#1 The Beginning of a Spiritual Journey for American Indians and All

1 Corinthians 2:2 Says, For I resolved to nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. 

I was serving on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota as a pastor and I had good times and bad times as it is the front line of Spiritual warfare.  When I was a teenager I would see the green glass in the alleys where many people use to drink Gibson’s Muscatel or what we called the “Green Lizard” and people drank lots of bottles.  At the end of my time there on the Pine Ridge the wine was changed to beer or malt liquor and now White Clay is closed and people have to drive further to get their drinks.  People are putting Vodka in water bottles and drinking right in the streets and Meth is rampant and I have come to the place in my life where I finally understand why our Lakota people call it Iktomni or the trickster.  Nothing will satisfy you like the Creator and I believe it is time to seek Jesus and figure out what his sacrifice means to the Lakota people. 

                I remember Louie Good Buffalo he would wail walking on Highway 18 and Louie had a great friend, his name is Leon Little Moon and when I read and heard Louie’s story I realized that it was Leon who just loved on him and was his greatest friend.  I believe we need more stories like this in our lives.  I have seen the depths of the world and I did not hit rock bottom but I realize I need to return to my favorite verse.  The apostle Paul was first named Saul of Tarsus and later after meeting Jesus on the road to Damascus and was blinded by the Jesus being Wankan or Sacred.   Paul went on to become the greatest messenger for God.  He was shipwrecked, beaten, ridiculed and eventually jailed.  But he never stopped believing Jesus was the meaning of life. 

Paul was a Jewish man and yet he came from Tarsus so he was able to be a Roman Citizen.  I think my life is similar in that I am a Lakota man and I was born in Los Angeles and grew up in Denver.  I moved to my home Reservation when I was fourteen just two years after I gave my life to Jesus in the Black Forest of Colorado.  I started attending church in Pine Ridge my first year and was able to sit and listen to a great Bible teacher and I listened every time the church doors opened.  I would later attend Crown College and study Christian Ministries and Philosophy.  I enjoyed learning and it was hard because I had a young family.  Crown College is located west of Minneapolis near Minnetonka, which is a very affluent suburb and I started working while going to college.  I was able to get a job at a grocery store and I liked being there and working over nights so I could attend school during the day.  The owner eventually approached me to stay on with the store and raise my children but God was calling me back to the Reservation and the poverty and wealth of these two places were exact opposite.  I would return to the Reservation and worked there for 19 years.  I believe God allowed me to experience the world and now I am seeking to follow Jesus where ever he leads me.  Passion is a powerful weapon when you have the Creator on your side. 

                My life has had many struggles and I know you have as well and I believe what my good friend told me, “God is in the business of Redemption!”  I actually understand this statement because nothing satisfies like God.  I wanted to share my favorite verse with you and I have many others and will begin writing a devotional book and this is the first story.  I hope you get to read the stories and all of the messages God has for us.  I was blessed to spend some time with a friend this past week and then I went to a Jewish memorial service and heard a Baptist preacher bring the message and then the end was really cool because I heard a lady sing a Lakota healing song and I thought she did a great job.  It was a great day but long and I am getting ready to go into surgery tomorrow so I will be writing.  I will not even be able to cook meals at home.  So I think I should probable go to the store tonight and pick up some easy meals to prepare.  In the words of Ron Hutchcraft, Go MAD or go make a difference!