Got kicked out of a band because I was a liberal......

The other day I received a message on my Facebook account from a friend.

Hey Marshall, I got fired from my new Christian band for being a liberal! They let me go last week. The whole experience was pretty unbelievable, I'll tell you about it when I see you. Darn Obama sticker on my car.

What is wrong with us? A bumper sticker has separated people from doing something for God together. I am always amazed at what we let separate us. I remember talking to a older man one time and he had a friend from an opposite political party and their friendship ended over it. I always found that to be a pretty shallow thing. I am sure that there are "critical" issues but are we trying to say "this is how Jesus would vote if He were to vote."

I know that this friend of mine loves Jesus with all his heart. I know that he serves in his local church. I know if people actually sat down and talked with him they would find that he loves people. Besides he is a good guitar player as well. All of this blows me away.

When your world view is your political party you have a problem. We need to remember that political systems are created by man not God, which means that people could be wrong. Their view could be wrong, and of course it could be right. Should't we approach it that way? Shouldn't we be able to have a conversation rather than just making a "judgement" on someone because of a "bumper sticker?" Wow!! I wanna give these people the benefit of the doubt and hopefully there were other reasons they wanted him to leave the band.

I know - a rant, a rave...oh well. I told him that it was a band that he didn't want to be a part of anyway.

A great week.

Such a great week this last week. Makes me so thankful for what my family and I get to be a part of at BridgeTown Ministries. I saw so many lives impacted this last week.
Two teams came into Portland to help us with our mission to "Love people because people matter", Colorado Christian University and Bethel Church from Tri Cities area in Washington. Each group posessed a strong passion to be used, to be challenged and to see God do things in their
lives. I watched them spend themselves in loving people. I so injoy witnessing sights like this


Watching high school students reaching out to the least of these. Letting God speak thru them. It never gets old. It always challenges me, always moves me to want more, to be more. To empty myself and be fully aware, available and present in every moment that I am blessed with.
Each time we finish one of our Adventures I am extremely tired, but it is a different tired, a tired in body but a freshness in spirit If you know what I mean.
I wonder about are participants, will they take the challenge to be world changers, will they decide to say yes to making a difference or will they just assume the posistion that so many assume, a consumer just accepting their faith as a "sin management program" or just a "fire insurance policy".
My hope is that they will take up the keys that have been intrusted to them by our Lord and run to the broken and hurting of this world with a message of love and redemption.
Each one of us bring something, we have something to give. We are created by a master designer a master builder one that can weave spirit and flesh together and then with the inspiration of the Holy Sprit, cause us to extend our heads, hearts and hands to others and let them know they matter, that God is aware of them, He knows their name, He knows that they are hungry and cold and weary and lost. Then through the eagerness of a young person He extends His hand to humanity and says, "I know you."

"God has given us the task of telling everyone what he is doing. We're Christ's representatives. God uses us to persuade men and women to drop their differences and enter into God's work of making things right between them. We're speaking for Christ himself now: Become friends with God; he's already a friend with you." 2 Corinthians 5