living together-ness

I have been surrounded lately by folks who have decided to live together before or instead of marriage. At first I was angered...and justly so. But now I realize that my anger came only from my inability to perceptualize like them (a word I made up that means 'to see through their eyes'). I mean to give no justification for cohabitation. What I am realizing is that there is such a hunger for acceptance and community that is not being met in people today that these hurting folks are turning to unholy unions with others to find both of the missing pieces from their lives. It is my hope, and I believe the plan from God as described in the Bible, that people would find these two first in a relationship with God, secondly in a relationship with God's Church, and thirdly in relationships with those not in God's Church (When I say God's Church I mean all people who are living in a relationship with God and meeting together. I do not mean a specific 'church' as is commonly understood in Western culture).

I fear that we the Church have focused so much on finding, pointing out, and eliminating sins that we have alienated the sinner. We have forgotten that we ALL are sinners who can ONLY be saved by Grace which comes ONLY from God. Jesus loves the sinners. Don't forget that. Jesus does not love you more simply because you love him more. He loves that gay-communist-leftist-environmentalist-whateverist just as much as he loves holy-saint-you.

Now back to living together-My plea to the church is that we remember to have compassion on those who are living this chosen lifestyle. Remember that God does not see cohabitation as the culmination of all abominable sins (desanctifying marriage, fornication, adultery, etc.) rather, God looks at the people and has compassion on them as Jesus did so so many times in the Gospels.

Consider this: how many more times did Jesus compassionately reach out to the lost than he congratulated the found?

9:1

I have heard it said that one must say nine nice and uplifting things to make up for one misplaced negative thing. I am living in that reality right now.

I just finished leading another great Wednesday night youth group service. It wasn't great because of me. In fact, I realize that I was so busy with paperwork and details that I missed out on many great things, but it was great because God was there. I am excited as I see the way that God is working with the 789s ministry.

After youth group I noticed a couple from the Sr High youth group hanging out in the parking lot and decided that the youth pastor-ly thing to do would be to go talk to them and pretend that I was just there to talk so that they would see that they were really not the only two people in the world. Of course, when they saw me they exchanged a quick hug and he walked away. The girl was standing by her car with a very upset look on her face.

I guess I should give some background...about the past year (since she left the 789 ministry and entered Sr. High ministry) this girl has seemed upset with me. I have talked with the Sr. High leader and have spent time in prayer and sat down and just tried to think for a time back on anything I could have said/done to upset her like this. I have nothing.

So back to tonight...I decided that since no one else was in ear-shot but people were still all around us that it would be an appropriate time to ask her if she was upset with me. Of course she said 'no'. I explained to her that it is very easy for me to say things without thinking about them first and sometimes it can hurt peoples' feelings to which she said 'yep' and got in her car and left.

I worry that the same fate my sister chose is one that she may consider. My sister used one misplaced statement by a youth leader as an excuse to leave the church and begin a relationship of sin. Unfortunately it doesn't matter what the youth leader shares with her or if she apologizes all day, my sister will not forgive her. I keep a few pictures of my little sister from her youth group days in my office as a reminder that it can be ANYONE who is turned away from morality and sensibility because of the power of the tongue.

Desires, Dreams, and Iphones

Recently I have started a program which allows me to earn a free IPhone after completing certain offers from companies and referring friends to do the same thing. It is a great idea for the companies and for anyone who wants a free (minus the $5-10 charges for the services here and there) phone. It started innocently enough, but my quest for a new phone turned into a sickness of online shopping and greed. I realized that because of putting money back for a while that I had saved up enough money to spend quite a bit on stuff so I did. I realize now that this runs much deeper than just a silly shopping binge. My true desire for my life is to live simply. I would love to take a year and live out of my vehicle with no more money than I can make to cover fuel/food costs. To hike, walk, camp, drive, and visit my way across America. I dream about that kind of adventure. No worries, no deadlines, just time to focus on what's really important: time with God in nature, relationships with new people, and sharing what God has blessed me with.

It's hard to think that a cell phone program can really be the first step away from fulfilling that desire, but I feel that I have recently lost focus of my dreams and have started to breed discontent with my current life situation. I want to move up in the world rather than listen to what the Bible which I say I believe says..."this world is not your home." If I really do believe that I hope that I can live it out by remembering every day that there is more to value than stuff here on this world.

riiiing...riiiing....*sigh*

I have to start by explaining a phone call I got yesterday. It was a phone call from a 789 parent. The parent wants to start an in-depth Bible Study with any of the 789 youth who are interested...sounds great! The thing I'm working through is that it has turned from a 'let's start a new Bible study with small groups' to 'you are not reaching all youth in an effective way, so let start a group for the ones who are at a higher level spiritually but not connected in friendships'. This parent's solution for the disconnectedness of a few of the students is to separate them from the majority of the group on Sunday morning (one of our 3 weekly meetings) for an in-depth hermeneutic study. I'm in the process of developing an alternate plan (such as offer a 4PM study for the youth interested in the Bible study which would get them to youth group 1.5 hours early for our Sunday night meeting) which does not remove them from the larger group. I do not think or understand the thought process which says that in order for us to help a small number of people connect to the larger group we should remove them from the group and have them start their own independent study.
Now that I have vented on that and shared our news of the week from the 789 trenches I'll encourage you with this...

“The world can do almost anything as well or better than the church. You need not be a Christian to build houses, feed the hungry, or heal the sick. There is only one thing the world can not do. It can not offer grace”.
-Gordon MacDonald

Let's offer some grace to everyone we come in contact with today!

It's been a while...how God has worked!

I am amazed as I look back at the last few years and how God has worked in my life and in my family's lives. I know that if you had asked me on the day that I graduated if I would be sitting in an office doing 789 ministry and school at the same time I would have called you crazy. I was going to be the next great Engineer who was going to make tons of money have a big house and a new truck with a great family. That was my dream...the American Dream. But as I entered college I realized that there might be more to life. I fell away from the church for the first semester at LeTourneau. I was dating a girl from school and I wanted to do my own thing. I didn't have time for God and really didn't have much of a desire to make time for him. But as He has been known to do, He kept pursuing me even when I was running the other direction. It didn't take long before I realized that if I didn't listen to His voice that I would not find any true happiness anywhere in my life. And so I switched my major to Christian Ministries and started volunteering with my old Jr. High ministry. I was offered a volunteer spot in my old high school ministry too, but I felt like I would be too close in age to some of the people in there and I remember that my 789 years were when I was closest to God, so it made sense to try to go back there and see what would happen. Up until this time I was focused only on myself and my future. I had put little thought into what God wanted for me or from me. After just a short few months I was invited to begin an internship with the 789s which has slowly transformed into a full time job where I have been privileged to work with youth and pour into their lives with mine.
There is alot of pressure put on a minister or pastor...even one to Jr. Highers. We are expected to understand biblical truths fully enough to present them in an understandable, interesting, ADHD captivating way. Recently I have been convicted because it seems that I have fallen into a comfortable pattern of being a good youth pastor on Sunday mornings, evenings, and Wednesday evenings, but a regular Joe on the other days of the week. God Has been putting it on my heart to be real ALL the time. That's easier said than done.
For instance, when I was driving to school yesterday I passed a man in a business suit holding a 'Jesus is Alive' poster and a Bible who was preaching while he was walking down the road. My first thought was that I ought to pull over and tell him that it is through love, not loud, confrontational preaching that people will be reached today, but then I was stopped cold. 'LOVE': it was the message that I used to condemn the man. I took a position of judgment over the man because I thought I could do what he was doing better than he could when I know that I don't have the guts to even tell the guy carrying out my groceries that 'God loves you'...
So I suppose that I just wrote nearly a whole book just to say this: If you live what you believe, others will believe what you are living.
Be the example. Be the difference. Be real.

A Christian Porn Site!

I have spent many hours the last few weeks watching the xxxchurch.com podcasts on Itunes. If anyone has not heard of xxxchurch.com, I encourage you to check out their website (it is not what it sounds like!). The videos have really caused me to start thinking in a whole new way. This ministry (xxchurch) regularly sets up at porn conventions to give bibles away to attendees and to those who are in the pornography industry. I wish that everyone could take the time to watch some of the videos. If we in the church would watch these videos and see the reactions that this ministry gets at these shows, I think we would be forced to reexamine our thoughts and preconceived notions about the women and men in the ministry.

Here is just one video...it shows some people who are picketing the people in a conference. I wonder now how often I have thought the same thoughts that these guys are expressing? I hope that I can change that.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_7AQxgaZZcY

Aweful first post

It is tough to try to start the first post on a new blog. It's like deciding the first place to drive a new car. The blog could be about anything, but should be about something. I guess if I had to decide a subject for this one, it will be about ministry. Junior high ministry! Maybe by sharing some of the good, bad, and ugly I can connect with some more youth leaders. Maybe even encourage them in their crazy journey in youth ministry.