Update

It is hard to know just what to write about in these blog posts. So much seems to be happening and yet it seems so difficult to put into words. We are in our third month of the youth church and God is definitely "in a hurry" as Jack Louman is constantly reminding us about our work over here.

We were privileged to be invited to Winter Camp with Westside Church this month and the fruit from just that one weekend was amazing. The Decker's workshop on the spiritual world seemed to be especially impacting for our young people. The testimonies that took place through exposing the schemes of the enemy has been in turn bringing about freedom in other's lives that weren't able to be at camp. It has been really encouraging to see God doing such a quick work amongst our young youth church.

For all the challenges that come with having church in a Movie Theater, we have been seeing incredible opportunities to minister to the community every Wednesday night. We have had our youth staff pray with people as they are heading into a movie and stop to see what we are doing. We have had people actually buy a ticket to a movie and then come to check out church instead. This week we had a man from Puerto Rico who happened to stop in and check out worship before his movie and rededicated his life to the Lord! He is coming to main church this weekend. It has been a lot of fun to see all the opportunities that God has been putting in our laps.

We just finished our first series on "Identity" and are headed into a new series called, "Walk it Out." Keri is in town visiting us and she led worship for us this week. That was a lot of fun! We also just won first place in a poster contest for the Treasure Valley. The contest was to create a poster for the campaign against Meth use in the area. They were giving out a $1,000 to the youth organization who won first place. Great publicity plus great financial blessing!

So that is the short jest of what has been happening over here. God is definitely up to some crazy things! I just wanted to leave you with a thought from my personal time with the Father today:

The believers believe, that is what makes them who they are. They believe that God is who He says that He is, that He will do what He says He will do, that His body will function the way He has called it to function. They just believe! Whether it is concerning the big building blocks of the faith or the small details in their personal relationship with God; their function in life is to believe. Again, that is what makes them who they are; the believers! It seems so simple and yet the revelation of it hits my spirit with profound weight.

Take care, brethren, that there not be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart that falls away from the living God. But encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called "Today," so that none of you will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. For we have become partakers of Christ, if we hold fast the beginning of our assurance firm until the end, while it is said, "TODAY IF YOU HEAR HIS VOICE, DO NOT HARDEN YOUR HEARTS, AS WHEN THEY PROVOKED ME." For who provoked Him when they had heard? Indeed, did not all those who came out of Egypt led by Moses? And with whom was He angry for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies fell in the wilderness? And to whom did He swear that they would not enter His rest, but to those who were disobedient? So we see that they were not able to enter because of unbelief. Hebrews 3:12-19 NAS

Unbelief leads to sin in our lives. When we drop the shield of faith we leave ourselves vulnerable to falling prey to the fiery darts of the evil one. We consistently quote, “Without faith it is impossible to please God” (Heb 11:6) and yet how many times do we examine our faith to be sure that it is indeed pleasing to God? Today, I am struck by the revelation that there are those who will not enter into the abundance of God not because they do not desire it but because they have not been diligent to guard their own faith. What a terrible day to discover that the condition of your heart led you not into the Promised Land but rather back into the desert to continue to wander. May we be consistently cautious to guard our faith in every area that we may walk with confidence into the perfect will of God!