This week I am in Baltimore, MD sharing a series of messages with the overarching theme of “What Would Jesus Really Do?” The series take a look at the life and teachings of Jesus to determine whether or not what Jesus taught is applicable and relevant to our lives. Obviously I believe that the answer is a resounding YES and it seems that those who are coming out would agree. The series is being hosted by the Brooklyn SDA Church in Baltimore. You can find more information on the website.
If you are in the area, we want to encourage you to come out and join us. If you are unable to make it in person, the messages will be available on the church’s website soon. We are at the church starting promptly at 7pm each evening and Saturday mornings as 11am for a full-church service.
Location: Brooklyn Seventh-day Adventist Church
3533 Fourth St.
Baltimore, MD 21225
Contact: Pastor Nelson
Phone: 410-354-0027
Email:nelsray@juno.com
GODencounters: FLORIDA was absolutely amazing this year. Held May 22-23 in Orlando, FL on the campus of Forest Lake Academy, we had an outstanding experience in worship, community, and the Word!
For the ‘09 & ;’10 sessions of GODencounters: FLORIDA the theme is “The Greatest of These...” based on the verse found at the end of 1 Corinthians 13 (the love chapter), “:13 So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.” Furthermore, Jesus says, quoting Deutoronomy 6:5, in Matthew 22:37-39 And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” For 2009, we focused on the first of these two, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.”
If you were able to attend GODencounters this year, please let us know what you thought. And as always, if you have any questions/comments or prayer request, just let us know.
Today at Avondale we had an absolutely amazing time worshiping and connecting with Jesus! A BIG THANK YOU to all the participants and to Bevan Craig and Jeff Parker (www.nnswyouth.com) for their leadership in pulling this together. There was a sweet spirit in the place as we heard numerous testimonies about how God was working in and through people both locally and around the globe. It seems to me that God is on the move and that He truly is working out His good and perfect will in the lives of young people.
While I was really blessed hearing the stories about overseas mission projects (a great passion of mine!), I was especially blessed with the story of the mountain bike ministry that was started. The story was told about how a group of guys loved mountain biking, but came to a recognition that it was all about them. Deciding to follow Jesus, they choose to take their passion and make it a ministry that would be about others. The group has grown, establishing several different clubs. It is simply powerful to consider what can be done when Jesus is at the helm of our lives!
Blessings to you all NNSW youth! I look forward to seeing you in a few months at Big Camp 18+ tent!
This week I am on the Central Coast in Australia speaking at the Central Coast Adventist School for the bi-annual WOSE (Week of Spiritual Emphasis). The theme this year is “Sleeping In” based on the song by the Christian band Nevertheless. The emphasis is that we are often sleep walking through our lives, not making a commitment, not taking a full-on stand. It has been said before that until you find something worth dying for, you’re not really living. Jesus died for you, He died for me and when you enter into a relationship with Him, suddenly you have something worth really living for!
I would love to hear from you guys (the students) on your thoughts about the week. Let me know if you have any questions, comments or prayer requests.
This week I am at Blue Mountain Academy in Hamburg, PA. I will be here all week speaking every afternoon and evening to the student body. This is my second day and I am already feelin’ the love.
Yesterday we started by simply leveling the playing field. What I mean by this is that before we get down into the life and teachings of Jesus, my goal is to help people to recognize that they do have a need for Jesus. Where is this found? In my opinion every human can relate with the Apostle Paul’s statement that “the things that I don’t want to do, I do. And the things that I want to stop doing is the every thing that I keep doing.” This basic human experience is also known as sin. The Bible defines sin as “to the person who knows to do right, but doesn’t do it, to that person it is a sin.”
Ultimately Jesus died for our sin issues. Beyond that, Jesus wants to restore in us His own Spirit so that we actually become like Jesus as He lives His good and perfect will out in our lives.
I am looking forward to the remainder of the week. Prayers ascend that Jesus shows up in powerful ways!
This weekend I was in Orlando, FL speaking on the campus of Forest Lake Adventist Academy for a state wide annual youth event called Just Do Something!. The weekend is all about mobilizing young people to put their faith in action. After our corporate worship experience on Friday morning, roughly 200 young people went out into the community and help primarily in beautification projects. Later that evening, during the next corporate worship experience a video was shown which captured testimonies of the young people sharing their perspective of what service meant to them. All in all it was a wonderful weekend and I thoroughly enjoyed spending the weekend with them.
Plans are already being made for Just Do Something ‘10! Hope to see you then!
This weekend I am headed to Ontario, Canada to speak at LIVE FEED: A Conference on Media in the Lives of Young Men and Young Women. I am very excited about the opportunity. On Friday I will be spending the day in Toronto visiting a friend of mine from seminary, along with his leadership team. That evening I will be worshiping together with the church family and then on Sabbath heading over to the conference to present two gospel presentations. Friday night I will be at The Refuge Experience. If you are in the area. Come check us out!
For those of you who do attend, I invite your feedback. Let us hear from you what you appreciated about the conference and as always, if you have any questions or comments about my messages, feel free to let me know. Furthermore, if you have any prayer requests this is a great place to post them.
Additionally, I would personally love to hear how media and technology has been either a benefit to your spiritual walk or a hindrance. For me personally I know that on the negative side, media often distracts me from priorities in my life. On a positive end, God has used media to further my walk with Him. I will go into this further this weekend, but I would love to hear from you how media has impacted your spiritual walk.
This week I am in Richland, WA presenting a series of messages revolving around the theme of “What Would Jesus Really Do?” This is an exploration through the teachings of Jesus to see what He would do if He was here in the 21st century.
On a personal note, I have found these topics to be a real fascinating study and a fresh approach to looking at scripture. Each night I find myself not only more excited about the life and teachings of Jesus, but I am also finding myself contemplating spiritual issues.
If you are in the area, I would encourage you to come out. We are meeting at the Richland Adventist Church each night at 7pm and I do my best to end by 8pm.
For those of you who are joining us each night, I would love to hear from you. Maybe you have questions or comments that you would like to share with the rest of us.
I am looking forward to seeing you tonight as we discuss what Jesus would do to forgive others.
This year the NAD Youth Department has an initiative to help provide further equipping to the local churches. The name of the training is Innovation 2009 and will be held in various locations around N. America. This weekend I will be speaking for the main worship session in LA at the White Memorial SDA Church. If you are around I would love to have you join us. The event is free and you can find more information by CLICKING HERE. While I have to confess that my sermons are always a work in progress until I utter the last “Amen” I am planning on talking about how Jesus was the epitome of innovation in that He frequently brought in a new way of doing things, including making it possible for people to experience eternal life.
What are your thoughts? Do you think that Jesus was an innovator?
While some people literally hate Mark Driscoll, I love his emphasis on Jesus and the authority of Scripture. While I don’t agree with all of his theology, I believe that God is using him to further the Kingdom.
Lately I have had quite a few discussions with people in regards to debate dealing with Traditional/Conservative vs. Liberal/Progressive. While the video below doesn’t completely spell out everything, I do believe that it scratches the surface. What do you think?
This week I am in Baltimore, MD sharing a series of messages with the overarching theme of “What Would Jesus Really Do?” The series take a look at the life and teachings of Jesus to determine whether or not what Jesus taught is applicable and relevant to our lives. Obviously I believe that the answer is a resounding YES and it seems that those who are coming out would agree. The series is being hosted by the Brooklyn SDA Church in Baltimore. You can find more information on the website.
Today at Avondale we had an absolutely amazing time worshiping and connecting with Jesus! A BIG THANK YOU to all the participants and to Bevan Craig and Jeff Parker (
This week I am on the Central Coast in Australia speaking at the 
This week I am at 
This weekend I was in Orlando, FL speaking on the campus of Forest Lake Adventist Academy for a state wide annual youth event called Just Do Something!. The weekend is all about mobilizing young people to put their faith in action. After our corporate worship experience on Friday morning, roughly 200 young people went out into the community and help primarily in beautification projects. Later that evening, during the next corporate worship experience a video was shown which captured testimonies of the young people sharing their perspective of what service meant to them. All in all it was a wonderful weekend and I thoroughly enjoyed spending the weekend with them.
This weekend I am headed to Ontario, Canada to speak at LIVE FEED: A Conference on Media in the Lives of Young Men and Young Women. I am very excited about the opportunity. On Friday I will be spending the day in Toronto visiting a friend of mine from seminary, along with his leadership team. That evening I will be worshiping together with the church family and then on Sabbath heading over to the conference to present two gospel presentations. Friday night I will be at 
This week I am in Richland, WA presenting a series of messages revolving around the theme of “What Would Jesus Really Do?” This is an exploration through the teachings of Jesus to see what He would do if He was here in the 21st century.
This year the NAD Youth Department has an initiative to help provide further equipping to the local churches. The name of the training is 