I just watched this amazing video on how students learn from a secular perspective, but I really think the church needs to think about this.
How do we reach students of this generation who are dealing with all of this stuff? I look at this blog and there are so many things that even I don’t know about or things I don’t know how to do on this blog! Craziness for a 27 year old!
This weekend I spoke on spending time regularly and consistantly with God. I decided to take my own lesson and do that this morning for an extended time. I began by reading through Luke 13 and all of these amazing miracles that Jesus performed. It was nuts how Jesus would heal these people and free them from their burdens even before they asked him to.
How crazy is it that God knows our thoughts and will answer them even before we ask?!?!
I just felt an overwhelming need to pray and begin releasing things to Him that had been on my heart! What an amazing relief! I don’t know how else to explain it, but an amazingly cool feeling of comfort and a lifting feeling off my shoulders. I know that he is in charge, but it seems so often we try to do things on our own and not ask the Holy Spirit for guidance.
This is an amazing view of the stellar phenomenon, “The Eye of God.” What it actually depicts is the so-called Helix Nebula, described by astronomers as “a trillion-mile-long tunnel of glowing gases.” At its center is a dying star which has ejected masses of dust and gas to form tentacle-like filaments stretching toward an outer rim composed of the same material. It is awe inspiring and amazing to look at and then t think that God, OUR GOD, created it just for us.
I had the opportunity to watch a video entitled, “The Privileged Planet: The Search for Purpose in the Universe.” It was a unique look at the earth and the design behind the planet. Fantastic!
I then read Job 11:7-9 which states, “Can you fathom the mysteries of God? Can you probe the limits of the Almighty? Thy are higher than the heavens- what can you do? They are deeper than the depths of the grave- what can you do? Their measure is longer than the earth and wider than the sea.” God is amazing! And I sit in wonder of ever being on this powerful beings radar. Craziness! This God, that no one ca fathom, chooses to love me so much. His mysteries are unable to be completely understood. They are like, well, the eye of God!
These two chapters are absolutely amazing! The story of Saul’s conversion is a remarkable one to me. You see, he was literally given permission to kill followers of Christ by the High Priest and was carrying out his orders. All of a sudden, he is met by Christ and radically changed. I wish I had an experience like Saul and got spoke to me face to face and then chose to spare my life because I was going to be used powerfully for Him.
Adnd to be Ananias! To be a follower of God and of Christ and to be told in a vision to go meet with Saul, this murderer of Christians, and pray for him!!! You’ve got to be kidding me! Now, I get along with most people, but to be told to go hang out with someone who has wanted me killed and pray for them! Insanity in a nutshell. But, unlike me, Ananias goes and heals Saul and this hater of Christians becomes one of the greatest Church leaders ever!
Now matter where I am at or you are at, God loves us and can do amazing things through us in spite of our weaknesses or our past! How cool is that?
So I found this interesting blog that has some great resources and may be a cool connection for youth ministry. Check it out at www.youthministryideas.net.
So tonight at youth group I am going to be speaking on discipleship and I wondered about what it truely means to be a pastor. I look at the life that Jesus led and the disciples that he mentored. In three years of “discipleship training” he had equipped these twelve for everything they would need to start a new Way. Being a middle school pastor I had three years to help train and mentor these students and equip them for what they need to survive in high school. Now, with my new job I am overseeing Middle School, High School, and College. So, I now roughly have twelve years that i can invest in the lives of these students. I look at the past ministry and wonder if I have fully equipped the students I have met to be sold out followers of Christ. I tend to not see students after they have left middle school. I hope, with God’s help, that I can impact students the way Christ impacted the twelve and my life personally.
Alright, so I started a new job and I love it. while I miss all of the people that I worked with and ministered to, I love the new opportunities and experiences I have been having. It has been such a culture shock leaving the church that I have grown up in and had my first job in and leaving for a much smaller church. It is so exciting and I look forward to coming to work every day! I hope to have more time to blog and keep my web site up-to-date. Thank you to all of you who have encouraged me to continue to write.
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