»I FEAR(ED) LONELINESS.

One of the fears that I had all my life was to be "lonely". It is ironic because sometimes, I love being alone. But it gets to a point where I want to have somebody that I can trust and talk to... I had always feared staying by myself. Even though I had some friends, I knew that one day they would go on with their own lives. I always feared being stuck in life, feeling lonely.

The way that I received help in this area was to confide in God's love. If I could feel God's love and I could love others, I would be allright. Even though the people that I once loved and spent time with... left me, I would keep making new relationships and love again.

1 John 4:18

"There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear..."

I give thanks to God for a very special person that God put on my life. Ruthie, my girlfriend. What an awesome girl she is. She is my world. She helps me in this area... I love her deeply.

There are other people that I love... and I thank God for them too.

What I encourage you not to forget though, is that "perfect love".

The only love that can help you abolish all fear is the "perfect love". That is what the Scripture says. And that perfect love can only come by having a relationship with Jesus. If you have a relatioship with Jesus, every fear that you have ever had will be wiped out. Fear of the dark? Fear of loneliness? Fear of making mistakes? Fear of anything? Just receive that "perfect love" from Jssus, because where there is love, there is no fear.

I leave you with the words that Jesus told his disciples.

Matthew 10:31
"So do not fear; you are more valuable than many sparrows."

It does not matter who you are... you are more valuable than many sparrows.
Do not fear.

»SIMPLE CHURCH (What I'm Reading)

I just had to write again... I bought this book and am devouring it page by page. Oh wow! This is an amazing book. I love the style that both authors use to write it. I am learning so much on how to have a Simple Church and not a Difficult Church, concerning staff, that dang calendar, announcements, numbers, meetings and mission statements.

It is a Church Administration book and I love it. Thank God for people that write such books and help us (aspiring ministers) from running into a brick wall... Well, we will all have our brick walls. But these books do help.

I encourage each person that is doing and will be doing ministry to read this book.

I cannot wait for Chapter 3. Imagine a church without the clutter and all the mission statements. Imagine the church like the Google homepage. Simple. Wow! Where the process of making disciples is Simple, easy and not complex. I gotta stop. This is awesome.

Read the book. It's wort the $15.

»I FEAR NOT KNOWING EVERYTHING!

Pastor Rios is going through an 8 week series dealing with Fear and how to be free from it. I can't wait to learn some things. But for the next few days, maybe this whole week, I want to be transparent and write about some fears that I have. Can I be honest with you? No. Really?

I will write about what I fear and the strategy that I use to defeat that fear. I hope you can benefit from this.

I FEAR NOT KNOWING EVERYTHING.

People have expectations from you. Your family expects things, your friends. Even your church expects you to know things. Sometimes, I expect to know a couple of things for myself... and I learn. I read like crazy. I study people. I watch and observe. I want to know. It is an instinct. Sometimes, people come and ask me questions concerning the Bible. I give them an honest answer. BUT... Sometimes I just don't know! Hehe.
Really. Sometimes, when people have asked me things that I expect myself to know how to explain, and I cannot answer them, I fear that everything else that I have said before will be doubted. When I see a person in pain and cannot answer them when they ask, "Why?" I fear that I am not living up to myself. I fear when a person comes up and asks me a question that I have to know, because I have been in church all my life, and according to everybody, "I need to know."

So how do I cope...? Not really cope, but overcome this fear? Well the scripture says in John 24:17

"Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as

the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled,

nor let it be fearful. "

I overcome when I stay calm and don't let the pressure get to me.

When someone challenges me with a question that expects a very good answer, I rely on God's peace to come into my heart and I keep calm... and let them know I will get back with the with an answer.

When someone faces a crisis in their life an questions God and comes to me just asking , "Why this...?" and, "Why that..?"I can only rely on God's peace to say the "right" things and be confident that God has everything under control.

There is a saying that someone said. I don't remember who. He said:

"This world is lost. It needs a Pastor."

It does not need more educated doctors and good technologies. It does not need more money and luxuries. It needs a Pastor. A pastor that is just as human as the people he serves , but is hearing God's voice at all times. A pastor that whenever faced with fears he can rely on God to answer even the toughest question. A Pastor that stands with God's people in times of Need, Recovery and Victory. A pastor that fears, but fears (relies) God more.

I pray to be like that.

Even if I do not know everything. I want to have the peace in my life and be conficent that God really is Omniscient and that He knows ALL things.

I realize this: I will always fear not knowing everything. I will NEVER know everything, but I also know this... that if Jesus gives me the peace and confidence that He only can give, I will be able to withstand any expectation.

Come back tomorrow to hear about my next fear.

»What I Desire to see in Ministry.

Oh man... oh man! What a week!
I dislike working for the man... and the"man" may be myself... hehe. I wish to see someones life change. I desire to see someone commit to serve Jesus. I long for the days that I can be a witness of life change in people. Not the beginning of life change. Not the result of life change... but the PROCESS of Life Change. You know? It is not an event... or a program... or a single testimony that I want to see. It is the dayS, the eventS, the testimonieS that I want to see in people. Many can lie about it. Many can give up after they testify. Many will fall away after they come to Him. I want to see the development of a person before their conversion and after the conversion. That's what I pray for in Ministry. The hard work, the effort, the times of quietness (meditation), will be paid off with an army of people that are experiencing Life change. From bad to good. From good to better. From better to best. What a joy it is to see a person that has nothing... to see them smile big, knowing that all they have is Jesus. Wow. That is why I live... To see that.

You don't have to motivate me to want to see the joy of a new Christian. You don't have to push me to see the positive life change of people. No. You don't. I was created to serve Jesus in that way. I wish to tell you everything that I feel in my heart, but I'll save it for later. One day.

I am excited. Once again, I will be helping out in the pulpit of Starting Point this Sunday. God has been really showing up, in my life, at least. It is a fight! It is a battle! But I guess you already know who the Champion is.

All I know is that I love the responsibility of preparing a message and move myself around to be able to put my ear to God's heart and feel what He wants me to say to His people.

"Life change. Jesus, that's all I ask for... that there would be Life change this Sunday. Let it be so."

»CONFESSIONS of a Reformission Rev.

WOW! I barely finished this book... I only have a couple of minutes to blog about.. brag about it. This is awesome... I dedicated the whole night to reading it... and I finished it.

This is the story of Mark Driscoll planting Mars Hill, a church of 6,000 people in Seattle, one of the least churched cities in America... He says that there are more dogs than Christians in Seattle. That's funny. It was insightful. I love reading stuff from people that went through it, you know? Not just people that call themselves experts and just know statistics and do not know the "work" that was done to get the statistics.

This guy started with nothing and now he has Elders (Pastors) that are helping him grow Mars Hill. I enjoyed it...

He also gave good instruction... good advice, and good counsel. I learned a lot from him.

I will read his next book... "Radical Reformission."

If you are ayoung leader and are called to be a Pastor or a Minister, you need to read this book. It will help you. Wow.

I'm going home. I'm at work.

I will post more about CONFESSIONS OF A REFORMED REV tomorrow.

Goodnight.

»Charles Spurgeon!

"Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth."

2 Timothy 2:15

This picture is of Charles Spurgeon... The prince of preachers. Pastor of Pastors. He is amazing!

We need a love for God's Word. That's how He talks to us...

Spend some time reading it...

» LOOK UNTO ME!

Charles Spurgeon... The man! He has been one of the most enjoyable preachers to read. I say "read" because this guy was alive in the 1800's... He is awesome. I have always been amazed by his story and his work. Great sermons! He was 15 when he was converted... He started pastoring when he was 20 YEARS OLD. He pastored one of the largest churches of his time... more than 6,000 members at one time. Imagine that! Without TV, Blogs, Myspace, Cell phones... you get the point.

He is one of my mentors... Seriously! He still speaks to my life whenever I read the lectures that he gave to Pastors. Rich!

Here is the story of his conversion. Check it out!

"I was miserable, I could do scarcely anything. My heart was broken to pieces. Six months did I pray, prayed agonizingly with all my heart, and never had an answer. I resolved that in the town where I lived I would visit every place of worship, in order to find the way of salvation. I felt I was willing to do anything if God would only forgive me. I set off determined to visit all the chapels, and though I deeply venerate the men who occupy those pulpits now, and did so then, I am bound to say, that I never heard them once fully preach the gospel. ... At last, one snowy day, I found rather an obscure street and turned down a court, and there was a little chapel. I wanted to go somewhere, but I did not know this street. It was the Primitive Methodists' chapel. I had heard of this people from many, and how they sang so loudly that they made people's heads ache; but that did not matter. I wanted to know how I might be saved, and if they made my head ache ever so much, I did not care. So sitting down, the service went on, but no minister came. At last a very thin-looking man came into the pulpit. He opened the Bible and read these words: "Look unto me and be ye saved, all ye ends of the earth." Just setting his eyes upon me, as if he knew me all by heart, he said: "Young man, you are in trouble!" Well, I was, sure enough. Says he: "You will never get out of it unless you look to Christ." Then, lifting his eyes, he cried, as only a Primitive Methodist could do, "Look, look, look!" I saw at once the way of salvation. O, how I did leap for joy at that moment! I know not what else he said, I was so possessed with that one thought. ... I looked until I could almost have looked my eyes away, and in heaven I will look on still, in my joy unspeakable."

WOW!
Look Unto Me!
That will preach, man!