First day of camp

We had 40 kids out to soccer camp this morning and they seemed to have a great time. They learned some basic soccer skills and then got to play some games. They also had the opportunity to hear about God's love in very simple ways, which is what the children need.

The children were really good eaters too. They ate lots of "pasketti" and sauce, and went through lots of cookies. I was glad we could feed the kids as long as they were hungry.

In the afternoon we headed out of town to work and scrub at a camp for children. These kids would normally not be able to go to camp because their parents either are incarcerated or are disadvantaged in some way. Lots of floors were mopped and swept, windows were cleaned, and kitchens and bedrooms were scrubbed down completely. It was great to serve in this way.

The Meeting Place drop in was where we spent our evening. The mission team had an amazing time hanging out with those in our city that are often overlooked. They rode their unicycles and did some magic tricks for the folks and then settled in to play some board games. It was simple ministry but great fun.

Mission team arrived from Tennessee

I am so excited for this coming week of ministry as we have a mission team of teenagers from the state of Tennessee. They are here until Friday ministering to children through soccer camps and sharing God's love through many other avenues.

I make it a point for each mission team that comes in to ask them the question, "What do you hope to achieve this week?" I was thrilled to hear 11-13 year old kids talk about their desire to teach soccer skills to the children and to also share God's love with them. I am looking forward to seeing these things happen.

It looks like we will have close to 40 kids at soccer camp. They range in ages from 4-12 and we will be feeding them snacks and providing lunch each day for the kids too. Each child that comes to camp will be given a soccer ball as well as other amazing gifts. It is going to be an incredibly memorable week for these kids.

We would appreciate your prayers this week. Our ministry is committed to reaching these young children and their families with His love. If you want to swing by and see all the excitement we are talking about, stop by in the mornings at First Wesleyan Church between 9:30-12:30.

Early start this morning

I know we have all had the experience of waking up early and feeling wide awake. I don't mean like the teenagers who have just finished school and wake up at 11 in the morning and can't get back to sleep. I am talking about the 5 am kind.

I had this experience early today. I laid in bed wondering what I should do. I finally decided to make the most of it by going for a walk and praying. I love this time of day, I was the only one out walking and it was just me and God. I was able to have an uninterrupted time with Him and I was so blessed.

At the end of my walk I had a chance to have a great conversation with a friend of mine who shared some of the challenges going on in his life. I was able to leave that conversation and then pray for these shared needs.

I would like to make 5 am my new wake up time, but in order to do that I need to get to bed before midnight. It will be quite a change for me as I am more of a night person. I guess it comes down to discipline in my life.

In order to achieve anything great in life we have to have that personal discipline. The reward of that discipline is knowing that I have done my best and that I have walked out my personal goals. I want to do my best in all I do. It takes time and commitment but like anything of value it is worth it.

Is there anything God is asking you to have more discipline in? Maybe it is praying or reading God's Word, maybe it is exercising, maybe it is spending more time with family. Whatever it is, ask God to help you do it, and then do it!!! It will be rewarding.

You never know who you impact

Last night I had the chance to do something very special. I was invited to be the guest speaker at a street level church service. It is basically a once a month evening service for people who either live on the street or are struggling to survive.

When I went there I had planned to share my testimony, but during the worship time I felt like I was supposed to talk about bitterness. I have been working my way through the Book of Ruth and I was impressed by the Lord to share from the first Chapter of that wonderful book. I tied in a bit of my story of how God helped me to overcome that bitterness in my own life.

After I was finished one of the guys walked up to me. Many of you have probably seen him. He has long hair and has tattoos all over his face. He has a number of symbols and many crosses that are very visible. Most people when they see him will walk the other way. Anyways, back to the story I was telling.

Andy came up to me and said, "I remember you. I used to come in to a store you worked at years ago. I was the kid with the spiked blond hair." I tried to remember him because he was obviously talking about me and the place I worked at. He continued, "I remember you because you were always so nice to me and my dad when we came into the store". Wow!!! Who would have thought that someone would remember that you treated them well over 20 years ago.

It was a great reminder to treat people well. I am glad this is the memory he has of me. I am happy that his memory of me wasn't that I had been a big jerk or rude to him or his dad.

My memory of Andy will be great too. I will remember how nicely he talked to me last night. It was a blessing I did not expect. I look forward to treating Andy well in the future!!

Throwing a party

I recently completed a teaching on the Prodigal son and how he returned home and his father threw him a party. I think that we as Christians ought to have many more parties, we should find reasons to have parties to celebrate victories.

Recently the Chicago Black Hawks won the Stanley Cup. A few days after the big victory the city of Chicago had a victory parade as the championship players were given front stage. The only reason they had this big party was to celebrate something incredible.

Today we threw a party. It was a reason to celebrate. We celebrated the return to this city of a young man who has had an incredibly tough past year. We wanted to recognize him and let him know that we think he is a special young man and that we appreciate and believe in him. That should be enough reason to celebrate right.

I get tired of listening to the local news and reading the local newspaper. If you listen to the first 20 minutes of any news show the focus is on negative things. It features stories about people being killed, horrific accidents, a teen doing something wrong, a disaster of some kind. I know it is reality, but what if we focused on celebrating and reporting the good. Some say that wouldn't sell, but I can tell you I would buy something that focused on positive and amazing things being done in the name of love here in our city, province, nation and world.

Here is what the front page of the newspaper should read, "Teenager blessed by God as family adopts him into their family, welcome party followed!!!".

Lots of fun

I just had a great night at my house hanging out with three teens in my youth ministry. It was so much fun to have Kaitlyn, Kurtis and Jerry over and just spend time together laughing and being crazy.

I want to always provide a place for teens to come and hang out on a Friday night. I want to provide a safe environment where they don't have to be surrounded by the wrong crowd. It was so great to hear them talk about how much fun they had.

I thought it would be good to show a few of the pictures we took as we decided it would be our "gangsta night". Hope they make you laugh as much as they made us.

It is especially a blessing to see Jerry having a great time, surrounded by people that have the same values as he desires in his life. He is loving his new home and his friends that he was separated from this past year.

Worry, what is the opposite of it?

I have been doing a lot of praying lately about our upcoming soccer camp, VBS and mini-olympic camps that we have coming up in the next few weeks in Fredericton. I have been concerned that we wont have enough kids in attendance.

I am not a person that generally worries about things. I feel like worry is the opposite of trust. It is not me that I trust in, it is God that I trust in. I believe that if I spend time in his presence and share what is on my heart with Him, that I can trust Him. He has proved Himself to be very trustworthy.

I don't make my plans on my own and then tell God that He needs to bless me. I try to spend time with Him to know His heart and then step out and trust Him. Just last week I was talking with a lady that introduced me to a friend of hers. She talked about how I was the kind of Christian that had great faith.

I do have great faith, but not in me. It is in Him!!! If I know He is asking me to do something and I am willing to trust Him, I guess that makes me a person of great faith. I can say with conviction that the best way to walk in faith is to spend time with God and seek His face. When we understand God's plans and what he has for us, great things can happen. The question is will we step out in faith or are we worried we will not succeed.

Oh by the way, we still have more openings for our upcoming programs. Here are the dates and times:

June 28-30 from 9:30-12:30 Soccer Camp at First Wesleyan Church

July 5-7 from 9:00-12:00 VBS at Morning Gate Church

July 5-6 from 1:30-4:00 Mini Olympics at First Wesleyan Church

These events are geared towards 4-11 year olds. They are open to all kids not just kids from the host churches. We are not trying to build these churches, we are focused on reaching kids and these are the buildings we are using.

Join me in praying that God raises up many children for these outreaches. I believe that God can make a great impact on their lives!!

More in our city

I am a walker and I enjoy walking downtown. I have noticed that there are a lot more teenagers in our city since the new weather has arrived. I would guess that many of them are not from Fredericton but have arrived here from outside our city.

There are some of these folks that look pretty helpless. They also look hopeless. I see a lot of heads that are hung low and not making eye contact. I wonder how many of these teens are "trying to live the life." For some it might be an adventure but for others it may be a very scary place to be.

I am going to try and make it my goal to talk to some of these folks. I want to understand who they are and where they come from. I want to find out if there are things that they might need or families that they may need to reconnect with. It is more than just a vain curiosity, I want to know if I can bless them in some way.

I saw one young man tonight that was sitting on the street corner playing his guitar. He had his guitar bag out to collect some money in case people wanted to assist. I never stopped to talk to him, but I did pray for him. Next time I have the chance I am going to stop and chat.

It is time to get our youth drop in center up and running. I hope we will do that very soon.

New attittude

It has been a great last two days. I had the privilege along with Boaz ministry to go to Miramichi this Saturday and pick up Jerry and bring him back to Fredericton. Jerry has spent the past two days at our house, and what a blessing it has been.

I will not go into the details of any of the conversations we have had over these past few hours together, but I can say that Jerry has a wonderful perspective on what God has taught him over these last few months. It has also been very evident that God has protected him from potentially damaging circumstances.

I have been reminded as we talked of how God has answered my prayers and the prayers of others for Jerry. If you ever wonder if prayer changes things, I can say with certainty that God has moved incredibly to help this young man.

If you have people in your life that you feel like giving up on, I want to say don't. I also believe that God wants us to not worry and stress over them either. I feel that we can best invest in their lives by lifting them before the King of Kings, the Lord of Lords, and the Redeemer of humanity.

I have noticed a new and humbler attitude in this young man. I am constantly reminded of the prodigal son, and the Father's heart. This prodigal has come home. It is time to celebrate because this son, is alive!!!

Change is not always easy

As you will notice I have a new background for the blog. Some people will like it and some people won't. That's life, whenever a person does something new, some like it and some don't.

Change is one of those really hard things for people to accept. Even if the changes are for the better some want to be able to keep things the same. Thats the way we have always done it, or it has worked that way for years, why change it?, are popular refrains. If we don't adapt, we will lag behind.

We can see it in churches, when they try to change and adapt to youth they run in to tremendous opposition. I recently met a man who told me a church in town was falling a part because they spent too much time on youth. He told me of all the people that left this church because of the music, and he told me those same people were much happier at their new church because the music was what the old folks liked.

The next day I met a man from the church that received all these older minded folks, he was in his sixties. He did not know about this chance conversation I had the previous day. He said to me that they had a big problem in their church because they had no youth, they just had older people with old music. He said if we don't change we wont have a church in 15 years. He is right!! You see there is no benefit to our next generations if we demand to have things our way.

Why do I talk about change? Because we have a family that is going to have their dynamics change greatly. Whenever you bring a new person into a home there will be challenges. There will be changes for the person coming into the home too. People come with different backgrounds and experiences and they need to be able to work through these with love and patience. I am excited for these changes for this family. We need to pray that the transition goes well!

So here is the question: Are we so stuck in our ways that we are not open to doing God's work in new ways? We don't have to change the gospel message, we do need to change the way we deliver the message! If we don't, we will lose the next generation.

Thoughts...

Joy in his voice

I have been so blessed the last two days to have my good friend Jerry calling me. Why have I been blessed you might ask? Because I finally hear joy in his voice and not hopelessness. It is simply amazing.

I have driven to Miramichi a number of times over the past year. Every time except for one I have had to drive home saddened. The one time I wasn't sad is when I was there to take Jerry to SoulFest last summer. This weekend though I am so excited to be heading north.

This time I get to drive Jerry back to the place where I knew he needed to be. A place where he is going to be treated with respect and feel the genuine love of a family. He knows that too. He is going to experience what all people want to experience the love and acceptance of a family.

I am so thankful that God has provided this miracle. I know Jerry is rejoicing and that is why he has a joy in his voice, and I bet a skip in his step.

Meeting of the minds

As I sit here at Triniteas Cup on Regent Street, I am very excited. Why?

I just met with a young couple who are stepping out into ministry and have a desire for many of the same things we do. They have a desire to honor God with their lives and to see kids with challenging circumstances be given a chance in life.

I met with this couple after I received an email asking for help in bringing in volunteers to help at Bar None Camp. This camp is run in the summer for children whose parents are either incarcerated or have been, or their parents are dealing with addiction. They shared that they want to be able to connect with these children after camp and invest in them.

I shared our desire to be involved in the lives of at risk teens and also in the lives of families in need of intervention. I shared our desire to have a drop in center for teens here in our city. They then shared that God has been speaking to them about the same thing. They have a desire to have a drop in center where kids can come to and get out of their regular environment and have a safe place to go.

I have a couple of mission teams coming to Fredericton over the next five weeks. I have been praying and asking the Lord to give us a good work project that would really assist a ministry in need of a little teenage enthusiasm. I feel like this is a good place for us to go. So, once during each of the mission teams week we will be going to help out at their camp.

I am grateful that God puts new people before us that share the same vision. I am reminded of the scripture in Jeremiah 29:11-13 which talks of the plan God has for us, and that it is good. It tells us that we need to seek God with all our heart and when we do we will find Him.

It always amazes me that when we pray God moves. Sometimes we need to be patient and allow the Lord to reveal exactly what He has for us to do. Thanks God for your networking of brothers and sisters in Christ.

What is a redeemer?

As you know the name of this ministry is Boaz Lighthouse International Ministries, Inc. The shortened version is Boaz Ministries. Where does this name Boaz come from you might ask?

Boaz was a man in the Book of Ruth in the Old Testament that served as a kinsman redeemer. It was his privilege to redeem Ruth and her mother Naomi. Once they were redeemed they had their lives back and they would be provided for and be accepted into the family.

There are some verses that talk about redemption in God's Word. Let me share just a couple, as I want to be able to help us understand what a redeemer does.

Isaiah 43:1 But now, O Jacob, listen to the Lord who created you. O Israel, the one who formed you says,“Do not be afraid, for I have ransomed you. I have called you by name; you are mine.

Think of it this way. When a person is kidnapped and held ransom, money is demanded in order to release that person. When the ransom is paid the prisoner is set free. Well there are teens who are being held captive emotionally, spiritually and in other ways. God can redeem them, He has already paid the price for their freedom. The Boaz ministry is focused on helping people find their freedom.

Job 19: 25 Job declares this: I know that me Redeemer lives and that in the end he will stand upon the earth.

I know you know the story of Job, a man who seemingly lost everything and he was writhing in pain. It seemed that no one cared for him. In the midst of his pain he makes this declaration. He understands his only hope is to be redeemed by the redeemer. The Boaz Ministry will reach out to those who feel like all hope is gone.

Finally, this verse in Ezekiel 34:16 is beautiful: The Lord says, “I will search for the lost and bring back the strays, I will bind up the injured and strengthen the weak.”

This is God's heart, the redeemers heart. It is also the heart of Boaz. We will seek out the lost and weary and bring them back from despair. We will help those who are hurting and we will strengthen those who feel week.

I just wanted to remind you of what a redeemer does and why this ministry is named Boaz. This ministry is one of redemption. Christ has already paid their and our price and he has ransomed them.

Back on track

While I was out walking this morning I observed a man and his dog. The dog would sit at his owners feet and stay there waiting for his master to throw him a frisbee. Once the owner threw the frisbee the dog would take off to get that frisbee. He would get it in his mouth and then look for his master. I watched this happen over and over and was reminded of something.

There are times when I need to just sit at my masters feet. Other times he sends me out to do his work, but I must never forget to return to the master. The master will always be there for me, the question is will I get side tracked with my tasks and become preoccupied with them instead of the master.

This a short thought for today, but it is one I thought about for the rest of my walk. It is funny how God can speak to us. I guess if we are open to Him, He will speak to us.

Falling through the floor

I was in the Gulf Coast after hurricane Katrina and we were helping out homeowners who had suffered tremendous loss. Some had their entire homes destroyed and others suffered lots of water damage as they had six to eight feet of water in their homes.

One homeowner asked if we could come and help him out, and we went to see him and his home. Upon our inspection of his home we noticed that all the floor boards had been severely weakened and were rotting from the water damage. We told him that if we were to help him that we would need to replace the floorboards as someone might fall through.

He disagreed and said we were just trying to create more work and expense for him. We countered with the fact that we were not charging him any money, as we never did for others and that we were there as volunteers. He just thought we were overreacting. We showed him where the floor was especially weak and again he disagreed.

He walked over to the place to prove he was right and then he disappeared. He disappeared right through the floor boards. We could only see him from the waste up. As he stood there looking at us sheepishly he agreed that it was time to repair the boards.

Why do I tell this story? Because sometimes we need to listen to the counsel of others. The Word of God tells us that we should seek wisdom. So whether you are a teen that needs to listen to the counsel of trusted adults or you are an adult that needs to know what to do in a situation, seek advice from those who have your best interest at heart.

If you do so, maybe you will prevent yourself from falling!!

Upcoming camp for kids

We have a couple of upcoming events for children that I want to make people aware of. These events are for all kids and we specifically want to include children who may not be able to attend camp otherwise.

June 28-30th we are hosting a soccer camp for kids. This event will take place at First Wesleyan Church in the morning of each of these days. It will be an opportunity for kids to learn some soccer skills and at the same time learn about God.

July 5th and 6th in the afternoon at First Wesleyan Church we are hosting the "Mini Olympics". It will be an exciting couple of days for kids to participate in different activities. We will be giving out some fun prizes and doing some fun challenges. They will also learn about God through this time.

Finally we are hosting a VBS the mornings of July 5-7th at Morning Gate Church. From 9-12 each morning kids between the age of 4-11 will be invited to join us for a great time of fun and food. Gotta love both of those and as always VBS is focused on children learning about God.

If you know of kids who may be interested in attending or may need an invitation to come please let them know. I am reminded of the scripture that says, "train up a child in the way they should go, and when they are old they won't depart from it." Jesus also told his disciples to "bring the little children to me."

Lets make a difference and help those who may need a little encouragement.

Intimacy with God

Have you ever wanted to have a really intimate and deep relationship with God? Have you ever wondered what it would take? There is an answer but I will share my thoughts momentarily.

This morning I woke up and headed out for my walk. As I walk, I pray, it is a great time to do both. It seemed that my theme for the morning was intimacy. I prayed that those who don't have families would find someone that would care for them deeply. I prayed for teens that have broken relationships with parents that they would develop close relationships with them. I prayed for those who come to my youth group that they might know Christ intimately. I prayed for my family that we would have times of intimate talks.

Many times when we think of the word intimacy we think of sexuality, but that is not what I am talking about. I am referring to close and committed relationships.

I am reading a book that talks about intimacy with people and that the more committed we are to people the greater chance for intimacy. In other words as people become deeply committed to another person and show their care and concern that relationship will grow deeper. That could be with a friend, a family member or with someone you fall in love with.

So back to my original question, how do we develop that intimate relationship with God? We need to be committed to spend time with Him, to know His heart. We need to invest in that relationship. I can never go deeper with God unless I am willing to make Him a priority. How intimate do you want to be with Him? I want all that he has for me.

I hope this makes sense!