tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12790615231382443022024-03-18T22:23:57.563-05:00the Rooted blogencouraging grace-driven student ministryRootedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06082315302384132122noreply@blogger.comBlogger166125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1279061523138244302.post-63168616920730360172013-04-18T21:21:00.000-05:002013-04-18T21:21:22.697-05:00A New Home for the Rooted MinistryRooted is pleased to invite you to our new home at <a href="http://www.rootedministry.com/">www.rootedministry.com</a>. There you will find all of the resources, blog articles, and information about our mission to see student ministry anchored in the incredible message of the Cross and of God's unconditional grace. Please visit us at <a href="http://www.rootedministry.com/">www.rootedministry.com</a>.<br />
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<br />camcolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17943913143497052073noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1279061523138244302.post-43128591687740753862013-04-08T09:20:00.000-05:002013-04-08T09:20:00.560-05:00Re-Thinking Your Sunday Best: Why Student Ministry Needs to Reclaim the Centrality of Imputed Righteousness<div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ2QffUiYN_d3898Rot2OSi2HnG2zik3eZLZkqZ5ZzXwaAVTyPEgI6xtUkm4S0_Odvhp7UD7t6ArsPVjZr8KP3dsUoDkMEJBOBK9-TChof4B4BEdlES4-TXoB_Agbtw8Q52SVm5k-UduBT/s400/sunday-best.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ2QffUiYN_d3898Rot2OSi2HnG2zik3eZLZkqZ5ZzXwaAVTyPEgI6xtUkm4S0_Odvhp7UD7t6ArsPVjZr8KP3dsUoDkMEJBOBK9-TChof4B4BEdlES4-TXoB_Agbtw8Q52SVm5k-UduBT/s320/sunday-best.jpg" width="259" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Growing
up, my parents made sure I wore my “Sunday best” to church—coat, tie, slacks,
and on special occasions, suspenders!
After all, we were going to meet with the living God. A whole generation
(or two) regularly used this phrase to communicate the reverence and awe of
worship and to make sure our outward appearance reflected something of the cleaned-up
heart we all embraced. Ironically, I didn’t spend a lick </span><i style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">preparing</i><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> my heart for worship.
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<span style="font-size: small;">Most
of the time—during my early years—I only heard one side of the gospel. I heard
that Jesus died on the cross as a payment for my sin, but I never heard that he
lived for me. While I heard that Jesus died the death I should have died, I
never heard that he lived the life I should have lived.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">The
point: Jesus has accomplished for us what God has required of us. He lived a
perfect, sinless life, obeying all of God’s commands. That we are declared
“righteous” by God (the doctrine of justification) is a declaration made on the
basis that our sin has been credited to Christ and his righteousness has been credited
to us.<span> </span>We, therefore, stand
accepted by God because of an alien righteousness, received by faith alone.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">In
reality, Jesus is our Sunday best. He is our righteousness. God is pleased, not
with the fancy tie I received for Christmas, but with the righteous robes of
his own Son, which I have received by faith alone—a “righteousness from God
that depends on faith” (Phil. 3:9).</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://sovereignlogos.files.wordpress.com/2011/02/sola_fide.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="176" src="http://sovereignlogos.files.wordpress.com/2011/02/sola_fide.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Why
does this matter for student ministry?<span>
</span>Because the imputed righteousness of Christ stands as the foundation for
the good news of our being justified by God.<span> </span>In other words, without justification <i>sola fide</i> we don’t have the gospel. If you, like many who have
loved the recent “gospel movement”—<a href="http://thegospelcoalition.org/"><span style="color: #cc0000;">The Gospel Coalition</span></a>, <a href="http://t4g.org/"><span style="color: #cc0000;">T4G</span></a>, <a href="http://www.gospelproject.com/"><span style="color: #cc0000;">the GospelProject</span></a>, among others—want to lead a gospel-driven student ministry, the
imputed righteousness of Christ must take a central place in your teaching and
ministry to students.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Nothing
will free your students from the cyclical shame of sin like knowing and
believing that all of our sin—past, present, and future—has been cast as far as
the east is from the west (<a href="http://www.esvbible.org/Psalm+103/" style="color: #cc0000;">Ps. 103:12</a>). Similarly, nothing will spur them on to
holiness and sanctification like knowing and believing that they are simply
living out what they have already been declared: “righteous.” They are not striving
to earn God’s favor; rather, they are striving to please the One who earned
God’s favor for them.<span> </span>The law of
God, then, comes alongside, not to condemn, but as a friend, showing him or her
how he or she can please God.</span></div>
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<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Nothing
will give your students joy like knowing and believing that their righteousness
isn’t found in being a good student, a good son or daughter, or a good soccer
player.<span> </span>Their righteousness is
found in Christ alone.<span> </span>Indeed,
their hope is built on nothing less than Jesus’ blood and righteousness.<span> </span>Or, in the words of the hymn “Before
the Throne of God Above”</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; margin-left: 0.5in; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><i>Behold him there the
risen Lamb</i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; margin-left: 0.5in; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><i>My perfect spotless
righteousness</i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; margin-left: 0.5in; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><i>The great unchangeable I
AM</i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; margin-left: 0.5in; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><i>The King of glory and of
grace</i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; margin-left: 0.5in; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><i>One with himself I
cannot die</i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; margin-left: 0.5in; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><i>My soul is purchased by
his blood</i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; margin-left: 0.5in; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><i>My life is hid with
Christ on high</i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; margin-left: 0.5in; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><i>With Christ my Savior
and my God</i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; margin-left: 0.5in; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><i>With Christ my Savior
and my God</i></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">May
student ministries across our land embrace and love the doctrine of the
imputation of Christ’s righteousness and may it free youth pastors and parents
from the success-oriented, entertainment-driven models of ministry that
undercut the very message they are seeking to communicate.</span></div>
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<a href="http://www.awakencreativity.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/freedom.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="268" src="http://www.awakencreativity.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/freedom.jpg" width="400" /> </a></div>
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<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: small;">If
you are involved in the discipleship of students, reclaim the centrality of the
imputed righteousness of Christ as you teach and equip them.<span> </span>May that, not self-help <i>sola-boot-strapia</i>, provide the true
“gospel” focus of your ministry to students.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><i>Brian
H. Cosby</i><i> is pastor of <a href="http://www.waysidechurch.org/#" style="color: #cc0000;">Wayside Presbyterian Church in Signal Mountain</a>, TN and author of </i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Giving-Up-Gimmicks-Reclaiming-Entertainment/dp/1596383941/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1351513926&sr=8-1&keywords=giving+up+gimicks" style="color: #cc0000;">Giving Up Gimmicks</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Giving-Up-Gimmicks-Reclaiming-Entertainment/dp/1596383941/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1351513926&sr=8-1&keywords=giving+up+gimicks" name="_GoBack" style="color: #cc0000;"></a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Giving-Up-Gimmicks-Reclaiming-Entertainment/dp/1596383941/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1351513926&sr=8-1&keywords=giving+up+gimicks" style="color: #cc0000;">: Reclaiming Youth Ministry from an Entertainment Culture</a>
(P&R, 2012) <i>and</i> <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Rebels-Rescued-Students-Reformed-Theology/dp/1845509803/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1351513956&sr=1-1&keywords=Rebels+Rescued%3A+A+Student%C2%92s+Guide+to+Reformed+Theology" style="color: #cc0000;">Rebels Rescued: A Student’s Guide to Reformed Theology</a> (Christian Focus, 2012).</span></span><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: justify;">
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Rootedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06082315302384132122noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1279061523138244302.post-20446024657040901872013-04-03T07:17:00.000-05:002013-04-03T07:17:00.801-05:00Apologetics for Teens: You Asked: Your Questions. God's Answers.<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
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<span style="font-size: small;">Answering students’ questions about God, life,
Scripture and Christianity is like walking a tight rope. On one hand, students
deserve clear, thoughtful, and simple but not simplistic answers. On the other
hand, the questions often reveal deeper, unspoken, concerns present in their
own heart. The challenge is to provide answers for the spoken questions while
also recognizing and addressing the unspoken questions.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; margin-bottom: 12pt;">
<a href="http://www.wtsbooks.com/common/images/products/large/images/9781781911433.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" height="320" id="TB_Image" src="http://www.wtsbooks.com/common/images/products/large/images/9781781911433.jpg" width="203" /></a><span style="font-size: small;">For that reason I am delighted that William Edgar’s
<a href="http://www.wtsbooks.com/you-asked-pb-edgar-bill-9781781911433" style="color: #cc0000;"><i>You Asked: Your Questions, God’ s Answers </i></a>is now available. The book may
rightly be described as “apologetics for teenagers” and its format is
straightforward: each chapter begins with a common question middle and high
school students ask, and then provides clear guidance and instruction enabling
students to discover answers from the Bible and a Christian worldview. It is a
work Edgar is uniquely qualified to write, having expertise in apologetics, a
deep grasp of culture, and experience as a high school teacher. Furthermore, as
an apologist in the tradition of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cornelius_Van_Til" style="color: #cc0000;">Cornelius Van Til</a>, Edgar skillfully answers
the spoken questions while gently exposing and addressing underlying heart
issues.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; margin-bottom: 12pt;">
<span style="font-size: small;">The direct audience for this book is students
themselves. Edgar has provided a reliable guide for them in language they will
find accessible. However, it would be a mistake to assume that this book is <i>only
</i>for students. Youth pastors and parents will also find it a useful resource
guiding their own interactions with their teenagers.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">I am thankful this book is available and would
encourage youth pastors, parents, and teens alike to make use of it. As Michael
Keller wrote in his endorsement, the book will help students navigate the
“minefield known as adolescence.” I agree with Mike, and commend <i>You Asked </i>to
teens wrestling with tough questions, and to youth pastors and parents helping
teens along the way.<i> </i></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; margin-bottom: 12pt;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><i>Bijan Mirtolooi is part of the youth ministry staff
at <a href="http://www.redeemer.com/" style="color: #cc0000;">Redeemer Presbyterian Church</a> in New York City</i>.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=1279061523138244302" name="_GoBack"></a></span></div>
Rootedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06082315302384132122noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1279061523138244302.post-37974863505171412542013-04-01T07:30:00.000-05:002013-04-01T07:30:02.681-05:00The World’s Half-Truths for Teens Pt.6: The Power for Change Comes from Within<div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://ramascreen.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/Percy-Jackson.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="248" src="http://ramascreen.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/Percy-Jackson.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></div>
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<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">When I first
began working with youth, the first <i>Percy
Jackson</i> series was all the rage.
Greek gods, adventure, and awkward teen drama had captured the
imaginations of youth all over the country - and some at my church.</span>
</div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Being totally
unfamiliar with the books, I was curious to read them to find out why these
books had become so popular. So I
picked up the first book in the series and began to read.</span></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">It didn’t take
long to figure out what kids found so alluring about Percy Jackson’s
story. As the story begins, Percy
appears to be relatively insignificant, marginally outcast, and and
uncomfortable-in-his-own-skin pubescent youth.</span></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Before long, we
discover that -despite appearances - Percy Jackson is anything but normal. Much to Percy’s own astonishment, he’s
really a demigod - the son of a human mother and a Greek god for a father. And Percy doesn’t have just any Greek
god for a father, his dad is Poseidon, one of the “big three” in the Greek
Pantheon.</span></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Along with the
revelation of his lineage, Percy also discovers that as Poseidon’s son, he
inherits some of Poseidon’s power.
Percy discovers he can breath under water. Water gives him strength. And most importantly, Percy can
control water, bending it to do his will.</span></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">How awesome
would it be to discover that a god-king was your father and that your
father-god shared his power with you...?</span></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://images.lazygamer.net/2013/02/21336_funny_batman_batman_word.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="199" src="http://images.lazygamer.net/2013/02/21336_funny_batman_batman_word.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Yeah, pretty
much that’s the gospel - isn’t it?
Pretty amazing.</span></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">In Christ,
haven’t we become children of the One True God, king and ruler over all things?
(cf. <a href="http://www.esvbible.org/Galatians+3%3A29/" style="color: #cc0000;">Galatians 3:29</a>, <a href="http://www.esvbible.org/1+John+3%3A1-2/" style="color: #cc0000;">1 John 3:1-2</a>)
And what’s more, because we are his children, hasn’t God shared his
power with us, filling us with the Holy Spirit as a downpayment of our
inheritance? (cf. <a href="http://www.esvbible.org/Galatians+4%3A6/" style="color: #cc0000;">Galatians 4:6</a>, <span style="color: #cc0000;">Ephesians 1:13-14</span>) Isn’t this the source of our joy and delight? (cf. <a href="http://www.esvbible.org/Ephesians+5%3A18-20/"><span style="color: #cc0000;">Ephesians5:18-20</span></a>, <a href="http://www.esvbible.org/Colossians+3%3A15-17/" style="color: #cc0000;">Colossians 3:15-17</a>)</span></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Familiarity with
these truths sometime blinds us (and the youth) to their sheer
awesomeness. Sometimes it takes
something like Percy Jackson to wake us up to the sheer wonder of the story in
which we find ourselves.</span></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Obviously there
are some difference between Percy and the Christian. First, and most importantly, Percy Jackson and the Olympians
is fiction whereas our adoption and inheritance are reality.</span></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Secondly, there
is a fundamental difference between the power of Poseidon at work in Percy and
the power of Yahweh at work in us: Percy seeks to control Poseidon’s power to
wield the god’s strength for his own ends, while we seek to be controlled by
the Spirit to be wielded by Yahweh for his ends.</span></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">It’s here that
we begin to see the lie that underscores Percy Jackson’s interaction with the
world.</span></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">In the end, any
difference that Percy makes in the world or change that happens in himself
emanates from his own willpower and ability to control the power of his father
god, Poseidon. Ultimately, and
change is of his own doing (the gods are rather disinterested in the affairs of
their children and the human world).</span></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">For the
Christian, however, meaningful change cannot begin with our own efforts but
with the grace of a God who cares deeply about us and this world. </span></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6178/6186082980_3ab1608175.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="192" src="http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6178/6186082980_3ab1608175.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Biblically
speaking, the power to redeem doesn’t come from us learning to control the
Spirit of God, but the other way around.
The Holy Spirit is not a weapon or tool that we wield, but that wields
us even as the Spirit works to renew us into the image of our creator, Jesus
(<a href="http://www.esvbible.org/Colossians+3%3A10/"><span style="color: #cc0000;">Colossians 3:10</span></a>).</span></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Certainly we are
called to participate in the Spirit’s work as we seek to put off the old self
and put on the new self - but even this is done by faith as we learn to rest in
Jesus’ finished work and receive from him the inheritance he secured for us in
the Spirit as the Lord bless our time in Scripture, prayer, Christian
fellowship, and the sacraments.</span></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">So concerning
the world’s half-truth of the power to change coming from within, I say, Amen!
Let us find the power for change within...but not within us as ourselves, but
within us as children and temples of the One True God who is generous with his
grace. And let us cling to his
grace by faith - not as a reward for our personal effort, but as a gift of the
Spirit works within us to conform us to the very likeness of Jesus.</span></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><i style="color: #666666;">Mark Howard is the Youth Director and Assistant to Pastor at <a href="http://www.trinitypca.net/" style="color: #cc0000;">Trinity Presbyterian Church</a> in Covington, GA. Mark has a Masters in Theology
from <a href="http://www.wheaton.edu/" style="color: #cc0000;">Wheaton College Graduate School</a>. </i><br /> </span></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
Rootedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06082315302384132122noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1279061523138244302.post-64285030606770537842013-03-28T07:55:00.000-05:002013-03-28T07:55:00.488-05:00Essentials in Youth Ministry: Others<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.rachaellay.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/its-not-all-about-you.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="162" src="http://www.rachaellay.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/its-not-all-about-you.jpg" style="cursor: move;" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;">We want to feel necessary.<span> </span>We want to feel important.<span> </span>An easy way to fill these desires as a
youth worker is to make our youth ministries about us.<span> </span>We even do what I just did -- call the
youth group “ours” and come up with clever tricks to make the kids want to come
be with us.</span>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span>But it’s not really about us.<span> </span>Youth ministry is about our Triune God
- giving glory to the Father, in Christ, by the Spirit.<span> </span>Certainly we’re actively involved in the
work of God in these kids’ lives, but <i>it’s
God’s work</i> through us - not ours in which to boast.<span> </span>Ultimately, these kids are God’s. The
glory is His.</span></span></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span>What these kids really need, then, is not
more of us, but more of Jesus and His grace.<span> </span>Certainly they need to see more of Jesus in us and through
us, but we are not the only - nor the primary - means through which the Father
by the Spirit points the youth in our churches to Jesus.<span> </span></span></span></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span>The primary means through which - by faith
- the Spirit roots our youth in the grace of Jesus is Scripture, prayer, the
sacraments, and fellowship with other Christians.</span></span></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span>And the primary community through which God
has ordained to practice these means is the church - the family of God.<span> </span>And though we serve the church in a
very unique capacity as youth ministers, we are not the fullness of the church
in and of ourselves.</span></span></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span>The youth need to see and experience God at
work in others. <span></span>They need to see
and experience the wisdom of God through others.<span> </span>They need to see and experience the fellowship of God with
others.</span></span></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span>And “others” as I’m using it doesn’t refer
only to other youth in the youth group.<span>
</span>They need to know their senior pastor(s).<span> </span>They need to know other parents.<span> </span>They need to know seniors and other adults in the
congregation.</span></span></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3c1op8W-f2Ssi0CulgGYQ_Y3AFhnPjNdXFJ1SlgYPs0HuXztbJgaSLBfE2R3PsbEqbjxWoxamr3WuCEvcI_Magv-O1Yn-7Q1NcFT2jDW2TNaWa7Qal7C-li6c_S5apIQYo7Zl59pjTak/s1600/171-The+Elephant.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="293" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3c1op8W-f2Ssi0CulgGYQ_Y3AFhnPjNdXFJ1SlgYPs0HuXztbJgaSLBfE2R3PsbEqbjxWoxamr3WuCEvcI_Magv-O1Yn-7Q1NcFT2jDW2TNaWa7Qal7C-li6c_S5apIQYo7Zl59pjTak/s400/171-The+Elephant.gif" width="400" /> </a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span>Though it has many flaws and downsides, one
of the helpful correctives of postmodernism is that it reminds us that we all
see things from a perspective.<span>
</span>This includes how we see God.<span>
</span>I am much too heady for my own good.<span> </span>I need people in my life with passion and emotion in their
worship and relationship with God.<span>
</span>They help me see aspects of God that I can’t on my own.</span></span></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span>If the only picture of God that our youth
see is from our preaching and teaching, then they are missing out.<span> </span>Involving other adults in youth group
-- or better yet, involving the youth in the fuller life of the church -- is
one of the ways God uses by his Spirit to nurture our walk with him.</span></span></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span>It might feel like a slap in the face to be
told we’re not as important as we think we are, but really, this is good news.</span></span></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span>We can’t do it all.<span> </span>We can’t be all things to all people --
we aren’t meant to be.<span> </span>There are
kids with whom we have difficulty connecting.<span> </span>But the same Spirit at work in and through us and our
ministry is also at work in and through other Christians and the other
ministries of the church.</span></span></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://cdn.memegenerator.net/instances/400x/23032908.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://cdn.memegenerator.net/instances/400x/23032908.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span>If a kid doesn’t want to meet with us,
maybe they will want to get together with someone else from the church.<span> </span>If they don’t want to come to youth
group, maybe they will want to join the choir or the praise team.<span> </span>If they don’t want to come to Sunday
school, maybe they will want to join an adult Bible study.</span></span></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span>As Paul puts it in a beautiful passage on
the unity of the one church in the one Spirit, <i>“Speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him
who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held
together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working
properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.”</i>
(Ephesians 4:15-16)</span></span></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span>The family of God is an incredible blessing
for those of us who can’t do it all (which is all of us).<span> </span>Let’s not neglect the body of Christ in
our ministries that we might together be built up in God’s love.</span></span></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span><i style="color: #666666;">Mark Howard is the Youth Director and Assistant to Pastor at <a href="http://www.trinitypca.net/" style="color: #cc0000;">Trinity Presbyterian Church</a> in Covington, GA. Mark has a Masters in Theology
from <a href="http://www.wheaton.edu/" style="color: #cc0000;">Wheaton College Graduate School</a>. </i></span><span><br /></span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span> </span><span style="color: windowtext;"></span></span></div>
Rootedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06082315302384132122noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1279061523138244302.post-78218715002137043622013-03-25T07:30:00.000-05:002013-03-25T09:52:22.194-05:00Fear, Patience, and Prayer in Discipling Kids<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmjW6i05UC3xB4nczbBPafer8WTdN-ZcwzTwdIrWGCXNsZg9TAWDJDFETnDIXC9F6YrA5zpVapRDH77MFrd54jmG6iza1LT99LK8RtmPG8119cDQpuCeSmzicRZTRyFcF-WoEAAaYX-4uh/s400/scared.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmjW6i05UC3xB4nczbBPafer8WTdN-ZcwzTwdIrWGCXNsZg9TAWDJDFETnDIXC9F6YrA5zpVapRDH77MFrd54jmG6iza1LT99LK8RtmPG8119cDQpuCeSmzicRZTRyFcF-WoEAAaYX-4uh/s400/scared.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Recently, I made a presentation to parents in our youth
ministry, entitled, “Why Kids Abandon the Church.” Two years earlier, when I
made a similar presentation, called “Grace-Driven to Postmodern Teens,” the
class drew <i>five</i> people. Not surprisingly,
this terrifying title attracted a packed room of <i>sixty</i> parents.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">In the presentation, I explained our strategy, which has
been eight years in the making, to maximize the chances that students will
stick with Jesus and the church after high school. Terms, such as “theological
depth,” “grace-driven,” “devotional training,” and “family discipleship” flew
around the room. I routinely dropped names like Kenda Creasy Dean and Christian
Jones. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">While I qualified the talk with the premise that we have so
little control over our children’s spiritual future- only God yields fruit- the
presentation did have a “business plan” feel to it. While I stand by our
strategy and commend other youth ministries to focus intentionally on fostering
life-long disciples of Christ, a conversation afterwards with a young adult in
the audience exposed my blind spot. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">He said simply, “The thing you are missing is that after
they leave home kids have to claim their faith on their own; parents cannot
force that to happen.” This young man grew up in a nurturing Christian home and
solid church. To my knowledge, he did not consistently seek out church or
campus ministry in college. Here as a young adult he is thoughtfully
considering the depth in which he may or may not follow Christ. God has brought
a woman into his life, and this relationship has stimulated a fresh
consideration o<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=1279061523138244302" name="_GoBack"></a>f faith. His honesty helped me contemplate
discipleship of young people with a fresher balance and with the following
concepts in mind. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><b>Control</b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">As much as say that God’s total sovereignty and goodness is
the only hope for our children, in my flesh I believe that I have control. I
think if I deliver the right messages, relate in the best manner, and
orchestrate certain experiences, I can effectuate real faith in my students and
in my own children. The lurking fear I have, that kids for whom I care so
deeply will reject Christ and the church, only exacerbates my desire to cling
to my devices. </span></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://mothering21.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/helicopter-parents21.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="281" src="http://mothering21.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/helicopter-parents21.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">When I survey the turning points that led to my decision to
walk with Christ in college and young adulthood, all of them came places that
no person, except God, could control. At the National Young Leaders Conference
during my sophomore year of high school, an agnostic from Maine asked me why I
was a Christian. I had no answer other than subjective experiences and the
beliefs of my parents. This encounter caused me to question the veracity of
Christianity. Days later, the Jehovah’s Witnesses (of all people) dropped by
our house and gave us an apologetics tract. I only read the section on proofs
of the resurrection and fulfillment of prophecy. This tract stimulated a season
of further study, which confirmed for me that, in fact, Jesus Christ is the
Risen Lord. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">My parents and church had built solid foundations, but only
in the moments ordained by the Holy Spirit in the mundane circumstances of life
did I convert from a cultural Christian to a committed follower of Jesus. It
all occurred apart from the control or strategy of any person but God. </span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><b>Patience</b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Like most Christian parents and youth pastors, I have a
strong desire to see my kids walk with Jesus in college. Ideally, in their
first week in college they will attend a Cru or Navigators or an RUF meeting.
On their first Sunday, they will start searching for a church that teaches
exegetically and preaches the Gospel of grace. Their first date will be with a
solid Christian classmate. At their first party, they will say no to the
keg-stand and will return home that night to talk about the balance of law and
grace, as they sit around their dorm room with their new found Christian
friends. Oh, the fantasies of Christian parents. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">But here is reality. God does not adhere to our dreams. God
has timelines that conform to his desire to be exalted in the maximum manner in
the optimal season. Our children and students may find God after they receive
their third DUI or while working on their PhD dissertation in evolutionary
biology or at the Democratic National Convention. We must depend on the grace
of God for the patience and faith to align with His timing. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><b>Prayer</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">An article, like this, which decries our impotence in ultimately determining the
spiritual welfare of our children, often leads to fatalistic despair. This absolutely should not be the case.
If anything, seeing that only God can produce fruit should drive us to the foot
of the Cross and to a life of fervent prayer. </span></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjti_VykN0d7EmT_YNHdSgH2eQiWZE57u1dR5Az3yVBhEkmVZmlUpW9NMQhZ9DGQL_bkTOLWpWjDwCMVNh5aw6wvJ_NTRF1LOCMMGr4nK0Fl0pJECdZeX5tnnwRO-wGjeif_uckajHw4Kk/s1600/discipline-of-prayer-the.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjti_VykN0d7EmT_YNHdSgH2eQiWZE57u1dR5Az3yVBhEkmVZmlUpW9NMQhZ9DGQL_bkTOLWpWjDwCMVNh5aw6wvJ_NTRF1LOCMMGr4nK0Fl0pJECdZeX5tnnwRO-wGjeif_uckajHw4Kk/s400/discipline-of-prayer-the.jpeg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">For several years, I have journeyed with a family in the
discipleship of their children. These parents model family discipleship as they
have taught their kids the Word, prayed with them, taken them to church, etc.
Their children have wandered spiritually through high school, college and young
adulthood. I have watched the mother move from panic to calm largely due to a
fervent prayer life. In one of their children it appears that God- in a
mystical yet palpable way- is using the random circumstances of his life to
draw the kid to Himself. I feel as if I am watching the fruit of faithful
prayer at work before my eyes. The Lord undoubtedly pours down grace on our
children and students in response to our prayers.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><b>Going Forward</b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">I plan to continue to pursue ministry, where we preach grace
and cultivate a deep, biblical belief system in students. We will help students
transition to college and will equip them for a devotional life. And, it never
hurts to be reminded in the midst of our best intentions that all hope centers
on the generosity and sovereignty of God. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: small;">Cameron Cole serves
the Director of Youth Ministries at the Cathedral Church of the Advent in
Birmingham, AL. He is the chairman of Rooted: Advancing Grace-Driven Youth Ministry,
which holds its next conference, Hope in a Time of Suffering, in Atlanta
October 10-12, 2013. </span></i></div>
Rootedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06082315302384132122noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1279061523138244302.post-56186430378454932692013-03-22T14:02:00.002-05:002013-03-22T14:02:38.253-05:00Are We Throwing Out the Baby with the Bathwater on Fun in Youth Ministry?<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqnAeRjlnpbtcyco68QiUVje8DWiOQH3OrYvu0DTpea7qaIZvqQYoUwORWqpIVI310NqYLQTSou3xtx8mowwx7L0CmhyF7qLuLCRohRRr9pVRiAJPoujkHdUqE0VEtlxigBZbtjmFkHPeg/s1600/baby+bathwater.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqnAeRjlnpbtcyco68QiUVje8DWiOQH3OrYvu0DTpea7qaIZvqQYoUwORWqpIVI310NqYLQTSou3xtx8mowwx7L0CmhyF7qLuLCRohRRr9pVRiAJPoujkHdUqE0VEtlxigBZbtjmFkHPeg/s320/baby+bathwater.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />
In our efforts to critique youth ministry and move towards reform, such that ministry to kids is more grounded in the Gospel and discipleship, can we "throw the baby out with the bathwater" when it comes to fun? Mike McGarry at Emmanual Baptist Church in Norfolk, MA, a respected friend of Rooted, had a great analysis and clarification on the tension between "fun" and being Gospel-centered on his blog, "crosswalk."<div>
<br /><div>
Read more <a href="http://ebccrosswalk.wordpress.com/2013/03/14/youth-ministry-jesus-fun-biblical/#comment-1076">HERE</a>: <a href="http://ebccrosswalk.wordpress.com/2013/03/14/youth-ministry-jesus-fun-biblical/#comment-1076">Youth Ministry + Jesus - Fun = Biblical?</a><br /><div>
<br /></div>
<div>
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</div>
Rootedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06082315302384132122noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1279061523138244302.post-56011702324597461622013-03-20T16:01:00.000-05:002013-03-20T16:10:10.529-05:00A Letter to Friends of Rooted<style>
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</style>Dear Friends of Rooted,<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
First let me thank you for your participation in our
movement. I wanted to update you on some of the exciting things coming soon for
Rooted. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span>Rooted is gearing up for a total makeover. We
will have a new website which integrates the blog and the other content of the
ministry into one place. The look and feel will be fresh, and, more
importantly, we graduate from Blogger! Our new home at <a href="http://www.rootedministry.com/">www.rootedministry.com</a> will go live in
the next 3-4 weeks.</div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
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</span></span></span>On April 8-10, Rooted will take its act to the
Gospel Coalition National Conference in Orlando. Two Rooted steering
committee members, Josh Cousineau of Redemption Hill in Auburn, ME and Dave
Wright of the Diocese of South Carolina, will present workshops. Josh’s
workshop is entitled, “<a href="http://thegospelcoalition.org/2013/talks#gospel-centered_youth_ministry_building_on_jesus_not_the_jokes">Gospel-Centered
Youth Ministry: Building on Jesus not the Jokes</a>.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Dave will speak on “<a href="http://thegospelcoalition.org/2013/talks#gospel-centered_youth_ministry_jesus_mission_to_the_next_generation">Gospel-Centered
Youth Ministry: Jesus' Mission to the Next Generation</a>.”</div>
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</span></span></span>Will you be attending the Gospel Coalition
Conference? Come by our booth and meet us. Rooted will be a “vendor” at the
event (we aren’t selling anything). We would like to know you personally. </div>
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<span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span>Our next Rooted Conference takes place in
Atlanta on October 10-12, 2013. We are very excited about our speakers, Jared
Wilson, Sharon Hersh, and David Plant. The theme, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Hope in a Time of Suffering,</i> has great relevance for ministry to a
generation of students, which have suffered greatly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Right now, you can <a href="mailto:https://events.r20.constantcontact.com/register/eventReg%3Foeidk=a07e75ml3b9014a18ea%26oseq=%26c=%26ch=">register</a>
very cheaply ($100) for this conference at <a href="http://www.rootedconference.com/">www.rootedconference.com</a>. Prices
will go up in mid-April. </div>
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Please reach out to us if we can help and support you in
anchoring your ministry more deeply in the Good News that the work of Jesus
Christ on the Cross is utterly complete. </div>
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Kind Regards,</div>
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The Steering Committee of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Rooted: Advancing Grace-Driven Youth Ministry</i></div>
camcolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17943913143497052073noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1279061523138244302.post-55688817898979341732013-03-18T09:03:00.003-05:002013-03-18T09:03:51.923-05:00The Only Foundation for Youth Ministry<div style="color: black; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><i>Rooted steering committee member, Josh Cousineau, authored this article on <a href="http://thegospelcoalition.org/" style="color: #cc0000;">the Gospel Coalition</a> blog. Josh will be leading a workshop at the Gospel Coalition Conference in April about Gospel-centered youth ministry. Rooted will have a booth at this show, as well. If you have an interest in grace-driven ministry, please come see us at the show to learn more about our ministry, about our next conference, and about how you can join the movement.</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">I remember sitting in the auditorium at the 2009 Gospel Coalition
National Conference in Chicago. A session had just finished; we had been
shown the glories of Jesus and how he is the only hope and foundation
for our ministry. My heart was full, and I was glad that God had called
me to minister to students. The two guys who came with me to the
conference digested the content as they considered how to apply it not
only to our own lives, but also to the students we served back home at
church. . . .(<a href="http://thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/tgc/2013/03/14/the-only-foundation-for-youth-ministry/" style="color: #cc0000;"><i>Link</i></a>)<i></i></span></div>
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<i><span style="color: #666666;">Josh Cousineau serves as the pastor of <a href="http://rhcommunity.org/"><span style="color: #cc0000;">Redemption Hill Community</span></a>. He
previously served as youth pastor at East Auburn Baptist Church. Josh
leads <a href="http://gospelalliancene.com/" style="color: #cc0000;">the Gospel Alliance</a>, a network of pastors committed to the Gospel
in New England. And if you can't tell, he's also really awesome.</span></i></div>
Rootedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06082315302384132122noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1279061523138244302.post-9178654428442587102013-03-12T15:04:00.000-05:002013-03-25T08:22:31.405-05:00The World's Half-Truth's For Teens Pt.5: "I Am Generally Good"<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Several years ago, I received a
rap on my door at 6:00AM. A sheriff stood on the porch and yelled in my
half-asleep face, “Come on out and see what you did last night.” I had taught a
Bible study the night before at a local Starbucks and gone to bed at 10:00PM,
so I was confused at his proclamation. He pointed out that my car was on top of
the base of a mailbox, and the mailbox itself was three feet from its
foundation. The Sherriff then accused me of drunk driving. (After three minutes
of common sense investigation, we all saw that my bumper was dented and someone
had done a “hit and run” on my car, knocking it on top of a mailbox.)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://www.wholesalemedals.com/admin/images/gallery/Good%20Kid.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.wholesalemedals.com/admin/images/gallery/Good%20Kid.jpg" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">In those moments where my
integrity was challenged, I immediately started to justify in my head how good
of a person I considered myself. “I am a youth minister; I teach Bible studies;
I’ve never been arrested; I’m nice; I tithe; I didn’t drink until I was
twenty-one; I’ve never smoked a cigarette. I waited until marriage, by
darn…trump that!” Even though I preach the depth of human sin and theologically
include myself in that category, deep down inside in that moment of being
challenged, the dirty truth, that I really think that I’m a “good person” based
on my merit, came to the surface. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: small;">“I’m a good person; it’s not like
I’ve killed anyone.” We all probably have heard this one before from a teenager.
Helping teenagers understand their sinfulness may constitute the biggest
challenge a youth pastor faces, given the humanist sentiments in the world
today. The idea of human goodness is a lie. It’s why we all lock our doors at
night, and we don’t leave cash on our dashboard. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">In truth, man can become good,
but the biblical means, by which this occurs, differ drastically from the
secular conception. And if teens embrace the secular sense and means of
achieving goodness, they will be set up for a life of either misery, denial, or
both. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><b>Where
is this true? <o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">The incredible reality of the
Gospel is that through saving faith in Christ, in the forensic sense, believers
become righteous. This means that God imputes all of the “goodness” that Christ
earned in his life to a believer. So, in a biblical sense, believers become
“good.” It’s not just that our sins are forgiven; imputation means that
believers become perfectly righteous in God’s eyes through imputation. However,
this goodness comes through saving faith and God’s generosity. Not one ounce-
an utter and complete zero percent- originates within us. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><b>Where
is this false?<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://mikeduran.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/sysyphus.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="248" src="http://mikeduran.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/sysyphus.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">The world’s conception of human
goodness comes through the merits of a person’s actions or mainly through the
absence of atrocities. Teens, convinced of their moral adequacy, will justify
their goodness by pointing out that they don’t do hard drugs, make racist
remarks, or commit acts of violence. Meanwhile, they may point to acts of
charity, kindness to other, or community service as further proof of their
righteous. (Let’s be honest, in our sober moments, we all think we’re pretty
darn good. I know how deluded I am, deep down inside.) They fail to understand
that to be good in God’s eyes requires one to be completely perfect.
Imperfection equals badness. Period. Man can gain no righteousness by his or
her own efforts. They look internally for goodness, rather than externally. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><b>What’s
the problem?<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Buying the lie that we are good
or can become good out of our merits is a miserable place to live. It’s a life
of intense pressure. This belief requires that a person try very, very hard all
of the time to be perfect to maintain this good. The alternative is to live in
utter denial as one tries to somehow justify his or herself in comparison to
others, rationalize their sins, or overlook them altogether. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Not challenging kids presupposed
belief in their inherent goodness sets them up for burden or denial, neither or
which is…..good. Pointing them to the goodness that comes externally from God
through imputation sets them free.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=1279061523138244302" name="_GoBack"></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
Rootedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06082315302384132122noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1279061523138244302.post-8883672416812062052013-03-05T21:39:00.000-06:002013-03-05T21:46:27.078-06:00Why Kids Abandon the Church (audio)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEituFXM2h8X5Q4HJU-iCpTRtVvVFW820AnSRuSHkLgM_PghABdxtxTR1rKwnYdNwFC20wyMLp0LGhA9-zaFbaG-BN4QURcy2UE5OAZnLGiAaMAA3fYS1cQiVVSLrc1TGkqbobQf_pKW0CAU/s1600/cameron+cole+advent.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEituFXM2h8X5Q4HJU-iCpTRtVvVFW820AnSRuSHkLgM_PghABdxtxTR1rKwnYdNwFC20wyMLp0LGhA9-zaFbaG-BN4QURcy2UE5OAZnLGiAaMAA3fYS1cQiVVSLrc1TGkqbobQf_pKW0CAU/s320/cameron+cole+advent.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">In </span>the following audio recording, Cameron Cole offers parents explanations of why students abandon the church and how grace-driven ministry seeks to foster life-long disciples of Jesus.<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"></span>Link: <a href="http://adventbirmingham.org/audio/why-kids-abandon-the-church/">Why Kids Abandon the Church</a></span><br />
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<i>Cameron Cole is the chairman of Rooted: Advancing Grace-Driven Ministry and serves as the director of youth ministries at the Cathedral Church of the Advent in Birmingham, AL. </i>camcolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17943913143497052073noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1279061523138244302.post-49902918773167228012013-02-28T07:30:00.000-06:002013-02-28T07:30:00.113-06:00A True, Radical And More Than A Little Scatalogical Story About Forgiveness<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<i><span style="font-size: small;">the <a href="http://www.mbird.com/2010/04/true-radical-and-more-than-little/" style="color: #cc0000;">following post </a>is from the blog <a href="http://www.mbird.com/" style="color: #cc0000;">Mockingbird</a> which is is a ministry that seeks to connect the
Christian faith with the realities of everyday life in fresh and
down-to-earth ways. We do this primarily, but not exclusively, via
publications, conferences, and online resources.</span></i></div>
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Whenever I’m in need of inspiration for a sermon, I re-read <a href="http://www.mockingbirdnyc.com/Mockingbird/Publications.html" style="color: #cc0000;">Judgment and Love</a>
– it contains the exact sort of true stories of forgiveness and its
life-altering impact that always translate well in the pulpit. This past
week I heard a doozy of a new one – this actually happened (ht Will
Kulseth):</div>
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<span style="font-style: italic;">At a boarding school for troubled
teens in upstate NY, something terrible happened. Someone defecated in a
trash can, and then smeared the contents all over the walls of one of
the living rooms. </span></div>
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An assembly was called, and the headmaster, after voicing how upset
he was about the incident, told the group that they were now going to
sit there and wait for a confession. They sat for a long fifteen
minutes, and then a student said: “I know who did it, and if he doesn’t
confess soon, I’m going to tell on him.” </div>
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Finally a boy stood up and came forward. He said, “I did it”, not all that apologetically. </div>
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In perfect<span style="color: #cc0000;"> </span><a href="http://www.esvbible.org/search/Luke+15/" style="color: #cc0000;">Luke-15</a>-”While-he-was-still-far-off” fashion, the
headmaster embraced the boy. He said: “Son, I’m proud of you for coming
forward, and I want to tell you something very important: you are
forgiven.” </div>
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He dismissed the assembly, and led the culprit with him back to the
scene of the incident, where he had the boy sit in a chair facing the
soiled wall. Then the principle cleaned up the mess by himself, while
the boy sat there watching. </div>
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<i><span style="font-size: small;">written by <a href="http://www.mbird.com/author/john-zahl/" style="color: #cc0000;">John Za<span class="post-author"></span>hl</a><span style="color: #cc0000;"> </span><span class="post-date">Apr 5, 2010</span> • <span>2:43 pm</span></span></i></div>
Rootedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06082315302384132122noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1279061523138244302.post-14313233466042423302013-02-25T07:30:00.000-06:002013-02-25T07:30:01.698-06:00The World's Half-Truths for Teens Pt.4: God Wants You to Be Happy<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
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<span style="font-size: small;">Right
in the middle of my talk on the exclusivity of Christ, a hand went up in the
back of the room. “Yes?” I
asked. The young man cleared his throat. “How can you say that Jesus is the only
way to heaven? I mean, what about
all the other billions of people around the world—are they going to hell simply
because they don’t believe what <i>you</i>
believe?
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<a href="http://www.theminimalists.com/files/2011/03/Happiness-Hands1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://www.theminimalists.com/files/2011/03/Happiness-Hands1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">I
started to answer his question when I realized that he had <i>lots </i>of questions. I
asked him if he could stay after the meeting. He agreed. As
the other youth were filing out of the back door, I made a beeline for my
examiner. Among the many topics we
covered during that conversation, one struck me. I asked him, “What’s your ultimate goal in life?” His answer (like most Americans would
probably respond): “To be happy.”</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: small;">As
I reflected on his answer, I have come to realize that it’s a half-truth. God does want me to be happy—<i>in him</i>. It sounds like something from John Piper…and the Bible. As Piper quips, “God is most glorified
in us when we are most satisfied in him.”
Many students see happiness and church-life as exclusive realities;
happiness comes as a result of entertainment, not God, right?</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: small;">The
“I’m-bored” phenomenon plastered all over Facebook and Twitter suggests that
teens are often living between one pleasure-high to the next. In between Justin Bieber’s swoosh and
the latest iPhone game lays the black hole of boredom. The joy of serving others is lost in
the sea of narcissism, which has led to a culture of depressed, self-centered, and
unhappy teens.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Ironically,
the endless stream of entertainment has not brought happiness or joy to the ever-wandering
heart of the American teen. Instead,
it’s led to loneliness, disillusionment, and a sense of being let down. As Ravi Zacharias has said, “The
loneliest moment in life is when you have just experienced that which you
thought would deliver the ultimate, and it has let you down.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: small;">But
in God’s presence there is fullness of joy; in his right hand are pleasures
forevermore (<a href="http://www.esvbible.org/search/Ps.+16%3A11/" style="color: #cc0000;">Ps. 16:11</a>). God wants
his children to be happy, joy-filled disciples of Jesus. But make no mistake: <i>the gospel of Jesus Christ provides the
foundation and fuel for happiness in him</i>. That reality that you are chosen in Christ, born again by
the power of the Spirit, justified in the sight of God, and adopted into his
covenant family, ushers the unhappy to see the majesty of our gracious
God. That God is self-sufficient—complete
in himself from all eternity—and therefore without need of you or me or any
celebrity, draws the unhappy, self-centered teen, again, to see the majesty of
our gracious God. Such majesty
cannot but make the redeemed heart long for his fame and glory—bringing with it
a sense of satisfaction; indeed, happiness.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">As
St. Augustine once taught about the dangers of dis-ordered love, the same can
be said of dis-ordered happiness.
If we seek <i>first</i> the happiness
in the creature, we will never know that happiness which we seek. But if we seek first the happiness in
the Creator, we will know the fullness of joy.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://thereforenow.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/MudPie.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="216" src="http://thereforenow.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/MudPie.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">While
the young man I talked with wanted “to be happy,” his quest for happiness was
too small. He was, as C. S. Lewis
said, “like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum
because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the
sea.” God is supremely happy in Himself and, by grace, offers the teenage soul happiness in Him through Christ
our Lord by the power of the Holy Spirit. The black hole of
boredom explodes with “the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the
face of Jesus Christ” (<a href="http://www.esvbible.org/search/2+Cor.+4%3A6/" style="color: #cc0000;">2 Cor. 4:6</a>).
It is there that the self-centered, unhappy heart vanishes. God wants you happy; don’t pursue
lesser loves.<i> </i></span></div>
<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="color: #666666; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><i>Brian
H. Cosby</i><i> is pastor of <a href="http://www.waysidechurch.org/#" style="color: #cc0000;">Wayside Presbyterian Church in Signal Mountain</a>, TN and author of </i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Giving-Up-Gimmicks-Reclaiming-Entertainment/dp/1596383941/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1351513926&sr=8-1&keywords=giving+up+gimicks" style="color: #cc0000;">Giving Up Gimmicks</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Giving-Up-Gimmicks-Reclaiming-Entertainment/dp/1596383941/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1351513926&sr=8-1&keywords=giving+up+gimicks" name="_GoBack" style="color: #cc0000;"></a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Giving-Up-Gimmicks-Reclaiming-Entertainment/dp/1596383941/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1351513926&sr=8-1&keywords=giving+up+gimicks" style="color: #cc0000;">: Reclaiming Youth Ministry from an Entertainment Culture</a>
(P&R, 2012) <i>and</i> <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Rebels-Rescued-Students-Reformed-Theology/dp/1845509803/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1351513956&sr=1-1&keywords=Rebels+Rescued%3A+A+Student%C2%92s+Guide+to+Reformed+Theology" style="color: #cc0000;">Rebels Rescued: A Student’s Guide to Reformed Theology</a> (Christian Focus, 2012).</span></div>
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Rootedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06082315302384132122noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1279061523138244302.post-31957073232425387042013-02-21T09:45:00.000-06:002013-02-21T15:46:36.552-06:00We All Need Jesus: That’s Why Youth Group Isn’t A Replacement for Corporate Worship<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
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<span style="font-size: small;">In one sense, what
we do as youth ministers is unique in the world of church ministry. Our job definitely includes some of the
most fun - and perhaps, also, the most heartbreak.</span></div>
<div class="BodyA" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://www.funnyjunksite.com/pictures/funnypics/animals/sheep/funny_sheep_picture_22.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="261" src="http://www.funnyjunksite.com/pictures/funnypics/animals/sheep/funny_sheep_picture_22.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div>
<div class="BodyA" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">But in another
sense, our calling isn’t intrinsically different than that of any other
minister. We are all called to
shepherd the flock...it’s just that our flock is going through puberty and will
eventually leave the confines of our specified fold when they graduate from
junior high or senior high.</span></div>
<div class="BodyA" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="BodyA" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">And perhaps it’s
stating the obvious, but whatever our age, what all sheep need most is to be
pointed to their True Shepherd, Christ Jesus the Lord. He is the one in whom we are filled,
and he’s the one in whom the fullness of God is found (<a href="http://www.esvbible.org/search/Col+2%3A9-10/" style="color: #cc0000;">Col 2:9-10</a>). </span></div>
<div class="BodyA" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="BodyA" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Not surprisingly
then, according to Paul’s plea in <a href="http://www.esvbible.org/search/Colossians+2%3A6-7/" style="color: #cc0000;">Colossians 2:6-7</a>, all Christians are called
to “walk in [Jesus], rooted and built up in him and established in the faith,
just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.”</span></div>
<div class="BodyA" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="BodyA" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">The the assumption
Paul makes in this verse is that all<i> </i>Christians
are being taught to walk in Jesus.
The means by which we do this with the youth (<a href="http://therootedblog.blogspot.com/2012/11/remembering-whats-important-part-1.html">as others have writtenmore extensively about, such as Brian Cosby</a>) are nothing less than the means God gave all Christians:
Scripture, true Christian fellowship, the sacraments, and prayer. </span></div>
<div class="BodyA" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="BodyA" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">By faith the Spirit
uses these means to graciously expose our sin, confirm our dependence on Jesus,
and to remind us of our hope in forgiveness, redemption, and new creation.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="BodyA" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Youth group provides
one context within which to employ the means of grace in a targeted way to the
youth. But the means of grace
remain the practices that are to define our worship as the local church - both
young and old, men and women together.
As such, corporate worship remains an essential part--perhaps even the
most important part--of our discipleship with the youth.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">The beauty of corporate worship in the local congregation is
that it provides the opportunity to weave together all the means of grace into
one full-bodied experience in all our local diversity. In fellowship together we read,
meditate on, and preach from Scripture; we pray together in thanksgiving, with
confession, and for one another; and we celebrate the sacraments as members of
God’s family.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYDWeVVyJTMChachVKHyYAkzrSW6sIRs2io0zTx57qWdpaycXZQnAhzk3yaUVM634lCrm3hhMoprRAd9vOgshtYkbppUDxHsPFo8kSiv2ZZ5PTLZ-4ZmG6_HmIPG_dwPR6BmuS7JZY989m/s1600/segregation.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYDWeVVyJTMChachVKHyYAkzrSW6sIRs2io0zTx57qWdpaycXZQnAhzk3yaUVM634lCrm3hhMoprRAd9vOgshtYkbppUDxHsPFo8kSiv2ZZ5PTLZ-4ZmG6_HmIPG_dwPR6BmuS7JZY989m/s320/segregation.jpg" width="264" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">To segregate our youth from corporate worship or somehow
treat them as if they need something different than the rest of the
congregation seems to deny the sufficiency of the gospel of Jesus Christ and
the means He’s given to feed and protect his sheep. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Moreover, it implies that the youth are not yet full members
of the family of God and must wait until they are older to fully participate in
the ministries of the church. Yet
the reality is that any who are in Christ--whatever the age--remain a full
member in the family of God.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="BodyA" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">So may we, as youth
ministers, continue to encourage, equip and enable our youth to fully join in
the corporate worship of the local churches in which we serve. After all, the reality is that what the
youth need is what we all need: more of Jesus.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><i style="color: #666666;">Mark Howard is the Youth Director and Assistant to Pastor at <a href="http://www.trinitypca.net/" style="color: #cc0000;">Trinity Presbyterian Church</a> in Covington, GA. Mark has a Masters in Theology
from <a href="http://www.wheaton.edu/" style="color: #cc0000;">Wheaton College Graduate School</a>. </i></span><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: windowtext;"></span></span></div>
Rootedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06082315302384132122noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1279061523138244302.post-52636343490132236422013-02-18T07:00:00.000-06:002013-02-18T07:00:17.696-06:00The World's Half-Truths For Teens Pt.3: If it Comes Naturally, it's Okay<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
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<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-dENyuwL4qVG9AtRZ8frGU_FSLYlgyoOTlWEMFJZCJtnTPZ4SJfq6uKpBDNidRdsPRCpWS6EgOi0iof7mGrhP42wjpjP2LWgX0gCw5Yow2sQsc2HIbTdE9wva0FmYW4jOF1PTAj5c8rLx/s1600/twilight+poster_4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-dENyuwL4qVG9AtRZ8frGU_FSLYlgyoOTlWEMFJZCJtnTPZ4SJfq6uKpBDNidRdsPRCpWS6EgOi0iof7mGrhP42wjpjP2LWgX0gCw5Yow2sQsc2HIbTdE9wva0FmYW4jOF1PTAj5c8rLx/s320/twilight+poster_4.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div>
<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">For all of it’s
silliness, there is one thing the ubiquitous <i>Twilight</i> saga does well - it offers a powerful challenge to a
popular half-truth in the world today: <i>if
it comes naturally, it’s okay</i>. Since most of our youth have some form of <i>Twilight</i> mania (either loving or hating
the series), it can be useful in starting a discussion</span></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">For those of you
who have miraculously avoided knowledge of the basic plot-line of the <i>Twilight</i> saga, the main character,
Edward Cullen, and his family (a coven of vampires) are caught up in an
existential identity crisis: should <i>what</i>
they now are determine <i>who</i> they are
and what they <i>do</i>?</span></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">You see, Edward
and the Cullens all used to be fully human, doing human things, eating human
foods, and living by the human moral code that murder is wrong.</span></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Fate, however,
changed them into vampires without their consent. Through no fault of their own they now desire human blood,
and need blood to live. They’ve
been transformed into killing machines.
Murder has become fundamental to what they are.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Moreover, blood
makes them stronger, it brings them intense momentary satisfaction, and it
feels supremely good to drink.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Enter the moral
dilemma: <i>does being a vampire make
killing humans and drinking their blood okay? Does the fact that it comes naturally and feels good make
murder morally permissible?</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Here is where -
despite his annoying hair and brooding demeanor - Edward provides a useful
example for youth seeking to follow Jesus and live by the gospel in today’s
world. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioSZkMVJm9I-s6Wty3LT7t_DHFnaVpSWTScdZrroUJbyzyA3bnQ8DU5y3_twKwQedHZ1iVF45sWXe084k_0L73FR0XO2ot91giPoPCnN382JfroygBRTINKtcrfLNMOEJOb7UyAdaYz3I/s1600/100_3539.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioSZkMVJm9I-s6Wty3LT7t_DHFnaVpSWTScdZrroUJbyzyA3bnQ8DU5y3_twKwQedHZ1iVF45sWXe084k_0L73FR0XO2ot91giPoPCnN382JfroygBRTINKtcrfLNMOEJOb7UyAdaYz3I/s320/100_3539.JPG" width="320" /></a></span><span style="font-size: small;">Edward and the
Cullens say no to their vampire nature, concluding that however “natural” and
pleasurable it is for them to drink blood as vampires, it still isn’t
right. And here’s the great part -
they come to this conclusion based on <i>who
they “really” are, not what they currently are</i>.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">There are many
parallels between the vampires’ plight and a biblical understanding of human
nature (theological anthropology).</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">The biblical
narrative tells us that what we are now isn’t who we should be. Scripture makes clear that there is
something profoundly unnatural about the fallen human condition. Like vampires, our desires are out of
whack with the way things should be.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">We may not want
to drink human blood, but we too want illicit pleasure (porn, cutting,
revenge). Human blood doesn’t make
us stronger, but we (along with our youth) naturally apply our cunning to
cheat, lie, and steal our way to greater power and comfort.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><i>Just because
something comes naturally doesn’t make it okay for the Christian. Our moral code and behavior aren’t
determined by the desires of our current state of being, but are based on who
we really are in Jesus.</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Scripture tells
us that our identity isn’t in our flesh, but in Jesus who promises to one day
redeem and make new our flesh (Colossians 3:1-4 and 1 John 3:1-3 make this
point well).</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">And so, like the
Cullens putting off their vampire nature, we are called in Scripture to put off
the “old self” with it’s fallen ways and put on the “new self” which is being
renewed in the image of Jesus.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Perhaps, though,
while encouraging our youth to follow Edward’s example in fighting his
“natural” desires, we should encourage them to avoid (as far as is possible)
Edward’s propensity for angst-ridden teenage pseudo-romantic drama. Just saying...</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><i style="color: #666666;">Mark Howard is the Youth Director and Assistant to Pastor at <a href="http://www.trinitypca.net/" style="color: #cc0000;">Trinity Presbyterian Church</a> in Covington, GA. Mark has a Masters in Theology
from <a href="http://www.wheaton.edu/" style="color: #cc0000;">Wheaton College Graduate School</a>. </i></span><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
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Rootedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06082315302384132122noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1279061523138244302.post-27621036260689695662013-02-14T07:49:00.000-06:002013-02-25T00:24:06.255-06:00The World's Half-Truths For Teens Pt.2: If I Am Better I Will Be Loved<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
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<i>The following article comes from our newest series, The World's
Half-Truth's for Teens. Scott Douglass' article combats the message, "If
I Am Better, I Will Be Loved" continuing an exposition of Ephesians 1:3-14. Click <a href="http://therootedblog.blogspot.com/2013/02/half-truth-performance-pt-1.html" style="color: #cc0000;">here</a> for Pt.1</i></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext;">As we walk through what Ephesians 1, in particular v.
3-14, says to us, let’s remember first and foremost that our identity, our
value, and our acceptance is based on Christ and our being found in Him.</span><i> </i><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #020f18;"></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: #020f18;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: #020f18;">Ephesians 1:3-14</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: #020f18;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord
Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the
heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world,
that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love he predestined us for
adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to
the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved.
In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses,
according to the riches of his grace, which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom
and insight making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his
purpose, which he set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to
unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.</i></span>
</div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: windowtext;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>In
him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the
purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will, so
that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his
glory. In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your
salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who
is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the
praise of his glory.</span></i></div>
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<b><span style="color: #020f18;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div class="Body" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<a href="http://fc05.deviantart.net/fs71/f/2010/150/8/3/redeemed_by_musikalora.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="192" src="http://fc05.deviantart.net/fs71/f/2010/150/8/3/redeemed_by_musikalora.jpg" width="320" /></a><b><span style="color: #020f18;">Redeemed/Forgiven
(v. 7)</span></b><span style="color: #020f18;"> - If you are in Christ, you’re
forgiven for everything you’ve done, and everything you’re going to do!
Remember, this isn’t freedom to do whatever you want and take advantage of
God’s grace. That’s like slacking off and banking on the smart kid to do all
the work for your group project. The beauty of this is that God knows
everything about you - your heart, your faults, your sin, and your shame - and
in Christ He takes all of those things and erases them. Josh Harris has a <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SjvelbJCoNA" style="color: #cc0000;">great demonstration of this</a>.
In Christ, you are forgiven. The Bible uses this idea of redeemed to talk about
who we are in Christ. Redeemed basically means that you have been set free by
someone paying a ransom for you. A movie I loved in college was <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0228750/?ref_=sr_1" style="color: #cc0000;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Proof of Life</i></a> with Russell Crowe. In it
he plays a kidnapping expert who works with a lady whose husband is being held
captive. If they pay up the money, he’ll be set free. The cost is steep, and so
it is with our sin. Romans tells us that the wages (what we have earned) of our
sin is death. Hebrews reminds us that without blood there is no forgiveness.
The problem is that the only way to pay for our sin is by blood shed. Jesus
satisfies this because He dies for us, and with His blood our redemption is
purchased.</span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #020f18;">Lavished</span></b><span style="color: #020f18;"> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">(v. 8) </b>- The
description of God’s grace given to us isn’t one of a dripping faucet or even a
glass of water. The idea Paul gives for us to understand God’s grace in our
life is a fire house from Niagara Falls! God gives us so much grace in Christ
that it covers us and swamps us and overwhelms us. John Mark McMillan describes
it like this <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“if grace is an ocean, we’re
all sinking.”</i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We cannot fully
understand God’s grace in our lives because of how overwhelming it is. And this
is grace that God gives to <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">you</i>. Yes,
you. You who were once an alien, stranger, and enemy of God. You who struggles
with unknown sins to anyone else. You who has doubts, who struggles with
performance expectations, and who wishes to just disappear at times. God gives
you grace. Grace to live daily. Grace to persevere when things get hard. Grace
to love and trust Jesus more. Grace to depend on Him for everything.</span></div>
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<a href="http://www.talkofdetroit.com/beta/images/entry_mid_1435.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="177" src="http://www.talkofdetroit.com/beta/images/entry_mid_1435.jpg" width="320" /></a><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #020f18;">Purpose
(v. 9)</span></b><span style="color: #020f18;"> - Nothing happens by accident.
One of the biggest lies that we’re told is that “stuff happens.” It’s simply
not true. God is sovereign. Part of God’s sovereignty means that everything
that happens is part of a purpose, a plan. History, your life, your friend’s
life, your unborn children’s life, is going somewhere. There is a point to
everything that happens in your life. You are part of God’s redemptive story,
the unfolding drama of God’s activity here on earth. We entertain ourselves to
death, living through social media which has redefined ‘friend’ to make it a
verb, as in when you friend someone. We entertain ourselves to death by
observing everything that happens around us rather than participating. God
invites us to be a part of His work, not tweet about it. You were created for a
purpose, for a task, for a reason. Three books that speak highly to this are <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Dont-Waste-Your-Life-Edition/dp/1581346107/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1360849239&sr=8-1&keywords=Don%E2%80%99t+Waste+Your+Life" style="color: #cc0000;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Don’t Waste Your Life</i></a><span style="color: #cc0000;"> </span>by John Piper, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Just-Do-Something-Liberating-Approach/dp/0802458386/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1360849263&sr=1-1&keywords=Just+Do+Something" style="color: #cc0000;">Just Do Something</a> </i>by Kevin DeYoung, and <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Radical-Taking-Faith-American-Dream/dp/1601422210/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1360849282&sr=1-1&keywords=Radical" style="color: #cc0000;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Radical</i></a> by David Platt. Read them, be
challenged by them, and do something.</span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #020f18;">Inheritance
(v. 11) </span></b><span style="color: #020f18;">- When my grandfather died he
had a provision in his will for my sisters and me to receive a sum of money. It
was a great blessing because that money helped us buy our first home and
provided the finances for me to begin my PhD. But in the grand scheme of
things, it really wasn’t that much money. Another relative died and I got to
pick out a sweater of theirs I liked. At times like that I wish my last name
was Gates, but oh well. Can you imagine what kind of inheritance the God of the
Universe is able to give? Do you think there’s any way to get your head around
the amount? But that is what <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">you</i> are
promised by God in Christ. We stand to receive an inheritance from the King -
and Heaven, with all its promised beauty and splendor,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>is only a glimpse of that.</span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #020f18;">Hope
(v. 12)</span></b><span style="color: #020f18;"> - I can’t tell you how many
times I’ve watched people chase after a hope that fails them. Whether it’s a
scholarship, a leadership position, a spot on the roster, or even their
driver’s license, so many times those hopes fail us. The reality is, everything
we place our hope in apart from Christ will at some point let us down. But the
good news is that Jesus is the hope that never disappoints, always delivers,
and gives us far more than a scholarship or roster spot ever could. Hope gives
us the motivation to go on. People who get lost in the wilderness cling to the
hope of rescue. There are stories from disasters like wars that talk about how
those with hope are able to endure the hardship and make it out - while those
without hope often fulfill their own doom and gloom. You don’t have to worry or
freak out over the scholarships, the performance, the need to be perfect on the
field, or the need to be someone you’re not. Jesus has done all that for you.
Your hope is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">in Him</i>.</span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #020f18;">Sealed
(v. 13) </span></b><span style="color: #020f18;">- Lastly, this passage talks
about how we are sealed by the Holy Spirit. There’s a hymn with the line <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“no power of Hell, no scheme of man, can
ever pluck me from His hand,” </i>and that demonstrates the power of God to
keep us. We buy into the performance lie whenever we tell ourselves that we
must do something in order to keep someone or be accepted. That’s why so many
teens become sexually active, because they’ve bought into the lie that sex =
love. That’s why so many become addicted to drugs like Xanax or Adderol,
because they’ve bought into the lie that performance or happiness = success.
When we replace God with some other substitute, we realize how slippery a grip
we have on that substitute. Do you remember the rope climb in gym class? I
hated it. I never could get a good grip on the rope and so I could never make
it very high. My hands would keep slipping. So many of us are in the same boat
when it comes to our life. But the promise of God is this: in Christ, there is
no way to break the bond between us and God (want proof? Read <a href="http://www.esvbible.org/search/Romans+8%3A31-39%27/" style="color: #cc0000;">Romans 8:31-39</a>).
The Holy Spirit seals us with a stronger grip than we can ever break.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #020f18;">Child of God, my prayer for you is
this: that you would find your satisfaction, your hope, your joy, your peace,
your fulfillment, your acceptance, and your value in Christ alone. My prayer is
that you would ignore the voices around you that tell you to substitute Jesus
for something else that over-promises and under-delivers. My prayer for you,
dear Christian, is to not base your life on a lie of performance but to take
deep roots in the grace of Christ. My prayer, beloved, is to live a holy life
but to recognize that there is nothing you can do to cause God to no longer
love you. My prayer, brother and sister, is to see who you are through the lens
of Christ, not the person next to you.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666;">Scott
Douglas serves as the Minister to Youth at Westside Baptist Church in
Murray, KY. Scott has a Masters in Divinity and is presently pursuing a
Doctorate degree from the <span style="color: #cc0000;">Southern Baptist Theological Seminary</span> in
Louisville, KY.</span></i></span><span style="color: #020f18;"> </span></div>
Rootedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06082315302384132122noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1279061523138244302.post-50992500623452563802013-02-11T08:02:00.000-06:002013-02-25T00:24:18.701-06:00The World's Half-Truths For Teens Pt.1: If I Am Better I Will Be Loved<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
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<i>The following article comes from our newest series, The World's Half-Truth's for Teens. Scott Douglass' article combats the message, "If I Am Better, I Will Be Loved."</i><br />
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<span style="color: windowtext;">“I wish I was better looking”</span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext;">“I wish I was smarter”</span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext;">“If only I could do…”</span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext;">“If only I hadn’t done…”</span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext;">“Why couldn’t I be…?”</span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext;">“I guess I’m not good enough/smart
enough”</span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext;">“I need to get my life right
before I can…”</span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext;">One of the hardest parts of
student ministry is to hear the despair in students. They are broken over
things like past sins, current struggles, regrets, but most of all they are
broken and distraught over the performance mentality that so dominates their
life. It consumes them, because the smartest get the scholarships, the best
athletes get the attention, the most active get the class superlative, and
everywhere they look there’s someone prettier, someone stronger, someone
faster, someone who’s more serious about their faith, someone who can do or know
something they cannot. And in the performance culture, this quickly escalates
to hopelessness.</span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext;">Spiritually though, this can be
more than disappointing, it can be devastating. When students buy into the myth
that their performance leads to their acceptance or value before God, the
result is a constant pursuit of “do better, try harder, be gooder.” Because
performance is so tied to value, the system that dictates class rank, playing
time, and community attention is carried over to their faith. Rather than seeing
themselves rooted and grounded in the work of Christ, students substitute that
for a Deceiver who whispers to them “you’re not good enough to be a Christian,
you need to do better to be accepted by God, you know if you don’t do
everything the way you’re supposed to then you’re nothing but a fraud.”</span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext;">I love the book of Ephesians. I
spent a semester teaching through it, and would love to dedicate longer to it
in the future. I continually come back to Ephesians 1 as a tremendously
valuable passage of Scripture in helping students see who they are in Christ.
At the core of this myth is an identity problem. Students who buy into the
performance mentality believe that their identity is connected to what they do
(or, what they don’t do). As we walk through what Ephesians 1, in particular v.
3-14, says to us, let’s remember first and foremost that our identity, our
value, and our acceptance is based on Christ and our being found in Him.</span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord
Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the
heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world,
that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love he predestined us for
adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to
the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved.
In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses,
according to the riches of his grace, which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom
and insight making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his
purpose, which he set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to
unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.</i></span></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: windowtext;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>In
him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the
purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will, so
that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his
glory. In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your
salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who
is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the
praise of his glory.</span></i><span style="color: windowtext;"></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: windowtext;">Chosen
(v. 3)</span></b><span style="color: windowtext;"> - God has chosen to have a
relationship with <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">you</i>, yes you. The
God of the universe, in grace and love, wanted to have a relationship with you
and pursued you with the love of Christ. You are valuable to God in Christ. You
don’t have to be a blue chip recruit or an All-American to be ‘drafted’ by God.
He chooses you to be a friend and does so in His kindness through Christ. In
verse 11 Paul uses the term “predestined” to describe us. Basically, that means
that God, in wisdom and love, has decided to pursue you and draw you to Himself
for His glory and for the blessing of others.</span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: windowtext;">Holy
& Blameless (v. 4)</span></b><span style="color: windowtext;"> - In Christ,
we’re no longer seen in our stains, guilt, and shame. Instead, God sees us as
He does Jesus - in all His righteousness. You are made right with God. Romans
8:1 declares that there is now no condemnation for those in Christ. You are not
the mistakes you’ve made, nor the things you’re able to do or not able to, you
are in Christ and therefore you are holy.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgo7YzfSGi6zi6PSj0JIbksFIA_R0tNVnyjaRH001cOKdoA6y6A3jTBeUYzveni3ZsFPqiYzdU7A8qMTI_MK7e5h3ZMm8Hay3XNpo5hmKO4pyKnE9YayYDXVEz9Fw75X6dJW2d9Nso8LqM/s1600/comp+adopted.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="258" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgo7YzfSGi6zi6PSj0JIbksFIA_R0tNVnyjaRH001cOKdoA6y6A3jTBeUYzveni3ZsFPqiYzdU7A8qMTI_MK7e5h3ZMm8Hay3XNpo5hmKO4pyKnE9YayYDXVEz9Fw75X6dJW2d9Nso8LqM/s320/comp+adopted.jpg" width="320" /></a><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: windowtext;">Adopted
(v. 5)</span></b><span style="color: windowtext;"> - Don’t ever fail to be amazed
by this. God not only calls us friends in Christ, not only does He forgive us
and give us a new hope, but He <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">adopts</i>
us. You, as a Christian, have God as your Father. He has brought you near to
Him. No matter if you had a great family or if your family belongs on Jerry
Springer, in Christ you are given a whole new identity and you have the God of
the Universe as your Father. You are loved and valued and accepted by God
because He has decided to adopt you and make you His child.</span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: windowtext;">Blessed
(v. 6)</span></b><span style="color: windowtext;"> - We find our blessing in the
Beloved (aka Jesus), in whom we have everything we need. Regardless of whether
you grew up rich or poor, in a single-parent home or stable family, if you have
new shoes or have to buy from consignment, if you go to a great school or to
one that rewards you for not getting arrested/pregnant, you have everything you
need in Jesus. When our needs/wants are shifted from what we think we must have
to what God does, it changes our perspective. Psalm 37:4 says this “Delight
yourself in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart.” When our
primary place of delight, joy, and satisfaction is in God, everything else
falls into place.</span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext;">(Thursday's post will continue helping us understand the lies we believe with <a href="http://therootedblog.blogspot.com/2013/02/the-worlds-half-truths-for-teens-if-i.html" style="color: #cc0000;"><i>The World's Half-Truths For Teens: If I Am Better I Will Be Loved Pt.2</i></a>)</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666;">Scott
Douglas serves as the Minister to Youth at Westside Baptist Church in
Murray, KY. Scott has a Masters in Divinity and is presently pursuing a
Doctorate degree from the <span style="color: #cc0000;">Southern Baptist Theological Seminary</span> in
Louisville, KY.</span></i></span></div>
Rootedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06082315302384132122noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1279061523138244302.post-18819507545816339512013-02-07T13:25:00.001-06:002013-02-07T13:50:12.625-06:00Resisting the Urge to Do Cutting Edge Youth Ministry<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUuQQydx2O1JIcqSw5bt_FZY83f8mR4hgiaVtnk01h1M45M9GZRR_gWUP0T-IdDupEsSTbXOYYJo300JoFi0baG8h-hs-4ArjpjQVh7l29aX2uP-0hCjcYIk5Y_eNUgF2yXbseEvwHZATB/s1600/apple+pie.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a></div>
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In my early twenties upon moving to Birmingham, AL, I attended for three months a mega-church with an impressive growth rate. The pastor regularly boasted about the church’s increasing attendance in between opportunities to talk about the large audiences, to which he was speaking around the world. My last Sunday was capped by the pastor’s proclamation that the incredible prosperity of the church resulted from the “cutting edge ministry,” which they performed (and, oh yea, God too.) I exited with a bad taste in my mouth and a headache from the number of times I rolled my eyes that Sunday. <br />
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Fast forward ten years. I had been working for six years as a youth pastor at the Cathedral Church of the Advent. During a meeting with a business leader in town, where I explained our somewhat unique approach to reaching postmodern teens through a fragmented ministry of smaller, intimate clusters of students, the entrepreneur said, “Wow, it sounds like you guys are really working at the tip of the spear.” As I burned with pride, the voice of my ego whispered, “You might even say that we are on the....cutting edge.” In the one- and only one- potentially cutting edge moment of my life (which lasted ninety seconds), I felt this rush of pride as if my efforts made the difference and as if I had distinguished myself from other ministries. (These are ironically vain sentiments for someone who still uses a flip phone.)<br />
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In all spheres of ministry, the temptation lurks to be “cutting edge.” This enticement may exist more <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7Lu5Kv7FlQalAMWGNtqlJbtmC_WZ-IzMwn4Lx5yktukpIqd0eZ5n5_l7LUng1mZvYN5TDABOW-kS-FlZr8fb3oNfa0BddWJvrATAv8vXcBEgFJedSu7atb1G3-ESJzAKeV2phyplOtSRZ/s1600/cutting+edge.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a>in youth ministry more than other sectors, due to the frequently evolving nature of teen culture, where the target seemingly moves every five to seven years. In a valuable manner, youth ministry people seek to keep a watchful eye on the most efficacious means by which to reach teenagers. It is part of what makes the field exciting and dynamic. At the same time, youth ministry can dedicate exorbitant amounts of attention to finding a magic bullet in our methodology. <br />
<br />
The longer I work with students,<br />
the more convinced I am that<br />
there is nothing sexy or cutting edge <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7Lu5Kv7FlQalAMWGNtqlJbtmC_WZ-IzMwn4Lx5yktukpIqd0eZ5n5_l7LUng1mZvYN5TDABOW-kS-FlZr8fb3oNfa0BddWJvrATAv8vXcBEgFJedSu7atb1G3-ESJzAKeV2phyplOtSRZ/s1600/cutting+edge.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7Lu5Kv7FlQalAMWGNtqlJbtmC_WZ-IzMwn4Lx5yktukpIqd0eZ5n5_l7LUng1mZvYN5TDABOW-kS-FlZr8fb3oNfa0BddWJvrATAv8vXcBEgFJedSu7atb1G3-ESJzAKeV2phyplOtSRZ/s320/cutting+edge.jpg" width="214" /></a>about effective youth ministry. I have annoyed many a colleague with my penchant for repeatedly saying, “There is nothing new under the sun: if you want to be cutting edge, go into biomedical engineering or particle physics, not ministry.” Effective youth ministry boils down to pursuing relationships, teaching scripture, proclaiming the Gospel, worshiping, and praying fervently. That is it. Ministry revolving around these five components has endless possibilities. Other parts of ministry, such as missions, social justice, and fellowship, can have great vibrancy with such a foundation. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7Lu5Kv7FlQalAMWGNtqlJbtmC_WZ-IzMwn4Lx5yktukpIqd0eZ5n5_l7LUng1mZvYN5TDABOW-kS-FlZr8fb3oNfa0BddWJvrATAv8vXcBEgFJedSu7atb1G3-ESJzAKeV2phyplOtSRZ/s1600/cutting+edge.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a>Ministry that lacks relating, exegeting, proclaiming, worshiping, or praying usually evolves into an exercise in futility or a practice in “playing church.” <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7Lu5Kv7FlQalAMWGNtqlJbtmC_WZ-IzMwn4Lx5yktukpIqd0eZ5n5_l7LUng1mZvYN5TDABOW-kS-FlZr8fb3oNfa0BddWJvrATAv8vXcBEgFJedSu7atb1G3-ESJzAKeV2phyplOtSRZ/s1600/cutting+edge.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><br />
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Such a minimalistic philosophy will not sell many books or land you on a panel at the next conference. Nobody has ever been impressed when I describe our strategy with a few participles: loving, teaching, proclaiming, worshiping, and praying. Perhaps, this is because effective youth ministry involves a healthy <i>lack</i> of confidence in<i> our </i>ability to effectuate change and transfers all hope upon what Jesus <i>did do</i> and what the Holy Spirit <i>can do</i>. Thus, our methods become less sexy and sophisticated and more simple and basic. What a relief! Thanks be to God.<br />
<br />
<span style="color: #666666;"><i>Cameron Cole serves as the chairman of Rooted: Advancing Grace-Driven Student Ministry and has been the director of youth ministries for eight years at the Cathedral Church of the Advent in Birmingham, AL. </i></span> camcolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17943913143497052073noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1279061523138244302.post-29553210698448495012013-02-04T10:13:00.001-06:002013-02-04T10:14:57.457-06:00False Reasons for Youth Ministry <div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
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--</style>In the past 10+ years of Christian ministry, I have been
in churches where the expectation for youth ministry was nothing more than
glorified baby sitting. There was actually one time I heard a parent talk about
how much they liked having date night when they would drop their children off
early and leave them at youth group late! I am not making this up, this really
went down… It was interesting and eye-opening to say the least. Maybe you have
never overheard that conversation, but I can assure you that in any given
church, in any denomination there are many different reasons the people of your
church think youth ministry exist for, and many of them are neither right or
biblical. </div>
<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a;"></span></span>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; margin-bottom: 12pt;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a;">I figured in the midst of this series that is based around
a discussion about <b><i><u>what youth ministry is for</u></i></b><i>, </i>I
would jump in and mention a few of the <i>false</i> reasons for having a youth
ministry. Maybe they will simply be good for a laugh or maybe (hopefully) the
Spirit will use them to confront pastors and youth workers with what <i>not </i>to
have as the focus of ministry.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a;">•<span style="-moz-font-feature-settings: normal; -moz-font-language-override: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><b><span style="color: #1a1a1a;">It will save the church</span></b><span style="color: #1a1a1a;"> -
Having a youth ministry may be part of the growth of your church, but it will
not save your church. It will not ever save your church. Only the gospel will
save your church. No youth pastor, no matter how great they are, will be able
to give life to a dying church. </span></span></div>
<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a;">•<span style="-moz-font-feature-settings: normal; -moz-font-language-override: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><b><span style="color: #1a1a1a;">To raise godly kids</span></b><span style="color: #1a1a1a;"> -
Youth ministry is not the way to raise godly children in and of its self.
Again, as above, it might be part of the solution, but it takes much more for a
church to have godly students than simply have a youth ministry. So don't start
a youth group with the thinking that, '<i>now the kids will be godly!'</i></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a;">•<span style="-moz-font-feature-settings: normal; -moz-font-language-override: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><b><span style="color: #1a1a1a;">Child care</span></b><span style="color: #1a1a1a;"> -
As the story above points out, there are people within churches that look at
youth ministry as simply a place to watch their children. Now hopefully you
will actually watch the teens when you are on a missions trip to Africa, but
this should not be the utmost goal of your youth ministry. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a;">•<span style="-moz-font-feature-settings: normal; -moz-font-language-override: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><b><span style="color: #1a1a1a;">Only for those in the church</span></b><span style="color: #1a1a1a;"> -
Youth group has to be fulfilling the mission that Jesus gave to the disciples,
reach the world for Jesus. This means that a youth group cannot be just for
those good church kids. It should look more like <a href="http://www.peopleofwalmart.com/" style="color: #cc0000;">Wal-mart</a> than a country club.</span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://toppun.com/Political-Cartoons/Jesus-Cartoons/Country-Club-Jesus-Blessed-Those-Exclude-Others-Economic-Reasons.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="251" src="http://toppun.com/Political-Cartoons/Jesus-Cartoons/Country-Club-Jesus-Blessed-Those-Exclude-Others-Economic-Reasons.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a;">•<span style="-moz-font-feature-settings: normal; -moz-font-language-override: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><b><span style="color: #1a1a1a;">Only for outreach - </span></b><span style="color: #1a1a1a;">Just
as above the church needs to also care for those in the flock, which means it
cannot only be about reaching the skater kids, and troubled youth. It also
needs to be about ministering to the pastor’s kids. </span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a;">•<span style="-moz-font-feature-settings: normal; -moz-font-language-override: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><b><span style="color: #1a1a1a;">Keep students out of the service</span></b><span style="color: #1a1a1a;"> -
Often the leadership of a church sees youth ministry as a way to keep students <i>out
of the service </i>and out of their hair. There is need for rebuke in this
situation. Jesus welcomed children and teens into his life, and so should our church
leadership!</span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.5in;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a;">•<span style="-moz-font-feature-settings: normal; -moz-font-language-override: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><b><span style="color: #1a1a1a;">Replace parents</span></b><span style="color: #1a1a1a;"> -
Youth ministry will never replace the roll that God has given to the parent. Although
some youth ministers may have thoughts along the line of, '<i>if only I could
get rid of these parents, then these students would grow,' </i>this is a lie
from the pit of hell. Don't believe it for one moment. You are simply called to
come along-side the family and the church to make disciples who love and serve
Jesus. </span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; margin-bottom: 12pt;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a;">What false reasons for youth ministry have you either seen
in your ministry, or heard about from another youth minister? Use the comment
section to share! Humor us and help us guard against the pitfalls of false
reasons for youth ministry.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; margin-bottom: 12pt;">
<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; margin-bottom: 12pt;">
<i><span style="color: #666666;">Josh Cousineau serves as the pastor of Redemption Hill Community. He
previously served as youth pastor at East Auburn Baptist Church. Josh
leads the Gospel Alliance, a network of pastors committed to the Gospel
in New England. </span></i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
Rootedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06082315302384132122noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1279061523138244302.post-74225839558470363612013-01-31T09:17:00.000-06:002013-01-31T09:17:16.416-06:00What Are Youth Ministries For: Pt.3-The Overhaul of Belief System<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
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<a href="http://www.empowernetwork.com/kalyaniroldan/files/2012/12/Decisions-1024x1024.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://www.empowernetwork.com/kalyaniroldan/files/2012/12/Decisions-1024x1024.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Several
years ago I walked around a shopping mall with a student who was weighing the
cost of whether he would walk with Christ as a disciple or go the way go the
world. He had a new, non-Christian girlfriend and the question of whether or
not they would sleep together loomed. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Before
this experience, I would have asserted that the basic function of youth
ministry is discipleship-making. That is the Great Commission and primary
function of the Church, right? Nobody would argue with such a standpoint. However, this conversation with the
teenager uncovered for me that there is a deeper layer beneath
discipleship-making that serves as the foundational purpose of youth ministry.
I think youth ministries function to reform and overhaul the false belief
system, which all students (and people) inherit as a product of original sin. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">A
distorted worldview constitutes the biggest obstacle in the formation of
disciples. This young man called into question the validity of the scriptural position
on sexual abstinence. He proceeded to offer rationale for why premarital sex is
not immoral or harmful, based on his thinking. In the midst of this was an
absence of the idea that God had his best interest in mind while constructing
His Law. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: small;">This
rebuilding project centers on three primary areas: revelation, self, and God.
Just like Adam and Eve, kids believe that authority for truth lies within the
subjective, the self. They do not believe that they can trust God’s Word in the
same way that Adam and Eve disregarded the warnings God issued about the Tree
of Knowledge of Good and Evil. Moving them in a direction of understanding that
truth comes through what God has revealed in His Word serves as a starting
point in the rebuilding effort. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: small;">In
regard to their view of self, teens naturally believe that they can handle life
apart from dependent relationship with God, or that they can be “like God.” God
is there for help when they need Him but generally they can handle life on
their own. Helping kids understand the depth of the problem and nature of their
sin, as beings desiring to live apart from God, brings them into an accurate
understanding of self. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://ahmedbilal.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/belief-system-1.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="287" src="http://ahmedbilal.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/belief-system-1.gif" width="400" /></a></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Finally
and most significantly, they believe that God is not good, cannot be trusted,
and is against them. The need for repeatedly showing God’s interest in their
life, His goodness, His mercy, His kindness, His gentleness, and His generosity
is the backbone of the reformation of the marred belief system. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Discipleship-making
goes nowhere without a complete revolution in the belief system of an
individual. We should aim and pray for movement from these false beliefs to a
place where the heart embraces the reality that we are needy sinners living in
a world ruled by a gracious and good God who longs to live in relationship with
people. The mission of breaking down the false belief system and building a new
foundation, rooted in God’s Truth, is the work of a youth minister. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
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<i><span style="color: #666666;">Cameron Cole is the chairman of Rooted: A Theology Conference for
Student Ministry and the Director of Student Ministries at the Cathedral
Church of the Advent in Birmingham, AL. He is a candidate for a Masters
in Religion from Reformed Theological Seminary. </span></i><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
Rootedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06082315302384132122noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1279061523138244302.post-32206143988864903322013-01-28T11:10:00.002-06:002013-01-28T13:13:39.403-06:00What Are Youth Ministries For? - Pt.2 - Biblical Foundations of Youth Ministry<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
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<a href="http://www.worksmartmompreneurs.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/url.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="228" src="http://www.worksmartmompreneurs.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/url.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a;">I remember one particularly galling Wednesday night
several years ago. The previous days had brought a familiar mix of high-effort,
low-response, excitement, frustration, and discouragement, all in one package.
And when I walked away from a house that night I had just one simple question:
Why? Let's face it: There are times in youth ministry when you walk away from a
small group study or a conversation with a family or a late-night program, and
the thought occurs to you ... "Why I am doing this? Is there any good or
compelling reason that I continue to pour heart and hands, effort and energy
into this work of youth ministry … or am I just keeping the car running?"</span></span></div>
<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a;"> </span></span>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; margin-bottom: 12pt;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a;">A few months ago I was at a conference where I got to hear
Simon Sinek give a short talk on "The Power of Why." His thesis: Why
drives the how, how results in what. But this is the reverse of our normal
practice where we focus on what, argue over how, and rarely figure out any
justification for the whole enterprise.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; margin-bottom: 12pt;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a;">So is there a clear "why" for youth
ministry? Why this work with students, this endeavor within (or without)
our churches to seek out and minister to teenagers? What do we find in Scripture
that convinces us that this work matters and God calls us to it? </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; margin-bottom: 12pt;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a;">The more I reflect on these 15 years in youth ministry,
the more convinced I am that youth ministry is really just one of the manifold
ministries of Christ and His church. It is highly-contextualized ministry to
adolescents that can take a myriad of local forms that all look to Scripture
for both guidance and goal. I make no claim to have THE biblical theology
for youth ministry, but I can attempt a few words of call, challenge, and
comfort that have lead me to a theology for it for our day in the church.
This is my why. This is what I believe.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; margin-bottom: 12pt;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a;">1. Youth ministry is <i><b>mission</b></i> work. The reality is that we
have been called by a missionary God: A Father who sent His Son (for
us!) and His Spirit (in us!) that we might be adopted into His family, united
to Him as sons and daughters, renewed in His image and participating in His kingdom. I'm growing to love <a href="http://www.esvbible.org/search/1+Peter+2/" style="color: #cc0000;">1 Peter 2</a> more and more: "you are a
chosen people, a royal priestshood" ... to what end? "<i>So that </i>you
may declare the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His
marvelous light." We in youth ministry get to stand at the foggy
adolescent intersection of childhood and adulthood, family and friend, church
and wider society. We stand and say it, sing it out: The praise of God to those
who are adrift in the fog and lost in the dark. </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; margin-bottom: 12pt;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a;">2. Youth ministry is <i><b>corporate</b></i> work. It is the church's
work. The Church is the body of Christ, and where He is working, there the Church is to be found. This family of God, this fellowship of Jesus, is
sent (via the Son's command! <a href="http://www.esvbible.org/Matthew+28/" style="color: #cc0000;">Matt 28:18ff</a>, <a href="http://www.esvbible.org/John+20/" style="color: #cc0000;">John 20:21-22</a>) on the mission
of making disciples to Jesus. Though we love the church and are
passionately committed to it, we point to Christ, not to it (or ourselves) - we
want to see students called to a robust, sticky faith in Jesus Christ that is
poured out in love for God and for people. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a;">3. Youth ministry is <i><b>family</b></i> work. God desires for these
broken human families to play their part in telling his story of redemption.
God has designed the family such that parents have the primary spiritual responsibility
of telling the story of God's grace in creation, redemption, and restoration
and then leading kids to know God, to love him heart, soul, mind, and strength
with an everyday faith (<a href="http://www.esvbible.org/search/Deut+6/"><span style="color: #cc0000;">Deut. 6</span></a>). </span></span></div>
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<a href="http://calvaryfv.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/lg-disciple.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="195" src="http://calvaryfv.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/lg-disciple.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a;">4. Youth ministry is <i><b>student</b></i> work. The church faces a
world in which many adolescents are both far from God and in the dark - and yet
none less than Jesus Himself is seeking them through the work of His Spirit.
Where possible, the church must partner with the family for the sake of
declaring the gospel to the next generation (<a href="http://www.esvbible.org/search/Ps.+71%3A16-18/"><span style="color: #cc0000;">Ps. 71:16-18</span></a>). But just as the
church doesn't forsake the parents but must equip them to (re)discover their
God-given role in the discipleship of their kids, it must not also forsake the
kids and students who do yet know Christ. That means the work of training
and equipping adults and students from the church to go out and share in the
mission: Seek students, stand with them, speak out for them, love them, and
bear witness among them to Christ at work in their midst. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a;">5. Youth ministry is <i><b>welcoming</b></i> work. The church must
welcome kids/students into its communal life of worship and witness and BE the
extended family of God to those who have been abandoned. If Paul can talk about
the church as the place of new humanity in Christ where Jew and Gentile stand
before Christ together, it damn well better be the place for adults and kids
together, too. As the church welcomes kids, it welcomes the Lord Himself
(<a href="http://www.esvbible.org/search/Mk.+9%3A33-37/" style="color: #cc0000;">Mk. 9:33-37</a>). Our welcome here is our worship (<a href="http://www.esvbible.org/search/Rom.+15%3A7-9/" style="color: #cc0000;">Rom. 15:7-9</a>). Part of making a
home for them means taking pains to teach them and make the long-term
commitment to walk beside them into maturity as a whole human being renewed in
Christ and ready to take up their vocation in this world. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a;">6. Youth ministry is <i><b>desperate</b></i> work. To persist in this
ministry you must heed the call of God to know him for his sake, to follow him
in full knowledge of the cost, and to boast only in his cross,. You
must loosen your control, let go of outcomes, and lift your eyes to the risen
Christ who speaks to your timid heart: "Take courage! It is I: do not be
afraid… and I am with you. Always." Fix your eyes on Him, make your prayer
that of Paul in <a href="http://www.esvbible.org/search/Phil.+3%3A9-14/" style="color: #cc0000;">Phil. 3:9-14</a>, and devote yourself to the work of the Lord
because none of it goes to waste (<a href="http://www.esvbible.org/search/1+Cor.+15%3A58/" style="color: #cc0000;">1 Cor. 15:58</a>).</span></span><br />
<br />
<div style="color: #666666;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="color: #666666;">
<i>Andy Cornett is the Director of Student Ministries at <a href="http://www.signalpres.org/" style="color: #cc0000;">Signal Mountain Presbyterian</a> in Chattanooga, TN. Andy earned a Masters in Divinity from <a href="http://www.fuller.edu/" style="color: #cc0000;">Fuller Theological Seminary</a> in Pasadena, CA and has over ten years of
experience in youth ministry<span style="font-size: small;">.</span></i></div>
</div>
Rootedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06082315302384132122noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1279061523138244302.post-52252217048456772382013-01-24T07:30:00.000-06:002013-01-28T13:14:00.782-06:00Ministry Across America- Manhattan<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
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<a href="http://cdn.omg-facts.com/2013/1/21/99b85872abebcd72fd3478d9ca748b33.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://cdn.omg-facts.com/2013/1/21/99b85872abebcd72fd3478d9ca748b33.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<b> 1.<span style="-moz-font-feature-settings: normal; -moz-font-language-override: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></b><b><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">Please describe the context in which you minister
(socio-economics, geography, race, etc.</span></b></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">New York City is, of course, a diverse
community both socially and economically with hundreds of cultural pockets
throughout the five boroughs. Primarily, our ministry context in Manhattan is
one where students come from households where both parents are in the home, are
college graduates, with many of those having some post-graduate degree. Last I
checked, Redeemer was 45% Asian-American, the most prominent being
Korean-American. Caucasian, Black and Hispanic make up for 55% of the church
with Caucasian being the majority. We have 20 something schools represented in
our youth community ranging from private to public to home-school.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">2.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><b>What are your students' biggest stumbling blocks when it comes to
receiving the Gospel?</b></span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">That’s a good question… Generally, I’ve found
that though there are experiences acute to teen life (puberty, SAT’s, etc.) the
real stumbling blocks in our context are ones that both adults and students struggle
to overcome. I’m thinking specifically about the “intellectual questions” i.e.,
exclusivity, faith vs. science, reliability of the Bible, etc.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Of course, the biggest obstacle for
someone receiving the Gospel is not intellectual but spiritual. Questions need
to be answered, but hearts need to be changed, before we can receive the
Gospel. That, of course, is only something God can do. For that reason, maybe I’d
be careful to not distinguish too sharply stumbling blocks of teens vs. stumbling
blocks of everyone else. </span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">3.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><b>How do teenagers in your region feel about the Church and
Christianity as a whole?</b></span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">From what I understand about 3% of New York
City residents consider themselves professing, evangelical Christians so there
is a lot of misunderstanding about the Church and Christianity, as a whole. I’d
say that the non-believing NYC teens assume the spiritual position of their
parents but with an extra bent towards universalism. Having opportunities to present
the Gospel in public high schools, I’ve found students are naturally pretty
skeptical about the Church as an institution and Christians as people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, they are open to spiritual discussions
and are intrigued when they meet someone who has thought through faith and
culture bit and appears to be living in light of their beliefs. The common
response I’ve encountered is one of genuine surprise over discovering something
so beautiful. Once you unpack Christian doctrine and demonstrate how the grace of
God extends to their own story, students find the Gospel desirable. </span></div>
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<b><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">3.) What perceptions and reactions do teenagers in your area have to
Christian morality?</span></b><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> Though a typical NYC
teen might respect the Ten Commandments as a religious or cultural institution
(especially our Jewish friends and neighbors), they wouldn’t necessarily see
its relevance to their daily lives. Though a student might not phrase it this
way, they would (<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">like their parents</i>)
believe the traditional, Biblical sex ethic was culturally conditioned and
therefore, out of date.</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;"></span></div>
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<b><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">4.) What approaches have you found helpful in dealing with the
aforementioned stumbling blocks such that you effectively can share the Gospel with
students in your area and bring them in to the life of the Church?</span></b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxRfDOpipVONSWjSinuGvyu15o_AKr0ME9Qo4eFVOFhNJdolg65LVtTOI9zOdy_EuyjiBuHKau2VQnECuSUPrSvJ48WuL-W2IuEx0NwlxpZBOYZjhc383nPWJMa-6FliYKbjAEAJuUIA0/s1600/Facebook-Narcissism.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="254" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxRfDOpipVONSWjSinuGvyu15o_AKr0ME9Qo4eFVOFhNJdolg65LVtTOI9zOdy_EuyjiBuHKau2VQnECuSUPrSvJ48WuL-W2IuEx0NwlxpZBOYZjhc383nPWJMa-6FliYKbjAEAJuUIA0/s320/Facebook-Narcissism.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">If</span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> we are doing a good job, we couldn’t point to
any one thing, it really has been a combination of bible teaching, worship, and
consistent time with one another.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>However, one discipline does set up the others. For us, everything is
built upon our preaching and clearly articulating what transpires between God
and mankind in Christ- and then applying the meaning of that for students whose
lives are often filled with loneliness, boredom, rejection, narcissism, etc. By
teaching sound doctrine in an engaging and relevant way, we are able to begin
cultivating a grace-based community not just of students but of parents,
pastors, lay-leaders <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">and students</i>. </span></div>
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<b><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">5.) What encouragement would you give to other youth pastors in your
area trying to reach teenagers? </span></b><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Practically
speaking, let the Lord regularly encourage you with his private company through
his Word. Then meet regularly with other youth workers who also spend time with
Christ<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">.</i> Pray and vision cast
together. Learn from each other, do case studies with one another, share ideas
and resources, and be inspired by what God is doing in the field of labor we’re
all in.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Secondly, I'd remind them
of what the apostle Peter reminds us in chapter one of his first epistle, where
he basically says, the only permanent thing in an otherwise temporary world is
the resurrection of Christ. There are few jobs in ministry as notoriously temporary
as the youth pastor role. From what I gather, many are looking beyond to a
future ministry post, or biding their time while in seminary, and some are
bi-vocational and simply filling the gap because the church has asked. Whatever
the case may be, be encouraged that the Lord has placed you there and is at work-
even <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">within a fleeting moment</i>. Trust
God, be bold and teach them something eternal. Lastly, come to the <a href="http://rootedconference.com/" style="color: #cc0000;">RootedConference</a> next fall in Atlanta!</span></div>
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<i><span style="color: #666666;">Rev. David Plant serves as the Director of Youth Ministry at</span></i> <a href="http://www.redeemer.com/" style="color: #cc0000;">Redeemer Presbyterian Church<span style="color: #cccccc;"> <span style="color: #666666;">in New York, NY</span></span><span style="color: #666666;">.</span></a></div>
Rootedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06082315302384132122noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1279061523138244302.post-73825480015267198632013-01-21T07:30:00.000-06:002013-01-28T13:12:15.978-06:00What Are Youth Ministries For? - Pt.1<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
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<a href="http://q2learning.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/moving-target.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://q2learning.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/moving-target.jpg" width="224" /></a><span style="font-size: small;">Hitting a moving target requires an ever-changing aim. This is as true in youth ministry as
anywhere else. The aim of youth
ministries historically has shifted as the needs in society have changed. It’s hard for us in the 21<sup>st</sup>
century to imagine a world without adolescence, a world that would not
understand the concept of a full time youth pastor. We only need to turn the clock back a few centuries to find
our role in the church completely irrelevant. Why is that? In
the early days of youth ministry, specifically the 19th century, much of the
efforts toward youth were devoted to children. Most teenagers were in the work force at that point. Later in the century the public high
school emerged and by the early 1900’s the concept of adolescence was first described
by psychologist <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/G._Stanley_Hall" style="color: #cc0000;">G. Stanley Hall</a>.
So, it’s not surprising that the aim of youth ministries historically
has changed.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">In a <a href="http://thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/tgc/2012/04/02/a-brief-history-of-youth-ministry/" style="color: #cc0000;">blog post for The Gospel Coalition</a>, I looked at the
history of youth ministry from the middle of the 20<sup>th</sup> century forward
to see significant developments. In
this post we will look at just a few purposes or aims of youth ministries in
the past. For a more comprehensive
look at the history of youth ministry, I would suggest Mark Senter’s book “<a href="http://www.amazon.com/When-God-Shows-Up-Protestant/dp/0801035902/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1358751818&sr=8-1&keywords=When+God+Shows+Up%3A+A+History+of+Protestant+Youth+Ministry+in+America" style="color: #cc0000;">When God Shows Up: A History of Protestant Youth Ministry in America</a>.” Meanwhile, let’s look at just five
purposes that youth ministries have served or are serving at some point in
history. I am sure you can think
of more.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">1.<span style="-moz-font-feature-settings: normal; -moz-font-language-override: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span><b>To keep
kids off the streets.</b> Several
ministries to young people emerged in history for the specific purpose of
keeping kids off the streets. The
YMCA is an example of an organization that formed because rural young people
were moving into the cities to find work and needed support in their new life
in the city. A gospel opportunity
was seen and the YMCA became a place to gather young men and provide Bible
studies, fellowship, and prayer meetings.
Many American youth ministers today would not describe this as their primary
purpose for youth ministry. The typical suburban teen has more activities in
their life than they have time for. Yet as I spoke with an Egyptian pastor
recently I heard of a real need for the church to provide a safe haven from
life on the streets. He described
to me how seven days a week loads of teens show up at his church and they feed
them, help with homework, provide Bible studies, prayer, activities, etc. What might not be viewed as a currently
relevant purpose in one context may be vital in another.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">2.<span style="-moz-font-feature-settings: normal; -moz-font-language-override: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span><b>To keep a
vibrant faith in the lives of young people.</b> In the late 1800’s, Christian
Endeavor emerged as an international movement that sought to help young people
grow in their walk with Christ. Several mainline denominations soon formed
their own organizations for similar purpose. The denominational versions could take on a more
catechetical approach as they brought to the table their own particular
theological and ecclesiological emphasis.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">3.<span style="-moz-font-feature-settings: normal; -moz-font-language-override: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span><b>To
provide Christian fellowship for teens.</b> Following the formation of denominational organizations that
promoted Christian faith, local churches began fellowship groups for young
people. These in some cases shifted the focus from discipleship to training in
churchmanship. In many denominations over time these fellowship groups became a
holding place for youth to be involved until they would be old enough to
participate in the full life of the church.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">4.<span style="-moz-font-feature-settings: normal; -moz-font-language-override: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span><b>To reach
unchurched young people with the gospel.</b> The para-church movements of <a href="http://www.yfc.net/" style="color: #cc0000;">Youth For Christ</a> and <a href="http://www.younglife.org/us" style="color: #cc0000;">Young Life</a>
took a decidedly more evangelistic approach. The emergence of a distinct youth culture created a context
to reach teens that were not being ministered to in the church. Youth For Christ began with
evangelistic rallies (Billy Graham being one of the main evangelists) and Young
Life took a local club approach where groups met in students’ homes.</span></div>
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<a href="http://tworiverschurch.org/files/Images/Other%20Logos/Young%20Life.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="235" src="http://tworiverschurch.org/files/Images/Other%20Logos/Young%20Life.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">5.<span style="-moz-font-feature-settings: normal; -moz-font-language-override: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span><b>To make
disciples of young people. </b> In
some ways reacting to the para-church movements, a number of organizations
emerged that either sought to disciple teens or created resources for the
church to make young disciples. In
some contexts this has meant resourcing or partnering with parents. Most American youth pastors would
likely describe their purpose in youth ministry as primarily making disciples.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Looking at the aims of youth ministry over history helps us
see how context shapes the needs and opportunities for ministry to students. My friends who do urban youth ministry
speak of the need to get students off the streets while those doing suburban
ministry complain that their students are far too busy for youth group
meetings. Most of us however would deplore the idea of simply providing
fellowship for youth because we have seen the need for making disciples and
evangelizing the unchurched. Some would argue that there was a time in recent
history when it appeared as if youth ministries existed merely to attract large
crowds and make the church leadership feel good about the future of the
church. Fortunately things are
changing in the youth ministry landscape both here and further afield.</span></div>
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<i>Dave Wright is the Coordinator for Youth Ministries in the Episcopal
Diocese of South Carolina and blogs at <a href="http://fusionmusing.blogspot.com/" style="color: #cc0000;">http://fusionmusing.blogspot.com</a></i></div>
Rootedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06082315302384132122noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1279061523138244302.post-56957514290943527142013-01-17T08:16:00.000-06:002013-01-17T08:21:19.003-06:00Confessions of a Small Town Student Pastor<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
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<a href="http://www.kansascommerce.com/images/pages/N453/more%20white_Small%20Town%20Spotlight_Logo_FINAL.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="188" src="http://www.kansascommerce.com/images/pages/N453/more%20white_Small%20Town%20Spotlight_Logo_FINAL.jpg" width="200" /></a><span style="font-size: small;">Every now and then we take our regular worship service and change things up. I give our band a night off to thank them for their hard work and to create an environment that doesn’t become dependent on something else besides the Word taught. Typically we do a time of prayer that involve several stations to engage them in repentance, thanksgiving, service, and supplication. I usually ask them to write out their prayers. I think writing prayer helps to process what you’re praying for rather than a series of ‘dear Lord’-s. This past time I had them write out their sin they wanted to confess on black paper with a dark pencil and tape it to the cross, after they had read <a href="http://www.esvbible.org/search/1+Peter+2%3A21-25/" style="color: #cc0000;">1 Peter 2:21-25</a>.<br /><br />Now confession time: I read the pieces of paper. This is as old a youth minister trick as the caramel covered onion or the camp roommate assignment list. It provides an immediate and anonymous look into the lives of students, to give a window into what prayer needs are there in our student ministry. It’s beautiful, but it’s heartbreaking.<br /><br />We serve in a typical American small town. Most of the businesses are locally-owned, it’s impossible to find a good cup of coffee (I miss Starbucks), the school systems are the predominant social group, and when an accident happens on the main road it can tie up the entire town. Our town hosts a regionally known Division I university, and is the primary education seat of our region. We were also voted last year as the “Friendliest Small Town in America” by <a href="http://www.bestoftheroad.com/" style="color: #cc0000;">Randy-McNally</a>. The summer focused on a special election about making our town wet, which prompted the opposing side to declare our town a good old-fashioned American town, the one that loves family values and is a good, morally sound community.</span></div>
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<a href="http://www.jimnolt.com/metmay.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="231" src="http://www.jimnolt.com/metmay.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="font-size: small;"><br />But that image of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mayberry" style="color: #cc0000;">Mayberry</a> is not what I read on those slips of paper. Most of them were your standard teenage angst: rude to parents, talking about other people, dating one guy and being interested in another, struggling with siblings, and not focusing on school as much. But there were some that hurt to read. A girl who cuts and covers it by bullying. Several guys who admitted to pornography. One who admitted to repeated inappropriate text messages to different girls. Still others who admitted to pot, alcohol, and other substance issues. Broken relationships. Sexual promiscuity. Dysfunctional family situations. Same-sex attraction. You name it, it’s sitting on my dining room table, the tears and shame visibly evident.<br /><br />The veneer of our community, and even our church and student ministry, is one where everything is ok. But behind that good face is an indescribable hurt. One that is being masked by a fig leaf of religiosity - or worse yet, the false promise of an insecure salvation. None of the self-help, guidance counseling, crisis intervention, or anything like that can solve this pain. Only Jesus can.<br /><br />So what to do? What follows is at attempt to process all this and offer some prescription for us in smaller communities.<br /><br />Pray - Intercede for these students, pray for wisdom for parents, pray for repentance, pray for God to increase grace.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><br />Don’t be naive - We cannot pretend that these kinds of problems belong ‘over there,’ and miss out on reality. These problems aren’t city problems or poor problems or ethnic problems. They’re problems that come from a Deceiver who wants teenagers to believe something else besides Jesus will satisfy them.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><br />Address the heart of the issue - The issue isn’t drugs or alcohol or peer pressure. The issue is the heart, one that is bent against God. Make sure to not lose sight of this and try to fix addiction, self-harm, etc. The first need is Jesus. Then work on everything else in light of that.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><br />Be honest - I plan on sharing that I read the cards, and begin by offering myself and my wife as resources. Knowledge isn’t power, only knowledge that is used has any value. I could choose to overlook these findings, or choose to respond to them. These issues are very real and painful - to ignore them is a shameful act.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><br />Involve parents - Small town ministries may find themselves fighting against a cultural Christianity, rather than an emphasis on the work of Christ. Many times my thought is that parents assume their kids are safe/fine/good. But meet with your parents and begin to bring them on board. Take time to pray for students. Maybe they’re even hiding knowledge of their teen’s problems because of shame. Remove that, and every other barrier that prevents the Spirit from working.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><br />Refocus - Take a minute and assess if you’re teaching accurately about the power of the Gospel. Make every message, teaching time, devotion, etc. about the Gospel. Teach the all-inclusive and all-encompassing power of the Gospel to not only save the soul but provide the answer to the deepest conditions of the human heart.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><br />Pray - Worth repeating.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><br />Seek wisdom - Student ministers, remember: we’re not Superman. Bring in other godly leaders who have likely dealt with similar issues. Get yourself in a network, get in contact with older student ministers. Involve your pastor in the conversation. Whatever you do, do not do it alone!</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666;">Scott
Douglas serves as the Minister to Youth at Westside Baptist Church in
Murray, KY. Scott has a Masters in Divinity and is presently pursuing a
Doctorate degree from the <span style="color: #cc0000;">Southern Baptist Theological Seminary</span> in
Louisville, KY.</span></i></span>Rootedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06082315302384132122noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1279061523138244302.post-9628238981086823902013-01-08T16:29:00.000-06:002013-01-08T20:29:47.339-06:00Hail Mary, Blessed Art Thou Among Skeptics<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMar-U3RijZciY-FICkGkI4rjCOrGaPRnhxBiBX2eWyLdxKMPm3aAQ9X8eCHmOOaxI3vUn5LhN_MH6kuiBBtVLfbcje5WiTth6PHgkJt_82yADg6E2ReSsSQOZtNclOzQ3kDET6oaeSOqS/s1600/Magnificat.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMar-U3RijZciY-FICkGkI4rjCOrGaPRnhxBiBX2eWyLdxKMPm3aAQ9X8eCHmOOaxI3vUn5LhN_MH6kuiBBtVLfbcje5WiTth6PHgkJt_82yADg6E2ReSsSQOZtNclOzQ3kDET6oaeSOqS/s320/Magnificat.jpg" width="320" /></a>One
of my favorite characters in the Bible is the Virgin Mary (hence the name of my
baby girl, Mary Matthews.) Very often, the honest, authentic, and skeptical
nature of Mary is lost in Christmas sentimentality. Working from the text in Luke 1: 26-38, here
are several ways in which Mary serves as a superb model and entry point for
teenagers struggling with and doubting Christian faith:<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<b>11.)<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; font-weight: normal;">
</span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Mary
questions whether things that come from God are good or bad. <o:p></o:p></b></div>
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When
the angel appears to Mary to deliver a message from God, <span style="color: #2f1a14; font-family: "Times New Roman";">she was greatly troubled at
the saying and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be” (v.1:29).
She did not just assume that all circumstances or words that originate with God
are good. In reality, this is the deepest question with which teenage skeptics
wrestle. At the bottom of their doubts- regardless of whether they identify
themselves as an atheist or agnostic- they believe in a higher power. However,
they question whether that “god” is personal and good. Mary, the mother of God,
shares their same hesitations when the angel appears to her. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><b><span style="color: #2f1a14; font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">22.)<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-weight: normal;">
</span></span></b><!--[endif]--><b><span style="color: #2f1a14; font-family: "Times New Roman";">Mary wrestled with
questions about science and religion. <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<br /></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAykUlv4xhlaZjOEicLMEwJjy5W88oI6M2A_mcsNqPsxNeDmLYndBwYmnHjk2pnDKCOG23Pi8FhTFm9mizZVd0SlIyzDBDxdICY7afUHqT-ALBUSLrWSAXgKcj5CX27JDuQE0QZjrVFgbu/s1600/science+and+religion.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAykUlv4xhlaZjOEicLMEwJjy5W88oI6M2A_mcsNqPsxNeDmLYndBwYmnHjk2pnDKCOG23Pi8FhTFm9mizZVd0SlIyzDBDxdICY7afUHqT-ALBUSLrWSAXgKcj5CX27JDuQE0QZjrVFgbu/s320/science+and+religion.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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When
the angel pronounced to Mary that she had conceived a child, she asked, “How
can this be since I am a virgin?” Given that Mary stands as perhaps the most
celebrated and revered woman in Christianity (or any world religion for that
matter), many teens may be surprised to see that she raised doubts about
science and religion. She did not just assume, “Well, of course, the answer is
that God will perform a miracle.” Mary raised the reasonable question that her
conceiving a child defies the biological explanation of how children are
conceived, since she not had sex before. She needed help and reassurance from
God to come to where she could believe that God would and could perform a
miracle and that He is at work in this realm. What a comfort to teens that
struggle with questions over science and faith that their struggle is not new
and that even that strongest of Christians experience it too. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>33.)<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; font-weight: normal;">
</span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Mary
came to faith in light of suffering. <o:p></o:p></b></div>
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So
many teenagers resist embracing God because they have suffered trauma or see so
much evil in the world. Many times I hear teenagers say that they never can
believe that there is a good God because they have seen and experienced so much
suffering. Mary serves as an example of
one who has experienced the worst and still maintains faith in God. Mary is a
poor, disenfranchised woman who will become ostracized from Jewish society
because she appears to be a whore. Her family will have to flee and leave the
country due to wicked leaders who want to slay her baby. Herod will murder all
of the children in her hometown on account of her child’s special status as
King of Kings. A suffering teenager, who really wants to believe but simply
can’t, may find comfort and hope in seeing how much the matriarch of
Christianity suffers and yet still can embrace God. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><b>44.)<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; font-weight: normal;">
</span></b><!--[endif]--><b>Mary’s
faith comes from God, not effort. <o:p></o:p></b></div>
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In
my own life when I fail to walk in the reality of God’s goodness and the
benefits of Christ’s death on the Cross, I futilely try to muster up faith to
believe. I have found that I have to ask and trust God for the faith that I
need to walk in His truth. Mary’s transition from doubt and questioning to
humble obedience does not come through effort, self-talk, or technique. God
does something in her heart to make that giant leap across this spiritual
impasse. After hours of conversation and reference to apologetics, I often come
to the conclusion with a student that he or she needs to ease off trying to
generate faith and simply ask God to give them the faith they desire. Mary’s
incredible faith appears to come by God’s miraculous work in her heart as
opposed to Mary’s spiritual determination. <o:p></o:p></div>
<!--EndFragment-->camcolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17943913143497052073noreply@blogger.com0