Colossians 3:23-24: “And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men: Knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ.”

Ecclesiastes 9:10: “Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest.”

            Recently, I was at my sister’s wedding in Tennessee. It’s always great to see family and friends! My oldest brother has two children, a boy and a girl named Cole and Kora. As is the custom when families get together, we were all over at my parent’s house late one night enjoying each other’s company. Cole (who’s eight years old) and Kora (who’s five years old) were beginning to become pretty excited about everybody being there. Because it was already past their normal bedtime, they were getting their second wind for the night and were incredibly excited about playing Hide and Go Seek. (Ah, those were the days!)

They had already convinced my wife to play with them, and now Cole was trying to get me to play. During this conversation, I simply asked him: “Are you pretty good at Hide and Go Seek?” I’ll never forget his reply.

With no hesitation whatsoever, Cole replied: "I break records.”

At this statement, the whole table burst out with laughter! Cole simply smiled, gave everyone a somewhat confused look, and then ran off to play another round. We all enjoyed the laugh together, but interest was sparked inside of me, and I could not help but see the application. You see, Cole’s simple faith in his ability to give Hide and Go Seek everything he had and to finish knowing he had given it his best resulted in, for him, the obvious: he must have broken some kind of record!

Let me ask you young person, this year…what records will you break? In what area of your life will you apply yourself so diligently that when you finish, you can’t help but know that somewhere, you broke some kind of record? How about your prayer life? How about your personal walk with Jesus Christ? God commands us in Colossians 3:23 that we are to give our absolute best in every area of life. Spiritual, physical, mental, educational – in every area may this be your motto: “I break records!” 

Galatians 4:4-5 “But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.”

Recently, I came across a story that reminded me of the true importance of Christmas.  Dr. James Dobson relates a story of an elderly woman named Stella Thornhope who was struggling with her first Christmas alone. Her husband had died just a few months prior from a slow developing cancer. Now, several days before Christmas, she was almost snowed in by a brutal weather system. She felt terribly alone—so much so that she decided she was not going to decorate for Christmas.

Late that afternoon the doorbell rang, and there was a delivery boy with a box. He said, "Mrs. Thornhope?" She nodded. He said, "Would you sign here?" She invited him to step inside and closed the door to get away from the cold. She signed the paper and said, "What's in the box?" The young man laughed and opened up the flap, and inside was a little puppy, a golden Labrador Retriever. The delivery boy picked up the squirming pup and explained, "This is for you, ma'am. He's six weeks old, completely housebroken." The young puppy began to wiggle in happiness at being released from captivity.

"Who sent this?" Mrs. Thornhope asked.

The young man set the animal down and handed her an envelope and said, "It's all explained here in this envelope, Ma'am. The dog was bought last July while its mother was still pregnant. It was meant to be a Christmas gift to you." The young man then handed her a book, How to Care for Your Labrador Retriever.

In desperation she again asked, "Who sent me this puppy?"

As the young man turned to leave, he said, "Your husband, Ma'am. Merry Christmas."

She opened up the letter from her husband. He had written it three weeks before he died and left it with the kennel owners to be delivered with the puppy as his last Christmas gift to her. The letter was full of love and encouragement and admonishments to be strong. He vowed that he was waiting for the day when she would join him. He had sent her this young animal to keep her company until then.

She wiped away the tears, put the letter down, and then remembering the puppy at her feet, she picked up that golden furry ball and held it to her neck. Then she looked out the window at the lights that outlined the neighbor's house, and she heard from the radio in the kitchen the strains of "Joy to the World, the Lord has Come."

Suddenly Stella felt the most amazing sensation of peace washing over her. Her heart felt a joy and a wonder greater than the grief and loneliness.

"Little fella," she said to the dog, "It's just you and me. But you know what? There's a box down in the basement I'll bet you'd like. It's got a little Christmas tree in it and some decorations and some lights that are going to impress you. And there's a manger scene down there. Let's go get it."

Let me encourage you as December begins to enjoy this Christmas Season! Are there circumstances in life that have you down? Perhaps you fear simply that you won’t acquire all the gifts you wanted. Maybe the traffic drives you insane! I don’t know what it is about the Christmas season that you wish you could do without, but let me admonish you: don’t let it steal your joy! Just remember, Christmas is ultimately about the gift of eternal life! Matthew 1:21 tells us that the reason Jesus came was to save his people “from their sins”. The long-term goal and gift is Heaven, and if you’ve got that, you’ve got everything! Galatians 4:4-5 also tells us that Jesus came so that “we might receive the adoption of sons.” If you’ve accepted Jesus Christ as your personal Savior, you’re a son or daughter of the Most High! Don’t allow the hustle and bustle of life, the fear of the unknown, or any other circumstance to rob you of the Christmas spirit during this season! For Christians, Christmas truly is the most wonderful time of the year!!! 

Ephesians 5:20  “Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.”

I Thessalonians 5:18  "In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you." 

There is no doubt that this is an exciting time of year! The weather is getting cooler (even here in Houston!), the winter clothes are getting pulled out of the closet, and Starbucks is already out with their holiday favorites. Commercials are beginning to have a jingle to them, Christmas trees are on sale, and Thanksgiving turkeys are running for their lives! Pretty soon, Thanksgiving break will be here and we’ll all be putting on that extra layer against the cold (and no, I’m not talking about clothing either). Yet in the middle of this excitement, how are we supposed to take the time to reflect and be thankful?

I’ll never forget the statement that I heard Pastor Randy Dignan make at a camp I was working at one summer. His message was entitled, “Thank You”, which is a little bit of an unusual camp message. As he introduced his sermon, he made this powerful statement: “Patrick Henry said it like this: 'Give me liberty, or give me death.' The hippy movement of the 60’s and 70’s cried: 'Give me liberty.' Today we say: 'Give me.' We have come a long way from the principles that built this country.”

God’s Word warns us in II Timothy 3:1-5 of how men will act in the latter times. If we’re honest, this list could describe many of the problems that we have in America today, if not all of them. Right in the middle of all these problems, we find that Paul warned Timothy that people were to become unthankful. This really is a humility check for all of us, because no one wants to admit that they are unthankful. Unfortunately though, disliking the way a word sounds doesn’t mean you are exempt from being classified under the definition. Here in America, almost all of us have more than we deserve or even need. I’m challenged when I truly consider whether or not I am thankful.

So what’s the solution then? How can we be thankful amidst everything else that is going on? The answer is so simple that we often just shrug it off and continue in our complacency. We are commanded in Ephesians 5:20 to give thanks always, for all things! I Thessalonians 5:18 admonishes us that not only is it a commandment, but it "is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you." God’s answer and ultimate will for the right amount of Thanksgiving is “always for all things”! I think it’s awesome when families sit down around the table at Thanksgiving and truly do give thanks for something that is on their heart! I encourage you to implement that in your Thanksgiving tradition if you don’t already. But lets face it. It should be more than just a part of our November. God commands us to always have the Attitude of Gratitude!  

             “Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.”

            If you look up the word separation in Webster’s Dictionary, or in any dictionary for that matter, it is doubtful that you will find joy as one of its synonyms. In fact, the word separation has developed some very negative connotations, especially in today’s society. Think of the term as it is used all too often when families break up. A person might say, “Oh no, they have separated!” When separation is used to describe those entities (i.e. families) that were never intended to separate, it indeed takes on a whole new perspective. Our view of separation in general may have become tainted. The problem comes when we apply our definitions to God’s design.

Possibly one of the greater struggles in the Christian walk is to maintain a Biblical standard of separation in our lives, especially as young people. Society today has provided teenagers with their own clothing line and brands, their own music, their own TV shows and movies, their own vocabulary, and in essence their own world! It seems that every corner you turn as a Christian and especially as a teenager, you are being marketed to and influenced in one way or another. Yet, in the middle of this incredibly fast-paced, 24/7, drive-through available, microwave-compatible, volume “pumped up” society, we are supposed to, “…come out from among them, and be ye separate…”?

Let’s be brutally honest. Unfortunately, the average Christian teenager today looks no different, talks no different, and often acts no different than the teenager who doesn’t have a relationship with God and doesn’t attend a youth group on Sunday or Wednesday. This attitude among Christians begs the question: why? The simple answer is that we have redefined God’s design of separation from this world as uncomfortable and unnecessary, and in so doing have lost the joy of separation! Instead of seeing separation as a privilege, we view it as a burden or an unfortunate necessity of being a Christian.

We admit and acknowledge that we are saved, but we reject the calling of our Savior to a separated lifestyle. Our reasoning behind this is that we view Biblical separation as separation from the world and that’s it. Young person, we are sadly mistaken when we do this! The principle of separation is probably best seen in Psalms 1:1-2. Verse one gives us the list of those things we are to separate from: “Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.” Here we find what to separate from, but that’s not it! Verse two gives us the other half: “But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.” Young person, separation is not just separating from the world, but it is also separating to God! Without realizing it, we limit our relationship with our Heavenly Father when we refuse to separate from this world, and in essence, refuse to separate to God. The joy of separation comes when we take our eyes off of the world we are walking away from and put them on the omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent God that we are embracing! Separation is not just turning down the volume of the world, but it’s tuning in and turning up the volume of God’s Word. What happens when you do this? All of a sudden life makes sense, and there is a certain unexplainable and unspeakable joy. As a young person, for the first time maybe, you have a clear purpose in life. Is there still a lot that you are unsure of? Of course! But you’ve got a Friend that sticketh closer than a brother, an eternal Guide, and an ultimate Authority and God in your life. 

I have many memories with my youth pastor when I was a teenager. Bro Kurt was a lot of fun, and some of those memories are absolutely hilarious! One memory that sticks out to me took place my junior year in high school when our youth group went up to a Nashville Predators game for a youth activity. We arrived at the Bridgestone Arena with a busload of teenagers, all of us hooping and hollering, excited about the game. As we began to get unload, the tickets were handed to each teenager until all the tickets were handed out. Somewhere along the way, someone had miscalculated, and we were two tickets short. Not really caring about seeing the team warm up and wanting to hang out with my youth pastor, I volunteered to accompany him as he parked the bus.

When we had finally found parking, we locked the bus up (as much as a bus can be locked up I guess) and headed inside. The arena seemed unusually full, and when we got to the ticket counter to purchase two more tickets for our admission, all of the cheap nosebleed seats were gone. The cheapest seats we could find were on the level right above rink side, and they were expensive. The idea was to purchase tickets to get us in the door and then we could sit with our group, but this was turning into a costly affair. With no other alternative available, Bro Kurt purchased the tickets and we headed inside. The game was just beginning, and as we made our way to our seats we could see our youth group way up in the nosebleed. With plenty of chaperones there and the youth group under control, Bro Kurt suggested that we get our money’s worth out of the tickets and spend the first period in our expensive seats with a great view.

I’ll never forget that youth activity. It was awesome! We talked about everything from the game to grades. I had no theological reasoning to decide to separate from the group and go with my youth pastor. Looking back though, I learned a deep theological truth. You see, my motive was not to separate from the youth group; rather it was to separate to my youth pastor. Often I think we get so caught up in this world that we don’t want to separate from it, and in turn we lose the joy of separating to God. Let’s put our fleshly wants and desires behind us as Romans 13:14 states, and rather focus on becoming like and spending time with our God. Are you separated to God today, or have you allowed the world to redefine separation as unnecessary and uncomfortable for you? 

            “For a just man falleth seven times, and riseth up again: but the wicked shall fall into mischief.”

Have you ever had a point in your life where it seemed like everything was just perfect, and then tomorrow’s circumstances changed all of that? You have great friends, a loving family, you were the star in Friday night’s game, the pretty girl at school smiled at you (guys), or the good looking hunk of a guy wanted to share your homework answers (girls) – you fill in the blank. It just seems like for once everything is going for you, and its awesome! You go to sleep that night, thinking that nothing could ever go wrong!

Then tomorrow comes.

You wake up late and are rushed to school. Let me stop here and say that rushed for girls means they didn’t have a chance to do their hair, their makeup, their clothes don’t match perfectly, they forgot to brush their teeth, and they have a huge zit on their forehead! For guys, rushed means…well…they didn’t have a chance to grab the Mountain Dew that they were going to guzzle for breakfast regardless of clothes, hair, or teeth! Either way, whatever the situation and whoever the person is, this day is not at all going right. On and on the day drags! All sorts of nightmares come true and your worst fears imagined are faced! You wonder what’s wrong with you and what you did to cause this. You feel like you can never get out of it. The fact that “I don’t deserve this!” echoes loudly in your mind. Finally the day comes to an end and it’s all over.

Has anyone ever been there before? Has anyone ever felt like a failure?

In Proverbs 24:16 we find a verse about recovering from one of those days...about recovering from failure. The Bible says, “A just man falleth seven times, and riseth up again…” Lets take a look at the Biblical solution to failure in the Christian life found in this Biblical statement.

The first characteristic of this statement is that the Bible classifies this person as a just man. In the latter part of the verse Proverbs contrasts the just man with the wicked. It immediately becomes evident that there is a difference in this man’s life. The difference, to make short work of it, is Jesus. All through the Bible the title just man is used in reference to those who have been justified from their sin through the blood of Christ’s redemption (Romans 1:17, Galatians 3:11, Hebrews 10:38, I John 1:7). The ultimate reason this man can fall down and get back up is because his faith is not in his own strength to forgive himself, but rather in the fact that Christ has already forgiven him! His day is not dependent on his popularity with his friends, his appearance, or his performance, but rather on his position with God! The finality of failure is completely dependent on the eternal destiny of one’s soul!

Secondly we see the just man falleth. Despite the fact that he has a relationship with God we see that he is still human. When we enter Christianity it is not with a pious attitude of self-improvement, but instead with a humble admittance of our inability to do right by ourselves. We need the help of the One who created us, and without Him we fail miserably. In the illustrative story above, the person who is having this terrible day feels like all these bad things are happening to them. Often that is our attitude: bad things happen to us, not because of us. The verse states that the just man falleth. It’s not the circumstances that knock him down, and it wasn’t “bad” people that attacked him. The reason many people cannot move past failures is because they cannot admit that they themselves may have failed! Not the system or the situation, but them. Before one can move on often an acceptance of past failures must be reached. If you can admit that you made a mistake, you can ask God for forgiveness and in turn forgive yourself because God will forgive you (I John 1:9). If forgiveness takes place you are on the road to restoration, and you can keep your history from controlling your destiny!

Once the just man had fallen and realized his need for forgiveness, the restoration process began. The verse actually states that the just man “riseth up again.” So many Christians get knocked down because they are human, but fail to get back up again. Why? Because they forget that despite the fact that they are human, they are also children of God! The just man did not get back up because of how good he was, how smart he was, or even who he was. He got back up because of the fact that his relationship to God was not based on his own ability, but on God’s sacrifice. You see, he didn’t let God down because he was never holding God up. God held him up with the right hand of His righteousness (Isaiah 41:10).

Today Christian, if you’ve fallen, you can get back up. Not because of who you are or what you’ve done (good or bad), but because of what He’s done and Who He is! True failure is not in falling down, but in failing to get back up. God wants you to live a victorious Christian life. If you fall, He wants you to get back up. Failure is never final for the Christian! Have you gotten back up?

“The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord: and he delighteth in his way. Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the Lord upholdeth him with his hand” - Psalm 37:23-24

We have had a great week at camp and we can't wait to tell you all about it.  Thank you for your prayers this has been a wonderful week of spiritual decisions for our teens.