Tuesday, February 2, 2010

OUR NEW WEBSITE


We are pleased to announce the launch of our NEW WEBSITE!

For a couple months now we have been working with the guys at ViaMedia and they have brought our website to completion! We are thrilled. Our new site has a lot of new elements you are not going to want to miss.


Check us out at

http://www.hisvoiceforsudan.com



NEW WEBSITE:: NEW BLOG ADDRESS

Our online blog is now located on our NEW WEBSITE. We are excited about this but want you to be informed that if you were currently visiting our old one or are getting RSS feeds delivered to you from it, we will no longer be located at that URL. We are now located for RSS at

http://www.hisvoiceforsudan.com/blog

Tuesday, January 26, 2010

Is watching football a waste of time?

Kevin DeYoung recently posted a blog citing a study which found that out of the 3 hours a person spends watching a televised football game they only see 11 minutes of actual football being played.  The rest of the time is filled with commercials, huddles, replays etc.


Now I have never felt the need to be constantly doing something, as I do not believe that busyness equates to productivity, and I LOVE football but I am not quite sure what to think after reading this.  Don't get me wrong I am not going to stop following the sport or watching it on T.V. but I am definitely going to have to consider how to redeem some of that time.  3 hours for 11 minutes just doesn't seem like a very good investment.  


Any thoughts/suggestions?




Saturday, January 16, 2010

Obstacles for Aid to Haiti

The Wall Street Journal has an interesting article on the difficulties that aid agencies and foreign governments will face as they attempt to deliver aid to Haiti.

All the more reason to be diligent in our prayers for this country and realize that although the news coverage will slowly die down the need will not.

Friday, December 4, 2009

Thoughts on Bearing Burdens


Learning to Bear Burdens

I have been thinking a ton lately about bearing the burdens of others. As a family we have been praying much for the healing of Matt Chandler. We have also been praying for several guys on staff at The Village and their families. Our prayers have simply been the following:

Papa, please make Your thoughts their thoughts. Make Your feelings their feelings. Give them a peace that will surpass all understanding that guards both their heart and mind in You.

As I have prayed this for each of them I have realized how much of a distorted view of carrying a burden I possess. Many times I have looked at it as asking God to take the persons “burden” and pass it to me. The problem is that it would crush me, so I definitely would not be carrying it well.

He has been teaching me the only way to properly carry a burden is to look at Him and ask Him to take it from the person. It does not have to do with the burden being “taken on” in order to relieve the other person because of my ability to carry their burden. After all, this is still practical atheism. God has nothing to do with that thought process.


He asks us to intercede in such a way that the relief people experience is MAINLY from Him, not my prayer. If it is any other way I am focused mainly on my glory and ability in prayer and not looking for Him to be all in all. Let me give a word picture (although analogies breakdown).

A little boy and his friend were playing outside in the woods. Lightening struck a tree and it fell over on the little boys friend. The little boy runs to His daddy, who is the world’s strongest man, and says, “Daddy, My friend is being crushed by a tree in the woods! Please come and help! I KNOW you can lift the tree.” The father quickly runs out and lifts the tree off the friend and brings him to safety. As the boy recovers, they both constantly talk about the father and what he did.

Let’s look at a few things in this analogy.

First of all, in a situation like this the father does not begrudgingly come to help. It is his good pleasure (Mt. 7:7-11). He is fully confident in His own strength. The strength of the Father should give us a source of comfort and confidence. He is not like the father who hates to be interrupted in the middle of a college football game to come and help!

Next, the son knew exactly where to go. He did not take time to try and lift the tree. He knew it was hopeless, yet it did not cause TOTAL hopelessness. His lack of ability caused him to seek out someone greater than himself. This is the call of truly “carrying a burden”. We are to seek out Him who is truly greater than us and ask Him to lift the burden. After all, HE IS INFINTELY STRONG!

Finally, notice how the relief of the injured child and the relief of the son was found in the work of the Father. The strength of the father produced an intense confidence that culminated in His praise. It would have been ludicrous for the son to turn toward his friend and start talking about how great he was because he ran to his father and THAT ACTION is what saved the boy. It is not that the action was not important it just was not the saving source of the boy. The father was.

The size and weight of the tree was not mainly the focus either. The problem was not the focus. Looking at the power of the tree would not have saved the boy. The focus was the father. His strength. His compassion. His love. His power.

As we think about “carrying burdens” for others I pray we will mainly look to Him who is infinitely stronger, more loving, more compassionate, and more powerful than we will ever be. As we pray for others, I pray our focus would be on our Father in Heaven who feels infinitely stronger about every situation than we will ever feel. Pray for all those involved in this situation with Matt. Yet, pray in such a way that the way you carry the burden is by Ps. 37:5.

“Commit your ways to the Lord; trust in Him, and He will act.”

Love Truth

Vernon

Friday, November 20, 2009

His Voice and The Advent Conspiracy

His Voice For Sudan Advent Conspiracy Video from Amber Burger on Vimeo.

I made this little video up last night to go along with The Advent Conspiracy. If you, your small group, your family or your Church are looking for a avenue to give to children around the world, we would love for you to consider our sweet friends in Sudan.

For more info on what the needs are visit our website's Partner Page or CLICK HERE for a document that has goals you could set for your group.

THANKS!

(scroll down to previous post if you are unaware of The Advent Conspiracy)

Tuesday, November 17, 2009

The Advent Conspiracy

If you have not already heard of The Advent Conspiracy, please take time to watch this video and consider how you can be involved::


Last year we had a couple families give to His Voice for Sudan instead of exchanging gifts! I have heard all kinds of great stories of people giving money to help build water wells, helping send missionaries to remote lands, providing for single parent families in their church and buying animals for families around the world so they can eat. All these things by simply buying less extravagant gifts and giving more relational gifts.

One example may be: Instead of giving a nephew a $40 gift card, buy two tickets to the cheap seats of his favorite sports team and go with him. Spend $15 and give the other budgeted $25 to your favorite non-profit or even better, tell him about a child in need and let him brain storm how the $25 could help them.

Happy Conspiring!

Monday, November 16, 2009

Thoughts from Tim Keller

I am reading Tim Keller's new book called Counterfeit Gods. It is amazing!

Here is a great quote that he gave about reading the Bible:

We usually read the Bible as a series of disconnected stories, each with a "moral" for how we should live our lives. It is not. Rather, it comprises a single story, telling us how the human race got into its present condition, and how God through Jesus Christ has come and will come to put things right. In other words, the Bible doesn't give us a god at the top of a moral ladder saying, "If you try hard to summon up your strength and live right, you can make it up!" Instead, the Bible repeatedly shows us weak people who don't deserve God's grace, don't seek it, and don't appreciate it even after they have received it.

Have you ever read the Word as MAINLY trying to get something out of it for yourself and put the MAIN STORY as secondary? I definitely have. If you have not done this, good deal. Keller's words have been a timely reminder and encouragement.

What do you think about his thoughts?

Love Truth
Vernon