At The Risk of Sounding Repetitive...

Sometimes, as a youth pastor, I feel like a broken record, or that I’m beating a dead horse, or whatever cliché you’d like to use. This is one of those times. If I could have the attention of every Christian parent in America for 10 seconds, the one message I’d want to convey in those 10 seconds is: “Get a Facebook account and befriend your teen so you know what they’re doing online!” Many teens have me as their friend on Facebook, yet not their parents. I think many of those teens forget that I am their friend on Facebook, as some of the things they post I doubt they really want their youth pastor to see. I have been recently discouraged by some of the musical artists, video clips, pictures, or all-around comments of teenagers who have grown up in a church environment and know better.

The first, and most effective way of guiding a teenager through the online world is for their parents to be plugged in and courageous enough to parent in the world of cyberspace. They can always “drop” their youth pastor from their friend list if the youth pastor calls them on the carpet for bad online behavior. They can’t drop their parents, if their parents make their “Facebook Friendship” a requirement for their teen to have a Facebook account.

The world has become so much smaller than it was in the 80’s and 90’s, when the parents of this teenage generation were teenagers. There are some remarkable benefits to this. I have friends on my Facebook from not only every corner of the United States, but also from foreign countries such as Haiti, India, Nicaragua, and Jamaica. But with these benefits comes the potential for an unending stream of negative influences, dangers, and bad decisions. This isn’t necessarily a Biblical message; it is a message of common sense. If we are to take Christ’s command to raise our children to love God with all of our hearts, mind, soul, and strength, we must use common sense and stay plugged in to what our teens are doing online, and with whom. Be strong and hold your ground when it appears your child is making a bad decision online. They may not like it, but you may save them from a decision that could have life-long consequences. In order to do this, we must take the first step and join the online community.

-Pastor Adam

It Really Does Matter What The World Thinks Of You!

Does it matter what the world thinks of you?

The above question is often answered by Christians with an emphatic “NO, it does not matter what the world thinks of me! Jesus loves me and that’s all that matters!” While I don’t necessarily disagree with the ideology behind the statement, I do think it is naïve and misguided. I say this because I believe strongly that it indeed matters what the world thinks of us, as believers.

This is never more evident than in the case of Daniel. We all know the story of the lion’s den, but notice, for a moment, the predicament Daniel’s accusers were in. They were upset because a Jew was one of the three administrators that ruled over them. They wanted to remove him from not only his position of authority, but from the earth altogether. They had a big problem though; Daniel’s life was flawless. Daniel 6:4-5 says, “At this, the administrators and satraps tried to find grounds to charge against Daniel in his conduct of government affairs, but they were unable to do so. They could find no corruption in him, because he was trustworthy and neither corrupt nor negligent. Finally these men said, ‘We will never find any basis for charges against this man Daniel unless it has something to do with the law of his God.’” Daniel lived his life in such a righteous way, they couldn’t even make up a charge against him as he was so far above suspicion. Instead, they had to zero in on his relationship with God and try to make that illegal.

How do you live your life? If someone really wanted to snare you with an accusation, would they find it difficult? Would people find it hard to believe that you had done whatever you were accused of? Or is your character or lifestyle one in which people wouldn’t be surprised at all. I’ve had times in my life in which people would not have been surprised to find that I had done something I shouldn’t have. The worst part of my guilt was feeling like I had given a bad representation of Christ to those non-believing friends who knew I claimed to be a Christian, but lived the same they did. As a “little Christ” (what the term “Christian” means), I reflected poorly on my Savior.

Too many Christians live hypocritical lives, and then boldly declare they don’t care what people think of them and all that matters in Christ. If all that matters is Christ, then why don’t we try to live to please Him first and foremost? If we care so much that Jesus loves me, why don’t we live in appreciation of that wonderful fact? Darius, in trying to encourage Daniel before he gets dropped into “the den,” cries out to him that he hopes Daniel’s God, “who [he] continually serves” will rescue him (6:16). Daniel was known for constant servitude to God. I want to be known for that! Wouldn’t that be cool! 1 Peter 3:16 warns believers to live life with a “clear conscious” so that people can only persecute us due to our faith, instead of our hypocrisy or moral failures.

This is not an attempt to propagate legalism. Instead, we should strive to love Christ with all of our hearts, living to please Him. In doing so, we’ll shine a light toward Him and away from ourselves. Our testimony can damage Christ in the eyes of the world if we refuse to take seriously the idea that people are watching us, all of the time, to see if Christ is really a life changer. Thank goodness for Grace, or we’d all be lost, but we need to take our lifestyle and morality seriously for the sake of growing God’s kingdom.

- Adam

The Danger of an Insecure Father

One of my all time favorite comedy programs is The Dick Van Dyke Show. Now, through the wonders of Netflix, I can watch it to my hearts delight. I recently watched an episode, however, that kind of hit a bit close to home to me – a husband and father of three. In this episode the father figure of the show, Rob, becomes very insecure at work, to the point that he thinks his co-worker is conspiring against him to take his job. It gets to the point that Rob thinks he is losing his ability to do his job well, while the other employee is suddenly shining in the boss’ eyes. Rob’s insecurity transcended into his home, where his insecurity started manifesting itself everywhere. He became paranoid and insensitive with his wife Laura, and harsh with his son Richie. Finally Richie asks his Laura “What’s wrong with Daddy?” to which Laura responds, “Daddy just doesn’t like himself right now.” Richie answers, poignantly, “I like daddy better when he likes himself.”

Richie’s comments hit me hard as I, as much as I don’t want to admit it, am quite sensitive at times and become my own worst enemy. My thought life runs wild and a small mistake quickly becomes a massive deal in my own head. The next thing you know, I think I am completely inadequate and start beating myself up verbally. The byproduct of this downward spiral is that it inhibits our ability to lead our families the way God wants us to. We become short with our wives and harsh on our children, not because of anything they’ve done, but because we are really mad at ourselves.

Dads, we need to remind ourselves that we too are God’s children. Our perfect Father created us for a purpose and loves us unconditionally. That doesn’t mean we don’t make mistakes, big ones at times, but we strive to improve, not wallow in our failures. Paul exhorts us to “Forget what is behind us and strive for what is ahead.” (Philippians 3:13) God, our Abba Father (translated: Daddy), calls us His children and has prepared in advance good works for us to do (Ephesians 2:10). We become ineffective in our God given task of being lights for Him (Matthew 5:16) and leading our families (Ephesians 6:4), when we selfishly entertain the negative thoughts we have about ourselves. We need to be honest with ourselves and look for areas where we need to improve, but the goal is to work toward improvement, not self-destruct. We will fall short of what we desire to be and what God expects of us, as we are fallible people, hence the necessity of Christ’s sacrifice on the cross and subsequent resurrection. When we feel inadequate, we need to recognize that with Christ we are adequate to complete the job He has given us: to lead our families, and be an example of Christ in the world.

The Shell and the Glory

My family and I had the miserable experience recently of having our beloved dog, Lady, pass away. It was quite unexpected. Saving you from the details, she passed away in the middle of the night. To spare my family of seeing her this way, I got up and moved her body to the garage for the remainder of the night until I could bury her in the morning. I was very sad at her passing and was telling her one last goodbye before I picked her up to move her. As soon as I picked her up, though, I realized that “Lady” was no longer there. What I carried into the garage was merely a shell. The dog I loved was gone.

I do not relay this to you to bum you out. Carrying my dog’s body was a brutal reminder to me that we all, as human beings, are currently “renting space” in the bodies we are currently inhabit. Some day we will be glorified in an imperishable body and will abide with Christ, and our fellow believers, forever (1 Corinthians 15:35-58). With that in mind, what is our goal in this life? To accumulate accolades, rewards, wealth, esteem, and a legacy that is worthless when our spirits leave our bodies and all that is left is an empty shell that will be buried and mourned?

Christ’s words in Matthew 6:19-21 become all the more real when we think seriously about death. Storing up for ourselves treasures in heaven should become our aim, where moth and rust cannot destroy and we can bask in God’s glory with our heavenly treasures for all eternity. This does not mean that we abandon our earthly callings, but instead those callings can serve a higher purpose as everything we do as believers (including your profession, relationships, and wealth) should be with the intent of pointing people toward Christ and glorifying Him (Colossians 3:17 and 1 Corinthians 10:31). We will then reap the eternal benefits of our life lived on earth.

Judged by Love

I thought it fitting, since February is the “Month of Love,” to discuss how important a topic love is for Christians. The reason it is so important is because it is the standard by which our lives are measured by God. In 1 Corinthians 13:2-3, Paul writes that “If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing.” Paul was not exactly a teddy bear, he could be brutal to both friend and foe alike, yet he understood the importance of our faith bearing the fruit of love so that others may see Christ through us.

This love is not just for those we like, or those we are attracted to, we see God’s call for us to treat our enemies well as early as Exodus 23:4, and Jesus commands us to flat out love them in Luke 6. So the big question is: How well do you love EVERYONE? You can say you love someone, but can they tell you love them by how you treat them, how you speak to them, and the time you offer to them?

Here is a test for you that I recently did, and failed miserably at: re-write 1 Corinthians 13:4-6, and instead of the word “Love,” insert your name. You’ll have to do some wordsmithing to make it flow together well, but when you do, read it to yourself out loud and ask yourself if you are really living up to what you just read. Then, ask yourself how you will improve in the areas you are not currently succeeding. It is important that we love others, as that is what Christ expects of us, for it is how people will see Christ here on earth.

Sincerely,
Pastor Adam

"Knowing" God Takes Work, Devotion

Last post we talked about how we were created by God with purpose, protection, and also a sense of belonging. This post, however, will address the crummy reality of our current lives living in the "post-fall" world. While we are are still created with a purpose by God, protected by God, and with the desire to belong with other people, we now have to work for our knowledge of God. Let me be clear from the beginning, we do not work for our salvation - we are saved by grace, but we do have to work on our relationship with God. When you look at the relationship Adam had with God prior to the eating of the fruit in the garden, you'll notice an intimate an natural relationship where God and man conversed and walked together in the Garden of Eden.

This is in stark contrast, however, of the relationship Adam and Eve had with God after disobeying the one command God gave them. In reading Genesis 3:8, the immediate response of Adam and Eve upon eating the fruit and hearing God approaching was illogical: they hid from God. Immediately upon the fall of man, Adam and Eve lost some of their knowledge of God. They knew God as creator and omnipotent. They knew that he could not be hidden from, yet they panicked and hid from God, an action that made no sense at all.

Ephesians 4:18 says of mankind, "They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts." Because of our ignorance, we are darkened. We are not born with knowledge of God. Even as we grow up we lack an understanding and knowledge of the true God. We may know some things ABOUT God, but we don't know God. I know a lot ABOUT Tim Tebow, but if I walked up to him tomorrow and said "Hey Tim!" he'd look at me and ask, "Who are you?" Only until we place our faith in Christ can we truly know God, and even then, we have to work to understand Him more. It doesn't happen naturally or by osmosis.

What is my point? Too many Christians sit back and wonder why we don't understand our faith better, or we are lazy and figure salvation is enough for me so why bother trying to understand it better? Knowing God takes devotion, hence the term "devotions." We must be devoted in our study to better understand God. In order to do this, we must be "devoted" to reading our Bibles, and "devoted" to prayer. If you truly want to know God, you have to put in the work. This is a direct consequence of the fall of Adam and Eve. Before the fall, no work was necessary for man to know God. After the fall, the world in which we all live, we must work to know God better. Are you willing to put in the work?

-Pastor Adam

The "Good Stuff" We Were Created With

This past week in the high school SYMOTA group, we started a series that strives to discover who we are in Christ and what that means for our outlook and perspective on life. The first discussion we engaged in on Sunday dove into how we, as people, were created with significance, security, and with the need for belonging.

A unique feature of human beings is that we were created with a higher responsibility and purpose than the rest of creation. I know that sounds elitist, but the only thing that should be offended is a shrub or a duck. We, as homosapiens, are more significant than all the rest of earthly creation. We know this from Genesis chapter, 1 verse 28, which instructs Adam and Eve to “subdue” the earth. God goes on to tell his first children to “rule” over all of the living creatures. This is an important point because we were not created by chance, meaning we have a purpose to our lives. Every one of us has a reason for being here. God doesn’t make accidents, so when He made you; he made you for a significant reason. Plants and animals were created to offer God glory through their appearance, complexity, and beauty, but when all is said and done, their mission in life is to exist. Ours is not merely to exist. It is to accomplish great things for God.

As God’s children, we are also covered by a heavenly security blanket. We first see this in Adam and Eve as well. In Genesis 1:29, we read about how God provided for all of their needs in the garden. Even after their fall, God provided for them by fashioning clothes for them before banishing them from the Garden (Gen. 3:21). This promise of provision has not changed. Jesus reiterates this promise in Matthew 6:25-34, in which he urges his listeners to quit worrying about their physical needs, as God knows what they need and will provide for their needs. Paul reminds us as well in Philippians 4:19 that God provides according to His will. This is a significant concept that many of us fail to grasp. First of all, we need to rely more on God and less on ourselves. (This does not, however, mean to quit your job and just wait for God’s provision. His provision may be through the job he has provided for you!) Secondly, we must prioritize what a need is in our lives. Do we need cable television or a Wii? We often behave as if we do.

Finally, we also learned that God created us to live in a community with one another. Our lives, and our faiths, are not meant to be alone. Harkening back to Adam and Eve once more, we see this in God providing a wife for Adam, stating “It is not good for man to be alone” (Gen. 2:18). I will venture to say that God would also say, “It is not good for woman to be alone” either. I say this because our faith is not meant to be practiced in solitude. Not everyone is meant to be married, but everyone is meant to have relationships. The church, our Christian brothers and sisters, as well as the non-believing friends we witness to, all fill a need that God intended us to have – a need for companionship. This includes our fellowship as believers. Hebrews 10:25 warns us to not give up meeting together. Our faith, and our lives, were meant to be spent with others. We must avoid the temptation of holing up by ourselves and shutting the world out. Make an effort to find a good support system of believers whom you can trust to rejoice with, pray with, and be held accountable by.

Next week’s topic is the “bad stuff” of our nature that led to the fall of Adam and Eve, and what that means for us believers.

Till then,
Adam

Be Known For What What You Do.

Last week kicked off a new season of our SYMOTA youth group for 2010-2011. My goal this year is to blog each week about the topic (or topics) we talk about at youth group that week. This past Sunday we challenged the teens to be known this year for the things they do, and not for what they don’t do. In other words, don’t be known for what you don’t do; don’t be known as the kid that doesn’t drink, or doesn’t smoke, or doesn’t have sex. Our aspirations should be greater than just the kid who abstains. We, as believers, should be known for the great things that we are doing for Christ, and not the great accomplishments we may get on the sports field, in the classroom, or in music. We should be known for helping others, regardless of their appearance, ethnicity, or interests. We should be known as people who sacrifice personal comfort for the benefit of someone else. We should be known as people willing to listen to the problems of others. We should be known for our faith being lived out in action. Our physical accomplishments are not bad, especially if provide us an opportunity to praise God and bring people’s attention on Him, but we must be careful to not set our goals to be physical accomplishments as they all stay here on earth when we perish.

We see this happen in both Colossae and Ephesus. In the opening verses of both Colossians and Ephesians we see that Paul, while stuck in prison, hears about the faith of the believers in Colossae and Ephesus and commends them for it (Ephesians 1:15-21 and Colossians 1:3-14). The account in Colossians gives details of Paul’s expectations for the continual good works of the believers there. In Colossians 1: 9-13, Paul instructs the believers he is praising to continue to become as knowledgeable as possible, to endure, to have patience, to be joyful while giving thanks, and to bear fruit. What type of fruit should we bear? Galatians 5:16-24 offers us two types of fruit, the good and the sour. You know the fruit of the spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. As you examine your life, how are you doing with bearing and displaying the good fruit? It cannot be just a display, but a genuine effort to exude the fruits of the spirit. For when we do, we may draw some to Christ.

It is interesting that the fruit of the spirit passage is found in Galatians, as Galatians is written as a bit of a tongue lashing to the Galatian believers who were known for something as well. They were known for being easily swayed from their faith by false teachers (Galatians 1:6-10). Paul writes the letter of Galatians to remind those in the church there to return to a gospel of Grace and not be swayed by false teachers. Paul also warns them to avoid a whole myriad of negative behaviors prevalent around them (5:19-21). Unfortunately many Christian teens today become known by their peers for many negative behaviors instead of for bearing the fruit of the Spirit.

My challenge to all of you is to be known for doing great things for God, not for negative behaviors, or being the person who abstains from everything. It may not be popular, but it is what we are called to do, and it will have an impact for the Gospel upon those around you.

-Pastor Adam