Cry of the World

So its been nearly a year since I've wrote a post, honestly I forgot I had a blog and I just found it today haha. A lot has happened in last 8 months, I went to Uganda back in the summer, I transferred schools and now go to UofL. I'm part of an amazing ministry known as The Refuge, where we see high school and college students giving their all to Jesus. This is the group I want to focus on in this post. Everyone in this ministry has come out of some kind of worldly pleasure or sin, from drug addictions and alcohol to homosexuality and anger issues, you name it, someone there has come out of it. But they have something else in common, they're desperately in love with Jesus, He's changed their lives completely!! Its from this group that I've started realizing that the world has its own cry.

We see it everyday, its in our classes, we hear the stories at lunch and all the ball courts; its the stories of the world. Its the "Bro listen to how drunk I was last night" or "We went to this parking lot last night." They're looking for something, its a need for pleasure and satisfaction, but they can't ever get it satisfied. I've been there I know how they feel; I also know the answer they need, its Jesus. That's what the people at The Refuge have found, its that satisfaction that is so great that nothing in the world can ever give it you. But again there is a problem, its us, its the Christians, the Church, how we act.

We always hear "Actions speak louder than words" guess what, its true! The people in the world don't want to be in the church, because most churches look just like the world. Their "Christian" friends are the ones they go party with on Saturday night and then invite them to church on Sunday morning. There are too many people who claim to know Jesus but you couldn't tell it by their actions. This is the cry of the world, they want Jesus!!! They just don't know how to find Him, and until the churches decide to start changing, and really start following Him, its not going to happen. Don't get me wrong, not every church is like this, and every church has its own issues. That's what I love about the Refuge, believe me we're not perfect, but we're not ashamed of who we follow. He's changed our lives and we let it show. That's what people want, they want the real authentic Jesus encounter, to see the Christians living like Him.

So I guess this post is more of a challenge, a challenge for me, for those reading this, and for everyone in the "Church" as we say. We have to watch our actions, let Holy Spirit guide and direct our lives. Pray for people, don't be afraid to be known as that weird guy that prays for people. Believe me, the first time someone gets healed and people get word of it, they're going to want what you have! That's how people get to see Jesus, its through us!!

Again, sorry I have blogged in awhile, and I'm rusty with writing, but I hope this is taken with open hearts and that the Lord really begins to convict all of us to be more like Jesus!!!
"Yes, just as you can identify a tree by its fruit, so you can identify people by their actions." Matthew 7:20

Nazarite Cry

This is my first blog on here, I have a Tumblr, but you can't reach as many people on there as you can here; so bare with me as I grow in my writing abilities and I hope you enjoy!

I wear a bracelet that says Nazarite Cry everyday, this bracelet helps to remind to be set apart and consecrated to the Lord. For those that don't know, a Nazarite is someone who takes a Nazarite Vow and declares themselves as set apart for the Lord. Many people today have no clue what a Nazarite is, or even what the Nazarite Vow is. To give you the background, here are the scriptures of the Nazarite Vow:
Nazirite Laws (Numbers 6:6-21)

6 Then the Lord said to Moses, ² “Give the following instructions to the people of Israel.

“If any of the people, either men or women, take the special vow of a Nazirite, setting themselves apart to the Lord in a special way, ³ they must give up wine and other alcoholic drinks. They must not use vinegar made from wine or from other alcoholic drinks, they must not drink fresh grape juice, and they must not eat grapes or raisins. ⁴ As long as they are bound by their Nazirite vow, they are not allowed to eat or drink anything that comes from a grapevine—not even the grape seeds or skins.

⁵ “They must never cut their hair throughout the time of their vow, for they are holy and set apart to the Lord. Until the time of their vow has been fulfilled, they must let their hair grow long. ⁶ And they must not go near a dead body during the entire period of their vow to the Lord. ⁷ Even if the dead person is their own father, mother, brother, or sister, they must not defile themselves, for the hair on their head is the symbol of their separation to God. ⁸ This requirement applies as long as they are set apart to the Lord.

⁹ “If someone falls dead beside them, the hair they have dedicated will be defiled. They must wait for seven days and then shave their heads. Then they will be cleansed from their defilement. ¹⁰ On the eighth day they must bring two turtledoves or two young pigeons to the priest at the entrance of the Tabernacle.^[a] 11 The priest will offer one of the birds for a sin offering and the other for a burnt offering. In this way, he will purify them^[b] from the guilt they incurred through contact with the dead body. Then they must reaffirm their commitment and let their hair begin to grow again. ¹² The days of their vow that were completed before their defilement no longer count. They must rededicate themselves to the Lord as a Nazirite for the full term of their vow, and each must bring a one-year-old male lamb for a guilt offering.

¹³ “This is the ritual law for Nazirites. At the conclusion of their time of separation as Nazirites, they must each go to the entrance of the Tabernacle ¹⁴ and offer their sacrifices to the Lord: a one-year-old male lamb without defect for a burnt offering, a one-year-old female lamb without defect for a sin offering, a ram without defect for a peace offering, ¹⁵ a basket of bread made without yeast—cakes of choice flour mixed with olive oil and wafers spread with olive oil—along with their prescribed grain offerings and liquid offerings. ¹⁶ The priest will present these offerings before the Lord: first the sin offering and the burnt offering; ¹⁷ then the ram for a peace offering, along with the basket of bread made without yeast. The priest must also present the prescribed grain offering and liquid offering to the Lord.

¹⁸ “Then the Nazirites will shave their heads at the entrance of the Tabernacle. They will take the hair that had been dedicated and place it on the fire beneath the peace-offering sacrifice. ¹⁹ After the Nazirite’s head has been shaved, the priest will take for each of them the boiled shoulder of the ram, and he will take from the basket a cake and a wafer made without yeast. He will put them all into the Nazirite’s hands. ²⁰ Then the priest will lift them up as a special offering before the Lord. These are holy portions for the priest, along with the breast of the special offering and the thigh of the sacred offering that are lifted up before the Lord. After this ceremony the Nazirites may again drink wine.

²¹ “This is the ritual law of the Nazirites, who vow to bring these offerings to the Lord. They may also bring additional offerings if they can afford it. And they must be careful to do whatever they vowed when they set themselves apart as Nazirites.”

There you have it! The requirements of a nazarite. My question for you is this, What if we had a generation who said, I want to be set apart and consecrated for the Lord. This generation would spend time in the Word, and intercede for their nation and friends and family, and literally see the hand of Yahweh come and touch earth. Throughout the entire Bible there are listings of people who were Nazarites, to name a few: Sampson, John the Baptist, and many others. Can you imagine, the impact this would have? So I encourage you to look into this yourself, a good book to read is called Nazarite DNA by Lou Engle, and let your Nazarite Cry come forth!