Archive for January, 2008

Upper Loft Meditation – 2 Corinthians

January 29th, 2008 by Benjamin

“I’m writing this to you now so that when I come I won’t have to say another word on the subject. The authority the Master gave me is for putting people together, not taking them apart. I want to get on with it, and not spend time on reprimands.” (MSG) – 2 Corinthians 13:10
This past weekend I began reading a book on the history of the English settlement of Jamestown in Virginia back in the 1600s. The leadership style of Captain John Smith, hard driving and desirous of personal achievement, was a stark contrast to the leadership style I was reading about in another book. I also have been reading through 2 Corinthians, examining the leadership examples that come from Paul.

If you exercise leadership among other believers, your family, or co-workers, I encourage you to carefully study Paul’s view of his own authority. Like Captain John Smith and many of us, Paul liked to be in charge, and he felt frustrated when people failed to follow his lead, as the Corinthians had. As an apostle, he had spiritual authority over them, which at times led him to deal severely with them.

But it is important to notice how Paul exercised his authority, especially as he grew older in the faith. Unlike Captain John Smith, Paul didn’t lord it over others or try to use his authority for personal advantage. Nor did he abuse his power by using it to work out his own anger. Instead, he recognized that spiritual authority is given “for edification and not for destruction”, for building others up, not for tearing them down.

Is that how we use our position and authority? Are we more like Captain John Smith, just trying to survive a difficult situation? Do we exercise leadership in order to accomplish the best interests of those who follow us? As they carry out our directives, are they built up in Christ, or torn down?

Categories : Benjamin's Blog, Upper Loft Meditation
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Violence rocks Kenya again

January 29th, 2008 by Benjamin

…Update sent from Oakseed friend in Kenya…

This update comes to you when shocking violence rocked and led to partial destruction of otherwise peaceful towns of Nakuru and Naivasha. One of our staff wen on official duty to minister to the displaced in Burnt Forest and together with a team of 20 conducted the first ever Sunday service for the displaced yesterday.

They are now stuck in the area due to the countless roadblocks that have seen the death of a Catholic priest and close to 20 others forcefully removed from Public transport vehicles and killed. Last night was difficult for them as raiders attempted to raid and kill the displaced close to the police station where the team is putting up. The police thankfully repulsed the raiders. It is now official that the roads are unsafe without police escort and the situation has worsened since Friday last week… worse than when the caravan of hope went out… The team expected back today is trying to get to Eldoret before they can be escorted back to Nairobi, ironically via Burnt Forest again. The police in Eldoret are who are expected to escort the convoy are reportedly overwhelmed by violence further north west near Turbo town towards Webuye. Over 20 or so roadblocks have been erected for ethinic cleansing…

Peace gathering in Kibera…

On Saturday, (19th), there was a meeting with 22 leaders in Kibera, who met to discuss how to restore peace by critically examining the impact of (past) conflicts. Some of the worst violence continue to be experienced in Kibera especially around Fort Jesus. It is around this area that churches were razed by arsonists.

Several pastors, community elders and two aspiring civic leaders from both divides of the conflict were among those who attended; one a very eloquent young man who cadidly explained why he lost the election. He claims his supporters told him that he was too young, still single and had no money. The other civic leader’s ward has been ordered to hold fresh election due to anomalies at the just concluded election. The two hour deliberations saw the leaders make interesting proposals: that we meet again in about two weeks time and hold similar conversations in the hotspots and have as many of the inciters of violence attend. Thankfully our young civic leader has contact with a number of inciters and promised to not only host the meeting but also to invite the inciters of violence. Our mediation plan will include engaging warring parties to carry out joint reconstruction of homes etc as a way of rebuilding peace and trust.

Please pray that we shall see calm return to Kibera through these efforts. Pray also that the ongoing mediation talks led by Koffi Annan will yield lasting peace and reconsciliation. One major concern is that the violence, if it continues (and if it hasn’t already) may head into an irreversible gear; that of personal/tribal grudge and revenge militias which the two leaders may be unble to contain regardless of who is or becomes the legitimate president. IT will be remembered that many conflicts on the continent started as small feuds that then escalated into decades of bloody civil strife by not being contained early enough. Pray for my work that has so far been put into a neutral face but recently been personally examined as to who I am and my tribal affiliation which is now a very sensitive issue.

Categories : Ministry News
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Palabras de Aliento – Lucas 7

January 25th, 2008 by Benjamin

“Vino el Hijo del hombre, que come y bebe, y ustedes dicen: “Éste es un glotón y un borracho, amigo de recaudadores de impuestos y de pecadores.” – Lucas 7:34

Para mucha gente en los Estados Unidos, este pasado 22 de enero marca un día de protesta y conflicto. Ese día marca el aniversario de la decisión Roe Vrs. Wade, la cual permite la legalidad del aborto. Este es un día de retos. Un reto es… ¿ Eres “amigo de los pecadores”?

Cuántas veces cuando hablamos con nuestros colegas, visitantes de la iglesia, de nuestra casa, o pecadores el tono de la discusión cambia de una mutua discusión cristiana a una discusión del pecador, tratando de componer la actitud de éste acerca de algún tipo de pecado. Cristianos alrededor del mundo hablan de amar al pecador, mientras se odia el pecado. La pregunta apropiada de hoy es…¿Realmente estás amando? ¿Eres “amigo de los pecadores”?

Mucha gente ve a los creyentes como críticos, arrogantes y prontos a culpar a otros. Los cristianos bíblicos de hoy tienen un problema de imagen. Jesús tenía también un problema de imagen. Los primeros creyentes estaban disgustados ya que creian que él era demasiado blando con los pecadores. Ellos creían que Jesús era demasiado amigable con los pecadores. Jesús fue repetidamente llamado un “amigo de los pecadores.” Que ironía, que en la era actual del cristianismo los creyentes se ven de manera opuesta. ¿Eres “amigo de los pecadores”?

¿Cómo podemos hacernos más amigos de los pecadores?

1. Mira en tu interior – Muchas veces las cosas que no podemos soportar en otros están enterradas profundamente dentro de nosotros.

2. Mira a Jesús – Mira como Lucas describe la relación entre Cristo y los pecadores.

3. Deja de evitar a la gente pecadora – Pídele a Dios que te dé hospitalidad hacia los pecadores.

¿Nos interesa mucho el llegar a otros sin tener una agenda? ¿Eres “amigo de los pecadores”?

Categories : Spanish Meditation
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40 Days of Lent

January 24th, 2008 by Benjamin

(February 8th to March 22)

Fasting is doing without for the purpose of clearing the way for insight into your walk with God. Here are seven ways that you can do without as an act of thanksgiving for what God has done for you. As you take this action, by yourself or with others, ask God to give you greater understanding of the riches that are yours in Christ.

“I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the rihes of his glorious inheritance in the saits, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. – Ephesians 1:17-19

What you set aside, from one or all of these activities, can compound to become a great blessing for someone else. After 40 days, send what you have collected to Oakseed Ministries. These funds will be sent to Peru to our ministry partner MISIUR to build homes for the poorest of the poor who have lost everything in the recent earthquake.


Projects

Fast Food Friend

Whenever you eat at a fast food restaurant, double the amount, and give the second meal price to the ministry. If your meal costs $6.95, then you donate $6.95 to the ministry.

Spare Change Friend

At the end of the day, take the spare coins in your pocket and put them in a jar. After 40 days send the amount in the jar to Oakseed.

House Coffee Friend

For the 40 days of Lent, whenever you want to order a specialty coffee, order a house coffee and donate the difference.

Movie Friend

Instead of going to the theatre, go rent a movie. Then donate the difference of going to a movie for two: If the movie theatre costs $15, and a movie rental costs $3. You send $12 to the ministry.

Family Dinner Friend

Instead of eating out in a restaurant, your family buys the goods at the grocery store and cooks it together at home. The difference from eating out and cooking is then given to the ministry. Example: Eating out costs $60. Buying groceries and eating in costs $20. Give $40 to the ministry.

No News is Good News Friend

Choose not to buy the morning newspaper for 40 days. Instead get your news from the radio, television or internet. The money you save, give to the ministry.

Give up 5 minutes a day for 40 days

Take your monthly pay check and divide it by 20 (days) and divide that by 96 (96 – 5 minute segments to an 8 hour work day). Take that amount and multiply it by 40 (days). It is only five minutes a day you are setting aside for another.

Categories : 40 Days of Lent
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Upper Loft Meditation – Luke 7

January 22nd, 2008 by Benjamin

“The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners’.” – Luke 7:34
For many people in the United States, today marks a day of protest and conflict. Today marks the anniversary of the Roe v. Wade decision enabling the legality of abortion. This is also a day of challenges. One challenge is… Are you a friend to sinners?

How many times when we talk with co-workers, people visiting our church or our home, or sinners does the discussion tone change from a mutual discussion to the “christian” talking TO or AT the sinner, trying to fix that sinner’s attitude about some type of sin. Christians around the world talk about loving the sinner, while hating the sin. The question today becomes… is the love actually coming through? Are you a “friend to sinners”?

Many people see believers as judgmental, prideful, and quick to fault others. Biblical Christians today have an image problem. Jesus had an image problem also. The early believers were upset because they thought he was too easy on sinners. They thought Jesus was too friendly with sinners. Jesus was repeatedly called a “friend to sinners”. How ironic, that in the current era of Christianity believers are seen in the opposite light. Are you a “friend to sinners”?

How can we become more of a friend to sinners?

  1. Look within – Many times the things we ‘can’t stand’ in others are buried deep within us.
  2. Look to Christ – Read how Luke portrays the relationship between Christ and sinners.
  3. Stop avoiding the sinful people – Ask God to help you with hospitality towards sinners.

Do we care enough to reach out to others, without an agenda? Are you a “friend to sinners”?

Read the Spanish Version. Read More→

Categories : Benjamin's Blog, Upper Loft Meditation
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Diminishing Fears

January 22nd, 2008 by Benjamin

These days, more and more expectant parents use testing to determine what genetic defects might affect their child. When parents are told that their child is likely to have Down syndrome, 91-93% of parents choose to end their pregnancies in abortion. Thinking about the reasons that such an astounding statistic exists, it seems likely that fear is a factor that drives parents in that direction.

After reading the article: Son’s Progress Inspires Parents I got a clearer picture of what it is that parents fear when facing the thought of having a child with Down syndrome. The article tells the story of a couple’s journey through preparing for their child’s anticipated disability. Their fears were many; fears that their son wouldn’t be accepted, that he wouldn’t be joyfully welcomed into the world, that he wouldn’t have the same achievements as others.

During the pregnancy, the couple went through a mourning period. They really were mourning a death of sorts—the death of the dreams that they had for their child. In the Beatitudes, Jesus says, “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.” (Matthew 5:4) Because of the fall, we have things to mourn over. Because our freedom in Christ and understanding of His redemptive purpose of our lives, we have freedom to mourn the things that are broken. That includes broken dreams. And so, these parents mourned.

Then their child was born, and they rejoiced. Since then, their fears have evaporated as their son is invited to parties and develops his motor skills. They took a chance on their son, a chance that only 7-9% of similar parents take.

What can be done to encourage more parents to embrace a child with Down syndrome? Maybe more testimonies from parents of children with Down syndrome would help debunk the fears that people have about having a child with a disability. There must be a way to eliminate the statistic. We need to find it.

Categories : Essay Contest
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Palabras de Aliento – Mateo 9

January 18th, 2008 by Benjamin

«La cosecha es abundante, pero son pocos los obreros —les dijo a sus discípulos— Pídanle, por tanto, al Señor de la cosecha que envíe obreros a su campo.» Mateo 9:37-38

Este pasaje es un enigma. En el verso anterior Jesús señala a sus discípulos la condición de la gente, “estaban agobiados y desamparados.” Uno espera que el líder diga a su equipo, “¡Vean el problema! Vayan y hagan algo al respecto. No se quedean solamente parados como si no ven. ”

Jesús responde al problema en dos formas.

Primero, Jesús claramente declara la raíz del problema. Es hora de cosechar. Hay un corto período de tiempo para la siega sino la cosecha se marchita y muere. La cosecha no se puede segar por si sola. Esta requiere un ente externo que venga y separe la planta de sus raíces. Hay pocos trabajadores.

Segundo, Jesús dice que nuestra primera acción es orar al Señor por la cosecha. Aquí está el enigma. Dada la urgencia de la tarea, la mayoría de nosotros saltaría a la acción. La necesidad está ahí. Ahora es el tiempo. ¡Haz algo! ¿Por qué Jesús declara que la prioridad es la oración?

Categories : Spanish Meditation
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The Beatitudes for Friends of Someone with a Disability

January 17th, 2008 by Benjamin

Blessed are you who take time to
listen to difficult speech,

for you help us to know that if we
preserver, we can be understood.

Blessed are you who walk with us in public
places and ignore the stares of strangers,
for in your companionship we find havens
of relaxation.

Blessed are you who never bid us to ‘Hurry up’
and more blessed you who do not snatch our
tasks from our hands to do them for us, for
often we need time rather than help.

Blessed are you who stand behind us as
we enter new and untried ventures,

For our failures will be outweighed by the
times when we surprise ourselves and you.

Blessed are you who ask for our help,
for our greatest need is to be needed.

Blessed are you who help us with the
graciousness of Christ, who do not bruise
the reed or quench the flax, for often we
need the help we cannot ask for.

Blessed are you when by all these things
you ensure that the thing that makes us
individuals is not our peculiar muscles, no our
wounded nervous system, nor our difficulties
in learning, but in the God-given self which
no infirmity can confine.

Rejoice and be exceedingly glad and that
you have given us reassurance that could never
be spoken in words, for you deal with us as
God dealt with His own children.

-Author Unknown

Categories : Essay Contest
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Dancing Moves the Soul

January 15th, 2008 by Benjamin

As I have been reading about the state of those with disabilities, information about inclusive education has been overwhelming. It seems like many advocates of children with disabilities are putting all of their eggs into the basket of inclusive education, as if being incorporated into a classroom with students without disabilities is all that is needed to open a child up.

At the beginning of December, I caught a news segment on the Shimmy Club, a program that teaches visually impaired teenagers how to tango. Founded on the concept that dancing doesn’t require vision, only feeling the music, two women implemented the program in their community.

These two women have empowered the teens by helping them gain self-confidence. The teens have broken out of their shells and are now bold enough to ask someone to dance. Tango, in fact.

Imagine what could be done in the lives of visually impaired teenagers if there was a program like this in every community. The end that many are seeking, inclusive education, would greatly benefit from being paired with a program that teaches self-confidence to students with disabilities. And, as these two women have proven, it doesn’t require action on behalf of a school system or the government to make a difference in the lives of people with disabilities. It just takes a vision and the dedication to see that vision come to fruition.

What is your vision?

To read the article visit: http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/22147757/

Categories : Essay Contest
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Upper Loft Meditation – Matthew 9

January 15th, 2008 by Dr. Edward Bradley

“Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.” -Matthew 9:37-38

This is a puzzle passage. In the preceding verses Jesus points out to his disciples the condition of the people, “they were harassed and helpless.” One expects the leader to say to his staff team, “See the problem! Go and do something about it. Don’t just stand there as if you don’t see it.

Jesus responds to the problem in two ways.

First, Jesus clearly states the root of the problem. It is harvest time. There is a small time frame when you must reap the harvest or the crop will wither and die. The crop cannot harvest itself. This requires an outsider to come and separate the plant from its roots. There are only a few workers.

Second, Jesus says that our first action is to pray to the Lord of the harvest. Here is the puzzle. Given the urgency of the task, most of us would leap into action. The need is there. The time is now. Do something! Why does Jesus state that the priority is prayer?

  1. It is the Lord’s harvest
  2. The harvest must be done in the Lord’s way and with His power.
  3. The requirement for our participation in the harvest is that we are “sent out with His authority.

Do you see the harvest, “the harassed and helpless”? Are you praying? Will your prayers today be longer than a TV commercial, a 60 second interruption to your regular programming?

Categories : Upper Loft Meditation
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