What does Paul mean when he says this in 1 Corinthings, "So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God." How does somebody eat or drink to the glory of God? I have been thinking about that question a lot recently, and seeking what it means or what it might look like in my life.
Late Friday night after the MoB Christmas Party I was lying in bed just reflecting on the night and I could not stop myself was just praising God for the friends He has blessed me with. I don't think that this is any sort of law or requirement, but if you leave a place praising the Lord for what he just let you be apart of, I'm pretty sure you were doing whatever you were doing to the glory of God.
Monday, December 13, 2010
Saturday, June 26, 2010
European Love
Every Friday we take a group of students out to one of the barrier islands off the Gulf coast called Ship Island. This week our group included ninety people. The plan was to take the 2:30 ferry back to the mainland, but two students didn't show up on time to the ferry, so three of us stayed back on the island to look for them and then take the next ferry back at 5.
We found the two students right away. Tim, their youth leader, gave them a quick talking too, while Luke and I sat in the shade next to one of the buildings. While we were sitting there, one of the employees at the concession stand came over and started talking with us.
He was an interesting man...to say the least. His name was Stoycho, and he was from Bulgaria. He told us stories from his past and deposited words of wisdom to us as we real talked for an hour or so, here are a few of the high lights...
...Back when Bulgaria was under communist rule, he was a member of the underground church, and that was where he came to know the Lord....While he was going to school, he spoke out against the communist party and for that, he was thrown in prison. He said, "this isn't like prison in America, this was communist prison". He told us that he shared a small cell with five others and was fed only beans and bone worms and that he said that he barely survived the experience...
...it turns out that he came to America because he was an opera singer and he does performances in the winter. He sang for us and then gave us his demo CD. We listened too it, and it was beautiful, and I don't even care much for opera...
...The most beautiful thing that he told us was a commentary on American culture. He told us that in his opinion, America was about two things, love and money. He told us, in a strong Bulgarian accent that was simply poetic, that in Europe, there are three types of love, Love If, Love Because, and Love In Spite Of... He said that Love In Spite Of is "European Love"...
"...Love If... He will love her if she has dinner ready every night at 6. She will love him if he makes her breakfast in the morning...Love If...that is no kind of love...
...Love Because...She loves him because he has a successful company. He loves her because she is beautiful...Love Because...that is no kind of love...
...Love In Spite Of he explained a little differently by using a metaphor...
...Small wood ovens have a small door on the left side to put the wood into. Sometimes you get a log that is a bit crooked and doesn't fit very well. So the saying goes, he is a crooked log, but he fits just right for my stove...that is Love In Spite Of...That is love...."
As he shared this with us it made me reflect on how God loves us and how we should love one another. It reminded me that Love is a choice. To truly love someone you have to choose too because if you only love them IF they do what you want or BECAUSE they provide you with something, what happens when things change?
It was refreshing to hear profound truths about love from a stranger from Bulgaria, on a beach island in the middle of the Gulf, while we waited for the ferry, because two students lost track of time.
-chase
We found the two students right away. Tim, their youth leader, gave them a quick talking too, while Luke and I sat in the shade next to one of the buildings. While we were sitting there, one of the employees at the concession stand came over and started talking with us.
He was an interesting man...to say the least. His name was Stoycho, and he was from Bulgaria. He told us stories from his past and deposited words of wisdom to us as we real talked for an hour or so, here are a few of the high lights...
...Back when Bulgaria was under communist rule, he was a member of the underground church, and that was where he came to know the Lord....While he was going to school, he spoke out against the communist party and for that, he was thrown in prison. He said, "this isn't like prison in America, this was communist prison". He told us that he shared a small cell with five others and was fed only beans and bone worms and that he said that he barely survived the experience...
...it turns out that he came to America because he was an opera singer and he does performances in the winter. He sang for us and then gave us his demo CD. We listened too it, and it was beautiful, and I don't even care much for opera...
...The most beautiful thing that he told us was a commentary on American culture. He told us that in his opinion, America was about two things, love and money. He told us, in a strong Bulgarian accent that was simply poetic, that in Europe, there are three types of love, Love If, Love Because, and Love In Spite Of... He said that Love In Spite Of is "European Love"...
"...Love If... He will love her if she has dinner ready every night at 6. She will love him if he makes her breakfast in the morning...Love If...that is no kind of love...
...Love Because...She loves him because he has a successful company. He loves her because she is beautiful...Love Because...that is no kind of love...
...Love In Spite Of he explained a little differently by using a metaphor...
...Small wood ovens have a small door on the left side to put the wood into. Sometimes you get a log that is a bit crooked and doesn't fit very well. So the saying goes, he is a crooked log, but he fits just right for my stove...that is Love In Spite Of...That is love...."
As he shared this with us it made me reflect on how God loves us and how we should love one another. It reminded me that Love is a choice. To truly love someone you have to choose too because if you only love them IF they do what you want or BECAUSE they provide you with something, what happens when things change?
It was refreshing to hear profound truths about love from a stranger from Bulgaria, on a beach island in the middle of the Gulf, while we waited for the ferry, because two students lost track of time.
-chase
Next Step Update
Hey Friends,
We just said goodbye to our second week of students. So far we have had two great weeks of trips. We have been able to do a lot of work repairing houses in the community and touched the lives of the residents. We have had a lot of fun with the students so far, working with them on the sites and hanging out afterward around the church, and during worship.
We have seen several students begin relationships with the Lord and others take major steps in their faith giving up control and letting Jesus begin to heal their hearts. We have seen students step up, take charge, and lead their groups. It has been really exciting to witness and be apart of. The Lord is at work!!!!
We will have another group come in tomorrow night from Dupont, Ohio. It is a much smaller group than the first two weeks so we are looking forward to having to spend less organizing and more time getting to know the students.
Pray that we would continue to grow together as a team. That we would continue to rely on God even though we are starting to get the swing of things down here. That we would walk well with God during this time.
Pray that I would lead our team well. That I would seek hard after God. That I would pour into scripture. That I would have wisdom to make good decision that will Glorify God.
-Chase
We just said goodbye to our second week of students. So far we have had two great weeks of trips. We have been able to do a lot of work repairing houses in the community and touched the lives of the residents. We have had a lot of fun with the students so far, working with them on the sites and hanging out afterward around the church, and during worship.
We have seen several students begin relationships with the Lord and others take major steps in their faith giving up control and letting Jesus begin to heal their hearts. We have seen students step up, take charge, and lead their groups. It has been really exciting to witness and be apart of. The Lord is at work!!!!
We will have another group come in tomorrow night from Dupont, Ohio. It is a much smaller group than the first two weeks so we are looking forward to having to spend less organizing and more time getting to know the students.
Pray that we would continue to grow together as a team. That we would continue to rely on God even though we are starting to get the swing of things down here. That we would walk well with God during this time.
Pray that I would lead our team well. That I would seek hard after God. That I would pour into scripture. That I would have wisdom to make good decision that will Glorify God.
-Chase
Sunday, June 13, 2010
Summer in the South
Hello Friends. For those of you who don't know, I am spending the summer in Hancock County, Mississippi, the official ground zero of hurricane Katrina. I will be working with Next Step Ministries as the site director down here leading week long high school mission trips and two family trips. Our work crews are still repairing houses damaged by Katrina. Besides just working on the service projects we put together a nightly service to help the students to engage and grow spiritually and take the next step in their faith.
My team and I have been down here since last Sunday. The eight of us drove down here all the way from Madison. We have spent the week finding work projects, setting up our facilities, and doing other preparations to get ready for the first group that will be arriving sometime this afternoon. The church has a big commencement ceremony tonight for the VBS that they had this past week. So we have a lot of activity going on tonight!
We have a lot of cool sites that we are working on and I have a really awesome team so this week and the rest of the summer should prove to be a lot of fun. I will post pictures of our lodgings and work sites later this week and you can look forward to profiles of my team as well.
-chase
prayer requests:
*work sites would run smoothly
*our staff team would grow closer together
*the students coming would have open hearts and come to know Jesus this week!
My team and I have been down here since last Sunday. The eight of us drove down here all the way from Madison. We have spent the week finding work projects, setting up our facilities, and doing other preparations to get ready for the first group that will be arriving sometime this afternoon. The church has a big commencement ceremony tonight for the VBS that they had this past week. So we have a lot of activity going on tonight!
We have a lot of cool sites that we are working on and I have a really awesome team so this week and the rest of the summer should prove to be a lot of fun. I will post pictures of our lodgings and work sites later this week and you can look forward to profiles of my team as well.
-chase
prayer requests:
*work sites would run smoothly
*our staff team would grow closer together
*the students coming would have open hearts and come to know Jesus this week!
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Observations of Public Transportation and Sin
Every Monday morning I ride the 80 from the Natatorium(where I work) to the Union. It's a longer bus ride so I usually get a seat and settle in while we pick up all the students from lakeshore trying to cram on so they don't have to make the long trek to class in the cold.
One Monday, while sitting the front section of the bus I noticed how inefficient back packs make public transportation. If we didn't have them we could get way more people on the bus and it would be easier to get on and off without having to bust out twenty yoga positions while jostling through the crowd. What struck me this particular morning was that it wasn't just that people have backpacks on but rather how unaware they are of how much space they take up and how bulky they truly are. From my seat I could see exactly how much the backpacks got in the way of the carrier and the other riders.
I think sin is this way. When you are off on your own carrying your own sin only weighs you down and doesn't really get in the way of others. But when we come into contact with other people, sin, like our backpacks, gets in the way and makes it difficult to navigate through life and work together. The difficulties are evident but we can't always see this ourselves; we no we have sin, but aren't aware of how bulky it is.
That is why we need people in our lives. People to bump into us to make us aware that we are wearing backpacks, that we have sin in our lives, and people to sit on the outside that can notice our backpacks for us, alert us of our sin so we can remove it from our lives.
One Monday, while sitting the front section of the bus I noticed how inefficient back packs make public transportation. If we didn't have them we could get way more people on the bus and it would be easier to get on and off without having to bust out twenty yoga positions while jostling through the crowd. What struck me this particular morning was that it wasn't just that people have backpacks on but rather how unaware they are of how much space they take up and how bulky they truly are. From my seat I could see exactly how much the backpacks got in the way of the carrier and the other riders.
I think sin is this way. When you are off on your own carrying your own sin only weighs you down and doesn't really get in the way of others. But when we come into contact with other people, sin, like our backpacks, gets in the way and makes it difficult to navigate through life and work together. The difficulties are evident but we can't always see this ourselves; we no we have sin, but aren't aware of how bulky it is.
That is why we need people in our lives. People to bump into us to make us aware that we are wearing backpacks, that we have sin in our lives, and people to sit on the outside that can notice our backpacks for us, alert us of our sin so we can remove it from our lives.
Saturday, January 2, 2010
Chase-ing Glory-Explaining the Name
The purpose of this blog is to chronicle events in my life as I chase after Glory, in hopes that it is helpful to others and that because of it people encounter Jesus through the Holy Spirit at work.
The first line of this post may sound arrogant or that I'm trying to become the lead in made for TV movie about triumphing over adversity, but that isn't the reality. My life's pursuit is to bring glory to Him who is the only one deserving of it, Jesus Christ. So as their may be triumphal stories in this blog the purpose is not to bring glory to me, but rather to reflect the glory to God.
My aim is to glorify God and I pray that as I do that my life can be a blessing to you.
-chase
The first line of this post may sound arrogant or that I'm trying to become the lead in made for TV movie about triumphing over adversity, but that isn't the reality. My life's pursuit is to bring glory to Him who is the only one deserving of it, Jesus Christ. So as their may be triumphal stories in this blog the purpose is not to bring glory to me, but rather to reflect the glory to God.
My aim is to glorify God and I pray that as I do that my life can be a blessing to you.
-chase
My Story
I wrote this for an online outreach. It is the story of God in my life and it is crucial to understanding me or anything I say on this blog. I hope you enjoy it.
The Three Beers That Changed My Life
I heard a loud whistle followed by movement outside of my tent. My friend Kyle started yelling for us to wake-up and get dressed because we were leaving in a few minutes. I put my shoes on quickly and out I went, people were gathering around the remnants of the fire from the night before as the sun started to rise through the trees.
After everyone had gathered, Kyle told us told that we were starting the First Annual Burly-Man Challenge and to follow him. He took off at a jog along the trail. We ran for a few minutes until we came to a clearing. We formed a large circle and started learning names. After a few times around the circle, a senior was asked to come forward and repeat everyone’s name. If we were going to come together as a group and accomplish anything, we had to be one, and that started by knowing each other by name. The penalty was ten push-ups for every missed name.
One hundred push-ups later we had learned everybody’s name. Now we could move forward and begin the real challenges. That morning we competed against each other in a number of events ranging from a push-up contest to a survival puzzle. Some challenges were individual, others were as a team, and few we had to complete as a group. Each activity was designed to show our need for brotherhood. It culminated in people getting launched over a high rope to be caught by the group on the other side. After we were exhausted we cleaned up our campsite and ate breakfast.
That morning, as we competed with each other, I saw something different in the older men of the group. They had a deep bond and connection that was unmistakable. It was the first time I had ever seen men truly care for one another and be so genuine about getting to know me, a punk freshman kid. It was enjoyable to just be around them regardless of what we were doing.
We crowned our Burly-Man and headed home. I left relatively unchanged from the experience.
That night the Badgers played Iowa in a night game at Camp Randall Stadium. I got dressed in my red and white bibs, a wig, and boxing gloves and went to the game early to get a good seat. After the Badger victory I went to a party at a friends house from high school. I had a few beers and hung out with a lot of old friends from high school who were there for the game. While I was drinking my third beer I started looking around the party and realized how empty it was. Everything seemed so fleeting.
I found that I…
I no longer needed that beer to be accepted or have fun with people.
I no longer needed to be drunk so I could fit in and be funny.
I no longer needed the party scene for a place to escape on the weekends.
I put my beer down on the counter, said goodbye to a few friends and went home. On that walk home I realized what was different about those men I had hung out with that morning. They had a love that wasn’t conditional. They had love for one another, period. Not love if you’re funny, or cool, or attractive, or athletic. Unconditional love.
I left that party changed. I realized that what I had learned in my youth group at church in high school was real after seeing it lived out by those men. The story of Jesus being God, coming to earth as a man, living a perfect life, and dying on the Cross for my sin so that I can have a relationship with God, was no longer just a fact to me, but it was real. I had experienced God’s love and he showed me that it is so much better than a buzz from a few beers and the approval of some people at a party. That night I submitted my life to Christ, not my plans but his.
Since then, it hasn’t been easy, bad things still happen to me, but I have a hope in something else now. I still catch myself seeking the approval of my friends and peers, but I remember that it isn’t their approval that matters. The God of the universe chose me. He didn’t care how much I had done to wrong him. He loved me so much that he sent his Son to die in my place while I was still living to gratify my own desires.
I am not yet a finished product, God is still revealing things in my life I have to change or give up and it usually isn’t fun in the moment, but looking back on my life since; I have been happier, I have great relationships with people who really care for me, and I have purpose. The biggest change is I have finally experienced the greatest love; that someone would lay down his life for his friends.
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