Virtuous Reality Blog

I just twittered this but wanted to share it with you too. Check out this article, it's one of my all-time favorites.

"As an atheist, I truly believe Africa needs God"

If the title alone isn't enough to get you there I will come give you a personal kick in the pants. Seriously. I love that a man who doesn't believe in God saw God at work through His people in Africa and it made a difference. I love that the difference was so big and life changing that he couldn't miss it. And I love that he shared what he saw with the world. This article was so very encouraging to me because I've been struggling with how much we talk big as Christians but don't often follow through with our actions...I do anyway. I'm sick of sitting through church services and listening to one more sermon but not being moved to get out there and help those who need it the most. I'm tired of myself and my "cheap grace" faith and frustrated that I fit right in with most of the "church" in America. And I think I'm done with that. I think that, thanks to the grace of God and the faith He has grown in me, I'm ready to move on and really live out what I say I believe. St. Francis of Assisi once said:

"Preach the gospel at all times -- If necessary, use words."

What that means is that I should love Jesus so much that He's visible in all that I do instead of just someone I talk about. So I'm going to hold onto Jesus with all I've got, get out of my comfort zone, take some chances and see what the Holy Spirit can do with someone like me. Are you with me?

Phil is a horrible name for a cat. Especially for a kitten. Maybe horrible is overdoing it but seriously...Phil? This is Phil:

Cute isn't he? I rescued him from the shelter on June 20th and I didn't give him that name, the shelter did. So far the Snowbeast isn't very excited about him. She doesn't seem to see the possible friendship and good times they could have together if only she would stop with the hissing and growling. Here's how Phil entered the picture. I was listening to Francis Chan (who encourages me so much) and he was talking about rescuing kids from prostitution and the slave trade. and I got all worked up and wanted to rescue someone. It's a bit tricky finding a person who needs to be rescued, so I ended up at the local shelter where they are OVERLOADED with kittens right now, and 2 hours later came home with Phil. He had his little face pressed up against the cage and his eyes closed and he was doing the silent cry, which might be the most pitiful thing in the world. Turns out he was running a fever and had an upper respiratory infection which we are still trying to get under control. The face in the picture - that's what happens when ice cream comes out of the freezer. He loves ice cream with a white hot passion.

I think these two rescue cats are just the beginning of something big. For years now I've wanted to start a rescue society where we (that would be me and whoever else loves Jesus and wants to get involved) would come to the rescue of anyone who is being mistreated, abused or neglected by someone bigger and/or stronger than them. I'm pretty sure that's hundreds of thousands (if not millions) of people. So I'm going to have to trust the Holy Spirit to make it happen because on my own I can barely get myself out of bed in the morning, but with Him, it could all be taken care of in one day. I want my life to be exceptional in that whatever I do, it only makes sense that God did it and not me. I want to be like Moses who knew and talked to God one on one, and not like the millions of Israelites who were too afraid to go near the mountain and know God personally.

And that, my friends, is the story of Phil...which might not be his permanent name. Let me know if you have a better one. And if God asks you to go rescue someone or something, just go do it. We'll start small and soon the whole world will be a better place.