Everything else is just bragging.

James 4:13-17 NLT
Look here, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we are going to a certain town and will stay there a year. We will do business there and make a profit.” How do you know what your life will be like tomorrow? Your life is like the morning fog—it’s here a little while, then it’s gone. What you ought to say is, “If the Lord wants us to, we will live and do this or that.” Otherwise you are boasting about your own plans, and all such boasting is evil. Remember, it is sin to know what you ought to do and then not do it.

On the eve of our departure from Simferopol I am reflecting back on the last two weeks. When we met with Yelena Nabiyevna, director at Simferopol Detski Dom, we were facing a week with on 13 of the expected 45. She was worried we would not want to stay and work with the kids.

Arthur and I reassurred her that it was no problem and that it only meant 13 kids would get the extra attention. All the while in my mind I was thinking all of our planning had gone for naught.

My long-time friend and our lead mentor, Nastya Skovorodnykova reminded me to see God'a plan first. She reminded me that because we didn't have so many kids we were able to focus on those we had and we were able to go deeper with them. We were able to discuss things we normally don't get an opportunity to.

Because there were fewer distractions we got to know some special girls better. We got feedback and participation we didn't expect.

She's right. We plan, prepare and think it's all going to come down to how well we pull off those plans and preparations. All the while we forget to let God go first. Anything else is just bragging and boasting.

[Thank you Lord for going out in front of us in this work despite my focusing on my giants. Forgive me for worrying needlessly and for not keeping my gaze fixed on you. May I always remember to let you go first.]

(Apologies for mistakes and type-o's. My eyes burn with weariness. Tomorrow we begin our ling hornet home.)

The Return on God's Investment

Apologies. It's been awhile since my last entry. But I just haven't been inspired. Until now that is. I've gotta  share this story. It's mysterious and yet it's obvious. It's confirming and inspiring. I hope I do it justice here.

Whenever, I assemble a mission team to go to Ukraine I tell the team that raising the funds needed is the hardest part but at the same time it's the most humbling and brings the greatest blessing. Asking for provision is hard, awkward, and humbling. But it's necessary. Otherwise our team could not continue to connect orphaned and abandoned children with life-giving relationship.

Before I tell the story I have to start by reminding you of another story of provision, thanks, and return.

It starts in Matthew 14 with the beheading of John the Baptist. Herod ordered that John the Baptist be executed as the result of a prideful promise made to his daughter...

“Herodias’s daughter performed a dance that greatly pleased him,  so he promised with a vow to give her anything she wanted.  At her mother’s urging, the girl said, “I want the head of John the Baptist on a tray!”  Then the king regretted what he had said; but because of the vow he had made in front of his guests, he issued the necessary orders.  So John was beheaded in the prison,  and his head was brought on a tray and given to the girl, who took it to her mother. ”

Afterward, John's disciples recover the body in order to bury it properly then they go to find Jesus in order to share the dreadful news. After receiving the news,  Jesus is grieving for the loss of his cousin and he wants to be alone. He withdraws in a boat to remote place. However, a crowd finds him and begins to assemble.

You know the rest...

Jesus saw the huge crowd as he stepped from the boat, and he had compassion on them and healed their sick.  (Jesus is grieving yet he is overcome with compassion.)

That evening the disciples came to him and said, “This is a remote place, and it’s already getting late. Send the crowds away so they can go to the villages and buy food for themselves.”  (Knucklehead disciples)  

He stuns them and tells them, “That isn’t necessary—you feed them.”  (He's about to reveal once and for all to them the power of the almighty God.)

 “But we have only five loaves of bread and two fish!” they answered.  (You know what happens next.) 

 “Bring them here,” he said. Then he told the people to sit down on the grass. 

Jesus took the five loaves and two fish, looked up toward heaven, and blessed them. Then, breaking the loaves into pieces, he gave the bread to the disciples, who distributed it to the people. They all ate as much as they wanted, and afterward, the disciples picked up twelve baskets of leftovers.  About 5,000 men were fed that day, in addition to all the women and children!

Keep this in the back of your mind.

It all starts with some long-time friends of mine - a retired couple - Ron and Priscilla. They offered to help our orphan outreach mission team by providing some simple craft supplies. This couple is blessed. They're not wealthy be any stretch. Not many retired couples I know are wealthy. They live modestly and humbly. But all the same, they're richly blessed.

Ron has been a mentor for me. He's a man I admire greatly. He showed me the ropes of the print industry when I first arrived in Nashville in 1985. He gave me the leg up that I needed as a freelance designer in a tough industry when the market was glutted with guys like me. He taught me business integrity. He introduced me to my wife, Linda, for which I am immensely grateful.

I'm thankful that there are those whom God leads to give. I'm thankful that he provides the opportunity for friends to participate in blessing orphans by giving. It's humbling. Some don't really "have it" to give in the first place. Yet they give nevertheless.

It blesses them. It blesses others. It blesses me.

Ron has some health issues. He needs a cane sometimes to walk. He has had a rough go of it in the last several years. As time goes on his ability to walk without aid diminishes. It doesn't slow him down at all it seems. He began to tell me a story....

Ron needed a wheelchair - and they aren't cheap. The insurance would pay for most of the cost. But the deductible was close to five hundred dollars. Money they didn't have.

A friend offered to provide the cash for the deductible. I can imagine Ron and Priscilla were feeling the same humility in that offer that I often feel when receiving support for outreach. They thanked them for the offer but humbly refused. You see they knew God would provide.

Think about it though. What a blessing to have people in your life who are ready and willing to share what they have been blessed with. To have... in order to share. God provides so that we can share.

Instead, Ron and Priscilla decided to sell a boat motor that Ron had purchased some time before. They posted on Craig's List and asked $450 for the motor. Within a few hours after posting they received a message from a man in Cleveland, TN. He was a fisherman. He offered full "asking" price if Ron would hold the motor until he could arrive in Nashville.

The fisherman arrived and promptly left the cash in the full amount with no questions. It was the exact amount needed for the deductible to pay for the chair.  

That "gift" allowed them to use their own funds and offer to purchase the craft items for our team. Call it an offering of thanks. Having... in order to give. Provided for in order to share. 

Humbling.

You see, we live in a straight ahead fashion - minute by minute. We can only experience the present and recall the past. But even the past gets hazy. As we move forward in time our memories of what God has done for us along the way become thin.

May we never forget what God has done for us - how he has provided - how he continues
to provide.

The disciples did - and often. They couldn't see past their own bewildered noses - standing before five thousand men (along with women and children) and Jesus says to them,
"You feed 'em!"

So they collect the loaves and the fishes. Only they can't see the future or how Jesus is going to bring about a return on the gift of those loaves and fishes.

Jesus gives the credit to his father for providing. He knows how his father works. If you thank God, he provides. If you give away what he provides, you get back ten-thousand-fold.

But, there's just a little bit more to the story. It gets even better.

Priscilla sent a text to tell me they'd received the items in the mail yesterday. It went like this:

5:48 pm - P: The materials for the bracelets came today. Will bring them Sunday.

5:50pm - J: Great! Thank y'all so much!

5:52pm - P: You are welcome. Glad we could do it.

5:54pm - J: Y'all are awesome.

5:56pm - P: And you will not believe the bus card that was enclosed.

When they opened the shipping carton, out fell a business card. It read:

"Working for Jesus doesn't pay much, but the retirement plan is out of this world"

On the reverse side was printed:

Romans 6:23 - For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.

God provides. God gives. God gets back that which he loves the most - his one and only son...and us in the bargain. I can't wait to see how God will use these gifts from friends like Ron and Priscilla. 

What kind of return will come back from all this provision?

Black Sea Reflections: What a wild ride! Adventures in Orphan Outreach in Ukraine.

Black Sea Reflections: What a wild ride!: January 2013 is here and almost gone. December and 2012 has passed us by. YouthReach International volunteer teams have completed another su...

What a wild ride!

January 2013 is here and almost gone. December and 2012 has passed us by. YouthReach International volunteer teams have completed another successful year of  reaching out to orphans in Russia, Ukraine and Belarus. 


Photos from 2012 camps: https://plus.google.com/photos/101363171234003143720/albums/5835203216451629905?authkey=CLKow9f3x6XZPQ

Last summer in Simferopol I was very excited to participate in a summit meeting. Representatives from groups, orgs, agencies, as well as foster parents, and church leaders there to discuss ways we can come together to better serve, orphans, system graduates, trade school students, and street kids in Simferopol, Ukraine. During our mission trip/winter camp in December 2012 we met again. There were many great suggestions on ways to collaborate and network.

 Marizza (center left) and Nastya (far right)
are YouthReach mentors shown here
with two of our orphan graduates,
Andrei (far left) and Sasha (center right)
who attend a local trade school.

One morning during our December trip, I had breakfast with Dima Malashko of Saving Orphans Souls and Crimea Without Orphans. Over omelets, we discussed ways to reach out especially to young men who have aged out of the orphanage system. Most are in trade schools. These trade schools teach menial skills to teens and college-aged adults. The dormitories are often co-ed, unsupervised, and very violent. Drunkenness is common. I hear often of beatings, rape, even murder.

I look forward to meeting with Dima again to see how we can connect various local ministries to fill this gap.

One particular event which stands out in my mind from our December trip was our visit to the Gvardeskii village orphanage. Gvardeskii village lies outside of Simferopol by about 40 minutes drive. It’s a very poor facility. At one time the facility was the focus of our trips. However we lost access due to reorganization, administrative turnover at the facility. In December, we took the opportunity to travel by bus to visit and explore future possibilities.

Arthur Kazaryan, Igor
Kholopov and I.

Along with us was a young man named Igor Kholopov. Igor grew up at Gvardeskii. I am certain he has many dark memories of life there. He had not returned since graduating 2-3 years before. However, because his brothers and sisters in Christ were with him he mustered the courage to go. I was surprised to see his joy at seeing one of his favorite caretakers. We also saw several children we all remembered from years past.

I’ll be returning to Simferopol in June and leading a team that is proving to be the largest team we’ve had in several years. Haley Harrell, Jordyn Harry, Michael Clinger, Casey Catignani, and Claire Pennington will join with our 12-3-1 mentors to host camp in Simferopol.

Our goal is to serve the orphans at Detskyi Dom and Gagarin School for Girls. We hope to visit Gvardeskii again and meet the director. We also hope to plan a side trip to Feodosia to visit Maria (Masha) Yermachenkova, one of our mentors, and the orphanage she now works in as a caretaker.

Please be in in constant prayer over our team. This week, team members are raising the funds for deposits needed to sign up by January 25. The following week we will begin full-fledged funding campaigns and  bi-weekly preparations.

Soon I’ll be sending an email with a calendar so that you can volunteer to be in prayer over a specific week as we raise funds, prepare, pack, travel, work, and return home. Keep you eyes open.

God is doing great things in Simferopol. Grab a hold and hang on! It’s a wild ride. We need your prayerful partnership and financial support. Please join with us. Bookmark and share the url link to our team homepage with family and friends.

Our team web page:
http://www.youthreach.org/faf/search/searchTeamPart.asp?ievent=1051800&lis=0&kntae1051800=26771FC7B98D402F923D7EECEF314F38&team=5352899

Peace and grace,

Joel Butts
Volunteer,/Team Leader
TeamSim - a YouthReach International mission team partner

“What is essential is invisible to the eyes”

Kick Off Your Shoes...You're on Holy Ground.

This past Saturday morning I was dead asleep after a restless night. I had a lot of thoughts rolling around my skull that I couldn’t turn off. Linda’s phone rang at a few minutes before 8 a.m. that alone made me mildly grouchy. Ugh, I was FINALLY sleeping so good! And it was a good Saturday to sleep. I was sluggish from the unusually mild weather and rain over the last several days.

It was the guy from the local Firestone store with a report on our van. The end result of the call [an $800+ needed repair] left me more than mildly grumpy. I decided to get up. Sleep had fled with the last of my paycheck.

I made the coffee and shuffled into the den rubbing the sleep out of my eyes. Logged into my email and found a message from my good friend Greg Perry and an invite to join him at J&J’s Market and Cafe downtown off Broadway near Lyle. I didn't hesitate to send a response.

So I got dressed and made my way downtown. I love hanging out with Greg. Something good always comes out of the conversation.

I walked in and we shook hands and pulled one another into a brief ‘man-hug” (clasped right hands, left arm around the back, two slaps on the back, and out again). We spent a while just catching up. We sipped coffee and earl grey as we slid down into deeper topics like sliding into my uncle Bob’s old worn leather easy-chair.

Sometimes in life I face big decisions and I really want someone to tell me where and when to step, jump, or climb through a window of opportunity. Greg and I were discussing a possible opportunity that has been in front of me for a while. Indecision often hamstrings me. Doubt frequently blindsides me like a Ray Lewis tackle leaving me stunned and immobilized.

As Greg and I talked he shared with me something I should have considered on my own. Sometimes, That’s where my enemy likes to keep me. So confused and so hesitant that I can’t remember all the things that should be second nature to me.

Greg reminded me of Exodus 3. It’s the story of Moses and the point in his life where God appeared to him in a burning bush. God was trying to convince Moses to go to Egypt and be His man, his voice before Pharaoh and all the Israelites. So I was curious. When I got home I began to read it the account. In fact, I've read it a couple of times since Saturday.

Moses, while tending Jethro’s sheep, sees this light and off he goes to check it out. As he approaches, he sees it’s a bush - and it’s on fire! But yet it’s NOT-on-fire. Curiosity gets the best of him and he moves closer. Suddenly the voice of God says,  “Do not come any closer...”

Now I don’t know about you but if I saw a bush-burning-but-NOT-burning, I’d want to check it out. So when an opportunity shows itself I immediately get excited. I move closer to check it out. I get passionate and curious - I've got to find out what this thing is!

I’m so focused that I tune out the voice of God telling me to “STOP! Don’t come any closer!” There’s a reason for this warning.

If I don’t mind that warning I can be consumed...burned by God’s perfect presence without ever seeing his purpose. “Take off your shoes. Don’t take another step. You are on holy ground.”

When opportunity presents itself, I’m so caught up in my own desire that sometimes I don’t stop long enough to take my shoes off and wiggle my toes in the warmth of God’s nearness.

Ever get too close to see something? The older I get I find my arms aren't quite long enough to see well enough. I get caught up in getting so close that I can’t see clearly what God intends for me to see. I can’t see where God intends for me to step next. One part of God’s message to me in this story is this: “Stop! Step back! Wait! Take off your shoes and feel my nearness next to your skin. There’s plenty of time for your next step. Which, by the way, I’ll tell you where and when to take it.”

The other thing that to me is obvious in this well-known story is not just the excuses that Moses makes. That’s probably the aspect if the story most folks focus on. Most of us only recall how frustrated God was with Moses and how lame his excuses were.

What I find intriguing is a fact that Greg brought to my attention. God provided a way around or over every single obstacle Moses had placed in the way of obedience to God’s calling.

Check out God’s promises:

Moses: “But God? I’m a nobody.”
God: “I’ll go with you every step of the way. And when you come back? You’ll worship together with all my people on this mountain.”

Moses: “What if the Israelites ask me who it is that sent me? What’s his name? What will I say?”
God: “Say to the Israelites, ‘Jehovah, Yahweh, I am’, the God of your fathers — the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you. Tell them you come in My name.”

Moses: “What if they don’t believe me or listen to me and say, ‘Jehovah did not appear to you! Liar!’?”
God: What’s in your hand? A stick? Throw it on the ground. I’m going to empower you!”

As if all  this wasn't enough....
God: “Put your hand in your cloak. Now pull it out.”
Moses: [GASP] “I have leprosy!! What have you done!!?? I should NEVER have listened to you!
God: Put your hand back in your cloak. Pull it out again.
Moses:  No WAY!!! There’s no telling what disease you’ll afflict me with next! 
God: Just do it!
Moses: It’s...it’s...hey! It’s healed. How di...what did...yeah b-b-but...you...you healed me.
God: Well of course I did. See? You can trust my heart. It’s good. I have great plans for you....I would NEVER harm you.

Moses tries, lamely, one last time...

Moses: But God, I stutter. I-I-I get tongue-tied! I’ll say all the wrong things and I’ll mess it all up!
God: Oh brother!
Moses: What did you say?
God: Hey! Exactly! That’s it! Take your brother, Aaron with you.He’s really quite eloquent you know. I made him, remember? He can do all the talking. NOW! Quit making excuses!

So, God has a plan. He’ll go with me - every step. I should never fear because he’ll always show up and lead me...there and back again.

He reminds me that he sends me in His own name. So, those who have ears to hear...let them hear.

He heals me as I go. I’m not perfect today. I need his healing disparately. I will be perfectly healed one day because he heals me with each step I take if I follow him. The more steps I take as I follow him, the closer I get to perfection.

He expects me to trust his heart. It’s good after all - not like Satan would have me sometimes believe. He would have me believe God can’t be trusted - that I'm better off on my own. But God’s heart IS good and he wants good things for me.

He sends others to help me on my way. So, what am I waiting for?

I’m not equipped to see the future. I can only see right at my feet where he shines his light and where I’ve already been.

Like the scene in “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade” where Indy’s dad, played by Sean Connery, has been shot by the evil Nazi Colonel Vogel. Indy must make his way past 3 boobie-traps to the Holy Grail and a final challenge of selecting the ‘right’ cup. The third test is a “step of faith” across a seemingly invisible bridge.

So Indy steps out into a chasm fully expecting to plunge to his death hundreds of feet below. Instead, to his amazement, he lands squarely on the bridge. As he makes his way across his confidence grows with each step. Once he safely reaches the far side of the chasm, he turns and tosses sand on the bridge to make the once invisible bridge, visible. Only then is he able to see where he has been. He shakes his head in wonder as he turns to go inside to face the last test.

What I need to remember is this:
(1) Listen to God’s instruction, stop and look on in wonder whenever I’m on the holy ground of his opportunity, and wait for further leading before stepping out in faith.
(2) Don’t make excuses or live in fear of my own perceived inadequacies - after all God made me - It's nice to have a plan but be flexible...God's plan is better.
(3) Look for the essential, which consequently, may be invisible. I should take someone with me, set others free from bondage, and bring them back so we can all celebrate together.

Peace and grace.

Summer orphan outreach mission opportunity

Joel Butts  is seeking volunteers for a summer orphan outreach mission team through Youthreach International. The team (TeamSim) has been partnering with Donelson CofC and ministering to orphans in Ukraine since 2006. If you are interested in a two-week short-term mission in early June focused at sharing the love of Christ with orphans and at-risk children please contact Joel by leaving a comment below. For more information on YouthReach International's ministry visit www.youthreach.org.

YouthReach International, TeamSim Dec 2012 Mission update

Greetings everyone,We had a fantastic Winter Camp in Simferopol, Ukraine beginning Dec 8 and ending on Dec 16. Our team worked in 2 orphan facilities during that time. The team was made up of (me), Christy Blazer, Arthur Kazaryan, Nastya Skovorodnykova, Sasha "Pechen'ko" Lifentseva, Masha Yermachenkova, Violetta Alimova, and Elya Sharipova. 

We shared with approx. 100 kids lessons loosely based on the John Elderedge book “Epic”. If you haven’t ever read it check it out. It’s a great little read.

“Life, for most of us, feels like a movie we’ve arrived to forty minutes late. We find ourselves in the middle of a story begun before the dawn of time that is sometimes a confusing mixture of wonderful and awful at the same time and we haven’t a clue how to make sense of it all. We need to know the rest of the story so we don’t lose heart. It’s a story of adventure, of risk and loss, heroism . . . and betrayal. A story where good is warring against evil, danger lurks around every corner, and glorious deeds wait to be done. Think of all those stories you’ve ever loved—there’s a reason they stirred your heart. They’ve been trying to tell you about the true Epic ever since you were young. There is a larger story And you have a crucial role to play." (Epic)

Typical days were spent arduously marching up the hill to Detskyi Dom (Children’s Home) for lunch, back down the hill to catch the bus across town to Gagarin School for Girls where we spent 2 hours. Back on the bus and across town to the Hotel, up the hill to DD then 2.5 hours spent there each evening followed by dinner. Needless to say falling exhausted into the bed each night.

So often we don’t see the results of our effort. I wanted to share below what happened a few days after the camp...actually while Christy and I were flying home...


From Lead Mentor Nastya Skovorodnykova:

“Today there was a concert at DD devoted to the St.Nicholas Day (Dec. 19). So there were different guests who brought lots of presents. Our Vice Mayor was also there. So he said to the children:  

VM: “Kids, who is the main person of [St. Nicholas Day]?

Kids: “Santa Claus!!!” (Or Grandpa Frost)

VM: “And who is the greatest person in our city?”

Kids:” BOG!!” (GOD!!!)

And this is how I realized our efforts are not in vain! Go TeamSim! Go!!!” ~ Nastya

According to Nastya, the adults in the room were stunned, mouths hanging open.


Thank you for sending us - All 8 of us. Without your gifts and prayer God would not receive the praise of these children.

Peace and grace,
Joel

P.S. YouthReach International TeamSim June mission is underway. Want to experience this kind of blessing in your life. Email me at prophet1961@bellsouth.net. Go! BE!