A WANNABE FRANCISCAN MISSIONARY, AND A DISCIPLE OF ST. ARBUCKS

Monday, January 29, 2007

RICH AWED BY POOR'S ABILITY TO LIVE LIKE THAT. "No Way We Could Do It," Say Leaders of Wealthy Nations

Monterrey, Mexico (SatireWire.com) — At a United Nations conference last week to address world poverty, dozens of leaders from the planet's wealthiest nations concluded they were "totally in awe" of the 1.2 billion people who reportedly live on less than $1 a day.

With no medicine, sanitation, or food, the poor do it anyway.
"Lord knows I couldn't do it," U.S. President George W. Bush told a roundtable of colleagues Friday. "The mortgage on my ranch alone is $5,500 a month."

"I think the hardest part would be keeping it up," added South African Finance Minister Trevor Manuel. "Every now and then I'd have to sneak out for a nice meal with my wife, or maybe a movie."

But truly poor people, several delegates noted in wonder, never do that.

"How often do you see a really poor person splurge for a steak dinner, or an upgrade to first class on an airliner?" said French President Jacques Chirac. "I tell you, these people are incredible."

Said Bush, after a momentary pause: "I'd like to propose that the world doesn't just have a billion poor people, it's got a billion heroes."

However, some attending the International Conference on Financing for Development respectfully suggested the leaders, while apparently no longer indifferent, were missing the point.

"The poor don't have mortgages. They don't have houses," said U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan. "Most days, they don't even have food."

"Oh heavens no, I'd have to eat," replied World Trade Organization chief Michael Moore. "I could maybe skimp on dessert, but that's it."

As the meeting adjourned, a spokesman for the World Development Movement announced that almost half the earth's population — 2.8 billion people — lives on less than $2 a day. The attendees stood in unison to cheer until it was explained to them that these people wanted money.

Copyright © 2002, SatireWire

Saturday, January 27, 2007

John 12:32

Jesus will indeed draw people to Him if we but lift Him up and give Him the praise, honor, and glory due His name. Josh Heymans, Melody Wallace, Mark Enos, and I went to the Pen Center this evening for some evangelism and had a time and a half. First we split up into two groups (Josh & Mark; Myself & Melody) and we cruised around looking for people to witness to. It didn't go too great untill we met up at the food court and started challenging each other. Then Josh stepped in front of these two teenagers and asked them if they knew about God's abundant love for them, or something to that effect. They weren't up for it and walked away; but they told 3 of their other friends who came over immediately and started asking if we were the ones who knew about God. So within 10 minutes, we had a group of about 12 teenagers all standing around us in the middle of the mall as we preached up a storm to them. It was quite an event. Most of them were really willing to actually 'listen' to us and recieve the things which God had for them to hear. It was really something. It was something God initiated Himself and something we couldn't have done in our best attempts at all.

Then we headed to Niagara International Worship Center for a saturday night Worship EXPLOSION!!! It was actually quite AMAZING. But that song 'friend of God' follows me around like a bad cold! I cant escape it. "Whats up with that God?!!" Anyways, see what ya's think. Blessings all; it truly was an anointed evening.

Friday, January 26, 2007

tales from galatians 6:17

I looked at the old eagle, and for the first time I noticed the scars amid his torn and broken feathers. However, the scars were not ugly, but were lined with gold that was somehow not metal, but rather flesh and feathers. Then I could see that it was this gold that gave off the glory that emanated from the eagle, making his presence so awesome.

"Why did I not see this before?" I inquired.

"Untill you have beheld and appreciated the depths of the treasures of salvation, you cannot see the glory that comes from suffering for the sake of the gospel. Once you have seen it, you are ready for the tests that will release the highest levels of spiritual authority into your life. These scars are the glory that we will carry forever. This is why even the wounds our Lord suffered are with Him in heaven. You can still see His wounds, and the wounds that all of His chosen ones have taken for His sake. These are the medals of honor in heaven. All who carry them love God and His truth more than their own lives. These are the ones who followed the Lamb wherever He went, being willing to suffer for the sake of truth, righteousness and the salvation of men. True leaders of His people, who carry genuine spiritual authority, must have first proven their devotion this way.

I looked at the leader of the company of angels that followed me. I had never witnessed deep emotion in an angel before, but these words were unquestionably moving him greatly, as well as the rest. I really thought that they were about to cry. Then the leader spoke:

"We have witnessed many wonders since the creation. But the voluntary suffering of men for the Lord, and for their fellow men, is the greatest wonder of all. We, too, must fight at times, and we do suffer, but we dwell where there is such light and glory that it is very easy to do this. When men and women who dwell in such a place of darkness and evil with so little encouragement, not able to behold the glory but only having a hope in it, choose to suffer for that hope in which they can only see so dimly in their hearts, it causes even the greatest angels to bow their knee and gladly serve the heirs of salvation. At first we did not understand why the Father decreed that men would have to walk by faith, not beholding the reality and the glories of the heavenly realm, and suffering such opposition. But now we understand that through these sufferings their worthiness to recieve the great authority that they will be given as members of His own household is surely proven. Now this walk of faith is the greatest wonder in heaven. Those who pass this test are worthy to sit with the Lamb on His throne, as He has made them worthy, and they have proven their love."

Then the eagle interjected, "Courage is a demonstration of faith. The Lord never promised that His was would be easy, but He assured us that it would be worth it.............."

- from The Final Quest

Wednesday, January 24, 2007

evangelism wednesday

Today was 'evangelism wednesday' at CBC. So Josh Heymans and I took Priscilla out to the Pen Center to see what we could get ourselves into. We looked for sick people but couldn't find any cause the Pen Center ain't very busy on a wednesday afternoon. So Pricilla and I started playing chess on this floor chess board. We were hopin to draw a crowd, wherewich we could do some soap-box preaching, but a crowd just didnt get interested. So Josh just cruise's over to this handful of students and starts witnessing to them. This sparked a great time of cruising around the mall and doing some prophetic evangelism. We were asking for God to give us names of people walking by, and then we would approach them and ask them if their names were the ones which we believed God gave us. It's a great way to learn to hear God better. Our batting average wasn't very high, but at least we went down swinging rather than stand at the plate and watch pitches go by. I did go up to one girl at the food mart and speak a bit of God's love for her into her day, so that was sweet. We also got to push Priscilla WAY out of her comfort zone. I like doing that to people.

So I am thinking of changing evangelism times from wedensday afternoon, to saturday afternoons. The opportunities to speak to people are infintely greater, as the numbers are so much more. T'was good times today. It's a great thing to get into the habit of actually doing what the bible says to do...........................oops, did I just say that.

Sunday, January 21, 2007

unbelief becomes hardness



Today, Josh Heymans came over to 35 Elma St, picked me up and we cruised to the Pen Centre to see what we could get ourselves into. Actually we were going to Dairy Queen for some Cheesquake Blizzards, which we did, and they were awesome!!! But really, we were on a scouting mission from Holy Spirit to see if we could pray for anyone. We seen a few people who were obviously disabled, etc. It's a strange thing, you know; it's not a problem to be able to get the blind, etc, to let you pray for them; the problem is the people whom they are with. They are the ones who think we have 'ulterior motives'. They are hindrances to the advancement of divine healing.

Anyways, before we left, we passed this gentleman who was walking with a cane and an obvious limp. I approached him and asked if I could ask him a question. He was reluctant, but agreed. I said that I noticed his leg was not well and proceeded to ask if he would let me pray for God's healing power to take care of his leg. Before I could get the 'God's power' deal out of my mouth, he denied me the opportunity. He walked away saying that he "had nothing against God" but obviously didn't want anything to do with my prayers.

Such is the state of much of Christianity. We can acknowledge the fact that the gifts of the Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:4-11) are for today, well, most of us anyway. But even in those, we deny the application of those gifts in our own lives. We have much unbelief. We welcome Holy Spirit into our churches, then kick Him out when He starts pushing us out of our comfort zones. I am realizing that our own pride and unbelief are not quite as restricting as other's unwillingness to let us pray for them. The battle does indeed continue..........

Friday, January 19, 2007

no one like Jehovah

the sick are healed
the blind can see
the cripples dance
the demons flee
at the name of Jesus
every knee will bow

the dead are raised
the deaf can hear
as we proclaim
"the Kingdom is here"
at the name of Jesus
every tongue will shout.....

.... "there is no one like our God
there is no one like Jehovah
You are worthy
forever worthy"



-Kelanie Gloeckler

Thursday, January 18, 2007

wednesday morning prayer meeting

There is a 9-11 scene with two huge towers constructed in the middle of a huge parklike area. It's actually like a forest but the trees are so small in comparison to the buildings that it looks more like a park. The two buildings are part of no city, they are out in the open, all alone and unhidden. The sun is shining in more than all it's strength. It's intense. Planes are flying towards the towers. There are people in the buildings and some are leaping out to their death from fear of the attacking enemy. The other people are standing in front of the windows with their eyes closed and their arms outstretched, worshipping the sun. The roofs are lit on fire by the extreme heat of the sun; they burst into flames. The sky is cloudless, it's a beautiful (but extremely hot!) day.
As the planes collide with the building they leave only small damage and minimal wreckage as they crumple against the awesome stability and solid structure of the towers. The scars that are left from the planes are minimal, but necessary.
The people in the buildings are fearless, eyes closed, worshipping God, as the planes collide, over and over again against the building. The onslaught ceases and the Believers radiate with the same heat and light as that which they worship.

The interpretation:
the sun = Jesus
planes = enemies attacks
jumping people = christians that are not strong in their relationship with the Lord
worshippers = Believers that know their standing in Christ
the towers = the temple of Holy Spirit
the area the towers are in = the life centered in God
no clouds in the sky = the strength of the Almighty in relation to the attacks of the enemy
fire roofs = the anointing the mature Believers will recieve to resist the enemy
the radiation at the end = the anointing the mature Believers will carry throughout their lives

This was a vision type thing that I recieved at the prayer meeting yesterday morning. It is one of the most indepth visions I have recieved in my walk with the Lord. It pales only in comparison to a couple I had in Pemba at the mission school. Pretty crazy. Just the beginning................or continuation..................

Sunday, January 14, 2007

Matthew 25:35-40

A day off, but not really. This morning, Josh Heymans picked me up and we cruised to Niagara Falls and went to Niagara International Worship Center for a service. The Pastor (Christer Ihreberg) used to teach at WIBI, so it was cool to see his church and stuff. It was pretty sweet. A couple awesome things he said was that 'we won't see rivival until we are in a place to accomodate it'. In other words, we won't see God bring 500 people into a church until we are equipped to handle it. To expect God to bring in new converts without the adequate structure in place is leaving them sheep without a shepard. It's a pretty crucial word, if you think about it. The other thing I really recieved was that he said "Our warfare is love". Nice. A true statement; we wage warfare by loving people. Thats powerful.

After that service, Josh dropped me back at NCC and I met up with Millie, Amy, Lynette, and Guy, and we headed to Niagara Detention Center to conduct a service of our own. I stepped up and led the service which was attended by 5 guys in the maximun security wing. I spoke from Isaiah 59:1-2, and how we separated ourselves from God by sin, and how He reconnected to us by Jesus. It was alright, I guess. As usual, I am very critical of myself. After I spoke, We divided up into one-on-one and had some ministry time. The gentleman I paired up with had had a very hard life, but I believe I was able to speak some much needed encouragement into his life. He rededicated himself to the Lord and is quite open to having weekly meetings with me. God is so good, and not just when we want Him to be.

Tomorrow I start what looks like a very busy week. Some courses I will be tackling this week are: Ministry Gifts, New Testament Survey, Church Birthing, Practical Ministry, and Counseling. I also do my work at NCC, and Wal-Mart, and Prison Ministry, and Evangelism, and tape duplicating. Wow, indeed. Good times.

5 Spiritual vows



  1. never own anything (what we own, owns us)


  2. never accept glory (all glory belongs to God)


  3. never defend yourself (God is your defender)


  4. never pass on anything about anyone that will hurt them


  5. deal thoroughly with sin


-A.W. Tozer

Saturday, January 13, 2007

busy? yes

Indeed, I am busy. We now have internet at 35 Elma St though, so now I might be in better contact with you all. Pretty sweet.

So, yes, lets talk busy. I have recently been hired on by NCC to do some janitorial work. So let's take an indepth look at what a normal day-in-the-life-of-josh duffy looks like right now:
5:ooam Get up and put coffee on and have shower, shave, etc
5:30-6:40 spend time with God and drink coffee
6:40 head to NCC
7:00-8:00 do tape duplicating for the Bible School
8:00-12pm Bible School
12pm-3pm(ish) either student ministry or (most likely) work at NCC
3:00 head to Wal-Mart
4:00-10:30 work
11:30 or 12am head to bed

So, it's been pretty crazy. But I only have the job at NCC till they find a computer technition, then the guy who I'm helping out will move back into my position full time and I will vacate it. Busy, but good. I feel though that my ministry will decrease while I'm in this short season, but it's all good. God is teaching me certain things and it's all in His hands.

New Poll
There is a new poll to the left and down a bit. Any new years resolution? I sort of do, not tellin though. Oh, and there are new pictures and videos on the sidebar.

Wednesday, January 03, 2007

2007: first post


2007 has started and I'm into my 4th semester out of 4. Yeehaw!!!! My 26 hr bus trip to St Catharines was alright. Long, but decent. I spent the night of the 30th in St Catharines and in the morning I got on a bus and cruised'er to Rochester for New Year's Eve with Jaci Frattare. Good times. I helped her clean her house and stuff, and then about 30 or so people arrived for the party. I met some cool people and had some good times. I was in Rochester for justover 24hrs. Crazy; a short trip, yet a crucial one nonetheless. It was good to get with Jaci and just be around another HoGi again. Pretty sweet. It seems to have sparked a fierce hunger for more of God, again. The last couple days have sported some intense talks and experiences with God. I'm believing right now that my dream life will shift from what it was to what God intends it to be. That would be a MAJOR turning point in my life. It would really change things up, and turn things up a notch, or two, or fifty.
So I'm back at WIBI for 4 more months and I am right now doing courses in Ministry Gifts, and Practical Ministry. I believe we resume the prison ministry tomorrow, so that brings excitement with it. I am really hoping for some awesome times at the detention center this semester. Other than that, things are good and God is good, even when we don't think He is. Sometimes He's a little hard to pen down.