their challenges seems overwhelming and may even appear to be impossible. If we can offer them some kind of hope then their whole demeanor and attitude changes.

Earlier this week we became aware of another family in need. It is a mother of three that came out of a messy separation and they were in need of most everything including food and furniture. When it came to furniture they needed beds, end tables, dresser drawers just to name a few things. Thanks to the blessing of God we were able to supply all those needs, including three beds. It was wonderful to place some hope back in this family.

You may be wondering where these supplies come from. The answer is various sources. One of those sources was very unique. Through Kijiji, which is an online classified ads web site. We contacted a lady who was moving back home after graduating from university. She invited us to come over and pick up some of the free things she had available. Once she learned what Boaz was all about she invited us back on three different occasions to pick up things. This included beds, end tables, dressers, kitchen table, shelves and much more.

I love how God supplies our needs in very creative ways. It seems like before we are ever made aware of a need, that God has a solution in mind. You see it really isn't us that gives people hope, it is God giving people hope through us. God is good, actually God is great. He gives me hope everyday!

Life changing moment

"To the world you may be one person, but to one person you may be the world"

Last week I was approached by one of the people on my board and they talked to me about something God was laying on their heart to do. It was going to be life changing for them and for the person they felt God had told them to "adopt".

Many of you know Jerry, a young man that found himself abandoned and alone. He was in my youth ministry and he became very dear to me. I was moved with compassion for him and his situation and yet we had no where here in Fredericton for him to live. His only option at that time was to move to Miramichi and live in a group home. I am thankful that they were able to provide transitional housing for a period of time.

As of today Jerry has been trying to make it on his own as he is renting a room in a home. I along with Will, Bo and Max drove to Miramichi today to meet Jerry and make a proposal to him. My heart was deeply moved as I sat at a table over lunch with Jerry and the Doyle family and they asked Jerry to become part of their family. Jerry was presented with a life changing opportunity.

I could see that Jerry was deeply moved by this incredible offer. I am glad to report that Jerry has accepted this gift and the plan is for him to move in with the Doyle's upon completion of his school year in three weeks. Jerry said he has been asking God to let him have a family that cares and God has answered those prayers.

These are the reasons that Boaz Ministry was created. I am so blessed and was so blessed to be a part of this amazing noon time discussion and to see a young man come to life. It was incredible to see Jerry go with us to a local supermarket and see "his new family" purchase him some much needed groceries. Jerry took the hand of Max as he was walking through the store and introduced Max to a friend of his as his "little brother". It was beautiful.

Continue to pray for Jerry over these next three weeks that he can stay focused at school and make good choices. Pray for the Doyle family as this will be a big change for them too.

I told Bo on the way home from Miramichi that if the Bible were being written today, this story would surely be included because Jesus had such a heart for the orphaned.

The Prodigal Part 15 Conclusion

What does a prodigal look like? You and I.
How old are they? Any age.
What economic background do they come from? Rich, poor and in between.
What do their families look like? Christain and non Christian.
In other words we pass by prodigals every day.

I was talking with a lady yesterday about her daughter who is so far from God. She is searching for answers but looking in all the wrong places. My advice, love her unconditionally, just like the father.

I think the challenge for many of us, is to love the prodigal unconditionally and at the same time not condone the action. I may be wrong but I think that if we love the person the way we need to and live a life that honors God, the prodigal will know that their action is not condoned.

I feel like we need to consistently bring the prodigals before the Lord and let Him bring the conviction. Most often when we approach the prodigal and confront them with their action they do not feel conviction but condemnation. This is not our heart but it is what is felt.

I have a good friend who has consistently messed up for the four years I have known him. He has a heart to serve God and certainly good intentions. He has called me often over these years and I have tried to listen and offer advice as he asks for it. I may have had opinions about things over the years but unless he has asked for my input, I have not offered it. Instead I have tried to encourage him and listen.

Yesterday I was talking with him and he shared that he has drawn the line. He knows he needs to stop his destructive behavior and he is going to. No more running, no more pretending, just stopping.

He thanked me for my friendship over the years. He shared that he never felt condemned when we talked and that he knew he could always share what was going on in his life. I am excited for what God has been doing in his life and what wonderful things God has planned. Another prodigal is on his way home.

If you are praying for a prodigal in your life lets believe together for a miracle of God.

A reason to celebrate Part 14

Have you ever been in a restaurant and out of nowhere the singing starts. "Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday dear_________, happy birthday to you." Usually when the singing starts we try to figure out whose birthday it is because we want to see who is being recognized. Those times often bring a smile to my face as I see joy in the people who have gathered to celebrate.

After the father dispelled the lie the son was believing it was now time to remind the son why the celebration was being held. It was because "this brother of yours was dead and is alive again, he was lost and is found."

When I was in Czech Republic as a missionary I had a moment that stands out that I will never forget. It wasn't that I saw a dead person come to life physically. I never saw a person who was physically lost get found (though I did witness many lost spiritually get found). What I did witness was a man who was blind physically who could now see by a miracle of God.

I remember Alex receiving his miracle of restored eyesight and the uncontainable joy he could not wait to share with his classmates at our MTS school. He was healed during a prayer time at about midnight and all of the other students were already asleep in the dorm. He asked permission to go and share what had happened right away. He ran across the parking lot into the building and exclaimed, "I can see, I can see"

As the other students woke up to Alex's excitement a celebration broke out. People had a hard time getting back to sleep. All of us were changed as we recognized the power of God. The next day we threw a celebration party and what a great time we had.

That is how I best understand the celebration that was held on behalf of the prodigal who had returned home to the Father. I feel that it is the same celebration that happens whenever a prodigal returns home, at least in the heavenly realm.

I may be wrong but I think we need to have celebrations when people come into a relationship with Christ. We need to get excited about seeing the lost come home. As important, is getting excited about going to share with those who are away from home. What if we were to throw a party each time a sinner came home. I think that the church could get pretty excited, or would they.

Sometimes we act more like the older brother and are not all that excited to welcome into our churches new believers or the prodigals. We don't know what to do with them. We don't know how to include them in the body. But we must!!!

Believing the lie Part 13

"My son, the father said, 'you are always with me and everything I have is yours.' (15.31) This is in contrast to the son saying "you never gave me anything."(5.29)

What a reminder for us. "Everything I have is yours." Christ has given it all to us. We just need to accept it. Love is mine. Peace is mine. Freedom is mine. Forgivness is mine. I have to believe it and receive it. If we know the truth,the truth will set us free.

Understanding the truth about God and his heart is essential. He is always with us. He never walks away from us. Why then do we believe the lies? What lies are we accepting as truth?

Here are some common lies we accept as truth: If we walk with God we will never go through trials. Lie!!! God doesn't care about me. Lie!!! I could never be forgiven for doing( you fill in the blank) Lie!!! Hell does not exist. Lie!!! All roads lead to God. Lie!!! If I am a good person and give to the poor I will go to heaven. Lie!!!

In reality there is truth. All people will go through trials. God does care. God does forgive us when we ask. Hell is real. There is one way to God, through Christ. A relationship with Christ and experiencing his forgiveness is the way to heaven.

We need to listen to the father and his Words. His Words are true!!! Don't believe the lies!!!

Heart of the other brother Part 12

I have been thinking about what to say about the older brother and there is certainly many things that can be said about him. Some would say he was bitter, angry, jealous, mean or self centered just to name a few. But has the son always been like this, I do not think so.

I choose to use another word to describe the son. Hurt.

Often when we look at other people and how they act or react we want to look at the action. I think it is much more important to look at what is happening under the surface that causes the reaction. What has caused the person to react in this way.

I think the older son offers some insight, especially if we really listen to what he says. He uses the word Look!(15.29), but I think he was really in his heart saying LISTEN! Here are his points: 1) I have been working hard for you
2) I never disobeyed you (I guess he is now though)
3) I don't feel like you've ever done anything special for me
4) I have not wasted everything
5) I deserve to be rewarded too.

I think the prodigals brother gets a bad rap, but isn't he reacting like most people do. I know of Christians who have expressed the same sentiments to God but maybe we just use different words. When we are hurt we react. In the heat of the moment we say things we wish we hadn't. The wonderful truth is that I can tell God exactly how I feel and He does not judge me for it. He would rather have me share than remain silent.

The reality is that God does listen to us. He hears what we say. He understands our frustration. He is forgiving. He does reward us for our faithfulness. He is patient with us.

Alive Part 11

A good friend has shared with me that when he was in the drug culture he was always seeking a new high. He did everything he could to score the next hit so he could feel that euphoria. He says that if he knew years ago, the "high" he now experiences from a relationship with God, he would have saved himself much grief and heartache. What he thought was living in fact brought him death. Today he is ALIVE!!!

ALIVE!!! ALIVE!!!

The prodigal returns home and is welcomed by his father. He is given the royal treatment. He is loved, accepted and brought into a place of peace and safety. Then his father declares a feast because his son "who was once dead is now alive."

The same power that brought life to Christ after he died for us, is the same power that brings life into the prodigal. He asked for forgiveness and it was done. He was now alive.

I feel like the son was dead emotionally, mentally, and spiritually. His life away from the father had caused him to live a life that was just an existance, it was not really living.

Many people complain about Christianity because it has so many "rules". They say I just want my freedom. Isn't it sad that so many want their freedom but it leads to bondage and death. Those who turn to Christ and what He desires for us actually find freedom and life.

Grace Part 10

The son has practiced the words, remember in (v. 18) he has rehearsed what he is going to say: "Father I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son: make me like one of your hired hands."

Now the time has come and he stands before his father and here are his words (v. 21): "Father I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son." He was not even able to get all the words out before his father has a different plan. It is not to make him like one of the hired hands, but to restore him as His son.

That is grace!!! Grace treats us in a way that we do not deserve to be treated. Grace is God offering us forgiveness even when we do not deserve it. Grace is hard to understand fully but wonderful to receive.

I believe that there are many people who feel that if they are going to start a relationship with Christ that they need to get "all cleaned up" first. Others who have had a relationship with Christ and walked away from Him feel that way as well. They need to understand grace and the heart of the Father. He accepts them just the way they are. He loves them. He wants them to come home first and then they can get cleaned up.

It is God's work to clean people up and make them aware of what they need to work on. It is our work to show people how to return to the Father. They will find peace and rest when they meet Grace.

The Compassionate Father Part 9

"While he(the son) was a long way off his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him, he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him." Luke 15:20

WOW!!! Is this really how our heavenly Father feels about us? Does he really have unconditional love? The answer is yes and yes!!!

Here is a son that took his inheritance, blew it all, had not made any effort to contact his father and yet he is welcomed home. In fact he is received with open arms before he even makes it all the way home.

I think there are times when we will welcome the prodigal home if they show obvious remorse for their actions, if they prove they have changed completely, if they guarantee they will never hurt us again, if they repay us for all the hurt they have caused us. Thank goodness this is not the heart of the heavenly Father.

What is the definition of compassion? Compassion is a sense of shared suffering, most often combined with a desire to alleviate or reduce the suffering.

As family or friends of prodigals we need to have that sense of shared suffering. One of the challenges prodigals feel is that they are all alone and no one can understand their broken heart, no one will help them work their way through the process of healing, and that they will not be forgiven. As Christians we have the privilege of listening, loving and leading people back to fellowship with Christ and families.

It is very encouraging to me to now that my heavenly father is so compassionate towards his children. He never stops loving those who serve Him and even those who don't. He wants that close relationship for all His creation. If you are the prodigal, God loves you!!! His message is "Come home, you are welcome here."

Self dialogue Part 8

After our family had returned from Czech Republic, I had a real struggle. I was torn between being in Canada and wanting to return to Czech to finish off some ministry commitments I had made. For a month, I would toss back and forth whether or not I was to return to Czech.

This battle raged in my mind and my heart for that month. My family thought I should stay home, and they were right, though I was unsure. I ended up booking a flight to Prague via Montreal. As the day approached for me to fly to Czech I became more insecure about going and had a mental battle brewing. One time of the day I knew what I needed to do and the next I was unsure.

Saturday came and I found myself on the flight to Montreal. As I was taxiing down the runway I knew I was making the wrong decision. I tried to find a peace that would allow me to contine on my way to Prague, but I could not find that peace. Whenever I thought about returning home I had peace,whenever my thoughts turned to following my own desires I was confused and unsettled. I finally made the decision to land in Montreal and then get the first flight home. I needed to do the right thing.

I can tell you that even after making the right decision my thoughts turned to questions like: What will the people in Czech think? What will my leaders think? Am I going to look weak by doing this? How could I be so stupid as to get on the flight to start with? Why didn't I listen to my family? and on it went. But in the midst of the questions at least I had peace.

I think the prodigal son had that inner dialogue as well. You know the wheel that keeps spinning in our heads that speaks to us. The dialogue we often do not share with others. I think for the prodigal son there must have been times on his long journey home where he rehearsed over and over what he would say, whether he would be accepted back, what people would say, and what if people knew how he wasted everything and so on.

For prodigals to return home to the father they need to understand that they will not be harassed, condemned, belittled or mocked. They need to be loved, accepted, encouraged and understood. After all they are humans just like you and I. We all make mistakes, we all have choices we wish we could change and we are all in need of being loved, accepted and welcomed home.

Coming to his senses Part 7

Have you ever been sound asleep and then the alarm wakes you from a deep sleep? You shake your head and can't believe that it is time to wake up and get moving. I remember being in a hotel room while I was in the gulf coast and had a wakeup call for 4:00 am in order to catch my flight. I had so many things going through my head as I tried to go to sleep. I wanted to fall asleep but it was tough. Then it seemed I had just fallen asleep when the wake up call came from the hotel operator.

Luke 15:17 talks about a wake up call for the son. It says 'When he came to his senses..." I know that there comes a time in our life where we can do the same things day in and day out, we just go through the motions and then we have a wake up call. Sometimes we have the "lightbulb" moment where we can see things from a new perspective. Sometimes someone says something to us which catches us off guard.

Often like the prodigal son, a person realizes their desperate need and asks oneself some serious questions and they realize the gravity of their situation. He makes the statement:" How many of my fathers hired men have food to spare, and here I am starving to death!"
I think there are other ways prodigals make their statement. Maybe it goes something like this: Why did I smoke that first joint?... Why did I take that first drink?... Didn't he say he loved me?... I didn't think my wife would ever find out about my affair!... I can't believe I was so stupid to trust her!... I didn't think she would get pregnant!... or you can fill in the statement.

At times life jolts people out of their fantasy world and into the reality world. They have to come to that place of realizing the desperateness of their situation. They can't keep running. They need to understand they are in need. They need to find a place of rest. They need to be able to get back on their feet. The need love and acceptance. And that is what the son is hoping to find as he sets out on the long journey home. Do you know any people who are in any these situations? Are we part of the solution?

Tomorrow I am going to speculate on what that journey home might have been like.

A deep longing in the heart Part 6

Deion Sanders wins the Super Bowl. Later that week he buys a $275,000 Lamborghini to celebrate, yet he is still not happy. Here is what he says in his testimony, "I hadn't even driven a mile before I realized, No, Thats not it. Thats not what I'm looking for. Its got to be something else, I'm so hungry."

Deion then goes on to share that he knew the Lord was calling him. He tried running from God. He tried everything, parties, women, buying expensive things. But he had no peace, no joy just emptiness inside. His conclusion was, " I could see that nothing could possibly satisfy the hunger that was deep inside of me." Deion then made a decision to follow Christ.

Doesn't this sound like the prodigal son. In Luke 15:15 we see the son in great need. He went and hired himself out and he ended up going to feed pigs. This was the ultimate low for a Jew. To go and work with the worst of the unclean animals. Isn't this human nature to turn to many other things before returning to the Father. I think we all know people who have tried everything they can think of before heading home.

Luke 15:16 says that "the prodigal had a longing in his stomach to eat the pods that pigs were given but no one gave him anything." I think the son was hungry, but not just for physical food. I believe that he had a hunger deep inside of him. The reality was that even if he could have eaten a couple of pods it would have been a temporary fix. The "bandaid over the bullet hole." He would not have been satisfied. There was to be only one answer that would work. Return home to the Father.

The more I work with people I see that they try to fill that empty, lonely place in their lives with things other than God. We could all make a list of some of those things. I feel if people really were to be open and talk about that deep hunger that is within, their needs would include some of the following: love, joy, peace, hope and forgiveness.

Let us continue to try and understand the heart of the prodigal and help the prodigals to make their way home. They will receive, love, joy, peace, hope and forgiveness from the heavenly father. Will they receive it from us or will they feel condemnation?

Now I have it,,,now I don't Part 5

The son got what he asked for. His inheritance was given to him because of the generosity of the Father. Off the son goes. He is really going to live now. No more rules. No more hard work. It is time to party and live it up. It is time to really live. At least that is what he had in mind in his short sited view. Luke 5:13

There are times when people want to get far away from God, their parents, responsibilty, the guidance of others and just do their own thing. That is what this son did. He set off for a distant country. Out of sight, out of mind...or so he thought. But we know he never left the mind of the father.

He was having the time of his life..for a while. He had all he needed to do his thing...for a while. He was the life of the party...for a while. He was the man...or was he.

We are not sure how long he was able to sustain this lifestyle but eventually reality set in. Luke 5:14 tells us about the famine, the money was long gone, and he was in need. I think the son had some questions he was asking himself: Where were all the friends I had partied with? Where were the girls who I had been sleeping with? Where has all my money gone? How could I have had so much and now I have so little? How am I going to make it?

I think all of us who have wandered away from God have had lots of questions go through our mind. Often those questions lead to self condemnation, guilt, fear and hopelessness.

Maybe we need to understand that we are human and that there truly is hope and peace and forgiveness. Even when everything is gone and all has been stripped away, God is still there. He is wanting to hear from us. He wants us to tell him exactly how we feel. His heart breaks for his lost children, even more than our earthly fathers.

There are words to a song, "I Need You More" by Integrity Music and Hosanna records which declare these words to God:
I need you more, more that yesterday, I need you more, more than words can say, I need you more than ever before, I need you now, I need you now."
Let this be your and my heartcry.

The heart of the Father Part 4

What is our heavenly Father like, what is His heart for His children? I think there are many things that can be said from this parable. I want to focus on a couple of characteristics I believe we can see.
Luke 5:12."He divided the property between them"... We do not know the full discussion that was had on the topic of giving the young son his "entitlement" but we can speculate on what that conversation was like. I feel I can do that because I can see from other scripture what God's heart is. Here are a couple of scriptures, John 3:17, "God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world" and Luke 19:10, " For the Son of Man came to seek and save the lost."

I believe that the Father in this parable did not have a condemning spirit. He loved His son. He knew that his son was probably going to blow everything. He knew his son was demanding and self centered. He knew his son would make mistakes. He also knew that he could not dictate everything that his son would do and he needed to allow him to have a free will and the freedom to choose.

Would the son have ever felt he could return home if he knew he would be condemned for what he was about to do? Are we going to allow others to make mistakes and maybe blow everything in their lives? If they do are we going to be there to provide them with a safe place to land? These are not easy things to do but I feel it does represent the heart of God.

As Christians we are to be the hands and feet of Christ. That means we need to have the heart of God. That heart should include one of forgiveness. We should not have a condemning spirit or attitude. We need to be praying for those who are away from the Father and helping where possible to seek out those who are lost and help them find their way back home. Home to the Father's arms.

The heart of the son Part 3

"Father give me my share of the estate". These are the words that introduce us to the young son in Luke 15:11-12. He sounds like: a demanding person who thinks that he has a right to things; the world owes him something; and he wants it now.

I think all of us have had that mindset from time mto time. Many times I have heard people telling God that they have rights. They have the right to drive a fancy car, they have the right to blow hundreds of dollars at the local bar, they have the right to have an adulterous affair... and on and on it goes.

I recently talked with a young man who shared that when he turned nineteen, it was his chance to go out and really live. He was now old enough to legally drink and he went out and got plastered. He bought drinks for everyone and ran up a tremendous bill. He thought that was what he had been denied and now he was entitled to party. He wanted that freedom now. Freedom came with a cost.

When I was a teenager and then as a young adult I often thought that I knew more than my parents or others in authority over me. I did things others said were not in my best interest, but afterall I knew best. The truth is that I have discovered the following: "The older I get the more I know I don't know."

I am not sure if this properly describes the young son but I think I might be close. I think he may have become the kind of person others did not really want to be around. The kind of person that is focused on me and what I want. Those are sometimes the toughest people to love.

Can you identify with this person? Are you this person? How do you and I love the "prodigals" in our lives? How do our churches create and environment where the prodigals are loved and accepted?

I think the answer to those last two questions is provided when we consider the heart of the father. I will talk about that tomorrow.

Prodigal part 2 Am I Lost?

When I was a teenager about age 17 or so, I went to church one evening and the atmosphere was different. A phone call had just come in to the church which indicated that one of the children in our church, Sarah age 8, was lost in the woods about 20 miles from the city. They asked for anyone who could come and join the search party to do so.

When we arrived on the scene there were many people getting instruction on how to conduct the search. There were also skilled people who were part of search and rescue and a dive team to check in the lake. They did not leave any rock unturned. The search was very thorough and lasted through the night. Each time a search team arrived back at the base the story was the same. No trace of Sarah at all.

I remember the raw emotions of the family as they dealt with this tragedy. The fear, the sadness and the hurt. I also remember the love of the parents and the hope and expectancy that Sarah would be found.

Almost 24 hours after Sarah disappeared she was found by a search team along an old dirt path. She had made freinds with some of the animals overnight and they kept her calm. I remember hearing the rumors and then the truth that Sarah was indeed found.

Everyone had the question, "how did she get lost?' She became lost as she headed just into the woods to pick flowers for her grandparents. She got turned around and walked away from their home and walked deeper into the woods.

I think this may be the same way that we get spiritually lost. We have good intentions and then we find ourselves one step further away from where we know we need to be. We then continue to take more steps that lead us away from that place of safety and God's open arms.

As Christians we need to be a part of the "search committee". There are people who are lost and we can play a part in helping that person find their way home to the loving Father. It takes an investment on our part.

Teaching series

In October of 2006, I taught a series on the prodigal son. It is a 15 part series and I am going to be posting it here over the next couple of weeks. I am doing this because I feel it represents the heart of the gospel and the heart of the Boaz ministry. I hope you enjoy it.

Eleven days ago our cat, Chip, left home for what seems to be his fall time, "get away from home." I think it is the fourth time he as done this, twice in the spring and twice in the fall. But this time it seemed different. Usually he goes away for a week and then shows up at the door, hungry and tired. Give him a day or so and he is right back to normal. You know how cats are.

While he was away this time for his extended trip (he had never been gone this long) I wondered if he would ever come back. Now I am not a cat lover, but I will confess each morning I got up and looked on the back deck to see if Chip had come home. Every morning I looked I thought well maybe this will be the time he never comes back.

Well at 5:00 this morning my prayers were answered, not really!!! I woke to hear a cat crying outside. I turned on the light and there he was, Chip had made the journey home. After 11 days away, in walks Chip. Of course you know how it works the first thing Chip does is run and jump into my arms and purr. Uh... no... the first thing Chip does is head for the food dish and the water. I guess cats are alot like people sometimes.

Chip then spent the next 30 minutes running from his food to our room to purr and get some TLC. He was not sure what he should do now. I think he was so worn out from being on the run, that he was confused as to what he should do and how he should act.

We do have other cats and you can guess their reaction. They did exactly what the brother did in the story of the prodigal. They hissed at Chip, they tried to swat him. They were not excited that the prodigal had returned. It was quite the scene at 5:30 in the morning.

In some ways Chip's saga is like the prodigal son. He left and he came back, unsure how he should act and looking for a soft place to land. A place where he would be accepted back with open arms. This is the message of the prodigal son. It is certainly not one of judgement or accusation, it is one of grace.

The message I want to share over the next few posts is one of grace. Maybe no one will read it and it will just be me sharing some thoughts, but I believe it will help me to better understand the heart of my heavenly father. His arms are wide open.

Advice to a teen

Yesterday at lunch I had the opportunity to share a pizza with a 16 year old young man that has been struggling greatly. He has been trying to make it on his own and has found that life is really hard. He knows that he needs to make good choices if his world is going to change so I really challenged him.

He had not been in school for the past day and a half and he was out riding around on his bike during that time. When I was discussing with him what he wanted in life he talked about a job he would desire. I spoke very directly to him and told him that if he wanted to have a job in the future that he needed to be in school now. I told him I would help him if he chose to get back in school, beginning yesterday afternoon.

We also talked about drinking, cigarettes and smoking weed. I asked him if he was doing any of those things and he told me he was smoking some. I asked him if he was willing to stop smoking and he said he would. I stressed to him that it was and is important to be willing to listen to the advice of those who are trying to help. He agreed to try and that is all I could ask for.

I really enjoyed meeting this young man. He is very smart and has somewhat of an understanding into what his situation is and the underlying things that have caused him to be where he is right now. I have great hope for him and look forward to seeing another young man succeed.

By the way, I got a text from him a couple of hours after we met and it said, "Thanks for talking with me today, it helped. Just want to let you know I am at school this afternoon."

God is using us in a mighty way. It is a blessing to serve Him through this ministry!!!

The blessing of giving

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jkgL3QuwXAY

I wanted to finish my third part of the videos on the story of Bo, she is the young lady that grew her hair to give it away to someone in need. She was being such a blessing to someone else, but she knows an important truth that we all need to discover.

What is that truth? It is simple, but the only way you can understand this truth is to do it yourself, you have to live it. Here it is: when you bless others, the person who receives the greatest blessing is you. Whenever you serve someone, whenever you go and do an act of service, whenever you give of yourself to help others you will be incredibly blessed yourself. You will never out bless yourself.

Today I had a wonderful conversation with a lady in need. She found it very difficult to ask for help, and admitted that she was trying to do things by herself and on her own. I decided to try and talk with her from a different angle. I said, "if you saw a neighbour in need, and you could do something to help, would you do it?" She answered "yes!". I asked her, "how would it make you feel to be able to help someone?" She answered, "it would feel great." I reminded her that one of the greatest joys in life we can have is to help others, and that she should allow others to bless her.

If you want to feel good, if you want to lay your head down at night and know that you are fulfilled, do an act of kindness for someone today. Not only will you feel good, but you will be a blessing and you will be truly blessed. On top of that you will be obeying God's command to love your neighbour as yourself.

I hope you can sense this in Bo's comments in this video.

How to really help people

As Christians we have a desire to see other people come in to a relationship with Christ because we know that when they truly know Him, He will change their lives. When they meet Him their spiritual needs are met and He gives them peace and hope.

My experience has been that in order to help a person come to that place of seeing their spiritual need being met, that we as people need to meet their physical needs first. Many people go through very difficult things in life and they need to know people really care before they want to open their hearts up to something greater.

How do we find those people that are in need? There are so many ways, but most people are found by talking with others or learning of needs. I have decided to take a new approach to try and find some of those needs. One of those areas is through kijiji a site were people buy and sell. There is a specific section that offers things for free, and a place where people are looking for things for free.

This afternoon I wrote to one of those people with things they are giving away for free and was able to pick up a single bed with a headboard. I also sent a reply to someone who was in need of some help to see if we could help meet a need. If we can help someone in need, we should do it? If God blesses us with free things, shouldn't we in turn bless others?

Most people in need of assistance have a hard time asking for help. I know I did!! We need to have eyes to look around and see what we can do.

My daughter the evangelist

Being a lighthouse for God

I went upstairs to talk to my daughter this afternoon and encourage her to get ready to go and visit her grandparents. She told me to wait a few minutes because she was talking online to a friend of hers that lives in Toronto.

She said that she was talking to him about God and how he needed to be sure that he was being taught the truth in life. He was sharing that someone had invited him to go to a "church" that in reality was a cult. My daughter was trying to explain that this was dangerous for him to do.

After our visit with my parents we came home and my daughter went upstairs to continue her conversation on line. She came down a few minutes later and told me that she was going to call her friend and talk to him. She wondered if I could help her to answer questions her friend might ask in case she got stumped.

She placed the call and she asked if she could put him on speaker phone, he thought that would be great. For the next 45 minutes the three of us had an amazing discussion about God, and truth and His love. It was awesome and I was so impressed that my daughter had such a heart to share her faith with her friend.

Her friend also shared that his dad is an alcoholic and that he wishes that his dad would be set free from alcohol. I had the privilege of praying for his dad and I told him that I would get others to pray for his dad to go and seek help. Please join with me in praying for Glen, that he would be released from the power of alcohol.

I loved to hear my little girl share her faith with a friend. I know it isn't fathers day, and that it is mothers day, but it was an amazing gift to me to hear her be bold for God. I will be praying for her friends salvation and that he would know the truth, because when we know the truth it will set us free. Please pray for Ryan.

Feeling helpless

Last night at about 11 o'clock I was made aware of a teen that was in need of help. I was talking to his older sister on the phone and she brought me up to speed on what was happening with her brother. I wanted to do so much more to help but there was nothing I could do at the time. She also wanted to do much more to help but she felt helpless. I look forward to the day we have a home to help these kids out.

I did get to talk with him on the phone for a couple of minutes and I reminded him that no matter what was happening in his life that he needed to make good choices right now. I asked him not to compound his situation by making a mistake he would regret later. He assured me he would not do anything stupid.

On a different note I had a wonderful discussion today with some other teens. We were discussing the challenges that some of their peers are facing. One of the girls said, "wow, do we ever live a sheltered life, we don't have any great problems and our lives are pretty easy." I am glad for them that their lives are that way. They were saddened to think that others have it so much different.

One of the other girls involved in the conversation realized that someone she goes to school with was having a really challenging time in his life. She had no idea. She wished she had known earlier as she may have had a more compassion for the person experiencing turmoil. I think it is so important that we spend time getting to know people and building trust. Once we do that we may understand their challenges and know why they act like they do.

Please pray for our teens and their families. Be thankful for what you have. Take time to listen to this generation of teens.

Tomorrow I will put up the last video regarding the donation of her hair to the IWK.

Crazy!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UcSzpxC8vc4

It is one thing to talk about what a great idea it would be to do something, but it is something different to follow through with it. Did you know that the world needs crazy people? We need people to do things that don't always make sense. There is a big difference between being crazy and stupid or senseless.

I was listening to a sermon today and the preacher was talking about God wanting to use crazy people. People who are not just satisfied with life and seeing things that need to change and doing nothing. People crazy enough to get involved in the lives of hurting people, People crazy enough to help the struggling person. People crazy enough to cut their hair short so someone else may benefit.

Are we crazy or are we safe? Are we willing to step out and do something so big for God, that if he doesn't intercede we will fall flat on our face? I think we need to be a little bit crazy sometimes.

Thanks Bo for following through with this crazy idea, to grow your hair long, have it cut and give it away. You are one crazy girl!!

Healthy relationships

I have been trying to load part two of the three part video on Bo`s donation of hair, but I am having some challenges, so we will try again tomorrow.

I had a wonderful conversation this morning with someone that I really care about. This young lady is going through some really rough waters in her life. I am careful to not use peoples names in my blogs and I will continue to do that because I think it is important to respect their privacy. It is unlikely that any of you would know her so I feel comfortable telling her story. I will call her Lilly for now, though it is not her real name.

Lilly grew up in a home where she was told that she would never amount to anything. She and her siblings were told that they were mistakes and that they were useless. Lilly`s parents were also very hot tempered and became very aggressive emotionally and physically towards her. She desired one thing growing up and that was to be loved and accepted by her parents.

It never happened and still has not happened to this day. Since that time she has been trying to find someone that could really love her. Unfortunately in that quest she has walked through some very tough times. Just when she thinks she is making progress she resorts back to this need for security and to be accepted.

How would you feel if you were in Lilly`s shoes, who would you turn to if you had no adult figure in your life that you felt you could talk to.

As we continued to talk Lilly said, I don`t think anyone should make judgement on someone else because they don`t know what that person has gone through in life.

As I was talking with this amazing young lady I was reminded of the story of Jesus and the woman caught in adultery. The people were judging her and wanted her to be torn apart, not just physically but in every way. Jesus told them to go ahead and throw the stones if they wanted to. He told them that the one in their midst who had never sinned should be the first to throw the stones.

You know the story, eventually everyone walked away because no one was holy enough to throw stones. Jesus was left with the woman and He asked her where her accusers were, and she replied that they were gone. Jesus said that he didn`t accuse her either. He was not condemning her! He simply asked that she change what she was doing in her life.

I want to encourage each of us to see others through Jesus eyes. I refuse to be part of the people who mock those in need. We need to start a revolution of compassion. Thank you Lilly for reminding me again today to seek to listen and understand. God Bless you my sister in Christ.

What can we offer

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttXfSMJDVNA

On the east coast of Canada we are blessed with the IWK Hospital. Their focus is to help sick children from across the Maritime provinces. Often these children are the sickest of the children in the region or they have experienced some kind of accident.

One of our advisory board members in Boaz, is Bo. She has a wonderful heart for God and for helping others. She made a decision some time ago to grow her hair long so she could cut it and donate her hair to children in need.

I wanted to document a little bit of the process Bo went through and what it meant to her to be able to give the gift of hair to a child that had been burned and is now unable to grow hair. What a special gift from a special person.

The first video and todays blog entry is a short interview with Bo and her husband Will just before she went in to give away her hair. Tomorrow's entry we will see Bo as she has her hair cut. Fridays entry will be an interview with Bo after she has completed the process and she shares her thoughts on giving.

Thank you Bo for being a willing vessel. I am sure your donation will make one little girl on this planet feel so much better to have beautiful hair.

"To the world you may be one person, but to one person you may be the world."

Update on Chinese Dinner

After a quick calculation we have confirmed having sold and commitments made for 60 of the tickets for our important fundraiser. That represents 40% of what we are hoping for. I am sure those numbers will rise as we get closer to the date.

How can you help? If you are thinking about going and haven't decided, I want to encourage you to join us. The food will be great, the fellowship outstanding and you will helping us to bless those in need in our city. You could buy a group of tickets for some friends, we will give a whole table for your group.

Boaz Ministry is committed to impacting our city and this nations youth by helping those who are hurt and rejected by society. They have been placed in hopeless and overwhelming situations and are in need of someone to come alongside them. We meet their physical needs by providing clothes, food and blankets just to name a few things.

Our future goals are to open a house here in our city for at risk teens and to begin a drop in center where teens can drop in for a warm bowl of soup or chili and have someone to talk to.

Come and be a part of this great night. Saturday May 15th @6:30 at First Wesleyan Church is the place to be. We sure hope to see you and your friends there. Tickets are just $15.

What does it take to operate a ministry?

This seems like a simple question, but it is more complex than it might seem. First and foremost I believe that you need to have a reason to exist. Our reason is to come alongside of hurting people, especially teens and young families.

Secondly, I believe that you need to have a vision or calling to do it. These are two different things as a person can have a vision for something but not have a calling to do it. On the other side a person can have a calling to be involved in a ministry but not have a vision for how God wants them to do things.

Most importantly it takes people. People to minister to and people to be involved in the ministry. They are the unsung heroes, people who work behind the scenes to make the ministry flow. They are people like board members, servants, cooks, supporters, prayers, encouragers, accountants and lawyers. They are so valuable.

To each of you I say thank you so much for your generosity. It would be wrong of me to name them by name as inevitably I would leave someone out. You people allow Boaz to be the ministry it is and is becoming. Together with Christ as our overall leader we will be an effective ministry.

Finally we need to be committed to pray for those in our care and for those who we serve or those who serve us.

"Lord I pray right now that you would richly bless all those associated with this ministry. I ask that you would meet their every need, that you would enrich their lives, that you would minister your healing balm to their families who are hurting. I ask that you would encourage their hearts and give them strength to continue serving you."

"Heavenly Father I would ask that you would show us how to proceed in this ministry. I plead the blood of Jesus over all those who come in contact with this ministry as helpers or those in need of assistance. I would ask that you would equip us and raise up those who have a heart to bless the fatherless. "

"Lord you are the head of this ministry, we are your servants. Help us to serve you well. Our desire is to hear you say to us, 'Well done good and faithful servants.'" Amen

The bully in the family

I love teaching my Sunday School class. I enjoy having discussions that challenge the way we look at things in life. Over the next few weeks we are looking at a book called "Mean Girls". It considers those around us that are mean, and in some ways abusive in their behavior. It gives helpful suggestions in how you should deal with the "mean people."

Most of the teens felt like no one in the class was really dealing with mean people in their lives. We did a survey of eight questions and the results showed that some of them are indeed being treated meanly by others at school. The interesting thing is that this discussion is not just aimed at schools but in families too. As we talked we began to understand that one of the easiest places to be mean to one another is in our own homes.

Some of the teens shared how they were that mean person. They have been the one that has done deliberate things to humiliate others at school, but they also have done the same things with their younger siblings at home. We came to the conclusion that what older siblings think as "fun" in pushing around their much younger siblings or making fun of them over and over is indeed mean. We began to see ourselves in a much different light.

I singled out one of our teens, singled her out for something positive. I have seen this young lady and the way she treats her younger sister that is 6 years younger. She loves her, talks to her politely and spends time with her little sister. She is very keen to treat her with respect.

I challenged all of our teens to think about how they are treating the people in their home. Do they treat the people in their home the same way they treat others at school or others in youth. I pray that God will help them where they fall short.

Cost of doing youth ministry

Today I was at the second day of our pastors conference and we were asked to talk about what we see for the future in our respective ministries. We were divided into small groups for this time. One very sweet lady was in our group, and she shared that her desire was to have youth in their church as she recognized that they are the future church and are also the present day church.

She asked the question, "How can I start a youth ministry in my church?" This is a difficult question to answer based on the fact that the church she attends only has six or seven families attending and they are all older people. I could sense her desire for this type of ministry as she shared that her own granddaughter who is 13 is already into some pretty destructive behaviors.

One of the other gentleman in our group was very helpful. He was a senior, probably in his mid sixties and he asked the question "is your church ready to pay the cost of having a youth ministry"? He explained what he meant when he said, "are your church members prepared to change your music in your church, are you ready to have some holes in your walls, are you prepared to understand the culture of teens"? Such good questions to consider.

The ladies response was also a blessing. She said "we have to decide if the cost of reaching our grandchildren is worth it, and the answer is yes!" I love her heart, but will she be able to convince her church that this is an important area to move in? Will she get the support of others? Will the church adjust their sales in order to reach out to teens in need and their families?

I want to be able to help her see the desire in her heart come into reality. I want to see her granddaughter, Kaitlyn, be set free from those who seek to tear her life apart. I want to be an instrument of encouragement to those who have a desire to reach this young generation of amazing people. I want to see these teens come into a vibrant and powerful relationship with Christ.