Hearing God's voice

I have had some amazing experiences over the past few years and almost all of them have come as a result of following God's leading in my life. I try very hard to position myself so that God can speak to me. When He speaks I try and be obedient to His voice.

Last night I was sitting at home after spending some quality time with God. I had been in His presence asking Him for wisdom in many areas of my life. As I sat there I felt like the Lord direct me to go downtown and go to a drop in center for adults. I was not sure why I was going there except I felt very strongly that God was asking me to do this.

I arrived at the drop in center and sat at a picnic table outside. Immediately I noticed that a number of people there were not adults. In fact there were a number of teens present. I waited on God for what I was supposed to do and then I knew what to do. A girl that used to be in my youth ministry walked in to the area. She did not recognize me.

I called out to her and she looked at me perplexed. She moved closer and then she said, "Scott, is that really you?" I told her it was and asked her to sit down and talk. She and her two friends came by and we talked. I discovered that her world has completely fallen apart. She is in rough shape, one of those teens Boaz was created to minister to.

I also got to talk to a number of other at risk teens that were "hanging around" looking for some food. I was able to talk with six different people who would be our target group for this ministry. I feel like some seeds were sown for Boaz and more importantly for God.

The next surprise for me was seeing the girl from my youth ministries mom. She was there and I said hello to her. She didn't recognize me either. We began to talk and she shared how difficult life had been for her and her daughter. She also told me that just a few weeks before her daughter had said, "I wish I could talk to Scott again because he is someone I trust and would talk with." I assured her mom that we could make this happen.

I say all this to remind myself and others to follow His leading. If we don't we might miss out on a blessing from Him.

"I Love You"

"Jerry and I during one of our crazy times together"

"I love you" are three words that really speak to a persons heart, especially if they know we are serious. If they sense they are just words it will not have that effect.

Today I had the chance to meet with the young man named Jerry I have talked much about. We have had great days together over the last couple of years and we have had some very hard days during that time. No days have been harder than the last week.

As we were talking I reminded him how much I still believed in him. I reminded him that we still were praying for him and that he was a great guy who needed some help. He finds that hard to believe but it is truth.

Many people have heard about Jerry's situation and a few have suggested that we walk away from Jerry and let him sort everything out on his own. I respectfully disagree! Maybe not respectfully, I guess. I have reiterated that I will never give up on him. I have told people that my heart would never allow for that. Why? Because HOPE IS RISING!

I loved sitting and talking with Jerry today. I loved to hear him share how he wants to be successful. I loved reading his journal where he writes those thoughts down that he has a hard time expressing in words. I loved buying him a soda and chatting with him. I loved helping him work through some of his questions. Why? Because I love him and HOPE IS RISING!

I finished our time together by giving Jerry a hug and telling him those three simple words, "I love you." Why, because I want Jerry to know that HOPE IS RISING!

Will you please join me in praying for Jerry and others like him. Pray for a young man named Noah. Pray for a young lady named Amanda. Pray for...

Why? When we pray for people and ask God to show us his heart for them, no matter what they have done we can love them. We can love them because we can see them through His eyes. That gives me hope.

Family supper

There are days in every family that are bittersweet, today in our family that was the case. We had our entire family together tonight which was great. Why did we get together? My son and his wife are moving to a new province to begin the next chapter in their lives. My son is going back to school and this is the last time we will see them for a while.

It is very difficult sometimes to see your children leave. I am blessed that my son is leaving and we have open communication. We know for many families that is not the case at all. Families separate and never talk to each other. Children are left out of the picture as parents move on with their lives and children are forgotten.

I want to encourage you to spend time with your families. We need to forgive other peoples shortcomings. We need to try to find the good in others, and I know sometimes that is hard to do.

I want to challenge each of you who read this blog to do something else too. I challenge you this week to take a look around you and see if there is someone that you cross paths with that has no family around them. Maybe it is a university student that has made their way here and has left family behind. Maybe it is the young person that comes to your church. Maybe it is an older person who has no family or at least has no family that ever takes time to visit. Maybe it is your own son or daughter! (Now that is a tough one)

We all need to feel like we have people around us that truly care. If you have family, love them and don't take them for granted. They won't always be in your life.

My final word is to parents. Spend time with your kids. Get to know them. Communicate with them. Love them, they are a gift from your Father in Heaven.

Confirmation

After I had published my blog earlier, I was directed to this devotional through my twitter account: It was written by Rick Warren of Saddleback Church.

If you wait for perfect conditions, you will never get anything done. Ecclesiastes 11:4 (NLT)

"God expects you to do what you can, with what you have, wherever you are."

Real servants do their best with what they have. Servants don't make excuses, procrastinate, or wait for better circumstances. Servants never say, "One of these days" or "When the time is right." They just do what needs to be done.

The Bible says, "If you wait for perfect conditions, you will never get anything done" (Ecclesiastes 11:4 NLT).

God expects you to do what you can, with what you have, wherever you are. Less-than-perfect service is always better than the best intention.

One reason many people never serve is that they fear they are not good enough to serve. They have believed the lie that serving God is only for superstars. Some churches have fostered this myth by making "excellence" an idol, which makes people of average talent hesitant to get involved.

You may have heard it said, "If it can't be done with excellence, don't do it." Well, Jesus never said that! The truth is, almost everything we do is done poorly when we first start doing it — that's how we learn.

At Saddleback Church, we practice the "good enough" principle: It doesn't have to be perfect for God to use and bless it. We would rather involve thousands of regular folks in ministry than have a perfect church run by a few elites.

It is time! Are you ready?

I am reading an amazing book, written so simply but has some simple profound truth in it. I borrowed it from a friend so I can't underline in it, but if I could I would have lots of yellow highlights.

One of those lines from the book entitled "Goodbye Generation" is this: "There is something that happens when you spend time with people who are living their faith. I love spending time with the people who are doing what everyone else talks about doing." Do you catch that? Do you see the difference?

Thats me! I want to spend time with people who not only believe by faith in something but are willing to put that faith into action. I get so encouraged when I see people taking risks for God, risks that are born out of time spent with God.

I also want Boaz Lighthouse International Ministries Inc to be a ministry that inspires others to take risks for Him. I want this ministry to be defined by God's intervention. I want others to see that without His intervention (that comes from His leading), we would surely fail.

What does this mean? It is time for this ministry to launch out by faith into that which he has called us. It is time for us to find a place in this city to be a place to meet struggling teens. It is time to find and trust Him for His provision for a shelter. It is time to find a home to serve as our first Boaz home. It is time for us to find that couple willing to serve as surrogate parents in our home. It is time to receive his financial blessing. It is time!!!!

I am excited in my spirit as I trust God in moving us from talk to action. We have made an impact already, but we have only caught a glimpse of what He has in store for us. Please join with me in prayer, believing for God's miraculous provision.

God is good!!!

Take it to the next level

It has been almost a year since the Boaz Ministry was launched and it is time to take Boaz to the next level. It is time to really focus on what this ministry was created for. The question is how do we do that?

As I have taken some time to reflect over the last few days I am convinced more than ever that this ministry needs a home for at risk kids. We need that place where we can bring in troubled teens and give them that opportunity to be rebuilt and reestablished.

Last night I woke up and felt the nudging of God to push into deeper waters. I believe it is time for us to find a home to be used and to get the financing in place. I believe we either need to buy a home or we need to build it. Do we have the resources in place right now to do either of those things, the answer is no. But, I believe by faith that God will surely provide.

God has blessed me with a place to go on an almost daily basis where I can reflect and dream about the future for this ministry. I had a conversation today with a couple while I was in "that place." They suggested that they wanted Boaz to have a house soon. They went on to say that it was possible that there home would be a good place for Boaz, and that they may be willing to sell their home to us in order to do so. Is this the home for us? I am not sure but I am certainly going to pray.

They have recently had a "prophetic word" spoken over them that their home was going to be used as a place where hurting people would be loved. I believe that God still speaks prophetically and I want my heart to be open to receive.

What does all this mean? I believe it is a confirmation that we need to move this ministry to a new level. We need to refocus on what this ministry is all about. This ministry was started from a quickening in my heart and a prophetic word spoken. I have this same feeling in my heart today as I write.

I am ready to take this next step!

The ups and downs of working with teens

I have been reading a book written to youth pastors and those who work with teens on a regular basis. Within the first couple of paragraphs the writer talks about this type of ministry, expressing that some of his greatest joy comes from working with teens. Conversely he shares that some of his greatest pain has come from working with teens.

I could relate to this today. First the painful part. Today was the day when we had to go to Jerry, the young man we had helped to place in a home just two months ago and tell him that he could no longer live there. He had chosen to break the most basic of rules his adopted family had set up for him. He broke this repeatedly and after many warnings the decision had to be made.

I love this kid and still do. We explained it to him lovingly and helped him to understand why we had come to this place. We reminded him that we were not giving up on him and that we were still committed to helping him. I took him out for supper and reiterated that we were not giving up or abandoning him, that we were still there for him. Pray for him as he has some tough days ahead. He does have a place to go and we will continue to monitor his situation very closely.

Upon arriving home from dropping him off to his place to stay I laid down and received a message from another teen. This time the conversation was incredible. This young lady shared with me how excited she was that she had just had an amazing conversation with her dad. She had been able to have a heart to heart talk with her dad, one that was long overdue.

We had been praying for this breakthrough for some time now and it was such a blessing to see the overwhelming joy she had from connecting with her dad. I told her how proud I was of her for having the courage to share her heart with her dad.

I am reminded that in youth ministry and in this ministry to hurting teens that there are going to be days of victories and days of pain. I hope there is less of the latter, but even in them I am going to continue to have hope. After all HOPE IS RISING!!!

The ups and downs of working with teens

I have been reading a book written to youth pastors and those who work with teens on a regular basis. Within the first couple of paragraphs the writer talks about this type of ministry, expressing that some of his greatest joy comes from working with teens. Conversely he shares that some of his greatest pain has come from working with teens.

I could relate to this today. First the painful part. Today was the day when we had to go to Jerry, the young man we had helped to place in a home just two months ago and tell him that he could no longer live there. He had chosen to break the most basic of rules his adopted family had set up for him. He broke this repeatedly and after many warnings the decision had to be made.

I love this kid and still do. We explained it to him lovingly and helped him to understand why we had come to this place. We reminded him that we were not giving up on him and that we were still committed to helping him. I took him out for supper and reiterated that we were not giving up or abandoning him, that we were still there for him. Pray for him as he has some tough days ahead. He does have a place to go and we will continue to monitor his situation very closely.

Upon arriving home from dropping him off to his place to stay I laid down and received a message from another teen. This time the conversation was incredible. This young lady shared with me how excited she was that she had just had an amazing conversation with her dad. She had been able to have a heart to heart talk with her dad, one that was long overdue.

We had been praying for this breakthrough for some time now and it was such a blessing to see the overwhelming joy she had from connecting with her dad. I told her how proud I was of her for having the courage to share her heart with her dad.

I am reminded that in youth ministry and in this ministry to hurting teens that there are going to be days of victories and days of pain. I hope there is less of the latter, but even in them I am going to continue to have hope. After all HOPE IS RISING!!!

Ministering in the Dominican

My friend Harolin

Those who know me know that I have a heart for the people of Dominican Republic. I have this passion for the people because of a seed for this nation God placed in my heart 18 years ago.

Well today I was able to minister there again. I didn't do it by flying there this time, though I will be going back again soon. I was able to minister through facebook.

While in DR in July I met an amazing 18 year old girl named Harolin, who served as one of our translators. She was such a blessing and many of us have kept in contact with her. Today I asked her a question I have asked many teens before, "how can I pray for you today?" She shared how I could pray for her, she asked me to pray for "God's blessing on her as she wants to do something amazing for Him, for spiritual strength for her on a daily basis, and for a Godly man to love her and treat her well."

I was able to encourage her and pray for her and then we had about a 45 minute discussion about dating and God's perspective on it. I reminded her how beautiful she was and how God viewed her and that He had a great plan for her life.

It was refreshing to be able to share with Harolin. I invite you to join me in praying for this remarkable young lady whose greatest desire is to honor God with her life.

Hope is Rising

I am sitting in my favorite cafe and thinking about what to write and how to put it into the proper words. I guess the best way for me to put things is that my heart is sad today.

I know that all of us have days when our hearts our sad. If this was the final answer to our situations in life it would be devastating. As Christians we know that there is someone that can take our sadness and turn it into joy. The reason is that we always have hope.

One of my favorite bands is Downhere, a Canadian group who have done very well. (Iwould encourage you to listen to their music) They have a song that is called "Hope is Rising", and here are some of the words in that song:

Ive lost all my earthly optimism

that its all gonna be alright

that the good will win this fight

somewhere between youth and disappointment

the dream became dispare

the love became a lie

just now I've reached the end of my line

just now im too tired to keep on trying

hope

it is rising

its a sunrise

from me

hope

it is rising

and its breathing

for me again

I hope today that you can see hope rising in the situations of your life.

2 Cor 4:1, 16-18...And so, since God has given us this wonderful ministry, we never give up...

That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying our spirit is being renewed day by day. For our present troubles are quite small and won't last very long. Yet they produce an immeasurably great glory that will last forever. So we don't look at the troubles we can see right now, rather we look forward to what we have not yet seen. For the troubles we see will soon be over, but the joys to come will last forever. (NLT)

Back to blogging

One of the amazing teens I met in Dominican

Wow I cant believe that it has been almost seven weeks since I have written anything on the Boaz blog site. It is time to get back to it!

There have been so many incredible things that have happened over the last few weeks. Some of those highlights included a powerful mission trip to the Dominican Republic, an amazing week at SoulFest 2010 in New Hampshire and some much needed downtime.

As I look back over the past year, I have noticed some changes. One of the biggest changes for me personally is the launching of this ministry. It was about this time last year when God began a process of change in my heart that ultimately led me to this ministry.

It has been challenging to get this ministry launched. I feel like we have made some great strides but we have so far to go. There have been times this year when I truly wondered if we would ever achieve what God had placed on my heart. Sometimes I still wonder.

Over my last few days of "vacation" I have been trying to reflect on what this ministry is for, what is its purpose. I keep coming back to that one thing. Boaz exists to bring hope to hurting teens. It is that simple. Our mission has got to be to identify broken, confused, lost and unloved teens and help them to find there way. It is not easy and it is painful to see those who are so desperate.

I still believe that God desires for us to have a home, a shelter and a drop in center for teens. I still believe we are to meet teens and build relationships with them and help them to find their way. My prayer is that the Lord will keep me on focus, to not lose sight of the vision and to trust Him.

Boaz is His ministry! I trust Him! Lord send us and help us find those broken teens who are in need of your love and acceptance.