favorite moment from the last week

There were times during the week in Philadelphia that the Gospel was glaringly absent from the evening lessons and morning devotions. It wasn't that what was said was wrong...it was just that Jesus wasn't the grounding for it. The messages had a very "be good" feel to them.

And then something eternally rewarding happened. Several kids from my youth group said to me, after I asked them their thoughts on the past couple of days, that the Gospel was not there. The messages seemed unfulfilling and not quite Jesus centered.

It made my heart joyful to know that they could recognize Jesus-absent theology. Not only that, but that they desired to hear the Gospel.

On Thursday night after a brief message on foot-washing we began to ready ourselves for the act of washing. My kids were fidgety and uncomfortable (which is absolutely normal) and then one of them said "I just wish I knew why we were doing this. I don't think that washing someone's feet is a very good way to serve."

What they missed was the awesome service of Christ washing our feet as a symbol of our continual need for repentance and his continual intercession on our behalf. When they saw the beauty of God's sustaining grace found in foot-washing they were immediately ready to endure the brief uncomfortable moment for the delight of Christ continual work on our behalf.

I asked them two questions: What did Peter ask Jesus to do? (Wash his hands and face as well.) What did Jesus respond? (That he was already clean and only his feet needed continual cleaning.)

They immediately saw the connection to Christ's sustaining work for us. What a sweet thing to see them get it, that it's not about our service but about Christ's work. So awesome.

-joe

back from philly

Apparently the Twilight Zone does exist. How else do you explain a 730 mile trip taking 15 hours? I hate Ohio.

We had a great week, the 5 kids and my last minute assistant, Allison. We met lots of folks, made lots of friends and were able to share the love of Christ with folks.

There were lots of things that could have been better but there is no doubting that all of us came away more in love with our awesome savior, Jesus Christ.

I'll give you a more thorough treatment once I get some more sleep. Definitely need lots more sleep.

Here's a pic with another group that was there with us. They're from Buffalo, NY.

-joe

a little about philly

I thought some information on Philadelphia might help you get a better picture of where we'll be.

Philly is best known for things like the Liberty Bell and cheesesteaks but there are lot of other things you probably didn't know about the 5th largest city in the US.

Did you know that the first secure website purchase was made from Philadelphia? He bought a CD.

The first piano built in America?...yup, Philadelphia.

Apparantly the idea of hanging out in a bar and discussing weighty matters was common in Philly, with the likes of John Adams, Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin spending time at the City Tavern.

And, the picture below will remind you that the movie Rocky (shot in 28 days) was filmed in the "city of brotherly love."


-joe

mission trip

Tomorrow morning I'm heading off to Philadelphia with 5 kids from my church and a girl that I barely know. (She was gracious to step in at the last minute after a chaperone had to step down.)

We'll be working with YouthWorks! which I've heard from my friend, Rachel, is a great organization. I've been getting more and more excited as the day approaches. I can't wait to see the effect of teaming together with 60 other people for the cause of Christ will have on us.

I love mission work and haven't had the chance to go on any short-term trips since I spent the summer of 2005 in Yellowstone with Campus Crusade. I hope this proves to be a good experience and a Christ-exalting time.

Pray that we would be safe, united and good witnesses for Christ. But mostly pray that Jesus will be our focus and that His Gospel would go forward with power while we are there to save those who would believe. That's the whole purpose.

I've got several scheduled posts for next week, I hope you enjoy them. We'll be getting back late Friday night.

In Christ who sustains,

-joe