30 Hour Famine

On February 26-27, I, my students, and thousands of others worldwide will be participating in World Vision's 30 Hour Famine.



This will be the 15th year I have led a group through this amazing event.  It's purpose is simple.  To get a taste of what hunger feels like, and raise funds for, and awareness of, the hungry and needy in our world.  It's in Matthew 25:31-36 that we read Jesus' words instructing us to meet the needs of the lonely, the hungry, the thirsty, the naked, the sick, and the imprisoned, and that in doing so, we minister to Him.  It is our desire to do that very thing.

Would you please consider joining us?  Would you please pray that God multiplies our efforts to show His love and heart to the needy in our world?  Would you also pray that our hearts would be broken and drawn in closer to His?

Would you also please consider giving to this strategic effort?  You may click here to be taken to my secure online giving site.  This year your giving will even be multiplied by 10 due to a generous government matching grant!

Here's a brief look at a past famine.

World Vision Gift Catalog

I love that Christmas is a time for giving.  Giving is a wonderful expression of love and gratitude toward those that are most important to us.

Two years ago our family began a new Christmas tradition.  While we still give gifts to one another, we place more emphasis on giving gifts to Jesus.  It is after all...His birthday.

In Matthew 25:31-46 we read of Jesus honoring those that gave to the "least of these." Those that suffer and have been pushed to the margins of society.  He goes so far as to say that when we give to the hungry, the thirsty, the naked, the imprisoned, the strangers, and the sick, we are actually giving to Him.  What better way to give to Jesus than to give to those that have real need!  I love that World Vision has provided a fun way for people to do that very thing.

The World Vision Gift Catalog is filled with incredible giving ideas.  Opportunities to give to the poorest of the poor in the name of a loved one that you would normally give a gift to.  It's an opportunity to let someone a world away know that they have not been forgotten.  An opportunity to be a blessing to those Jesus referred to as "the least."

As you consider the gifts you will give this Christmas, consider how you might also give to the One in which we celebrate.  It will change your whole outlook on how you celebrate Christmas!

We're All In This Together

This is the first year in many that I have not participated in the 30 Hour Famine. It is a movement that I so believe in, and am thrilled to see the students I leave behind continue to embrace. If you know a student participating this year, give. Your participation through your giving will have a profound effect on many.

If there is one thing I have learned through World Vision's 30 Hour Famine, it's that we as God's Church, particularly in America, need to realize that God desires, and expects, us to responds to the needs of the world. For it is in fact the purest form of worship. When asked what worship is, the average American church goer will answer, singing. Singing is only but one very small element of worship. Bigger than singing, is responding to the cry of the needy, the suffering, and the broken in our world (James 1:27, Matthew 25:31-49, Romans 12:1).

I so appreciate what Hillsong United will be releasing this year. Were All in This Together, a feature-length documentary, will illustrate the inseparable union of worship and justice - aimed at inspiring people to see injustice, think creatively and act in response.

Watch this teaser and let it move you closer into the heart of God.



May we never forget ... we are in this together.

For more see i-heart.org.

What Do You Want For Christmas?

As I shared in my last post, I had the opportunity to preach yesterday. It was a great morning and I feel the message was well received. The title of my message was "What Do You Want For Christmas?" We essentially took a look at what it would look like if we focused our giving more toward Jesus this Christmas and made it less about ourselves.

One of the texts that we looked at was Matthew 2:1-12. It is the story of the Magi coming to see the newborn Jesus. They came to worship Him, and they worshiped Him through their giving to Him. My two main points were, The greatest gift we can give is our worship, and the greatest form of our worship is our giving.

At the conclusion of my message I shared a few practical ways that we can give to Jesus this year. There are a number of great ministry organizations that one can give to that are actively involved in meeting the basic needs of people. The kind of people that Jesus mentions in Matthew 25.

World Vision Gift Catalog
Samaritan's Purse
Compassion International
Medical Teams International
Bridgetwon Ministries

May we remember, we are never more like Jesus, than when we give.

You may hear the message here, or in iTunes.
Download the accompanying outline here.