The Radiant Face of My Dad

During my lunch break yesterday, my mom called me up to let me know that my dad had been experiencing some sharp headaches over the last week, but told me not to worry. I advised her to take him to the hospital quickly for analysis and then began calling my circle of friends for prayer.

More than any other feeling, a sense of peace came to my heart. The peace that goes beyond all human understanding. One picture I still can not get out of my head is the time I saw the glory of the Lord on my dad's face. I have witnessed several manifestations of the Holy Spirit in my parents' ministry, but this experience with my dad stuck out the most. In my time of waiting to hear any news of my dad's condition, this memory brought peace because it reminded me how close my dad is to the Lord. No matter how bad my dad's condition could be, I knew that the Lord's servant was just fine.

Most people have only read about the radiant face of Moses in Exodus 34:29-35, but words can not begin to tell what it looks like in person.

It happened in the Summer of 2000, I had just finished reading a powerful book about the search for the mountain of God. I had also been fasting, praying, and seeking the face of God like never before and intensely studying His written word. I came to 1 Corinthians Chapters 12-14 and to the part where Paul said "But eagerly desire the greater gifts" (1 Corinthians 13:1a). It seemed like I got hung there for a week or two as I eagerly sought after the gift of prophecy.

Little did I know, but the Lord had come strongly upon my dad for over a week. For a solid week, my dad was in the presence of the Lord. He could not speak in English, but instead only spoke in foreign languages giving praises to God. In order to communicate with my mom, he would write notes to her on pieces of paper. The presence of the Lord was so strong upon him that he did not want to eat nor could he as he was being supplied all that he needed in the Lord's presence. He was full of the Holy Spirit.

Two hours away, and unknown to my parents, I was "eagerly desiring the greater gifts," and then something happened on a Wednesday night. It was if my eyes were opened to Paul's words "and now I will show you the most excellent way." I began reading the thirteenth chapter of 1 Corinthians in a whole new way. I had read through this chapter over and over again and it had spoken to me in so many different and meaningful ways before. But this time the Lord began to tell me over and over again "don't seek the gift, seek love."

Now I thought I had sought the love of God before. I had done so many times before I ever studied the spiritual gifts of 1 Corinthians. But this was a different kind of love. It was a passion. I began to cry out to God, "God give me love for lost souls. May I share in your grief for people that do not know you. May my heart explode for them. Please give me your heart of love!"

The next day, my mom called me up around lunch time and said "Danny, the presence of the Lord has been upon your dad for the last week." She began to tell me how strong His presence had been in their house and how my dad could not speak or eat, but instead could only pray. Then she told me these words "Danny, the Lord has given him a message and he wrote it down on a piece of paper and it says 'tell Danny to come down because I have a message for him and Martha.'"

I told my mom that we would be on our way to the house after class that afternoon. I told my wife about the phone call and she began to quickly ready Danny Boy and our luggage for the trip down to Douglas. After class, I picked them up and set out on the road. Martha had to drive, because already I began to experience the presence of the Lord and began to shake.

The closer we got to Douglas, the stronger I began to experience the Lord's presence. It reached a crescendo when we reached my parent's driveway. So strong was the sensation that my mouth began to tingle (I experience this from time to time when I lead worship, which almost prevents me from ministering). We quickly got off the car and ran to the door. My mom had tears in her eyes and said "mijo, God's moving on your Daddy."

I walked into the dining room and saw him come out of the door. My dad's face was glowing! I looked in his eyes and his eyes were on fire. I had never seen anything like it before. His eyes were not the eyes of a mad man, in his eyes were power and love. Waves of the Lord's presence were emanating all around him. I threw my arms around and immediately I began to feel the fire of God all over me. Out of my mouth gushed a spontaneous song of praise to God first in English and then in a foreign language. It was one of the most powerful experiences I have ever had with the Lord and I shared it with my father.

A few people from our church began streaming into our house as the Lord had instructed my dad to call them via my mom in similar manner for His message to them. We all sat down in my parent's living room and one by one my dad gave them startling words from the Lord. Amazingly, the Lord had already spoken to these people and was using my dad as a powerful confirmation.

My wife and I were the last people, he spoke to. Looking at us with those same eyes of power and love, he said "Danny, the Lord knows that you have been seeking the gift of prophecy, but he tells you 'do not seek the gift.'" He paused and then continued "'seek love.'" He then turned to my wife and said that she had been given the gift of discernment.

Then for the next hour or so all of heaven opened up on top of us. It was as if liquid fire was falling on us. I could only describe it as taking an adrenaline rush, adding to it a generous amount of warm soda, multiplying it times a million, shaking it up and then pouring it on top of someone. The Lord had given us a Mount Sinai and Tabernacle experience in the middle of my parent's living room.

Our experience demonstrated that the God of the Universe still takes the time to visit individual people in powerful ways. He still takes the time to speak through them and leave memories that will never fade. Indeed, memories of a radiant face go a long way. In the midst of my uncertainty, I knew that my face was glowing underneath just thinking about this. Just think of the radiant memories God wants to shine through your face.

Win, Build, Send!

Last Monday night, we received an answer to a desire that had been hidden in our hearts for over a year. My pastor left a voice mail message on my cell that began with: "yes, this message is for the new Youth Representative for the Salinas Section." And with that, a giant door and window to Heaven was opened up to Martha and me. Something that had only been a faint hope had suddenly drifted upon our shoulders like Elijah's mantle.

To the youth of the Salinas Section of the Northern Pacific Latin American District of the Assemblies of God: we are your servants and can't wait to serve you!

We had left the youth, children's and church board ministry in Monterey just a year earlier to pursue a calling to a new season of ministry in Hollister. Sure, God had spoken in clear terms of where to go and what to expect, but never before had we ventured in such unknown territory. For the first time, God called us to "Evangelism." Martha and I knew only about this type of ministry. While in Hollister, God filled so many blanks and worked so many miracles that there is not room enough on this blog to describe. If I could sum up the biggest blank in one word it would be "Discipleship." If I could thank one person on this earth for helping us fill this blank it would have to be our pastor, Pastor David Prado.

We had told our pastor, that if we ever returned to youth ministry it would not be in the tradition that we had served in before. In fact, I had to come up with a new term for myself to describe what role it would be: "youth motivator." It's not that the style of youth ministry that we had before was bad, by no means. It just no longer fit.

I laugh about it now, but yesterday morning as I was praying about the vision for our youth, I needed some motivation for myself. I felt as though I was floating in midair in suspended animation just like all those sci-fi movie scenes you see these days. I just needed a kick to get the momentum going again.

After people win an award, medal, or election, you often hear them say "I am humbled and feel a little beside myself at the moment." Well, I never truly understood what they meant until now. This is exactly where I found myself. I was a cow staring at two different open gates, except this time I was a cow in a frozen tornado scene staring at two different open gates (remember "Twister?"). I felt like Solomon upon assuming the throne of his father David and Elisha clutching Elijah's cloak in his hands:

Solomon said:

"Now, O LORD my God, you have made your servant king in place of my father David. But I am only a little child and do not know how to carry out my duties. Your servant is here among the people you have chosen, a great people, too numerous to count or number. So give your servant a discerning heart to govern your people and to distinguish between right and wrong. For who is able to govern this great people of yours?"

While Elisha:

picked up the cloak that had fallen from Elijah and went back and stood on the bank of the Jordan. Then he took the cloak that had fallen from him and struck the water with it. "Where now is the LORD , the God of Elijah?" he asked.

Know what I mean? Mooooo

I must pause here, while in suspended animation, to say that the new District Youth Director for the Northern Pacific Latin American District, Pastor Dan Garza, has brought a tremendous purpose-driven vision for the youth of our district. I am so excited to say that this vision, when you cross-check, is the same one as our church (Faith, Hope, and Love Center) and our own ministry (Light the Fire).

So here I was back at the farm. The last youth article I had read that really inspired me was the vision of the incoming National Youth Director, Pastor Jay Mooney. In one sentence it reads: "equipping the church to win, build and send students to fulfill the Great Commission." In three words, "Win, Build, Send."

So there I was yesterday morning frozen and with this vision highlighted and ready for copy and pasting for future reference, when my good friend calls me up to share what God had been stirring in his heart all morning long. This was no accident. Martha and I had served under this man of God as assistant youth rep and secretary for two years. This was our "King David" and "Elijah" as it were. The word that he shared with me over the phone in less than ten seconds was enough to press the Play Button...

Youth of the Salinas Section:

From the top to the bottom. From national to district to sectional, we are united in vision! Get yourself ready for Holy Revolution. Get yourself ready, because we are about to win more souls for the kingdom of God that the nets won't even contain. Get yourself ready because, we are going to be built up to be effective disciples for Christ. Get yourself ready because, the Lord is going to send you out to the four corners of your prayer closet, of your school flagpole, of your city streets, of your neighborhood, of our section, of our district, of our country and of our world! Get ready, get ready, get ready!

So help us God,

Bro Danny and Sister Martha Morales

This is your Daughter

Just wanted to post a praise report for my friends Melanie and Jeremy (aka "Crazy").

Jeremy earned the name "Crazy" while at Oral Roberts University (I should know, I was his roommate). I'll never forget falling asleep to Crazy telling me how crazy in love he was with Mel. Years later after they married, they were introduced to Brianna.

During one fateful church service, Jeremy picked up Brianna to carry her for a few minutes and the Lord spoke to him, "this is your daughter." He had been barely introduced to her and knew nothing of her situation, but God said she was theirs. No matter the obstacle, God had promised to give Brianna a loving home and a bright future with the Deemys. One by one, the obstacles fell as God made a way into the promised land of adoption.

What began as a gentle whisper, now God says loud and clear for everyone else to hear, "this is your daughter."

To the fatherless, motherless, or those without hope, this is your Father's words to you:
"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD , "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." (Jeremiah 29:11).

One man taken to morgue alive another man's Shroud buried before its time

I could have choked on my Chai Tea when I ran across the Associated Press story about a man that was taken alive to the morgue.

As my dad was say "good grief Charlie Brown," how could someone overlook the fact that this man was still alive and breathing? How could they pronounce this man dead and then practically bury him? But for some reason, I thought "good grief DJ" that's exactly what people have tried to do with Christ.

As I scanned further down KLOVE's News Page, I saw another equally fascinating Discovery Channel Story that was ironically similar. A story about a burial shroud that is older than a 1988 radiocarbon dating has suggested. A shroud that may have been buried before its time.

I remember asking one of my physics professors at The University of Arizona, who at the time was a senior professor in the department, about the dating of this shroud. I asked him whether the tests were conclusive in his mind and he told me: "well, the questions have been answered sufficiently in the minds of those who conducted the tests." Something just did not sit right with me and for me, at least, the case was anything but closed.

As my Chai grew cold, I did some quick web-based research (Google) and found another Discovery Channel Story about the reverse side of this burial shroud. Interestingly enough, this side reveals even more details than the front, which would be extremely difficult for a medieval forger to produce.

Whether this is the actual burial shroud of Jesus may never be known. What I do know is that Christ no longer needs a burial shroud and that people are still finding him alive and breathing. Will you find him? Follow the living Son of God. Follow Christ.

Witnesses to a Miracle

Sister Z and Danny Boy striking poses at Youth Convention

(Thought I'd post the following while on my lunch break)

At our Young Adults meeting last night, Sister Z shared some awesome testimonies of how God answered prayers over the weekend. Developing...

(Alright it's quitting time)

Last Saturday night, Bro Izzy calls me up and says that a friend of Sister Z had called him and said that Z's mom is in danger in the Philippines (PI) and that it looks like she is going to be held there and not be able to leave the country. My first thought in a situation totally out of everyone's control here on the other side of the world is, of course, pray. My second thought was contact our pastor, and then pray. When Jesus said in Matthew 18:19 "again, I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything you ask for, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven," he meant it. I did little but listen and agree with the Pastor as he prayed down heaven and earth for what seemed to be 15 minutes. All I had to do was agree.

Fast forward to Monday morning. The last word I heard was that Z was going to arrange for emergency leave and fly over to PI sometime Sunday. Well, I called up Sister Z's office and low and behold Sister Z is there! After the initial shock, all she told me was that her mom was already back in the states and that she would tell our group more that night. Amazingly, God worked a miracle Saturday night (daytime in PI) that allowed Z's mom to fly out of country, literally seconds before the plane took off, thereby allowing her to escape danger.

Pastor, Bro Izzy, Sister Martha and myself were some of the only people stateside that knew what was going on in Sister's Z's life. In fact, Z had no clue until Monday morning that we even knew about the situation and that we had been praying for her mom. Thank you Father for bringing heaven down to earth!

Some people call it coincidence, but we call it a miracle. Jesus meant what he said. Agree in prayer with someone right now, whether they know it or not, whether they're close by or a world apart. You will experience the power of prayer by agreeing with a missionary or child crying out to God at this very second. The power of prayer knows no borders, distance or time zone.

Are you a young adult? Are you looking for a group that experiences the power of prayer? Visit the Young Adults Site and slide to the "Interactive" bar at the top to find a YA group near you.

See you there, see you in prayer,

DJ Morales

The Gospel According to Milkshakes

Friday night after church, we had to speak to the pastor about our upcoming "40 Days with Jesus campaign" for the Easter Season. After our little talk, he asked a rather rhetorical question to someone who loves to eat, "are you guys hungry?"

Ah, late night at Jack in the Box. Brought back memories from high school after football games. Time to grub on fast food. What better way to celebrate a victory than over greasy cheeseburgers, or Cordon Blue in Bro Izzy's case, fries, and Danny Boy's favorite, a chocolate milkshake.

How could we refuse the pastor? He was buying after all. I don't know about you, but food just tastes better when it's free and not made by your hands.

So there we were telling and retelling stories of glory like that night's service. Thank God for pastor's who give hungry people food (after all, that's their job). We were having church in Jack in the Box.

On our way home, Danny Boy wanted to talk about his recent angelic visitation and dream about Jesus. He wanted to know a little more about why Jesus had to die on the cross. He had seen it vividly in his dream and had seen it before in Passion plays, but he just wanted to hear it again. Just like the people at church retelling their personal experiences, and like the retold stories of church services past, he wanted to relive the moment. He wanted to keep it fresh.

Like all good stories, good news is worth telling 1. because it's good and 2. because it's true. If it's especially newsworthy, it will be retold again and again. If it's a living story, it will find ways to tell itself.

I asked him if he enjoyed his milkshake, another rhetorical question. I asked him if we had to pay for our food. "No, pastor paid," he answered. I explained a little more, "pastor thought about us and wanted to give us free food." Pastor had even called by cell while we were packing up our equipment downstairs to ask if we were still coming to eat. Who could pass up a freebie?-especially a free milkshake.

I continued...
"Well, God did the same thing. He thought about us. He came downstairs and gave us something for free. He paid the price (of sin) so that we didn't have to, so that we could enjoy something better than milkshakes-life and life forever (eternal life)."

There you have it, the Gospel (good news) According to Milkshakes. How can you pass up a freebie like eternal life? Good news worth re-telling. I bet you'd be willing to try a Triple Thick from Micky Dees, why not give God a try? Would you like to taste the free gift of eternal life? Follow Christ. Taste and see for yourself, God is good...

Here's an instant message from Jesus:
"Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me." (Revelation 3:20)

What Happens When God Shows Up?

Did you ever plan out a day only to spontaneously put it aside for someone special and then end up having the best day of your life?

Well, that is what happened last night at Faith, Hope, and Love Center. Pastor David had a well-organized prayer service in mind. Bro Izzy and I had a great night of We Build Kids/BGMC planned for the kids as well. It would have been their first night of puppet training.

It started with the worship. We just could not stop singing His praises. The Bible says that God inhabits the praises of His people. This is what it means---when people celebrate a celebrity, and invite him or her to their celebration, any good celebrity will show up.

Have you ever known people that light up the room as soon as they walk in? You may not see them at first, but you know they are there. They are the life of the party, the ones who make everybody feel good and feel that they are special. They could be speaking to a crowd, but you feel like they are speaking to you. They keep you thinking for weeks about the one little comment they shared with you. Well, this is the God whom we serve. He is our Number One Celebrity.

Who cares that we had an agenda? As soon as we knew He was in the room, we threw out our talking points, got up close and just enjoyed His presence. Who cared about our board meeting? The one person showed up that always has a way of turning heads and changing the conversation. Normal business could wait. Bro Izzy and I could do our program and share our missionary story on Sunday.

One by one, people started streaming to the altar. They just wanted to reach out and touch God, our celebrity came to our celebration party thrown in His honor. They cried as He spoke to them and gave them words of encouragement. His touch, like the warm hands of a mother brought growth, a sense of security, and most importantly, love.

After the time at the altar, it seemed that the whole church had something to say. One by one, the people got up and spoke about how God had answered their prayers over the past week and how He had just spoken to them at the altar. Needless to say, God was in the house.

Anywhere The Wind Blows

Tonight, as we read and discussed the third Chapter of John, verses one through sixteen, and then prayed in our bedroom chapel, three wonderful women of God came to mind. It all happened as I pondered over the verse that says:

Jesus answered, I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. You should not be surprised at my saying, You must be born again. The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.

Such deep and seemingly mysterious words. Of course as with all things spiritual, it took my son about three seconds to understand the message behind these words. But this is often the case with most children. He immediately grasped the concept of people who are physically alive but spiritually dead, people who are in desperate need of a savior. This is precisely what Jesus was talking about. The body dies, but the spirit, our spirit lives forever. As my son told me matter of factly, "in heaven, we will always live."

Just like the highly analytical Nicodemus, to whom Jesus was talking, I found myself getting caught up in the complexities of Jesus' words. As a meteorology officer, I found myself scrutinizing the phrase "the wind blows wherever it pleases." I thought about the fact that with all the computers in the world working together, man could never predict the precise wind direction in every cubic meter of air of the earth's atmosphere over the next hour. Impossible, when you have a butterfly in Africa that can set off a stampede of wildebeest that sets off a dust cloud that sets off a thunderstorm and so on as the story goes. That's why we have a category of wind speed and direction called "light and variable," because any attempt to figure out the slightest wind would be chasing it with our minds.

That's when it hit me. Why do people fight against the wind of the Spirit? Why do people try to figure it out? I can not think of a more frustrating thought than fighting against God with the human will and the human mind. And, that's when they came to my mind all in a flood of thoughts. Three women who flow with the Spirit. Three women unknown by the standards of the world, but known by God for the standards of their faith. Why these three? I don't know, but that's where the Spirit wanted to take me.

Mary Louise Vigil, woman of God, my dad's associate pastor. Here's a woman who defies all the odds. She can tell you her story of being an alcoholic at the age of twelve. She can tell you how God delivered her cold turkey at the altar with no withdrawals. One story of hers I want to tell is about her faith.

I remember the day she told me about one of the largest store buildings in town, the former A.J. Bayless building in Douglas, Arizona. That summer day about four years, she told me that she had two experiences where she prayed that this building would be used for the Lord's work. So strong was the presence of God when she told me this that I immediately took out a piece of paper and together we started planning the usage of this building. We laid out the future sanctuary and I negotiated with her for a portion of this building for the youth. Never mind, literally, that a company owned the building and that it was still in business. I will never forget when she told me a couple years later that the company had tried and tried to sell this building to no avail. When they could not find a buyer they resulted to donating the property. But to whom? Well, unknown to her and any of us, they chose the church where Mary Louise attended and ministered without so much as giving an explanation for their choice. In fact, we had no idea that the company was even thinking about donating the property. We all found out after the fact. Why on earth would one of the largest properties in Douglas, Arizona with one of the largest parking lots in the city be given to the Lord's work for free? Simple, because Mary Louise follows the wind of the Holy Spirit.

Then there's my niece, Cindy. She's over in Thailand right now as a missionary. She was there before the Tsunami and she'll be there after the last relief efforts have run their course. One of her missions is to "buy" young girls before they are sold into prostitution by their desperate and destitute parents. She can tell you about the miracles that happen over there. She can tell you about the hope that her mission brings. But the question I want to ask is: why did my American niece leave the security and comforts of her Southern Californian home to go over to a dangerous and poverty stricken country to rescue total strangers? Simple, because Cindy follows the wind of the Holy Spirit.

Lastly, our good friend and former youth member, Lorena. My wife and I always saw the awesome potential in this young lady. We saw even despite her shyness that she would one day be used mightily by God. Recently, we were invited to attend the Royal Navy's celebration of Trafalgar Day (where our picture was taken in noticeably poor lighting). We had asked Lorena to baby sit for us that night. After the celebration, we returned and I began the laborious task of taking off my uniform---my undersized cumberbund was quite grateful as its velcro teeth were screaming the entire night and would pop off with each bite of food :-). As I was changing into my civilian clothes to take Lorena home, the Lord spoke to me and said "Lorena has a message from me to you." I remembered her shyness and thought "did I just hear that?" We got into the car and on the way to her home I asked about the family. After the small talk came the long silence and then all of a sudden. "Guess What?!!!" she shouted. I had never seen her so excited. She gathered herself and said "last night the Lord used me to give words of knowledge." For those who may not know, these put the best psychics to shame, because these come from the Almighty, all-knowing, and only God of the Universe (1 Corinthians 12:7-11). She went on to tell me how one by one the Lord revealed things about several of her family members while in their presence. She ministered at length to each one, praying for sicknesses and marital problems only known by the affected persons. As she told me this, I was reminded of what the Lord had told me. I asked her to pray for me and she gave me the word of encouragement my family and career needed at that particular moment. How does she do it? How can a teenage girl be used of God so powerfully? Simple, because Lorena follows the wind of the Holy Spirit.

There are a thousand and one reasons not to believe these three stories. There are a thousand and one explanations and criticisms. You hear its sound, but are you fighting or following the wind of the Holy Spirit? Jesus put it very simply "you must be born again." The adult mind will never understand what a child's faith takes for granted. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit. Follow the wind of the Holy Spirit, any which way it blows. Follow Christ.

Bro DJ

Oh and just so you don't think I forgot about the men. Check out how these two M.O.Gs (Men of God) follow the wind of the Holy Spirit with little more than their backpacks, one change of clothes, a camera, and a world map: www.traveltheroad.com. Thanks Bro Fin-daddy for the site!

Danny Boy Dreams of Jesus

Last night was a great night of family devotionals. Devotionals in our home means reading a short passage of Scripture, sharing our thoughts about what it means (with plenty of examples from personal experience), and then prayer. My wife and I have seen a tremendous growth in our oldest son. He shows such a keen understanding of the Bible and what it means to be a Christian.

Last night we read about having the faith the size of a mustard seed and how this faith can literally move mountains (Matthew 17:14-20). This really struck a chord with Danny Boy as one of his favorite songs is "Si Tuvieras Fe," which is a Spanish song based on this Scripture set to a tropical Latin beat complete with movements (Salvador has a great version).

To demonstrate the Scripture, I shared many stories of God's miraculous powers. One amazing but true story that my mother had just told me over the phone minutes earlier was about one of their member's near death experience, visitation to Heaven, and miraculous recovery from a coma. I relayed to him of how God had also worked a miracle with this Lady's son, whose car had all of sudden quit working while on the road. He prayed and then immediately felt a strong push that allowed his car to reach his destination. I explained to him that these miracles moved mountains in the lives of these people, all of whom happen to be ministered to by his grandparents. All that was needed was faith (belief in God) the size of a mustard seed watered with a lot of prayer.

Danny Boy was pretty shocked by the fact that there are people who do not believe in the stories of the Bible, like the story we had just read and discussed. The reason for his shock is that he has not only heard stories from the Bible, he has actually experienced them firsthand.

As we began to pray after our devotional we sensed a strong and beautiful presence in our living room. We immediately recognized this presence because we experience it on a routine basis at church, work, home, and just about everywhere when we pray---it's the presence of God.

I noticed Danny Boy look up to a corner of the room and then scan around the room. I knew by the expression on his face that he had just seen something. Interestingly, minutes earlier, I had seen some movement out of the corner of my eye while I was reading the passage of Scripture (I kept this little observation to myself).

After scanning the living room, he looked around to me and then said rather calmly "Dad I just saw an angel." I asked him where he had seen the messenger (angel means "messenger") even though my wife and I had both seen his actions as he scanned the room. He pointed to the corner of the room near the ceiling. As I looked up and back to him I saw a small flash of light dart from the corner. He then retraced the messenger's movements around the room.

A picture drawn by Danny Boy the day after our angelic visitation depicting the angel he saw in our living room

I told him that angels bring messages from God and that we are supposed to only pray to God and not to angels. I knew that God had a message in store for Danny Boy.

As we prepared for bed, Danny Boy asked me "Dad what does Jesus look like?" I told him that I did not know for sure but that based on a dream that I had had of him, that matched the accounts of the Transfiguration and those in the book of Revelation, he looked very much like the pictures we often see of him. He was content with my answer and soon fell asleep.

This morning he woke me up in excitement. "Dad last night I saw Jesus in a dream." He added, "I saw the cross and him dying for my sins." Remembering our messenger's visitation the night before, I asked him "did he tell you anything?" He responded "yes, he told me that he was hungry and had no place to go in." Immediately, I was reminded of the parable of the sheep and the goats (Matthew 25:31-40). He then said that he woke up and looked for Jesus but did not see him anywhere.

I knew this was a message from God for several reasons one of which is that Danny Boy has never heard the parable of the Sheep and Goats (we have been his Sunday School teachers all his young life).

This morning as I prepared to post this blog, I remembered the Chinese missionaries that are taking the message of the Bible to the most dangerous places on earth: the Islamic, Buddhist, and Hindu countries along the old Silk Route to Jerusalem. Recently, the Assemblies of God has challenged its members to give to this effort. These missionaries, who are a part of the "Back to Jerusalem" movement are giving spiritual food to people who are spiritually lost, hungry, and homeless. They are ministering to people who resemble the Jesus of Danny Boy's dream. You will be inspired by their amazing stories and those of others. You can learn more about and give to their cause and similar causes by:

Emailing:

mailto:info@biblealliance.org?subject=Please

Visiting:

Back to Jerusalem
http://www.backtojerusalem.com/

Testimonies from Back to Jerusalem
http://www.backtojerusalem.com/news.htm

Danny Boy's dream is not that uncommon when you check out some of the visions and dreams that these Chinese missionaries have had. Amazingly, Muslims are having visions and dreams of Jesus, as well as angelic visitations. However, unlike Danny Boy, they do not know who this Jesus is. That is, until someone tells them, feeds them, and shows them the only way into God's home. Have you met the Jesus of Danny Boy's dream? He is knocking at your door. Follow Christ.

Space Probe Conveys Message from God

Here's an article about the joint space probe "Huygens" landing on the Saturn moon of Titan. The story, much like the recent Nova episode (second part aired last night) mentioned in one of our previous posts, gives reference to the passion that these Space Agency professionals have for their spacecraft:

Mission officials — who have waited seven years for Huygens to reach its destination — had tears in their eyes as the first signal was picked up, indicating that the probe was transmitting to its mother ship, the international Cassini spacecraft.

Just imagine the passion God has for His creation. I know it brings tears to His eyes when He is able to establish communication with His children.

Don't believe in God? Here is something to think about. This year, more people will be believing than not believing in the God of the Bible. More people will be starting a personal relationship with God than those who will not. Will you be one of them?

Here are the facts...The world's population is roughly 6 billion people. There's about 2 billion Christians in the world alone. Of these, there are roughly 1 billion that believe in personal relationships with God (Evangelical Christians). Of this number, there are 500 million or so that believe and experience miracles, healings, and all the awesome supernatural experiences mentioned in the Bible. These Christians alone constitute a population twice that of the United States. Together, Evangelical Christians are growing in population by 13% per year. By contrast, the world's population is growing at 1.6% each year. In other words, more people are starting relationships with the God of the Universe than are being born in the world! Many of these people could tell you of personal experiences that scientists and engineers can not explain, experiences that can only be described as supernatural, explained only by the Bible. If you think about it, a relationship with the God of the Universe is supernatural in and of itself. Either these people, who are steadily becoming the majority in the world, are crazy or lying, OR they are experiencing real relationships with the God of the Universe. God is desperately awaiting your signal. Give Him an open line of communication. Follow Christ.

For some stats check out:
http://www.adherents.com/
http://www.missionfrontiers.org/

Join the Bandwagon before it leaves Station Earth!
-Bro djm

Preacher Dies During Sermon About Heaven

An amazing account about a person jumping into eternity. What are the chances of this minister's last words being "and when I go to heaven...?" or to even be speaking about the topic of the after-life the day he was to enter into his?

There is an after-life. There is more to this existence. What will your last words be on this earth? Are you ready for eternity? Are you willing to take the risk of not knowing about your eternity? Follow Christ.

Check out the story.

Mission to Mars Proves Truth of Life

Last night, I watched another great episode of NOVA on PBS with the family (before we played Candyland). The show featured the technical and sometimes even emotional journey of a group of NASA scientists and engineers who designed the MARS Rover Vehicles, "Spirit" and "Opportunity," and their entry mechanisms. I was immediately hooked because anything remotely to do with NASA intrigues me as I was once a NASA Space Grant intern and Space Lab Manager at the University of Arizona.

I marveled at how much thought, hard work and even stress went into the design, engineering and scientific process for making these missions a success. It was high drama and even brought tears to the eyes of some of these grown scientists and engineers, so proud and at times frustrated with their beloved technical creations.

Then suddenly this overwhelming truth flooded my person as I watched the rocket carrying "Spirit" preparing for its launch. Here is that truth:

Everything that was up there in that capsule was put their by years of design and purpose. Everything from the launch window time-frame, which comes every two years, to the precisely rigged and tested parachute, to the sturdy airbags for its controlled crash, to the tiniest of "pyros" that popped open the launder, and to the unfolding mechanism of the rovers had to work exactly as designed in order for the mission to be a success. Every piece, big or small had to come together almost perfectly in order for everything to work. Every last one of them were products of intelligent design, made for a purpose: to explore the possibility of life on Mars, past or present.

No person in their right mind and with any degree of intelligence would come across one of these Mars rovers years from now, frozen in place on the lifeless planet, and say that these wonderfully made creations of human intelligence were accidents and somehow found their way to this desolate planet. I doubt that such a person would say "I hypothesize that an asteroid hit the earth or a volcanic eruption on earth dislodged this beautiful craft and it landed here on Mars by complete accident and chance."

What credit would this be to the years of design and engineering it took to create these machines? Would it not be a crime to think nothing of the hard work, passion, and even love it took to build and send these machines exactly to their place of destination? Would there not be a personal story behind their making?

In spite of all their complication, these machines can not even measure up to the complication of a single-celled bacterium---a bacterium that was designed to live, operate, and, even more amazing, reproduce in the most austere environments known to life.

Now think about yourself for a moment. As your eyes scan over this line, think about the millions of cellular and sub-cellular interactions that have to work just right and come together precisely and accurately for you to read, breathe and live for this moment. You are much better off than that bacterium and those rovers on Mars. Unlike them: you know that you exist; you want to have a purpose for living outside of just existing; you know what love is or may want to know what it is; you want to think that there is meaning to life, and you want to know, like those NASA scientists and engineers, whether there is life outside of human existence.

The truth is, you are not an accident. You and everything you know about life in the Universe is not the product of random chance. Furthermore, you are not even reading this by accident. Everything had to work and come together exactly as God designed for you to be alive and reading this. You can believe all you want that you are an accident, the product of natural selection and chance, but it will not change the fact that you are masterpiece of God's intelligence, that you have a purpose, and that God is attempting to communicate with you. He'll use any way to reach you, even faster than the speed of light. He'll use anything to reach you, even a blog. He'll use anyone to reach you, even another blogger. If you just let Him. These words are flowing through human hands, but they are not the thoughts of the human mind. They are the thoughts from the heart of a Creator, who is proud of you, is passionate about you, and who has given you the power of choice (not even bacteria, much less human-made machines, have what we know as choice).

You have the choice to believe that He exists. You have the choice to believe in His love. You have the choice to believe in His purposes for your life. You have the choice to seek a Higher life-form outside of your physically-confining environment. Just for a moment in your life, for once in your life, BELIEVE and KNOW that God loves you! Humans would travel the Universe if they could to find life when a very real universe is just on the other side of their hearts. The only distance between the two is belief!

I could tell you over and over that the earth is not flat and that gravity exists. But it's entirely your choice to believe these truths. These truths are not abstract. Either the earth is flat or it's not. Either gravity exists or it doesn't. Whether you believe these truths or not does not change the fact that they are true. You can believe all you want that God does not exist, much less that He loves you or has a purpose for your life. We'll respectfully disagree on this point and you're free to go on not believing. But it doesn't change the truth that He does exist, that He made you, and that He has a purpose for your life. You are a shining example of His intelligence. As He said Himself "You are fearfully and wonderfully made!"

For just a moment in your life, for once in your life, acknowledge Him. Take wonder at what He has done. Ask Him to show you His love. Ask Him to show you the purpose for your life. I promise you that you don't have to go to another planet to seek out life or the origins of life here on earth. Just go to the one who gave you life. He has been attempting to communicate this message to you for a very long time, ever since you left the innocence of childhood and assumed the right to choose for yourself. Choose Him. Give God a chance. Give him one minute of breath and he'll change your whole life.

In your own words, acknowledge that there is distance between you and Him. This distance has put you millions of miles away from your creator (just like those rovers on Mars). He put you on earth by design and for a purpose. He enabled your complex parts to come together and planned a great future for you while you were still in your mother's womb. He did all this to have a relationship with you, to know you and for you to know Him. His name is "Father God." The one who has been tugging at your heart is His "Spirit." The one who bridges the distance, between you and Father God is named "Jesus." He is the one that wants to take your hand and show you the only way to God. He is the one sent from the Father to bring you back home and re-unite you with your creator. In your own words, believe that Jesus can do this. In your own words, believe that He loves you. Accept Him today, at this moment, for once in your life accept the greatest truth of life.

May God light the fire in you with His Spirit!
Danny Morales,
dannyandmartha@lighthefire.com

P.S. thank you Doc Nos for your encouraging blog ;-)

Support the Tsunami Relief Effort in South East Asia

The Assemblies of God has relief efforts in full swing. Many of the congregations are housing the displaced people, and are providing food, medicine, crisis counseling, and spiritual support. These congregations are in need of funds to support their role in the relief efforts. We agree in prayer and action for the desperate needs of our fellow brothers and sisters (both Christians and non-Christians) who are suffering from the loss of their loved ones, homes, and ways of life. May the Lord perform miracles in their midst!

Bro DJ Morales