Thoughts for the journey

We added two new items to our Families with Youth newsletter this week that I hope will help families engage their faith at home.

In the “Pass It On” segment, I am inviting a different parent to write something each week where they can briefly share a way they pass on their faith to their children. Part of this comes from a passage in Deuteronomy that we discussed in our Parent/Student Meeting a few weeks ago:

⁴Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. ⁵Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. ⁶These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. ⁷Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. ⁸Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. ⁹Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates. (Deuteronomy 6:4-9)

This does not have to be anything complex or fancy. It might describing a weekly family devotional. It could talk about how a family prays together each day or week. They might share a special service opportunity they participate in as a family. It could be as simple as some way they weave faith into their everyday conversations. The options are endless.

Thank you to one of our parents, Laura Stewart, for her willingness to be my “guinea pig” by writing the first “Pass It On” entry. Parents are asked to email their submissions so I can include them in upcoming newsletters.

The second new segment is entitled, “Faith@Home.” In this section, I will be providing the title and description for our current series as well as the specific class topic for the current week. The “Talk about it” section of this segment will offer a few questions for discussion as well as an action point. Families may choose to read these questions verbatim or use them to formulate their own questions. In the action point, families are asked to put what they have discussed into practice.

As our ministry enters into this new season of helping the home become the center of spiritual formation, I am hoping these new resources will help our families along the way.

shine!
Jason

The last fifteen months or so have arguably been the darkest season of my life. Looking back over the landscape of that time, I believe that this time even eclipses 1999, the year that Michelle and I both lost our mothers. You see, it is one thing to lose a close family member. It is quite another to walk with an entire church community through a host of difficulties while dealing with your own personal struggles.

I am not seeking pity or praise for the last year or so, but as I look back at what the last fifteen months have been, I have new appreciation for the words of the psalmist, “Even though I walk through the darkest valley…” (Psalm 23:4) I feel like I have walked through a valley and as I stand on the edge of that valley and look back at the path, I see death, destruction, and discouragement in the midst of the hell that the Rochester Church and I have journeyed through together.

The death of a mother of four (including a teenager still at home) after fighting a brain tumor for five long years.

The unexpected death of a friend and partner in ministry, a 31-year-old husband and father of three (one of them still in the womb at the time of his death).

The tragic death of a seven-year-old child in a freak sledding accident.

The death of a 21-year-old young man who had been in my youth group, and the long recovery for his twin brother, who suffered serious injuries in the accident.

These are only the tip of the iceberg for a dark and difficult season in the life of our church family.

I don’t think you realize the weight of walking through a war zone until you escape it. I have never served in the armed forces nor have I been in a physical battle, but I have been through a spiritual battle in the last year or so. These have been some of the deepest, darkest days of my life, but only now am I fully realizing where I have been and the impact it has had on me.

It’s funny how you don’t really grasp how dark it is until light erupts on the horizon. I’m just now really beginning to understand how this has all affected me.

And in the midst of everything above, our church also went through a significant staff transition and I wrestled with my own calling in ministry. There were times I considered walking away from ministry. Other times I had no idea what to do. And in the midst of these upheaval and uncertainty, God spoke clearly to me and I returned to my true calling to minister to students and their families.

I don’t share this to receive sympathy. Rather, I want each of us to realize that sometimes we are in the darkness and we don’t realize it. Other times, we may get frustrated with others walking in darkness, but we need to realize they may not see it.

These past months have taken a toll on me physically, emotionally, and spiritually. I have gained back nearly half the weight I lost. I have not been the husband and father I should have been. My relationship with God has suffered. But today, I stand on the dawn of a new day. I look back at the valley, but just for a minute. Then I look to the future, to a new horizon.

In the early 1990′s, singer Gloria Estefan was seriously injured in an accident. Following that accident and her struggles in the months after, Estefan penned the words to a song that made it all the way to the top of the charts. I think these words speak to a hope we all long for and a healing we all seek. While she wrote these words to her husband, I want to take these same words and direct them to the One who has ultimately brought me out of the darkness.

Why be afraid if I’m not alone
Though life is never easy the rest in unkown
Up to now for me it’s been hands against stone
Spent each and every moment
Searching for what to believe

Coming out of the dark, I finally see the light now
It’s shinning on me
Coming out of the dark, I know the love that saved me
You’re sharing with me

Starting again is part of the plan
And I’ll be so much stronger holding your hand
Step by step I’ll make it through I know I can
It may not make it easier but I have felt you
Near all the way

Forever, forever I stand on the rock of your love
Forever I’ll stand on the rock
Forever, forever I stand on the rock of your love
Love is all it takes, no matter what we face

Thank you, Lord, for walking with me though the valley of death. Thank you for shining your light into the darkness. Thank you for bringing me out of the dark.

shine!
Jason

Today we are celebrating the life of a man who helped change the course of history. He stepped into a conflict dominated by hate and violence and offered love and peace. When others wanted to use bombs, guns, and intimidation to forward their cause, Martin Luther King, Jr. advocated peaceful marches and non-violent protests.

Martin Luther King, Jr. is about so much more than the Civil Rights Movement. Don’t get me wrong, racism lost a lot of ground because of the efforts of King and those who marched with him. But what he stood for went much deeper than that.

In his famous speech in Washington, D.C., King said, “I have a dream…” But this wasn’t King’s dream. It was God’s dream living through him. While I never knew him personally, I can tell by the fruit that he bore than Martin Luther King, Jr. was an ambassador of the Kingdom of God. He wasn’t perfect, but he was certainly taking a stand for something that reverberated the echoes of the voice of the Creator.

Ultimately, his willingness to stand against the tide cost him his life. A voice of hope, peace, love, and victory was silenced too early. But not before he sounded a cry that would echo for generations to come. Much like the man he followed, Jesus Christ, Martin Luther King, Jr. was willing to do what was right, regardless of the consequences.

When I consider the life that King lived I am both embarrassed and encouraged. I am embarrassed about the number of times I fail to live in way that reflects and advances the Kingdom of God. I am encouraged because I know that King struggled, too. When I read a biography of King’s life, I learned that this larger than life man was just as human as I am. He made his mistakes. He had his regrets. And in that way, he and I are no different.

If a man like Martin Luther King, Jr. can take a stand and change the world, so can I. There may never be a holiday named after me and it’s unlikely I will ever appear in a history book, but I can have a dream like God’s that will change the world around me in a way that ushers in the Kingdom of God.

Thank you, Dr; King, for showing us a better way to live so that God’s dream can become our dream, too.

shine!
Jason

What is true religion? What does it mean to be a Christian?

These have been questions that followers of Jesus have wrestled with for hundreds of year. The answers have not always led to good results. Churches have split. Denominations have been created. People have given up on God.

But at the same time, it’s the question that we must continue to seek an answer for. It is the question that tugs at our heart and cries out for a response.

James tells us, “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.” (James 1:27)

So, religion isn’t really a set of rules, a way of doing church, or anything like that. Are there commandments we are called to live by? Yes. Does God want us to meet in community for worship, encouragement, and accountability? Absolutely. But neither of those are the purpose. They are guideposts along the journey.

Ultimately, religion, true religion, is a call to live a life that echoes the story of God. A story of hope.  A story of love. A story of redemption.

It is a way of life that demands we live according to a different rhythm than the one the world offers.

The world – and Satan – want us to base our religion on rules and doing church. When we do that, we miss the point, and evil gains a foothold in the world. While we focus on what happens for a few hours, one day a week, God is focusing on the world around us. A world where people are hurting and help captive by a variety of masters.

Do you really want to be religious?

Look after orphans and widows. Care for the unloved. Reach out to the untouchables. Acknowledge the ignored. Not just in some country on the other side of the globe or even in another city. Do it where you live. In your community. On your street. Maybe even in your home.

Keep yourself from being polluted by the world. This means so much more than don’t have sex, don’t get drunk, and don’t steal. It means live a life that reflects Kingdom values. How has consumerism taken you captive? Does having a good image trump doing the right thing? Do you gossip or look at members of the opposite sex as objects rather than people created in the image of God?

If we are going to practice true religion, we should stop worrying so much about what we do on Sunday mornings and focus on who we are on Monday mornings. Then we will live a life worthy of the calling we have received.

shine!
Jason

I have had a few days now to think about my trip to Daytona Beach and the National Conference on Youth Ministries and I wanted to share a few reflections from my week…

Receive the day

Each morning at the conference, Earl Lavender from Lipscomb University led us in a morning devotional. While the crowd was sparse, what Earl offered was very rich! His focus for the week was to receive the day. He pursued the idea of starting the day open to what God has in store for you.

I tend to wake up and start the day by looking at my iCal to see what I have planned. While I am intend to stick to my commitments, I am going to work this year to not let my calendar dictate my day. I am convicted that I need to leave margin in my schedule for God to reveal opportunities for the inbreaking of his Kingdom.

Each day should be an opportunity for an exciting, unexpected encounter with God and his creation. I want to echo in my own life the words we read from Psalm 5:3 last week, “In the morning, LORD, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly.”

Cherish the simple things

On our last morning there, our family went down to the beach to watch the sun rise over the Atlantic Ocean. As we sat there anticipating the breaking of the sun over the horizon, I was reminded of the beauty of simple things. In a world where Facebook, texting, hundreds of channels on TV, iPods full of music, and busy schedules dominate our lives, we need to appreciate the simple things.

A sunrise. A bird walking along the shore. The smile of a friend. The embrace of a loved one. These are the true treasures of our world. I so often get wrapped up in the complexities of life that I miss the beauty of creation. We have created a world that demands our attention and often distracts us from the more important things. I often miss hearing God because I’m focusing more on what we have created, and less on the Creator and his creation.

Slow down

This will require me to slow down. I am too busy. My schedule is too full. I struggle to receive the day and cherish the simple things by my own doing most of the time.

I have bought into the American philosophy that busyness is good. I have been taught to believe that my productivity determines my worth. I often measure my value by what I am able to do, not who I am. Chris Seidman asked a question the first night of the conference that has stuck with me. He asked, “Are you living from the blessing of God or for the blessing of others?”

I am convinced that I spend too much time living for the blessing of others and way too little time living from the blessing of God. God tells me that I am his child, highly valued, not for what I do, but for who I am. I am his. He created me. He loves me. He values me. If I only I could slow down long enough to hear his voice.

God is in the business of redemption

David Fraze reminded us that, “Your life, your story, no matter how chaotic, is redeemable.”

I needed to hear that for my life. I can be an idiot sometimes. I allow my life to become too chaotic. I don’t receive the day from God. I don’t cherish the simple things. I don’t slow down. Even on my best days, I usually well off the mark.

God created me for relationship. Relationship with him. Relationship with others. And too often, I forget that. I live like I am created for success, recognition, or my own self-aggrandizement. God forgive me for pushing him off his throne and trying to climb in it myself.

There is hope in knowing that no life, regardless of the chaos, is beyond redemption. Thank you for that reminder. I am a sinner in need of God’s grace and mercy. This is not some formula that simply wipes my slate clean. It is so much more.

This redemption is about a God who repairs relationships, restores identity, and renews life. God has not just saved me from my sins; he is saving me from myself. I am in need of God who loves me regardless of the mess I have made in my life and embraces me no matter what.

And that is what I need every day.

shine!
Jason

One of my goals for 2012 is to blog a little more often. So here we go…

Have you ever watched a movie and noticed all of the people that appear in the scenes? I mean, sure, we notice the stars, the people whose names appear on the posters. The people who have all of the speaking parts and make the millions of dollars are hard to miss. They are the focus of most scenes.

But what about the supporting actors and actresses? And what about the extras? We might think they’re unimportant – especially the extras, but are they really?

Think about those scenes on busy streets or in a sports arena. What would those scenes be like without all of those extras Would it be the same if a couple was walking down a sidewalk in New York City with no one else around?

What would God’s story be like without the supporting actors and actresses and the extras?

In 1 Corinthians 12, Paul reminds us that everyone is a part of the story. We are each a member of the body of Christ. We are all important.

Think about what happens when a part of the body is amputated. It becomes lifeless. It loses purpose.

The same is true when we are disconnected from the bigger story we are invited into.

It seems like I constantly have to remind myself that I am a character in a bigger story – God’s story. The truth is that I forget this all of the time.

Sometimes my pride gets in the way and I think I am the lead character. I start to think I am God and act like it. Trying to be the lead in our own story is like trying to use my iPad and not bringing the charger along. It might work for a while, but eventually we run out of energy.

There are other times I feel so unimportant and inconsequential that I forget I’m even in the story. I might begin to think I don’t belong in the story and that I am not in the picture. This is never true. While it may be true that our role is minor at time, it is never insignificant.

I must always remind myself that I am a character in God’s grand story of creation. And the coolest thing is that I have the freedom to write my part. I should always listen to the Author of Life, but at the same time I have the pen in my hand. I get to fill the pages in my script. I can choose to write the story I want. This means I have the freedom to make the story revolve around me and loose its greater purpose. Or I can write myself out of the story and feel like I don’t have a place. Or…

Or I can listen for the voice of God and allow Him to invite me into his grand narrative and find a place where my story finds it purpose and I can be more than I ever imagined.

shine!
Jason

Almost every aspect of our culture fights against the idea of being “poor in spirit.” Pride is a virtue in the story of the Amercian Dream. Commercial after commercial seeks to convince us that we will not be happy without their product. We praise people who succeed at all costs. But this is not the culture of the Kingdom of God.

When Jesus says, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven,” he is ushering in a new way of life. A life that lives and breathes humility.

James expresses the same idea in his letter that reflects many of the same teachings as the Sermon on the Mount. In James 4:4-6, he writes the following…

“You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God. Or do you think Scripture says without reason that he jealously longs for the spirit he has caused to dwell in us? But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says: ‘God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.’”

How would living according to this way of life impact your life? Your family? Your school?

So often, Christians focus on our behavior. Maybe we’re starting at the wrong place. Instead of making Christianity a religion about outward appearance, perhaps we should make Christianity a way of life emerging from inward attitudes.

That means to we need to consider what story we are a part of. Are we part of a story focused on how God will bless us or how we will bless others? Are we part of a story focused on doing the right things or being the right people?

Jesus invites us into his story, a story built on self-sacrifice and humility. It’s not just something did; it’s who he was. And if we are going to be his followers, our story needs to be a part of his story.

shine!
Jason

This is the last week before Christmas, so I wanted to encourage each of our teens to think about what they are planning to give for iChristmas. As we focus on the idea of love, it’s a great time to consider what is most important to us and how we can bless others.

Our society tells us over and over again that this is a season to want. What is on our Christmas list? What do you want for Christmas? We hear so many messages that our joy comes from what we get, that we can lose sight of what is really important. I believe that Jesus’ words in the Sermon on the Mount have a lot to say to our culture of consumerism…

¹⁹“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. ²⁰But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. ²¹For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

²²“The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are healthy, your whole body will be full of light. ²³But if your eyes are unhealthy, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!

²⁴“No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.

Where is your treasure? What are the things you consider most important? What do you really need and what is want?

Most of us are blessed beyond belief. Even those of us who consider ourselves to have little have more than most of the world. Our needs would be a dream to much of the world’s population.

There is nothing wrong with enjoying our blessings, but we must always remember to put things in context. It is important to remember that most of the things we “need” are really things we want. Real needs, such as food and shelter, are things that we take for granted, but that much of the world struggles to find on a daily basis.

Just as God gave to us, we are called to give to others. As we enter the final week before Christmas, take time to think about how blessed you are and, more importantly, how you can be a blessing to others.

shine!
Jason

So often when we think of peace, we think of a lack of war. But that idea of peace falls well short of the peace God ultimately desires. God does not simply wish that we would stop fighting. Peace in the Kingdom of God is so much more.

God’s peace is about restoration and redemption. It is about making things right in the world.

So, as we consider the arrival of Christ into the world, we find God preparing to answer hundreds, if not thousands of years of prayer. After many promises, prophecies, and predictions, the Messiah is about to arrive on the scene.

But the Messiah was not the one many had hoped for. Instead of a king who would rise up and defeat the empires with an army, his weapon was a cross. Instead of killing, he healed. When he faced execution, he displayed humility and servanthood, even to the point of death.

This was a Messiah who was seeking to restore the world to what God had dreamed of since the beginning. A world where everyone would be loved and no one was excluded. A world where power, position, and possessions were not the defining markers of someone’s worth. This Messiah used his power without seeking attention. His position was one of a servant. His possessions were few and humble.

As we pursue peace, we must use the values of the Kingdom way to achieve it. We are not called to be people of evil or violence. Evil breeds evil and violence breeds violence. Instead, we are called to be people of peace. People who put others first. People who love the unlovable. People who not only talk about peace, but practice it.

The Savior of the universe, God in the flesh, entered the world in the most humble of circumstances. Born in a manger in a small village in Israel, God himself entered the world as a helpless infant. His parents fled to Egypt before their son could be murdered and they raised him as a carpenter in Nazareth.

Peace did not come with a loud trumpet cry, but instead with the cry of a newborn baby. Peace did not come with a large army, but instead with the presence of shepherds, the lowest of society. Peace did not come through a large palace, but instead with some hay in a wooden bed that normally served as a feeding trough for animals.

If we are to be people of peace, we must follow the One who showed us how to make peace. We must live in way that turns the world upside down though sacrifice and servanthood. “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.” (Luke 2:14)

shine!
Jason

What is hope?

This word has a variety of meanings.

The dictionary defines hope as, “A feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen.” This might include examples like, “I hope that my team wins this weekend,” or “I hope that I get that job.” This is a desire for something that might happen.

But when we consider the meaning of the word hope in the Kingdom of God, we find a different definition. Consider what the author of Hebrews writes…

Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of his purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised, he confirmed it with an oath. God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope set before us may be greatly encouraged. We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. (Hebrews 6:17-19)

Our hope is God is not something that might be there. It is a promise made by the Creator of the universe. The one who made us and gives us breath has promised us eternal life. This is our anchor, the thing that holds us in place, regardless of the circumstances. It is a hope that is built on trust.

But unfortunately, we often place our hope in other things. In his letter to Timothy, Paul addresses one of the things we often place our trust in…

Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life. (1 Timothy 6:17-29)

When we trust in something other than God as our hope, then we usually let go of God (or at least lighten our grip). I believe this is why Paul ends this particular passage of Scripture that when they are willing to hope in God then “they may take hold of the life that is truly life.”

Most of the things besides God that we turn to for hope are hollow. They might give us hope in the short-term, but they often fall short.

When Mary became pregnant with Jesus, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” (Matthew 1:20-21)

This is a message of real hope. The Father, through the Holy Spirit, conceived Jesus in Mary’s womb. The God of the universe stepped into a human body and became one of us so that he could save us. What the angels announced would change the course of human history. God made it clear through Christ that salvation is not something we might have available to us. Rather, it is something we can trust to be an anchor for us through even the most difficult seasons of life.

shine!
Jason