Winterfest was incredible this year! I encourage you to talk to our teens about The Mission. They were challenged to: Know, Be, See, and Share…Jesus. Sounds familiar really…and I’m ecstatic about the excitement that our teens will bring to The Mission here at Northview. I’ve even heard from one of our teens who has already talked to a neighbor about God. “It was easy…I just did it,” was a part of the phone call I got. I’ve also talked to Dudley and they are getting all kinds of stories from all over the country of teens doing the same thing!! What an incredible challenge for us who sometimes find ourselves calling them the “Church of tomorrow.”
An interesting thing happened this morning before I sat down to write this blog. I regularly have breakfast with a mentor of mine…almost every Friday morning. Today was about the same as always…we had a variety of discussion because that is what good friends do. Because most people end up talking about that they are passionate about…we found ourselves talking about the Church. We don’t bog ourselves down in debating…most of the time we’re just simply talking about ministry…about purpose of the Church.
While sitting and talking, I noticed a young girl slowly walk in. Very timid. Probably no older than 18. She got her cup of coffee. Never said anything. Then slowly walked out and on down the street. You’re probably thinking she stole the coffee but the reality is…this coffee shop has kind of taken her in. They will often hand her a bag of food which one of them will slip a $5 bill in the bag because of the compassion they have for her. Neither of us knew her story but found out later by the workers at the coffee shop.
Why is this so interesting? It didn’t hit me till later. At Northview, we do a lot of good for a lot of people. I am amazed at the workers we have in our family here. There are a ton of people who work so hard without being seen by others. I had to wonder though, how many times we…the Churches scattered around the World…sit around and debate, talk about ministry, dwelling on what the purpose is for the Church, and looking for God’s guidance for what we should be doing with our lives…when there are people in need all around us.
Not all of us get to sit in a coffee shop on a Friday morning and watch something like this take place. The reality is that there a lots of hurting people in our lives that all we have to do is open our eyes to see. Take some time to think of the people you come into contact with daily. Where are they hurting? Do you look at them and SEE Jesus? What could you do to BE Jesus to them?
For all of you who are already working so hard in this world to help the hurting…I applaud you. One of the reasons I love working with teens is because of the way I am challenged by them to get up and do something that has purpose. Though they can scare us sometimes…sometimes we don’t understand their thought processes…or their language…they are a group of people that are filled with passion and desire to have purpose. I hope to extend this challenge to you from the passion and purpose of our teens. Let’s stop letting the world lead the way in helping the hurting when we are the ones who are called to do “Whatever we do for the least of these.”
Friday, February 22, 2008
Friday, February 15, 2008
Spiritual Trekking
Trekking. To trek. To hike. To trudge. To make a slow or arduous journey. As you have probably figured out by now…I like to hike. There is something about it that is freeing to me…and also rewarding. For me, it is one thing to see a beautiful view of the mountains from the side of the road, but another to get intimate with them and to see the mountain views from somewhere that I walked to.
Clint Ulmer and I continued our SB6K (South Beyond 6000) journey this past weekend. We started at the top of Mount Mitchell and ventured off along the Black Mountain Crest Trail in hopes of conquering six more peaks on our list. Apparently this 12 mile trek was going to be one of our hardest that we would have to do but we felt up to it.
I won’t lie that I was not adequately prepared for this trek. I could blame it on my age…but most of you would laugh at me. I’ve been in better shape in my life…but I’m not quite there anymore. No matter what the excuse may be…my legs just weren’t used to walking that far, especially with the uphill and downhill grades that we had to go over with 40lb packs on. When on a trek like this you might come to a point where you want to just quit but the reality is…you’re in the middle of nowhere and quitting would mean simply deciding to live where you are.
“The Spiritual Race is not a sprint, it’s a marathon,” is something I heard often growing up and I’m sure you’ve heard it too. I’ve changed that slogan in my life to, “Our Spiritual Walk aint no walk in the park, it’s a Trek.” There are a lot of ups and downs. It is really hard at times. There are times where the view is breathtaking. Times where your next step is completely because of the power and grace of God. This Spiritual Trek is something that we have to constantly work at, prepare for, and encourage one another on…or we simply choose to settle where we are, in the middle of nowhere.
T.R.E.K. (True Religion for the Eternal Kingdom) Bible Study is starting up this Thursday Night for the teens. It is a Bible Study that is going to be focused on going deeper into the Spiritual Trek we call life. We’ll be focusing on habitual practices of Spirituality to prepare and encourage one another in this Trek. I look forward to this time during the weeks because of what our teens will teach me about spirituality. They have so much to tell with their lives and I can’t wait to see how God works through them in each other’s lives.
Clint Ulmer and I continued our SB6K (South Beyond 6000) journey this past weekend. We started at the top of Mount Mitchell and ventured off along the Black Mountain Crest Trail in hopes of conquering six more peaks on our list. Apparently this 12 mile trek was going to be one of our hardest that we would have to do but we felt up to it.
I won’t lie that I was not adequately prepared for this trek. I could blame it on my age…but most of you would laugh at me. I’ve been in better shape in my life…but I’m not quite there anymore. No matter what the excuse may be…my legs just weren’t used to walking that far, especially with the uphill and downhill grades that we had to go over with 40lb packs on. When on a trek like this you might come to a point where you want to just quit but the reality is…you’re in the middle of nowhere and quitting would mean simply deciding to live where you are.
“The Spiritual Race is not a sprint, it’s a marathon,” is something I heard often growing up and I’m sure you’ve heard it too. I’ve changed that slogan in my life to, “Our Spiritual Walk aint no walk in the park, it’s a Trek.” There are a lot of ups and downs. It is really hard at times. There are times where the view is breathtaking. Times where your next step is completely because of the power and grace of God. This Spiritual Trek is something that we have to constantly work at, prepare for, and encourage one another on…or we simply choose to settle where we are, in the middle of nowhere.
T.R.E.K. (True Religion for the Eternal Kingdom) Bible Study is starting up this Thursday Night for the teens. It is a Bible Study that is going to be focused on going deeper into the Spiritual Trek we call life. We’ll be focusing on habitual practices of Spirituality to prepare and encourage one another in this Trek. I look forward to this time during the weeks because of what our teens will teach me about spirituality. They have so much to tell with their lives and I can’t wait to see how God works through them in each other’s lives.
Friday, February 08, 2008
Cycle of Stupidity
“The Israelites did evil in the eyes of the LORD…They forgot the LORD… The anger of the LORD burned against Israel so that he sold them into the hands of…they cried out to the LORD…He raised up for them a deliverer…So the land had peace for forty years…deliverer died…The Israelites did evil in the eyes of the LORD…They forgot the LORD………” – Cycle of Judges
We (the youth group) are taking a break from the Old Testament for a time…but my favorite quote that came out in almost every class is “Israel is SOOOO STUPID!!!” I like this quote because we surely aren’t as bad as Israel was…right? I’m not going to go there but you can talk amongst yourselves about it. What I’ve been mulling over for the past few weeks is this “cycle of stupidity” that is found in Judges. Why would something like this ever happen? I think the answer is found in Joshua before the famous verse “But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.”
“So I gave you a land on which you did not toil and cities you did not build; and you live in them and eat from vineyards and olive groves that you did not plant. Now fear the LORD and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your forefathers…But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.” Joshua 24:14-15
We’re called to be in a Relationship with God. With relationship comes dependence. In the Wilderness, Israel learned dependence on God. In the Promise Land, Israel “forgot the LORD.” Think hard about our lives. Where do we live? I live in a house I didn’t build. When I am hungry I go get something to eat. If I’m sick…I don’t call Dan…I call the doctor.
Where do I depend on God? This is a hard question…the first thing that comes to mind is…I depend on God when something bad happens…and most of the time I come to that point when I can fix it myself. Do you wrestle with this? I don’t want to fall into the “Stupid Cycle” with Israel. So…where do I find dependence on God in a country that provides for my every need?
We all have something that we struggle with…or people we struggle with…that we cannot handle on our own strength. Paul calls this his “Thorn in the Flesh.” I realized a long time ago that I have a sarcastic tongue. I have hurt people in my life because of it…never intending to. Though I have constantly struggled with it…and continue to struggle…I constantly have to ask God to help me be “slow to speak.” Though I don’t like it…I find hope in it…because I realize that I am not perfect. The only way I can find perfection is in Christ…and it’ll come sometime after I stop breathing. Let’s work as a family to find our dependence on God in a country that provides our every need.
“To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. 9But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me.” – II Cor 12:7-9
We (the youth group) are taking a break from the Old Testament for a time…but my favorite quote that came out in almost every class is “Israel is SOOOO STUPID!!!” I like this quote because we surely aren’t as bad as Israel was…right? I’m not going to go there but you can talk amongst yourselves about it. What I’ve been mulling over for the past few weeks is this “cycle of stupidity” that is found in Judges. Why would something like this ever happen? I think the answer is found in Joshua before the famous verse “But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.”
“So I gave you a land on which you did not toil and cities you did not build; and you live in them and eat from vineyards and olive groves that you did not plant. Now fear the LORD and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your forefathers…But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.” Joshua 24:14-15
We’re called to be in a Relationship with God. With relationship comes dependence. In the Wilderness, Israel learned dependence on God. In the Promise Land, Israel “forgot the LORD.” Think hard about our lives. Where do we live? I live in a house I didn’t build. When I am hungry I go get something to eat. If I’m sick…I don’t call Dan…I call the doctor.
Where do I depend on God? This is a hard question…the first thing that comes to mind is…I depend on God when something bad happens…and most of the time I come to that point when I can fix it myself. Do you wrestle with this? I don’t want to fall into the “Stupid Cycle” with Israel. So…where do I find dependence on God in a country that provides for my every need?
We all have something that we struggle with…or people we struggle with…that we cannot handle on our own strength. Paul calls this his “Thorn in the Flesh.” I realized a long time ago that I have a sarcastic tongue. I have hurt people in my life because of it…never intending to. Though I have constantly struggled with it…and continue to struggle…I constantly have to ask God to help me be “slow to speak.” Though I don’t like it…I find hope in it…because I realize that I am not perfect. The only way I can find perfection is in Christ…and it’ll come sometime after I stop breathing. Let’s work as a family to find our dependence on God in a country that provides our every need.
“To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. 9But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me.” – II Cor 12:7-9
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