What 2009 taught me

This time last year i was sitting in the Escamillia's house wondering what 2009 had to offer, and here i am 363 days later trying to think back at what great things ive been able to be apart of, the places ive seen, the people ive met.

I think back to Graduation of ACE Teams in July and what a moment that was for me personally. it was moment for to be able to say to all those who said i wouldnt amount to anything, look at me now, i spent the last 10 months from home in america, and here i am to tell the tale, look what God did through me that year, look what by the grace of God ive accomplished. it was probably also the most difficult moment of my life, watching everyone else greeted by family was tough to watch.

If i look back at 2009 their are probably two things that its taught me :

1) "In every Season You are still God" no matter what im going through, no matter where im suffering God is still in control, whether my family is with me or whether they 4,500 miles away. he knows everything

2) Remain in me and i will remain in you, apart from me you can do nothing - this is a lesson ive learnt over the last few months, when i take God out of the equation and try and figure it alone then its gonna go wrong, things are going to mess up, Gods way is sooo much better anyways!

Im Excited for the Challenge of 2010. im excited to look back in a years time and see where i am, im excited to look back and see what ive acomplished.

Happy New year Everyone,

Jono

Primal

We have a capacity to complicate Christianity. Jesus simplified it with one commandment: Love God with all of your heart, soul, mind, and strength. In Primal Mark Batterson explores the four elements of Great Commandment Christianity: compassion, wonder, curiosity and power. Along the way, he calls Christians to be a part of God's reformation, starting in their own lives.

"Is there a place in your past where you met God and God met you?" asks Batterson. "A place where your heart broke for the things that break the heart of God? In that moment, God birthed something supernatural in your spirit. You knew you'd never be the same again. My prayer is that this book would take you back to that burning bush--and reignite a primal faith."

Batterson says that that moment may have been during a sermon, on a mission trip or at an altar, but regardless of the time or place, a return to a primal faith is essential to all believers. According to Batterson that primal faith will lead Christians to a new reformation, an overhaul of the way they love God. "Reformations are born out of primal truths rediscovered, reimagined and radically reapplied to our lives," he says. And the importance of rediscovering the need to love God with all that we are can't be measured. Primal will help readers live in light of what matters most and discover what it means to love God, becoming great at the Great Commandment.

Admittedly, I hoped for more substance based on the brilliance of Batterson, great depth and longevity in the journey to loving and honouring the very heart of God. It's a helpful catalyst to loving God and renewing our roots. I did long for greater impact. The anticipation exceeded the reality!

Just Started Writting

So often recently Ive been having the thoughts of why am i doing this, what makes me think im capable, what made God called me 4,5000 miles from home this year and everyone else live so close to home, why am with these people. I started to think that maybe giving up would be the easy thing to do, maybe just telling Dave that i want to go home, that i can't do this anymore. Every time have these thoughts, it's like God gives me a Picture of me telling People like Dave and my team that ive quit and i just can't do it.

Their are so many people who have made me feel so welcome this year and let me be part of their lives, and for that i will always be grateful. Theirs people this year who have gone out of their way to make me feel so loved and welcomed.

This week God Showed up. God reminded me of Moses standing at the burning bush and how he made many excuses for not being able to go to Pharaoh and God Said to him I AM WITH YOU!, and then it hit me. God hasn't sent me here alone, he came with me, he came on the plane and took care of me, he is with me as write this,

It's so simple everything we do, we are not alone, God is their!!! he didn't abandon us, he came along for the Journey! he is working through us and in us. God doesn't exepct us to understand everything, he wants to use us in ways we could never imagine.

Recently ive learn't that giving God the time, and the chance to speak he will, its amazing what God can do given the moment, i think sometimes the biggist obsticle to God is ourselves.

HE LOVES US
HE REALLY DOES LOVE US

This is just some of my thoughts for the week and i pray that if you are in a similar situation right now, that you will take heart and remember God loves you!!!

HE IS JEALOUS FOR YOU


God can do anything in a moment, but will we give God that moment???

But God Looks at the heart

"Man looks at the outside but GOD looks at the Heart.

Ive heard that verse a lot during 20 years of life but this morning i read it and i really thought about what i was reading and it was like i was challenged by the words i read, yes man does look at the outside but God looks at the heart and many times we have passed that off and said, "oh it doesn't matter God knows whats in my heart" but i want to pose a new Question would you really like God seeing your heart? would you like him to see what you really feel and think?

on Valentines Day millions of Americans (and English People) will be exchanging Cards and gifts in a show of love for people, and many of us have a deep desire to one day get married and start a family of our own, and yes i am one of those people, im excited to be a dad and a husband, but before any of that happens we must first Get our hearts right with the Creator, he loves us more and more each day, he showed the ultimate act of love my laying down his life and all he asks for in Return is our Hearts!

let your prayer be God let my heart be right, let me see things you see, break my heart for what breaks yours

I'm Not Guilty anymore

eels Ages since uve actually took time to write on here. last week we headed to a leadership confernce in Atlanta GA, called Catalyst, the first few days we helped set up for the conference, helped stuff bags for the guests and so fourth. that is not the reason i sit here typing this.

On The Thursday night of the Coference, God just showed up, i had one of those moments that, felt like it was only me and God in the room. Francis Chan had got up to speak about the cross. during the time he read familur passages that i had heard before, maybe even thousands of times before during sermons, That night though it hit me hard, that Jesus actually did this, this wasnt actually a story, it actually happend, he died for me!

It was announced that night we would be taking Communion, as we were passing out the the Communion symbols, Aaron Keyes came back on stage and starting playing this Song entitled I’m Not Guilty Anymore:

It doesn’t matter what you’ve done; It doesn’t matter where you’re coming from
Doesn’t matter where you’ve been, Hear me tell you I forgive

You’re not guilty anymore, you’re not filthy anymore,
I love you, mercy is yours
You’re not broken anymore, you’re not captive anymore,
I love you, mercy is yours

Can you believe that this is true, grace abundant I am giving you
Cleansing deeper than you know, all was paid for long ago

You’re not guilty anymore, you’re not filthy anymore,
I love you, mercy is yours
You’re not broken anymore, you’re not captive anymore,
I love you, mercy is yours

There is now therefore no condemnation for those who are in Jesus

You are spotless
You are holy
You are faultless
You are whole
You are righteous
You are blameless
You are pardoned
You are mine

As were singing this song i just began to fill up with tears, as God spoke these words to me ” Your not guilty anymore, Your not Guilty anymore, your not guilty anymore, it ended when i said it is Finished”

its a powerful moment, when i finally realized that God has forgiven me for what i have done.

“No greater love is their than for a man to lie his life down for his friends”

Look what i have

Ive realized its been a while since ive actually wrote on here and thought it was about time for another. man this last few weeks here on ACE have been crazy, Lake Zuric, Atlanta GA, now Back in Peoira. God has deffantly been working in me and challenging me this year and today was probably one of those days.

Ill be honest recently ive been taking for Granted being here. ive been feeling like, im just in a small town, im just at a camp ground. This afternoon i was kinda of hit over the head and challenged to look around at what i had.

Firstly i am in the USA! ive travelled from England and how many others can say that! while my friends from high school decided to settle for the normal lifestlye i decided to settle for something different, something adventorous. i came here to commit 2 years to Serve as part of ACE Teams. I also at the end of this year i will be a Credetionaled minister. i have the opptunity, to get something people spend thousands of $’s on in 4 years in the space of 1.

Man i have been given so much oppotunity. i have blessed with great friends while being here, no longer will i take what i have for granted, no longer will i see the smallness in what i have.

Copyright © 2009 Changed life Changing lives

Thanksgiving

I know , i know 2 blogs in two days, crazy i know. i think this calls for it though. Today Americans will be spending the day giving thanks for that they have in their lives. Even though the english dont reconize this as a holiday, we still have so much to be thankfull for and i just wanted to share a few things im thankful for.

1) That God would choose to give me chance after chance, that his love for me has never stopped loving me. im so glad he gave me this oppotunity to be in america for the last 2 years. its been a huge privalidge to be able to serve with some amazing people

2) My Family - thanks for sticking by me through everything. i truley love you and coudn't have asked to be apart of a better family, thank you for allowing me to go to the USA and supporting me.

3) Friends - i have some amazing friends both here in england and in Americas, thank you for accepting me, and taking the time to get to know you. you are all amazing people.

The Jouney so Far

Man 2 months ago, i got back on a plane and headed 4,000 miles to america to do it all again. for 10 more months i would live out of my suitcase, for 10 more months i would serve churches in any capacity, for 10 more months i would give everything to be Jesus to people. you would think going back would be easier right? wrong, it was harder, so much more harder than i ever imagined.

coming back to do ACE Teams again, i knew it was what God wanted, i knew it where he needed me but the challenges that lay ahead i was not expecting.

Their are a couple of key moments ive had over the last 2 months that i wanna share:

If theirs one thing ive taken from this year over the last 2 months, is that That i can do nothing apart from him, he really is the true vine and i am the branch. When it started this year i remember during the time for Devotion i would literrely spend 45 minuties telling god the same two words over and over "Help me" i didnt know what i was doing leading a team, i knew i couldnt do it alone and that the only way i could was with Gods help.
A month into it i got confident in my own ability and i began to ask God less and less for help and tried to figure it out alone, it became more about me and less about him, thats when things went tough, i started struggling with things, arguments with people startedl, i read my bible less, prayed less, i then Got major back pain and someone came to me and said that God was trying to get my attention, i was in so much pain when i got back to the camp ground that i went and cried and told God he had my attention, God remeinded me of John 15, i can do nothing apart from him, i am just a branch and unless i am connected to him in useless. every morning now i am finding mysself going back to the place where im saying God help me, i cant do this alone.

During the training period of ACE Team's we have the privalidge of travelling to Atlanta GA to help with a leadership conference called Catalyst, 13,000 leaders gather every year to be inspired and challanged to change their areas, and in the evening session, Francis Chan got up to speak and what happend next of those few moments i will remember forever, he got up and said he wanted to go back to basics and talk about the cross, he started talking about how jesus died on the cross, and read some Bible Verses, during this week took communion and then a worship leader Called Aarron Keyes Got up and sand this Song "Not Guilty Anymore" as the words of this song i got overwhelmed with emotion, as i sat thier i began to hear God say to me because of my love for you, because of my love for this world i died so you didnt, and your not guilty anymore, i forgave you, i forgot. those words have stuck with me, it was like a wake up call i needed, i no longer had to worry about my sin, because God forgave.

i know that the past 2 months have been a challange and are strentching me, i know it is all for God, every challange i face in the end will make me a better and stronger in him, im so excited for what is next, i cant wait to see where God is going to take me over the next 8 months, and how he is going to use me.

The Journey has only just begun.......