Everyone in the video below would certainly say “yes.” Jesus is still working on earth, still changing people, still transforming people, no matter where they’ve come from or what they’ve done. My man Chris Tavalare slapped this together and did a fantastic job. Enjoy.
“We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.” Romans 6:4
Anyone who’s seen me at youth knows I’m not even close to the Ignatius-type of youth pastor, but the above quote from Kelly’s former youth pastor hit me like a ton of bricks.
If we’re only able to capture people’s hearts with show, fun, lights, games, and videos…what will be left for them when the fun dies out? Will they simply move on to the next church, the bigger church, the more exciting church?
If we’re winning them with entertainment and self-help, it’s what we’ve won them to. We shouldn’t be surprised when they refuse to serve, to sacrifice, to give, to lay down their lives. If we’ve won them with empty promises then we’ve won them to comfort.
This is not a call to throw away all modern devices of creating a powerful environment, but to examine our our heart, our churches, our ministries to see if we’ve allowed the method to BE the message instead of being a way to deliver and communicate our one and only message.
For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.
If they hadn’t said this was a comedy sketch, I might have thought it was a documentary with the way things seem to go in youth ministry these days. Big props to Travis Hawkins and his crew for putting this together.
This Wednesday Every Nation, Tallahassee will facilitate our first Ash Wednesday service to kick off the start of Lent. Here’s a brief explanation of the two events from my notes for the service:
By the 4th century the Western church determined that the Lenten period of fasting and renewal should correspond to Christ’s 40-day fast, and, by counting 40 days backwards from Easter (excluding Sundays, which remain “feast” days), arrived at the Wednesday seven weeks before Easter.
The aim of Ash Wednesday worship is threefold:
- To meditate on our mortality, sinfulness and need for a savior
- To renew our commitment to daily repentance in the Lenten season and in all of life
- And to remember with confidence and gratitude that Christ has conquered death and sin.
Ash Wednesday worship, then, is filled with gospel truth. It is a witness to the power and beauty of our union with Christ and to the daily dying and rising with Christ that this entails.
If you’ve liked our Good Friday services, if you like the SACRIFICE series, if you liked the message last week you’ll really enjoy the service. It’s primarily a worship service with a few prayers, communion and the imposition of ashes mixed in. Don’t worry about not understanding certain elements; we’ve included an explanation for everything we’ll do during the service.
Please come and join us this Wednesday from 6-7 p.m. We look forward to seeing you.
Feb 10
When you’re a young leader (or just a bad older leader) you see your department/ministry/responsibility and not much else. Whatever you do is more important than what everyone else is doing. Budgets, people, scheduling…all of it should focus on what you’re focusing on.
A good leader, a growing leader, will learn to have a big picture perspective on how what they’re doing fits in with everyone else. Perhaps another department needs to be focused on for the overall health of the organization/church for a period of time.
Maybe you need to sacrifice in your budget for their health.
Maybe you need to spend time understanding how what they do impacts you.
Maybe you need to spend time asking how what you do impact them.
Maybe you need to ask how you can serve them, not how they can sacrifice for you.
Don’t forget, Jesus rebuked the “leaders” of his day because they knew all the rules and regulations but NO IDEA how to use that knowledge to understand what was taking place around them. Learn from their mistake. Get perspective.
There are tons of fantastic leadership books, blogs, articles and magazines. Unfortunately, most of them won’t work for you.
Because you’re alone.
You don’t have a staff to manage or motivate. You don’t have a department to turn around. It just you. Maybe a committed volunteer or so. But mainly just you.
The dirty secret of most leadership positions, especially ministry ones, is that it’s dirty work. Need chairs out? You put out the chairs. Trash cans need to be emptied? There’s the dumpster!
I’m not trying to discourage you from leadership, only paint you a realistic picture. If you’re only willing to step into a leadership role so you can synergistically up sell a motivated group of team players who are on the right seats on the bus…well, you’re going to be very disappointed.
But if you know what you’re getting in to, you remember why you’re doing it, and you know how it all fits together…then the all the dirty work is worth it!
Jan 28
Tonight at ENT Youth we’re kicking off a new series entitled “What’s Your Story?” It’s going to be a great time of hearing what people have been through and how God’s changed their lives.
Do you know your story?
Can you clearly articulate how Jesus changed your life?
25 years ago Roe V. Wade was made official.
Since then the following has taken place in the US alone:
In Florida there is 1 abortion for every 2 live births. The national average is 1 to 3.
Florida has 6% of the US population but 10% of the nation’s abortions. There were 91,000 in 2008.
Since 2003 the abortion rate in Leon County has risen 47%
There are over 2,000,000 people waiting to adopt babies in the US.
I like you guys and gals.
I ask you questions, you provide great answers.
But I don’t want it to be one-sided. I want you to have your chance to grill me.
So go ahead. Ask away. Serious or silly. Personal or public.
The short questions I’ll answer in comments. The long ones I’ll save for an entire blog.
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I'm husband to Kelly, father to Caroline, and lead pastor Trinity New Life Church, located in Trinity, Florida. I love Jesus, my family, and my church.
The ideas expressed here are totally my own and do not reflect the official positions of TNLC.