Wild and Precious

I’m writing this post at 35,000 feet on a flight from Phoenix to Los Angeles.  I just saw the Grand Canyon for the first time in my life! As I’m flying back, I’m thinking about bucket lists.  And death. And what it means to be alive.

I was diagnosed with breast cancer nine years ago.

I had two recurrences, five surgeries, eight rounds of chemo, 30 days of radiation, one year of Herceptin infusions, three years of Zometa infusions, five years of Tamoxifen and Zoladex, and now I’m halfway through another five years of Arimidex and Lupron.

I have doctors appointments every three months. There’s a blood test my oncologist can check to monitor my cancer.  If the marker spikes, it means my cancer’s back and I need to start chemo again.

I did some research and found that checking the marker doesn’t improve your chance of survival.  It just lets you know sooner that your cancer’s back and you might die.

“Why would I want to know my cancer’s back sooner if it doesn’t improve my survival?” I asked my oncologist

“The only reason you’d want to know is if you’d live differently if you knew you were dying,” he said.  “Like — if you’d want to quit your job and have time to parachute out of an airplane or fly around the world or spend more time with loved ones.”

“Let’s cancel the blood test,” I said.

“Are you sure?” he asked me.

I nodded.  “I already live like I’m dying.”

And it’s true.

When you read my memoir The Invisible Girls, you’ll learn that when I was diagnosed with breast cancer, I was seriously dating a man named Ian.  Shortly after my mastectomy, he picked me up from my apartment one evening to take me out to dinner.

He suggested several restaurants that we’d enjoyed in the past.  And I became irrationally angry.  “Why would we want to go there?” I demanded.  “We’ve BEEN THERE BEFORE.”

After facing my mortality at 27 years old, I became acutely aware of how short and how precious life is.  And I didn’t want to retrace any of my steps.  I wanted to blaze new trails — even if it meant doing something seemingly insignificant, like dining at a new restaurant.

It’s been nine years since my cancer diagnosis, but I still feel the same sense of urgency.

The world is a big, beautiful place. There are so many things to see and to do.  I’m not going to live forever. So let’s start exploring now.

Lots of people talk about their bucket lists.  It’s a list of things to do before you die, but for most people, it becomes a list of things to do as you are dying. 

What if we rethought the idea of bucket lists?  What if, instead of filling up a bucket with experiences and memories and then kicking that bucket over shortly afterwards as you’re dying….what if we fill up buckets to carry with us as we’re living?

What if we look at live as an adventure?

What if we see the world as a land of endless possibilities and experiences?

What if we celebrate life by slowing down and noticing that we are, in fact, alive?

What if we create space in our lives to do the things we’ve “always wanted to do?”

What if we stop procrastinating and look for opportunities, even this week, to experience the world in a unique way?

What if we stopped thinking about what we want to do before we die, and started thinking about what we  would enjoy doing while we are pain- , disease-, and deadline- free?

What if we already lived like we were dying?

In the words of Mary Oliver,


“Tell me, what is it you plan to do

with your one wild and precious life?”

Sarah Thebarge has a Master’s degree in Medical Science from Yale and was earning a Master’s in Journalism at Columbia University in 2010 when she was diagnosed with breast cancer at age 27. After nearly dying, she sold everything and moved to Portland, Oregon, to start over. While still undergoing cancer treatments, Sarah developed a relationship with a single Somali mom and her five daughters, who taught her how to love and be loved again.

The details of Sarah and the Somali girls’ story of survival, recovery and redemption are recorded in her memoir: The Invisible Girls. All of the proceeds from the book are going into a college fund for the Somali girls. Sarah has written for The Huffington Post and Christianity Today. Her book was chosen as the First Year Experience book for incoming freshman at Mississippi State University, where she delivered the convocation in August 2014. She is also spokesperson for Vanity Fair Lingerie’s Women Who Do campaign and Compassion International.

Bring her to speak to your group or at your church event: Book Sarah Thebarge

By |June 22nd, 2015|Invisible Girls|0 Comments
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The Invisible Girls

by Sarah Thebarge

I was riding on a crowded train during rush hour in 2010 when a little Somali girl, who couldn’t find a seat on the train, climbed into my lap and fell asleep.

While I was holding her, I started talking to her mom, who told me in broken English that they were refugees from Somalia. Her husband had left the family shortly after they arrived in the U.S., and now she was stranded here, raising five children by herself, without any income or language skills or job training.

Then the woman leaned her head against the window as tears welled up in her eyes. “It’s too much,” she said, shaking her head. “It’s too much.”

I sat there silently, holding the sleeping child while her exhausted, overwhelmed mother cried. And as the minutes dragged on, I grew more and more uncomfortable.

I didn’t have a clue how to help a refugee family. I didn’t have any strong opinions about how to fix the problems with our immigration system. And, if I was really honest, I avoided most people who talked about “social justice” and “immigration reform” because the terms felt overused and overwrought. They seemed to require a significant amount of information and energy, and I didn’t have either of those things.

Shortly before I met the Somali family, I had been diagnosed with breast cancer at age 27. After nearly dying of it, I had bought a one-way ticket from the East Coast to Portland, Oregon, landing in the new city with nothing but a suitcase of clothes and a broken heart.

Even now, as I held the sleeping Somali girl in my lap, I was still undergoing cancer treatments. I had no mental or emotional capacity to rescue a refugee family — most days I felt like I needed to be rescued myself.

“God, you dropped this Somali family into the wrong person’s lap,” I thought as the train traveled down the tracks.

And then I felt an overwhelming peace, almost as if God had whispered in my ear: Just do for this family what I’ve done for you.

God had pursued me — chased me across the country, in fact — and encountered me in my loneliest moment. So I asked the Somali woman for her address and went to check on the family a few days later.

God had loved me when my bald head and mastectomy scars made me feel unlovable. So I began to spend more time with the Somali girls, loving them when their stained clothes and broken English made them feel unlovable.

God had shown me that He was Immanuel, the God who dwelled with me — not instantly changed or fixed me, but dwelled. So I began spending most evenings at the girls’ apartment, sitting with them in their dark, cold apartment because their mom was worried they’d run out of money for food if she spent too much money on utilities.

The more I loved the family, the more I began to see that the reason I used to dislike phrases like social justice and immigration reform was because it made the problems seem like massive, institutionalized, politicized systems. And I don’t have the interest, let alone the ability, to overhaul a system.

But when I dug through the rubble of the system, what I found underneath were people who were just like me. Girls who were scared and scarred and broken. Unlovables who wanted to be loved. Invisibles who wanted to be seen.

I ended up writing a memoir about the adventures I had with the Somali girls as I helped them navigate life in America for the first time. It’s called The Invisible Girls and all the royalties from the book are going into a college fund for the five Somali sisters featured in the story.

As I’ve been on this adventure with the girls (and with God), I’ve discovered that there’s a lot I can’t do in this world. But I can love God, and I can love my neighbor the way God loves me.

And maybe that’s enough.

Sarah Thebarge has a Master’s degree in Medical Science from Yale and was earning a Master’s in Journalism at Columbia University in 2010 when she was diagnosed with breast cancer at age 27. After nearly dying, she sold everything and moved to Portland, Oregon, to start over. While still undergoing cancer treatments, Sarah developed a relationship with a single Somali mom and her five daughters, who taught her how to love and be loved again.

The details of Sarah and the Somali girls’ story of survival, recovery and redemption are recorded in her memoir: The Invisible Girls. All of the proceeds from the book are going into a college fund for the Somali girls. Sarah has written for The Huffington Post and Christianity Today. Her book was chosen as the First Year Experience book for incoming freshman at Mississippi State University, where she delivered the convocation in August 2014. She is also spokesperson for Vanity Fair Lingerie’s Women Who Do campaign and Compassion International.

Bring her to speak to your group or at your church event: Book Sarah Thebarge

By |June 12th, 2015|Invisible Girls|1 Comment
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The Suffering and Audacity of Raw Faith

by Kasey Van Norman

And what more shall I say? For time would fail me to tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets— who through faith conquered kingdoms, enforced justice, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, were made strong out of weakness, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight.

Women received back their dead by resurrection. Some were tortured, refusing to accept release, so that they might rise again to a better life. Others suffered mocking and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were killed with the sword. (Hebrews 11:32-37 ESV)

Many things in life can be so very different than the way they seem.

For me, depression seemed like an excuse for weak women…until I was depressed. For me, adultery seemed like something only a perverted harlot would sink low enough to engage in…until I was the perverted harlot. For me, cancer seemed so far away, if ever…until it was here and now. For me, faith seemed like a happy place to eat ice cream and never gain weight…until faith sent a sledge-hammer of suffering into my gut.

For the men and women listed in this passage above, things must have surely turned out differently than expected. When children of God are permitted to suffer, be rejected, and mistreated; to go destitute and afflicted, I believe, God is giving a gift to our world.

I believe He is spreading his love and grace to the world through those who suffer inside the unshakable faith that the Lord himself is better than life. I believe it is this raw faith that strips our heart of pretense and allows us to dance naked—laid bare—before our Creator.

Once upon a time my aim was to live simply; to survive the brutal blows this world hands out with a smile. My goal was once to live floating in my wade-pool of contentment; to go to church, have a loving husband, healthy children, a white picket fence, and a maybe a small dog, and above all, to never venture far outside of my religious box of experience in my small town underneath my small Southern-Baptist, sweet-tea steeple.

Once upon a time, I would have never written that last sentence for fear of what others might think. Once upon a time I would have never looked under the covers…never asked questions that actually stop people in their tracks…never do anything but shake my head yes and no like a small, female, soldier with no voice; doing whatever a ‘faceless committee’ deemed necessary for me to do and the ‘majority’ affirmed.

But God wanted me to look. He invited me to dig. He beckoned me to run naked through the streets of religion and scream, “Oh yeah! Well, take this!”

He wanted me to see faith as He sees—truly, deeply, unhinged and often unspoken of.

Prior to cancer I didn’t know what it was like to really be faithful…not the faithful like these people in this Hebrews verse.

My faith wasn’t naked and bare before God and others…it was clothed in hypocrisy-phony and small and timid.

I didn’t need God when I was happy.  I didn’t God when we made a good living and the bills got paid on time each month.  I didn’t need God when I delivered 2 healthy children with no problems.  I didn’t need God when my husband came home every night still wanting me.  I didn’t need God at church—I was happy there.

I believe that I am different now; more audacious now; more laid bare than ever before, for one reason– my faith is different.

Our trials, suffering, pain, and hardships prove to us a God of faithfulness despite our faith. If we turn toward God in our tough times, these seasons can work for us, not against us.  They have the potential to create in us hearts that are truly satisfied in absolute surrender, instead of hearts that are clothed in doubt, fear, worry, anger, anxiety, envy, and bitterness.

Hearts that are faithful are hearts that sprint naked in surrender before the Lord.

Hearts that are truly changed and point toward God’s glory are not hearts that cower in the face of opinion and tradition, but hearts that leap for joy over the grit God has developed through trial in their life.  These hearts are laid bare before God, welcoming whatever it is that will make us more like Jesus-if pain must be felt, so be it.  If our pride or reputation must be ruined-so be it. If we never understand the ‘why’-so be it.  If we never hear the, “I’m sorry-“so be it.

In my life I have come to one grace-grand conclusion…

Naked hearts are faithful hearts.

Kasey is a cancer survivor, a licensed professional counselor who has earned degrees in psychology, public speaking, counseling, and biblical studies. In 2014, Kasey was named ‘most inspiring woman of the year’ by Houston, TX and Buffalo, NY radio affiliates. She and her husband of 13 years, Justin, live in Bryan, Texas with their two children. She is the President of True Mission – a not for profit residential safe-home for minor girls rescued out of human trafficking within the US. She is also co-founder of Raven’s Way, Inc. – a not for profit online community of women who are learning to know and speak their life-story together (launching August 2015).

Kasey’s 2014 book and Bible Study: Raw Faith: What Happens When God Picks a Fight, (Full Study Series Here) has been hailed as one of the most daring and vulnerable ‘cancer narratives,’ to hit Christian literature. You can find out more about her on her website: KaseyVanNorman.org or follow her on Twitter @KaseyVanNorman.

By |May 29th, 2015|Raw Faith|0 Comments
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A Bleeding Heart of Faith

by Kasey Van Norman

When we think about faith, we often reach for actions and behaviors—things we can quantify. We create a mental checklist: Have we been going to church? Have we cut back on the drinking? Have we been giving money to the church? Have we been doing our devotions?

We forget that authentic faith—the kind of faith that touches the heart of God—is not rooted in the external. It’s all about what’s happening on the inside.

People with real faith have hearts of good, rich soil. People with real faith surrender to the truth that there is absolutely nothing they can do to please God or maintain right standing before him. People with real faith understand that as they hear and receive the Word of God, the Spirit takes over and changes their hearts. As their hearts change, so do their behaviors. Then what you see on the outside is only a sincere reflection of what is happening on the inside.

I once thought that satisfaction would come from some external experience. But my greatest moments of victory, my most blissful seasons of peace, my consuming feelings of joy and contentment have never come from a big paycheck, a glass of wine, a beach vacation, a sexual experience, a relationship, or a blazing moment of success. Nor have they come from attending church, being a “good girl,” or serving in ministry.

For me, the greatest thrill of my life has always come from the breaking and changing of my heart to look more like Christ.

Perhaps the most victorious moment in my life to date was the true realization that God works in the gut-wrenching valleys of our life. Just as He brought the Israelites in to the wilderness to show them his mercy through manna; so He brings you and I into journeys of wandering through the wilderness to show Himself greater. True joy and overwhelming satisfaction is found there—in the process. In fact, the process is the point of our life all along. For me, I sensed no greater feeling of protection, security, and identity than the moments of heaving and sweating my guts out into a trash can from the previous days chemotherapy treatment; when my heart had no one or nothing else to lean against but the love of Jesus Christ.

Undying faith is found only there—in the broken, bleeding, surrendered places of our hearts. Great faith can only be experienced in a place of absolute dependence on Jesus.

The same can be true for you, no matter your history with faith. Maybe you’ve been a skeptic your whole life; maybe you have danced on the borderlands between doubt and faith for years; maybe you’ve been looked the part of a faithful Christian but haven’t truly jumped in with both feet. Wherever you find yourself, it’s not too late to embrace true faith.

Kasey is a cancer survivor, a licensed professional counselor who has earned degrees in psychology, public speaking, counseling, and biblical studies. In 2014, Kasey was named ‘most inspiring woman of the year’ by Houston, TX and Buffalo, NY radio affiliates. She and her husband of 13 years, Justin, live in Bryan, Texas with their two children. She is the President of True Mission – a not for profit residential safe-home for minor girls rescued out of human trafficking within the US. She is also co-founder of Raven’s Way, Inc. – a not for profit online community of women who are learning to know and speak their life-story together (launching August 2015).

Kasey’s 2014 book and Bible Study: Raw Faith: What Happens When God Picks a Fight, (Full Study Series Here) has been hailed as one of the most daring and vulnerable ‘cancer narratives,’ to hit Christian literature. You can find out more about her on her website: KaseyVanNorman.org or follow her on Twitter @KaseyVanNorman.

By |May 15th, 2015|Raw Faith|0 Comments
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When People Pleasing was my Spiritual Gift

by Kasey Van Norman

For most of my life I have struggled with pleasing. So much so that I would have reckoned “people-pleasing” was a for real spiritual gift from the Bible. And if a real thing, then I had been “gifted” with an overdose of the “pleasing” ability and talent.

It started as early as I can think back. In fact there are very few moments I can remember prior to the age of 30 that I lived free of what others thought of or were thinking of me. From the way I acted at the grocery store to the car I drove, how I dressed, what technology I used, where I spent my free time, the house I owned, and even down to the lunch I ate–all of it was controlled by what another person thought of me. I was so enslaved to receiving the approval of others that I would actually spin the events of my life (stretch the truth, so to speak), because the real story seemed to lack enough interest and flavor to intrigue anyone long enough to listen.

At the age of 18 I went to church camp. While there, a well-meaning counselor diagnosed me as being a people-pleaser. She was right. But in the same diagnosis she offered me a dose of very bad medicine.

First, the counselor spoke this verse over me:

For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ (Galatians 1:10).

Then, she told me that I needed to stop focusing on how to get the approval of man and start focusing on how to get the approval of God. She sent me on my way with a new Bible-reading plan, a challenge to pray and journal every morning for 1 hour, and a list of service-oriented activities that I should be involved in through my local church.

I was thrilled. This was a language that I understood and spoke well.

I could follow the rules and a “to-do” list like a boss. And so, I did exactly what she said to do. I pumped up my obedience level even more-so and upon returning home, I went hard after the approval of God.

In the years that followed something happened that I did not expect.

Instead of feeling more free, I gradually felt more enslaved. Five years into pleasing God, I fell in love with and married a man because his reputation seemed good for my image. Six years into pleasing God, I went back to my old, comfy idols of self-harm, depression, and the abuse of prescription medications. Seven years into pleasing God I committed adultery. Eight to ten years into pleasing God I lied to my closest friends and family about who I really was. And twelve years into pleasing God I attempted to take my life via overdose.

At the bottom of all my seeking and all of your seeking is one, singular fear. It is the fear that drives us so often into the most dumb and dysfunctional places of our life. If you don’t realize that you personally struggle each day with this fear than you have suppressed this fear so deeply that your heart has become numb to it, and you are simply living a mediocre, auto-pilot existence as a slave. The most liberated people are those people who are deeply familiar with this fear and their great desire to pick it up and play with it each and every day.

The fear of being unknown is at the bottom of all our doubt, depression, disorder, and desperation. This fear alone cripples our culture.

It starts with the fear of not being known by other people. We spend so much time here because the approval of another human being is theoretically possible. It is possible for people to approve of us. And so, once we taste it, we become addicts. The approval of man becomes our cocaine.

But despite the “high” we may feel in the moment of acceptance, here are the facts:

•Human approval is shallow. No human can know the deep places of our heart. If they did, would they still want to know us?
•Human approval is shifty. Some people will like us and some people will not.
•Human approval is skewed. Your friends will overlook many of your failures that need to be addressed. And your enemies will overlook many of the good things we do that leaves us to address them by working harder for their acknowledgement.

But there is a slavery deeper than seeking the approval of man. And that is seeking the approval of God.

While living to gain the approval of man is possible, gaining the approval of God is impossible.

“For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members.

Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin.” (Romans 7)

When we are drowning the answer is not to kick harder, but to grab onto the only life-vest available–Jesus. And the best response is here in Romans 7: “WRETCHED MAN THAT I AM!”

I shout–YES! I AM FREE!!! There is no amount of working or earning or seeking left to do. There is no amount of being good or moral, not enough time reading the Bible or praying, no amount of journal-writing or acts of service or ministry or legacy-leaving left for us who are in Christ Jesus!

And THIS sets us free to live and love without receiving anything in return.

Our helplessness before God is the space for true faith and freedom to be ignited in our life and for our pleasing of man and God to die.

What foolish slaves we are when we attempt to be something…anything, in the place of grace. We offer nothing to a holy, self-sustaining, sovereign Creator. And it is the being satisfied in this place that busts open our chains and liberates us to live.

Know your stuff > We fear not being known every day.

Believe the truth > The approval of man isn’t worth it. The approval of God is impossible to earn.

Live in Freedom > Through Jesus Christ you have been approved. God is pleased in you because of Jesus. It is finished.

Let Grace Change Your Heart > I don’t have to do anything. I get to serve God and love others.

It is finished, my love.

Kasey is a cancer survivor, a licensed professional counselor who has earned degrees in psychology, public speaking, counseling, and biblical studies. In 2014, Kasey was named ‘most inspiring woman of the year’ by Houston, TX and Buffalo, NY radio affiliates. She and her husband of 13 years, Justin, live in Bryan, Texas with their two children. She is the President of True Mission – a not for profit residential safe-home for minor girls rescued out of human trafficking within the US. She is also co-founder of Raven’s Way, Inc. – a not for profit online community of women who are learning to know and speak their life-story together (launching August 2015).

Kasey’s 2014 book and Bible study, Raw Faith—What Happens When God Picks a Fight, has been hailed as one of the most daring and vulnerable ‘cancer narratives,’ to hit Christian literature. You can find out more about her on her website: KaseyVanNorman.org or follow her on Twitter @KaseyVanNorman.

By |May 1st, 2015|Raw Faith|0 Comments
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How Much Is Enough?

by Josh Lawson

In the early 1900’s there lived a man by the name of John D. Rockefeller. He was the first baron of the oil industry, and he is believed to be the wealthiest person in the history of the world. At one point during his lifetime, his net worth totaled more than $350 billion (in adjusted dollars). Just to put that into context, Bill Gates is the wealthiest person in the world currently and his net worth is a measly $75 billion. You could combine the net worth of Bill Gates and the next five wealthiest people in the world and John D. would still be wealthier than all of them! This guy had wealth beyond our wildest dreams.

But during his life someone asked him a question that we have probably all wondered ourselves, “How much is enough?” His response might shock you. Even though he was the wealthiest man in modern history and had all the money anyone could hope for, he replied, “Just a little bit more.”

John D. Rockefeller was not the first person to feel this desire for “a little bit more” and he is surely not the last. This “little bit more” is called discontentment and it creeps into each of our hearts whether we have a billion dollars or a one dollar bill.

Discontentment is a lethal concoction of Greed plus Envy. Erich Fromm says that “greed is a bottomless pit which exhausts the person in an endless effort to satisfy the need without ever reaching satisfaction.” At our core, we are all on a search for satisfaction. But, we have been sold a bill of goods that says if we keep following the bread crumb path of consumption, we will eventually find satisfaction.

Nothing can be further from the truth.

Satisfaction can be had, but let me tell you a secret: it will never be found in things, people, events, or stages of life. It won’t be found in that perfect job, perfect spouse or perfect kid (but please tell me if you ever find any of these!).

Satisfaction (also known as contentment) will be the hardest thing you have ever learned – that’s why Paul called it a secret. But it is also closer than you might imagine.

Do you want to learn how to be truly satisfied?
Do you want to get off of the rat wheel of trying to find your satisfaction in stuff?

Then please join us over these next few blog entries as we seek to find the secret of contentment and try to answer the question, “how much is enough?”

 

About the Author

Josh Lawson serves as the director of Community Restoration (formerly Financial Restoration Ministry) at Antioch Community Church in Waco, Texas. He is passionate about seeing families set free from the burden of debt and financial stress, so that they are free to walk in the freedom that Christ has for them.

While serving at Antioch Community Church, Josh and his wife Jenny have developed the REALIGN curriculum. During that time the total amount of debt that has been paid off by both class attendees and those receiving financial coaching has been well over $3 Million dollars.

Follow Josh on Twitter: @joshvlawson

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By |March 31st, 2015|Josh Lawson|0 Comments
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You Can Lead A Horse To Water…

science.opposingviews.com…but you can’t make him drink.

Last Wednesday our family had the opportunity to drive out to a ranch in Texas to celebrate the 4th of July. If you know anything about Texas, people love their ranches. They are designed to bring out the little bit of John Wayne in all of us. Every time I go to a ranch, I ask the Lord if in my next life I can come back as a real cowboy. Then, if I go to the beach, I ask the Lord if I can come back as a surfer dude!

Before you go crazy, ‘my next life’ is just a form of expression 🙂 I know there is only heaven or hell after we leave earth and that is exactly why at The Hub we are so passionate about developing and distributing Bible resources that can draw any person to Christ, whether believer who is seeking to know Christ more intimately or disillusioned believer or not a believer yet.

On the way to the ranch we had a chance to stream a video by Mark Driscoll about who we are in Christ, with our entire family in the car. Parents, this is greatness, kids completely trapped and we had church in the car!

The goal of this blog is not to get you to go trap your family in a car and make them listen to a sermon, but it is for you to think creatively and be spontaneous about how to share and model truth to your family. Technology allows us the access to have the truth ready for delivery whenever you are ready for it! You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make him drink.ipodincar

Perhaps the thing I love most about technology is that when the proverbial ‘horse’ is ready to drink, there will be quality water waiting him or her.

We at The Hub wake up every day asking the Lord by His grace and power to help us be a key source of quality water whenever anyone in the world is ready to drink of Christ’s living water.

Thanks for listening…

Doug Hudson
Founder and President of The Hub

By |July 11th, 2013|Hub Thots|0 Comments
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Real Marriage Lynchburg, VA – Liberty University Recap

There is something special about seeing 6000 students worshipping and praising the Lord. In a world that is flush with college and high school students fist pumping along with Jersey Shore and wishing they were 16 and Pregnant, it is nice to know that there are still a plethora of young men and women who are not ashamed to fist pump for Christ.

The Lynchburg, Virginia leg of this tour was held at Liberty University and on Friday morning Mark Driscoll spoke at convocation. The Vines Center, their basketball arena, was packed with students and teachers ready to learn about Christ. Now I’ve been to Christian Universities before and I have to say that Liberty was indeed different. Instead of plunging necklines and short shorts with Uggs the girls were dressed modestly and seemed more concerned about each other than themselves. While I’m not suggesting that this school is perfect, none are, there was really a feeling of friendship between students and a willingness to serve. It was a real blessing to see this firsthand and how Christ’s involvement in our lives shapes us to be more like him.

During the afternoon I had the pleasure to go to an early dinner with a girl named Kelsey, her friend Tia and our Food for the Hungry representative Ashlee. We popped over to Moe’s for a quick bite of mexican food and conversation. What I learned during that meal was that Liberty University has a great discipleship program. There are small groups that every student is in and the campus is chock full of student leaders who obviously lead those small groups – and those student leaders have leaders and it makes for this amazing trickle-down accountability and spiritual growth that was evident in the students that we worked with.

Mark Driscoll started Friday morning’s convocation with the story of the Prodigal Son. It’s a story most of us have heard and can identify with on some level, but the core of the message is the same – it is Jesus, the Father, that changes us, that pursues us, that loves us despite our filth. I’ve heard Mark teach a number of these conferences and I’ve heard him via podcast many times, but it was a treat to get to see him teach live and I was blessed by his message.

When we finally got to the actual conference it was business as usual. People were lined up early to get in the doors and then they were lined up to get their books signed and to get pictures with Mark and Grace. None of this was surprising to us, but what was surprising is when Doug Hudson, the conference producer, asked “How many of you are from more than 3 hours away?” About 60% of the room raised their hands. Then he asked over 5 hours and he still got about 30% of the room to raise their hands. We often get a number of long distance travelers to these events but this one had the most by far.

Overall we enjoyed the Liberty University event and heard many testimonials of young couples whose lives were changed. It is always encouraging to see the Lord work in marriages and those changes begin in the heart.

Real Marriage Tour with Mark and Grace Driscoll - Marriage, Divorce Help

We like to take pictures at the tours, but we love seeing the event through the eyes of our attendees. Check out these great photos on our Facebook page that have been tagged with Real Marriage.

There is only one event left for Real Marriage 2012 and it is September 21st and 22nd in Indianapolis, IN. Get your tickets and make your travel plans today!

What others had to say…

We just attended the Real Marriage conference in Lynchburg this past weekend. Let me say what makes this so outstanding. It’s becuase first and foremost – what Pastor Mark did was preach the truth of the GOSPEL. The conference provided great insight on marriage from a Biblical standppoint and had lots of practical insights and tactics to use. But ULTIMATELY – it was so good becuase it was all based on the truth of the gospel –> that Jesus is not “an” answer….He is “THE” answer (to everything!).All of the teaching came from this premise.  Thank you Mark and Grace for brining the real truth of the Gospel in the contect of marriage. – Roger Boutin

Thanks Mark for speaking truth and from your heart. Thanks to Grace and your kids too! You guys are such a blessing. I am looking forward to a new and better friendship with my husband. Had a great time at Liberty!! – Helen Blocksom

We really enjoyed the conference. Our marriage is now on the track to being better not bitter. – Joanna Shields Whitaker

Special Thanks to Our Real Marriage Tour Sponsors!

 

Food for the Hungry BibleStudy Magazine vyrso 5 Love Languages PastorMark.tv
By |April 24th, 2012|Real Marriage, Weekly Devos|1 Comment
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Real Marriage Tour – Anderson, SC – Recap

Dealing with Addiction

At each conference there seems to be some key element that is unique to each city that we visit and while the stories that we hear are often about emotional affairs, addictions to pornography or just the unwillingness to change, the central problem is always the same – people try to escape from their situations or change their lives by substituting something of this world for Jesus.

Over the weekend in Anderson, South Carolina Matt & Lyndsey Weldon shared their story of marital problems and how Matt’s addiction to prescription drugs was affecting their marriage. At one time Matt said, “There is no drug that is shaped like Jesus…” What a simple and truthful phrase. For so many of us we struggle with the intense need for a quick “fix”. Instead of trusting in the Lord we become impatient and try to solve our problems ourselves. Matt said that he struggled with drug addiction for 6 to 7 years all the while keeping it a secret from his wife Lyndsey. I’m sure that this resonated with many people in the audience. How many of us have hidden secrets from the people we love out of fear? We’re afraid of being hurt, we are afraid of being rejected and often times we truly believe that we can overcome the problem on our own. Our pride keeps us from asking for help.

At the Real Marriage conference our desire is to share the hope and light that comes from trusting in Jesus Christ. Putting Christ first in your marriage is the first step in having a successful marriage, as well as overcoming any type of addiction. We hope Matt and Lyndsey Weldon’s story is inspirational to you and is something that you will share with others who may be dealing with similar issues.

NewSpring Praise Team

One of the highlights of this event was the NewSpring Praise and Worship Team. We always have great praise and worship at each event and it is one of my favorite parts of the weekend. NewSpring has an amazing lighting system and the music coupled with the lights created an amazing worship experience. I don’t think fancy lights and awesome instruments are a requirement for a great worship experience, but I will say that there is nothing wrong with making worship exciting and fun either!

NewSpring used a variety of song leaders and the talent level was so amazing. Everyone was so gifted and it was truly moving to see people with hands lifted high and just surrendering to Jesus and worshipping his holy name.

Real Questions with Pastor Mark and Grace Driscoll

At each conference we allow attendees to text in their questions. One of my favorite questions of this event was “My husband and I have naked Wednesday’s – is that a good day of the week or should we choose another day?” At the conference we have a lot of fun with very serious questions and some that are a little more light-hearted. I find that we often get a lot of the same questions and the answers are often the same as well: Communicate. Ask for help. Find a support group. Have Grace. And of course lots and lots of prayer.

Behind the Scenes

One of my favorite parts about working with the Real Marriage Tour is seeing what goes on behind the scenes. Each location has had such great hospitality and wonderful volunteers who set up the green room for Pastor Mark and Grace as well as those of us who fly in that work for the tour. What people might not realize is how much prayer and thought goes into every detail of this event and afterwards we always look back and we are amazed at how God works miracle after miracle. Our core goal at these events is that God be glorified and so we put him first in all things.

A Shout Out to Our Volunteers

As always these events could not be possible without the selflessness and the service from our many volunteers. We are loved on from the moment we arrive to the second we leave. At one point I asked where I could get some coffee and a volunteer said, “I’ll go get you some, how do you take it?” It may seem like a small gesture but when you add up all these acts of service over and over it becomes this overwhelming blessing and we could not be more grateful.

In the picture above you can see the volunteers in the NewSpring-Green volunteer shirts. Yovanna or “YaYa” as we affectionally called her kept us grounded and had things running smoothly and effortlessly even when you have a few hundred people trying to purchase books all at once.

In the center of all these wonderful volunteers is me (Eddie Renz @eddeaux), the guy who writes these recaps and is privileged to get to travel from Dallas to all of these events. My favorite part of traveling on this tour is meeting all of these wonderful people that I will one day spend eternity with. While at the tour I write updates on our Real Marriage Facebook and Twitter pages. It is really a blessing to get to have a job that allows me use my skills to do ministry and spread the word of Christ.

What Others Are Saying…

“So thankful I attended this Real Marriage Conference. It was amazing! NewSpring Anderson y’all rocked it out. I love my church!” – Christy Harris Moore

“I thank God for you both! My husband and I laughed all the way back to Charlotte about having “Naked Wednesdays” Who knows might give it shot? 😉 I can’t thank Grace enough for the verse the Holy Spirit gave me through her. I will pray for you guys and your marriage, family and ministry! God bless you both!” – Ashley Joy Penson

“Special Thanks to Jenimar and Brian for inviting us to this event ! Thanks to [Pastor] Mark and NewSpring church for doing this conference . Being Married 25 years this July . Personally lost track of my better half’s needs and some of mine . Due to the daily grind of trying to survive … Real Marriage Tour reminded me and gave me tools to grow Thank you and PRAISE GOD!!!!” – Andre Aubin

NewSpring Staff and Attendees

I’m a bit of a design nerd so I was excited to meet Joshua Blankenship who will be speaking at the Echo Conference this year and is the Design Director at NewSpring Church. Joshua is on the far right and next to him in the yellow hoodie is Delvin, the praise and worship leader that rocked it out on Friday and Saturday.

I got to talk to Delvin for a little while and hear about his passion for ministry AND he told me about a “Meat and Three” – which is apparently is a southern restaurant that serves your choice of meat and three really good homestyle vegetables as well as cornbread and rolls. After meeting this crew I thought I might have to leave my beloved Dallas and move to Anderson. They seem to be passionate about all the things I love: God, Design, Music and Food! If you have not had a chance to check out NewSpring’s website then I encourage you to do so and download some of the great teaching from Pastor Perry Noble.

Thanks to Our Sponsors

The Real Marriage Tour is sponsored by Logos Bible Software as well as Food for the Hungry, Bible Study Magazine, PastorMark.tv, The Resurgence, Vyrso, and 5 Love Languages.

We have had great success with our Food for the Hungry sponsorship of children. Our goal during this 7-City Tour is to have 600 children sponsored and we are half way to reaching that goal. If you are interested in learning more about how you can help a child then be sure and check out fh.org.

For those of you who are not familiar with Logos Bible Software then you may not know that is is AMAZING. With Logos software you have quick access to thousands of books and references that will help enrich your Bible study and understanding of the word. It is a must-have for anyone who teaches the Bible. Some of the features of the Scholar’s Software package: 43 Bibles and Interlinears, 67 Commentaries, 24 Reference Books, 27 Bible Intro & Surveys, 29 Maps, Photos, Media, 26 Preaching & Teaching, 75 Ministry Resources, 38 Original Languages Grammars & Tools, …and 250+ other Resources!

If you have not had a chance to attend the conference you have two opportunities left so don’t wait, get your tickets today!

(Many of these photos were courtesy of Drew Delianides of NewSpring Church. Thanks Drew!)

By |March 26th, 2012|Real Marriage, Weekly Devos|2 Comments
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Real Marriage Tour Ft. Lauderdale Recap


What’s Your Story?

At every conference I meet new people and what I find is that no matter where we are at in our lives, we all have a story. Our volunteer Steve told me about how he and his wife were walking miracles. His sweet wife Sharon a survivor of breast cancer and he lived through a heart attack that should have killed him. For Christians we do not see miracles as coincidence, serendipity or chance, we see them as intentional acts of God. Our challenges, our sickness, our pain are all tools that God uses to shape us into who he wants us to be.

Isha and Joseph, the couple that renewed their vows, have a story as well. If we could look back in time would we have known that God would use them to stand in front of over 3000 people humbly retelling their tale of marital pain? When people say “I do” and their is the cutting of cake and toasts we always wish them the best, but the reality is that marriage is difficult – and perhaps it is supposed to be. Difficulties and challenges are what help us to grow. Our weakness is what moves us closer to Christ.

When I watched Isha and James say their vows for the second time I cried along with them. It was so moving to see what God can do in people’s lives. How our brokenness can draw us closer together as believers and how it draws us closer to Christ.

Getting REAL with the Q&A

I think one of the best things about going to a Real Marriage conference is getting the opportunity to text in your questions. We get a lot of questions and we try to pull the ones that have common themes behind them so that many questions are actually answered by the same question. This week, we have the video of both days of Q&A so take a moment and watch them for yourself.

Jeff Bethke

“If sex were just for fun, then why does it take such a toll? Maybe it’s because you don’t have sex with a body, you have sex with your soul…”

It doesn’t matter how many times I watch these poems by Jeff Bethke I am moved by them each time. He packs so much truth in just a few short minutes. God has truly blessed him with the ability to string together words in a creative way that penetrate straight to the heart of the matter. Obviously he was a hit at the conference and to talk to him you can see he is a young man who is delighted to be used by the Lord. One time when I went into the green room it was just Jeff, his girlfriend and their manager just chilling out and reading their Bibles. It was a blessing to see young people (All of them are under 25) spending time in the word. In all our ways we should be acknowledging God and he will direct our paths… it seems like Jeff is an example of that Proverb and it’s cool to see God bless his footsteps.

Here is the poem Jeff did on Saturday morning. It’s called “Sexual Healing”.

Thanks to Calvary Chapel and our Sponsors!

Of course all of our events would not be possible without our awesome host churches and sponsors. At each venue we have been blown away at how much God’s people are willing to serve and love on us. From the moment we arrived we had some amazing volunteers and staff unpacking boxes and setting stuff up – but their work began long before Friday night. It takes quite a bit of preparation to pull off an event smoothly when you have 3000 guests arriving and the team at Calvary Chapel made it seem like a breeze. Kimber, Curtis, Debbie, Anne, and so many others were not only great helpers but just to be a joy to serve alongside.

We also want to thank our Sponsors Logos Bible Software, Vyrso, Bible Study Magazine, PastorMark.tv, The Resurgence, Food for the Hungry and 5 Love Languages for helping make these events possible.

Also, for those of you that might want Joseph’s poem in writing, here it is…

Written and dedicated to my wife Isha James on our wedding day.

Gift wrapped by omnipotent hands,
proceed with the Gift-Givers critical plans
Why doesn’t everyone pray?
I never knew mine would be answered this way.
Finally found the last lost piece of the jigsaw puzzle,
Connected to how we fit when I hug you,
How my fingertips stick when I touch you.
You are a part of me,
Can’t stand to see you part from me.
Two physicals, one spiritual encasement,
Interwined like links on a chain, one breaks we get tighter.
Through trials we gain & remain,
Like masons, brick by brick,
We built the essence of God,
Step by step we manifest what is in our hearts.
If there is a heaven without you, I don’t want to go
How could it be heaven with half a soul gone? More than a mate is missing.
Even after the stars burn out,
Externally and universally you are my spouse.
You are my house and my home,
If you leave there is nowhere to roam.
To the presenter of this gift, I send up gratitude,
Through praise and sincerity, I say thank you to my LORD,
With a grateful gracious attitude for giving me the wife that I adore.

Written by Joseph James III

By |March 19th, 2012|Weekly Devos|4 Comments
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