Hey all it has truly been a while since I wrote my last blog…but as Philly has said in his previous blog…it’s never to late

Greetings from the beautiful city of Bangalore! As many of you know I am currently residing in Bangalore India, pursuing a master’s degree in divinity. My stay here thus far has been tremendous. I miss my family and my friend’s sooooo much…but I remind myself everyday that I am here for a purpose.

To make a long story short…I always had a passion for international ministry as a young child, especially for India. India is my motherland country and I am proud to be from such a great country. It breaks my heart though that the world views India as a Hindu and Muslim believing country, but I truly believe one day the world will view India as a Jesus believing country. Amen. I know this is such a bold statement to make, but is there anything impossible for God?

Some people may laugh and tease me and say, “ look at this American coming to India and making such a ridiculous statement!” but I really don’t care what others think! Nothing, absolutely nothing, is too difficult for God!

As part of my studies here I must part take in a weekly ministry one day out of every week. I came to India to see the real India. The “real” India, are those living below poverty line and living in such unimaginable living situation. All my life living in the US I have heard, read, and seen photos about the poor around the world, but to actually see it in person breaks your heart…and honestly makes you ask… “Why God?”

Every Friday I go to “ Bangalore Baptist Hospital” and from there I go with a small medical mission team to the local villages in Karnataka. The above photo was taken at the Mother Teresa Village Hospital, which is the main base camp for the medical mission team. Many people come into the facility everyday for treatment, such as the young boy above. My job is to go with a counselor and nurse and make home visits. Let me tell you…the villages I go to are terrible and scary. The smell! Ayo!!…lol…I was shocked when the team had told me that a particular village we were visiting is considered to be like a “high class” village. The villages we will visit in the future will be much worse! When I walk into the homes and see the faces of these precious people, honestly, the smell and the discomfort goes away. I see people hungry for hope! It is truly and experience to sit on the floor and just to talk with the families and just listen. These precious people just want to be noticed. This experience thus far is changing my life, and my perspective on life. I just want to come to end by saying be grateful for what you have.

I ask that you all remember me in your prayers! And pray for India!

To God be the Glory, Honor, & Praise,

Joel V

Raise your hand if you loved those memory verse competitions as a kid…..I can picture all you people out there…NOT raising your hand :) When I was a kid….I dreaded those competitions at church. The pressure of looking good in front of your parents, uncles, aunts, and the uncles and aunts who aren’t really related to you but you call them uncle and aunty anyway.

I dont remember ever winning one of those contests. But what I do remember are all the complaints. All the kids, as we got older, would complain and murmur, “Why do we have to do this?” I work in the education field and I hear this all the time. Many students come up to me and say, “Why do I have to take an English class? I’ll never use it for my job anyway!”

That’s when I just stare at them blankly. Really? You’ll never use it? How did you form the question you just asked me? One thing I am realizing as I get older is that many of the lessons we learn as kids, or even in everyday life, will come in handy at one point either now or in the future. I will admit, I was one of those kids who would complain, and not try very hard during Memory Verse competitions. But as I get older, and life’s circumstances really weigh me down, the only thing I can rely on is the precious Word of God.

For my daily devotionals, I read a morning and evening portion written by Charles Spurgeon. One of the devotionals talked about remembering what “He hath said”. He hath said…He will never leave you or forsake you. He hath said… He will be my refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. He hath said…Even through I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for Thou art with me.

He hath said……a lot to me over the years. I was young, and I now I’m getting older. But I still remember many of those Memory Verses I learned as a kid. No, it won’t help me win any kind of competition. But they have helped me gain victory over many circumstances in my life. No matter what you are going through, always remember, what “He hath said.”

God bless,

Jobbin

Six years ago today, a couple of guys in Chicago got together on a church floor to pray. We had no idea what would happen from that prayer group, how our lives would change, and what path God would take us on next.

Six years later, God decided to use this prayer group to raise over $10,000 raised towards feeding the homeless, awareness for AIDS in India, building a well in Kenya, supporting flood victims in Mexico, supporting persecuted Pastors in Orissa, putting human trafficked girls through college, host concerts, BBQs, and making a live small group over the internet for young people to connect. 182 blog articles, 8,817 views on YouTube, countless hours of fun, friendships, and memories formed over these 6 years.

Six years later….how do we celebrate? We do what we have always done. We plan to get together and pray. Just like always. It started as a prayer group. It still is. Don’t be afraid to follow what God has called you to do. You have no idea what He has in mind.

God bless,

The ROC322 Team

Hey guys, it has been awhile since I wrote a blog but it’s never too late.

I was listening to the song Jesus Culture and their rendition of “How he loves us”. Like my boy Jonathan John, certain songs speak to me and the lyrics reach out to me. This is that song. The song simply speaks about the love of God and how he loves us. Countless times, I always condemn myself for failing or sinning against God; however, the Bible says, “There’s no condemnation in Christ Jesus.” His love is always there and he loves us so much no matter how many dumb things we do. Some individuals say, ” I don’t deserve his love” and that’s simply not true. Everyone deserves his love no matter how bad we lived our lives. Why? Because he loves us…oh how he loves us. The love of God is so deep and infinite and nothing can separate us from it. Kim Walker, at the end of the song, starts to speak that you need to encounter the love God. Yes, it’s true. Once you encounter the love of God your life at the present moment will change such as changes of personality, views of life, and how you treat others. To receive this love, you’d think it would be hard…nope. Just ask God for his love.

Hey internet world,

It’s been a very long time since the last blog I’ve done and a lot has happened since then, so I’ll be going through everything that has happened event-by-event…….. JK!  I won’t bore you with those details… today at least :)

I must say though, looking back at the past 6 years of ROC 3:22, God has done AMAZING things.  This should come to no surprise, since our God is an AMAZING God, and we shouldn’t expect anything less of Him and His awesome ways, but from a small prayer group that started out with just a few of us guys willing to sit down and pray to God for some direction to a small prayer group that is still going strong with many new additions, God has done so much!  You’re probably confused right about now.  You’re probably thinking… “you guys went from a prayer group to still a prayer group?”  My answer, along with everyone’s in our group’s answer (and I know this because they know exactly what I’m talking about), but OUR answer is YES!

The difference?  We’ve definitely come a long way and have been able to reach many youth in Chicago, and also we’ve been able to consistently fundraise for various causes and have even done several homeless outreaches within Chicago itself with ALL Glory to God of course, but all of THIS aside…. the best part has been the prayer over the years.  The consistent sitting/kneeling down in prayer to God.

I moved out of Chicago about 3 years ago, but if there’s one thing I can always be sure of, is that these guys will be gathering together to pray each and every Thursday – I’m not saying all of this to put anyone up on some pedestal… not at all actually, but rather, to say that NOTHING IS POSSIBLE WITHOUT PRAYER!!  God may use you in various ways, but let me tell you something… in my life, I know that when I am feeling closest to God, it’s because of prayer.  It’s because I know I can always go to God with anything and everything!  He’s your best friend, your Redeemer, your Savior, your “go to guy” – but not just when things go sour, but always!  At least He’s always there whether or not we utilize that opportunity to go to Him about things.  The best part about prayer is that prayer is a communication with God, an actual conversation with your creator – which actually means, He can respond back – and He WILL!  Do you want to hear from God?  Just go to God :)

I don’t want to make this some long drawn out post, but it’s time to sit/kneel down – in fact, go ahead and do it now (RIGHT NOW!) and just say a prayer to God.  It might be a thank you to God for everything He’s done in your life, or it might be about some issues that you’re facing, you might just need to vent to God, or perhaps you’re angry and you need someone to talk to… man, let me tell you – just go to God!

Be blessed.