Wednesday, December 28, 2011
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
"Sharing and Caring" he calls himself. I've shared about him on a number of occasions. He is a friend from the park we serve at. Haven't seen him in a couple months. He came today and told me he has prostate cancer. If you will, please pray for him. Another one of our friends also got diagnosed with lung cancer recently...
Saturday, December 3, 2011
Saw George again today (the man in the picture below with the green hat). He said we might not see him for a month. Even though he has very little and faces a difficult internal struggle, he still believes in God's love for him and protection over his life. That is George's real and lasting victory in the midst of his affliction - his choice to pursue and believe that which seems so hard to believe, particularly in his time of greatest hurt and need.
Saturday, November 19, 2011
main st. - flushing... spent nearly the entire time today with our new friend. He spent all night riding the subway and had gotten off to "see where his feet would take him." He loves the radio and sang us many commercial jingles. We were able to read a passage from the Bible with him to encourage him. He believes in God. George has schizophrenia...
Sunday, November 13, 2011
Friday, November 4, 2011
International student from China came to our gathering the other night. He really wants to know God. We talked briefly about Romans ch. 5-8 - the human condition and our freedom in God. He came to a prayer watch this week and emailed to say he'll be back for the gathering on Sunday. The pursuit of God. AWESOME.
Thursday, October 13, 2011
Wednesday, October 12, 2011
Monday, October 3, 2011
Friday, August 19, 2011
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
Friday, August 5, 2011
Thursday, July 28, 2011
Brazil 2011 - We set up for worship and drama at the town crossroads (apparently also a small garbage dump). On a hill-town favela overlooking one of the biggest churches in Brazil somebody said, “This town is considered scum by the city people. No one ever comes here and does anything like this.” It was here that we encountered many young children. Approaching two of them my friend and I asked if we could pray for them. The translator told us what the young girl said: “I want to sing Gospel music.” And the young man (he couldn’t have been more than 10 or 12) said, “I want to be a pastor.” As we prayed a simple prayer of God’s destiny for them the boy began to cry. “Is this for real?” I thought. I had never seen a person so young be so sincere and ready to live for God. That this boy was even seriously considering these things blew me away. Here he is, in the town others call “scum” – he probably has almost nothing and yet he understands that God is what matters most, that God is LIFE, and there’s no greater honor than to share that Life with others.
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
Pools of water and urine had collected on the ground where we were to set up the music gear. A few girls on the team were kind enough to buy a bottle of liquid soap and pour it all over the ground and broom it back and forth. The stench actually turned into a sweet aroma - like the Presence of God that night, an attractive fragrance, drawing people to Himself. He has His ways. We thanked God for a prime location to worship Him and see His salvation welcomed into broken and repentant hearts. Some rats could be seen on the perimeter as we were packing up. We knew this is where we were supposed to be… the bus stop.
BRAZIL 2011
BRAZIL 2011
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
It was interesting being Jesus in the drama this year instead of Satan. The story of this picture: I was talking to someone else and my friend came over to me and said, “This guy needs a hug from Jesus.” I’m just me, but to represent Christ in this way to someone was a very powerful experience. Having Christ physically present, in a sense, this man could reach out and touch Him – embrace Him. We represent Christ all the time, whether well or poorly, but to portray Christ during the drama and ministry time was a new and exciting experience for me. Very thankful.
Sunday, July 17, 2011
“These fields are ripe. It’s harvest time.” - John 4:35 -
My friend says, “The quickest way to deliverance is repentance.”
Many of our interactions with people in Brazil this year were with men addicted to alcohol, drugs, and spending money on prostitutes at the brothel - things they NEED to be delivered from, to be freed from. Nearly every day God blessed us to be in conversations with men and women who repented and cried out for the life of God for the first time. Some cried out to God themselves, while others were too undone and they asked us to lead them in prayer. A wonderful experience - for them and for us!
After doing a drama outside of the brothel I saw a man just standing in the street. He was drunk. I asked him if I could pray with him and made gestures about giving his heart to God. The man grabbed my hand and held very tightly. He seemed fairly incoherent and we weren’t communicating well so I began to look into his eyes and sing over him - “life, sanctuse (I hoped it was one of the Portuguese words for ‘holy’).” At that point one of our great translators came over and began speaking to him. The man responded, “My wife loves me, but I spend all my money on alcohol and the women at the brothel.” Rock bottom. Although drunk, the man was pouring out honestly from his heart. It was like his real self was crying out to be released from the shameful corpse he had become. We asked him if he wanted to repent and receive the Lord, be forgiven, and free to live a real life. Without reservation he agreed and we prayed together! The man hugged me over and over.
In the type of service we do, it can be easy to question the validity of someone’s response to God’s love, especially if they are under the influence, but I am believing for an authentic work of our God in this man’s life - that his repentance was of the heart and that God’s faithfulness has delivered him.
Oh, God’s eternal and everlasting purpose - “...the glory of God and the glory of the children of God.” Thank You, Lord.
“Through your faithful prayers and the generous response of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, everything He wants to do in and through me is taking shape.” - Philippians 1:19 -
much love,
- Riley -
Megan, Fernanda, and I sharing with a man at the brothel. We were in costume most of the night. The graffiti on the door seems to say, LORD!
My friend says, “The quickest way to deliverance is repentance.”
Many of our interactions with people in Brazil this year were with men addicted to alcohol, drugs, and spending money on prostitutes at the brothel - things they NEED to be delivered from, to be freed from. Nearly every day God blessed us to be in conversations with men and women who repented and cried out for the life of God for the first time. Some cried out to God themselves, while others were too undone and they asked us to lead them in prayer. A wonderful experience - for them and for us!
After doing a drama outside of the brothel I saw a man just standing in the street. He was drunk. I asked him if I could pray with him and made gestures about giving his heart to God. The man grabbed my hand and held very tightly. He seemed fairly incoherent and we weren’t communicating well so I began to look into his eyes and sing over him - “life, sanctuse (I hoped it was one of the Portuguese words for ‘holy’).” At that point one of our great translators came over and began speaking to him. The man responded, “My wife loves me, but I spend all my money on alcohol and the women at the brothel.” Rock bottom. Although drunk, the man was pouring out honestly from his heart. It was like his real self was crying out to be released from the shameful corpse he had become. We asked him if he wanted to repent and receive the Lord, be forgiven, and free to live a real life. Without reservation he agreed and we prayed together! The man hugged me over and over.
In the type of service we do, it can be easy to question the validity of someone’s response to God’s love, especially if they are under the influence, but I am believing for an authentic work of our God in this man’s life - that his repentance was of the heart and that God’s faithfulness has delivered him.
Oh, God’s eternal and everlasting purpose - “...the glory of God and the glory of the children of God.” Thank You, Lord.
“Through your faithful prayers and the generous response of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, everything He wants to do in and through me is taking shape.” - Philippians 1:19 -
much love,
- Riley -
Megan, Fernanda, and I sharing with a man at the brothel. We were in costume most of the night. The graffiti on the door seems to say, LORD!
Monday, June 20, 2011
BRAZIL: June 28-July11... am privileged to go on this outreach again this year. All prayer is needed as we fly down to Belo Horizonte to engage with people on the streets, in the rehabs, and at the brothel where we worship and do dramas. It is God's heart for all people to know Him and what He's really like - AWESOME! Thank you for sending me. Really, I have never experienced anything like it. Please pray for us. Look forward to sharing when we return.
if you remember from last year, men like Marcio were set free from a lifestyle of lust and visiting prostitutes...
this year we are again doing the drama, Puppet-Master, but my role is different this year. Instead of Satan, I will play the role of Jesus.
if you remember from last year, men like Marcio were set free from a lifestyle of lust and visiting prostitutes...
this year we are again doing the drama, Puppet-Master, but my role is different this year. Instead of Satan, I will play the role of Jesus.
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
Jamaica, Queens Prayer Station - Tommy, a man who had been incarcerated numerous times and was on his way to see his parole officer in regards to another potential incarceration said he wanted to turn his life around. Today he committed his life to Christ. All our friend did was ask if he could pray for him, but Tommy knew he needed more than a prayer. He needed to make a choice to follow the One who is LIFE.
Saturday, June 11, 2011
Saturday, June 4, 2011
Sunday, May 15, 2011
Saturday, May 7, 2011
Sunday, April 17, 2011
Saturday, April 16, 2011
Thursday, April 14, 2011
While packin up today I asked a guy if he could sit in another place so we could take our chair back with us. I held his soup and helped him up. He was really out of it. A few stumbling steps and he feel to the ground - he rolled over and blood was running down the side of his face - a cut just above his eye - my friend and I helped him to a nearby bench where another friend bandaged his eye. Then she began to sing "Lord, I give you my heart" over him. Even though he was so out of it he was able to say thank you. You could tell it meant something to him. The ambulance arrived shortly after and he was taken to the hospital. His name is Tim...
Monday, March 21, 2011
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
I wasn't prepared for what I would see that night during the Don't Walk By outreach. Our team was going to Penn Station to search for homeless men and women to offer a ride back to an anchor church where they could receive all kinds of care. The native New Yorkers said it would be "busy," but I didn't think too much about it. Then we arrived on the scene. From the moment we went underground we began to encounter those in need. People sitting and sleeping on the floor. People that didn't have a place to go that night so they were forced to the only place where it was warm and somewhat safe. At one point during the night, an invitation to 2 people quickly turned into a group of 8 as others in need around us overheard "hot meal, clothes and the opportunity to get into a shelter." We all went street side where the vans were waiting to take our new friends to a place of love and healing. God is good.
Friday, February 4, 2011
Sunday, January 16, 2011
Sunday, January 9, 2011
Saturday, January 1, 2011
New Year's Eve Outreach!
This week was a great time - we had our annual New Year's Eve Outreach. Due to the snow storm I had to leave Ohio to return from break later than I originally planned. I arrived an hour before we started the busy, but GLORIOUS, week. We had people come and serve with us from Ohio, Mass., Tennessee, Florida, and Canada!
Met Jim - a trumpet player who has worked on dozens of movie musical scores (including Fargo and Home Alone) - this excited me because I've never really met anybody who has been a part of the movie business. And I love movie scores! Also met Peter - a man who claimed to be agnostic, but he was longing for friendship. We talked about seeking God and that if Peter would seek God then certainly he would find whether or not God is really there.
Many lives encouraged and helped by our loving God! Just a brief rundown - hope to write more before too long
Met Jim - a trumpet player who has worked on dozens of movie musical scores (including Fargo and Home Alone) - this excited me because I've never really met anybody who has been a part of the movie business. And I love movie scores! Also met Peter - a man who claimed to be agnostic, but he was longing for friendship. We talked about seeking God and that if Peter would seek God then certainly he would find whether or not God is really there.
Many lives encouraged and helped by our loving God! Just a brief rundown - hope to write more before too long
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