Relevant

Local Church

2010-03-15T15:39:00.006-07:00

I wonder what God thinks about the state of the "local Church"?
This past Sunday I taught about the local church to my high school group.

It wasn't until college that I began to understand the spiritual benefits of coming together to worship as the body of Christ. Before then I went to church for 3 very good reasons (according to my immature brain) friends, girls and tradition (I'd been going since before I was born).

We have the privilege of reading about the first church through Luke's account in the book of Acts. I wonder what that group really looked like?

It is incredible how often this happens without any coordination but the sermon in "big church" Sunday also took a look at the first church and compared it with the church we are a part of now.

I really think that the separation between then and now comes from the individuals that make up the church not being willing to lay aside petty differences and unite to follow Christ and the purpose that He called His followers to!
The key word above is petty. There are some issues that we must take a stand against and so some division will probably always be a part of Christianity, unfortunately.
But, even within my local church there is division. Why?
We are not willing to be sold out followers of Christ. Our ego is more important. Our reputation is more important. Our friends are more important. Our habits are more important. We allow all that crap to keep us from being the force that we could be cause someone looks, dresses or acts different.
I hate Satan! He can take a beautiful thing and through the fall distort it into an ugly mess.

Diversity. A God authored/ordained fact about humanity that is there for a purpose. To make the body more efficient and effective. Satan can distort and use it to cause division in the body of Christ. I know I just opened up a can of worms with that subject but not even getting into the race or cultural differences, even things as petty as style of clothes or gifting or body size and worse divide us.

Since I made the statement that I believe the separation comes from each of us as individuals...the question must be asked...am I laying aside petty differences for the greater purpose of carrying out the great commission as a part of my local church?

Are you?

Lament for Haiti by Ben Homan

2010-02-23T15:26:00.004-07:00

I LOVED this message that Ben posted and wanted to share it with you...Ben is the President of Food for the Hungry and has recently returned (as you will read) from a trip to Haiti.

More than 220,000 people perished.
More than 700,000 people displaced from their homes.
70% of the schools destroyed.
Life disrupted – and changed forever – for millions more.

The Haiti earthquake staggers the mind – and breaks the heart.
I felt torn as I went to Haiti, a tragedy that evoked hard memories of past emergencies. Still, having walked through what I can only call an “open graveyard” in post-tsunami zones and seen terror in the bullet-ridden hospitals of Baghdad, Haiti’s lament summoned. Yet I also knew such calls included searching for elusive words to say in unspeakable situations.

Haiti was no different.

My first morning in post-earthquake Port-au-Prince, I glanced at the schedule. To my surprise, my name was listed next to “Staff devotions.” I winced. What would I say? What could I say? All around us was indescribable loss, the crush of debris and even the stench of bodies trapped in the rubble. In the dim morning light, I muttered a simple prayer: “God help me.”

The day before, I saw many of the 337 makeshift camps that contain an estimated 550,000 displaced people. Children roved by themselves. Bed sheets hung loosely as roofs and walls. Desperate stares. Pancaked buildings. Twisted rebar. Rescue crews. And the vacant eyes of survivors. I donned a face mask to fight the terrible odor. A staff member recounted pulling 15 bodies from his collapsed apartment building. “I was 5 minutes from death,” he said, reflecting on how far away he was from his home at the time of the quake. “I arrived home to find the bodies of six sisters huddled in one place; they died together.”

I fumbled through my Bible, hoping for God’s Spirit to speak to my soul and arrived at the Old Testament book of Lamentations – written, scholars believe, by the “weeping prophet,” Jeremiah. “A book about lamenting,” I thought. “That should do.” From my bedside, I devoured all five very hard, grief-filled chapters of Israel’s defeat, devastation, captivity and exile.Questions streamed through my head. How do you process the intensity of Haiti’s tragedy? How does one understand the huge loss of so many, many people? I read the prophets words, “Your wound is as deep as the sea. Who can heal you?” (Lamentations 2:13). Exactly, I thought.

As I tried to grasp the pain and suffering around me, I clung to three big ideas that gave comfort and hope – notions that I needed for my own sustenance – and that I shared with our staff on that morning. Below I have recorded an updated version of those rough ideas:Through Lamentations, God invites us to into 1) honesty, 2) relationships and 3) humility.

1. God invites us into HONESTY.
As I read the pages of Lamentations, I was struck with the raw emotions and stark descriptions.
“My eyes fail from weeping, I am in torment within, my heart is poured out on the ground because my people are destroyed, because children and infants faint in the streets of the city,” Lamentations 2:11·
“…your children…faint from hunger at the head of every street…. Whom have you ever treated like this?” Lamentations 2:19, 20·
“This is why I weep and my eyes overflow with tears. No one is near to comfort me, no one to restore my spirit. My children are destitute because the enemy has prevailed.” Lamentations 1:16·
“You, O LORD, reign forever; your throne endures from generation to generation. Why do you always forget us? Why do you forsake us so long?” Lamentations 5:19-20

As I read these rugged verses in Lamentations along with Psalms of lament, such as Psalm 10, I was struck at the emotional range and space that God’s prophet uses to lead others into lament. Is God really that big and expansive to invite His people to wail, to weep, to complain – and even to, at times, lodge charges of abandonment on heaven’s doorstep? The answer is “yes.”

God invites our honesty. He will meet us on the “holy ground” of our expressed sorrow, our lament, and He is doing this in Haiti. Yet I am convinced, as I read Scripture and understand more of God’s amazing emotional depth, that the path of healing for Haiti must first route itself through grief. Lament cannot be healthily by-passed. God can deal with our brutal emotional expression – and beckons us to come close with all of our hurts. He wants to touch us and heal us at that level.

2. God invites us into RELATIONSHIPS.
Lamentations was not written as a private journal or secret diary. It was inspired and preserved for a collective purpose in the life of God’s people. Indeed, it was written as a community document, in poetic form, that would facilitate a shared historical experience. It builds a lexicon of suffering, a model of how to communicate about epic loss. Yet while the Book of Lamentations at its most basic structural level strings together five poems that key off of Hebrew acrostics, the book trail blazes vulnerability with others and a group sharing of hard emotions. But the prophet does not stop at the transparent exposure of feelings. He also goes down the brave path of confession. ·
“My sins have been bound to a yoke….” Lamentations 1:14·
“The Lord is righteous, yet I rebelled against His command,” Lamentations 1:18·
“The crown has fallen from our head. Woe to us, for we have sinned! Because of this our hearts are faint, because of these things our eyes grow dim.” Lamentations 5:16-17

After I shared my thoughts about Lamentations with our staff in Port-au-Prince, I was with one of Food for the Hungry’s trained trauma counselors inside the wreckage of a neighborhood Haitian church. With holes in the ceiling above and crumbling walls, he distributed blank sheets of paper, pencils and crayons to each of these precious Haitian quake survivors. At a crude table, he invited the group to draw pictures of their earthquake experience. Where were they? What do they remember? The group quietly drew – and then they spoke, wept and discussed. The community of quake survivors found a common voice in their drawings – and it allowed them to take an early step toward processing their pain and receiving God’s comfort – in the context of relationships.

My own natural tendency when I return from disaster zones is to shrink away into private reflection. “Leave me alone,” I sometimes think. Yet withdrawing from relationships is no path for restoration or depth of healing from trauma. God grants relationships as a means of recovery from wounds. “Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn,” (Romans 12:15). We are invited in the community of faith to meet each other across our vast spectrum of both easy and difficult emotions. Of course, this has implications not only for folks who experience suffering, but also those in close proximity. Sometimes, the bystanders of pain must go in pursuit of a friend or loved one who is hurt. No one who is injured should bear the burden alone. “Bear one another’s burdens and thus fulfill the law of Christ,” Galatians 6:2.

As I emerged from post-earthquake Haiti, I dedicated the better part of a day to talk with a friend who is also a pastor and trained counselor. I shared what I saw and experienced in Haiti. I grieved for the man with mangled legs who dragged himself everywhere with his arms. I told of a restless, almost mob-like situation surrounding our distribution of health and hygiene boxes – and I felt graced with the restorative impact that flows from close relationships. One of my prayers for Haiti is that it will become a nation of “wounded healers” who bless and restore each other, in part, through the ability to express loss. In the context of relationships, we can remind people in pain that what Jesus said is true, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest,” Matthew 11:28.

3. God invites us into HUMILITY.
The prophet in the Book of Lamentations, viewing the tragic events for the Hebrews, offers no pat answers or definitive answers as to the “why” question of suffering. He offers no explicit, one-size-fits-all philosophical statements on the problem of pain. To be blunt, the book affirms that suffering perplexes and that we lack God’s full perspective. The Hebrew reader at the time of the book’s writing would likely have been instructed in the Law of Moses and be familiar with Deuteronomy 29:29, “The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may follow all the words of this law.” There are realities hidden from view. There are answers we do not have.

In the life of my own family, we have no clear understanding of why my wife has the disease Multiple Sclerosis. My father and my wife’s father both died from the same form of cancer. One lived to age 86; the other did not reach 70 years. Why such different courses for the same diagnosis? We do not know. The complexities of not knowing can be frustrating – yet we are allowed and even invited to struggle, wrestle and dispute. At the end of the day, mysteries and secrets remain – and starkly remind us of human limits. In short, the secret things of this world humble us. I am finite; God is not. And it is perhaps in this recognition of my shortcomings and limited view of reality that I can gain a larger view of the greatness of God. As we learn in Lamentations 3:22-23, “Because of the LORD's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” God is great; I am not great. It is a humbling truth to which pain and suffering can bring us.

CONCLUSION
A reflection on lament cannot be complete without acknowledging Jesus’ lament. Recall that desperate moment on the cross as Jesus completed His selfless act of redemption and sacrifice, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46).
Jesus’ lament, which marks an amazing moment in redemptive history in which He bore the penalty of sin, was likely not in clear view of the writer of the Book of Lamentations or its initial audience. Think of it. The Creator God becomes human, bears our burdens and cries out in lament. Though the prophet Isaiah predicted the Messiah to be a “Man of sorrows” (Isaiah 53:3), the notion then of a suffering Savior was not fully grasped. Yet being a reader of the Book of Lamentations on this side of the cross, I can only stand in greater amazement and worship of God for entering our world of lament, suffering on the cross and truly becoming a “Wonderful Counselor” (Isaiah 9:6) who meets us in our pain and binds up our wounds.

As we pray for Haiti and as we connect with each other through our own lamenting, be reminded that lament also represents an invitation. Lament can be a part of our journey into honesty, relationships and humility. God meets us there in hard, but intimate communion.

by Benjamin Homan
Food for the Hungry
February 2010

The original post of this can be found at the address below on the Food for the Hungry facebook page.
http://www.facebook.com/#!/notes/food-for-the-hungry/lament-for-haiti/336742167776

God's Provision

2010-01-25T15:40:00.002-07:00

It became undeniably obvious last week that while I have been "milking" the tires on my wife's Honda Pilot for over 70,000 miles now, for the safety of the MOST important people in my life it is time to put them to rest.
I took a little bit of time this past weekend to look at reviews of some of the most widely used tires for her vehicle and determined a couple of good options.
I went into Discount Tire this morning with a heavy heart though knowing that we don't have the $ to buy a set of cheap tires let alone a set of tires I feel comfortable that my family is riding on.
I got there shortly after they opened and talked with the guy at the desk. "yup, you need knew tires" he says to me. No surprise! Not to sound too cynical but He prob would have told me that even if I didn't (thankful that I have a dear friend that is honest with me and just so happens to have a "shop").
I had him price me a set of "middle of the road" tire. $700!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I almost fell over. I tried to keep from crying in the middle of a tire shop and asked about other options. Here is where it starts to get good!
Turns out that he didn't have that tire in stock but he could upgrade me for "no additional cost" to a Yokohama (better than Goodyear Intergrity) tire. Come to find out that there was an inventory issue and they didn't have the Yokohama tire in stock either so that manager decided to give a free upgrade (again) to a Goodyear Fortera silent armor (better than the Yokohama) tire.
I made the purchase with a heavy heart but praying the whole time that God would in some way provide the $ to cover this purchase.

After I get the tires I have to head directly to my seminary class. After class lets out I check my e-mail via my phone (which I rarely do). There is an e-mail from the chairman of our Shepherd Board (elder board) stating that the board had decided to give a one time gift to the salaried staff (we did not receive raises or bonuses this past year out of prudence for the economic situation).
The amount of the one time gift combined with a refund of our escrow acct from the home that we bought this past year completely covers the tires!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I'll stop there but there aren't enough exclamation points that I could include at the end of that statement.

In Philippians Paul is talking to the Philippian church and is commending them for their faithful giving to him and to his work and his encourgaement to them is "And my God, will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus. To our God and Father be glory forever and ever. Amen." Phil 4:19-20

AMEN.

Am I a leader? I want to be a leader!

2009-12-14T15:41:00.005-07:00

As I meet regularly with mentors of mine we seem to get on "themes" for a couple weeks at a time...and sometimes for longer.

Lately, the theme has been leadership. Specifically, my leadership of the 18 volunter leaders and 1 intern that are under my "leadership".

This past week one of my mentors provided two word pictures for me. His words were: a manager is the guy trying to push his team up the hill.

A leader is the guy out in front leading the way up the hill.

As I have spent some time thinking and praying introspectively about this here is what I came up with...short version :)

One was a picture of a manager that kinda looked like this...

Everyone is there and ready to be told what to do but they are sitting around while the "manager" is trying to get them on board and push them to the finish line (read: goal).

The other was a picture of a leader that looked more like this ...

A person knowing where they are going and how to get there. He has built relationship with them and poured into their lives so they trust him and he trusts them.

They are on board with him & the strategy so now he is stepping out and leading the way knowing that the eager and willing people will follow his example and direction to achieve their goal.

As I meditate on these two word pictures in my mind and look at these two pictures that I found I am able to see that I have put on the hat of a manager which is NOT my natural approach. Nor is it the most effective (my opinion) in this ministy setting.

Part of it is me trying to adopt things that other people are that just aren't me and part of it is a forced action because I feel pressure to accomplish goals, etc.

As I was talking with him (my mentor) I realized that actually my more natural approach is the "leadership" style not the "manager" one.

I am a more relational person and love connecting with people that way.

I hope this realization will make me more of a leader.

I want to be a great leader!

5 Great Leadership Principles

2009-12-10T10:53:00.002-07:00

One of my youth leaders is a leader in his workplace as well as here in the youth group. He is upper level management and he sent me these 5 principles that they discussed at one of their more recent staff meetings.

I'm not sure where these "originally" came from but wanted to share them.

1. Determine not to know everything. Successful
leaders don’t know everything. But they know people
who do. If you’re a leader and you don’t have a
good assistant, you’re in trouble. If you have the
right person in place, you can keep your mind on the
main thing while your assistant thinks about everything
else.

2. Determine not to know everything first. If every
problem must be shared with leaders first, then
solutions take forever. The people on the front lines
are usually the ones who provide the best solutions.

3. Determine to let someone represent you. The
decision to let others represent you requires much
time and trust. This trust should not be given lightly.
You must get to know the people in whom you place
that trust, and they must earn it through seasons of
proven performance. Once you reach that level of
trust with people you work with, you will be freed up
even more to remain focused on the main things
that really matter.

4. Determine to stay with your strengths and not
work on your weaknesses. Strive to stay with your
strengths. In those areas of strength, you usually get
good results because you remain focused.

5. Determine to take charge of what takes your
time and attention. Take control of your calendar. You
cannot fulfill your purpose if you are forever fulfilling
everyone else’s. If you don’t take charge of your
schedule, others will always be in charge of you.

ANGRY!

2009-12-07T16:54:00.005-07:00

" Everyone gets angry but not everyone gets angry about things that matter"

This has been a great series from The ReThink Group that we are in the middle of.

We often are so angry about little insignificant things...people cutting us off on the road, bad hair days, parents, siblings or other people not treating us the way WE think they should or giving us what WE want, photo radar(that's a big one here in Phoenix :), sports athletes or teams not performing up to standards or performing too well...etc.

What would happen if as the body that makes up Christ's bride we got ANGRY about the same stuff that makes Him mad? Idolatry, adultery, selfishness, genocide, The "haves" purposely keeping from the "have nots", abuse etc.

Look at the list of things that God hates in Proverbs 6:16-19 "haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, a false witness who pours out lies and a man who stirs up dissension among brothers."

Do we hate those things also? When we hear about those things happening does it make us angry?

What if we jumped on board with the redemptive restorative process that He started way back in Genesis 3?

Leaning on His promises, with His power in us we could do anything we wanted to!

Isn't it incredible to think that, based on consumer statistics, if those of us in the United States stopped eating ice cream for 12-18months we could almost completely wipe out world hunger!!!

Would we be willing to sacrifice this delicacy in order to accomplish this?

Would you consider becoming more aware of things that make God angry & be angry about them & less angry about the things the things that make us angry out of our own selfishness?

Imagine what we could do allowing that righteous anger to motivate us to action as part of what God is doing!

Video Editing Try

2009-11-19T14:12:00.002-07:00

This is the highlight video that I put together for our upcoming "Youth Sunday".

Still learning how to do all this video editing stuff but I'm happy with it.

Marathon Training

2009-11-17T09:42:00.002-07:00

I have always been a runner. There have been times in my life when I had to run (from people or dogs/animals or "authorities"), times when I was on a team that ran (track team), times when I ran to blow off steam etc.

This is the first time since High School where I have had a clear running regiment that was leading to a set goal. Funny thing is that I am learning a lot about myself in this process.

Nobody has ever accused me of having a incredible work ethic. I have an average "drive" in life. I was and am a "B" student (although in seminary i think I have bested that so far). I do have short bursts of intensely highly driven times when I am working on a certain "project" that I am really passionate about but then the project ends and so does the drive. My drive is really up and down instead of consistent.

When I decided to run a ridiculous 26.2miles a good friend of mine gave me a training plan. It is a good plan. He told me that if I could stick to the plan then I'd be set and have no problem finishing the marathon. Just one problem. I'm having a hard time sticking to the plan. My drive to reach my goal comes in bursts and then fizzles out. I think in the long run it will make this whole process as well as reaching my goal much more difficult.

In our youth ministries we use a curriculum called XP3. The series we are doing is called "road signs" and is based out of Proverbs as well as a principal that Andy Stanley has kind of "coined" that says "The path that you are on, not your intentions, determine your destination."

I find that I rely on my "intentions" a lot to get me where I want to go or be.
I read a post from John Piper the other day titled "When You Don't Want to do What you Ought To" that I really liked and was very personal to me.

The encouragement for me was:
You can seek, by grace, to have God give the "want to" so that when the time comes to do the "ought to," you will "want to." Ultimately, the "want to" is a gift of God.

I posted a quote on facebook and twitter the other day that said, "don't let the reasons you are who you are become excuses for not being who you could/should be".
That was directed at myself and if someone else read it and liked it then great.

Honestly, I never thought to pray for more "want to", for more drive.
You better believe that I am prayin' for it now though!

The Church as Consumers

2009-10-14T10:55:00.003-07:00

When I say the "church" above I do not mean the institution of the church but the body of Christ that is THE Church. The people that make up His bride being stuck in this rut of consumerism being made up of consumers.

Just for clarity for myself I looked up the definition of consumer and consumerism as well as read about what others are saying on this issue (some of their posts are listed at the end of this post for you to check out if you would like to).
Consumer: a person or thing that consumes; Economics. a person or organization that uses a commodity or service.
Consumerism: the concept that an ever-expanding consumption of goods is advantageous to the economy. The fact or practice of an increasing consumption of goods.

When I think of a consumer I think of a person that sits back and takes from society or a group or whatever and does not contribute to society.
I picture it like this, remember back to school when the teacher would give you a group assignment and there were a couple of kids in the class that nobody wanted to be in a group with because everyone knew they wouldn't do any of the work but still get the same "credit" or grade as the rest of the group. Of course all of us had the urge to be that guy or girl but we didn't want the reputation that came with it.

Why does it not bother us that our involvement in the church can be that way and nobody feels bad about it? Especially since the church is one of the two institutions that Jesus instituted and our involvement is birthed out of our relationship with God. Last time I checked, a relationship is a two way street. Not many relationships last very long if they are one way. Eventually the person doing all the giving steps away from the relationship. Now, that will not happen with God and will not happen with the Church but that really shouldn't be motivation for us in this case anyway.

There are probably lots of reasons that people smarter than I could give as to why we are where we are as a consumeristic church body but I am focusing on ministry moving forward and trying to answer the question "How do we combat and eventually change the mentality of churchgoers to be fully engaged participants in the bigger story"?

Do we forget that we come to church not to receive but to give and in the process we receive.
It looks like this:
I come to church with anticipation of meeting with like-minded people to worship (in whatever form) give glory to, express love to, humble ourselves before a Holy God and He in fact meets with us! Then we are able to edify one another...see Hebrews 10:24-25

So, what are ways that we must change the institution of the church in order to change the mindset of the body of believers that make up the Church.

Interaction is one thing that pops into my head. Experience is another. Finding ways to partner with God in His redemptive work.

What does that look like, specifically, in this suburban upper middle class church & youth ministry that God has placed me in?

A few links to a few articles or blogs I read about this subject. I do not necessarily support or endorse any of these but I found them to be good food for thought.
Christianity Today
Sojourn
Out of Ur
Mark Sayers

Rose to the Top: Experience & Service

2009-10-06T11:19:00.002-07:00

As I continue to wade through and try to identify all the thoughts and feelings in my brain still dancing/thrashing around like a moshpit I find that more questions are being asked than answered...but questions are good.

One of the "labs" that I went to laid out some of the obvious differences between the modern and postmodern group of people. I'm honestly not sure which group I fall into. I think I am a mut, part of my make up is rooted in the modern tradition and part of me is made up with the postmodern views and characteristics. I'm not sure if that gives me an advantage or a disadvantage. I kind of wish I was deeply rooted in one or the other but I also see value in being the mut.

This postmodern group that most of my ministry is directed to is much more of an experiential group. They are driven by experiences. The TV shoes they watch, the concerts they go to, the things that grab their attention are experiential in a way like never before.

I believe that the church is always behind the cultural shifts a step or two, so given that observation as I/we try to "catch up", not to be too cultural but to be most effective in ministering to the teenagers that are fully enthralled in this postmodern culture. We need to provide experiences for them.

I believe that the "experience(s)" that we provide them have to be made up of a few things but there are 2 that are primary in my head:
1) Find ways for them to interact and experience God's Word in a perhaps new way. I believe that the single greatest activity that we can do to continue & further our spiritual formation is to read & meditate on God's Word.

2) Find ways for them to do significant things (acts of service). I believe another big springboard in our spiritual formation is putting actions to our beliefs or words. Giving them opportunities to act out the things they "say" they believe. Taking on the attitude of Christ who did not come to be served but to serve.

I could and am tempted to write SO much more about this topic but I'm going to stop here for now and may return to it later.

ReThink/Orange Leaders Forum

2009-10-01T13:03:00.004-07:00

Below are a couple videos from this past Monday when Reggie Joiner, founder of the ReThink Group and author of Think Orange was here at our church hosting a forum.

I got to hear Reggie speak at the NYWC this past weekend also so it was good to have an opportunity to speak with him and really try to chew on some of the principles he talked about such as:

Shifting my weekly attention heading toward Sunday:
from student to leader
from content to experience
from production to relationships
from age group focus to family ministry focus
from growth to service

Principles about change
-If you want to build something that lasts you have to be willing to change what you build. upgrade, tweak, etc.

-There is a tendency to be too slow to upgrade because change seems costly.

-The best way to keep a team moving toward your mission is to frequently upgrade your systems.

-Making changes gives you an opportunity to distinguish between what is core and what is cultural. Important Distinction!

-When you don't upgrade the system, you lose your capacity to support a more relevant approach.

-Effective organizations create a culture that is intentional about upgrading critical systems.
How do we connect leaders both in our ministry but across ministries in our church?
How do we connect people to the Truth?
How do we connect people to the Family?
How do we connect students to mentors?
How do we connect them with and through service?

Rising to the Top

2009-09-30T12:48:00.002-07:00

Every year I got to the National Youth Workers Convention that Youth Specialties puts on and each year I walk away with so much! Inevitably, by the end of the convention a few things have risen to the top and have almost become "themes" for the convention for me. Sometimes they have been personal things and sometimes they have been ministry things.

The things that really stood out to me this year were just a few words:
Storying
Community
Experience
Learning/Teaching methods

There is a lot I could write under each one of these words and I my goal is to try and get some of this stuff out of my head this week so i'd love it if you would check back and dialogue with me about some of this stuff as I post it.

Rose to the top: Storying, Experience & Collaboration

2009-09-30T12:32:00.004-07:00

Every year I go to the National Youth Workers Convention and every year it is beneficial on a bunch of levels. But, inevitably a few things rise to the top each year that really stick with me and almost becomes themes throughout the weekend.

Each year I attend an Intensive Learning Lab which consisted of 6-8 hours of teaching and training in a certain subject.
This year I attended one titled "Story, Experience and Collaboration: New Approaches to Youth Ministry presented by Mike and Mark Novelli along with Kelly Dolan.
There was a real focus on "Storying" which was an ancient Hebrew approach to the scriptures that includes creative & sequential telling of Bible stories followed by review and dialogue that allow the participants to be drawn into the scriptures in a "new" way (new to us because we don't teach this way in teh US very much). Michael has a ministry website called Echo The Story and Mark and Kelly also have a minsitry website called Imago - re-imagining the way we gather, learn and worship.

They brought us up to speed on what "storying" really is. Mike shared some stories from his youth groups that he has done this with and they led us through a storying experience. What a great way to interact with scripture.
I really believe this is something that could "wet the whistle" of every kid that wants to know God more deeply but doesn't dare to pick up their Bible because it is confusing or intimidating or whatever their excuse because it draws them into the story and makes them an insider and partner in the story not just a spectator.

Mark and Kelly really talked about the postmodern culture that is almost woven into the very make up of our kids and highlighted some of the observations about this culture and the impact that it SHOULD have on the way we do youth ministry.
A few of those observations were that they are: experiential, artistic, abductive, non-linear

The question(s) I posed to myself after this were:
Are we trying to teach/reach a postmodern culture by using modern tactics?
How can we tap into the students to learn from them about what "works" for them?
Are we pandering to and reinforcing their consumeristic midset?
Are we telling them what to do or showing them how to discover it for themselves?
If someone is artistic and doesn't learn very well in the traditional style (I don't learn well in this way) how can we teach them in a way that suits them?

It was great to be in this intensive with one of my leaders, Mike! We actually got to take Mike, Mark and Kelly out to dinner one evening to get some "one-on-one" time with them to pick their brains a little bit more.

I think we are going to experiment with storying in our High School group. Neither Mike or I had picked guys that we wanted to be in a discipleship group with, not without trying or praying about it. But, maybe God was holding us back for something better (not to diminish discipleship!)

I am REALLY excited about where this goes!

1 of My Top 5 YM Experiences

2009-09-15T09:37:00.003-07:00

This past weekend I took a group of about 60 High Schoolers to Magic Mtn for an Outreach Trip. It was a "Burnout" trip. We left at midnight on Fri night, drove all night, ate breakfast, got to magic mtn about 45min before the park opened at 10:30am, stayed at the park all day till it closed at 10pm, went to the hotel to get some sleep, woke up the next morning, had breakfast and a service before loading up and coming home...man, i am tired again just writting about it. hahaha

The couple of weeks leading up to this trip were kind of a roller coaster for me. Our numbers were WAY down and I was questioning if we should even do the trip. As I was praying for the trip I felt God tell me that numbers don't matter, He is going to bring the people He wants on this trip. So, even though I was hoping for like 80 students and at the time we only had like 30 I continued to move forward with planning. Then my admin assistant found like 20 registration forms that she had put in her desk and forgot about and then in the last week leading up to the trip we had a few more sign up to put us around 60 students.

With this being an outreach trip i told my "regulars" if all of you just come then this is a failure of a trip...invite people! And they did. Almost half of the kids that came were either brand new to the church or were visitors and most of those were not followers of Christ.

Sun morning while we were waiting to start our service a guy walks into the room next to us and I realize that I recognized him. He was some athlete but I couldn't remember who. After a little asking around of some of my kids we figured out that it was Marc Jackson (former Indiana Pacers star and current ESPN analyst). Turns out he pastors a church that meets in the room next to where we were gonna meet. It was cool to meet him and talk with him for a few minutes.
When it was time for our service we sang a few songs (unplugged) and I had 2 students share their testimonies before I got up to present the gospel. I don't know what I was expecting but when I gave the invitation 11 students prayed to accept the free gift that God offers to us through Jesus Christ!!!

One of the girls that came and accepted Christ told one of her friends "it was incredible, Michael said something like make eye contact with me to let me know that you wanna do this and I did and afterwards I had this really strange and good feeling that's what made me cry!"

Right when I got done with the closing prayer some music started coming from the room next door and it was a woman signing praises to God for like 2 minutes straight! It was as if her praises were the celebration of what just happened in our room. It was a glimpse of heaven's celebration after someone decides to follow Christ. It was powerful for me/us and I thank and praise God for allowing us that glimpse.

Series: Things I Wish I Knew About Ministry Before-training adults

2009-09-14T16:05:00.004-07:00

This is one element of my job that I have fought. When God called me to youth minsitry I don't remember training adult leaders as part of the initial equation. It was all about youth, the kids. About loving them, training them, teaching them, accepting them, etc.
I wish when I was younger (like college or internships) someone would have really made it very clear to me the necessity of pouring into adult leaders and of training them in the service of the ministry.
I kinda feel like I am behind the curve a little bit. But as I have grown into the knowledge of the importance of training, equipping loving on leaders it really seems that more than 65% of my ministry time is and needs to be focused on the adults and not on the students!
That is hard to swallow, but as I have learned this and am implementing plans to continue to pour into the adult volunteer leaders, I see the ministry being built into what I was hoping it would become.
I see and embrace the necessity of equipping the adults so they can be as effective as possible. That we are in this together. That this minsitry is led by a group of people following Christ. I just happen to be the one that God has placed in the position of leadership over that group and as I do it more the more I enjoy spending time with the adult leaders. Building relationships with them and getting to know thier families, gifts, etc.

I'm the only paid youth staff member. I do have a paid intern which I am thankful for.
I'm SO thankful for the group of volunteer adult leaders that are a part of this ministry!
If you are reading this and you are one of them, I love you and enjoy being a part of your life and doing ministry with you!

Series: Things I Wish I Knew About Ministry Before-parents

2009-09-08T09:30:00.003-07:00

Yes, the first couple of paragraphs are the same incase you didn't read the first blog in this sereis...if you did read the first in this sereis then please feel free to skip down...

As a 20 yr old I had already been working with a youth group for a couple years as a leader. I was not qualified or called, I just didn't want to attend the college group because, I thought, it was boring and none of my friends went.

The summer of '99 God called me into ministry. It was a definate calling. The beginning of the summer I thought the idea of being a youth pastor was ridiculous! By the end of that summer there was nothing else I wanted to do! God changed my heart.

I had a passion for students. I wanted to love them and teach them and do life with them...and that was all I wanted to do.

That passion carried me through school (something I have never been that good at). Right out of college I worked part-time at a church as well as at a crisis intervention home for teenagers. I loved it. I watned to do ministry full-time but was not given the chance yet.

It is now 10 years after that summer of 1999 and I have been through so much in ministry. God has done so much. I have been able to do those things that God gave me the passion for but there are some things that I know about now that I wish I would have known about back then.

PARENTS:
I think that living in doing minsitry in the era that I began in the whole "parent ministry" thing as part of the youth ministry wasn't a really big deal yet. It seemed as I interned and volunteered in ministry that the vibe I got from youth pastor's or leaders was that parents were annoying, skeptical, critical, unsupportive, nosey, gossips, etc.
As the shifts in ministry have happened my views on parents has changed as well. From the beginning of my vocational ministry I have told parents that I/we (the ministry) wants to "team" with them in impacting their son or daughter. In loving them, in speaking the truth in love, in modeling Christ for them, etc. I don't know how many parents actually believed me but it was a true desire of mine...kinda.

It was the right thing to say. It made parents feel like that was my goal but I'm not sure if I was being really true to myself even by saying that. There was still this underlying negative feeling about parents. When a parents would come up to me to "talk" or ask questions there would be this guard that went up...partially from the mentality I witnessed prior to those experiences and partialy because some parents really are pushy, nosey, critical, etc. and I had run ins with a few of them.

BUT, as I have come to understand my role more (still evolving) and have read more and talked to older and wiser people and also matured personally, I can see how if God has called me to work with teenagers and statistically parents are the biggest influence in their lives (especially in the spitirual lives of teens) and they probably want what is best for their son/daughter then it seems logical that we should work together to impact the teenagers in our lives.

"Two combined influences make a greater impact than just two influences." -not really sure who the original author of that quote is but I saw it in the book Think Orange by Reggie Joiner

Series: Things I Wish I Knew about Ministry Before-politics

2009-09-06T11:13:00.005-07:00

As a 20 yr old I had already been working with a youth group for a couple years as a leader. I was not qualified or called, I just didn't want to attend the college group because, I thought, it was boring and none of my friends went.
The summer of '99 God called me into ministry. It was a definate calling. The beginning of the summer I thought the idea of being a youth pastor was ridiculous! By the end of that summer there was nothing else I wanted to do! God changed my heart.
I had a passion for students. I wanted to love them and teach them and do life with them...and that was all I wanted to do.
That passion carried me through school (something I have never been that good at). Right out of college I worked part-time at a church as well as at a crisis intervention home for teenagers. I loved it. I watned to do ministry full-time but was not given the chance yet.

It is now 10 years after that summer of 1999 and I have been through so much in ministry. God has done so much. I have been able to do those things that God gave me the passion for but there are some things that I know about now that I wish I would have known about back then.

POLITICS:
(In an effort to keep this short. i am not going into details or a full spectrum of thoughts of pros & cons of politics in the church)
As a young newbie in vocational ministry I rebelled against politics in the church. I thought they were silly and showed favortism and didn't really have a place at all in the ministry.
While I still believe that politics in the church are silly and do show favortism and shouldn't have a place in God's service I now understand that they do and probably always will. I wish I would have understood the importance of learning how to "play along" earlier.
Thank God, I have not been fired because of politics or anything like that but I think many things would have gone smoothier or would have come easier if I had been willing to do my due diligence and get the "right" people in my corner or responded differently to the "right" person or parent.

Crazy Videos

2009-08-31T17:00:00.002-07:00

The info on here is almost scary but exciting at the same time!
Imagine the implications for spreading the Word in a world like this!
Are we taking advantage of the resoures that we have available to us?

Religion vs. The Gospel

2009-08-17T08:56:00.001-07:00

I don't remember where I originally found this but I saw it again on one of my friend's blogs and wanted to share it with you...

RELIGION: I obey-therefore I’m accepted.
THE GOSPEL: I’m accepted-therefore I obey.

RELIGION: Motivation is based on fear and insecurity.
THE GOSPEL: Motivation is based on grateful joy.

RELIGION: I obey God in order to get things from God.
THE GOSPEL: I obey God to get to God-to delight and resemble Him.

RELIGION: When circumstances in my life go wrong, I am angry at God or my self, since I believe, like Job’s friends that anyone who is good deserves a comfortable life.
THE GOSPEL: When circumstances in my life go wrong, I struggle but I know all my punishment fell on Jesus and that while he may allow this for my training, he will exercise his Fatherly love within my trial.

RELIGION: When I am criticized I am furious or devastated because it is critical that I think of myself as a ‘good person’. Threats to that self-image must be destroyed at all costs.
THE GOSPEL: When I am criticized I struggle, but it is not critical for me to think of myself as a ‘good person.’ My identity is not built on my record or my performance but on God’s love for me in Christ. I can take criticism.

RELIGION: My prayer life consists largely of petition and it only heats up when I am in a time of need. My main purpose in prayer is control of the environment.
THE GOSPEL: My prayer life consists of generous stretches of praise and adoration. My main purpose is fellowship with Him.

RELIGION: My self-view swings between two poles. If and when I am living up to my standards, I feel confident, but then I am prone to be proud and unsympathetic to failing people. If and when I am not living up to standards, I feel insecure and inadequate. I’m not confident. I feel like a failure.
THE GOSPEL: My self-view is not based on a view of my self as a moral achiever. In Christ I am “simul iustus et peccator”—simultaneously sinful and yet accepted in Christ. I am so bad he had to die for me and I am so loved he was glad to die for me. This leads me to deeper and deeper humility and confidence at the same time. Neither swaggering nor sniveling.

RELIGION: My identity and self-worth are based mainly on how hard I work. Or how moral I am, and so I must look down on those I perceive as lazy or immoral. I disdain and feel superior to ‘the other.’
THE GOSPEL: My identity and self-worth are centered on the one who died for His enemies, who was excluded from the city for me. I am saved by sheer grace. So I can’t look down on those who believe or practice something different from me. Only by grace I am what I am. I’ve no inner need to win arguments.

RELIGION: Since I look to my own pedigree or performance for my spiritual acceptability, my heart manufactures idols. It may be my talents, my moral record, my personal discipline, my social status, etc. I absolutely have to have them so they serve as my main hope, meaning, happiness, security, and significance, whatever I may say I believe about God.
THE GOSPEL: I have many good things in my life—family, work, spiritual disciplines, etc. But none of these good things are ultimate things to me. None of them are things I absolutely have to have, so there is a limit to how much anxiety, bitterness, and despondency they can inflict on me when they are threatened and lost.

In the Works

2009-08-11T14:20:00.003-07:00

I've got a lot on my plate right now...I'm in one of those seasons that takes a lot of focused and time consuming work up front but will really pay off in the end.

Here are a few of the things..."in the works"
1) Completed Discipleship Ministry plan for 7-12 grades

2) Internship Plan (i am trying to develop an intern program here)

3) Parent Ministry- how can we reach out, touch and come along side the families of the students that we are ministering to.

4) Organizational System in the Youth Ministry- decentralize, my tendency is to hold on to the reigns a little too tight. I am trying to tap into my leaders gifts and abilities to equip and unleash them in different aspects of the ministry.

If you have thoughts or resources that you would recommend I would be interested.

I covet your prayers in this process if you are so inclined.
Here are some things I am praying for/about with regard to this current process.
-Creativity
-Future thinking
-Godly Wisdom and Discernment
-Humility to be able to honestly evaluate
-Courage to make the necesary changes that God is authoring

Philippians

2009-08-05T10:40:00.002-07:00

May, June and July of this year have been the roughest stretch for me in a long time. Usually, there are home issues that hit and then at other times work issues that hit and at other times personal issues that hit but these past few months they all have hit all together.
It has been a low point for me in a lot of those areas.
I have questioned my call in ministry, I have questioned my ability to prioritize the way I should so that my family feels like they hold the top spot as they should, i have walked with a family through the loss of their mom to Leukemia (both of her girls are in our Sr. High group) and this month has started out with more of the same...we just lost one of our Jr. High leaders to a heart attack last Sat (he also has a son in our Jr High group & a daughter in our Children's ministry). 2 funerals this week...It just feels like A LOT is going on.

It is times like this that I REALLY wish I could get a glimpse into what God has going on in the midst of all these things.

One thing that has been cool for me though is that this summer I have had more parents and people thank me for the job that I do in the ministry here at DVBC than I have ever had before. Nothing really big just a parent stopping me and telling me that I have made a difference in the life of their kid & thanking me or someone in the hall of the church telling me that they are praying for me cause they know that working with JH and HS is such a hard but important thing, etc...God is showing His grace and love to me through these other people and I am just so thankful for that!

You might be wondering why I titled this blog Philippians...fair enough...well, this Summer I have spent a lot of time in the book of Philippians. reading it and re-reading it and studying it.

Rejoice is a word that is repeated by Paul throughout this letter like 9 times whether it be a statement of how he is rejoicing or an encouragement to the readers to rejoice no matter what.
Rejoice in Christ being proclaimed even through trials and hard times
Rejoice in death or in life
Rejoice in the Lord

There is a theme established throughout his letter of rejoicing and he is writing from PRISON.

Great reminder for me...helps me to re-focus.
Hopefully you are encouraged also if you could use some.

Convicted

2009-08-03T12:08:00.002-07:00

I take my Bible(s) for granted. Sitting here at my desk I can look up at the shelf above my desk and see 12 Bibles in 6 different versions (ESV, NIV, NASB, NLT, The Message, CEV). Wow, impressive huh? NO.

My good friend and brother in Christ Mike Mac subscribes The Voice of the Martyr's mailing and had a couple forwarded to me. I am so glad he did.

The August 2009 issue came with an insert and on the cover it talks about how a Chinese Christian had 140,000 Bibles "confiscated" from him. That earned him a $22,000 fine & 3 years in prison while leaving 2 daughters behind. I open up the insert and one of the headings says "imagine if you had to wait 18 years for your very own Bible". Based on simple math the amount of Bibles they have avail compared with the amount of requests they have for Bibles it would take 18 years to fill all the orders, and that's if they don't get any more orders/requests for Bibles.

I spend hours and hours trying to think of ways to build a desire in our students for the Bible. For what it has to offer. For what it is. I would be willing to bet that almost every single kid in my youth group has a Bible or 5 in their home. They prob even have one of their very own maybe even with a leather cover with their name printed on it.

That's great! I'm glad my students have Bibles but, something tells me that the Bibles my students have and the Bibles that are being shipped to China and other countries that are in serious need of them have two different purposes.

The Bibles that my students have are "show" Bibles. They bring them to church (sometimes), they carry it with them in their backpack (maybe), mostly it sits on their shelf or desk collecting dust and is rarely taken down to be read or studied.

The Bibles being shipped to people who are eager to have God's word in their language and at their finger tips, i bet, get used very differently.

I wonder if things would be different if we didn't have Bibles avail in English or at every book store in so many different versions that I have lost count.

What does it take to value God's Word for what it is? I am trying to think of what caused me to change from not really reading it and not really valuing it to loving when I get to sit down and study and read it...i'm having a hard time putting my finger on it.

God, give us, give me a hunger for your word that is unquenchable!?

This Book Changed the Way I Do Youth Ministry

2009-08-01T18:29:00.006-07:00

If you are in youth ministry I think you need to read this book by Mark Devries.

Esepcially if you are in the first few years of ministry but even if you are a "veteran" youth pastor/youth worker it offers GREAT info (perhaps reminders) for us.

Get it.

Read it...at least once (i'm reading through it for the 2nd time right now)

COME ON!

2009-05-28T13:10:00.002-07:00

You have to read this story!

"Pastor David Jones and his wife Mary have been told that they cannot invite friends to their San Diego, Calif. home for a bible study — unless they are willing to pay tens of thousands of dollars to San Diego County."

How shady are we getting now in this economic situation that the San Diego County is stretching so far as to try and weasel a few thousand dollars out of this family!

They are just marching all over this couples freedoms. I'm sure it won't stand, but the mere fact that this has now been tried gives me a moment of pause.
Not to say that is has never happened before - I don't know - but it has now.

God, we need you now more than ever!

Eat my words?

2009-05-27T13:25:00.002-07:00

Back in January of this year I had the privilege of preaching on a Sunday morning. I really enjoy the times I have been able to do that.
I chose to talk about my life the past year or so and what God had been doing and how He had been challenging me.
Early in '08 my grandma passed away. She was a Christian and we new it was coming but loosing someone so close to you is still HARD.
A few months later my mom was diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer and was also HER2positive which is an aggressive form of breast cancer.
Most of my sermon was focused on how I had been questioning all these sayings about God loving us and having a plan and all that stuff that we throw around way too loosely.

Anyway, the outcome of my search was that God, in fact, does have a plan. God does love me (and everyone) and even though my definition of "good" may be different from His in some respects (i.e. I think cancer is bad and it is but He can use it for good, therefore it is good) I have to rely on and trust in Him.

Well, here I am with an opportuniyt to eat my words or put my money where my mouth is. Two girls in our youth group just lost their mom this morning to Leukemia. 16 & 14yr old girls from this point forward don't have a mom in their life. A loving husband lost his wife. A set of parents just lost the 3rd of their 4 kids!

It BREAKS MY HEART and causes me to once again re-visit my questions and outcomes of previous searches.
I know God is big and has a plan and loves His children but I am forced, once again, to ask "WHY?"
and I prayerfully look forward to, if He allows me, see the answer to that question...

What I am SUPPOSED to do

2009-05-12T14:03:00.003-07:00

Luke 17: 7-10
7"Suppose one of you had a servant plowing or looking after the sheep. Would he say to the servant when he comes in from the field, 'Come along now and sit down to eat'? 8Would he not rather say, 'Prepare my supper, get yourself ready and wait on me while I eat and drink; after that you may eat and drink'? 9Would he thank the servant because he did what he was told to do? 10So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, 'We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.' "

Just happened across this section of verses as I was reading in Luke. I'm sure I have read it before but, like happens so much, my personal time and place in life brings new light into my reading of scripture.
Ministry is often a thankless job. It can be tempting to seek credit or special recognition. I find myself desiring that sometimes. “hey how about an at-a-boy or a pat on the back”. Hopefully, forever more this verse (10) will pop into my head when I have those thoughts… Shut up Stines. You are doing what you are SUPPOSED to be doing. Just do the work that God has put before you to do! Your reward will come later!

Food for the Hungry

2009-05-05T09:33:00.002-07:00

Great Video - Great Philosophy
This is the philosophy that Christians should have...how can we get to the heart of the issues to bring about God's redemptive work in this world?

Mom Update

2009-04-06T09:55:00.003-07:00

Got this update from my mom and wanted to share it with you all...a bunch of you have been asking...

I’m done with chemotherapy but will continue with treatments until the end of the year with another drug. The neuropathy (A medical term describing disorders of the nerves, common symptoms associated with damage to the motor nerve are muscle weakness, cramps, and spasms as well as tingling, numbness, and pain. Pain associated with this nerve is described in various ways such as the following: sensation of wearing an invisible "glove" or "sock", burning, freezing, or electric-like, extreme sensitivity to touch.) is slightly helped with a medicine they gave me. The doctor said it would take at least three months for the neuropathy to start to go away.

Reconstructon will probably begin in May. That involves three surgeries. That process will take until the end of the year.

In two weeks I am to start another drug which I will be on for 5 years.

I’m feeling well except for my fingers and toes. I’m looking forward to my hair starting to grow back.

Thank you so much for your prayers.

Thanks for praying for my mom in this process.
In addition to all this my parents have decided to significantly downsize and are moving within the next month.
They have a lot going on and would appreciate your continued prayers!

Proverb

2009-04-01T20:31:00.006-07:00

I know that the Bible carries in it the greatest wisdom for life but it is fun to find solid (even Biblical) wisdom elsewhere sometimes also and to think about it through my Biblical Worldview perspective.

So, here's one I found that I like!

If you want to travel fast, go alone.
If you want to travel far, go together.

Ah the implications for life as well as ministry from this old African Proverb.
Sit there and think about it for a few minutes.

Global Food Crisis Day

2009-03-11T08:18:00.006-07:00

Today is the day that so many should stop being surprised by statistics and stop being moved to tears when heraing stories of hunger and starvation around the world and step up and...

DO SOMETHING!

Check this out: Hunger Fact Sheet

Whether it is through Compassion International or Food for the Hungry or World Vision or The ONE Campaign or One Million Can...

...or whoever...

Today the Christian radio station KLOVE and many many radio stations across the globe are participating in Global Food Crisis Day. And are giving you an opportunity to step up and help.

Less than $15 will feed a kid for a month!!!

Less than $40 will feed 3 kids for a month!!!

http://www.compassion.com/global-food-crisis/?referer=98495&utm_campaign=gfcradio-klove-98495

Spring Training

2009-02-27T18:48:00.002-07:00

Man, I don't know what it is this year but the thought of spring training and baseball starting up just gives me good feelings.

It is the sign that spring/summer is coming and nostalgic memories of sitting in Candlestick park watching the Giants with my dad sitting out in the right field bleachers (which was the family section) eating a hot dog, chewing sunflower seeds, watching the sunlight move up the stands until it finally reached us to warm us up.

I remember watching Will Clark play first base and just waiting for him to hit one out to me since he was left handed. I remember Robby Thompson at 2nd base and Jose Uribe(pronounced "U ree bay" at short and the whole stadium would yell his name first 1 section would yell "UUUUUUUUU!!!" then the next section would yell "RIBE!!!". Then you had Matt Williams at 3rd. (before he started "juicing")

I remember Kevin Mitchel out in left field making a bare handed grab one time.
I was in the stands when Dave Dravecky pitched in his first come back game. It was intense!

Now, I have the opportunity to be making those memories with my oldest, Cam. I've taken him to games every year but he is almost 4 1/2 now and I look forward to spending lots of time at the ballpark with him and teaching him all about baseball and it's tradition.

I'm glad he is too young to know what has been going on in baseball for the past decade ish. Hopefully this "era" will be over before he really gets into it. I would hate for one of his role models (as far as sports) let him down becaue they didn't have any integrity or respect. I'm not gonna get too high on my soapbox.

Anyway...LOVE this time of year!

Grammie

2009-02-25T09:44:00.008-07:00

Feb 25th, 1922 my grandma was born.
Feb 15th, 2008 my grandma's time on this earth was over and her REAL life began!

I had the privilege of giving the eulogy at her service here in AZ...this is what I said about her.

I only knew Grammie for the last 28 years of her life. I have A LOT of great memories with her in those 28 years. A couple that immediately come to mind are:
-Climbing her Olive tree in the front yard at her house on Candy Ct. (how cool is it that she lived on a street called Candy Ct.!!!)
-Swimming in her pool in my underwear
-riding my bike over to her house to just hang out
-how excited she was when she found out she was gonna be a great-grandma (she actually kinda scream/yelled in her own special way, that you can prob hear in your head if you knew her well, "I'm gonna be a great-grandma!")

I could list countless things & I'm sure many of you could as well.
It is hard to think of going forward in life without her! and while we mourn the loss of her presence on this earth, today is a celebration of looking back at the amazing life she lived as well as the truth of where she is now & will be for all eternity.

Early last year 2 strangers walked into Grammie's hospital room, shared the Truth about Jesus Christ with her and she prayed to accept the gift of life that Jesus came to give & to make Him Lord in her life.

And now that she is in heaven her body is perfect...
never again will she wake up choking
never again will she need oxygen tanks
never again will she have to argue with firemen about whether or not she is going to the hospital
never again will she need an IV or to be put on a ventilator or have a chest tube to drain her lungs of fluid
never again will she need a walker to get around

In Psalms 119 it talks about how God has a plan for each of us & that each day is already planned for us. He knew exactly how long it would take for Grammie to soften her heart enough to accept Him. He knew how hard it would be on her to keep her here that long & that she would suffer in her health...BUT also the blessings that would come to her in those later years.
4 of 6 grandchildren graduated college so far - 3 great grand-children

Since early last year there has been a clear difference in Grammie because of knowing the one true God.
Above all was a peace, she understood what was waiting for her on the other side of this world and I guarantee that she wouldn't come back for anything!
I'm sure gonna miss her! Selfishly, I wish she could see how good her house, see her great-grandkids grow up, she Shannon and James graduate High School...
BUT
To wish her here is to wish her out of Heaven.

So, we must lay aside any selfish thoughts of wanting her back, and because of our love for her, carry our memories of her and her legacy and celebrate with her that she is in a place far better!

She would have been 87 today. I've missed her this past year. She always made things special and always made me smile. I still can't bring myself to delete her contact info out of my phone. I think of her often! I look forward to being with her in glory someday!

Change is a comin'

2009-01-21T16:15:00.002-07:00

Religion is on a wierd track here in the US. Especially Christianity. The new generation that is stepping up and becoming adults now want something totally different than previous generations, and they should. They have been raised in a COMPLETELY different world.

This article from George Barna makes me think about relating this to ministry. How as a youth pastor do I need to change some philosophies of ministry or need to change some directions we are going and why?
While the church as a whole minsiters to peole in all age groups categorized at the bottom of this post, my ministry is just focused on one...Mosaics. WOW

What other challenges do you foresee?
The reshaping of religious institutions will have an impact on meetings. Churches have changed; it’s no longer people going into a building with a paid leader or pastor. More and more people don’t want to belong to an institution or gather with a mass group. By 2025, roughly one half of the market share of the local “conventional” church will be lost to other ways of expressing one’s faith—alternative or house churches, prayer groups, and worship centered around media, the arts, or culture. There will be a transformation through connections, creating spiritual mini-movements where people find their faith … mothers’ groups, prayer-at-work groups, 12-step groups, social networks, and homeschools. The same thing will happen with trade associations. Within the next 5 to 10 years, the major ones will have to close down or join with others. Many are already challenged by declining volunteerism.

Your new book is about the emergence of “spiritual tribes.” What affects do these groups have on religious meetings and events?
Tribal distinctions are huge. You have to have an understanding of them as you try to determine who you bring into your event. The seven tribes are casual Christians, who are not totally engaged; captive Christians, whose faith is paramount in their lives; skeptics, including atheists and agnostics; Mormons; Pantheists, New Agers, and Buddhists; Jews; and Muslims. There is a new sociocultural agenda and new leaders. There is a shift in style and aspirations. The mindset about faith in our country has shifted. Traditional Christian behaviors are no longer the norm. Affinity groups are important now. The largest proportion of nonprofits is religious and has incredible diversity. Athletes, musicians, poets … people are integrating their interests with religion. Personal faith is important but it is more integrated into society. The mosaic generation only know an accelerated pace of change. You need to get ready for them.

The Generation GapDefinition
Mosaics--—those born between 1984 and 2002
Busters—those born between 1965 and 1983
Boomers—those born between 1946 and 1964
Builders—those born between 1927 and 1945
Seniors-—those born in 1926 and earlier

Activities
Mosaics are less likely than any other generation to volunteer time to their church (12% of mosaics report volunteering). Conversely, 23% of busters, 29% of boomers, and 34% of elders (builders and seniors) have volunteered at a church in the past week.
• Small group participation appears to be positively correlated with age, with 26% of elders, 24% of boomers, 19% of busters, and 20% of mosaics reporting that they participated in a small group in the past week.
• Compared to 60% of elders who have a “quiet time” during the week, 54% of boomers, 39% of busters, and 35% of mosaics do the same.
• 33% of mosaics, 43% of busters, 49% of boomers, and 53% of elders attend church on a given Sunday.
• In a typical week, 32% of mosaics, 42% of busters, 47% of boomers, 58% of elders read the Bible.
• Mosaics are the age group least likely to pray to God. In a given week, 65% of mosaics, 82% of busters, 90% of boomers, and 88% of elders report praying.

Faith
• Boomers emerge as more likely and mosaics as less likely than any other generation to be born again (33% of mosaics, 38% of busters, and 53%of boomers are born again, compared to 48% of elders).
• Mosaics are the least likely age group to indicate that faith is a very important part of their life. Only 51% of mosaics say their faith is very important in their life, compared with 62% of busters, 73% of boomers, and 79% of elders.
• 61% of mosaics, 67% of busters, 77% of boomers, and 74% of elders believe that God is the all-powerful, all-knowing, perfect Creator who rules the world today.

Self-Descriptions
• Busters are more likely than the other generations to be searching for meaning in life: 44% of busters compared to 32% of all others are searching for their purpose in life.
• Busters are the generation most likely to feel “too busy.” Compared to 53% of busters who maintain that they are too busy, 49% of boomers, 32% of builders, and 27% of seniors feel the same.
• Older individuals are also more likely than younger individuals to describe themselves as a “born-again Christian.” 49% seniors and 47% of builders call themselves born again, compared to 42% of boomers and 31% of busters.
• Financial comfort appears to come with age. 38% of busters say they are personally struggling with finances, compared to the 32% of boomers, 23% of builders, and 20% of seniors.
• Busters are almost twice as likely as are seniors to indicate that they are stressed out (41% to 22%, respectively). Likewise, 32% of boomers and 27% of builders said that “stressed out” is an accurate description of them.

Growing Family

2008-12-29T21:50:00.005-07:00

Our family of 5!

Micah Andrew at about 5 weeks old.

Micah Andrew at about 5 minutes old

Mom Update

2008-12-01T14:09:00.006-07:00

Here is the latest from my mom's "process"...Her strength has been pretty incredible and I attribute that to who God made her. Her faithfulness in God is steadfast even in the hard times when I talk to her when she is feeling the worst and she knows His faithfulness never is diminished.

I’ll have my 4th chemotherapy Dec. 11th. I have been having treatments every three weeks but, starting in January, they’ll be every week along with a new drug called Herceptin. Right now the main side effects are the nausea, stomach aches when not nauseous, more hair loss other places and tiredness. My head gets really hot sometimes and really cold other times. Those are the negative things. On the positive side, I’m still working full time so far and my family and friends are very supportive. They pray for me daily and I feel very close to the Lord.

Love,

Mom

What she says and especially what she doesn't say speaks volumes about her mindset through this.
What she doesn't say is that this is HARD and the reason she doesn't say that is because she is able to go through this process just knowing that this is where God has her and it is what the necessary "next step" so to speak is. Her attitude has been incredibly positive. Each round of chemo is harder than the previous round and during the first round she told my dad "I don't know if I am going to be able to do this"...and yet she does. She normally gets the chemo on a Thurs and then a shot on Fri to boost her immune system. Sat & Sun are the worst 2 days but then she bounces right back and is wanting to watch my kids and wanting to do stuff and, as she mentioned in her note, she is still working full-time.
AMAZING

I think it is true that you never know or show your potential until you are forced to. I never would have thought that my sweet little mom had the strength, perserverance, toughness, faith to fight through something as hard as this. And it isn't like anyone can help her through it. It is strictly her and God. Nothing my dad or the Dr's or I can do make this better for her. Sure she feels supported and loved but God is carrying her through it and she is relying on Him to do just that...and He is!

Thanks for your prayers for my mom. Please continue to join us in prayer for her as the process is only gonna get harder.

Words

2008-11-30T23:08:00.001-07:00

Apparently this program scans your blog and picks out the most used words...pretty interesting...

Tis the Season

2008-11-29T22:08:00.006-07:00

Things are just so much better with a little side kick!!!

Work is no longer work...it is fun time, teaching time, experiment time and so much more.

Results...

Reformation

2008-11-12T20:10:00.009-07:00

American Christianity (if you can even call it that) needs a reformation! I'm talking Martin Luther type reformation. And maybe not only reformation but a re-formation!
And the sad thing is we need the same desired outcome that Luther was fighting for, accept the Word of God is not kept from us like it was them! It is avail to us in English in 17 different versions! Luther wanted the people to have the Word because He believed that The Holy Spirit speaking through the scriptures to people, makes people change. And he was right! Before I head to far down this road let's look at how Christianity is defined by people between the ages of 16-29 that are not Christians.

When asked which words describe Christians here were their top 10.
(This info is taken from the very detailed study by the Barna Group and is written in the book Unchristian which you all should buy and read!)
1) Anti-Homosexual
2) Judgemental
3) Hypocritical
4) Old-fashioned
5) Too involved in politics
6) Out of touch with reality
7) Insensitive to others
8) Boring
9) Not accepting of other faiths
10) Confusing

Now accept for the last one, maybe, which of those words would have been used to describe Christ? NONE OF THEM!
Why are we described that way? What happened to the Christianity that Jesus modeled for us? Where and when did we loose our way? What caused it?
I'm not even gonna begin to try and answer those questions. Sure I have thoughts and I understand that knowing where you have come is important to knowing where you are going but we had better make some SIGNIFICANT shifts in the direction we are headed because there isn't much that is attractive about this American Christianity and it will only get worse if we let it.

Getting back to Luther and the other reformers that understood the significance of reading, knowing and studying scripture over tradition how are we as a nation doing with that? I hear it said over and over that this generation in JH and HS now is the most Biblically illiterate generation this country has ever seen. It saddens me to say, but, being as I work with that generation I wouldn't necessarily argue that point.

Willow Creek has recently produced findings from some big time surveys they have done that started in their church and has now spread across the country. They wanted to know what causes spiritual growth in people and guess what the number 1 catalyst for spiritual growth is..........
Reflection on scripture!!!

What can we do to change the views that the non-Christians around us have of Christians? It can't start with trying. It can't start with better church marketing. It can't start with more relevant teaching or anything else. It must start with each and every Christian { pause} Let me define what I mean by "Christian". I do not mean the religion or a title. I mean Christianity as a lifestyle sold out to following Christ and HIS teachings. I mean a life of sanctification where the Holy Spirit is doing the work and we are doing our part as He chooses to use us. {un-pause} reacquainting themselves with the inerrant, God-breathed, God authored Scriptures.
I believe that if we do that, those labels will melt away because we will be changed. Not into what we are told to be or what we think we should be like but into who God has made us to be...his true image. His clay to form. His instruments to use. We will be reflections of Him to the world. And if we are true reflections of Him to the world those things will not be true about Christians like they are now.

God help us to acquire a passion and hunger for your Word like never before.
Bring a reformation! Bring a revival!

LIMBO

2008-10-01T14:14:00.007-07:00

I remember doing the limbo as a little kid...ok fine even as college student, who doesn't love playing LIMBO! How low can you go...how low can you go...how low can you go.
I never realized something that could be so much fun as a younger person would be such a PAIN as an adult.

I am no longer talking about the game LIMBO but the permanent state of being in LIMBO that my life has seemed to be in for the past 10+months! These are the questions over the past 10 months that have guided our lives.
It all started with deciding to sell our house. Are we gonna? What do we have to do to it? How much do we sell it for? Where are we gonna move? How much can we afford? Are we gonna move into my grandma's house? How long will we live there? Do we want to move before our next son is born or after? Can we qualify for a loan? Should Beck cut back to part time? Can we afford it if she does? Not to mention that for the past couple of months there has been this recurring limbo period with regard to my mom's cancer diagnosis and treatment.

Beck said to me the other day that her faith is uncomparable to what it was last year at this time. Because of all the things that have gone on in our lives and all the ways each time something new comes our way God acts in ways only He can to continue to prove to us that He cares for us, is watching out for us, loves us and is faithful. Have the times been easy? NO! They have been very hard! I lost my grandma, we moved out of our first house, bills have been REALLY tight, we unexpectedly got pregnant, we are in a transitional house that doesn't really feel like home, my mom was diagnosed with cancer...

James is one of my favorite books of the Bible and so my mind often goes to his book and I am reminded that in the very first few verses of the very first chapter James tells his readers "Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything".

The message version reads: Consider it as a sheer gift, friends, when tests and challenges come at you from all sides. You know that under pressure, your faith-life is forced into the open and shows its true colors. So don't try to get ot of anything prematurely. Let it do its work so you become mature and well-developed, not deficient in any way. If you don't know what you're doing, pray to the father. He loves to help. You'll get His help..."

We have received His help in almost countless ways...and those are just the ways where we see what He has done.
So, if I am going to believe James, and I do believe James, then all this stuff is to benefit me. It is to build my perseverance. It is part of the sanctification process that God has me (and Beck) going through for whatever reason(s).
I sure would love to know the reason(s), but I don't have to because I believe that, as I said above, God cares for us, is watching out for us, loves us and is faithful.

I hope you know the same God I do. Follow Him. Hang on for the ride. Be faithful to Him as He will always be faithful to you!

Mom Update

2008-09-29T15:16:00.009-07:00

I know that many of you know some of these details already but also that some of you don't and are asking me so...Instead of me trying to explain everything I aksed my mom to send me some details that gives an idea of what is next medically for her in this process...

I’ll have a PET scan and an echocardiogram this week (9/29-10/3). The PET scan looks for cancer in other places and the other test is because the medicine I have to take since I’m HER2 positive can damage the heart. I will have my first chemo treatment on October 9th and a shot to boost my immune system on Oct, 10th.

Right now my main problem is that I keep having to have my lymph nodes drained because the fluid is gathering there and not disbursing. That involves having a shot to lesson the pain and the insertion of big syringes to remove the fluid buildup. The fluid buildup is quite uncomfortable.
The doctor did the draining twice last week and will do it again Monday morning. So I need prayer that my body will adjust so I don’t have to keep having this done.

Thanks so much to all who are praying. I know they are helping to carry me.

Love, Mom

the WORD

2008-09-28T08:01:00.002-07:00

Psalm 100
A psalm. For giving thanks.
1 Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth.
2 Worship the LORD with gladness; come before him with joyful songs.
3 Know that the LORD is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.
4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name.
5 For the LORD is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.

I love Osama, Obama and everyone else?

2008-09-18T12:37:00.007-07:00

I have started my second graduate level theology class. This semester is focused humanity, angels and the work of the Holy Spirit. The professor, Steve Tracy, who happens to be my brother-in-law(so I will refer to him at "Steve" because I can and he knows that there is no intended disrespect in that) is a theologian, author, missionary, husband, father, professor...etc. When I was debating about starting seminary and still one of the concerns I have had about pursuing this degree is the "in theory" syndrome people can get when they are learning about lots of good things but are not implementing any of them. I do not want to become this person. Something Steve said in class and I'm sure will repeat is "God FORBID that I am strictly a theoretical theologian".
With that in mind, we were talking about IOG (image of God) in class. In the reading, in Steve's lecture and in our discussion the Holy Spirit made a few things became VERY clear...almost painfully so.
If all mankind is made in the IOG and that even in the fall that still remains (though somewhat changed)what should my attitude be to something that God fearfully and wonderfully made in HIS image?
Homosexuals, Terrorists, baby killers, racists, abusers, self absorbed teenagers (my particular area of ministry), atheists, etc. all are made in the same image that I am.
It is easy to say love all people cause God says to or because God does and I want to follow Him but we are now talking about the very essence of all people. God made them in His image! That's a pretty big deal.
Am I a theoretical theologian?
To what extent do I allow this truth to impact my life? Do I sometimes wish harm to people that belong to groups that I listed above? Yes. I can't recall how many times I have been in conversations with people about killing Osama Bin Laden or wishing someone would. Probably not the way God would like me thinking or talking about someone made in His image. What about people I come in contact with on a daily basis that maybe do not belong to one of those groups but are not Christians and/or are part of another "group" that I or society places them in?
What about people across the world or in my own city who suffer through persecution or are suffering through injustices? What about them?

Sometimes I grow impatient with myself. I am thick headed. I have to learn things many times before it sinks in. You have to sit me down like a 5 year old and spell it out sometimes. I guess it is comforting to know that many of the disciples were the same way...but not really.

God has a lot of work to do with me!

Update on my mom

2008-09-18T12:37:00.002-07:00

Praise God!
The lymphnodes that were taken out last Thurs showed NO signs of cancer!
My mom will meet with the oncologist on Tues to discuss this further and to decide treatment options moving forward.
The process is not over and perhaps the most difficult times for my mom are ahead but in times of struggle each little victory is something to praise God for and to hold on to.
Thanks for praying with my family through this situation!

Update on My Mom

2008-09-10T20:12:00.002-07:00

My mom met with the oncologist on Tues. I called her that afternoon and she was obviously down. I asked her to send to me the info that the oncologist went over with her so that I could share it with you. Here it is:

I’ll try and re-cap some things the oncologist said. I have aggressive cancer and I am HER2 positive, so I’ll need aggressive treatment for a year and some medicines will continue indefinitely. After recovering from the tomorrow’s surgery, I’ll have a pet scan and some other tests. They want to check my heart because one of the drugs can be harmful to the heart – but it’s necessary for me to take it because of being HER2 positive. Tomorrow I’ll have another surgery called an ancillary lymph node dissection. They will also put a “port-a-cath" in my chest because I will need so many treatments. That way they won’t have to re-do an I.V. every time.

I will lose my hair two weeks after the first chemo according to the doctor. Also, one of the medicines is bad for the bones so they will have to monitor me for osteoporosis. I’ll have to be very careful about any infection or fever of 100.4 or higher.

It’s so weird to say all of this since I feel pretty well now – just some pain around where they removed the lymph nodes before.

I really appreciate all your prayers.

Love,

Mom

These are a couple verses that give me comfort and remind me and hopefully my family to keep on keepin' on:
2 Corinthians 12:10 "...for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong."

Romans 8:26 "...the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.

Thanks to my B.I.C. (Brother in Christ) Mike M. for encouraging me with these verses...

2 Corinthians 1:3-4, "Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God."

2 Corinthians 4:16-18,"Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal."

My moms 2nd surgery is tomorrow (thurs) at 1:30.
Thank you all for lifting up my family in your prayers.

Update on My Mom

2008-08-27T13:00:00.005-07:00

For those of you who have joined us in praying for my mom, thank you so much. She says to me often that she really has been encouraged and strengthened through the prayers.

Her surgery last Fri went great! It took about an hour. They did the mastectomy and the Dr. also removed 2 lymphnodes to be tested from her armpit area.

Her recovery has been really smooth. They sent her home on Saturday and that night we were over there for dinner and she was doing GREAT! The pain medicine they said would cause nausea or constipation or the opposite of that or other stuff really had no effects on her other than doing what it was supposed to do which is numb pain. We join her in thanking God for that.

Today is the day we have been waiting for. Today she had the appt where they would get the results back from the tests on the lymphnodes. Here is the e-mail I received from her:
I got some sort of bad news – but not too terrible. One of the lymph nodes showed cancer, so I have to have surgery again to remove more lymph nodes. It’s scheduled for Sept. 11 ‘cause my doctor is out of town next week.

He’s thinking I won’t need radiation – which is better for reconstruction, but I probably will need chemotherapy. I see an oncologist on Sept. 9th.

Love,
Mom

Sounds like this is a ways from being over...
I sit and think about this situation. It is easy for me to put it in God's hands because I know I am incapable of doing anything about it on my own. But, sometimes... ... ... ...

I am understanding the Biblical writers better when they talk about waiting on God or when they talk about persevering through trials or finishing strong...it is HARD and this has only been going on for like a month! I can't imagine what it would be like to do this for years! Not that I was disillusioned about the fact that God basically promises us it is going to be hard, but you always get a better understanding when you are tasting it for yourself. Which I guess is a blessing in disguise but, I kinda wish the disguise was a different one.

God, help me to be true to myself and to you. Show me in this situation what I am to learn, how or in what way I need to be broken in order to allow you to rebuild.
Take the fear away from my mom and dad and replace it with peace, perseverance and GREAT faith in you and in your perfect plan.
Draw people that do not know you, to you through this situation somehow. Use us however you see fit to fulfill your plan here.
AMEN

40 Weeks of Change

2008-08-25T09:00:00.003-07:00

This 40 Weeks of Change is about changing perspective for us (Christian high schoolers and leaders). It is about changing our relationship with God so that we truly are learning how to live like Him so that we can follow Him better by doing things that He did and living like He has called us to. It is also about bringing change to His church, our city, state, country & world as God uses us in His plan to restore all His creation.

This past Saturday, as part of our 40 Weeks of Change we are doing with our High School students two other youth pastors and myself took our groups out to a local foodbank to serve/volunteer.

It was so cool to see the students jump in and take ownership of little things like stacking boxes the right height so the foodbacnk could fit them on the shelves in their warehouse. Nobody was standing around, nobody had a bad attitude we all were just gettin the job done.

After we had been there for a couple hours the work was coming slower from the foodbank and I was saying "it's always a good sign when the place you are going to serve starts running out of stuff for you to do".

The guy over there, Pete, was SO excited about the work we did! He told me that he was blown away by how much we did. He said we did 2 times what they had planned on us doing which = 4,000lbs of food which inturn = feeding 4000 families a meal they may or may not have gotten.

What a great opportunity to serve the way God has called us to. You never know how an experience like that will change a person. Either the one receiving OR the one giving. A couple of the students and a leader in our group said things like "Man, I've never done this before...this is REALLY cool. We should do this again!"

That's just it...we should do it again. We should be doing it often because it has to become part of our lifestyle as we live following Christ.

I praise God that He is gracious enough to allow us to be a part of what He is doing!!!

I didn't know this about Chocolate...did you?

2008-08-21T10:43:00.001-07:00

We have become so consumeristic that we haven't cared where our oil comes from, how we have created/used energy, where our clothes come from, who makes them, even where our chocolate comes from. All in the name of the almight dollar...America has some big changes to make...the world has some big changes to make.

God says in Micah that we are to love justice...all i see in this video is injustice!

Are you gonna be part of the change? We need to think sincerely about that question and answer it. Not like we normally answer questions just so someone thinks we are smart enough or sensitive but answer the question with actions!

How are you gonna answer it?

Update on my mom

2008-08-12T13:27:00.002-07:00

They did an MRI and found another "nodule" of cells in the same breast as the other cluster of cancer cells originally detected. They performed a biopsy on that nodule of cells as well and determined that they too were cancer.

This is an e-mail I received from her this morning.

I just wanted to let you know this info. I’ll see one surgeon on the 19th and the other on the 20th. If they agree, then my surgery is scheduled for Friday, August 22.

Love, Mom

At this point they are unsure about whether it has spread into other areas of her body or not. After the surgery they will have a better idea if it was contained in her breast or if it has spread.

Please be in prayer for my mom and dad and the Dr.'s leading up to and for the surgery.

thanks!

Update to "scary words" blog from last week

2008-07-23T15:04:00.003-07:00

I received this e-mail from my mom late last night.

Dr. Zannis called and I do have breast cancer, but it’s in the early stages. The next step is an MRI and probably a lumpectomy. I have a lot of confidence in the doctor.

Love,
Mom

Thanks to those of you that are praying for her. I would ask that you join us in continuing to pray for her. I will keep you all posted (no pun intended :) )

Now that this is a reality, God is giving me the opportunity to prove whether or not I actually belive my words in my blog about "scary words" and will live by them and I gotta say..........it's hard!

Is God Enough?

2008-07-22T12:28:00.007-07:00

Why is it that Christians don't look much different that non-Christians other than myabe attending church?

Why is it that Christians show no faith in times when it should be the greatest?

Is it because God isn't enough?........easy answer......NO

It is because God isn't in enough of us. We have compartmentalized Him. We box him up and put Him on the shelf, then every once in a while we take Him down and dust Him off in order to fulfill some misdirected view that we have a responsibility to do that in assuring our salvation…what a bunch of CRAP!

The sad thing is, I think, most of us don't even realize that we believe that and if someone were to ask us we would prob deny that we believe that to be true and yet our lives scream that we believe it to be true.

God designed us to be relational…originally He designed us to have a relationship with Him, but we all know what happened. That doesn't give us the right to treat Him like a genie. We take Him down, rub Him, make a wish and then put Him back away. Then we wonder why we don't feel like God is with us…don't blame Him, you boxed Him up and put Him on the shelf. It wasn't His choice!

The cool thing is, my friends, in 1 John 1:9 it says, "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness."

All it takes is a little humility and a repentant heart to restore the relationship and then you can start building it back again…hopefully keeping Him out of the box and off the shelf…and God will become so much more than enough for you.

Meeting a hero!

2008-07-17T17:33:00.005-07:00

This is from a while back cause I imported it from my other blog to shut the other one down... I don't need two :)

One of my heroes. He is not a personal friend or even an acquaintance. He hasn’t poured into my life, confronted me when I was in the wrong or spent countless hours “doing life” with me like so many of my God given mentors and heroes…but we are part of the same family.
He has a passion for God much like I do; only mine seems to be much more in the infant stages compared to his. His is inspiring to me, his makes me want to be able to preach like He does. It is so obvious every time I get to hear him preach that he speaks as one who has such intimacy with God. Again, something that inspires me.
He is not just a hero because of his passion or even his intimacy with God BUT his intimacy with God leads him to be the man that is my hero. He is my hero because he allows God to use him in mighty ways. He is a humble servant that follows hard after Christ and because of that, God has done and is doing GREAT things through him. He would not want credit or people to look to him maybe even in this light, though it is tempting I’m sure with his notoriety and giftedness, but instead points people to Christ. He leads them, through his words, into God’s presence and leaves them there to soak it up. He speaks clearly and passionately in a way that forces you to respond but most importantly he speaks through the power of the Spirit in Him, the same Spirit that is in me and in every Christ follower.

This, gives me hope...inspires me...challenges me...It was so great to shake his hand, look into his eyes and talk with him.

Wow, what a highlight for me!
Who am I talking about?

None other than...

.............................................................Louie Giglio!

scary words...not scary!

2008-07-14T17:08:00.003-07:00

Sacrifice - Complications - Surgery - Biopsy - Cancer - even Restoration and Forgiveness are all scary words.

If God is "good" (maybe not good like we intitially think but good as in the very essence and starting point of anything good) and His word tells us that everything works together for "good" (again "good" based out of who God is not whether we would consider it "good" or not) for those that love him...then as a Christian...is there "bad"? Are "scary" words scary, if you are a Christian?
Granted there is evil in this world because of the fall and people that don't know God see bad as bad...as Christians we are called to restore people to God and share His love with everyone but, as a Christian=Christ Follower when James says consider it all joy when you face trials of many kinds then is bad really bad?

A friend of mine had his house burn down the end of last year. Total loss. Some of their pictures were salvaged because stuff had fallen on the boxes and kind of protected them but basically everything in the house was lost.
When I called him you know what he said to me...(in his deep Texas accent) "It aint nothin' but a house and I can get another one of those".

About a month ago this same guy's wife started having trouble breathing. Her body wasn't converting carbon dioxide into oxygen at a sufficient rate. The Doctors have no answers. They did a surgery to take out parts of her lungs to send to the Mayo clinics world renowned Doctors to try and find out why this is happening.
I was with him when his wife went into surgery. He was a little bit scared (understandably, cause even if it is God's will he would really miss her if she died) but we sat and talked the entire time she was in surgery and He is convinced that somehow this stuff they have gone through will help them in their single parent ministry that they run.

God is good! God is in control! I know it is true because I have seen it proved true to me through my life and through sharing life with others.

My mom is going in for a biopsy on Thursday. The Dr. says that is a about a 50/50 chance that it is cancer.

Scary words aren't as "scary" when you know God and follow Him.

Intimacy

2008-01-16T15:43:00.001-07:00

Did you know that just to maintain any kind of intimate relationship, statistics show that you have to spend 15 hours a week focused completely on that relationship...and that is just to maintain!
As I think through the relationships that I would consider "intimate" i.e. God, wife, kids I am forced to think through my time priorities and time management or lack thereof. Beck and I set a goal of 12 hours last week with no kids, no tv, no other people just us focused on each other and man was it hard to do! I am not a good "talker" but we both noticed a huge difference in our relationship.
As I shift that same principle to my relationship with God I see problems. I am not sitting with God just He and I as often as I would like to think. I use my sermon prep time and count that or times I pray for/with other people and I count that or time I spend in the Word and count that but that time is not focused on God alone. Rarely do I sit in the presence of God and not do anything. Rarely is that time focused on God and me and I know why...it is uncomfortable to be bare in front of Him and let Him look at and love me the way He does.
I have a new goal to set now, if I want intimacy with God. If I want to truly experience Him and everything that He is.
What is the total time you spend with God just you and Him not focused on anything else but being real in front of Him and being with Him?
I bet you are like me...we desire intimacy with God but we aren't "puttin in the time". My goal for this week is 5 hours. 5 hours of nothing but me and God. No Scripture, no prayers for others, no singing, nothing ministry related... just me and God......what is your goal gonna be?

DeCentralize

2008-01-07T10:00:00.000-07:00

Decentralize: verb (used with object)
1.to distribute the administrative powers or functions of (a central authority) over a less concentrated area: to decentralize the national government.

2.to disperse (something) from an area of concentration: to decentralize the nation's industry.

I do not mean necessarily that we move from a central focus to many focuses HOWEVER I do like the idea of distributing “administrative powers” not to take jobs off of my plate but to enable and empower you (as leaders) and the youth to do certain things that may or may not necessarily be a “youth” event with the students i.e. in your small group.

Of course we will keep “large group” activities a regular aspect of the ministry but if certain students in your small group really want to get into service why do they have to wait for us to schedule a “service day” until they get to do some service. Instead of that maybe you tell them to call a place and set something up and you and your group goes and does it. I would want to know about it for scheduling purposes and so I can be a help or resource to you and to cheer you on but it does NOT have to be a youth activity.

I LOVE Gina’s comment: “Encourage them to take their part in helping those who are living with injustice- locally and then globally. What if each of us shared our passions with them, and then let them know how and when they could participate”

I think every one of you that has jumped into this conversation has brought up some aspect of service as something that we need to expose these students to more. I totally agree…I want to say this in the most encouraging way…DO IT! Instead of having small group time some Wed go feed a dinner at a homeless shelter or get together on a Sat and trim some old lady’s bushes or rake her lawn or whatever, contact the city and find out if there is a place that you can “clean up” (usually they will provide gloves and a dumpster if it is trash, all you have to do is show up with man/woman power) or any other ideas you have.

Decentralization needs to be more of an aspect in this ministry where you and the students can plan something and do it without being worried that you are excluding someone or stepping on my toes. My toes could use some stepping on :)

The Conversation Begins

2008-01-07T09:40:00.001-07:00

Good Morning...The idea is for these questions to start a conversation that will be ongoing amongst us as the leaders God has placed in this ministry. These come from a very humble heart please, do not take offense to any of them. I wrote these to myself directed to me but realized what a benefit it would be for all of us to think through and discuss these things together.

Overarching Questions.
Are we doing ministry with mediocrity? Are we effective?

What traditional models of ministry do we need to re-think?
i.e. small groups, Sunday morning, Wednesday night, Outreach events, etc.

Are we just telling them what to think or are we teaching them how to think?

How can we help make them feel like they are part of the church body and not a separate (kinda forgotten) group?

Guiding Questions
Do we fill our schedule with agenda driven “junk”?

What do we offer them in their overscheduled/overbusy life?
Does ministry business help?

How can we encourage them to take up the cause of those that have lived through or are living with injustices?

Can we create and offer some sort of an online community?

Do we give them opportunities to truly enter God’s presence?

What are some ways we can give them to connect “golcally”? global and local

Do they see ministry opportunities as kingdom advancement or just an experience for them to consume and move on?

What are some ways we can let them show/express their creativity?

Do they know how they fit into God’s plan? Are they participating?

How can we teach them to engage culture and not run from it?

Is their spiritual life separate from their “regular life”?

Do we need to de-centralize our ministry? What does that look like?

Do we just proclaim or do we guide them?
Guides are on a journey and participating with followers.
Guides interpret culture around them.
Guides are healers.
Guides are theologians, philosophers and artists.

Are we meeting needs in our community? Who are our district reps?

Move from Orthodoxy to Orthopraxy...
Are we concerned with being right or living right?

What kind of vision are we giving them to carry?

Are we program driven or people driven? not numerically but relationally

Questions specific to leaders lives
Are we modeling a passionate pursuit of God? Shouldn’t it be contagious? If it isn’t, what is getting in the way?

We want them to be transparent...are we? They are seeking authenticity!

Do we model, not just teach loving acceptance even toward those “living in sin” while not condoning the sin? i.e. gays/lesbians, living together before marriage, going out partying and participating in drinking or drugs, etc.