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Matthew Armstrong,
Friend, Artist, and Youth Worker
RescueTheGirl.com
MEDITATION: Given, Found, and Opened
"I was impressed by God that in the total darkness of the closet I was now free to enjoy the Source of Light."
Read Matthew 7: 7-8
Instead of emphasizing the "ask, seek, and knock" exhortations from Jesus in this passage, consider entering a time of prayerful contemplation and emphasize instead the reality of things being "given, found, and opened".
In my prayer time this morning I contemplated the meaning of things being given, found, and opened to me. It soon lead me to hear God's voice say, "Stand Up". I did and as a result noticed a reflection of light on my shirt. My meditation time this morning was spent in my clothes closet (this was admittedly new for me). I had the lights off and just enough room to kneel comfortably. When I sensed that I should stand up and continue to pray, I noticed that there was a unique pattern of light on my chest. The light was being reflected off of a mirror in the closet. I could not figure out exactly where the light was coming from so, before moving further, I took the opportunity to ask God to teach me something, "God are you trying to teach me something... I am open." Next, I instinctively used my hand to try and "trace" where the light was coming from by moving my hand in relation to the light closer and closer to the mirror. Once I got to the mirror I moved my hand away from the mirror, following the light in an upward direction. It turns out the light was coming through a very small crack in the seal on top of the door.
As I sat there, open to God's voice, I heard him tell me clearly that, in my seeking him, I was looking for mirrors instead of the source of light itself. Tears started forming in my eyes as I felt the presence of God gently opening my understanding to what this meant. I see the light coming from the "mirror" - the functions and forms that God uses to show his light - but the mirror is not the source of light, it merely reflects light. Do I want to live from the source of light? Or am I content to attach myself to the "mirrors" that merely reflect that source?
I caved in. My face in my hands, I repented to God and let him know how grateful I was for his Words. As I confirmed my desire for union with the SOURCE, with God himself, the little reflection of light that began my whole inquiry suddenly, as if on cue, was gone. The reality is, the light in the other room was simply turned off by my wife. But the fact that it happened when it did was certainly meaningful to me... I was impressed by God that in the total darkness of the closet I was now free to enjoy the Source of Light.
And then the direction and insight I needed needed were given, found, and opened for me.
Matthew Armstrong
MEDITATION: "You can't come to me to be successful."
I was reading "The New Christians: Dispatches from the Emergent Frontier" and came across this gem while reading the section on theology.
"So theology isn't just talk.... Actors act theology and businesspeople work theology and stay-at-home moms change diapers and make lunch theologically.
So human life is theology. Virtually everything we do is inherently theological. Almost every choice we make reflects what we think about God. There's no escaping it."
After dwelling on the truth of those words I entered into a time of intimacy with God. This is what I got:
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You can't come to me to be successful.
When you approach me or seek me from your own intellect, you do so most of the time in order to gain something for yourself. However, when you move from the mind and intellect to the being, to your heart-will, you can come to me out of natural response to reality and truth. If you are truly interested in Me, in finding yourself in God, in spending time with me in intimacy, then you can not come to me to be successful. It's like spending time with a friend to secretly gain access to his connections and relationships that could profit you. The truth is, the truth does profit you... but to reach for truth, to access God, in order to gain from it yourself is not aligned with the truth you seek. The truest form of reality is present regardless of your intent. However, your intentions are the key to both removing the veil of selfishness and fashioning it.
You can't come to me to be successful.
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Father, creator and sustainer of all that is, purify my intentions. Cleanse me from my selfish spirituality that seeks you in order to gain. May my heart connect with you in truth, as a natural response to your being - as a natural response to the presence of you being here, in this moment, in and through me. I sincerely desire to know you more. I sincerely desire to love you more. Not because of what you can do for me, but because of who you are. May the prayer of Jesus be fulfilled in my life, that we may be one. Please give me the grace to embrace your truth not with my mind alone, but with my actions also.
Thank you for loving me, I still think you're crazy.
Matthew Armstrong
RescueTheGirl.com
RescueTheGirl.com
US: Despite Slump, U.S. Role as Top Arms Supplier Grows
Yeah - in case you didn't know, the USA not only has the biggest military budget of any nation (no other nation comes even close), we aslo are the number one arms dealer in the world.... and thanks to our leadership in the "war on terror", we're sellin' even more guns and bombs.
http://www.corpwatch.org/article.php?id=15436
I like Jesus' foriegn policy of "do unto other what you would have them do unto you"... but that just doesn't make for good war or good profits from it.
Why Crush Jesus?
If God is who we say he is, and the world is really in the shape it's in - why are there not multitudes of people being drawn to Jesus?
Image by Steve Wampler via Flickr
That question assumes a lot of things and is really an oversimplification. I am afraid the rest of article is pretty much the same way. If you can live with that in order to learn "Why Crush Jesus?", then read on.
America is decaying. We are in some serious trouble. In fact, forget the threat of "terror"... with it's colored "threat-levels". We have a real state of emergency and it's not because some crazy terrorist might attack us.
We are a culture and a country that is attempting suicide - the most heartless death of all. We are destroying ourselves from the inside out. The really bad news is the fact that the "good news" is apparently not good enough to turn our suicide into just an attempt. Even though there are gospels and bibles and christian stuff everywhere, overall the country is still going through with it. We are attempting suicide and if something doesn't change... if something doesn't subvert and interrupt our attempt to kill ourselves, the bottom line is we will do it.
I could talk a lot about the evidence of our suicidal ways, about the corruption in America at the highest levels, the social injustice we encourage, the moral degradation we are selling to our youth, the gross hypocrisy our nation models to the world, and on and on.
Image by jakebouma via Flickr
However, the sentence you just read about the proliferation of christian stuff in a suicidal culture... this is what I want to deal with. See, as we move in this suicidal direction there has to be a reason that the message of hope and love and forgiveness doesn't seem to draw people.
If God is who we say he is, and our country is really in the shape I describe - why are there not multitudes of people being drawn to Jesus?
Mark 3:9 "So He told His disciples that a small boat should be kept ready for Him because of the multitude, lest they should crush Him." - NKJV
Look at this verse... are you kidding me? Read that again, "...lest they should CRUSH Jesus?" Holy Cow.. Jesus almost got crushed! Thank God it didn't happen... otherwise he wouldn't of made it to the cross. And I don't know about you, but being crushed by a stampede just isn't the way Jesus should go!
Read the verse one more time.... actually back up to verse 7 (seriously, go read it right now) and see it in context.
Why are the multitudes being drawn to Jesus? It tells us "when they heard how many things He was doing". What was he doing? Who was he doing it to? We see in verses 1-6 that Jesus was healing someone on the Sabbath in a
Image via Wikipedia
This thing Jesus was doing... the person he was being and life he was living (and still is) struck such a chord with the "multitudes" that they almost crushed him... that's how much they were being drawn to him.
The truth is, I believe the reason that the multitudes in America aren't being drawn to Jesus is because they simply aren't being exposed to him. They don't see his life being lived in the majority of American Christianity. They don't hear of the "many things" he is doing to make a practical difference in the lives of ordinary people. What they do hear and see is that we have become more like the self-appointed moral police than the ones that give them problems.
And let's be clear, it's not that Jesus ISN'T doing the same type of stuff that drew the multitudes in Mark chapter 3. It's just that he isn't prominently doing it in mainstream American Christianity.
Matthew Armstrong
Re: update?
I got to be quick here because the internet keeps shutting off.
We got on the plane to India and was surprised to find that the people sitting next to us were put there by God. Sitting next to Derek was a producer for CBN (Christian Broadcasting Network)... we told her about RescueTheGirl and she said she wanted to try to get us on their program - and she was serious! AMAZING! We talked with her for hours (the flight was 14 hours, so we had plenty of time). Next to Nathan was a young woman named Amanda in her 20's that was returning to India to serve in an orfanage in India. Amanda was deeply encouraged to hear what we were doing and we got a great interview with her right in the airport once we arrived in Dehli. Talk about inspiring.... can't wait for you to see the interview.
Also on the plane, sitting just behind Tessa and Derek, was a young American guy in his 20's who was doing church planting in India... this was crazy because, not only was he doing church planting in India he was doing in in Patna, Bihar! That's where I am writing this email at the moment! We are in Bihar to help with a christian conference for local pastors. You see, Bihar is a state in India with very very few Christians... it's the poorest state in India and was once known as "the graveyard of missions". The fact that we met a church planter was one thing, but the fact that he would be in the exact same place where we were helping... well, that's just a little beyond coincidence I think.
Talk about mind-blowing! All of this amazing stuff is happening and we haven't even got off the plane!
Eventually, we did get off the plane though. And we were very thankful. After getting our money changed for rupees (indian currency) we shot a quick interview with Amanda and then got our taxi. As we headed to the apartment arranged for us, we began to realize that we "ain't in kansas anymore". The traffick was wild... people ignore the lines on the road and go anyway they want... we passed big trucks with dorky flashy lights on the front, people laying down in the median, cars honking ALL THE TIME... I mean literally a constant honk-fest that never ends! Honk honk HONK honk hOnK Beep BEEEP honk BEEP honk honk BEEP BEEP HHHOOONNNKKK BBEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP honk beep beep honk... EVERYWHERE! Then there are people sleeping on the side of the road all over the place - with goats and random animals! How do they sleep with all the honking? I don't know... but they do. Oh my... after we went through a toll both our taxi driver (who does not speak english and only nods at us every now and then) pulls over and tells us something like "Wu rakish na tasses.. cha"... then he grabs some papers and leaves us. We watch as he walks over to some crappy run-down shed type thing that looked like it was made with sticks and mud... I light is on and a guy is sitting in the window of this crappy shed thing. We were like... "are we being sold?". Yeah, for a moment it was kind of scary. Thankfully we weren't sold and we did finally make it to the apartment (after our driver got lost for about 30 min).
The apartment we stayed in was very nice and very hot... thankfully our bed room had AC. I couldn't help but think about those people sleeping next to the street... this heat was ordinary to them? The next morning we went to a church meeting where I got to preach. What an honor... It was an english service so most people there could understand me. God moved and we saw the people respond to the living word as it went forth. Many came forth at the end of the message to recieve prayer about "waking up" to what God is doing and becoming the leaders we are called to be. It was humbling. Nathan and Derek did an incredible job with a couple songs during the wrship time.... everyone got into it and was jumping and spinning around!
After lunch we had to pack up a few things quickly and head to the train station. We traveled 13 hours on a train from Delhi to Bihar. The train experience was one-of-a-kind, as is almost every experience here. THankfully we had first class seats which gave the four of us our own little beds and private room with a lock on the the door. We got great footage by hanging off the side of the train (you know I was lovin' it). We arrived in Patna, Bihar to a scene that words can not describe.... only the video can give you an idea. As we were loading our stuff into the car outside the train station I look down as I feel a tug at my legs... it was a young man, maybe 18-22 yys of age, walking on all fours like some kind of animal. He was severly crippled... such that you didn't want to look. He would tug on your pant legs, clearly askign for money. I turned only to find a hindi woman holding a beautiful baby... she had pain in her eyes as she asked us for money.... motioning to her baby's mouth letting us know he needed to eat. This was heart-wrenching to see. We were gaining more attention and more people starting gathering around... we were all very uncomfortable.
As we drove to our apartment in Patna we saw stuff that can not be put into words... it is simply to hard to describe. FLOORED... I was completely floored. What made it especially unique was that the car we were riding in was playing "i can only imagine" by Mercy Me. A band from Greenville, TX where I am a youth pastor... two worlds so different, so strange was the experience. So much depravity and poverty mixed with cell phones and computer stores and random cows that wander everywhere untouched... we often see them on the side of the road eating grass and trash as they just roam where they may.
We arrived on our apartment and began to sweat. We had a day to just rest. We needed it. Our friend Abhishek who lives here took us out for dinner to a pizza place called "smokin' Joe's" texas restruant. Well, the pizza was good... but the only thing that was like texas there was the picture of a coyboy on the wall.
The next day we took part of the pastors conference that was here. Nathan got to speak and the spirit came down in power. We couldn't even tell what the people were saying as they were crying out with their hands lifted high - but you could feel the spirit so strong. On the streets here we have gotten some amazing footage. I interviewed this one guy on the streeet and drew a crowd of about 50 young hindi guys. Can't wait for you to see. One guy I talked to just wanted me to know "really like your country.. country we like very much.." "Obama very good" This one guy thought president Obama was the governor of Texas... funny.
Today we will be out on the streets witnessing and sharing and learning. We leave on a plane this evening for Dehli.
Touch base soon!
For Re:defined Youth... sing it with me now: "Jesus is a friend of mine... Jesus is my friend.... Jesus is a friend of mine.... I have a friend in Jesus.... Jesus is a friend of mine"
May God Wreck Our American Plastic Castles! And by the way.... God loves you more than you know.
Matthew Armstrong
RescueTheGirl.com
jesuspaper.blogspot.com
Matthew Armstrong
On Sun, Jul 12, 2009 at 9:40 AM, Leslie Armstrong <aspiring4life@gmail.com> wrote:
hey honey, haven't gotten anything from you yet? but I will let them know the little you told me!
Leslie Armstrong
daughter of Christ
wife of one awesome husband
mom of 3 fabulous children
thankful and grateful for life
Raising up an ARMY!
....an army of radicals.
....an army of radical lovers.
....the preacher asked for it, and he got it. The youth tonight didn't experience youth camp. They experience a moment that could very well define their future and their world. The youth tonight were not given an alter call, they were given a chance to respond authentically to the God who dares love the rebellious bunch.
After explaning that God was raosing up an army, students were challeneged to stand alone in a filled auditorium and yell out who they were presently (addicted, angry, hopeless, lustful, etc.) and then say
"God, change me."
One at a time, from the shocked silence, students... teenagers... began rising withj hands held high... "god, I'm an addict, CHANGE ME" ... the cry was real, and as the voices rose from different directions, a symphony of sorts, of broken humanity desperate for real authentic life, desperate for change.
Probably a hunderd to two hundred students rose with yearnings for real change. The presence of God gently tugged as we then enter a true wrestling match with God... He yielded, and many students came out, like Jacob, with a different name.
2009 youth camp, and it's the first night.
Watch out for JESUStm
Countless people form their lives around the person Jesus… countless others form their lives around the JESUStm brand. What’s the difference? Well, the commercial JESUStm brand is really about you keeping up your good image. You get to feel better about yourself, and you get to make others think that you are better than you are. Don’t buy it! There’s no life or forgiveness in the JESUStm Brand.
The real Jesus of the New Testament is naturally opposed to the brand that uses his name. First of all, the JESUStm brand is fake. The real Jesus is the realest person to ever live! Also, Jesus isn’t interested in your “good” image. He’s interested in your ugly, selfish heart being transformed through the messy, radical love of God. Jesus says you don’t need to “feel better” about yourself… in fact, he says the selfish you must die in order to really live! And he knows what he’s talking about! The guy dies and rises again for a living! Most of us get confused sometimes and replace the real living Jesus with the JESUStm brand. The “good news” is that real Jesus REALLY forgives. Listen for him to speak to you today about the JESUStm brand in your life.
From our trip to MountainFilm
The trip was amazing. You can view some of the videos of the trip at my youtube channel http://www.youtube.com/thelivingparable
The Radical Call of Jesus
A conversation I had a few days ago reminded me just how lame our Jesus is.
Yeah... You read that correct.
"Our" Jesus is a lamo, cushy, conservative who is more concerned with proper piety and social respectability than living in radical surrender, selflessly Loving God and people.
- The word radical means to get to the root of something. As followers of Christ, we aren't trying to be radical 'cause it's trendy. We are learning to respond to life at the realest level, or root level - which is the God-level. Like we should expect, our domisticated version of Jesus is a very surface person, concerned with our material success, comfort, personal prefrence, and our ability to compartmentalize life.
I was talking with another youth pastor about ministry and he told me how he longs to be doing something "radical" for Jesus. He was frustrated with how unradical youth ministry was. It didn't really occur to him that the call we are answering in ministry is by nature radical, and that whatever isn't creatively radical may be where "our" version of Jesus steps in.
Many of us know "our" version of Jesus isn't "THE" Jesus. Yet we are so deeply infected with our version of him that we struggle with letting the real Jesus be who he already is. Ordinary people like me fear that if we really let Jesus be Jesus, we simply can't survive. And we're right. The raw untamed Messiah isn't safe for us. He's an "all in" type of guy who unreservedly, yet lovingly, asks for our total allegiance. He asks - no, commands - "Follow me... take up your cross... come and learn how to die, that you might truly live." Yes, the call of Jesus is radical. And it's not just radical for a few of us either. The call of Jesus is RADICAL, peroid. Somehow we've domisticated Jesus to the point that only some people hear the radical call of Jesus while others hear the regular call (you know, be good people, join a church, tithe regularly, etc).
Truth is, I'm longing for the culture of Jesus. And my religious ego hopes and prays that I continue longging for it. "Our" Jesus is ok with us theorizing and emotionalizing our relationship - even if it isn't real.
Who is Jesus? I fear we often know too much of him to really know him at all. Contemplate what he says. Intently watch the way he lives. Pretend he's a stranger. Is this guy the express image of God or a crack head?
As for the call of Jesus, it seems pretty clear to me that he is telling us to abondon our culture and join his radical life - repent for God's Culture/Kingdom is here and available. Jesus is calling us to follow him - not a religion or a program. And that's radical! Following Jesus isn't a life-style choice... it's LIFE. He came, not to give us Christianity or some super ethics but, "I came that they may have life and have it abundantly." The life he gives is so good, you can get your self killed - and love it. Or sell all that you own - and love it. Or feed mean, stubborn old people - and really love it. Or literally reach out to a prostitute - and love it. Retiunely help a homosexual - and love it. Actively forgive a terrorist - and truly love it. Serve a musty, stinky third-world community in Africa - and love it. You get the picture.
Matthew Armstrong
June 6th, 2009
The Art of Breathing
Title: The Art of Breathing
When the cease finally came
The thunder finally held it's peace
The skys have cleared their name
Now this storm of life has ceased
...and the heavens clear their way
perfect blue consumes the grey
The open air shares it's warmth
Past the skin straight to my soul
I move beyond the doubt
As my fragments become whole
...I can hear the heaven's say
I can hear Him gently say (yes, I can hear Him say)
Breathe deep again, breathe deep again
and take me in
Breathe deep again, take it in, take it in
and take me in
I stretch forth my arms, free to receive
The embrace of open arms, as they receive me
(inhale/exhale)
And the smiles I wear speak of the dance within
I find rest as my lungs are filled with Your unforced rhythms
(yes, I can hear Him say)
Breathe deep again, breathe deep again
and take me in
Breathe deep again, take it in, take it in
and take me in
written by Matthew Armstrong, 2009
breathe - Definition from the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary
Definition of breathe from the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary with audio pronunciations, thesaurus, Word of the Day, and word games.
www.merriam-webster.com
Ending the Cycle
Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that. Hate multiplies hate, violence multiplies violence, and toughness multiplies toughness in a descending spiral of destruction....The chain reaction of evil--hate begetting hate, wars producing more wars--must be broken, or we shall be plunged into the dark abyss of annihilation.
Martin Luther King, Jr., Strength To Love, 1963.
I Have A Dream Speech - Text, Audio and Video of Martin Luther ...
I Have A Dream Speech - text, video, and audio of Martin Luther King's most famous speech from the Mach on Washington. Plus Common's I Have a Dream Hiphop ...
www.mlkonline.net
Martin Luther King, Jr., Strength To Love, 1963.
 | Common: "A Dream" Music Video The music video for Common's new single "A Dream", produced by Will.i.am for the upcoming film, Freedom Writers. Be Heard on YouTube.com/BeHeard www.youtube.com |
I Have A Dream Speech - Text, Audio and Video of Martin Luther ...
I Have A Dream Speech - text, video, and audio of Martin Luther King's most famous speech from the Mach on Washington. Plus Common's I Have a Dream Hiphop ...
www.mlkonline.net
Jesus Shoes: Walking with Jesus in America
We will be going over the following four American characteristics and how they influence our dedication to Jesus.
Please stay tuned - and go ahead and watch the intro video I did below.
Thanks,
 | Jesus Shoes: A New Teaching Series In America, people are so familiar with the words of Jesus that very few people take them seriously. This is most notable in mainstream religious ... www.youtube.com |
Matthew Armstrong
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