Would a Rose Still Smell as Sweet...

Have you ever wondered on the amazing nature of God?

God Who revealed Himself to us in a way that requires us to take on a part of His nature every time we even just say His name?

When Moses came upon the burning bush, God told him His name is, "I Am."

We cannot say it without making it something personal, without taking some responsibility for it. The Jewish people of that day weren't even allowed to say this version of His name.

And those two simple words also make up the smallest, shortest sentence acceptable in the English language.

A subject and a verb.

A verb? Can God be a verb?

An action?

It takes so many parts of our brain to even begin to get the smallest iota of an idea of Who He is in this respect. Again, we cannot even say His name without taking it personally... and without giving motion to it.

Jesus walked in this revelation. That He could be one with God... and therefore answer the cries of the people. He simply had to say the name of God. When the people cried out, "Who is going to heal us?" Jesus said the name of God.

I Am.

"Who is going to save us?"

I Am.

Whether or not Jesus actually used those words, He made it clear that He knew it was His identity. And by making the sacrifice He did, He made it our identity as well. So that every time we see the suffering of others and we wonder who is going to save them...

...we can simply say the name of our God, the God we are one with.

I Am.

Who is going to be a benefit to them?

I Am.

Who is going to bring them hope?

I Am.

And we can rest in the peace and revelation that when we cry out to God and ask, "Who is going to make us a way where there is no way?"

He tells us His name.

I Am.

Defining Moments

People really are beautiful.

Someone suggested to me that I should link to something I wrote a while back. It's an entry on my old blog, about an experience I had in Brazil.

It's one of the entries I'm more proud of, so I have no problem agreeing to the suggestion, and sending you there... now.

I recently heard someone refer to these instances in our lives as "defining moments".

Brazil was definitely one of those for me.

I've had some others too; from performing the morning stretches on a FedEx airport ramp, to playing bongos at a lesbian bar.

And they've all taught me the same thing:

If we've ever thought there was something more important than loving people...

...we were wrong.

Why Not?

A lot of Christians have this attitude about only having the ability to act or perform, when they act "with God."

It often comes out in statements like, "I can't do this without God." Or, "...it without God."

I think the root of this belief is very good... even noble.

But I'm not sure it's accurate.

Maybe it stems from John 15:5 where Jesus says,
"I am the vine and you are the branches. If you abide in Me and I abide in you, we will bring forth much fruit, but without me, you can do nothing."

But we do things without Him all the time, don't we? We're not robots... we're not just plugged into Him and when we get separated from Him we don't just get unplugged and shut down. Though, it seems like that might be nice sometimes... considering some of the things we are completely able to do and have done when we are without Him.

No, if that scripture is the root of it (I won't pretend to be a Bible scholar), then I think that phrase is taken out of context. Jesus didn't just say, "...without me, you can do nothing."

It looks like what He said is, "...together we bear much fruit, but apart you can't bear any."

God made us very capable.

We can do many things. I think even good things, without God.

But what comes of it?

Have you ever talked to someone who used the "can't without God" thing as their... litmus test of "hearing" God? Like they're into something (and to you it may not seem that great) and their attitude is that they must be in His will because they wouldn't have been able to do it at all without God? Yet their entire situation reeks of misery and is like a... vacuum of energy just hearing about it. That's the flaw of the "can't without God" attitude.

I know that there are things I can do without God. Maybe even this trip to Africa. I could probably borrow a bunch of money to get there and go through all of the physical and practical training, and there's a really good chance I would survive. Probably even get some cool stories out of it.

But to what gain?

There are hurting and suffering people in this world, and I don't just want to make an effort, I want to make a difference. I won't do this thing without Him.

Not because I am unable, but because I am unwilling.


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On a totally unrelated note:

One of my coworkers at Borders Books, Chris, is a video game designer. When he heard about this trip he got excited about an idea for a video game about a missionary (me) with sort of Indiana Jones-ish attributes (flattering). And "I" wander unawares into a village...

...infested with zombies!

Not to mention, a vampire element.

"I" can fight the zombies and vampires, but my convictions keep me from hurting any human enemies... but, I can build up my "conversion" power and potentially convert enemies into allies against the forces of darkness! (Cheesy?... yes.)(Biblical?... eh, no.)(Great video game potential?... absolutely!)

Can it get better? Yep.

For the instances where my zombie/vampire slaying skills just aren't enough, Kim-possible joins the scene (another coworker... who oddly enough, also has a heart for missions (you just can't know how rare and unlikely that is in the Boulder area)), her convictions... and ninja skills... have no problems with incapacitating even the mortal foes... and fighting the good fight.

Chris himself will be in the game as the computer/communications/hacker/genius/skeptic guy, striving to keep his Holy Pals from being... martyrs.


So Chris, here's a shout out to you and your binary brilliance.

What Is It?

This isn't really part of this blog, but I stumbled onto a scripture I was wondering if anyone had any insight into:

Dan 6:27- He delivereth and rescueth, and he worketh signs and wonders in heaven and in earth, who hath delivered Daniel from the power of the lions.

What, do you think, is a "wonder" in heaven?


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So, Africa.

My sister, Sharon, and I both are going to a 3 month intensive training at




Overland Missions Base in Zambia Africa.













It is located on the Zambezi River gorge...















...less than 10km from the Victoria Falls (one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World).







So, how did I get involved with this?

Well, last Halloween Pastor Mark of Planet Youth (the youth center where I volunteer) called and said a couple of missionaries were in town to speak to the youth group the next day. He wanted to spend that night with his kids, so he asked me to pick them up and drive them around and hang out with them.

So I did.

I met Leslie (an Australian... a man), and Phil (a South African, and the founder of Overland Missions).

I had a fantastic time driving them around. Phil has led an extraordinary life, and I was immediately mesmerized by his stories. Stories from being drafted at 17yrs into the SA army during their civil war and several times being one of the only survivors of various battles. Stories of having worked for Camel cigarettes' as their equivalent to a Marlboro Man, and for several years being Landrover's icon. A fascinating life.

He talked to me about a school they've been working on to train people to be useful in the mission field.

Overland's mission is to reach the unreachable and hard to reach people of the world. They are the arms and legs of Life Project. They take houseboats down the Amazon to get to villages that don't have a single road leading to them, they take converted 4X4 trucks to reach African villages just as isolated out in the bush.

He said they have hundreds of people who want to get involved with their missions, but for the most part those people aren't really... useful.

His school is supposed to change that. It's called AMT (Advanced Missions Training). It's a three month intensive training of practical field knowledge: U.S. certified EMT course, basic survival, Welding 101, ham radio licensing, basic auto mechanics for diesel engines, universal human communications, 4X4 operation and recovery, etc....

They had 20 spots and gave Sharon and I each one.

How cool is this?

Pretty stinkin'... we think, but we'd be glad to hear your thoughts.

The base has broadband Internet, so I'll be able to keep this blog up-to-date throughout the entire experience.

Yes, They Are.

I have great hope for our generation.


Informally our generation has been called "The Do Nothing" generation.
I'm sure that is supposed to be applied with contempt, but I believe it fails in that regard.

We don't mind being labeled, because the labels others put on us are worthless. Label us however you want, we may not know yet what we are... but we know what we aren't. That label is fine because it gives us room. It's fine because it takes very little to prove it wrong.

But you know what? I believe our generation has no problem embracing it. Why?

Because it's true.

It's true, but it's incomplete. To be more fully accurate, it just needs two more words:


Without Purpose.

Without Reason.

Without Hope.

Without Inspiration.

Without Love.


Two words complete it, and although those two words are flexible, our resolve is not.

We will do nothing without purpose.
We will do nothing without reason.
We will do nothing without hope.
We will do nothing without inspiration.
We will do nothing without love.

The member (of whatever generation) who labeled us may have been willing to go along with the norms, and the standards, and may have been willing to take their life and the lives those they had influence with for granted. And it may frustrate them that this generation has not been so easily... cattled.

But that is not how our value is defined.

There may be those of us who have been stagnant, but it isn't from a lack of quality, it's from a lack of purpose.
Those of us who have failed to act, not from irresponsibility, but from fruitless reason.
Those of us who haven't made ourselves available, not from negligence, but from hopelessness.
Those of us who haven't created, not from lack of talent, but from lack of inspiration.

We refuse to take this life for granted.

Our value is defined when we act with purpose.
When we act with reason.
When we offer ourselves because of our hope in what we can bring.
When we create out of inspiration.

We define value... by measuring it in love.


I'm going to Africa. There are things there I am going to learn, and become. There are things there I'm going to bring, and offer. I'm excited to be a benefit to this world, and the people in it.

Shad "Do Nothing..." Turner