Ethiopia 2015 - what a start

Hello friends and family! I just wanted to write a short blog post to let you know thigs are going very well here in Addis Ababa. I have not had the internet connectivity I would have liked so this is my first post. And since the clock just struck midnight, it will be short. But I did want to let you know the wonderful things the Lord is doing.

First, our team is meshing and has already become an amazing group. Their selflessness, love for Jesus, love for the people of Ethiopia, and joy is evident. They are fun to be with, which helps to fill the work with enthusiasm. I can already tell this week will be way too short.

One way that spirit showed up today was when the OA staff asked for our help in moving some beds. They are moving some of the children from one location to another and today it was bed moving time. So without hesitation, our team jumped right in and carried these beds a fairly good distance. All with an attitude of wanteing to do whatber they could to serve the local workers - the ones who are with the children all year. God is working through these friends.

So here they are moving the beds:

And just a few more pictures from our first couple of days. Hope you can sense the joy:

Well, that's about enough - gotta get some sleep. Thank you for all your prayers. It's an awesome privilege.

Good night!

Hope

Yesterday at noon, I was privileged to be part of something that can only be described as transcendent. In the aftermath of the unspeakable tragedy in Charleston this week, Christians from across our city gathered to pray. To pray, to sing, to worship, and to join out hearts together. Citizens of Montgomery from across multiple churches, in a rich mixture of black and white, gathered to come before God as one. There was no message being sent. And that's what makes the message so powerful. If you are in God's kingdom - part of God's family - nothing else matters.

Over the course of an hour, we were led in prayers by ministers from across our city:

• A prayer for the nation by Rev. Lawson Bryan of First United Methodist Church
• A prayer for our state by Rev. Claude Shuford of Mount Zion AMEZ Church
• A prayer for forgiveness by Rev. James Turner of the Victory Through Faith Worship Center
• A prayer for the Church by Rev. Farrell Duncomb of St. Paul AME Church
• A prayer for reconciliation by Rev. Emmanuel Williams of Resurrection Catholic Church
• A prayer for the family by Rev. Brian Miller of Aldersgate United Methodist Church 
• And a prayer for unity by Rev. E. Baxter Morris of First Baptist, Ripley Street

And then our mayor shared some remarks leading into the singing of Amazing Grace.

You should have heard it!

The focus of the day was of course the victims of the Charleston shooting. It was not about us, not about our city, not about our problems. But I have to admit that I could not help thinking about those things. I saw hope, springing from the only place hope comes from.

From the the only answer to the madness around us - the gospel of Jesus the Messiah.

We have seen it in the way the victims' families have responded to their loss. (If you've ever read a link from my page, read this one!) And I saw it yesterday in the prayers of my fellow believers.

Love. In the face of hate. That's what we saw in Jesus at the cross, and it's a big part of what makes the Gospel different from religion.

And it's why evil will not win.

For that I'm thankful.

And hopeful.

Go...and do what?

And Jesus came up and spoke to them saying, "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.

- Matthew 28:18-20

Anyone recognize that button?

If you you were born after 1960's, I doubt it. I was a senior in high school, and it was the lynchpin of a national plan to get Christians to "witness." We wore these buttons to school, put bumper stickers on our cars, and had a pocket full of tracts to help us talk people through the Good News.

So, according to the training (yes, there was training), conversations were to go like this:

"I found it!"
"What did you find?"
"New life in Jesus Christ."

Now, let me stop and say that I'm sure there are a lot of people who began their road to faith in Jesus with just such a conversation. Or by reading a "Chick Track" left on a restaurant table. And I personally know people who came to faith because of someone bold enough to share the Four Spiritual Laws with a stranger.

But as I read the passage and look at the level of commitment among those who profess the name of Christ, I wonder where we lost our way. Do we really believe that we can just follow a formula - like praying a specific prayer - and treat it as a guaranteed ticket to heaven? That it doesn't matter what we do after that?

A Gospel built around a formula and getting someone to walk through an exercise. What kinds of fruit has it produced?

Well.....

• We don't need to go to church and worship collectively with other believers. Faith is a personal thing, just between me and God. I don't need you, I prayed the prayer. I'm good, thanks.
• For that same reason, I don't want to force my beliefs on you.
• I can live however I want - after all, I prayed the prayer and punched my ticket years ago. I can live out my life full of envy, greed, sexual immorality, and all sorts of selfishness.
• My salvation is about my eternal destination - not about the glory of God here on earth. As long as I asked Jesus into my heart, that's all that matters. Check with you at the end, God.

But alas, that is not what Jesus commanded. He didn't tell us to go and convert people to a shallow religion that makes no difference in our lives. In fact, he condemned religious leaders who did so:

"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you travel around on sea and land to make one convert; and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as you are."

- Matthew 23:15 

Ouch!

No, he commanded something much deeper. He came to announce God's kingdom, and the disciples were to be part of his mission to spread the glory of God throughout the earth. He said to make disciples - people who devote their lives. And for us to teach them to obey everything he commanded.

So, Christian, go. Go, not to accumulate notches on your belt for the number of people you got to walk through a conversion ritual. But go, live out the Gospel. Share your life with everyone around you. Tell them about Jesus, who through his death made it possible for us to come into God's presence. And teach them what it means to have true faith and repentance - and how a changed heart will enable them to love Jesus and obey what he taught.

And when that happens, we'll be a step closer to the goal.

Blessed be his glorious name forever;

may the whole earth be filled with his glory.

- Psalm 72:19

Go.

Summing it up

It's easy to bow reverently at a nativity scene, and feel wonder at the mystery of the Incarnation. But what does it mean for how I live?

This month, we celebrate the coming of the Messiah Jesus to the earth he created. A little over thirty years after God took on flesh, he found himself in the Temple, chasing out the money changers and declaring that it had become a total distortion of what his Father had intended it to be.

Not long after that, a religious scribe came to him and asked what might have seemed a strange question. He asked Jesus what the most important commandment is (Mark 12:28). How very odd. After all, if a commandment comes from God, doesn't that make it important by definition? How can one be greater than another?

But Jesus answers by quoting from the Hebrew Scriptures, first from Deuteronomy, then from Leviticus. And his answer is the basis for the philosophy you'll see the to the left of this page. First, love God with all your heart. Then, love your neighbor as yourself.

And then, the scribe who came to ask the question agrees...and expands. And the expansion is what's really interesting. He says, yep, good point. Those are the top commandments. But then he makes a comparison - he says that those commands are at the top because they are more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices. Why is that significant?

Because of what Jesus had just finished doing! He had gone into the Temple, overturned tables, driven merchants out, and basically declared by his words and actions that they were missing the whole point. They were all about sacrifices, but were totally missing the love of God and neighbor.  So Jesus used the opportunity to say, this is what's important. Not that...this! The kingdom of God was arriving and it was a matter of the heart.

And the scribe agreed. And thus was, in Jesus words (Mark 12:34), "not far from the kingdom of God."

What does it look like to experience this heart change? Listen to the words of theologian N.T. Wright, from his book Mark for Everyone:

(T)his comes as a considerable challenge for contemporary Christians. Would anyone looking at us - our churches, our lives, the societies that claim in some sense to be 'Christian' - ever have guessed that the man we claim to follow saw his followers as being people like this? Or to put it another way: when the crisis comes, what remains solid in your life and the life of your community? Wholehearted love of God and neighbour? Or the mad scramble of everyone trying to save their own skins?

Ouch! Wright is saying that the way we react when we are bumped tells whether we are taking seriously the words of our Lord. When someone pulls the fire alarm, so to speak, are we all about loving God and those around us? Or are we desperately trying to get out the building no matter who we might step over along the way?

So, as a Christian, what is my first thought when...

• When there are cutbacks at our place of work. "What will happen to me?" Or "How can I be servant to my coworkers as we go through this together?"
• When a tornado rips through my city? "That was close! But at least I'm alright." Or "Wow, people are hurting all around me...how can I show them the love of Christ?"
• When we hear of a deadly disease killing thousands overseas. "How can we keep it away from us so we'll be safe?" Or "My heart is broken for those affected...I need to pray for them and look for ministries to lift them out of it."

Don't misunderstand. I'm not saying that the self-preservation instinct is unnatural. It is of course the natural first thought of the human mind. But that is what's so powerful about the cross of Christ. Through his death and resurrection, he has brought about a new order where God can dwell in our hearts and make us think differently. So that, by his power, our hearts can become more and more inclined to think of his glory and the welfare of others first.

Love God. Love people. When that happens, the world will see that God has made his dwelling on earth through his people. 

And that is the good news of Christmas.

Christmas? Now?

Tonight I sang Christmas music for about an hour. And no, I'm not crazy. Or at least if I am, it's not because of this.

You see, our church choir has begun its preparation for the annual Christmas musical. Actually, we have been rehearsing Christmas music for over a month. We started some time in early September.

So tonight, we were singing about "The Most Wonderful Time of the Year." We sang about angels and shepherds and stars and wise men and....well, you get the idea. Does it feel a little weird? Maybe, but I'm used to it. Because here's the thing: If we're going to be prepared - if we expect to know the music - we have to be working on it now. Christmas is in the future, but if we want to do it right, we have to bring the future into the present.

N.T. Wright, among others, has described the death and resurrection of Jesus as God's future bursting into the present. I think it's a pretty good description. Scripture says that Jesus being raised from the dead was "the first fruits of those who are asleep." (1 Corinthians 15:20) We live in an age where God has already won the victory over death and hell, but the final manifestation of that is still to come. The future, when all God's people rise to reign with him, has burst into our present.

So what do we do now? We practice! We are going to spend eternity bringing glory to God, but why wait until then? If we are going to do it right, we need to be living it now.

So...Christmas has burst into October, and we are singing carols and practicing to fully celebrate it when December rolls around. Similarly, God's glorious future has burst into our present, and we can't ignore it. This is what living the Christian life is about. Not obeying a bunch of rules to try and earn God's favor. But beginning the future right now. Reflecting the image of the Creator in his creation. Practicing for an eternity of obeying him and bringing him glory.

You know, it's kind of like Dippin Dots - you know, "the ice cream of the future." It may be the ice cream of the future, but we've been eating it for around 20 years.

The future is here. Faith isn't about waiting for heaven. It's about how we live now, in anticipation of how we'll live then.

Are you ready?

The Walking Dead: Who are we?

Sunday night over 17 million people watched the Season 5 premiere of the popular AMC show The Walking Dead. For those who don't know, it is a show set in a dystopian world, the result of a "zombie apocalypse." It may seem like one long zombie movie, but it's really a show about human nature, survival, hope in the midst of despair, moral choices in the face of extreme adversity, and community. It is in many ways gruesome, dark, and at times hard to watch. But it also is a story that keeps sending me back to examine the meaning of life and how God fits into the picture.

SPOILERS AHEAD


Leading up to the this episode, Rick and his son Carl are approaching a place where sanctuary has been promised, but the promise is a lie. Those who are waiting for them have gone off the deep end, doing unspeakable things to their fellow human beings. As they walk along, this conversation takes place:



They have been through so much. Done so many things out of necessity. So have they lost their identity?

Fast forward to Sunday's episode. Rick and his friend Glenn have just escaped from one of the most gruesome deaths imaginable, at the hands of the people who had promised them sanctuary but only wanted to use them....for food. That's how low these people had sunk. And as they are plotting their escape, they notice a train car with some fellow human beings trapped. Would they save them, or just look out for themselves? And so the question of identity comes up again:



They're still holding on to their humanity. By a thread, but they are. "That's still who we are...it's gotta be."

As the episode progresses, we learn about the journey of the captors at Terminus. How they started out providing sanctuary and really trying to help people, but were betrayed. Tortured, killed, and assaulted in every way imaginable. And so they hardened. They became determined to never let it happen again. And the end result? Total depravity.

So who are they? Who were they before it happened? Are they different people, or were the depths of sin always there, crouching at the door, waiting to devour them? (And whoever they might trap.)

And what about the supposed heroes of the story? Who are they? Are they on the same journey as the evil captors? Are they becoming jaded, one crisis at a time, until they are just as depraved as the Terminus crowd?
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So what about us? Who are we? It's so easy to look at myself as I live my relatively comfortable life (no zombies here) and think I'm a pretty good person. But am I? Or is there a level of adversity where  I would progress into something I don't recognize?

This is where I need the grace of Jesus, the resurrection power to change me from the inside out. Through his death and resurrection, my heart can be changed and the evil lurking there defeated. There is hope...hope that I do not have to become what I hate in order to defeat it.

When the world tried to force Jesus to fight back against its power structures, he defeated evil in a surprising way: by submitting himself to a humiliating death. He defeated evil by taking on sin and allowing it to die with him, and then rising from the dead.
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I'm not sure where Rick's journey will lead. It looks like there is a real danger of becoming everything he hates in the struggle to survive and protect those he loves. I look forward to seeing how far down that road he goes...and whether he ever recognizes what's happening to him. But the real question is, do I realize what's happening to me? Do you? And what are we going to do about it?

Gearing up...Day Zero

Day Zero In Ethiopia and already it's a good trip. No, we did not get much sleep on the plane and yes, it's been a long day. It's important to stay up after a flight like that so you can sleep through the night; somehow we did it.

So, on this day of preparation and fighting through jet lag, there were several highlights:

I got to spend the day with some awesome people and servants of Christ. I can tell already that I will be sad for this week to end.

We made an unscheduled appearance at an international church and worshipped with hundreds of other brothers and sisters in the Lord. Yes, at times it was a struggle to stay alert, but well worth the trip, as we heard a great message from Embracing Hope director Jerry Shannon about what to do when you get more than you can handle. I'm sure we'll be applying that at some point this week.

And we got to spend the day with the staff of Holy Savior Guest House. It is going to be fun working with them all week.

Well, it's on to the children tomorrow morning. Please pray for their hearts to feel the love of Jesus as we are with them. Please pray for the tireless servants of Christ who are with them 24/7/365, before and after we're here. And pray for our team: Danny, Trisha, Clark, and Chasya. Pray that we will follow the Holy Spirit's leading every step of the way.

Off to bed...big day tomorrow. Can't wait!

Ethiopia, Take 5

Well, it's that time again. I;m heading back to Ethiopia again, and I cannot wait!

As some of you know, these trips to Africa are how this blog began in the first place. I wanted a place to share what God was doing through the amazing people I've had the privilege of traveling with. And so the writing began.

So as we head out tomorrow, we covet your prayers. Pray for our team: Clark, Danny, Trisha, Chasya, and me. Pray for the children, families, and staff we are going to visit. And pray for God to move in ways we can't even imagine.

As always, if I get good wifi, you'll hear from us during the week. If it's spotty, I may be sharing after we get back. Either way, I can't wait to share about it!

So here we go...trip #5. Let's do this! Talk to you all soon....

Keeping it going

Yesterday the Alabama softball team captured the championship of the Tuscaloosa Super Regional, and they are bound for the softball college world series. Again.

Three years ago, the Tide was a win away from the championship series before running into a red hot Florida team. And then, two years ago, they won it all on a memorable night complete with rain delays, a comeback, and plenty of drama.

Now, after falling short last year, they're going back.

It wasn't easy. Friday night I sat through one of the most tense dramatic games imaginable. Bama fell behind 4-0 early, and scratched their way back to win after 12 innings and almost five hours of softball. But the remarkable thing about that game was the play of the freshmen:

• After senior Jackie Traina had one of her rare nights struggling to pitch, freshman Sydney Littlejohn came in and pitched 8 scoreless innings. 
• In the bottom of the 7th (the last inning in softball), freshman Marisa Runyon blasted a shot over the wall to tie the game. on to extras…
• And then the game ended when freshman Peyton Grantham hit another blast.

As I thought more about the game, I thought about the key players in the championship two years ago. Some of them have moved on to their post college lives: players like Kayla Braud, Courtney Conley, Kendall Dawson, and Amanda Locke. Others are about to end their careers at Alabama and turn the team over to the "kids": players like Kaila Hunt, Molly Fichtner, and Jackie Traina. So it's good to see the young ones stepping in and showing the potential for the future.

You know, it's kind of like life. We all have a very limited time on this earth. The 75 years or so that we average is but a breath; we are here today and gone tomorrow. Time will, as the Indigo Girls song says, "make history of us." There is so much to be accomplished, so many people to help, and such a need for us to spread God's love and enhance the kingdom of his Son.

So it's good sometimes to sit back and realize that it's all part of a much greater plan enfolding over thousands of years, under the direction of a very patient God. Like Alabama's seniors, I need to work hard, prepare hard, and do all I can. But when I am done, others will step in and probably do even better. Others like my nephew and nieces, like the young people I have met through YoungLife, and like the children of my friends. Lie those Tide freshmen softball players, they are stepping to the plate and I know they will hit it out of the park.

So, anyway….softball. Yeah, great series. Now let's take home another championship. Roll Tide!

Going Back for More

This is the text of a guest post I did for the Frazer OneFamily blog. I thought this would be a good time to post it here, as we have a little less than ten days to get new sign ups for this year's Visiting Orphans trip to Ethiopia (details here). If you're even thinking about it (or even if you're not), this is why we go:

It was a normal December day less than four years ago. My phone rang at work and I recognized the number. It was my niece Brooke. 

I had promised to take her on a trip for graduation. She was calling to tell me that she wanted to go on a mission trip. 

To Africa.

Africa? Umm, ok. 

I’ve got to confess that in my 50 years I had never once had a thought that I wanted to set foot on African soil. I was so proud of her for wanting to do this, but this was intimidating. Maybe her mom would tell us she couldn’t go.  

I am so glad she didn’t. 

Through the wisdom and heart of this teenager, God moved my heart and gave me an incredible love for the children of a community on the west side of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.  A place called Korah.  Out of a two-week trip, we only spent two days in Korah. But God spoke to me and I knew I would be back. 

We spent time with a ministry that was doing a summer camp (VBS-like) program for the children, and setting up a programs that would allow many of them to break the cycle and get an education while hearing the Good News. 

This summer I will be going back for the fourth time.  I can’t stay away. 

There are some who would say, why? 

Why keep going back to visit the same children? 

Why not donate money rather than spend it going over there? 

What good are you doing by seeing them one week a year?

Fair questions.  I could probably write a book about why I believe God is leading me to travel across the world to see these people again and again. Or I could just quote James 1:27. But here are just a few reasons I keep going back:

Well, James 1:27…and dozens of other passages about God’s heart for the oppressed. Actually, not just dozens of isolated passages, but a theme – a thread – running through the entire Bible. Jesus came to rescue us when we were most helpless, just as the God of Israel had done throughout the Old Testament. He didn’t just send us provisions to meet our needs; he came in person. We are called to do the same. There is no substitute for a smile, a kind word, a touch, and time spent with someone. I don’t know about you, but my greatest need is to know I’m loved. There’s nothing that says, “I love you” like a personal visit.

I think we have fallen into the trap of believing that money solves all problems. We believe it about our own lives – if I just had a little more, I’d be happy. Well, it’s not true for us and it’s not true for them. Yes, financial support is important. But it is no substitute for what happens when they see a bus roll down their street full of Christ-followers who cared enough to come spend time with them and share “not only the gospel of God, but our lives as well.” (1 Thessalonians 2:8)

I can’t share my life with them without ever seeing them. I love my friends who are investing their lives in these children full time. This is so important, because I’m fooling myself if I think one week a year is going to change the lives of the people in Addis.  Right? 

Wrong..... if my visits encourage the hearts of those God is using there 365/24/7, then yes, it is making a difference. I’m talking about both the leaders who were born in Addis and devoted their lives to changing their community and those from other countries who have been called to live there full time. I go each year praying that something about my visit will help my friends there lift up Jesus and change the lives of the children. It’s not hit-and-run ministry; it’s a small part in a bigger plan. 

To the extent that I remember that, I can get excited about how God is using me without getting a false sense that I have to save everyone because I have limited time. I am there to serve the people God has placed there.

It changes me. 

God has worked through my Africa experience to give me heart for orphans in our community. My eyes have been opened to needs all around me, and it began when he opened my eyes to the needs of children 8,000 miles away. 

I have a much greater view of how big God is and his plan for the nations because I’ve seen his work among the people of Addis. If you want to really see the heart of God, spend time with the people he has a heart for.

Those are just a few reasons – well, looking back maybe I did write a book! But there’s just so much to say. God is more awesome, merciful, loving, powerful, and wise than I ever imagined before July 2010.  And I owe that to my dear friends in Ethiopia.

And so I keep going back for more.

That's Not Why I'm Here

Just a few years ago, it would not have played well on American television.

FX is well into the second season of its drama The Americans. This series, starring Keri Russell and Matthew Rhys, is set in the early 80s during the tension of the Cold War. Russell and Rhys star as a couple who are Russian spies in Washington, DC. Their marriage was arranged as a cover for their espionage, but over the years they have had children and it's obvious they have actually grown to love each other. This causes a major complication in their prime objective: to bring down the United States from the inside.

The reason it would not have played a few years ago is that the drama builds sympathy for these characters. The fact that it's successful is a testament to how short the collective memory of a society is.

Nevertheless, it is a fascinating premise.

The most fascinating part of it is the way the lead characters interact with this culture - one they are sworn to bring down, but one that they have become used to in their 15 or so years living here. After all, they have made friends, settled in a very nice suburban house, have comfortable cover jobs, and are raising their kids in American society. How in the world can they not waver and think, "This might be better than our country"?

That tension is probably why I watch. It, well, reminds me of something. (More on that shortly.)

So in that context, check out this clip from last week's episode.  Phillip Jennings (Rhys) has just bought a new Z28 sports car, and he is really enjoying it. He clearly is more tempted by our American comforts than his wife Elizabeth (Russell), and sometimes she challenges him on that. Where is his loyalty? This is one of those scenes:



Powerful scene. Doesn't she like the luxuries? How can she not? Phillip says it just makes her human if she does. And you know, I'm sure she does. But she responds by reminding her husband of her focus. She may enjoy this country, but that's not why she's here.
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To me, this is a vivid picture of my mission as a citizen of the kingdom of God. That is where my loyalty lies, not in this world system. Like Elizabeth and Phillip, I am living my life in a society that does not have my loyalty. Do I enjoy my job...good food…indoor plumbing…Apple products…TV…movies…football? Sure.

But like the Jennings, I am here for a different purpose. This world system is passing away, and since Jesus came and announced the kingdom of God, his followers have been called to a higher allegiance. We are citizens of heaven, working to bring about justice, mercy, healing, and love in a broken world.

I must never forget that.

So yes, I learn something from watching these fictional Russian spies. I learn what it's like to live in a society that is opposed to what I believe in. Can I enjoy my life? Of course. but I must always remember…

That's not why I'm here.

Google vs. Death

I got a text from a friend today. Seems he saw the magazine to the left in the stack of the waiting room where he was…well…waiting. It's from last September but it grabbed his attention. And especially this week - Holy Week - it grabs mine as well.

I tried to find the article online but without a subscription I could only see the first couple of paragraphs. I need to find it and read the whole thing, because it is definitely an intriguing premise. Basically, Google is founding a subsidiary (known as Calico) focusing on health and aging, with the goal of significantly extending the human lifespan.

And so the cover asks the question, Can Google solve death?

It's a question that strikes at the heart of our greatest fears. If there is something, or someone, out there that can "solve death" it would change everything.

And that is why the good news of Jesus is so…good. For the entirety of human history, we have been slaves to death. It is the greatest enemy. It snatches away those we love, and one day it will get us too. It is so insidious that facing it moved Jesus himself to anger and tears (John 11:33-35). It is something we hate, and we have good reason.

But death's days are numbered. The King of the universe entered his creation, spent his life announcing  the kingdom of God in both word and deed, and then did the most amazing thing ever. Even though he was God, he subjected himself to death, and by the very act of that submission, defeated it. That victory was confirmed by God on the third day when he rose from the dead, never to die again.

Because of this singular act (and the death and resurrection are a singular act - one without the other would have been meaningless), we know that he is the King. His resurrection power is available to us daily, and he is the first of many to rise bodily. The message of Easter is that through the death and resurrection earth has been claimed by heaven. When he returns, we who follow him will rise again and reign with him forever. Wow!

So, go ahead Google. Fight death, find ways to extend life. That would be cool. But ultimately, no - Google will not solve death.

But that's okay. Because Jesus has.

Prayer (Petra)

You never know what gem you're going to be reminded of when you put your playlist on shuffle. Today, for the first the first time in maybe years I heard the song below on my iPhone. And then I listened again, and a third time. Each time after the first, I was 1) lifting a prayer of thanks and praise, 2) requesting God's care for the people I love, and 3) asking to be used by him to build his Kingdom.

Here it is, along with the lyrics. Pray with me please:

Prayer:



Lyrics:

First I want to thank You Lord for being who You are
For coming to the rescue of a man who's drifted far
For calling me to be Your son and calling me to serve
Lord the way You've blessed my life is more than I deserve

Keep the ones I love so dearly
Fill their emptiness while I am gone
And fill the loneliness in me, in me

This is my prayer lifted to You
Knowing You care even more than I do
This is my prayer lifted in Your name
Your will be done I humbly pray

Let me be the evidence of what Your grace can do
To a generation struggling to find themselves in You
May they come to know the love of God
May their eyes be made to see

Give me the opportunity to share the truth that sets them free

And may unity in all things
Be the banner of Your church
And let revival's fire begin to burn, begin to burn

This is my prayer lifted to You
Knowing You care even more than I do
This is my prayer lifted in Your name
Your will be done I humbly pray

As we face the last and final hours, turn a wayward country back to You
And keep us from the evil that devours
Keep us on the path and lead us through
Keep us in Your light until Your kingdom comes and our work is done

This is my prayer lifted to You
Knowing You care so much more than I do
This is my prayer in Jesus' name
Your will be done I humbly pray

This is my prayer, this is my prayer