Jesus is all its about!

So today I read a quite intteresting story in my mornings devotional. The author talked about a women in a store who plowed through everyone to get the items she wanted. While wearing the appropriate T-shirt that said "Its all about me!!" No the author then goes on to talk about Romans 9:1-5 where Paul talks about how he would give up his salvation if others could be saved. which really shows the humility that we all need and should all be desiring in our lives. Christ came down from heaven to be the son of a carpenter to die on a cross for the lives of us sinful humans. This right here is the perfect example of love and humiltiy the example we all should be trying to reflect. I know I personally have trouble with be humble and more so loving those who have wronged me. But all I have to do is remember this God loved me in my sin can't I forgive someone who sin's towards me are so insignificant towards the sins against the almighty. Some times we do worry to much about ourselves and have this "Its all about me" mentality. We are called to share the message of God's love with those in the world, even those who have wronged us. And honestly how can we be angry at those who have wronged us when we have such love and promises that have been given to us. Lets throw away the "Its all about me" T-shirt and pick up "Its all about him" Tee.

In summary

Well guys I know that it has been a very long time since I have posted but as promised Nick is back. So a little run down of what I have been doing these past three weeks. The first week of my travels I was in New York at Word of Life Island. And let me tell you this was an amazing week of fellowship and praising the Lord. I made some awesome friend's in my counselor's and fellow TIers. The week after that I was in Philadelphia on a mission's trip where we ran a Vacation Bible School for two of the inner city churches. And again it was a great week of fellowship and praise an even better because on top of all that we got the chance to spread God's word but more detail's later. And the week after that I spent down in Florida with my parents, grand-parents, and family friends on a cruise. An I know in comparison between that week and the two before it its like wow big difference in focuses. But trust me it was just as spiritually fulfilling as the two weeks before that. So as promised more details about my travels, well on the Island God really blessed me because he started to show me the friends I had in his family. I mean this is personally something that has been really scaring me, I mean High school is over teen club is over an a whole bunch of other things. Everything I have know for the past twelve years is over an it feels like I will never really see my friends anymore. An I was praying in the middle of the night an I prayed God I feel so alone but your always with me and no matter who walks with me on Earth as long as I have you. And you know the amazing thing? The next day at church it seemed like everyone just came up and talked to me. An I couldn't help but be amazed at one God's answers to prayer but also his love that he cared enough to show me here is where your friends are. There right here with me, so I rambled but it was so amazing I had to share. So the week at the Island was a week of fellowship an it was AWESOME. Now it was also another chance for god to humble me. You see I am afraid some times I get a big head on my shoulders and think I'm some kinda of sage an extremely wise teen. Well at TI I was stunned to find I didn't even place in my area, and when I got the review sheets a couple of weeks later I found I did fairly well. its just that everyone else did really good at well. You see the thing I love about God is that he is never afraid to humble us for our benefit. An I find myself praying for God to humble me more and more so I can grow in humility an also the wisdom that God shows to me each time he humbles me. So any who on to Philadelphia this was an amazing experience as well because this week was a combo of living for God and seeing his works be done. It was amazing to see God work in the hearts of those children,teens, and adults.Now I should explain for one thing we were kept on our toes during this trip because nothing seemed to go as we thought it was suppose to. For the first church we had mainly little children around five and under. Also on one day ALL but three of the children left for a Field trip with the day care that was a part of the church. An I can say that God has a sense of humor when he answer's prayers because well the three that were left behind with us. Two of them were the children that I was praying for patience for because they were they troublemakers. So God thought it best to leave us alone with them an I have to say it worked I really don't remember them being to bad after that day when they got the attention and one on one time they needed. Now at the second church we had another curve ball thrown at us, the first day we went there we had only four kids. The group was mainly made up of adults and teens. So again another curve ball that I wasn't expecting but God's will was done . Now this situation was actually enjoyable to me because before we came down to do the trip I really wanted to run the teens class. But Joan one of our group letters really wanted me to stick with the big kids. Well after a couple of the curve balls I ended up being able to go help Joan with the teen class. And to my amazement on the last day of VBS Joan had nothing really prepared for the last lesson so i sat up on the churches balcony an I started flipping through my bible looking for some passages to help out Joan well when I showed her she just gave the lesson over to me. I got to deliver the message of salvation it was the coolest thing every. An also when we came down we brought three boxes of donated bibles to give to the churches. Well I saw those bibles fly off the 'shelves' it was amazing people just keep asking 'Can I have one?' and the second they found out they could they were gone it was so cool. And finally we come to the last part of my travels my week cruising. Now like I said before this was a week just as spiritually fulfilling as the first two weeks. Why you might ask well because i had given it to God. i might not have had fellowship with other believers or spread God's word but I was able to spend the majority of that week in intense prayer with my God. I would find a beautiful veiw of God's ocean an I would sit and just talk to him about my trouble's or blessing and sing praises to him and it was amazing. And you know what is awesome about our God? He is always there sitting and talking back and he even shows his blessing. No lie as I was sitting singing to God I saw a bunch of dolphins start jumping out of the water near our ship. it only made me praise louder. Well there is the summary of my three week travels, but trust me my journey with God isn't over not by a long shot. I might not travel to third world countries but I am a missionary and God has showed me my mission feild, an I am on my way!!!!

Missionary in training

So I am finally able to sit on the old "Nick-Top" (yes this is what I call my laptop) and post. So to catch you guys up I have been in New York for a week of praise,worship,and spiritual growth. As well as having a lot of good old fun and fellowship, I am really looking forward to the growth of these friendships. Now I would go into detail about all the lessons and spiritual leaps and bounds that I have gone through but I'm afraid it would take to long to do in one post so I will promise to sit down when I get the chance to go into better detail about my travels. As some of you may know I'm now in Philadelphia to help run a VBS for two churches here. An I am really excited because I get to hang with some really great brothers and sisters in Christ. But also because I get to see God's word spread and his message reach the heart's of many I AM EXCITED. Please pray for us and for the hearts' of those we witness to.

In my travels

It is coming to the point where in a few days I will be leaving for close to a month of traveling. Now at this point I will be unable to post for a majority of it, but fear not I will be keeping careful records of my adventures, as well as the many wonderful experiences and people I will meet on my travels. I hope that all I experience will be a learning experience that will help prepare me for my future ministries. But back to the present, in today's devotional I read of extending our hands to those in need. We have been so blessed in our lives and we have a calling to share what God has blessed us with to those who need it. Now the topic of today's devotional was truly God inspired because just yesterday during a bible study the pastor talked about going to the people who are hurting. Rather then getting them to come to us, now this pastor in my opinion is quite blunt but he makes a good point. How lazy we have become in this day and age, we always expect those who are in need should come to us. But this isn't the case we are called to go to them, and to work with those who are hurting. But there is the flip side to this issue those who will go, but they'll go half way around the world and no one is working with those who are hurting right in front of us. We as believers in Christ are called to love and to share the message of God's love. But lets not forget there are uncounted numbers of people around us who need that love, let us not turn a deaf ear towards them. Extend a hand of love to someone today.