Cultivating Spirituality: Spiritual Disciplines

The spiritual disciplines can be defined, in short, as the various activities that are used to cultivate spirituality in oneself. The definition itself is not subject or meant only for Christians, as Buddhists, Hindus, Muslims, Jews, and believers of every religion in the world practice spiritual disciplines to grow in their own personal faith and spirituality. For the next few weeks, I will be posting a series of studies and dissections of the spiritual disciplines that Christians often and should practice, in hopes that any Christian who is reading this blog can gain some insight and motivation on cultivating their own spirituality. It is also for the enlightenment and understanding of anyone who isnt a Christian, in hopes that they can get a look at why Christians do what they do! To lay a foundation, lets get some things understood. There are two types of disciplines, contemplative and active. They are pretty self explanatory, contemplative disciplines usually being done in silence, by oneself in the presence of God, and not seen by others. Active disciplines are engaging, in public, and expressed to others verbally and visually, and often are practiced in the cultivation of the spirituality of a group of people as well as oneself. Often, we as humans are either activists or contemplative in our personalities, being drawn to practice one type of discipline or the other. But, as Christians, we ought to follow in the footsteps of Jesus, which means following his entire example. Here is a list of some of the contemplative disciplines and also some of the active disciplines:

Contemplative Disciplines - solitude, silence, meditation, prayer, Sabbath/rest, worship, journaling, fasting, study

Active Disciplines - study, fellowship, teaching, evangelism, service

There are other disciplines that would fit inside of some of those that have been listed. These are basic disciplines, simply divided into contemplative or active. Starting next week I will post a study of the spiritual disciplines of solitude and silence. On many of these I will write about 2 disciplines at once, in order to move through the list faster. Let us strive to discipline ourselves in a way that cultivates our own spirituality and our relationship with God our Father. God bless!

Life and Times of Ben and Jaz

A lot of things are going on right now! It has been a while since I have written anything of real substance in this blog, but I hope to be able to share what the Lord is doing here at the Valley Church of Christ in Wasilla, Alaska. There have been a lot of baptisms lately and it looks like a lot more to come, its awesome when a congregation is evangelistic and not just the minister/preacher or missionaries. When members start their own studies and are sharing their own lives and stories with the lost and converting them to Christ, its truly amazing! It is the dream of any worker for the Lord, to see the body working together to bring others to Christ! One aspect of the work which I am involved in and really excited about is the mens ministry. We have a small group of about 10 men who meet every Tuesday night to share our lives together but more importantly to study the nature of God in order to grow closer to Him. The past few months the men have grown really close and it has been awesome to see plans and thoughts and ideas put into action, as a group of men will be driving the 6 hour trip up to Fairbanks Alaska and serving the congregation there on a Sunday in March! I am unfortunately not going to be able to go with them because I will be spending some time in Mexico with my beautiful wife Jazmin, as we are still awaiting anxiously her visa and documentation allowing her to live here in America. She is waiting patiently and continues to grow in her relationship with God. I have decided to put off college for a few years and continue to pursue a certificate of Biblical Studies from Sunset Int. Bible Institute, which will aide me in becoming a better servant and worker for the Lord. I will be taking most of the classes online, so that I can gain Bible knowledge while in the meantime getting experience working with the congregation here in Alaska. Its an exciting time to be a worker for the Lord, as "the harvest is plentiful but the workers are few." I encourage every Christian to persevere in the work!

My mom was begging me to do this. Well maybe not begging, but she really wanted me to. So here it goes:
"5 Things":
5 things I was doing 10 years ago
1. Going to school at Cottonwood Creek Elementary
2. Enjoying building forts in the front yard
3. About to move to England
4. About to start middle school
5. Having fun at church

5 things on my to-do list today
1. Go to the gym.
2. Study at Kaladi Bros. coffee.
3. Teach a mens bible study.
4. Read the Bible
5. Get some sleep

5 snacks I like
1. peanut butter on graham crackers
2. protein shake (chocolate and blueberry)
3. saltine crackers
4. cup of tea
5. leftover pizza

5 things I would do if I were a millionaire
1. Fill up a retirement account
2. Buy a church building for Leon Mexico
3. Buy a car for Jazmin's mom
4. Give enough for the building expansion project to continue here in the Valley
5. Pay for a college education

5 places I have lived
1. Maryville Tennessee
2. Wasilla Alaska
3. Barton Bendish England
4. Lubbock Texas
5. Leon Mexico

5 people I tag - I DONT KNOW IF THEY HAVE ALREADY DONE THIS
1. Helga - Ant Collins
2. Kristina Collins
3. Jake Collins on Kristinas blog
4. Caitlin Baker - GET A BLOG SIS!
5. Anyone else who reads my blog

Tea Time

Okay so this blog may seem a little strange coming from me: I have always thought tea was for women to drink, and coffee was for men. I dont know where that idea came from, but it had been somewhat drilled into my mindset. When me and Jazmin started dating, she really loved tea, and I didnt. When I got back to Alaska, I started to drink it because my parents are tea fanatics. Over time I have tried all kinds of teas, and my favorite is now Celestial Seasonings green teas, Blueberry Breeze and Mandarin Orchard being my favorite of those. They have flavors for any kind of taste you want. But to me its more about the health benefits of green tea that strike me. If you know me, you know that I enjoy excercise and healthy eating. When I started reading about the benefits of green tea, I was surprised. Here are some of them:

• full of antioxidants, these prevent the toxins in your body known at free radicals. the antixodants found in green tea have been proven to be 100 times more powerful than those found in Vitamin C, and 25 times more powerful than those found in Vitamin E!



• reduces risk of stroke and coronary artery disease



• reduces risk of cancer



• increase in metabolism and fat fighting properties



• reduces stress

To get the full benefits from green tea, researchers say you need to drink about 3 cups a day. This isnt really a whole lot, as you can easily have a cup at breakfast, in the day, and then before bed (if its decaf!!). I guess it has just intrigued me, the effects that this potent drink really contains. God has blessed us with little things like this, and I think its important to take advantage of them!

Picture time

Me and my beautiful niece Marie















Jake, me, and my uncle Bill













my sister and I, 21st birthday!








Me snowshoeing, and I bought my mom cast iron cookware for Christmas

New Year update

Wow! Time is flying and I find myself getting farther and farther behind on my blog!! As soon as I am able to get Jazmin up here I might just have to hand the reigns over to her, that way it gives her something to do and also she can practice her English! Well she is doing good, helping her mom at work (she is a real estate agent), finishing school, and planning the wedding (the second one) and Im really proud of her for doing all these things. She is really excited to move up here to Alaska but I think she will be happier moving up here in the summer, because lately its been about -30 every day. As far as ministry goes, our preacher Robert was gone most of December taking a much needed break and visiting with family. I was given to chances to preach from the pulpit, a few Weds. night devos, the mens small group and my Sun. morning teen class. During the week I am usually studying, visiting, or resting. I am studying with a 74 year old Serbo Croatian man named Milorod and its going really well, he is already a Christian but he is to old to drive at night (which is when most of the group bible studies take place) so I told him I can bring the bible study to him, we have been studying about prayer and taking lessons from Jesus. He has become a good friend and I enjoy the time we spend together. Anyways just wanted to let everyone know what all is going on, I will try and get pics up soon! God bless - Ben and Jaz

prayers please

hey everyone! its been a while i know, i have been super busy just with everything. well we all know the power of prayer, and right now i really need some. i am trying to get Jazmin a visa from the U.S. Government so that she can come and live in the United States with me. its not an easy process, and its it really frustrating me. there is a lot of paperwork involved, a lot of waiting, and a lot of trusting in other people to allow my wife to come and live with me. i ask for your prayers that the process turns out successful and that soon Jazmin can come up here to Alaska. its really hard putting all of your trust into an immigration officer whom you have never seen or talked to. anyways i would greatly appreciate the prayer, thanks! God bless