Tenth Avenue North : Journals

This is an Emergency

January 28, 2010

A Coalition of Non Profit Organizations are Working to Prevent Human Trafficking and Exploitation of Haitian Children

Global Centurion, The Home Foundation, Love146, Call and Response, Renewal Forum, Fondation Espoir, Salvation Army, Olive Branch International, Doctors at War on Trafficking, Equitas Group, Gracehaven, World Hope International, Beyond Borders, Restavek Foundation, and Fondation la Limye Lavi announce a first response campaign to develop and distribute simple, clear information campaigns designed to prevent human trafficking after the earthquake.

Take action and join in our efforts to raise awareness in Haiti against the dangers of Human Trafficking.

1. Text SAFE to 85944 and donate $10 to help
2. Post this on your Page
3. Twitter and SPREAD THE WORD!!!

Read more about what we are doing in HAITI on our website www.thehomefoundation.net/blog

9 comments

leave a comment

more from jeff

The world we live in

October 23, 2009

According to livescience.com they polled a lot of people and a lot of scientists to find the “Top 10 Greatest Mysteries of Science.” It’s not surprising that in the top 5 you’ll find:
-Where is the rest of the universe? only 4% of the matter and energy in the universe has been found. How could they even know that?
-What drives evolution? what is evolution? That sounds made up…
-Who are you? -I’ve been asking myself that for a long time now…
-How did life arise on earth? -sounds like the evalootion question or however you say it.

Granted, I’m being ridiculous with my commentary, but really- it sounds like everyone’s looking for a beginning, and an ending and “science” has yet to yield solid results. Really, we don’t even know how gravity works. Still! If we’ve only come this far in decades and generations of modern science and research, it doesn’t sound like we’re going to have the time in our lives to get to the conclusion. Don’t get me wrong, I love science and nerdy things, but my faith hat hangs on God. Searching for answers is just too much fun, but honestly, I don’t “believe” in science.
Here’s a nerdy article: here
Just reading this makes me believe a lot of scientists believe in God but just don’t know it.

I’m a dork. These are my ramblings.

14 comments

leave a comment

more from jeff

Across the World & Across the Street.

October 02, 2009

Hello, friends, fans, and family.
Last night Mike and I had the opportunity to hear the heart of some of our fellow christian music artists about the current rising global crisis. To my surprise it’s not famine, it’s not AIDS, it’s not financial deficit either.

I know I’ve blogged about this before and sorry for repeating myself. I realized during this conversation we had recently that I am in a band that has a platform (although modest in size) to speak and “fight the darkness.”

This growing crisis is human slavery. It is said that there are now more slaves in the world today than in any point in history. This slavery isn’t working in fields or factories. Children are being sexually abused. And this isn’t an intangible reality. This is a virus of the most evil nature that manifests itself in India, China, Africa, and just a few months ago even in my own back yard of Nashville, TN. A local motel was raided and 8 girls were rescued from a prison of a room filled with mattresses.

I could fill this page with statistics and heart breaking, disgusting stories, but I’d rather fill this page with hope. There are facilities and institutions in place that are making a change. They will not be quiet and they are shining their light where there is no light. Please, educate yourself on this subject that not many know about. The church is oblivious to this situation and we must not wait for the government to deal with it like the last time. Slavery is real and it pays less in our generation.

I’m excited because we’re working with other artists to help fight this poison that has silently crept into the streets of our world. Pray that those who are oppressed will be saved.

God will break the chains. He will deliver. Allow him to work in you to fight the darkness.

www.ijm.org

www.thehomefoundation.net

Tags: crisis God hope slavery social justice

18 comments

leave a comment

more from jeff

Something cool

September 15, 2009

So, there’s an age-long conversation about going to church I’ve been witness or exposed to.

My whole life I’ve known that it’s good to go to church. A few days ago Heather and I read why…

¹³ “If you keep your feet from breaking the Sabbath
and from doing as you please on my holy day,
if you call the Sabbath a delight
and the LORD’s holy day honorable,
and if you honor it by not going your own way
and not doing as you please or speaking idle words,

¹⁴ then you will find your joy in the LORD,
and I will cause you to ride on the heights of the land
and to feast on the inheritance of your father Jacob.”
The mouth of the LORD has spoken.

-Isaiah 58:13-14

There’s a lot of cool moments in there.
If I keep from doing as I please then…
I will find delight in the Lord.

So take that, eat it, digest it, and absorb it’s nutrients. One thing I’m working on is the 2nd and 3rd to last lines. What does He mean?

-Jeff

Tags: church God life

15 comments

leave a comment

more from jeff

Chapter 10 You Are

September 12, 2009

So we played a show at a church tonight,
and it was beautiful. God was adored, the gospel was treasured,
compassion kids were sponsored. Like I said, beautiful.
And it’s night like these that get me sort of weepy.
I start asking God under my breath, “Why do I get to do this?
You and I both know I don’t deserve it. You know I’ve got nothing
to offer you that you didn’t first give to me, so what on earth Lord?
Me? You sure about this?”

But it’s true. Right now we’re on the Inside and In Between Tour,
and I’ve been totally amazed. Amazed at how God has kept me close
to my wife over the phone, how He’s spoken through us and in spite of us,
how people have come to a better understanding of the gospel, and how
God has moved in hearts to initiate people to partner with Compassion
in releasing children from poverty in Jesus’ name. It’s unbelievable.

And on a night like tonight this chorus seems easy.
“I give you all of me, for all you are,
here I am, take me apart. Take me apart.”
But it’s only easy, because the most glorious thing happened tonight.
I forgot about myself.
I know, totally crazy.
But I did. I think it might have just been for a few minutes or seconds or so,
but it really did happen. For one brief shining moment, God took up my
thoughts and affections and freed me from the prison of myself.

And that’s kind of what makes this prayer work.
So many of us try so hard to get better, do more, change the world,
and all we ever seem to do is fall flat on our back.
And its sad because I feel like no one ever told us that we’ll
never make it that way. It’s just not possible.
The only true path to freedom is adoration.
The forgetting of oneself in the awe of another is the only place we
can be changed, for to change into something that we are not,
we must see what it is to what we must aspire.
Or in other words,
“the worth and excellency of a soul is measured by the objects of its love.”
-Henry Scougal
Or in other words,
“We are forms of all the things we love.”
-Jars of Clay
Or in other words,
“but we with unveiled faces, beholding God’s glory, are being transformed
from one degree of glory to another.”
-2 Corinthians 3:18
Or in other words,
we become whatever we love.
Love mean and sordid things and so you will be.
Love God, and the most wondrous thing will happen, Scougal explains,
the life of God will show up in the soul of man.

And so that’s all this song is saying.
Don’t try to be better for God.
Don’t try to figure out all the things you need to change,
just fix your eyes on Jesus.
He is your life. He is the one who saves.
He is at the center of all things,
and He holds all things together.
And as you love Him,
as you fawn over all that He is,
He’ll begin to change all that you are.
Or as my pastor says,
“for every time you look at yourself, take ten looks at Jesus.”
Don’t look at what your hands have done,
look at what his have done for you.
And as you fix your eyes on Jesus tonight,
and on all that He is, I pray that you slowly but surely,
forget about all that you are.

May the infinity of who He is , so fill your finite heart and mind
that you find yourself being crammed out entirely.

Tags: God tour

49 comments

leave a comment