Loving Mike-y

Mike-y is like the younger brother that I always wished I had; he's fun, kind, and hilarious! I met Mike-y when he was just starting out as a freshmen in college. I had graduated then, but was still helping out in college ministry, and one of my good friends asked if I could help watch out for Mike-y, and plug him into our fellowship.

The first time I met Mike-y was when I drove over to pick him up for church early one Sunday morning. Even though it was the first time we met, being the friendly person that he is, he came up to my car, and said, "I saw this kid at the student center on the way over here, and he looks like he's waiting for something, can we go ask him if he wants to go to church with us?" I was a bit surprised, but this kid's enthusiasm really inspired me, so sure, why not... It turns out that this guy was actually there waiting for someone to turn up to give him a ride to church! We were his answered prayer!

Well, fast forward a few years, it turns out that because of Mike-y's invitation to this guy, they became fast friends, and throughout their years in college, they encouraged and inspired each other in their walks with the Lord, like Nathan did to David.

Mike-y is graduated now, and it came as no surprise to me when I found out that instead of settling with the status quo, he is taking 2 years off to go to Japan to share his love and hope from the Lord to those there. What faith! What love! Of course I had to support and encourage my bro! May God be with Mike-y as he heads off for another year to Japan, and may God grant him more opportunities in which he can draw others to Christ, just as he had done with his friend in college...

"The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field."

Manga!

I just met a friend who started publishing Christian manga. His vision is to capture the hearts of this generation's youth by sharing stories of God's faithfulness to us. And what better way to capture their attention than through manga and anime?

He's all the way on the other side of the world though, and to encourage him, I thought I would send him some manga (Next Manga!) from this side of the world (though technically, I'm just sending it back to where it came from, because it was published in his neck of the woods. :P) In any case, I pray that it would be an encouragement to him, and give him some good ideas for his own Christian manga!

Have you ever read Christian manga? What do you think of it?

"The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field."
May manga be used for the glory of God and to usher in His Kingdom!

Crying out for the lost

At the Kingdom Advance conference that I went to this past Saturday, we learned about how to make disciples, and one of the things that Jaeson Ma challenged us to do was to pray for the lost. Before planning any activities, or sitting down with anyone, prayer is the first thing we should do, and it is the most important thing we can do. Jaeson challenged us to cry out to God every day, twice a day, at 10:02 a.m. and 10:02 p.m. If the lost are to be saved, we need to cry out to God to remember His people, to save the lost, and to send out harvesters into the harvest field. We need to cry out in faith, trusting that our God of the universe will send the perfect people at the perfect time, to bring the Good News of His salvation to the hurting, needy, poor, and lost of this world.

So we set alarms on our phones, and we have been praying. I decided that I will not only be praying for harvesters, but I will be praying for those who are lost - by name. Today, I prayed for one of my close friends and my cousins. Tomorrow, I will pray for my dad and my coworkers. Most of all though, I pray that God will empower me to keep praying, to keep trusting, and to keep loving the lost.

Love challenge: "The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest."

Loving missionaries

Last year at the Called 2 All conference, I met an amazing pair. They're a young couple, who've committed their lives to loving God and loving others. Despite their young age, they are confident in their life purpose, and are doing awesome things in pursuit of it.

Recently, they've informed me of an awesome journey that they will be taking to India, where they will spend time exploring a potential partnership with a ground-breaking organization that helps local entrepreneurs. Using local entrepreneurship to eradicate poverty and raise standards of living - that's what I'm talkin about! I'm so inspired and encouraged by this young couple's love for others, that they would step out of their comfort zone, travel all the way across the world, to help others in need. How could I not support and help be a part of this rocking movement?

Love challenge: Support great causes, whether financially, by praying, or going yourself!

"The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few."