illuminate is here!

Almighty Father,

You are so good.  Thank you for all of your wonderful blessings.  Thank you as well for the trials that you allow to enter into my life.  I know that you are using them to grow me and to draw me closer to you.  Your ways are far above my ways.  I look forward to serving you each and every day.  Guide me today I pray.

Amen

Within the past month or so illuminate has been in action!  What is it exactly?  I'll tell you.  Illuminate is a group of people who are transitioning from going to church to being the church.  We are banding together to spread God's unconditional love into the local communities.  Each gathering consists of unhinged worship, prayer, and a warm, welcoming atmosphere.  Everyone on staff is energized by the holy spirit and is ready to serve at any opportunity.  Anyone is welcome to attend a gathering and worship along side of us in any way they choose to.

I am so excited to be involved in what God is doing in our area of the map.  It is such a blessing to be furthering God's Kingdom in a tangible, practical way.  Also, I am so blessed to have such a wonderful group of friends whom I consider family.  They mean so much to me and I am honored to be in relationship with them.  God has placed us all together for a specific reason and purpose.  We are bringing Heaven to Earth and allowing the Holy Spirit to lead us where He wants us to go. 

Right now we are in four locations throughout Lorain county and will be spreading and reaching out further beyond those walls soon here in 2012!  By God's goodness, Sarrah (my beautiful wife) and I have the opportunity of leading the Avon location and coordinating the staff to make sure everything is rolling smoothly at each gathering.  All of us are looking forward to where God is going to lead us in the near future.  Thank you to everyone who is volunteering and putting so much time and effort into this vision.  We are illuminating our cities, our states, and eventually the entire world!

All praise, honor, and glory be to God forever and ever.  Amen.

Life Group

Lord,

Your majesty reaches beyond the scope of human language.  Your glory outshines the sun.  Your radiance is more beautiful than the brightest beams of light.  Allow me to simply bask in your presence.  I love you.

Amen

For those of you who do not already know, I am part of a bible based life group that meets every Friday evening.  For last nights' meeting I was asked to lead discussion over 1 Peter chapter 2.  I readily agreed to this and began preparations for it a couple days previous.  As I began going over the material though, I felt an uneasy feeling deep within me.  I wasn't sure why this was happening (perhaps it was the enemy shaking me up) so I called my best bud Jake and talked about some different matters concerning the upcoming discussion.

Wouldn't you know it, like he always does, he set my heart straight with words of kindness and encouragement.  After speaking with him and praying with him I continued researching and studying the passage.  Like a lot of situations where I am not completely sure of the outcome, I felt a bit anxious leading up to discussion.  Fortunately it was more of an excited anxious than a nervous one.  Then...the time came, and something incredible happened.

The Holy Spirit was moving and the whole meeting ended up being an amazing blessing for everyone who was there!  It was not simply a mediocre gathering, but it was a powerful, mind-blowing experience as we prayed, studied the Word, and praised God for His goodness in our lives.  The meeting went way better than I expected.  It is wonderful to hear different people's perspectives on a particular passage that hasn't been heard before.  God is doing great things and has great plans for our life group.

I am thankful for each and every one of the guys involved.  I am so blessed to have such a strong group of brothers working together in order to further God's Kingdom and to lift each other up when we are down.  Josiah, Mark, and Stevan, you three are a wonderful addition to our group.  We hope that you continue to meet with us and share your hearts with us. 

I love you all. (Jake, Tim, Gary, Kevin, Josiah, Mark, Stevan, Bob, Dan, John)  

The Man God Uses

Father God,

I cannot imagine serving anyone or anything besides you.  You are amazingly awesome in every way and nothing even comes close to your majesty and power.  Please guide me as I write this post.  May your words be written.

Amen

This weekend my life group and I attended a conference at Open Door church called "The Man God Uses".  It was POWERFUL to say the least.  My favorite part of it was when we all stood up together as one body of Christ and sang praises to the Lord.  The room was filled with over 100 men as we lifted up our hands and gave all glory to God for who he is.  It was an incredible sight to see and was worth every penny spent to go there.  The Holy Spirit was alive and well as we sang songs, raised our hands, listened to guest speakers, drank coffee, ate food, etc. 

Dr. Henry and Tom Blackaby headed up the speaking for both Friday and Saturday sessions.  They spoke about topics such as the power of prayer, praying for the family, building spiritual walls for protection, modeling the Christian life daily, having a personal relationship with God, waiting on God, and many more topics.  Even though a lot of men who attended were a bit older than we were, it didn't matter to me.  God called us there for a reason and He has a divine plan to use us for His good and perfect will.

I have never seen so many men in one place praising God and surrendering their lives to Him.  There were multiple men, including myself, who got down on their knees to praise and pray to the God of the universe.  It was absolutely surreal and I am so grateful and joy-filled that I was able to join them in celebration.  It reminded me of what eternity will be like in Heaven, worshiping our Father with all of who we are forever and ever.

Myself, as well as the many other men involved in this conference are charged up now for serving in God's Kingdom.  I know that He has big plans and I cannot wait to be a part of them.  I want my life to continue the trend for generations after me.  I want to rise up with other believers to accomplish the plans that God has set forth from the beginning of time.  Here I am Lord, send me.  Allow me to join my brothers and sisters in defeating evil and ushering your Kingdom into this world.  May your will be done.

I am the man god uses.    

Unfiltered

God,

You are beautiful.  Not only are you beautiful, but you are beauty itself.  I set all of my cares and worries, hopes and fears, dreams and admiration on you and you alone.  All that I am and all that I have is because you gave it all to me.  I praise you and love you always and forever.

Your servant, Kenneth Dean Melendez

Amen

Filtered -- according to dictionary.com is:  to slow or partially obstruct the passage of something.

Unfiltered -- according to dictionary.com is:  not having been toned down, censored, or edited. ex: unfiltered news sources

I suppose that this notion has been in my thoughts and in my heart for quite some time now.  Yet yesterday (9/10/11) a word popped into my head to wrap the idea up in three syllables...unfiltered.  I believe this is what God has in store not only for myself, but for other believers as well.  

We live in a world that is surrounded by influences.  From newspaper to television to internet to culture to peer groups to family members to work places and even to churches.  We have a certain way of acting and going about our daily lives according to the influences surrounding our environment.  Of course our own personality traits do indeed come into play here as well but that is not my main focus at this time.

Here are my questions though.  What if all of this was put behind us?  What if we could possibly break through these 'barriers' that may keep us from being our true selves?  Sometimes I worry about what someone else is going to think about a particular action that I perform.  What if that was gone?  What if we could say what was truly on our minds instead of not saying anything or making up some sort of lie?  

My most prominent question would be...what if we could live unfiltered for Jesus Christ, obeying Him with all of who we are?  I do not want to reach the end of my life and know that I could have done more for God if I just would have lived an unfiltered life of complete surrender to His will. God calls each and every one of us to follow Him and that means that we lay down our pride down at the door and walk with Him.  Unfiltered even means stepping out of our comfort zone (which I know is uncomfortable) and making a difference by shining the light of Christ in people's lives through our example.

The same day this word came to me I also jotted down characteristics that I feel are extremely important and that run along the same lines.  The words are:  honesty, integrity, humbleness, truthfulness, love, patience, gentleness, kindness, faithfulness, wisdom, other-centeredness, beauty, and leadership.  I'm sure there are others but I feel that these traits can be found in a person who is truly unfiltered and is always seeking after God. 

I realize that today marks the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attack on our country.  I remember and honor the fallen and their families.  Lets live our days for Christ and in remembrance of those who suffered on that tragic day in history.  May we be a people who rise up and take a stand for all truth and justice on this earth.

Remove the filter, break down the barriers, and devote yourself completely to Him.  This is how we live life to the fullest.  The way God intended it from the very beginning of creation. 

 

A Strange Encounter

Father,

Ignite my soul.  Fill me with your presence and your love today.  I need your guidance and direction each day of my life.  I pray that others' spirits would be awakened by the messages relayed through my posts.  I love you.

Amen

So yesterday as I was driving home from class I noticed a man walking down the sidewalk with his right leg turned sideways and a cane to hold him up.  He seemed to be in his 30's and I felt compassion welling up inside me to help him out.  I wanted to give him a ride to wherever he was heading to.  So, after my car had already been turned off, I started it up again and drove over to speak with him.  He accepted the invitation and hopped into my car.

I asked him where he lives and he said it's about a mile or two away and that he'll direct me there.  The first part of our conversation was your average small talk conversation.  But then about midway through I asked him what he does for a living.  He said that he is religious.  I said oh yeah, what religion are you?  He goes...Satanic.  Oh, I replied.  The rest of the conversation was pretty much him directing me to his place.  After I parked and unlocked the door for him to get out, he was laughing a bit for some reason.  He said thanks for the ride and 'until next time'.  I thought to myself, will there be a next time?  Maybe there will be.

Anyways, the whole experience kind of shook me because I have never encountered someone 'who keeps the dark side happy'.  That was something he brought up as well.  I got home and told Sarrah about it.  When we went to bed I kept thinking about that drive and how strange it was.  I definitely felt something spiritual being stirred up inside of me.  I decided that I wanted to say a prayer for this man and also for me because my spirit was restless and needed peace that only God can give.

I pray that the ride I gave this man planted a seed in his heart and that God draws him to the light.  Lord you are all powerful.  I pray that you would please do a work in him like he's never seen before and that you'd use him for your Kindom's purposes.  Amen.

The Cross

Dear Lord,

You are more amazing than words can express.  I am not worthy of your love but yet you love me anyways.  Even when I mess up and allow sin to creep in, you are always right there waiting for me to return to you.  Thank you for your faithfulness and truth.  I am surrounded by your matchless grace and peace.  I love you.

Amen

The Cross.  What does it signify?  What does it stand for as it hangs from our necks and our rear-view mirrors?  Why do we look at it, studying it like we do?

In all reality, the crosses back in Jesus' day were big, heavy pieces of wood that people were literally nailed to until they suffocated and died.  They were ugly, nasty places of torment and disgust.  A place where people suffered who were accused of wrong doing and breaking the law.  It was an excruciatingly painful and humiliating way to die.

Even though the above may be true, the cross, for Christians, is also a place of forgiveness, love, salvation, and pure sacrifice.  For Christ followers, we see the cross and remember what Jesus did for us 2000 years ago.  He gave up His life so that we may have a right relationship with God once again.  He loves us so much that He gave up His LIFE for us!

For believers, Jesus' death was just the beginning.  He rose from the dead three days later!  He is alive and well now and forever!  We are in relationship with Him by accepting Him into our hearts while repenting of our old, sinful ways.  He longs to be connected with us, to speak with us, and to live daily in our hearts guiding our steps.

So what does the cross signify in a word?  Love.  God defines love.  He is love.  He showed us how much He loves us on that dirty, filthy, painful cross 2000 years ago.  Now it is our turn to show Him how much we love Him.  Lets live lives that are pleasing to Him, obeying His commands. May all glory and honor be to God forever and ever.  Amen.

Anxious Feeling

Lord,

Today is the day that you have made.  I will rejoice and be glad in it.  I remember singing those words back when I was younger but now they have so much more meaning to me.  Thank you for this day and every day that you allow me to live here on Earth.  I love you.

Amen

This morning as I'm drinking my hot tea and eating some oatmeal raisin cookies, I found myself in a state of worry and doubt.  I was reminded of how many tasks I need to complete this week and how little time I have to finish them.  After about ten minutes of shuffling around and thoughts impulsing through my brain, a specific verse from scripture popped into my mind.  "Be still, and know that I am God".  Immediately I stopped what I was doing and just stayed still.  The thoughts in my mind slowed way down.  I knew that God was speaking to me.

After sitting there for a minute or two, I began to think to myself, 'Why am I freaking out like this?  God is in control and I just need to focus on Him.'  So I did.  I sat right at my desk and prayed to the Lord about what was on my mind.  At the same time I was doing that I remembered Philippians chapter 4 where Paul says to not worry about anything and instead pray about everything.  I felt so much better after focusing my mind on God.  I even opened my Bible after praying and read a couple chapters out of it.

Not only did I feel better, but God put it in my heart to inspire others with His Word.  So, I wrote a verse on Facebook and also went on to write this blog.  God took a hold of me in the midst of my troubles and said, 'Ken, it's alright.  Just take a step back and see that I am your God.  You have nothing to be anxious or worried about.  I am in control so that you don't have to be.'

Spending time with God before the day starts is so crucial to how the rest of my day will turn out.  I need Him to build me up and strengthen my mind and spirit.  I do not want to let anything in this world rank more important than my relationship with the Lord.

Thank you God for intercepting my anxiety and replacing it with peace.