Youth Winter Fest 2015 was absolutely incredible! It was awesome having 16 churches together in one place to meet with God and grow in our relationships. Best of all, we have heard stories of dozens of students who made decisions to make Jesus the leader of their lives, and that is what it is all about! Our theme this year was Honor, and our speaker Lamont O’Neil challenged us to be men and women who honor God in all we say and do. We had a great time of worship with Mitch Parks, Daniel Bashta, and the Fellows. We also experienced a powerful time of ministry by the Nubian Gents and Feminine Fire – the ministry Lamont O’Neil started 20 years ago to mentor and disciple students. Many reports have been coming in about the impact our morning seminars had on them. The three seminars were on Honoring God in our media habits, Honoring God through music, and Honoring God in our relationships. The prayer room was also a major hit with students. And, of course, we had tons of fun on Saturday playing football, table games, hanging out in the snack shop and playing volleyball, basketball, and dodgeball tournaments. Everyone’s already asking about next year. Here’s the recap video. Enjoy! #YWF15
Which One Do You Need? (5 Types of Retreats)
This coming weekend we are taking our students away for the weekend for Youth Winter Fest – a weekend retreat where over 400 students from churches all over our area will gather together for an encounter with God, and to deepen relationships. I believe there is tremendous power is disconnecting from the everyday, ordinary to connect with God and others in an extraordinary way. A little over a year ago I shared 5 different types of retreats that I find are very significant and meaningful. Here they are:
“Living the Life is NOT Enough”
“Every once in a while, I meet someone who says something like, ‘I don’t think you have to go around telling people about Jesus. I think all you have to do is live the life that Jesus wants you to live so others can see that life and want to become Christians themselves. That’s what I do.’
“What arrogance! Stop and think about it. These persons are saying, ‘I don’t have to explain Jesus to anybody. I am so righteous that all I have to do is let people take a good look at me and they will fall over converted.
“I don’t know about you, but there are enough flaws and shortcomings in my life for me not to want people to look too closely lest they be disillusioned in a big way. I don’t preach myself; I preach Christ. I do not hold myself up; I hold Him up. I have to tell people about Jesus because only He embodies the goodness that is worthy of emulation. All the rest of us fall short of the glory of God. It is through hearing the gospel story that others gain the opportunity to enter into a transforming relationship with God – and transformed people are the instruments of love and justice who can transform the world (see Romans 10:15).”
– Tony Campolo
Share Your Story: At What Point Did Your Faith Become Your Own?
I am currently reading a book by Len Kageler in which he mentioned a question he often asks his students. I thought it was an interesting question, and I would love to hear your responses to it.
At what point did your faith become your own? That is, do you see your Christian faith as a carryover of what your parents told you, or has there been a point when you realized it is now your faith, not theirs. Be honest. Tell me your story.
We’re A Long Way Off
I have been listening to this song for over a year now and contemplating it very regularly. It is my favorite song from Gungor’s album I am Mountain. For me it is such a call to humility and grace. May it encourage, challenge, and bless you as well.
Practicing what we Preach vs. Preaching what we Practice – A Thoughtful Insight
Francis Schaeffer was away at college when he was experiencing a sense of failure over doing something wrong, then being chastised by other students for not “practicing what he preached.” In a letter to Francis his soon-to-be wife Edith wrote him something insightful:
“Franz dear –
We humans fall so short of our ideals at times that it is discouraging. But we wouldn’t want to preach that side of it – I mean we wouldn’t want to say – ‘Well, once a month it’s a fine thing to break through and do something entirely opposite to what you believe is right’ – just because all of us do do things like that. We don’t want to sanction it – just for the sake of preaching what you practice? We want to really preach the Christian life – and then we want to live it so far as is possible, but because we are human – we can’t be perfect. That’s where forgiveness comes into the picture – forgiveness for our mistakes. I don’t know whether you can read into this what I am trying to say or not. Anyway – I think the fellows are all wrong in picking on one small slip – when there is so much more in your life that is parallel to your ‘preaching.’ In fact, I think it might help your influence for them to know that a Christian is just as human as anyone else – the difference is that he has someone to go to with his mistakes – and difficulties – to get them smoothed out – that that instead of pulling him down … he goes on again – a bit more prayerfully – and a bit stronger for having found his feet and climbed up the hill he slid down. See???” (Francis and Edith Schaeffer, pp. 63-64)
Canadian Wilderness Trip Lesson #6: Necessities
Ever since seeing my dad’s as a kid I had wanted one.
A Stanley 1.1 quart Classic Thermos.
They’re not cheap as thermoses go, so I have often passed them up. But while I was in Walmart shopping for our trip, there it was. Spotlight from heaven shining down upon it. A vision of baby angels in diapers sitting on clouds was seen, and the sound of them singing and playing harps was heard. I knew this was God’s appointed time for me to finally spring for one. And so I did. As I drove home all I could think about was how great it would be drinking Starbucks Via from my thermos in the Canadian wilderness.
I packed my supplies for the trip and was excited about all of my gear, my new Stanley 1.1 quart Classic Thermos chief amongst it all. I took an earth science class in high school, and one of the things I took away from Mr. Moore’s class, when talking about survival in the outdoors, was to prepare for the worst and hope for the best. As I looked through my gear I was sure I had everything I needed.
But then something happened. I picked up my luggage. It was heavy.
No problem. My suitcase had wheels. But my suitcase wasn’t going into the outdoors with me. All of this stuff was going to go into a pack along with my share of team supplies, including food and a tent, all of which was to be carried on my back. And so, I took the painful measure of going through my gear and lightening my load. Some things that I really liked and wanted to take didn’t make the cut because I realized they were not essential.
I went through the process several more times, and each time I made the hard choice to leave things behind. One thing that kept making the cut, however, was my Stanley 1.1 quart Classic Thermos. As we were making final preparations before getting into our canoes and setting out for the week, Greg, one of our experienced team leaders saw me struggling to fit everything into my pack. I had crammed as much in as I could fit. I sat on my pack and squeezed out as much air as I could, but my thermos was not in the pack. Greg asked, “Do you have a cup?” I assured him I did. “If I was you,” he said, “I would leave the thermos. You’re not going to need it.”
What?! O no he didn’t! No way! This thermos was coming with me! I found a couple of carabiners and hooked the thermos onto my pack. Heavy? Yes. Necessary? Do you really have to ask?
By day 3 … I had not used the thermos … not once. I forgot I was going to be up so early each day and would have my 2 cups of coffee in me before 8am. I also apparently neglected to consider that I would be busy paddling all day and wouldn’t have time to sip coffee anyways, even if I wanted to. Plus, one of the carabiners broke and I had to deal with the thermos clunking around while I was struggling to carry my pack along the trails.
Sometimes we need to leave behind things in order to get where we want to go. Sometimes it’s obvious and easy. They may be things that we know are not good for us. They might be sinful things. But then, there are other things that are not as easy to identify and let go of because they are not bad. They are not sinful. But the issue isn’t whether or not they are bad, it’s a question of whether they are essential and helpful in getting us where God wants to take us. The hard thing is letting go of the good things that God tells us we must leave behind in order to reach the great places He wants to take us.
The Apostle Paul put it this way in 1 Corinthians 6:12: “Everything is permissible for me, but not everything is helpful. Everything is permissible for me, but I will not be brought under the control of anything” (HCSB).
The writer of Hebrews said it like this: “Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus” (Hebrews 12:1-2, HCSB). Notice the two different things: 1) every incumbrance, and 2) the sin which so easily entangles us. Not just the things that will entangle our feet and trip us up (sin), but also the things that will encumber us and weigh us down, making if difficult to move forward.
What are the sin issues that God is calling you to lay aside in order to fulfill His plans for your life? What are other things – maybe even good things – that you know are not helping you in your journey – that God is calling you to let go of?
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