Chris Burkmenn's Blog

How many of you have ever heard of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego? It is probably one of the greatest stories in the Bible. It is quite a lengthy chapter, but it is worth reading.  Some astrologers informed Nebuchadnezzar that Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were not worshiping him. Tell him that they continue to worship their God, but do not worship his gods or the gold statue that the king had created. The king became very angry with this. The king summoned them to ask them if this was true, and if it was in fact not then he wanted to them to start worshiping him as soon as the music started play or they would be thrown in the fiery furnace. Hinting that whatever god they were serving wouldn't be able to rescue them from the fire. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego told the king that they would not serve him and that if they were thrown in the fire that their God would save them. This angered the king extremely. He then ordered the furnace to be heated seven times hotte

Has anyone else been as fascinated as I am with reading the story of the beginning, especially Adam and Eve. Discovering where we came from and what it means. He created everything, The light, water, land, fish, birds, trees, humans, and so much more. It's such a beautiful thing to comprehend.  One of my favorite verses in the entire Bible is Genesis 1:1-2 In the beginning  God created  the heavens  and the earth.   2  Now the earth was formless  and empty,  darkness was over the surface of the deep,  and the Spirit of God  was hovering  over the waters.       Reading that and seeing how dark the world was how empty it was without God. That is so symbolic because are lives are like that without Christ, empty, dark, and formless.       When God comes in he transforms us makes us new. No matter how empty we are he comes and transforms us into an amazing masterpiece. We had always been a work of art, but never reached our full potential until he came a long!    

This year in a nutshell Rocked out at Kelly Clarkson's summer tour. This summer I grew a stache and then shaved it. Visited Memphis with our youth at Oasis Church Had fun with all of my friends Dressed sharp for an awards ceremony at Oasis Church Partied with my friend Chase Saw my family they visited and so did I Celebrated my birthday with some crazy friends Enjoyed time with my Mom and sister Went home for my sisters birthday party. Loved my sisters over the Christmas Holiday. Had a photoshoot with my friend Sarah Weeks Enjoyed spending time with my mentee Isaac Chambers Saw Needtobreathe with my good friend Caitlin Miles

Tonight I saw the perks of being a wallflower . A friend blessed me with the opportunity to go and see the movie. I had seen the previews and I was so intrigued, because when I was younger I never really fit in any cliques. I was teased as a child, and sometimes bullied. So I thought it would be great to see this movie. Let me tell you, what a great movie. I felt so sorry for this young boy Charlie, going to school day after day and being treated the way he was. He was teased pretty awfully for the way he dressed, or even the questions he answered in class. I sympathized with him because he had so much going on internally and with his family. No one cared though, and not one person asked him how he was doing. The one thing Charlie has are his letters to his "friend" in a journal, and they summarize his feelings and help him grow as a writer. It helps him process all of the things that are going on around him. Help him not think about how lonely he truly is. One day

In a world where our excuse is time, and that we don't have much to give. We get to a place where we can almost become desensitized to the world around us. We tend to think that we should live our lives and we should be the only ones that are benefited from it.  I believe that we have the ability to change, to change the course set in the past. Just an excuse cannot cut it anymore. We have to stand up and say I can't go, but I can support those who have been called to go. We must do a little bit to support a bigger cause than ourself. If we were to give a little it would go so much further than giving none. I am guilty of believing that if I can't give something big then I probably can't do anything at all, but that is so not the case. $5, $10, $20 can make a world of difference in Cambodia, Thailand, Africa. Our third world countries need our help, but let us support our fellow friends and send them and support them on the call that God has placed on their lives