Joe Castillo

After my performance at Mount Pleasant Community Church, a man approached me, took my hand and leaned well within my personal space and began whispering in my ear.  “Two of the members in my family told me some time ago that they would never walk into a church again. They are here this Sunday because they came to see you.” 

Since my success in reaching the finals on America’s Got Talent, the number of people I am able to touch has increased dramatically.  With it comes the weight of responsibility to make my influence count. 

I am also reminded that I am still a very small grain of sand on a very big beach.  The new Pope, now he has some influence and a huge weight of responsibility.  How do you lead a church of almost one billion people, many of whom will hang their lives on your every word? I pray for him as I do for other world leaders. I also pray that Pope Francis could point many to Christ. I pray that he could proclaim the gospel in way that many will understand the Christ’s love, the sacrifice He made for us and receive Christ as their savior. I pray that he would point to the resurrection and encourage Christians to live a new life in Christ. I pray that he would promote peace and unity in the church, the body of Christ. I pray that he would encourage us to live out the prayer of Saint Francis of Assisi.  

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.

Where there is hatred, let me sow love;

where there is injury, pardon;

where there is doubt, faith;

where there is despair, hope;

where there is darkness, light;

and where there is sadness, joy.

O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek

to be consoled as to console;

to be understood as to understand;

to be loved as to love.

For it is in giving that we receive;

it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;

and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. 

Amen

I hope you enjoy this SandStory video about the selection of Pope Francis. With the University of Pretoria Choir singing the prayer of St. Francis. 

“Spring is supposed to be here,” I mumble as I wipe Kentucky snow off my glasses while packing our car in 28º temps for our next trip. But I smile, Orlando Florida (72º), Las Vegas, Nevada (82º) and Honolulu, Hawaii (sweetº) are on the Itinerary.  God is Good! 

Please check our calendar to see if we are going to be near you and follow our adventures on FaceBook or Twitter. 

Two Views, Two attitudes

How would you handle the "Nightmare" on the Carnival Cruise ship? What would you do when you stepped ashore from that ill fated vessel? I heard that within twenty four hours of docking, someone had already filed a lawsuit agains the Cruise Lines.

Difficulties, hardships and tragedies eventually interject themselves into every life. First and most important is getting clear perspective on the event. After all, finding a lump in your gravy is not the same as finding a lump somewhere in your body. Your appraisal of the situation is critical in how it affects you. 

In all of it though, there are really only two vantage points. Only two major world views. Which camp do you fall in?

First is believing that everything is an accident. Life is a roll of the dice. No God, No plan. You make or break your own fate. Something bad happens? Tough. No point in going to the complaint department. Nobody can answer the why of it. 

Secondly is the belief that somehow, something is in control of what is going on and it's outcome. Call it karma, destiny or God. Things happen for a reason. There is a plan. It might not always be clear but someday you will know why.

Regardless of which side of the philosophical fence you are on, there are only two attitudes that come in to play. Which attitude do you choose?

Somebody is going to pay. You are going to gripe, whine complain and if you are shaking your fist at God, so be it. If it is all silent and dark out there. If nobody is home and there is no one to ask or blame, you are still going to be cranky, angry and make as many other people miserable as you can.

Or, If I would rather be glad than sad; If happy is better than crappy, then put a smile on your face, grab a mop or a broom, sing a song, pray a prayer, choose to be a force for good rather than evil, and make a difference. 

You can always be glad you weren't on the Titanic.  

And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, since to this you are called along with the whole body and be thankful.  Colossians 3:15

Once upon a time... 

I think we all get captivated by a good story. A great one endures generations and we all want to hear it again. Almost ten years ago I developed a way of telling stories in sand. They required no introduction, explanation or translation. In the past five years I have told these stories in 39 states, 18 foreign countries to at least eight language groups. Almost daily I am reminded of the universal nature of these SandStory performances.

A wrinkled, weathered old man came up to me after one of the live “America’s Got Talent Live” shows that I performed at the Palazzo Theater in Las Vegas. With leathery gnarled hands he took both of mine, turned them palm up and then looked up into my eyes. His obsidian black pupils looked moist. In broken English he communicated that he had watched my televised performance in Armenia and traveled 5,000 miles to watch me perform live. In the noisy crowd that always congregated in the lobby after the show he leaned close and what he said left me stunned. “I know you tell story of Jesus.” I din’t even know how to respond. We embraced and I was left yet again with the incredible weight of responsibility to continue sharing the story of Jesus.

This time of year share the old story in a new way. My “ArtStory Greeting Cards” tell the story in the details of clever drawings. We have a  Special Holiday offer. 

Six different Notecards to choose from:
    - The Face of Christ
    - The Lord is my Shepherd
    - Carried in His arms 
    - Mary Chosen of God
    - I have given you an example
    - The Shadow of His hand

During the month of December, with any 10 pack notecard order you can select a second 10 pack FREE! Order 4 packs and get 8 with FREE shipping!

Right before the America's Got Talent Finals, my social media hit the fan. My son, José, encouraged me a couple of years ago to leap in to the "digital dance". He refers to himself as a "geek translator" explaining the mysteries of the internet and its value to those who do not speak the language. So I took the big leap. Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, Instagram, My space and whatever. It was kind of fun. I reconnected with old friends and made new ones. Then AGT came calling. Suddenly I had 173 personal messages. Some of them good friends in serious crisis, some I had never heard of. My Facebook friend tally had hit 10,000 and 4,000 people were following me on Twitter. I was overwhelmed! 

Answering a phone call, a letter or an email has always been a big priority for me. People are important. How could I keep up with that kind of onslaught? What I was discovering was that my online relationships were becoming one inch deep and a mile wide. This question really blew my mind. "How in the whole world could God keep up with billions of people with needs" People have weighty requests, serious hurts, and valid complaints. 

Back in the pages of the ancient scriptures I was comforted to read "It is so precious when you think about me, O God! You think of me huge number of times a day! If I try to count them, they are more in number than grains of sand on all the beaches." God is not a mile wide and an inch deep. He is deeper, wider and longer than anyone can imagine. 

So if I don’t respond to your tweet or FB post, please forgive me, but be comforted, God will never leave you hanging, forget your face, loose your text or ignore your email. 

God hears our every heartbeat.