blank

no picture for this post.
i don't think i will post one later either.
seems fitting in light of the absense of not only activity here on the blog, but also for the lack of activity for "a bold stand"

not that it has not been on my mind, but what do you say to someone who says "sounds exciting, these stories were great." etc... and then looks with a blank stare at you as if it is inconcievable that they would ever be into sharing what God has done in their lives.

and not that it hasn't been on my mind, but what do you say when it looks like we'll make rent fine this month and then your computer dies? shell out another couple grand to steve jobs, take on a couple jobs to make up for it, mix up your priorities and your supposed "calling" with the aspirations of good business.

add to that, not that it hasn't been on my mind, but what do you say when a good friend opens up their heart to you and you have a conversation that costs a LOT because your cell phone minutes are already eaten up for the month.

add to that................

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God willing, there will be another story told on wednesday afternoon.
God willing, that story will be posted live to the site by friday evening.
God willing, it will change someones perspective in life.
God willing, it will inspire one more to be willing to put it all out there for the world to see.
God willing, i will not continue to be caught up in doing what is "good for business"

lights

things progress slowly, one person at a time.

all who i share this vision with are excited about it. but not to many are willing to participate. i refuse to be pushy, and so get someone's testimony online that is not really prompted by God to share. i pray that people come to me. it is kind of a hard road to walk, since i am used to pursuing the goals that i set for myself. i am used to me having to act to make it happen. but this... this is different. in this i have to just make people aware of the opportunity, let them know that if they are feeling a tug on their hearts to do this thing, then i will be there in every way i can be to make it happen.

to the few that have said, "count me in," thank you. thank you for your willingness to be vulnerable. thank you that you realize that you never truly have it "together" and so will not wait until times are better. thank you that even though our schedules have been hard to line up, you do not lose interest. thank you, mainly because you give me hope. 

hope that the lights will actually come on, and the camera rolls. hope that your voice will actually be recorded, and be available to those who need to hear of God's great love.

hope that this vision is not just a passing dream, a fleeting ideal that can never be fully grasped.

hope that this is.

ripe

i had a post with the same title last week, but then it didn't seem right then, so i deleted it.

as God brings us down this journey, i think it is amazing how He is preparing us. me in particular, as i seek His face, he continually reveals areas in my heart of bitterness and anger, and i continually have no choice but to give them over to Him. 

no choice?

nope. not from where i stand. see, i have been down that road before, and know exactly what kind of place that ends up, what kind of fruit that bears. i want nothing to do with it.

see i desire to be, like caleb in joshua (Old Testament), a wholehearted follower of God. to "bear fruit" that is pleasing.

here is the flipside though: a few chapters later, joshua addresses isreal and gives the famous "choose you now this day whom you will serve..." but that isn't the whole story. when the leaders of isreal say that they too will serve the Lord, joshua warns them that if they commit to following the Lord, that He will hold them to it, and He is a jealous God, desiring all of who they are. that there are stiff consequences and responsibilities to committing to follow the Lord.

so this following comes at a price, but the reward?

i make my stand, i give up my heart (daily, sometimes hourly) and desire the ripest of fruit God can offer in my life.

clean

"wash me and i will be whiter than snow."

it is amazing how dirty our hearts can be. i have found, and keep finding areas within me that are just plain bitter, mean, and angry. just when i give something over to God to cleanse and make whole, another area reveals itself.

but what is amazing is that God just keeps taking it, when I give it up to Him, he washes me and makes that part new. 

so as i wait for this whole thing to do what God wants it to, i keep getting cleansed, i keep getting  reminded why it is so important for people to share God's story in their lives. 

when we tell of God's forgiveness, His power, we are giving Him glory. and that is what we were created for. we weren't created for us, we were created for Him.

that is what excites me about this whole thing.

launched

a temporary website has been launched. it is tied in with my business site.

you can see it here:

www.phillippalacios.com/a_bold_stand.html

please all continue to pray that more and more people would feel led to do this thing.

and that God's timing would prevail.

i feel the urge to tell everyone about it, but i then feel that "not yet" within me. like this thing has to grow on it's on accord, not on mine.

lets go.

it is time for me to finally share with all two readers of this blog what this is all about

"my name is _______ and I am a transformed follower of Jesus Christ."

God has put on my heart a vision to expand the reach of these transformation stories. as people are willing, film their stories in a complete, unbroken "take," and place it a yet-to-be-built website. this website would be absolutely free, visitors would be able to view the films online, download them in HD, listen to just the audio, or read a transcript of them. they could use them in Church gatherings, small groups, Bible studies, wherever. the only copyright placed on them would be that the viewers gauge if God is leading them to take "a bold stand" and profess to the world who they are, and who they strive to follow.

as for the actual films themselves, like i stated before, i would attempt to leave them unedited, even in the case of slight mess-ups. there are many reasons for this but the most prominent in my mind is that the story of God's provision, healing, and struggles in someone's life is in itself more powerful than an emotional piece of music that is playing underneath their words, or brilliantly placed b-roll footage. this is all very similar to using white letters on a black screen for worship music at Crossroads Bible Church gatherings: no frills, no manipulating emotions.

Simple. Restful. Real.

this isn't to say i just turn on a camera and say, "go." i still use all the talents that God has entrusted me with. I light, record sound, frame the camera, and everything else as best i can.

i hope to have at least one person a week willing to be filmed, so as you read this and think of your own story, or as you talk with someone who has a story that you feel is important to share, pray over whether God is leading you to take a bold stand and tell the world that you are done flirting with faith.

check it out:

www.phillippalacios.com/abs/ABS1.wmv

beginnings

this is now where it begins to get interesting.

with the very first step "in the can" there is so much to pray about:

how much scoring (music) to put to it, if any.

how much cutting (editing) to do to this story, if any.

because if i follow what i have learned, i won't cut, and i won't score. it will be a raw, untouched testimony of God's love.

unconventional, unpolished.

"simple, restful, real"