International Travelers Venting About The Church…

Hostel Influence

While I was in Los Angeles, I wanted to stay in a hostel in the hollywood area, not only because it was pretty affordable at $20/night, but because I wanted to meet people from other countries. And, I was not disappointed, as I met an Australian, Swede, Brit, and African.

We chatted for a while about different things, but the conversation allowed me to share why I was staying in the hostel that weekend. I told them I was going to a Christian Conference, which led one of them to ask what it was about. Their curiosity amazed me. I then posed a question about their spiritual background, which opened the door to their beliefs…

Religiousness in the Church

One of the British guys I talked to was not interested in church. His dad, he said, was “born again” and tried to get him to go to church with him. We talked in depth about this, and I could clearly see his negatively toward the religiosity of the church. This allowed me to share my personal discontent toward religion, and also how Jesus calls us to follow Him not a religious system. After sharing all his frustration toward rules and the hypocrisy he saw in church, I left him with a question to ponder,

“What would keep you from following Jesus and him alone, not a church or a religious system?”

He was stumped. I don’t believe he had ever been asked that before, but now he was left to examine his views of Jesus and not make any more excuses about how other people have kepted him from meeting the Living God.

A Swede, Sex, and God

The next night, I had a long 4 hour conversation with a Swede over sex and God. This person thought I was absolutely crazy for staying a virgin, while they had sex with multiple people by the age of 18. I explained that I was waiting for marriage and even though it wasn’t easy because we are bombarded by sex all over the place, I wanted to honor both my future wife and my God. Their view of God was one of absence. It was not possible for them to believe in God. Their lives were about partying and sex period. They were now looking to experiment with same sex attraction just because. The one thing I will take from this conversation for a long time is their view of sex below:

“I have kissed very few people, but I’ve had sex with more.”

What does this statement speak to you? It speaks to me of a lack of intimacy in sex to me, that they view kissing as more intimate than they would allow their partner to have with them. This broke my heart, and it should everyone who reads this.

Hostel Takeover: Creating a new Hostel Environment

As I was reflecting on my time at the Hollywood hostel, I began to see the possibilities that could exist if a Christian were to start a hostel in the area. Think about the opportunities! Many International travelers looking for shelter and community are at your fingertips. What an opportunity to be a light, to demonstrate true community, to share God’s love with them, to offer bible studies to those that might be interested. I don’t know yet how you control their desire for sex and drinking, but I pray God would stir peoples hearts as they read this.

I would love to see Christians around the country starting Hostels so that this can become a reality. Think of the Influence. These International visitors can get a true picture of a Loving, Living God and take it back to their Countries.

If anyone reads this and wants to find out more or would like to partner with me in this, I trust God will bring someone along with a similar desire and a location to start a hostel.

There used to be a hostel in Orange County, but it’s still a great place with the popularity of the OC. And, even though L.A. already has at least 8 hostels already, It could definitely benefit from one more, especially one that is focused on loving these International travelers and displaying the Greatness of Jesus.

What kind of experience do you have with International Travelers? How has this influenced you to love them more?

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Does Christianity today look like Jesus? George Barna says…

My last post looked at the religious spirit in the Church today, and I believe this relates to the article I read the other day on ChristianPost.com. It shines a light on both the culture we live in and the American Church that we are apart of, whether we like it or not! George Barna examined the trend of non-christian views toward Christianity, which shows a steep decline in terms of viewing “Christians” favorably. I find this both a poignant article and a timely one, as we evaluate the Christian culture of our day. I’ve even experienced this negative attitude talking to people all over the country about their views on God, Jesus, and Christianity.It can be discouraging to read this article and very humbling to know that the Church has in many ways not embodied the cause of Christ both in actions and words. We are quickly entering an anti-christian age, which will certainly lead to more persecution as Christians that sincerely follow Jesus communicate with the world about their need for a Savior. At the same time, It will hopefully bring unity among the church and allow us to see who is sincere in their faith in Jesus as both Lord and Christ.See the article here:http://www.christianpost.com/article/20070925/29448_Study%3A_Christianity_No_Longer_Looks_Like_Jesus.htmDo you think Christianity Looks like Jesus anymore? Why or Why Not?

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The Healing Power of God

The other day I had a conversation with a Grad student from ASU. She was getting her masters in Architecture and happened to be from the midwest like me - Springfiled, Illinois to be exact. We talked for a while about general stuff and then I had an opportunity to ask about her religious beliefs. She shared about being raised catholic, but was now very turned off to the things of God and came off very apathetic to anything about God. But, she still allowed me to share about the dangers of religions and I sympathized with her about how a religious spirit can be a turn off to her now considering the claims of Christianity. I even shared how Jesus was the toughest critic of the religious leaders of his day and didn’t tolerate their outward religiosity. (And as I right this I can’t understand why we have become so tolerable of this similar religious spirit in the Church today, which has caused so much hatred by the world aligning us with the pharisees of our day - which has included me in the past - Colossians 2:21-23 talks about these dangers by saying “These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in promoting self-made religion and asceticism and severity to the body, but they are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh.”)I began to share with her about how Jesus has healed me both physically and spiritually, how I’ve seen His Power in so many ways. But, the comment she made in response, I will never forget.”I don’t need to be healed.”I was taken aback by this comment. I should have been ready to respond about her need for spiritual healing. But, I wasn’t. I should of told her about her need for a Savior. But, I didn’t.Instead, I simply left her with a picture of Jesus Christ of Nazareth that I hope was more accurate than she has probably ever known, one that I hope she will never forget. But, even with thoughts on what else I could have said, I need to trust her to the Power of the Holy Spirit to bring conviction, show her God’s love, tear down the walls of religion, and bring her into an intimate relationship with the Living God - Jesus of Nazareth.I’m reading a book right now about “Freedom from the Religious Spirit”, which I highly recommend, as it analyzes what this religious spirit is and how it has seeped into the church very intentionally by the Kingdom of Satan. Let’s fight against the religious spirit in our churches, our communities, and in our personal lives. It will steal our unity as a body, our love for Jesus and the world He loves so much.My friends, Jesus is alive today and wants to move in Power through His Church and through His People. If you’re open to it, He will show you amazing things. You will be used by him in some amazing ways. But beware a religious spirit that seeks to steal the Healing Power of God from your life and your hearers.One such demonstration of God’s Power is from an acquaintance of mine named Fabian who has a website called FreedomToCaptives.com. He shares a healing testimony in his newsletter below:

Another encouraging testimony is from a lady that we have been ministering to over the phone. She has been bed ridden and had to use a wheel chair for over 24 years. She was bound by a spirit of infirmity. Doctors named this one Fibromyalgia. She called me a few days ago excited to share with me that she is healed. She believed that Jesus took her infirmity by the stripes He took on His body. She refused to believe the devil’s lies. Now she is walking, driving her car and ministering to other sick people to be healed. - Fabian from www.FreedomToCaptives.com

Since sharing this story on my Myspace page, a few friends have responded with similar testimonies. See them below:http://blog.myspace.com/KJFHow have you been healed by God? Please share with the Missionary Road community how God has been moving in your life or those you’ve been privileged to minister to!

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