The Ellijay Experience

Yesterday felt like a real safari all over again: I was up at 6 a.m. on my way to Ellijay, and I arrived to Pleasant Grove Baptist Church at around 9 a.m. I spoke first during the 11 a.m. service, and I was astounded by the incredible feedback I received. The different perspectives I heard on the relationship between lions and hyenas in terms of the human connection with God were truly eye-opening and always great to hear. After the service, I decided to spend some time in Ellijay, and came back to the church to speak to the youth and elementary children at 6 p.m. Man, do I love talking to children! Animals are always a hit with them, and with the “Yell if you know the answer!” format I have for the presentation, we had a fantastic time talking about God’s creations as well as His cleverness in crafting animals the way He did. Although the day was long, seeing as how I did not get home until 9:45 p.m., I felt great getting into bed knowing that I had shared my message with the good folks up in Ellijay.

I even got a positive review!

“We had Fledge for a one day event. He ministered to the whole church Sunday Morning and then ministered to the youth and children Sunday night. Let me tell you: His presentations were like a cool breeze on a summer's day. He helped us focus in on the beauty and greatness of creation. However, he didn't stop there--- he used creation to take us back to its majestic Creator and the wondrous Gospel message of Jesus Christ. I know that our hearts were touched!”
David Taffin - Youth Minister - Pleasant Grove Baptist Church

Once again, I would like to thank David for inviting me to speak, and the great congregation of Pleasant Grove Baptist for listening to me!

Speaking Engagment: Pleasant Grove Baptist Church

Son Safaris has the terrific opportunity, this Sunday April 11th, to speak at Pleasant Grove Baptist Church in Elijay, Georgia. I will speak during the main service at 11a.m. and again at 6 p.m. to the Youth and elementary aged group. I would like to sincerely thank David Taffin for inviting me to share my message with the congregation at Pleasant Grove.

If you would like to hear me speak or would like to know more about the venue, here is the website which will have some helpful information

http://www.pleasantgrovebc.com/

His Continued Love

In honor of Easter, I would like to share my own thoughts on Jesus Christ and His amazing gift to humanity with his sacrifice on the cross. The picture on the left is representative of the astounding relationship I have with the Lord, for truly I did not become a whole man until I found Him. I hold the hammer and the nail, and I know in my heart that I crucify the Lord every single day yet He continues to love me. Through that love, I have become a better man and person in countless ways. I truly was nothing before I found the Lord.

While we take the time to honor Christ during Easter for His sacrifice on the Cross, often times we fail to realize that He is still with us now. We see what He has done in the past, but my realization is what He is doing now in my life now, and most important for me is what He is GOING TO DO in the future.

(painting "Forgiven" by Thomas Blackshear III)

Helping Others

When turning on the news at the end of the day, the images of hunger, poverty and suffering are paraded before us. We can change the channel, or we can take charge, and that is exactly what the organizations that attended the Annual Global Mission Conference are attempting to do. I had the great pleasure of attending the conference at Atlanta Christian College this past Saturday, March 27th, and I was just amazed by the not only the amount of organizations there, but by the enthusiasm of the people who run them. One such group that stood out to me was HOBO 50/50, a non-profit whose mission is to get homeless people who do want to work jobs, and to expose those artists who live on the street.



Website:http://www.hobo5050.com

The vast outpouring of love and passion for the work those associations are doing truly gave me hope that no matter how tough and brutal life may be, there are still those out there willing to help others.

Mysterious, Beautiful Life

Last night, I had the pleasure of watching an episode of “Life” on the Discovery Channel with my family and a few friends. With Oprah Winfrey narrating (no comment), I was yet again taken into the beauty and harshness of life as the images on the show are truly breathtaking. One scene in particular stood out for me, that of a tiny one inch tree frog taking tadpoles individually from a puddle at the base of a tree, climbing 150 ft, and then depositing it’s offspring into another puddle on the tree. At the end of the day, the frog had climbed over a mile, but this was not the amazing part to me. I wondered how in the world did these tiny tadpoles know when to get on and get off the back of their mother. This got me to thinking…

While sometimes life can suck, there is an order to all the things we do, a plan if you will. The Creator does not arbitrarily throw trials into our lives; He has a plan for us, and there is nothing that happens that is not in controlled by Him. So on rainy days such as today, when the world is wet and weary, it is comforting to know that there is someone up there making sure that everything goes according to His will and understand that God’s way is not my way.

Praying and Paintball

While paintball and Christ are not exactly synonymous with one another, I was lucky to experience both this past Saturday, March 13 in Rome, Georgia.

Six years ago, Kevin Bradberry and I started a scenario paintball team as a part of the men’s ministry in order to show that having tons of fun and being Christ-centered can be achieved. Also, what a great way to get out all that male aggression! While I have not been directly involved with the Renegade Ratels in about three years, Kevin has kept it going, and the team has grown from six individuals to about fifty, all as a result of his hard work.

Not only was it wonderful to be a part of the Renegade Ratels again, I was grateful that the game, called Flag Wars, was family friendly and Christ oriented. About 200 individuals came out, of all different ages. We all were able to pray together before we started shooting one another, and the referees patrolling the field made sure that anyone using vulgar language or not in keeping with the rules were swiftly taken out. The game lasted from 9am to about 5pm, and our team managed to bring 8 people, including Kevin’s dad and brother. All in all, we just had a really fantastic time.

And one more interesting thing happened, and that had to do with the Most Valuable player (MVP) medal, awarded to one member of each team, in this case Red and White, at the end of the game. The generals on each side chose a player on their side to receive this medal. The referees too patrolled the field to observe how the players interact with one another, and if one from each team showed great sportsman-like conduct.These two players were voted on by the refs. Well, I could not believe my ears when they called my name. I was awarded the sportsmanship award and even though our team had been awarded with most valuable team twice before, it was a great surprise to be shown that individually I was great on the field. Honestly, I see it as a credit to the entire team-without them, I would never have received anything. Julie was also thrilled, since it seemed to justify me spending 100 dollars to get out there!

Truthfully I had no idea how they chose me or singled me out of over 200 other ‘masked’ players. Hmmm, isn’t this how a Christian should be? Impacting others around us without even knowing? Then at the end of the day being recognized by Christ as doing what it takes to Glorify Him, not that this is the goal of a Christian to be recognized, quite frankly, just go about being what Christ wants you to be or do and impacting those around you on the spiritual ‘battlefield’…

Christ can be truly present in everything, even paintball!

Never a Moment Wasted with the Lord

I was recently shown by the Lord that nothing He does is a waste of time-He always has a plan!

I had been invited to the Christian Youth of Georgia Conference on beautiful Hilton Head Island, SC, during the weekend of Friday February 26^th to Sunday February 28^th. The purpose of my attending was to have a display at the conference, giving me some great networking opportunities. I did have to pay my own way to get there, so I was hoping to meet and establish relationships so I could get my monies worth! My family was able to accompany me on this trip, which provided me with the support I needed to do my best.

About midday Saturday, however, I began to feel dejected. I felt that I had wasted my time, energy, and money on attending the conference. I did not feel like I was getting the experience I had come for, and the weekend was not turning out how I had envisioned. Then the Lord seemed to say “Oh really Fledge?” and set out to prove me wrong.

By the end of Saturday, I was able to establish three incredible contacts. I spent time talking with the guest speaker of the conference, Steve Geyer, a truly wonderful guy. I had dinner and spent time with the band members of “True Story”, a great Christian group. This interaction has opened a few doors for possible future opportunities together. I had a terrific conversation with Keith Wagner from Woodland Christian Camp, and he explained to me that their summer mission will be to put clean water wells in Africa. Wait-that sounds awfully familiar. That is a part of my dream too! The weekend turned around, from failure to success. I was able to achieve my goal of networking with great people and ended up having a great time.

Thank you Lord, You always know best.