"Freedom"

"Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory,

which comes from the Lord,

who is the Spirit."

2Cor 3:17-18

freedom... a recent theme these past weeks

academic freedom

physical freedom

spiritual freedom

this semester has been a strenuous and arduous semester... i get weary just thinking about it..... the only thing i can do, is to lift my hands to believe again....surrender to trust & give to the Lord... everything.

the idea of bondage in our lives is very real and tangible in many ways, and in many of our lives.... sometimes w.o. us knowing it.

from academic to church to media to friends~ our loyalty and addiction can b easily spread throughout our lives and Jesus has the leftovers.

the hardships of our lives blur the image of God and we step further away instead of stepping closer....why?

does the world taste better?

does the world fulfill ur desires?

does the world create purpose?

will the world last forever? or will u be in this world forever?

and the latter poses...

does God taste good?

does God fulfill ur inner desires?

does God give u purpose?

will God last forever? will u b with God forever?

this upcoming week @ Basileia 2011, these are some questions i want to pray over.... and experience and definitively, assuredly, resoundingly say YESSS!!!!

God created me and so He knows and has given me my desires for a reason!!! to glorify Him.......

i've been @ Basileia since 2006 and it has been an amazing journey~ every year has encouraged me not only as a student, friend, brother, son, employee... but really as a child of God~ this is my identity above all... and i can say.... i am free to say..... I KNOW WHO I AM!!!!

i know this blog is a bit everywhere~ but i'm really excited for this next week....

Basileia has filled my life with joy and faith, & every year i look fwd to meeting God here... in the quiet, in the stillness.... He's spoken to me in different ways and in power here, and i know He's going to do the same this year...

bcuz whether i'm here or not here.... God will still move... but my prayer is that while i'm here..... i'd learn to hear God's voice just a bit more, experience God that much more, see God move in the lives of my brothers and sisters in NYC and beyond.... that much more... is worth it.

i've been given the opportunity to serve on the worship team here and it's truly a blessing to serve my fam in Christ and i wouldn't miss it for the world~ praise God :)

during my time here, i also plan to pray for different people in my life and situations....

i really feel God is pressing certain ppl in my life....

and most likely, it's the people reading this blog =)

c u when i get back guys~ keep me in prayer as i will for u

w/ much love,

JP ;)

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a Basileia classic

Holy Spirit Come - Kate Miner

Academic Satire!

as i lay rest @ the computer lab workin on papers & notes, i c the academic/spiritual satire of my friend, "Sufferin' Student".......

it's been tough keeping up w the blogs, but it's always on the back of my mind and until i've written something for the cyber world, i can not lay rest in peace.

As the semester comes to a close, it's crunch time.

With Nowitzki in the west and Wade in the east to show me how it's done in the clutch, i'm confident that God will pull me through these next upcoming weeks! les go! (this sentence will only make sense to those who are following the playoffs, if not, just move on ;)

"Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not people, because you know that the Lord will reward each one for whatever good they do, whether they are slave or free."

Eph 6:7-8