Matt Manes.com

Guatemala 2012

Matt — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 03:22:19 +0000

Here I go again.

I’ve been given the opportunity to go alongside of Hands and Feet Ministries this upcoming May 5, 2012 – May 12, 2012 to Guatemala!

We will be going to work alongside another ministry called Hope of Life International (http://hopeoflifeintl.org/)

I could sit here and try to explain what their ministry does, but I think this video sums it all up. (Be prepared to shed a few tears.)

(Video: Watch this video on the post page)

Here is a list of items we will be doing while there.

–Construction – build a home – work on a hospital

–Mobile Medical Clinics

–Feeding centers

–Evangelism Outreach

–Programs – music, drama, gospel illusions, skits, teaching

–Preaching

–Jungle Outreach

–Sports Outreach

–Orphanage

–Rescue Center

–Elderly Home

–School Programs

In order to go on this trip, I have been asked to raise $1500 that will go towards the airplane ticket, building supplies, food, and any extra supplies that may be needed.

Donations can be sent directly to Hands and Feet Ministries:

Hands And Feet
300 Colonial Drive
Waynesburg, PA 15370

(If you would like to, you can turn in this Tax Document with it as well. Click Here)

OR:

You can pay online here: http://www.handsfeet.org/donate/

(Be sure to put my name: Matt Manes as the individual you would like to donate to.)

I can’t thank you enough for all of your support!

It Couldn’t Just Happen

admin — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 21:02:15 +0000

It Couldn’t Just Happen: Knowing the Truth About God’s Awesome Creation
Lawrence O. Richards
Thomas Nelson
BookSneeze
Amazon

From Thomas Nelson Description:
This four-color, Gold Medallion Book Award winner is a perfect tool that offers solid, biblical answers to some of the tough questions kids ask about evolution and our world.
“Did Earth begin with a ‘Big Bang’ cosmic explosion?”
“Does science contradict the Bible?”
“What happened to dinosaurs?”
“Is there life on other planets?”
“Did we evolve from apes?”
“What makes my body work on its own?”
Kids are daily exposed to the theory of evolution by the media and public schools. It’s not safe to assume that your kids will reject that theory. It’s up to us as parents and Christian leaders to make sure our children know the truth about the creation of the world. With thousands of evidences to prove He created and sustains the universe, It Couldn’t Just Happen will fascinate kids with fun activities and examples of God’s marvelous works.

It feels great to be able to actually read for pleasure and not just what my professors have asked me to read for school. Not that I’m not enjoying those books, but it’s nice to chose the book that I wanted to read.

I began this book before going back to school this semester, and have just finally finished it.

The book was a great read. I got it mainly because there is a kid in my youth group who is really into studying creation and evolution, and I wanted to brush up on some of the topics a little so that I could at least hold my own in a conversation.

The author did a great job at just presenting facts and not really taking a stand, until the end of the book. I really appreciate that because some authors will display their bias from the beginning and then as a reader, you are stuck with that mindset for the rest of the read.

This book covers a huge array of topics from Heaven and Hell to Creation and Evolution and even to Dinosaurs.

Towards the end of the book, the author got in to a lot more of the Christian topics like Prophesy and Miracles performed by Jesus.

Here are two of my favorite quotes:

“Bible prophesy about Jesus could not have “just happened” to be fulfilled. God must have spoken through the prophets. And Jesus must be the Son of God, as the Bible says he is.”

“People who watched these miracles knew that what they just saw could not just happen. What they saw was something supernatural, not something that was natural.”

If you’re looking for an easy reading book that brings up topics that you can discuss with your teenage son or daughter, this is a great book for you.

Disclosure of Material Connection: BookSneeze sent me a free copy of this book as part of their bloggers book review program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

I Don’t Know My Calculus

admin — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 18:42:53 +0000

A couple of weeks ago, one of my professors contacted me to tell me about a Scholarship that was offered at my school and that she thought I would be a great candidate. The scholarship was created specifically for future math or science teachers.

One of the stipulations of the Scholarship is that I have to receive a B or better in both Calculus I and Calculus II. I took Calculus I this summer and received an A. So I’m good there. But, I’m currently in Calculus II, which is much much much harder.

With that being said, in order to receive a B in the class, I need to get above a 80%. My grade in there right now at the mid-term….81.2%.

I still have 2 tests and the final left to bring up my grade, but normally classes only get tougher as you get towards the end.

When I first learned my grade I was really worried. Can I bring this grade up? Am I going to get a C in this class and not be eligible for the Scholarship?

But then I was reminded of a verse in the book of Philippians. “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice! Let your gentle spirit be known to all men. The Lord is near. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” – Philippians 4:4-7

Would I like to have a 95% and be sitting safe? Yes. But by having a 81.2%, will that make me cast my anxieties on the Lord and trust Him to help me get the grades that I need? Yes.

Since this reminder, I have truly felt the peace of God guarding my hearts and my mind to not go down that path of anxiety and fear.

And for me, there’s no place that I’d rather be.

Walk to Cure Diabetes

admin — Sat, 03 Sep 2011 18:10:15 +0000

Greetings!

I’m writing to ask for your support in a very special cause.

This year, I’ll be taking part in the JDRF Walk to Cure Diabetes, along with a half-million others nationwide. Our goal: to raise $89 million to fund research for better treatments and a cure for type 1 diabetes and its complications.

I’m asking you to help support my fundraising efforts with a donation. Your tax-deductible gift will help make a difference in the lives of people with type 1 diabetes.

It is faster and easier than ever to donate. Simply click on the link at the bottom of this message to donate online

Any amount, great or small, helps JDRF get closer to its goal of finding better treatments and a cure for type 1 diabetes. I greatly appreciate your support and will keep you posted on my progress.

Sincerely,

Matthew Manes

Please visit my Walk Web page if you would like to donate online or see how close I am to reaching my personal goal:
http://www2.jdrf.org/site/TR/Walk-TN/Chapter-MiddleTennessee4622?JServSessionIda004=77xfzvftu1.app318d&px=1480994&pg=personal&fr_id=1451

About JDRF:

JDRF is the worldwide leader in funding research to find better treatments and a cure for type 1 diabetes, an autoimmune disease that strikes children and adults suddenly and lasts a lifetime. It sets the global agenda for type 1 diabetes research, and is the largest charitable funder of and advocate for diabetes science worldwide. To date, JDRF has funded more than $1.5 billion in diabetes research, including nearly $107 million in fiscal year 2010.

Every Single Man’s Battle – Book Review

Matt — Fri, 15 Jul 2011 15:05:20 +0000

Every Single Man’s Battle.
http://www.everymansbattle.com/.
Waterbrook Multnomah.
Buy on Amazon.

From Waterbrook Multnomah Description:
Powerful ammunition for your war against sexual temptation.

As a man, you’re bombarded by sexual images and battle inner urges. You want to do right—in fact, you want to meet God’s standard of avoiding any hint of sexual immorality. But accomplishing that goal is a challenge.

If you are a single man struggling to remain sexually pure, you are not alone—
there’s practical, hard-hitting help from the authors of the blockbuster Every Man Series. Every Single Man’s Battle guides you—or your men’s group—through an honest and clear exploration of God’s Word. You’ll undertake a personal journey into key scriptures, wrestle with questions for reflection and examination, and discover the practical tools and biblical strategies you need to live the pure life God calls you to—even while living in a sexually-soaked culture.

Now includes the workbook!

Before I get into my blog about this book, I just wanted to clear the air, as they say, and let you know that I am NOT single, but am extremely happily married. I was given this book by a publishing company called, Waterbrook Multnomah to review as part of their blogger review program.

And now we begin…

This series of books has been a great help to me in my life. While in college, a group of fellow men and I went through Every Man’s Battle, then we went through Every Young Man’s Battle and they both were great books that helped us to be honest with our struggles with sexual purity.

Although this book was mainly about sexual purity, I found there were some key elements that would help to deal with other sins as well.

1. Accountability – Throughout all of the Every Man’s series, one of the biggest points they seem to hit on is accountability. I’ve had a couple of great accountability partners over the years who have been there for me whenever I needed them. I highly recommend that if you don’t have an accountability partner, that you seek one out.
2. Victory with your eyes and mind – There are 2 chapters, one is entitled “Victory with your eyes” and the other “Victory with your mind.” I still remember this concept from reading the 1st book in the series. They state that if you don’t look at something that may make you fall into sin, and if you don’t let you mind take you somewhere that might make you fall into temptation, then you will have a much better chance of not falling into that sin. I remember them referencing a sumo wrestler who lives inside of you and how if you continue to feed the sumo wrestler with images and with thoughts about sexual impurity, that it will get to the point where you can no longer defeat the sumo wrestler, and he will end up winning. This is also true with any other sin as well. If you personally continue to tempt yourself with these sins, there will come a time when you can no longer win and you will be defeated.
3. Scripture – There are tons of great Bible verses throughout this book. I really appreciated how the authors realized that without Scripture, your fight with sexual purity and any other sin is going to be a huge defeat. I would recommend taking some of the verses shared in this book and memorize them for the next time you feel tempted by sin.

This book has a great workbook that is about 3/4ths of the book. I would highly recommend going through this book with a group of men and not by yourself. There are tons of great points to talk about in a group. You will also need a copy of Every Man’s Battle, as it references it a lot.

I really liked this book. It brought back a lot of ideas and concepts that I learned back in college and reminded me how far I’ve come since then and how grateful I am to God for bringing me here.

Disclosure of Material Connection: Waterbrook Multnomah sent me a free copy of this book as part of their bloggers book review program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Losing my iPhone – Week 1

Matt — Thu, 07 Jul 2011 14:30:16 +0000

So I’m going on a week without an iPhone and so far, I have to say it’s not such a bad thing.

I’m not going to go into why I no longer have an iPhone, but our contract with AT&T is up on July 20th. So I figured for the next 20 days or so, I’ll go without an iPhone and then decide if I want to get one when we switch to Verizon.

The Good Things About No iPhone

1. Paying more attention to my wife. – Most of the time when we were out to dinner or even eating at home, we would have great conversation while we were in the middle of eating, but as soon as the eating was over, I found myself going to my phone and checking Twitter and Facebook and my e-mail. Ever since I got rid of the iPhone, I now find myself continuing the conversation well past desert.
2. Staying focused on people I’m visiting with. – Not only was I finding myself doing this with my wife, but I also found myself using my phone when visiting with friends, whether it was over food, or even meeting some of my old youth group for coffee. I also just finished a week of VBS at my church and we all spent the first 15 minutes looking at our iPhones/iPods/iPads, instead of having conversations.
3. Not needing to have it in my hand all day long. – My Pastor made a comment one time that he sees all of these people walking around with one of their limbs being used, because they are carrying their phones. After he said this, I began seeing it happen all of the time. People are using their elbows to open doors, because they are carrying their phone in their other hand. Ever since giving up the iPhone, I’ve actually forgot multiple times where my phone was and it felt really good.

The Bad Things About No iPhone

1. Directions – The other day I was headed to a place that I’ve never been and normally I would pull out my iPhone and find directions and just use the phone to lead me there, but I actually ended up having to print off directions from MapQuest. It wasn’t that bad, but it definitely needed to be done beforehand and couldn’t just be a spur of the moment thing. BUT… I also have a GPS in my car and I know that Verizon has their own VZ Navigator that I could always use on another phone.
2. Notes – I would use notes for anything and everything. I would use them for notes in church, grocery lists, and I even started a little early Christmas list of items that I wanted to ask for on Christmas. But ever since getting rid of the iPhone, I’ve had to go back to writing things on pieces of paper, and then I would lose them and have no clue where I put them. BUT… The good news is that most phones do have a notes section on them. It may not be as easy to use as the iPhone, but I can still keep track of things better.
3. Calendar – My good friend, Todd Stepp asked me if I could go golfing with him. Checked my schedule and I was open, so I told him that I could. The next day, I walk in to work and my co-worker asked if I could cover her shift on the same day that I was supposed to go golfing. Because my memory isn’t the greatest, I told her I could without even thinking about golfing. When I got home, I realized the mistake I made and was able to get the shift at work covered, but I’m very certain that with a calendar, that I wouldn’t have double booked myself like that. BUT…. There’s calendars on a normal phone as well. Once again, it won’t be able to sync with my Google calendar, but I’m sure with a little work, I can make it work.
4. Reading – This is probably the only big thing that I’ll miss about my iPhone. I’ve really started to love reading and was burning through books on my iPhone, but ever since giving it up, I haven’t ready much at all. Now, I do have my iPad which I can read on, and I know there’s always things like Kindle’s and such, but I really do miss the small screen and how I was able to read through books rather quickly on there. Sorry there’s no BUT…

Overall, I think the Good things out weigh the Bad things for sure. Now if I can only find a small screen that I can read books on, like would be perfect.

Still have about 13 days to decide…do you think you could go without your smart phone?

It’s Not About Me

Matt — Thu, 16 Jun 2011 15:07:15 +0000

It’s Not About Me.
Max Lucado.
Thomas Neslon.
BookSneeze
Buy on Amazon.

From Thomas Nelson Description:
Pop culture and psychobabble tell us to make ourselves the center of the universe in order to be happy. Churches have communicated the false idea that God exists to give us all that we selfishly want. In this book, Max Lucado reminds us that it’s not about us, it’s all about God. It is through this shift in thinking that we can truly live an unburdened, happy life.

I could have not thought of a better name for this book than, It’s Not About Me. When you finish this book, if you think of yourself higher than God, then you must have not read the same book that I did.

Too often, we try to take our lives and think that they are all about us. We do things and try to become people that will help to promote us, but Max does a great job at helping us to realize that it’s not about us at all, but it’s all about Him.

“God does no exist to make a big deal out of us. We exist to make a big deal out of him. It’s not about you. It’s not about me. It’s all about him.” – Max Lucado

At the same time, I feel that sometimes we think that God has changed. Instead of realizing that it may be us who are changing, we think that God had to change. But the reality is that God will always be the same. He’s the same yesterday, today, tomorrow, and forever.

“He will always hate sin and love sinners, despise the proud and exalt the humble. He will always convict the evildoer and comfort the heavy-hearted. He never changes direction midstream, recalibrates the course midway home, or amends the heavenly Constitution. God will always be the same.” – Max Lucado

Max ends his book the same way I would like to end this post. With a prayer:

“May God rescue us from self-centered thinking. May we have no higher goal than to see someone think more highly of our Father, our King. After all, it’s not about….well, you can finish the sentence.” – Max Lucado

Jesus, My Father, The CIA, and Me: A Memoir. . . of Sorts

Matt — Wed, 08 Jun 2011 02:13:30 +0000

Jesus, My Father, The CIA, and Me: A Memoir. . . of Sorts.
Ian Cron.
Thomas Nelson.
BookSneeze.
Buy on Amazon.

From Thomas Nelson Description:
“When he was sixteen years old, Ian Morgan Cron was told about his father’s clandestine work with the CIA. This astonishing revelation, coupled with his father’s dark struggles with chronic alcoholism and depression, upended the world of a boy struggling to become a man. Decades later, as he faces his own personal demons, Ian realizes the only way to find peace is to voyage back through a painful childhood marked by extremes—privilege and poverty, violence and tenderness, truth and deceit—that he’s spent years trying to escape.
In this surprisingly funny and forgiving memoir, Ian reminds us that no matter how different the pieces may be, in the end we are all cut from the same cloth, stitched by faith into an exquisite quilt of grace.”

The thing that really intrigued me about this book was the word CIA in the title. Before I began reading, I thought it was going to be a story about Ian and how he worked for the CIA, and how he was able to maintain being a Christian, while working for the CIA. And his struggle with killing someone, and questioning if it’s right in God’s eyes.

And I was completely wrong.

The book was focused more on Ian’s childhood and living with his alcoholic father (who was in the CIA). Throughout the entire book, I continually saw the need that Ian had for his father to accept and love him, and how his father never gave it to him.

“My heart was pounding. There was something I’d waited my entire life to hear him say, words that I was convinced could change everything, past, present, and future.” – Ian Cron

“So I’ve come up with alternative strategies to fill the empty space in my heart where my father’s love is supposed to be found.” – Ian Cron

“I wanted to tell him that I would do anything if he would just stop drinking. I wanted to tell him that I was sorry for not being a good enough son, for being such a disappointment to him.” – Ian Cron

Although every part of me wanted to know that his father one day would show him the love he deserved and wanted, it just never happened.

The only concept of being a father, is our own personal fathers. Some were raised with great dad’s who were there for them for sports, and music concerts, and some, like Ian, were raised on father’s who were alcoholics and never showed any interest at all when it came to their children’s lives. “If there was a God, he was just like my father, a drunk who forgot to keep his promises to his children. It was up to me to make life work.” – Ian Cron

One night at a revival, Ian heard a voice say to him, “Forgive me, Ian,” which really confused him. He asked a couple people how it was possible that God could ask him for forgiveness. He couldn’t get a straight answer, until he talked to Miss Annie. She told him about how God humbled Himself to become a man, and humbled Himself by dying on the cross for us. She then asked, “So why wouldn’t Jesus humble himself and tell a boy he was sorry for letting him down if he knew it would heal his heart?” – Miss Annie

The book ended with a story of Ian and his three kids. You could tell that Ian was extremely interested in all of his kids lives, especially his 8 year old son, Aidan, and how he wasn’t going to let his earthly dad dictate how he would treat his children, but instead would treat them the way his Heavenly Father would.

This book wasn’t what I thought it was going to be, but it did make me appreciate the relationship I have with my father.

Ian is a great author and this book was an easy read. It’s a great Sunday reader.

Prayer request from my friends in Sudan

admin — Wed, 01 Jun 2011 03:49:35 +0000

I just received this from a friend of mine in Sudan:

Hi folks,

I have just received some news from Sudan that is very concerning, not only for our team plans this summer, but for the people of Sudan. Please read, and pray.

The area of Sudan where myself and Lori worked with the Ganza people, is in Blue Nile State. This is also where our team was set to travel to next week. Blue Nile State is one of three contested states that could go to the North or the South.

We have just received news that the army of North Sudan has given the Southern Army (SPLA) an ultimatum to leave Blue Nile State by tonight and surrender the area to the North, in a situation similar to that of Abyei last week. Unlike in Abyei though, there is a very large SPLA presence many of whom consider Blue Nile their homeland, and have been vocal in their commitment to protect it by force.

The situation reported on the ground is that Northern troops have moved to within 5km of southern troops in State of Blue Nile. This has prompted SIM, and other organizations to evacuate their personnel out of Blue Nile State, this is happening as I write this. SIM’s ministry in this part of Sudan, including the Ganza ministry has therefore been put on hold.

Therefore, we will not be going ahead with our plans to visit the Ganza in Blue Nile State this month with the Glasgow team. Alternative locations and ministry opportunities are currently being considered for the team, and we pray that God will use us in another part of Sudan. There are however much greater ramifications of this than that of changes to our trip, and to this end we’d like to encourage you to pray earnestly for a miracle of peace. There are many people there, Christians and otherwise who are in very serious danger, many of whom Lori and I know personally.

Please pray,

Peter

No He Can’t: How Barak Obama is Dismantling Hope and Change

Matt — Thu, 26 May 2011 16:33:40 +0000

No He Can’t: How Barak Obama is Dismantling Hope and Change.
Kevin McCullough.
Thomas Nelson.
Buy on Amazon.

From Thomas Nelson Description:
“Nationally syndicated radio talk show host and columnist Kevin McCullough tackles the thorny issue of why the audacity of hope is not found in the current path that President Barack Obama has laid.

As the first pundit in the world to predict that President Barack Obama would become president of the United States (verified on-air by Rush Limbaugh), Kevin McCullough was not surprised when Mr. Obama was elected to that office. Yet even McCullough admits he’s surprised by President Obama’s actions since the election. Surprised by the overt falsehoods already carried out by this administration. Surprised by our country’s sudden deficit of clarity and common sense. Surprised by a blatant lack of accountability. In No He Can’t, McCullough stands as the loyal but outraged loyal opposition to the current state of affairs.”

I’m very certain that there are more 5th graders in this country who know more about politics than I do.

I’ve never really been interested in politics before. Ever since a young age, our family would spend their evenings watching Wheel of Fortune more than watching the national news. Although, we did watch plenty of our local news. (Which is Pittsburgh can be quite interesting sometimes.)

Honestly, before picking up this book, I didn’t know much about President Obama either. I knew that he was the first African American President, and I’ve heard some minor things about him and his Presidency, but still didn’t know much. I was just under the impression that everyone didn’t like him because he wasn’t a good President. Which with the little I know, I just thought it was a common thing.

But I was wrong.

One of the biggest shockers to me came in the beginning of the book, when Kevin talked about President Obama’s stance on abortion:

“He advocated not merely for the morning-after pill, the use of RU-486, early trimester elective abortion, second-trimester elective abortion, abortions without parental consent, abortions without parental notification, the placement of abortion clinics on school grounds, or even transporting minors across state lines to gain access to abortion not provided in their home state, but he then broke new territory. Obama supported late-term abortions, also properly referred to as “partial-birth abortions”. But even that was not enough. When the issue was brought to vote of whether or not unwanted disabled children who had been born despite abortion procedures should be allowed to die from starvation, neglect, and lack of medical care, Barak Obama became the only federally elected officeholder to have ever voted in favor of allowing those children to die.“

Wow.

This book was a great book for someone exactly like me. Someone who doesn’t know much about politics or the President, but is eager to learn a little.

Kevin does a great job at exposing some of the things that the President has done wrong, but at the same time, helps to give an easy to understand perspective of why he did the things the way he did. He even went as far as taking the last chapter to give 10 things that President Obama’s could do to help change all the wrongs that he has done so far. (I actually thought that since it looks like there isn’t many people who are looking as good candidates to go against President Obama in next year’s election, that it looked as if Kevin knew what he was talking about and would be a great candidate!)

This book left me with a bad taste in my mouth for President Obama. I hate to say it, but the overall thoughts that I gained about the President can be summed up by saying that he promised a lot before he became President to get votes and to get him into the White House, he didn’t follow through with any of those promises, and he’s not going to try to change it so that he will follow through with those promises.

Because I know so little about politics and the President, I’m afraid to take this book as the only book that I’ll read about him, but I’m not quite sure I’ll find a book that shows the “other” side of President Obama?

Guess it’s time to start looking for one.

Disclosure of Material Connection: Thomas Nelson Publishers sent me a free copy of this book as part of their bloggers book review program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”