For the Sake of the Call

The Cup - CJ Mahaney

2010-07-28T08:11:00.002-05:00

New Blog!

2010-06-25T09:51:00.000-05:00

Hey everyone!

I hope and pray all is well with you guys! Thank you so much for following this blog and seeing whats going on with me.

Something new happened in my life on June 12, I got married! Michele Petracco, now Michele Johnson, is my wonderful wife!

We have decided to make a blog together to tell of our journey's with God and on the mission field. We are in New Jersey right now but will be getting back to Texas / Mexico in August. Please continue to pray for us and our marriage and that we would grow more and more like our Savior, Jesus Christ.

So, here is the new blog to follow us on:

www.thejohnsonsjourneys.blogspot.com

Again, thank you for following this blog and please follow us on this new one. I will be posting my normal blog posts, Michele her posts and ours together on life and missions work in Mexico!

Here is a quote to leave you on:

"Either Jesus is the only Savior, the perfect Savior, and your only comfort in life and in death, or Jesus is for you no Savior at all"

Love you guys!

For His Glory!

Chris

Before the Throne of God Above

2010-05-11T07:45:00.001-05:00

Do you Still Marvel at our Great Salvation?

2010-05-11T07:44:00.000-05:00

Hey guys

I was just listening to the video of Shane&Shane's version of "Before the Throne of God above" and I started to just really think about the words and the Gospel.

Christians are saved by Grace along, through Faith. We do NOTHING to save ourselves, it is a gift of God. Not only that, by His strength He is keeping it safe for the inheritance that we will get when we go to heaven.

1 Peter 1:3-5

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, who are protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time"

Sometimes.....ALOT of the times I just get into the swing of things and forget of the great love shown in my great salvation. It cost our Great God's son's life, and Jesus went willing fully for His Fathers plan and out of the great love He has for His brothers and sisters. We will never, NEVER know such a great love as that love!

Please join me and reminding ourselves DAILY about the great cost of our salvation and that we do have a Great High Priest in Heaven pleading for us continually!

Hebrews 4:15-16

"For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin. Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need"

Hebrews 7:25
"Therefore He is able also to save forever those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them"

Praise our Great God!

Our salvation is costly, it cost the live of the Son of God, God Himself! Let us humble ourselves, be broken by our great God and praise Him for his great mercy!

Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Praise the One, Risen Son of God!

For His Glory!

All I have is Christ!

2010-05-03T08:33:00.002-05:00

Is the Gospel real to you?

2010-04-13T07:29:00.002-05:00

Is the Gospel real to you? from I'll Be Honest on Vimeo.

Slaves.....for Christ!

2010-03-31T13:41:00.003-05:00

Slaves for Christ - John MacArthur from I'll Be Honest on Vimeo.

Jesus, THANK YOU!

2010-03-30T11:59:00.002-05:00

Consider the Cost

2010-03-26T21:45:00.002-05:00

It Will Cost You Everything from I'll Be Honest on Vimeo.

David Livingstone

2010-03-24T08:36:00.000-05:00

David Livingstone was born March 19, 1813.
He gave his life to serve Christ in the exploration of Africa for the sake of the access of the gospel.

On December 4, 1857, he spoke the sentence that has made a great impact on many. It is a clear application of Jesus’ words in Mark 10:29-30. Jesus said,

Truly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or lands, for my sake and for the gospel, who will not receive a hundredfold now in this time, houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions, and in the age to come eternal life.

Here is what Livingstone said to the Cambridge students about his “leaving” the benefits of England:

For my own part, I have never ceased to rejoice that God has appointed me to such an office. People talk of the sacrifice I have made in spending so much of my life in Africa. . . . Is that a sacrifice which brings its own blest reward in healthful activity, the consciousness of doing good, peace of mind, and a bright hope of a glorious destiny hereafter? Away with the word in such a view, and with such a thought! It is emphatically no sacrifice. Say rather it is a privilege. Anxiety, sickness, suffering, or danger, now and then, with a foregoing of the common conveniences and charities of this life, may make us pause, and cause the spirit to waver, and the soul to sink; but let this only be for a moment. All these are nothing when compared with the glory which shall be revealed in and for us. I never made a sacrifice.

(Cited in Samuel Zwemer, "The Glory of the Impossible" in Perspectives on the World Christian Movement, Ralph Winter and Stephen Hawthorne, eds. [Pasadena: William Carey Library, 1981], p. 259. Emphasis added.)

That's My King! - SM Lockridge

2010-03-14T16:05:00.001-05:00

The Heavenly Man - Consider the Cost

2010-03-01T18:18:00.000-06:00

I am reading through a book called "The Heavenly Man".

This book is a true story of the life of Liu Zhenying, better known as Brother Yu.

PLEASE READ THIS BOOK IF YOU CAN!!!!!!

I am over half way done and the stories are just so encouraging. Just to see what this brother went through living in China and preaching the Gospel to the people closed in from the Gospel. I thank God for the work He did in brother Yu's life and that his life is an encouragment. The Christian life is not a safe one, it was never meant to be. The Bible is clear on that:

2 Timothy 3:12 - "Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted"

Brother Yu lived that life and saw the truth of that in communist China. He was arrested and imprisoned and almost beat to death MANY times in his life. All because he loved Jesus and could not keep his mouth shut about his great Savior. China is still like that to this day.

There is a story in this part of the chapter about a "Sister Yuen" who had been arrested for having a Bible and spreading the gospel. When she was arrested, she was a widow and had two small children. The government brought her children to her at the jail gate and had her look out and said "You have been good thus far so we have decided to let you leave and go to your children. They have no one to care for them. Would not your God want you to care for your own children? Just write down your crimes and say you will stop them". She took the small paper and wrote down -

"Jesus cannot be replaced. Even my own children cannot replace Jesus"

She was sentenced to another 23 years in prison and her children were told by the government that their mother rejected them and did not love them. When she got out of prison her son was 34 years old and living in Tibet. She went to him to see him and talk. He rejected her, screamed that he had no mother, and pushed her out of his house. She has never seen her son again.

INDEED, ALL YOU DESIRE TO LIVE A GODLY LIFE IN CHRIST JESUS WILL BE PERSECUTED

Here is a direct quote from the book. Page 214:

"The path of following the Lord Jesus Christ is not an easy one. Along the way lies suffering and hardship, but nothing we experience will ever compare to the suffering Jesus endured for us on the cross.

I have a problem with the "prosperity" teaching prevalent today, which tells us if we follow the Lord we'll be safe and comfortable. This is completely contrary to Scripture as well as to our experiences in China. In addition to serving years in prison, I've been arrested about thirty different times for the sake of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

To follow God is a call not only to live for him, but to die for him also

'If we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord' - Romans 14:8"

Let us ponder on these words of brother in Christ, a man of God because of God's grace and mercy and strength.

Is Jesus worth it?

-Chris

Temptation

2010-02-27T00:15:00.002-06:00

When diagnosing the heart there are few better than the Puritans. I have returned over and over again to John Owen for wisdom and help in this area. Notice Owen’s careful assimilation and articulation of the practical with what is biblical…

A temptation, then, in general is anything that, for any reason, exerts a force or influence to seduce and draw the mind and heart of man form the obedience which God requires of him to any kind of sin.
In particular, it is a temptation if it causes a man to sin, gives him opportunity to do so, or causes him to neglect his duty. Temptation may suggest evil to the heart, or draw out the evil that is already there. It is also a temptation to a man if something is by any means able to distract him from his communion with God, or the consistent universal obedience that is required of him.
To clarify, I am considering temptation not just as the active force of seduction to sin, but also the thing itself by which we are tempted. Whatever it is, within us or without us, that hinders us from duty or provides an occasion for sin, this should be considered temptation. It could be business, employment, the course of one’s life, company affections, nature, corrupt, purposes, relations, delights, reputation, esteem, position, abilities, gifts, etc,, that provide the opportunity to sin or neglect duty. These are true temptations just as much as the most violent solicitations of Satan or allurements of the world. Whoever does not realize this is on the brink of ruin. –John Owen (Temptation, Banner of Truth), pp. 10-11

Our SOVEREIGN God! Totally Sovereign!

2010-02-22T12:34:00.000-06:00

Not what my hands have done can save my guilty soul;
Not what my toiling flesh has borne can make my spirit whole.
Not what I feel or do can give me peace with God;
Not all my prayers and sighs and tears can bear my awful load.
Your voice alone, O Lord, can speak to me of grace;
Your power alone, O Son of God, can all my sin erase.
No other work but Yours, no other blood will do;
No strength but that which is divine can bear me safely through.
Thy work alone, O Christ, can ease this weight of sin;
Thy blood alone, O Lamb of God, can give me peace within.
Thy love to me, O God, not mine, O Lord, to Thee,
Can rid me of this dark unrest, And set my spirit free.
I bless the Christ of God; I rest on love divine;
And with unfaltering lip and heart I call this Savior mine.
His cross dispels each doubt; I bury in His tomb
Each thought of unbelief and fear, each lingering shade of gloom.
I praise the God of grace; I trust His truth and might;
He calls me His, I call Him mine, My God, my joy and light.
’Tis He Who saveth me, and freely pardon gives;
I love because He loveth me, I live because He lives.
Horatius Bonar, 1861

Devastation in Haiti

2010-02-11T22:58:00.001-06:00

keep praying.....

It is well.....with my soul.....

"Far Away" Lecrae | (Haiti Relief) [OFFICIAL]

2010-02-11T22:27:00.001-06:00

I know you might not like "rap" music but

PLEASE WATCH this video!

It was at a Haiti relief concert. Listen to the words, meditate on the words, give God glory through it! God is NOT far away but the people of Haiti feel that way. Pray for the efforts in Haiti and that God would be known through this all and looked Glorified in the food and clothing and all the love given with the GOSPEL!

*****If you go to itunes, you can purchase this song for .99 cents and ALL the money goes to Haitian relief with the gospel! Buy it just for the Glory of God to Haiti!!!!!*********

Update on mom

2010-02-09T22:00:00.000-06:00

Sorry its been awhile on an update!

Thank you so much for all of your prayers! Mom is still in the Intensive Care Unit but they are going to move her tomorrow. They wanted to move her tonight but there were no open beds for her. She is off the oxygen, the IV and her blood pressure is good. Her heart rate is still high and her lungs need to be worked out a bit more, but she is better over all. She walked some of the ICU floor today and feels the strength coming back!

Thank you again for our prayer! Thank you for ya'll who are praying and do not even know me or my mother. We are all still a big family though, the family of God, the Church!

God Bless!

All Glory to our great God and Savior!

Chris

Praying for my Mom

2010-02-06T22:11:00.000-06:00

hey everyone

I am just asking for some prayer for my mother. She had her gallbladder taken out on thursday night last week and she came home on Friday afternoon. She was then taken back to the hospital for vomiting blood and unbearable abdominal pain. As of today, they say that she has a bile leak from where they took the gallbladder. Tomorrow morning, Sunday 2/7/10, she is going to have a few procedures done to 1) fix the leak 2) clean up the bile from the leak and 3) probe the ducts to make sure that everything is ok and there is no blockage.

She is in the critical care unit for the night because of the complications that can happen with a bile leak.

Please pray for her safety and for her recovery.
Pray that God's will be done.
Pray that God will be glorified in all of this.
Pray that the pain will be taken away from my mother.
Pray that through the pain she will find peace in her savior and know God more!

Pray as God leads you and pray much!

Thank you very much!

Chris

The Rich Young Man

2010-02-03T20:06:00.000-06:00

I just was reading Chapter 19 in Matthew and came to the story of the rich young man. I have always loved this bible story. You can see the parallels in Mark 10 and in Luke 18.

What is the few points of these story? Well, the story goes on to talk about the rich, the wealthy. Jesus said that "only with difficulty will a rich person enter into the Kingdom of Heaven". So, is this story all about the rich? I don't think so. This story goes on to the disciples question "Who then can be saved?". Jesus replies with "With man it is impossible, but with God all things are possible."

I believe the top keys to this story is this: 1) God saves and 2) its a heart issue, not about our sacrifice.

1) Matthew 19:25-26 shows that the only way people are saved is by God, GOD SAVES! We can not save ourselves and would fail if it was an option. God works in the hearts of His children and shows Himself to them. We then drop to our knees, mourn over our sin, repent of our ways and by the strength of God live a God glorifying, Christ exalting life. The problem with the rich young man, like most of the world, is that he did not want to give up the things of this world, primarily his riches, to follow Christ....which leads us to #2

2) Salvation is a heart issue, its a heart transplant.....the heart of rock taken out and God's heart of flesh put in. The rich young ruler was trying to "work" his way to heaven, to "do" all the right things. He sacrificed living like the world to live a "nicer" life with the hope to get to heaven. Jesus sees his heart issue, greed and money, and Jesus attacks that with telling him to sell all that he has and give it to the poor. This was something he could not do because he still had the heart of stone, he was still of the world and he could not work his way to heaven.

I used to be like that. I thought I could be a good person, go to church, run a youth group and say all the right things to get to heaven. I thought that was the road to heaven.....to be obedient and "look" good. As God worked in my heart of stone, He allowed me to see the problems with that and that I was not truly living for God as the Bible calls us to do. I had never denied myself, I had never counted the cost......I just tried to be good. It was not going to get me to heaven.

BUT

"God being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us (ME), even when we (I) were (WAS) dead in our (MY) trespasses, made us (ME) alive together with Christ - by grace you (I) have been saved - and raise us (ME) up with him and seated us (ME) with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus"
Ephesians 2:4-6 (I personalized it in the parentheses)

God saved me, showed me Himself, and gave me a new heart! I saw my sin as the ugliness it was, hated it so much and was so repulsed by it. I repented and turned to God. To this day I still see my sin and ugliness, hate it more than ever and still repent daily of the sin in my life to my God and Father.

Let us give God all the glory of the work He does in the lives of His Children. We are saved BY God and the issue is a heart issue....is it stone or of flesh?

If you are reading this and in my description of my early life you felt like that is you.....please search the scriptures for the truth, contact me to talk with and pray with. Plead with God to show you himself......He is faithful and will.

For the Glory of God!

Chris

Prayer Causes Things to Happen

2010-01-22T22:16:00.001-06:00

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus"
(Philippians 4:6-7)

"Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus" (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18)

'This is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests which we have asked from Him (1 John 5:14-15)

It's been awhile........

2010-01-22T21:52:00.000-06:00

Hey everyone, its been awhile since I have written and some people have asked me, whats going on?

Well, some big things. I got engaged to Michele Petracco on December 1st. She was a student this year with To Every Tribe Ministries, the organization that I work with. She went through the schooling and has a heart to be used by God and go to unreached people groups with the true Gospel! We will be getting married in a month, on February 27, 2010. We will be staying around New Jersey visiting with family and enjoying fellowship with brothers and sisters!

In May or June, we will be heading to Texas for a few weeks to get ready to go into Mexico by the end of June. We will be going to Guadalajara, Mexico to start so Michele can finish language training and I will be growing in my language as well. We will then join the Oaxaca team in Huatulco, Mexico in October, Lord willing. We will then begin to be at "home" there for the next 3-4 years or however long God allows us and where God directs.

Please keep us in prayer, for our marriage to be CHRIST centered and people can see Christ and the Church in our marriage. Pray for wisdom and direction as we go into Mexico and go to unreached areas. Pray also for God to supply all our needs. We will need to raise more support now that it is a married couple verses my single support I have. Pray that God will bring along a church or two more and some more individuals who want to partner to bring the Gospel to the unreached peoples around the world....starting in Mexico!

I will be trying to write some more here so to share things God is showing me and to spread a passion for the lost souls of the unreached people groups around the world!

Colossians 3:2-3
"Devote yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with an attitude of thanksgiving; praying at the same time for us as well, that God will open up to us a door for the word, so that we may speak forth the mystery of Christ"

Please, PLEASE realize the important of PRAYER! It is a command and an expectation of our God that we will pray and thank our God and King as well as ask of Him the things we need and petition Him and ask for His opening of eyes of those who do not believe! Please, check yourself and look at your prayer life. I am doing that right now as I speak and realize it has not been what it should be.

We should make time DAILY to be alone with God and we should "pray without ceasing" (1 Thessalonians 5:17) all day long in all the things we do; working, making dinner, eating dinner, visiting with neighbors, cleaning the house, cutting the grass, playing with the kids, putting them to bed at night.....in all actions of the day be in constant prayer of petition and thankfulness.

Thank you God for You...for Your Son Jesus Christ and for the Holy Spirit! Thank you!

"Your blood has washed away my sins, Jesus Thank you
The Fathers wrath completely satisfied, Jesus Thank you
Once your enemy, now seated at your table, Jesus Thank you"

His Unworthy servant

Chris

Preach the Gospel to yourself.....What does that mean?

2009-12-18T10:10:00.000-06:00

I found this article on the "Irishcalvanist" blog and I just wanted to post it here, its GREAT stuff!!!

You Need More than Just Data in Preaching the Gospel to Yourself

Posted by Erik in Irish Calvinist on Dec 17th, 2009 | 4 Comments

There is a lot of (necessary) talk these days about preaching the gospel to yourself. This is truly a great need for every Christian. We all found ourselves slouching back to the self-promoting, self-worshiping default position of our hearts. That is, we forget the gospel.

But let’s be very clear about what it means to forget. We are not simply talking about forgetting facts or Bible verses. It is not like we somehow can’t remember the definition of substitutionary atonement or that Jesus came to save sinners. No, no, it is much bigger than this.

The Issue is Our Satisfied Delight

When we talk about forgetting the gospel we are talking about forgetting to see the glory of Christ in the gospel. That is, we forget to see the infinite value of Jesus as the redeemer. In this we see our infinite sinfulness, hopelessness, idolatry, and separation from God. The only thing we have to do with God apart from Jesus is to be on the wrong side of his barrel of divine wrath. So in seeing the beautiful sufficiency in Jesus, both his person and his work, we begin to delight in him as our Savior.

In other words, what we don’t just forget facts, but rather to delight in the glorious God behind the facts! Christ and his work is both historical and personal. That is, it happened in time and it happened for sinners like me and you! And the fact that it is successful and available for a rebel like me causes me to be amazed, humbled, refreshed and happy as I bask in the illuminating beams of the glory of Christ through the gospel.

More than an Upload of Data

Preaching the gospel to yourself is not just a mind exercise. You are not to be just reciting facts without the engagement of your heart. The gospel is to stir our minds with theological truth but that stirring also is like a divine oar in the water of our hearts, as it stirs us with rich gospel happiness.

In the gospel we are seeing the glory of Christ in his condescension for us; we see his infinite stooping to rescue infinite sinners and provide eternal righteousness. And then, one day, we’ll see his perfect righteousness and preserving power and unfailing love on full display as we, his bride, the church is wonderfully presented to him as holy, blameless, and beyond reproach. This is all done through his work as the husband par excellence washing us, his bride with his word (Eph. 5.25-27 )

So yes, preach the gospel to yourself everyday, even multiple times a day. But do not treat it like you just need an upload of data. Because, in reality, you need much more than that. You need divine help through the Spirit to happily see the glory of Christ in the gospel that you might be transformed into his own image (2 Cor. 3.18 )

How wonderful the Father's love for us!

2009-12-02T11:32:00.001-06:00

I was listening to the song "The Father's Love" by Sovereign Grace and I am blown away! The love that is flowed down from our great Father above is not really comprehended by us.

1 John 3:1 - “See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are.”

Romans 8:14-17 :

"because those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, "Abba, Father." The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory."

For those who believe and are filled with the Holy Spirit, we are children of God, heirs with Christ and God's love is so GREAT that we can't really understand!

Romans 8:31-39 :

What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us.Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? As it is written,

"For your sake we are being killed all the day long;
we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered."

No, in all these things we are more thanconquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers,nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

I pray that you will be able to take some time to listen to the song. Here is a link to a page that you can hear the song. Just copy and paste the address and the song should start right away:

http://www.imeem.com/people/hX0Ft9/music/o1EhS-H6/sovereign-grace-music-the-fathers-love/

Always remember that His Love and Grace and Mercy is because of God, not by anything we deserve or have worked for. Our best works are like filthy rags to God. Let us thank Him, Thank Him MUCH for His love and mercy and grace in our lives and for bringing us to Him.

Jesus Thank You!!

His unworthy servant

Chris

Conference Audio Up!

2009-10-30T17:02:00.000-05:00

Hey everyone, Here is the conference audio link to To Every Tribe Website.
http://toeverytribe.com/pages/page.asp?page_id=78743
Please check out the speakers!

For His Glory!

Chris Johnson

Missions Conference - To Every Tribe Ministries

2009-10-28T17:44:00.001-05:00

Hey everyone!

Tomorrow night the 2nd Annual To Every Tribe Ministries Missions conference starts. It is being held in Dalton Georgia and I am blessed to be here and part of this. The conference is called "The Privilege of Suffering: Jesus is Worth It!". Please check out the website and I believe the audio will be posted up very soon after the conference, www.toeverytribe.com . Please PRAY for the conference and what the Lord will be doing through this. It's all for His Glory and His name proclaimed to the Nations!

Revelations 5:6-10

"And between the throne and the four living creatures and among the elders I saw a Lamb standing, as though it had been slain, with seven horns and with seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth. And he went and took the scroll from the right hand of him who was seated on the throne. And when he had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each holding a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. And they sang a new song, saying,

   "Worthy are you to take the scroll
   and to open its seals,
   for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God
   from every tribe and language and people and nation,
and you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God,
   and they shall reign on the earth."

For His Glory!

Chris Johnson

Live Dangerously

2009-10-12T07:46:00.001-05:00

Jesus is Worth it!

Grace Unmeasured

2009-10-12T07:37:00.003-05:00

Here are the lyrics to a awesome worship song. Bob Kauflin wrote it; I never cease to be moved when singing or even just reading these words.

Grace unmeasured, vast and free
That knew me from eternity
That called me out before my birth
To bring you glory on this earth
Grace amazing, pure and deep
That saw me in my misery
That took my curse and owned my blame
So I could bear your matchless Name

Grace, grace, grace, paid for my sins
And brought me to life
Grace, grace, grace, clothes me with power
To do what is right
Grace, grace, grace will lead me to heav'n
Where I'll see your face
And never cease to thank you for your grace

Grace abounding, strong and true
That makes me long to be like you
That turns me from my selfish pride
To love the cross on which you died
Grace unending all my days
You give me strength to run this race
And when my years on earth are through
The praise will all belong to you

Shai Linne - My Portion

2009-10-07T08:39:00.000-05:00

I don't wanna go to Heaven if God is not there!

Valley of Vision

2009-08-29T17:48:00.001-05:00

A Disciple’s Renewal

The Valley of Vision has MANY great prayers. This one is titled “A Disciple’s Renewal.”

*****

O My Saviour, help me.
I am so slow to learn, so prone to forget, so weak to climb;

I am in the foothills when I should be in the heights;
I am pained by my graceless heart,
my prayerless days,
my poverty of love,
my sloth in the heavenly race,
my sullied conscience,
my wasted hours,
my unspent opportunities.
I am blind while light shines around me:
take the scales from my eyes,
grind to dust the evil heart of unbelief.
Make it my chiefest joy to study thee,
meditate on thee,
gaze on thee,
sit like Mary at thy feet,
lean like John on thy breast,
appeal like Peter to thy love,
count like Paul all things dung.
Give me increase and progress in grace so that there may be;
more decision in my character,
more vigor in my purposes,
more elevation in my life,
more fervor in my devotion,
more constancy in my zeal.
As I have a position in the world,
keep me from making the world my position;
May I never seek in the creature what can be found only in the creator;
Let not faith cease from seeking thee until it vanishes into sight.
Ride forth in me, thou King of kings and Lord of lords,
that I may live victoriously, and in victory attain my end.

The Gospel Song- Sovereign Grace Music

2009-08-24T10:18:00.001-05:00

A short song but but a GREAT song and something we all need to remember and teach ourselves daily....THE GOSPEL!

For His Glory

Chris

1 Corinthians 15:1-4

Persecution: A price to pay for being a Christian?

2009-08-01T14:56:00.001-05:00

The Few

2009-07-22T23:12:00.001-05:00

Count the Cost!

Are you a new creature?

Is Christ that precious to you?

Let us persevere in Faith and Holiness!

Because of the Cross

Chris

"Memorize Scripture" John Piper Sermon Jam

2009-07-21T15:49:00.001-05:00

The Gospel

2009-07-20T10:08:00.002-05:00

Because your blood has washed away my sin
Jesus Thank You!
The Fathers wrath completely Satisfied
Jesus Thank You!
Once your enemy, now seated at your table
Jesus Thank You!

WOW!

What does that mean to you?

I have tears in my eyes thinking about those words. I used to HATE God and wanted nothing to do with Him......BUT........He brought me to Him.....He saved me while I was fighting to get away....Oh JESUS THANK YOU!!!!!!!

Oh may we never grow cold to the Gospel ourselves! We need to always be reminding ourselves of what God did! The Gospel was NOT something we believed (past tense), it is something we believe (present tense) and continue believing throughout our whole lives!

I can read these lyrics and feel them:

I stand amazed in the presence
Of Jesus the Nazarene,
And wonder how He could love me,
A sinner, condemned, unclean.

He can love me because He paid the price for my sins, He drank to cup of the Fathers wrath and it was satisfied. I am counted righteous by HIS righteousness.....Jesus Thank You!
Oh what love God has for us and what miraculous raising of the dead He does when He saves us!

Ephesians 2:1-10 -

¹And you were dead in the trespasses and sins ² in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience—
³among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. ⁴But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us,
⁵ when we were dead in our trespasses,even made us alive together with Christ— by grace you have been saved—
⁶and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, ⁷so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. ⁸For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, ⁹ not a result of works, so that no one may boast. ¹⁰ we are his workmanship,For created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

May we take time to let the Gospel sink in today.....everyday. Let us see the grace and mercy of God in the Cross of Christ and His great Love!

Because of the Cross

Chris

Texting while Driving....

2009-07-01T17:02:00.000-05:00

Here is some new data from a CNBC.com article: Texting while driving is worse than driving drunk. Much worse.

Car and Driver Magazine tested how long it takes to hit the brakes "when sober, when legally drunk at .08, when reading an e-mail, and when sending a text." Here are the results:

Unimpaired: .54 seconds to brake
Legally drunk: add 4 feet
Reading e-mail: add 36 feet
Sending a text: add 70 feet

That's a lot of cushion required for sending a text vs. drunk driving. But as dangerous as it is, the author of the CNBC.com article fears it'll take more deaths before public opinion changes about texting and driving.

2009-07-01T16:34:00.001-05:00

Free Book: The Jesus You Can't Ignore by John MacArthur

"If you’ve ever wondered how to deal with false teachers and their bad theology, where better to look than Jesus and His example.

So how did Jesus deal with religious leaders who taught error and rejected the gospel? Did He seek common doctrinal ground and engage in dialog? Did He soften and adapt the gospel so it wouldn’t confront or make them uncomfortable?

John MacArthur’s new book, The Jesus You Can’t Ignore, explores the Lord’s many personal, often-explosive encounters with the influential teachers of His day. You’ll see how both Jesus’ message and His manner have direct application for believers who love truth in this age of accommodation and compromise."

Go Here and fill out the form. The link will not work after July 20th

How Deep the Father's Love

2009-06-28T12:21:00.001-05:00

The Few - Piper/Washer/Ravenhill/Conway/Leiter

2009-06-20T15:59:00.001-05:00

Those who ENDURE to the end....will be saved

Treasuring Him - DWYL Sermon Jam Video

2009-06-14T16:57:00.001-05:00

Am I a Christian?

2009-06-12T14:50:00.002-05:00

Hey Everyone!

Please watch this video, it is SO GOOD!

Its convicting.....watch it all...pass it on.....

For the Glory of the Lamb who was slain,

Chris

http://blip.tv/file/2220280

Life is a Vapor. Live Like it!

2009-06-08T16:21:00.001-05:00

Know Christ, Know the Gospel - Paul Washer

2009-06-08T16:15:00.001-05:00

John Macarthur Slaves for Christ

2009-06-05T16:13:00.001-05:00

Yearn, Shane and Shane

2009-05-25T10:01:00.001-05:00

Do we yearn for God?

Do we desire to be with Him?

Do we desire Him above all else?

We should.....

For His Glory

I Stand Amazed (How Marvelous)

2009-05-20T10:18:00.001-05:00

What about Grace?

2009-05-19T10:15:00.002-05:00

On Sunday, Rod Conner (the Vice President of To Every Tribe) preached at Divine Providence, the church I attend here in South Texas. It was a great Sermon.

He spoke from the verse in

Luke 23:34 - Then Jesus said, 'Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do."

The sermon went on to describe the Grace in salvation. Do we really know about the Grace in salvation? Do we remind ourselves daily of this? Do we see what God did for us?

Ephesians 2:1-10
And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience. Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest. But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.

As you can see, we were once DEAD, HATING God and by nature, children of wrath. Oh the "but's" of the Bible are so nice, especially the one in verse 5. "But God". We were dead and by nature children of wrath BUT GOD came in and being rich in mercy and saved us.

Think of the chorus of "Jesus Thank You":

Your blood has washed away my sin
Jesus Thank You
The Fathers wrath completely satisfied
Jesus Thank You
Once your enemy, now seated at your table
Jesus Thank You

By the precious Blood of Christ (1Peter 1:18-19) we were ransomed, saved from the futile ways of our forefathers. We were saved, God's wrath that was on us was satisfied by Christ's death and God brought to His table a man who was once His enemy, and is now His child.

OH WHAT GRACE!!!!!!!!

Grace is undeserved merit....or easy words...getting what we don't deserve!

We deserve God's wrath for eternity.......we deserve death...BUT, God, being rich in mercy, saved us.

"For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast."

Do we remember this daily? Do we thank God for his GREAT MERCY and for His GREAT GRACE!!!!

"Amazing grace, how sweet the sound,
that saved a wretch like me.
I once was lost, but now am found
was blind but now I see"

Think of the first part of the old hymn "I stand amazed in the Presence"

"I stand amazed in the presence
Of Jesus the Nazarene,
And wonder how He could love me,
A sinner, condemned, unclean."

I do wonder how He could love me, a sinner, condemned, unclean. Oh what love, oh what grace! Let us this day, AND EVERYDAY think of that great LOVE and great MERCY and great GRACE that God has in bringing His children to himself by the means of himself, Christ Jesus.

His unworthy servant

Chris

Charles Spurgeon

2009-05-02T11:24:00.002-05:00

Charles Spurgeon wrote this, its called:

Murdered

There was a day, as I took my walks abroad,
when I came by a spot forever engraved upon my memory,
for there I saw this Friend, my best, my only Friend... MURDERED!
I stooped down in sad affright, and looked at Him.
I saw that His hands had been pierced with rough iron nails,
and His feet had been torn in the same way.
There was misery in His dead countenance
so terrible that I scarcely dared to look upon it.
His body was emaciated with hunger,
His back was red with bloody scourges,
and His brow had a circle of wounds about it:
clearly could one see that these had been pierced by thorns.
I shuddered, for I had known this Friend full well.
He never had a fault;
He was the purest of the pure, the holiest of the holy.
Who could have injured Him?
For He never injured any man:
all His life long He "went about doing good."
He had healed the sick, He had fed the hungry,
He had raised the dead: for which of these works did they kill Him?
He had never breathed out anything else but love -
and as I looked into the poor sorrowful face, so full of agony,
and yet so full of love,
I wondered who could have been a wretch
so vile as to pierce hands like His.
I said within myself,
"Where can these traitors live?
Who are these that could have smitten such an One as this?"
Had they murdered an oppressor, we might have forgiven them;
had they slain one who had indulged in vice or villainy,
it might have been his desert;
had it been a murderer and a rebel,
or one who had committed sedition,
we would have said,
"Bury his corpse: justice has at last given him his due."
But when You were slain, my best, my only-beloved,
where did the traitors hide?
Let me seize them, and they shall be put to death!
If there be torments that I can devise, surely they shall endure them all.
Oh! what jealousy; what revenge I felt!
If I might but find these murderers, what I would do to them!
And as I looked upon that corpse,
I heard a footstep, and wondered where it was.
I listened, and I clearly perceived that the murderer was close at hand!
It was dark, and I groped about to find him.
I found that, somehow or other, wherever I put out my hand,
I could not meet with him,
for he was NEARER to me than my hand would go.
At last I put my hand upon MY BREAST.
"I have you now" said I - for lo!
he was IN MY OWN HEART - the murderer was hiding within my own bosom,
dwelling in the recesses of my INMOST SOUL.
Ah! then I wept indeed, that I, in the very presence of my murdered Master,
should be harboring the murderer - and I
felt myself most guilty while I bowed over His corpse,
and sang that plaintive hymn...
"Twas you, MY SINS, my cruel sins,
His chief tormentors were;
Each of my crimes became a nail,
and unbelief the spear."
Amid the rabble which hounded the Redeemer to His doom,
there were some gracious souls
whose bitter anguish sought vent
in wailing and lamentations- fit music to accompany that march of woe.
When my soul can, in imagination,
see the Saviour bearing His cross to Calvary,
she joins the godly women, and weeps with them;
for, indeed, there is true cause for grief,
cause lying deeper than those mourning women thought.
They bewailed innocence maltreated, goodness persecuted,
love bleeding, meekness about to die - but my heart
has a deeper and more bitter cause to mourn.
MY SINS were the scourges which lacerated those blessed shoulders,
and crowned with thorns those bleeding brows;
my sins cried - "Crucify Him! Crucify Him!"
and laid the cross upon His gracious shoulders.
His being led forth to die is sorrow enough for one eternity;
but MY having been His murderer,
is more, infinitely more grief than one poor fountain of tears can express.
If Christ has died for me, ungodly as I am,
without strength as I am, then I cannot live in sin any longer,
but must arouse myself to love and serve Him who has redeemed me.
I cannot trifle with the evil which slew my best Friend.
I must be holy for His sake.
HOW CAN I LIVE IN SIN WHEN HE HAS DIED
TO SAVE ME FROM IT?

John Piper Glory of Christ

2009-04-20T10:27:00.001-05:00

The Gospel - Jesus Wants the Rose

2009-04-14T20:15:00.001-05:00

The Cup of Christ

2009-04-11T10:32:00.001-05:00

He drank the cup, the wrath of God, for each person who did, and is and will believe in Jesus Christ as the Son of God.

We were apart and seperated from God.....Jesus was the reconciler.....but He could only do that by PAYING the price of our sins.....taking the WRATH of God for each one who believed.

Christ suffered more on the cross then any sinner ever will in hell. Think about that!

THINK ABOUT THAT!!!!!

My sin put Him there to suffer ALL of God's wrath that was on me....up to the last drop.

Thank you Jesus!

Jesus, Thank you!

That's Easter: Life to Death

2009-04-11T10:08:00.001-05:00

2009-03-20T08:54:00.004-05:00

Hey everyone!

I am going back to La Barra and leaving THIS Saturday, March 21-April 2! Please pray for this trip! I will be going down with a family from the school here at To Every Tribe Ministries. The Ibanez family is here for the school this year and have a leading towards Mexico and will be traveling along to see La Barra and get a feel for Mexico as well as see the chances of the Lord leading them to the La Barra team we have been praying for! PRAY PRAY PRAY!!!! We will meet Chris Berger and Jim Bloomstrand down there in Mexico. they are two who went through the TETM school in 2006. We will also be meeting up with a few other guys, Evan and Tom Wallin. Pray for this team to be wise and to be preaching the Truth!

We are planning to stay in Huatulco, the tourist town 30 minutes from La Barra and travel Daily into la Barra to meet with the believers and go through the book of Philippians. Each time we go we like to go through a book of the Bible teaching and discipling the 5 believers in this village of over a 1,000 people. We have been "kicked out" of the village already but returned in daily in October for a week and hope to do the same this time. Pray for the believers: Inocenta & Idelfonso, Luis & Briseda and Eva. Pray for their families as well to come to know the Lord, that God would open their eyes! Pray for the leaders who are against us, Pablo and Jose, for their salvation! Pray for men of peace and for the NEW President and Vice President that we may have favor with them and get back into the village to stay for the nights as well with the believers and with the village.

We are also using this trip to scout out the areas of La Barra and Huatulco for a long term team. Some of the people in this trip are considering to join a team for La Barra / Huatulco long term. PLEASE CONTINUE TO PRAY FOR A TEAM!!! Even from this group! We are planning to look at prices of housing in both places and begin putting plans together for a team to use who will go in. We will also be scouting Huatulco for churches and getting the needed information for this town since I believe that there is not a evangelical, gospel preaching church in the town as well as La Barra. It may be a team living in Huatulco working on planting a church there as well as working in La Barra planting and discipling the believers. PRAY for wisdom and direction for myself and the team.

Please pray for safety as well. We know our God is sovereign and has this trip already planned, but we should be wise and pray for the safety of His people. We wish for God to use us for His Glory, no matter what the cost. We are sold out for His Glory and for His name to be proclaimed and loved in La Barra, Huatulco and ALL over Mexico AND the World! The drug wars have been getting worse and things are not great in Mexico. Please, pray for God's will to be done as well as our safety!

Thank you for your prayers, your love and for your support! I pray for ya'll daily and will not stop. You are part of this work....this is YOUR work too! Over all, God is letting us have the privilege of being His hands and feet and speaking the "power of God unto salvation", the Gospel!

Thank you again!

Because of the Cross

Chris Johnson

Philippians 1:20-21"it is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full courage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain"

Be Unto Your Name

2009-03-11T09:49:00.001-05:00

Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty
Worthy is the Lamb who was slain
Highest Praises, Honor and Glory
Be Unto your name

La Barra

2009-03-04T09:58:00.001-06:00

La Barra again!

2009-03-04T09:36:00.005-06:00

This video is to get you started in Prayer!

On March 20th I will lead another team down to La Barra, Mexico. Many of you, if not all of you, know that my heart is in this village, in this region of Oaxaca, Mexico. The trip is planned to be from March 20 - April 3.

Please be praying for the believers there; Idelfonso & Inocenta, Luis & Briseda and Eva. Pray also for the families of these believers to have their eyes opened....as well as the WHOLE village! May the Lord's Will be done! We are going to be visiting and working through a book or two of the Bible while also looking at La Barra and Huatulco (the tourist town 25 minutes away) for housing and ideas for a full time team to be there....maybe by the end of the year!

I thank ya'll for your prayers and support to continue this work to the unreached people's of the world. La Barra AND Huatulco are UNREACHED, no true gospel presentation in these area's. Our desire is to go down, preach the gospel, watch God's calling of His sheep and help them to start church's where the men are leading and we are discipiling. Please pray!

Pray also for the relations with the authority in La Barra. There is a new president and vice president and we will, Lord Willing, be going in to talk to them and see if we can get back in the village and at least visit daily. Pray for wisdom and boldness!

"May the lamb who was slain receive the reward of His suffering"

His unworthy servant,

Chris

Revelations 5:9

"And they sang a new song, saying, "Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals,for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation,"

Jesus, Thank You!

2009-03-03T11:52:00.001-06:00

Music Playlist at MixPod.com

Missions conference

2009-02-28T15:37:00.002-06:00

Hey guys!

It's Saturday afternoon and just wanted to say hi! I am in Fort Worth and at a missions conference at Calvary Bible Church. They are one of my supporting church's and they asked me to speak this morning to the youth on missions. We had a great session and plan on going out this evening to downtown Fort Worth to do some street witnessing. Pray for the Lord's working and speaking through us!

Its been a great conference so far and loving the other speakers and getting to know other missionaries.

Miss ya'll!

Chris

Phil. 1:20-21

Off to Fort Worth

2009-02-25T10:55:00.004-06:00

Hey everyone!

Well, I am getting ready to head out Friday to Fort Worth, Texas to speak at a Missions conference at Calvary Bible Church. I will be able to visit with brothers and sisters and give a little fire for Missions! I get to speak to the youth about missions and the plans to go FULL TIME and give their lives to bringing the gospel to those who do not have it!

Please pray that I will be a blessing to all and that I will be used by God to spread a passion for His Glory and for Missions.....going to the UNREACHED....those without the gospel. Pray God will speak through me and call His workers for the already ripe and ready harvest!

Thank ya'll for you continual support and prayers! Ya'll are a blessing and I thank you for everything! May we live every day of our lives for His glory and for His name!

Hebrews 12:1-2

"Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God."

For The Sake of the Call,

Chris

2 Moravian Missionaries

2009-02-23T09:22:00.001-06:00

May the lamb that was slain receive the reward of His suffering!

Hey everyone

2009-02-14T13:59:00.003-06:00

Hey~

Just wanted to explain the music "ipods" that I put up so you can listen to things. In side the "screen" of the ipod there is a song, or in my last post, two things (a song and part of a sermon). To listen to them you just click on the name of the song on the "screen" of the ipod and it starts playing. If there are two or more things to listen too, click "menu" at the end of a song and you can see all the rest of the songs. I just want ya'll to hear some AWESOME stuff!

This last blog set of song/sermon part is on prayer. PRAY hard and PRAY OFTEN~! I was just speaking to a friend about La Barra and how I have been praying for Eva's husband, Rafael, since we met him that the Lord would save him. I just sat there and thought, LET US PRAY FOR HIM DAILY AND PRAY EXPECTING IT!!!!!

Please pray for La Barra, pray for the salvation of Rafael! I want to get down there in March and have another baptism to watch! It is not only a command, its a privilege to come before our great God and King and Lord with our petitions!

1 Thessalonians 5:17 "Pray without ceasing"

Matthew 21:21-22 "And Jesus answered them, "Truly, I say to you, if you have the faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what has been done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, 'Be taken up and thrown into the sea,' it will happen. And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith"

Do you have faith? Do you trust God's Word? Do you trust God?

Charles Haddon Spurgeon said, "There is a general kind of praying which fails for lack of precision. It is as if a regiment of soldiers should all fire off their guns anywhere. Possibly somebody would be killed, but the majority of the enemy would be missed."

Please pray for La Barra as it gets closer, pray for the salvation of Rafael AND the whole village! I pray big, pray BIG with me!

For His Glory

Chris Johnson

1 Peter 3:12 "For the eyes of the Lord are on the Righteous,
and his ears are open to their prayers"

Prayer

2009-02-14T13:55:00.001-06:00

Music Playlist at MixPod.com

Chris Tomlin - Uncreated One

2009-02-12T10:29:00.001-06:00

Music Playlist at MixPod.com

Whats going on?

2009-02-11T13:23:00.002-06:00

Hey everyone...

How ya'll doing? Just wanted to check in and say hi! I am taking a break from getting some stuff together to look at taxes, whats fun.

Well, i was up in Wisconsin and Minnesota a little over a week ago. I went with David Sitton, President of To Every Tribe, to a conference he was speaking at. I was able to speak in a few small groups about To Every Tribe, but most of all, Missions and going to the unreached!

I have to detour from the update. What are you doing for the unreached? I know, I know, allot of you support missions, maybe even me, but, do you pray, beg God for the Nations to know Him? I just am tearing up thinking of the faces of those I know that do not know Jesus as their Lord and Savior and there are so many others around the world who have never heard of Him or never heard a TRUE gospel presentation. Oh pray brothers and sister, pray much and pray hard for the Glory of God to be known to the Nations! It will happen, WILL happen:

Malachi 1:11 - "For from the rising of the sun even to its setting, My name will be great among the nations, and in every place incense is going to be offered to My name, and a grain offering that is pure; for My name will be great among the nations," says the LORD of hosts."

My name WILL be great among the Nations, Says the Lord of hosts......but that does not take away our responsibility to Go and to send and to PRAY as goers or senders. May we plead and beg the Lord for workers and for the Nations to know Him....and never forget....you may be that worker you are praying about! That's what I am praying for !

Well, I also spoke at a church, Houston Baptist Church Houston Minnesota. They are a new supporting church of mine and a awesome church! I thank God for them!

I also Got to spend some good times relaxing and hanging out with some new friends in that area. Coffee at Panera bread is really good if you did not know that already. You can get unlimited cups for like $1.50! Yes, I love coffee if you did not know. And ya, when did Mcdonalds start having Mc' cafe's?

Well, After that I went to Minneapolis to attend the Desiring God Pastor's conference. That is where I heard David Sitton speak back in 2006 and where the Lord did His "official" call in my mind to missions! You can still get that message at www.desiringgod.org and search for David Sitton.

It was a great conference and I was able to spend some time with my brother Allen, which was a great blessing. He has been a great influence in my life....my Paul to this Timothy. Thank you Allen for being used by God and for all your prayers! This is the fruit of that obedience!

I am in the planning stages for a trip back to La Barra right not for the dates of March 20th/21st till around April 1st/2nd. Please begin praying for this trip, for those who will most likely be going: Jim Bloomstrand, Chris Berger and myself. Pray for wisdom and knowledge, pray for protection BUT for God's Will to be done. Pray for boldness and courage to preach the gospel and stand firm for the gospel. May we never shrink back or be ashamed of the gospel.... even to death for God's Glory!

Hebrews 10:39 - "But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who have faith and preserve their souls."

Romans 1:16 - "For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek."

Philippians 1:20-21 - "it is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full courage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain."

Thank you for your prayers and support! Ya'll are a blessing!

For His Glory!

Chris

Will you be like this?

2009-02-06T12:39:00.001-06:00

New Prayer Card!

2009-02-04T14:33:00.001-06:00

Hey everyone, here is my new prayer card. I will hopefully get this out through the mail to those I have address's. Hope all is well!

Chris
Phil. 1:20-21

Traveling & Missions

2009-01-30T13:09:00.003-06:00

Hey everyone!

I am in the state of Wisconsin as I write this. I am staying with a brother, Kyle Danielson, and his family with David Sitton. We are up visiting Kyle's church and spreading a passion for the Nations. I will be speaking this Sunday at Houston Baptist Church in Houston, Minnesota and then proceed on to the Desiring God Pastor's Conference in Minneapolis.

Thank you all for all of your prayers and support. I pray that all of you are staying in the word and praying for the Nations!

"Jesus is Worth it!" - worth what? Worth everything we are! We should give ALL that we are for all that HE is.....Do it all for His Glory!

What does mission's mean to you? Maybe we can have some people answer that question on the comment part and start a dialog. What is missions to YOU?

For His Glory

Chris

Rev 5:9 - "And they sang a new song, saying, "Worthy are You to take the book and to break its seals; for You were slain, and purchased for God with Your blood men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation."

Bless the Lord!!!

2009-01-26T22:11:00.002-06:00

Psalm 103

Bless the LORD, O My Soul
1 Bless the LORD, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name!
2 Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits,
3who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases,
4who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy,
5who satisfies you with good so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
6The LORD works righteousness and justice for all who are oppressed.
7He made known his ways to Moses, his acts to the people of Israel.
8The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
9 He will not always chide, nor will he keep his anger forever.
10He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities.
11For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him;
12as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us.
13As a father shows compassion to his children,
so the LORD shows compassion to those who fear him.
14For he knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust.
15As for man, his days are like grass; he flourishes like a flower of the field;
16for the wind passes over it, and it is gone, and its place knows it no more.
17But the steadfast love of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting
on those who fear him, and his righteousness to children’s children,
18to those who keep his covenant and remember to do his commandments.
19The LORD has established his throne in the heavens, and his kingdom rules over all.
20Bless the LORD, O you his angels, you mighty ones who do his word,
obeying the voice of his word!
21Bless the LORD, all his hosts, his ministers, who do his will!
22Bless the LORD, all his works, in all places of his dominion.
Bless the LORD, O my soul!

Living Dangerously

2009-01-24T21:59:00.001-06:00

Do you still Love Him above all?

2009-01-21T08:30:00.001-06:00

Pray for La Barra!

2008-12-30T17:44:00.007-06:00

La Barra will have a new President and Vice President this year! Pray for the Lord to work and select those who may allow us to go back in to visit and to even stay and live when a team is formed!

Pray for a team to be formed this year and for wisdom for myself as I visit and talk to people in La Barra to see about us renting out a house and living there.

Please again, do not forget to pray for the believers there in La Barra and the growing church!

Here are some photos of the trip I took with George and Irian in August!

George, Me, Irian

Luis and his wife Briseda

Idelfonso and myself

Eva, her son Jonathan, her daughter Diana, myself

Idelfonso, Inocenta, Briseda and Eva

(Sorry about the photo, I could not get it right side up)

That's My King!

2008-12-29T11:53:00.001-06:00

Bad News: Santa Claus Is Coming to Town

2008-12-24T09:20:00.001-06:00

Not forgotten!

2008-12-19T08:20:00.003-06:00

My brother and sister-in-law adopted a beautiful boy from Ethiopia. He is 1 1/2 so he did not make it on the snowmobile with Ruth and Daniel, nor could he play games with us. So, here are a few picks of my little nephew, Ezra :

He enjoyed playing with some snow in a bucket!

He was giving me a smile:

He gave a big smile with Uncle Chris:

Consider the Cost of following Christ

2008-12-17T16:04:00.001-06:00

Music Playlist at MixPod.com

N.Y. Fun!

2008-12-17T15:11:00.005-06:00

Well, I spent some time playing a game with Ruth and Daniel, Chicken foot to be exact. And yes, I played games for those who know I do not usually play games, ha ha. I even played chicken foot last night with a few friends and the family!

We looked outside and saw the snow and they wanted to go out and have some fun:

SOOOOO, we all went for a snowmobile ride. We went up in the field above the house and then we went for a ride around the lake next door

We were pretty cold so we went inside and sat around the wood burning stove and dried out our clothes.

I always bring the snow!

2008-12-17T09:26:00.002-06:00

I am in upstate New York visiting my brother Allen and his family. Every time I come to visit I seem to bring snow with me and this time was the same. This morning we had 5-6 inches of snow on the ground with another 1-2 throughout this morning. It is so beautiful!

Living in Texas, I do not get to see the beauty of the snow.

Every time I see snow, I bring my mind back to :

Isaiah 1:18
"Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord:
though your sins are like scarlet,
they shall be as white as snow.
though they are like crimson,
they shall become like wool"

As we look at God's creation and wonders, let us not forget the great work of raising us from the dead, opening our eye's to see Him and knowing that through the death of the perfect son of God, we were washed white as snow, though we were dead and our sins were like scarlet.

Praise the Lord all you peoples, Praise the Lord!

For His Glory!

Chris

Phil. 1:20-21

Deadly Persecution

2008-12-10T14:48:00.001-06:00

Please pray for Mexico - for the strength and courage of the Christians to stand up for God's Glory and for His name, for them to live and preach to gospel to their country, for the Lord to send workers into His field of Mexico, and for God to build His church all over the country, even in these hard places.

"If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will loose it, but whoever loses his life for my names sake and the gospel's will save it" Mark 8:34-35

"For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also suffer for his sake"
Philippians 1:29

"Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted"
2 Timothy 3:12

Persecution in Mexico

2008-12-09T13:31:00.002-06:00

Many do not realize that there is MUCH persecution in Mexico for those who will follow the true God of the Bible. In Mexico, most of the people are Roman Catholic or claim to be Roman Catholic though they do not follow or "practice" it. Here is a article on a village in Oaxaca, Mexico where persecution is happening against Christians. By the way, Oaxaca is the state that La Barra is, where I pray the Lord allows me to go and be a light in that darkness! Pray for them please!

Persecution of Christians Persists in Parts of Mexico:

Compass Direct News reports that as the number of evangelical Christians in southern Mexico has grown, hostilities from “traditionalist Catholics” have kept pace, according to published reports. Especially in indigenous communities in southern Mexico, the prevailing attitude is that only traditionalist Catholics, who blend native rituals with Roman Catholicism, have rights to religious practice, according to news reports. In Oaxaca state, four Christians in Santiago Teotlaxco, Ixtlan de Juarez district, were jailed on Nov. 16 for refusing to participate in a traditionalist Catholic festival and for not paying the high quotas they were assigned to help cover its costs, according to La Voz news agency. Their neighbors, now fewer than the town’s 180 Christian evangelicals, have been trying to force them to practice what the evangelicals regard as idolatrous adoration of saints and other rituals contrary to their faith.

It is happening ALL over Mexico. Pray for the Lord's work in Mexico and for the Lord to "send out workers into His harvest"

For His Glory!

Chris

Phil 1:20-21

Back in Jersey

2008-12-09T12:48:00.002-06:00

Hey Everyone!

Its been awhile since I wrote on my blog or even wrote to just say hi and say whats going on! Hope everyone is doing well! I have returned from Guadalajara, Mexico where I finished the Harvest Language school and my language studies. Again, I would not consider myself "fluent" really. BUT, I can have conversations and talk regularly in Spanish. I need to really work hard on one conjugation of Spanish called subjunctive. It's not easy at all. I got to practice my Spanish with a waiter at IHOP today when I went for breakfast with my nephew Jason. I will use it every chance I get!

So yes, I returned to Texas last Wednesday morning and returned to Jersey last night. I am planning to rest a bit, visit with family, fellowship with church family, visit my brother's church in upstate New York and with His family and whatever else God has in His will while I am back. It is time for rest but ALWAYS time for God's Glory in all my actions, words and thoughts!

I hope and pray you are all doing great! Thank you again, ALL OF YOU, for you support and prayers! I should be sending out an update in the next few days so if you do not get it, feel free to email me at cjohnson@toeverytribe.com and I will send you one! Feel free to pass it along to friends or family or churches too!

Hope to hear how you are all doing! Praying for you all!

For His Glory!

Chris

Psalm 9:1-2
"I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart; I will recount all of your wonderful deeds. I will be glad and exult in you; I will sing praise to your name, O Most High"

The Necessity of a Pure Heart

2008-11-19T17:33:00.001-06:00

This video sets up a future blog i hope to do on the Conscience....Johnny Mac is dead on! Let us understand our God given mechanism called the Conscience!

For His Glory!

Chris

2 Corinthians 1:12 - "For our boast is this, the testimony of our conscience, that we behaved in the world with simplicity and godly sincerity, not by earthly wisdom but by the grace of God, and supremely so toward you"

Where is your treasure?

2008-11-18T17:43:00.003-06:00

After the last video blog I posted, It got me thinking....Where is our treasure?

My treasure is in our Lord Jesus Christ, in His life and His death. He is my treasure. He is my life! He is my everything!

Matthew 13:44 - " The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field"

Is Christ that to us? Is He EVERYTHING? In our Joy do we count Him worth the loss of all other things? Is He all you need? Do we have Joy in our great treasure?

Matthew 6:33 - "But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things will be added to you"

We don't need to worry and nor should we! God will supply all our needs if we seek Him FIRST and put HIM ABOVE all other things! He is our God, our Creator! He gave us His son, Our Lord, Our Savior. Christ should be our treasure and should be number one in our life. Is He?

"Turn your eyes upon Jesus,
Look full in His wonderful face,
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim
in the light of His Glory and Grace"

Lets make sure He is our treasure, that we live a life that EVERYONE sees that He is our treasure, our EVERYTHING!

Matthew 6:21 - "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also"

People, even ourselves, will be able to see where our treasure is. If we treasure that car in the driveway, people will know cause our heart will be there. If the house is that important, our heart will be there and all will see. If people in our lives are the most important treasure, above Christ, the world will see. If our job, money, fame, family, boyfriends/girlfriends, school, sports, or ANYTHING is above Christ, it will be evident.

He needs to be our treasure, above all things or people. Our heart needs to be with our first love, our treasure and if we are living with another treasure......then what does Christ really mean to us? We must ponder this!

How will we spread the gospel if we don't live a life that shows He is our treasure?

How will we stand before Him one day when we did not make Him our treasure and think we will hear "well done good and faithful servant"?

Let the things of this earth slip away and grow dim, and let Him be our treasure and shine through our lives! Let His Will be what we strive for!

TREASURE CHRIST ABOVE ALL THINGS!!!!

For His Glory!

Chris

Death Is Gain

2008-11-17T20:19:00.001-06:00

Bless The Lord, Oh My Soul

2008-11-03T20:40:00.002-06:00

Psalm 103

Praise for the LORD'S Mercies.

A Psalm of David.

1Bless the LORD, O my soul,
And all that is within me, bless His holy name.
2Bless the LORD, O my soul,
And forget none of His benefits;
3Who pardons all your iniquities,
Who heals all your diseases;
4Who redeems your life from the pit,
Who crowns you with lovingkindness and compassion;
5Who satisfies your years with good things,
So that your youth is renewed like the eagle.
6The LORD performs righteous deeds
And judgments for all who are oppressed.
7He made known His ways to Moses,
His acts to the sons of Israel.
8The LORD is compassionate and gracious,
Slow to anger and abounding in lovingkindness.
9He will not always strive with us,
Nor will He keep His anger forever.
10He has not dealt with us according to our sins,
Nor rewarded us according to our iniquities.
11For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
So great is His lovingkindness toward those who fear Him.
12As far as the east is from the west,
So far has He removed our transgressions from us.
13Just as a father has compassion on his children,
So the LORD has compassion on those who fear Him.
14For He Himself knows our frame;
He is mindful that we are but dust.
15As for man, his days are like grass;
As a flower of the field, so he flourishes.
16When the wind has passed over it, it is no more,
And its place acknowledges it no longer.
17But the lovingkindness of the LORD is from everlasting
to everlasting on those who fear Him,
And His righteousness to children's children,
18To those who keep His covenant
And remember His precepts to do them.
19The LORD has established His throne in the heavens,
And His sovereignty rules over all.
20Bless the LORD, you His angels,
Mighty in strength, who perform His word,
Obeying the voice of His word!
21Bless the LORD, all you His hosts,
You who serve Him, doing His will.
22Bless the LORD, all you works of His,
In all places of His dominion;
Bless the LORD, O my soul!

Chris Tomlin - Take My Life

2008-10-29T14:36:00.001-05:00

Have we given our lives for our Great, Awesome Lord and Savior?
What a freedom it is to say "Take my life", to be able to say "I am yours", to say "I trust you with all of me", or even to say "Your Will be done, not mine".

Say with me today to our God,
"Take my life"!

For His Glory!

Chris

Here are the lyrics:

Take my life and let it be
Consecrated Lord to Thee
Take my moments and my days
Let them flow in ceaseless praise
Take my hands and let them move
At the impulse of Thy love
Take my feet and let them be
Swift and beautiful for Thee

Take my voice and let me sing
Always, only for my King
Take my lips and let them be
Filled with messages from Thee
Take my silver and my gold
Not a mite would I withhold
Take my intellect and use
Every power as You choose

Here am I all of me
Take my life it's all for Thee

Take my will and make it Thine
It shall be no longer mine
Take my heart it is Thine own
It shall be Thy royal throne
Take my love, my Lord I pour
At Your feet its treasure store
Take myself and I will be
Ever only all for Thee
Take myself and I will be
Ever only all for Thee

Here am I all of me
Take my life it's all for Thee

(Take my life, Lord take my life. Take all of me)

Here am I all of me
Take my life it's all for Thee

To Every Tribes Mission Conference

2008-10-22T15:12:00.003-05:00

Here is the link to get to John Pipers message this last Sunday at the To Every Tribe Ministries Missions conference. The rest will be available at www.toeverytribe.com later on in the week!

John Piper
http://www.desiringgod.org/Blog/1459_what_do_christs_afflictions_lack/

Only Jesus

2008-10-20T13:36:00.003-05:00

Hey everyone!

We all got back from La Barra on Saturday night here in Guadalajara. I am writing up an update on the trip and should have it out by tonight, maybe tomorrow! God worked in such AWSOME ways and IS working in such AWESOME ways in La Barra! We GET to be part of HIS work, its not our work and it never was. It's always been God's work, done through His precious son Jesus. Thank God for His great love and mercy to plan and send His one and only Son, the perfect lamb of God to pay the price for us, to take God's wrath for us. He made this plan before the formation of the world. He planned to save us when we would be born hating Him and rebelling against Him. Oh what joyous news that is!!!!! Well, that all leads to this song I have a link to below. Click on the link and listen to the song "Only Jesus" by Sovereign Grace. It is a AMAZING song. Let me know what you think!

http://www.imeem.com/people/hX0Ft9/music/2hAh1voX/sovereign_grace_music_only_jesus/

For His name!

Chris Johnson

Colossians 1:13-14
"He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins"

La Barra again!

2008-10-09T21:12:00.000-05:00

Hey Everyone!

Some did not get my last update email sent but just wanted you to know, I am back in Huatulco, Mexico. That is the village 30 minutes from La Barra, the village I have been working in and was just at 2 months ago. The vice president and a few people from the village has told us that we are not wanted and are not allowed to come in anymore or we will be thrown in jail. We do not go in for the fear of the persecution that may come to the believers in the village that seem to not be ready for it.

We (Chris Berger, Michele Petracco and myself) are in a hotel in Huatulco waiting to visit with Eva (one of the believers of La Barra) and her family tomorrow. We met up with her son, Israel, who lives and works here in Huatulco and brought the message that we are here to his family. Tomorrow around 10 AM we plan to head to his house to visit and speak with them about setting up another week of bible studies going through the book of Ephesians and maybe another. The Lord only knows WHAT will happen!

Please keep us in prayer and we are here and do as the Lord says. We just want to be obedient to God's will and preach the gospel in Love! Pray for La Barra, pray that God will call His people and build His church here. Pray that a team will form to live in La Barra or close by to minister with the people. Pray for us to grow and be Christ like for the people to see our good works and give Glory to our Father in Heaven. Thank you for Your prayers and support!

For His Glory!

Chris Johnson

Phil.1:20-21

You are loved

2008-10-05T13:47:00.001-05:00

Rock of Ages - Chris Rice

2008-10-04T10:57:00.001-05:00

I have grown more and more in love with this Hymn over the last year or so. Listen to the words of this song and realize the truth in it and the Gospel in it.

"Foul, I to the fountain fly,
Wash me Savior or I die!"

HE has to wash us, HE has to do it! If He does not wash us and open our eyes, we die. Thank God for His Mercy and Grace that we do not deserve!

May this uplift you and make you sing with it!

Missing you all!

Chris

For I am not ashamed of the Gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes...

Purpose Driven Death Conference

2008-10-01T23:00:00.002-05:00

Well, TETM will be having a conference on October 18-19 in Austin, Texas. Desiring God Ministries will be having their regional conference two days before the TETM missions conference and John Piper will be speaking at BOTH conferences. Please check out the website for details, http://www.toeverytribe.com/

Go if you can so you can let me know how it is, I am in Mexico and can't make it :(

All things Crucified

2008-09-20T13:05:00.006-05:00

Hey everyone!

I am reading through a book called "A Gospel Primer for Christians" by Milton Vincent. I have read this book a few times but it always has such great things to say that jump out EVERY time I read it. If you can get it, get it:

Well, there is a section called All things crucified thats speaks about how we are to be crucified with Christ, it is the story of OUR crucifixion as well. It speak of how our "love affair with the world was crucified there at the cross" and "The cross is also the place where I crucify my flesh and all its sinful desires".

Does anyone else have struggles with that?

Daily we must take up our cross and follow Him, we must crucify our sinful desires and give Him the glory in our lives. I NEED to hear these words DAILY to remind of my desires that I have NOT crucified and allow to live with me, that I even feed. We are NEW creations if we are believers, we need to live that way and we need to push through these trial and struggles.

Psalm 119: 1 " Blessed are those whose way is blameless, who walk in the law of the Lord"

Psalm 119:11 " I have stored up your Word in my heart, that I might not sin against you"

Let us crucify our flesh, our sinful desires and all that is not HOLY!

As Milton says, "Crucifixion hurts!"

Let us push through the pain, push to give our Awesome and Holy God the Glory He deserves and WILL get!

Think of these words by Milton:

When my flesh yearns for some prohibited thing, I must die.
When called to do something I don't want to do, I must die.
When I wish to be selfish and serve no one, I must die.
When shattered by hardships that I despise, I must die.
When wanting to cling to wrongs done to me, I must die.
When wishing to keep besetting sin secret, I must die.
When wants that are borderline needs are left unmet, I must die.
When dreams that are good seem shoved aside, I must die.

" Not My will, but Yours be done"

Struggling to die daily,

Chris

The Atonement - Shai Linne

2008-09-14T16:27:00.002-05:00

Hey everyone! Just wanted to write down some lyrics from a song by a guy named Shai Linne. Take some time to read through this song. It is basically the Christian faith put into a small song describing different words and the gospel! Take some time to read it. What do you guys think? Thank you for your prayers and support! Miss you all!

Chris

Atonement Q and A
written by shai linne

Who is God? God is the universe’s Creator
And Sustainer plus the only Savior, there is no one greater
He triune, holy, omnipotent, omniscient, absolute
Loving, sovereign and righteous are a few of His attributes
How do we know this? Well, we know this from the Bible
Where God has revealed Himself- anything else is just an idol
What’s the Bible about? Man’s complete ruin in sin
And what God has done in Christ to bring us to Him again
What is sin? Sin is the breaking of God’s law
Plus our condition, which means from birth we all got flaws
What’s the result? The result is by nature we’re God’s enemies
And must pay the penalty unless God provides the remedy
What the remedy? The remedy is the cross of Christ
Where He suffered all the strikes for the lawless type
I’ve been rescued by the Lamb, I’m convinced that He’s risen
And blessed is the man whose sins are forgiven!

Just fall back, and with the eyes of faith
Behold the beauty of surprising grace
Because the Lamb has died, third day He had to rise
He’s magnified- God’s wrath is satisfied
Just fall back- there’s an atonement now
The cross of Christ is holy ground
Because the Lamb has died, third day He had to rise
He’s magnified- God’s wrath is satisfied

Regeneration- the Holy Spirit’s true work in His love
To the elect, who receive new birth from above
Expiation- expiation means God’s removed my filthiness
The old testament type was the goat into the wilderness
Redemption- we’ve been freed from slavery to sin
And His very own blood is the price He paid, my friend
Propitiation- Propitiation means since the Lamb has died
His work is finished- God’s wrath is satisfied
Adoption- adoption means God is now my Father
I got the hottest Poppa and by the Spirit holler Abba
Reconciliation- means there’s no more enmity
God is now a friend to me, we’re no longer enemies
Justification- God declares us righteous
Sanctification- we’re being made into His likeness
Glorification- that’s what happens at the finish
When God conforms believers perfectly to Christ’s image!

Just fall back, and with the eyes of faith
Behold the beauty of surprising grace
Because the Lamb has died, third day He had to rise
He’s magnified- God’s wrath is satisfied
Just fall back- there’s an atonement now
The cross of Christ is holy ground
Because the Lamb has died, third day He had to rise
He’s magnified- God’s wrath is satisfied

God’s grace is magnificent, He slayed His innocent
Son- through faith and repentance we get the benefits
What is faith? Faith is a gift from God- when we receive this
We trust and treasure the person and finished work of Jesus
Repentance? Repentance is turning from your sin
And trusting Christ as the Spirit cleanses you within
What is grace? Oh, grace is unmerited favor
Our inheritance major ‘cause we cherish the Savior
Right, and if I may quote again, we were doomed with Satan
But believers get Jesus’ righteousness through imputation
Imputation? God takes Jesus’ righteousness amount
Through faith He credits it into the Christian’s account
Anything else? Well, I guess this overview must suffice
But none of this is possible apart from union with Christ
And finally, once you know the ways of the Lord than the
only thing that you can say is Soli Deo Gloria!

Just fall back, and with the eyes of faith
Behold the beauty of surprising grace
Because the Lamb has died, third day He had to rise
He’s magnified- God’s wrath is satisfied
Just fall back- there’s an atonement now
The cross of Christ is holy ground
Because the Lamb has died, third day He had to rise
He’s magnified- God’s wrath is satisfied

Chris Tomlin - Amazing Grace (My Chains are Gone)

2008-09-06T11:31:00.001-05:00

I have posted this a few times on this blog but I never get over the the Grace of God to save a WRETCHED sinner like me.

WHY? Why would He save me? For His Glory but I will never understand it till I stand before His throne one day.

He did not have to save us, we don't deserve it, I DON'T DESERVE IT!

He purchased us, with His blood (Acts 20:28), and He loves us, oh how He loves us! What great kind of Love that is!!!

May we praise Him and LIVE for Him every day. We should live a life that a person can not live with us a week without knowing the gospel and seeing it in our lives!

For His Glory

Chris
(a wretched sinner saved by the Grace of God)

Little by little

2008-09-04T13:08:00.002-05:00

Well, we are getting ready to finish our second week in language school here in Guadalajara. I have been enjoying the classes and learning the language but it has been tough. There are more and more conversations in class and only talking in spanish in class so when I get stuck on sentences or words I can't remember, it can be frustrating.

God has been gracious in helping me to remember and learn the words and ideas. Every other day we have about 50 vocabulary words or so and the other day I have verbs to learn and learn how to congegate them. Every day we learn new grammer and have homework on that as well as having phonetic classes and conversational classes.

Thank you all for your prayers and support. They are greatly needed and again, THANK YOU! Miss you all and hope and pray all is well with you!

For His Glory!

Chris

Language School Begins!

2008-08-25T22:39:00.002-05:00

Hey ya'll

I started language school today. We arrived safe and sound on Saturday evening in Guadalajara after a 15 hour ride from Los Fresnos, Texas. Today was the first day of classes and though it was a short class, we had a few hours of homework already with memorizing vocab and asking people questions. I feel more comfortable this time after being in Mexico with TETM and I am speaking ONLY spanish with the family I live with here. They know some english but I love just conversing in Spanish.

Thank you for you prayers and support everyone! Please don't let them stop! Please pray for my growth in this langauge and understanding while I am here. I want to feel fluent when I leave this place in December. Pray that I will jump on chances to preach the gospel while the Lord has me here also. This time is not ONLY for language learning, we are to be lights in the darkness at ALL times! Let us live for His Glory every day, all day!

Miss you all! E-mail me at cjohnson@toeverytribe.com while I am here if you want!

For the Sake of the Call!

Chris Johnson

Acts 26:17-18

Guadalajara, I am coming back!

2008-08-22T23:40:00.002-05:00

Hey everyone!

Tomorrow morning, 4 hours from now, I will be driving my car down to Guadalajara, Mexico. Coming along with me will be Chris Berger and my girlfriend Michele Petracco. We will be going for 4 months to the language school, Harvest Language Center. I will be finishing up the first half as will be Chris, Michele will be starting the first half.

Please pray for the adjustment to a new place and for the language learning. Please pray that the Lord will open our minds to understand this language and to grow with it. Afterwards I hope to be able to call myself FLUENT.

Thank you all for you prayer and support! Please send me an email anytime and I will reply when I can. Miss you all!

For the sake of the Call

Chris

Philippians 1:20-21

Paul Washer - Total Depravity

2008-08-15T20:24:00.001-05:00

We all have been saved by grace, through faith by the blood of Jesus Christ. We all were born into sin(Psalm 51) because sin came into the world by the sin of Adam (Romans 5).

We were everything that we see bad in this world before God drew us to Him and opened our eyes. We need to humble ourselves and see that we were what the world is!

Let us know this, let us be so THANKFUL to God for His Mercy and Grace and pray for the salvation of each of the people we know and see daily! We are all born evil and God makes us justified by the life and death and resurrection of Christ.

Thank the Lord for the appeasment of God's wrath in Christ. Let us live for His Glory, we should do no less!

For His Glory!

Chris

Back from Barra

2008-08-11T14:12:00.003-05:00

Hey everyone!

Thank you all for your prayers and support and emails while we were down in La Barra and in the region. God has a people group in La Barra that are His. There is 7 or 8 professing believers in La Barra right now wishing for more teaching on the Bible and meeting together for His Glory! If you would like to recieve an update from me on the whole trip, either message this blog update with your email or email me at cjohnson@toeverytribe.com.

Thank you again for everything and for all your prayers! Please continue to pray for His church there in La Barra and the believers!

For His Glory!

Chris Johnson

Phil. 1:20-21

La Barra closes door´s again

2008-07-31T14:28:00.002-05:00

I am Huatulco, a village about 40 Minutes away from La Barra, after being kicked out of La Barra, yet another time. My team, George from California, Irian from texas and myself are praying and fasting today and tomorrow for wisdom and direction. I believe that David Sitton, the president of To Every Tribes Ministries, will be flying down on Saturday morning and we plan to re enter La Barra. They told us to leave for the reason of our "religion". They do not want the gospel and they kicked us out. They are planning to do the same to a small group from a church here in Huatulco that visits the believers. Please pray for wisdom and direction! Pray for discernment as we stand up for God's name in a dark village. I believe it is only a few people not allowing us in an dthis will prove that or not. The possibilities; we call their bluff and do nothing OR they throw us in jail and possibly bring physical abuse. BUT, it is all planned out already by our Mighty God and it is all for HIS Glory! Pray for the gospel to enter into la Barra, pray that this will strengthen the believers! God has gone before us and will be with us! Pray His will be done!

Thank you much for holding the rope as I go down into the well, you have and will have the same scars I have on my hands! Lets do this for His Glory!

Please PRAY PRAY PRAY!

For the Sake of the Call!

Chris

Luke 21:12-15
"But before all this they will lay their hands on you and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues and prisons, and you will be brought before kings and governors for my name’s sake. This will be your opportunity to bear witness. Settle it therefore in your minds not to meditate beforehand how to answer, for I will give you a mouth and wisdom, which none of your adversaries will be able to withstand or contradict. "

Chaos and the Sovereignty of God

2008-07-25T08:45:00.002-05:00

This is a powerful video about the tragedies and chaos we witness around the world every day and the sovereignty of God - check it out if you get a chance. I was looking around on different blogs and found this link. It is a great video I think. Tell me what you think.

http://www.ignitermedia.com/products/iv/singles/21/Chaos

I heard John Piper explain about disaster's and pain and he explained how it is just a visual representation of sin. So when we see all the "bad" things around us, the killing and pain and disasters, SEE WHAT SIN REALLY IS! And after we see and realize that, know Christ went to the cross to save us from that. Though it is still in the world till God makes the new heavens and the new earth, Christ conquered our sins by His life, death and resurrection. Also, as we see its wickedness, let us know that our sin that we commit each day looks like that. Let us live HOLY lives for our HOLY, HOLY, HOLY God!

For His Glory!

Chris