Dark Tunnels
Sometimes going through some of life's "dark tunnels" with God can feel like one of those creepy amusement park rides…the further you go in the tunnel the darker it gets and you just want to say, "let me off this ride!" But I'm reminded of a wise old quote from Corrie ten Boom that says, "When a train goes through a tunnel and it gets really dark, don't panic and jump off! Just sit still and trust the Conductor."
I have learned while navigating through the dark tunnels of life spiritually and God seems a million miles away, to "learn hard" on the Lord…His character, His Word, and His promises. God's promises are like stars. The darker the night, the brighter they shine. I can't begin to tell you when some of the "feelings" will return in your relationship with Christ. Sometimes the dark, spiritually numb times last for only a couple of days. Other times, they last much longer. But on the other side of the "black hole," I promise that your spiritual roots will be deeper and your faith will be stronger. Even more important, you'll make Jesus smile because of the authentic friendship you're developing with Him. You see, He's got a lot of "casual friends" who just stick around when times are good and emotions are high. Try not to be a "friend" like that. Jesus deserves real friendship from you, not just the superficial, self-serving kind.
Sometimes going through some of life's "dark tunnels" with God can feel like one of those creepy amusement park rides…the further you go in the tunnel the darker it gets and you just want to say, "let me off this ride!" But I'm reminded of a wise old quote from Corrie ten Boom that says, "When a train goes through a tunnel and it gets really dark, don't panic and jump off! Just sit still and trust the Conductor."
I have learned while navigating through the dark tunnels of life spiritually and God seems a million miles away, to "learn hard" on the Lord…His character, His Word, and His promises. God's promises are like stars. The darker the night, the brighter they shine. I can't begin to tell you when some of the "feelings" will return in your relationship with Christ. Sometimes the dark, spiritually numb times last for only a couple of days. Other times, they last much longer. But on the other side of the "black hole," I promise that your spiritual roots will be deeper and your faith will be stronger. Even more important, you'll make Jesus smile because of the authentic friendship you're developing with Him. You see, He's got a lot of "casual friends" who just stick around when times are good and emotions are high. Try not to be a "friend" like that. Jesus deserves real friendship from you, not just the superficial, self-serving kind.
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Exodus 33:7-11 tells us how Moses used to pitch the "Tent of Meeting" outside the camp. It was the place where the Lord would speak to him, face to face, as a man speaks with his friend.
Don't you long to create your own Tent of Meeting, a place where you can spend some face time with the Lord? I know I do, but I also know I'm going to have to fight for it on a daily basis. For I know, no one will create a Tent of Meeting for me, but me. And, no windows of opportunity will ever magically appear. My Tent of Meeting will only come through sheer determination, a refusal to let anything else encroach upon my time with Him. Without it, ministry will inevitably get messy.
I'm up for the challenge, the fight and the relentless pursuit! Are you? Draw near my friends! For He promises that if we draw near to Him, He will draw near to us.
Lovingly,
While we say we hunger to know Christ more intimately, sometimes we get lazy. Other times, our world comes crashing in on us when things don't go as anticipated. In both situations, all too often we want to spiritually sit down on the inside. Rather than chasing after the things of God, we choose, instead, to coast. The Enemy would love for us to believe that coasting will not cost us anything; however, nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, Proverbs 1:32 tells us that kind of complacency will spiritually destroy us.
In this Source, we'll look at Jacob's wrestling match and Elisha's journey. They both had every opportunity to sit down on the inside, but chose not to. There was a price to be paid in their pursuit, and they were willing to pay it. My question is...are you? This Source isn't just for your students, but for you too. When everything on the inside of you says "sit right down and coast here," may you stand up on the inside! The price tags you pay to live a life fully committed are worth "playing to the whistle."
Refusing to coast,
In the church world, I think we "motivate" well toward growing closer to Christ, but sometimes don't "lead" well when we fail to give students pragmatic steps for success. Our continual "10 & 10" (10 minutes in the Word and 10 minutes in prayer) challenge is one of our attempts to do just that, but in this Youth Leader's Coach, "Stood Up Again," we take it a step further.
Through a simple but powerful drama, the reading of David's heart cry found in Psalm 42 and the sharing of a transferable illustration involving deer, we try to help students become more aware of and responsive to the Lord's constant presence. Specifically, drawing upon the wisdom of Brother Lawrence, we encourage them to transform their prayer lives by "Practicing The Presence Of God." And finally, in the giving of a 30-day challenge to have a secret, silent, running conversation with the Lord, our hearts' desire is to stir up a deep longing in them to be in His presence and submerged in Him daily, not just in times of trouble.
This message, however, is not just for students...it's for us too! In the chaos of life, I know too many leaders who are better at being youth pastors than they are at being Christ-followers. May this message serve as a reminder to be "Practicing The Presence" ourselves.
Lovingly,
Harold Camping said that the world would end on May 21, 2011. He also predicted that the world would end on May 21, 1988 and September 7, 1994. Harold Camping was wrong. Harold Camping does not know when the world will end, neither does anyone else for that matter. The Bible tells us not even Jesus knows the exact date and time, but only our Heavenly Father knows. Regardless, our kids are curious...and so are we. Our media-driven society stirs that curiosity and creates fear through their imagined disasters. Earthquakes, tidal waves, invasions of super villains and aliens are all box office hits.
This Source, "Preparing For God's Final Exam," is not focused on living in fear of the final "epic" disaster, but to use the "end times" buzz and curiosity to provoke thought and transform lives. Specifically, using Scripture, video and an inexpensive token, our goal is to encourage our students to live wholeheartedly for Christ by eliminating the "straw in their lives." Prayerfully, they will never hear the words "it could have been so much more."
Lovingly,
We're all pretty desperate about getting our problems solved, but we want the solution without it costing us something. I think that's why we have so many half-hearted Christians these days. Why? Because when something ceases to cost you something big, it ceases to mean something big.
In this month's Source, "How bad do you want it?," my ground zero question is, "Does it take desperate times for you to pursue God desperately?" My heart behind this message is to inspire some of us to make the personal choice to passionately come after God no matter what our feeling level.
Fanning the flame,
