A Moment

A moment such as this, a day like today, a light rain passes through the concrete skies of Portland.

Is it just another day, just another season? Like Esther and Nehemiah we know that today is THE day, the day we will spend a moment with a King! Not just any King, a King not bound by laws of nature, or time, not bound by money, or circumstance; No we have a moment with the King of Kings, the Lord of Lords, who is willing to do immeasurably more than we could ever ask or imagine. The question is simple; what will we ask, what will we imagine?

We know that like much of the events that took place in the book of Exodus that a single year can alter the course of history; a single year can set a people free, a single year can forge a people together and unite them under one mission. It may have victories that will be shared about for generations as well as defeats that will attempt to define the character of the people. 2013 will be our year; no it will be God’s year!

We have learned through men and women like David, Gideon, Esther, Deborah, Elijah, and Elisha, that God can do so much with a single imperfect heart especially if that heart is willing to change, willing to surrender, willing to fight, willing to run, and willing to stand. Through the book of Acts we see what God can do with many imperfect hearts when they are willing to sacrifice, willing to be set apart, and willing to stick together. Hearts set free can’t help but to turn the world upside down!

The youth and family ministry, like any other ministry, must be scriptural, clear, evangelical, and practical; well stated, explained, defined, and applied.  We will not let anyone look down on us because we are young. We will work harder than anyone as to set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith, and in purity.

So when all is said and done, we will let LIGHT REIGN through the concrete hearts of Portland, and we will see this world evangelized in OUR generation. It all starts with a moment such as this, a day like today.

Aaron Mullins

The Battle

“Every morning in Africa, a Gazelle wakes up. It knows it must run faster than the fastest lion or it will be killed. Every morning a Lion wakes up. It knows it must outrun the slowest Gazelle or it will starve to death. It doesn’t matter whether you are a Lion or a Gazelle… when the sun comes up, you’d better be running.”

Every day is a battle, but a 1/3 the battle is knowing. In my experience I can say I know there is a battle, but often I underestimate my opponent, or I get caught with my guard down. I constantly have to be reminded of scriptures like 1Peter 5

be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings. And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast. To him be the power for ever and ever. Amen.

Another 1/3 of the battle is preparing.  Do you prepare, if so how? Ephesians 6 describes how to prepare and what to guard.

Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.

The last 1/3 of the battle is fighting. Are you? Seriously, are you? We are all in this battle, it doesn’t matter whether or not you want to be .There will be casualties, there will be losses, and there WILL be victories. Sin is inevitable, if your fight is to remain sinless you have already lost, let your goal be to finish the fight, in order for this to happen you must consistently learn from every battle you get in. You must be faster, stronger, and smarter than your enemy. Oh, and make sure you have your leader in front of you; remember John 16:33 “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” If you follow close you will overcome.

Aaron Mullins

A pile of rocks

WHAT DO YOU SEE

A pile of rocks remains a pile of rocks until someone sees something different. So often we settle for the circumstances we are in, we settle for “the way it is” or “the way it has been”. There are countless injustices going on around us at any given time, and often go unnoticed, or worse “promoted”. How long was there a pile of rocks before Nehemiah saw a glorious temple? History is filled with the names of men and women like him who stood in the gap, who saw the world around them in a different light. In the beginning God took what was formless and empty and saw a place filled with people created in his own likeness, with limitless potential. He saw his son take away the sins of the world and a kingdom established in love, before man had suffered the guilt of sin or the sting of loneliness. God saw what wasn’t there.

Jesus walked this earth challenging every social and religious norm of the day. He always stood up for those who couldn’t stand, and spoke for those who couldn’t speak, all the while teaching those who love him how to do the same. Walking on water and flying in the air are not miracles. A miracle is walking this earth. Jesus, to this day, was the only one to walk this earth the way it was meant to be walked. He saw through the circumstances and the destruction; he saw through the broken hearts and torn families, he saw through the addictions and the lies; he saw through the religious world just as he saw through the pagans. He walked through the struggles because he saw what could be. That’s who we walk with!  If you want to build a boat, don’t herd people together to collect wood and don’t assign those people tasks and work, but rather teach them to long for the endless immensity of the sea. Before leaving, Jesus told his disciples that they would do even greater things than he did. They in fact did, will we? We have the ability and the talent to change this world in our generation. What man has done before, man can do again.

They say imitation is the highest form of flattery, so we imitate, and are happy doing so, but no matter how great our imitating may be it is still simply that, an imitation. Henry Matisse said “there is nothing more difficult for a truly creative painter than to paint a rose, because before he can do so he has to first forget all the roses that have ever been painted”. Like those men and women in the first century, let’s stand up and stand out, lets find the gap and bravely stand in it, building what should be, and not what has been, or currently is. We need to look at the rubble in and around our lives and see something different, something glorious. Together let’s long for the immense possibilities that God saw as he created this world, and like Nehemiah, let’s be willing to get our hands dirty. Then and only then will light reign, and this world be turned upside down.

Aaron Mullins