January 28, 2009

"The King's Secret" is going to print in mid-February 2009! I’m so pumped about this book! You can get your copy at www.amanirecords.com as soon as it's available. It'll also be available on www.amazon.com.

This book is about a young bitter orphan girl named Jane of Aldengate whose life is transformed by a series of events that occur in the Land of Aletheia. The story is really a long parable about the love of God, the sacrifice of Christ, and the transforming power of the gospel. I wrote the book to help young people understand the truths of God's grace, who they are in Christ, and how truth can transform. I especially envision this book being useful for parents to read to their children (ages 8-12). It has discussion questions at the end of every chapter to help drive home the lessons. Read the book and learn the king’s secret!!

Stay tuned! It'll be ready soon!

Derek Joseph Levendusky

October 8, 2008

Letters From Uganda

The following is some correspondence we had with church leaders in Uganda after our time there. Thought you’d be encouraged to see it. —Derek J

Dear Isaiah Six,

The entire youth fraternity of Kawanda Elim church with to extend their grateful thanks to you for the inspiring conference held at Kawanda. I t was so owe some and indeed it was a landmark in the life of the youth. A lot was learnt among them include “The heart if God, Being a seeking heart, The love of God as the creator”. This was a timely and season word to people and in a country where the love of fathers is not common. The youth also wish to share some of the challenges the youth face in Uganda Elim church to you. For instance, unemployment thus low income, school dues to those in schools. This has made the work of God to lag behind to the extent that some youth cant afford to buy a bible. It is our prayer that the Almighty God and the holy spirit may lead you to come back to Uganda and be a blessing to us. May the Almighty God anoint you more.

Muzzanganda John Sanyu Justine
Chairperson Secretary for Youth



My dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

Thank you so much for the kind and encouraging letter you sent to us. I believe that we were as blessed in going to Uganda as you were in receiving us. We are so thankful that the Word of the Father heart of God was so well received by the youth.

In the midst of our coming, we really sensed that the Holy Spirit put on us the spirit of adoption for your people as a ministry. To us this means that our work among you has only begun. We hope to return to you again soon. When we come, we will ask God to continue to "open the eyes of your hearts that you might know the hope of your calling and the riches of His inheritance in the saints" (Ephesians 1:18).

Please pray for us as we are praying for you.

Be strong in Christ today!

Derek Joseph Levendusky
director, Isaiah Six

September 8, 2008

ANGELS IN UGANDA: TRIP UPDATE

The Father Heart Of God

“When I became a Christian, my father abandoned me,” explained Susan Muwanguzi, the young Ugandan woman that attended the National Youth Conference in Kawanda, Uganda. It was there that we led worship, and I taught on the Father heart of God. Susan, in her gentle and quiet African way, began to weep as she continued, “What you have taught us about the Father heart of God has changed my life forever. I will never forget you!”

Her story was typical in Uganda, as many thousands face a fatherless existence. For some, like Susan, it is because they’ve been disowned by parents after turning to the faith. For others, AIDS has taken away “Mummy and Daddy”; others are merely the symptoms of poverty, and still others the sad orphans of a generation of fathers that was crushed by Idi Amin’s regime.

What do you say to such a broken people?

“God has a seeking heart,” I taught them. “He is a Father that pursued you to a cross, and He longs for us to come to Him as children.”

Pastor George Nsamba said, “We have never heard words like this in Uganda. This is what our nation needs!”

Everywhere we went, I preached this message, and God visited us with transformed hearts, and with signs and wonders. We saw salvations, healings, and those who were oppressed by the devil set free. During the youth conference, we began to pray for the sick during worship, and one youth leader was healed of a chronic intestinal disease that had plagued him with pain for several years. Another young woman had a vision of Christ that was so intense that she crawled on her hands and knees through the chairs in the sanctuary, weeping hysterically until she reached the altar, where she clung to the feet of Pastor Nsamba.

WATER IN THE VILLAGES
As our vehicle pulled onto the church property in the village of Jinja, our first water tank site, you would think the president of the United States were arriving! Dozens of children ran toward us from every direction, and church members gathered in thankfulness. “Many have died in this village because they have been drinking out of the swamps,” explained the local pastor. “This water tank is a great blessing!”

Such was the scene in Mityana as well, the second village where we placed a water tank through the Ugandan Water Project. People gathered from everywhere in celebration, and I preached on John 7:37: “If any man is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink.”

We are thrilled to see these scenes repeated hundreds of times over the next few years as we continue to supply water tanks for the poor villagers of Uganda.

SICKNESS ON OUR TEAM
We did our best to avoid anything that would make us sick, but after a few days, James Harrington fell ill. James was completely bedridden for one day, and then continued to minister in weakness. He’s still not 100%, though much better, and recovering here in the United States.

On our final night in Uganda, there was a pounding on my door at 3:10am. It was Dara, my daughter Gracie’s roommate at our guest house. “Come quickly!” she said. “There’s something wrong with Gracie!”

I walked into the room to find my daughter doubled over in severe pain, hysterical with fear. As a father, looking at my sick child in a third world country in the middle of the night, fear certainly tried to consume me as well. Instead, we gathered the whole team and began to pray for Grace. What a miracle of God’s presence we saw in that moment! A spirit of peace came on Grace, and she began to worship, saying, “Jesus, I thank you that You are with me.”

I opened the Scriptures right to a passage in Isaiah where God said, “I am with You and will not forsake you.” This was the exact message (“I Am With You”) I had preached the day before and it was fresh on our hearts. Pastor Nsamba and his wife Beatrice came, and we took Gracie to a hospital in Kampala. Her doctor’s name? Dr. Emmanuel. “Emmanuel,” of course, means “God with us.”

Gracie received painkillers, and was diagnosed with food poisoning. She vomited, and we could tell it was something she’d eaten in a village. Though she was weak for several days, she was strong by the time we arrived home.

THEY CHANGED US
Honestly, it can be a greater culture shock to return to the United States than it can be to leave the United States. The affluence, convenience, and abundance that exists here in the U.S. is a shocking parallel world to the poverty and sorrow that exists in a third world country like Uganda. Even the purity in the believers there stands in contrast to the often shallow experience of American Christians. Meeting a people that have suffered so greatly, that live in such simplicity uncontaminated by the trappings of American culture and materialism, was strangely refreshing.

I believe I speak for the whole team when I say that they changed us more than we changed them. I believe we encountered “angels unaware” and were ministered to by the purity of their love and faith. I’m glad we were able to bless them, but it is they who blessed us. Most days were spent by our team in tears. At any given time, it seems, I could find an eye around me that was moist. What were we seeing in this hidden corner of the world? Something rare and something special. We were seeing the miracle of pure love, having been refined by fire, given to us without a price and without fanfare. May we never forget.

We have adopted this nation and this people into our hearts. We hope it is the beginning of many more great things for Uganda.

-Derek Joseph

August 28, 2008

Uganda Update _1

We have been in Uganda for a few days now and are having an amazing time! We are on day 2 of a 3-day national youth conference, and God is moving powerfully among those attending. I am teaching a series called "All of Grace." This is a teaching series I developed to teach God's grace, the Father's love, and bring an understanding to believers of who they are in Christ. Yesterday, Pastor George Nsamba, the director of the conference, said, "We have never heard a message like this and this is exactly what our country needs!"

We also had a worship concert last night, and it is awesome to see how much the Ugandans love our music and love to worship with us. Gracie (my daughter) was a huge hit too as she shared some of her music. Today we'll be continuing this ministry. We'll also be doing a village outreach, and inviting the area to our worship concert where we'll share the gospel with them.

We also saw the first two tanks we purchased for The Ugandan Water Project, and look forward to seeing them put into two different villages in a few days! I met the pastor of one of the village churches where one of the tanks will be put in, and he said the whole village is anticipating our arrival. One of the water tanks will supply water not only for a village, but a school, where we were told, "Up until now, the children have not had water all day at this school."

Our team is being hugely impacted. We are especially moved with compassion for the scores of children that love to mob us and be entertained by our cameras and white skin. We brought many gifts for them, which they are so blessed by.

Will update you again soon! Thanks for your prayers and support of what we're doing out here! God is moving and doing great things!

-- Derek Joseph

August 19, 2008

Leaving For Uganda

That's me and my boy Reese with the Spidey tattoos we got on our dad-son outing. Anyway...

Hey all! It's been a while but I've got lots of good excuses. The first one being the birth of my daughter Audrey! She's a little doll and we're all blessed to have her. This kind of doll, by the way, keeps you up at night.
Heidi's doing well, and happy not to have a bowling ball attached to her abdomen. ;)

Had an amazing time of worship at my local church yesterday (Elim Gospel Church). I wasn't feeling on my game to be honest, but God totally took over. We sang the song "Whisper His Name" by Jonathan Stockstill and it was like God became the worship leader, not me. I love when I become invisible as the worship leader. That's really my job. I welcomed the congregation to the altar for "an offering of worship" and the people streamed to the front. I don't know all that God was doing, but it was one of those "can't leave the same" experiences. On a funny note...in the second service we were supposed to be done at 11:10am, and I went a little over with the last song. It was 11:12am. I never told Preston to cut the last song though, and he slammed his kick drum into the "Dancing Generation" pattern, and away we went. I glanced at my pastors and they seemed cool with it. Glad we did it, because I've never seen my church explode in dancing before the Lord like that!

Hard to believe that we'll be in Uganda one week from now. It's going to be an amazing trip. We're almost there with funds needed for the trip, but we did have two separate checks come in to fund the installation of the first two water tanks in the Ugandan villages! We're going to film a promo video for our new Ugandan Water Project while we're in Uganda and now we get to show you two of those tanks actually being installed!

We're going to do a lot of concert ministry, worship ministry, speaking ministry, and evangelism too. Keep us in prayer! I'm pumped about my daughter Gracie coming along. It's going to be life-shaping for her. Quite honestly, I was a little nervous at first about bringing her to a tough place like Africa, but the Lord spoke to me a few times about it, giving me faith to do it. I remember what a young missionary told his mother once: "Mom, I'm safer in a ship in the sea in the will of God than on your living room sofa out of the will of God." Amen.

This week will be a flurry of activity trying to wrap up things at home before we go, making sure the ministry is in order, finishing my curriculum for a course I'm teaching this fall at Elim Bible Institute, spending lots of time with the kids, and getting our backs packed with all necessities. We'll be posting trip updates at www.isaiahsix.com and you can see what's happening there while we're gone.

One more thing...I just posted a new video on my myspace site with a Prophets & Princes theme. Hope it encourages you. www.myspace.com/derekjosephlevendusky

See you on the flip side!

-Derek Joseph

August 5, 2008

It's A Girl!

July 28, 2008

Scared Nation

July 23, 2008

Faith That Shocked Jesus

"When Jesus heard these things, He marveled at him, and turned around and said to the crowd that followed him, 'I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel.'" (Luke 7:9)

What is faith? It's a pretty mysterious term, and is often defined in different ways by different people. For most, it conjures up warm fuzzy feelings of good days in life, believing the future looks bright. In America, religious and non-religious people both throw the term around with phrases like, "Keep the faith!" But what is it, really?

In Luke 7, if you read the whole passage (Luke 7:1-10), a Roman centurion (a leader of soldiers) sends along some messengers to Jesus requesting a miraculous healing for his beloved servant. Something happens in this story that so amazes Jesus, He hits the pause button on life for a moment, just to draw the attention of the crowds to this man's faith. He makes it a classroom, using this man's faith as a lesson for everyone.

What shocked Jesus so much about this man's faith?

Contrary to what so many believe about faith, it it not a noun. Faith is a verb...an action word. This story teaches us that. Jesus was impressed with this man's faith because the man did not sit idly wondering why God wasn't doing something. His faith caused him to take action, believing that God could do anything if he would simply do his part.

This is why Paul said "faith is the evidence of things unseen" (Hebrews 11:1)...because faith looks like something. It is more understood by what it looks like than by what it feels like. It looks like action. One of my favorite sayings is, "Fear looks. Faith jumps."

So many say they have faith, but will not "jump"...they will not obey what the Lord is telling them to do, or trust Him enough to take the steps they're being asked to take. This is not what faith acts like. I've found that on my worst day, when I feel completely unspiritual, I can still live by faith because it's more about how I'm acting than what I'm feeling.

If faith is just a feeling to you, you walk on dangerous ground. Because now, what you believe will not guide and govern you, but your feelings become your Lord. Beware of living this way! It never leads you down the right path.

The other thing that amazed Jesus was that the centurion knew that faith needed an object; but not any object...the right object! So many have "faith" but the object of their faith does not produce what it promises. When I was a young boy, I once bought a pair of Reebok sneakers when they were hot, thinking they'd make me a better basketball player. Boy was I wrong.

I had "faith" but the object of my faith did not produce for me that which it promised. So then, "faith" alone is not enough...you need to have the right object. The only object of faith that will truly cause the life of God to flow into you is Jesus Christ and His work on the cross. The centurion understood this. He not only knew his faith needed action, but His faith needed to go to the right place to look for the miracle. He knew it was Jesus Christ.

Where do you go? What do you trust in?

Is your trust in your feelings? Is it in your performance? Your rituals? If it does not lie in the power of Jesus Christ, you'll find nothing, and your faith is useless.

Finally, Jesus was shocked probably because this man was non-Jewish. This was important in those days because the Jews alone were considered to be "God's people." Until Jesus the Messiah came, Israel was pretty convinced that the Messiah would be for the Jews only, but Jesus taught us that He came for all people. This Roman centurion (a tough Italian dude), went against the grain of common thinking, and believed Jesus would accept His request anyway because of His humble faith.

Jesus will accept you too if you come to Him, even if you've never come before, or prayed before. Just believe that He will receive you, and let your faith give you wings. Who knows if your faith will shock Jesus again!

-Derek Joseph

July 14, 2008

Derek Hospitalized

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.

In all your ways acknowledge Him
and he will make your paths straight." (Proverbs 3:5-6)

Quite an interesting week for my family!

Last Tuesday, I started experiencing abdominal pain, by Wednesday night I was feverish, and by Thursday I had severe pains in my lower left side. It was difficult to walk or even move as I was doubled-over in pain. After consulting our family physician, Heidi rushed me to the ER, where they put me on morphine, and ran a series of tests, including Cat Scan, X-Rays, blood and urine tests. They determined that I had "diverticulitis." This is the swelling of the large intestine, and is only brought on by a pre-existing condition called "diverticulosis." Diverticulosis, normally found in older men, is the existence of small pockets in the intestine. When an irritant like a seed gets stuck in one of these pockets, the result is inflammation, swelling, stoppage, fever, and pain.

I was admitted to the hospital for three days, where they fed me antibiotics, pain killers, and fluids through an IV. I gradually began to feel better, and they finally released me today. I still have some pain and discomfort, which the doctor said I should expect for the next week as the antibiotics I'll be taking orally continue to do their work.

Having diverticulosis will also require a diet change for me. I'll have to eliminate seeds, raw vegetables, grains, and some other foods which might cause a relapse of diverticulitis.

Thanks for all your love and prayers. God is sovereign and God is good.

As you know, earlier, this year, I endured a ruptured vocal cord and six weeks of silence. We're expecting a baby in less than three weeks, too! It really has been a tough year for my family for a lot of reasons, but through it all, my faith hasn't failed. Our faith hasn't failed. We have remembered God's Word. Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding...

I hope our confidence through our trials can give you confidence in yours. God is a faithful Father.

Derek Joseph

June 27,2008

Look in the Mirror

“For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror; for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was.” (James 1:23-24)

If you think about it, human mirrors are not accurate. In fact, they are the exact opposite of reality. Everything is in reverse. If you part your hair on the left, it looks like it’s on the right. If you have a dimple on the right, it looks like it’s on the left.

God’s mirror is different. It is a perfect representation of reality. What is God’s mirror? In the above verse, God illustrates His Word as a mirror, saying that the one who looks at it, and does not live by it is like the one who looks in a mirror and forgets what he looks like.

Isn’t that interesting? Do you the effect the Word is supposed to have on you? It is not merely obedience to laws, but actually shows you who you are. So many read the Bible as a rulebook. Others hate the Bible for the same reason. But here God says that though obedience or “doing” is the fruit of the Word, the Word is not about laws but it’s about identity. It’s not about understanding what to do, but who to be. It’s a mirror. You look at it to see what you look like. And if we will learn who we are, we will begin to do. We will live differently!

It’s like Clark Kent, when his father and mother took him in the barn, and showed him the rocket that he came to earth in. He finally learned that he was the son of another world with special powers and privileges. That’s when Clark Kent became SupermanЊwhen he learned who he was.

So we should look in the Word and see, “Wow, God sees me differently than I see myself. I am chosen and loved. I am a child of God; royalty of the highest order!”

If we do so, and forget, then princes begin to live like paupers. Now it makes sense why Paul said, “I implore you to walk in a manner worthy of your calling” (Ephesians 4:1). When we know who we areЊwhat we look likeЊwe live out that identity.

Picture with me the coach of the New York Giants, who won the Superbowl in February. Imagine halftime of a tough game next year, if and when the Giants are playing less than their potential. Picture the coach standing before his discouraged team, saying, “You are the world champions! Now get out there and play like the greatest team in the NFL!” What’s he doing? He’s holding up a mirror, and reminding them of who they are, knowing that if they’ll remember that fact, they’ll play like it.

I know a guy that was the third generation son of some great missionaries. This person began to make some extremely stupid decisions, and his pastor sat him down and said, “I knew you grandfather. He was a great man. I knew your father. He was also a great man.”

The young man nodded, and the pastor paused for a moment. Then he leaned into this young rebel and said, “What happened to you?”

This is tough love, but what was he doing? He was holding up a mirror, reminding the young man of who he was.

I went through a tough season of discouragement a few years back, and I sensed the Lord wanted me to write down who I am. I broke it down to six things the Word tells me about who I am, printed it out, framed it, and put it where I could see it every day for the next two years. It often encouraged me when I faced future battles with discouragement.

So I want to hold up the mirror right now and ask you: Who are you? According to the Word of God, if you’ve believed in Jesus Christ, you are God’s child (1 John 3:1). So how does a prince act? How does a princess conduct herself? Take a long hard look today, my brothers and sisters, and see how your stride, your countenance and your heart will change when you look in the mirror.

-Derek Joseph

June 2, 2008

Can I Be Honest With God

"Oh God, why hast thou fosaken us forever?"
-Asaph, worship leader in Israel (Psalm 74:1)

Wow. Now that is a warped sense of reality. Did God really forsake Asaph and Israel forever? Of course not! Then, if Asaph's complaint isn't true, why is it in the Bible? I thought the Bible is all true! It is true in this sense...Asaph is being honest with God about how he feels. Asaph is being real.

Can I be honest with God?

I used to think that if I was honest with God, that He'd get mad at me. When I listened to the ultra-faith message, I felt even worse, for they teach that only the "positive confession" is allowed by God, anything else is lack of faith.

Then I suffered. I went through darkness. The urge to be honest was overwhelming, but still I tried to be positive until I was defeated and helpless. Now what?

I began to read the writings of David and the prophets.

“How long, O Lord? Wilt Thou forget me forever?
How long wilt Thou hide Thy face from me?”
-David (Psalm 13:1)

“Would that God were willing to crush me;
That He would loose His hand, and cut me off.“
-Job (Job 6:9)

“Why has my pain been perpetual,
and my wound incurable, refusing to be healed?
Wilt Thou indeed be to me like a deceptive stream
with water that is unreliable?”
-Jeremiah (Jeremiah 15:18)

Raw. Broken. Honest. I began to realize that if I want a real move of God I need to be real with God. As long I I faked it with God, I would get a fake move of God. Honesty is the doorway to God's grace.

I want you to think about how you came to Jesus. Did any come with hands full or did not all come with hands empty? If you're like me, you said something like this: "Lord, I'm absolutely helpless without You. Your grace is my only hope. Please save me!"

Why then, do we think we graduate from such a confession? You see, the true operation of faith is that it gives you the belief that you can come and present yourself honestly before God. True faith does not ignore reality, but looks at it, calls it what it is, and then trusts.

Can you be honest with God?

The way you access God's grace today is the same way you accessed grace at the beginning (if you've come to Him). Be honest about where you are. If you've never come to Him, the way you start your journey is to be honest about your brokenness and trust His grace.

One of the places that my honesty with God began to manifest was in my music. I journal my life through my songs. If you listen to my music (songs like "I am Weak" or "In the Suffering"), you'll hear a broken heart reaching out for grace.

There are some great Christian artists, but honestly, I have a hard time listening to most of Christian radio today. So many songs are written with clever hooks for ear candy and record sales that it almost seems we've forgotten how to be sincere.

The bottom line is, you can't be intimate with someone that you can't be honest with. If you have to fake it with someone, you don't know the person as well as you think you do. We are called to know God. Let's learn how to be honest with Him, trusting that He's a big enough Daddy to hear our cry, and lead us to salvation.

-Derek Joseph

May 9, 2008

Friend Of The Fire

"[Paul and Barnabus] returned to Lystra and to Iconium and to Antioch, strengthening the souls of the disciples, encouraging them to continue in the faith, and saying, 'Through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God.'" (Acts 14:21-22)

It was not long ago that I was walking through six weeks of silence because of a ruptured vocal cord. Thankfully, God restored my voice. Last week, my daughter Esther started to have strange bruises all over her legs, hives appeared all over her body, and her feet swelled to almost double the size. We took her to the ER, where she spent half a day in a hospital bed having blood tests. Finally, they diagnosed her with a rare sickness called HSP, a condition that weakens blood vessels and the immune system. It lasts 4-6 weeks. Please pray for my daughter, that she would fully recover from this sickness without complications to her kidneys or stomach.

I can't remember who it was, but someone said to me Sunday at church, "Man, you just got through your vocal injury, and now this!"

I answered them, "Through many tribulations we enter the kingdom of God!"

I was once mentoring a younger brother in Christ, who, after hearing my testimony, asked me, "Do you think I have to go through the fire like you did, or can I become more like Jesus without trials?"

I really wanted to tell him that he didn't have to see the fire, and though there's much growth in the Lord that comes through faith and the Word, I realized that I couldn't honestly tell my little brother that he could avoid trials. God uses these to refine us, and to make us more like Christ.

The Bible says, "When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they will not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be scorched, nor will the flame burn you" (Isaiah 43:2). Notice that the Bible does not say if you walk through the fire; it says when.

We all like the promises of God that make us smile (and rightly so). You know..."I can do all things through Christ!" or "Cast all your cares on Him, for He cares for you." These end up on our refrigerators, and on "positive, encouraging" Christian radio. But there are some other promises of God we need to remember. We may not like them, but they are equally as true as the others. Here's a few:
"Through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God."
-Paul in Acts 14:22

"In this world you have much trouble, but fear not,
for I have overcome the world." -Jesus in John 16:33

I don't point these things out to be morbid, or do strike fear in your heart. I point them out to equip you for life and to give you comfort when difficult days come. Maybe you're in a trial now, and these truths will encourage you. If not, tuck these truths in your pocket. You'll need them one day.

I've learned to be a friend of the fire. It's not that I want it to come, but I'm not afraid of it. I don't dread it. Because every time, God uses it to strengthen my faith, to remind me of His grace and power, and to deepen my worship. Part of me wishes God would wave His magic anti-suffering wand, but like my song "In the Suffering" says:
In the suffering, there is something
That You're teaching me
I could never know much better
That You're my hope and my God
Than in my suffering

Regarding Christians going through the fire, Peter went as far as to say, "Why are you surprised as though something strange were happening to you?" (1 Peter 4:12) This may be hard for American Christians to understand, because we live in relative ease compared to believers in other lands and times.

When I went to China a few years ago, I realized that Chinese believers do not debate the role of suffering in the Christian life. When a Chinese person accepts Christ, they embrace the fact that persecution and suffering are part of their walk with God. I spent five days with 40 leaders of the underground church. All 40 of them had been imprisoned at some point for their faith, and some of them had been tortured.

Some of you are walking through fiery trials right now. Take heart! God is with you, and is working out His will in your life! May God give us the grace to trust Him in the fire, and not to faint, remembering that no student is greater than his teacher, and that Christ Himself suffered, showing us how to take up our cross. Let's follow Him where He leads, even if He calls us to be a friend of the fire.

-Derek Joseph

April 30, 2008

How I Scarred My Neck

Everywhere I go, people want to know how I got the scars on my neck. I've shared lots of stories...head transplant (one guy believed me), throat slit in a gang fight, shark attack, barb wire on a snowmobile, etc. But I've decided to let my mother tell the real story in her own words:

"It was a Sunday afternoon October 30, 1972, about 1:00-1:30pm. I was busy in the kitchen preparing fried chicken. Cassandra was still napping but Derek was more than awake, ready to take on the afternoon. I was in a bathrobe; my long hair was in juice-can size curlers.

Derek's father, Bruce, preferred fried chicken, and I was attempting for the first time to make it. I was cooking on one ofthose old metal counter-cupboards. The electrical outlet was higher than thecountertop and I had the cord looped and secured together so no little fingers could pull it. Derek was into the pots and pans. He had crawled in to where they were stored in the bottom of the broiler. He looked so cute in his new shirt and pants. I took a picture.

Ten minutes later, Bruce said he was going up to his uncle’s bar to cash a check. I said bye, took three steps to the doorway, and gave him a kiss. Then…BOOM! This awful sound, and Derek’s scream. I froze momentarily; I knew what had happened. Bruce looked in the kitchen and yelled, ‘Oh my God!’ And he froze.
I moved. All I saw was hot dripping oil on Derek’s head and hands. I couldn’t look at his face, so I focused on the X of his suspenders. I grabbed him and ran to the bathroom off the kitchen, turned on the cold water, and put him under the flow (I never looked at his burns). I put a wet towel over him.
The next few minutes were a blur…getting someone to come over and watch Cassandra…Bruce was too panicked to be any good. He stopped at every light on the way to the hospital. Derek was screaming and screaming.
I looked at my son as we pulled into the hospital, and skin was hanging from his cheeks. I brought him into the ER, and started to help cut clothes off. Then I lost it. They medicated Derek a large dose, and still he screamed all the way up to the children’s wing. He threw his head back, and then I saw the third degree burns under his chin. It looked white with red pin points—eerie. They bandaged him from head to mid-chest, and down each arm. I rocked my son to sleep, and sang, ‘Derek, Derek, give me your answer true…’
Derek had second and third degree burns on approximately 30% of his body. Although they gave a 60% chance of survival, the first 24 hours were most critical, and the chances for disfigurement and scarring were high. The biggest problem with burns is the loss of skin integrity. One no longer has the ability to keep fluids where they belong. All my friends were trying to be positive, but Bruce was in denial. He didn’t even tell his best friend Murph, whom he visited with, until an hour into their conversation. I called the hospital at midnight and 4am. I couldn’t sleep. The next morning, I went to the hospital, and when I arrived in the children’s wing, the nurses said, ‘He wants you.’ There he was, a gruesome creature. His neck was twice the normal size, his face was swollen, and his arms and hands were suspended. He was softly crying. I had to ask if I could hold him. Thank the Lord his throat didn’t swell shut, and he was still able to eat. He was put in isolation for the next four weeks with daily wound scrubbings. He was not allowed out of his crib except for when I rocked him, and he screamed every time the doctor came into the room. He was not touched by skin—only gloves and masks—for the next month.
Derek never showed any emotional trauma from the experience. I believe it was God’s grace, even before we knew Him.”
I still have pretty severe neck and chest scars from the burns, though I have no facial scarring because the top layer was completely removed. I often think back to this experience in my childhood, and recognize that God’s grace and hand was on my life even at a young age. It makes me live with a sense of destiny and purpose. And of course, I’m thankful for God's kindness in healing me.

-Derek Joseph

April 22, 2008

Behind The Veil

"In whom also we have obtained an inheritance,being predestined according to the purpose of Him who worketh all things after the counsel of His will..."
(Ephesians 1:11)

I am so encouraged by this Scripture. God works all things after the counsel of His will. In other words, all the affairs of our lives are governed by His wisdom, and like a Master-Weaver, He weaves all things together to write a story that glorifies Him, and blesses His people. We also know the Scripture that says, "God works all things for the good..." (Romans 8:28).

God often works His purpose in secret, behind the veil where no one can see but Him, and just in the right moment, at the exact time He has appointed, He pulls the veil back and shows what He has been doing.

I have a recent testimony in this area. Most of you know that I just recovered from a vocal injury that forced me into silence and seclusion for six weeks. You can see the testimony about my healing on the new video blog I posted (or read my last blog). God was doing many things behind the veil during this time, many of which I'm sure I still don't know even now. But I do know this story...

When I found out that I was injured and could not keep my ministry dates, I asked some ministry friends to fill in. Some were music events and some were speaking events. One young man that I asked to cover for me was Matt Drake, the director of Campus Target, a powerful new ministry mobilizing young men and women to give a year of their lives to reach college students in China. Matt filled in for me as a speaker at two of my events.

This last week, Campus Target had their training week for new recruits who will be going out this fall. They have almost 40 new workers! My family and ministry staff were blessed to serve them dinner, and I had a chance to interact with the leaders and new recruits. That was when Toby Canavaugh, one of the ministry leaders, told me that because I had Matt Drake fill in for me, they have four (and maybe five) new missionaries that will be going this fall! Let me say it plainly: Because I ruptured my vocal cord, four new missionaries will be serving the Lord in China for the next year! If I didn't injure my voice, how many students in China wouldn't have a chance to come to Christ?

God was working behind the veil.

I don't know how many times I've seen God work bad things for the good. What He wants from us is absolute trust when we can't see. He wants us to rest in His promises, that behind the veil, He is actively working on something wonderful.

How could Israel have known when they were crying out in Egypt that floating down the river in a basket less than a mile away was a baby named Moses? God was working behind the veil.

How could any of us have known in the first Gulf War that God would use the presence of American armed forces in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia to launch churches in the heart of Islam? God was working behind the veil.

How could my friend Darrell Scott, who lost his daughter to the bullet of an angry young man in the Columbine school shootings in 1999, have ever known how God would raise up his family as a light to our nation? How could he have known that he would interact with presidents?
God was working behind the veil.

How could Peter and John, looking on the cross of Christ from a distance, have ever known that this was not Jesus Christ's greatest defeat, but His greatest victory? God was working behind the veil.

No matter what we're all facing today, let's trust the Lord, that He is the God who works all things after the counsel of His will, and that if we'll abide in Him, we will see that all along, He has been working behind the veil.

-Derek Joseph

April 15, 2008

Healed

"We had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves, but in God who raises the dead, who delivered us...you also helping together in prayer for us, that thanks may be given by many persons on our behalf..." (2 Corinthians 1:9-11)

When God delivered Paul the Apostle from a great affliction in Asia, his report caused many believers to rejoice, for many had prayed for that deliverance. I believe I understand what Paul was feeling when he wrote this. I have received dozens of reports of people, churches, and ministries praying for my vocal cords to heal.

Last Thursday, when I went to the vocal specialist to receive another vocal scope, I received a great report. The specialist said that I'm completely healed! The words she used (with a hint of surprise, I might add) were, "This is what I would see if I was looking at a normal check-up for perfectly healthy vocal cords." I am so thankful for the many prayers of so many people. Honestly, my first response was gratitude for all the prayers. I said to my wife, "How could God refuse the prayers of so many saints?"

It was only three short weeks ago, three weeks into my six weeks of silence, that things looked grim. I was experiencing more pain than I had yet, with each swallow becoming a painful task. Dinner was difficult for me to eat, and difficult for my poor wife to watch me eat. Even trying to exercise or play basketball was painful, as the movement and motion agitated my injury. My doctor said this was not normal, and we were all concerned for my future. I received prayer at my local church (Elim Gospel Church), along with the hundreds of people praying for me around the world, and things began to change. In three short weeks, my vocal cords not only healed, but healed properly. Had the burst blood vessel healed on the outside of my vocal cord, I would have much trouble in the days to come. But it didn't. It healed like it had never happened!

My only remaining issue is strength and stamina. Like whenever you don't use a muscle for six weeks, it requires time to rebuild strength and stamina, so the next month will be a time of building up strength again. My hope is that by late spring/early summer, I'll be 100%. I do intend to begin working with a therapist soon.

I should be able to resume public ministry in May and my normal pace by June. I'll be creating a new video (my wife and I video-chronicled the whole trip to the specialist) and posting it soon. Thank you for standing in prayer for me and my family during this time. God has used this season to say much to me and do much in me. You'll be hearing more about this in the future as well.

Love in Christ,

Derek Joseph

April 9, 2008

Abide

"He who abides in Me, and I in Him, bears much fruit;
for without me you can do nothing." (John 15:5)

I remember well my college days, when I had so much inner turmoil, struggling with the failures of my past, the pain of my youth, my fears of the future...I wanted so much to hear God speak to me. I longed for God to calm the storm in my soul with a profound prophetic utterance from heaven. During those days, He said nothing except for one word found in ten times in the first ten verses of John 15: "Abide."

I remember back in 2001-2002, when I suffered for so long in the wilderness of depression and anxiety. There were days when I would wake up, and say, "Oh no...another day." Again I longed for God to say some profound thing to me that would rescue me from the wilderness, and again, He would simply say one word: "Abide."

Abide? That's it? I would think to myself, and yet I would do exactly that. I would take one step at a time, one day at a time. I would remain in God's Word, and His Word remaining in me, following Jesus and trusting by faith that the future would hold better days; trusting that God would not fail me.

Here I am again, walking through a wilderness place. My vocal cords injured, silence my friend, financial pressure a companion, relationships with loved ones broken, and what is God saying to me when I seek Him? Abide. I fear not that the God who gave me grace in the past will give me grace now. Often times, we as believers share our stories after we find victory, and talk about our sorrows as a distant land. But I felt compelled of the Lord to share with you while I'm in my sufferings. For a time, I'd actually wrestled with the thought of becoming a recluse during this time, and stopping all communication with the public, but the Lord has shown me that this would not encourage you. I'm inclined to think that some who read this are suffering as well. Join me in my journey of trusting Christ while it hurts.

I'm not asking for sympathy or applause. I simply want to encourage you to walk with Jesus.

Lamentations 3:23 says, "The Lord's lovingkindnesses indeed never cease, for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning. Great is Thy faithfulness."

The Lord gives you and I enough to live today. Notice that heaven's transfer of grace comes every morning...not every week, not every month, or every year. Every morning. And if you will abide in that grace, and walk with him today through your sufferings, your pain, your failures, or your sorrows, you will find His life flowing into yours until you bear fruit that remains. Like a branch that made it through the winter, still attached to the vine, spring will come, and that branch will bear fruit in time. In Christ, you can never fail! It is impossible for you not to bear fruit if you will remain in Him. I have found that this daily provision of God's strength gives us the grace to outlast every enemy of the cross that comes into our lives.

Are you suffering today? Are you in a long journey through a dry wilderness? I wish the answer was profound or flashy. All I can tell you is what the Lord has told me every time my feet take me to the desert. Abide. All I can do is tell you what He's telling me now. Abide.

There's a song on my site that I wrote called "In the Suffering" which is based on John 15. If you get a chance, click here and listen to it as a meditation of this blog.

-Derek Joseph

April 1, 2008

When Strangers Become Friends

"This is eternal life, that they may know Thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom Thou hast sent." -Jesus (John 17:3)
As most of you know, I was diagnosed with a ruptured left vocal cord over a month ago, and have been in a doctor-prescribed six weeks of vocal rest. In some ways, I've been taken away from the hustle and bustle of fast-paced ministry life, and have had time to spiritually catch my breath.

I've been in seasons like this before, where God pulls you away from life so He can meet with you. He says lots of things, but one of the most important things He says is nothing. He just wants me to rest in Him.

Out in the rat race of life, though, it's so easy to lose sight of the simplicity of intimacy with Christ. Other affections and distractions start to come in, attempting to steal the purity of our relationship with the Lord. I call these other affections "strangers." They sneak in, and though unfamiliar and unwelcome to our relationship with the Lord, they seek to abide in the temple. A stranger can be apathy; it can be prayerlessness; it can be a comfort zone; it can be sinful habit or addiction. Basically, it's choosing to live with anything that is inferior to your relationship with Christ. It's like spiritual adultery.

That in mind, as I've been spending time with the Lord, I've realized that I've had some "strangers" move in, and the Lord has been bringing me back to the simplicity and purity of my relationship with Him. So yesterday, I penned this poem. It's probably the beginning of a new song, but I just wanted to share what I had with you. I thought it would encourage you this week as you walk with Jesus.

When Strangers Become Friends

Staring at the picture on the wall
I remember him
He was so full of fire and love
Somehow in the middle of it all
He became a stranger to himself and angels above
Oh Lord, come and free
For You have the key
To open up the prison again
And give him sight that it's not all right
When strangers become friends

Staring at the mirror on the wall
Who have I become?
This is not what I hoped to be
Forgetting my Redeemer and the call
I remember when this lonely stranger
Came here to me
A danger here
Something to be feared
Beware lest it happen again
Don't think light of the cold dark night
When strangers become friends

words by Derek J. Levendusky
copyright 2008 Derek J. Levendusky

March 24, 2008

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