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Archive for the category “Teaching Youth”

08 Jul 2022

Compassion needs action

Compassion is defined as Sympathetic consciousness of others’ distress together with a desire to alleviate it.

Interesting, Compassion has two components:

  1. Recognize the distress (or struggles) of others
  2. Then desire to alleviate (change) it.

How can we (you) recognize the distress, struggles of others?  I would start simply, look outside of yourself. I know it seems simple to some, challenging to others, and yet not accomplishable for others. I think it is simpler than we make it… 

  1. Look, open your eyes and look… practice it… just look at others, what do you see? what don’t you see?
  2. Look with your heart and look… practice it… what do you see? What don’t you see?
  3. Act, you may need to act… say a kind word, take a simple step to offer a listening ear, simply smile.

It is something our world needs. It is something our hurting world needs so desperately.  Time to go back to the definition… What is compassion? Sympathetic consciousness of others’ distress together with a desire to alleviate it.

Why do we want to recognize and alleviate peoples’ distress? Distress is not fun. We don’t like to be under or experiencing distress and we can do something about it.

Take action, look, Listen, Respond.

Challenge up? 

Take a couple days to simply watch, observe those around you.

Take time to recognize what you have noticed? Are people happy or sad? What could be causing their emotions?

Take time to consider, if you are a person of faith pray for God’s to provide discernment, what you are to do about it.  You may do nothing. You make act in silence. You may engage in person with them. You make simply be present and walk alongside them in their distress.

Reevaluate, what did you learn? What will or should you change? Move Forward.

Posted in life happens, speaking, Teaching Youth, think about it, time for action, youth ministry leadership and tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment
24 Jun 2022

The Keys

When you read that simple two-word title what comes to mind?

I think of the following:

  1. Car keys… then quickly… do I know where they are?
  2. House keys…. Yeah, with the car keys, but do I know where they are?
  3. Lesson keys… Keys to lesson or maybe the answer key. I wish I had some of those.
  4. Piano keys… Nope, If I was on piano… not good but I know where my car keys are.
  5. Hiring keys… yes, this is a stretch but if you knew the right key to a lead to a good paying job, or that ever daunting raise.
  6. Coaches’ keys… seem like every athlete now, has a key card on their person. It tells the play or set up.

I am sure you might come up with some of the same but maybe even better ones. I will be thinking about keys more often now, following this blog post.

In my devotion time today, titled “the Keys of the Kingdom”, and referenced Matthew 16:19. “I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”’

I bolded the word keys for effects I guess.
It reminds me of a story, names are changed to protect the innocent. A friend, will call Jon, called his wife frantically. He lost his keys, the keys to the car and needed to get to an important meeting. As he was franticly searching, his wife began to tell (suggest) he retrace his steps…. Desperately, he complied this time to her advice. The first stop… the Car and it hit him, like a ton of bricks, square in the face. Looking into the vehicle, he found his keys… IN THE VEHICLE Amazing I know!

Upon further examination, after hanging up the phone with his wife, he realized just how safe his car keys where…… swinging from the ignition…… Yeah… open the door, Jon! One would think that was a great idea. Can you relate with me… or think… Great idea, I never thought of that. Of course not, we would never do that lol. Please read again in your sarcastic voice.

Lifting the door handle of the driver side… locked

Lifting the door handle on the driver’s side back door… locked

To save time… every door, locked. Every window up and not moving… Those keys were super safe in the car locked ready to be used to get Jon to his meeting…. 

If you are like me, well it was my story, and have misplaced your keys, maybe lost them, or just don’t have them can be super frustrating. I would say it could push a person to consider breaking things, like the car window, and get super frustrated.

Think about the verse above, I will give you the keys of the kingdom of Heaven. Wow, what an awesome gift. It is something that has eternal impact, personal joys, and the ability to know where to go, what do to. But how often do we as people simply, lose the keys, lock the keys away until a better time, or worse yet never grab the keys given? Often, is my reality.

Posted in sermonizing, speaking, Teaching Youth, think about it, time for action, youth ministry leadership and tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment
12 Jun 2022

The Keys

When you read that simple two-word title what comes to mind?
I think of the following:

  1. Car keys… then quickly… do I know where they are?
  2. House keys…. Yeah, with the car keys, but do I know where they are?
  3. Lesson keys… Keys to lesson or maybe the answer key. I wish I had some of those.
  4. Piano keys… Nope, If I was on piano… not good but I know where my car keys are.
  5. Hiring keys… yes, this is a stretch but if you knew the right key to a lead to a good paying job, or that ever daunting raise.
  6. Coaches’ keys… seem like every athlete now, has a key card on their person. It tells the play or set up.

I am sure you might come up with some of the same but maybe even better ones. I will be thinking about keys more often now, following this blog post.

In my devotion time today, titled “the Keys of the Kingdom”, and referenced Matthew 16:19. “I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”’

I bolded the word keys for effects I guess.
It reminds me of a story, names are changed to protect the innocent. A friend, will call Jon, called his wife frantically. He lost his keys, the keys to the car and needed to get to an important meeting. As he was franticly searching, his wife began to tell (suggest) he retrace his steps…. Desperately, he complied this time to her advice. The first stop… the Car and it hit him, like a ton of bricks, square in the face. Looking into the vehicle, he found his keys… IN THE VEHICLE Amazing I know!

Upon further examination, after hanging up the phone with his wife, he realized just how safe his car keys where…… swinging from the ignition…… Yeah… open the door, Jon! One would think that was a great idea. Can you relate with me… or think… Great idea, I never thought of that. Of course not, we would never do that lol. Please read again in your sarcastic voice.

Lifting the door handle of the driver side… locked

Lifting the door handle on the driver’s side back door… locked

To save time… every door, locked. Every window up and not moving… Those keys were super safe in the car locked ready to be used to get Jon to his meeting…. 

If you are like me, well it was my story, and have misplaced your keys, maybe lost them, or just don’t have them can be super frustrating. I would say it could push a person to consider breaking things, like the car window, and get super frustrated.

Think about the verse above, I will give you the keys of the kingdom of Heaven. Wow, what an awesome gift. It is something that has eternal impact, personal joys, and the ability to know where to go, what do to. But how often do we as people simply, lose the keys, lock the keys away until a better time, or worse yet never grab the keys given? Often, is my reality.
God offers me the keys to the Kingdom of Heaven, and I choose to desire other keys, world’s keys, personal keys, and frankly keys that do not work.
I would like to post more but I need to go find my keys. This blog has me worried about where they might be….  Grab your keys, keep them close, and use them often.

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30 Apr 2022

Making a Change or other’s making it for you

Make a change. It takes change

I have a few miles under my belt, as a 52-Year-old Youth Minister, some might say a few marathons but that would be rude, true but is it necessary to state the obvious on this one?
I jokingly mention miles, and marathons. I was a runner but never a marathoner. Throughout my life of running coaches would also challenge or comment (most of the time I didn’t want to hear what they had to say) on to be a better runner you need to make changes, to be a faster runner you need to make changes… etc. etc. etc. Yeah, yeah as a young guy, I didn’t want to hear it. I knew what I knew, and it was enough, but it didn’t get me to the change and had a expense to it, that expense was no state meet in track. 
I have a few days under my belt, as a 52-Year-old Youth Minister, some might say a few years (decades) but that would be rude, true but is it necessary to state the obvious on this one? 

Sound familiar? If not, please go to paragraph one and read again.  I could say easily I knew what I knew, and it was enough, but it didn’t get me to the change I needed.

As I completed a daily devotion from the Experiencing God: day to day Journal, the topic flooded my mind. It spoke on Suffering for Others, and how ministry is costly, as is life. Life has some expenses; I am not speaking of ministry as in paid pastoral ministry I am speaking of life ministry.  One of the verses was Romans 5:8, “But God proves his love for us in that while we still were sinners Christ died for us.” WOW! God proving his love, His Son died.  Did I die to myself to accomplish the running goals? NO! Did I die to myself in the younger years of change? NO! As I get older, I am beginning to see the value of change. It isn’t easy! Suffering for others isn’t easy either. I assume giving your Son for people not worthy of that isn’t easy either. 

The devotion goes on to speak of going through expenses (like rejection, understanding,  doubters, and even being opposed). The expenses are huge and costly but so is seeing friends, loved ones perish for eternity. The expense are huge and costly but so is seeing your church or group or community slowly move from Jesus risking to comfort keeping. I am guilty of it all the time. My comfort zone might seem missing but trust me. I have one, God continually pushes into it regularly. So what?

I would simply say SO this… are you willing to risk the comfort of today for the unknown future of tomorrow, a future that might bring more to Jesus, more success to you, your community, church company? It comes down to a choice to make change or be subject to others change. The cost is high but so is eternity.

I hope you join me in the journey of change facing and change making one day, one mile at a time.

Posted in life happens, sermonizing, Teaching Youth, think about it, time for action, youth ministry leadership and tagged , , ,
27 Nov 2019

Thanksgiving or Not?

Thanksgiving, holiday or not? Are you out of context when talking to others?

It is a national holiday, but I bring attention to national. I reside in several Youth Ministry Groups and dabble with comments on occasion. Someone posted the comment about what will you be doing for thanksgiving, or more specifically do you get holiday off or not?

I have several youth worker friends who do not reside in USA but is also cool to know. We live in a global connected world for sure. Some of the posts say… not getting a day off, not a holiday which puts us into a reality. A reality of proximity, how often do we (you) quickly jump to assume you know all the contexts of a conversation or situation?  If you are like me, you do it way too often, daily in fact.

I would like to grow in this area. I am planning on being more intentional in the pursuit of connecting, hearing and bringing value to the situation before I speak to the opinion of this. I am simply a work in progress which seems more practice than success.

I hope you will join me in this pursuit of listening more, reflecting more and then speaking to the opportunity, person or whatever it maybe. Maybe this is something we can begin doing now, to have a habit of doing so prior to New Years day resolutions take place.

Lord, first help me lean into your word without bias, or opinion but to be open to the Word you want me to hear and apply to my life in that moment. Second, help me seek you in all conversations to discern what you are having me learn and say. Third, that I might be open to a renewing of me each day. Finally, be with us all as we seek to grow in relationship with each other. Amen

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03 May 2019

The victory comes before the event

I am a big fan of the underdog in sports, and in life. I don’t know if it is as much about the little guy beating the giant as much as the preparation done prior to the challenge or event.

1 John 4:4 tells us, “But you belong to God, my dear children. You have already won a victory over those people, because the Spirit who, lives in you is greater than the spirit who lives in the world.”

Think about this verse a few minutes…
1. When you belong to God… having accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior, you are no longer controlled by the world. The world can and will influence you, but it doesn’t control you.

  1. When you have victory over the world… having victory over the world is all about how you view and function in the world. We are to be in the world not of it. Simply put, we are to be in it, but it isn’t in us.
  2. When you see the details… you discover two different letters used in this verse… S is capitalized when it refers to a person and that person is the Holy Spirit. It also implies the s (spirit) of the world is less than that of God. This is a key point to remember… God wins.
  3. Preparation is vital… we must prepare for the victory or game etc.. When we practice to the focus of the win, we will be better equipped for the win. It is all about preparation and focus.

This is something our world misses…

We can be caught up in the touchdown celebration but totally overlook the plays that prepared for the touchdown.
We can celebrate the winning field goal without seeing the hours and hours of practice with the snap, hold and kick.
We can watch out friends get a promotion, find a great house or other things along this line but we often forget about the hard work put into earning, developing and earning the promotion, saving up for the house or vehicle etc.

We can see the parent with a great relationship with their children and overlook the hours and hours of time spent conversing, working on homework and doing life with them.

We can see the perfect couple who seems to have it all, the best communication, date nights etc… but we neglect to see the commit they have made to make it a priority or to see the time they invest in growing the relationship.

I could go on and on for pages of we can see but we don’t see. God has won the victory over death and the world through Jesus and we are no longer slaves to the world but servants to the One True God. So, what?

I would encourage you to take regular time out of you day, week, month :
to reflect on the victory God has done,
to put in the work to gain and earn things.

Dave Ramsay talks about living different now in a way that you can truly live land give different later. He speaks from a financial mindset but I would also encourage us to take the same attitude towards life… live now so you can enjoy living fully in Christ later… Devote yourself to the apostle teaching, spend time with God and continue to influence the world on His behalf.

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24 Apr 2019

Healthy People don’t need a Doctor – sick people do.

Healthy People don’t need a Doctor – sick people do.

I am all for health care. When someone begins a post with that comment, it might imply a distain for the health care system, or it simply implies I am all for health care.

I first begin with:

  • I appreciate my medical doctor. Dr Tibby is the best.
  • Daughter 2 is studying to work in the medical field.
  • I have friends who work/volunteer/run the Bright Fire Department.
  • I have a sister who taught most of her career (Ferris State U) in dental hygiene
  • I appreciate our school athletic trainers

So, I not to excited about shots or giving blood through a needle… next to snakes I am not a huge fan. If a snake had a needle in its possession I would be long gone.

But the above line “Healthy people don’t need a doctor, sick people do.”  Found in Luke 5:31 jumped out at me and I wasn’t working in that paragraph or section of the bible in preparing for some teaching coming up. I was drawn to it for a couple reasons:

  • We all need coaches in our lives and support people who will guide and care for us.
  • We all know someone who isn’t doing well
  • We all have gifts and abilities (both time, talents and funds) to help people

But we also make excuses:

  • Well I am not a coach… but seem to have no problem coaching from the sidelines or (the arm chair QB position).
  • Well I am hurting and struggling myself. Often helping others will also help yourself.
  • Well I am a busy person running kids around, working in my yard or at the office etc. But we share the same 24 hours in a day and can choose to help others in the midst of those things.

I will focus energy and time in investing in others this week. I might not have a medical degree or called to be a Doctor of Medicine, but I can be a doctor of hope, help or even encouragement. I can choose to (be smart about it) connect with those who need support without falling into the cycle they are in or even just simply pray for those who are hurting and in need of a doctor…

I hope and encourage and challenge you to take the challenge to seek out those who are in need. The very next verse says, “I have come to call not those who think they are righteous but those who know they are sinners and need to repent.”  Jesus is showing us the need to reach out to those who have no clue of their need for support and in turn or need to be supporters.

 

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22 Feb 2019

Chosen? Royal? Holy?

In my devotion time today, reading from Experiencing God day to day, I landed on the title Royal Priests.

1 Peter 2:9 “But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation. His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of the darkness into His marvelous light.”

I bolded three key words. I had them underlined from a previous year of devotional time. I want to give or suggest some ideas alongside of each word.
1. Chosen.  We live in a  world that everyone wants to be picked… and not picked last. I remember standing in the line during recess hoping to be in the top five picked.. sometimes it happened but not often.
God has chosen you to be His child.. reread that… You are picked first…. Celebrate and remember that. The creator of the world picked you to be his child.

2. Royal. This is a word more designated and reserved for kings, queens, princes and princess of England or other countries. If you are like me, you are not in line for the throne of England or any country unless, like me, you are the king of your garage, room or vehicle. Yeah, sad but hey I am king of my vehicle most of the time.  God calls you into royalty… in fact a royal priest. I know it seems and sounds intimidating but should it? I know God is equipping each of us to be his instrument to a world that doesn’t know Him. I know but I am not smart or biblical awesome but when you opened the bible, listened to a sermon or podcast, attended FCA or a bible study or small group… you are equipped more than others who didn’t attend or do those things… Welcome to the priesthood friend.

3. Holy. Holy is something we do not see or recognize very often in our world or life. I believe it is partly due to living in a world of sinful nature but also due to our inability to seek it out and recognize it due to our limited desire to see it. It brings accountability and a standard of life that we often choose not to live up to or achieve. So, this is more of a challenge than anything… live holy, pursue holiness and seek out those who are doing so and learn from them.

I know we are all called into relationship with Jesus and that calling and acceptance will change our lives as we continue to pursue Jesus. The people in successful marriages often are due to their pursuing each other as a couple. They are no longer single and adjust their lives accordingly. They learn and grow in their relationship with their spouse. See, it is a work in progress that a single person does to become a successfully married person. A parent doesn’t know everything about raising kids, that too is a work in progress. We read books, watch Youtube videos, attend classes and occasionally make a guess

In closing, I want to remind you.. You are CHOSEN. You are a ROYAL priesthood. You are a HOLY nation.

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01 Feb 2019

Looking out for others

Ezekiel 22:30 says “SO I sought for a man among them who would make a wall, and stand in the gap before Me on behalf of the land, that I should not destroy it; but i found no one.”

Obviously, at first glance this is a tough read and can be taken out of context. God was looking for someone to do a tasks (well two: build the wall and stand in gap) but none could be found. I was reading this as a part of my devotional time and my mind went into a new direction….

God is looking for someone… a person or peoples to stand in the gap… In the gap for what? I feel He is looking for individuals and groups of people willing to stand in the gap for the following people groups:

  • homeless
  • widows
  • those in prison
  • those with disabilities or special needs
  • those who are hurting, physically, mentally, emotionally
  • those who are lost, trying to find identity in the world with no success
  • those who struggle with suicidal thoughts
  • those who just don’t feel like they fit into a social or friend group
  • those disconnected with and to the church
  • those simply lost in their selves.

I know it is an exhaustive list. I know it seems like a big task, or seems like it doesn’t connect to or concern me so why bother? I know we can make excuses but why?

Excuses come in a variety of means… but often are developed to keep fear in check or our lives comfortable and safe.

My prayer and challenge is to seek God and do our best to friend someone.. it will both help us and the person being friended.
My prayer is for our needs to be met while meeting other people’s needs in the process.

Take a risk for someone.. you never know.. someday you might need them to take a risk for you.

 

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25 Jan 2019

Eternal Perspective

I admit.. this is the second run on the whole perspective blog post. I started it a few days ago but didn’t quite finish it, simply due to it not being ready to be done.

Perspective a word I have clung to for two years. My wife challenged our small group of adults to find one word, check out myoneword.org for more details. I used perspective for two years in a row. It was something that God used to help me grow.

Perspective is a huge word; your views come from perspective. How you view other people has a lot to do with perspective. It is a key to learning to function and work with other people.

I was reading today’s (1/16/19) devotion in the book Experiencing God Day-by-Day. The title God’s Eternal Perspective. I kid you not. The base scripture is Genesis 12:2 “I will make you a great nation; I will bless you and make your name great; and you shall be blessed.”

I view a lot of people in our world, nation and area that want to make themselves known, creating a great name for themselves and even blessing others but if we are honest this is only going to help the person not the world around them. It might benefit their family assuming they have one, or survive the mystery of it is all about me mentality.

The devotion tells the reader, God will provide assignments based on our character, and in reflection of the proportion of the character we have. Character is something we don’t see to much in our world of media and popularity. We can easily name key people in our world whose character cost them something, a job, a career, a family, an influence. It is a sad thing but something that doesn’t discriminate against. Character will guide us to perspective and hopefully you will join me in seeking God’s prospective for our lives, families and community.

What if God is offering you an opportunity to seek his perspective and impact the world? What if you are the next world changer?

The only way to discover it is to seek God’s perspective in life and be a person of impact no matter where you go or what you are doing.

Perspective! It matters!

 

 

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