Do Not Have Time to think of a Title

Alright, since my last posting title was “No Time,” I could not think of a different title to show how busy everything is. I’m sorry if that first sentence made no sense at all.

Last week’s theme was “Because He is worthy, we cannot be silent.” It was a week truly devoted to sharing how unbelievable God’s grace is on the boardwalk and wherever else we have been. The week was great. It ended with a huge party at our house where we invited friends from work and what not for dinner. One of the coolest things to see was how the body truly has to work together. It is seen various times in scriptures how there are different parts to the body (1 Corinthians 12:12-31). I had the opportunity to invite a guy that I work with at the golf course. The only thing that stood in the way of myself sharing with him was that he could only speak Spanish. However, it was so cool to see that he would accept our humble invitation. Think about how difficult that would be to go into a place and really not know anyone that knows your language. Anyways, our friend from work came to the party and I started to realize there was a few people who knew Spanish extremely well. It was incredible to see the love the people on this project poured into him. One girl even had the opportunity to explain to him how to have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ in Spanish. How great is our God!!! Another person on project invited a friend from work. The friend came and so did that person’s deaf friend. Luckily, there was a person on project who knew sign language. The body of Christ is unstoppable.

A huge thing God has been putting on my heart is my responsibility to tell people I can actually communicate with the gospel. God has given me the ability to speak English, so it is my responsibility to communicate with those of the same language.

While still on the topic of work. My last day at work is this coming Tuesday. Only four full days of work left. Can you believe it!?! I look back at my experience at Greate Bay Golf Course and leave fully satisfied. I have had the incredible opportunity of sharing the experience with two other guys that are here on project. The relationships I have developed with Drew Stevenson and Erik Kuhn are truly God-centered. This past week, we were able to share the full gospel and reality of those that do not believe with our bosses. It was a convicting time but at the same time good. I look back at the last few months at work and can say to myself that “I left it all on the floor.” What that means is that God gave us three guys the ability to share with every single one of our co-workers that spoke English. Let all the glory go to the One that deserves it!

I am extremely sad to leave the golf course. My bosses have been incredible. Not once this entire summer has my boss raised his voice in disappointment or anger. He is a cool, calm guy who works hard. He is just so encouraging. Often times throughout the day, our bosses will just come tell us how great of a job we are doing. It is such an incredible environment. We three want to work harder for our boss just because of his attitude. He is such an example for my life in my faith and leadership. He does not freak out and stays in control. His daily encouragement and care for us is contagious. Often times we go through life not encouraging each other. He has been an example of the opposite.

Speaking of encouragement, this week’s theme is: “Because He is Worthy, We show real love.” The week’s focus is on showing love to the people around us and to experience the fellowship that God has provided for us. It has been an incredible week just encouraging people and building them up in their faith. One of the biggest things I have been learning is the true importance of fellowship between believers along with our fellowship between Jesus. In 1 John 4:12 it states how “No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.” While this statement may not make sense to those who have yet to entrust their life to Christ, it should be an awakening experience for those who have. Seriously take one minute to think about that verse right now. You guys, we are the essence of God’s love to the rest of the earth. No one can physically see God’s true love, but we have the ability as believers to express that to the world. Wow, how that has hit me hard this week. So many times my speech is sarcastic, discouraging, or just plain bad. My actions often have selfish intentions. What is your life like? How is your speech? Can people see God’s love in your fellowship with other believers? God’s love is not discouraging. While it is tough to admit, sarcasm is usually negative. When was the last time you personally complemented or encouraged another believer? I challenge you and myself to live a life that reflects the love of God to the world.

Over the past two weeks, I have also been learning of how short my life here on earth truly is. The average life span for an individual is 74 years old. It was incredible, because last Sunday, I had the opportunity to hear two incredible sermons on our life. The first one was at church by a guest pastor from Yonkers, NY. He talked about the shortness of our lives what we should do because of it. The second talk was by Brendan Manning. Manning is a relatively famous author and former priest. He talked about how great God’s grace and love is for everyone. The things we do here on earth will last an eternity. The Bible is a reality. There will be people that go to Heaven, and others who will unfortunately go to Hell. What are you doing to make a difference? Are you personally getting into the game of sharing your faith? Or are you satisfied with just supporting missionaries? Do not get me wrong, God calls us to support those who give their lives to share the gospel, but are you still standing on the sidelines of evangelism? People are dieing everyday without hearing the incredible Good News, who is responsible for that? Who is responsible for that person that works in the cubicle next to you? Who is responsible for the person that cuts your hair? Who is responsible for the person sitting next to you on an airplane? Next time you see a person you know who is not a believer, ask whose responsibility it is to let that person know the Good News. Supporting a missionary in India is not going to reach that person! Now do not get me wrong, I struggle with this daily. It is difficult for me to talk to my friends about the amazing news. However, I have to know that it is not me that is talking and it is not me they are rejecting. I will never be able to convince anyone that the Gospel is right and true. The talking, acceptance, and convicting is entirely done by our amazing guide, the Holy Spirit.

I know this blog has been long and maybe a bit winded. There is just so much more I want to share with all of you. I cannot believe in less than two week I will be home. Not that that is a bad thing, but I may never see some of these people until I get to Heaven. While that is a sad thing, eternally, I cannot wait to see them in Heaven. At the same time, I am convicted of the many people I know that will not be there. What am I doing? Do I not love them just as much?