Well, there really isn't much to this one. We were at the taco stand. They use the whole cow. The head is considered the best part of the animal. James thought it would be funny if I ate an eyeball. He said that he would buy me two meals if I did. So, I ate one.
It tasted a lot like the cow brains. Kind of like tuna, with the consistency of thick custard.
On a side note:
Today in big church I had the opportunity to help lead. It was great, except for one thing. Two of the three microphones quit working as soon as we started. So, it was a little strange, but things still went really well.
God bless,
Eric-
Howdy,
This is a day late, but here you go.
Julio, Nicole (Julio's girlfriend) and myself headed to the Island. The youth were supposed to come with us, but none showed up. That did not stop us. We made it to the Little Yellow Schoolhouse ( It is a school that takes in mentally challenged kids, and teaches them practical life skills. How to do dishes, how to keep a house... Check it out http://www.littleyellowschoolhouse.org/) and got to work. The day pretty much consisted of moving a pile of dirt and rocks, painting (I still cannot get all of the paint off of my fingers), weeding a sidewalk and fixing screen doors. It was a pretty great day.
One of the most exciting parts of the day was planning for future work there. We are going to build gardens for the kids! This will be a great opportunity for the kids to learn practical skills. They will get to plant and cultivate the seeds, and in the end sell the produce. I am excited to see the school grow.
Another random note: This afternoon we had worship practice for the American side of the church. Things are going really well with that. Because the church is small, there are only three people in the band, and we are free to be really creative with our music. It has been wonderful so far.
That is all for now!
Eric-
Just thought that I would write a quick update.
I am headed out to the Island. The youth group is going to the special needs school for the second time now. I am excited!
I will give an update when I return!
God bless,
Eric-
To start off, today has been a great day! On the way to church, I had a chat with our taxi driver. I found out where he was from, and we talked about how long he had been in Cancun. Then we arrived on the topic of religion. He is a Catholic, and thought that we were Jehovah's Witnesses. I told him that we were Christians, and he responded with, "oh yea, that's the same religion." This provided the opportunity to share the gospel!
The taxi driver said that he read the Bible, and believed that it was true. So, I shared this with him.
John 14:6 "Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me."
Before we got out of the car, I gave him a track that explains the gospel, and the path to salvation. He gladly accepted it!
Most sunday mornings start with being late, cutting people off because you are late, and if family is around, a few arguments. This was a welcome change from the routine.
God is good.
Eric-
I have always heard it said "Why would God allow bad things to happen to good people?" Why would an all powerful god who loves his children let them be sick, get hurt, and eventually die?
Matthew 5:43-48 ""You have heard that it was said, 'You SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR and hate your enemy.' But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? If you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect."
After reading this passage (yes I know it isn't addressing my question), my brain made a connection that I wanted to share with you. If God loved me enough to send His son to die for me when I was still in sin, then He loves both His children and those still in sin equally. In Luke Jesus tells the parable of the 100 sheep. One of those sheep becomes lost. He then says "What man among you, if he has a hundred sheep and has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the open pasture and go after the one which is lost until he finds it?" The lost are important.
This leads us to the question at hand. "Why would God allow bad things to happen to good people?" According to the scripture that has just been read, we should ask a more appropriate question. "Why would God allow bad things to happen to the people that He loves?"
To this question I have yet to find a direct answer in the Scripture.
What about Job in the Old Testament? Job was the best man in the land. God loved him. And yet, He handed Job into the hands of Satan.
Is it possible that this seemingly simple question is too deep for human understanding? I cannot claim to know why God would or would not do something. Maybe this life isn't all about humanity. What if our main purpose for being on this earth was not to become wealthy and have a family. What if God has a plan? What if someone being in a fatal car accident is a part of that plan? Do I have enough faith to accept the fact that this life is about God and not myself?
If a parent never let their child try to walk because they might scrape a knee, then how will they learn to walk?
Take a look at Luke 17:1-10. If you would read through the section of scripture a couple of times. Don't have a Bible? Well, check out http://www.biblegateway.com. There you can look up any scripture in any translation. I recommend the NAS.
There are several radical truths in these words of wisdom from Jesus to his Disciples. Today we are going to focus on the first nugget of truth. (Verse 1-2)
Truth 1: Verse 1-2 "Stumbling blocks". This section of scripture should make any person who claims to be a believer stand guard of their every word and action. Jesus tells us that it would be better for someone to have a millstone (A big rock) tied around their neck and thrown into the sea, than for him to cause a little one to stumble. Curious as to what a "stumbling block" was, so I did some research. I have recently discovered how great of help a Strong's Concordance can be. With a little snooping around I discovered that the greek word used here is "Skandalon". (Almost sounds like the word scandalous) Skandalon: stumbling block, obstacle, offense, something that causes sin." Lets sit back and think about that for a minute. Jesus said that it is better for you, his followers, to be forcefully drown in the sea, than to cause someone to sin. Wow.
In the many different aspects of this concept, one of them to me is the most convicting. A part of parenting, and being a minister is leading by example (I am not a parent, just a minister to youth). Many years a go, early on in my ministry, I caused one of my youth to sin. I had decided that one thing modern day youth needed to see were mature Christians (me thinking that I was "mature" just goes to show how immature I actually was) living like real people. I occasionally drank alcohol, never getting drunk, and always controlled. I wanted them to see that a person could be a true believer and at the same time enjoy a drink now and then. I never thought that these high school sophomore boys were not ready to understand that concept. I didn't drink in front of them, but I didn't hide the fact that I drank, and I didn't try to hide the bottle of alcohol. Well, when I was in the other room, one of them grabbed my bottle and took a swig. A few days later I found out. I was fortunate that he was willing to confess the wrongdoing and tell his parents.
You may be thinking that this is nothing. I disagree. I provided the opportunity for kids to break the law. We are commanded to obey the laws of the land. There are many more things that could have gone wrong. It all comes down to the fact that I caused him to sin. Jesus said that it would be better for me to have been thrown into the sea to drown.
If I caused a young one to sin with something as small as not putting a bottle of whiskey out of sight, how else do I cause the youth I work with to sin? Do I lead them astray with the words I say? Jesus wants us to be controlled and collected, not loose with our words and actions. I have heard it said that every single thing that you do will effect someone else. I really believe that is true. The clothes you wear, the language you use.
Lastly, keep in mind that we do not do these things in order to achieve holiness. We do not do these things to help with our salvation. The reason that we do these things is because we believe that Jesus is the son of God. We believe that what he said is true. We have a faith that produces works. (Jesus addresses this issue in the end of this section of the text. Verse 7-10)
Soon we will discuss the rest of Luke 17:1-10.
For a small number of reasons I have recently quit using Facebook. This act has caused a great change in some of my habits. I no longer sit mindlessly clicking through page after page of social chatter. My compulsion to be constantly connected to the internet is nearly non existent.
It is interesting how something so small can gradually make such a drastic change.
One year ago you gave me this vision.
A vision of bringing healing to the masses.
One year ago I lost my vision.
My vision that would redeem my Church.
One year ago I fell to that very sin.
A sin that swept my vision away.
You see it isn't my vision.
It isn't my church.
It isn't my plan.
It is your vision for my life.
My life isn't my own, it is yours.
One year later you restored this vision.
A vision that would bring healing to the masses.
One year later you began to work.
A work that I was completely unaware of.
You are El Shaddai.
The Lord God almighty.
You are Jehovah Raah.
The Lord that is my shepherd.
You are Jehovah Shamar.
The Lord that is here.
I often write out my prayers. Today I ran across this.
"The old sin will fade away
I will remember to run
I will live day and night with an eternal perspective
Please renew me
Connect my heart and mind, and lift the fog
Know you"
"We are never to judge a philosophy by it's misuse."
-Augustine
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