Day 2 of Forest Lakes Districts Youth Conference in Green Bay began with a total of 6 hours of sleep behind me. Woo hoo! That's actually a lot based on my experiences in prior years. I was blessed with a lovely trio of girls in my room, who unselfishly gave me a bed to myself and respected my wish for lights off at 1 a.m.
I also had a great group of young ladies in my small group. Sometimes it can be difficult to get middle school girls to discuss things beyond the superficial, but these girls seem to have a real desire to live for Christ. They are also honest about their struggles and want to know how to change. Not the norm in middle school girl world, so I'm excited to see this.
Another rally kicked off the morning with gut-busting laughter courtesy of comedian Daren Streblow. I highly recommend you check out his videos on YouTube. The guy is not only funny but incredibly nice. I saw him hanging out and talking to kids all weekend.
We heard another great message from Bill Allison about making Jesus the center of our lives, not just a piece. He drew a pie chart with a circle in the middle, and wrote Jesus inside the circle. The other "slices" were things like school, friends, work, sports, etc. When Jesus is in the center, we can then allow Him to influence every area of our lives. He also taught us (with actions) Colossians 3:23, which was the centerpiece verse for the weekend. "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men." He called it living the C323 life, and he illustrated how this looks with examples from playing football or volleyball. Working at whatever we do full throttle, but doing it for the glory of God, not the glory of man.
The afternoon began with a middle school rally, complete with a HIGH energy worship (never seen middle schoolers worship that way before! Wow!) and a "So You Think You Can Dance" contest. The comedian was one of the judges, so you can imagine the entertainment value. One of my girls, Nora, was chosen to compete in the dance competition. She didn't win, but she represented well!
Saturday afternoon offered a number of options for the kids. Some attended workshops, many went to the mall, and I imagine a couple took a nap. Kelsey and I spent some time in the booth, talking to kids and handing out more clothespins.
Saturday night was the "main event", so to speak. Bill Allison shared his personal testimony, which included a story about nearly being murdered at the age of 7, along with his mother and sister, by his alcoholic stepfather. Through a series of incredible events that could only have been orchestrated by a mighty and loving God, his mother became a believer. But I think it was his own moment of salvation in high school that really connected with the kids. He had been attending church with his mother but had this notion that you didn't really become a Christian until you were an adult. He believed that because he didn't know of any other Christians his age. One day in school, again through an almost eery chain of events, he encountered two young men (although through his description, sounded a lot like angels to me) who delivered the message of the Gospel and led him to salvation in Christ.
He went on to share of nearly giving up on his faith - twice. Both times, God pulled him back in the most extraordinary ways. He shared how God had broken the curse of alcoholism that had been in his family for generations. Not only was he the first in his family to graduate high school and college, he became an English teacher, then a youth pastor, and is now a missionary (and he joked about having all those high-paying jobs). :)
After sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ, he asked all the youth leaders in the room to stand. He told the kids they have no idea how much these people love them and sacrifice just to be with them. He then asked that any wanted to give their lives to Christ for the first time to go to one of their leaders and pray with them. I had the privilege of praying with two young ladies, one from my small group.
Then he asked that anyone who was already a believer but wanted to commit themselves to living a centered life to stand. Nearly the entire room stood. Wow. Over 3200 young people across the state of Wisconsin are now striving to live full out for God. I dare say we will see from fruit from that!
As we went into worship in song to celebrate, I glanced over and saw my daughter, Emma. She was in tears. She looked at me and walked over to where I was. She asked if we could talk in the hall. When we got out there, she hugged me and began to weep. I asked if she was OK. She replied, "Yes, I'm just so happy! For the first time in my life, I really know God is real, and He is here!" Then she said there was something else. "I think God is calling me to be a missionary!" Another 'wow' moment for me. She was so excited, she was ready to get on a plane for Panama right then. I encouraged to start with our neighborhood as her first mission field, and we'll take it from there.
As the evening wound down, I felt the effects of the day: a physically exhausted body and mind, but a spirit that was still celebrating. After tending to some girl drama, I returned to my "rock-starred" room, found my pillow, and passed out. Ah, God is good.
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Monday, January 11, 2010
Living a centered life - Part 1
I spent the past weekend at a youth conference in Green Bay with 3200 middle school and high school students. I've been to many similar conferences over the years, and they are always well worth the price I pay in sleep deprivation and exhaustion!
This year was no exception. I believe every adult should experience worship in such a setting at least once in their lives! The energy, the obvious presence of the Lord, and the sweet spirit of kinship among young people is really unique. It's really difficult to describe. If you ever get a chance to be a part of something like that, don't miss out.
I started journaling the first day I was there, deciding I would blog the experience in three parts. So here we go - day one:
Getting here was not easy. The past week has been filled with spiritual attacks - interrupted sleep due to a variety of unusual reasons, a sick dog, recurring sickness of my own, an exploding kitchen sink (yes, I said exploding), and a snowstorm which threatened travel plans. I sensed the enemy did not want me to go, which (to me) meant God was about to do great and mighty things. The attacks actually served to solidify my resolve to go, so I called in all my prayer warriors. After a brief delay Friday morning, we headed out for Green Bay. Thank you, prayer warriors - the roads were dry as a bone!
Upon arrival to the convention center, we found our booth and quickly set things up. I was surprised to find we had been given a booth in an excellent location. I expected to be stuck in a corner somewhere, since they were providing the booth for free! The director of the conference came by and introduced himself, giving me an opportunity to gush some words of thanks. He seemed excited that we were there, and that was encouraging.
After the First Free bus arrived with the rest of the kids and leaders, there was no time to relax. I was immediately met by several girls who wanted to switch rooms. Unfortunately I had to tell them "no", since we (leaders) had determined to not allow any switching, and instead rely on God's providence in placing them in the rooms they were in. I hated that my first words to them were negative, but they seemed to get over it quickly enough.
Following the chaos of checking into rooms, we headed back to the convention center. The booth was already surrounded by enthusiastic kids, all anxious to get these crazy clothespins we had designed. The clothespins had the website for our book's blog on one side, and we had written "Don't Freak Out!" on the other side (the name of the book). We had gotten the idea for the clothespins as a promotional tool from a band we met at Sonshine last summer. We had optimistically made 1700 of them, assuming we would have plenty left over to use in other places. Wrong! The clothespins became the hot item of the conference. All the kids wanted them, and they loved trying to sneak them on other people. They found the most creative way to wear them, too. Everywhere you went all weekend, you would see people with clothespins attached in various places. We ended up having to ration them in order to have enough for the whole weekend.
Before the night's first rally, I checked on all of the girls in my small group. We dealt with a lost wallet, improper swimwear, headaches, tiredness and homesickness. And yes, we had only been there a few hours! My thought was, "Wait a minute. Why did I agree to do this?" :)
The rally was thought-provoking and high energy. Rockin' worship with Floodgate Alive and an inspiring (and funny) message from Bill Allison. He defined what it means to live a centered life. The Scripture was Mark 12:28-31, Jesus' response to the question about the greatest commandment. Bill talked about how it is easier for us to love God than it is to love others, but that the Christian walk must include both. Loving God is the vertical line in the cross, loving people is the horizontal.
In our small group later, we all agreed that it is definitely easier to love God than others. I asked the girls to think of the most annoying person in their lives right now, and to think of some way to show love to that person next week. Then I asked them how they could love one another in their room tonight, knowing full well there would otherwise be arguments over bathroom time, sleeping arrangements, and temperature controls.
That was as much as I could get out of my girls for the night. They were far too wound up (and sugared up), and their main goal for the evening was to go back to the convention center to listen to a band. Fortunately, they were back in their rooms on time, so I knew I had some responsible girls. Of course, they had to tell me how cute the guys were in the band. *sigh*
The girls in my room graciously gave me a bed all to myself, which may have been due to the fact that I warned them about my snoring. Either way, I am thankful. Good night.
This year was no exception. I believe every adult should experience worship in such a setting at least once in their lives! The energy, the obvious presence of the Lord, and the sweet spirit of kinship among young people is really unique. It's really difficult to describe. If you ever get a chance to be a part of something like that, don't miss out.
I started journaling the first day I was there, deciding I would blog the experience in three parts. So here we go - day one:
Getting here was not easy. The past week has been filled with spiritual attacks - interrupted sleep due to a variety of unusual reasons, a sick dog, recurring sickness of my own, an exploding kitchen sink (yes, I said exploding), and a snowstorm which threatened travel plans. I sensed the enemy did not want me to go, which (to me) meant God was about to do great and mighty things. The attacks actually served to solidify my resolve to go, so I called in all my prayer warriors. After a brief delay Friday morning, we headed out for Green Bay. Thank you, prayer warriors - the roads were dry as a bone!
Upon arrival to the convention center, we found our booth and quickly set things up. I was surprised to find we had been given a booth in an excellent location. I expected to be stuck in a corner somewhere, since they were providing the booth for free! The director of the conference came by and introduced himself, giving me an opportunity to gush some words of thanks. He seemed excited that we were there, and that was encouraging.
After the First Free bus arrived with the rest of the kids and leaders, there was no time to relax. I was immediately met by several girls who wanted to switch rooms. Unfortunately I had to tell them "no", since we (leaders) had determined to not allow any switching, and instead rely on God's providence in placing them in the rooms they were in. I hated that my first words to them were negative, but they seemed to get over it quickly enough.
Following the chaos of checking into rooms, we headed back to the convention center. The booth was already surrounded by enthusiastic kids, all anxious to get these crazy clothespins we had designed. The clothespins had the website for our book's blog on one side, and we had written "Don't Freak Out!" on the other side (the name of the book). We had gotten the idea for the clothespins as a promotional tool from a band we met at Sonshine last summer. We had optimistically made 1700 of them, assuming we would have plenty left over to use in other places. Wrong! The clothespins became the hot item of the conference. All the kids wanted them, and they loved trying to sneak them on other people. They found the most creative way to wear them, too. Everywhere you went all weekend, you would see people with clothespins attached in various places. We ended up having to ration them in order to have enough for the whole weekend.
Before the night's first rally, I checked on all of the girls in my small group. We dealt with a lost wallet, improper swimwear, headaches, tiredness and homesickness. And yes, we had only been there a few hours! My thought was, "Wait a minute. Why did I agree to do this?" :)
The rally was thought-provoking and high energy. Rockin' worship with Floodgate Alive and an inspiring (and funny) message from Bill Allison. He defined what it means to live a centered life. The Scripture was Mark 12:28-31, Jesus' response to the question about the greatest commandment. Bill talked about how it is easier for us to love God than it is to love others, but that the Christian walk must include both. Loving God is the vertical line in the cross, loving people is the horizontal.
In our small group later, we all agreed that it is definitely easier to love God than others. I asked the girls to think of the most annoying person in their lives right now, and to think of some way to show love to that person next week. Then I asked them how they could love one another in their room tonight, knowing full well there would otherwise be arguments over bathroom time, sleeping arrangements, and temperature controls.
That was as much as I could get out of my girls for the night. They were far too wound up (and sugared up), and their main goal for the evening was to go back to the convention center to listen to a band. Fortunately, they were back in their rooms on time, so I knew I had some responsible girls. Of course, they had to tell me how cute the guys were in the band. *sigh*
The girls in my room graciously gave me a bed all to myself, which may have been due to the fact that I warned them about my snoring. Either way, I am thankful. Good night.
Thursday, January 07, 2010
Snow: A Different Perspective
If you are like many people here in the upper Midwest, you are a little sick of snow right now. I am often teased about my love of snow, but I offer that it's all in the way you look at it. Below is a little devo I wrote last year about this time. I hope it gives you a fresh perspective as the flakes swirl around today.
SNOW: A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE
"Come now, let us reason together," says the Lord. "Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.” Isaiah 1:18 (NIV)
I’ve always loved snow. Growing up in Minnesota, there was plenty of snow. I loved to watch those beautiful, magical flakes falling from the sky. It meant going outside to make snowmen , forts and snow angels, playing football with my brothers, and having snowball fights. It often meant school was cancelled, and sometimes the snow would literally trap us in our house for a couple of days. When that happened, we would have marathon Monopoly games, ping-pong tournaments, and card games. Being “snowed in” was a treasured family memory for me.
I still love snow, even though now it means shoveling and driving in it. We’ve had a lot of snow this winter. This morning, as I watched it fall, I marveled again at its beauty. The flurries pouring down from the sky were enchanting, calling me into a deep connection with the Creator of all. I watched in wonder as God poured out fresh mercy over the earth, and I discovered an amazing link that drew me closer to Him. As I considered the qualities of snow, God drew me a picture of redemption.
In order for snow to fall, you need two things: cold air and moisture. It’s easier for sin to creep in when we are cold and lonely; we are tempted to run to false gods for warmth. When that happens, we often feel the consequences of our actions. Sometimes that looks like a torrential downpour of moisture into our lives.
As the snow approaches the earth, you notice that each flake is unique, and each one knows just where it is to land. Each one of us is unique, and God sends just exactly what we need, when we need it.
In case you haven’t noticed, snow is white. When there is fresh blanket of snow on the ground, everything looks clean and fresh. It has a pure, cleansing quality. God’s forgiveness has this same effect in our lives.
Another quality of snow is that is helps prepare the ground for spring. As the sun begins to melt away the snow, the earth is dampened and provides fertile ground for seeds to be planted. As we receive His mercy, God prepares our hearts for the new things He wants to do in us.
Sometimes there are after effects to the snow. The roads become slippery and hazardous. When we are convicted of our sin and ask forgiveness, we sometimes forget the act of repentance. If we don’t turn away from our wrong actions, the road will soon become icy and difficult to navigate.
The winds will also occasionally pick up after a snowfall. Sometimes the white stuff is blown around so much you can hardly see two feet in front of you. Satan loves to blow in after we’ve had a great victory over sin and try to blind us from the direction God wants to take us.
Finally, it’s important to remember that it’s usually still cold after the snow arrives. We may still feel a little lost and lonely, but if we choose the right source of warmth, the spring will soon come.
“Wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.” Psalm 51:7b
SNOW: A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE
"Come now, let us reason together," says the Lord. "Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.” Isaiah 1:18 (NIV)
I’ve always loved snow. Growing up in Minnesota, there was plenty of snow. I loved to watch those beautiful, magical flakes falling from the sky. It meant going outside to make snowmen , forts and snow angels, playing football with my brothers, and having snowball fights. It often meant school was cancelled, and sometimes the snow would literally trap us in our house for a couple of days. When that happened, we would have marathon Monopoly games, ping-pong tournaments, and card games. Being “snowed in” was a treasured family memory for me.
I still love snow, even though now it means shoveling and driving in it. We’ve had a lot of snow this winter. This morning, as I watched it fall, I marveled again at its beauty. The flurries pouring down from the sky were enchanting, calling me into a deep connection with the Creator of all. I watched in wonder as God poured out fresh mercy over the earth, and I discovered an amazing link that drew me closer to Him. As I considered the qualities of snow, God drew me a picture of redemption.
In order for snow to fall, you need two things: cold air and moisture. It’s easier for sin to creep in when we are cold and lonely; we are tempted to run to false gods for warmth. When that happens, we often feel the consequences of our actions. Sometimes that looks like a torrential downpour of moisture into our lives.
As the snow approaches the earth, you notice that each flake is unique, and each one knows just where it is to land. Each one of us is unique, and God sends just exactly what we need, when we need it.
In case you haven’t noticed, snow is white. When there is fresh blanket of snow on the ground, everything looks clean and fresh. It has a pure, cleansing quality. God’s forgiveness has this same effect in our lives.
Another quality of snow is that is helps prepare the ground for spring. As the sun begins to melt away the snow, the earth is dampened and provides fertile ground for seeds to be planted. As we receive His mercy, God prepares our hearts for the new things He wants to do in us.
Sometimes there are after effects to the snow. The roads become slippery and hazardous. When we are convicted of our sin and ask forgiveness, we sometimes forget the act of repentance. If we don’t turn away from our wrong actions, the road will soon become icy and difficult to navigate.
The winds will also occasionally pick up after a snowfall. Sometimes the white stuff is blown around so much you can hardly see two feet in front of you. Satan loves to blow in after we’ve had a great victory over sin and try to blind us from the direction God wants to take us.
Finally, it’s important to remember that it’s usually still cold after the snow arrives. We may still feel a little lost and lonely, but if we choose the right source of warmth, the spring will soon come.
“Wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.” Psalm 51:7b
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