Keeping Your Head In The Game2/8/2015 Welcome to my blog. So that I don't bombard Facebook with lengthy posts I thought I'd try this format and just put a link on my Facebook page. I wanted to write about keeping our head's in the fight, keeping on mission, eyes on the prize, enduring hardships, not growing weary in doing good, or like Jesus for the joy set before us enduring our cross. I joined Ywam when I was 18 years old. God called me and He used Youth with a Mission to disciple me, and send me. I learned of the amazing opportunities and joys of reaching out to the least reached people with the Gospel of Jesus, The only hope for the World that we've had for 2000 years and still haven't completely made available to all people. I'm a hedonist at heart and embrace a life of pursuing the best and most satisfying things available. It's this hedonism in me that is terribly dangerous if I'm not allowing God to be my pleasure and settling for scraps from the garbage can of the World. It's also the hedonism in me that has compelled me to a radical snobbishness towards the world's dainty rotten morsels and a hunger for the meaty things of God. Not just the milk buffets so readily available in most western churches but the choice cuts of spiritual goodness that are to be found in a life completely surrendered. To be honest I've found the choice cuts of the world to be as satisfying if not more satisfying then the watered down milk that's being greedily lapped up and poured out to the spiritually malnourished here in the west. I'm a big guy and have never been able to survive off of it alone. My hunger for hedonism has been too strong. The problem in my opinion in the western church isn't that we have too much desire for pleasure it's that we don't desire it enough. The bible does talk about two different desires that dwell within us. One for the things of the Spirit (things of God, holy and pleasing things) and one for the flesh (worldy things, sins). For me half measures in my pursuit of satisfying either one have seemed pointless. The worldly person who does his best to maintain an appearence of goodness so far away from his claims of agnostic or atheistic belief baffle me. If we are freak accidents of a scientific phenomenon, no more then evolved pond scum then crush your fellow man, do all you can to establish your own kingdom and fulfill your own fleshly pleasures. Life has no value no meaning. If however we are created and loved by God, if God sent Himself in the form of His son to bring us a message of hope and pay a price necessary for our restored relationship with God then we must live as though we believe it. Nothing compares to knowing God, and walking in the light of his presence and love, let us do all we can to eradicate anything in our lives that separate us from that light and love, let us throw off everything that hinders and run the race marked out for us, let us get our heads in the game and play for keeps. For a number of years I had my head in the game. I fought the good fight, I labored in the ripe fields where the work was overwhelming and the workers non existent. Sadly after 6 years of fighting and getting knocked around quite a bit I quit. I had no more fight left. Like Forest Gump I suddenly stopped running. I was tired and wanted to go home. For me the final kick in my pants I needed to get my head back in the game was the death of the Rogenback family. Jeff his wife Jiin and their daughter Jasmine died this July in a car wreck in Thailand where they were actively waging war against the darkness and lies of Buddhism. That's right I said darkness and lies of buddhism, live in a buddhist nation, see the end result of a buddhist worldview and tell me it's all peaceful and lovely. See the Grandma tell her grand daughter that she's an orphan and a cripple because she was a bad person in her past life and has to pay off her karma now in this life. Watch the crowd of onlookers staring and murmuring as the mangled carcass of a half dead person lays bleeding in the street and no one does a thing to help lest they simply delay his inevitable karma. Watch as the Khmer people allow their land to be destroyed by the wealthy and not care because it's all an illusion anyways and to care would be to sin. Anyways the Rogenback's went to Thailand out of the love for the Thai people and gave their lives in the belief that nothing in this world compares to the surpassing worth of knowing God. I on the other hand was sitting around in Idaho feeling sorry for myself, smoking cigarettes and reluctantly considering being a nominal Christian again. However when I found out about their death it pissed me off. In fact it pissed me off just enough to do something about it. I decided that if God would free me of the chains I had allowed myself to be enslaved to once again that I would take up my rusty sword and return to battle. Like Samson I prayed "Sovereign LORD, remember me. Please, God, strengthen me just once more, and let me with one blow get revenge on the Philistines for my two eyes." Miraculously I am now here at Ywam Kona. Running through a 3 month spiritual boot camp we call DTS alongside 25 fellow veteran soldiers and 48 new recruits. Getting ready and being willing to storm hell with squirt guns if God would call us to it. I can feel the missions zeal burning again deep within my heart and my hunger I can akin to that of my favorite missionary C.T Studd who said. "some wish to live within the sound of a chapel bell; I wish to run a rescue mission within a yard of hell" So my desire is there and God is doing the necessary work within me to make it happen. However without a home base to provide prayer and support I will be of little use. I hope and pray that God will speak to some of you right now to partner with me once again. I've done what I can and will continue to do what I can do. I'm willing, able, and I humbly submit that with the power of Holy Spirit I'm competent. I'll be starting things off with a brief 2 month tour in Cambodia. A place I know and love well. I have a good knowledge of the language, the land, and the enemies strategies there. My primary purpose will be to help strengthen the long term missionaries and their ministries while providing reinforcements with the 7 students and the other 2 staff that will be with me. I'm praying about committing again to this long term. There are realities and consequences to the 5 years I spent out of the game. I'm financially in debt, and many of my relationships are broken. I need your help if I'm to actually do this full time in order to be restored fully. I will use any finances given wisely as a good steward. I will pay off my debts, do the Lords work, and God willing we will reap a harvest and share in the rewards together. Please pray that I will have the strength, faith, and wisdom to continue to keep my head in the game, and finish my part of bringing the gospel to every tongue, tribe, and nation.
1 Comment
Ryan dawson
2/8/2015 09:54:33 am
From one hedonist to another. I can't wait to stand with you in person. I am excited and giddy for the redemption that God has allowed in each of our lives and the impact love, grace and forgiveness can have on those around you!
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Leave a Reply.AuthorMy name's Uriah Lyford and I'm a volunteer with YWAM. My dream is to see the spiritual solution of a restored relationship with God through Jesus be made available to every person on earth. I do this through the mentoring and training of young people to build and become the Church Jesus died for. Archives
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