Year: 2005

I’m hardly able to do anything these days, except when I listen to the only stable truth in my life, God himself. There is so much going on that makes me think I am inadequate, “just an intern”, “just a computer guy”, “just this or that”… But, it’s all a lie. Christ wants us to be more than “just this or that” he says that we are saints, to be equipped, and he has commissioned us to do the work of spreading his word. It is our responsibility to let the world know about him, through serving, loving, telling, there is nothing else more important. Because he loves us so much, he has invited us to do the most important job. Of course, he can reveal himself, as he does around the world, but he uses us to make disciples of the nations. How humbling, how honoring, how mind-blowing that the creator of the universe uses us, and remember he made us only slightly lower than the angels. We give him love, and since we were created in his image, and we need love, therefore he must need love too. I’m hardly able to grasp it all, so I’ll take it just one day at a time.

Now, I have not yet read John Eldredge’s book “The Sacred Romance” however, God is showing Alexis and I the magnificent beauty of having God as the center strand of our love affair. If it were not for Him there is absolutely no way I could ever love a person as I do right now. I can honestly say that I am head over heals for her and that I can not imagine life without her, just as life with out Jesus is a very scary thought for me, life without Alexis just wouldn’t be right. She is certainly not an idol to me, but she is the object of my love, right now, right here, and God is the eternal object of my love. I know without any doubt, with full certainty, that the God I serve, love, adore, and revere is true.

This isn’t just because I am courting an amazing, beautiful young lady, it is because when I made the decision to enter into Jesus’ will, and honor, glorify, and praise Him for everything, my entire life got meaning. I have a meaningful life, a life of hope. When I look back over the past five years, there are so many miracles, everything lines up, my life is not just a bunch of random decisions, it is beautifully crafted for purpose.

Two people can accomplish more than twice as much as one; they get a better return for their labor. If one person falls, the other can reach out and help. But people who are alone when they fall are in real trouble. And on a cold night, two under the same blanket can gain warmth from each other. But how can one be warm alone? A person standing alone can be attacked and defeated, but two can stand back-to-back and conquer. Three are even better, for a triple-braided cord is not easily broken. [Ecclesiastes 4:9-12]

I will write something more formal in the next few days, but out of desperation, and God’s way of humbling me, I wanted to get going here. The Lord has been providing for me in very awesome ways, in fact while I was in Poland all last year I never had a month where I was behind in any kind of support.

However this year, a large part of it has been my personal savings (from when I worked full time) and from the very little work that I have had. So now, it has come to a place where I must simply ask. I currently owe $1620 for winter quarter, thankfully the Oregon College of Ministry is graceful, however there does come a point where they must stop. Not only have I not finished paying for winter quarter, spring quarter is just around the corner, and that is going to be another $1900 plus dollars (I bought one book for winter quarter out of six that I should have).

This situation is creating some stress in my life, my job just covers my two bills (car insurance and cell phone) and whatever is left goes towards the college. Unfortunately, because of my duties as an intern (which is part of the school program), I have only time on Tuesdays and Saturdays that I can work, and spiritually I would like to keep one of those days free as a true Sabbath.

So, this is the situation of desperation and humbleness. Thanks for your prayers and support,

If anyone feels compelled to support me in this endeavor to be equipped for the ministry, you may either send a check to:

Oregon College of Ministry
701 N. Main Ave.
Gresham, OR 97030-7236
on the memo line please include: For Travis Mielonen

Alternatively, donate online with PayPal:

I had this test question in my Christian Worldview class: Critically evaluate the following statement in light of our Christian worldview perspective: “One is not able to come to absolute certainty concerning just about everything because of mankind’s many limitations. As a result, truth is relative.” The following is my answer:

Firstly, the above statement is contradictive to itself since it is an absolute statement, and quite certain in nature. Secondly, it is a statement made from the reasoning of man, a source that is finite and limited as it states. Thirdly, the statement assumes there is no absolute source outside of man for truth.

The statement must be closely examined because at a glance, it seems reasonable, but one must know all in order to make such a statement. The statement itself says humankind is limited; therefore, it falls apart on its own accord.

Further, only when one recognizes that God is truth, and only He is infallible will he/she see the breakdown of logic. Even still, careful consideration will prove that unless one assumes God he/she cannot make an absolute statement of truth. We must acknowledge the biblical God as our authoritive-voice in truth matters, since He is the only one with evidences of truth support.

My brain hurts, but I got twenty points out of twenty possible.

The sun makes a world of difference for my mood. When the light comes in through my windows (as little as there are in my basement apartment) it just livens me up. It seems everything is a little lighter, the people in the streets, the animals, and the overall spiritual environment, everything. When the sun is out, I feel like I’m walking directly with THE SON. I wish I could just internalize this feeling inside, make it a recallable memory, but instead I seem to slip into heaviness when the sun is away. Not all the time, and I must say it is getting better with each day.

God has been showing me many new things in my life, things like saying a simple hello, praying with people on the spot instead of “I’ll be praying for you” and the ever-so-simple smile. I have been so humbled by life here, that’s just as simple as it gets. Be humble.

Not sure, what it is, but the past few days I’ve just felt heavy, a little frustrated, but at the same time, I have a peace. I think I just need some time alone, I have not been journaling much nor have I done much personal time. God is trying to speak but for some reason I seem to be ignoring Him and finding other things to do. I love and hate these kinds of times. I’m learning to balance all of my life, so much of it is great, however I must focus on myself. Still, blessed be HIS name. My heart is choosing to say blessed be YOUR name.

Last Wednesday Alexis and I got back together. The past three months has been an incredible stretching time for me. There were definite moments where I thought we would never get back together, but now everything is so different. We are talking differently, we have a very clear idea of what God wants us to do in the future, and we know we will have little, maybe even big, tiffs, but God is the center of this relationship. The counseling I am in right now has shed so much light on all of my little quirks, that is not to say that am 100% better or that things in my past won’t rear again, its just that now I can identify them and seek God’s guidance.

In other news, Alexis has her own blog now, but I still do not have the address. She’s already getting comments and she hasn’t advertised or commented on anyone else’s blogs, so there must be something good on it! It’s a creative writing blog so I’m dieing to see what’s on there, she said I’ll know soon, she just wants to get it going first. She isn’t using her real name on it so I can’t search for it.

Young Man:
How beautiful you are, my beloved, how beautiful! Your eyes are soft like doves.

Young Woman:
What a lovely, pleasant sight you are, my love, as we lie here on the grass, shaded by cedar trees and spreading firs. [Song of Songs: 1:15-17]

I have no idea what to write though, there is so much, and right now I’m sitting in a coffee shop just thinking of all the great things God has done in my life these past few months. I guess I can always ask for prayer, prayer for good direction, quiet times to listen to the Lord and to do what is right for the people I love. There is so much going on in my mind right now and so many people that I would love to have long conversations with that I am just kind of in this comatose mindset of not knowing what to do. Tomorrow is a huge day, I will be meeting with people who are the most influential in my life at the moment, and the most authoritive in my life with a big decision to propose to them, I am nervous, and after tomorrow, you all might know why. Well, I had better go.

Here is a quick update. I finished my first quarter at Oregon College of Ministry and the International Training Program with a 3.4 GPA, go Travis! Alexis and I are doing very well, we still are not back together, but it is a time of healing and reflection for our friendship and is probably near its strongest point ever. I have learned a lot about ministry, listening to God, being sensitive to other

Fear of God: Revearing trust in God that includes commitment to his revealed words and will.