Good ol' John Denver (think shoulders)

Look closely at this picture, what do you see? Yes, shadows. What do shadows mean? Yes, IT'S SUNNY OUT TODAY. What's more, IT'S WARM!!!!!!!!!!! Now, you may be thinking, "duh Josh, of course it is, it's late April." Well, it is that, certainly. However, late April in Glasgow means that it's usually cloudy and cooler. Well, any month here actually means cloudy. Anyhow, it has been a huge blessing. We had an intern meeting today. Brian took them (and those of us who tagged along) to the university chapel and did the same thing he did with me my first day here. He asked, "What do you see?" If you want to know, leave me a message. :-) That being said, it really made me think about all that God has done over the past year and a half. He has really worked and moved here. I'm so thankful for how He has worked! God is amazing, I don't ever say that enough.

Galatians 5:5-6
But by faith we eagerly await through the Spirit the righteousness for which we hope. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.

Ephesians 6:18
And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.

Philippians 3:7-11
But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ-the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith. I want to know Christ and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in His sufferings, becoming like Him in His death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead.

Colossians 4:6
Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.

Today was a wonderful day here in Glasgow! The sun was out all day and it was good to sit in my lounge and read my Bible. It struck me today as I watched the kids downstairs during church how God must feel. I was reading Ezekiel earlier and just thinking about the nation of Judah and God's anger on them. I thought about how often I act like a petulent and selfish child, how often I deserve God's wrath but don't recieve it. Thanks be to God for His infinite mercy and lovingkindness!

Verses from Jeremiah

For one of my Bible read throughs this week, I was reading Jeremiah and Lamentations. These are a few of the verses that really stood out to me:

Jeremiah 10: 23-24
I know, O LORD, that a man's way is not in himself, nor is it in a man who walks to direct his steps. Correct me, O LORD, but with justice; not with Your anger, or You will bring me to nothing.

Jeremiah 17:14
Heal me, O LORD, and I will be healed; save me and I will be saved, for You are my Praise.

Easter Feast!

Belated happy Easter everyone! At RE:Hope we had large feast! We wanted to through a huge celebration for Easter. We were expecting 50, I think we had close to 70 (maybe more!). It was awesome to be able to celebrate arguably the best day of the year with so many people. Along with food we heard testimonies from Richard and Daniel. The Libolts dedicated their children (Olivia and Noah) as did the Brian and Kelly (Ethan, Emma, and Owen). It was great to see people there who may not normally have been in church. I want to follow up with some of them and invite them to some of our fellowship times.

So this is a pic of me "jumping" off the westernmost point of continental Europe. I was just in Portugal for a team spiritual retreat. It had to be the most interesting trip I ever took. It took over 24 hours to get back here, and I didn't even change a time zone. God was good though, and I was able to get closer to my team than I've ever felt. I think I missed my times with God, which was really almost a first. I usually don't physically miss (long for) my times spent with Him. It was awesome!

Pics from Germany!

Here are a few pics from Germany. The one on the left is Guido at his house. On the right I'm standing in the church that Johannes Gutenberg (the first one to print the Bible) was baptized in. While I was in Germany I went to church on sunday. I could understand the lyrics because they were printed. It was surreal to think that God could too. It showed me just how much of a linguistic box I put God in. It was awesome to worship Him in another language! Plus it sparked some good conversations with Guido! Times with God have been great these past few weeks! I've tried to start scheduling more time into my day to seek Him, and He has been responding! I'm so thankful!