Another Text Encounter???

Lauren and I are bummed! We left on Wednesday to go to Gulf Shores, AL for vacation to enjoy the beach for a few days. Our plan after that was to meet up with her friend Erin, who lives in Mobile, to hang out with her Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. We were getting ready on Thursday evening to go eat dinner when Lauren got a call from Erin. Erin is in the hospital with pneumonia (spelling?) and will be there for 3 days. We were looking forward to seeing Erin, but there is not much fun we can have in a hospital. We decided to see if we could book our hotel room for one more night, but the rate went up $50 so that option was gone. The last option was to see if there were hotel rooms at the beach in Pensacola, FL (about an hour away), but none were available in our price range. Like I said, we were BUMMED!

After exhausting our options, we decided to get up early on Friday morning and go to the beach one last time to let Price play in the sand and take some family beach pictures. On our 5 minute walk to the beach, Price quicly fell asleep. We laid out our blanket, set up our chairs, and hoisted up the umbrella. After Price being asleep for about an hour, we looked behind us and the darkest of rain clouds were upon us. I saw the look on Lauren's face, which said, "You have got to be kidding me!" With Price still being asleep, there was no chance for him to play in the sand one last time, and the photo opp for beach pictures with our family was gone. The situation was turning from bad to worse. As soon as we returned to the hotel, the flood began. We cleaned up, packed up, and headed for home in the storm. It was a very silent ride home and there was nothing I could do about it...FRUSTRATING!

As I drove up I-65, everyone was sound asleep in the car, so I began to ask God to show me why He needed us back in Cartersville so bad. Every option we had to stay longer was shut down. I was clueless! When we reached home (a few days too early), we unloaded the car and just sat in silence. Frustrated, confused, and wallowing in self pity. It was about 8:30 pm and I needed to go pick up one of our dogs from a friend's house. Once I arrived, my friends and I began talking about caring where the people we know and love will spend eternity, and we even spent a minute praying for a couple opportunities my friend will have this week to speak with her friends about eternity. I put Charlie (our dog) in the car and decided to go through the drive-thru at Arby's for dinner. This is where God began to speak...

Let me take you back a few minutes before Arby's...

When I was leaving our friend's neighborhood, I began to tell God that I wanted to see why He brought us home early...it had to be a pretty good reason, right?!? I asked God that if I needed to share Christ with someone, then He needed to show me clearly. So after I got my food from Arby's, I was at the stop light on West Avenue and I noticed there were a couple of guys in the truck in front of me leaning out the window waving at me, one on each side. It was two of my former baseball players. All of a sudden, it hit me...was this the encounter I was brought home early from vacation for? The reason I say that is because I had a conversation earlier this year with one of the guys in the truck about where he would spend eternity. He clearly told me that he knew that he did not have a relationship with Jesus. I asked Him why and he replied, "Because I see all these people that call themselves Christians at school and they do the same stuff I do. I don't want to be a hypocrite like them." That answer about killed me, but he was right. If Christians do the same stuff people who are not Christians do, what is the difference??? It actually made me down-right mad knowing that is the picture a lot of non-believers have of "Christians"!

This morning I got up and I text him to let him know that I care where he spends eternity. I let him know that if there is ever a time that he wanted to talk about it, that I would drop whatever I am doing to talk with him. He text back and said, "Ok Coach, I will let you know." I truly believe last night was one reason that God brought us home early from this trip, so that I would see that young man and be reminded to let him know that I care where he will spend eternity. I know this...he has something to think about this weekend and he has a choice to make. Making no choice is making the choice to reject Jesus because he knows the truth about Jesus and why He came to earth. He may not decide to talk to me anytime soon about this matter, but it is in God's hands now. My job is to simply let him know that I care where he will spend eternity.

Let me finish this post by asking you this...

If you are a Christian, what picture are you giving non-believers about a relationship with Christ? Does it make you different (in a good way), or are you the one that gives non-believers the excuse why not to make Jesus the Lord of their life??? Like Alan Duncan said at SPLASH Bartow, "You are either a missionary or the mission field." Which are you?

Verse for Week #5...

After a long school year, I was worn out spiritually. I prayed that God would renew my strength and refresh me, and this summer has been day after day of spiritual refreshing...THANK YOU, LORD! I was reading my Bible the other day and I came across this verse. I thought it would be appropriate, especially for those who feel like they are out of spiritual energy and need to be refreshed...

"A generous man will prosper; he who refreshes others will himself be refreshed."

Please know that the Lord, your God, wants to refresh you...just ask Him!

Verse for Week #4...

Here is the verse for this week...

Jesus said, "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."

-John 16:33

Such words of encouragement!

Mission to Africa (Day 2)...

We boarded our gi-normous airplane around 5:00pm and we left the ground around 6:00pm. I had the pleasure of having a window seat next to Eric Webster. Everyone was giving their 2-cents about how they were going to sleep at a certain time, stay awake for so long, so by the time we arrived in Johannesburg they would be adjusted to the 6-hour time change. My decision was to just go with the flow and I would adjust when I got there.

In the mean time, Eric and I had a conversation about expecting to see God work in Sesheke and what we were expecting out of this trip. I honestly had no clue what to expect, but I prayed that God would speak to my heart, change my heart, and use me for His glory! I also prayed that God would send people in droves to the service under the big tree at the Baptist Mission's house later during the week, and that His presence would be seen and felt by all. I know that God can do more than I ask or imagine, so please do it Lord!

The pilot soon came over the intercom with his "radio voice" and informed us of our dinner choices. With his Jamaican accent he told us, "Your dinner choices for tonight will be beef, potatoes, and veggie-tables or chicken, rice, and veggie-tables." Apparently where he is from veggies come on a table, so that is how he pronounced vegetables. We all gave our smart comments after he finished his spill, then out came our dinner.

After dinner I watched a movie and tried to get a little shut-eye, but I have no clue how much I actually slept. After 8 hours in the air, we landed in Dakar to refuel, but we were not allowed to get off the plane. For 8 hours I never once left my seat, so when I tried to stand up I had NO BLOOD in my legs because it had all lodged in my feet. I didn't realize it until I was standing up and I could not feel my legs! My choice was to either sit down in my seat quickly or fall in the aisle. I chose to sit and do some leg pumps, then I got up to stretch.

We finally launched our plane from the Dakar runway and flew another 8 hours till we arrived safely in Johannesburg, South Africa, or Jo-burg as some people call it. We arrived around 5:30 pm Jo-burg time, which is 11:30 am Georgia time. Baggage claim was our next destination, then we took a van to the hotel where we were staying the night. It took us a little while to check in at the hotel, but once we did we cleaned up and ate dinner at "Tribes" around 7:30 pm. On the menu was steak, chicken, kudu, impala, warthog, ostrich, and several other familiar and foreign meats. I tried them all, but my favorite was warthog! I never thought I would be one to branch out to try crazy meats, but it would not be the last chance to eat something crazy in Africa.

After dinner, we went to Ty & Richard's room for devotion, which Eric shared with us...

He asked us, "Why are we here? Are we prepared? What are we prepared for? Satan doesn't want us in Sesheke, but God is with us! We have divine appointments waiting for us in Sesheke (and, boy, did we!). God is going to hold the Devil and his demons back and let us work. We each have a reason for being on this trip."

Eric finished with Ephesians 6, the Armor of God, and encouraged us to be prepared and know that God is with us!

Mission to Africa (Day 1)...

I got up about 4:00 that  morning to get ready to be at church by 5:00am. Lauren and Price got up with me and we all drove to Tabernacle Baptist Church for devotion and last minute instructions. Lauren dropped me off, and it was very hard to say goodbye. I tried not to let my emotions show because I knew Lauren was already struggling with the fact that I was going to be gone for 10 days. I kissed them goodbye and met my team inside the church.

Matthew Early, a past member of this trip to Africa, gave the devotion and he asked us, "What was Jesus' purpose for coming to Earth?" His purpose was to restore the relationship between God and man, and to tell people the truth. And the last part is what God was calling us to do in Sesheke, Zambia...tell people the truth about why Jesus came to Earth.

We left for the airport and arrived to check our baggage around 6:30am. We went through security, and after we put our shoes back on and gathered our belongings we realized we were 2 team members short. We looked...and looked...and looked! Sydney and Eric were no where to be found. I heard that Johannesburg, South Africa was the world's most dangerous city and possibly expected something unfortunate to happen when we arrived there, but in Atlanta??? Finally, someone pointed out that Eric and Sydney had been chosen to do the full body scan, so our hearts were at ease.

Our flight didn't leave until 8:30am, so we grabbed some breakfast and chatted before we loaded the plane. I sat with Zack Philliber (Philly) on the plane ride to Washington, D.C., which seemed to be a short ride compared to the 16-hour flight awaiting us. We arrived safely at Washington Dulles International Airport. By now it was lunch time and we had about 6 hours to kill during our lay-over. Most of the team ate at Fuddruckers, a few grabbed pizza, but after lunch we made ourselves at home at our terminal.

Let me introduce you to our team before I finish the story of Day 1. The captains of our trip were Joe Carp and Clift Dempsey. Mr. Joe and Mr. Clift were a perfect combination because they are both great leaders. They were very quick to get on to one another (out of love and fun) when the other took the lead and made the slightest mistake (I will get to that in a second). Next we had Mr. Gary Glaze who has been on many mission trips. He even went on trips when I was in high school. He was our photographer and the "ham-bone" expert (if you don't know what that is, that is where you use your hand and leg to make a music beat). It was my pleasure to get to know Eric Webster, who has to be one of the most genuine people I know. He has a true passion for Jesus, he is a great teacher, and I was blessed by being on this trip with him. The college teammates were Richard Downer, Zack Philliber, and Sydney Carp. All 3 have made the trip to Sesheke before, so I was interested to learn from their experience. Then came 3 of my students from the high school: Ty Downer, Clifton Dempsey, and Pierce Dempsey. All in all we had an outstanding team that was ready to tell Sesheke, Zambia about Jesus Christ!

Back to Joe and Clift ragging each other...

After lunch, Clift found nothing better to do than to rag Joe about losing 2 team members before we left Atlanta, arriving at the Atlanta airport 3 days before we were supposed to leave (really just a couple of hours), and now Clift found out that Joe had a better seat on the plane than he did. Clift's seat was on the very last row where he could not recline...for 16 hours! We were all laughing pretty hard and it became a joke the rest of the trip. We passed the rest of the time by playing games, eating ice cream, and talking to our family before we left for Africa. I called Lauren and Price one last time to say goodbye. Lauren was out "bargain" shopping with her friend Shawna, but I was so happy that she was occupied. I sure was going to miss my family over the next 10 days, but I was excited to see how God was going to work in my life and work through me to change lives!

Tune in tomorrow for the 16-hour plane ride to Africa...

(To view my "Mission to Africa" photo album, become my friend on Facebook...Drew Startup)

Verse for Week #3...

I thought this week we would go with Ephesians 3:20, which talks about God's POWER!

"Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us..."

I think that we forget sometimes that God is an all-powerful God! When we ask God to do something, He wants to do it according to His will, but we must BELIEVE when we ask. Is there something you need to believe God to do in your life? The verse says that He is able to do IMMEASURABLY MORE than all we ask or imagine. Ask and believe!

It Started With a Text...

My wife and I, along with the rest of the FCA leaders, had just returned to Cartersville from FCA Camp. We were pulling into the Target parking lot around 7:30pm on Sunday evening, and everyone was beyond ready to be in their own bed to rest. As we were pulling in, Lauren pointed over to Bruster's Ice Cream and saw some of my students from the high school enjoying ice cream. I saw one of my baseball players over there and decided to tease him a little about hanging out with some girls. I shot him a text and he text back. He asked where we were coming back from, so I told him we just got back from FCA Camp. He asked me if it was fun, and that is where it all started...

I had the choice to tell him that camp was fun and be done with the conversation, or I could apply what I learned at camp and show him that I cared about where he spent eternity. I waited for a few minutes before I text back and asked him, "If you died today, do you know where you would spend eternity?" Several minutes passed after I sent that text and I thought to myself, "Great! I lost him, but at least I tried." I decided to send another text, which said, "The reason I ask is because I actually care about where you spend eternity." As soon as I hit "Send" I received a lengthy reply back from him.

He said that he was happy with life, but not as happy as he could be if he were completely right with God. He believes in God and he knows that when life is over he has to come face to face with God. He told me that he is not sure where he will spend eternity when he died. He hangs around good people and makes very wise decisions, but he admits that he is not as spiritually active as he should be. He knows that he needes help, admits that he has messed up many times, and said that he knows he needs to repent, but doesn't know how. He knows what he should do, but doesn't know how to get there.

I was blown away by his honesty, but also by the thought he put into his response. I immediately asked if I could meet him somewhere for coffee so I could share how he could know where he would spend eternity, but he sent me a text back saying that he would love to sit down and talk with me face-to-face when he got back from playing baseball out of town on Friday. I was so thankful that he was willing to meet with me, so I told him to let me know when he got back in town.

I spent the next several days praying that God would prepare his heart and that He would keep him alive long enough to hear how he can be born again. I sent him a text Thursday reminding him about meeting with me and he assured me that he would be there. I contacted several prayer warriors and asked them to be praying that God's power would be present when we met.

Friday finally came, and Lauren and I were up early to take Price to get his 6-month shot. We did a little shopping while we were out, and while we were at Wal-Mart I got a text from him asking if we could meet after he worked out. We decided to meet at 1:00 at Applebee's, so all I could do now was pray. When Lauren and I got home, I rushed to help put up the groceries before my meeting. There were still groceries left on the counter, but it was time for my appointment. This was the first time I was not nervous about sharing Jesus with someone, but confident that God was going to change someone's life!

I arrived at Applebee's and we walked inside. We sat down and talked about what we have done this summer, baseball, and then Jesus. I asked him what his thoughts were about the question I asked him on Sunday and he said that he was ready to make an impact in the lives of the people around him for a better reason...Jesus. I shared with him how sin separates us from God, how Jesus came to be the sacrifice for our sins by dying on the cross, and how Jesus can forgive him of his sins. The scripture I shared with him was Romans 3:23 (we all have sinned), Romans 6:23 (because of our sin we deserve to spend an eternity in hell, but God's gift is eternal life through Jesus), 1 John 1:9 (God will forgive our sins if we confess them), Romans 10:9 (you will be saved if you confess with your mouth "Jesus is Lord" and believe in your heart God raised Jesus from the dead), and John 14:6 (Jesus is the way, truth, and the life and no one comes to the Father except through Jesus). I asked him if he had any questions and he said, "Coach, I am ready to give my life to Jesus."

On a Friday afternoon in a booth at Applebee's, one of my baseball players gave his life to Jesus! He confessed his sins to God, asked God to forgive him, and asked Jesus to take control of his life. Words cannot describe how I felt hearing him talk to Jesus, and words cannot describe the peace and excitement he felt giving his life to Jesus. I have a brand new brother in Christ! I asked him, "Who are you going to tell about your decision today?" He began to rattle off names to no end. I encouraged him to find a church to get plugged into, get plugged into FCA, and to read his Bible and talk to God daily. I assured him that many of his friends would be so excited to hear the news of his decision and that he would have many people praying for him and supporting him in his new walk with Christ. I explained that many people in the Bible died because of their faith and that being a born again believer is not always easy, but God promises that He is always with us!

God orchestrated this whole encounter over the course of this summer. In Africa I learned how to share my faith. At FCA Camp I was challenged to be bold about sharing my faith. Then God simply gave me the divine appointment and left it up to me to me to decide whether or not I cared about where this young man would spend eternity. All glory goes to God for giving me the boldness to share and for saving a precious soul today!!!