God has really been working in my life ever since I started attending the Church at Brook Hills. So many people have told me how much they have enjoyed getting to see my mature over the past year and I can't help but think, wow, how bad was I? Because according to the world's standards I thought I was doing pretty good. The more I've grown closer to God this year, though, the more I realize how low of a priority He has been in my life all these years. I also realize that Satan encourages us to compare ourselves to the world's standards rather than the standards set for us by Scripture.
I made a commitment on November 15, 2009, along with many members of my faith family to take on this Radical Experiment.I pray that through this "experiment" that I will know God deeper than I ever have, that my heart will become more like His, that I will truly care for orphans and widows, that I will be obedient to His command and spread the gospel to the nations, that I will make Him a part of every area of my life, and that by sharing my journey with you that your life will be radically changed, as well.
So, for the first part of the Radical Experiment, I am praying for the nations using the tool, Operation World. I am excited about this mainly for two reasons. First, because selfishly I want to become more educated about geography and general information about other countries (I didn't pay much attention in school). Second, I believe we underestimate the power of prayer and I look forward to seeing how God works in the countries that we spend focused time in pray for. I pray that as God does His work in these areas that others may believe in His power and come to faith in Christ.
The second part of going radical, reading through the entire Bible, is especially important to me. Growing up as a PK I think I felt like if I had a question about the Bible I could always just go to my dad, but other than that I was saved, so that was all that mattered. Now I believe that reading the Bible is not just about knowing factual information, it's about getting to know God and I am excited to start getting to know Him more! I also think it is so amazing that so many people are going to be reading the same pages each day that I am reading so I have accountability. I am also thankful that we will have a reading "plan" because I like structure!
The third part, I am sacrificing my money for a specific purpose. On a church level, I love, and am excited about, the testimony that this will be to other churches and to those in our community. On a personal level, I've been racking my brain to come up with ways to do this on such limited resources and with a good bit of debt. It's humbling to go through the process of determining what can be cut from your budget to care for urgent needs across the world. More to come on that!
Fourth, I am giving 2% of my time in another context spreading the gospel. This is another exciting challenge for me this coming year because I have NEVER been on a mission trip. You probably couldn't have paid me to use my vacation time for missions, but slowly but surely, over the past several months I have been attending Brook Hills I have come to the realization that Jesus COMMANDED us to go and make disciples of all nations. I, like many, many other Christians, have always thought that missions were for a select group of people that God "calls." I've fought the truth long enough and am SOOO excited that I am going to go on my first mission trip in Summer 2010!!!
Lastly, I am commiting my life to a mulitplying community. I have been involved in quite a few ministires over the past year or so, but I have not been 100% committed to a weekly small group. I've found a great group of people, but logisticially the time and location of the small group meeting is not working out for me so I pray that in January God will lead me to the group He wants me to be a part of, while continuing to serve in the other great ministries I am already a part of.
So now that you know what I commited to for 2010 and beyond (as Buzz Lightyear would say), please please, please pray for me, encourage me, and keep me accountable as I take on this challenge set before me! If you are going through the Radical Experiment, too, I would love to hear about your journey, as well!
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