Tuesday's Night Life :)

So last night we ventured out again to Twin Circles mobile home park in Butner.  We are becoming regulars there now and the people are begining to get warmed up to us....which is wonderful!

We are getting that ground ready to receive the seed on good soil on July 30th.

(If you don't yet know - that's our first big community outreach in our area.  A post about that will probably come tomorrow or this weekend.  But we will need YOU if you're willing to be used by the Lord as a servant to His people.)

We were able to give out much needed produce, snacks and loaves of bread.  Dean's mom Marcia was a great help in the food handout department last night!

Dean was also able to talk to couple of people about their current walk with the Lord.  He spoke directly to the young men about saying they loved Jesus, but still living like they didn't.

He also has been having great conversation with a young guy named Enoch.  This guy is really hungry for the Word of the Lord and Dean is going to be there to meet that need!  Dean has challenged Enoch to begin reading the Bible and learning what the Lord really has to say, and specifically reading about the man named Enoch of God's Word. 

Enoch did say that he did not have a Bible that he could really read.  All that was in his house was a Spanish Bible and he really couldn't read Spanish all that well.  So we have promised to get him an English Bible very soon.  If you would like to donate an English Bible for Enoch, please let us know!  They have a great ESV version at Family Christian for only $5 right now.

Last, but definitely not least, is my favorite "department"....the kids :)  They just make me smile.  I love hanging out with them and seeing their faces light up when we pull up and get out to talk with them.   They love the treats and are always eager to get the food and take it home to their parents.

I was able to talk with the little guy in the green shirt a little more last night.  When we were there last week I encouraged him to read some books while he was out of school for the summer, and to specifically read his Bible.  Last night I was so excited when he told me that he had started reading his Bible.  I then challenged him to read the book of James, and when I came back again if he had read it and was able to answer a pop-quiz question for me, then I'd have a special surprise for him.

Now just to think of a good surprise for this 5th grader....lol.  Suggestions are welcomed :)

In closing I'd like to just say how appreciative we are for what God is doing in our ministry already.  We are sure that we is happening so far is definitely from the Lord.   We know that we are in His will at this time because wonderful things keep coming our way - at just the right time.

If you would consider praying about helping us out with donations for gas to travel back and forth for all of the food pick ups and distributions, we would really appreciate it.  We totally understand that times are tough right now.  If you would be willing to partner with us and just pledge to $5 a week in gas, it would greatly help!

Loving Radically Through Christ,

Melissa

COUNT THE COST

A man enters a store to buy a single pearl. The owner of the store approaches the man and asks, " How may I help you?"  The man explains, " I would like to buy a single pearl." The owner replies, " I see."  The owner pulls out the finest pearl the man had ever seen. The man then asks the owner, " How much is it ? " The owner replied, " It is very expensive." The man asks, " How much?" The owner asks, " What do you have?"  The man answers, " I have $10,000 dollars."  " That is good the owner says, but it is not enough, what else do you have?" The man said, " That's everything I have! " The owner asks, " Do you have a car? " The man said, " Yes I have two of them."  The owner replies, " Great , I will take those too; do you have anything else? " " Well I have a house."  The owner replies yet again, " I will take that as well; anything else?"  The man said, " No that's everything, but a camper."  The owner replies, " Oh you have a camper?  I will need that too." "What more do you have? "  The man said, " You have taken everything."  The owner asks again," Do you have a wife and kid's? I will need them also, oh and I will require your life as well!"  The cost of  being a disciple of  Jesus requires us to give up everything, even our on lives.  Is it worth losing it all to gain Jesus? If the answer is no then we gain nothing and lose everything! COUNT THE COST!   Luke 14:25-35

Living Radical For Christ
Dean                                                                       

Tuesday, June 28, 2011

It's that time of the week again - Tuesday meet-up at our house at 7pm.  Dean said that we'll probably meet and pray and do a quick Bible study/discussion, but then get out in the neighborhoods, doing what we love the most.....meeting the needs of the people with food distributions and sparking up discussions about Jesus :)

We'd love to have you join us!  Give us a call at 919-529-2486 if you'd like more information on joining us.

**Spanish speaking friends are needed immensely in the trailer park we'll be in.**

A MATTER OF LIFE AND DEATH

"If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, and brothers and sisters - yes even his own life - he cannot be my disciple. And anyone who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple. "  Luke 14:26,27          
"Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to turn a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law -- a man's enemies will be the members of his own household." "Anyone who loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves his son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; and anyone who does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it."  Matthew 10: 34-39
WOW! JESUS, AREN'T YOU JUST OVER DOING IT A BIT? Besides we have our lives to live, a family to provide for, ball games to go to, a job, a house, our cars, our kids, our family, our friends, a checkbook to balance, church to attend, and this and that and the other! I will talk to you later Jesus but not now my favorite t.v. show is on. What? Go where? That's a dangerous place to go! How about this Jesus I will pray for them? I should pray, nah i'm too tired God knows I work hard! How many more of these excuses do we make day after day? Jesus is not saying we have to stop living, he's just saying we have to die! Let's face it our lives are our biggest barrier between what we are presently and what we can be. We say we love Jesus but our lives just do not produce it. Well God knows i'm not perfect! Neither is a dead man. Jesus is calling us to take up our cross (death) so that we can truly live. God is a jealous God and he totally demands our allegiance. Even if that means cutting off family members that refuse to trust in God and are pulling you under. Leaving a church because the leadership will not let the Holy Spirit lead the church and leaves you dry and empty. We are called to follow Jesus not religion or any other man made pursuit. We are living in a day when anything and everything is accepted but unless we love God more than our society and it's influence we have no part in Jesus. This is a matter of life and death, we can choose to live with our excuses or we can choose to die to this way of life and follow Him! The enemy would like nothing more than for us to become so bogged down with our lives that we are no threat to what is going on around us. We've got to understand who the real enemy is here, US, YOU, ME, I, and SELF! Jesus says to us plainly, unless we are willing to lay it all down for Him then we have no part in him. How can we influence the lives around us that are dying and going to HELL everyday if we are to busy living? Jesus is telling us that this is a matter of life and death! Let this be the day you choose to die to yourself!

Living Radically Through Christ,

Dean

Imagine This Scene....

Imagine this scene with me.  Jesus Christ, the one you have spent the last three years following, the one you have dedicated your life to, just ascended to heaven.  You saw it with your own eyes.  You and the people who have become as clsoe as your own family are all gathered in Jerusalem in someone's house, waiting.  you know that something is coming because Jesus told you about it.  He said to wait, but you don't know exactly what (or in this case, who) you are waiting for.  Maybe you are getting tired of wondering how many more days before something (what, you have no idea) happens.

Suddenly, a sounds fills the whole house.  And then tongues of fire appear and come to rest on each person present.  And then it happens.  Verse four reads "And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit."

Now these are the same disciples who were dedicated to following Jesus no matter what, but who scattered as soon as Jesus was arrested.  And here they were gathered togethere, no doubt confused about how they should proceed now that Jesus had ascended.  Yet when the Holy Spirit descended and indwelt them, a radical change occurred.  From that point on, none of these disciples was ever the same.  The book of Acts is a testament to this fact.  We read of Stephen, the first martyr.  We see Peter, a changed, courageous man.  We see Paul (formerly Saul) go from killing Christ followers to becoming one and showing many others how to do so too.  They were no longer timid or confused; they were bold and inspired and began to declare and live the gospel of Jesus through the power of the Holy Spirit.  Thank about what a huge moment this was in the lives of the disciples.

A multitude of people had gathered.  Peter preached a powerful sermon, and when they heard his words, they were "cut to the heart" and asked how they should respond.  Peter answered, "Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.  For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself" (Acts 2:38-39).  The text says that on that day around three thousand people became a part of God's kingdom and accepted the gift of the Holy Spirit.

.........

Is it clear to you that you're suppose to repent, be baptized, and receive the Holy Spirit?  If so, have you done it?  If not, what keeps you from doing it today?

Why do we sometimes fees that we need to debate this endlessly, running through every possible hypothetical situation and answering every theological question first?  When will we simply respond to the truth we have heard and then work through our questions from there?

..........

I think it's needless for us to debate about when the Holy Spirit becomes a part of someone's life.  In my own life, was it when I first prayed as a little kid and believed I was speaking to Someone?  Was it in junior high, when I raised my hand after hearing an evangelist who literally scared the hell out of me?  Was it when I got baptized?  Was it in high school, when I actually had a personal relationship with Jesus?  Could it have been in college, when I came forward at a charismatic Bible study to "receive the Spirit"?  Or was it later in life, when I chose to surrender my life fully to Jesus?

..........

All taken from Forgotten God by Frances Chan - Chapter 3.....this is what we're studying on Tuesday nights.  Good stuff!

He Delivers!

Mark 11:12-25/26 - great passage....

Mark 11:22-25:  ²² “Have faith in God,” Jesus answered. ²³ “Truly I tell you, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and does not doubt in their heart but believes that what they say will happen, it will be done for them. ²⁴ Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. ²⁵ And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins.”

When we decided to finally offer ourselves, our lives, our relationships to this ministry - we knew that everything we have for the ministry will have to come directly from God.  Yes, we are a blessed family and have everything we need, and lots of luxury compared to most of the worlds population.  But one thing we don't have is an abundance of money to buy whatever we want.  We're what America calls "middle class" which basically means that you can pay your basic bills, eat fast food once in a while, and hopefully afford the gas to drive back and forth to work....lol.

So we have went into this thing in full humility and in absolute reliance on prayer for God to give us what we need.  And what a faith builder this has been!

I must admit that Dean had a lot more faith than I did in the beginning....but I'm really getting the hang of this believing God to give what we NEED to do HIS WILL ;)

I just wanted to tell you guys a little of what He has provided to us in the past 2 weeks:

3 folding tables for outreaches
5 cases of drinks (the next day after we prayed for them)
buns and bread so much that we can't even walk through our house (we have been able to donate to a local Christian daycare and the Durham Crisis Response Center in addition to our regular neighborhoods)
50 bags of chips (2 days after we prayed for them we got 38 bags in one pop)
snacks, snacks and more snacks (we go through these like crazy in the neighborhoods with the kids)
2 cases of eggs (2 days after we prayed for them)
10 gallons of milk (the SAME day I cleaned out the fridge and told God I was ready for the milk He was going to send)
a deep freezer
over 400 hot dogs/red hots/sausages (the next day after we prayed for them)
a possible connection on a trailer to carry all of our outreach supplies in
a volunteer to help us get a voice amplifier for getting God's Word out loud and clear

We have gotten to the point where we know that if we ask God for it and He plans to use it for His ministry, then we'll be getting it pretty soon.

Isn't God good???

In all of this though....we pray utmost that we use what He gives us the way that He wants, and that at no point do we take responsibility for getting these items.  We must stay humble and thankful at all times.

Loving Radically Through Christ,

Melissa

*P.S. - yes one day Dean will get to post....as soon as we get a computer at home.  We have internet right now, but a sick computer....lol.*

Quail??

So the Lord has been raining manna on us since we made the profession that we were going to start this outreach ministry.  It has been completely unbelievable to watch Him deliver things to us that He wants us to distribute to His people.

We are now getting bread pick ups 3 times a week and it is such a blessing!  We have been thanking God for the "manna" and are NOT grumbling.....but just happened to mention the "quail"....and lo and behold - He delivered to my husband again today.

Thank you Lord....Thank you!  We WILL use it to share the gospel!

Loving Radically Through Christ,

Melissa

Tuesday Night Bible Study - FINALLY GOT THE PICTURES ATTACHED!

Well we had been doing a Bible study at our house on Tuesday nights at 7pm.  We've been doing this so that people we meet along the way can have an avenue to come and learn more about the Bible outside of a typical church setting.  We've also been inviting friends and family.  We started out by reading the book "Forgotten God" by Frances Chan.  (Excellent, excellent read by the way....)

Well the first couple of weeks went well.  Family and a few friends showed up and also a family that we met at our first outreach at Lake Rogers Park in Creedmoor.

But for the past two weeks we've only had one person show up on Tuesday nights. 

However.....that hasn't stopped God at all!  You know what He taught us....we just need to be ready in and out of season.  We will be available to hold Tuesday night Bible studies and will give the option to everyone that we meet at outreaches.  They can come to our house - or we'll come to theirs! 

If anyone wants to come over on Tuesday nights for Bible study and discussion at 7pm - please come!  We'll hold it.  If not - we'll just do what we've been doing the past two weeks.....and that's going out into the community.

Last week we went and delivered food in a local mobile home park, and last night we did it again!  Dean's friend and co-worker Diana Allen went with us and we had a wonderful time:  meeting people, talking with familiar faces, meeting immediate needs with food, telling people about the July 30th outreach, and talking with folks about Jesus :)

(Ya'll know I'm still new at this blog so I hope I can get the pictures from last night to show up....lol)

To God be the Glory for each food item that we are able to hand out....to each person we are able to talk to....to each smile we're able to get out of the children....to each hand we're able to hold....to each prayer we're able to lift up!

First Official Post

I'm very excited for our first official post!  This is where we will be able to update everyone on what's going on with Radical Life Outreach Ministries.

We are very excited about what God is already doing with us.

It seems like everything is going so fast and just exploding....in a good way of course.

Sometimes it's hard to keep up with all the goodness that God is sending our way - but we know that He will give us the strength and patience to handle it all.

I will try and update later with a list of everything that's been going on the past week or so.  Dean and I have been keeping a journal at home and just jotting down notes when things happen - so I'll try and get that transferred here soon.

(Our computer got a virus and completely crashed at home, so I'm not able to do any internet stuff at home until I'm able to get a new cpu.)

Loving Radically Through Christ,

Melissa