"I got invited."

These are three wonderful words from our Sunday gathering. After worship I always ask, "Somebody share a God story." I ask this because God is always working in our lives, however, we often don't recognize God working in our lives because many of us don't ask: "Is this God?"

This last Sunday when I asked, "Somebody share a God story," a friend of a friend raised his hand & said, "I got invited to this today." When he said this I was somewhat stunned & I almost cried. I wasn't stunned because he got invited; I was stunned because I too easily forget to be thankful that I am invited. I forget that eleven years ago, when I was at a horrible place, God invited me. Since that time he has continued to invite me; in spite of the fact that I have taken up the attitude I am someone worth inviting! What this friend said was an: Out of the mouth of babes moment. He was just thankful to be invited. I'm tired of inviting. He's thankful to be a part. I'm tired of being here. He's thankful he got invited. I put my invitation away & forgot about it.

After he said this I laughed one of those laughs you make when your shocked or embarrassed. But God quickly filled my heart & reminded me of something. I then said to those gathered last Sunday: "We all got invited didn't we."

It's when we move into the realm of entitlement that we become disillusioned with who we are in Christ. We forget where we came from & then start to become ungrateful for who He is & who we are. We are not entitled to anything especially a place at the Wedding Feast; we forget that we WERE invited when we shouldn't have been. We forget we ARE invited even though we shouldn't be. When we start to feel pinched isn't because we feel entitled to something that we have no right to in the first place?

If we could remain in a posture of: "I got invited," I am certain we would enjoy God more & enjoy what He has for us.

Our God is the God of manna, not Urbana.

Here's what I mean. When the disciples asked Jesus, "Teach us how to pray..." He said amongst other things, "Give us our daily bread..." (I've really been thinking about the theological depth of the Lord's Prayer: It really is complete.) Now to a Jew daily bread would have conjured up thoughts of when God gave bread to Israel in Exodus: Manna. There, He provided daily for the physical needs of Israel; it may not have been flashy, terribly tasty, or what they wanted day in & day out, but He provided what they needed. He is the God of Manna; He is the God who gives us physically & spiritually what we need; day in & day out.

Now Urbana. Urbana is an outstanding missions conference. I have no problem with Urbana & hope to go one day. It only rhymes with Manna & represents, what I believe, many expect their devotional life to be like day in & day out: Huge & revelatory beyond belief. However, we serve the God of Manna; God gives us what we need. Manna is what we need; Urbana is what we want.

When we sit with God daily in an unrushed time with him He always delivers, He always provides Manna, what we need, our Daily Bread. However, to insist on Urbana when I sit with Him is to betray who He is. He always gives me what I need & even if I don't feel it when I sit at His feet, I receive the seed of the Kingdom & within that seed is the entire Kingdom DNA; & given the correct soil, it grows & grows into...well, Urbana!

God is not a dispensary of my wants. God knows what I need & in the end what I need is really what I wanted! Amazingly He knows the deepest desires of my heart. Sadly, I often confuse wants & needs. Daily bread is what I need.

Our God is the God of Manna, not Urbana. Get your Manna on.

While in Buffalo we drove past a building that was both huge & beautiful. I asked Steve what the building was for & he said, "It's Buffalo's abandoned mental asylum." Totally freaky!! Check out this site: http://kingstonlounge.blogspot.com/2008/09/buffalo-state-hospital-h-h-richardson.html

What is freedom? Where do I find it? Everyone in one way or another is asking this question. Christ came to "set us free;" & "whom the son has set free is free indeed." However, God's definition of freedom & ours aren't the same. As we frantically try to control our lives we realize, or at least other people do, that we are out of control. What is freedom? Freedom comes from giving control of your entire being to God. What he says is right is right. What he says is wrong is wrong. His values are THE values you live your life by. As an American my definition of Freedom is: Doing what I want to do when I want to do it. This isn't God's heart or definition of freedom & only leads to confusion. Only submission to God through Christ empowered by the Holy Spirit leads to REAL freedom! Please read the Epistles with special care to the word: Slave. It is a favorite title for those who knew Christ. It's not very popular today either in title or in standing.

Bondage to Christ leads to freedom; freedom as you define it, & therefore live it, leads to bondage.

He came to set us free because we are bound. The blind cannot lead the blind. The blind cannot walk without assistance. We are blind & when you realize that you are blind he gives you sight. He came to save us because we are out of control; bound by sin & death.

Bondage to Christ leads to freedom; freedom as you define it, & therefore live it, leads to bondage.

Our trip to Buffalo was amazing. We weren't sure what to expect & didn't expect what we got. To say the least God showed up in so many ways. Janine said it best, "God showed that he Sovereign;" & he did. Eleven of us came from Santa Cruz to Buffalo & every single person had a transormational experience while in Buffalo. I've been to: Africa, Thailand, China, & India yet our trip to Buffalo was the most profitable. Why? First, our friends Steve, Tami, & Mary live & have started a church there. Although we are doing things a bit different in Santa Cruz our goal is the same: Total Devotion to the person & purposes of Jesus. So, we went to Buffalo & "did the stuff," but with our sisters, brothers, cousins, aunts, & uncles. I feel bad for Christians who aren't a part of family. As is true for our time in Santa Cruz, we experienced real friendships, community. When our two groups got together it felt like it was one group. Secondly, everyone had questions answered in powerful ways. We all have questions we're asking God. On this trip God spoke to all of us. We'll see what happens.

We brought two girls who hadn't said yes to Jesus & his offer of life. Both of those girls committed their lives to Christ on this trip, which was incredible. Steve had mentioned, "It's cool to see Danielle & Marianna loving people in the name of Jesus before they have given their lives to Him." Marianna actually gave away her Bible to another woman who had questions before she had given her life to Jesus! Actually, Marianna gave her life to Christ on a car ride to hang out with Angela (a woman we met at at BBQ) who had questions about Jesus! As I dropped Marianna off she was in tears because she had just been born again & she said, "What do I do now? I don't want to overwhelm Angela." Wow. She was so convinced of Christ's love before she said yes to him that she was reaching out to others who were curious about him! Seriously, this is just one story amongst many.

Needless to say this was a big push on the flywheel of two outstanding communities, on two different sides of the United States, doing one thing throughout the earth. Loving God, Loving People, Making Disciples.

Buffalo was more than amazing. Here's the first post.