When Jesus started talking about marriage he said these words that are recorded in Mark 10:5"It was because your hearts were hard that Moses wrote you this law," Jesus replied. 6"But at the beginning of creation God 'made them male and female.'[a] 7'For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife,[b] 8and the two will become one flesh.'[c] So they are no longer two, but one. 9Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate."
Interesting choice of words; “for this reason”. What reason? Maybe it was because of their hard hearts. In Matthew 5 Jesus says that if I look upon a woman and lust that I have already committed adultery in MY HEART. (emphasis mine) It's a heart issue. Adultery is just a symptom of a sickness in my heart. Just because I haven't shown symptoms doesn't mean I'm not a carrier.
He goes on to say that in the beginning this was how it was meant to be; one man one woman. And when I look back at the Genesis account I see that they were “naked and unashamed”. (Gen 2:25) They were together. After Adam and Eve had been together for the first time, it says that God called their name “Adam”. (Gen 5:2)
From Song of Solomon to Hosea to Revelation, God would over and again use the picture of husband and wife as the picture for His relationship to us. (It stands to reason why there will be no more marriage in Heaven since the picture will no longer be needed.)
When all is right in a marriage, those moments of intimacy is as close we can come to on this side of heaven to understanding the picture of our relationship with God. With that in mind we see why it is that God would ask so much of us in marriage and why the enemy would attack it so fiercely. It’s the very picture of God and us. Tearing it apart damages the picture.
As an aside; It’s easy for us to sit and throw rocks at those we think have it all wrong, specifically in terms of sex. We go to Romans 1 and can dish out some serious theological rocks and declare them as “fools”. (Matt 5:22 If you missed last weeks teaching feel free to download it and see why Jesus equated that with murder)
What we skip is that Romans 2 Paul goes on to say that we shouldn’t be passing judgment. It’s not that what we’re seeing is or isn’t sin, but he says that in passing judgment we’re doing God’s job. I guess in short, He doesn’t need Holy Ghost Junior. If you want a good look at what Romans 2 is talking about, go to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F_hSyYfY9kc&feature=channel_page
In John 8 it’s recounted that there was a woman caught in the act of adultery that had been brought to Jesus. They didn’t bring the man along so we know that they weren’t really interested in the law as much as they were trapping Jesus in his own words. (Deut 22 and Ex 22 both say that BOTH should be killed)
If He said let her go, it would’ve been fodder for their fire as Jesus being a law breaker. By the same token saying to stone her would undo the message of grace He was bringing. Of course Jesus did neither. He said, let “he who is without sin, cast the first stone.”
You know the story. He bent down and wrote on the ground. The very finger of God that wrote the 10 commandments, bent down to write again. It’s not recorded what exactly He wrote, but what we know is this. One by one, from oldest to youngest, they all left. Of course we don’t know, but I kind of wonder if he was writing down the names of each individual there and right alongside of the name, the sin they were guilty of.
He looked to the woman and said, “woman where are your accusers?” She said that they had all gone. Every last one of them. And here was this woman, who was no doubt naked since she was caught in the very act of adultery standing there.
It’s not lost on me that she was standing there as it was in the beginning. She stood there naked, and maybe for the first time in her life: Unashamed.
There is much more to discuss. There isn’t one of us whose lives have not been affected or indirectly affected by adultery. There is so much hurt, destruction, and grief. There is also restoration. We’ll talk about all of that.
Monday night at 730pm. Hope to see you there.
Blessings,
Darren
LUKE CALDWELL FROM ESTERLYN WILL BE LEADING WORSHIP TOMORROW NIGHT. IF YOU WANT TO KNOW LUKE A LITTLE BETTER YOU CAN GO TO WWW.ESTERLYN.COM YOU CAN DOWNLOAD BOTH OF THEIR ALBUMS FOR FREE. NO GIMMICK. DIGITAL COPIES OF BOTH RECORDS. FREE.
1. Don't forget you can feed a child for a month in Haiti for $15. so easy. just click on www.conduitmission.org and you can donate online. Just skip Star Bucks for a couple weeks and you've got a kid covered for the month.
2. Pray about sponsoring one of our kids in Haiti full time. It's $32 a month to feed, clothe, educate and shower a child with the Love of Jesus. You can do this at www.conduitmission.org as well.
3. We had another lemonAID stand in Dallas, TX this week. special thanks to our friend Michael Slaughter and the people at Nations Church. If you're planning on doing the lemonAID stand this summer let me know so we can report back.
Sunday, July 12, 2009
Sunday, June 21, 2009
Conduit June 22- Place of Hope Part 2
It had been several weeks since I had seen my dad. It was circa 1983 and he had been sick for some time. It had become apparent that he wasn’t going to be coming home anytime soon so we made a three hour road trip to Omaha where he was at the VA Hospital. It was my mom, all 4 brothers and my grandparents.
I don’t remember much about the visit other than he had to come down to see us because hospital rules did not allow children in the patient’s room. I remember that he looked really different than the last time I had seen him. I was too young to articulate it but losing 40 pounds can really change the look of someone.
What I specifically remember is after they wheeled him back upstairs we waited there with my grandma for what seemed like hours. It seemed like it because it was. Years later I would learn that the reason she was gone so long was that my dad had gone into cardiac arrest and had actually died before being resuscitated. All the while we were blissfully unaware and stir crazy in the waiting room. When my Mom and Grandfather came downstairs they never said a word.
I don’t mean this to be a commentary on government controlled health care but what started as a simple appendicitis had grown to my dad being hooked on prescription meds and dying. This all happened in the squalid conditions of a VA hospital. It was after this moment that my mom decided to take matters into her own hands.
Alongside of our pastor Patsy Busey, she went back to Omaha with our dear family friends Duane and Diana Covey. They were told he was too sick to leave and that they wouldn’t allow him to go. Knowing that staying was just as much of a death sentence Duane informed them that he would kick down “every damn door in the hospital” (as it was later quoted to me) to find him. He was a marine corp. vet and they believed him.
My dad was soon on the way to a faith based nonprofit hospital in Oklahoma that took in people whether or not they could pay. We fell into the “could not pay” category. Within moments of being seen he was diagnosed. He was addicted to prescription painkillers, a fact that was overlooked for months in the government operated hospital. The VA had locked him up in a psych ward and medicated him out of his mind.
With the Christ centered nature of the treatment he received in Oklahoma he was out and on his own in just a couple months. He’s been clean for 30 some years.
This Fathers Day I’m reminded that addiction tried to steal my father. It wasn’t a government hospital that pulled him through it was Jesus and those that were listening to His call to serve the poor.
This wasn’t consciously one of the reasons we decided to support Mike Coupe and Place of Hope. Rather it’s just one of those Godincidence type things. It’s just like God to place this ministry right in front of us at the exact moment we were praying about who we should send our financial resources to.
There are moms and dads in Place of Hope at this very moment who will be restored to their families. Conduit plays a role in this through our financial commitment to Place of Hope. We are an active and vital part of the ministry of restoration. We are rescuing hostages from the hands of the enemy. We are setting free the captives.
I had some testimonials forwarded to me from our brothers and sisters who are in treatment at Place of Hope that joined us last week at Conduit. I’m putting a few of them below. Notice the phrase “saved my life.” Take it from someone whose own father almost lost his life to this disease. That is not hyperbole.
It’s fitting that we’re at the 5th commandment to honor our father and mother on Fathers Day weekend. If you haven’t noticed in our previous studies, these commandments are super meaningful to our lives and this one is no difference. With most of us not living at home anymore it might not seem like this commandment is a throw away. Believe me when I say it’s not. Hopefully you can join us tomorrow night.
Blessings,
Darren
Below are the testimonies from our brothers and sisters who are being rescued from the evil that is addiction through the ministry that is happening at Place of Hope.
“I would like to thank the Conduit group for supporting the Place of Hope. The Place of Hope has saved me from sure death by showing me a new and wonderful way of life. I have given my will and life completely to God and He has given me peace and strength like I have never had before. I believe my life has purpose now and I know what my purpose is. I want to share this gift with as many other people as I can. God has taken away my desire to drink and use drugs and given me a desire to know more of His will for me.”
- Matthew T.
The contributions that you make as such a small group are simply amazing. Through your donations to the Place of Hope you have saved my life from the drugs and alcohol that consumed me. You have given me so much hope and faith. May God always bless you with all of His blessings.”
- Todd H.
“I wanted to thank you for coming to ya’lls place. It helped me a lot. It’s good to see people help other people they didn’t know.”
- Lonnie C.
“My experience at Conduit on Monday night was amazing! I felt very blessed to have met many of the young men and women that help so unselfishly and generously to the Place of Hope. It was very inspiring. Thanks from the bottom of my heart. It’s believers like you who believe for people like me until I can believe for myself. God bless you all!”
- Rhonda H.
“I was touched and impressed to listen to what the Conduit Ministry has done so selflessly for all of us at the Place of Hope and other ministries.”
- Jeffrey D.
“I was so confused when I walked into these doors at the Place of Hope! Through day after day of hearing the Word, now I have a purpose in life. The Place of Hope saved my life!! Brother Mike Coupe is kind, going out of his way to help somebody. I wished I be more like Brother Mike Coupe. I cannot say enough about the Place of Hope!!”
- Chris B.
“I would like to thank Darren and the Conduit Group for all you have done for me. You have saved my life. You are an inspiration to us all.”
- John L.
“I have been at the Place of Hope for six weeks and I enjoyed our visit to the Conduit meeting. The Place of Hope has saved my life. I now walk with the Lord and we appreciate your contributions and support. We are the lepers of the 21st century and the Conduit judges no one. I give ya’ll my deepest thanks. Ya’ll are part of the Place of Hope.”
- Michael R.
I don’t remember much about the visit other than he had to come down to see us because hospital rules did not allow children in the patient’s room. I remember that he looked really different than the last time I had seen him. I was too young to articulate it but losing 40 pounds can really change the look of someone.
What I specifically remember is after they wheeled him back upstairs we waited there with my grandma for what seemed like hours. It seemed like it because it was. Years later I would learn that the reason she was gone so long was that my dad had gone into cardiac arrest and had actually died before being resuscitated. All the while we were blissfully unaware and stir crazy in the waiting room. When my Mom and Grandfather came downstairs they never said a word.
I don’t mean this to be a commentary on government controlled health care but what started as a simple appendicitis had grown to my dad being hooked on prescription meds and dying. This all happened in the squalid conditions of a VA hospital. It was after this moment that my mom decided to take matters into her own hands.
Alongside of our pastor Patsy Busey, she went back to Omaha with our dear family friends Duane and Diana Covey. They were told he was too sick to leave and that they wouldn’t allow him to go. Knowing that staying was just as much of a death sentence Duane informed them that he would kick down “every damn door in the hospital” (as it was later quoted to me) to find him. He was a marine corp. vet and they believed him.
My dad was soon on the way to a faith based nonprofit hospital in Oklahoma that took in people whether or not they could pay. We fell into the “could not pay” category. Within moments of being seen he was diagnosed. He was addicted to prescription painkillers, a fact that was overlooked for months in the government operated hospital. The VA had locked him up in a psych ward and medicated him out of his mind.
With the Christ centered nature of the treatment he received in Oklahoma he was out and on his own in just a couple months. He’s been clean for 30 some years.
This Fathers Day I’m reminded that addiction tried to steal my father. It wasn’t a government hospital that pulled him through it was Jesus and those that were listening to His call to serve the poor.
This wasn’t consciously one of the reasons we decided to support Mike Coupe and Place of Hope. Rather it’s just one of those Godincidence type things. It’s just like God to place this ministry right in front of us at the exact moment we were praying about who we should send our financial resources to.
There are moms and dads in Place of Hope at this very moment who will be restored to their families. Conduit plays a role in this through our financial commitment to Place of Hope. We are an active and vital part of the ministry of restoration. We are rescuing hostages from the hands of the enemy. We are setting free the captives.
I had some testimonials forwarded to me from our brothers and sisters who are in treatment at Place of Hope that joined us last week at Conduit. I’m putting a few of them below. Notice the phrase “saved my life.” Take it from someone whose own father almost lost his life to this disease. That is not hyperbole.
It’s fitting that we’re at the 5th commandment to honor our father and mother on Fathers Day weekend. If you haven’t noticed in our previous studies, these commandments are super meaningful to our lives and this one is no difference. With most of us not living at home anymore it might not seem like this commandment is a throw away. Believe me when I say it’s not. Hopefully you can join us tomorrow night.
Blessings,
Darren
Below are the testimonies from our brothers and sisters who are being rescued from the evil that is addiction through the ministry that is happening at Place of Hope.
“I would like to thank the Conduit group for supporting the Place of Hope. The Place of Hope has saved me from sure death by showing me a new and wonderful way of life. I have given my will and life completely to God and He has given me peace and strength like I have never had before. I believe my life has purpose now and I know what my purpose is. I want to share this gift with as many other people as I can. God has taken away my desire to drink and use drugs and given me a desire to know more of His will for me.”
- Matthew T.
The contributions that you make as such a small group are simply amazing. Through your donations to the Place of Hope you have saved my life from the drugs and alcohol that consumed me. You have given me so much hope and faith. May God always bless you with all of His blessings.”
- Todd H.
“I wanted to thank you for coming to ya’lls place. It helped me a lot. It’s good to see people help other people they didn’t know.”
- Lonnie C.
“My experience at Conduit on Monday night was amazing! I felt very blessed to have met many of the young men and women that help so unselfishly and generously to the Place of Hope. It was very inspiring. Thanks from the bottom of my heart. It’s believers like you who believe for people like me until I can believe for myself. God bless you all!”
- Rhonda H.
“I was touched and impressed to listen to what the Conduit Ministry has done so selflessly for all of us at the Place of Hope and other ministries.”
- Jeffrey D.
“I was so confused when I walked into these doors at the Place of Hope! Through day after day of hearing the Word, now I have a purpose in life. The Place of Hope saved my life!! Brother Mike Coupe is kind, going out of his way to help somebody. I wished I be more like Brother Mike Coupe. I cannot say enough about the Place of Hope!!”
- Chris B.
“I would like to thank Darren and the Conduit Group for all you have done for me. You have saved my life. You are an inspiration to us all.”
- John L.
“I have been at the Place of Hope for six weeks and I enjoyed our visit to the Conduit meeting. The Place of Hope has saved my life. I now walk with the Lord and we appreciate your contributions and support. We are the lepers of the 21st century and the Conduit judges no one. I give ya’ll my deepest thanks. Ya’ll are part of the Place of Hope.”
- Michael R.
Conduit June 15- Place of Hope
If you’re Lindsay or Brittany and you find yourself hooked on drugs and/ or alcohol after you call your publicist , you head out to a resort style detox center and begin plotting your comeback. The biggest decisions are should you call Oprah or Barbara first.
If you’re poor and in the same situation your monumentally screwed. You can walk into an emergency room and say the magic words “I’m feeling suicidal” and they have to take you in. But it’s just a band aid solution. The church isn’t very well suited for the combination of a spiritual and medical battle that is addiction.
If you’ve ever witnessed or personally battled with addiction you are familiar with the sense of hopelessness that comes alongside it. The starts and stops, the failures and successes, the lost and found moments are all part of the slide. You’ve seen how it can seem like you’ve finally beaten it, only to see it start over again.
It’s easy to sit and throw rocks of blame. It’s seems so simple that they did this to themselves. Of course if you’re a child and it’s your single parent that “did it to themselves” as best you can tell you just want your mommy back. It can all seem quite hopeless. But it’s not.
God chose an alcoholic named Mike Coupe as a messenger of hope. Mike had his own battle with alcoholism and through Christ he defeated it. 2 Corinthians 2:4 says that God comforts us in our troubles SO THAT we can comfort those in any troubles with the same comfort we ourselves have received. The very thing the enemy meant for harm in Mike and his families lives God has used for good. If Satan had only known, I’m assuming he would have left Mike alone.
God interrupted Mike’s life with an idea that He could be used by the Lord to make a difference in someone’s life, to change someone’s personal history. Alongside Dr. John Brown, Mike started Place of Hope in Columbia, TN over 10 years ago. That idea has since become a sixty-four bed facility that according to their website “provides quality care for adult men and women and their families, throughout the Middle Tennessee region.”
Place of Hope also includes a temporary shelter for the homeless and a daily hot meal for the hungry and elderly. In addition, they collect, recycle, and give away clothing, furniture, and household goods to the poor. In His first public declaration of ministry, Jesus stood up and read from Isaiah. It was like Jesus "mission statement". Included in that statement was a promise to bring liberty to the captives and to preach the gospel to the poor. Mike lives this out every day.
Conduit financially supports 3 different ministries. Place of Hope is one of them. We are blessed to be one of their largest donors. We are an active part of the supply line to the troops on the front lines right here in our own back yard.
Mike will be joining us tomorrow night at Conduit to share the story of Place of Hope. It’s a fascinating journey filled with testimonies of God providing time and time again. I’m always inspired after spending time around Mike. He’s a perfect example of what can happen when someone like you or I just simply surrender to the call of God on our lives.
He takes ordinary people and does extraordinary things.
We’ll be starting at 7:30pm in the Theater at Journey Church in Franklin.
I hope you can join us.
Darren
You can see more about Place of Hope at www.placeofhope.us
www.darrentyler.com
If you’re poor and in the same situation your monumentally screwed. You can walk into an emergency room and say the magic words “I’m feeling suicidal” and they have to take you in. But it’s just a band aid solution. The church isn’t very well suited for the combination of a spiritual and medical battle that is addiction.
If you’ve ever witnessed or personally battled with addiction you are familiar with the sense of hopelessness that comes alongside it. The starts and stops, the failures and successes, the lost and found moments are all part of the slide. You’ve seen how it can seem like you’ve finally beaten it, only to see it start over again.
It’s easy to sit and throw rocks of blame. It’s seems so simple that they did this to themselves. Of course if you’re a child and it’s your single parent that “did it to themselves” as best you can tell you just want your mommy back. It can all seem quite hopeless. But it’s not.
God chose an alcoholic named Mike Coupe as a messenger of hope. Mike had his own battle with alcoholism and through Christ he defeated it. 2 Corinthians 2:4 says that God comforts us in our troubles SO THAT we can comfort those in any troubles with the same comfort we ourselves have received. The very thing the enemy meant for harm in Mike and his families lives God has used for good. If Satan had only known, I’m assuming he would have left Mike alone.
God interrupted Mike’s life with an idea that He could be used by the Lord to make a difference in someone’s life, to change someone’s personal history. Alongside Dr. John Brown, Mike started Place of Hope in Columbia, TN over 10 years ago. That idea has since become a sixty-four bed facility that according to their website “provides quality care for adult men and women and their families, throughout the Middle Tennessee region.”
Place of Hope also includes a temporary shelter for the homeless and a daily hot meal for the hungry and elderly. In addition, they collect, recycle, and give away clothing, furniture, and household goods to the poor. In His first public declaration of ministry, Jesus stood up and read from Isaiah. It was like Jesus "mission statement". Included in that statement was a promise to bring liberty to the captives and to preach the gospel to the poor. Mike lives this out every day.
Conduit financially supports 3 different ministries. Place of Hope is one of them. We are blessed to be one of their largest donors. We are an active part of the supply line to the troops on the front lines right here in our own back yard.
Mike will be joining us tomorrow night at Conduit to share the story of Place of Hope. It’s a fascinating journey filled with testimonies of God providing time and time again. I’m always inspired after spending time around Mike. He’s a perfect example of what can happen when someone like you or I just simply surrender to the call of God on our lives.
He takes ordinary people and does extraordinary things.
We’ll be starting at 7:30pm in the Theater at Journey Church in Franklin.
I hope you can join us.
Darren
You can see more about Place of Hope at www.placeofhope.us
www.darrentyler.com
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Conduit June 1- God Branding
One of the things that I learned early on being a manager was that artists like free stuff. Of course, this is not unique to artists, it’s somewhat of a human condition lived out at the sample tables at Costco every day. (I get borderline giddy when they break out the chicken wing samples.)
Almost without exception one of the earliest questions I get from a new client has to do with endorsements. It’s a great lesson to teach a young artist that there really isn’t any such thing as a free lunch or more specifically free guitar. A corporation isn’t in the business of giving out free stuff to artists because they think it’s cool. There is very much a business transaction going on. The transaction is simple, they pay you with free stuff and in exchange they get to tell people that you’re playing, wearing, driving, or slathering their stuff on.
They’re playing to lowest common 8th grade denominator that if the cool kids are doing it everyone will want to. And of course, it works. When Suzuki sponsored the Kutless tour it was their expectation that they would sell motorcycles and cars as a result of their investment. The good news is they did.
If you’re a baby band nobody has heard of you are not a potential endorser, you are a potential customer. Thus little to no free stuff for you. As the name of the artist grows, so does the desire of a company to align them selves with the name (In modern circles we like to call it “the brand”) of the artist or band.
As is always the case when lawyers and handlers are involved the deals can get way more complex and sophisticated but at its base that’s what an endorsement is all about. Your name side by side with a product or service acts as an endorsement or verification of the legitimacy of the product or service.
As an artist it’s important to not put your name next to things you don’t support, stand for, or even for stuff that has bad quality to it. The reason is simple, your name, no matter how popular, does not bring legitimacy or quality to a bad product or service. It might boost initial sales or whatever, but ultimately if the product or service is inferior or offensive it brings the name of the artist down, not the quality of the product up. It can actually bring damage to the name or “brand” of an artist.
When God was writing up the 10 commandments with His own hand He puts this commandment in the top 3.
Exodus 20:7 Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain;
It’s pretty easy to have total buy in with the no murdering or stealing ones, but why would this one be so important? I do agree that someone ought not to evoke God and damn if you bang your shin but If it were just referring to cussing, could that have made the top ten?
The KJ version doesn’t say to not speak His name in vain but rather not to “take” it. The NIV uses the words “do not misuse”. It’s oversimplifying to suggest that it’s just referring to speaking His name wrongly. That is part of it, just not all of it.
In Matthew 7 Jesus said that there will be some who come to Him on that day (referring to judgment day) and say Lord, we cast out demons in your name, prophecy in your name, do miracles in Your name? Jesus said something that is at best provocative and at worst scary; He said He will say on that day “I never even knew you”.
It’s almost as if Jesus is painting the picture of what we would call a “name dropper.” You know the type, dropping the names of famous or powerful people as if they’re friends even when they likely only met them in passing. It’s evoking a name to make them feel or appear more than they are.
When I’m dropping the name of Jesus as if I know Him and meanwhile keep up my own agenda, lifestyle, systems that’s very much taking His name in vain. It’s utilizing His name for my own agenda. Offering up my opinions, systems, programs, judgments, in the name of God doesn’t make my agenda look any better, rather it brings defamation to Gods name. After reading what Jesus said it ought to make me afraid.
It’s easy to point the finger at a televangelist wringing people out of their money to support a lavish lifestyle or shooting and killing an abortion doctor. I also think this could apply in our institutional churches where we’re building programs, systems, regulations, judgments in the name of God that look nothing like God.
Jesus gave this as a warning for us to be able to recognize them as false prophets. (matt 7) The good news is He said it would be super easy to spot them. He said we would know them by their fruit. What does the Bible call fruit? In Galatians Paul says that the fruit of the spirit is Love. Not how many people are being “reached” or how many “souls” are saved, that’s not the fruit. (those are more branches being attached to the vine)
I guess maybe it’s better to think of it the other way around. Instead of me trying to sign up God as my endorser, I should be signing up as an endorser for God. Philippians 2 says that His name is above all other names. There isn’t anyone with a bigger name for him to score as an endorser, so he picks you and me.
And what is God selling? Not to be cheeky but He’s not selling anything, He’s giving it away. He’s offering life, salvation, service to the poor and vulnerable. To put it simply, Love. When I’m spending my time offering Gods stuff. When I’m spending my time preaching the gospel, serving the poor and vulnerable, loving my family well, I’m an endorser for God.
In doing this it’s not just good branding, it’s God branding.
Tomorrow night we're back at Conduit and will be unpacking this commandment. I have more to unpack on this topic and I'm sure you will too. Come prepared for a fun conversation.
Blessings,
Darren
www.conduitmission.org
remember that $15 will feed a child in Haiti for a month. pray about it and see if God might lead you to partner with us.
www.darrentyler.podomatic.com the teachings from Conduit all posted here.
Almost without exception one of the earliest questions I get from a new client has to do with endorsements. It’s a great lesson to teach a young artist that there really isn’t any such thing as a free lunch or more specifically free guitar. A corporation isn’t in the business of giving out free stuff to artists because they think it’s cool. There is very much a business transaction going on. The transaction is simple, they pay you with free stuff and in exchange they get to tell people that you’re playing, wearing, driving, or slathering their stuff on.
They’re playing to lowest common 8th grade denominator that if the cool kids are doing it everyone will want to. And of course, it works. When Suzuki sponsored the Kutless tour it was their expectation that they would sell motorcycles and cars as a result of their investment. The good news is they did.
If you’re a baby band nobody has heard of you are not a potential endorser, you are a potential customer. Thus little to no free stuff for you. As the name of the artist grows, so does the desire of a company to align them selves with the name (In modern circles we like to call it “the brand”) of the artist or band.
As is always the case when lawyers and handlers are involved the deals can get way more complex and sophisticated but at its base that’s what an endorsement is all about. Your name side by side with a product or service acts as an endorsement or verification of the legitimacy of the product or service.
As an artist it’s important to not put your name next to things you don’t support, stand for, or even for stuff that has bad quality to it. The reason is simple, your name, no matter how popular, does not bring legitimacy or quality to a bad product or service. It might boost initial sales or whatever, but ultimately if the product or service is inferior or offensive it brings the name of the artist down, not the quality of the product up. It can actually bring damage to the name or “brand” of an artist.
When God was writing up the 10 commandments with His own hand He puts this commandment in the top 3.
Exodus 20:7 Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain;
It’s pretty easy to have total buy in with the no murdering or stealing ones, but why would this one be so important? I do agree that someone ought not to evoke God and damn if you bang your shin but If it were just referring to cussing, could that have made the top ten?
The KJ version doesn’t say to not speak His name in vain but rather not to “take” it. The NIV uses the words “do not misuse”. It’s oversimplifying to suggest that it’s just referring to speaking His name wrongly. That is part of it, just not all of it.
In Matthew 7 Jesus said that there will be some who come to Him on that day (referring to judgment day) and say Lord, we cast out demons in your name, prophecy in your name, do miracles in Your name? Jesus said something that is at best provocative and at worst scary; He said He will say on that day “I never even knew you”.
It’s almost as if Jesus is painting the picture of what we would call a “name dropper.” You know the type, dropping the names of famous or powerful people as if they’re friends even when they likely only met them in passing. It’s evoking a name to make them feel or appear more than they are.
When I’m dropping the name of Jesus as if I know Him and meanwhile keep up my own agenda, lifestyle, systems that’s very much taking His name in vain. It’s utilizing His name for my own agenda. Offering up my opinions, systems, programs, judgments, in the name of God doesn’t make my agenda look any better, rather it brings defamation to Gods name. After reading what Jesus said it ought to make me afraid.
It’s easy to point the finger at a televangelist wringing people out of their money to support a lavish lifestyle or shooting and killing an abortion doctor. I also think this could apply in our institutional churches where we’re building programs, systems, regulations, judgments in the name of God that look nothing like God.
Jesus gave this as a warning for us to be able to recognize them as false prophets. (matt 7) The good news is He said it would be super easy to spot them. He said we would know them by their fruit. What does the Bible call fruit? In Galatians Paul says that the fruit of the spirit is Love. Not how many people are being “reached” or how many “souls” are saved, that’s not the fruit. (those are more branches being attached to the vine)
I guess maybe it’s better to think of it the other way around. Instead of me trying to sign up God as my endorser, I should be signing up as an endorser for God. Philippians 2 says that His name is above all other names. There isn’t anyone with a bigger name for him to score as an endorser, so he picks you and me.
And what is God selling? Not to be cheeky but He’s not selling anything, He’s giving it away. He’s offering life, salvation, service to the poor and vulnerable. To put it simply, Love. When I’m spending my time offering Gods stuff. When I’m spending my time preaching the gospel, serving the poor and vulnerable, loving my family well, I’m an endorser for God.
In doing this it’s not just good branding, it’s God branding.
Tomorrow night we're back at Conduit and will be unpacking this commandment. I have more to unpack on this topic and I'm sure you will too. Come prepared for a fun conversation.
Blessings,
Darren
www.conduitmission.org
remember that $15 will feed a child in Haiti for a month. pray about it and see if God might lead you to partner with us.
www.darrentyler.podomatic.com the teachings from Conduit all posted here.
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Conduit Apirl 19- God's Image
When I started to think through this week, my initial instinct was to continue on a narration of Haiti and how vodou is actually a combination of gods that are lower than the big God of the universe. I figured I would have plenty of fodder to talk about and tie in with a statement in regards to a command against idols. Vodou takes the Catholic religion and then mixes in ingredients from different African religions. Think of it sort of like a gumbo religion. It’s Catholicism with a ingredients that are varying degrees of creepy. With all the images and idols Vodou felt like an easy target for a study on having no idols.
The problem was that I was confusing commandment #1: No other gods with commandment #2 “No graven images”. Haitian Vodou definitely comes up with some doozies as it relates to worshiping other gods. When it comes to creating a graven image of God, Americans are in a class all by our selves.
The confusion is easy because the word is also translated idols and we get those confused with gods. The fact is that they are two completely separate commandments that are at once mutually exclusive and yet (like all 10 of them) completely intertwined. Much like a chain with 10 links.
The first commandment is a warning against worshipping other gods. We talked about it last week at Conduit but simply put it’s a command against replacing the true God with false gods. The second commandment is a warning against worshipping the true God falsely.
Throughout history man has wondered what God is like. What does He look like, act like, talk like. The desire is to capture an essence of Him, and looking to, among other things, nature to create an image of what He is like. Thus the reason the American Indian would put an eagle on top of their totem poles, or the Polynesians would worship turtles, or Egyptians would worship cows. (Ex 20:4…or any likeness [of any thing] that [is] in heaven above, or that [is] in the earth beneath, or that [is] in the water under the earth)
They would say that the eagle is majestic and can see from above and is all knowing so that must be worthy of our worship. It’s just like God. It’s true that God is majestic, and all knowing and can see things I can’t, but the eagle swoops down out of the sky and picks of the weak and the defenseless. That is NOT God. It’s capturing something that is true of God, and applying it as God. It reduces Him, it oversimplifies Him, it brings confusion.
I don’t know anybody who knows anybody who has actually carved out a literal idol and used it for worship. My kids have used Play Doh for years and never once have I walked in and found them worshiping what they created for the Play Doh barnyard.
Just because the image isn’t literal doesn’t mean we haven’t created an image though. See if you smell what I’m stepping in.
Public figures are very conscious of their image. The image is sort of the short bio, the description, it’s the essence of who they are. When you think of Brad Pitt for instance you think of someone who is impossibly good looking, a great actor and a social activist. That is his image. It’s sort of reducing him to a couple of sentences. It’s true of Brad Pitt but it is not him.
What about God? What is His image? What is His essence? Paul told the church at Colossi that Jesus Christ was the image of the invisible God (Col 1:15) The writer of Hebrews goes a step further saying that the Son is the “exact representation of His being”. (Heb. 1:3) Jesus painted a picture of God not with His hands, but with His life.
Paul said in Romans that we are being conformed to His image (Rom 8:29) and that we should no longer conform to the patterns of this world. (Rom 12:1-4) Jesus Christ is the image of the unseen God, and we are to be conformed to that image, to the image of Christ. When I’m wondering how I should live, how I should respond to a situation, what my stance on a particular issue should be, I base it on Jesus Christ Himself. What is God’s “image”? Jesus.
What was Jesus known for? He had this amazing ability to make powerful religious people feel very uncomfortable and yet the marginalized, sinners, poor, oppressed felt very comfortable in His presence. When He saw people in need, He met their needs. He healed sick people. He fed hungry people. He lived sacrificially. He loved.
In their book Unchristian Gabe Lyons and David Kinnaman published research and found that the perception of Christians is that we are antihomosexual (95%) judgmental (87%) and hypocritical (85%) These perceptions are followed by majorities of boring, out of touch with reality.
When you stop and think of who Jesus was, how He lived while living here in a suit made of dude, how would you describe Him? Judgmental? Hypocritical? Boring? No way. How is it possible that this is our image? Perhaps it’s the image we’ve ascribed to God?
Paul said to not conform to this world, but the idea is of conforming to a pattern, to a mold. The pattern or mold of this world is to celebrate powerful, to get all I can, to be successful, to finish first. It’s the exact opposite of the image that Jesus painted with His life.
As a church we’ve sought power, we’ve sought success, prosperity, we’ve sought to impress people by “competing with the world” so that we can “reach” more people. In doing so we’ve unwittingly created an image, a graven image that attempts to represent who God is, but falls dramatically short.
I know that I’m speaking in generalities and the fact is there are churches right here in America that don’t worship this image of God. Conduit is only one example among many.
I saw a church in the image of God in Haiti. I saw a building that wasn’t fancy and had no moving lights. It didn’t even have glass in the windows. But it was a church serving their community. They were feeding the poor, healing the sick, and reaching out the world around. They weren’t prosperous, successful, or powerful; they weren’t even white. But then again, neither was Jesus.
It’s easy to cop an “Elijah complex” that nobody is getting this right but me and go hide. We must not do that. There are plenty of folks doing amazing stuff, they just don’t get on television. The church is you, the church is me. God isn't going to hire a publicist. We can tell His story with our lives.
The problem was that I was confusing commandment #1: No other gods with commandment #2 “No graven images”. Haitian Vodou definitely comes up with some doozies as it relates to worshiping other gods. When it comes to creating a graven image of God, Americans are in a class all by our selves.
The confusion is easy because the word is also translated idols and we get those confused with gods. The fact is that they are two completely separate commandments that are at once mutually exclusive and yet (like all 10 of them) completely intertwined. Much like a chain with 10 links.
The first commandment is a warning against worshipping other gods. We talked about it last week at Conduit but simply put it’s a command against replacing the true God with false gods. The second commandment is a warning against worshipping the true God falsely.
Throughout history man has wondered what God is like. What does He look like, act like, talk like. The desire is to capture an essence of Him, and looking to, among other things, nature to create an image of what He is like. Thus the reason the American Indian would put an eagle on top of their totem poles, or the Polynesians would worship turtles, or Egyptians would worship cows. (Ex 20:4…or any likeness [of any thing] that [is] in heaven above, or that [is] in the earth beneath, or that [is] in the water under the earth)
They would say that the eagle is majestic and can see from above and is all knowing so that must be worthy of our worship. It’s just like God. It’s true that God is majestic, and all knowing and can see things I can’t, but the eagle swoops down out of the sky and picks of the weak and the defenseless. That is NOT God. It’s capturing something that is true of God, and applying it as God. It reduces Him, it oversimplifies Him, it brings confusion.
I don’t know anybody who knows anybody who has actually carved out a literal idol and used it for worship. My kids have used Play Doh for years and never once have I walked in and found them worshiping what they created for the Play Doh barnyard.
Just because the image isn’t literal doesn’t mean we haven’t created an image though. See if you smell what I’m stepping in.
Public figures are very conscious of their image. The image is sort of the short bio, the description, it’s the essence of who they are. When you think of Brad Pitt for instance you think of someone who is impossibly good looking, a great actor and a social activist. That is his image. It’s sort of reducing him to a couple of sentences. It’s true of Brad Pitt but it is not him.
What about God? What is His image? What is His essence? Paul told the church at Colossi that Jesus Christ was the image of the invisible God (Col 1:15) The writer of Hebrews goes a step further saying that the Son is the “exact representation of His being”. (Heb. 1:3) Jesus painted a picture of God not with His hands, but with His life.
Paul said in Romans that we are being conformed to His image (Rom 8:29) and that we should no longer conform to the patterns of this world. (Rom 12:1-4) Jesus Christ is the image of the unseen God, and we are to be conformed to that image, to the image of Christ. When I’m wondering how I should live, how I should respond to a situation, what my stance on a particular issue should be, I base it on Jesus Christ Himself. What is God’s “image”? Jesus.
What was Jesus known for? He had this amazing ability to make powerful religious people feel very uncomfortable and yet the marginalized, sinners, poor, oppressed felt very comfortable in His presence. When He saw people in need, He met their needs. He healed sick people. He fed hungry people. He lived sacrificially. He loved.
In their book Unchristian Gabe Lyons and David Kinnaman published research and found that the perception of Christians is that we are antihomosexual (95%) judgmental (87%) and hypocritical (85%) These perceptions are followed by majorities of boring, out of touch with reality.
When you stop and think of who Jesus was, how He lived while living here in a suit made of dude, how would you describe Him? Judgmental? Hypocritical? Boring? No way. How is it possible that this is our image? Perhaps it’s the image we’ve ascribed to God?
Paul said to not conform to this world, but the idea is of conforming to a pattern, to a mold. The pattern or mold of this world is to celebrate powerful, to get all I can, to be successful, to finish first. It’s the exact opposite of the image that Jesus painted with His life.
As a church we’ve sought power, we’ve sought success, prosperity, we’ve sought to impress people by “competing with the world” so that we can “reach” more people. In doing so we’ve unwittingly created an image, a graven image that attempts to represent who God is, but falls dramatically short.
I know that I’m speaking in generalities and the fact is there are churches right here in America that don’t worship this image of God. Conduit is only one example among many.
I saw a church in the image of God in Haiti. I saw a building that wasn’t fancy and had no moving lights. It didn’t even have glass in the windows. But it was a church serving their community. They were feeding the poor, healing the sick, and reaching out the world around. They weren’t prosperous, successful, or powerful; they weren’t even white. But then again, neither was Jesus.
It’s easy to cop an “Elijah complex” that nobody is getting this right but me and go hide. We must not do that. There are plenty of folks doing amazing stuff, they just don’t get on television. The church is you, the church is me. God isn't going to hire a publicist. We can tell His story with our lives.
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Hi everyone, I posted an episode to my podcast, Conduit Bible Study- Darren Tyler. Click this link to check it out: Exodus 20:2 No Other Gods - Darren
Hi everyone, I posted an episode to my podcast, Conduit Bible Study- Darren Tyler. Click this link to check it out:
Sunday, May 10, 2009
Conduit April 11- The Hope Of A Nation
In 1791 Saint Dominque was the richest European colony in the world making many French wealthy through gigantic sugar plantations and coffee-producing estates. With a new nation being born just to its north Revolution was in the air in a country that would become known as Haiti.
A half million slaves who were the driving force of this enterprise started doing a head count and realized they outnumbered owners by 15 to 1. Those are overwhelming odds by any ones standards and certainly a confidence booster when planning a revolt. The slaves from Africa combined forces and overthrew their euromasters and sent them packing.
Over 200 years later this nation born from freed slaves is the 148th least developed of the worlds’ 179 countries. The average annual salary is $240- about 66 cents per day. 50 percent of the population lacks access to potable water and barely 10 percent uses electricity. For those 10 percent that have access to electricity it goes off every day for several hours.
What I saw on the ground was a nation in the throws of poverty. There is no public garbage service and so it is strewn around everywhere. There are piles of it, mountains of it, rivers of it and streets of it. There were literally streets that seemed to be paved with it. An interesting juxtaposition against a heaven whose streets are paved with gold.
This nation of former slaves was built on the backs of a people who had no idea what it was like to be free. As slaves it was not in any interest of the owners to educate their property Thus it was that a half million men women and children with no education, no resources and no God set out to form a nation.
With no formal training many of the former slaves retreated to the nation’s interior where they farmed small plots with little outside investment. They settled into subsistence farming techniques that continue to this day. It’s those very farming techniques that have played a huge role in stripping the land and have prompted an ecological crisis. In a year like 2007 when 4 major hurricanes blew through it is cataclysmic.
It is recorded that Haiti is the first nation that was ever established by a group of former slaves. This is not entirely true. Israel holds that title. Israel had been living in slavery for 400 years under the brutal Egyptian government. Like our brothers and sisters in Haiti, Israel was the economic engine for the prosperity of their owners.
When you consider this it begins to make total and perfect sense why one of the first things that God would do is to park them in the desert and give them The Law. It comes into focus why God would tell them to farm the land for 6 years and every 7th year to give the land a break. (Lev 25:1-2) It makes sense why He would take the time to tell them to go outside the camp and bury it when they have to go to the bathroom (Deut 23) It’s clear why He would tell them to stay away from certain foods that we know today have the dangers of carrying disease. (Lev 11)
It wasn’t a God trying to set up some sort of cosmic buzz kill system but rather a merciful God that knew what it would take for a people to coexist in a new land. It makes you wonder if Israel would’ve found themselves in the same condition as Haiti if God hadn’t taken the time to give them an education.
Many experts believe Haiti is not beyond hope. It has a relatively small population and is in a stable region. By some accounts there is about $1B in foreign aid immediately available that could be invested in hospitals, schools, health care, electrical systems and vital infrastructure. And yet that isn’t happening.
John Currelly, an agronomist with the Pan American Development Foundation in Haiti says "If you had covered these mountains 100 years ago with high-producing fruit trees and various other perennials, this country would still be richer than Canada. Haiti is extremely productive and has a tremendous recuperative capability ... The land itself, if left alone, comes back very quickly."
But the land has never been left alone. Its riches once fueled an empire, just as poverty now powers its collapse. And so what to do?
The government has failed dramatically if not spectacularly. I would be lying if I said that I didn’t feel a sense of hopelessness when I first arrived. How could these people in this country ever thrive? Billions of dollars of foreign aid, a UN force t visible everywhere that operates on a $580M annual budget and the direct involvement both militarily and internally from the United States have not helped. Where is the hope?
At the risk of sounding cliché, it’s in Jesus. More specifically it’s in Jesus IN you and I and our brothers and sisters in Haiti. I had been asking where is God in the face of such suffering but the proper question is “where is the Church?” When I looked in that direction I saw hope manifested in a man like Gerald Lafleur who leads the church appropriately called Restoration Ministries.
I saw hope in Pastor Rodrigue who along with his wife open their home 3 times a week so 75-100 kids can eat a meal that is more than a dirt cookie or stale rice.
Sebastian (is sponsored by Bucky and Kimmie Elliot through Conduit.) is being taught principles like giving and mercy and love.
Farrah (sponsored through Conduit as well) is being taught that her body is her property and to break the cycle of single mothers with children from multiple fathers who will never marry their mothers.
Vlo (sponsored by Philip Peters through Conduit) is being taught to be a man to not get a woman pregnant and walk out on her.
Dashka (sponsored by Theresa Swain through Conduit) is being taught that abstaining from sex outside of marriage is the ONLY guarantee they have of not contracting an evil disease such as HIV/ AIDS.
They’re not only being fed physically but spiritually as well. These well fed children will grow up, and it’s my belief that they will grow up to be part of the revival that awaits Haiti.
This is all being done in the confines of a local church in a local community. It’s all being done because of folks like you and I. THE Church, made up of believers all over the world, are coming together and bringing real hope to this ravaged nation. It will only be done if all of us will man up, do our part, stand a post.
Jesus, when He sent out the 72, told them to pray for laborers. He said that the laborers are few. Living in Nashville where there are 1,000 churches that’s kind of a foreign idea. Coming home from Haiti I saw exactly what He was talking about.
If you’re not already involved with what we’re doing through Conduit, I would ask that you prayerfully consider getting involved. I’m not going to lie to you and say that I just want your prayer support, it’s my hope that we already have that. Sebastian, Farrah, Vlo and Dashka already have laborers, I wonder if you would consider joining us.
You can click on this link http://www.unitedcaribbean.com/haiti-childsponsorship-programme.html and see some of the kids that are still waiting to be helped. By donating through Conduit 100% of your gift each month is tax deductible and 100% of it goes directly to Restoration Ministries where 100% of it goes directly to serving the child spiritually, physically and emotionally. $30 a month. Many of you are already involved in a ministry like this, but if you’re not, prayerfully consider joining us.
(If you wish you can donate directly to Restoration Ministries but their accounts are in Haiti and you do not get the tax deduction)
Blessings,
Darren
CONDUIT RETURNS TOMORROW NIGHT. 7:30PM AT JOURNEY CHURCH IN BUILDING 8 AT THE FACTORY IN FRANKLIN. WE’VE GOT SOME AWESOME VIDEO, PICTURES, ETC FROM OUR TRIP TO HAITI.
A half million slaves who were the driving force of this enterprise started doing a head count and realized they outnumbered owners by 15 to 1. Those are overwhelming odds by any ones standards and certainly a confidence booster when planning a revolt. The slaves from Africa combined forces and overthrew their euromasters and sent them packing.
Over 200 years later this nation born from freed slaves is the 148th least developed of the worlds’ 179 countries. The average annual salary is $240- about 66 cents per day. 50 percent of the population lacks access to potable water and barely 10 percent uses electricity. For those 10 percent that have access to electricity it goes off every day for several hours.
What I saw on the ground was a nation in the throws of poverty. There is no public garbage service and so it is strewn around everywhere. There are piles of it, mountains of it, rivers of it and streets of it. There were literally streets that seemed to be paved with it. An interesting juxtaposition against a heaven whose streets are paved with gold.
This nation of former slaves was built on the backs of a people who had no idea what it was like to be free. As slaves it was not in any interest of the owners to educate their property Thus it was that a half million men women and children with no education, no resources and no God set out to form a nation.
With no formal training many of the former slaves retreated to the nation’s interior where they farmed small plots with little outside investment. They settled into subsistence farming techniques that continue to this day. It’s those very farming techniques that have played a huge role in stripping the land and have prompted an ecological crisis. In a year like 2007 when 4 major hurricanes blew through it is cataclysmic.
It is recorded that Haiti is the first nation that was ever established by a group of former slaves. This is not entirely true. Israel holds that title. Israel had been living in slavery for 400 years under the brutal Egyptian government. Like our brothers and sisters in Haiti, Israel was the economic engine for the prosperity of their owners.
When you consider this it begins to make total and perfect sense why one of the first things that God would do is to park them in the desert and give them The Law. It comes into focus why God would tell them to farm the land for 6 years and every 7th year to give the land a break. (Lev 25:1-2) It makes sense why He would take the time to tell them to go outside the camp and bury it when they have to go to the bathroom (Deut 23) It’s clear why He would tell them to stay away from certain foods that we know today have the dangers of carrying disease. (Lev 11)
It wasn’t a God trying to set up some sort of cosmic buzz kill system but rather a merciful God that knew what it would take for a people to coexist in a new land. It makes you wonder if Israel would’ve found themselves in the same condition as Haiti if God hadn’t taken the time to give them an education.
Many experts believe Haiti is not beyond hope. It has a relatively small population and is in a stable region. By some accounts there is about $1B in foreign aid immediately available that could be invested in hospitals, schools, health care, electrical systems and vital infrastructure. And yet that isn’t happening.
John Currelly, an agronomist with the Pan American Development Foundation in Haiti says "If you had covered these mountains 100 years ago with high-producing fruit trees and various other perennials, this country would still be richer than Canada. Haiti is extremely productive and has a tremendous recuperative capability ... The land itself, if left alone, comes back very quickly."
But the land has never been left alone. Its riches once fueled an empire, just as poverty now powers its collapse. And so what to do?
The government has failed dramatically if not spectacularly. I would be lying if I said that I didn’t feel a sense of hopelessness when I first arrived. How could these people in this country ever thrive? Billions of dollars of foreign aid, a UN force t visible everywhere that operates on a $580M annual budget and the direct involvement both militarily and internally from the United States have not helped. Where is the hope?
At the risk of sounding cliché, it’s in Jesus. More specifically it’s in Jesus IN you and I and our brothers and sisters in Haiti. I had been asking where is God in the face of such suffering but the proper question is “where is the Church?” When I looked in that direction I saw hope manifested in a man like Gerald Lafleur who leads the church appropriately called Restoration Ministries.
I saw hope in Pastor Rodrigue who along with his wife open their home 3 times a week so 75-100 kids can eat a meal that is more than a dirt cookie or stale rice.
Sebastian (is sponsored by Bucky and Kimmie Elliot through Conduit.) is being taught principles like giving and mercy and love.
Farrah (sponsored through Conduit as well) is being taught that her body is her property and to break the cycle of single mothers with children from multiple fathers who will never marry their mothers.
Vlo (sponsored by Philip Peters through Conduit) is being taught to be a man to not get a woman pregnant and walk out on her.
Dashka (sponsored by Theresa Swain through Conduit) is being taught that abstaining from sex outside of marriage is the ONLY guarantee they have of not contracting an evil disease such as HIV/ AIDS.
They’re not only being fed physically but spiritually as well. These well fed children will grow up, and it’s my belief that they will grow up to be part of the revival that awaits Haiti.
This is all being done in the confines of a local church in a local community. It’s all being done because of folks like you and I. THE Church, made up of believers all over the world, are coming together and bringing real hope to this ravaged nation. It will only be done if all of us will man up, do our part, stand a post.
Jesus, when He sent out the 72, told them to pray for laborers. He said that the laborers are few. Living in Nashville where there are 1,000 churches that’s kind of a foreign idea. Coming home from Haiti I saw exactly what He was talking about.
If you’re not already involved with what we’re doing through Conduit, I would ask that you prayerfully consider getting involved. I’m not going to lie to you and say that I just want your prayer support, it’s my hope that we already have that. Sebastian, Farrah, Vlo and Dashka already have laborers, I wonder if you would consider joining us.
You can click on this link http://www.unitedcaribbean.com/haiti-childsponsorship-programme.html and see some of the kids that are still waiting to be helped. By donating through Conduit 100% of your gift each month is tax deductible and 100% of it goes directly to Restoration Ministries where 100% of it goes directly to serving the child spiritually, physically and emotionally. $30 a month. Many of you are already involved in a ministry like this, but if you’re not, prayerfully consider joining us.
(If you wish you can donate directly to Restoration Ministries but their accounts are in Haiti and you do not get the tax deduction)
Blessings,
Darren
CONDUIT RETURNS TOMORROW NIGHT. 7:30PM AT JOURNEY CHURCH IN BUILDING 8 AT THE FACTORY IN FRANKLIN. WE’VE GOT SOME AWESOME VIDEO, PICTURES, ETC FROM OUR TRIP TO HAITI.
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