Eli

Eli http://virb.com/eyokley Virb 2.0 (@eyokley) en StuffChristiansLike.net http://virb.com/eyokley/posts/text/645986
It is HILARIOUS.

:)

Love,
Eli]]> Mon, 02 Jun 2008 05:31:19 -0700 http://virb.com/eyokley/posts/text/645986 Why Don't We Care Like We Used To? http://virb.com/eyokley/posts/text/459506 The Beatles. 4? British guys, "invaded" America, and America loved it.

Vietnam. Dumb war, needless death.
Vietnam. People filled the streets in protest. People rioted. People cared.

Sinatra. Ella. The Greats.
Sinatra. Ella. Why do we not get more like them?

Reagan, Roosevelt, Churchill, Gorbachev. Why don't we get people who genuinely care about their country. Why don't we fight wars like we used to? Why do we not participate in diplomacy like we used to?

Why is it that nothing is coming from this culture of whatever we live in now.
The "greats" are not people, anymore. The greats are the works of Steve Jobs, and some Asian dude. The greats aren't people. The "greats" are mega-corporations who care only about money.

What happened to the goodness Sam Walton, J.C. Penny, and Walt Disney wanted?

What happened to that "get on the moon" spirit, or the fight the reds fire we used to have?
What happened to the talent of Sinatra? Ellington? Fitzgerald?

Where has the fire gone? The Kennedy spirit, the passion, the excitement to do something greater than your self.

Where did the days of rallying around your country to support liberation of Europe go? Why can we not show the same spirit to the battles of our time?

Why can we not simply live? Why can we not simply live, and cherish goodness? Why do we need the new Blackberry, or the new whatever that comes out of Apple? Why can we not appriciate? Why won't we fight for something good? Why are we so offended?

Why can we not just live? Love?

Why can we not Give like we should? Why are we quick to call those who Fast fanatics? Why can we not just have a conversation with the Creator?

Where did it all go?
]]> Mon, 11 Feb 2008 11:30:31 -0800 http://virb.com/eyokley/posts/text/459506 I've resorted to resorting. http://virb.com/eyokley/posts/text/394757 alt

Resorted, I am. Here at Tan-Tar-A Resort, right off the Lake of the Ozarks. Its a beautiful place, i bet its better in the summer.
I've enjoyed my family, taken some photographs, and drank some crappy coffee. Its nice to be away, to not receive too many phone calls, and just be with the family, and this very photograph-able lake.
Earlier in the weekend, a Christian conference called faithwalkers was hosted here, and in the relaxation of my weekend, I remembered that I love what they're doing. However annoying it is to walk though the halls and having to walk around the groups talking, its nice to see so many people commited to a relationship with Christ. The Jewish called this feeling, this want to be there, this Joy the presence of God gives you the "kavode", the honor the presence gives you.

Enjoy this as we enter the new year, the fireworks will be going off, the wine bottles will be opened, and the new year will be here. Its great to have gotten through the last one, it was a great one, but I cant wait till the next one. There's great things in store for 2008. See you in June, Joplin.]]> Tue, 01 Jan 2008 10:32:58 -0800 http://virb.com/eyokley/posts/text/394757 Quack http://virb.com/eyokley/posts/text/394756 alt

Quack in the new year, bay-be.]]> Tue, 01 Jan 2008 10:32:57 -0800 http://virb.com/eyokley/posts/text/394756 Both Sides http://virb.com/eyokley/posts/text/386163 alt

Great sermon. I was listening to rob bell on the way home from Christmas at my grandma's house. He was talking about how its not just about how we act on the outside, but what we really feel on the inside. Its where our heart is at. If we try, even if our outside is kindof a mess, if on the inside we're "clean," we're in the right place.
Sometimes we throw on this 2 Sided thing.. we act great on the outside, but we don't mean it, or we do this great act of service, but for the wrong reason. And thats not what its about.

Happy Christmas yo, Jesus is kindof really amazing.

Eli]]> Tue, 25 Dec 2007 18:04:28 -0800 http://virb.com/eyokley/posts/text/386163 Live, From KC ( Day 3 ) http://virb.com/eyokley/posts/text/366951 alt

Melting, in Nevada.

Frozen, in Joplin.

Starting, in Kansas City.

Finally, the news coverage began. CNN broke in live from the plaza in mid-KC. Its raining from where I am, melting the ice, but now, in the freezing line. Branches are starting to droop, its like Sunday was just south of here.

Today I sit in warmth, and have been brought word of electricity being restored back home. Tommorow, I'm headed back, to begin the cleanup, and to reintroduce myself to a life of normality.

In other news, 2 were killed in a Church, 9 in a mall, and schools a constant target, gun violence has been a big story this week. Just today, 5 were killed getting off a bus in Las Vegas. Terrible, terrible story.]]> Wed, 12 Dec 2007 01:14:30 -0800 http://virb.com/eyokley/posts/text/366951 Day 2 http://virb.com/eyokley/posts/text/364697 I like my old metaphor, but I want to go on, and write an appreciative blog.
From Nevada, Missouri, I write. And the Ice, the snow, is Beautiful. Lets throw a cleche' in here- a beautiful disaster- one that killed 10 in Oklohama yesterday, one that left 60,000 without electricity (I left to avoid that statistic), a disaster that killed summer cool-ness (i'm going to miss that tree!) , but a beautiful thing, that left the world as I know it reflective.

It reminds me of maybe how I'm supposed to be, how my world is supposed to be, how how-ever-many years ago Ice covered everything, and how they didn't have electricity, and how they had their cave and fire. How nice is that?

I'm sitting here, on my Grandma's dining room table, eating a egg and toast, not anything like those people "back then," but when I step outside, I think I (and We) are just like them. Sliding around. Cold.

It will be time for noon coffee soon, I think I'll go sit with grandpa and "the guys" and listen to whatever they want to talk about...either liberal propaganda (grumpy old man), or maybe if I'm lucky, war stories from Korea, Vieatnam, wherever, stories from a better era, an era of movement, and I like that.

Stay warm.]]> Mon, 10 Dec 2007 20:14:06 -0800 http://virb.com/eyokley/posts/text/364697 Frozen (part 2) http://virb.com/eyokley/posts/text/363443

Destruction.
I woke up, and stepped out my back window this morning and saw pure destruction. I put on some jeans (which I hardly ever wear - I'm more of a shorts guy!) and walked around. I took some photographs, but they just couldn't capture the destruction. Trees fallen, trees falling. The sounds, branches falling, the feeling of hope that it isn't the one above you. I kicked through my yard to look around. I remembered the trees from 6 years ago, when the big tornado swept through just south of us. How the trees looked. How they looked today. Thank God my house wasn't torn up, thank God no lives were lost. But let me continue my metaphor from the other night.

These people, good intentioned and lacking in drive, sit here, frozen. Lets call them branches. They sit, frozen, until more luggage, "crap", lets call that ice, falls on top of them. And because of lack of action, lack of reason for God, for Moving the ministry (serving), they sit there, frozen to their pews, until they fall off, dead. (1 John basically says whoever doesn't live in love lives in spiritual death- nothing in their lives.)
And then it comes cleanup time.
As followers of Christ, we are completely fully especially called to serve those people. The fallen, the broken, the disconnected, and those of us who are "iced" need to see spring, to get Closer to Christ so they can serve as well.

Amen? Tell me if I'm way wrong..

Hope you are all safe!

Eli Yokley]]> Mon, 10 Dec 2007 00:23:13 -0800 http://virb.com/eyokley/posts/text/363443 Frozen http://virb.com/eyokley/posts/text/361964 alt

is everywhere today.

The first ice of this winter is moving through my area, and I'm loving it.

But thinking about the trees and how they're stuck -frozen. It reminds me of this photograph i have of some grass last year, and how if you weren't careful with it, you broke it, you just had to wait till it moved, then play with the grass, as it should be.

Last Sunday, sitting in church, watching above from my spot in the sound booth, I saw the same thing in human form, so much potential, so much "goodness" frozen in an ice of kainophobia, an ice of fear of change. Frozen to their pews, their seats, whatever we call them now, one stood out, praised as she felt she should, and was stared at. Others reached out with ministry, and few showed up to help.

The lask of movement is incredibly appalling. Craig Gross & JR Mahon in their book Starving Jesus refer to it as Starving Jesus, when we ignore what God's calling us to do, and just sit there, frozen to our chairs.

It is time for spring, for melting, but all I can see for now is a week of ice.

Its Cold, STAY WARM.
Good nigh, Joplin.
-Eli Yokley
(p.s. you want spring? We're doing a 6 week tour of church's insprining them to move, helping them organize a service project, and putting together a list of ways to help out others, right her in Joplin.)
]]> Sat, 08 Dec 2007 18:50:35 -0800 http://virb.com/eyokley/posts/text/361964 Eat Some Beans. http://virb.com/eyokley/posts/text/332782

Thats what he said.

]]> Tue, 20 Nov 2007 06:36:38 -0800 http://virb.com/eyokley/posts/text/332782 prayer http://virb.com/eyokley/posts/text/222060 sometimes, maybe i test God.
but always, He passes those tests.

Today I did it twice, and both times, I was amazed with the allowing of a small prayer to be fulfilled. Should I have been, no, I shouldn't doubt, but human nature leads me to doubt, so surprise is expected.

First, I was sitting in CAII today, and we were taking a long reading test. I started falling asleep, and I just prayed real fast, real thoughtfully, if that makes sense, "God, help me to stay awake." Not long after, the teacher of the class walked around with a bag of candy and gave everyone a Starburst (yum!).

Small situation, huge revelation.

Things like this make me understand the power of prayer.
Sometimes, I don't. Sometimes, I take it for granted, not noticing what I could do.
Maybe I didn't understand how to pray until this summer, on a Sunday night, watching the local CBS affiliate KOAM. They were broadcasting a the worship service from some local mega-church. I started listening to the sermon, and the point that struck me hardest was this: To get prayer's answered, you first have to really believe they will be answered.

DUH! THAT is faith. But i never understood that. Did I not have faith until then? I really don't know. I believed there was a God, I supported him, but did I believe in Him? I really dont know that I did.

And that scares me.

Am I hiding other things from myself? Yeah, I understand its a learning process, and that was just a step along the way, but to know that I thought i was doing something right for the longest time, and finally realized that I was doing it wrong, it leads me to other questions. What will be changed in me next?
___________________________________________________________________

In other news, September 30th, or whatever the last Sunday in September is, my church (www.pathwaysumc.com) is hosting a worship event sunday morning at 9 and 10:30, focused on moving ministry. Moving with Prayer, Moving in Life, Moving toward Love. I'm doing the Love message, and I'm really excited. This is the first major youth event since they fired the last director, so I'm really hope it can do something for the group..we sure need it. I hope it can do something for the leaders, so they can see where we want to move. WE want to move the church, move the ministry, move the ministry from self focused things to helping others, from a sunday morning and some wednesday nights, to a day-to-day constantly ministering, being deciples, MOVEing with Christ.
]]> Thu, 13 Sep 2007 23:03:18 -0700 http://virb.com/eyokley/posts/text/222060 Untitled http://virb.com/eyokley/posts/text/222059

Pray for Ramadan.

]]> Thu, 13 Sep 2007 23:03:18 -0700 http://virb.com/eyokley/posts/text/222059 prayer http://virb.com/eyokley/posts/text/222058 sometimes, maybe i test God.
but always, He passes those tests.

Today I did it twice, and both times, I was amazed with the allowing of a small prayer to be fulfilled. Should I have been, no, I shouldn't doubt, but human nature leads me to doubt, so surprise is expected.

First, I was sitting in CAII today, and we were taking a long reading test. I started falling asleep, and I just prayed real fast, real thoughtfully, if that makes sense, "God, help me to stay awake." Not long after, the teacher of the class walked around with a bag of candy and gave everyone a Starburst (yum!).

Small situation, huge revelation.

Things like this make me understand the power of prayer.
Sometimes, I don't. Sometimes, I take it for granted, not noticing what I could do.
Maybe I didn't understand how to pray until this summer, on a Sunday night, watching the local CBS affiliate KOAM. They were broadcasting a the worship service from some local mega-church. I started listening to the sermon, and the point that struck me hardest was this: To get prayer's answered, you first have to really believe they will be answered.

DUH! THAT is faith. But i never understood that. Did I not have faith until then? I really don't know. I believed there was a God, I supported him, but did I believe in Him? I really dont know that I did.

And that scares me.

Am I hiding other things from myself? Yeah, I understand its a learning process, and that was just a step along the way, but to know that I thought i was doing something right for the longest time, and finally realized that I was doing it wrong, it leads me to other questions. What will be changed in me next?
___________________________________________________________________

In other news, September 30th, or whatever the last Sunday in September is, my church (www.pathwaysumc.com) is hosting a worship event sunday morning at 9 and 10:30, focused on moving ministry. Moving with Prayer, Moving in Life, Moving toward Love. I'm doing the Love message, and I'm really excited. This is the first major youth event since they fired the last director, so I'm really hope it can do something for the group..we sure need it. I hope it can do something for the leaders, so they can see where we want to move. WE want to move the church, move the ministry, move the ministry from self focused things to helping others, from a sunday morning and some wednesday nights, to a day-to-day constantly ministering, being deciples, MOVEing with Christ.
]]> Thu, 13 Sep 2007 23:03:17 -0700 http://virb.com/eyokley/posts/text/222058 http://virb.com/eyokley/posts/text/222057

Pray for Ramadan.

]]> Thu, 13 Sep 2007 23:03:16 -0700 http://virb.com/eyokley/posts/text/222057