I spent the morning praying with a group of leaders from “One by One Leadership” in Immokalee; Reed, John, Dave, Dick, Sinclair, and Pastor Andre from Haiti. The heart for the area is strong and the desire is to practically meet the tangible needs of the community. How to accomplish this is a concerted effort between the churches of the community, the Ave Maria community and University, and the resources of the Naples area. Collier county consists of one of the wealthiest communities in the country; wealth in both dollars and experience. I am awed at the talent and success that is collected here. Immokalee is also home to a relatively large Casino owned and operated by the local Seminole tribe. The local population includes a smaller population of land owners and farmers in addition to the migrant communities. Yet the pressing need from the perspective of a Pregnancy Medical Clinic CEO is the absence of medical care for pregnant woman. PP will be present pushing their agenda but isn’t it a tremendous opportunity to demonstrate the compassion and care that God’s people provide. A recent visitor to the local Pregnancy Center summed it up this way: “ I can’t have a baby now, I already have 3 and I can’t put shoes on their feet.” In response a nearby church ended their Sunday service by instructing the congregation to leave their shoes at the door as they left the service. Hundreds of shoes were collected and distributed in Immokalee. I heard they were all gone within a couple of hours. What about you?  Will you be part of a team that brings help to those in need? Let me know.

Immokalee FL, A Mission Ministry Opportunity

God has been amazing during this mission trip to Immokalee. We had a great response from the banquet. Cindi and I met with Dave, Diane and 2 of their leadership team members for about 3 hours on Saturday to help them plan for their future. Today I will be headed to Immokalee to pray with a number of those who minister in the community. Immokalee is a migrant community with groups of African Americans, Haitians, Latinos, Guatemalans, etc. It reminds me of some of the places in Mexico, the Carribean and Africa that I have visited before.  There are parts of the community that resemble a 3rd world country right here in Florida. The needs are great especially since the tomato and orange crops have been hit hard with frost this spring. There isn't much work for those that are here and there are a number of Haitian refugees on their way. Pregnant women don't have access to basic pre-natal care and little OB care as well. The clinics that take Medicaid are in Naples, Ft. Meyers and Miami, all of which are too far away to walk to. Planned Parenthood is here and most believe that chemical abortion is as well. As this ministry builds it's "street cred" by serving faithfully, they could use short term medical teams here at least once a month doing nothing but pregnancy verification, STI testing, pre-natal exams and vitamins as well as follow up post partum and limited pediatric care. They have an ultra sound but no one to operate it. Pray with me that God will raise up teams from existing PMC's to send short term teams here for a week at a time. A team a month would be a great start.

How many mouths are you trying to feed?

The end of the year has finally arrived. Later today the staff of BRWC will gather together and share ministry stories that occurred this year. As we prepare for a new year, we want to begin it in the spirit of gratitude and thanksgiving. Before Jesus fed the 5000 with those five loaves and two fish, he lifted them up to Father and gave thanks. I don’t know about your specific situation today but I am pretty confident that many of you are facing some pretty overwhelming situations as we launch into a new year. Think about it for a minute. Jesus was facing an overwhelming situation: thousands of hungry mouths and only one lunch to feed them with. You know how the story goes, though. Jesus knew that Father wanted to feed them…and if Father wants it to happen, it happens.

We face impossible situations every day and I am finally to the point where I welcome that. I have finally concluded that I would rather be in a situation that is impossible without God than in a situation that is possible because of my own abilities and strength. I find both in my life regularly (you probably do as well) and I love it when God shows up—especially when the situation is impossible if he doesn’t.

As we budget and plan for 2010 I tend to focus on what we need and what we don’t have rather than on the heart of Father. Will we have enough volunteers? Will we have enough money? Will we have a favorable political climate? Will there be enough to go around? My tendency is to look at all the hungry mouths that need to be fed. Is that your tendency as well?

Would you join with me this New Year as I change my view from the hungry mouths to the Father who loves us beyond measure? Let’s lift up all that we have today and ask Him to bless it and use it as he sees fit. I’d love to hear your comments and thoughts on this subject

Father doesn’t need to punish his child for being disobedient

Father doesn’t need to punish his child for being disobedient; the real time result of being disobedient is punishment enough.

If I were to climb to the top of the office roof and jump off, I would experience the consequences of my decision almost immediately. The roof is 3 stories up, about 25 feet from the ground. Ouch! I am fully aware of the principle of gravity. I also know that Jesus is the author and sustainer of that principle. Scripture tells me that he created all things and he holds all things together. I could have prayed that God would suspend gravity for a couple minutes while I jumped off so I could float to the ground gently and avoid pain and injury. I could have prayed all the way down as well. Father, through the Spirit was reminding me of the effects of gravity while I stood on the edge of the roof. He reminded me of them on the way down. He will remind me of them as we spend some time together in the E.R. Upon landing, Father does not say, “I’m going to send him to the woodshed for this.” Instead, he tells me that he loves me and that he is pained by my pain. He lets me know that he will put me back together and in time, he will encourage others not to jump off buildings with my story. Father uses our recovery times to draw us closer to him…closer so that we can hear him more clearly and learn that he desires to lead us along a narrow path…the narrow path. People who disobey Father’s instruction is nothing new to him; it has been happening since the first ones were created. All of us are disobedient regularly and some of us daily. Knowing Father’s heart helps me to understand that the outcomes of my actions provide an opportunity for me to draw closer to him.

"I will make you as white (clean) as the snow"

"Four women......Three with their husbands and one with her mother and father, sat quietly and nervously as the service began. It was supposed to be a celebration...a time to rejoice over the lives of their children. Their journey,begun some eight weeks earlier,was one filled with ups and downs, laughter and tears, fear and courage, loneliness and the amazing discovery of “never-aloneness.” The hurt, loss, they had hidden in their souls years earlier had been revealed...The secret had been surrendered. I watched them all cry, some with a depth of emotion that caused them to tremble. They all spoke of their journey and the way that Father had revealed himself to them along the way. Each one of them had heard Father speak directly to their hearts…they heard him say,“I love you, I always have and I always will.” As I anointed them with the oil of gladness I looked deeply into their eyes. They were full of joy and glimmered through the tears. As I prayed, I heard Father say, “do you see how clean snow really is?” I do know something about snow. Living in Michigan, snow was a major part of my life for over 12 years. But I had never seen snow that white, that clean before. As we ended our time of celebration I charged their men to find the same forgiveness and healing for the secrets in their souls......so that they too could know that Father’s heart is turned absolutely to his children. That is, after all, the Father’s heart."

Father doesn’t reject me because I am disobedient to him.

He looks at my disobedience as an opportunity to build me up. After all, he knew I would be disobedient before I was.

Many of you have fathers that turn their back to you whenever you disappoint them or are disobedient to them. We seem to learn early on that acceptance in the “real world” requires compliance and living up to someone else’s expectations. It continues in marriage and then we model it to our children and the cycle starts all over. Fortunately that isn’t the way of the Father regardless of what you have been taught in Sunday school, church, or bible study. Our Father knows when you are going to be disobedient before you ever are. He offered Jesus for forgiveness of that disobedience before you ever lived it out. Father is the one who is with us always and never leaves us…no matter what. When we are disobedient to him, he knows that the good to come from it will be our change…our conforming to the image of Jesus; if we will allow it.

Obedience to Father simply keeps you on the pathway that he has set before you; it is a momentary decision.

Obedience to Father simply keeps you on the pathway that he has set before you; it is a momentary decision that keeps you close to the one who loves you.

I tend to think of obedience in terms of the long run. If I can be moving in the general direction of obedience to Father, over time I should come out alright. Wrong thinking! Obedience is about the now…the immediate. As I walk with Father he is constantly showing me the pace and direction he is traveling. I must learn to move with him in obedience to the moment. I cannot do that if I think that my relationship with him is dependent upon the few minutes I spend with him at the start of the day. I must learn to walk with him attentively all 1440 minutes of every day. Doing so allows him to adjust my pace and direction. Throw out the books on prayer that tell you to spend more time at the beginning of the day. Grasp the concept of being in constant communication with Father.