The 4th Day of Christmas

My true love gave to me- Four Calling Birds, Three French Hens, Two Turtledoves and a Partridge in a Pear Tree. And, to quote the folks on, "The Office" this season, "that's a lot of birds".

Pastor Waybright at Lake Avenue Church shared a message at the Christmas Eve service regarding the giving of gifts that inspired the following meditation:

Giving comes from the verb, "to give". It means to hand something over to another person or being. To give food, shelter, a gift, etcetera, is the act of giving. To be a giving person, we must practice this action regularly. In addition, we must practice it selflessly. We give to benefit another person, to honor them, or to fill a need they might have and not our own. In like, we have our needs met in the process but that does not prompt our actions or thoughts.

To give is the ability to say, "No" to The Self and "Yes" to The Other. For the 12 days of Christmas, True Love practices the art of giving increasingly elaborate gifts to the Beloved. These 12 days are the Magi's Travelling Days. If they were flying to Bethlehem, it would be their in-flight time plus their airport wait time. 12 Days for those guys to walk across the wilderness following some bright star in the sky just to give gifts to a poor baby an angel had told them was someone important. These guys sacrificed to give their gifts and nowhere is it noted that they did it out of reverence to Self and what they would get out of it but in reverence instead to the baby and the desire to express their truest feelings about His entry in to the world.

It's this that we can meditate on this holiday season. What does it mean for us to do things in deference to The Self that consumes our days and instead pay homage in gift-giving kindness to The Other that we are thankful for, hopeful for, happy with, and do it for that reason alone. What does it mean to worship God because He is God and worthy of our Praise and for that reason alone? We surely can't do this alone and it is only by the grace-gift given to us by God first that we are able to do so. May we worship Him, may we fall on our knees, and may our sacrifices and hardships be negligible in comparison to the opportunity to give we are given.

"Whoa! Slow down there girl..."

Yesterday was a beautiful November Saturday morning in Southern California and a group of us gathered at 8am in the Lake parking lot to head on out for our 2nd of what will hopefully be many Slow Downs.

This time around we headed up to Eaton Canyon Reservoir for an hour hike up the canyon to the waterfall. Though deceived early on by what was a waterfall- a very short one over a concrete wall- we continued on to our destination where we prayed, then scattered to our own spots to reflect and pray in this beautiful area 20 minutes from the Pasadena city limits.

My decision to join the others, some I knew and some I met with for the first time, was one of necessity yesterday as I found myself in the midst of a pretty tough struggle of my own and some troubles with some people I love dearly. Escaping in to nature has been a constant in my life, a way to talk to God and clear my head. I've just traded the banks of the Columbia River and Leslie Groves Park for the foothills and beaches of So Cal.

For me it is pretty clear way to be with Him as one notices the vast slopes on either side of you with shrub and tree jutting out at different angles, some in good shape, others not. The striations in the rock and dirt showing where water once rose to. The falling water and the still water downstream. The group of birds taking flight from their perch above you. The tumbling rocks down the side of the mountain next to you that makes you nervous, should I move?

As I look around, it hits me that I am in the presence of things man had no control over. We maybe created the hiking trail up there and some of what is seen around us there but by and large the foundation of it all was put there by something bigger than any of us humans.

So, on this journey yesterday, in my desperation, I cried out to Him. Jesus, guide me. Tell me what to do and how to see this present situation I and my family are in. Speak to me. Pleading with God. He was silent.

At least in English he was silent. I kept on crying out until my body was too tired and my heart was angry. Why do you not say anything? Then the birds took flight and the rocks came a-tumbling and I raised my head and felt the warmth of the sun on me and knew that God heard me. In an inexplicable way, I knew in my heart, deep down inside, that He heard me. And His answer for right now, was to just listen to me.

Flash Forward to tonight at Warehouse and the sermon from John 15. A scripture I have heard taught many times before and yet I still can't receive well. Not all of it at least. Jesse Oakes, one of the High School Ministry Staff, shared his observations on us, the branches and God, the Vine.
God calls us to abide. To sit in the La-Z-Boy recliner. To simply sit there.

For me, there is a breath that finally is released upon knowing this, to be encouraged that what God wants for me to do is sit in His presence. To not get stirred up by troubling circumstances by feeling some compelling need to say the right things or make the right decision. To not miss out. To hit all the gophers in the Chuck E Cheese arcade. There is this feeling that I need to be able to "do" it all. But, God at times just wants me to be there. Sitting in the recliner. Or in yesterday's case on the big rock in the middle of brush and bugs in a canyon. He just wants me to sit and listen and look and wait.

I confess though that it is so hard for me to do or remember to do and often go through much heartache and stress before being able to stop.

It's really like God is John Wayne up on his horse (which is me) and he is gently pulling the bridle in his gentle all knowing voice soothing me to stillness with the words, "Whoa there girl! Slow down. Slow down."

We soon hiked back out, chatting our way to the cars, gathered at a restaurant for lunch, shared some bits and pieces from our experiences, and soon headed out on our separate ways home. I hope that we are able to make this a consistent practice to allow God to be John Wayne in all those movies where he rode a horse and help teach us to slow down and be still before Him. Amen!

Upcoming event at L.A. Public Library (Central)

[ALOUD] at Central Library
Wed, Oct 28, 7:00 PM
ALOUD and Vesper Society present

IRENE KHAN
The Unheard Truth: Poverty and Human Rights

In conversation with David Kaye, Executive Director, UCLA School of Law International Human Rights Program

Khan--the first woman, first Asian, and first Muslim to serve as the Secretary General of Amnesty International--sheds a much needed light on the rights and powerlessness of the poor.

Irene Khan, the first woman, first Asian, and first Muslim to serve as the Secretary General of Amnesty International, has brought a strong focus to socioeconomic rights and violence against women around the world. She spent 20 years at the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and was appointed in 1995 as the Chief Mission to India, becoming the youngest United Nations representative. Khan was awarded the Pilkington “Woman of the Year” Award in 2002, as well as the Sydney Peace Prize in 2006.

www.theunheardtruth.org

David Kaye is the Executive Director of the UCLA School of Law International Human Rights Program. He teaches International Human Rights and directs an International Human Rights Clinic. For more than a decade, Kaye served as an international lawyer with the U.S. State Department, responsible for issues as varied as human rights, international humanitarian law, international litigation and claims, nuclear nonproliferation, and U.S.foreign relations law. He was a legal adviser to the American Embassy in The Hague, where he worked with the international criminal tribunals and acted as counsel to the United States in several cases before the International Court of Justice and the Iran-U.S. Claims Tribunal. From 1999 to 2002 he was the principal staff attorney on humanitarian law, handling issues such as the application of the law to detainees in Guantanamo Bay and serving on several U.S. delegations to international negotiations and conferences. The State Department honored him with four of its prestigious Superior Honor Awards.

Prayer = Advocacy

Prayer is such a simple act of faith, and that’s probably why children are so good at it. And that might also be why we don’t always think of the ministry of prayer and the ministry of justice as being related. Prayer is too often viewed as a necessary, but passive, thing that we as Christians do. However, the more I engage in the ministry of prayer and the ministry of justice, the more I see that they are indeed related!

When we refer to people who pray for others, we often use the word “intercessor,” which basically means someone who stands in the gap on behalf of another. Isaiah 59:16 says, “The LORD looked and was displeased to find there was no justice. He was amazed to see that no one [intercessor] intervened to help the oppressed. So he himself stepped in to save them with his strong arm, and his justice sustained him.”

God did the interceding for himself, but he really wanted human intercessors. God values the human touch. He has called us to be his hands and feet to bring about justice and righteousness in the world. And one of the ways we do that is through the ministry of intercession.

The Holy Spirit, the Great Intercessor, empowers us to help others through prayer in their time of need. As intercessors we stand in the gap for those who are spiritually, emotionally or physically oppressed. We plead for their rights — the rights given to them as human beings made in God’s image. We feel their pain and empathize with their weaknesses. When we intercede for someone, we are actually speaking to God on their behalf — giving voice to their need. Intercession is a ministry of justice — because it brings people into a right relationship with God, with others and even with themselves.

So one way you can engage in the ministry of justice is by committing to being an intercessor. Pray compassionately for others. Go ahead — do justice to your prayers.

_______________________________

An excerpt from "A Letter From Marion Skeete, Pastor of Prayer Ministries" in the Fall issue of "Seasons," Lake Avenue's Quarterly Newsletter.

Slow Down

Thanks for waking up early to go on our first Slow Down, friends! Indeed, we all needed a morning to spend entirely and exclusively with the Lord. For those of you unable to join us, please enjoy some pics:

[BJ, Darla, and my head]

[the infamous Monrovia Canyon Falls]

[ our company at the end of the trail

note youth stretching on the right!]

[fallen leaves, running water]

[God's beauty even in things that scare us]

The best time for me was our time on our own after the hike. I had an opportunity to sit down and speak with God, and say things that I normally wouldn't say in the mishmash and hodgepodge of the everyday. It felt good. I left feeling at peace and refreshed.

Will you be joining us on our next Slow Down? Maybe in the fall, after the back-to-school rush? Maybe by the beach?

Just a few thoughts on prayer...

You know how you go to the web to look for something and an hour later you wonder why it was you went to the web in the first place? I'm having one of those afternoons. I've been thinking about prayer a lot lately as I spend evenings praying for the friends that Warehouse has Sent.

You know how you turn off the TV, go into a dark quiet room and just pray as it comes? Praising, singing, battling, crying, laughing, proclaiming, dancing and a lot of just sitting in the stillness, in silence? Ok, well maybe that's just me. In which case I've shared too much and I need to explore this more in counseling. :) What I mean is, just spending time in His presence as you would a friend who has come to visit.

I guess my point is, no matter what you do when praying, isn't it awesome when you come back and realize that two or more hours have passed? And you think, this was so much better than watching TV. (Or doing the Sudoku puzzles I'm addicted to.)

I wonder why I don't do that as a practice. Why do I only do it when there's a missionary traveling, or a friend or relative who is very sick? And why, each time I do this, and have these very same thoughts and conviction, do I go right back to pursuing distractions rather than spending time with Jesus?

So I've been crawling for thoughts on prayer. Prayer insights. Prayer ministries. Prayer communities. I want to know - how do people do this? What's the key? What's the trick? How do you make focused, extended, intimate prayer a lifestyle?

Of course I could say - well, two hours of prayer every day isn't for everyone, just the people who are spiritually gifted to pray. But I know that's not true. I know it's a matter of just getting the fact that you are spending time with Someone you love and who loves you.

Watching TV for two hours is easy. Surfing iTunes is easy. I wouldn't say that I have the spiritual gift of Law & Order: Criminal Intent, or the gift of paying 99 cents a song to bring grunge back. So why do I think that a person needs to be especially gifted to spend that same amount of time praying?

I don't have any answers, really. I expect I will always do this prayer thing imperfectly. I found a few quotes I thought I'd share anyway. ~Aida

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Prayer itself is an art which only the Holy Spirit can teach us. Pray for prayer. Pray until you can really pray. ~ C.H. Spurgeon

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"Our prayer must not be self-centered. It must arise not only because we feel our own need as a burden we must lay upon God, but also because we are so bound up in love for our fellow men that we feel their need as acutely as our own. To make intercession for men (and women) is the most powerful and practical way in which we can express our love for them." ~ John Calvin

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“…the man on his knees has a leverage underneath the mountain which can cast it into the sea, if necessary, and can force all earth and heaven to recognize the power there is in His name.” ~ M.E. Andross

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“Depend upon it, if you are bent on prayer, the devil will not leave you alone. He will molest you, tantalize you, block you, and will surely find some hindrances, big or little or both. And we sometimes fail because we are ignorant of his devices…I do not think he minds our praying about things if we leave it at that. What he minds, and opposes steadily, is the prayer that prays on until it is prayed through, assured of the answer.” ~ Mary Warburton Booth

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"The true spirit of prayer does not consist in asking for blessings, but in receiving Him who is the giver of all blessings, and in living a life of fellowship with Him." ~ Sadhu Sundar Singh

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Bring a Book | Buy a Book Sale & Silent Auction

To Benefit Warehouse's Thailand & Cambodia workers ~ with a Special Presentation from Rachel Snodderly of Compasio

Bring your old books to Warehouse THIS SUNDAY, JULY 19th.

Drop off your books before WHS, then stick around after WHS for the used book sale & silent auction.

USED BOOK SALE

Support Warehouse’s workers in Thailand & Cambodia by donating your old books and while you’re at it, pick up a few “new” ones! Donations may be left at the book donation table in the back of Warehouse before service on July 19th.

SILENT AUCTION

Need a new website? A resume that opens doors? Framed original artwork or photography? Having a party? Get your bid in for a live jazz band (one of Warehouse's own!) who will perform for an hour at any event of your choosing! How about a gourmet meal prepared just for you and a friend or two? Need a ghostwriter - a poem for a friend, or even a marriage proposal? :) How about a hat or mittens (ok, gloves for the guys) custom knitted just for you?

These and other services and products will be up for auction on the 19th! There's something for everyone.

Get your bid in! Then browse the used book tables. Eat. Hear from Rachel (see below). Make sure you stick around to hear the winners of the auction. One of them could be you!

SPECIAL PRESENTATION FROM RACHEL SNODDERLY
Stories from Thailand

Rachel currently serves with COMPASIO (http://www.compasio.org/) and has PHENOMENAL photographs and cool stories to share which will leave you on the edge of your seat and praising God for His provision and His unshakable love. We also have a very cool opportunity to support Rachel as she serves widows and orphans, street children and "Prison Babies," on behalf of our Warehouse community.

Slow Down -- this Saturday!

Whatup Peeps,

Here's the lowdown on our first (of many?!) Slow Down this Saturday, July 11th.

Meeting point: LAC parking lot (near Maple Street entrance), 8:30 a.m; (you can do it); carpool to nearby Monrovia Canyon Park (to save $5 parking/car).

From there we choose a trail -- I'm thinkin' either the 2-mile or 1.5-mile one -- and hike to the waterfall, where we'll break up for about an hour of individual prayer time.

If you've done an hour at the 24-hour prayer room or signed up for an hour during Operation Rolling Thunder, this should seem short! If not, you may be thinking, "How am I gonna pray for an hour, and by myself?!?!?!" No fear! Prayer helps will be provided!

Since we're going through the David series on Sundays, I thought it'd be relevant to read some of the psalms written by David -- his own prayers. In preparation, how about listening to some of the messages we've heard recently? For guys, maybe listen again to Albert's message on Fathers Day...or whatabout the message about not just dealing with vengeance, but overcoming it? We've seen just a glimpse of David's life, but already there is a range of activity and emotion. Lots of good stuff! Catch the messages online by clicking here.

I'll bring printouts of the pslams, but bringing your Bible will definitely be useful. If you want to be adventurous, you may open up to any page and see what the Lord has to say to you then and there! Also optional, but useful: a journal (and pen). Your solitude time is not limited to speaking aloud or to God in your head. Consider writing your prayer out, or try composing your own Psalm!

After the prayer time, we'll regroup and, depending on how we feel, may talk a bit about what God has said or revealed to us during that time. Then we'll head over to one of the picnic areas for lunch (bring your own!), and head on home.

Sounds good?

Now for some logistics --

• Dress appropriately! We'll be starting about 9:00, so it'll already be warming up. Layering is your friend. So are hiking boots or sturdy sneaks. Also: sunblock, sunhat, sunglasses... you get the picture.
• Don't forget the water.
• Perhaps a small backpack to put everything in! But remember: whatever you bring, you will be carrying for at least a couple of miles...
• Be advised that we will be out in the midst of nature! Catch Page 3 of the Monrovia Canyon Park page to see what to watch out for...
• Bring a watch, too, so you know when to come back to the group!

We should be back at the LAC parking lot between noon and 12:30 p.m.

See you Saturday, bright and (not that) early!

Prayer Partners

Whatup Peeps,

As you may or may not know, GLO has been talking to the WHS Hospitality Team coordinators about adding a Prayer Partners ministry, providing people to pray with and for their brothers and sisters after each WHS service. Our vision is that one guy and one gal would hang out at the cross after each service and be available to pray. GLO is on board, and we're working with the Hospitality Team to make this a sustainable venture.

Launch time is slated for July! Marion Skeete, Pastor of Prayer, will lead us in a prayer workshop THIS SUNDAY BEFORE WHS. Should be a great time to give us tips on how we can live out being a Community of Concern to both newcomers at WHS, as well as oldtimers.

Come one, come all! Meet at WHS at 5:00--that's THIS Sunday, June 21st!

BTW, in light of the prayer seminar, we thought that postponing our Slow Down would give others an opportunity to practice what we learn (or learn them, if they're not able to go this Sunday)... so we've pushed it a few weeks out, to July 11 (weekend after Independence Day). Save the date!

Global Day of Prayer - Sunday, May 31st

Hey Friends. If you're still thinking skyward after Operation Rolling Thunder, and still aching and hoping for the community - both near and far - we want to make sure you know about the Global Day of Prayer (GDOP) which is this Sunday, May 31st. The Pasadena event will be held at the Rose Bowl Court of Champions. It starts at 6pm and ends at 9pm, so you can go to Warehouse and hear our guest speaker, Brian Loritts (Albert's mentor), then head on over to the Rose Bowl afterward if so inclined.

Here are the links for more info:

• http://www.lovepasadena.org/AboutGDOP.htm
• http://www.globaldayofprayer.com/

Oh. And how was your prayer yesterday, anyway? Any victories to report? Blessings? Struggles? We'd love to hear how the day went. If there's something you feel comfortable sharing or praising publicly, please share it with the gang in the comments space below.

Shalom!
~Aida

"If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land. My eyes will be open and my ears attentive to every prayer made in this place." (2 Chronicles 7:14-15)

"Think as Jesus Taught"

Hey, friends,

Just wanted to post yesterday's reading from Oswald Chambers' My Utmost for His Highest, as the verse was the same as our prayer room, and as we're heading into Operation Rolling Thunder.

"Pray without ceasing." 1 Thessalonians 5:17

We think rightly or wrongly about prayer according to the conception we have in our minds of prayer. If we think of prayer as the breath in our lungs and the blood from our hearts, we think rightly. The blood flows ceaselessly, and breathing continues ceaselessly; we are not conscious of it, but it is always going on. We are not always conscious of Jesus keeping us in perfect joint with God, but if we are obeying Him, He always is. Prayer is not an exercise, it is the life. Beware of anything that stops ejaculatory prayer. "Pray without ceasing," keep the childlike habit of ejaculatory prayer in your heart to God all the time.

Jesus never mentioned unanswered prayer, He had the boundless certainty that prayer is always answered. Have we by the Spirit the unspeakable certainty that Jesus had about prayer, or do we think of the times when God does not seem to have answered prayer? "Every one that asketh receiveth." We say - "But . . . , but . . ." God answers prayer in the best way, not sometimes, but every time, although the immediate manifestation of the answer in the domain in which we want it may not always follow. Do we expect God to answer prayer?

The danger with us is that we want to water down the things that Jesus says and make them mean something in accordance with common sense; if it were only common sense, it was not worth while for Him to say it. The things Jesus says about prayer are supernatural revelations.

Operation Rolling Thunder: Warehousers Called to Pray on May 28, 2009

As we type this, there is someone praying for Pasadena. In fact there will be someone praying each hour 24/7 for the rest of the month, lifting up our city to the Lord.

Operation Rolling Thunder is a prayer movement that's all about Pasadena.

For 24 days - from the National Day of Prayer on May 7th through the Global Day of Prayer on May 31st - twenty three Pasadena churches have taken on the challenge to pray for one full day for 24 hours. On the 24th day, which happens to be the Global Day of Prayer, all of the churches are invited to pray together as one at the Rose Bowl.

WAREHOUSE HAS FAITHFULLY COMMITTED TO

THURSDAY, MAY 28TH AS OUR DAY TO PRAY.

What are we asking from you?

We are trusting that God will bring forth 24 different people from Warehouse who will each commit to pray for one hour on May 28th from 12:01am to 11:59pm. You don't have to come to any specific location to pray, you can pray right where you are, wherever you are.

What are we praying for?

• For God’s Kingdom to come to business, government, military, education, family, church, media/entertainment/arts, and healthcare;
• For the safe and smooth release of many thousands of ex-inmates back into Pasadena society in the near future;
• For this entire Kingdom-led transformation process to go well – and it is a long-term process;
• For all the pastors and congregations who are involved in seeking Kingdom-led transformation in Pasadena through adopt-a-school, gang intervention, low-cost housing, and more.

But don't feel limited by this list. As in all things, we pray with intention, but we also pray as the Spirit leads. A more detailed list is available here.

How do you sign up?

Check us out at the back table @ Warehouse this Sunday, May 24th, choose an hour, pick up a reminder card, and you'll be on your way!

We know Warehouse will come through. In so many ways we have proven ourselves to live up to our mission to be a community of concern, on a discovery of faith. Can't wait to pray with you (with you in Spirit, that is) on May 28th!

See ya Sunday!

~The GLO Team

Operation Rolling Thunder (ORT) Phase I Update:

• We’ve now had seven days of continual 24hr prayer over Pasadena!
• We are very exited that 22 (now 23) congregations and ministries are each taking 24hr of prayer May 8 to May 30!!
• The May 31 Pasadena Global Day of Prayer at the Rose Bowl, Sunday 6-9pm will be a historic occasion – 219 nations praying on the same day!! The largest prayer gathering in the history of humanity!!

A part of the reason the Lord has orchestrated Operation Rolling Thunder is because of the biblical principle of mass. Mass defines the power that can be projected through agreement in prayer. Corporate Prayer events like the Pasadena Global Day of Prayer on May 31st also help enormously to develop a culture of prayer and the prayer momentum already gained in the city. From my experience prayer is more caught than taught.

Recent Testimony – Kansas began Operating Rolling Thunder on April 6th and reported that ever since they established that canopy of prayer over their city no homicides were reported. Prior to that they had averaged 3 per month.

Looking Ahead – Phase II of Operation Rolling Thunder is moving toward 365 days of continual prayer over the city – It is possible to see continual 24hrs of prayer all year round in Pasadena!!

________________________________________________

The update above was abstracted from a letter from Michael Spence of "Love Pasadena," the coordinating body for ORT 2009 in Pasadena. http://www.lovepasadena.org/

More at http://www.watchmanministries.com/pages.asp?pageid=66974

Homeless Karaoke

Hey Friends,

This past weekend I had an opportunity to partner with my church, Christian Assembly, on our annual Young Adult's Urban Plunge and work with Central City Community Outreach. CCCO is located in Skid Row in Downtown Los Angeles right in the heart of the largest homeless population in the nation. I want to confess that in the past, I've been kind of scared of homeless people and I have largely ignored them, thought ill of them, and haven't honestly taken the time to get to know any homeless people by name. I mostly felt confused and unsure of how to deal with people I see on the street and this gaping problem.

But this weekend, I was humbled.I was challenged to take a risk and actually looked several homeless people in the eye and tried seeing the world with a different lens. I had some deep conversations with Fred and Jim, two homeless people I met with my team on the street. I took the time to listen. I also learned some crazy statistics about the homeless. Did you know that the average age of the homeless is 7 years old?! Can you believe that? 7...and that there has been a 360% increase of women and children on Skid Row in the last 6 months, primarily because after being victims of domestic abuse they have nowhere to turn?

Now I know we all have different ideas of the homeless and what the causes are, what our role is, etc. I'm not here to start some argument about it, but I would just like to challenge you to watch this short documentary about a program called Homeless Karaoke. I'm a believer that film can change lives and this film and program has actually changed the lives of people within the Skid Row community. It's easy to have your hope challenged when you go to Skid Row. And yet I found myself being inspired by the stories of people in LA who are giving their lives to help people like Fred, who without us even mentioning it, told us about how at Homeless Karaoke, he has the opportunity to rise above his status in society and be respected under his alias, Dr.Cool.

In the documentary you will see Grady, Tony, and Jan, some of these people who daily give their lives to the Skid Row community. I dare you to watch this and at least not be challenged a little bit. I know it challenged me... And if you want to join some of my team members to see what Homeless Karaoke is like, let me know. We're checking it out this month!

http://www.homelesskaraoke.com/

Go to VIEW.

Thanks!
Melissa

Ajith Fernando Speaking at LAC May 16th and 17th

Yes! I saw Ajith speak at Urbana 2006. He’s funny, real, and has a profound story to tell about how God has used tremendous tragedy, war, and unrest, not to mention natural disasters, to bring Sri Lankans to the foot of the cross person by person, family by family. He has a whirlwind personal testimony of humility, love, a passion for Jesus and for the study of His Word, and most of all an undying Kingdom vision for a people and a culture he calls home.

I totally recommend you guys attend either the Saturday night or one of the two Sunday morning services May 16th/17th (next week!) to hear this strong and lovely man of God share some of his story, and His Story. I don’t know what his topic will be but he’s quite the scholar and expositor. At Urbana he led us through an exposition of Ephesians on each of the five days of the conference. It was the highlight of each morning this time of study and reflection.

So check him out next weekend @ Lake.

This is a perfect time to also let you know about GLO’s upcoming Summer Series:

Sri Lanka: Words, Film, Music, Food and Service
July 9th through August 20th

Hang out with us as we engage with Sri Lankan life and culture right here in Greater Los Angeles. Join us for a film screening, live music, food, and a volunteer project in our local community. Plus – we’ll have another guest speaker share and pray with us in a smaller, more casual setting.

The best part about this whole thing is we planned the GLO Summer Series without even knowing about Ajith’s visit to Lake.

Jesus is so Cool Like That. :)

Watch the blog in June for details!

National Day of Prayer

Wikipedia tells me that "the National Day of Prayer is a day designated by the United States Congress as a day when people are asked to come together and pray, especially for their country. It was created as a floating holiday in 1952 and fixed on the first Thursday in May by Ronald Reagan."

The article went on to talk about the controversy surrounding this event (separation of church and state, growing exclusivity to Christian evangelicals, etc). I write that here to recognize that exists, but as a person of faith and as a contributor to this, uh, prayer group, I'm all for the NDoP.

I was recently reminded that, like the plaster slabs upon which the law was written by the Israelites upon entering the promised land, the monuments surrounding our nation's Capitol tell us that our founding fathers were people of faith. Moreover, many of the principles for today's law and society are built on God's law, which he commanded "that [we] may live, and that it may go well with [us], and that [we] may live long" (Deut 5:33). There are many Bible verses engraved into those monuments and even a depiction of Moses and the Ten Commandments on the frieze of the Supreme Court buidling. Sadly--and ironically--such is simply not allowed anymore.

There's a lot about our country that we can't fix ourselves--just look at the headlines.

But let's pray thanks, too, for all the ways in which we are blessed by our nation, most of all for the many freedoms we enjoy.

Happy NDoP, and happy praying!

Welcome

Come one, come all and post on our Blog, our afterGLO blog, the baddest, boldest, sweetest blog to hit the cber world!

A Little Daring

What a wonderful journey this book has been over the past few months. I don't know what your expectations were, but I think I was most surprised that the direction this book is going is upward and not inward.

I guess one way to say it is that I have found that, because of the book, I am drawing nearer to God in prayer, as opposed to trying to pull God down closer to me.

Sometimes I think of prayer as such an inward thing, but as I seek to glorify God and to lift up who He is, I have less angst about whether God is bending down to take care of every one of my needs. I know, because of how Big He is, that there is no question about His ability to speak into anything in my life at any time, and in my smallness, I can rest in that like a child rests in her dad. And in that rest, I can take a deep breath and then re-direct my eyes to Kingdom Purposes.

Anyway. That's just a little of how the book has played out in my walk.