revive 5

helping people take another step forward

[revivefive]

The Art of Disappearing

I don’t think I’m the only person to have felt the desire to disappear. If I were even more honest, I’d say that I wouldn’t be the only person to have wanted to just stop existing. 

And if you were honest with yourself... you’d say: “Yeah... yeah, me too.” 

I was there not too long ago, friends. The only thing that made it bearable was that I had a small - very small - community of people that I reached out to and was completely honest with. 

It was probably, and still is, one of the most freeing experiences I’ve encountered in my life.

But that did not stop me from hiding from everyone. To be truthful, I was, and still am, very embarrassed of how far I let myself go and how very awful and terrible and depressed I felt about myself. When I first felt this way, I went on a total disconnect from any and everyone that I ever had contact with in the last six months to a year. Naturally, there were questions. People, much to my surprise at the time, wanted to know where I’d been and what I’d been up to. There wasn’t anything I wanted more than to disappear again, because disappearing would be easier than having to try and explain my feelings, my thoughts, and my spirit. I was tired of explaining myself. I was tired of giving and giving and giving til I had nothing else. I, I, I, me, me, me...

Finally, The Spirit bore into my spirit and told me not to hide anymore.

Finally, I was free.

Finally, my joy was made truly complete in Christ who gave, and continues, to give me strength.

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Of Sacrifice and Sabbath Rest

of what and why? 

First, let’s talk about SABBATH. It’s that pesky fourth commandment that no one really takes seriously. Jesus apparently didn’t keep the Sabbath, at least not by Pharisee standards. That was just for ancient Israel, wasn’t it? 

 In Exodus 20:4--6, Yahweh God clearly spells out the importance of the Sabbath. Its not just a nice suggestion, it is a HOLY day. What does Holy mean? Set apart, sacred, consecrated, maintaining a state of purity, being devoted to God. (It’s mentioned one-hundred and fifty times in scripture; that must mean God thinks it is rather important). 

In our North American flavor of Christianity, most of us (myself included!) don’t think much about Sabbath. If we do, it is usually in reference to the absence of work, at least, or of having fun, at best. We quote Jesus, saying that the Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath (Mark 2:27). We have (I have) boxed this holy day, this sacred commandment, in terms of Rest, of TGIF, of “me-time.” And in doing so, we completely glide over the next verse: “The Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath” (Mark 2:28). 

Jesus was all about the Sabbath, but he didn’t seem to be all about “me-time.” 

Besides long insomniac nights of prayer, readers of the gospel see Jesus having compassion on the crowds and great patience with his slow-on-the-uptake companions.  Yet Jesus says He is Lord of the Sabbath. He came for the Sabbath, he died for the Sabbath. “But I thought Jesus died for my sins!?” Yes, but not so I can go skipping along to enjoy my life all by myself. Freedom from sin frees me for fellowship. Jesus died to be with his beloved creation. This is the same thing the Godhead chose to do when He established the concept, on the seventh day: God enjoyed His creation--and the crown jewel of creation, humanity. 

God rested when the world was made; and we will be welcomed into an eternal rest in heaven. But the type of rest is essential: this is a rest of fellowship between God and His children, not simply refraining from labor. No wonder God calls it holy. God is Holy, and Sabbath is the day we set aside (We Tithe it, if you will) to commune with the Holy Creator of the Universe. 

Jesus shed his blood and emptied his breath to spend a Sabbath day with you. 

This is where Sacrifice comes in. Jesus was the perfect sacrifice to make this fellowship/rest possible. But we are also called to make sacrifices. Romans 12 frames it in terms of living sacrifice. Sabbath is a time for you to sacrifice, to set aside your agenda. Absorb the cost of loving God. Light the incense of prayer. Lay your day’s paycheck on the alter. Cut into pieces the worries of the world. Set afire your to-do list and your need to feel accomplished. Pour out before Him your worry about the opinions of others. Shed tears of repentance, then feast on His unyielding love for you. Sit in His presence. He is a Holy God. 

[revivefive]

Why are we single you ask? Well, let us tell you... Take a watch and see what we have learned, and why we are ok with being single, and how we got there. 

Message us or Email us. =) 

Hope to hear from you guys!

[revivefive]

Getting the Basics Right - ##forwardfridays

Hello Everyone,

It's been a while, I know. But today I wanted to take some time to encourage everyone with everything that has been going on.

Revive 5 is about helping people get unstuck. It's about helping people move another step in the forward direction. And to be honest...

I have been stuck.

It is really interesting how difficult it is to keep a ministry moving as a well oiled machine. It takes a lot of commitment from people. It takes prayer and fasting. And I'm not just talking about food. It takes sacrifice from other important activities in people's lives to make a ministry like this work. Our contributors have jobs and provide whatever help they can to Revive 5's vision free of charge. None of our contributors get paid. As a matter of fact, it usually costs us money to make this work.

I wanted to take a little bit of time to continue to dream with my team about what Revive 5 has the potential of being. We have accomplished so much with very little time a very little resources. I can only imagine what it would be like to have more time and more resources. If we could start to faithfully pray for more resources and more time, that would be a great start. I pray for everyone to be able to find more time (if only 5 more minutes a day) to invest in helping people move forward. I pray that individually, you would find the resources to support your contributions and that we as a team would be better supported. Whether that be more contributors, more financial backing, more encouragement from local churches / non-profits, or just more unity as a group. We need all of those things. And I want to be able to help you in any way I can to make that possible. Let me just summarize what I have said:

- More time. What can I do to make your time worth while? What can I do to save time in the contribution process? - More resources. How can we better encourage each other? Who can support us financially? Who can we partner with to meet needs and have our own needs met?

I know it's crazy.

Nobody said this was going to be easy.

And I know how crazy busy everyone is. There isn't any shame or guilt in recognizing that Revive 5 is something that we do in our spare time. But in doing so, we won't have the kind of influence that we need to have. Helping people take another step cannot be another hobby. It must be a calling.

And sorry, if that's not your calling, then it may be time to gently move on.

Because we need passion. We cannot become stagnant. We cannot be complacent.

But what I am saying is that I believe in you as a contributor. I believe in your influence. I believe that everyone is getting better and better at expressing themselves and getting the message out there. Every blog post, every podcast, every video, and every facebook post is getting better and better. You are people that "really do care" about helping people. And that is what makes us unique as a ministry. It's what makes Revive 5 extra special to me. We are people with normal jobs and normal lives and normal struggles. If we're willing to do this for free, then our motivation is right where it should be. But I do know how difficult it is because we all struggle with apathy.

I'm writing this while disconnected to the internet, working on a contract in the middle of the ocean around Italy for four months. 10 hours of work every day. No day off. Enough said.

But with that, we have done some amazing things this year. We're continuing to build a strong foundation and I faithfully believe that we are so close to helping a lot more people move another step forward in life.

But it is difficult. We also as contributors have to be willing to move another step. To take that jump in the water to let others know that the water is life giving.

What have we done so far? - We have over 100 people in our facebook community. - The podcast format changed and improved. And I expect to improve and continue this in the fall. - Amanda and Erica have started and are getting better and better with the Embracing Limitations video blog. I love this because they are literally embracing all kinds of limitations to make these videos. And they are really relevant and real. If you have a chance to check them out, do so. They are doing something really exciting. - There are blog posts and contributions made every single week from some really smart and encouraging people.

So where are we going with all of this? How do you help a person move forward without being pushy? I want to start off by saying that I want all of our contributors to get a saying in your head for this fall. And that saying is this:

"Let's get the basics right."

What does that mean? It means the basics of our walk. It means those baby steps. We have to learn to walk before we run. It means re-connecting with the things that got us excited about God. It means pursuing after that first-love feeling that we had with Christ. It means NOT getting caught up in all the religious and political and judgemental and argumentative topics that don't really matter too much. Those things that make us cynically exhausted. Missing our purpose. Making things too complicated. Always trying to categorize everything. No! What are the basics? Because those basics are what can help people make another step.

http://qideas.org/articles/why-small-churches-are-the-next-big-thing/

In a Q-ideas article by Karl Vaters on "Why Small Churches are the Next Big Thing," Karl outlines a few characteristics of the small church that are very relevant today, especially to young people:

- The next generation will, as a majority, be raised outside traditional marriage, genuine relationships and intimate worship - what small churches do best. And they need these things more than did their parents. - Millennials want to gain intimacy, without giving up quality. And they wont't have to. - Millennials don't want a big Sunday morning stage show as much as they want genuine intimacy and relationships. And they are more sensitive to it with the numbness and surprising disconnection that people are feeling with the abundance of social networking.

Health starts by getting the basics right: - Real-world Bible Teaching - Genuine relationships - Practical ministry opportunities - Clean, safe childcare - Competent musicianship on the worship team

What are we working on? - Starting very soon, I am going to be working on a short weekly series called "Wiki-Christian." This is where I am going to look up Christianity and Christian in Wikipedia and begin to define piece by piece what Christianity is all about, what is a Christian, and what can we apply from this in our lives? Is it relevant? It has a lot to do with not just being one kind of Christian (i.e. Missions only, Bible only, Music only, Political only) but rather a well-rounded follower of Christ. - The podcast will return starting in mid-September. I want to get together with anyone willing in September to have a large gathering. Either in person or online. To work out a plan for the next six months. What does everybody want to do? What can we do together? What can we do on our own? What can we do as small groups? What can we do online? What can we do in our communities and churches? I want to also record DAILY a conversational podcast with whoever can make it. Hopefully several of you can? If we can record every day for a month, we could have around 30 weeks of podcasts to send out. And hopefully we can grow as a spiritual community as well. That's my main hope. - I want to continue to support and help make the Embracing Limitations video blogs a success. That means providing any kind of resource. Camera? Video software? Better computer? Or... just more encouragement! More publicity! More people! More coffee? Yes. - Every contributor should be working on their own projects to bring to the table. Whether that is a podcast idea, a video series, or even a missions/ministry project in your local community that we can support or that you could share on Revive 5. I want to see lots and lots of new content filling our website. - And speaking of website, our NEW website will be up and running this fall. So we have a lot to learn. It's going to be really nice and just as easy to post new content. But the presentation is much more streamlined. Our new website will convey what Revive 5 is all about, what we are most recently working on, and will provide an easy way for people to find content based off topics (such as addiction, abuse, depression, faith, community, prayer).

So there you go! Whew! That was a lot. But it's been a while since I've been on here. Be encouraged everyone! We're just getting started.

Revive 5 is not about me. It's not even mine. It's yours! Take ownership. Some of you already have. And I love being surprised by everyones contributions. They are unique. They are always improving. And they are useful in helping us as a group to get un-stuck. What are our basics to get un-stuck?

1. Forward speaking, thinking, moving & innovating how the gospel is shared. 2. The good Christian life is not linear but progressively focussed on being well-rounded. 3. We do not have all the answers but it is better not to ask questions alone. 4. We do things differently by embracing limitations to enhance creativity. 5. We promote love and other big things that can unite us.  

Keep checking Revive5.net and our Facebook page for more updates from me, and I look forward to speaking with each and every one of you in September.

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Hey all, here is the new vlog. Take a watch and message us on facebook or email us at [email protected]

[revivefive]

Love Without Expecting

Hey all.

Wanna share something with y’all real quick.

I’ve been learning that it’s really important to serve and love people without expecting anything in return. Because when you serve and love and expect it back, you’re setting yourself up for failure and it just confirms the idea that people do things out of selfish gain. 

I’m not going to claim that it’s possible to do something in complete altruism, because it’s not. But it is possible to ignore it and put to death the selfish ambition of expecting something in return for serving and loving others. 

It’s something I think we should all consider if not daily, then at least once in a while.

Be blessed, everyone.

[revivefive]

Please take a watch. Come see our amazing acting skills. :) Email us at [email protected]

[revivefive]

Do Works Save?

The simple answer to this question is a flat out “NO”.

Ephesians and Romans state very clearly that it is nothing that we can do or that we ever will do that can bring us our salvation. (See Ephesians 2, Titus 3, Romans 5) It is a supernatural act of God’s grace that we are brought into His fold. He chose us and has us in His grip and will never let go.

But there is a question to be asked here: If there’s nothing I can do to earn salvation, to earn God’s favor on me, and I’m supposed to look different from the world (Romans 12), then why do I need to do good deeds?

Still, the answer is simple: You don’t. 

But why on earth wouldn’t you?

If something deeply personal and spiritual happens between you and the Creator of EVERYTHING, there will be something that happens to you. It’s the Holy Spirit now living inside you. And now that He lives in you, there will most certainly be situations when you will be compelled to do good for others. It will be nearly impossible for you not to. Why? Because now that He lives in you, Jesus is going to show through you. Look back in the Gospels. How did He treat the poor? The sick? Prostitutes? Cheaters? Rich people? Even the Pharisees and Sadducees? All of these people He looked on with love and tenderness and fed and taught and lived life with.

I want to be very careful here.

No, works will never earn you a place in Heaven, but these works (serving those who can’t help themselves, loving annoying people, sticking around 15 extra minutes to help clean, volunteering anywhere, feeding people, handing a couple of bucks to a homeless person, picking up trash just to pick up trash... you know, just to name a few...) are proof that something deep inside of you is different and weird because of Jesus.

The book of James says it clearly.

What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder! Do you want to be shown, you foolish person, that faith apart from works is useless? Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up his son Isaac on the altar? You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by his works; and the Scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”—and he was called a friend of God. You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. And in the same way was not also Rahab the prostitute justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way? For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead.

James 2: 14-26 ESV 

If you have faith, but don’t show it, then how are those around you supposed to know what you’ve got? Sure, you might be able to speak pretty awesome and get a crowd riled up, but when it comes down to it, are you willing to get down and dirty and sweaty and smelly and nasty - just to show someone that another person (with Jesus in them) is capable of being a decent person?

The power of God is indeed mysterious and it is indeed impossible to explain why He would choose us to be His saints (Ephesians 4). But if it moves you to do something, then please by all means, get out there and be Jesus to people and shower the love and grace that God so graciously gave to you.

The world needs it.

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My weakness/His strength

A month ago I was able to visit a third-world country where poverty, illiteracy, and diability were put on display. Since then I’ve been wrestling with 1 Corinthians 1:18--31. It's a sizable passage, but I re-post it here in hopes that you will join me in drinking in its magnificence:

"For the Word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written, 'I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the discernment of the discerning I will frustrate.'

Where is the wise man? Where is the scholar? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe. Jews demand signs and Greeks look for wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to the Greeks, but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than man's wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man's strength.

For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to the world's standards. Not many were powerful. Not many were of noble birth. But God chose what is foolish of the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no one might boast in His presence. And because of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption. so that, as it is written, "Let him who boast, boast in the Lord." 

I am white, American, educated, relatively wealthy (compared to most of the world)...I am the powerful of this world. Can I recognize that this is a loss to me? Every day I am faced with the temptation to rely on my resources instead of God's wisdom?

But I am also weak, limited, and poor. When I can't buy the all the groceries I want because of my limited budget, can I trust that God is actually transforming that limitation into glory? When I face a difficult decision and I don’t know the answer, can I see that this is an opportunity to rest in the hands of the God of History? When my circumstances dangle my wants just out of my reach like a cheap carrot, can I believe that self-denial is actually a valuable gift? Or, when I find myself surrounded by people who are weak and needy, can I see their inherent value as a person in whose life God is at work? 

I need a perspective-shift on a daily basis. God, help me honestly seek how you show off Your Glory in my weakness. 

[revivefive]

You don't wanna miss what we learned

While we aren't experts yet.... we have done it long enough (we think) to be able to hand out a few tips.... Most of them are funny. So enjoy and don't be afraid to send us tips or pointers. grin emoticon We look forward to hearing from you. -Erica and Amanda

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cRHcId8ddJU

[revivefive]

Alright friends... The post is up! And technology didn't even fight me this time... Plus.... I'm on time!!! :)

Anyway... take a watch and see what song gave us a wake up call this week.

https://youtu.be/p94ts15Zp-M

[revivefive]

JOY

…  you can’t squelch it.

There are many who say, “Who will show us some good?”     Lift up the light of your face upon us, O Lord!  You have put more joy in my heart     than they have when their grain and wine abound.

                            Psalm 4:6-7

Sometimes in life I run into people who seem intent on squelching Joy, as if,  because of some obscure determination to maintain unhappiness and worry, your joy becomes a threat. “Who will show us any good?” becomes a dare… show me something good, and I will point out why it’s not worth rejoicing in.”  It’s hard to live around people like that without eventually being sucked under.

Then there are other seasons in life when no matter how I try, I can’t find joy around me. Life is brimming with disappointment and struggle. I feel surrounded by evil people. I know that joy supposedly comes from God, but I’m still waiting for it, and it feels like I’ve been waiting a very long time.

David was feeling this way in Psalm six when he cries out in despair, “Save me, oh Lord, for I am languishing!...My soul is greatly troubled, but you, oh Lord—how long!?” How long do I have to wait for your deliverance? Is there any guarantee that you will save me?

Have you faces similar situations? Maybe you’d like to trust God, but past experience tells you that things might not be okay in the end. Maybe you’ve been praying and praying for a change, but things keep getting worse. How do we find joy in times like these?

“Depart from me, all you workers of evil,     for the Lord has heard the sound of my weeping.  The Lord has heard my plea;     the Lord accepts my prayer.  All my enemies shall be ashamed and greatly troubled;     they shall turn back and be put to shame in a moment.

                            Psalm 6:8--10

 Even in the middle of his weeping, David had the audacity to claim victory over his enemies. But he claimed this victory not after his enemies were defeated, but before!! The reason for his victory? “The Lord has heard my plea.” His evidence for this was not in his situation (his situation hadn’t changed) but in the character of God.  This is a promise. Going back to Psalm 4, David says “I know the Lord has set apart the godly for himself. The Lord hears when I call to him” (verse 3).

Again, the reassurance of being heard is not found in our circumstances, but in God’s decree.

How does this tie in to Joy? Maintaining a joyful heart is so much more than positive psychology, wishful thinking or optimism. There are some days when even the most stubborn optimists have nothing to sing about. But nothing can shake the promise that the God of the Universe, the Eternal God of History, the Creator and Sustainer of all things has heard your prayer. He will answer; He will bring about justice because He is Just. He will grant mercy because He is Merciful.

So laugh at your enemies. Shrug off your circumstances.  Roll your eyes at the joy-suckers. They may appear to have to upper hand today, but your God hears your prayers. He is the One to put Joy in your heart.

[revivefive]

Can’t squelch Joy

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Transparent Faith Ep. 3

Today, we're going to share the conversation we had with Ben. He's had a rough couple of years, but his determination to trust in God and have a positive attitude is remarkable.

If want to listen to this, make sure you have time; this one runs a bit longer than normal.

Listen to this episode.

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Ok so clearly I, Amanda, will be late to my own funeral. smile emoticon oh well... here is the long awaited vlog.

Join us and see why (we think) people are leaving the church. And hear our story of finding our church. 

Let us know what you think, and what you think is causing people to leave the church. smile emoticon

...

Hope to hear from you!

[revivefive]

In His Image

At the church I attend, we've been going through the design of Creation and the importance of the creation of man in the grand scheme of things. Admittedly, I've never really given it a whole lot of thought. I mean, I know about the significance and the intimacy God used to make Adam. He took special care to make us in His image. "In the image of God He created them; male and female He created them." But tonight at youth group, something I heard the youth pastor say to the students really caught me off guard. He said, "I want you to go home and look in the mirror and say, 'I am made in His image.' Say it over and over again until you believe it." Never done it myself, so I figured I'd try it. Something in my heart finally snapped into place, I guess. In the years that I've struggled with lust and pornography, the vail that's been covering my heart I never thought of these images and these countless numbers of women as in His image. I just saw it as amusement for my own pleasure and nothing else. But when I heard this message tonight, I guess The Spirit smacked me around a bit.... You were made in His image. Now stand in front of a mirror and say it until you believe it. Take care and be blessed everyone.

[revivefive]

Transparent Faith Ep. 2

In this episode, we speak to Dustin about some of his past experiences in ministry and how it's shaped who he is today. 

Listen to this episode.