Brent Dongell's Page

And if they will perish, let them perish with our arms about their knees, imploring them to stay.

2011-10-05T12:49:00.001-04:00

If sinners will go to hell, at least let them leap to hell over our bodies. And if they will perish, let them perish with our arms about their knees, imploring them to stay. If hell must be filled, at least let it be filled in the teeth of our exertions, and let not one go there unwarned or unprayed for.
Charles H. Spurgeon

Don't fake it til you make it, live it til you make it.

2011-09-27T11:52:00.003-04:00

Don't fake it til you make it, live it til you make it.
too often people get burnt in prosperity teaching trying to fake it until they are tired of putting on the smile anymore. Proclaim it, but trust and live it so that whether it comes now or in heaven, you will make it.

Love this Thought

2011-09-25T16:01:00.001-04:00

"The successful will perish but the Lord is my portion forever." Psalm 73

Always Complainers

2011-09-19T11:35:00.002-04:00

We can't be "Always Complainers" as Christians. The religious leaders are finally having Jesus crucified after going through a whole 3 year ordeal and night/day process to convince Pilate to kill Jesus. Even after its decided he's going to be killed, the religious leaders are STILL complaining... over a SIGN!!! They are finally getting everything they said they wanted and yet they still complained and wanted more. Don't be that guy or girl in the church and out in the world who is an Always Complainer, it's not Christlike.

Are you going to hang out with Jesus if there are smelly sick people around all the time?

2011-08-25T17:28:00.003-04:00

Are you going to hang out with Jesus if there are smelly sick people around all the time?
That's my question for Christians after reading today. They were always being brought to Jesus as i am reading so you couldn't be stuck on being high profile and high maintenance and hangout with Jesus all the time. But often that is how we ask God for our lives to look. Do we have a double standard in our lives sometimes?

Danger of Christians

2011-07-05T00:23:00.002-04:00

I have had the privilege of growing up in the church and being a Christian most of my life. There are so many life changing amazing things that God does in our lives, but we can also become unaware of the common weakness and blindspots that can also appear.

We can forget to focus on the unseen and only focus on what is seen/temporary and begin to act as the blind if we are not careful

1 Jn 2:15-17

These are some Bad habits we can sink into:

1. Skipping over Scriptures

a. Memorization Mumble- mumble through words to get to a point

b. Skim- Skim the verses in a book to get to what the author has to say

c. Danger: Not Reflecting on the Living Words of God you have heard to allow His words to change and speak to you in a new way

2. Believing but not heeding Scripture

a. Pride- We have heard it and already know what it says

b. Bad assumption: that "since we have heard, we are living it out" when a lot of times we have heard but not fully changed and obey what we have heard

3. Putting Extra Guilt/ Rules on Christianity that God never did

a. We Often turn God’s Tools into Rules (Bible, prayer, church, etc.)

4. Forgetting the Purpose of what We Do

a. Church/Read/Pray/etc. We get to MEET with JESUS!

b. The Powerful Mystery of Prayer.

c. Loss of Perspective can lead to being Guilt Driven or blind instead of appreciative of serving opportunities.

This is not a criticism of all Christianity, this is a reflection to make sure we are aware of potential blindspots.

Questions about American Life Pt. 5 of 5

2011-07-03T08:35:00.005-04:00

I love living in America and so thankful to call this place home, but i know no place or people is perfect, so here are some of my questions after living with less for a week.

Need vs. Wants
needs- something necessary to have an acceptable quality of life.
wants- something good but unnecessary to have an acceptable quality of life.

I do struggle at times with what we call needs in our culture or at least with what the media wants us to belief are needs. Computers/nice cell phones/TV/own car/insurance/nice makeup/etc. Our society and jobs can almost force these things to be needs, but in no way are they directly necessary to having a better "quality of life." They are wants they market as needs so that we buy them and feel like we can't live without them. It is not that these things are not good and that we can't consider them a blessing to be thankful for, but i do wonder

At what point do the goods become a Trap instead of a Blessing?
I personally like the simplicity of less technology instead of more even though i use it a lot. So it was hard for me to see people wanting to get back to their phones and facebook even before we had left Jamaica as though it was their lifeline to survival. I know it is good to want to be in others lives, but it is almost like we have made it a necessity to be able to reach each other at any time and to be able to keep up and know what everyone's doing at all times through text, twitter, and fb newsfeeds. But i constantly wonder when does this become a distraction and more noise to keep us from God? it also makes me think that we may be

Convenience Spoiled.
Once again as you saw in my previous post, i am very thankful for convenience. At the same time, I think our American culture is constantly elevating convenience and worldly security to a higher and sometimes completely unhealthy need when it is really a luxury or want. We have to have a TV & cable in our house even though it would be cheaper going to a friends or restaurant when i wanted to watch something. We have to be able to track or be able to contact our kids everywhere for their own safety even though kids have continued to survive for thousands of years compared to our 20 years of cell phones being around. We have to have a cell phone instead of a land line because if people can't reach us, how will survive (see last sentence). Which brings me to my next question,

Are We Security Consumed?
One I struggle with sometimes is insurance. I don't think those houses in Jamaica have insurance on them. I am not sure about the cars. I don't think the families in Jamaica have insurance for their family. yet the culture continues on. Yes, on the opposite end i didn't get to see but i heard the hospitals were a place to be avoided and that our team walked away so thankful for what we do have, so don't get me wrong. I'm so thankful on some level for our system. But i still have to ask in my head, Is all the different insurances i pay for really necessary and are all the ways we want to protect our kids and families necessary? or are they also luxuries and wants that we have convinced or trapped ourselves into believe are necessities we stress over rather than luxuries to leave behind or be extra thankful for?

Thankful Jamaica Recap Pt. 4 of 5

2011-07-02T17:40:00.008-04:00

Me and the team actually get to share more of this on Sunday at the DeWitt campus service, but this was the list of things i am thankful for that i started to compile with a few others while I was overseas:
Thankful for:

My own personal car- they can be lucky to have a family car, if not just taxi $, let alone each individual in the family owning a car
Money to get to school and eat
Parents who made Access to education (taxi's/uniform) possible
Pastors able to be themselves- Sounds like their are some pretty strict rules of a religion rather than relationship put on pastors at times in Jamaica
Ice
Urinals that don't splash
Toilets that aren't falling apart
Air conditioning
Easily accessible Hot water
Clean hospitals
Reliable Car
Washing machine
Safety on roads
Unending supply of water
Less bug spray needed
Shoes
Electricity
More Value in Families with one mom and dad
Plumbing instead of Water in barrels

Comfortable houses
Proximity- churches/school close enough to get to
Christian culture- the non-pressure to lose my virginity
Not having Innocence lost- falling into bad circumstances early because of poverty
Trash service- there is not a lot of recycling and mainly have burn piles there
Nice Grocery stores
Refrigerator
That I was Taught/know how to swim/I met a few adult Jamaicans who were scared of the ocean or couldn't swim
Not worried about having to be darker/lighter skin color for prejudice reasons
Having a Christian community/good church back home
Beau at Faith Church (Jim and Penny expressed their appreciation of his support)
Lack of Accusations- against what I've done in ministry so far
Lack of Distrust in the local church- I hear of a lot of people who don't trust the church anymore, but despite its flaws and humanity, i still have a wholehearted hope for its people.

Things I contemplated giving up or at least pondered whether i should be downgrading:

Cell phone
Clothes
How much money needs to be spent on securities

God at Work Jamaica Recap Pt. 3 of 5

2011-07-01T17:41:00.009-04:00

God Stories:
Unity- God really brought our two groups together(MI/CA & NC) and allowed us to mesh and encourage each other, Jim & Penny, & others in an amazing way!

Testimonies- We had testimonies share in the circle of where people were coming from in our team circle that cannot be shared but it was amazing to see who God had brought on this trip and how people were growing and giving even from some pretty dark past scenarios. Its fun to see God stretch people. Stories of past failures, current struggles, and future fears were all shared and prayed over.
Ian- (Jamaican below in the background) I had a really great conversation about what it means to be a light in dark places as a Christian and what it means to be a Christian. He considered himself a believer but not a baptized Christian since he had 4 girlfriends at the time (which I don't believe is right, but is more of a common practice in Jamaica from what i am told). It Was a really good conversation for me to share about saving myself for marriage and what it means to try and be to living a life of purity as a Christian guy in every aspect of my life. It was the first time i have actually been straight up laughed at by a group of guys for still being a virgin! Apparently, Reggae is connected with the "party scene" of Jamaica and once you become a baptized Christian from Ian's perspective, you will be judged harshly if someone who knew you to be a Christian were playing that kind of music out of your house. Interesting.

Lloyd-
was riding by on his bike and seeing a group of us reading by the beach, he asked me, "What are you all studying?" I was able to tell him it was the Bible and slowly the conversation switched from small talk to me being able to ask him what it meant for him to get back into the habit of following God, since he said he had fallen out of the habit of church or praying. I suggested that while "he was riding his bike by the water would be a fantastic time to think about God and pray." I hope our conversation reminds him to do that.
Rosa- Was the mom who we helped rebuild her house(top picture). She had such a great attitude and was so thankful and optimistic about the future and her next steps from what others told me, despite living in such simple conditions. A blessing to be apart of helping and to see.

Also, Erika told me she counted 27 answered prayers over the trip as she looked back. I can't wait to hear all of them, but this was my starting list, although it doesn't even begin to scratch the surface...

Answered Prayers:

Logan got his passport on time before we left
Logan's hand got better after being bitten and swollen by centipede
Amanda's headache felt better after a day or two
Amanda T had a God moment in her quiet time that she had been asking for.
Trace was able to be on the team because he was obedient to moving to Michigan
Cami Carter wouldn't have come if Trace didn't move to MI
Kristyn stepped out in sharing her faith and talking to others as she had been praying
Kayla Marie stepped up to play and sing by herself on Sunday at church for the first time
I actually made it to Jamaica in God's timing
Penny & Jim and the kingdom builders ministry should be making it in the Jamaican Observer newspaper which was a prayer of redemption and blessing that God seemed to answer through the article.
Conversations with Ian & Lloyd the morning we had prayed for such opportunities

Jamaican Culture Recap Pt. 2 of 5

2011-06-30T16:52:00.008-04:00

STEREOTYPES

Saying, "Ya, mon." This one is true! They said it way more than i thought they would. More than my canadian friends say, "eh." That's for sure.
Fast Runners- Also True. I'm not sure everyone is, but they definitely were beating all of us in sprinting contests on sports day and following their runners racing in Kingston in the news!

Good Climbers- Also True. I was climbing a tree and it felt kinda like how i pictured Africa in the Lion King (tropicalish)... sitting in a windy swaying tree over looking a field. When Four local kids all started climbing up the tree at the same time and were hanging upside down, by one arm, etc. like monkeys. Once again, this may not be all Jamaicans, but these boys definitely blew me and my American friends out of the water!

Laid Back- Also true. From what I could see life was slower because you would run a shop or business out of the home, but it seemed like a lot of people would sit around the shops or by the street during the day and at least not appear too busy. Also, you could smell it and i was told that the ganja(mirijuana) was very popular among the people and what helps run some of the power and economics.
Poverty- Fairly true. there were some nice houses and areas, but there were definitely way more simplistic areas and poor housing as you drove throughout the country. It was sad to hear that the kids can often get themselves into more trouble because this puts them in more situations where they might be performing favors or trying to find other ways to get the money needed for a ride, an education, or to provide for their family.

Churched- Somewhat True. I've heard of a lot of missions trips going to Jamaica, but it seems that although it one of the leaders of the most churches per capita of people, it seems that a lot of people believe in God, but that a lot of people will not commit to the church or call themselves a "baptized Christian" because they don't want to live a godly life (have multiple girlfriends) or see the church as more religion rules (ie. have to dress a certain way) than a relationship and don't want to be too committed to that falsehood. So there is still a need for cultural and church shifts and outreach.
Need Help? Yes. We can't just always be handing people things and the people there are happy with less, but yet there is so much we have to offer these people from labor to resources to loving arms to godly male examples to a pair of shoes.

Jamaica Recap Pt. 1 of 5

2011-06-29T16:49:00.012-04:00

Thank you to all of those who prayed and supported our team to Jamaica this June 20-27!

For those of you who didn't get to go or even know this was going on, I want to break this into 2 or 3 posts to give you an update because there is just too much to share! But i want to start by recapping what we did, the cultural things i saw, and then what God did over the three posts even though this will only scratch the surface.

This was not my first time on a missions trip, but definitely my first time to Jamaica.
We flew into Montego Bay(the top dot) and stayed in Whithouse (the bottom dot) which was about an hour drive through mainly mountains.

If you look at the first picture below you will see that I am not in it. I missed the flight when my passport fell on the floor of the car that dropped me off and then i got stuck in Orlando when i was on standby and didn't make the flight so I arrived two days late. but God is a God of impeccable timing. I don't know exactly the reasons for the mix up, but I had a good time of rest and rejuvenation and was ready to go when i arrived.

There were 21 of us between the 2 teams (11 connected to Faith church and 10 from North Carolina)

I missed the first two days which consisted of visiting the hospital and nursing home and digging an outhouse hole, playing with kids, and leveling a dirt floor the second day. I know that these two days were pretty eye opening for a lot of the group.

The team gave me a group hug when i finally arrived Wednesday evening which was huge to me feeling included even though i was late.
So the first full day after i arrived, was actually our one play day at YS Water Falls where we swam, played on a rope swing, and rode the zipline.

The other days consisted of:
Carrying water to houses without plumbing
and playing with kids and giving them toys.

Also helping out with construction projects where we could and putting up two walls on a one room house.
A Community Sports day with over 700 adults/teens/kids from the community... (yeah purple team)

And we had the privilege of leading a church service where their older pastor had just passed away the previous week. That was fun to help lead the music and share our hearts.

The house we stayed in was a 3 minute walk from the water,
so some of us did try and make sure to get out by the water for some God time and snorkeling in our very limited free time

It was fun to test some new foods like the flesh on the outside of an almond, mango straight from the tree, sugar cane, and chicken foot soup.

Yes, my one guilty pleasure buys was this hat and dreads. I have a feeling it will get its use.

A few of us would go for a run in the morning and Every night we would have a time of worship, debriefing the day, and then share our personal testimonies. There were some huge breakthroughs, God moments, changed lives, and prayers that happened in these night meetings!

God was good. I can't wait to share with you more indepth over the next two posts, but this post is already long enough and we have youth group tonight here, so until tomorrow...

Going to Serve in Jamaica in a few days

2011-06-16T16:16:00.004-04:00

I am a part of a team of 11 young adults that are leaving from Lansing, MI to serve over in Whitehouse Jamaica on Monday June 20th for just over a week. This has been a long standing mission's project of Faith Church to support Our Father's House over there. We will meet up with another team from North Carolina when we get over there. It is always exciting to see how God uses willing hands and hearts for Him!
Looking forward to it and appreciate your prayers and look forward to sharing the awesome stories, answers to prayer, and pictures when we get back!

Take Walks and Do the Math

2011-06-10T01:59:00.000-04:00

Here are two random observations to make your life better.

Take Walks-
We need to take walks more- I always think this when i walk around Michigan State's campus or think back to my college days. There are so many good talks and down moments that happen while we are walking. That is so key and refreshing.

Do The Math-

When i actually did the math at how much extra i was paying in interest on something rather than paying something upfront it was stupid (ie. paying an extra $5,500 over five years on a $20,000 loan when the interest compounds... that's just crazy ). High School Common sense math would've made me look at that and question adult's sanity, yet sometimes we may be too busy or ignorant to realize this because it is advertised so well

Trust in God rather than preparation…?

2011-06-09T12:21:00.000-04:00

I'm preaching tomorrow and i had this thought as i was preparing on Wednesday.

I was thinking about how much the nervous bug in my stomach would have gone away if i would've just had my outline done another week in advance or studied the passage more or had one more really compelling illustration or analogy... and i felt like my thoughts (or God!) stopped me in my tracks and said.

"What are you trusting in to make this message succeed?"

This was a big slap in the face.
I was trusting in the fact that i was preaching the Word of God and the preparation and creative elements...

but i was FORGETTING The empowerment and leading of God.

preparation/study/application/creativity all matter
but probably not as much as:

Knowing God has given me the spiritual gift of teaching and that i am supposed to use in
Obedience to preach what God has revealed to me. that's most important.

A good analogy is important, but that is not what God would consider most essential. Many MANY successful sermons have been preached straight from the Word without the creativity I so often want to rely on for success.

God grant me the creativity and preparation that is important, but more, MUCH more importantly, grant me your empowerment and obedience to teach what you have called me to, and to equip who you desire(equip church) and have planned for me to equip(good works in advance)

One Encouragement Letter

2011-06-06T10:45:00.002-04:00

A core of who i am as a person is an encourager/empowerer.
For years i have wanted to develop a habit where I keep myself accountable to sending out at least one encouragement letter a week because i absolute love to do this but don't always make the time.

This is one of the first times i have been almost completely consistent at following up with this for the past month or two.

It's a battle
God's Got This
Bedazzle
How Can I serve?
No Negative
GOD'S Spirit is in me
Prayer for my Family
Let me Encourage You!

Hebrews 3:13
But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called “Today,”

That is my 20 power minutes on Tuesdays!

Prayer For My Family

2011-06-05T10:45:00.001-04:00

I love my family and i don't feel like i could pray or think about them enough. This is my one time outside of when i think about them randomly and pray for them that i set time aside to make sure that i pray specifically for mom/dad/Jen/Brandon/Jaylon/Kylan/new girl/Kelly/Brenton/Riley.

I love my family and love having this time to think about them and lift them up to God.

It's a Battle
God's Got This
Bedazzle
How Can I Serve
No Negative
GOD's Spirit is in me
Pray for my family

GOD'S Spirit lives in me

2011-06-04T10:44:00.001-04:00

This has been a new and refreshing thought. I know God lives in me, but i am excited about the God of Peace living and active in me. I really want to understand and ask and see the magnitude of what it really means to see GOD Himself's Spirit in me.

It's a Battle
God's Got This
Bedazzle
How Can I Serve?
No Negative
GOD's Spirit Lives in me

No Negative

2011-06-03T10:44:00.002-04:00

I also mentioned this recently where i spend a whole week turning every challenge or issue into a positive. I would love to make this a life habit (Phil 4:8/1 Thess 5:18), so i tell myself on a weekly basis to try and live a no negative week.

It's a Battle
God's Got This
Bedazzle
How Can I Serve?
With a Servants heart for God there can be No Negatives

How can I serve?

2011-06-02T10:44:00.000-04:00

I wrote a blog recently on this recently.

The best way i think i can add to this world is asking the question:
How can i serve?

This is what Jesus set as the example and epitome of being great: servanthood.

If life is a battle
God's Got This
and I'm Here To Bedazzle then
How can i Serve?

Bedazzle

2011-06-01T10:43:00.000-04:00

This was my cheesy yet best analogy of my place and contribution to this world. Bedazzling something helps to beautify and contribute but it doesn't effect or make a phone or computer or whatever function. That is already taken care of. God is the one who makes this world machine run and come out on top. I just have a chance to add his love and bedazzle it up a little! :)

Its A Battle
God's Got This
I'm here to Bedazzle! :)

God's Got This

2011-05-30T10:43:00.001-04:00

This is my reminder that the world's redemption does not rely on me! That good wins and that God has got this. I need to remind myself that not only does God win the battle but that He is the ultimate victor that people rely on including me.

God's Got this.

It's a Battle

2011-05-29T10:43:00.001-04:00

¹⁰ Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. ¹¹ Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. ¹² For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. ¹³ Therefore put on the full armor of God... take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Ephesians 6

We can so easily forget that we are in a spiritual battle and struggle. This is my weekly reminder that life is a battle which means i should expect wounds and attacks. God is on my side so the victory is certain, but it is good to acknowledge the reality we face.

In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” John 16:33

it's a battle.

20 Power Minutes

2011-05-28T22:36:00.000-04:00

When i was in New Zealand i had a reminder pop up on my computer every day that said:

I"M IN NEW ZEALAND! WOO!

It was my everyday reminder to enjoy and be thankful for where God had placed me.

Once a week in Lansing, i have a reminder that pops up with Phrases God has laid on my heart that i constantly want to remind myself of:

It's a battle
God's Got This
Bedazzle
How Can I serve?
No Negative
GOD'S Spirit is in me
Prayer for my Family
1 Letter of Encouragement

And Yes... now i have a 4pm reminder that says

I"M IN LANSING! WOO!

DAWG (Day Alone With God)

2011-05-26T15:53:00.003-04:00

I'm not sure if you have ever had a day where you practiced the idea of solitude and went off for yourself for hours at time to spend time with God, but it is well worth it and a suggestion i would make for everyone, especially those who are in ministry. Its often called a Day Alone With God.

I have heard it said that it is good to get into rhythms of
Daily: Prayer/Reading
Weekly: Sabbaths
Monthly: Days Alone with God
Yearly: few day/week retreat
(I am actually trying to implement this more into my schedule now)

I was able to have a Day Alone with God at the Beginning of the month and here were a few things that stood out from my time with the Lord:

We Need to Focus More on What We're Made to be instead of What we Could Be
Our Gifts are given to us by God to edify the church
If you want a Definitive answer, Pray for God's promises more than your wants because God always follows through on his Promises.

I was reading Unforgotten God by Francis and it asked me to list out my fears of giving myself fully to the Holy Spirit. Here were some of my hold ups I listed:

Becoming Weird/unrelatable/overbearing if speak in tongues
What family and church will think (small concern)
Becoming unstable emotionally & rationally
No system for proactiveness
Fear of not being productive: always talking or being drawn to conversation instead of work as a relational person. Mislabeling or attributing natural wants as the Holy Spirit prompting.

I appreciated the book challenging, that although we may all have our holds ups as to what it may look like, that as Christians, all fears aside, we should all desire more of the Holy Spirit. We may differ on what that looks like, but our fears should not make us quit pursuing to see more of the Holy Spirit and God in our lives either way.

Seriously, think about how you can take a day or a half a day alone with God in June.

My Mom is Awesome!

2011-05-25T16:18:00.001-04:00

She has always been a one of my biggest supporters and prayer warriors.

Just Recently she got a droid phone and has been sending me random pictures over the past few weeks that i was supposed to piece together.
One or two through me off because i wasn't sure how they related to me..... and there were way more pictures than these four but what it was...
was my mom saying that she was praying for me continually. Her exact words over text were, "U cannot escape our prayers 4 u! In bed throughout the nite, in the car to & from work, special spots: greenchair, ur room, taco bell, sitting in church, under NZ cloudy skies, on a walk, reading ur blog... always praying 4 u with more love and pride than you will ever know!!! O:-) "

You want to know how I live the way I do? Its because of godly loving parents like this that God has placed in my life that i could never replace.

I love you mom

Does Faith Church Realize How Lucky They Are To Have Brandon Bruce?

2011-05-24T16:27:00.000-04:00

Seriously Though,
Does Faith Church Realize How Lucky They Are To Have Brandon Bruce?
No, this is not me trying to suck up.
No, this is not Brandon hacking into my account.
No, this is not because there is a problem in the church.
Just something that Needs to be said.
Too often we can forget to appreciate what we have.
Too often senior pastors can't make everyone happy and people can forget to focus on the 100 great things instead of the 1 bad thing.

Faith Church is growing
Brandon is a man of God with character.
Brandon has a heart for the lost and the church.
Brandon has continued to build excitement which has led to more and more people coming through the church doors.
Brandon is stretching people to take risks for the Lord and stay on the frontline of reaching this next generation.
Brandon tries to care for those under Him as a part of His team.
It also helps that he has such an awesome, godly, and supportive wife!
Thank you God for being in control and leading and sending Brandon here to Lansing, MI.

Unanswered Questions #8: How involved is God in our lives

2011-05-23T23:05:00.001-04:00

I have seen people go to both ends of how involved God is in our daily decisions
One Extreme:
I had one Sunday school teacher who said: God cares about everything in our daily lives
She prayed for front spots to the grocery store and God gave them to her
Another Bible Study Leader said that God laughs with him and i thought to myself as a teenager "God never really laughs with me..."
Another Bible Class teacher said that biting my fingernails and what candy bar i ate were spiritual issues and i kind of smirked as a teenager thinking, Really?!?
I had another very analytical boss who said he never didn't analyze things! This thought alone exhausted me as a college Student

Other Extreme:
God doesn't care about anything in your daily life.
Basic idea of Deism: God is up there but not involved in our lives.
Doesn't care about sports and the outcome
Doesn't tell you what food to eat or not eat
Doesn't answer small requests because he has bigger issues at hand

What I have learned: I respect those who do live in a constant conversation and relationship with God; that truly is the goal of our lives. The Danger is I have seen people get borderline extreme, crazy, and to the point where they can't seem to understand other people & where other people can't understand them. I'm not sure if they go spirit led, or just socially awkward at times.

When is walking with God Spirit led vs being overly analytical because sometimes the thought of God caring about every detail of my life kinda exhausts me.

Unanswered Question #7: The Balanced Life

2011-05-22T10:48:00.001-04:00

Where is the balanced life?
rich or poor?
active or laid back?
love or justice?
etc.

I think balance it the answer to a lot of life, but finding the the right level of tension can be so hard at times.

Generosity is more important than rich or poor and that can look different...
Obeying God is more important than how much or little you do...
and the list goes on.

This is probably one of my most frustrating issues in my life since i like concretes. It is good yet stretching to have to try and live in the balance.

In regards to be overly self-righteous or overly foolish the Bible makes this clear statement:

"Whoever fears God will avoid all extremes." Ecclesiastes 7

Power & Might=Endurance & Patience

2011-05-21T16:13:00.001-04:00

This is not the equation I would've naturally put into my head but it seems to be what the Bible teaches:
"being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience" Colossians 1:11

Usually i think of getting power to make things happen NOW in the way you envision.... I usually think of endurance and patience being things you need LATER when things aren't happening the way you envisioned....

He gives us power for the long run, not simply for our whimsical wants.

Peace.

2011-05-20T16:12:00.001-04:00

Here is how the conversation with my dentist went a few weeks back.

Dentist: “How has your day been?”

Me: “Havin fun and working away”

Dentist: “I don’t really want either of those”

Me: “Haha. Then what would you want?”

Dentist: “Peace.”

Me: (silenced and put in my place)

Unanswered Question #6: Swearing

2011-05-19T10:37:00.002-04:00

One of my questions that even bugged me as a kid were swear/cuss words.

There were certain words you just didn't say. They were just seen as bad.

And one day in Awanas when i was still in elementary school I read
"He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned." Mark 16:16 King James Version

It really confused me to know that the Bible could say something that i was told was "wrong" to ever say.

Since then I have heard a pastor go so far as to say that Paul's emphasis in Phil 3:7 would seem to denote that "loss" would have more of the same emphasis of the "S" word to be correctly translated.

and as an amused kid, i found 1 Samuel 25:22 especially hysterical!
So and more also do God unto the enemies of David, if I leave of all that pertain to him by the morning light any that pisseth against the wall. King James Version

Please here me out. I do not want to throw the baby out with the bath water. I don't think that the words we call swear or cuss words rarely if ever stack up as appropriate in consideration of Ephesians 4:29
Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.

There is a respect problem today. A lot of priests back in the day would not even say or write God's full name out and today we throw around and misuse things and people worthy of respect in a way that is sinful at times in my opinion.

The is also a legalism problem today. As a kid it was probably good i didn't go around slinging any word i wanted but it still does crack me up that i would have trouble saying a word out loud and also wonder what some other Christians might think around me, that i would freely be able to read in the Bible!

There will always be a little bit of this issue being subjective based on where you live and what is seen as inappropriate to say, but as a person who wants to represent Christ in what i believe he would say and do, i would always err on the side of keeping my language pure and Godfilled.

No one should seek their own good. but GOD and the good of others (my own addition)
If we chose our words in light of this idea in v 24, I think we would filter a lot of our words out of unselfishness.

²³ “I have the right to do anything,” you say—but not everything is beneficial. “I have the right to do anything”—but not everything is constructive. ²⁴ No one should seek their own good, but the good of others. 1 Cor 10

There is a lot more here, but i just didn't want to dig into this issue to deeply. Just acknowledge another ongoing inner dilemma at times.

Church work is not for cowards. That's for Sure!

2011-05-18T10:59:00.000-04:00

Quote from Michelle Fischer in the staff devotions this morning:

Church work is not for cowards. That's for Sure!

Life to the Full

2011-05-17T15:29:00.000-04:00

I have never thought about "Life to the full" in food terms:

Jesus says
" I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." John 10:10
Chris Conrad two Sundays ago was using a food analogy and compared food that fill vs food that leaves you more hungry. He was saying how they can resemble the activities/things in our life that are temporary and leave us always wanting more vs. eternal things that fulfill and it really helped me make this connection in my head:

You can have life to the full when your doing things that leave you filled instead of activities that's always leaving you needing more.

For Instance: Whoever loves money never has enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with their income. This too is meaningless. Ecclesiastes 5:10

Sometimes it feels like the ministry I am doing can be heavy,
but I take for granted that it is satisfying versus the other things that i could be doing that look good, but in the end i will have to go back for more because it will never fill the God hole and the God giftings i have been created with and for.

For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. Eph 2:10

Sometimes I pray to God for more strength and motivation, but the truth is that I very rarely to NEVER question whether what i do is wasteful or unfulfilling, because in my opinion, there is nothing better than being a part of God working in people. This is always working towards heaven which, in my opinion, is the epitome of full.

Some New Experiences

2011-05-15T03:04:00.000-04:00

These were just some new experiences from the past few months

I have been to chicago...
but i have never been to
Wrigley Field where the Chicago Cubs play before

MSU's Glee Club
I had never seen a live glee club perform until to seeing MSU's recently
Athletes In Action Friends and Banquet
I have been involved with sports my whole life but never so familiar with sports ministry on a campus as i have had the chance to with Athletes in Action. I was able to attend their end of the year banquet and it was fun to see how many faces I already new and have connected with.

My epitaph

2011-05-13T23:18:00.003-04:00

A long time ago I was asked, what would you want to people to say about you after you were gone? how would you want them to remember you?

Hopefully it would go something like this:

MY EPITAPH

Brent lived life to the full. …But it wasn’t just for himself. His life centered around others and God, that’s what made it full.

Words that described him were: sacrificial, inspiring, encouraging, passionate, strong, and generous

Unanswered Question #5: Who is truly saved?

2011-05-11T10:50:00.004-04:00

This question is hard. This is one of the reasons why Rob Bell's Love Wins has been such a conversation starter.

The debate of Inclusivists vs. exclusivists and how many go to heaven has gone on for years.
What exactly is salvation and when are we sure it has happened in a person?
Are Catholics in or out? what about Jews?
It does seem clear in the Bible but is can also vary a little from person to person it seems. We have a pretty good idea that the only way guaranteed by God in the Bible is through faith in the person of Jesus who not only died to take care of our sins but has the power to raise himself and others from the dead.

At the same time, the Bible is clear that God is the only one who can truly read all the hearts of men. So we can do our best to point people to Christ and warn them from the danger we can see on the outside, but always being aware that we cannot see a all of a person and everything about them the way God does.

Unanswered Questions #4: How did Brent get so good looking?

2011-05-10T10:51:00.001-04:00

i don't know either, this one is just unfathomable to me! :)

One to also be debated for centuries to come...

(This is a comic relief blog... please don't take it even slightly seriously!!! :)

Unanswered Question #3: Jesus and Politics

2011-05-09T10:39:00.000-04:00

Should Jesus/Christianity be in Politics?

I never would've even posted something like this until after I went to New Zealand.
The idea of "separation of church and state" took on new meaning.
Where our Presidents have always claimed to be Christian on some level, New Zealand's last two prime ministers would more likely be characterized as agnostic(believing that you can't fully know if God is real).
All that to say, Due to our difference in leadership where Americans seemed more comfortable with the crossover of Christian ideas in the government, some of my New Zealand friends seemed to believe that Christianity in the political system could potentially create more blurred the lines.

This came to a head in the last Obama election. One of the big debates was "Is Obama leading us down a road that is contrary to what America has always stood for?" and intertwined in that idea was the fear that by beginning to resemble other world governments more, we were not only moving away from a different way of government, but also moving away from some of the intended Christian values in our system.
Were we making more friends because we were legitimately making progress based on the rest of the world or were we making more friends because less people would hate us for standing up for a potentially different way of doing government where Christian values were attempted to be more intertwined in the workings of the system?
(Given: I have friends who would even argue whether the American government actually acts more or less Christian than others)
So another question that will still seem to always remain in my head with at least some abiguity is how much Christianity should be in the government. I want to believe that if the leaders of the government were all committed Christians, that it would just naturally do better, but i know some of my friends who would say being a Christian does not make you the best leader for a nation.

Unanswered Question #2: To be Bold or not to be?

2011-05-07T10:44:00.003-04:00

No one wants to be the Christian who thinks they know everything. The one that does more harm than good in their prideful overbearing attempts to stand for truth.
But no one wants to be the Christian who does not take the gospel seriously and urgent enough to ever respond and find the opportunity to share the truth of the gospel.
Whether the moment requires bold answers for truth to be heard or not is a second question that I think we will have to wrestle with our entire lives.

What Happens if i Don't check facebook or my Email for a day?

2011-05-06T11:09:00.007-04:00

What Happens if i Don't check facebook or my Email for a day?
There is this draw or fear that i have to check it for some odd reason and i'm not sure it is legit.

So That is my test for the day from May 5-May 6th.

I failed.

(This was my "Look mom at what i wore for easter!" text)

I checked my fb/email by around 5pm that day...
BUT

I was was more focused and productive at work because i began right
and

I did have:
emails: +21
fb notifications: +12
fb messages: +8
over the 24 hour period (a lot for some/childs play for others! haha)

But i was able to reclear those down to "0" again by Friday morning in about an hour.

In the future, I will most likely try to not check emails on work days until later in the day for better focusing.

Unanswered Question #1: When to Do and When to Wait

2011-05-06T10:41:00.003-04:00

There are some great debates or questions that are still somewhat unanswered in my head. I am going to reflect on a few of those over this month.

The picture below is not one of those for me. It should always be over from my opinion.
When to Do and When to Wait
Talk to them about Christ this moment or not?
Take the job or wait for something else?
Get involved with more responsibility or not?

There's that moment where you hit a wall or a moment of uncertainty and i wonder, "Is God telling me to take more action and push forward to succeed or is he telling me i'm trying too hard and i need to pull back and wait?"

As my second mom in New Zealand said, "This is a question i think we will have to wrestle with the rest of our lives."

I am welcome to any comments with insight from the scriptures or your opinion. My best answer although still subjective at times is prayerfully being Spirit led in situations.

God Watching Over Me.

2011-05-05T03:06:00.003-04:00

I really like what these three pictures taken in the last 8 months symbolize:

My mom pointed out in this first picture that it looks like "God's eye" in this tree from my front yard and said it symbolized to her that God was looking out for me.
I love the posture of this second picture taken in the Grand Canyon. The Sun is so Bright and the rays just look like God to me. I feel like my posture on the rock is how i have been coming to the Lord since being here. Humbly at his service and waiting to hear from Him.
and the last picture was from a youth event this last weekend which has a lot of core people from the student ministries and really symbolizes a year of God's fruitfulness and blessing in this ministry and friendships.

Thanks God, for watching over me.

How can I serve you?

2011-05-04T23:32:00.000-04:00

In college I wanted to start a ministry called "How can i serve you?" where i would simply go around and be available to be a helping hand whenever someone needed. To ask the question "How could i be a help to you today?" without nothing better to do than be by their side as a helping hand.

Jesus, consistently says that the servant is truly the greatest:
Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant.

and that serving is a part of God's long term plan or us and Him.
It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watching when he comes. Truly I tell you, he will dress himself to serve, will have them recline at the table and will come and wait on them.

We need to practice becoming joyful servants for eternity. Last week I was asking myself repeatedly, How can i serve the people and other leaders I am leading at church at this moment? This chorus came to me as I was reflecting on Jesus washing Peter's feet just before his crucifixion:

As we come together
Lord, please wash my feet
As we come together
show me what this means

I want Christ to serve me and wash my feet not because i want to demand anything from Him or seem higher but because i want Jesus to truly be my Teacher- even on how to serve.

and I really want to ponder and ask the question: What does it mean for me to minimize the "I wants" and to put to the forefront the God wants and other people's needs?

17 And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins.

2011-05-01T23:41:00.003-04:00

I think i will read all of 1 Corinthians 15 every Easter in the future. I just found it this last week as a reminder of the importance of the resurrection and have loved dwelling on its magnitude!

¹⁷ And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins...

But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.

Why do revivals come and go?

2011-04-30T16:41:00.000-04:00

This question was posed to me today and i thought it was a good question, because i didn't have an easy answer.

Why do revivals come and go?

Reflecting on Heaven

2011-04-29T03:38:00.001-04:00

My picture of heaven:

One of pure intense serving and adventurous love

Pure: diamond, water, we love pure (see beauty without flaws)

Redemption: Like a Second Hand Furniture Store that Finds Beauty in Old

Intense: Love (the strong draw and feelings)

Serving: Jesus washing our feet

Risk- the unknown excitement of a wedding proposal

Work: great responsibilities

Will we be in want or need in heaven? ie. Adam still needed food.

Choice in heaven- can choose how much food we eat without eating same amount or going in excess or deficiency

Love acts: cooking dinner for Jesus with all we got, making the perfect gift for someone,

Time and money won’t be there: the stresses of life are gone as to how quick something needs to be done.

All flaws gone; could adam trip, fall, naturally die? What would be his reaction if he did trip over a rock or cut himself on a thorn? Can we trip in heaven? :)

Is Life Simple For Some People?

2011-04-28T23:26:00.000-04:00

I just got off the phone with a friend in college whose life seems rather straightforward and simple and thought to myself, "Is life simple for some people?"
Ministry and loving people can seem so complex and complicated to me a lot of the times and i wonder if everyone else goes through the same things.

Or does my analytical mind or the complications of trying to love people the most Christlike way possible compound the complex issues of life sometimes?

Reading To Change

2011-04-26T03:37:00.000-04:00

As i have been reading and writing lately, i realized i still want to read for quality rather than quantity. I want to soak in the words. I want it to change me rather than just collect info in my head.

I don't like to skim. If i am reading a book, i am reading to learn or more importantly so that it will strengthen or change the way i think so i have a hard time skimming a book and missing the illustrations or emotions or points that help lead you to the depth the author is trying to get across.

Also are there different ways or reasons to read an author's work. For instance
Reading to change (there is more-hope)
vs. reading to be accepted (I’m okay-acceptance)
vs. reading for relationship (I’m not alone-trust)

Instant Emotion

2011-04-25T09:05:00.000-04:00

Emotions that I have not been able to change:

Over the years there have been a few times that I specifically remember wanting to feel differently or expected the situation not to impact or effect me the way it has. While i was in New Zealand, a friend of mine took the American flag I was letting someone else borrow, and right after I asked them to handle it carefully and not let it touch the ground, he picked it up and laughingly dropped it to the ground. His reasoning was that it “is just a flag.” This really upset me. It also shocked me that I had such a strong reaction. I don’t feel like I usually hold objects in too high of regard and usually I like to be able to down play things as not being a big deal. I tried to reason this one off as not a big deal, but for some reason I couldn’t shake the way that this offense made me feel.

The one other time I specifically remember being somewhat shocked with my response was after losing my last competitive intramural game in the first round of the playoffs during my last year of at uni at IWU.

I remember walking from the gym feeling very somber like someone had died or something. Through high school and college sports, I had prided myself in doing my best to be competitive and try to win, but in never taking the game so seriously that I couldn’t detach myself from it and have a good time afterwards, no matter whether we won or lost. I am not sure if it was because it was one of te last chances to be competitive that I knew I would have, or if it was the fact that I knew we should've won or whether it was simply the fact that we lost to my ex’s new boyfriend’s team, but for whatever reason I just remember thinking it shouldn’t matter that much but it just did.

No moral to these. Just story telling time.

Confessions 1: Moments I wish i Could take Back

2011-04-24T23:03:00.000-04:00

Some people say they wouldn't change anything about their lives. I get what they are trying to say, but I think they are crazy!!! Here are two moments that i grimace about every time i relive them and wish i could take them back.

1: Sermon "Awesome God" dis. I gave a sermon in college and somehow was mentioning how some songs or christian things in our lives can get stale. I was going to use the song "Awesome God" as an example of an overplayed song,
but the band had done an awesome rendition of that song earlier that night and i wasn't quick enough on my feet to change my notes. I got to the point of that joking point in the messgeand wasn't quick on my feet so i told the joke flopped and i looked like a jerk taking a shot at the band from the stage. My heart and Gut sunk so deep into my stomach! and i never felt like i got to repair that situation.Ouch.

2. Spoiling Travis' Banquet ask. Travis was going to ask his girlfriend to the school banquet by having her get pulled over by a cop friend and get arrested where Travis would propose. It was an elaborate plan he was ecstatic about and i somehow gave it away while we were all sitting around one day and i just saw his face drop. He was nice to me, but i felt like the worse friend alive for a long time.

And here is a video of a best man who also probably wishes he could take back the moment

Desire

2011-04-23T22:07:00.000-04:00

What can I do to become a man of God that is becoming Jesus and helping others become Him and living out the love and truth that I believe and profess?

Discipline.
Desire.
Working with Others.
Figuring out how to work with others.

What I need to know:
My boundaries.
My focus.
My goal.
My Beliefs
My God’s ability
My God’s will.

This is just thinking out loud... this is not hours of deep thought.

There seems to be more umf behind my thoughts than i can express on paper. Man, i want to live a life like him and know that i am fully living out his will and allowing God to do what He is capable of doing through my life!!!
(Journal 11/16/08)

My Productivity Killers

2011-04-22T07:18:00.003-04:00

This is for all my friends still studying, over the last week of finishing papers(May 2009) and needing to produce large quantities of work and to concentrate for long periods, i came across three main productivity Killers in my life:

1. Checking my facebook habitually throughout the day

2. Checking my email habitually throughout the day
3. My recliner- it makes me fall asleep ...but its so comfy!

Pastor vs Preacher

2011-04-21T11:51:00.003-04:00

I think sometimes that Pastor’s are setup to be pitiful preachers unless they are really make preaching a top priority in their time and schedules. Their are so many things to do that good sermon and preaching prep can easily take a backseat.

There is almost never enough time to continually develop and intentionally work on sharpening your teaching gift while having to develop one if not multiple fresh new messages each week.

At the same time as soon as you seem to focus in on more of the speaking and prep side and less on everyday "pastoral" logistics, a pastor can run the risk of removing the everyday tasks from his life and becoming less relatable and out of touch with everyone else’s day to day problems/struggles.

Just thoughts.

Vampires kill Jesus?!?

2011-04-20T09:13:00.003-04:00

Who really killed Jesus?
Too Funny :)
This is when you know Twilight and vampires hit Ridiculously Obsessive Status!

Here's a blog post on the book

Why does everyone value the harsh critic's opinion

2011-04-19T07:39:00.001-04:00

This is a question i have wondered for along time...

But why does everyone like someone like a Simon Cowell so much?
I am naturally a positive person

and I know there can be a place for brutal honesty, but why do we find so much enjoyment or pleasure in it, even if the person is wrong?

just a thought, i have no answer here.

Powerful Jonah thought

2011-04-18T22:44:00.000-04:00

“And Jonah stalked

to his shaded seat

and waited for God

to come around

to his way of thinking

And God is still waiting for a host of Jonahs

in their comfortable houses

to come around

to his way of loving.”

Thomas Carlisle

Eye Opening: The World likes Americans up close but does not seem to be big fans of Americans from afar

2011-04-17T19:59:00.000-04:00

These were some sombering stats i came across awhile ago. But once again, its one poll that might be biased(like i am not sure we are the worst dressed tourists). But if its not inaccurate, we've got a little ways to go to improve our image around the world :)
http://www.titanicawards.com/

The only two surveys we didn't make were the world's worst toilets and biggest drinkers

Hillsong in New York... crazy

2011-04-16T10:51:00.001-04:00

Hillsong is here in New York and apparently doing well. They started a church up this last year here in the states.
I love their music and style.

I believe this is their heart to further the kingdom to the US and in that case...
it is fun andcrazy to see people coming here from around the world to spread the good news. It is fun to welcome missionaries here in the same way people have done for me and others who have gone elsewhere with the same heart. i love servants

Reminds me of...

2011-04-15T06:53:00.002-04:00

The First Time i was in New Zealand, certain things would remind me of people that i was missing or away from. (4/15/07) The reason i never posted this was because i never had the time to compile all the pics :)

Here was my list of things that reminded me of a people.

Dad- every time i see Palm Trees

Kelly- Baby Pig

Logan M- "Prooove it!"

Nanna & Pappaw- everytime i see cows

Jen- Gifts to or from other people

Brandon- singing Will Smith "I can't stop this!"

Trace- Everytime i go surfing!

Levi Huffman- Exploring the Forest

Dave Hopewell- climbing buildings

Ryan Bales- Leading Worship

Chris Collins- Mac email

Corey Admitis- Dancing

Abby Dillinger- chacos

New Revelation for me! Jesus had to die for ALL.

2011-04-14T04:46:00.000-04:00

Journal from 5/20/09
I guess I always believed that if Jesus never came that the people in the Old Testament could’ve kept doing what they were doing and made it to heaven by their obedience and sacrifices.

But the Bible says this wouldn’t have been enough.
That EVERYONE in the world would’ve gone to hell if Jesus never came into the world.

EVERYONE would’ve gone to hell without Jesus. No obedience or sacrifice would’ve been enough. The OT sacrifices and blood appeased God, but it did not remove our sins and sinful nature.

I have heard scripture and teaching say that even the people before Jesus were saved by faith in Jesus even though they did not see or know him, but I never got this.

We would’ve never been holy or pure enough for heaven by the hiding of our sins, they needed to be removed. Our sinful nature needed to be reversed before we can truly do desire God first. I think we forget that if we believe humans are born with a sinful nature, that we are naturally prone to choose the opposite of God and that we would NEVER be fit for heaven unless our innate nature is actually changed. A lot of us still subconsciously live under the thought that we are neutral as humans and not slaves to sin until Christ changes us.

WOW! Without Christ dying, heaven would not have been a possibility for humans.
I am assuming that even the paradise mentioned in the OT would’ve been impossible for humans without the foreknowledge and timeless sacrifice of Christ Jesus which reaches eternally to the past, present, and future.

And how interesting is it that Jewish faith which holds to the Old Testament would focus more on the living in this present world than the next world! It seems fitting that some Jewish parts do not hold to the same kind of Messiah anymore. Their anticipation of a Messiah being the answer in the past who would set Israel and the world right and if Jesus is the answer but not the answer they are wanting or looking for…

It would be better for a Jew to focus on the world here if they are no longer sure that the Messiah or “heaven” they are wanting will come.

I am thinking this out loud so I still need to do some more research to solidify and balance out this view, but feel free to comment.

Media Frenzie

2011-04-13T22:50:00.000-04:00

3 January 2011 (after spending a solid week with no TV or movies)

Do You know how much time we use on entertainment? Football, movies, videogames. Youtube, facebook, etc. It has become such a default filler it is insane. To stop and think that people had approx. 2 more hours in their day where they weren’t sitting down looking at a screen simply because they didn’t have as much media entertainment. I was asked the other day by a college student when I said that I didn’t have netflix and an xbox, what do you do then? That is where we have gotten to. We are products of our world.

The TV has only been around for 60 years of at least 15,000 years of human history and we act like it is a must to survive or have a fulfilled life. The sports teams that we follow and allow take up so much of our brains have only been around 60(NBA), 100(NFL) or 150 (MLS) years too. The internet is less than 25 years old. Cell phones less than 20. Yet we act like we are stuck to those things for information and connection to live a full life as humans, that it is scary? It is just another way we have let the lies of the media get the best of us just like the need for debt. Does the entertainment industry sicken or scare anyone else as much as it does me? I don’t want to be the killjoy and i am just as guilty because i use it but the fact that I could easily spend 6 hours watching sports with a friend per week another 4 watching movies and another 2-4 on tv and youtube with friends just freaks me out. That’s two hours a day I spend doing nothing but taking in temporary stuff. Kind of freaks me out.

But you know what also freaks me out is becoming a workaholic. Tv is one of those lazy options to try and balance out life with fun, but I’m not sure that I like that as my fun option. Just because I need to balance out my work hours, doesn’t mean I should add something in that is just as much worthwhile or antiproductive as working too much. $55 a month on TV or 6 nights of bowling and other fun. I just need to be intentional about getting out and playing.

Having outside time, play time, and also personal ministry time. Time, time, time, Always biding for time. I didn’t realize that was going to be my tension and ongoing struggle in this life God. Why is it? Because there is too much we can do, that I want to do, too many people to include, too many problems to fix and ways to grow, too many ways to prepare for the next step and also just enjoy the people and the amount of people I already enjoy. I really do need to take my life in check and decide which way I want my life to go before it runs away with me. What do I want to become and make sure that I am continually striving to be that. What is it that you truly desire for me to become and have called me to and to hold on to those things with my dear life but never as much as holding on to You. Things are always up for change and discussion because it is a relationship with You where you are Lord, not me.

You create an atmosophere around you

2011-04-12T00:13:00.000-04:00

You create an atmosphere around you!

I recently noticed that when i enter another person's world or they enter mine, they often affect the atmosphere. The initials of friends below all bring a different feel usually with them:

L- tornado/crazy/busy

V- Tornado

M- lackadaisical

M- peaceful/quiet

M place of love/acceptance

D- tension at times

and it made me ask the question. What kind of atmosphere or energy do i naturally bring to a room and is it what i want to add to other people's lives? Is it Crazy Energy? Contemplative love?!? Genuine Care? I just hope that whatever it is, it glorifies God.

Rob Bell Learning

2011-04-11T13:53:00.000-04:00

The one thought i read on someone's facebook that really stood out to me said something like...
We are criticizing Rob Bell for missing his chance on national TV to say that Jesus is the only way to salvation, but God please forgive us for those daily opportunities we miss to do the same thing every time we talk to someone at the store or on facebook or at work or school.

Now that's convicting. I don't want to feel obligated to be "spiritual" online because i am pastor, but i definitely am reconsidering whether i will be held for my lack of words pointing to God on the platforms that i do have.

No Negative

2011-04-10T13:48:00.001-04:00

No Negatives for a whole week!!! Is that possible?
That's my goal for this next week, so feel free to keep me accountable if I'm not.

I realized today that my verse for the month of February was
Phil 4:8 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.

And yet i have been allowing a lot of defeating thoughts and negative outlooks on opportunities to cloud my thoughts. That needs to change. Lord lead the way on this.

Adventure 2: DeWitt Campus Launch

2011-04-09T17:12:00.006-04:00

On March 6, 2011
Faith Church Launched our second campus up in DeWitt.
I have an amazing team alongside of me making it all happen as the campus pastor!
The First Sunday we had a lot of new visitors from the central campus as well as the community. The service was lively and energetic with over 160 in attendance.

It is fun to see a growing younger crowd and new faces involved.
People are already starting to feel more comfortable as they find their place meeting each other after the service. God has big plans for this campus that He has been revealing and is excited to continue to unveil to us along the way.Jumptown is our children's program that has always been an exciting highlight for the children who come. Ashley and Matt Burger are doing a great job of heading that up, creating a fun environment and getting quality help!
The Moffits are the solid core family who have been the founders and generational family over the years. They have been so supportive and exciting of this whole new adventure and i can't wait to see how we will all work together to make a huge difference for the kingdom.Tomorrow will be Week 6! It is crazy how quickly time passes! So much of the stress and work leading up to the launch seems like it was forever ago, but none of it was wasted.

God, please continue to work through the obedient and open hearts that simply desire for you to do an amazing thing of your will through us as your body. In the name of the Jesus who had the amazing ability to find and save the lost, Amen.

Adventure 1: Grand Canyon Family Time

2011-04-09T16:55:00.007-04:00

The Last Few years two of my uncles have been hiking down and back up the Grand Canyon in one day. That is about a 5,000 ft elevation change and about a 16 mile hike total! This year they invited the rest of the guys in the family along so me, my dad, brandon, and kirby joined them on the adventure this year which was amazing! Here are some of the pics below. It was good family time, dad time, rest time, outdoor time, God time... just an overall good time.

In-N-Out 3 times and staying at my Uncle Gary's amazing place in Gilbert, AZ were definitely added bonuses!!

Blog Frenzie!!!

2011-04-09T14:15:00.001-04:00

For my faithful followers who have gone three months without a blog... you are in luck. I had a free day to catch up so not only am i going to catch you up, but i am also bringing up a bunch of old unfinished thoughts that were drafts that never got posted. So you are going to get new info and archive thoughts over the next couple of weeks that will be fun! :)

20 minute 5k

2011-04-09T13:44:00.003-04:00

20 minute 5k
That is my goal by the end of this month. This is celebrating being able to run outside again as it warms up and to set a new goal since i have never really ran a 5k for my own pr(personal record). I have been running and training hard to get up to par. I have been running light while recouping from some small snowboard injuries, but this last week, i shave 3 minutes off my time down to about 22 minutes at the moment, so now comes the big refining time! :)

Looking Back Over My Last Two Years in New Zealand

2011-01-20T10:52:00.002-05:00

Thank you so much God for what you do. It was a privilege and blessing to be a part of the growing multicultural Wesleyan Methodist church of New Zealand. Over my time two years in New Zealand I believe the number of church plants went from under twenty churches to 21 or 22 with hopes of starting a whole new hub of churches in the South Island from Christchurch. The community projects that ran through the Depot building where we held church (cession|community) were a great way to meet people and serve.

My study spot at the Esquires coffee shop in the local mall was also a great way to bump into people and bring God into the everyday conversations. Connecting people to the church was the big challenge. Getting friends to feel comfortable walking through the church doors was an equally difficult challenge. But getting them to see the essential need for God in this world was one of the biggest.

Small and big chances to connect people with God were small and big reasons to rejoice. I became good friends with the family that owned this local cafe and had some amazingly great dialogue about the differences between Hinduism and Christianity. I was even able to hangout with a couple of the guys and create friendships outside of the cafe setting through this.

Here was My original excitement of being cleared to go and get my plane ticket!

MINISTRIES
Global Partners Team

Cession Team

Dreaming

Ignite Wesleyan Youth Camp
One year i was able to be the camp speaker which was amazing and humbling at the same time to watch God speak and the teens respond. The second year i was the camp media director and was able to put this video together.

Outreach Opportunities

Weekly Church Setup

Culture
One of my most watched youtube videos was made a few days into my first New Zealand trip. So at the end of my two year term 3 years later, i decided to revisit with the Mackay family and other friends in the clip below.
IWU Missions Team Point Man on the Field

Youth Group

Preaching

Greeting

Creating Family

New Friends

Leading Worship as Needed
And Playing Bass

Volunteering for Lifeboyz Field Trips for kids with special need

Alternative Education Mentoring

FRIENDS
The Mackay Family Time

Snells

First Day in NZ with Jones Family & close friends

Australian Friends Visiting

Organizing Paul Milbank's Bachelor Party

Heidi's Arrival Bowling Party

It was interesting celebrating Christmas away from home. Here was Graeme my first roommate and some friends while we were decorating the flat that first Christmas.

EXPERIENCES
Soccer Tournament

Vanuatu Trip
a random jump i got to do in the blue water hole

Rugby at the Family Camp

Surf Lessons
This was a video Evy made when i was first teaching him how to surf.

Stations of the Cross Sketch

A Friend's Graduation Ceremony

I was also able to go to Hillsong conference in some of my free time. It was a great experience and opportunity to learn.

SCENERY
It was crazy being on the mission field and later realizing that i was getting accustomed to living in a bigger city instead of smaller town with Auckland being 1.4million in population.

OBSERVATIONS

My focus going over was to support the local church. This was good yet difficult because I felt like this meant my job was not to just create whatever I wanted ministry wise, but to really build and support my friends and people over there who were also ministers.

Brett Jones, Paul Milbank, and Rhett Snell- were 3 special friends and colleagues in ministry. My goal was to try and encourage and help them with their passions and responsibilities as i could. Brett was amazing smart and my NZ boss. I served alongside him as the community life pastor and really appreciated him pouring into me and trying to place me in the best possible spot passion wise to help him and cession. Paul was a close friend and the youth pastor at cession. Working out, mentoring teens, and working with the youth Monday nights our consistents. Rhett Snell was a good friend and prayer buddy. Outside of talking theology, i really appreciated our time towards the beginning of my two years where they would have groups over to their house after church and the times Rhett and i set aside to simply pray for cession and ministry.
Supporting other missionaries and visiting Americans was a specialty of mine. I met with a couple of guys and girls like Evy/ John Gorveatte/ and Heidi who traveled over to New Zealand for a season.
I invested in weekly cession cell groups and welcoming on Sunday to continue helping build a team that is growing and pouring into the people walking through the doors.
I don't want to take specific credit for things that were a team effort but there are multiple stories of people getting connected to the church family through relationships built.
A big blessing was the Saione which is one of the Fijian congregations. I was able to preach there a few times and was even asked to consider joining their community towards the end of my time which was such a huge compliment and humbling ask.

New Zealand went full circle coming back to the USA... it was ironic hearing Kari Jobe (who i was first introduced to in Australia) singing hosanna written by Brooke Fraser(new Zealand artist) while i was back in the states! It has crazy how my life has gone full circle and is interconnected.

Thank you so much for supporting me through prayers and finances over this time. New Zealand continues to be a place i pray over for the future and will try to visit sooner rather than later although i do not believe God is pressing me to return immediately in this season of life.

Today's flow

2011-01-19T01:38:00.000-05:00

I was a pastor instead of personally productive today. haha

The Pure Heart

2011-01-19T01:37:00.001-05:00

Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God Matthew 5:8

As water reflects a face, so a man's heart reflects the man Proverbs 27:19

So if the man is often seeing God in his everyday life it is fair to say that his heart is purely searching for God.

God is bigger than our imaginations

2011-01-14T13:51:00.001-05:00

"To most of us a person, a human being, seems to be a maximum of being, the ceiling of reality; we think that to personify is to glorify. Yet do not some of us realize at times that a person is not a superlative, that to personify the spiritually real is to belittle it? A personification may be both a distortion and a depreciation." -Abraham Heschel
God is bigger than our imaginations.

Trace Faubel and Kevin Brock moving up!

2011-01-07T11:47:00.004-05:00

So i have two friends moving up to be a part of ministry up here in Lansing, MI. My friend Kevin Brock
from Indiana Wesleyan University is moving from Indy and my friend Trace Faubel
going back as far as elementary school is moving up from San Diego. They both will arrive in this Saturday night. Its gonna be good time.

Getting back on the saddle

2011-01-04T23:15:00.002-05:00

First off, let me apologize for being a horrible blogger as of late.
Second, Laughing is Good

Third, here are some raw thoughts from an old journal a few years back.

There seems to be a consistent difference between what people say or think they believe and know to be true And how they REALLY feel

They need to realize the difference between recognizing how they really feel, believe, and act

and how that compares to what God actually means by what he asks of them

We are good at getting people into church and telling them what they should believe

But I’m not sure we are so good at helping them actually see and believe it themselves

Often, when we haven’t completely faced our deep seeded beliefs and have just accepted what others have told us.

We aren’t seeking… we are following and listening to whatever we are told.

Evy Mazellan put Marion IN on the Surf map!!!

2010-12-09T17:21:00.004-05:00

You got to check this out! how legit is this! Evy Mazellan put MARION, IN on the surf map!!!
haha. He's the lifeguard the guy is talkin about in the article and i'm pretty sure Evy also took the picture.

A Foretelling moment of the future ministries colliding?

2010-12-01T09:12:00.002-05:00

5 things ministry wise going on simultaneously

After Christmas this will be a huge one to try and learn how to manage...

· Personal Fun/UG people at volleyball

· Endowment meeting for NZ and larger church involvement

· Dewitt building meeting

· 3dYouth Band practice at church

· and I had almost thought that I could just go home and rest tonight at 5 from a long weekend :)

Lansing Fun So Far...

2010-10-15T13:23:00.002-04:00

I don't have pictures up, but a few of the things i have done so far are a:
Bonfire
Grand Rapids
college/young adults homegroup
Ignited conference

and Random Friend Visits from:
Heidi
Kevin
Codey Holliday
Dave Hopewell

Good times

The House & Churches in Lansing

2010-10-15T12:58:00.014-04:00

I still have a few videos and pics to go:
Service & UG video, dewitt pics/ office pic, etc.
but here is a quick look at my life!

FAITH CHURCH
My office

I have deer that always come behind the church windows

Sanctuary
This is a smaller venue where we hold the nigh service
I don't have a good picture of the sanctuary yet. this is it at night with no one in it! :)3D Youth Room...

DEWITT CAMPUS
This is the campus where we will launch in February
Parking Lot
We played volleyball here in the summer
Parking Lot from Entrance and overhang
The Sanctuary
Before the carpet was torn out.the awesome colored microphone covers and projector improvisationHall Way Before being torn down
The Afters are to come
Irony
Both these pictures so a desire to reach out although we are now going about it in a different way
Nursery extra rooms
The Parsonage Where I'm living
Kitchen Floor before
and After

Cursed to Taco Bell

2010-09-23T17:08:00.003-04:00

You know how it talks about generational blessings and curses in the Bible, the idea where your parents good and bad decisions can continue you on generationally in their kids, grand kids, etc?

Well the only one that i think i have come across is that i think i am doomed to crave Taco bell and be perfectly content to eat Taco Bell on a daily basis because of my dad. Okay, well maybe it is my own fault and decision as well, but i'm still not sure how much of a choice i had in this matter. :)

One of THE MOST AMAZING dance moves and football catches i have ever seen.

2010-09-14T23:16:00.003-04:00

I just rewatched this dance moment from America's best dance crew 5 and it still blows my mind every time i watch it!

I would say the same exact thing about this football catch made by prothro

Party in the AUK made New Zealand TV!!!

2010-09-14T02:54:00.004-04:00

Apparently Party in the AUK was played on Iamtv this last week!!! how awesome is that! If you didn't know, me, John Gorveatte and a load of other friends in New Zealand including laura, stephenie, and ben made a video talking about New Zealand and other things in Auckland. You can watch it below. It made my day to hear that the video made it on to tv though! so cool.

On the Move.

2010-08-21T02:30:00.002-04:00

I am officially getting a car and moving up to my new place today (Saturday) to preach my first Sunday at my new job in Lansing, MI. Kinda crazy. WIll post a pictures and update soon.

My Top 10 Favorite Movies

2010-08-21T02:17:00.004-04:00

I just got done watching August Rush again and loved it... i honestly think it would go in my top ten favorites and it got me thinking so this is gonna be my top ten in no particular order (and yes i cheated where i couldn't make up my mind)...

Dumb & Dumber
Braveheart or Gladiator
The Elf or Home Alone
To End All Wars or the Passion
Shawshank Redemption or The Count of Monte Cristo
Hitch
The Bourne Trilogy
The Lion King
August Rush
The Newsies

don't judge :) just enjoy some great movies .hahaha

My first US observations

2010-08-10T01:34:00.007-04:00

My initial observations being back stateside:

1. Square Land Plots-

Compared to flying over NZ, the US was so much more consistently structured in its development as i looked out the plane window

2. Hot-

Going from 12C=54F to 35C=96F in a day was a shocker with the change of seasons over night.

3. It is Light a lot later-

Also weird for it to be 9pm and still light out since i switched to summer time over night.

4. Flags-

After being patriotic and friends commenting on our respect for the flag, i notice the how many more US flags around houses and places i see compared to the NZ flag in New Zealand

5. Stomach getting used to the food-

It always happens and i always forget, but it usually takes my stomach a little while to change to the quantity of food and different food consistencies that i eat in the US compared to NZ

6. Hispanic/ African American Influence-

I wish i remembered my spanish more. It is weird getting use to hearing spanish and seeing a different style of light brown people always around.

People also have different accents and it is interesting to hear the lingo of african americans and even the voice differences. It is also hilariously good to see more swagger and baggy jean sagging again... oh how i missed that.

7. Being a Minority to Normal-

I went from being one of the few who stuck out as an american with my accent to just being one of many back in the states. This is not a "woe is me" statement but an acknowledgement that this hasn't been my world the past 2 years, that i am just one of the many, and that it will take a little time to re-find my place in what is a more natural everyday life.

8. American Dream Mentality

We were driving by and looking at some nice houses and condos a long a lake and i was surprised at how quick my mind drifted into dreaming about having a place on the water and what i could do to make that happen on the future (haha on a pastor's salary haha ! :)

Traveling & Life over July and August

2010-08-10T01:30:00.011-04:00

Here is my life in photos the past 2 months so far!

July 1-5 Auckland, New Zealand

(Last Days)

John Gorveatte and I singing at the Gathering

Got to help Stephenie Garey get settled in her first 2 months in NZ as a missionary

Me and the guys filmed a video called "Party in the AUK" talking about Auckland. Great time just to hangout with these guys where i wouldn't normally and a memory that will last a long time. You can watch the video below but be warned, it is mainly nz phrases! :)

Dinner with the Snell Family

My Last lunch with the ATC youth

A rainbow came in at my favorite raglan view!

i love how rainbows are everywhere in the winter in NZ

Hanging out after Sunday lunch with the Els
Was able to seen a partial lunar eclipse
and see an All Blacks Rugby game with some close friends
Varun (above) was a newer friend towards the end that was able to get to know and invest in while teaching the guitar
Random adventure under the dock

Hanging out with friends before leaving

Went and hung out with the mackays before i left too and made the video below talking about other new zealand phrases. love that house

Had an amazing send off from friends. Definitely felt loved and knew i would miss them

July 5th Sydney, Australia

(Hillsong & Ben/Leen Time)

Was able to spend some downtime in Sydney before heading straight back home.

I took the train everywhere
Made some new friends and got to see some old friends like Amy in the middle above and Ben (below) and Leen who moved to Oz not too long ago.

July 9th Plymouth, Indiana

(Parents)

Was only home for a day :)

July 10-21 Lexington & Holden Beach, North Carolina

(Grandparents & Family Vacation)

Went to the farm with the grandparents

Had a bonfire and kayaked on the pond at midnight with my crazy cousin becca gray the night before we left!

This was the last little bit we saw pappaw and the last goodbye wave as we drove out before we would drive back for his funeral.

got to surf and goof off at the beach for a bit

July 25-29 Lexington, North Carolina

(Pappaw's Funeral & My Ordination)

Had a few days of work and rest before finding out 3 days after our return that pappaw passed away and we drove back to NC for the funeral and back up to Marion, IN just in time for me to be ordained in the Wesleyan church!

Relatives together after the funeral

August 4 Indianapolis, Indiana

(Global Partners Visit)

Able to catch up with my help on the stateside and begin to take care of all the end details of a trip

August 10-16 San Diego, California

(ECWC Camp Speaker)

I am off to San Diego Today for just under a week and then will spend a few days movie and trying to put a rough draft of an NZ book together before the big move to Michigan.

August 22 Lansing, Michigan

(1st Sunday at Lansing Faith)

This is not Faith Church in Lansing, MI that is hired me, but this is the second site/venue/campus whatever you call it that i will work closely with

and the place i am looking to move into
and the inside of the church

Ministry Transition

2010-08-09T01:36:00.000-04:00

As to Global Partners, New Zealand, Life, etc.

I don't think you can ever leave a place after the amount of time i spent there without it always having a close place in your heart.

For the moment I am stepping out of my missionary role with Global Partners although there is always the possibility of me working on possible short or long term projects to NZ or other places if the opportunity arises in the future.

I will be working with Brandon Bruce and the staff at Faith Church.

I would appreciate your prayers. I will always hold the friends and relationships i made in New Zealand close to my heart and facebook :) but will be praying that God will continue to either bring since a peace about ending my time in NZ or to draw my heart closer to NZ in the future if there is still more to be done.

A poem i wrote in high school...

2010-08-07T23:06:00.003-04:00

don't know exactly when i wrote this, but i randomly read over it in an old folder. You will see why i never became a poet, but hopefully you hear the heart.

Heavens Beauty

The beauty of your creation

is too marvelous for painting

To find the perfect depiction

spend an eternity

The sunset's harmony of peace

a baby's smile of simple joy

The heavens' skies that never cease

songbirds for the ears to enjoy

If this beauty and creation

God can assemble in six days

My heart can't wait to see heaven

with two thousand years of work days

The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man...

2010-08-06T13:56:00.005-04:00

I have always read the second part of James 5:16 in the NIV and really liked it.

"The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective." (NIV)

But i just read it in the KJV and like it even MORE!

The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. (KJV)

I haven't done a solid word study on which version is the most accurate although the KJV tends to be more literal...

but the adjectives "effectual" and "fervent" help this verse make a lot more sense in my head because sometimes it was hard for me to know exactly what was meant simply by a "righteous man's prayer."

Another great verse clarification i found was 1 Peter 4:8

I always read

Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. (NIV)

but just read

And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins. (KJV)

I really like the description of “fervent charity among yourselves.” It helps clarify the meaning of love each other deeply because it adds so much more of an active description of what is being asked.

Did i meet famous people and not even know it?

2010-07-19T13:29:00.006-04:00

So i sitting in the LAX (might've been chicago but I think it was LAX waiting for my flight back to IN a week ago and ran into two people i think were famous:

This guy in the picture above was huge like a wrestler, had a some tattoos, and this group of guys asked to take a picture with him, i didn't know who he was so i didn't feel right asking to pose for a picture. Is this a WWE guy or someone else i should know?
at the same moment, i always like talking to the people next to me but i was sitting next to an attractive girl in normal clothes that had a wedding ring on and across from us was another guy chatting up the girl next to him and i didn't want to be that guy so i just contently played a game on my ipod instead. After awhile I was curious though, because she had ski boots on her louis vuitton carry-on so i asked where she was going and she said, "New Zealand to meet up with her team" and after i asked she said she was "a professional skiier." As she got up for the first class customers to board her plane, i quickly asked, "wait so are you well known? i didn't get your name" She humbly responded, "Lindsey Vonn" (with a kind laugh) "i don't know, maybe." and she was on the plane. I didn't know until i just looked up her name yesterday that she is a 2010 US gold medalists and that she has been on the front of Sports Illustrated and has a Facebook Fan page of like 150,000 followers among others things!

Resting and Taking it in.

2010-07-16T15:15:00.003-04:00

Me and my nephew Jaylon by the barn

me and pappaw resting in the air conditioned house.

I am officially back in the states spending time with family for the next few weeks. I am looking forward to putting together a large NZ update after I take some time to process and resettle over this time. It is definitely a big time of transition as the people in New Zealand have become my home and close friends over the past two years. Thank you so much for investing or being interested in how God has been working in New Zealand and my part in that. I have so many stories to share and can't wait.

officially home

2010-07-12T00:21:00.002-04:00

back for a day and resting and enjoying family time

Funny Moment

2010-07-01T15:59:00.002-04:00

I was going to look up Proverbs 19:21 in light of me making future plans and God being in control but i accidentally put in Proverbs 21:19 instead and it said rather bluntly:

¹⁹ Better to live in a desert
than with a quarrelsome and ill-tempered wife.

not hating on women, the verse just caught me off guard.

4 Days left in NZ

2010-06-30T16:59:00.003-04:00

My time to leave New Zealand has come up quickly. I will update my blog and you in more detail soon, but right now i would just appreciate your prayers as i try to connect and end this time well over these next couple of days. I leave this Monday at 12:15pm NZ time.

NZ and my involvement in the future are still heavily in my prayers as well but nothing has been decided.

As for my immediate next steps:

July 5-9- Australia for a few days to process the transition back home

Mid July- Family vacation in North Carolina

July 31- My ordination in Indiana

August- Potentially start a job stateside

Thank you so much for your involvement and support in my life.

Brent Dongell

Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the LORD's purpose that prevails. Proverbs 19:21

Life is Like the Game Rush Hour

2010-06-18T20:10:00.003-04:00

I was reading Purpose Driven Life a few years ago and it asked the question, "What is your life metaphor?" ie. "Life is rollercoaster full of ups and downs," "Life is a sport with a goal, strategy, and objective," "life is garden dig it," etc.

I concluded that mine was, "life is a game" back in the day.

Well today i decided, I feel like "My life is like the game Rush Hour." I used to play this game when i was bored at my grandparents farm and loved it.

If you don't know the game, I put an example below. The goal is to get the red car through the gap on the side of the board that it is facing, but you have to move the other cars forward and backwards to make this possible.

I feel like this is how and why i am constantly processing life. It is like there is this clear objective of living this life well, but to do that seems like a big puzzle that sometimes you have to take a step back and look at and other times you have to just keep watching and moving the pieces around until it starts to make sense.

Either way, it definitely all seems like fun and games until your patience runs out and you get frustrated with all of the obstacles in the way or how much time you have spent trying to figure out something so stupid and you just want to walk away and call the game dumb because your frustration has won over. i am tempted with this thought a lot. Life seeming too much or the frustrations of figuring out life not always feeling like they are worth it, but once i have started something, i hate not finishing it. Also most of us have learned that pain and struggle are often worth it and sometimes more rewarding than when they are lacking.

All this to say, there is a lot to process and do in these last couple of weeks in New Zealand. Sometimes i am tempted to call my execution planning stupid because i don't know how to piece these last couple of weeks together, but i try and remember the fun parts of this game we call life and to keep moving around and loving people and being loved by people as it all just seems to make sense and come together in the end.

Me Rambling

2010-05-22T09:03:00.003-04:00

3 funny things happened this last Thursday:

I made a friend a worship cd to practice the piano with the songs. When I asked him about it, he said thanks, and went on to explain that he has had trouble sleeping and that he played one of those cds and it put him right to sleep!!! hahaha that wasn't exactly what i had in mind, but i guess that works to.
I was having so much fun singing to a song in my van at a stoplight today, that the 2 girls and guy in the car next to me had rolled down their window to try and here what i was listening to! Now that is dedication to car dancing! What was i listening to? A random American song that i have been newly enlightened to called "Mysterious Girl" by Peter Andre. :)
A random remembrance: There was a girl i remember being extra flirty when i was back in the US like 3 years. I finally pinpointed it one day that one of the main things she did that made her this way was that she would never look at you straight face to face but would always look out at you from the side or the corner of her eyes. Just a random observation.

If You Want to Listen To My Latest Sermon

2010-05-12T02:28:00.003-04:00

Just over a couple of weeks at cession|community ago I preached on Judgement. It was a sermon that i received a lot of cool responses about. If you want to listen to the sermon you can click here and it should start downloading.

They included about 10 minutes of testimony before my actual sermon just as a heads up and also, towards the beginning, when i ask "what are your honest opinions about this?" i have on a crazy pair of American flag pants.

It was for a series called The Apprentice discussing whether you had what it takes to follow Jesus standard of living in terms of gossip, judgment, and revenge.

Personality Driven Ministry: To do or not to do?

2010-05-12T01:38:00.001-04:00

Having a stronger personality, this has been one of my bigger questions and areas of tension as i try to give to the church and people around me.

I hear both sides:

A) More often i hear: "Don't build a ministry around one person or personality."

The reasons are usually explained by someone who has felt the direct effects of this type of ministry when a pastor like this leaves the church. Often the people still at the church after the leader leaves are left trying to pick up the pieces or trying sustain or pick up where the other pastor left off without developing leadership and delegating other leaders to carry on what he started is one of the most common explanations.

B) On the flipside, some ministries just have worked that way like the Billy Graham Ministry.

I am not criticizing its inner workings at all, but all i am saying is that the name of that ministry and what it stands has centered around Billy Graham and his message. I was recently asked, "What is it that only Brent can do for the church? ...that God has created you for?" There seems to be a case for also leading a dream or passion that God has put in your heart and rallying others around you.

The fear of A is holding back. It could be good restraint, but i also believe there can be a negative restraint if i never feel free to fully pursue the dreams or directing God leads

The fear of B is selfishness and pride. It could become less about the team and more about your own desires.

I believe both kinds of ministries can have a time in place, but i have often felt in the middle. Wanting to just "unleash" and allow my personality and hearts desires to run free and to see where God takes them, while often holding back fearing whether it would become prideful or whether i would make sure to do this around a team and create something that goes beyond me rather than just living in the moment.

just ongoing ponderings...

My Top 10 Most Pet Peeves

2010-05-11T07:07:00.004-04:00

I grew up trying not to have too many things that annoy me, but as i get older my list has grown a little bit :) so i decided to put my top ten list of annoying things together. This has been a week long process, but i finally have a solid list so here it is!!! I hope it entertains you :)

My Top 10 Most Annoying things

Speed bumps.
When people walk by or beside you and they are intentionally having to try and ignore your presence by looking the opposite way or looking to the ground to avoid eye contact or conversation.
A zit on the nose.
Using a bathroom with thin walls that is right next to where everyone else is at.
The continuous car beep when the front seatbelt is undone, the van is reversing, or the keys are left in the ignition while you are just trying to listen to music with the door open.
Burning the top of your mouth or biting the inside of your cheek repeatedly.
The awkwardness of pulling up next to someone you know at a red light after the 5 seconds of the surprise excitement runs out and you awkwardly don’t know whether to keep talking or to pull forward so there is no pressure to keep conversation going.
Getting honked to hurry up when you are already rushing to do something in the house.
Serious or spiteful sarcasm with an added smile.
Getting hit by a shopping cart on the heel of your foot.

I love artists

2010-05-06T01:30:00.001-04:00

Here was a random Christian video that i came across that i found intriguing. I am always so impressed with artists expressing themselves in different ways.

One of the Best Parts of Missions...

2010-04-28T09:23:00.003-04:00

Missions has its hard times and its good times, but one of the reasons I was so grateful for my job over the past week is that a big part of what I do is focused on being a gift to others.

What a great occupation and job description: be a gift to others.

Not in a cocky sense like, "Hey, here is Brent Dongell with a bow tied around his head, isn't your life just that much better now?!?" haha

But in the sense that the reason I am sent to New Zealand is to be a gift from the US and wider body of Christ to the church and people of New Zealand with my time and finances. I get to go around and hopefully encourage and challenge people, be a listening ear, and give of my education, tithing, and extra spending money where i can and try and be a refresher to those around me.

Thanks to my friends, family, and supporting churches back home that make this a reality.

"...he who refreshes others will himself be refreshed." Proverbs 11:25

but I also have definitely felt blessed on both sides of this coin as always. Where ever i have been giving, I always wonder whether I am giving or actually receiving back way more from those people than i have ever given them.