Engaging the Culture: Discernment

Last week we talked about the first step in engaging our media: Discover. This week we revisited some of those themes and 1 Corinthians 10:23-33 where Paul encourages us to do everything for the glory of God. We discussed the second step in engaging the media that enters our hearts: Discernment. Discernment is taking all that we learned in the discover step to a deeper level by analyzing the worldview that our media portrays. Worldview is the set of basic beliefs through which we view life, purpose, and future. Each of us has a worldview based on our experiences and relationships that has been shaped since we were born. The media that we consume also has a worldview.

Here are some questions to think about with your family as you consider your own worldview and the worldview of your media choices: 

• How would you describe your worldview?
• Can a person go through life without a worldview? Why or why not?
• Which people, experiences, situations, and other factors have had the greatest impact on your worldview? How and why?
• Do you think the worldviews in most media pieces are obvious and easy to identify, or are they more subtle and hidden? Explain.
• Can media be good, true, healthy, and right without being blatantly or obviously “Christian”? Explain.

Consider analyzing a piece of media this week as a family and ask these questions:

• What message is this piece of media sending?
• Is the type of media used consistent with the message?
• How does the content of this media piece line up with God’s Word and a Christian worldview?

Next week, we will be discussing the final step in engaging media: Discernment. Once we have discovered our media and the message it is sending, what do we do with it? 

Engaging the Culture: Discover

This week we talked about the first step in engaging the media that enters our hearts: Discover. In approaching media, it’s important to understand the message that the media piece is trying to portray as well as how it lines up with scripture and how it affects our hearts. We can get caught up in a catchy tune, action packed thriller, or a drama –filled sitcom without realizing the images and values that it places in our hearts.  

In 1 Corinthians 10:23-33, Paul encourages us to do everything for the glory of God. This includes our media choices! I encourage you to chat with your family this week about how you approach your media choices. Here are some questions to consider:

• Why do you think Jesus cares about the media you and I consume? 
• How closely do you listen to the message of songs—or the main messages in a TV show, movie, or other media? How much do you believe these messages shape your opinions, attitudes, and actions? 

Choose a media piece to analyze this week (possibly as a family and answer these questions:

• What’s the main topic or theme?
• What values and beliefs are seen as virtuous? What values and beliefs are portrayed negatively?
• Where are value and worth found?
• How is God portrayed? What does it say about God? Who or what is God (god)?
• What does it say about what’s wrong with the world? Does it suggest a solution(s) to life’s problems? If so, what are those solutions?

Next week, we will be discussing the next step in engaging media: Discernment. Once we have analyzed our media how does it affect our worldview? I’ll be sending out the media we will use later this week!

Pizza Boxing

Outreach Event

The past few weeks at youth group and mission trip meetings we have really been hitting hard the importance of sharing our story with our friends and communities. This past week we wanted to put it all into practice, so we ventured into the Manassas Mall to "pray it up." I hope to be posting stories and photos soon, but for now I want to talk about why we went.

It's easy to talk about living your life as an example for Christ, not leaving your friends behind, and being an everyday missionary, but it's not as easy to live it.

I admitted to the youth before we went that sharing my faith was never an easy thing for me. Growing up, my faith wasn't a big part of my life and the first time I shared my testimony, I talked about all the bad things that happened in my life and cried a lot without giving much glory to God. I was surrounded by a gracious group of people who helped me work through my story and realize the places where God was working. Sharing my story became a little easier as long as I was in relationship with the person I was talking to.

In college I attended a church that would often go into the community to pray for people. They would ask God to reveal something to them that they would then see when they went out. People would see colors or shapes and phrases and then see how God led them. To be honest this made me really uncomfortable and it never worked out for my schedule, so I never participated. Then on last year's mission trip they asked us to do a prayer walk around the local community, praying for what we see and talking to people. We walked around praying, but didn't interact much, but since we are working with the same organization I wanted the youth and I to be prepared for this experience.

So, two weeks back I went into Manassas with Pastor Angel and we prayed for almost every person we saw. It was uncomfortable, but so simple. There wasn't any tricking them into conversation or waving the Bible at them, it was simply entering into a conversation and offering to pray for their needs.

I share all this because the youth and I shared a lot of the same feelings going into this activity, but coming out of it, we shared stories about people we prayed for. It was tangible the way that God was moving through them, showing his power in their place of weakness, and meeting people where they were.

We hear people talk about the importance of relationships but media and technology have put fear in us about talking to people we don't know. We judge them from the moment we see them. When we take the time to ask a few questions, we learn that they have recently lost loved ones, or are recovering from alcoholism,  or they are searching for a community. We have the opportunity everyday to share the love of Christ with those around us and it's much simpler than we have made it.

Read 1 Peter 3:13-18.

No harm will come to those who are eager to do good. We have been set free by Christ and his death on the cross, but our story doesn't stop there. Will we step out and be a light for others to follow for the sake of Christ? You don't have to go to the mall and pray for random people...but you could and you can pray for your friends and coworkers and families because it's worth pushing through the awkwardness for His message to be heard and seen through you. So keep praying it up!


I hope to have some stories and pics up soon! Here's a tip on what not to do:

How Not To Witness - Greg Stier

An Everday Missionary

This past week Jessi shared with us about being an everyday missionary. So often when we think about mission, we think that it means going somewhere else to help people in need. Those trips are great opportunities to share God's love and provision with others, but it's not always that complicated. As a youth, you look forward to the summer missions trip every year. You get to be with your friends (maybe get a cheese steak), help people, and see God move in awesome ways. You often return from these trips on fire for God and ready to change the world, but after a few months, weeks, maybe even days it wears off. You begin to think that God only moves when you go somewhere else. This week we were challenged to think differently.

In Paul's letter to Timothy, he tells Timothy that first of all, he is capable:

"Command and teach these things. Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity" (1 Tim. 4:11-12)

Paul tells Timothy that age doesn't determine your capability to minister to others. Your life can set an example for everyone around you. This is a true challenge, so how do we set an example? It's important to understand understand that God's power is made perfect in our weakness. Just because we feel too young or like we don't know enough about the Bible or we aren't great speakers, doesn't mean God can't use us.  Ok, but practically how can we set an example? Joshua encourages some of the Israelite people in this way:

"But be very careful to keep the commandment and the law that Moses the servant of the LORD gave you: to love the LORD your God, to walk in obedience to him, to keep his commands, to hold fast to him and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul."(Joshua 22:5)

Although we interpret the Great Commission to mean we must go somewhere, Jesus is really emphasizing that we make disciples. This is why we go on mission trips and pray for our schools and encourage each other. Showing people the love of God is what we are called to do and we do this by setting an example everyday, by loving God, obeying his commands, holding fast through trials, and serving others. God is moving among us all the time, not just at youth group and on mission trips. He wants to use you to reach your schools and your families right now.

The challenge this week is to consider areas in your life that you can work to set an example in speech, life, love, faith and purity and how will you seek God's guidance in the process as you learn to love him with all your heart, soul, and mind. You can't do this alone and your not meant to. Pray it up! Remember, your mission field is wherever you are standing, because that is where God wants to use you.

Caught in the Maze

A couple of weeks ago a youth approached me about something they were struggling with and God put a passage on my heart to share: 2 Corinthians 12:1-10. After I shared this with them I realized it was something we all needed to hear. The past few weeks between youth group and the mission trip meetings we have been discussing God's love for us even when we feel like we are lost.

This week we began with an activity where the youth were blindfolded and led into a maze. The only way out of the maze was to ask for help. Otherwise, they would just be going in circles. What unfolded in this activity was really challenging. Some of you made it out fairly quickly, some took a little longer, and one was left wandering alone. It was a powerful image of our interaction with the world.


You see, it's our nature to to want to figure things out on our own. If we know there is a way out of our problems, we want to do it ourselves. We want to solve the puzzle and find the answer. If we ask for help we have to admit that we are incapable. We don't want someone to tutor us in school, because that must mean we are stupid. We don't want to talk to someone about the struggles in our lives because it means there must be something wrong with us. We don't want to cry or show emotion because it's a sign of weakness in the world's eyes.

The Lord tells Paul,“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (v. 8). This blows our minds, because the world tells us that strength is physical or that it is based on outward appearance. Kneeling before God and asking for help is weakness in the world's eye. Jesus knelt down and washed the feet of his disciples and told them to do likewise (John 13:1-17). Christ's shameful death on the cross was weakness to all those around him, but God's power was shown through that weakness. The gospels are full of stories where Jesus is contradicting the world's view of strength.

From the beginning of time we were not meant to go through life alone, but we choose to walk around blindly through the maze because it's easier and others will think we are strong for persevering. Some of you stood on the outside of the maze and laughed when others couldn't figure it out. You didn't think they were strong, you began to think it was easy to get out and couldn't understand why they didn't get it. The truth is that it is often easier to walk in circles because eventually, it becomes comfortable. To get out of the maze requires us to make tough choices, to stop the routine. God has pulled some of us out of the maze, but we have chosen to go back in because it's too hard to change.


Some of you are on the outside of the maze. Initially you laughed because others weren't getting it. Then you hung out with others who were out and forgot about the people that were still trapped. You began to feel desperate because they were alone. This happens in our relationship with God. God has revealed his love to you and freed you from the maze. You depend on him for your source of strength but you are so consumed with making sure that you are ok with God that you forget what he freed you from and that he has called you to help others, to serve him by sharing his love with the world.


The challenge this week is to prayerfully consider where you are in your relationship with God:

Are you stuck in a maze? 
Are you going through the same routine and cycles too proud to ask for help? 
Are you afraid of the change that will have to happen if you do? 


Are you on the outside laughing at others who don't get it?
Are you ignoring others who are trapped, because you got out?

Is there a burning in your heart to be used by God to share the freedom you have been given?


We are praying for all of you this week and encourage you to pray with a family member, mentor, or friend about where you are with God and how he might be able to use you to share his love. Any of the youth leaders are available to pray with you, don't hesitate to ask!

 

30 Hour Fam Cam Compilation

 

A mesh of videos from the 30 Hour Famine. Enjoy!

God's Chisel

Ephesians 2:1-10

God created each one of you to be workers in his kingdom. He has designed each one of you with a purpose. However, each one of us also has a sinful nature inside of us that God is trying to chip away. Don mentioned in church this morning that it is Jesus who initiates our relationship with God. For some of you this happened on a mission trip or through your families, but God has initiated a relationship with each one of you.

As we grow in our relationship with God, He begins to chisel and shape us more into the image of Jesus and it is often painful. The term in the Bible used for this chipping away is sanctification. God knows this is a lifelong process. That’s why in Philippians 2:12-13, Paul tells us that we must “work out” our salvation. The term work out in the Greek usually refers to seeing something through to completion.  It means that when we have encountered God in some way through a mission trip or an experience at youth group of through our families, we don’t stop there. Matthew 5:48 says be perfect or made whole or complete like our father in heaven. It can seem daunting but it is a life long process.

Tommy says “I can’t be good,” but God responds I made you good.  If you think you are no good, what does that say of God’s workmanship?  We would never tell someone that God made them as trash, but we are often quick to put ourselves down or think we aren't good enough for God. He created us in his image to live out His purpose in our lives.

God never meant for you to walk this alone. He is walking with you as he walked with the disciples on Emmaus, revealing himself to you whether you are aware of it or not. He provides us with the tools: his word, the ability to communicate with him through prayer, and the fellowship of suffering. He died for us and asks us to take up the cross, even when it is hard.

Questions:

1.  If you were as bold as to ask God to “do whatever it takes” to make you into the image of Jesus, what would God chisel first in your life?
2. If God asked your parents where they would like the chiseling to start on you how would they answer?
3. What do you think would be the most painful or uncomfortable thing about the chiseling process?
4. Has there been a time when you felt like God was chiseling on your life?

Challenge:

Ask a parent, friend, or mentor to help you identify areas in your life that God might want to begin “chiseling.” Give them permission to be honest and try not to get defensive.

Let it Go

This is a beautiful song written and performed by Margot Kinsey. Recording isn't great but I hope this song blesses you. It is a great reminder to let God lead us by letting go of the things that are keeping us from pursuing a relationship with Him. Let Him be your strength!

By Faith

We opened up this session with these questions:

What is faith? belief in something or someone one, trust

How is faith defined in Hebrews 11: 1?

Vs. 1 – Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.

Faith requires us to ask ourselves what we are seeking after. What do we hope for? None of us can see into the future but most of you have faith that tomorrow you will wake up and go to school and your teacher will give you home work. How do you know this? You know because it has been tested. You know that if you go to school and you learn something that you will need to be tested in order to retain it and it happens every time.

Read Hebrews11:1-16, 32-40

Many of the figures we study in the Bible, at least initially, don’t have anything to fall back on. When God calls on Noah to build an Ark, Noah doesn’t have anything but a word from the sky that the flood will happen. When Abraham was told to pack up everything and go to an unknown location where his descendants would be as many as the stars he had only a promise that God would provide.  When David stood before Goliath, he had only the strength of his God. When Jesus tells the disciples to quit their jobs, leave their families, and sell everything they have to follow him, they have only the claims that Jesus was the coming messiah.  The promise that God would be with them was enough. This is what the author of Hebrews means by faith – to be sure of what we hope for and certain of what we cannot see.

In our own lives this may happen often. Some of you are preparing for graduation, or high school, or are dealing with tragedy that is going to change your day to day life. All of these require faith that what is in the future is in God's hands. When I was in high school, I poured all my energy into becoming a pilot. I talked to the military, took all the advanced math classes, and visited the school I wanted to go to for engineering. I was all set...until I failed my eye exam. There was no way I could be a pilot. At the time I was crushed and I can't say that I had a lot of faith in my future at this point, but my faith was tested and God has taken my life in a direction that is far better than what it could have been.

It’s scary to walk forward without being able to see what is in front of us. We have to trust that God has our best interest in mind and where he asks us to go he will prepare the way. God never sent one of his followers without hope for something better. He promises each one of us that if we will believe in him, we will have eternal life. This is the hope that we have through all things. None of us has seen God or heaven, but by faith God will lead us home.

"Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal." ~ 2 Corinthians 4:16-18

The Prodigal

Read Luke 15:11-32

Both sons in the passage are deeply loved by their father. One serves him diligently his entire life and the other leaves his family and blows all his inheritance for a life of ease. He soon realizes he can’t sustain it and he will have to go back. He goes so far as to desire the food that the pigs eat. Yuck!! Knowing he has been defeated and that he has disgraced his family, he decides to go back and see if his father will hire him. He sinned against his father and says himself that “he is no longer worthy to be called his son.” While he is walking his father sees him and runs after him. The son apologizes, but the father rejoices because his son has returned. He showers his son with love.

Like we talked about at the retreat last weekend, God knows our hearts. He knows our story, the places where we fall and the places where we stand up for Him. In this story we see that God loves us regardless of what has a happened to us in our past or bad decisions that we have made. The father in this story doesn’t yell at his son or make him feel guilty, he runs to him with open arms. God rejoices when we turn to him. Jesus died so that we wouldn’t be bound to death by sin. The father pleads with the older son to celebrate with them, because what was lost is found, his son who was dead is now alive.

Sometimes we have a hard time believing that God could forgive us or that when he died for our sins that he has truly given us life. It’s hard for a few reasons. Sometimes it’s because we are ashamed of our past and we can’t forgive ourselves for what we have done in order to allow God to heal us. Sometimes we just don’t quite understand unconditional love because it’s not apparent in our culture. Love is thrown around and has little meaning. If you hurt someone emotionally or get in a fight, often times that friendship might end, so why wouldn’t we assume that the same would happen with God? Because God is God.

God loves us unconditionally unlike any human being ever could and absolutely nothing can separate us from that love (Romans 8:38-39). He is able to do so because He is love. Not sappy chick flick love, but real true love.

1 John 4:9-18

We struggle to believe God loves us even in our sin because we fear punishment, we fear we will have to change or that we will lose something, but his perfect love drives out fear. When he lives in us, his love is made complete in us and we are free to live for him and to love him with all we have.

Epic Retreat: Resolution

Adapted from A Million Miles in a Thousand Years by Donald Miller

 

The story of this past weekend is over. We bonded and learned about each other. We studied what it means to be a part of this Epic story of our lives that God is writing for us. Now, we have a decision to make. Are we going to stop trying to write the story and trust God with our lives? Are we going to live up to the call that he has put on our lives to love others and to share his love with the world. Will we let him use us to affect other people?

In the Lion King we saw that Simba had run away to live a life worry free, Hakuna Matata. When Nala finds him he doesn't want to go back, because he is ashamed, but the pride needs him. The pride lands have been covered in darkness. A force had pushed against them and they were broken. If Simba doesn't return, many will be left in the dark. Simba sees his father in His reflection and then in the sky and he realizes that Simba was running from his father, but his father lived within him the whole time.

God lives in each one of us. He knows where we have been and where we are going. He wants to use us to be a part of his story of reconciliation (2 Corinthians 5:11-21). There are times when, like the disciples, we are left to wonder if Jesus is really going to come back, if there will be a day when he will come and reconcile all things back to himself.  We read the story and we know that he is coming back for the disciples and that he promises to return again. Because of this, we have hope. We know we don’t have to fear death because through his death we have eternal life. We know Jesus is alive and living through us.

Read Revelation22:12-13.

He will reward us according to what we have done, how we have lived our story. How did we live for him and not ourselves. Will we go back into the world after this weekend and seek to know God and to be a part of restoring the brokenness in our schools our families and the world.

God has invited each of us into the story. He provides us with ambition to seek him and to know him. He allows conflict in our lives that changes us and shapes us. He lives within us so that we can shine his light into the dark places. God's story is the greatest story ever and we are a part of it. He invites us in and calls us to invite others in through his love and grace. It is indeed Epic!!

Epic Retreat: Overcoming Conflict

Adapted from A Million Miles in a Thousand Years by Donald Miller

Physically we change about every six months. Our hair dies and new hair replaces it. Some of us are growing taller. As we learn through school and life experience, our brain is making new connections and absorbing information. As the seasons change we see the leaves change colors and fall off the trees, then snow falls and cover the ground, then in the spring the trees start to bud again and everything is green. The temperature changes. The tides change. This all happens because there is a force that changes them. The position of the earth in orbit, the pull of gravity, distance to the sun.

In every story there is conflict. As the character pursues their ambition, there is a force that works against them, that keeps them from pursuing their ambition. We have decisions to make and there are positive and negative turns in our life that affect our decisions, but our response to those events will define a part of our story.

We are hesitant to change because change and conflict can produce pain, but joy doesn’t change us, conflict does. Like we read earlier in Romans 5, perseverance produces character, conflict produces change. It shapes our character and our story. When we work for something, when we have ambition and we pursue it through pain, it has more meaning, it’s more real, and life becomes fuller.

“Without something that disrupts their comfort a character will never enter into a story. The change is a doorway that once the protagonist enters they can’t turn back” – Donald Miller

When God writes our story he gives us ambition and purpose and as our character is shaped through perseverance he brings us hope. God disrupts our comfort. He allows positive and negative turns to happen in our walk that will change us and shape who we are and who we will become.

Read Ephesians 2:1-10

Sin makes for a bad story. When Adam and Eve eat from the tree, the story takes a negative turn. The rest of the Bible is about healing and restoration from the brokenness that happened in the Garden. Their decision at this point in the story affects the whole story. Although God kicks them out of the Garden, he doesn't leave them alone. The rest of scripture is about the struggle for redemption which ultimately comes through Christ.

Jesus had to face conflict to pursue his ambition for us to know the Father. He was beaten, ridiculed, stoned, and mocked. He had to sacrifice his life and it changed the story of the world. It changed your story, because through Him, you have eternal life. His pain and sacrifice makes the ending more beautiful. He died so you could be free, and so he could work through you to break the chains of injustice in your schools and families and out in the world, but our freedom came with a cost. 

Read Matthew 16:21-28

Jesus became sin to save us and to redeem us. He wants to be the writer of our story. He finds us in our places of brokenness and offers us life. It doesn't matter what we've done or how far away we seem to have strayed, his grace covers all sin and he welcomes us into his story of fullness and restoration.

Some Questions to ponder:

• What are your fears? 
• What are some events in your life that changed your story? 
• What might you need to let go of in order to trust God with your story?