Readers, JUMP OUT OF YOUR BOAT!

Peter is my hero. No, not the “family guy” Peter (although he does crack me up) but the Peter found in the Bible. He was always the first to do something. I am sure the others were like, “What the heck Peter!?! Great, Peter is going to get us in trouble again. Who does he think he is? SHUT UP Peter!” Ok, there isn’t a Bible verse that I know of that says any of that, but that’s how I picture him hanging out with his buddies. Regardless, he is my hero. If I could have his faith, his determination, his zeal….imagine what I could do! Imagine what you could do? One of my favorite “preaching” lessons to the youth is found in Matthew 14:29. The Message says he jumped out of the boat to meet up with Jesus. DUDE! What if we jumped out of the boat and went to see Jesus. The boat is different for everyone reading this, but there is a boat none the less. What if you jumped out of the boat today. That would take some faith! (If there is anyone reading this on an actual boat, I am not saying to literally jump out of your boat!). Are you ready to take that jump of faith and let Jesus catch you?

Box Score: Jesus 1 devil 0

It happened last night. It was around 2am in the morning. I woke up and found myself sweating. I was wondering why because most of the time I am a little chilly. I saw my wife peacefully dreaming beside me. I got jealous! I rolled over and shut my eyes. All of a sudden fear came over me. Not a “you’re fired” or “where did mommy go” fear…but something more sinister, darker. All of a sudden thoughts of “what if’s” filled my mind. With every passing moment, the thoughts got worse. What if the storm outside causes lighting to hit the house, what if the 412 kids are in trouble, what if something ever happens to Annie, what if I died right now….what if the baby doesn’t make it? That was the last straw for me. I knew where this fear was coming and it wasn’t anything from heaven! My youth pastor growing up (Kenn) showed me Philippians 2:9-11 and I have never forgotten it. I cried out for Jesus to help me get through the fear. See, God is big enough to handle all of our problems…even at 2am! I prayed for protection over the house. I prayed for my wife to have one of the best nights of her life, I prayed that God would protect me, and then I began to pray for the baby (“cleatus the fetus” is what we have the youth group calling him/her). I asked God to calm my fears right then and there. “Lord, I know this is Satan trying to get after me. I know I’ve got two opportunities to preach to the youth tomorrow (FCA & 412) and the devil is trying to jack with me. Dad, you are so bigger than the devil could ever be and you hold us in the palm of your hand”. Immediately after the prayer, the fear sensation left. It was like, I said amen & it was gone! I guess I am writing this for two reasons: know that God is present with you even while you sleep and the power of Jesus’ name. Wherever you are, what ever you are doing today, I pray that God will calm you in the storm, no matter if it’s 2am or 2pm. Jesus so bigger than the devil could ever be! Score one for Jesus!!

The American Dream & Whip Antenna’s

Don’t weary yourself trying to get rich. Why waste your time? For riches can disappear as though they had the wings of a bird! (proverbs 23:4-5). That goes against everything they teach you in school! It is the “American Dream” to make a ton of bucks, have your own place, wife, kids, and a huge 4×4 with a whip antenna (ok maybe the last part is personal). Why do we rake ourselves over the coals to get rich? It’s one thing to love what you do and do it well…but it’s another to do it just to make money. I realize some people have to do jobs that aren’t what they want to do long term, and that’s totally different because they have a need to sustain family. What’s sad is when you meet a lonely retired gentleman playing golf that doesn’t know his kids, his wife, or his buddies….but he has a great retirement plan! It’s one thing to be responsible, but it’s another to let money drive you. Luke 16:13 says, “No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money”. Sitting here, worrying about future paychecks with the baby on the way…God asked me, Robbie why are you wasting your time? Are you serving the paycheck or me. OUCH. OK, God…I get it, for now! So I am preaching on offerings this week at 412!

Fending of the Temptress

Are you good fending of the temptress? Do you rely on your morals? Do you have church as a cornerstone in your life? Were you raised to be “better” or rise above? Hmmm…..chew on that for a second. Are you good fending of the temptress? Check out Proverbs 7: 1-5 for a second. Seriously, click on the link and read it, then come back to this page! Ok so now that you’ve done that (you have right?) lets talk. Look at the verse that says, “Write it out on the back of your hands; etch it on the chambers of your heart”. That says two things. #1 If you were to write it on the back of your hands, you would see it constantly…in everything you do. It would become second nature to see it. You might even get tired of seeing it somedays, but you would know it was there. #2 Etching it on the chambers of your heart, that just sounds painful doesn’t it?! That means you not only know it, you live it out. You own it. It’s yours. It’s your passion. So what’s your temptress today? Maybe it’s lying, stealing, gossip, lust, drugs, etc. Maybe it’s….well who knows what it is, but you do! Has it been hard to get rid of it? If so have you begun to read and memorize scripture that combats those thoughts or actions? Have you really repented and tried to do better for yourself? Sometimes it’s hard to fend off the temptress, but Jesus has our back no matter what attacks us! Read the Word and talk to Him about it…then applie it your life. See what happens! Check out the video too. It’s a human video that was done at a youth conference that shows Jesus helping someone that is being tempted. Extremely powerful, esp at the 4.30 mark. Bring tears to my eyes every time I see it! Have an awesome day and know that Jesus has your back!

Look it’s a bird, no it’s a plane, no it’s ….GOD?!

God is less than a breath away from you. He is above you. He is below you. He is beside you. He is around the corner. He is in your house. He is in your car. He is at the bus stop waiting to board with you. God is present during the 3rd inning of your softball game. God is standing in line with you at the chinese buffet. How crazy is that? The creator…….is with…….you. That’s how much He loves us. Matt Singleton preached two years ago at a 412 camp, that God is less than a breath away from you. He put his hand to his mouth & said that’s how close God is. I’ve never forgotten that nugget. We were made by Him, because He loves us. We were made to love Him back. It’s simple, really. But so simple it’s complex to understand for me. How could this be? Am I worthy of such a love? Nope. Did I earn that love? Nope. Can I leave that love? Nope. Psalm 139:1-12 talks about this. Last night, one of the 412 leaders showed me an awesome video by Tobymac, “Made to Love” that talks about the concept of God being everywhere with us and loving us. Check out the funny video here. Bottom line is this, God will never leave us or forget about us, because He loves us. Chew on that for a few minutes! Don’t just take a bite and move on with you day, instead let it flood your senses and embrace it!

Teens Do Worship!

We had an incredible time of worship last night at 412. It’s something about having the youth lead the youth in worship that makes it special. One of the coolest things you can see as a youth pastor is when the youth actually get it. Several told me after service that it was the first time they ever really listened to the words and prayed those words, (for all the churchy folk reading this….we can use the words “entered in”!!). My heart is wrapped around worship. I still remember being laid out on the floor 13 years ago dealing with issues and receiving my calling to youth ministry with “shout to the lord” playing in the background. One of the coolest songs out right now is by Hillsong United entitled, “The Time has Come”. The song says, “Found love beyond all reason. You gave Your life, Your all for me. And called me Yours Forever. Caught in the mercy fallout, I found hope found life. Found all I need. You’re all I need. The time has come to stand for all we believe in. So I for one am gonna give my praise to You. Today it’s all or nothing. All the way. The praise goes out to You. Yeah all the praise goes out to You. Today, today I live for one thing, to give You praise. In everything I do. Yeah all the praise goes out to You. All we are is Yours, And all we’re living for is all You are, is all that You are Lord.” Wow, now that’s incredible! My vision for youth ministries across this nation is to have youth yelling and screaming at the top of their lungs this song and then go to their homes and schools and live it out. Of course having the sound and lighting budget that Hillsongs have would be every youth pastor’s dream, but it doesn’t take that to worship! Could you imagine that though? Can you imagine your youth that excited about giving God praise. It’s happening….are you a part of it? I’ll close with these lyrics, “The time has come to stand for all we believe in. So I for one am gonna give my praise to You. Today it’s all or nothing. All the way.” 

The Perfect Script

If you could write the perfect script for your future what would it be? Would it be full of adventure? Would it be action packed? What about romance? Would someone rescue you from the big dragon? Would you race to save the damsel in distress? Would it be a comedy with Chevy Chase or Steve Martin by your side? Some of our adult leaders and I were discussing the youth group and the future of the youth that attend. It breaks our hearts when we see one of our 412′ers make a stupid decision that could effect them for a very long time. We try to tell them right from wrong through the games and worship. I use drama, personal stories, the Bible, and video’s to illustrate God’s love and how much wisdom He holds. I realize that as youth workers we can only equip them, but it is up to them to write the script for their lives. Now here is something that is cool….the future starts one second from now! We have a chance to write a new chapter in the script. Will God be a part of it?

zombies aren’t cool!

Depending on who you talk to, you can learn that the earth is really, really, really old. I am talking really old. Of all the million days, you are living today. You are at work, home, office, or maybe even a coffee shop reading this. Fact of the matter is…you are here. God has created you for this moment. Look around you. Who are you with? Is there anyone in the room around you or next door? He created this moment for them as well. Of all the millions of days, He decided that you were to be were you were, doing what you are doing now. That blows my mind away! This is your moment. This is your day. How will you use it? Audio Adrenaline has an older song that talks about living for this moment or living like a zombie.

What do you mean, I’m not cool?!

Satan works extremely hard trying to convince us that we will never be good enough, smart enough, skinny enough, strong enough, manly enough, sexy enough, rich enough, or popular enough. That is the truth isn’t it? I bust my rear trying to put together the best youth group service a kid could imagine. I go to the gym and work out for 2hrs trying to look like my idol, Hulk Hogan. I read the various magazines to keep up with what the youth are listening to and watching. I try to memorize random stuff to prove that I have a brain. I watch my carbs (kind of) in attempt to wear the size of jeans I wore in high school (notice I said size & not stylen). I want to be the popular guy on campus. Then I read, Galatians 1:10 “Am I now trying to win the approval of men, or of God? Or am I trying to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be  a servant of Christ”. OUCH!!!! So I learn from that verse that it’s ok to work on a great youth service, try to be physically fit, keep up with the culture, and everything else…but I do it to please God and not man. LOL, now that’s easy to write…harder to live out! I think you can agree, that’s something we all need to work on! Check out this video from dcTalk, it’s a classic: Jesus Freaks. What if we did just live to please God?

Lieutenant Dangle, Bike Chains, & this Generation

Lieutenant Dangle of the show “Reno 911″ was asked, what is your weapon of choice. His reply, “Preparedness is the most effective weapon, unless the guy has a bike chain“. I don’t know if it’s my youth pastor mentality, or the eggs I ate for breakfast, but God speaks to me through random shows like that. I wonder if we are really preparing the youth to take their generation to the next level spiritually? Another quote I’ve read that scares the marsh mellows outta my Lucky Charms is this: when 2 out 3 young people graduate from high school and youth group, they graduate from church too (paraphrasing a Doug Fields quote). We are not showing the youth that they are the church of today. Let’s face it, with that stat….we aren’t preparing them. I wonder if the church will ever catch up with everything that MTV, VH1, Apple, or Starbucks does to appeal to the youth. It seems like the church has become a spectator sport for the youth because they don’t dress appropriate for Sunday morning or fit the ideals of 30 years ago. If we don’t begin to invest in our youth (as a nation) they will not be prepared to fight against the devil. Are we strapping a bike chain around them to fit the model of the church that we like, that we grew up with? I’m not suggesting that we lose our theology, but I wonder how effective we are at teaching who God is to the generation that is more advanced than any before. I say we lose the bike chains and embrace this generation for who they are and where they are, that way they will be prepared! What are some ways we can stay true to what the Bible says, and effectively teach it to this generation?