¡Descubriendo El Salvador! ~ Discovering El Salvador!

¿Solo? Un pais extranjero en medio de una guerra civil.

Alone? A foreign country in the midst of a civil war.

¿Solo? Nadie a quien llamar y sin saber adónde ir.

Alone? No one to call and not knowing where to go.

¿Solo? ¿Estaba realmente solo sentado en el suelo fuera del aeropuerto?

Alone? Was I really alone sitting on the ground outside the airport? 

No, pero DIOS sabía que necesitaba estar en el pequeño país de El Salvador en junio de 1990.

No, but GOD knew that I needed to be in the tiny country of El Salvador in June of 1990.

Ese verano estaba en un vuelo desde San Luis, Missouri, al país centroamericano de El Salvador para unirme a otras tres personas en un viaje misionero de dos semanas. Aunque el gobierno de los Estados Unidos estaba advirtiendo a los ciudadanos estadounidenses sobre los peligros de viajar a El Salvador, yo estaba en camino.

That summer I was on a flight from Saint Louis, Missouri to the Central American country of El Salvador to join three other people for a two-week mission trip. Even though the United States government was warning American citizens about the dangers of traveling to El Salvador, I was on my way.

Debido a la tensa situación, mis amigos misioneros se reunieron conmigo cuando me bajé del avión para ayudarme a pasar por inmigración y aduanas. Sin embargo, no estaban allí mientras me dirigía desde el avión a inmigración. Salí de inmigración a recoger mi equipaje y noté a unos soldados salvadoreños con granadas y ametralladoras que no podrían conducir legalmente un automóvil en los Estados Unidos ya que ni siquiera tenían 16 años. Traté de recobrar la compostura mientras recogía mi equipaje y pasé la aduana sin ningún problema.

Due to the tense situation, my missionary friends were to meet me as I got off the plane to help walk me through immigration and customs. However, they were not there as I made my way from the plane to immigration. I proceeded from immigration to pick up my luggage and noticed some Salvadoran soldiers with grenades and machine guns who would not be able to legally drive a car in the United States as they were not even 16 years old. I tried to compose myself as I picked up my luggage and I made it through customs without a problem.

 

¡Pero ahora había un gran problema! Estaba sentado fuera del aeropuerto sin nadie a quien llamar y sin saber a dónde debía ir. No estaba realmente solo y cuando me di cuenta de que el SEÑOR estaba conmigo, le clamé a ÉL en oración: "PADRE Celestial, sé que no merezco que TÚ escuches mi oración, ya que no he estado viviendo la forma en que TÚ deseas que vivan TUS hijos. Pero sé que TÚ me estás escuchando mientras TÚ me trajiste a El Salvador con un propósito. Por favor, enséñeme y úseme como TÚ deseas."

But now there was a big problem! I was sitting outside the airport with no one to call and not knowing where I should go. I wasn't really alone and when I realized the LORD was with me, I cried out to HIM in prayer,"Heavenly FATHER, I know that I don't deserve for YOU to even listen to my prayer as I have not been living the way YOU desire Your children to live. But I know that YOU are listening to me as YOU brought me to El Salvador for a purpose. Please teach me and use me however YOU so desire."

Aproximadamente 45 minutos después, mis amigos misioneros aparecieron y estábamos en camino. Mientras viajábamos a través de las colinas devastadas por la guerra de El Salvador, una pesadez espiritual pero física comenzó a caer de mí. Al mismo tiempo, el gozo y la paz empezaron a cambiar quién era yo.

About 45 minutes later, my missionary friends showed up and we were on our way. As we traveled through the war ravaged hills of El Salvador, a spiritual yet physical heaviness began to fall off me. At the same time, joy and peace began changing who I was.

¿Quién era yo antes del viaje a El Salvador? Yo era un cristiano de 23 años que dejé de leer la Biblia, dejé de orar, dejé de ir a la iglesia y dejé de tener compañerismo con otros creyentes. Estaba en medio de casi cinco años de rebelión. Había pasado de tener una relación comprometida con JESÚS a pasar mis días relajándome escuchando música y bailando toda la noche en clubes nocturnos. Ese estilo de vida incluía casi cualquier droga que se pueda imaginar sin tener que usar una aguja.

Who was I before the trip to El Salvador? I was a 23-year-old Christian who had stopped reading the Bible, stopped praying, stopped going to church and stopped fellowshipping with other believers. I was in the midst of almost five years of rebellion. I had gone from having a committed relationship to JESUS to spending my days chilling out listening to music and dancing the nights away at nightclubs. That lifestyle included almost any drug you can think of without having to use a needle.

Sin embargo, cuando mi mamá me contó acerca de una dama de nuestra iglesia que iba a un viaje misionero a corto plazo todos los años, el ESPÍRITU SANTO tocó lo que había sido un corazón moribundo. Las influencias mundanas que había permitido que dominaran mi proceso de pensamiento ahora estaban en una batalla con el SEÑOR, quien a pesar de mi vida pecaminosa, todavía me amaba y se preocupaba por mí.

However, when my Mom told me about a lady in our church who went on a short-term mission trip every year, the HOLY SPIRIT touched what had been a dying heart. The worldly influences which I had allowed to dominate my thought process were now in a battle with the LORD who despite my sinful living, still loved and cared for me.

Entonces, envié cartas a familiares y amigos solo un mes antes de que necesitaba los fondos para el viaje y estaba convencido de que DIOS quería que fuera a El Salvador cuando llegara suficiente dinero un par de días antes de la fecha límite. Ahora, un mes después, cuando el ESPÍRITU SANTO me estaba cambiando a través de mi descubrimiento de El Salvador, no me di cuenta de que el mayor desafío hasta ahora estaba a la vuelta de la esquina.

So, I sent out letters to family and friends only a month before I needed the funds for the trip and I was convinced that GOD wanted me to go to El Salvador when enough money came in a couple of days before the deadline. Now, a month later as the HOLY SPIRIT was changing me through my discovery of El Salvador, I didn't realize that the biggest challenge yet was just around the corner. 

¿Sería un tanque rodando por las calles de la capital, San Salvador?

Would it be a tank rolling down the streets of the capital San Salvador?

¿Sería una torre eléctrica que había sido bombardeada y estaba al otro lado de la carretera?

Would it be an electrical tower that had been bombed and lay across the road?

¿Sería una barricada y un posible secuestro o pelotón de fusilamiento?

Would it be a roadblock and a possible kidnapping or firing squad?

No, el desafío para mí sería pasar dos semanas construyendo un patio de recreo en un orfanato en Santo Tomás, El Salvador.

No, the challenge would be for me to spend two weeks building a playground at an orphanage in Santo Tomás, El Salvador.

¿Por qué se consideraría eso un desafío?

Why would that be considered a challenge?

En ese momento de mi vida, me sentía extremadamente incómodo con los niños. No sabía cómo ni tenía ganas de jugar con ellos, relacionarme con ellos o hablar con ellos. Sinceramente, mi tendencia era evitarlos si era posible.

At that time of my life, I felt extremely uncomfortable around children. I didn't know how nor did I have the desire to play with them, or relate to them or talk to them. Truthfully, my tendency was to avoid them if at all possible.

Me asombró que al llegar al orfanato tuviera ganas de amar a esos niños olvidados. Traté de amarlos haciendo varias cosas con ellos, como jugar fútbol, ayudarlos con la tarea, leer la Biblia con ellos o cantar canciones de alabanza y adoración.

I was amazed that upon arriving at the orphanage I had a desire to love those forgotten children. I tried to love them by doing several things with them such as playing soccer, helping them with homework, reading the Bible with them or singing praise and worship songs.

Me sentí decepcionada y extremadamente frustrada cuando mi intento de amarlos se sintió seco y completamente desprovisto de amor. Encontré un lugar solitario y le grité a DIOS: "Oh PADRE, anhelo amar a estos niños, pero no sé cómo. Por favor ayúdame a amarlos y tratarlos como lo haría JESÚS porque ÉL es amor."

I became disappointed and extremely frustrated as my attempt to love them felt dry and completely void of love. I found a solitary place and cried out to GOD, “Oh FATHER, I long to love these kids but I don’t know how. Please help me to love them and treat them as JESUS would because HE is love."

Unos momentos después estaba nuevamente jugando al fútbol, ayudando con la tarea, leyendo la Biblia y cantando canciones de alabanza y adoración con los niños, pero estaba la inconfundible presencia del amor. JESÚS los estaba amando a través de mí y ese momento es algo que siempre recordaré.

A few moments later I was once again playing soccer, helping with homework, reading the Bible and singing praise and worship songs with the children but there was the unmistakable presence of love. JESUS was loving them through me and that moment is something that I will always remember.

"Tratar de hacer la obra del SEÑOR con tus propias fuerzas es el trabajo más confuso, agotador y tedioso de todos. Pero cuando estás lleno del ESPÍRITU SANTO, entonces el ministerio de JESÚS simplemente fluye de ti." ― Corrie ten Boom

"Trying to do the LORD's work in your own strength is the most confusing, exhausting, & tedious of all work. But when you are filled with the HOLY SPIRIT, then the ministry of JESUS just flows out of you." ― Corrie ten Boom

Durante este viaje que me cambió la vida, pasamos algún tiempo después de la primera semana reflexionando juntos sobre lo que había sucedido. Rompí a llorar pensando en tener solo unos días más con los preciosos niños del orfanato.

During this life-changing trip for me, we spent some time after the first week  reflecting together on what had happened. I broke down in tears with thoughts of only having a few more days with the precious children at the orphanage.

¿Cómo pueden estos niños que el mundo considera los más bajos de los más bajos significar tanto para mí?

How could these kids who the world sees as the lowest of the low mean so much to me?

Sus padres fueron asesinados en la guerra o los abandonaron en las calles debido a un problema de drogas o una vida de prostitución, o pueden haber sido abusados y colocados en el orfanato porque nadie los buscaba. Básicamente tenían un par de opciones de ropa diferentes pero había  un bendición  profundo, una BIBLIA. No tenían todas las cosas que un niño en los Estados Unidos da por sentado. Sin embargo, tuvieron el gozo y la paz que todo el mundo está buscando.

Their parents had either been killed in the war or abandoned them on the streets because of a drug problem or a life of prostitution or they may have been abused and placed in the orphanage because they were wanted by no one. They basically had a couple of different clothes options but there was a profound blessing, a BIBLE. They didn’t have all the things that a child in the United States takes for granted. Yet, they had the joy and peace that the whole world is searching for.

¿Cómo es eso posible?

How is that possible?

Esos maravillosos niños me enseñaron lo que había olvidado hace mucho tiempo. El ESPÍRITU SANTO me reveló a través de ellos que el gozo y la paz que todos anhelamos solo se encuentran en una relación personal con JESUCRISTO.

Those wonderful children taught me what I had long ago forgotten. The HOLY SPIRIT revealed to me through them that the joy & peace we all long for is only found in a personal relationship with JESUS CHRIST.

Me sentí honrado de que esos niños me ayudaran a recordar que lo más importante en este mundo es EL SALVADOR.

I was humbled that those children helped me to remember that the most important thing in this world is the SAVIOR — "The Savior" which in Spanish is "El Salvador!"

Entonces, mi descubrimiento de El Salvador fue doble. ¡No solo descubrí un país, sino que también mi SALVADOR redescubierto. 

So, my discovery of El Salvador was twofold. Not only did I discover a country but I also rediscovered my SAVIOR.

¡Yo amo El Salvador!

I love El Salvador!

Gracias a la autora Julia Greider Durango por ayudarme a editar la versión original en inglés hace varios años.

Thanks to Author Julia Greider Durango for helping me to edit the original english version several years ago.

¡Comparta este blog con familiares, amigos e incluso extraños!

Please share this blog with family, friends, and even strangers!

“It is the Soldier” — Dennis Edward O’Brien

"Courage is almost a contradiction in terms. It means a strong desire to live taking the form of readiness to die." ― G.K. Chesterton

It is the Soldier,

not the reporter,

who has given us freedom of press. 

It is the Soldier,

not the poet,

who has given us freedom of speech. 

It is the Soldier,

not the campus organizer,

who gives us freedom to demonstrate. 

It is the Soldier who salutes the flag,

who serves beneath the flag,

and whose coffin is draped by the flag,

who allows the protester to burn the flag. 

"Promises from the LORD!" — Siri Version

 

The LORD had said to Abram, "Leave your country, your people and your father's household and go to the land I will show you. I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.

So Abram went up from Egypt to the Negev, with his wife and everything he had, and Lot went with him. Abram had become very wealthy in livestock and in silver and gold.

Then the LORD took Abram outside and said to him, "Look up into the sky and count the stars if you can. That’s how many descendants you will have!"

"You shall have no other gods before ME."

GOD is not a man, so HE does not lie. HE is not human, so HE does not change HIS mind. Has HE ever spoken and failed to act? Has HE ever promised and not carried it through?

Be careful to obey all the commands I am giving you today. Then you will live and multiply, and you will enter and occupy the land the LORD swore to give your ancestors. Remember how the LORD your GOD led you through the wilderness for these forty years, humbling you and testing you to prove your character, and to find out whether or not you would obey HIS commands.

So obey the commands of the LORD your GOD by walking in HIS ways and fearing HIM. For the LORD your GOD is bringing you into a good land of flowing streams and pools of water, with fountains and springs that gush out in the valleys and hills. It is a land of wheat and barley; of grapevines, fig trees, and pomegranates; of olive oil and honey. It is a land where food is plentiful and nothing is lacking. It is a land where iron is as common as stone, and copper is abundant in the hills. When you have eaten your fill, be sure to praise the LORD your GOD for the good land HE has given you. But that is the time to be careful! Beware that in your plenty you do not forget the LORD your GOD and disobey HIS commands, regulations, and decrees that I am giving you today. For when you have become full and prosperous and have built fine homes to live in, and when your flocks and herds have become very large and your silver and gold have multiplied along with everything else, be careful! Do not become proud at that time and forget the LORD your GOD, who rescued you from slavery in the land of Egypt.

Otherwise, you may say in your heart, "My power and the strength of my hand made me this wealth."

Remember the LORD your GOD. HE is the ONE who gives you power to be successful, in order to fulfill the covenant HE confirmed to your ancestors with an oath.

If you fully obey the LORD your GOD and carefully follow all HIS commands I give you today, the LORD your GOD will set you high above all the nations on earth. All these blessings will come upon you and accompany you if you obey the LORD your GOD: You will be blessed in the city and blessed in the country. The fruit of your womb will be blessed, and the crops of your land and the young of your livestock — the calves of your herds and the lambs of your flocks. Your basket and your kneading trough will be blessed. You will be blessed when you come in and blessed when you go out. The LORD will grant that the enemies who rise up against you will be defeated before you. They will come at you from one direction but flee from you in seven. The LORD will send a blessing on your barns and on everything you put your hand to. The LORD your GOD will bless you in the land HE is giving you. The LORD will establish you as HIS holy people, as HE promised you on oath, if you keep the commands of the LORD your GOD and walk in HIS ways. Then all the peoples on earth will see that you are called by the name of the LORD, and they will fear you. The LORD will grant you abundant prosperity — in the fruit of your womb, the young of your livestock and the crops of your ground — in the land he swore to your forefathers to give you. The LORD will open the heavens, the storehouse of HIS bounty, to send rain on your land in season and to bless all the work of your hands. You will lend to many nations but will borrow from none. The LORD will make you the head, not the tail. If you pay attention to the commands of the LORD your GOD that I give you this day and carefully follow them, you will always be at the top, never at the bottom. Do not turn aside from any of the commands I give you today, to the right or to the left, following other gods and serving them.

"Be strong and courageous, because you will lead these people to inherit the land I swore to their forefathers to give them. Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law MY servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go. Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your GOD will be with you wherever you go."

Early the next morning, as everyone got ready to leave for the desert near Tekoa, Jehoshaphat stood up and said, "Listen my friends, if we trust the LORD GOD and believe what these prophets have told us, the LORD will help us, and we will be successful."

Uzziah sought GOD during the days of Zechariah, who taught him to fear GOD. And as long as the king sought guidance from the LORD, GOD gave him success.

Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on HIS law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers.

Fear the LORD, you HIS saints, for those who fear HIM lack nothing. The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing.

Let them shout for joy and rejoice, who favor my vindication; and let them say continually, "The LORD be magnified, Who delights in the prosperity of HIS servant."

For the LORD GOD is our sun and our shield. HE gives us grace and glory. The LORD will withhold no good thing from those who do what is right.

Praise the LORD. Blessed is the man who fears the LORD, who finds great delight in HIS commands. HIS children will be mighty in the land; the generation of the upright will be blessed. Wealth and riches are in HIS house, and HIS righteousness endures forever.

All of you worship the LORD, so you must trust HIM to help and protect you. The LORD will not forget to give us HIS blessing; HE will bless all of Israel and the family of Aaron. All who worship the LORD, no matter who they are, will receive HIS blessing. I pray that the LORD will let your family and your descendants always grow strong. May the LORD who created the heavens and the earth give you HIS blessing. The LORD has kept the heavens for HIMSELF, but HE has given the earth to us humans.

MY child, do not forget MY teaching, but keep MY commands in your heart, for they will prolong your life many years and bring you prosperity.

Lean on, trust in, and be confident in the LORD with all your heart and mind and do not rely on your own insight or understanding. In all your ways know, recognize, and acknowledge HIM, and HE will direct and make straight and plain your paths.

I love those who love ME, and those who seek ME find ME. With ME are riches and honor, enduring wealth and prosperity. MY fruit is better than fine gold; what I yield surpasses choice silver. I walk in the way of righteousness, along the paths of justice, bestowing wealth on those who love ME and making their treasuries full.

It is the blessing of the LORD that makes rich, and HE adds no sorrow to it.

Adversity pursues sinners, but the righteous will be rewarded with prosperity. A good man leaves an inheritance to his children's children, and the wealth of the sinner is stored up for the righteous.

Respect and serve the LORD! Your reward will be wealth, a long life, and honor.

“If you are willing and obedient, you will eat the best from the land; but if you resist and rebel, you will be devoured by the sword." For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.

Do you not know? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting GOD, the CREATOR of the ends of the earth. HE will not grow tired or weary, and HIS understanding no one can fathom. HE gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.

This is what the LORD says — your REDEEMER, the HOLY ONE of Israel: "I am the LORD your GOD, who teaches you what is good for you and leads you along the paths you should follow. Oh, that you had listened to my commands! Then you would have had peace flowing like a gentle river and righteousness rolling over you like waves in the sea."

Now this is what the LORD ALMIGHTY says: "Give careful thought to your ways. You have planted much, but have harvested little. You eat, but never have enough. You drink, but never have your fill. You put on clothes, but are not warm. You earn wages, only to put them in a purse with holes in it."

Ever since the time of your forefathers you have turned away from MY decrees and have not kept them. Return to ME, and I will return to you," says the LORD ALMIGHTY. "But you ask, 'How are we to return?' "Will a man rob GOD? Yet you rob ME." But you ask, 'How do we rob YOU?' "In tithes & offerings. You are under a curse — the whole nation of you — because you are robbing ME. Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in MY house. Test ME in this," says the LORD ALMIGHTY, and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it.

Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.

Don't worry and ask yourselves, "Will we have anything to eat? Will we have anything to drink? Will we have any clothes to wear?" Only people who don't know GOD are always worrying about such things. Your FATHER in heaven knows that you need all of these. But more than anything else, put GOD's work first & do what HE wants. Then the other things will be yours as well.

Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened. "Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your FATHER in heaven give good gifts to those who ask HIM!

JESUS looked at them intently and said, "Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But not with GOD. Everything is possible with GOD."

JESUS told him: "You can be sure that anyone who gives up home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or land for ME and for the good news will be rewarded. In this world they will be given a hundred times as many houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and pieces of land, though they will also be mistreated. And in the world to come, they will have eternal life."

Give, and you will receive. Your gift will return to you in full — pressed down, shaken together to make room for more, running over, and poured into your lap. The amount you give will determine the amount you get back.

JESUS said to the people who believed in HIM, "You are truly MY disciples if you remain faithful to MY teachings. And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."

I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in ME will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the FATHER. And I will do whatever you ask in MY name, so that the SON may bring glory to the FATHER. You may ask ME for anything in MY name, and I will do it. If you love ME, you will obey what I command.

Peter then said: "Now I am certain that GOD treats all people alike. GOD is pleased with everyone who worships HIM and does right, no matter what nation they come from."

Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that it may be by grace and may be guaranteed to all Abraham's offspring — not only to those who are of the law but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham. He is the father of us all. As it is written: "I have made you a father of many nations." He is our father in the sight of GOD, in whom he believed — the GOD who gives life to the dead and calls things that are not as though they were.

Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of GOD, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to GOD, being fully persuaded that GOD had power to do what HE had promised.

The SPIRIT HIMSELF testifies with our spirit that we are GOD's children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs — heirs of GOD & co-heirs with CHRIST, if indeed we share in HIS sufferings in order that we may also share in HIS glory.

And we know that all things work together for good to those who love GOD, to those who are called according to HIS purpose.

What then shall we say to these things? If GOD is for us, who is against us? HE who did not spare HIS own SON, but delivered HIM over for us all, how will HE not also with HIM freely give us all things?

Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through HIM who loved us.

Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the WORD of CHRIST.

Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of GOD's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to GOD — this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what GOD's will is — HIS good, pleasing and perfect will.

GOD, who has called you into fellowship with HIS SON JESUS CHRIST our LORD, is faithful.

You surely know that your body is a temple where the HOLY SPIRIT lives. The SPIRIT is in you and is a gift from GOD. You are no longer your own. GOD paid a great price for you. So use your body to honor GOD.

Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.

Since you excel in so many ways — in your faith, your gifted speakers, your knowledge, your enthusiasm, and your love from us — I want you to excel also in this gracious act of giving. I am not commanding you to do this. But I am testing how genuine your love is by comparing it with the eagerness of the other churches. You know the generous grace of our LORD JESUS CHRIST. Though HE was rich, yet for your sakes HE became poor, so that by HIS poverty HE could make you rich. Here is my advice: It would be good for you to finish what you started a year ago. Last year you were the first who wanted to give, and you were the first to begin doing it. Now you should finish what you started. Let the eagerness you showed in the beginning be matched now by your giving. Give in proportion to what you have. Whatever you give is acceptable if you give it eagerly. And give according to what you have, not what you don’t have. Of course, I don’t mean your giving should make life easy for others and hard for yourselves. I only mean that there should be some equality. Right now you have plenty and can help those who are in need. Later, they will have plenty and can share with you when you need it. In this way, things will be equal. As the SCRIPTURES say, "Those who gathered a lot had nothing left over, and those who gathered only a little had enough."

But this I say: He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for GOD loves a cheerful giver. And GOD is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work.

For GOD is the ONE who provides seed for the farmer and then bread to eat. In the same way, HE will provide and increase your resources and then produce a great harvest of generosity in you. Yes, you will be enriched in every way so that you can always be generous. And when we take your gifts to those who need them, they will thank GOD.

Consider Abraham: "He believed GOD, and it was credited to him as righteousness." Understand, then, that those who believe are children of Abraham. The SCRIPTURE foresaw that GOD would justify the Gentiles by faith, and announced the gospel in advance to Abraham: "All nations will be blessed through you." So those who have faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.

And now that you belong to CHRIST, you are the true children of Abraham. You are his heirs, and GOD’s promise to Abraham belongs to you.

Now that we are HIS children, GOD has sent the SPIRIT of HIS SON into our hearts. And HIS SPIRIT tells us that GOD is our FATHER. You are no longer slaves. You are GOD's children, and you will be given what HE has promised.

Anyone who receives instruction in the word must share all good things with his instructor. Do not be deceived: GOD cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the SPIRIT, from the SPIRIT will reap eternal life. Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.

All praise to GOD, the FATHER of our LORD JESUS CHRIST, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with CHRIST.

Now glory be to GOD who by HIS mighty power that is at work within us, is able to carry out HIS purpose and do super-abundantly far over and above all that we dare ask or think, infinitely beyond our highest prayers, desires, thoughts, hopes, or dreams.

You must have the same attitude that CHRIST JESUS had. Though HE was GOD, HE did not think of equality with GOD as something to cling to. Instead, HE gave up HIS divine privileges; HE took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When HE appeared in human form, HE humbled HIMSELF in obedience to GOD and died a criminal’s death on a cross. Therefore, GOD elevated HIM to the place of highest honor and gave HIM the name above all other names, that at the name of JESUS every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that JESUS CHRIST is LORD, to the glory of GOD the FATHER.

Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of GOD without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe as you hold out the word of life —i n order that I may boast on the day of CHRIST that I did not run or labor for nothing.

Rejoice in the LORD always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The LORD is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to GOD. And the peace of GOD, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in CHRIST JESUS. Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable — if anything is excellent or praiseworthy — think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me — put it into practice. And the GOD of peace will be with you. 

And my GOD will supply all your needs according to HIS riches in glory in CHRIST JESUS.

And now, just as you accepted CHRIST JESUS as your LORD, you must continue to follow HIM. Let your roots grow down into HIM, and let your lives be built on HIM. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness. Don’t let anyone capture you with empty philosophies and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the spiritual powers of this world, rather than from CHRIST. For in CHRIST lives all the fullness of GOD in a human body. So you also are complete through your union with CHRIST, who is the head over every ruler and authority.

Let the peace of CHRIST rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the WORD of CHRIST dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to GOD. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the LORD JESUS, giving thanks to GOD the FATHER through HIM.

But you, man of GOD, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness. Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses. In the sight of GOD, who gives life to everything, and of CHRIST JESUS, who while testifying before Pontius Pilate made the good confession, I charge you to keep this command without spot or blame until the appearing of our LORD JESUS CHRIST, which GOD will bring about in HIS own time — GOD, the blessed and only RULER, the KING of kings and LORD of lords, who alone is immortal and who lives in unapproachable light, whom no one has seen or can see. To HIM be honor and might forever. Amen. Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in GOD, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life.

For GOD has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline.

Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.

And without faith it is impossible to please GOD, because anyone who comes to HIM must believe that HE exists and that HE rewards those who earnestly seek HIM.

Is any one of you in trouble? He should pray. Is anyone happy? Let him sing songs of praise. Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the LORD. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the LORD will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven. Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective. Elijah was a man just like us. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years. Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops.

How great is the love the FATHER has lavished on us, that we should be called children of GOD! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know HIM. Dear friends, now we are children of GOD, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when HE appears, we shall be like HIM, for we shall see HIM as HE is. Everyone who has this hope in HIM purifies himself, just as HE is pure.

Behold, I am coming soon! MY reward is with ME, and I will give to everyone according to what he has done. I am the ALPHA and the OMEGA, the FIRST and the LAST, the BEGINNING and the END.

I original posted "Promises from the LORD!" on "The Florida Keyes" blog on November 5, 2013.

On October 20, 2021 I was inspired by Sara to make two new versions of "Promises from the LORD!"

Of course this is the "Siri Version" for enjoying a smooth listening experience.

On October ?, 2021 I will also post a "Copy & Paste Version" which will make it easy to share specific SCRIPTURE's Book, Verses, & BIBLE Version.

“Worlds Apart” by Jars of Clay

A beautiful young lady inspired me to create a breakdown of "Worlds Apart" because the moment I met her, I was filled with joy, love, & peace. She will forever occupy a unique piece of my heart. I’ll never stop thinking about her even when we are "Worlds Apart."

A serendipitous five seconds helps me to remember all the wonderful memories we shared together on our journeys.

“I miss you! Oh my gosh! I forgot I’m connected to the freaking . . . car.” — Audio Clip sent to me accidentally so I am praising the LORD for accidents, well, at least this one. 

This was not a happy accident!

It was a joy, love, & peace filled blessing from heaven that fills my eyes with tears even as I write.

"There is a sacredness in tears. They are not the mark of weakness, but of power. They speak more eloquently than ten thousand tongues. They are messengers of overwhelming grief & unspeakable love." ― Washington Irving

Could the BEST 5 seconds of my life possibly be listening to a 5 second audio clip?

It is definitely possible because the last sentence of the audio clip she was laughing as only she can & each time I listen to it, my smile seems to grow even bigger than the Grinch.

 ¡Pedro y Pepé el perezoso en Cartagena, Colombia!

 

"A cheerful heart brings a smile to your face; a sad heart makes it hard to get through the day." — PROVERBS 15:13

Her sweet heart & resilient spirit inspire me.

Martha Luz & I will always love her!

"Our path in life is stony & rugged now & it rests with us to smooth it. We must fight our way onward. We must be brave. There are obstacles to be met & we must meet & crush them!" — Charles Dickens

How does any of that apply to a song I have enjoyed since 1995?

She & I were talking about how to process emotions & feelings that literally make us feel like crap & block our ability to pray. 

I recalled this SCRIPTURE which illuminates how GOD prays for us when we are unable to. 

“The SPIRIT helps our weakness; for we do not know what to pray for as we should, but the SPIRIT Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words; & HE who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the SPIRIT is, because HE intercedes for the saints according to the will of GOD.” — ROMANS 8:26-27

I also told her that I was going to share a song with her because it has been a prayer of my heart countless times through the years & I am grateful that the Jars of Clay debut album I bought in 1995 still functions.

The  original "Worlds Apart" is almost the same as first half of the live version.

The remaining part of the song is an extra-special time of praise & worship filled with 25 Hallelujahs which is absolutely awesome to my spirit because of what Hallelujah means.

What does Hallelujah mean?

I shall let two well known sources explain, followed by the song/video link & lyrics,

The Merriam-Webster Dictionary

Halleluja as an interjection = Used to express joy, praise, & thanks

Halleluja as a noun = A shout or song of praise & thanksgiving

Wikipedia

Hallelujah is an interjection used as an expression of gratitude and adoration. 

The word hallel in Hebrew means a joyous praise in song. 

The second part, Yah, is a shortened form of YHWH (Yahweh in modern English), the name of the CREATOR. 

May we all be like a Manta Ray flying through the air unencumbered by natural limitations, allowing supernatural joy, love, & peace to make our lives soar to majestic heights!

"This is a song that has taken on a lot of new meanings lately." — Dan Haseltine 

"Worlds Apart" — Jars of Clay

I am the only one to blame for this

Somehow it all ends up the same

Soaring on the wings of selfish pride, flew too high

And like Icarus, I collide

With a world I try so hard to leave behind

To rid myself of all but love

To give and die

And turn away and not become

Another nail to pierce the skin of ONE who loved

More deeply than the oceans, more abundant than the tears

Of a world embracing every heartache

And can I be the one to sacrifice?

Or grip the spear and watch the blood and water flow?

Take my world apart

I am on my knees

Take my world apart

Broken on my knees

All said and done, I stand alone

Amongst remains of a life I should not own

Takes all I am to believe

In the mercy that covers me

And did YOU really have to die for me?

All I am for all YOU are because what I need and what I believe

Are worlds apart

So I pray

Take my world apart

I am on my knees

Take my world apart

Broken on my knees

Yeah

On my knees

On my knees

Yeah

I look beyond the empty cross

Forgetting what my life has cost

And wipe away the crimson stains

Dull the nails that still remain

More and more I need YOU now

I owe YOU more each passing hour

Battles between grace and pride

Gave up not so long ago

So steal my heart and take the pain

And wash my feet and cleanse my pride

Take the selfish, take the weak

All the things I cannot hide

Take my beauty, take my tears

Sin-soaked heart, make it YOURS

Take my world all apart

Take it now, take it now

And serve the ones that I despise

Speak the words I can't deny

Watch the world I used to love

Fall to dust and blow away 

I look beyond the empty cross 

Forgetting what my life has cost 

I wipe away the crimson stains

That dull the nails that still remain

Take my beauty, take my tears

Sin-soaked heart, make it YOURS

And all the things I cannot hide

Take my beauty, take my tears 

Take my world apart, yea take my world apart 

And I pray 

And I pray, I pray

Take my world apart

Worlds apart

It's worlds apart

Musical & Vocal Interlude Until . . .

Take, take, my world . . . apart

Take, take, my world . . . apart

Take, take, my world . . . apart

Take my world

Take my world

Take my world

Another Musical & Vocal Interlude Until . . .

Hallelujah

Hallelujah

Hallelujah

Hallelujah

Hallelujah

Hallelujah

Hallelujah

Hallelujah

Hallelujah

Hallelujah

Hallelujah

Hallelujah

Hallelujah

Sing it out

Hallelujah

Hallelujah

Hallelujah

Hallelujah

?

Hallelujah

Hallelujah

Hallelujah

Hallelujah

Hallelujah

Hallelujah

Hallelujah

Hallelujah

That was an epic bonus!

Next is Dan announcing they are done on the main stage but have a 4 song set on the acoustic stage & those will be for another day.

”We have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from GOD & not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.” — 2 CORINTHIANS 4:7-9

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Rediscovering Jars of Clay in the Desert!

“GOD takes everyone HE loves through a desert. It is HIS cure for our wandering hearts, restlessly searching for a new Eden. The best gift of the desert is GOD's presence. The protective love of the SHEPHERD gives me courage to face the interior journey." — Paul E. Miller

I have been richly blessed by everyone who has ever been part of Jars of Clay, especially the original members Dan Haseltine, Charlie Lowell, Stephen Mason, & Matthew Odmark.

“Worlds Apart” has been a prayer of my heart countless times through the years & I am grateful that the CD I bought in 1995 still functions.

25+ years ago I was in training with International Teams in Prospect Heights, Illinois because I would eventually be heading to the Spanish Language Institute in San Francisco de Dos Ríos, Costa Rica & then Medellín, Colombia to work in a youth ministry. 

During that missionary training on February 18, 1996 I thoroughly enjoyed a concert at the Rosemont Horizon that included Three Crosses, Jars of Clay, & Michael W Smith.

The "Boys" from Jars of Clay have become men who are inspirational living examples of simply doing what the LORD created us to do.

"We are GOD\"s workmanship, created in JESUS CHRIST to do good works, which GOD prepared in advance for us to do." — EPHESIANS 2:10

“Discovering El Salvador!” is my story of how a 2 week mission trip to an orphanage in Santo Tomás, El Salvador in June of 1990 changed my life forever. 

Why am I sharing this with y’all?

Despite serving the LORD the majority of my adult life, I have recently begun to break free from the darkest 20 months of my existence emotionally, mentally, physically, & spiritually.

“We have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from GOD & not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.” — 2 CORINTHIANS 4:7-9

“Rediscovering Jars of Clay" is invigorating me as “live” versions of songs I know are filled with new meaning & songs I am hearing for the first time are ministering to me precisely where I need it.

I am embarrassed to say that I only had the first 3 records but the combination of new with old excited me so much that I now have ALL the CD’s I did not have.

"Silence” is a song that I first encountered several years ago on YouTube that included heartbreaking footage of Tsunami destruction in Thailand causing me to wonder if GOD is even listening in the midst of suffering.

“The Box Canyon Sessions” version of “Silence” has brought tears to my eyes that fueled my spirit with an intense longing for GOD to rescue me out of the darkness. 

Why?

First of all, the setting that night brings back awesome memories when my wife & I took kiddos from 3 different foster care group homes to an outdoor concert by Dominic Balli in the backyard of a home in Tucson, Arizona & his song/video "Favela" featuring Nengo Vieira in Río de Janeiro, Brazil reminded me of ministering throughout the "barrios" of Medellín, Colombia.

Secondly, I cried for 2-3 hours every night when my wife & I were houseparents in Key West, Florida & then Oro Valley, Arizona because I was so frustrated & upset with the horrific abuse, neglect, & trauma those kiddos had experienced & a system that does not help any of them break the cycle within their families.

It is as if I needed to feel their pain at night but then get it out of my system in order to provide them with a home filled with joy, love, & peace the next day.

“Experiencing terrible pain opens our hearts & minds to express compassion for other people & communion with ourselves.” — Kilroy J. Oldster

Hopefully y’all have been encouraged by my words a fraction as much as I have been encouraged by the lyrics & music of Jars of Clay.

I pray that y'all will be richly blessed emotionally, financially, mentally, physically, & spiritually.

"Now glory be to GOD who by HIS mighty power that is at work within us, is able to carry out HIS purpose & do super abundantly, far over & above all that we dare ask or think, infinitely beyond our highest prayers, desires, thoughts, hopes, or dreams." — EPHESIANS 3:20

Peace be our journeys,

BPK aka Brian Pedro Keyes aka Weasel

P.S. The following quote when understood will fuel us to work supernaturally!

"Trying to do the LORD's work in your own strength is the most confusing, exhausting, & tedious of all work. But when you are filled with the HOLY SPIRIT, then the ministry of JESUS just flows out of you." ― Corrie ten Boom

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ABC’s of BPK

"Once we recognize the fact that every individual is a treasury of hidden & unsuspected qualities, our lives become richer, our judgment better, & our world is more right. It is not love that is blind, it is only the unnoticed eye that cannot see the real qualities of people." ― Charles H. Percy

Adventurous 

Boyish 

Charismatic 

Devoted

Emotional

Funolicious

Gentle

Humble

Inolvidable 

Joyful

Kind

Lovely 

Marvelous

Nitpicker

Opinionated 

Punctual

Quirky 

Resolute

Strong

Thoughtful 

[]_[]nique

Vexing

Weasel

X-Rayable

Youthful 

Zoetic

"The grace of GOD means something like: Here is your life. You might never have been, but you are because the party wouldn't have been complete without you. Here is the world. Beautiful & terrible things will happen. Don't be afraid. I am with you. Nothing can ever separate us. It's for you I created the universe. I love you." ― Frederick Buchner

"Trees" by Hermann Hesse

For me, trees have always been the most penetrating preachers. I revere them when they live in tribes & families, in forests & groves. And even more I revere them when they stand alone. They are like lonely persons. Not like hermits who have stolen away out of some weakness, but like great, solitary men, like Beethoven & Nietzsche. In their highest boughs the world rustles, their roots rest in infinity; but they do not lose themselves there, they struggle with all the force of their lives for one thing only: to fulfil themselves according to their own laws, to build up their own form, to represent themselves. Nothing is holier, nothing is more exemplary than a beautiful, strong tree. When a tree is cut down & reveals its naked death-wound to the sun, one can read its whole history in the luminous, inscribed disk of its trunk: in the rings of its years, its scars, all the struggle, all the suffering, all the sickness, all the happiness & prosperity stand truly written, the narrow years & the luxurious years, the attacks withstood, the storms endured. And every young farmboy knows that the hardest & noblest wood has the narrowest rings, that high on the mountains & in continuing danger the most indestructible, the strongest, the ideal trees grow.

Trees are sanctuaries. Whoever knows how to speak to them, whoever knows how to listen to them, can learn the truth. They do not preach learning & precepts, they preach, undeterred by particulars, the ancient law of life.

A tree says: A kernel is hidden in me, a spark, a thought, I am life from eternal life. The attempt & the risk that the eternal FATHER took with me is unique, unique the form & veins of my skin, unique the smallest play of leaves in my branches & the smallest scar on my bark. I was made to form & reveal the eternal in my smallest special detail.

A tree says: My strength is trust. I know nothing about my fathers, I know nothing about the thousand children that every year spring out of me. I live out the secret of my seed to the very end, & I care for nothing else. I trust that GOD is in me. I trust that my labor is holy. Out of this trust I live.

When we are stricken & cannot bear our lives any longer, then a tree has something to say to us: Be still! Be still! Look at me! Life is not easy, life is not difficult. Those are childish thoughts. Let GOD speak within you, & your thoughts will grow silent. You are anxious because your path leads away from home. But every step & every day lead you back again to our FATHER. Home is neither here nor there. Home is within you, or home is nowhere at all.

A longing to wander tears my heart when I hear trees rustling in the wind at evening. If one listens to them silently for a long time, this longing reveals its kernel, its meaning. It is not so much a matter of escaping from one's suffering, though it may seem to be so. It is a longing for home, for a memory of the family & friends, for new metaphors for life. It leads home. Every path leads homeward,

So the tree rustles in the evening, when we stand uneasy before our own childish thoughts: Trees have long thoughts, long-breathing & restful, just as they have longer lives than ours. They are wiser than we are, as long as we do not listen to them. But when we have learned how to listen to trees, then the brevity & the quickness & the childlike hastiness of our thoughts achieve an incomparable joy. Whoever has learned how to listen to trees no longer wants to be a tree. He wants to be nothing except what he is. That is home.

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