Go Ye Into All the World…

The Bible compels us to go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. Oft times we get so busy with life that we don’t go anywhere, much less into all the world, and we rarely preach the gospel. In these pictures on this post, George and Joseph both have had their lives changed by God. They gave up lives filled with hopelessness and drugs and traded them for abundant life.

Mission trips allow us the opportunity to get out of our comfort zone and help us to share our faith by removing the burden of the day-to-day. However, our lives should always be an example of who Christ is no matter where we are.

In New York we went to help New Baptist Temple with some necessary construction. We went to the Bronx and shared the gospel with Children in the park, and on the subways we ministered to people and even reached out to one man who needed to find a shelter for the night.

When I was growing up my parents were youth ministers, we let people come and live with us that needed a place to stay, we gave food to the poor, we had youth rallies and once even an exorcism. Our lives were buried in ministry, we wore Christian t-shirts to school, we sang in church and did everything we could to build the kingdom of Heaven.

Those were good times, happy times, slower times. Now life gets in the way of ministry. I put Christ not on the back burner, but I have put him in a tupperware container and tucked him away in the pantry so he will be nice and fresh whenever I need to use him.

I was excited when Amstaff Mom asked me if I wanted to go on the trip to NYC. I knew I needed to dust off my witnessing skills and this was an opportunity. My legs were stiff from sittign on the bench too long, my reactions were slow at first, but by the time the weekend was over I had gotten the opportunity to ask a few people about their faith.

That is the great thing about Mission trips – they aren’t always about reaching people where you go, but they are about reaching the people that are going.

In my faith, in my ministry, in my life, no matter what I am doing, I never want to be sitting on the bench, I always want to be part of the action.

That new movie Jarhead is coming out and in the preview it has a song by Kanye West – Jesus Walks. While we were in New York I kept thinking about this movie, and this song and how we are indeed at war, but the war is not the one Kanye talks about – terrorism, racism, drug addiction, the real war is spiritual- “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood but against the principalities and rulers of darkeness…”

(Jesus Walk)
God show me the way because the Devil trying to break me down
(Jesus Walk with me)
The only thing that I pray is that muh feet don’t fail me now
(Jesus Walk)
And I don’t think theres nothin I can do now ta right my wrongs
(Jesus Walk with me)
I wanna talk to God but I’m afraid cause we ain’t spoke-n so long

To the hustlas, killas, murderas, drug dealas even tha strippers(Jesus walks with them)
To the victims of Welfare for we living in hell here, hell yeah(Jesus walks with them)
Now hear ye, hear ye want to see Thee more clearly
I know He hear me when my feet get weary
Cuz were thee almost nearly extinct
We rappers is role models, we rap we don’t think
I ain’t here to argue about his facial features
Or here to convert atheists into believa’s
I’m just tryna say the way school need teachers
The way Kathy needed Regis, that’s the way I need Jesus
So here go my single dawg radio needs this
They say you can rap-about-anything except for Jesus
That means guns, sex, lies, video tape
But if I talk about God my record won’t get played,
Huh?Well if this take away from my spins
Which will probably take away from my ends
Then i hope it take away from my sins
and bring the day that I dream about
Next time I’m in the club everybody screamin out
{Chorus 2}
(Jesus Walk)God show me the way because the devil tryna break me down
(Jesus Walk with me)The only thing that I pray is that muh feet don’t fail me now
(Jesus Walk)And i dont think theres nothing i can do now ta right my wrongs
(Jesus Walk with me with me with me with me) [Fades]I wanna talk to god but im afraid cause we aint spoke-n so long …..

While on the trip I got into an argument with two men dressed in robes who were trying to argue the point that Jesus was black. It became a heated discussion and finally Luke Zimmerman told me to walk away and I was glad he did. The devil was indeed trying to break me down.

In these pictures on this post, George and Joseph both have had their lives changed by God. They gave up lives filled with hopelessness and drugs and traded them for abundant life. God does that, he fills the void in your life, he takes away the hurt, he gives life meaning. God sent his son Jesus to die on the cross so that we might live forever. To become a Christian all you have to do is believe – John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in him, will not perish, but have everlasting life.”

When you lay your head down at night and you are alone with your thoughts and you are unsure of where you will spend eternity, then give Christ a chance – you have nothing to lose and everything to gain.