Student Ministry Blog https://www.christchurchbaptist.org Fri, 29 Mar 2024 07:50:54 -0400 http://churchplantmedia.com/ The Inner Workings of Our Dessert Auction https://www.christchurchbaptist.org/youth-ministry-blog/post/the-inner-workings-of-our-dessert-auction- https://www.christchurchbaptist.org/youth-ministry-blog/post/the-inner-workings-of-our-dessert-auction-#comments Fri, 20 May 2016 21:00:00 -0400 https://www.christchurchbaptist.org/youth-ministry-blog/post/the-inner-workings-of-our-dessert-auction- Recently I wrote an article on, “What I Appreciated So Much About Our Teen Takeover Service,” describing how God had blessed a few principles and why we believe He did so. For the past four years our student ministry has participated in a Teen Takeover Service and Dessert Auction in order to minister to our church family and raise funds for summer camp. Each year that we have done the Dessert Auction (and long before I came), it has been a hugely successful fundraiser for our summer camp needs. I hope this article is a blessing to your youth ministry and if it is, would you mind letting us know so that we can rejoice with you?

Here goes:

1. Planning
Simply put, pick a date on the calendar. A couple things to look out for are avoiding big Sunday’s or events such as Missions Conference and Mother’s Day. Missions conference is a time when your church family (and youth ministry) should be focusing on giving to local and world missions specifically. Most people only have so much “disposable” income…so don't make them feel bad if they have already given liberally to your church’s missions program by following it up with a fundraiser for your youth ministry. The same thinking applies to Mother’s Day, only more from a time standpoint than monetary overuse. Allow your church families and teenagers to enjoy their Mother’s Day without having to worry about making a dessert for the Dessert Auction. Find a calendar date with some margin in it, and plan accordingly.

2. Preparation
Each church has a different set up, but most have a “Fellowship Hall” or gymnasium. Pick a location that will fit your church family comfortably. Turn the AC down well in advance, sweep the floors, select a music playlist, and decide on a set-up. Now, to many, these details may seem irrelevant to a successful dessert auction, but we have noticed a huge difference in adding attention to these little details over the years. One of the best articles I have read on this was written by a friend to our ministry, Pastor Cary Schmidt in Newington, CT, entitled, “Make Meetings Great Again!”
In our case, when I first came to Christchurch, the Dessert Auction was already a part of the church and youth ministry culture. It was held on a Sunday in the spring to allow for plenty of planning for the summer camp budget. The date was picked with attention given to the details above, and the actual dessert auction was held after the morning service. I took some advice that I read in a youth ministry book and decided not to change anything huge within the first year of my ministry here so as to learn and appreciate what had already taken place in years gone by. Not that you can’t make it your own…by all means you should; but that’s another topic. The first year that we held it I noticed that the whole morning service felt rushed to make it over to the Fellowship Hall for our Dessert Auction. Add to that the hunger that every good Baptist is experiencing on a Sunday morning after the morning service and by the time that it was all said and done I had quite the headache. The event was successful, but it was also a little painful. So the following year we sat down and tried to imagine what would make the Dessert Auction not just a success, but a delight! Here is what we came up with.

3. Procedures
This is the meat of my explanation, so most of the following may be more outline form rather than paragraph. A quick explanation would be that we do our Dessert Auction in the form of a silent auction and a live auction. Every dessert entered starts out in the silent auction, and then the juniors and seniors pick their top 4 desserts to be entered into the live auction. We allow 15(ish) minutes for the silent auction, then read all the bids out loud. I try to make this part quick and lively. Then we enter the live auction phase. This year, we had one cake go for $1,000, which is a little higher than normal. However, each year we have desserts go for several hundred dollars in the live auction. As you begin to do this every year, people will get into the spirit and be ready to try and outbid others. It really is a lot of fun.

Leading up to the event:

  • Begin announcing the Dessert Auction a minimum of one month in advance. 
  • Explain to the entire congregation how the Dessert Auction works two weeks before. This will: include new members in the process, remind everyone of the process, and generate a mental note for the upcoming date. 
  • Take extra time during teen announcements (Sunday or Wednesday programs) explaining the importance of their participation. Encourage teenagers to make a dessert themselves! If they don’t, why should anyone else?
  • Be energetic about announcements. 
  • Personally encourage people to participate. 
  • Send out reminders the weekend before (Saturday before) the Dessert Auction as most people will use that day to make their dessert. We use social media for this part. 
  • Set up the area with plenty of time to allow for unforeseen circumstances. We set ours up the Thursday before. Include in your set up plans:
  • Plenty of seating around tables including high chairs (people need a place to put their stuff, kids, and purchased desserts:)) These tables should be located close to the front and middle of the room.
  • Plenty of tables set up around the room for the dessert entries to be placed on. Try to create a traffic flow so that people can make it around the room to see each dessert and potentially place a bid during the silent auction.
  • Set up a registration/check out area for incoming desserts. Print out registration sheets with plenty of room for bids. If you would like to see what ours look like, simply contact me and I will send you a copy.
  • Serving station - we staff this with a few senior high young ladies who can cut and serve purchased desserts on the spot (include plates, utensils, and napkins in this area!)
  • Have simple refreshments like water and coffee available
  • Have a table set up at the front of the room for live auction items.
  • Have a sound system set up. Events often get loud.
  • Make sure trash cans are empty and available.
  • Double check the AC

Day of the event:

  • Host a combined teen Sunday school class in the location of the event (Fellowship Hall or gymnasium). Instruct them on what they will be doing such as: Serving station, Dessert and bid sheet collection for announcement, trash detail, and cleanup and break down. 
  • Encourage teenagers to: participate, serve their church family, and express their thankfulness throughout the night! 
  • Desserts will arrive at the church as early as that morning. That’s just the way some people are made. Simply have registration sheets out that allow them to place their name and the name of their dessert on it. Also, be sure to have cleaned out some room in the church’s refrigerator as some desserts will need to be kept cool.
  • Open registration that afternoon at least one hour before your evening service. If you have choir practice before the evening service as we do, open registration 15 minutes before choir practice begins.
  • Event begins immediately following the close of the evening service. This will prompt people to make it to your event location as quickly as possible.
  • Announce that the silent auction will be open for 15 minutes following the church service, but don't start the timer until you can make it over to the location. When the 15 minutes are up, judge the crowd. If people haven't even made it around the room yet, give them an extra 5-10 minutes. The longer the silent auction goes, the more money you will potentially make. But the later the event goes, the more restless people will become. So balance is the key.
  • Bidding during the silent auction can get tricky. This method was handed to me, and it is ingenious. Each dessert starts at a minimum of $10. Bids are then placed in increments of $5. So if a dessert has been bid up to $30, the next lowest bid is $35. People can place as high of a bid as they would like to, as long as it is a $5 increment. This prevents someone from outbidding someone else by 1 penny each time. Not that that would ever happen…
  • Once you have closed the silent auction, teenagers should be lining up behind the silent auction table and desserts. They will take the dessert and bidding sheet and bring it to the front so that you can announce it.
  • Announce ALL the entered desserts, regardless of the amount that they raised. Somebody invested in that and they are listening for it, so be sure to announce it. It is their contribution.
  • As you are announcing the silent auction bids, have the person who has “won” that bid meet the teenager carrying their dessert at the registration/check out area. My wife and some of our other ladies in the church always do an excellent job at expediting the check out process. This year we introduced taking payments by debit or credit card, and at least half of our total monies raised were taken in that form (check out Square or PayPal).
  • Once you have announced all the silent auction bids, the live auction will begin. This is where most of the pressure is on you. If you cannot be energetic in front of a larger crowd, you might consider finding someone who can be. My personal opinion is that it will mean more if you do it, but do what you have to. The goal of the live auction is to raise as much money as possible for the desserts that you are about to auction off. One of my mentors, Bro. Reno Likins, used to say this, “Remember you’re not asking for the money for yourself. You’re raising it for the Lord. Give it your best shot.”
  • Once you have concluded the live auction, thank EVERYONE for giving of their time, talent, and money to the Lord through the youth ministry and then have your Pastor (if he stuck around;-) or a parent in your youth ministry close in prayer.
  • Enjoy some fellowship afterward, and try to shake as many hands as you possibly can. You will be tired, but it will mean a lot to those who gave.
  • Have the teens once again show their thankfulness by cleaning up.
  • Announce the total monies raised at the next church service.

Do you have any questions or ideas? Has something else worked for you? Feel free to leave a comment below, or contact me at: csargent@christchurchbaptist.org. Thanks for reading!

]]>
Recently I wrote an article on, “What I Appreciated So Much About Our Teen Takeover Service,” describing how God had blessed a few principles and why we believe He did so. For the past four years our student ministry has participated in a Teen Takeover Service and Dessert Auction in order to minister to our church family and raise funds for summer camp. Each year that we have done the Dessert Auction (and long before I came), it has been a hugely successful fundraiser for our summer camp needs. I hope this article is a blessing to your youth ministry and if it is, would you mind letting us know so that we can rejoice with you?

Here goes:

1. Planning
Simply put, pick a date on the calendar. A couple things to look out for are avoiding big Sunday’s or events such as Missions Conference and Mother’s Day. Missions conference is a time when your church family (and youth ministry) should be focusing on giving to local and world missions specifically. Most people only have so much “disposable” income…so don't make them feel bad if they have already given liberally to your church’s missions program by following it up with a fundraiser for your youth ministry. The same thinking applies to Mother’s Day, only more from a time standpoint than monetary overuse. Allow your church families and teenagers to enjoy their Mother’s Day without having to worry about making a dessert for the Dessert Auction. Find a calendar date with some margin in it, and plan accordingly.

2. Preparation
Each church has a different set up, but most have a “Fellowship Hall” or gymnasium. Pick a location that will fit your church family comfortably. Turn the AC down well in advance, sweep the floors, select a music playlist, and decide on a set-up. Now, to many, these details may seem irrelevant to a successful dessert auction, but we have noticed a huge difference in adding attention to these little details over the years. One of the best articles I have read on this was written by a friend to our ministry, Pastor Cary Schmidt in Newington, CT, entitled, “Make Meetings Great Again!”
In our case, when I first came to Christchurch, the Dessert Auction was already a part of the church and youth ministry culture. It was held on a Sunday in the spring to allow for plenty of planning for the summer camp budget. The date was picked with attention given to the details above, and the actual dessert auction was held after the morning service. I took some advice that I read in a youth ministry book and decided not to change anything huge within the first year of my ministry here so as to learn and appreciate what had already taken place in years gone by. Not that you can’t make it your own…by all means you should; but that’s another topic. The first year that we held it I noticed that the whole morning service felt rushed to make it over to the Fellowship Hall for our Dessert Auction. Add to that the hunger that every good Baptist is experiencing on a Sunday morning after the morning service and by the time that it was all said and done I had quite the headache. The event was successful, but it was also a little painful. So the following year we sat down and tried to imagine what would make the Dessert Auction not just a success, but a delight! Here is what we came up with.

3. Procedures
This is the meat of my explanation, so most of the following may be more outline form rather than paragraph. A quick explanation would be that we do our Dessert Auction in the form of a silent auction and a live auction. Every dessert entered starts out in the silent auction, and then the juniors and seniors pick their top 4 desserts to be entered into the live auction. We allow 15(ish) minutes for the silent auction, then read all the bids out loud. I try to make this part quick and lively. Then we enter the live auction phase. This year, we had one cake go for $1,000, which is a little higher than normal. However, each year we have desserts go for several hundred dollars in the live auction. As you begin to do this every year, people will get into the spirit and be ready to try and outbid others. It really is a lot of fun.

Leading up to the event:

  • Begin announcing the Dessert Auction a minimum of one month in advance. 
  • Explain to the entire congregation how the Dessert Auction works two weeks before. This will: include new members in the process, remind everyone of the process, and generate a mental note for the upcoming date. 
  • Take extra time during teen announcements (Sunday or Wednesday programs) explaining the importance of their participation. Encourage teenagers to make a dessert themselves! If they don’t, why should anyone else?
  • Be energetic about announcements. 
  • Personally encourage people to participate. 
  • Send out reminders the weekend before (Saturday before) the Dessert Auction as most people will use that day to make their dessert. We use social media for this part. 
  • Set up the area with plenty of time to allow for unforeseen circumstances. We set ours up the Thursday before. Include in your set up plans:
  • Plenty of seating around tables including high chairs (people need a place to put their stuff, kids, and purchased desserts:)) These tables should be located close to the front and middle of the room.
  • Plenty of tables set up around the room for the dessert entries to be placed on. Try to create a traffic flow so that people can make it around the room to see each dessert and potentially place a bid during the silent auction.
  • Set up a registration/check out area for incoming desserts. Print out registration sheets with plenty of room for bids. If you would like to see what ours look like, simply contact me and I will send you a copy.
  • Serving station - we staff this with a few senior high young ladies who can cut and serve purchased desserts on the spot (include plates, utensils, and napkins in this area!)
  • Have simple refreshments like water and coffee available
  • Have a table set up at the front of the room for live auction items.
  • Have a sound system set up. Events often get loud.
  • Make sure trash cans are empty and available.
  • Double check the AC

Day of the event:

  • Host a combined teen Sunday school class in the location of the event (Fellowship Hall or gymnasium). Instruct them on what they will be doing such as: Serving station, Dessert and bid sheet collection for announcement, trash detail, and cleanup and break down. 
  • Encourage teenagers to: participate, serve their church family, and express their thankfulness throughout the night! 
  • Desserts will arrive at the church as early as that morning. That’s just the way some people are made. Simply have registration sheets out that allow them to place their name and the name of their dessert on it. Also, be sure to have cleaned out some room in the church’s refrigerator as some desserts will need to be kept cool.
  • Open registration that afternoon at least one hour before your evening service. If you have choir practice before the evening service as we do, open registration 15 minutes before choir practice begins.
  • Event begins immediately following the close of the evening service. This will prompt people to make it to your event location as quickly as possible.
  • Announce that the silent auction will be open for 15 minutes following the church service, but don't start the timer until you can make it over to the location. When the 15 minutes are up, judge the crowd. If people haven't even made it around the room yet, give them an extra 5-10 minutes. The longer the silent auction goes, the more money you will potentially make. But the later the event goes, the more restless people will become. So balance is the key.
  • Bidding during the silent auction can get tricky. This method was handed to me, and it is ingenious. Each dessert starts at a minimum of $10. Bids are then placed in increments of $5. So if a dessert has been bid up to $30, the next lowest bid is $35. People can place as high of a bid as they would like to, as long as it is a $5 increment. This prevents someone from outbidding someone else by 1 penny each time. Not that that would ever happen…
  • Once you have closed the silent auction, teenagers should be lining up behind the silent auction table and desserts. They will take the dessert and bidding sheet and bring it to the front so that you can announce it.
  • Announce ALL the entered desserts, regardless of the amount that they raised. Somebody invested in that and they are listening for it, so be sure to announce it. It is their contribution.
  • As you are announcing the silent auction bids, have the person who has “won” that bid meet the teenager carrying their dessert at the registration/check out area. My wife and some of our other ladies in the church always do an excellent job at expediting the check out process. This year we introduced taking payments by debit or credit card, and at least half of our total monies raised were taken in that form (check out Square or PayPal).
  • Once you have announced all the silent auction bids, the live auction will begin. This is where most of the pressure is on you. If you cannot be energetic in front of a larger crowd, you might consider finding someone who can be. My personal opinion is that it will mean more if you do it, but do what you have to. The goal of the live auction is to raise as much money as possible for the desserts that you are about to auction off. One of my mentors, Bro. Reno Likins, used to say this, “Remember you’re not asking for the money for yourself. You’re raising it for the Lord. Give it your best shot.”
  • Once you have concluded the live auction, thank EVERYONE for giving of their time, talent, and money to the Lord through the youth ministry and then have your Pastor (if he stuck around;-) or a parent in your youth ministry close in prayer.
  • Enjoy some fellowship afterward, and try to shake as many hands as you possibly can. You will be tired, but it will mean a lot to those who gave.
  • Have the teens once again show their thankfulness by cleaning up.
  • Announce the total monies raised at the next church service.

Do you have any questions or ideas? Has something else worked for you? Feel free to leave a comment below, or contact me at: csargent@christchurchbaptist.org. Thanks for reading!

]]>
What I Appreciated So Much About Our Teen Takeover Service https://www.christchurchbaptist.org/youth-ministry-blog/post/what-i-appreciated-so-much-about-our-teen-takeover-service- https://www.christchurchbaptist.org/youth-ministry-blog/post/what-i-appreciated-so-much-about-our-teen-takeover-service-#comments Mon, 16 May 2016 18:00:00 -0400 https://www.christchurchbaptist.org/youth-ministry-blog/post/what-i-appreciated-so-much-about-our-teen-takeover-service-  

Last night we celebrated what has become an annual occurrence for our youth ministry: our Teen Takeover Service and Dessert Auction. I have had many questions about our dessert auction, ranging from planning and preparation to execution, however, this article is going to focus on the Teen Takeover Service aspect. If you would like to know more about our Dessert Auction, I am hoping to write a follow-up post later.

The greatest introductory thought I can manage to put into one sentence about our Teen Takeover Service is this: last night we, as a church family, experienced the pouring out of the Spirit of Almighty God upon a group of young people in a very powerful and rewarding way. Every church should seek to pass on to the next generation the truth that the greatest relationship we cultivate every day is our relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ, and that one of the greatest ways we cultivate that is by cultivating our relationships with one another in a Christ-like way. Last night our church got to see that in person, and I am convinced that there are a few reasons why.

Now, before we get too deep into this, may I ask you to please understand that I do not believe this is a “formula”. God cannot fit inside our boxes, bottles, or articles for that matter. What God is doing in our church and youth group may not be what He is doing in your church and youth group. However, I do believe that there are principles that God has given us in His Word that He will bless consistently. Rewarding youth (and church) ministry is not a needle in a haystack that God sits back and hopes that we will find. He has clearly outlined principles such as charity, soul-consciousness, kindness, holiness, etc. in His Word that He desires to bless. The Christian life is not an egg hunt, and God is also not our genie in a bottle. That being said, I could not help but notice these three principles at work in our midst last night.

1. The Tone

The spirit of our Teen Takeover service took many forms as we headed into last night - busyness, frustration, prayer, patience, nervousness, and adrenaline. If you have ever planned a teen event, you're all too familiar with these emotions. Take the average emotions leading up to planning a big activity, and then multiply that by the fact that this event will be in front of the whole church. Better yet, it will be the church service for the evening. Sounds fun, right? Even as the service began so did the glitches. We had an order of service planned, however when we got up to show our Summer Camp 2015 Highlight Video we experienced technical difficulties. With a hope and a prayer I switched our order of service (after sitting for what seemed like 10 minutes waiting for the video to start) with a special later in the schedule. Thankfully the old adage seemed to ring true for us, that “all’s well that ends well,” to God be the glory.

So what made the tone of our service last night so special? Was it the singing? The preaching? The “amens”? To be honest, it was much more simple that it. It was the fact that the Spirit of the Lord was present. 2 Corinthians 3:17b says “…where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.” That was it. Last night was a service full of liberty. Now please don't misunderstand me. It wasn't the type of liberty that says, “Que Sera, Sera.” We didn't strip down the platform of any “old fashioned” decor (though at times I’m tempted too), we didn't only use songs that were on the screen, and we didn't dim the lights. I’m not saying those things in and of themselves are wrong. I’m just saying we didn't do it. Why? Simple. That’s not our church. One of the greatest blessings from last night for me was to see our young people serve our current church in a way that our current church could appreciate. That, my friend, is what I would call liberty. Not a liberty unto themselves, but a liberty that they could lavish on others. Galatians 5:13-14 states, "For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another. For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.”

I am thankful for a group of young people who recognize the awesome privilege to use our liberty as a chance to serve our church. Which leads me to my next point on what I appreciated so much about our Teen Takeover Service:

2. The Teenagers

I know, I know. Every youth pastor says it. They “love their youth group” or, “their youth group is the best!” Surely that’s just a gimmick, right? I mean, tell the young people you love them so that they can make you look good when they say it back to their parents, right? Unfortunately, that’s how many people (and sometimes parents) view youth ministry. Why not plug your young person into glorified baby-sitting? That way if there’s an issue, someone else is accountable for them, right? And thus begins the blame game. I feel it’s only fair to say that unfortunately, that’s how some youth ministers look at their ministries also.

I made a statement last night that the purpose of our youth ministry is not to have fun activities. We have lots of fun activities, but that’s not our purpose. The purpose of our youth group is not to create a social club for teenagers to feel safe in. We have many friendships that develop and grow inside the walls of our youth ministry, but that’s not our purpose. We exist as a youth ministry to be a bridge for young people to connect their heart with the heart of our Lord Jesus Christ. If all I do as a youth pastor is create a relationship with a teenager, win them over to an action-packed schedule, and make sure they make every activity on the calendar then I still have, unfortunately, failed them. One day they're going to wake up as a graduate who needs a job and has less of both time and money. If they have sold their soul out to a social club that participates in “fun” activities, they will chase that desire, regardless of where it leads them. But if instead I have played a small part in helping to instill in them a desire to continue to grow in their discipleship and relationship to their Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they will chase that desire, regardless of where it leads them.

Luke 18:28-30: "Then Peter said, Lo, we have left all, and followed thee. And he said unto them, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or parents, or brethren, or wife, or children, for the kingdom of God's sake, Who shall not receive manifold more in this present time, and in the world to come life everlasting."

So what was so awesome about last night’s service? Those who sang specials did so from a desire to sing to their Savior. Those who preached did so from a desire to please their Savior. The amount of study that went into our young men’s sermons (as was evident by their wonderful presentations of Scripture) came from a desire to know their Savior more. I thank God for every young person in our country (not just our youth group), who truly desires to serve their God. Last night was real because it was personal. I cannot help but make a quick application here…is you're Christianity personal? Is your attendance to church on Sunday’s personal? Are you really going to the house of your Father God and Brother Jesus Christ?

Gypsy Smith, the British 20th century evangelist, preached to audiences of hundreds of thousands. A delegation came to ask him how they could experience mass revival as he had. And this was his reply, “Go home. Lock yourself in your room. Kneel down in the middle of the floor, and with a piece of chalk draw a circle around yourself. There, on your knees, pray fervently and brokenly that God would start a revival within that chalk circle.” I thank God for teenagers who are willing not only to draw chalk circles, but to step inside of them.

3. The Testimony

Finally, last night would not have been possible without the testimony of two specific groups.

A. The testimony of our pastor

If you have ever heard or met our pastor, probably one thing in particular stands out to you: genuineness. Now he would humbly decline these comments, but that because he's genuine. Not perfect, sometimes preoccupied, but always genuine. Honestly, that could be his bumper sticker (hmm…youth activity idea?Jk.) I have served on staff at Christchurch Baptist Fellowship for five years now. Really, that’s just long enough to begin to realize my own mistakes. However, one of the greatest encouragements to my personal and public ministry during this time has been the genuineness of our Pastor. The reason I share this with you is to help you realize that more is caught than taught. Our teen’s are genuine because they have had genuineness modeled to them. They're not perfect and often times preoccupied, but they truly strive to be genuine in their relationship with their Lord Jesus Christ.

I often hear the question asked, “How can we get young people to stop leaving the church?” I think our answer is found in Acts 2:42-47: "And they continued stedfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers. And fear came upon every soul: and many wonders and signs were done by the apostles. And all that believed were together, and had all things common; And sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all men, as every man had need. And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart, Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.” (emphasis added is mine)

Many people believe that in order to have influence you simply need a title. Obviously, they are misguided. Still others believe that in order to have influence you must spend time. Less obviously, they also are wrong. True influence comes from spending genuine time together. Or as Acts puts it: "And they continued stedfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers. ... And all that believed were together, and had all things common;” - Acts 2:42, 44. Clearly, the directive for the believers to have meet together and have all things common did not come as a command, but as an example of genuineness. Paul echoes this passing of the torch to Timothy when he states, "But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them;” -2 Timothy 3:14

Can I encourage you to be genuine!

B. The testimony of our parents

As the busyness of the dessert auction came to a close last night, I stopped to thank one the parents her investment in the night. Her son had preached for us, so she quickly replied that she didn't help at all with the preparation for the sermon. I could not pass the moment up, and had to let her know that it was not the preparation of the sermon I was thanking her for, but the preparation of the life. She smiled and adamantly admitted, yes, she had put a good amount of time into that project. She was one proud mama…and she had every right to be.

Proverbs 31:27-28 - "She looketh well to the ways of her household, and eateth not the bread of idleness. Her children arise up, and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praiseth her.”

Parents, may I echo the voice of youth ministers across the country for you to hear? Please understand that these are words of encouragement.

You have an incredible responsibility entrusted to you. You are by far and away the greatest influence in your child’s life. Please do not allow yourself to be insecure about that, regardless of how your young person acts or what they say. Please do not squander that influence. Please do not trade your responsibility as your teenager’s parent for the cheap replacement of being their friend. I truly believe that if you faithfully continue to parent and guide them in the tough times of their teen years God will reward you with the ability to grow in friendship with your young person in their adult years. And, if you show them that there is no other greater Friend that they can have than Jesus, you will not only have gained a relationship in this world, but also one in the next as well.

Parents, we thank you. For every time that you've stood up when no one was watching. For every time that you've supported when no one else would. For every time that you've sacrificed when no one else knew. For every time that you have trusted God over your feelings or their emotions. Thank you, one million times over. You are under-appreciated and over-worked, but I promise you this, you will not be under-paid. Nobody out-gives God. Trust Him with your greatest investment, and you will not be disappointed.

Thank you again to all who made our Teen Takeover Service a success. May God get all the honor and glory.

2 Peter 3:18b - "To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen."

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Last night we celebrated what has become an annual occurrence for our youth ministry: our Teen Takeover Service and Dessert Auction. I have had many questions about our dessert auction, ranging from planning and preparation to execution, however, this article is going to focus on the Teen Takeover Service aspect. If you would like to know more about our Dessert Auction, I am hoping to write a follow-up post later.

The greatest introductory thought I can manage to put into one sentence about our Teen Takeover Service is this: last night we, as a church family, experienced the pouring out of the Spirit of Almighty God upon a group of young people in a very powerful and rewarding way. Every church should seek to pass on to the next generation the truth that the greatest relationship we cultivate every day is our relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ, and that one of the greatest ways we cultivate that is by cultivating our relationships with one another in a Christ-like way. Last night our church got to see that in person, and I am convinced that there are a few reasons why.

Now, before we get too deep into this, may I ask you to please understand that I do not believe this is a “formula”. God cannot fit inside our boxes, bottles, or articles for that matter. What God is doing in our church and youth group may not be what He is doing in your church and youth group. However, I do believe that there are principles that God has given us in His Word that He will bless consistently. Rewarding youth (and church) ministry is not a needle in a haystack that God sits back and hopes that we will find. He has clearly outlined principles such as charity, soul-consciousness, kindness, holiness, etc. in His Word that He desires to bless. The Christian life is not an egg hunt, and God is also not our genie in a bottle. That being said, I could not help but notice these three principles at work in our midst last night.

1. The Tone

The spirit of our Teen Takeover service took many forms as we headed into last night - busyness, frustration, prayer, patience, nervousness, and adrenaline. If you have ever planned a teen event, you're all too familiar with these emotions. Take the average emotions leading up to planning a big activity, and then multiply that by the fact that this event will be in front of the whole church. Better yet, it will be the church service for the evening. Sounds fun, right? Even as the service began so did the glitches. We had an order of service planned, however when we got up to show our Summer Camp 2015 Highlight Video we experienced technical difficulties. With a hope and a prayer I switched our order of service (after sitting for what seemed like 10 minutes waiting for the video to start) with a special later in the schedule. Thankfully the old adage seemed to ring true for us, that “all’s well that ends well,” to God be the glory.

So what made the tone of our service last night so special? Was it the singing? The preaching? The “amens”? To be honest, it was much more simple that it. It was the fact that the Spirit of the Lord was present. 2 Corinthians 3:17b says “…where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.” That was it. Last night was a service full of liberty. Now please don't misunderstand me. It wasn't the type of liberty that says, “Que Sera, Sera.” We didn't strip down the platform of any “old fashioned” decor (though at times I’m tempted too), we didn't only use songs that were on the screen, and we didn't dim the lights. I’m not saying those things in and of themselves are wrong. I’m just saying we didn't do it. Why? Simple. That’s not our church. One of the greatest blessings from last night for me was to see our young people serve our current church in a way that our current church could appreciate. That, my friend, is what I would call liberty. Not a liberty unto themselves, but a liberty that they could lavish on others. Galatians 5:13-14 states, "For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another. For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.”

I am thankful for a group of young people who recognize the awesome privilege to use our liberty as a chance to serve our church. Which leads me to my next point on what I appreciated so much about our Teen Takeover Service:

2. The Teenagers

I know, I know. Every youth pastor says it. They “love their youth group” or, “their youth group is the best!” Surely that’s just a gimmick, right? I mean, tell the young people you love them so that they can make you look good when they say it back to their parents, right? Unfortunately, that’s how many people (and sometimes parents) view youth ministry. Why not plug your young person into glorified baby-sitting? That way if there’s an issue, someone else is accountable for them, right? And thus begins the blame game. I feel it’s only fair to say that unfortunately, that’s how some youth ministers look at their ministries also.

I made a statement last night that the purpose of our youth ministry is not to have fun activities. We have lots of fun activities, but that’s not our purpose. The purpose of our youth group is not to create a social club for teenagers to feel safe in. We have many friendships that develop and grow inside the walls of our youth ministry, but that’s not our purpose. We exist as a youth ministry to be a bridge for young people to connect their heart with the heart of our Lord Jesus Christ. If all I do as a youth pastor is create a relationship with a teenager, win them over to an action-packed schedule, and make sure they make every activity on the calendar then I still have, unfortunately, failed them. One day they're going to wake up as a graduate who needs a job and has less of both time and money. If they have sold their soul out to a social club that participates in “fun” activities, they will chase that desire, regardless of where it leads them. But if instead I have played a small part in helping to instill in them a desire to continue to grow in their discipleship and relationship to their Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they will chase that desire, regardless of where it leads them.

Luke 18:28-30: "Then Peter said, Lo, we have left all, and followed thee. And he said unto them, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or parents, or brethren, or wife, or children, for the kingdom of God's sake, Who shall not receive manifold more in this present time, and in the world to come life everlasting."

So what was so awesome about last night’s service? Those who sang specials did so from a desire to sing to their Savior. Those who preached did so from a desire to please their Savior. The amount of study that went into our young men’s sermons (as was evident by their wonderful presentations of Scripture) came from a desire to know their Savior more. I thank God for every young person in our country (not just our youth group), who truly desires to serve their God. Last night was real because it was personal. I cannot help but make a quick application here…is you're Christianity personal? Is your attendance to church on Sunday’s personal? Are you really going to the house of your Father God and Brother Jesus Christ?

Gypsy Smith, the British 20th century evangelist, preached to audiences of hundreds of thousands. A delegation came to ask him how they could experience mass revival as he had. And this was his reply, “Go home. Lock yourself in your room. Kneel down in the middle of the floor, and with a piece of chalk draw a circle around yourself. There, on your knees, pray fervently and brokenly that God would start a revival within that chalk circle.” I thank God for teenagers who are willing not only to draw chalk circles, but to step inside of them.

3. The Testimony

Finally, last night would not have been possible without the testimony of two specific groups.

A. The testimony of our pastor

If you have ever heard or met our pastor, probably one thing in particular stands out to you: genuineness. Now he would humbly decline these comments, but that because he's genuine. Not perfect, sometimes preoccupied, but always genuine. Honestly, that could be his bumper sticker (hmm…youth activity idea?Jk.) I have served on staff at Christchurch Baptist Fellowship for five years now. Really, that’s just long enough to begin to realize my own mistakes. However, one of the greatest encouragements to my personal and public ministry during this time has been the genuineness of our Pastor. The reason I share this with you is to help you realize that more is caught than taught. Our teen’s are genuine because they have had genuineness modeled to them. They're not perfect and often times preoccupied, but they truly strive to be genuine in their relationship with their Lord Jesus Christ.

I often hear the question asked, “How can we get young people to stop leaving the church?” I think our answer is found in Acts 2:42-47: "And they continued stedfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers. And fear came upon every soul: and many wonders and signs were done by the apostles. And all that believed were together, and had all things common; And sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all men, as every man had need. And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart, Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.” (emphasis added is mine)

Many people believe that in order to have influence you simply need a title. Obviously, they are misguided. Still others believe that in order to have influence you must spend time. Less obviously, they also are wrong. True influence comes from spending genuine time together. Or as Acts puts it: "And they continued stedfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers. ... And all that believed were together, and had all things common;” - Acts 2:42, 44. Clearly, the directive for the believers to have meet together and have all things common did not come as a command, but as an example of genuineness. Paul echoes this passing of the torch to Timothy when he states, "But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them;” -2 Timothy 3:14

Can I encourage you to be genuine!

B. The testimony of our parents

As the busyness of the dessert auction came to a close last night, I stopped to thank one the parents her investment in the night. Her son had preached for us, so she quickly replied that she didn't help at all with the preparation for the sermon. I could not pass the moment up, and had to let her know that it was not the preparation of the sermon I was thanking her for, but the preparation of the life. She smiled and adamantly admitted, yes, she had put a good amount of time into that project. She was one proud mama…and she had every right to be.

Proverbs 31:27-28 - "She looketh well to the ways of her household, and eateth not the bread of idleness. Her children arise up, and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praiseth her.”

Parents, may I echo the voice of youth ministers across the country for you to hear? Please understand that these are words of encouragement.

You have an incredible responsibility entrusted to you. You are by far and away the greatest influence in your child’s life. Please do not allow yourself to be insecure about that, regardless of how your young person acts or what they say. Please do not squander that influence. Please do not trade your responsibility as your teenager’s parent for the cheap replacement of being their friend. I truly believe that if you faithfully continue to parent and guide them in the tough times of their teen years God will reward you with the ability to grow in friendship with your young person in their adult years. And, if you show them that there is no other greater Friend that they can have than Jesus, you will not only have gained a relationship in this world, but also one in the next as well.

Parents, we thank you. For every time that you've stood up when no one was watching. For every time that you've supported when no one else would. For every time that you've sacrificed when no one else knew. For every time that you have trusted God over your feelings or their emotions. Thank you, one million times over. You are under-appreciated and over-worked, but I promise you this, you will not be under-paid. Nobody out-gives God. Trust Him with your greatest investment, and you will not be disappointed.

Thank you again to all who made our Teen Takeover Service a success. May God get all the honor and glory.

2 Peter 3:18b - "To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen."

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WCBCYC https://www.christchurchbaptist.org/youth-ministry-blog/post/wcbcyc https://www.christchurchbaptist.org/youth-ministry-blog/post/wcbcyc#comments Tue, 21 Apr 2015 19:00:00 -0400 https://www.christchurchbaptist.org/youth-ministry-blog/post/wcbcyc Last weekend, my wife & I took a group of 27 (including chaperones) to ‪the West Coast Baptist College Youth Conference‬ and it was, in a word, AWESOME...but not just the parts you would think. Yes, Six Flags was thrilling, the games were exhilarating, and it was definitely a life-long memory. But as a youth pastor, what thrilled my heart was to see a group of that many young people respectfully navigating the airport, security, shuttle transportation, and even through other travelers. Then, to watch that same group pay such attention to the preaching of the Word of God (even with an exhausting schedule) that they made life-changing decisions! I cannot begin to express my heartfelt appreciation for all those who made this trip possible, from the parents who trusted us with their teenagers to the chaperones who came thinking because they had to request off from work that it would be a vacation but realizing you have to go home to have one of those :-), but I did think it appropriate to let you know that it did not go unnoticed. Truly, there is no church or group of people I would rather be associated with. We love you!

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Last weekend, my wife & I took a group of 27 (including chaperones) to ‪the West Coast Baptist College Youth Conference‬ and it was, in a word, AWESOME...but not just the parts you would think. Yes, Six Flags was thrilling, the games were exhilarating, and it was definitely a life-long memory. But as a youth pastor, what thrilled my heart was to see a group of that many young people respectfully navigating the airport, security, shuttle transportation, and even through other travelers. Then, to watch that same group pay such attention to the preaching of the Word of God (even with an exhausting schedule) that they made life-changing decisions! I cannot begin to express my heartfelt appreciation for all those who made this trip possible, from the parents who trusted us with their teenagers to the chaperones who came thinking because they had to request off from work that it would be a vacation but realizing you have to go home to have one of those :-), but I did think it appropriate to let you know that it did not go unnoticed. Truly, there is no church or group of people I would rather be associated with. We love you!

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Jesus > https://www.christchurchbaptist.org/youth-ministry-blog/post/jesus https://www.christchurchbaptist.org/youth-ministry-blog/post/jesus#comments Tue, 06 Jan 2015 12:00:00 -0500 https://www.christchurchbaptist.org/youth-ministry-blog/post/jesus It’s so simple. The fact that Jesus is greater than anything else we will come in contact with today seems so basic, so elementary. This simple truth could alone embody the principle behind the saying “familiarity breeds contempt.” It’s as if, in our quest for something greater (transcendence, if you will), Jesus just seems so…common. I mean, don’t get me wrong, He’s cool and all. But there is something about Jesus that is disconcerting. After all, you can never really tell what He is going to do next in the New Testament. I mean, one moment He is forgiving someone who, the spiritual leaders of that day, had condemned to die for the wicked, debauched life that she was living, and the next he is overthrowing the moneychanger’s tables in the temple. Don’t get me wrong, I like Jesus. He died for me, and in so doing made it possible for me to go to Heaven one day. But it’s not heaven that I struggle with…it’s the space in between. This little area called the Christian life is no cakewalk. And that is where I find most teenagers. They believe in Jesus. Most teenagers I deal with have even accepted Jesus Christ as their personal Savior and are trusting in Him to take them to heaven one day. But it’s not the “one day” that they are struggling with. It’s the here and now.

I suppose that I could go into the reasoning behind why the younger generation is struggling with believing that Jesus is greater than every issue, struggle, trial, and personal valley that they might encounter…I mean after all, they had to learn it from somewhere. But my goal is not to point fingers at those who have gone before. I simply wish to expose incorrect thinking in the theology, ideology and philosophy that has been passed down…in essence, what we believe about God in general. Specifically, what we believe (or don’t believe) about Jesus. You see, even the most basic of Christians, regardless of denomination affiliation, understands that without Jesus, our salvation is in trouble. We have grasped that it takes Jesus to get us in, but somewhere along the way we downshifted back to our old way of thinking. Paul calls it the carnal mind in Romans 8:7-9, and he doesn’t have anything good to say about it:

"Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God. But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his." - Romans 8:7-9

Literally Paul says that those who operate in the carnal mind (flesh) cannot please God. Then he tells the Christians in Rome, “But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit…” If there is a cynic out there, I’m sure right now you are saying, “See, Jesus saves me, and then His job is done. Now it’s the Holy Spirit’s turn.” My response would be, whose spirit is the Holy Spirit? Paul says specifically that it is the “Spirit of Christ.” Why are so many Christians struggling not with salvation but with sanctification? Why are so many teenagers fighting against a sinful habit that, according to the Word of God, Christ has already freed them from? Simply put, while they understood that it took the finished work of Jesus Christ to save them, they have forgotten that it is the same finished work of Christ that keeps them. We have exchanged a daily walk with Christ for a daily performance of our flesh. And, as we try to keep up face, pretending like we don’t have issues, problems, or addictions, at the end of the day we are only hurting ourselves more by developing habits that will cripple our spiritual lives. The real question then becomes, “Why?” Why do we settle for a performance instead of a transformation? The reason is simple enough, but so intricately woven into everything other part of our life that we miss it. We can’t see the forest because of the trees.

There is no arguing that the teenage years are some of (if not the most) formative years in a young person’s life. Scientifically, mentally, emotionally, physiologically, spiritually, etc…the list could go on, but the point has been made. Teenagers are in an incredible developing process…in reality seeing and in some aspects choosing whom they will become for the rest of their lives. And it is during this time that they learn a terrible truth that makes the world go round – performance-based acceptance. Now it isn’t called that. Sometimes it’s called talent. Other times it’s called genius. Still others call it genetics. But here, at their most impressionable stage, they find out that opportunities do not come to those who wait, but to those who perform. If they want to make it into a good college, they need to work hard, study harder, and worry hardest. If they want to make it on the football, track, basketball, or baseball team, hopefully they have been practicing their “performance” since they were five years old. If they want to be popular they better have whatever combination of looks, attitude, and personality traits that society says is acceptable to have at that point in history in order to be popular. And thus the cannon is fired, marking the understanding of performance-based acceptance in their lives, hearts, and minds.

Now let me stop a moment and put your mind to ease about something. The Bible is a full of Scriptural principles about hard work, due diligence, and worthy rewards (Eccl. 9:10, Col 3:23-24, II Thess. 3:10, Luke 10:7, I Cor. 9:9-10, I Tim. 5:17-18). Even the Christian life is compared to a race, a fight, and a war. The danger is not in learning and understanding performance-based principles. The danger is when performance-based acceptance reigns king in our lives and relationships…especially our relationship with God. You see there are some relationships that God has graciously provided as pictures of the fact that the hurdles of our acceptance being based on our performance need not be jumped. The greatest of these is our relationship with Him. Our eternal acceptance is not based on our performance, and neither is our daily acceptance. Probably the strongest picture that God gives us of His acceptance of us is when He declares that it is even stronger than an earthly parent-child relationship. In Isaiah 49:15, He emphatically states to His children: "Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee." God is telling His people that when it comes to our relationship with Him…it never has been and never will be performance based. Now God, as any loving Father would, will teach us hard work and due diligence, and He desires us to grow in our knowledge of His Word. But all of our Christian life is to be based on the foundation that Christ laid, which is acceptance by His finished work on the cross of Calvary, not our performance. That’s exactly what Paul was talking about in 1 Corinthians 3:11 when he said, "For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ." He goes on to talk about our responsibility to build on this foundation, and that our works will be tried as to what sort they are. But to be honest, I don’t personally see very many Christian teenagers struggling with understanding the fact that their Christian life should be consistently growing. Rather, I see them struggling with trying to keep up a performance when it feels like everything is falling apart on the inside. What then is the key? How can we overcome? By revisiting the truth that Jesus is greater than our failures! How can we defeat temptation both before and during the hour of temptation? By remembering the truth that Jesus is greater than our weaknesses! Jesus is our beginning, our journey, and our goal as Christians. When we realize that Jesus is greater than anything…than everything we will encounter in the next hour, day, and week, we free ourselves up to consciously choose Jesus every time over our addiction, weakness, or secret sin. The acceptance, love, and fulfillment that we get from Jesus…and from understanding that Jesus is greater, fills a void that cannot be filled with anything else. I love what C.S. Lewis said in his book, Mere Christianity. “If I find in myself desires which nothing in this world can satisfy, the only logical explanation is that I was made for another world.” How true that is!

This year our theme is simply “Jesus >”…because He is.

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It’s so simple. The fact that Jesus is greater than anything else we will come in contact with today seems so basic, so elementary. This simple truth could alone embody the principle behind the saying “familiarity breeds contempt.” It’s as if, in our quest for something greater (transcendence, if you will), Jesus just seems so…common. I mean, don’t get me wrong, He’s cool and all. But there is something about Jesus that is disconcerting. After all, you can never really tell what He is going to do next in the New Testament. I mean, one moment He is forgiving someone who, the spiritual leaders of that day, had condemned to die for the wicked, debauched life that she was living, and the next he is overthrowing the moneychanger’s tables in the temple. Don’t get me wrong, I like Jesus. He died for me, and in so doing made it possible for me to go to Heaven one day. But it’s not heaven that I struggle with…it’s the space in between. This little area called the Christian life is no cakewalk. And that is where I find most teenagers. They believe in Jesus. Most teenagers I deal with have even accepted Jesus Christ as their personal Savior and are trusting in Him to take them to heaven one day. But it’s not the “one day” that they are struggling with. It’s the here and now.

I suppose that I could go into the reasoning behind why the younger generation is struggling with believing that Jesus is greater than every issue, struggle, trial, and personal valley that they might encounter…I mean after all, they had to learn it from somewhere. But my goal is not to point fingers at those who have gone before. I simply wish to expose incorrect thinking in the theology, ideology and philosophy that has been passed down…in essence, what we believe about God in general. Specifically, what we believe (or don’t believe) about Jesus. You see, even the most basic of Christians, regardless of denomination affiliation, understands that without Jesus, our salvation is in trouble. We have grasped that it takes Jesus to get us in, but somewhere along the way we downshifted back to our old way of thinking. Paul calls it the carnal mind in Romans 8:7-9, and he doesn’t have anything good to say about it:

"Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God. But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his." - Romans 8:7-9

Literally Paul says that those who operate in the carnal mind (flesh) cannot please God. Then he tells the Christians in Rome, “But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit…” If there is a cynic out there, I’m sure right now you are saying, “See, Jesus saves me, and then His job is done. Now it’s the Holy Spirit’s turn.” My response would be, whose spirit is the Holy Spirit? Paul says specifically that it is the “Spirit of Christ.” Why are so many Christians struggling not with salvation but with sanctification? Why are so many teenagers fighting against a sinful habit that, according to the Word of God, Christ has already freed them from? Simply put, while they understood that it took the finished work of Jesus Christ to save them, they have forgotten that it is the same finished work of Christ that keeps them. We have exchanged a daily walk with Christ for a daily performance of our flesh. And, as we try to keep up face, pretending like we don’t have issues, problems, or addictions, at the end of the day we are only hurting ourselves more by developing habits that will cripple our spiritual lives. The real question then becomes, “Why?” Why do we settle for a performance instead of a transformation? The reason is simple enough, but so intricately woven into everything other part of our life that we miss it. We can’t see the forest because of the trees.

There is no arguing that the teenage years are some of (if not the most) formative years in a young person’s life. Scientifically, mentally, emotionally, physiologically, spiritually, etc…the list could go on, but the point has been made. Teenagers are in an incredible developing process…in reality seeing and in some aspects choosing whom they will become for the rest of their lives. And it is during this time that they learn a terrible truth that makes the world go round – performance-based acceptance. Now it isn’t called that. Sometimes it’s called talent. Other times it’s called genius. Still others call it genetics. But here, at their most impressionable stage, they find out that opportunities do not come to those who wait, but to those who perform. If they want to make it into a good college, they need to work hard, study harder, and worry hardest. If they want to make it on the football, track, basketball, or baseball team, hopefully they have been practicing their “performance” since they were five years old. If they want to be popular they better have whatever combination of looks, attitude, and personality traits that society says is acceptable to have at that point in history in order to be popular. And thus the cannon is fired, marking the understanding of performance-based acceptance in their lives, hearts, and minds.

Now let me stop a moment and put your mind to ease about something. The Bible is a full of Scriptural principles about hard work, due diligence, and worthy rewards (Eccl. 9:10, Col 3:23-24, II Thess. 3:10, Luke 10:7, I Cor. 9:9-10, I Tim. 5:17-18). Even the Christian life is compared to a race, a fight, and a war. The danger is not in learning and understanding performance-based principles. The danger is when performance-based acceptance reigns king in our lives and relationships…especially our relationship with God. You see there are some relationships that God has graciously provided as pictures of the fact that the hurdles of our acceptance being based on our performance need not be jumped. The greatest of these is our relationship with Him. Our eternal acceptance is not based on our performance, and neither is our daily acceptance. Probably the strongest picture that God gives us of His acceptance of us is when He declares that it is even stronger than an earthly parent-child relationship. In Isaiah 49:15, He emphatically states to His children: "Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee." God is telling His people that when it comes to our relationship with Him…it never has been and never will be performance based. Now God, as any loving Father would, will teach us hard work and due diligence, and He desires us to grow in our knowledge of His Word. But all of our Christian life is to be based on the foundation that Christ laid, which is acceptance by His finished work on the cross of Calvary, not our performance. That’s exactly what Paul was talking about in 1 Corinthians 3:11 when he said, "For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ." He goes on to talk about our responsibility to build on this foundation, and that our works will be tried as to what sort they are. But to be honest, I don’t personally see very many Christian teenagers struggling with understanding the fact that their Christian life should be consistently growing. Rather, I see them struggling with trying to keep up a performance when it feels like everything is falling apart on the inside. What then is the key? How can we overcome? By revisiting the truth that Jesus is greater than our failures! How can we defeat temptation both before and during the hour of temptation? By remembering the truth that Jesus is greater than our weaknesses! Jesus is our beginning, our journey, and our goal as Christians. When we realize that Jesus is greater than anything…than everything we will encounter in the next hour, day, and week, we free ourselves up to consciously choose Jesus every time over our addiction, weakness, or secret sin. The acceptance, love, and fulfillment that we get from Jesus…and from understanding that Jesus is greater, fills a void that cannot be filled with anything else. I love what C.S. Lewis said in his book, Mere Christianity. “If I find in myself desires which nothing in this world can satisfy, the only logical explanation is that I was made for another world.” How true that is!

This year our theme is simply “Jesus >”…because He is.

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Total Surrender https://www.christchurchbaptist.org/youth-ministry-blog/post/total-surrender https://www.christchurchbaptist.org/youth-ministry-blog/post/total-surrender#comments Tue, 07 Oct 2014 11:00:00 -0400 https://www.christchurchbaptist.org/youth-ministry-blog/post/total-surrender Recently I was greatly challenged by the devotional study "My Utmost For His Highest," by Oswald Chambers. In particular, the last devotion penetrated my deepest sense of service by calling into question the motives that we may secretly harbor in surrendering to God. As I mused over the subject I thought that a few words and a challenge to others by means of a blog may suffice to remove this smoldering thought from my soul, but as I began to write I came to the full realization that I am so challenged that I am at a loss for words. So, rather than delving into plagiarism, I thought I would simply share Mr. Chambers thoughts with you and pray that they might result in not just total surrender, but in true surrender to the Lordship of Jesus Christ in your life, as I am praying that this would be the final result in my life. Enjoy! 

 

MY UTMOST FOR HIS HIGHEST, DAY 30

By: Oswald Chambers

Read: Mark 10:28

Our Lord replies to this statement of Peter by saying that this surrender is “for My sake and the gospel’s” (10:29). It was not for the purpose of what the disciples themselves would get out of it. Beware of surrender that is motivated by personal benefits that may result. For example, “I’m going to give myself to God because I want to be delivered from sin, because I want to be made holy.” Being delivered from sin and being made holy are the result of being right with God, but surrender resulting from this kind of thinking is certainly not the true nature of Christianity. Our motive for surrender should not be for any personal gain at all. We have become so self-centered that we go to God only for something from Him, and not for God Himself. It is like saying, “No, Lord, I don’t want you; I want myself. But I do want You to clean me and fill me with Your Holy Spirit. I want to be on display in Your showcase so I can say, ‘This is what God has done for me.’” Gaining heaven, being delivered from sin, and being made useful to God are things that should never even be a consideration in real surrender. Genuine total surrender is a personal sovereign preference for Jesus Christ Himself.

Where does Jesus Christ figure in when we have a concern about our natural relationships? Most of us will desert Him with this excuse—“Yes, Lord, I heard you call me, but my family needs me and I have my own interests. I just can’t go any further” (see Luke 9:57–62). “Then,” Jesus says, “you ‘cannot be My disciple’” (see Luke 14:26–33).

True surrender will always go beyond natural devotion. If we will only give up, God will surrender Himself to embrace all those around us and will meet their needs, which were created by our surrender. Beware of stopping anywhere short of total surrender to God. Most of us have only a vision of what this really means, but have never truly experienced it.

O Lord, cause my intellect to glow with Your Holy Spirit’s teaching.

]]>
Recently I was greatly challenged by the devotional study "My Utmost For His Highest," by Oswald Chambers. In particular, the last devotion penetrated my deepest sense of service by calling into question the motives that we may secretly harbor in surrendering to God. As I mused over the subject I thought that a few words and a challenge to others by means of a blog may suffice to remove this smoldering thought from my soul, but as I began to write I came to the full realization that I am so challenged that I am at a loss for words. So, rather than delving into plagiarism, I thought I would simply share Mr. Chambers thoughts with you and pray that they might result in not just total surrender, but in true surrender to the Lordship of Jesus Christ in your life, as I am praying that this would be the final result in my life. Enjoy! 

 

MY UTMOST FOR HIS HIGHEST, DAY 30

By: Oswald Chambers

Read: Mark 10:28

Our Lord replies to this statement of Peter by saying that this surrender is “for My sake and the gospel’s” (10:29). It was not for the purpose of what the disciples themselves would get out of it. Beware of surrender that is motivated by personal benefits that may result. For example, “I’m going to give myself to God because I want to be delivered from sin, because I want to be made holy.” Being delivered from sin and being made holy are the result of being right with God, but surrender resulting from this kind of thinking is certainly not the true nature of Christianity. Our motive for surrender should not be for any personal gain at all. We have become so self-centered that we go to God only for something from Him, and not for God Himself. It is like saying, “No, Lord, I don’t want you; I want myself. But I do want You to clean me and fill me with Your Holy Spirit. I want to be on display in Your showcase so I can say, ‘This is what God has done for me.’” Gaining heaven, being delivered from sin, and being made useful to God are things that should never even be a consideration in real surrender. Genuine total surrender is a personal sovereign preference for Jesus Christ Himself.

Where does Jesus Christ figure in when we have a concern about our natural relationships? Most of us will desert Him with this excuse—“Yes, Lord, I heard you call me, but my family needs me and I have my own interests. I just can’t go any further” (see Luke 9:57–62). “Then,” Jesus says, “you ‘cannot be My disciple’” (see Luke 14:26–33).

True surrender will always go beyond natural devotion. If we will only give up, God will surrender Himself to embrace all those around us and will meet their needs, which were created by our surrender. Beware of stopping anywhere short of total surrender to God. Most of us have only a vision of what this really means, but have never truly experienced it.

O Lord, cause my intellect to glow with Your Holy Spirit’s teaching.

]]>
10 Strategies For Keeping Your Decisions https://www.christchurchbaptist.org/youth-ministry-blog/post/10-strategies-for-keeping-your-decisions https://www.christchurchbaptist.org/youth-ministry-blog/post/10-strategies-for-keeping-your-decisions#comments Tue, 08 Jul 2014 17:00:00 -0400 https://www.christchurchbaptist.org/youth-ministry-blog/post/10-strategies-for-keeping-your-decisions Summer camp is by far my favorite week of the year as a youth pastor! I do what I do today because of decisions that God impressed on my heart while at summer camp. God moved in a mighty way in the hearts of our teenagers. Several of our teens even made comments about not really wanting to return to the regular routine due to worldly influences that they face on a daily basis. I thank God for the decisions that were made at camp, but I know that there is a battle at hand...and the enemy is not happy about the ground of our hearts and minds that we have given back over to God. He's coming to rebuild those strongholds in our life. Teens, lets be prepared to resist the Devil! Below, I have listed a practical guide on how to keep your decisions as given by a friend of our ministry, Pastor Mike Ray. I also took the liberty to add some application to these godly principles. I truly believe we need to revisit these helpful tactics on a regular basis in order to add spiritual discipline to our spiritual decisions. Truthfully, these Biblical principles would be good for everyone to keep and practice on a daily basis in our Christian life.

1. Expect resistance – keep in mind that the mountaintop is always worth the climb.

2. Schedule decisions – Institute some basic schedules into your life. If you have decided to spend more time developing your relationship with Christ rather than just going through religious motions, then calendar God in! Feel free to add variety, like taking a walk or a run while you pray, etc. Trust me…it works! If your schedule is incredibly busy throughout the week and your time with God limited, then make sure and give yourself a double dose on the weekends. Download podcasts of preaching or listen to the Bible on audio while you get ready in the morning. Practically work God into every schedule you can! 

3. Clean house – Get rid of anything and everything that poses a threat to following God with all your heart.

4. Use the philosophy of replacement – This is best illustrated with music. If you decided to get rid of some ungodly music, you MUST replace this with godly music. You simply can’t just stop listening to music altogether, or you will once again fall back into old habits. Out with the old, and in with the new!

5. Don’t miss church on Sunday – While this applies wholeheartedly to the Sunday after camp, it ought to be a principle that we strive to live by every week as Christians. Prove to God that you still want to hear from Him!

6. Plan initial confrontation – If you made a decision that concerns someone or something else, don’t wait until that person talks with you. Take the initiative. Follow through. If your decision involves others (i.e. parents, friends, etc.) confront them with the right spirit.

7. Tell a leader so you can be accountable – Tell your parents first and foremost! I am more than happy to help with any decision, but they are your parents. They know you better because they’ve known you longer. Trust them. Obey them. Love them. Your parents want to help you with this decision! Let them.

8. Realize you only have to keep your decision today – Little by little, inch by inch. A journey of a thousand miles begins with one step. Don’t let the Devil trick you.

9. Don’t be overwhelmed – Trust in God!

10. If you made a major decision, make it public – Simply put, if you got saved, get baptized. If you were called to preach, tell the church, and then volunteer in any ministry opportunity you can. Make it public! Don’t be afraid to let others know about your decision. It will encourage them and you.

]]>
Summer camp is by far my favorite week of the year as a youth pastor! I do what I do today because of decisions that God impressed on my heart while at summer camp. God moved in a mighty way in the hearts of our teenagers. Several of our teens even made comments about not really wanting to return to the regular routine due to worldly influences that they face on a daily basis. I thank God for the decisions that were made at camp, but I know that there is a battle at hand...and the enemy is not happy about the ground of our hearts and minds that we have given back over to God. He's coming to rebuild those strongholds in our life. Teens, lets be prepared to resist the Devil! Below, I have listed a practical guide on how to keep your decisions as given by a friend of our ministry, Pastor Mike Ray. I also took the liberty to add some application to these godly principles. I truly believe we need to revisit these helpful tactics on a regular basis in order to add spiritual discipline to our spiritual decisions. Truthfully, these Biblical principles would be good for everyone to keep and practice on a daily basis in our Christian life.

1. Expect resistance – keep in mind that the mountaintop is always worth the climb.

2. Schedule decisions – Institute some basic schedules into your life. If you have decided to spend more time developing your relationship with Christ rather than just going through religious motions, then calendar God in! Feel free to add variety, like taking a walk or a run while you pray, etc. Trust me…it works! If your schedule is incredibly busy throughout the week and your time with God limited, then make sure and give yourself a double dose on the weekends. Download podcasts of preaching or listen to the Bible on audio while you get ready in the morning. Practically work God into every schedule you can! 

3. Clean house – Get rid of anything and everything that poses a threat to following God with all your heart.

4. Use the philosophy of replacement – This is best illustrated with music. If you decided to get rid of some ungodly music, you MUST replace this with godly music. You simply can’t just stop listening to music altogether, or you will once again fall back into old habits. Out with the old, and in with the new!

5. Don’t miss church on Sunday – While this applies wholeheartedly to the Sunday after camp, it ought to be a principle that we strive to live by every week as Christians. Prove to God that you still want to hear from Him!

6. Plan initial confrontation – If you made a decision that concerns someone or something else, don’t wait until that person talks with you. Take the initiative. Follow through. If your decision involves others (i.e. parents, friends, etc.) confront them with the right spirit.

7. Tell a leader so you can be accountable – Tell your parents first and foremost! I am more than happy to help with any decision, but they are your parents. They know you better because they’ve known you longer. Trust them. Obey them. Love them. Your parents want to help you with this decision! Let them.

8. Realize you only have to keep your decision today – Little by little, inch by inch. A journey of a thousand miles begins with one step. Don’t let the Devil trick you.

9. Don’t be overwhelmed – Trust in God!

10. If you made a major decision, make it public – Simply put, if you got saved, get baptized. If you were called to preach, tell the church, and then volunteer in any ministry opportunity you can. Make it public! Don’t be afraid to let others know about your decision. It will encourage them and you.

]]>
5 Thoughts About Easter https://www.christchurchbaptist.org/youth-ministry-blog/post/5-thoughts-about-easter https://www.christchurchbaptist.org/youth-ministry-blog/post/5-thoughts-about-easter#comments Sun, 20 Apr 2014 01:00:00 -0400 https://www.christchurchbaptist.org/youth-ministry-blog/post/5-thoughts-about-easter I have to admit that this year, more than any other year it seems, Easter has crept up on me. My excuse is that our church just finished Missions Conference this past Wednesday, but truthfully Easter has been on the calendar for a while now. Every year I truly enjoy reflecting on the passion week of Christ, which climaxes with the empty tomb that proved His victory over death and hell. As I have matured in the faith, I have come to love Resurrection Sunday probably more than any other Sunday because of what it stands for (yes, even more than Potluck Sunday and Old Fashioned Sunday). Over the past few days, I’ve noticed some changes that this time of year seems to bring about in my daily routine. The longer I thought about this, the more the Holy Spirit impressed on my heart that these changes, while great for the week which commemorates the Cross and the Resurrection of Christ, are areas that He desires me to seek His fullness in on a regular basis.

1. My Meditation

It’s been in the back of my mind for about two weeks now. Palm Sunday, the betrayal of Judas, the denial of Peter, the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus standing before Pilate, the mob crowd shouting for His crucifixion, the nails, the darkness, the borrowed tomb…these thoughts have been bouncing around in my mind whenever I’m doing, well, anything.

Being born and raised in the country on a dairy farm, I enjoy being outdoors, especially this time of year. For me, the fresh air and the engaging of my physical strength in some task seems to relax my mind. Usually that’s when I come up with my best ideas (like transforming the top level of our three-story parking garage into a go-kart track!) Typically, I will think ahead to sermon preparation, youth activity planning, or which game I’m going to tackle next on my Playstation 4. But as we were doing some sprucing up for Resurrection Sunday earlier this week, it seemed that my meditation kept returning to what Easter is all about. The cross, the tomb, the resurrection…the freedom from death we can now have in Christ! If I could encourage anyone reading this who is in need of a blessing to meditate on what Christ has done for us, I promise you won’t be the same! How it blessed me to reflect on the life we have in Christ.

As I continued mindlessly blowing the leaves and pine needles off of one of the lower roofs of our church, the Holy Spirit spoke to me in His still small voice. “What if you thought of the sacrifice of Christ not just one week of the year, but every week? What if you reflected on the love of the Father not just now and then, but every day?” Immediately I thought of the words of the psalmist in Psalms 119:97, "O how love I thy law! It is my meditation all the day." And there with my air of spirituality for thinking on the cross of Christ and the empty tomb, I realized that I wasn’t nearly as spiritual as I thought I was. Would to God that I would be as faithful in my meditation of Him every week! But not only do I find that Easter affects my meditation, but it also affects…

2. My Preparation

Just about two weeks ago, my wife and I went shopping for our Easter “outfits”. I put outfits in quotations, because for me that’s a shirt and tie. I have a pair of black and brown dress shoes, I have a black and brown belt, I have a black suit, a blue suit, and a gray suit…in a guy’s world, I am set for life! Therefore to me, a new “outfit”, simply consists of a new shirt and tie. My wife on the other hand, is different. An outfit can be any number of items. At times it includes a blouse (that’s a fancy word for a shirt, fellas), skirt, scarf, and shoes. Other times it includes a sweater. Other times it includes shoes (did I say that one already?) Other times it includes a blazer. Other times it includes a manicure. Needless to say, guys and girls are different.

Either way, my point is that I am prepared for Sunday. My shirt and tie have been picked out and ironed. My heart has been prepared by my meditations. My spirit is in tune with the Holy Spirit. I am prepared, because it’s Easter. But is any other day in the house of the Lord less important? Is any other day that the Lord has allowed me to wake up with breath in my lungs any less worth serving Him? How convicting, but how freeing if we apply these truths.

3. My Conversation

Often when we see the word conversation, we immediately think of the words we say. But the truth of the matter is that our conversation is not just the words that we say, but the life that we live.

I ran an errand to Lowes today, and as I pulled out of the parking lot and back onto the main road, I came upon a man and woman who had run out of gas and their truck was stalled in the intersection. Since I had been meditating on Christ and my heart was prepared to be Jesus to someone else, I pulled over into the nearest parking lot and ran back to help them push the truck out of the intersection. As I ran up, another car had slowed down and let out a young man who was volunteering his services. Together we pushed the truck into the nearby parking lot, and then I drove the stranded man to the nearest gas station. Thankfully he had a gas can in the back of his truck. I didn’t ask him but it made me wonder if he knew he might not make it to the gas station. Either way, I was able to hand the man an Easter invitation. As I drove away, I thought about how, because I was just running to the hardware store, I simply had on a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. Most days when I hand out Easter invitations, I’m in a shirt and tie. But this gentleman and his wife could have cared less about what I was wearing. It dawned on me that while it is important to make sure that I look like a Christian, it’s as important to make sure that I act like a Christian. Our conversation (verbal and visual) should reflect the truth of the Resurrection all year long.

4. My Anticipation

The definition of anticipation is, “a feeling of excitement about something that is going to happen; an eagerness; a looking forward to; an expectation of great things to come.” I’m excited about the services tomorrow. I’m excited to hear the sermon that the Lord has laid on the heart of Pastor Pope. I looking forward to seeing Christian brethren who will be blessed by the worship we will engage in tomorrow. I’m eager to meet new visitors, people who may for the first time ever experience the freedom we share in Christ. I am expecting a great time of worship, inspiration, and reflection…but what if I felt this way every Sunday? What if you did? The truth of the matter is we ought to. Church should be the highlight of our week. We should wake up on Sundays with anticipation that the Lord has something in store for us…not just for everyone else. The invitation shouldn’t be the time we look at our watches, or our phones, or our neighbor, but the time we look inwardly to ask the Lord to, "Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting." (Psalms 139:23-24)

5. My Participation

Statistics prove that the two highest attended services of the average church are around Christmas and Easter. (Interesting tidbit: Some people call these less-than-average-attendees “Chreasters.”) The truth of the matter is, we all do our very best to make sure that we are in church on Easter. We plan and prepare. We appreciate it when the Pastor does as well and the message is timely and on the Cross or the Resurrection. You see, we participate on Easter because we understand that it’s the least we can do. It’s our “reasonable service”, as Romans 12:1-2 says. The choir shows up because everyone wants to sing on Easter. The worship service is full because on Easter Dad and Mom won’t take no for an answer…everyone is going to church. People invite their co-workers and, much to their surprise, they show up. Pictures are taken. Everyone is in his or her Sunday best because, well, it’s Easter!

And that’s when it hit me. Every day is Resurrection day. Every day is the day when I should realize that Christ died for me, a truth that empowers me to live for Him through the Holy Spirit. He should be my meditation everyday. His glory should be the motivation for my preparation every day. My conversation should daily be a reflection of Him. I should greet His path and plan for my life with a daily anticipation that rivals any other person and vocation in the world. Finally, my participation in His church should not be limited to Sunday’s and Wednesday’s…I should be a living extension of the body of Christ every day!

]]>
I have to admit that this year, more than any other year it seems, Easter has crept up on me. My excuse is that our church just finished Missions Conference this past Wednesday, but truthfully Easter has been on the calendar for a while now. Every year I truly enjoy reflecting on the passion week of Christ, which climaxes with the empty tomb that proved His victory over death and hell. As I have matured in the faith, I have come to love Resurrection Sunday probably more than any other Sunday because of what it stands for (yes, even more than Potluck Sunday and Old Fashioned Sunday). Over the past few days, I’ve noticed some changes that this time of year seems to bring about in my daily routine. The longer I thought about this, the more the Holy Spirit impressed on my heart that these changes, while great for the week which commemorates the Cross and the Resurrection of Christ, are areas that He desires me to seek His fullness in on a regular basis.

1. My Meditation

It’s been in the back of my mind for about two weeks now. Palm Sunday, the betrayal of Judas, the denial of Peter, the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus standing before Pilate, the mob crowd shouting for His crucifixion, the nails, the darkness, the borrowed tomb…these thoughts have been bouncing around in my mind whenever I’m doing, well, anything.

Being born and raised in the country on a dairy farm, I enjoy being outdoors, especially this time of year. For me, the fresh air and the engaging of my physical strength in some task seems to relax my mind. Usually that’s when I come up with my best ideas (like transforming the top level of our three-story parking garage into a go-kart track!) Typically, I will think ahead to sermon preparation, youth activity planning, or which game I’m going to tackle next on my Playstation 4. But as we were doing some sprucing up for Resurrection Sunday earlier this week, it seemed that my meditation kept returning to what Easter is all about. The cross, the tomb, the resurrection…the freedom from death we can now have in Christ! If I could encourage anyone reading this who is in need of a blessing to meditate on what Christ has done for us, I promise you won’t be the same! How it blessed me to reflect on the life we have in Christ.

As I continued mindlessly blowing the leaves and pine needles off of one of the lower roofs of our church, the Holy Spirit spoke to me in His still small voice. “What if you thought of the sacrifice of Christ not just one week of the year, but every week? What if you reflected on the love of the Father not just now and then, but every day?” Immediately I thought of the words of the psalmist in Psalms 119:97, "O how love I thy law! It is my meditation all the day." And there with my air of spirituality for thinking on the cross of Christ and the empty tomb, I realized that I wasn’t nearly as spiritual as I thought I was. Would to God that I would be as faithful in my meditation of Him every week! But not only do I find that Easter affects my meditation, but it also affects…

2. My Preparation

Just about two weeks ago, my wife and I went shopping for our Easter “outfits”. I put outfits in quotations, because for me that’s a shirt and tie. I have a pair of black and brown dress shoes, I have a black and brown belt, I have a black suit, a blue suit, and a gray suit…in a guy’s world, I am set for life! Therefore to me, a new “outfit”, simply consists of a new shirt and tie. My wife on the other hand, is different. An outfit can be any number of items. At times it includes a blouse (that’s a fancy word for a shirt, fellas), skirt, scarf, and shoes. Other times it includes a sweater. Other times it includes shoes (did I say that one already?) Other times it includes a blazer. Other times it includes a manicure. Needless to say, guys and girls are different.

Either way, my point is that I am prepared for Sunday. My shirt and tie have been picked out and ironed. My heart has been prepared by my meditations. My spirit is in tune with the Holy Spirit. I am prepared, because it’s Easter. But is any other day in the house of the Lord less important? Is any other day that the Lord has allowed me to wake up with breath in my lungs any less worth serving Him? How convicting, but how freeing if we apply these truths.

3. My Conversation

Often when we see the word conversation, we immediately think of the words we say. But the truth of the matter is that our conversation is not just the words that we say, but the life that we live.

I ran an errand to Lowes today, and as I pulled out of the parking lot and back onto the main road, I came upon a man and woman who had run out of gas and their truck was stalled in the intersection. Since I had been meditating on Christ and my heart was prepared to be Jesus to someone else, I pulled over into the nearest parking lot and ran back to help them push the truck out of the intersection. As I ran up, another car had slowed down and let out a young man who was volunteering his services. Together we pushed the truck into the nearby parking lot, and then I drove the stranded man to the nearest gas station. Thankfully he had a gas can in the back of his truck. I didn’t ask him but it made me wonder if he knew he might not make it to the gas station. Either way, I was able to hand the man an Easter invitation. As I drove away, I thought about how, because I was just running to the hardware store, I simply had on a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. Most days when I hand out Easter invitations, I’m in a shirt and tie. But this gentleman and his wife could have cared less about what I was wearing. It dawned on me that while it is important to make sure that I look like a Christian, it’s as important to make sure that I act like a Christian. Our conversation (verbal and visual) should reflect the truth of the Resurrection all year long.

4. My Anticipation

The definition of anticipation is, “a feeling of excitement about something that is going to happen; an eagerness; a looking forward to; an expectation of great things to come.” I’m excited about the services tomorrow. I’m excited to hear the sermon that the Lord has laid on the heart of Pastor Pope. I looking forward to seeing Christian brethren who will be blessed by the worship we will engage in tomorrow. I’m eager to meet new visitors, people who may for the first time ever experience the freedom we share in Christ. I am expecting a great time of worship, inspiration, and reflection…but what if I felt this way every Sunday? What if you did? The truth of the matter is we ought to. Church should be the highlight of our week. We should wake up on Sundays with anticipation that the Lord has something in store for us…not just for everyone else. The invitation shouldn’t be the time we look at our watches, or our phones, or our neighbor, but the time we look inwardly to ask the Lord to, "Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting." (Psalms 139:23-24)

5. My Participation

Statistics prove that the two highest attended services of the average church are around Christmas and Easter. (Interesting tidbit: Some people call these less-than-average-attendees “Chreasters.”) The truth of the matter is, we all do our very best to make sure that we are in church on Easter. We plan and prepare. We appreciate it when the Pastor does as well and the message is timely and on the Cross or the Resurrection. You see, we participate on Easter because we understand that it’s the least we can do. It’s our “reasonable service”, as Romans 12:1-2 says. The choir shows up because everyone wants to sing on Easter. The worship service is full because on Easter Dad and Mom won’t take no for an answer…everyone is going to church. People invite their co-workers and, much to their surprise, they show up. Pictures are taken. Everyone is in his or her Sunday best because, well, it’s Easter!

And that’s when it hit me. Every day is Resurrection day. Every day is the day when I should realize that Christ died for me, a truth that empowers me to live for Him through the Holy Spirit. He should be my meditation everyday. His glory should be the motivation for my preparation every day. My conversation should daily be a reflection of Him. I should greet His path and plan for my life with a daily anticipation that rivals any other person and vocation in the world. Finally, my participation in His church should not be limited to Sunday’s and Wednesday’s…I should be a living extension of the body of Christ every day!

]]>
The Cause https://www.christchurchbaptist.org/youth-ministry-blog/post/the-cause https://www.christchurchbaptist.org/youth-ministry-blog/post/the-cause#comments Wed, 19 Mar 2014 16:00:00 -0400 https://www.christchurchbaptist.org/youth-ministry-blog/post/the-cause READ THIS:

"As the bird by wandering, as the swallow by flying, so the curse causeless shall not come." - Proverbs 26:2

"And David said, What have I now done? Is there not a cause?" - 1 Samuel 17:29

 

THINK ABOUT THIS:

My youth pastor could tell stories like none other. I'm talking David Gibbs sized stories (If you know who that is. Then again, who doesn't?) I looked forward to his preaching simply because of the hilarious stories (don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed the Bible teaching as well). I didn’t care what stories he told…childhood, teenage, college, fights with his brothers…if it was a story he had my ear. I remember specifically one story that was about receiving punishment unjustly. He was a young boy sitting in church, struggling to pay attention. Have you ever noticed things while you’re trying to pay attention that you’ve never seen before? Broken ceiling tiles, a run in the carpet, the intricacy of the stained glass…it’s amazing how everything comes alive when you are young, impatient, and bored. This was one of those times for him. He began to notice how the grooves in the pew had become filled with dust and dirt as time passed. Having a pen on his person, a brilliant idea lit up his elementary age mind. “I should clean out the grooves with my pen!” He promptly began to do so, and became so engrossed in his task that he failed to notice his Dad looking over at him sternly. The next thing he knew, he was being jerked out of his seat, taken out to the vestibule area, and having the board of knowledge administered to the seat of education for drawing with his pen on the pews…despite his objections that he really was simply trying to clean the pew.

That story always made me laugh, especially as a teenager. I would remember times that I felt like I had received punishment unjustly. I have even heard people take this principle and say that if you receive punishment for something unworthily, that it really is just payback for those times that you didn’t get caught. While I don’t really jump on the “karma” bandwagon, I do believe that God has placed a law of reaping and sowing into our world. An example of that is Proverbs 26:2, where Solomon through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit states plainly that the curse does not come without a cause.

As I have studied this truth out, I read after one commentator who applied this principle from Proverbs to I Samuel 17:29, where David asks the famous question, “Is there not a cause?" The truth of the matter is that there was a cause and effect at work here. We see the first curse that had not causeless come was…

1. King Saul

As far as size goes, King Saul was the right choice to fight Goliath. Apparently even Goliath knew this, as he calls himself a Philistine but then changes descriptors and calls the children of Israel “servants to Saul” (I Samuel 17:8). The problem was King Saul was a failure. Not because he had to be…because he chose to be. At one time, King Saul followed the Lord (I Samuel 9:2), listened to His prophet Samuel, and made the children of Israel proud. But two chapters into his reign, Saul disobeys the Lord, fails to wait on Samuel, and acts like anything but a king. God delivers the children of Israel, but not without some repercussions. The Philistines retreat for a little while, but they had discovered a weakness. The second area that the curse had not causeless come was…

2. The children of Israel

While this point goes hand in hand with King Saul’s failures, it was the people who had chosen Saul to be their king. Israel’s rejection of a theocracy and choice of a monarchy was not God’s intention, but God allowed it to happen. This is an example of God’s purposes, man’s free will, and God’s providence…God gave the people what they wanted, only for the people to find out that they didn’t really want it. John Phillips gives us some insight on this when he writes, “They wanted Saul because he was big, and God had given them Saul because they wanted him. Now they discovered that he was not nearly big enough. They had trusted in bigness, and all the enemy had to do was produce someone bigger.”

The application is simple yet profound. When we trust anything other than God, all the enemy has to do is produce something bigger than whatever it is we are trusting. When we trust whether or not we “feel” like God is real in our life, all the enemy has to do is give us something that “feels” more real or more right.

Thankfully, in the midst of our curse that has not causeless come, God offers grace. Especially in this story, we see God’s grace manifested in His taking what would have been a terrible defeat for the children of Israel and causing there to be an incredible victory by revealing to us His cause behind allowing the curse of Goliath, and that was…

3. David

Don’t ever forget that God loves to take Goliath-sized situations and make David’s out of them. David’s words, “Is there not a cause?" have echoed throughout many other grace filled stories in the Bible. When Daniel was thrown to the lions, and the king comes to den and cries out, “O Daniel, servant of the living God, is thy God, whom thou servest continually, able to deliver thee from the lions?” (Daniel 6:20). Daniel’s response may as well have been, “God has a cause…and yes it was to deliver me!” When Paul said in II Corinthians 12:9 that he had been told, "My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness,” he was saying, God has a cause!

Do you feel like there’s a giant in your life? It may be that the curse has not causeless come. Too many times we point the finger at God like it’s His fault for allowing something in our life when in all actuality the “Goliath” we are facing is a result of the activity of the enemy AND the harvest of the seeds that we have sown. Take comfort though…there is a cause! God wants to make a David out you! He has a plan, and His grace is sufficient.

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READ THIS:

"As the bird by wandering, as the swallow by flying, so the curse causeless shall not come." - Proverbs 26:2

"And David said, What have I now done? Is there not a cause?" - 1 Samuel 17:29

 

THINK ABOUT THIS:

My youth pastor could tell stories like none other. I'm talking David Gibbs sized stories (If you know who that is. Then again, who doesn't?) I looked forward to his preaching simply because of the hilarious stories (don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed the Bible teaching as well). I didn’t care what stories he told…childhood, teenage, college, fights with his brothers…if it was a story he had my ear. I remember specifically one story that was about receiving punishment unjustly. He was a young boy sitting in church, struggling to pay attention. Have you ever noticed things while you’re trying to pay attention that you’ve never seen before? Broken ceiling tiles, a run in the carpet, the intricacy of the stained glass…it’s amazing how everything comes alive when you are young, impatient, and bored. This was one of those times for him. He began to notice how the grooves in the pew had become filled with dust and dirt as time passed. Having a pen on his person, a brilliant idea lit up his elementary age mind. “I should clean out the grooves with my pen!” He promptly began to do so, and became so engrossed in his task that he failed to notice his Dad looking over at him sternly. The next thing he knew, he was being jerked out of his seat, taken out to the vestibule area, and having the board of knowledge administered to the seat of education for drawing with his pen on the pews…despite his objections that he really was simply trying to clean the pew.

That story always made me laugh, especially as a teenager. I would remember times that I felt like I had received punishment unjustly. I have even heard people take this principle and say that if you receive punishment for something unworthily, that it really is just payback for those times that you didn’t get caught. While I don’t really jump on the “karma” bandwagon, I do believe that God has placed a law of reaping and sowing into our world. An example of that is Proverbs 26:2, where Solomon through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit states plainly that the curse does not come without a cause.

As I have studied this truth out, I read after one commentator who applied this principle from Proverbs to I Samuel 17:29, where David asks the famous question, “Is there not a cause?" The truth of the matter is that there was a cause and effect at work here. We see the first curse that had not causeless come was…

1. King Saul

As far as size goes, King Saul was the right choice to fight Goliath. Apparently even Goliath knew this, as he calls himself a Philistine but then changes descriptors and calls the children of Israel “servants to Saul” (I Samuel 17:8). The problem was King Saul was a failure. Not because he had to be…because he chose to be. At one time, King Saul followed the Lord (I Samuel 9:2), listened to His prophet Samuel, and made the children of Israel proud. But two chapters into his reign, Saul disobeys the Lord, fails to wait on Samuel, and acts like anything but a king. God delivers the children of Israel, but not without some repercussions. The Philistines retreat for a little while, but they had discovered a weakness. The second area that the curse had not causeless come was…

2. The children of Israel

While this point goes hand in hand with King Saul’s failures, it was the people who had chosen Saul to be their king. Israel’s rejection of a theocracy and choice of a monarchy was not God’s intention, but God allowed it to happen. This is an example of God’s purposes, man’s free will, and God’s providence…God gave the people what they wanted, only for the people to find out that they didn’t really want it. John Phillips gives us some insight on this when he writes, “They wanted Saul because he was big, and God had given them Saul because they wanted him. Now they discovered that he was not nearly big enough. They had trusted in bigness, and all the enemy had to do was produce someone bigger.”

The application is simple yet profound. When we trust anything other than God, all the enemy has to do is produce something bigger than whatever it is we are trusting. When we trust whether or not we “feel” like God is real in our life, all the enemy has to do is give us something that “feels” more real or more right.

Thankfully, in the midst of our curse that has not causeless come, God offers grace. Especially in this story, we see God’s grace manifested in His taking what would have been a terrible defeat for the children of Israel and causing there to be an incredible victory by revealing to us His cause behind allowing the curse of Goliath, and that was…

3. David

Don’t ever forget that God loves to take Goliath-sized situations and make David’s out of them. David’s words, “Is there not a cause?" have echoed throughout many other grace filled stories in the Bible. When Daniel was thrown to the lions, and the king comes to den and cries out, “O Daniel, servant of the living God, is thy God, whom thou servest continually, able to deliver thee from the lions?” (Daniel 6:20). Daniel’s response may as well have been, “God has a cause…and yes it was to deliver me!” When Paul said in II Corinthians 12:9 that he had been told, "My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness,” he was saying, God has a cause!

Do you feel like there’s a giant in your life? It may be that the curse has not causeless come. Too many times we point the finger at God like it’s His fault for allowing something in our life when in all actuality the “Goliath” we are facing is a result of the activity of the enemy AND the harvest of the seeds that we have sown. Take comfort though…there is a cause! God wants to make a David out you! He has a plan, and His grace is sufficient.

]]>
Come Now https://www.christchurchbaptist.org/youth-ministry-blog/post/come-now https://www.christchurchbaptist.org/youth-ministry-blog/post/come-now#comments Wed, 29 Jan 2014 11:00:00 -0500 https://www.christchurchbaptist.org/youth-ministry-blog/post/come-now Isaiah 1:18: “Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.”

“Come now.” The first part of this verse has often been one of the greatest encouragements to me in time of need. Dealing directly with the problem of sin, it loudly and unapologetically declares that God is the God of the present tense. The fact of the matter is I never have trouble believing that God is the “alpha and omega, the beginning and the end.” (Revelation 22:13) I can look back over my life and see God’s hand guiding and directing in ways that I didn’t really understand until He brought me safely through. I have no trouble believing that He is the beginning. I can look at creation, and know that there must be a Creator, a Beginner of all life. In much the same way, I can look toward the future, knowing that it is uncertain at best, and trust that He holds tomorrow in His hand.

But when God says, “Come ”, a certain peace settles over my heart. A peace that declares that He knows my greatest fears, feels my deepest pain, and understands my utmost longings. As if His knowledge of my state isn’t enough, He bids me come to Him. This all-encompassing verb of beckon carries with it the connotation that I am both missed and welcome. Even the sorrow of knowing that I have strayed is overcome by the joy of realizing that I can return – that my Father will welcome me home with open arms. As I travel down the dusty road of repentance, I see Him running to meet me. I am swept up into the everlasting arms of the Father, and my spirit once again begins to soar. As this takes place, I notice that the dusty road of repentance has now turned into a soft but well-worn road of forgiveness. Gladness fills my heart when I see ahead the green pastures and still waters. I know that there lies the paths of righteousness, the paths I had forsaken, but now have been restored to. (see Psalm 23)

Finally, God also gives me a meeting time. He says now. Not tomorrow. Not only on Sundays. Not only “if you feel like it.” Now. Present tense. God doesn’t keep office hours because He is a “very present help in trouble.” (Psalms 46:1) He’s ready today. Maybe you feel like there should be some sort of showdown before you go back to God. Maybe you’re waiting for an ultimatum. Maybe you feel like you’ve run out of chances. Why not trust His Word over your feelings?

Are you struggling with your “present tense”, right now? Do you feel uneasy, lost, or like life has spun out of control? Have you forsaken the paths of righteousness, and are struggling with admitting it? Remember, God IS the God of the present tense. Let Him be the God of your present tense.

 

(repost from February 2013)

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Isaiah 1:18: “Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.”

“Come now.” The first part of this verse has often been one of the greatest encouragements to me in time of need. Dealing directly with the problem of sin, it loudly and unapologetically declares that God is the God of the present tense. The fact of the matter is I never have trouble believing that God is the “alpha and omega, the beginning and the end.” (Revelation 22:13) I can look back over my life and see God’s hand guiding and directing in ways that I didn’t really understand until He brought me safely through. I have no trouble believing that He is the beginning. I can look at creation, and know that there must be a Creator, a Beginner of all life. In much the same way, I can look toward the future, knowing that it is uncertain at best, and trust that He holds tomorrow in His hand.

But when God says, “Come ”, a certain peace settles over my heart. A peace that declares that He knows my greatest fears, feels my deepest pain, and understands my utmost longings. As if His knowledge of my state isn’t enough, He bids me come to Him. This all-encompassing verb of beckon carries with it the connotation that I am both missed and welcome. Even the sorrow of knowing that I have strayed is overcome by the joy of realizing that I can return – that my Father will welcome me home with open arms. As I travel down the dusty road of repentance, I see Him running to meet me. I am swept up into the everlasting arms of the Father, and my spirit once again begins to soar. As this takes place, I notice that the dusty road of repentance has now turned into a soft but well-worn road of forgiveness. Gladness fills my heart when I see ahead the green pastures and still waters. I know that there lies the paths of righteousness, the paths I had forsaken, but now have been restored to. (see Psalm 23)

Finally, God also gives me a meeting time. He says now. Not tomorrow. Not only on Sundays. Not only “if you feel like it.” Now. Present tense. God doesn’t keep office hours because He is a “very present help in trouble.” (Psalms 46:1) He’s ready today. Maybe you feel like there should be some sort of showdown before you go back to God. Maybe you’re waiting for an ultimatum. Maybe you feel like you’ve run out of chances. Why not trust His Word over your feelings?

Are you struggling with your “present tense”, right now? Do you feel uneasy, lost, or like life has spun out of control? Have you forsaken the paths of righteousness, and are struggling with admitting it? Remember, God IS the God of the present tense. Let Him be the God of your present tense.

 

(repost from February 2013)

]]>
My Reasons for the Season https://www.christchurchbaptist.org/youth-ministry-blog/post/my-reasons-for-the-season https://www.christchurchbaptist.org/youth-ministry-blog/post/my-reasons-for-the-season#comments Thu, 12 Dec 2013 19:00:00 -0500 https://www.christchurchbaptist.org/youth-ministry-blog/post/my-reasons-for-the-season I love Christmas time! There is no doubt in my mind that it is my favorite holiday season. I love everything that takes place during this time of year. The Christmas story (Luke 2 is my personal favorite), cooler weather, the lights, the time off school/work, Christmas music, Christmas movies, seeing family, putting up the Christmas tree, Christmas parties, Christmas concerts, Christmas carols, the Star of Bethlehem, the Wise Men, the announcing angels, Mary, Joseph, giving and receiving gifts, Christmas stockings, Nativity scenes, and even modern Christmas legends (Ebenezer Scrooge, the Grinch, Santa Claus, Charlie Brown, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, etc.). There isn’t a part of Christmas that I don’t love…I. Love. Christmas! (I feel like the little girl on Despicable Me who gets the stuffed unicorn and, while vigorously shaking it, announces, “IT’S SO FLUFFY!”)

Unfortunately, it’s usually this time of year that those who would like to remove Christ from Christmas come out in force. Magnified more by recent events, there are those who hate any part of Christmas that has to do with Christ, the babe in the manger, Mary, Joseph, angels, manger scenes, the Star of Bethlehem, and God, period. They verbalize their hatred by saying that it isn’t politically correct to say “Merry Christmas”. Ironically, they choose instead to say “Happy Holidays”. The etymology of the word “holiday” bears roots which tie it back to a day that was set apart as a “holy day” by the church. This is where we get our modern rendition and spelling, “holi-day.” In an attempt to combat the liberal bend towards kicking Christ out of Christmas, many well intending people fight back, and understandably so. When war is waged (and war has been waged on Christmas), the most natural response is to fight back. But that’s just it…this is our natural response…the response of our flesh.

Before this gets out of control, let me make a disclaimer: I am not trying to contradict what you believe the Word of God teaches to be true. My purpose is simply to challenge you to make sure that what you believe is based on and validated by the Word of God. I want to challenge you to be sure that the focus of your Christmas is Biblically based, as everything in the believer’s life should be. A great book published by the Answers in Genesis group recently challenged me. The title of the book is “The War on Christmas”, and I would encourage you to read it if you would like to study this subject further.

This is article is not about which Christmas traditions you choose to celebrate or not to celebrate. Rather, it is to challenge each of us to be sure that God gets the best part of us in every area, especially at Christmas. After all, He gave us the greatest gift that has ever been given, His Son, for our salvation. I want to be sure that I don’t crowd Christ out of my Christmas, with good intentions of simply enjoying the wonderful events that go along with Christmas. As I was musing over these thoughts, I remembered a quote from C.S. Lewis. Lewis said in his “Letters to Malcom: Chiefly on Prayer” as follows:

“It is well to have specifically holy places, and things, and days, for, without these focal points or reminders, the belief that all is holy and "big with God" will soon dwindle into a mere sentiment. But if these holy places, things, and days cease to remind us, if they obliterate our awareness that all ground is holy and every bush (could we but perceive it) a Burning Bush, then the hallows begin to do harm.”

Yes! That’s it! I want to be sure that what I have established as a joyous occasion and great traditions during the Christmas season don’t take up so much of my time that the ground is no longer holy ground. My prayer is that I will glorify Jesus Christ more this Christmas than I ever have before. This Christmas I want to make sure that everything I do has spiritual significance to me…I want every part of Christmas to be a Burning Bush, as Lewis so eloquently puts it. I have chosen three areas of Christmas that I truly enjoy each year, but that I want to make I sure I purposely use to remind myself of the true reason for the season.

 

 

1. The Christmas Tree

  • It reminds me of our Creator – Psalm 24:1: “The earth is the Lord, and the fullness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein.”
  • It reminds me that salvation was promised to spring up from the root of Jesse – Isaiah 11:10: "And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign of the people; to it shall the Gentiles seek: and his rest shall be glorious."
  • The tree (often an evergreen tree), symbolizes life in the middle of winter (death), which Christ brought to a world that was dead in sin – Ephesians 2:1: "And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins"
  • The ornaments, garland, and lights on the tree remind me of how the church should cling to Christ. Alone we are not much, but with Christ we make something beautiful – Ephesians 5:23: "Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body."
  • The star on top of the tree points me to the Star of Bethlehem that guided the wise men to the King of Kings – Matthew 2:2: "Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? For we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him."
  • If it’s an angel, I want to remember how the host of angels appeared to the shepherds that wonderful night – Luke 2:13-14: "And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men."

 

2. The Giving of Gifts

  • As we place our gifts beneath the tree, may it ever remind me of how God at Calvary placed His Gift, His Son, on the tree – Philippians 2:8: "And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross."
  • It reminds me of the gifts that the wise men gave to Christ – Matthew 2:11: "And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh."

 

3. The Candlelight Service

  • I will light a candle as a message that goes up before Him to let him know that my faith burns bright – II Corinthians 5:7: "For we walk by faith, not by sight."
  • I will light a candle to let the world know that I believe not only did He come, but also that He is coming back – John 14:1-3 "Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also."
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I love Christmas time! There is no doubt in my mind that it is my favorite holiday season. I love everything that takes place during this time of year. The Christmas story (Luke 2 is my personal favorite), cooler weather, the lights, the time off school/work, Christmas music, Christmas movies, seeing family, putting up the Christmas tree, Christmas parties, Christmas concerts, Christmas carols, the Star of Bethlehem, the Wise Men, the announcing angels, Mary, Joseph, giving and receiving gifts, Christmas stockings, Nativity scenes, and even modern Christmas legends (Ebenezer Scrooge, the Grinch, Santa Claus, Charlie Brown, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, etc.). There isn’t a part of Christmas that I don’t love…I. Love. Christmas! (I feel like the little girl on Despicable Me who gets the stuffed unicorn and, while vigorously shaking it, announces, “IT’S SO FLUFFY!”)

Unfortunately, it’s usually this time of year that those who would like to remove Christ from Christmas come out in force. Magnified more by recent events, there are those who hate any part of Christmas that has to do with Christ, the babe in the manger, Mary, Joseph, angels, manger scenes, the Star of Bethlehem, and God, period. They verbalize their hatred by saying that it isn’t politically correct to say “Merry Christmas”. Ironically, they choose instead to say “Happy Holidays”. The etymology of the word “holiday” bears roots which tie it back to a day that was set apart as a “holy day” by the church. This is where we get our modern rendition and spelling, “holi-day.” In an attempt to combat the liberal bend towards kicking Christ out of Christmas, many well intending people fight back, and understandably so. When war is waged (and war has been waged on Christmas), the most natural response is to fight back. But that’s just it…this is our natural response…the response of our flesh.

Before this gets out of control, let me make a disclaimer: I am not trying to contradict what you believe the Word of God teaches to be true. My purpose is simply to challenge you to make sure that what you believe is based on and validated by the Word of God. I want to challenge you to be sure that the focus of your Christmas is Biblically based, as everything in the believer’s life should be. A great book published by the Answers in Genesis group recently challenged me. The title of the book is “The War on Christmas”, and I would encourage you to read it if you would like to study this subject further.

This is article is not about which Christmas traditions you choose to celebrate or not to celebrate. Rather, it is to challenge each of us to be sure that God gets the best part of us in every area, especially at Christmas. After all, He gave us the greatest gift that has ever been given, His Son, for our salvation. I want to be sure that I don’t crowd Christ out of my Christmas, with good intentions of simply enjoying the wonderful events that go along with Christmas. As I was musing over these thoughts, I remembered a quote from C.S. Lewis. Lewis said in his “Letters to Malcom: Chiefly on Prayer” as follows:

“It is well to have specifically holy places, and things, and days, for, without these focal points or reminders, the belief that all is holy and "big with God" will soon dwindle into a mere sentiment. But if these holy places, things, and days cease to remind us, if they obliterate our awareness that all ground is holy and every bush (could we but perceive it) a Burning Bush, then the hallows begin to do harm.”

Yes! That’s it! I want to be sure that what I have established as a joyous occasion and great traditions during the Christmas season don’t take up so much of my time that the ground is no longer holy ground. My prayer is that I will glorify Jesus Christ more this Christmas than I ever have before. This Christmas I want to make sure that everything I do has spiritual significance to me…I want every part of Christmas to be a Burning Bush, as Lewis so eloquently puts it. I have chosen three areas of Christmas that I truly enjoy each year, but that I want to make I sure I purposely use to remind myself of the true reason for the season.

 

 

1. The Christmas Tree

  • It reminds me of our Creator – Psalm 24:1: “The earth is the Lord, and the fullness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein.”
  • It reminds me that salvation was promised to spring up from the root of Jesse – Isaiah 11:10: "And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign of the people; to it shall the Gentiles seek: and his rest shall be glorious."
  • The tree (often an evergreen tree), symbolizes life in the middle of winter (death), which Christ brought to a world that was dead in sin – Ephesians 2:1: "And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins"
  • The ornaments, garland, and lights on the tree remind me of how the church should cling to Christ. Alone we are not much, but with Christ we make something beautiful – Ephesians 5:23: "Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body."
  • The star on top of the tree points me to the Star of Bethlehem that guided the wise men to the King of Kings – Matthew 2:2: "Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? For we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him."
  • If it’s an angel, I want to remember how the host of angels appeared to the shepherds that wonderful night – Luke 2:13-14: "And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men."

 

2. The Giving of Gifts

  • As we place our gifts beneath the tree, may it ever remind me of how God at Calvary placed His Gift, His Son, on the tree – Philippians 2:8: "And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross."
  • It reminds me of the gifts that the wise men gave to Christ – Matthew 2:11: "And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh."

 

3. The Candlelight Service

  • I will light a candle as a message that goes up before Him to let him know that my faith burns bright – II Corinthians 5:7: "For we walk by faith, not by sight."
  • I will light a candle to let the world know that I believe not only did He come, but also that He is coming back – John 14:1-3 "Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also."
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