First Day of School for Romans 12 Academy

It's official! On this day, August 12, 2009, Romans 12 Academy has officially begun! This marks a new day in the life of our family. Julie has been preparing over the past several weeks for this day as we have decided to home school Alex(5th grade), Jonathan(3rd grade), and Caroline(1st grade). We awoke this morning to the smell of breakfast casserole! Alex said the blessing over the food and Jonathan and Caroline helped to set the table. At the table we talked about the irony of Romans 12 Academy and starting on Aug 12th! We didn't plan it that way but God worked it out. God works all things together for those who love him. As we finished breakfast and I left for the church, I prayed a prayer of blessing over the school and the start of a new school year.

As we begin down this road, our goal is to provide the very best Christian education that we can for our children. We believe that the Lord has led us in this direction and that he will see us through to completion. As in Romans 12, we believe that we are called to be transformed by the renewing of our minds...that is the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives daily. Through this process, we will know what God's will is and we will seek to please him by doing what he calls us to do.

Our children may not understand this right now but as we train them they will! We know that this journey will have it's own set of challenges but that's ok...we are expecting God to work in a powerful way this year! So pray for us as we answer the call of God to lead our family in this direction.

Thoughts on...Giving God the Glory

The phrase "Glory to God" or "Give God the glory" is often used as a way to acknowledge the rightful place of God's involvement in something we have just experienced. For instance, you may hear, "The worship service was powerful"..."Give God the glory" is the response. It's a way to praise God for revealing Himself to us in such a way. But it's not the only way to give God the glory. Acknowledgement that God should get the glory for something He has done, while important, has long been used as a way to sound spiritual in front of others or as a way to impress God. While it might convince others that it is used in earnest, God will not be mocked and cannot be fooled. I wonder what God thinks of a person who proclaims all glory to God with the mouth but not with the lifestyle? It defeats the purpose of giving God the glory for some great experience being witnessed when there is lack of trust in God's glory to be revealed through obedience.
Obedience is the key ingredient to bring glory to God! Since the beginning of time, God has been glorified through the obedience of His creation, human beings. And since the beginning of time human beings have struggled to give God the glory with an obedient lifestyle. The very reason we exist is because God designed our relationship with Him to bring Him glory. If our God-assigned purpose for living on Earth is to bring Him glory then we must recognize living a life NOT glorifying to Him is a disobedient life. If we are living in disobedience to God, we cannot bring Him glory even if we say it with our mouths. Saying it with the mouth is not he same as saying with our hearts. The one that says with the mouth, "Glory to God" is the one who really did not have faith in God that He could do such a thing and was simply amazed but not changed. Are you living as one amazed by God or are you living as one changed by God? The one who says with the heart, "Glory to God" is the one who has surrendered EVERYTHING to God and is changed by the glory revealed through the power of the blood shed on the cross of Jesus Christ! The death of Christ on the cross is all that God needs in order to change your life for His glory.
Anyone who lives to glorify God through an obedient lifestyle does so because of the power of God to transform their life daily into the image of God. An obedient lifestyle means living by this principle...If I am about to do something that does NOT bring glory to God, I should NOT do it. Because anything that brings God glory is obedience, and anything that does not bring God glory is disobedience. Obedience brings us close to God, and disobedience separates us from God. For example, does drinking alcohol bring glory to God? There is nothing at all that brings glory to God when a person drinks alcohol. Therefore, drinking alcohol is disobedience to God. Disobedience to God shows that a person trusts something else rather than God to sustain their life.
The only remedy for disobedience is faith and repentance in Jesus Christ. And God has a wealth of forgiveness ready to pour out on anyone who will confess and believe in giving God the glory!Are you ready to not only give God glory with your mouth but with your heart as well?

Just Some Thoughts on...."God Bless You"

I am constantly thinking about things that God has reminded me of lately. One thing is his desire to bless his children and his desire for us to want him to bless us. In the DR this summer, it was important to say "God bless you!" to the people. They wanted us to say it to them. They have a strong desire for God to bless their lives everyday. To them, it's more than just something nice to say at the end of a conversation. It shows the importance of speaking a blessing into someone's life. My friends in the DR have reminded me that no matter how much or how little you have, asking God to bless you as often as possible should rank supreme and should be all that we depend on to supply our needs. For me, I have realized that no matter how much I am able to do for myself and others, unless I truly and genuinely seek God's blessing, it will never be what it could have been without God. I might have the ablility to do many things well but I cannot afford to just operate on my own power apart from the Holy Spirit guiding all I do. When I operate outside of the Holy Spirit guiding me, two things happen. I am not nearly as affective, and secondly, it would be easy for me to take the glory for it rather than give the glory to God. We all know that God deserves all glory and honor and praise! But for some reason we have lost the willingness to verbalize it in everyday conversations. We have relied on our own power and in turn been rendered inaffective at accomplishing God's will and try to take the credit for something that is not even working...how stupid can such intelligent people be? Don't we realize how spiritually poor we have settle into being while at the mention of God's blessing, we invite the power to move mountains? We were created to give God the glory with our lives' and when our lifestyle is all for his glory, God's blessing will flow through , in and out of us witnessed by everyone who hears our heart say "God bless you"!

Starting a Mentoring Relationship

If you have never began a mentoring relationship, it can be pretty difficult to know how to start and know where to begin. I suggest that you begin by looking at your walk with the Lord first. You will never be able to take anyone any further than you are willing to go. The depth and success of mentoring depends on how deep the mentor is willing to grow. Anyone who desires to mentor must be growing consistently closer to Jesus and not be living a lifestyle inconsistent with the truth found in God's Word.
The first place to start is with prayer. I encourage anyone who is interested in being a mentor to first ask God to show you a name of a person. After you have prayed and God has led you to the person or persons you believe you should mentor, consider arranging a meeting with them to find out if they would be intersted in that kind of relationship. It could take a week or a month but be patience and God will lead you if you are doing his will.
In my experience, those I believe God has led me to, God has already prepared and they willingly accepted. If the relationship is not mutual then start over.
After the relationship is agreed upon, discuss the conditions such as meeting times and duration of mentorship. It could last from 6 months and longer depending on the situation. The relationship will likely change in time so be willing to adjust accordingly.
I like to meet weekly or monthly. The circumstances of the mentee may dictate how often you meet. Again be flexible and willing to adjust schedules.
Recently, I encouraged a person desiring to mentor to begin this way. But I also encourage this person to seek my advice about the names before a meeting is arranged first since I may have knowledge about who is being mentored already.
In this way, I play a role called multiplying mentorships. In a way, I am able to guide and advice the mentors as they mentor. So rather than just having a couple of mentees, I have mentors as my mentees. In this role, I am able to help them as they journey down the path with their mentees.
In my own life, I have a mentor but I also have mentees. A mentor should always have someone in their life that challenges or strengthens them, and someone that they can challenge or strengthen.

The Mentoring Movement has begun!

As a result of my last blog and a brief conversation with a friend who believes in mentoring the generations, I realized one thing.....mentoring is not just a program. There are many programs out there that do a great job of placing people in relationships in order to facilitate a mentoring relationship.
But I believe it can be something much bigger, much more impacting in the world. That's why I am calling for the Mentoring Movement to begin. In my world...it already has but this is bigger that me. I am calling all those who desire to mentor the generations to follow this blog and make comments about your mentoring relationships.
This is how it should look. One adult select three students of same gender and begin meeting for the purpose of meningful discipleship that leads to spiritual maturity and the desire to lead others to an authentic walk with Christ. Meetings are to last for one hour and meet weekly or monthly for six months. In your meetings access needs, overcome obsticles, establish goals, and set up action plans.
I look forward to hearing from those who enter into the world of mentorships. Remember, this is one investment that will payoff!
My next blog will be about how my relationships are going and how I am multiplying the mentoring process.

Mentoring the Younger Generation: UP..The Movie

As a way to celebrate the end of the school year, Julie and I decided to take our kids to a movie. We had been waiting for the new Disney movie called UP to be released so that is what we agreed upon. Without giving to much of the movie away...UP is about the journey of a man who spends his entire life in the pursuit of one dream, and in the process he learns a valuable lesson. He forms an unlikely relationship that reverses the old man's mindset. At the end of the movie, the old man does something he never dreamed he could do.... step out of the past in order to change the future.

One of the greatest needs of all the needs in our nation is for adults to step out and be willing to change the future. Somehow we have lost sight of the a necessary component in the Bible: mentoring. We are told in the Old Testament and New Testament to train the young so that they will have faith in the Lord. Parents have left youth ministers, clubs, schools, and organizations to devise programs for mentoring. While it is a great idea for these groups to come along side of parents, nothing can replace the parent as the primary spiritual developer of students.

I believe one of the reasons young people graduate from church when they graduate from high school is because they have not had a significant adult relationship to help mold and shape appropreiate decisions and actions. They have not been held accountable.

If we are to see a change in future generations, we must be intentional about forming mentoring relationships that hold students accountable. It takes letting go of our dreams and investing in the future of our faith. It means seeing the dreams of our young people and partnering with them until it comes true.

Like the movie, UP, as well as in the Bible, our future will depend on our willingness to do all we can to partner with students. They need adults to lead and cherish being with them in everyday situations. Young people need adults to intentionally disciple them so that students are prepared to disciple the next generation after them.
We have allowed the generational gaps to exist for far too long. As a result of the generational gaps, students who have been discipled are nearly extinct. In order to prevent extinction of discipled students, we must bridge the gap with intentional discipleship.
So how does the gap begin to close? I believe every adult should seek to be discipled themselves so they are equipped to invest into students' lives. Discipleship requires time with God, consistently applying godly principles, and selling out to the heart of God. So get discipleship for yourself now and prevent extinction of discipled students in the process!

What is a Jabbok Anyway?

The title of my blog may cause you to ask, "What is a Jabbok anyway?" It's taken from the Jabbok River mentioned in Genesis 32. The Jabbok River is known as the location where Jacob wrestled with God and was forever changed from the all night encounter. The river itself is known to be swift and to flow deep.





So, it is my desire to create a blog that leads people to an encounter with God that runs swift and deep into every part of life.




John 7:37-- Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him."

For Jesus to stand up meant that he was calling attention to a special mesage. In Jesus' time, it was common for the speaker to sit down unlike today. So in this instance everyone knew that Jesus was about to do something exceptional.


What strikes me most is the simplicity of Jesus. Just imagine being in the very presence of Jesus, the Son of God as he says the words "come to me". The offer from the King of kings is open to anyone! What would the world look like if they knew it was that simple? It is simply a matter of realizing that what we truly need can only come from Jesus and then let Him consume our life.


I have found that the most amazing thing happens when a person actually becomes consumed with living for Jesus Christ. They have a daily unquenchable desire for more because they know that they have experienced something that they cannot find anywhere else. It is as simple as being consumed and consuming all you can in a passionate pursuit of all things excellent in the cause of Christ.


Something else that stands out to me is the clarity of Jesus. He says in a loud voice, "drink". He is ready to pour into our lives as much as we will recieve. It's not a matter of finding the source or searching for some hidden treasure. He has already come to us. The fact is, we are to drink from the wealth of God's Word over and over and over! When is the last time you asked the Lord to fill you until streams of living water flowed from within you?


Then, consider the transparency of Jesus. Without hesitation or fear of rejection, Jesus claimed to be deity, varified the work of the Trinity, and revealed the result of faith in him. Jesus is the only source. The mention of "streams of living water" is a reference to the work of the Holy Spirit. And when we tap into the source continually, an abundance of the Holy Spirit will flow from us into the lives of others.


Romans 1:16 states, "I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile." The power is being transparent in the gospel message so that all who hear may believe and drink of the living water.


When we are willing to simply and clearly be transparent with this message, the purity and cleansing work of the Holy Spirit will infiltrate every part of life and cause a change in our lives that can only be the result of the all-consuming power Jesus Christ!