Rich... (& what i'm thinking)

This is the what I've been thinking on all week so far...

"Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life."
(from Paul's first letter to his boy Timothy... <6:17-19>)

& these are some of my thoughts so far...
- 1st thing I noticed was that Paul is definitely making a distinction on purpose with the phrase "in this present world." i.e. - that's the only time being rich really counts! it's just for now... just for a few years...
- & MAYBE for not as long as you think because it is "SO UNCERTAIN" WOW! is that not so crazy relevant for TODAY with all the economic uncertainty? man, for being so old this letter is right on for right now. who would've guessed it?
- I would put EVERYONE reading this blog in the category of RICH! no doubt & you probably shouldn't argue. If you have internet access you are freaking rich! if you have a car, a roof, clothes, and clean water you are richer than the majority of the world. so, the commands for the rich are for YOU and ME!
- looks like 7 commands to the rich = you & me...
1 - don't be arrogant
2 - don't put your hope in wealth
3 - put your hope in God
4 - do good
5 - be rich in good deeds
6 - be generous
7 - be willing to share

Obviously some of these are synonyms & could probably be combined into like 4 things, but I like to see them all separate.

We're talking about it at community group tonight along with Rob Bell's "Rich"... so more thoughts really soon...

invisible.

I saw this advertisement this morning.
It's in Australia and advertising for the Australian Childhood Foundation... obviously against child neglect and abuse.
This is some pimp advertising!

TOMS on AT&T commercial!

I was so excited when I saw this! TOMS (which we celebrated "barefoot day" with last week) got picked up for the new AT&T spot. It's all over the TV. Pretty sweet exposure. Here it is below in case you haven't seen it.

my wife is a bracket GURU!

Well, March Madness is over and the NCAA tourney is done. Carolina has been crowned the champions (as we all knew they would). And my wife WON the 2nd annual renown bracket tournament challenge!!! WOW! She beat everyone.

And she not only won our little bracket challenge, she finished in the top 99.3 percentile in the whole nation!!! That's out of over 6 million entries! She beat President Obama and everybody! She seriously only missed a few games.

we should have made some serious bank off her entries by entering her in tons of contests! But, oh well. next year I'll know better. My wife is a GENIUS when it comes to doing these NCAA tourney brackets!

**Next year I'm gonna copy my wife's bracket!

I am barefoot today...

Why am I walking around barefoot today? It's very simple = today is April 16th which is "One Day Without Shoes" sponsored by TOMS shoes. It's just meant to raise awareness for all the kids around the world who don't even have 1 pair of shoes. Read all about it HERE.

If you have no idea what TOMS is just click HERE and/or HERE and read a little about them!



Bottom Line = TOMS is all about helping kids in poverty have a pair of shoes. So, for every pair of TOMS you buy, they give one away! Here is what TOMS is asking us to do today = On April 16th, go barefoot on the way to the water cooler, walking to the mailbox, in an afternoon meeting or on your lunch break; go barefoot for the entire day or long enough to raise awareness.

I've got a lunch meeting @ Qdoba today... you think they'll let me in without my shoes?
Tell me some of your barefoot stories.

happy tax day!

congrats to you all! - probably most of you reading this post have sent your taxes in! They are all done until next year!
WHOOOO! & congrats to me (mine were done a few weeks ago). I finished them early & sent them in. SUCH a relief.

I HATE doing taxes. it's possibly what i hate MOST in life. haha...
To borrow a phrase from Jeff Foxworthy, "I'd rather take a beating with a brick stick" than have to do my taxes. Or even think about doing them.

Does anyone else hate it as much as me?

oh well. at least it's over with... until next year.

mentored by Bill Hybels (part 3)

(You can read Part 1 HERE & Part 2 (from yesterday) HERE.)

Basically I took advantage of an awesome resource called Axiom (which you can & should buy HERE) & I got to be mentored by Bill Hybels for 76 days.
Each of the titles below are basically the "axiom" or the leadership proverb that was coined by Bill over the years. That's the phrase to remember. The rest is commentary about it. I picked out my fav 7 from the 2nd half of the book... (I loved a couple others, but I included quotes from them in THIS POST.) enjoy...

A Blue-Sky Day - God gives peeps the ability to think creatively… therefore when things are stale at a church, “it’s a fair bet to say that God is not to blame… it’s that church leaders don’t carve out the time to establish the right environment, and rally the requisite energy to think new thoughts.” [wow. that is really calling us out. But i think it's so true.]
Here's a Great Q to ask = “What would we do to advance the kingdom of God if there was nothing to stop us from doing it?”
Essentially a “Blue Sky Day” = unlimited visibility & unlimited ceilings (Bill says these days off site are usually better – somewhere that contributes to free thinking, etc…)
I though this statement he made was really interesting = “Ministry people are so well trained to spot roadblocks and ‘reasons why not’ that it may take more time than you think to get your team to play by the new rules." [of no limits] *“any group that is conducting any sort of ongoing activity runs the risk of operating from a rut over time.”

The Bias Toward Action - “do you screen for action-orientation when you want someone to join you near the center of your cause? Are you intentional about seeking out the ones who by virtue of sheer wiring patterns will say, ‘Your dilemma is my dilemma too?’” I think a lot of times we do NOT do this. We just look for warm bodies.
I agree wholeheartedly with Bill on this =*** “I’d rather rein in a hyperactivist once ina while than have to wake him up from a long afternoon nap.” & “I believe God is looking to pour out his favor on those who are hopping out of bed each morning ready to further the cause for his glory.” Yeah, me too. I'm trying to be that guy.

Find the Critic’s Kernel of Truth - Bill was directly mentoring me on this one. It's so good for me to hear because I'm learning to deal better with criticism. I hear dwelling on it too long is my "leadership lid" & I don't want it to be.
*Here is the axiom summed up in Hybels' words = “A very wise man once told me that tucked deep inside every critic’s attack is usually at least a tiny kernel of truth. And rather than reflexively lashing back at a critic, he advised, I should spend my energy figuring out what it is.” & Then my bottom line is to GROW FROM IT!!! (not get defensive) I will keep insisting on learning from my critics!
**The beautiful part of all this is that after I apply this axiom for years -> then there’ll be less criticism! “You’ll have kept learning to walk straighter, discern better, and operate wiser and thus will be attracting fewer bullets.” haha, so cool. You're a genius, Bill.

Brain Breaks - Now this one was truly fascinating to me! World-class performance coach Jack Groppel says it’s all about leveraging bursts of energy and then giving yourself a break from stressors when necessary. *Typically the glazed eyes/mushy brains happens at the 60-90 minute mark… you just need a 15 minute time out. (I've started practicing this!)
“Your mind works according to rhythms of concentration that are beyond your control. It is your responsibility to know how long your bursts of brain power will last and how to recover.” [the book Bill recommends on this is The Corporate Athlete, Jack Groppel. All about energy management & physiology.]

Create Your Own Finish Lines - ***This one is SO TRUE in my life! & quite possibly the advice I needed most from Bill in our mentoring sessions! He said, “There is no end to the amount of work we could do”.../ There are always more appointments, calls, notes, encouragement, planning, prayers to do, etc…" Whoa... ALL of us in ministry (& tons of other professions) KNOW firsthand that this is THE TRUTH! it never ends... (& never will) SO, we have to be the ones to cut it off... to make an end.
The Big Q is = When is enough enough? “When is my workday ‘officially’ over?” -> If I don’t know then my “sustainability demands a different approach.”
*** “Most long-term efficiency studies show that if you work more than 10 hours a day, you begin to live in a diminishing-return dynamic, and your effectiveness and results will actually go down.” [Wow. that is fascinating to me! I've gotta protect my finish line vigorously!]
& @ that finish line give “a heartfelt thanks to God for accepting my best efforts throughout a day that is now over.” - man, that is so cool. I'm going to make this a practice too! Having this daily finish line means work stays at work & that's something I've NEVER been able to do.
A few more ideas = take a Sabbath every week/ get alone with God and relish a little solitude at least once every 30 days/ take time to be around peeps who can build into me & challenge me to lead at higher levels at least a couple times per year.
As Bill was mentoring me in this axiom he said “you’ll never regret it.”

Pay Now, Play Later - high-capacity leaders KNOW to be successful they must “discipline themselves to do the critical tasks first.” ah... this is like eating your veggies before dessert!
***Tell myself "these are the things you absolutely must get done. You’ll feel so much better at the end of the day if you will forge ahead with these critical tasks and move them up the field.”
And then after a full day of "paying" (doing these critical & maybe less enjoyable tasks), the “play” that follows is so much sweeter! I can definitely vouche for this one.

Read All You Can - Bill shared a story about how one of his staffers asked him about a leadership dilemma & he fired back & asked her the names of the last 3 leadership books she had read!!! Oooh… put her on the spot. she couldn't answer even !
- “far too many leaders in high positions of responsibility neglect their need to read.”
- “Leaders have a responsibility before God to constantly get better, and one of the most reliable ways to do so is to read. Great leaders read frequently. They read voraciously.” sweet! I love it.

Man, this was some good stuff! I am honored to have been mentored by Hybels for 10 minutes a day for 76 days. Thanks for putting this into print, Bill!
If you don't own Axiom yet - you NEED to go get it and READ IT! You can buy it HERE. Make it your pot book like I did.

For now - What do you think of the Axioms in this post?
& again WHO IS MENTORING YOU RIGHT NOW?

mentored by Bill Hybels (part 2)

You can read part 1 & all about how I was mentored by Bill Hybels for 76 days by clicking HERE.
Today I just want to share some of my favorite axioms from Bill's book called Axiom. You can (& should) buy it HERE.
The book is conveniently divided into 4 sections & each axiom in that section falls under the main topic of that section. The 4 main topics are = Vision/Strategy, Teamwork/Communication, Activity/Assessment, & Personal Integrity.
Because You get SO MUCH when you are mentored by Bill Hybels, I'm going to just share some of my favorite takeaways from the 1st half of the book.

Language Matters - my bottom line takeaway is that word choice is HUGE to start an epidemic… for a movement to catch on & spread. This is something I overlook way too much as a leader. I need to remember that **my effectiveness as a leader often hinges on something as "inconsequential" as word choice…
Hybels says that “leaders rise and fall by the language they use.” *** “Sometimes whole visions live or die on the basis of the words the leader chooses for articulating that vision.” Wow! This is major advice coming from a great visionary.
He also says “The very best leaders I know wrestle with words until they are able to communicate their big ideas in a way that captures the imagination, catalyzes action, and lifts spirits.”
this process of word choice is VERY difficult & time consuming, but it seems like it is AS rewarding as actually choosing the general content! WOW!
*I think that as communicators we might tend to "wing it" when it comes to communicating vision! Since we're "pretty good" at communicating we don't put time into it, we just do it. We don't spend any time crafting our words. BUT, I have learned from Bill that LANGUAGE MATTERS, so I am going to be intentional about crafting my words before every communicating venue...
I've gotta remember Hybels' advice = “The right words can make vision talks soar.”

Make the Ask - “Leadership is a lot about asking. I realized long ago that ‘asking’ would always be a significant part of my leadership role.” (Hybels) & it seems like the longer I lead the bigger my asks will get!
This was some very interesting advice from Bill = “when handled properly people are actually quite flattered to be asked to do significant things for God.” -> “they’re almost always honored by a wise and well-timed ask.” This is so interesting to. Is this really true? I guess I can take it from Bill, eh? He said each time a big ask came in to him he was quite honored, not offended in the least. I think he's probably right = when the asks are done well, there is rarely a downside. [He goes on to give some very practical steps as to HOW to "ask well".]
I love the way he looks at this! = “If you’re chasing a bold vision, one of the greatest GIFTS you can give the people around you is to get in front of them… ask them to step up and do something great for God.” that's such an awesome way to think of it! It's a gift... to THEM.

Vision: Paint the Picture Passionately - Here is an example of why the whole book felt like I was sitting at a coffee shop with Hybels and he was mentoring me personally... “Leaders [Patrick], don’t ever apologize for the strength of feeling you have for the vision that God has put in your life. Don’t hide your feelings about it. God meant for you to feel as deeply about His vision for you as you do about anything.”

The Three Cs - a lot of great lessons in here. the 3 Cs are Character, Competence, & Chemistry. This should be our guage for hiring peeps. in that order. “Good character is tough to discern in a 15 minute interview.” very true. We've got to get creative then.
Great advice = “Never apologize for looking for maximum competence in your new teammates, gifts and talents and capabilities that will take your ministry to the next level of effectiveness.” On the other side, if you get negative vibes the first 2-3 times you're with a potential hire… that’s a bad sign that you won’t ever get along with them!!!*** that’s big. Bill learned this painful lesson the hard way too many times.

Never Say Someone’s No for Them - Bill says this is an odd tendency in even the best leaders… they ask God who would be the very best person on planet earth for the role… then they come up with the reasons why the person prolly won’t want to do it & they go after lesser qualified peeps who they can get easier! This is INSANE & we've gotta remember never to fall into this tendency.

Get the Right People Around the Table - “resolve to get the right people around the table. I figured if the right people were around the table, surely God would speak through them or through me or through our collective conversation and show us which direction to head.” I think there is good wisdom in that statement.
This is a BIG & interesting quote = “I really do believe that every serious problem known to humankind is addressable and solvable when the right people are invited into the dialogue.” This is CRAZY intriguing to me. I'm still not sure that I totally agree yet. I think I want to though. What do you think of that above statement? I know what Bill thinks of it because he said “I believe in this principle like I believe in gravity.” Wow. He believes it pretty strongly... or else he falls down a lot.

Pay Attention to Greetings and Goodbyes - the "problem" = Leaders are wired to have a HUGE bias toward action = “most of them [leaders] get up every morning with freshly stirred, God-given passion for moving every player in their organization one step closer to mission achievement.” VERY true and if you are a leader you can vouch for that. "Therefore, leaders are usually ¾ steamroller & ¼ compassionate colleage."
[this is interesting to me… is this a cop out or just fact of life I should let go? Should I struggle with it or no?] Example = when leader walks into a meeting they have “only one thing on the brain: mission advancement.” - so, because a leader’s mind is singularly focused on “task,” the other people in room can be easily overlooked. SO...
***“The most important part of every meeting is your greeting and goodbye.”
Hybels cheats this tendency by = “I make it a habit to do a personal, enthusiastic, genuine, warm, highly relational, look-you-in-the-eye greeting to every single person sitting around the table before I even think about starting the meeting.”

Deliver the Bad News First - “what you leave with someone at the end of any given communiqué…sets the tone for how they feel about the future of the organization or endeavor.” This is a big idea & fascinating & really BRILLIANT!
The KEY = “The difference between great communication and not-so-great communication often comes down to where you place the bad news.” I’ve gotta DO this & learn to master this!

What are your thoughts? Which axiom was your fav? What thoughts do these axioms provoke in you?

Happy Easter! - Common Threads @ Ridge

If you live in the Charlotte area I hope you'll come check out "Common Threads" tomorrow @ Ridge Church. It's going to be amazing!

**Make sure you're not late. I mean you seriously need to be in your seat by 11AM! The opener is AWESOME & will blow you away. It's seriously going to be powerful. Don't miss it.
+ At the end of Chris' talk you'll see something you won't forget for a long time! I promise!

It's our 1st ever Easter worship service @ Ridge Church. (HERE's what we were doing last Easter). I'm pretty stoked about celebrating the greatest day in history with this awesome church.

mentored by Bill Hybels for 76 days!

Earlier this week I wrote about being "mentored" by Andy Stanley HERE. But I was also mentored by Bill Hybels for 76 days! That's not too bad either! People would pay big $ to spend time each day being mentored by one of the greatest leaders in the church of our generation - Bill Hybels, the visionary behind Willow Creek and the spark for much of the local church revolution we continue to enjoy.

It only cost me $14.99 and I talked about the book back when I bought it HERE. The book is called Axiom & you can buy it (for even cheaper) HERE.
It is basically a book of all Hybels' leadership advice/wisdom for the past 30+ years! That's pure GOLD my friends! PURE GOLD. So, I snagged it.

The thing I liked best about this book is that it is simply 76 "axioms" straight from Bill. Each one is only 2-3 pages. For me it's the perfect "pot book." I literally spent 5 minutes per day soaking in Bill Hybels' leadership coaching and in 76 days I had finished the entire book. I had accumulated all this advice he has been learning and compiling for decades.
*talk about "redeeming the time!" I was able to be mentored by one of the greatest leaders of this generation EVERY SINGLE DAY for over 2 months while... sitting on the pot! I think that is AWESOME use of my time!
**And really it took NO extra time out of my day... I would have been sitting there anyway, I just picked up the book while sitting there. Such an awesome use of time/way to "multitask!"

I'm sill stoked about having had Bill Hybels as a mentor for 76 days! wow! thanks Bill for writing this and giving me the ability to take advantage of it...

In the next post (on this topic) I'll pick out my favorite of the 76 axioms and break them down, but today here are some of my fav quotes from the book. [my added thoughts are simply in brackets.] Enjoy...


“Leaders must never expect from others anything more than they’re willing to deliver themselves.”
“The most important part of every meeting is your greeting and goodbye.” [This was a whole chapter & a lot of great wisdom about meetings! great stuff!]
“People who work in Christian settings often feel obligated to present opinions with a level of politeness that can often dilute the point they are making to where it is barely recognizable. The other people in the room respond with blank stares, wondering what in the world this person has just said.” [haha - this makes me laugh because it's so true! I think the mission is worth being a little more direct!]
“When high-capacity people work in close proximity to each other, there will be friction.” [that's a great thing to remember. We may not be able to avoid it, just manage it!]
***“The healthiest organizations I see are not conflict-free. They are just ridiculously committed to keeping short accounts.” [That quote & the axiom chapter that went with it is worth the price of the book! imho]
[Since God gives peeps the ability to think creatively… therefore when things are stale at a church] “it’s a fair bet to say that God is not to blame… it’s that church leaders don’t carve out the time to establish the right environment, and rally the requisite energy to think new thoughts.” [ooooh... you know he's right... but it hurts a little, doesn't it?]
“What would we do to advance the kingdom of God if there was nothing to stop us from doing it?” [just ask yourself that Q & run with it!]
“any group that is conducting any sort of ongoing activity runs the risk of operating from a rut over time.”
“I’d rather rein in a hyperactivist once in a while than have to wake him up from a long afternoon nap.”
“I believe God is looking to pour out his favor on those who are hopping out of bed each morning ready to further the cause for his glory.”
“The way I am doing the work of God is destroying God’s work in me.” [said about his unsustainable pace in ministry at one point.]
“far too many leaders in high positions of responsibility neglect their need to read.” [haha - I threw that one in because I feel like that's at least 1 I'm "safe" on... haha, just 75 others to work on.]
“Leaders have a responsibility before God to constantly get better, and one of the most reliable ways to do so is to read. Great leaders read frequently. They read voraciously.” [That's so encouraging for me to hear. Thanks Bill.]
“If you don’t get that [family leadership] right, then you probably won’t get your responsibilities in leadership right either.” [us ministry leaders GOTTA remember that.]
***“Show me a leader who can cast a white-hot vision and who builds great teams and who does great things for God but who has a bitter spouse and disillusioned, cynical children, and I’ll show you trouble waiting to happen.”
“I very slowly woke up to the fact that nobody in my organization was going to fight for my family but me.”


What thoughts did these quotes produce in you?
Who is "mentoring" YOU right now?

Congratulations Carolina Tarheels! The greatest team in the country...

WHOOOO!!! national champions baby!

I can remember sitting on the couch in my friend's house in Florida 4 years ago during my senior year of college - watching my boys, the Tarheels, win the national championship. That was an awesome night = Felton, May, McCants, Williams & co. brought home the title where it belongs!

Last night was an awesome night too! This team is special. They are sick... & unbelievable.

I told you all at the beginning of the season that there's really no one who can hang with Coach Williams' team this year! Nobody was in the same league. You can read what I wrote HERE. looks like I was right.

Congratulations boys! National Champions again!!!

vision has its price (mentored by Andy Stanley)

I feel very very lucky. I get to be mentored by so many amazing leaders, scholars, visionaries, and great men. Not in person on a weekly basis or anything. But I take full advantage of everything these men are putting out there (books, podcasts, blogs, conferences, etc...) I treat it as though they are mentoring me 1 on 1. I learn everything I can from what they are saying.

One of my favorite "mentors" is Andy Stanley. I'm going to talk much more about the book later, and I mainly want to just share some awesome quotes from a particular chapter... but let me at least say this = Throughout Andy's entire book - Visioneering - It was as though Andy was sitting with me in a coffee shop speaking every single word directly to me! Seriously. I don't know if a book has ever been as personal as this one. EVERY word was specifically for me. Amazing. Like Andy wrote it just for me. (of course I'm sure it has affected thousands this way, which is awesome...)

This stuff is all from Chapter 10 that I recently went back & jotted some notes from = Vision has its Price

This 1st thought hit me right off...
**“Any vision worth pursuing will demand sacrifice and risk. You will be called on to give up the actual good for the potential best. You will find it necessary to leave what is comfortable and familiar in order to embrace that which is uncomfortable and unfamiliar. And all the while, you will be haunted by the fear that this thing you are investing so much of yourself in may not work out at all.”
[This is so crazy because that spot is exactly where I’m at right now! exactly what I needed to hear!]

“Vision requires courage and confidence. It requires launching out as if you were absolutely assured of the outcome.” [Thanks for speaking this into me, Andy! I value it big time!]

“The difference between those with a burden for something and those who actually do something is not resources. It is a willingness to take risks and make sacrifices.
The people who make a difference in the world commit to what could be before they know where the money is coming from. Their vision is enough to cause them to jump in. Money usually follows vision. It rarely happens the other way around.”
*** [Man! that is what I'm talkin' about. I SOOOOO needed to hear that! I'm all in... This is some crazy valuable mentoring stuff!]

– Great Quote to keep in front of me!!! ** “Is this what I am going to do? Or is this one of those things that I am just going to talk about until I am forty or fifty years old?”
[That's what someone with a vision asked their team. I am freaking going to do this thing... it's not just something I'm gonna be talking about when I hit 40 or 50! It's gonna be reality!]

Building Block #9 – Don’t expect others to take greater risks or make greater sacrifices than you have. [great stuff for all of us leaders to remember!]

“put my money where my vision is.” = [I love it!]

[this seemed straight from Andy's lips to my soul. Like advice for me in the upcoming years. Like God used Andy to give me counsel & wisdom about what's coming up in my near future.]
“If God has birthed a vision in you, it is only a matter of time until you will come upon the precipice of sacrifice. What you do at that juncture will in all likelihood determine the future success or failure of your vision.”

* “God has chosen to work through men and women who are willing to make sacrifices for the sake of the ‘thing’ He has placed in their hearts to do.”
He most loves to work through peeps who “are courageously laying the things that represent safety and security at His feet for the sake of what could be and should be.” [oh yeah! I am totally on board to be that guy that God can bless because I am laying it all down!]

*This was an interesting challenege from Andy to me (and all of us). I'm gonna take him up on it... = “Search the Scriptures. Search the pages of church history. You won’t find an example of anyone God used in even a small way who did not make some kind of sacrifice in order to pursue the vision. Sacrifice and risk are always part of the equation.”
“One thing I do know. When a man is willing to give up something valuable for a God-ordained vision, God looks upon it as worship.”

[now, this is big time. Andy's not pulling any punches here!]
*** “Your vision has not truly captured your heart until it captures your wallet.”

WOW. I just unpacked all that really really quickly. This is just 1 random chapter in the middle of this almost 300 page book that spoke to me every single sentence... every word.
Now you can see I've got a lot to unpack! way more to come.

Like I said. It was like being mentored intensely by Andy himself. So personal. So practical. So awesome...

I've got a vision to do something about this! (Africa)

God's given me a vision & I've got to do something about these atrocities taking place in Africa that you'll read below.
& when I say "I've got to" I MEAN "I've got to!" I really don't think you can stop me. You can try... but there is an unstoppable and unquenchable passion in me to glorify God's awesome Name by FIXING THESE PROBLEMS!!!

In Africa...

• Every 14 seconds a child is orphaned by AIDS
• 50,000 children will die of AIDS this year
• 1,400 newborn Africans are infected with AIDS every day
• There are 900,000 orphans in Nairobi, Kenya alone today, mainly due to AIDS
• More than 300 million people in sub-Saharan Africa live on less than $1 a day
• Every 3 seconds a child dies of nutrition deprivation/starvation
• More than 300 million people in Africa do not have access to clean water
• 1 million children die of malaria each year (that's death by mosquito bite!)
  
• millions of unreached people don't know how awesome Jesus is. They don't even know His name...

My vision is to see those stats go away. AIDS, poverty, disease, ALL OF IT to end! My vision is for a Revolutionary Jesus Movement (RJM I might call it, haha) to spring up across the region and in people groups. My vision is for an Unstoppable Church planting movement to spread across Africa until we can truly say there are no more unreached people groups in all of Sub-Saharan Africa! What a cool day that will be. God will be famous. I will probably be dead, but maybe not. Doesn't matter because it's not about me.

I'm going for the rest of my life to do something about this. Not sure when exactly it will be. Some days I feel like I can't wait another second. God put a vision and a passion in me to let Him use me to change that continent... & sometimes I just can't help but talk about it.