Friday, June 27, 2008

A Thought on Words

"I will never say anything that could not stand as the last thing I ever say."
Benjamin Zander quoting a survivor of the German war camps in regards to words.
TEDTalks (video) 6/25/2008 "Classical music with a Smile"

Monday, June 23, 2008

Fan the Flame - 2 Timothy 1:6-8

Vicente Diaz shared an excellent teaching yesterday. The following are his main ideas

Fire must be taken care of to continue burning.

There are three basic componants neede for a fire to exist: heat, oxygen and fuel.


He compared the heat to believing God's words; oxygen to the Holy Spirit; and fuel to peoples' specific needs and stated that the presence of all three is required if there was to be a fire or a move of God in our lives.

In the Christian walk he mentioned 5 things we must believe:
  1. we are sons of God
  2. we are new creations
  3. the Holy Spirit lives IN us
  4. we have gifts
  5. gifts from God are to edify and bless the church and others
He finalized with 3 things that will put out the fire and prevent the gifts of God in our lives: fear, shame and lack of love and compasion towards others

A gift that is not stirred up is a gift that will be lost.

There are fine young men rising up at La Fuente! Thanks Vicente!

Saturday, June 21, 2008

Jinotega, A Church and Genesis 28:17-19


Entering your presence
is to encounter a large and open space;
It is to extend horizans
beyond those seen before;
It is to remove limits
and fly with the LORD of the Heavens,
Creator and Sustainer of the Universe.
Entering Your presence
is to experience eternity.


The photo is of a the inside of Iglesia de los Angeles [Church of the Angels] in Jinotega.

On one of the posts in the back were these words:












This is the House of God
The door to Heaven
Genesis 28:17

Wednesday, June 4, 2008

The Potter and the Clay

There are different types of clay and each one has it's special use. In North Nicaragua we have a lot of houses that are actually made of bricks, not just brick shells. The bricks are made of clay that is fired and then cemented together with morter to make walls and houses.

Here in Matagalpa we also have a black ceramic that is used to make different pieces of decorative pottery. It is formed, fired and then polished. Because of the unique elements in the clay it doesn't need to be painted, just polished.

There are many different types of clay, all created by God, with specific caracteristics and qualities that determine their use and purpose. The potter takes each clay and begins to work it removing rocks, straw, sticks, airbubbles, dry particles and sand. His purpose? ...the perfect work of the artist needs the removal of imperfections so the clay and the pot will not be ruined.

The same occurs in the Kingdom of God... we are all clay with different abilities, personalities, talents, etc. and in our clay we find rocks [character flaws], sticks and straw [good works to achieve God's favor and righteousness], dry clay and sand [personal failures] and air bubbles [lack of preparation and abilities]. The key is to stay on the potter's wheel and allow him to mold us and mold us according to His design. If the pot has some of the flaws in it or is damaged in to process, the potter may start over, and that isn't easy. On the contrary, many times starting over is shattering and requires brokennness, but the end result is a vessel of honor that will be a chosen work of the LORD.

Don't appologize for the type of clay you are. These characteristics are God given abilities and characteristics, but allow the potter to take out the rocks, sticks, sand and air bubbles. Don't confuse them. Allow the potter to make the decisions and in the moment of brokenness and starting over, don't get off the potter's wheel. Let Him mold you in the way he desires. He knows the exact purpose of your clay and he will mold you into the destiny he has planned, if we will let him.

I went to the potter's house, and sure enough, the potter was there, working away at his wheel. Whenever the pot the potter was working on turned out badly, as sometimes happens when you are working with clay, the potter would simply start over and use the same clay to make another pot. - Jeremiah 18 The Message