honoring seniors

we are a couple of weeks earlier than the last seveal years, but it is that time of year where we honor our seniors. We have a special service for them, and a banquet in their honor following the worship assembly. Each senior receives a Bible and a bunch of gifts from very generous members of our community of faith. I would be interested in what you do at your church to honor your graduates!!

 Please share!

That God is active in the world and we can join His work in this world, is one of the fundamental truths I am trying to instill in our youth group and my own children. Some of my youth group students have a hard time believing that God is active, that He is present. They struggle with what they cannot see, but apparantly we weren’t the only ones who struggled with living out our faith in a world hostile to the cross, the Corinthian correspondence addresses walking by faith and not by sight, Hebrews addresses the same thing when the writer writes, “faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.” Despite their vision problem, the writers of the Scripture constantly called the church to faith in Jesus. He is afterall, the central theme of the New Testament. He had changed the eleven, a group made up of fishermen, tax collectors, radicals, and just normal common folk. Not just after the resurrection were these men changed, but as they continued to preach and teach, this Jesus and His continuing presence through the person of the Spirit continued to shape them, change them, embolden them, push them, and guide them. As we call student disciples out of the world and into the adventure we call following Jesus, let us not forget to remind them of the continuing presence of God in this world. That the One who promised to be with us always, lives up to His name daily, “Immanuel.”

an early morning with children

newborns bring many a early morning. My middle daughter was up today too at 5:30 a.m. I she heard the baby crying and Kenzie wants to be where the action is, I don’t blame her, she comes by that honestly. Kenzie and Miley both finally crashed, mommy went back to bed and daddy is blogging checking e-mail, blogging and drinking coffee.

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Last night’s youth group meeting didn’t go so well. I still after 4 years don’t know how to keep some disinterested souls engaged and interested. It is a little frustrating really to have week after week a few good kids, doing their own thing. I have tried to spend one on one time with each of these kiddos, and well they are great one on one, but in a small group of like minded peers and they are disinterested team. Argh!

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Last night at church on my friends, a dear brother in Christ knocked over my tea cup which proceeded to drench my pants right before our designated starting time, so I walked into our main building with a huge wet spot on my crotch and endured stares and questions about my current wetness. My answer was, “I had an accident, I teaed on myself.” Sometimes church is just too fun!

It never should have happened…

I watched the news programs two nights ago all dealing with the massacre at Virgina Tech. My heart grieves for the families, students and faculty members affected by this horrendous school shooting. I have read headlines, and seen snippets of various reporters reporting yet another attempt to pass legislation forbidden guns, and others that have been about allowing those that qualify to carry a concealed weapon. One student they interviewed said the outcome of the horrible day would be different if “he” and others were allowed to carry a concealed weapon.

I don’t think outlawing guns is going to make a difference, and I feel that giving a license to any Tom, Dick or Harry to carry a concealed weapon wherever he or she pleases wouldn’t improve the situation either. My goodness, how many times would innocent people be shot just because they looked suspicious.

I know that our world is broken. I know that many young adults and adolescents are hurting and the wounds are deep and that many of these young people don’t know how to process their hurt. Adult communities and institutions need to listen to the pain of the younger generations, the adult community must be willing to not only pass value judgements on a culture of emerging youth, but be willing to be in dialouge and the church has to be in the center of all of this. For in the church, we have opportunites to harness the potential of future leadership of the church by involving young people in the life of the church. Also, adults who are serious about thier committment to Jesus must live authentic lives. Our walk must mesh with our beliefs.

The horrible killings at Virgina Tech never should have happened. It is heart wrenching and many people are grieving. But, we mustn’t forget that God enters into our suffering. The cross is the place where we see this most clearly, God dangling from a wooden cross, consumed by the torture of crucifixion and the consumed by the tidal wave of humanity’s sinfulness. The cross is a place of immense suffering and rejection, despair, and hope. For we see God’s deep, amazing love for his creation. Our yuck and messiness He bore for our healing and redemption. Even, now 2000 years later, the cross is where we need to find the healing and hope to deal with the sin in our world.

Let us never tire in listening to the emerging generations, and let us never tire pointing people to the cross and let us never tire in finding healing there ourselves.

more on Samuel

Samuel’s family line is that of Levite stock (1 Chron. 6:26-28). This is an important detail, I think, as it pertains to the vestments (Samuel wore an ephod) worn by the boy Samuel ministering before the Lord with Eli.

Also, his name is interesting. Samuel means, “heard of God.” Or I guess you could say, God hears. Now, in chapter 3, where we read of Samuel calls, in our English Bibles, particularly the NIV, the word “call” occurs over again. It is most frequently attributed to the LORD God in his “calling of Samuel.” Would “heard of God,” hear the God that was calling out to him?

Do we hear God? Do we recognize the voice of God in world of tension, strife, war, school shootings,  and a sex charged culture? Can we decipher the still small voice of the Lovely One?

I hope we can. Today, of all days we need to not only hear the still small voice, but we also need to be Christ’s hands, feet, heart and of course voice to a hurting community in Virginia. Our prayers need to be with the students and families of Virginia tech.

As we pray for healing for others, let us not forget the people in places who don’t have a voice of their own, in places like the Sudan, (Darfur), and the millions of slaves worldwide. As we listen to the calling one, will we also speak up for the those who can’t?

1 Samuel: thoughts

1 Samuel follows in the history of Joshua and Judges, and up this point the nation of Israel is torn by poor leaders, war, idolatry and experiencing a lack of the Word of the Lord. It is a desperate situation we enter into as beging our reading of Samuel. But, despite the obstacles that stand in the way of the survival of the nation, God is alive. He is active, and is moving amongst his people, and still actively pursuing a covental relationship with his people. God’s love is constant, his promises are sure and has not forsaken his people.

1 Sam 1-3: ramblings

Samuel, the wonder boy. Born to Hannah, a childless women, provoked often by the other wife of her husband, Elkanah. Hannah, prays and makes a promise. I love how God moves through Samuel. Where there was no hope of children, Hannah has a son, honors her vow and has more children. What a God!

Samuel, is called in most unusal way. An observation here that has struck me for sometime about his call in chapter 3. He is sleeping in the tabernacle of the Lord, where the ark of God was. I haven’t checked, but wasn’t the Tabernacle set up like the Temple was later one, with the ark resting in an inner area, (the holy of holies?) If this is the case, Samuel, who is not the chief priest was near the ark of God. A place that was reserved for special religious men (high priest, one time a year, etc.). I can’t help but draw the comparison to the words of Jesus, about entering the kingdom of heaven like a little child. Little chidlren have sense of wonder, they are trusting, loyal, enthusastic, curious, loving, and pure of heart. All the admirable qualities we should possess. Does the story of Samuel’s call say something special about the special relationship between God and his children? Just thinking out loud!

The hard road is the right road

Last night, our students and I embarked on a journey of newness. I hope it is new to them. I began a series of Wed. night classes using the popular videos from Rob Bell, the Nooma series. It has been a while, since I have viewed any of these vidoes. There is something strangely nerdy and yet drawing about Rob’s videos. Anyway, the first video in the series is titled “rain.” It has been one of my favorites. I love the part at the end where the dad holds his son close and says, “i love you buddy, where going to make it, dad knows the way home.” This phrase means more to me as a parent then it did just out of college, with no children. There is something special that takes place when a father holds a child close and whispers words of encouragment, and the child finds those loving arms to be safe, secure, and strong.

We talked about storms in our lives, and how we will all have them over and over again in our lives, we talked about suffering and how it draws us close to Christ, and how God’s power is made perfect in our weaknesses. I thought all in all, it was a good class.

But, having said all that, here are some observations I have about class, and youth ministry in general:

1. we spend all the time preparing lesson, studying, praying and thinking how best to craft our messages to our students, then class starts and one or more kids are more interested in their cell phones and texting a friend than they are listening to your well thought out lesson. This is called a reality check. Not all of our students care, not all of our students hang on every word we say. Actually, there is so much going on around them, that our time together on Wed. night would be better spent if we could capture the essence of their culture, and use it in a positive way. Could we have a class devoted to communicating through text messaging? I don’t know if it would work, would it draw more interest? I think a lot of us in youth ministry miss opportunities to connect to our students in meaningful ways. We have to be looking for bridges all the time, to help connect the reality of gospel with their reality of selfishness and materialism.

2. Youth ministry is hard work. I think I have already alluded to this above, but working with youth and families is hard work. It is never ending. Sometimes, it is hard to see any headway, and we can’t define success on big numbers, big budgets or big buildings. I think culturally where we are is at a place where autheniticity and experience are hugely important not only for our students but also for our parents. However, some of the experiential things are kids may go for, their parents may not like it, and certainly the older generations wouldn’t buy into it either. But, there remains the fact that the emerging generations are wanting real experiences of God, and not just a 45 minute lecture in a class. In addition to being a chaffeur at times, and a janitor, we must also be architects, looking for ways to build authentic encounters of God into our youth ministries. I don’t think this happens over night, I think it is something we must stumble into haphazardly even for some of us. But, nonetheless, looking for ways to allow our kids to experience the truths of Scripture and the presence of God with all of their senses is more and more important these days. With our postmodern culture, and a general decline in people’s general acceptance of the Bible as the sole truth, and seeing Christians as biggoted, hypocritical, hate mongering followers of God, and protectors of an institution of power and politics it is vastly important that we win back what it means to followers of Jesus Christ. The essential element of discipleship for all time and all believers is love for God and neighbor (stranger). We can’t loose sight of the fact that we are called to be selfless, humble, reverant, aliens and redeemed people. When we lose sight of the radical call to abandon self and follow Jesus, and we loose ourselves in institutional politics we will loose a voice in our culture, and we certainly have a lot of ground to recover in our world today.

3. Youth Ministry is worth it. Hard work aside, the thrill of working with emerging generations is invigorating. With all the muck of postmodernity, we are working with generations of students that are hopeful, that want to be active in their communities and globally. We need to be tapping into this interest and harnessing it for the good of the world. Youth Ministry in a nut shell is summed up in the parable of the sowers. The important point in the story, at least in my mind this morning, is that the seeds are being planted. Some of that which is planted may never produce a crop, for the seed that does, watch out and be amazed. So, wherever you are this morning and whatever flavor of church you find yourself in, don’t give up youth work. It is worth it. For many students, we are the only Jesus they will see and experience, and who knows the full impact of what their futures hold and the lives they will touch because your influence. God bless you brothers and sisters!

post-Easter ramblings

We are home from the hospital, and it has been as usual a long couple of nights. No sleep, lots of crying and lots of diaper changes. Parenting at its finest!

I got to speak yesterday and my text was Acts 5, and piggy backing off of this year’s LTC theme, I spoke about our “unstoppable God,” an “unstoppable movement,” an “unstoppable message,” and “unstoppable messengers.”

I hope all of your Easter services were uplifting and full as we celebrated once again the Risen One!

New Baby, Easter and fast no more

Yesterday, my wife and I welcomed our newest addition to our family, Miley Elizabeth into the world at 7:59 am. She weighed 6 lbs. 15 oz. and was 17.5 inches long. She is beautiful. She does and doesn’t look like her sisters. Jen is doing well, and recovering well. Baby Miley is doing well, and I will update more when we come home. Here are some pictures:

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I know my blog fast has ended a few days early, but I wanted to share the pictures of our new baby with ya’ll. I will admit that taking a blog break was harder than I thought. There was so much I wanted to write, so much that I could have posted, but I didn’t. So, I was able to devote more time to the one’s I love and that which is most important. I still am more like Martha than Mary and yet, I am learning how to slow down. I am learning that slowing down isn’t sin, I am learning that I need times of rest, solitude. So, as we eagerly await celebrating the resurrection of our Lord this Sunday, let us enjoy the anticipation in the Gospels leading to Calvary and Sunday’s exuberant joy. Let us weep anew with the followers of Jesus at the pain our Lord endured, let us weep as we remember our own times of weakness, but let us rejoice that our Savior loves us, and that his wounds heal us completely. Let us rejoice that His Words are still relevant, still life changing, and still inviting all these years later. Let us rejoice that we are being made new each and every day because of his resurrection from the dead. Because He lives, we too live!