Faith My Eyes Introduction

"So keep'em coming, these lines on the road,

And keep me responsible be it a light or heavy load,

Keep me guessing with these blessings in disguise,

And I'll walk with grace my feet and faith my eyes."
-Caedmon's Call, Faith My Eyes

In the gospel of John, Jesus says, "I have come that they may have life, and have it abundantly." Abundant life. Life to the full. An adventurous journey. This is what I have stumbled upon, or to be more accurate, this is what He has called me to. The intent of this blog is simply to share my journey with you. I want to share my adventure whether it's backpacking in the Himalayan mountains, teaching English in North Africa, attending classes at Southeastern Seminary, or just sitting around at home reading Tolkien's "Lord of the Rings" and D'Souza's "What's So Great About Christianity" over Christmas break.

I am a Christian, yes, but I am not you're typical ignorant pew sitter. You see, this life we live has a purpose that many of us don't recognize. Man's purpose rests in a passionate pursuit of the Creator through the Savior with the power of the Spirit. This passionate pursuit is manifested in a number of areas of life; in mine, there are three main areas into which I desire to pour my entire heart for His glory:

1. Paul wrote to the Corinthian church: "I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified." Peter describes our salvation as something "into which angels long to look." Growing in the knowledge and understanding of my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, is my life's primary pursuit. According to chapter 6 of Paul's Romans treatise, being free from sin, I am enslaved to God to serve Him with my full life.
2. Family comes next. My greatest ministry on this earth will be to my wife and children. Paul, in writing to Ephesian husbands, compares marriage with Christ's relationship to the church. Jesus loved and gave himself up for the church. This will be my second greatest pursuit in life: loving, giving myself up for, and being sanctified with a woman whose primary pursuit is the Lord. As for children, I desire to raise my children with the purpose of seeing them raise godly children (this is the method of discipleship that Paul teaches in II Timothy 2:2). As a single guy, I have to keep in mind Paul's concession, in I Corinthians 7, to "secure [my] undivided devotion to the Lord." This has serious implications for who or even if I marry.
3. My life's ministry is an area into which I desire to pour my heart and passion, though it will never come before my family or my own relationship with the Lord. My heart is in Africa. I do not yet know where I will ultimately serve, but I desire to live my life working with muslims who have never had an opportunity to hear the gospel of Jesus Christ. My dreams include, but are not limited to, connecting national Christians, translating Scripture, planting churches, and one day, underground or not, starting a seminary for the purpose of training pastors and missionaries.

So, with this introduction, strap in and join me for the adventure of my lifetime!