Week One of FANATIC starts at Cityedge this Sunday!! Come check us out!
www.cityedgetuscon.com
Ina and La Cholla
11:00am
Jesus and my grandpa September 1, 2008
So this week I flew up to Chicago for my Grandpa’s funeral.
At the funeral, my Dad spoke about how my Grandpa’s mom always wanted him to be a minister. Everyone there started laughing because well, my Grandpa wasn’t the “minister” type. My dad explained that my Grandpa was a minister. He had twelve disciples and two mini-disciples: his grandchildren and great-grandchildren. My dad then spoke of how much love he had for his grandchildren. My grandpa would do anything and everything for any of us grandkids. He even gave us each a nickname when we were born and from that day on only called us that name. I don’t think he really even knew our real names. I never once doubted his love for us. He made sure we knew how much he loved us through countless hugs and kisses, through talks of how proud he was, through starting family traditions, through giving, giving and giving some more.
My dad then explained that everytime my grandpa showed us love, that was Jesus. Everytime he hugged us that was Jesus. Everytime he gave us advice that was Jesus. Everytime he called us by our nicknames that was Jesus. The strongest memory I have of my grandpa is a memory of love. What an amazing legacy to leave.
I know Jesus told my grandpa, “well done good and faithful servant” because my grandpa allowed Jesus to live through Him to reach my cousins and me.
Jesus chases after us. He uses any and every way to reach us and to reveal His love to us. I believe with all of my heart Jesus used my Grandpa to show Himself to my cousins and me.
It got me thinking a lot this week: what kind of legacy will I leave? What will people say about me? Who am I ministering to?
“…God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him.” 1st John 4:16
Sushi Boogie August 22, 2008
So I recently got into a conversation with a musician friend of mine. I
was laughing at him because he was rocking out to the music that was
playing in the sushi restaurant where we were eating. He started talking
about how all he did for the past two days was play music and how
beautiful it was. He said, “Sorry you probably think I’m crazy but I
can’t help it. Music is everywhere to me, everything is related to
music, it’s everything to me.” I’ve met some passionate musicians
before, but if you can rock out to the musical styling of Alejandro
Fernandez in the middle of a hole in the wall sushi restaurant then
props to you. That’s passion. He said the comment, “I can’t imagine life
without music, people who live without it…man. People who are so wrapped
up into science, I don’t know I would just die.”
pas·sion: Boundless enthusiasm
Boundless. I like that word. There’s no limit, there’s no beginning, no
end. I know this is a common topic for me but I can’t get it out of my
heart. The possibilities in Jesus are boundless. All I could think about
as my friend was talking was that I feel that same way about Jesus as he
feels about music. He’s everywhere; everything relates to Him,
everything points to Him. The possibilities in Christ are boundless and
we’re passionate about him…when we have a boundless enthusiasm about
him…can you imagine?
One of the questions in Lifegroup last night was what do you find
intriguing about the Holy Spirit? I find the amount of power the Holy
Spirit has intriguing. Not only that, but that He wants to work through
us to do things we can’t imagine. So many people say well if God wants
to work through me so bad why doesn’t He? My answer to that is us. We
put limits on a limitless God, we bond a boundless God. We need to stop.
My mom told me the other day that the word impossible and can’t don’t
exist in God’s vocabulary, they don’t exist in Heaven. I challenge you
this week to do two things. 1. Dream BIG. Dream dreams that are
boundless, ask God for things you can’t imagine. And 2. (Now this is the
kicker.) Try taking the words impossible and can’t out of your
vocabulary this week.
“Now glory be to God! By his mighty power at work within us, he is able
to accomplish infinitely more than we would ever dare to ask or hope.”
Ephesians 3:20
Sounds like Heaven! August 4, 2008
This morning I got the chance to visit my old church. I came on the first Sunday of their Gospel month. Throughout the whole month of August they play gospel music during worship.
As the choir started to sing our music minister jokingly made the comment about gospel music. He said if you don’t like it you better get used to it because that’s what you’ll hear in heaven. It got me thinking. What will heaven sound like?
There is an endless list of all the genres of music in the world. On my Ipod alone I have 67 different genres of music ranging from ska to alternative to folk.
God is so creative. He’s invented so many different types of music. I can’t imagine what heaven will sound like. I’m sure we’ll walk down the streets of gold and hear people playing everything from heavy metal to country to rap and all that are inbetween.
I then got to thinking how can we bring the sound of heaven to earth? I know Jesus moves through music to touch people. Countless times I’ve heard Him speak to me through a song, through worship, through a soundtrack, through band practices. How do we bring that same sound in Heaven down to earth so that they can have an encounter with Jesus?
I don’t know if I have the answer to that question but I think it starts in each of us. As we encounter Jesus indiviually through worship it resonates to those around us. God experiences are contagious. When I hear someone speaking of a time they encountered Him, it inspires me to seek Him. As we worship God with everything in us, when we experience Him I think it draws others to Him.
How can you bring the sound of heaven to earth this week?
Spiritual Evolution June 9, 2008
I know I’m only 20 but I look at our world and how much it’s evovled since I was a kid. Pretty soon everyone is going to have to change their TVs to that HD thing. Our poor, crappy TV, we can’t even hook up a DVD player to it. Point being, our world is continually evolving.
I hung out with Jesus this morning and He told me how we should be evolving everyday spiritually. I don’t think I’ll ever be satisfied in God. If you’re a Christian, and you’re satisfied with God, satisfied with where you are with Him, I think there’s a problem. I should be deeper in Jesus tomorrow than I am at this moment. I wish the Church could catch this vision; it’s so strong in my heart I feel like I could burst! I think of Jeremiah when he said, “But if I say, “I will not mention him or speak any more in his name,” his word is in my heart like a fire, a fire shut up in my bones. I am weary of holding it in; indeed, I cannot.” Jeremiah 20:9
This morning my prayer has been “more of You and less of me”. I can never get enough of Him; I’m constantly searching for more. Jesus spoke to me loud and clear this morning. If He spoke this loud today, I can’t wait to see what happens tomorrow.
When God uses me He takes me out of my comfort zones, I love it. He calls me to do things that I’m incapable of. He calls me to do things that He knows I can’t, things that He knows I’m terrible at, it’s so beautiful. I’m not going to lie; it’s taken me some time to realize that being outside of my comfort zones is good. It forces me to cling to Him and rid me of myself…more of Him and less of me.
Everyday I find something new that I can give to Him. I’m so in love with Jesus I want Him to have every part of me. I look at the standards of this world, what it means to be satisfied with your life. You get a degree, start a career, get married, buy a house, have a family and start a retirement fund. All those things are good, don’t get me wrong. I just don’t know if God has called me to live such a life. I fear that if I do live a life as such, I would become too comfortable and loose sight of vision God has given me.
I don’t know where I’ll be in ten years; I could be in Asia showing people Jesus, I could be living in a surburban neighborhood in the States, who knows. All I know is that I’ll be closer to Jesus then than I am now. Jesus has called us to continually evolve. Are you the same spiritually today as you were yesterday? I hope not.
P.S. Please be in prayer for Bailey and her family this week.
Jesus and some pancakes May 22, 2008
I find so much purpose when I love people. I feel, no I know that God created me to love others. He doesn’t just desire me to do it, He put that in me when He created me. I find purpose for my life when I’m loving others.
As most of you know last week we gave $100 to everyone at City Edge asking them to use it to intersect someone’s life and tell them how much Jesus loves them.
We went to eat at Ihop the other night with some friends. We got to talking to our waitress and really connected with her. She’s 19 and used to live in LA. I asked her why she moved to Tucson and she said she needed to help mom finanically. This was one of the sweetest girls I have ever met, just a very genuine person. There was one other table besides us there. They left and she went to clean their table and she started freaking out. She was overjoyed because they had left her a $20 tip. The rest of our meal she was just smiling and so excited. One of the guys who was with us said he still hadn’t given away his $100. Before we left, he left it on the table for her.
That’s who Jesus is to me. Everywhere He went, He left something for someone. He left healing, or food, or wine. He left them with a feeling of love. He left us the Holy Spirit. Christianity is a way of life. It’s about love. It’s about how can we get our eyes off of ourselves and our world to help others. That’s the purpose for my life, others. I believe that’s the purpose for the church, others.
Sunday, Sunday, Sunday! May 2, 2008
This Sunday we will be meeting for the first time in our new building at Ina and La Cholla! Come join us at 11:00am (Directions are on our website: www.cityedgetucson.com)!
If you can’t make it please be in prayer for our first service. God has already done so much with CIty Edge, I can’t imagine what else He has in store!
Thank you so much for all of your support and love!
It’s a bird! It’s a plane! No! It’s Super Julia! March 15, 2008
Ok so if I could have any superpower I totally know what it would be. Seeing into the future. How rad would that be?
I feel like I’m at this point in my life where I have to make some major decisions. A point where I’m really having to trust God like I never have before. I can’t tell you how scary that is. It’s like my flesh so badly wants to see the future, just a glimpse to make sure it’s all going to work out. But at the same time my spirit is reminding me of the whole faith thing. God says to believe without seeing. To focus on what He says, not on what we see.
So does blind-faith count as a super power??
I know in my spirit that God will never let me fall. I know that He wouldn’t call me to walk deeper into the waters just so I can drown. But then there’s this whole stupid flesh part. Grr.
I feel like Peter. Jesus invited him walk on water with Him. Peter jumped out of the boat before Jesus could even finsh the invitation. After such confidence, Peter looked to himself, to his flesh and it was then that he fell. He took his eyes off Jesus, just for a moment. But Jesus is so faithful. He didn’t let Peter drown, even though Peter screwed up and looked to himself. Jesus reached out and picked him up, restored him.
Jesus, give me faith to trust You.
“Say something!” March 11, 2008
As a kid I had this image of God as a quiet, transparent, ghostly Spirit that just followed me everywhere I would go, never saying anything, just following me. I don’t know where I got this idea. Maybe from watching too many episodes of Tales From the Crypt.
I read a quote the other day that got me thinking. It said, “God is more eager to answer than we are to ask.” As a child I often complained because I could never hear Him.
I had to ask myself a question; Jesus is constantly seeking me, but how often am I seeking Him? The more we seek Him, the more we know Him, we can’t help but hear Him. I believe Jesus is yearning to tell us something extraordinary every moment of everyday.
I used to view God as a quiet and somewhat shy…then I got to know Him.
“This is God’s Message, the God who made earth, made it livable and lasting, known everywhere as God: ‘Call to me and I will answer you. I’ll tell you marvelous and wondrous things that you could never figure out on your own.’” Jeremiah 33:3
Happy (Late) Heart Day! February 15, 2008
Thank You Jesus that everyday is Valentine’s Day with You!
