Community

After getting back to the basics, there is definitely a need for a community of believers in your life. It gives you encouragement, love, care, and support in your life that is an absolute need in your own walk in faith. Sometimes we lose track of how important fellowship in a body of believers is. Illustrations of this are Hurricane Katrina and 9/11. What happened after these events happened? There was encouragement, support, care, and love given to the survivors of these tragic events. People helped others out in their time of need. See when I think of community I think of groups of houses. Well think of each believer as their own house. Each person might struggle with something such as hurt in the family, relationships, pain, sorrow that may tear at the house (person). The greatest thing with a community of believers though is that you will have people standing outside your house ready to encourage you and build you back up in your life. They are ready to take you and love, care, and support you to get back on your feet. This is so awesome that you can be prayed for, encouraged, loved, and cared about in the good times and the bad. Its so awesome! So I encourage each and everyone one of you that a community of believers is a must need in your life! I want to make sure in my life I always surround myself with this community so I feel I am not fighting this good fight alone. We all cannot do this alone the body is a unit. (1 Corinthians 12:12). If you want to see how this community is represented in the bible just read Acts 2:42-47. The people learned together and grew together as a community rather than alone. It is an awesome sight to see when this is truly lived out! I hope you enjoyed this little blog and I hope you have a great rest of the week! Keep allowing God do work in your life and continue to listen and be open to his plan! One Love!

Mike Kozlowski
One Love Ministries

Back to the Basics!

WOW its been forever since i last blogged and so much has happened!!! Im now in my second year of college and it's getting all but easier. I was blessed this summer with an intern position at the church and it really set a fire in my heart to work with youth and to do what i can to change the way the youth of today think. One Love is about living out the love of Christ!!! So i had been so busy thinking about ways to improve the youth group and ways to make other things better that i totally lost sight of what sparked me to want to be in ministry in the first place... the kids and seeing God do work! God is a big God and knows all and sees all and its just hard to think about people that dont believe there is a God.... Evolution? i mean really.... monkeys? well how'd they get here?.. bacteria....c'mon! howd that come about! it had to start somewhere!! God is the only answer to any and all questions you may have! But back to what i was saying (srry for the wild tangent i just get so worked up!) ha ha I was losing sight of what i really fell in love with. So i have dedicated this month to getting back to the basics. spending time on relationships, and spending more time in prayer and in the word, and just loving on kids and asking God about the future! I've been blessed already in the few days i've spent digging in, and im starting to get some guidance and wisdom beyond my years in where i feel i need to go and where i should be stepping up. I may be 19 but i got God backing me up! there is nothing that man can do to me! (Heb 13:6...my fav. verse by the way!) so live out LOUD!!!! and live Large! think BIG! and lean on God!!! Anything it possible! So i just want to encourage to get back to your first love and the basics that set you up for success!

One Love!!

Cam

The Golden Days

Do you remember the days where you were just a little kid and just jumped around, spun around, and didnt care what other people thought? Tonight at VBS I was just in awe of how these kids were all praising God! It was so awesome. I am guilty of this but we tend to think too much about praising instead of just doing what God lays on our heart. Those kids didnt think they just did it! That touched the heart of me and I want to encourage all of you to look back on the youth and praise like you dont care! Lay down every little thought of what kinda song it is or what kinda music it is and just jump up and down and praise God! Its so awesome how little things can encourage us in our walk! In mine tonight was preschoolers through 5th graders! Oh how God loves his children! Lets go back to the childhood days and praise like we dont care whats going on in our lives, but just listen to God in our hearts and let the little kid come out in us to praise!

One Love

Thrivestylin Crew!

Hey whats up guys and of course the ladies it has been an awesome summer so far and I hope all of you are enjoying every bit of it! The weather has been nice and I hope at least you all got some chill vacation time! Here in the summer though we are starting what is called Thrivestylin Thursdays! These are the days that you can come in to room 201 at Steele Creek Church of Charlotte and just get to know one another. Also it is a chill time where you can talk and snack on food and drinks while just starting conversations. We will have music and games and many other activities throughout the summer and into the fall! So if you feel like coming out myself, Cam and Beth would love to have you out at Steele Creek for a night of fun! Thanks for everything you guys and do and remember to always Do Hard Things!

Matthew 22:37

Michael Kozlowski
Thrive Student Ministry

A sight into an African Village

What a reality God brought on the youth that went to Mission Reality Weekend! Only but a glimpse and taste of what the African Refugee Camps are all about. The Thrive youth students started out at the church to watch a video, but really came out after watching the video with no bags, no shoes, and no cell phones! They were bombarded with smoke and firecrackers and only a bus that stood in front of them! They all hopped on the bus to head to a reality that only the leaders knew about. From there on once they got to the camp, much of themselves started to be broken down. The next 16 hours or so, kids started realizing how the refugees had it so hard and we here in America have been so blessed. Youth had to fetch their own water, were only served one meal over the 24 hours and had nothing but a tarp to sleep on! Bugs were everywhere, there were no bathrooms, and boredom beyond their imagination happened as well. From this though a greater image was brought out in the fact that these kids realized what they had and the broken hearts that were across the Atlantic Ocean in Africa. Thankfulness rose from the kids hearts as the sudden realization of a bed at home, food to eat, and family to love on them.

See there is more to life than the greatest treasures here on Earth. It may take a huge reality weekend to realize that, but we as youth need to be more aware of what really is going on amongst the other nations in the world. Jesus Christ loves everyone even those kids in Africa the same. It does not take the life of luxury to gain more approval from Jesus. Christ loves everyone and only wants to capture your heart. Let him lead your life and he will give an abundance beyond your imagination! "What does it profit a man to gain the whole world but lose his soul?" Next time you are in your quiet place or have a moment to just stop and think from everyday life, remind yourself of that comment. If you gain the whole world and lose your soul, what will it profit you? I think to gain the whole love of Jesus Christ and gain your soul profits you eternal life! He loves each and everyone of you! Seek and believe!

One Love Productions Crew

Start of the Summer

I just want to shout out to the youth at Steele Creek for all the work they have done this summer so far for Thrive on Mission! You are all serving well and glorifying God through service of your own backyard! Mission trips are fun, most of them are all outside the state and in different countries, but thrive students are helping the community surrounding them. The charlotte area is deeply blessed by your ministry and continue to thrive throughout the summer! We also want to take time to pray for those students in other areas of the world doing the same thing we are doing! We want to pray and keep in mind the other youth groups serving in other countries as well as around their communities as well. The thrive team is definitely blessed with the youth at Steele Creek and are seeing the change drawn out from these two weeks in the summer. Thanks for all you do and thank you God for all you have provided us with! Jesus you are the ultimate provider and the ultimate healer! We glorify you all our days!

Michael Kozlowski
One Love Productions

"I steadfastly refuse to gratify the devil by becoming discouraged"

Prayer!

What is up One Love Nation?! I hope you guys are doing well and I just wanted to just encourage all of you to keep pressing on through the last weeks of school! Do Hard Things and finish up strong! I know school is not the favorite thing to do, but you gotta do what you gotta do period. Anyways I havent blogged in a while and just wanted to ask you guys for any prayer requests going on? We love praying and seeing the miraculous things God is doing in your lives! So if you are going through some stuff let us know and we will be in prayer for you! Also be on the look out for summer and continue in prayer because One Love Productions is getting more and more out there now that us as a team are done practically with school! haha. Well guys continue to press into the word and continue to Thrive for God!

Matthew 22:37

Michael Kozlowski
One Love Productions

Abandon...

This past weekend me and mike went to help lead a taught at the Abandon retreat for our church. It was an amazing and eventful weekend; and not to mention tireing. God is great at every moment! Well, we were up in the mountains and as if thats not a place to be awestruck enough by God, he truly showed up. We talked about abandoning thing that hinder us from truly being those sold out christians and the crew that rises up and reps the Lord through all they do. Mike talked about abandoning your past which is a huge issue with todays youth. Some feel that they cant move on because of where they have been or what they have done and that couldnt be farther from the truth that God tells us. The the past is called the past for a reason... IT'S BEHIND US!!! Live in the NOW!! One you repent God takes all the big nasty past you lug around with you all the time and DESTROYS IT!! actually he destroyed that on the cross some thousands of years ago (..go ahead and let that sink in...) He was thinking of you when he was praying so hard not to have to go to the cross he was bleeding... he was thinking about you when he took that beating, one so bad he couldnt even be recognized after... he was thinking of you when he died on that cross (where he took your past and bled for it he was the ultimate sacrifice to destroy all sin!! and all PAST!! so give it us an let it go!! Rise up to be the men and women of God he has called us all to be..
I taught about fear! Fear has a way to grip and cripple us through life, it keeps us from doing the BIG things that we know we could do. YOUNG PEOPLE CAN CHANGE THE WORLD!!!!! ( yell it out) I can CHANGE the WORLD!! yeah i said it the entire WORLD!!! it just takes the rising up of a FEARLESS and POWERFUL generation of JESUS FREAKS!!! tell the devil to BRING IT ON! bc we are well equipped and ready to roll, ready to knock that sucka out. BUT beware you better be prepared know what you believe and believe what you know. Equip your self in a way that you're going to battle. train hard, be strong!! Fear is all in your head, God cast out fear with his perfect love as we live in him.
Picture us the young generation rising to take the world for Jesus!! Powerful.. now take that picture and make it REALITY!! Who is gonna stop you? Devil? no Jesus already conquered him. Fear? That is not of God, his perfect love cast it out. The world and man? Hebrews 13-4. yeah dont think so! Death? Jesus conquered that too!! Whats holding you back? what do you need to abandon???


One Love!
Cam

HOW GREAT IS OUR GOD?

I went to Charleston, SC, this past week for spring break to visit family there. On the way there i was watching Louie Giglios How Great Is Our God sermon. and i was really sitting there in deep thought about how great God really is.
While i was watching this an SUV up in front of us tire blew out and it began flipping across the interstate at 80mph. The SUV went airborne and as soon as it did my mom screamed out JESUS HOLD THEM. The SUV hit a tree about 12ft in the air and came crashing down below. The SUV looked like a crushed soda can, the front axle of the car came completely off and every single window was shattered. We pulled over and me and my dad ran down to the crash site. i remember thinking as i was running "Lord why did this happen? theres no way anyone could survive this." i was expecting to go down there to see dead bodies, the wreck was that bad.

My dad and I and some other men ran down and saw a man inside with his left arm and leg out of the drivers window, underneath the car which had fallen on its side. He kept saying "my arm, my arm," so we lifted up the SUV and a man dug under his arm and we got it out. His leg was to far and we couldn't flip the SUV without fear of hurting him so we decided to wait for rescue. Just looking at him i knew it was God holding him. I felt Gods presence and so i crawled into the front windsheild and talked with him and prayed with him until rescue came, his name is Jason. The whole time i was praying he was starring at me with tears in his eyes. It was a powerful moment for me and God had proved himself great and how mighty he is.
We had to leave because a helicopter was coming and we had to move the car, so I'm not sure what happened to Jason. But I know God protected him and hes going to be ok.


After that my friend called me and said that last week when we led worship at ONE7, there was a drunk man walking around in the parking lot. He was drawn to the worship music and came over to see what was going on. One of the leaders talked with him for 2 hours and the man hung out with them and talked everyday this past week. He got saved and has been sober for a week! this blessed me to know that God has placed me and the band exactly where he wants us to be used for HIS glory.

As you can tell, GOD IS GREAT.



Keep trusting Him, He WILL use you.



ONE LOVE

Josh Gomez
One Love Productions

TRUST

Its amazing how when we trust God and obey him, everything else falls into place. The last two years of my life has been a bumpy road but God always reveals himself as long as I put all my trust in him. This will be a short blog, but I just wanted to post on how faithful our God really is and all we have to do..is TRUST him.

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understandings."-Proverbs 3:5


ONE LOVE!


Josh Gomez

Romans 12:2

(2) Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

Stand against all that crap the world is throwing at you. Make the stand for Christ!! Making the stand will make all evil clear and blatant in your eyes! Take the step and stand up for what you believe! KNOW WHAT YOU BELIEVE AND BELIEVE WHAT YOU KNOW!! One Love!

We must Prepare the way for the Lord!

Hey One Love Nation! As this blog continues to grow we love just hearing from different people about the many things God is doing in their lives....this blog that you are about to read is from one of our good friends Stephen Kawakami. I hope you enjoy this as much as it has blessed us. He is talking about Lee and Cleveland Tennessee, but I want you to read this because it applies to everyone. The generation of this world it applies to! Lets prepare the way for the Lord! One Love!


I was reading Joshua chapter 1 tonight and God showed me something...

1 After the death of Moses the servant of the LORD, the LORD said to Joshua son of Nun, Moses' aide: 2 "Moses my servant is dead. Now then, you and all these people, get ready to cross the Jordan River into the land I am about to give to them—to the Israelites. 3 I will give you every place where you set your foot, as I promised Moses. 4 Your territory will extend from the desert to Lebanon, and from the great river, the Euphrates—all the Hittite country—to the Great Sea [a] on the west. 5 No one will be able to stand up against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you.

6 "Be strong and courageous, because you will lead these people to inherit the land I swore to their forefathers to give them. 7 Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go. 8 Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. 9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go."

10 So Joshua ordered the officers of the people: 11 "Go through the camp and tell the people, 'Get your supplies ready. Three days from now you will cross the Jordan here to go in and take possession of the land the LORD your God is giving you for your own.' "

Basically, the Israelites had been in wilderness for 40 years and they seemed to be content with where they were because they didn't want to do what was required to obtain the Promise Land. Moses died and Joshua is now in charge of the Israelites. Naturally, Joshua seems to be a little timid in accepting this role, but the Lord assures Joshua that He will be with him wherever he goes and the He will never leave him or forsake him. So then Joshua tells the people to get ready to cross the Jordan River in 3 days.

I feel like this is where we are now. The seniors are graduating in a month or so and most of our leaders are leaving and it is up to us to step up and take their leadership roles.

I know that God has promised a whole lot of things to Lee and Cleveland that have not happened yet. I think it is partly because we are not prepared and we are not doing the things required to obtain the promises. Just like the Israelites, we are settling and being content with where we are(the wilderness) when we could just put some effort into our relationship with God and obtain the things that God has promised for us.

I believe that God is raising up a Joshua generation that won’t be content with where they are and they won't be content with the unfulfilled promises that God has given them.

No longer will an unfulfilled promise go by this class at Lee. No longer will we be content. No longer will we settle for the ordinary or the good or even the great. It is time to strive for the promises that God has given us. Everything that God had given to Lee will come to fruition by the time that we graduate. Let nothing pass us by because we were not ready for it. It is time to step up and do what is necessary to receive what God has given us.

WE MUST PREPARE THE WAY OF THE LORD!