Good Old Kentucky

Hello all! Currently, I'm sitting in a nice little McDonald's in Kentucky typing out this blog for you guys. Why you ask? Why not? Haha, just kidding! This week I'm down at KCU for my last 'on-campus' Master's Class of this degree! WOO HOOOOO!!! I'm sitting at the McDonald's because for some reason or another, my computer has rejected nearly every wi-fi network I've attempted to connect to, EXCEPT MCDONALDS! I find that fairly ironic, but hey, at least I'm able to get on SOMEWHERE!

Anyway, I just wanted to update you all on some of the happenings in the life of the Willis Family. Emily's currently in Lexington, KY with her best friend/roommate from college, Leah Amerine, visiting another good friend who just had a baby last week. If you ask me, this might be baby overload... jk! ;) But Emily's doing well, or at least as well I suppose that one can be when pregnant! She's had a few concerning pains here and there, and of course that vile sciatic nerve has ALREADY began to give her problems, but the doctors been able to help you accommodate these things and get through them. Currently, I'm doing an online Bible-Study/Devotional series with the college students. Something I challenged them with before we broke for the summer was to stay active in the Word and to spend time with God daily. With the exception of a week at camp with no internet and a few days here and there because of traveling or my own forgetfulness, I've been able to get on and write up a post about a particular passage. We've already gone through the book of Ephesians and right now we're going through the book of Job, set to go over chapter 29 tomorrow. I'm not doing anything TOO in-depth because of the limitations of the online format and time, but it's proven to be a pretty good experience. I've been held accountable to stay in the Word more frequently because of this too, so it's certainly been a plus for me! I've gotten messages and texts from students saying that they are really enjoying this, or that they've been without internet for the past couple of days and they're really excited to be back and get caught up. These messages have certainly been a source of encouragement!

In other news, Emily and I were able to purchase a new car! Well, not NEW new, but new for us! The worship leader at our church is neighbors with a mechanic who fixes up cars on the side, once he comes from work. He was told about our situation and wanted to help us out, so he fixed up a car for us and sold it to us for $1,000. Not only that, but he also paid for our state inspection and is letting us pay off the car in payments each month of however much we can afford! We were praying for something like this because of the need of having an alternate mode of transportation in case Emily needed to go to the doctor and I wasn't able to go get her, and God provided this opportunity and moved this guy to really bless us with this car. It's just amazing to think about! =) So anyways, Emily and I are now proud owners of a 1995 Buick Park Avenue. WOO HOO! God is good! =)

Well, that's the big highlights for what's been going on here with Emily and I. I hope you've enjoyed reading this, and feel free to comment below or email me! =) God bless!!!

Pat

"God Distorted"

I can honestly say, I am SO glad that I chose this book to read and review. My wife and I are currently expecting our first child this December, so when I saw this book I thought to myself that it might be a good one to read to understand what kind of influence (positive and negative)I can have on my child/children and how that will affect how they view God. John Bishop did a magnificent job with this book. Not only does he take the time to outline and explain various 'types' of fathers, but he then takes time to help the reader establish a Biblicaly based view of God, overthrowing any type of misconception that they might have because of their earthly father.

This is easily one of the top books that I have read in the past year. I HIGHLY recommend it to everyone, but especially anyone who might have had a troubled family history, especially with his/her father. There were many times in this book when I would be reading, and then all of a sudden I thought about a person who I know and realized that this might very well be describing them! I never knew that even the best of fathers can influence our perspective of God in a way that can become distorted. From reading this book, I feel better prepared, and I hope that I am, to lead my  family and be the father to my children and my wife that God wants me to be.



"I receievd this book free from Water Brook/Multnomah Publishers to review."

Exciting News

So, for those of you who haven't heard yet, Emily and I have some exciting news....

WE'RE HAVING A BABY!!!! =D

I'm SUPER pumped and so is Emily! We're expecting our little bundle of joy come this December! I figured what better way to start the whole summer updates with this exciting news. =) This being said, I'm currently trying to start a new phase of fundraising. My goal is to find more supporters/ministry partners who will help me reach my goal of raising an extra $500/month. Emily's currently making about $400-$450/month, so I'm hoping that I can raise about $500 so that by the time December rolls around, she'll be able to stay home, recuperate, and take care of our son/daughter. Depending on how much more funding we are able to get, the ideal goal would be for Emily to be a stay-at-home mom and do campus ministry with me. I'd appreciate any prayers that you guys could provide and offer up for us! If you have anyone come to mind who might be looking to support someone (tax-deductible goodness.. ;)....), feel free to send them this way or tell them about us! Thanks you guys! Love you all!


Pat

Summer

Hello all! I'm really excited to update you guys, but I can only do so much at a time, lol. Anyway, it's finally summer time! Emily and I just got back from NC today and we're exhausted, but I wanted to take a few moments to let you know that I haven't forgotten about this blog even though I've been awful at keeping up with it. I'm hoping that I'll be able to keep up with this a little better because I'm also doing a daily blog-Bible study for the students, so everyday I see this one. I'm hoping that I'll be able to share some updates and prayer requests with you all though here this summer as Emily and I prepare for the new school year! Love you guys! =)


Pat

Humble Orthodoxy

I recently had the pleasure of reading Joshua Harris' new book Humble Orthodoxy. First of all I have to say that I couldn't have asked for a better book to come along at just the right time. For a long time I've felt the conviction of cross-denominational unity and I've made it a personal mission to not 'discriminate' against any Christian brother or sister who happens to go and participate in a congregation that believes some things differently from me. All that being said, Joshua Harris' new book Humble Orthodoxy is a book that I think every theologian, minister, really every Christian should read this book. It isn't a very big commitment, lasting on around 60 or so pages before you get to the study notes and index, and is a very quick read!

In this book Harris exposes the easy temptation to learn theology and bash others who disagree with our conclusions and beliefs. Even though he seems more 'reformed' than I am, I can honestly say that I agree side-by-side with him on this issue. I love how seriously he takes this matter, pushing his readers to evaluate him/herself and see whether he/she really is honoring God with what they are doing. So often have I fell into the trap of thinking less of someone else because they didn't agree with me on a certain issue, but over the years God's shown me that thinking and looking down on my brothers and sisters isn't honoring him, but is actually an act of boosting my pride and my own self.

Harris' book is a great piece of literature for our day. There are many people who are so caught up on learning something just for the sole purpose of proving another brother/sister wrong, and Harris correctly exposes this as wrong. Holding firm to the truth, orthodoxy, is CRUCIAL! However living a life of humility and love and gently correcting those who are wrong about ESSENTIALS of the Christian faith is just as CRUCIAL! Never before have I read a book that addresses this issue of maintaining humility and truth in one's life as clearly, concisely, and effectively as this book from Joshua Harris. I HIGHLY recommend this book! You won't regret it! In fact, you'll be wishing there was more! =)




I received a copy of this book to review by Water Brook and Multnomah Books.

I Am Not But I Know I AM

I recently just finished reading a book by Louie Giglio called I Am Not But I Know I AM.

First of all, I really enjoy listening to Louie Giglio, so when I heard that he wrote a new book I was very eager at the opportunity that I had to read it. In this book, Giglio takes his readers on a journey that reevaluate their lives and adjust them, in whatever way they might need to, to better connect themselves with God Almighty. Louie explains how each of us live within a grand story, a meta-narrative, if you will, where the main character is not ourselves, but God Himself. Taking time to realize the bigness of God and that we are not can make the difference between a life that is full of life and faith and a life that is full of spiritual hardship and disappointment. Louie includes personal stories in the book to illustrate his points that really help his message come to life. Over all, even though there are times when it seems that Louie is being a little repetitive, I think he presents a VERY important message in this book. Every person needs to come to a point in their own life where they realize that "I am not but I know I AM!"


I received a copy of this book to review by Water Brook and Multnomah Books.

Two Weeks Into The New Semester...

Well, we're finally back to school and the new semester is in full swing! This semester we're doing a series called "All-In" where we are going to take a look at what it means to be all-in when it comes to our relationship with Jesus. My hope is that from this series, we will all be able to look at our relationships with Jesus and go to the next level in the areas of evangelism and discipleship. Our first week was last week (1/30/13) and we had 38 students show up. We talked about Jesus' desire for us and how it's two-fold: 1) Jesus deeply desires you and me; and 2) Jesus has desires for/of us (our lives and what we do). Last night we talked about Jesus' mission for us. There are so many awesome benefits to being a Christian! Yet so many of us restrict them and reduce them to only salvation. Some even go as far as thinking that it's acceptable and part of God's plan for us to just receive Salvation through Jesus Christ and then just be idle, not doing anything to share this gift or improve in our relationship with Jesus. I think that this mentality doesn't  represent God's desire(s) for us, in fact I think it displeases God as well. Reading through the Bible as a whole, you can very clearly see this as a part of how God interacts with His people. God expects those who are His, not to be lazy but to do the good works that he had intended and planned for us to do from the beginning (Eph. 2.8-10). Perhaps one of the reasons people begin to think this way is because they are afraid of the persecution and rejection they might face for living the way Jesus calls us to live. But that opens the door to another question that I've had for a while, and that's "who ever said that persecution and opposition for living a life for Jesus is a bad thing? In 1 Peter 4, Peter encourages us to rejoice and be thankful. So why is it that we as Christian fear persecution, rather than rejoicing when we face it? I was reading a book a couple of weeks ago by Randy Alcorn and he said something that's stuck with me. "If God answered all our prayers to be delivered from evil and suffering, then he would be delivering us from Christlikeness." For Christians, even opposition and suffering is a good thing! I think redefining evangelism from meaning "telling others about Jesus" to "living life for Jesus" makes our part in Jesus' mission to redeem creation more personal and more impactful for us to grasp. It's so awesome to think about all of the connections we have with Jesus, but I have to admit that thinking about the fact that we are partners with Jesus in this mission brings me encouragement and sets me on fire with a passion to live my life in such a way that I "preach the Gospel at all times, and [only] when necessary use words." I pray that God would fill you with this same passion and desire to join Him more intentionally in this mission to save the world and that He would use you to completely change the face of your area! =) Until next time!!!


Patrick