Back 2 Bloggin

That is right bloggers....Jim Landis is back in the game. I realize that my last blog post was almost a year ago, but no worries, I'M BACK! A LOT has happened to me since my last post. I cannot even begin to tell you about it, but I can try to give you a quick run down....
I finished my second year of college and am now half way done with my third. I played baseball last year and am still debating on if I want to do it again. I love the sport and everything, but it gets pretty tough taking 20 hours at school and playing 40 games across the mid-west....We'll see.

I suppose I'll spend the rest of this blog telling you about last summer, because to be honest, it blew my mind! I was on a camp team for the school in which I went around to junior high and high school camps promoting the school. My team (SHOUT OUT to Dexter, Tiphani and Erin...I LOVE YOU GUYS!)toured around Oklahoma and Texas for the first four weeks of the summer, then went to Indiana and Illinois for the last 4 weeks. To put it simply: LIFE CHANGING! I cannot even think about listing all the people I met this summer that just encouraged me to meet them and to hear their story. (I'll tell a few so that when I tell them I wrote about them in my blog they may start reading it....suckers!) Jake Raits, Emily Ritchie, Rebecca Peddicord, Beka Hull, Matt Alt, Rachel Posey and MUCH MORE. These people are college age Christians that are determined to do amazing things for the Kingdom. Some from other Christian colleges that are studying to do ministry in the church or the missions field and others doing ministry in their own secular colleges. I cannot tell you how blessed I felt to have the opportunity to meet such people and I couldn't help but think......"man, the great commission is going to be fulfilled before we know it." So for all those who I had the privilege of meeting this summer...thank you and PLEASE keep doing what you are doing.

I would have to say that the highlight of my summer would be meeting close to 1000 students at the church camps. I WISH I could name off each camp and just tell you some names and stories. Some will make you smile...some will make you laugh...and some will make you cry. Over the summer I realized that I love speaking a lot more then I thought. I was able to speak at 4 or 5 camp fires this summer and it truly was an amazing experience. I guess that will come in handy for my career....being a minister and all.

I want to tell you just one story about this freshman named Tez who I met this summer. I'll tell you right now, this dude is straight baller. Tez crossed me on the court more times then I can remember and never hesitated to hit a jumped in my face. Tez lived in the cabin that I was the "dorm daddy" in and that gave us a lot of time for 1 on 1 talking. Tez had questions about Christianity and who Jesus really is. He had questions about life and family. He had questions about girls, and his boys, and situations he runs into everyday. See, Tez isn't the average church camp going kid. He is from inner city Cincinnati.

He told me about struggles
with drugs,
with theft
with fighting
and with gangs.

He told me his family went to church every once in awhile, but he wouldn't really know what it took to be a real Christian. He has been interested in getting baptized so we talked about that a little. And on the fourth night of camp, I was able to baptize Tez in the pond at camp Whitewater in southeast Indiana. That night was all about God--

and the grace
and the love
and the passion

that he continually offers to all his children. Tez was born again that warm summer night in Indiana. He has broken the chains that help him down and I remember talking to him later that night, and behind all his smiles he used words like

freedom
over and over again.

Tez and I parted ways the next day. And to be honest, I haven't heard from him since. Growing up in the inner city, he didn't have a cell phone, or Internet access or a facebook. I have no idea where Tez is now. I don't know if he is a street evangelist somewhere in Cinci, or if maybe he went back to his old lifestyle, running around with the same guys he did before. I don't know if he is still living out his newly found faith, or if he got shot and died on a street corner.
That is the hard thing about camp team ministries, you have to let go and trust that they are in God's hands. And I trust God's hands a lot more then I trust my own. Tez, if you out there somewhere, much love brother, and I'll see you in heaven.

Being a Road Sign

soooo its been about two months since I have written in this beast...and for my 3 dedicated readers I apologize. Second semester is up and running and so is baseball. My classes are awesome. Baseball is going pretty good except I already hurt my arm....but im just a wimp.

Last semester I read this book called Reading the Bible with Heart and Mind by Tremper Longman. It is an amazing book and I recommend it to anyone who wants a better idea of how to read the Bible the correct way.

Has I was reading I came to a section in the book where Longman breaks into how to read the Gospels. In this chapter, he breaks down each gospel and how they are presented. He calls Matthew the gospel of the Ox...Mark the Lion....Luke the man...and John the Eagle. When I was reading through this I kept thinking to myself....Which one am I? Will I be a preacher the best represents an Ox? being firm and strong for my faith....or would I be like a Lion? "Yeaaa a Lion would be tough and aggressive."I thought to myself. I decided that I wanted to be a minister that best represents a lion. People would look up to me and want to follow be because of how I was in my faith.

I kept on reading Longman's book until I got a slap in the face.

He wasn't referring to the Gospel writers as he was labeling them as these tough animals. He was referring to how they portrayed JESUS! This completely took me by surprise. I shrunk down in my seat embarrassed even thought I was in my room all by myself. The whole time I was reading, I thought that it was talking about what kind of minister I was going to be...but the whole time it was all pointing straight towards JESUS. How often do I do this? How often do we do this? I couldn't think of a better opportunity for God to humble me then this time. Everything points to Him. In our ministries, everything points to Him. In our lives, everything points to Him.

Last week at Carterville we talked about worship. How our whole lives are about worship. I thought back to the time when I read this book and thought that it was pointing to me, when in reality it was pointing to Jesus. Same goes for worship. Everything in our lives should be considered an act of worship not to ourselves but towards the only one worthy of it. I remember sitting down and praying during the singing and asking God to humble me. I asked that He would make me like a road sign that pointed others in the direction of the true destination. Imagine what would happen in the Church is everything we did pointed to Jesus. What if all we did was minimize ourselves so that others can see the true meaning of our worship and true meaning of our lives? It is not about YOU, it is about HIM.


JIM'S BURN
Facebook is the best and worst invention of all time. I say this because it is quite handy with keeping in touch with people and see what has been going on in others lives. But I also call it the worst because I have wasted so much time on it. I waist time looking at people's recently added pictures or thinking of a catchy status. This burn is specifically going out to "those girls" who make whole albums of themselves making different faces. It isn't cool. It isn't fun. It isn't entertaining. It is just you making new faces every 60 pictures and then tagging yourself in facebook for the whole world to see how "fun" you are. I mean at least get a different background! Take some pictures with your friends...or family....Heck take a picture of the carpet!