Wait! No, WEIGHT!!

A little visual humor for the day... are you saying I'm fat, btw???
http://thisiswhyyourefat.com/

Dispelling the Myths about Mexico

I’ve received LOTS of requests for a report from our recent mission trip to Monterrey, Mexico, mostly from the standpoint of “safety”. This is my reply that I’ll post on my blog and email/send to anyone that might want a copy of it. Please bear with me, as I am taking this opportunity to “preach” a little, but hopefully, it won’t cause you to miss the answer to your question. And thanks to the Christian Chronicle's Bobby Ross, for taking parts of this blog and including it in his article on his blog posting today.

Let me begin by saying that our experience a couple of weeks ago was completely uneventful, regarding any so-called "safety issues". During our time in Mexico, I spoke with preachers in both Nuevo Laredo and Monterrey about the situation there. I've been watching the Mexican media. I have spoken with numerous others who have traveled in and out of Mexico on a variety of mission trips over the past few months. They are in total agreement that the situation has been GREATLY exaggerated by American media outlets (especially CBS and FOX for some reason). Although in recent articles the Christian Chronicle has attempted to inform churches of the situation prior to the recent Spring Break time period, I believe that even that was somewhat inaccurate. Add these reports with a little third hand “spin” that many in our churches have put on it, and no wonder the situation sounds worse than it is. The truth is that there hasn’t been a single incident for ANY mission group (we are talking hundreds and thousands) from the US that has occurred relating to this situation.

Is there violence in Mexico between drug cartels and police/army/government officials? Yes. Why is this occurring? It is because the Mexican government (yes, even with all its history of corruption) is putting a great deal of pressure on the drug gangs and they are reacting violently, hoping to intimidate the government into backing down. It is not working… the government continues to tighten their “choke hold” on these negative elements in their country.

One particular Mexico mission trip effort with whom I have been connected for many years (I’ll save the name to avoid the appearance that I am speaking for them) is suffering greatly because of hasty decisions by a number of American churches of Christ in cancelling their trips to help. As of the last bit of information of which I am aware, nearly 20 groups have cancelled. The Mexican church is SUFFERING greatly because of these decisions.

The time for the church to shine brightest is when darkness seems to be at its most powerful. Now is that time both in the United States AND in Mexico. Jesus NEVER promised us safety... writer of the book, “The Irresistible Revolution”, Shane Claiborne, stated that the most dangerous place for the church is a place of comfort. Somehow, someway, we have to persuade our church leaders (and parents) to live dangerously for Christ. There is a time coming (it may be now) where we can not shrink back, but instead, have great courage and boldness. We should not be fooled that there is a much safer situation here in the US. Ironically, while we were in Mexico, there was a big drug bust in front of the home of one of our members in Fort Smith, AR with K-9 and SWAT police units. And recently, 11 women were murdered and found buried in a “safe neighborhood” in Albuquerque, NM. Recent statistics state that Phoenix, AZ is the kidnap capital of the USA right now.

I pray this information will help tip some churches into listening to God instead of Satan. This is spiritual warfare and the church in America needs to step up to the plate, show their faith in God and send people to Mexico. It is time for us to start PRAYING, to neither OVERreact nor UNDERreact, but to react appropriately.

Please feel free to inquire with any other questions you may have about this situation and may God bless you as you seek to live out Matthew 28:19-20.

Sign of the times - China style #3

You might have grown up in a Church of Christ youth group if...

Sign of the times - China Style #2

OK, I will post two for today in separate posts. This is just hilarious. Again, thanks to my friend, Katie, for letting me post these.

Make some comments, share with friends... it might even inspire me to write some more!

Signs of the times - China style

OK, so I have NO idea why I think these are funny... but they are. My friend, Katie, is currently living in China and is having the cultural experience of a lifetime. I really should post some of her pictures of food displays from the grocery stores there, as they are quite hilarious. However, the signs that she has found over there just put me over the top, nearly giving me a crying fit of laughter. I asked her permission to post these on my blog, so I'll hope you'll indulge me. Feel free to make comments, recommend this blog to friends, etc. I'll do one a day until she runs out. Thanks Katie!!

To Cell Phone or Not To Cell Phone

Well, many of you know that for many years, I've held tough on my policy about not allowing students to bring cell phones, iPods and MP3 players on youth group trips. My personal opinion was that they interfered with the opportunity that students would have to actually establish and maintain a relationship with other students in their own youth group. It was tough to enforce, but I felt like we were pretty successful in minimizing the impact/interference these electronic items could have on the dynamics of the group. Unfortunately, in recent years, parents have actually encouraged their students to take these items anyway, regardless of the rules. That brought other problems, such as a disregard for OTHER rules that were in place.

Anyway, I recently moved to a new ministry and we went on our first trip to Winterfest in Arlington, Texas. I was faced with the decision of whether I wanted to change my long-held policy on electronics or not. I decided to say nothing about it, thus not "banning" them from the trip. It was interesting to observe what happened during the weekend. Most of the students spent a significant amount of time texting one another or friends back home. Only a few times did anyone actually talk on the phone. The only time that it seemed that it was a problem was when a segment of Winterfest was ended, and I would get at least 30 text messages from students asking about where they should go/be next. It was wonderful and frustrating at the same time.

I think, in retrospect, that technology has a "chronology" of sorts... There is an initial usage, then abusage, then a retreat back to some appropriate sense of usage... this is happening with cell phones right now. I ran across this one article and one blog entry/sermon about cell phone usage for your consideration. Make some comments below about this subject and let's start a discussion as to the pros and cons of electronics on a youth group trip.

Ooops, gotta run... I just got a text...