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Learning

Sat, 30 May 2009 01:49:51 -0500

Bonjour, Hola! I hope everyone is doing great! We have been flying through our cities as of late, it’s hard to believe we are almost done. Barcelona was a beautiful city, it reminded me a lot of Chicago. Nice was a neat place, we did a lot of walking and laying on the beach. We spent the whole trip with our new friend Cameron from Australia. It was nice having someone new around.

To be honest I have been worn out and frustrated. It’s been nice to kind of get away, have our own place, and just relax! Never the less, God has been blowing my mind daily, scripture has never come more alive in my life than on this trip. I was reading today in John 14-16 and was reminded that I’m useless apart from the spirit. It was what I needed to keep me going for the next 14 days. I had become so worn out and started relying on my own strength to get me through each day. It carried over into my conversations, my attitude, life with my teammates, etc. But today reminded me that there is a bigger purpose at hand, the gospel.

It was nice to be reminded that God doesn’t need me, his mission will be carried out whether I’m on board or not. How cool is it though that God has invited me into his story and even lives inside of me? We have been going through these cities seeing things and meeting people we never thought we would encounter. It’s so easy to walk away from cities and people and deem it impossible for God to rescue. Thank God that he is the author of salvation, these people I look at and say there is no hope, God looks at and says wait they are just like you used to be. Please be praying for strength and patience for all of us.

Chase

Madrid is Bloody Amazing!

Fri, 22 May 2009 09:45:52 -0500

Hello all! We have just finished up our third city (Madrid) and are on a train bound for Barcelona. Madrid was nothing short of amazing! It was hands down my favorite city, it was filled with beautiful parks, scenery, people, and the weather was great. We also had the privilege of meeting a good amount of people. I was able to converse, laugh, and be made fun of by four Canadian girls, who weren’t to keen on sleeping in their time in Madrid.

We then ran across a girl named Steph from Australia, she approached us one night and just sat down and started talking. We all talked and hung out all night and ended up walking down the street to get some Churros, which by the way aren’t all they are hyped up to be. However, it was the next day that truly topped the city off. I was headed downstairs from my room to read and saw Nick Conte, a guy who had spent the day with us, just sitting on the couch by himself. I approached him and we began talking about the day and what the night had in store. He started talking about how much he loved backpacking and was jealous of the Australians who backpack for a living. I started to tell him about Chris (our Australian friend we met in Amsterdam) and the way Chris goes wherever he feels God leading him and trusts him to provide. Nick’s response was a door flung wide open, “You know Chase, I kinda envy you guys with faith!” My response, “Oh yeah, what do you mean by that?” The conversation continued to get deeper and deeper, we conversed and asked questions for about 2 and a half hours.

Nick is a very smart guy, he is a student at Wake Forest and was studying abroad for a semester. Nick said he struggled with the thought of him being created in the image of God because he thought it was a very arrogant and selfish thing for a human to say. I told him, “Nick you are very right if I said that from my mouth first hey look at me, I’m an image of God that would be a very selfish thing to say, but the reality is that didn’t come from our mouths it came from the mouth of God. It wasn’t Chase Alford or Nick Conte who decided we would be images of God, it was God himself.”

He then told me his faith was in human beings and their ability to sustain life. My response, so your faith is in something very selfish that has the potential to turn their back on you? His response, what do you mean? I asked him if he would agree with me that all humans default to being selfish and if an opportunity presents itself where a human has the opportunity to sustain his life or sustain the life of another most of the time the human will choose his own life? He said “Of course, I know I would!” I said, “Well you see Nick that is where we differ on faith, my faith is in a God who won’t turn his back on me and has my best interest in mind.” Nick began to tear up and said you know Chase, I have never heard it put like that, I think I need to discover all there is to know about this Jesus guy and God. Nick closed the conversation saying my summer reading is now full, I’ll be searching for God in the scriptures.

Guys be praying for Nick as he searches for life, thanks to all of you who are encouraging and praying for us all over the place. We miss you all!

Who’s To Say God Can’t Use You?

Tue, 19 May 2009 07:37:48 -0500

Well it’s day 8, and we are in Paris and we are just hanging out around the Eiffel Tower. Last time I wrote I shared with you guys a story about a guy I met named Jerome who had never heard the gospel. I asked you guys to be praying that God would allow our paths to cross one more time. Before Neal was even able to post my blog Jerome wandered into the cafe at the hostel in Amsterdam. Myself and TJ walked over to where he was and sat down and began conversing. After about 30 minutes of conversation we began talking about God again.

Jerome was filled with questions, one after the other he began asking. Questions like: “What is the gospel?” “Can a person have meaning and purpose in life outside of Christ?” “How is the bible laid out?” On and on he went with questions. He eventually asked me to get my bible and show him how it was laid out. So we were able to walk him through scripture from Genesis to 1 Timothy. I’ve never in my life seen a human being so intrigued by the Bible, he would pick it up look at it, flip through it asking us to explain different things to him.

Jerome made mention that with his life he wanted to help people and make the world a better place. I began to tell him about Paul, now Jerome had heard of Paul but he had never heard of Saul. It blew his mind to know that Paul once killed christians and was out to destroy the church. He wanted to see for himself, so we read together about Paul’s conversion in Acts, he was captivated. He proceeded to say that he had a desire to follow Christ but could never do it in Quebec. I was able to share with him that because one man (Paul) responded to the gospel the spirit began to use him and this world has never been the same since. I posed a question to Jerome, “Jerome whose to say that God through the spirit couldn’t use you to change the city of Quebec?” His face lit up at the thought of him being used and ushering hope in to a dark place.

For 3 HOURS we ventured deeper and deeper into conversation until his friend Bobby walked in. I could tell Jerome got really nervous when he walked in and wanted the conversation to shift to a different subject. So I tell you all that to let you know God is moving and will not be stopped, he is not bound by our borders. He brought a french person from Quebec to a hostel in Amsterdam where he would sit at a table across from two guys from Alabama and hear the gospel for the first time! It brings tears to my eyes to know that all the fundraising (your giving) was not a waste, a seed has been planted, there is hope for a city, someone now knows the gospel is more than a song. Continue to pray for us and please pray for Jerome from Quebec. Miss you guys, Chase

The Gospel? What Song is That?

Fri, 15 May 2009 03:36:36 -0500

It’s hard to believe that our time in Amsterdam has almost come to an end! I came into this city expecting filth everywhere, I couldn’t have been more wrong. Amsterdam is such a beautiful place. The streets are lined with old, historic, beautiful houses and buildings. I can honestly say this has been one of if not the most eye opening experience of my life, and I’m only one week into this trip.

The last blog I posted I talked a lot about the gospel and how it was my driving force coming into this trip. Well last night I sat down across from a guy from Quebec, whose named was Jerome. He was a very talkative and nice guy. We began to ask questions about one another, one of his questions was “are you a believer?” My response was “yes I am, and you?” He proceeded to tell me umm..... kinda.” He said “ I am a believer but I’m not a practicer.” In other words he acknowledges yes there is a God, but he didn’t buy into the whole “following Jesus thing.” I was kind of taken aback by that comment due to the fact that he initiated the conversation.

I began to ask him how that was possible and what does that look like? He told me that very few practice in Quebec and it’s very underground. He also said that even if you wanted to go to church it’s very hard because it’s only open a couple of hours a week. Being from the south where there is a church on every corner and your condemned if you’re not there every time the door is open that statement blew my mind. So I asked Jerome, “Have you ever heard of the gospel?” He said “no I have never heard the song the gospel, I don’t know what it is.” I can’t imagine the expression that was upon my face in that moment.

My heart broke for this guy and I immediately thought about my previous post that was all about the gospel, and here I am two nights later talking to someone who has never even heard the gospel, he thought it was a song. You know, I have always heard there are people around this world that have never heard of the gospel, but for the first time in my life last night it became a reality and there he was sitting right across from me. I wasn’t able to explain it to him last night because his friend walked up and they began to talk and move away from conversation. However, I’m praying that God provides an opportunity to cross paths with Jerome one more time before we board a train bound for Paris. Please be praying for us guys, we need it and greatly appreciate it. Thank you!

Why I Am Going

Tue, 12 May 2009 14:56:59 -0500

Today is the day! In just a few hours I will board a plane bound for Amsterdam! It’s hard to believe that six months has passed since I was selected yo be a part of the Youth Hostel trip. Over the six months I have witnessed God work in ways that are so much bigger than me. He in so many ways has blown my mind preparing me for what awaits me. Many people have asked what this trip is all about? I have proceeded to explain to them what the hostel trip is all about. Their response... “Is that really a mission trip?” Hearing that the past six months has in many ways really frustrated me! However, then it hit me! The way I have been portraying this trip has honestly in a sense been absent from the gospel. About a week ago I was reading Romans 1:1 where Paul says “Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God.” I read that and realized my perspective going into this trip was screwed up! What convicted me about the passage was the fact that Paul was literally telling the Roman church the only reason I exist is for the sake of the gospel. Why should my life be any different? I woke up this morning with breath in my lungs and a beat to my heart for one purpose, the gospel. Sure I am going to experience a whole new culture, see amazing sites, experience the beauty of Europe, and all those things are great things don’t get me wrong. However, if that is the reason I am going I have missed the point. All of those things are bi-products of the gospel being advanced. The gospel brought me to interview for this trip and the gospel will propel me through Europe. To all of you who have supported me financially and through prayer I say thank you. Please remember us as we go!