What is the 1 project?

Eddie Hypolite and friend

What is the 1 project

Dilys Brooks

Japhet de olivera

I asked Japhet de Olivera, the Director of the Center for Youth Evangelism, and one of the principals of the 1 project.

The 1 Project day 1 beginning

day 1 The Gathering

The one project day 1

I’m in Seattle this morning with my family about to attend the 3rd 1 Conference gathering. I have not been to any of these, but have heard good things. It’s interesting that if you ask anyone to explain it to you, they can’t really do it. They say  ”it’s about the experience”. So I’m going to experience it and maybe share some of it with you. Are you ready? I am.

I’m out.

Happy New Year?

New Year’s resolutions are overrated. Here we are at the end of another year and we reflect on the events, we watch the countdown shows to see if we agree with who they say were the most influential, fascinating, impacting, beautiful, etc. Then comes the all important moment when we say, ” I will (not) . . .” The idea of making a resolution is not a new one. The day of atonement, an Old Testament ceremony where the people of Israel would come together and the priest would go into the most Holy Place to atone for the sins of the people and they would “resolve” to be free of sin thus re-establishing right relations between them and God (Lev. 16:23-32). I think that’s where we go wrong with all this resolving to be and resolving to do stuff. There can be no resolutions in us if we are not willing to make the sacrifice. It is only by the renewing of our minds can we really see our resolutions come to pass.

I like the idea of being grateful for each day. Every morning provides us with the opportunity to sacrifice self on the altar, to be better than we were the day before. So rather than wait til the end of the year, I resolve at the beginning of every day to be better than yesterday and set myself toward being a better example, disciple, father, and servant.

Tears of a clown

Do you know that old hit from Smokey Robinson? It just came to my mind as I contemplated a word I learned while reading  a devotional from Charles Spurgeon. The word is lachrymatory. It means having to do with tears. I find this word utterly fascinating! Spurgeon was talking about God’s closeness to us when we cry in prayer. Psalm 56:8 says, “you have put my tears in your bottle” and “Are they not in your book?” Not only does God catch my tears, but he keeps record of each tear that I cry!

Tear #86: when Mommy was late with a feeding;

Tear #1,457: I stubbed my toe;

Tear# 601,853: I feel alone

Consider all the personal space protocols that must be broken in order for anyone to be close enough to you or me in order to catch our tears. Yet here is God, Potentate of potentates, King of kings, Lord of lords, Master of the universe condescending himself to serve me in the retrieval of my lachrymatory secretions(tears).

Smokey sings, “If there’s a smile on my face, it’s only there to fool the public; Cuz when it comes down to fooling you, now honey that’s just a different subject” David was singing a familiar tune because on the one hand he was running for his life from King Saul, and on the other hand, living with his opposers. His world was so turned around that he could find no where to feel safe except in the land of his enemies. I imagine that somewhere reflecting on his interesting turn of events David was frustrated. He was confused. He was angry, and what do we do when we are frustrated, confused and angry?  We cry. What comforted David then is what comforts us today. Even when we have no answers, when we are stuck between the devil and the deep blue sea, when we are lodged between a rock and a hard place, that God is close enough to catch our tears, and best of all, do something about it.

Separation Anxiety

I am a stay at home father. As far as possible, I have stayed home with my 2 children. I was home for Micah’s first four years and for Matea’s first 3. As a result, I am used to having my kids around me for the most part. We spend idle time together, play time together, work time together. They accompany me to the office. They have come with me to workers meetings. They have had to spend time in my office while I did Bible studies with young people. We spend a lot of time together. It’s to the point where it takes me a few minutes to acclimate to situations where my children aren’t present.

As I write this I’m on a plane headed to Atlanta, where I will board another plane to Lagos, Nigeria. I will be there for 2 weeks, and my wife will be with me for most of that time. This morning as I dropped my kids off at school (Micah), and preschool (Matea), I got that familiar pang in my heart and throat as I said goodbye. I had prepared them for this day; that mom and I would be gone for a little while, but we would be back. In worship, my son said, “Daddy, I’m going to miss you”, and I responded, “I’m going to miss you too, son.”

You see God was a stay at home Father. He co-mingled with other persons of the Trinity for eternity, then He stepped out into time to create this world that we inhabit. Perfect man became imperfect. Sin had entered in, and now this world would need a Savior.

Can you imagine that conversation in the Heavenly of heavenly’s? God the Father sending his Only Begotten to this world, to be separated for a little while, because Jesus would return to work on preparing places for us. How the Father had to have a pain in his heart so great, and the Son would say, “Daddy, I’m going to miss you” and His response, “I’m going to miss you too, Son.”

The Bible talks about God being familiar with all of the issues of this life. There is no more familiar emotion or feeling than loss. He understands what we feel when we lose a loved one, or if we have to move away from our family, or when we have to break up a relationship. He knows that feeling all too well. He sent His only Begotten so that we could be made whole again. So that we won’t have to live with that pain always, but that feeling would push us, compel us, drive us to be prepared for Jesus’ return. You see He’s prepared you for this day, for this moment, and He expects that you would face it like He knows you can. He suffered separation anxiety to make sure that we would never have to be separated again.

Who are you going to be?

When I was around 15 my dad asked me if I remembered what I said I wanted to be when I was, like 5 or something. Of course I didn’t remember so he told me. I wanted to be a fireman. I actually don’t remember ever saying that and to this day cannot figure what I would have ever liked about the position except that firemen are always looked at as heroes. No other emergency organization runs into situations when everyone else is trying to get out. Firemen (and now women) are uniquely trained to deal with the heat of fire, the pitfalls of flames, and the dangers of falling structures. For this reason many of us have a lot of respect for the men and women of the fire departments in our local municipalities. We don’t actually see ourselves doing what they do, but we like the fact that someone is trained to do what they do, God forbid, we ever have need of their services.

We all have people that we have wanted to pattern our lives after, whether it was because we want to be like them, or learn to perform in their vocation. These people become vicarious mentors for us as we set goals for ourselves in our schooling, in relationships, in our physical development. We see what they have done, and we try to follow in their shadow. Last week, I asked in Facebook, “What music star did you secretly want to be like when you were a kid?” and the responses were pretty funny considering what many of those who responded are doing today. We see people all the time and want what they have without, many times, considering what it would take to get there. Are you ready to deal with the fire of rejection, the pitfalls of bad decisions, and the dangers of crumbling relationships?

Ephesians chapter 4, verse 15 & 16 says “

But speaking the truth in love, we must grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, ¹⁶ from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by every ligament with which it is equipped, as each part is working properly, promotes the body’s growth in building itself up in love.

We must grow to be like Christ. Make Christ your goal. He will give you (us) what we need to be able to grow into the people he has created us to be. You (we) have been given gifts and talents to be able to work in this world and make a positive impact for Christ; but it is you that has to make the decision to go after him fully. For many of us, that decision doesn’t come until after we’ve been burned, or had to deal with our lives falling down all around us. I thank God for a Savior who would run into the burning building that is my life just when I was ready to give up because I couldn’t see my way out. I thank God for a Savior who would put on the flesh of humanity and feel the flames of human hatred when I felt like giving up. I thank God for a Savior, who, when everything around me was falling apart knew how to keep my safe.

Today make your decision to grow up.

A City to be excited about