Lift Letter for July

It has been quite a June and frankly, other than the heat, I can’t believe it is July. It seems like just yesterday I was on vacation in Cayucos with my family relaxing in a scorching 74 degree heat (okay, it was just yesterday). Bottom line is, I am rested and glad to be back with you all in our booming metropolis and Rasin Captial of the World. But onto the important things.

Camp is a few short weeks away so if you have not gotten your forms or your deposits in, I need them as soon as possible or else you will incur a late fee, sorry. If you want more info about camp and what is going on at Sugar Pine this summer you can either check out their website at www.sugarpine.org, or give me a call at the office and I would be glad to answer any questions you may have. On August 2nd there is no High School Reality YM due to camp and on July 15th as well as the 29th there is no Jr. High Reality YM due to VBS and then Camp. Lots of changes, but roll with us as we navigate through our choppy Summer schedule.

Other than that I just wanted to take a moment to thank all of you who supported our Mission Trip to Glorieta both with your prayers and your generous donations. We were in the thick of what God was doing down there and it was awesome to see our students respond to it. We will be sharing more on Youth Sunday on August 16th.

Rebuke

I am drawn to Titus at the end of chapter 2 when Paul talks about using the tools he has described to not only teach but also to rebuke. We have an obligation as followers of Christ to make sure other followers are not damaging the faith, essentially we are called to be intolerant of the sin in others lives.

Granted, the way in which we do this is of utmost importance. If we are merely calling people out due to our disdain for their actions and the way they live their life then that is not biblical at all. But if we rebuke out of love, showing them that the Lord is gracious and compassionate, then ultimately we are doing them a favor.

I had breakfast with a friend of mine this morning who told me not rebuking someone is like not telling someone when they have a disease. If someone is sick, you don't shrug your shoulders and pretend like everything is okay, you do the hard thing and tell them what is wrong, and then walk through the appropriate course of action with them.

I have been rebuked on numerous occasions, sometimes by those close to me, other times by people who I barely have a relationship with, and it never gets easier to handle, but I am thankful for those conversations because I am a better person for it now.

A favorite quote of mine, and speaking from a believers perspective, is this, "Tolerance is the weakest of virtues."

Labels

After reading my brother-in-law's blog about getting caught up in the differences in life and faith I decided I wanted to weigh in as well, because it amazes me how so many people hear the good news of Christ but are still so affected by things as basic and laughable as labels.

Now don't get me wrong, I am just as petty as the next guy, but last I checked we serve a huge God, a God who is the same yesterday, today, and forever as Hebrews 13:8 puts it. A God that has called us to be one body with many members in Christ. So why is it that things as man-made as political affiliation, monetary gain, and the color of our skin get pushed into the Sanctuary? Why is it that we need to have a small group with people who think exactly like we do? Why is it that money separates believers from communing with each other? Why is social status a big deal even in the church?

The cross was one of the most humiliating ways to die, it was, "The most wretched of deaths. (Josephus)" It was such a horrible way to do that "The ancient philosopher Cicero asked that decent Roman citizens not even speak of the cross because it was too disgraceful of a subject for the ears of decent people. (Cicero, Pro Rabirio 5.16)

The cross was a horrible horrible excruciatingly way to die, yet our massive God, creator of everything you see around us, the being who spoke Half Dome and El Capitan into existence, the being who knew grapes would wither into raisins, the being who filled the oceans and made everything work in a delicate balance, the being, went to the cross for all of us. That being, died one of the most painful and degrading deaths imaginable for us.

And we sometimes have the audacity to talk about churchgoers behind their backs, to stick our noses up at the people who are different than us. The cross was supposed to free us from our sin, our pride, our differences from each other and embrace one another as brothers and sisters united under the banner of Christ. Sadly, we dont always see that happening.

Hey Jude

So I am back in the office this week, well at least through Thursday, and after coming off an amazing spiritual high at MFuge in Glorieta, New Mexico, I sat down in my squeaky office chair and cracked open God's word. I flipped to the book of Jude so I could not only read God's word but get a sense of accomplishment for reading a book of the bible in one sitting. I came across these verses that spoke some truth to me, "20But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, 21keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting anxiously for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to eternal life."

What does it mean to keep ourselves in the live of God? What does it look like? What does it act like, smell like, taste like, what does it love like?

God's love is evident throughout scripture, both old and new testament. Everything God does, from the destruction of nations to the sacrifice of His son, is for the benefit of His creation, is out of love.

I haven't had to discipline Cooper yet because he has no clue what is bad and what is good, but one day when he is old enough to understand right from wrong, I will punish him in one form or another, and it will be because I love him. I will not let him go to parties where he will be tempted because I love him, I will ground him when he brings home a sub-standard report card because I love him, he will be madat me at times because he will think I am unfair because I live him.

We don't always understand why God chooses to allow things to happen to us, good or bad, but we do know that everything that does happen to us is for our benefit because it is for His glory. So to keep ourselves in the love of God is to keep ourselves obedient to His word as well as seek His glory first and ours second.

Day 6... Maybe...

I just got back from site and have seen a few kids but we had an amazing thing happen at our site today. First some background info, yesterday we worked at a site called open hands, a non-profit dedicated to building wheelchair ramps for people who are ultimately trapped in their houses. The guy in charge of this place is named Ken and is not a believer but naturally accepts help from anyone who is willing. So we spent the day yesterday cleaning up the area where his office is mowing the lawn pulling weeds, trimming bushes, yard work. He told us yesterday that he had to make phone calls to tell people he can't build them ramps because there was no funding for them. He needed a lot of money and he knew we were believers so he asked if we would pray for him, and we did, we layed hands on him and prayed.

We got back to the site today and were welcomed by a smiling Ken. He told us that he got a letter today from the Governor (maybe Senator, I don't remember which)saying that there is some money from the government stimulus package that just came in, and you are going to get 250,000 dollars of it. A non-believer told me today that he now believes in the power of prayer. Ken is a long way from knowing Christ as his Lord and Savior but God did an amazing work in a man's life today who helps a lot of people. It was amazing!

Day ?

Just a few pics for you all. God is good and our students are responding to serving Him and experiencing His love through loving others. I wish you all could see them in action. Check back tomorrow morning for some stories. Thanks for your prayers we feel them.












We miss you all

God is so cool...

I wanted to let you all in on a bit of what is going on here in the lives of our students. First off let me just tell you how cool God is, when we decided to switch to New Mexico for the trip rather than Mexico, I was bummed and a little bit frustrated. Then I signed up to fill 22 spots for this trip, I knew we were going to hit that mark when we had 5 students show up to our informational meeting. Again, a little bummed and frustrated. I kept thinking to myself that we weren't going where God wanted us to go because nothing was going as planned. We had people drop out with a few weeks left, we had a last minute addition a week and a half ago and our final total was 12, last year we had over 25... It wasn't until a few days before we left that God showed me how incredibly wrong I was about the whole thing. God knew where we would be going and the affect He was going to have on these students hearts when we got to the booming metropolis of Glorieta, NM. Every one of these students is here for a reason, every person who isn't here isn't here for a reason. God has been all over this from the beginning, so let me share some cool God sightings with you...

Katrina told me how she was playing tag with some little kids and one of them was hit too hard and started crying, it was clearly an accident and no big deal so Katrina pulled him aside, nurtured him a bit and began to explain to him that accidents happen, that the other child didn't mean it and so on and so forth. The kid looked up at her and said, "accidents do happen, like me... I was an accident." Katrina's heart broke, when she was telling the story you could tell she was getting emotional. She told the little boy the he is not an accident, that he has been put on this earth for a reason, that he has a purpose. Even my eyes welled up a bit with that.

Marisa had a conversation with a man who had a hard heart in a nursing home and after praying for him opened her eyes to the man sobbing. His heart had been softened by the love of Christ showed by Marisa and her team and he was like a different man after that.

Jeremy had a conversation with a man who is 101 years old for a solid 45 minutes, talking with him about everything under the sun and being there just to show him that Jeremy loves him and so does Christ.

There have been so many cool stories like that that I will let your students share with you later on but it has been a trip that is saturated with the spirit of the Lord. God is showing up in the lives of your students in a huge way and you should be proud of all of them in the way they have stepped up to the plate. Pray for a fruitful next two days for us, for rest, effectiveness, and for God to be the focal point for all of us. Bless God everyone.

Day 4

Things are busy... Good but busy. God is totally softening hearts and revealing himself to the students. Here's some pics...



















Happy Youthing

Day 3... Hoorah

I am tired! Can you hear the whine in my voice from there Pastor Craig? Ministry sites are awesome and our students are being stretched, here is how they are divided up:

Jeremy and Marisa- Creative Ministry (They sing songs to a group and talk with them after, good conversations so far, pray for their words.)

Wes and Jacob- Games and Rec (They are at a Boys and Girls club showing the love of God through their lives)

Cameron and Austin- Social Ministry (Today they were at 2 nursing homes talking with people there, had some conversations with people suffering from Alzheimer's, great stretching moment. Jeremy and Marisa had some conversations like this as well)

Allie and Katrina- Games and Rec (They are hangin out with the little ones, having fun and planting the seeds that hopefully will sprout when God reveals His timing.)

Pete, Denver, Amanda, and Michael- Paint Construction and Yard work. (I don't know why God placed all of our leaders in the same ministry track but it has been a blast rediscovering how great of leaders we have.)

Here is a video for you all...

Day 2

We are having fun and getting stoked. God is totally gonna challenge all of us this week. Pray for team unity and courage to speak to those who don't know the Lord. Happy Youthing!!