Hard Work

This has been a full and interesting week. It started off with three full days of Executive Staff retreat. We talked and dealt with weighty issues that impact the future and our ministries in significant ways. Good things to talk about but draining all the same. On top of that, because we do the retreat here at the Philemon Center, we really do need to stay caught up on e-mail, phone calls and other projects. So it is not really a retreat as the word would suggest. Couple in the youth ministry classes which have kept us hopping this year, the OBI discussions, and I should be looking at this as "TGIF".

And while I am looking forward to a variety of activities --teaching Jr Hi SS, watching some of my small group guys play football tonight and others in the band, helping a friend move, reffing two soccer games and various and assundry home projects--I can't help but think that I really do like to work. Some will think I am crazy. But didn't man have responsiblity in the Garden even before the fall? I don't think work is a bad thing. I am blessed to love what I do. I am grateful to my parents who modelled that work is a blessing from the Lord.

So this weekend, I am looking forward to more "work". The variety of these next couple days will be great. And I can't imagine living life by the motto: "I'm living for the weekend" so I can sit around and do nothing. May as well be dead at that point! Hope everyone reading this has a good weekend too.

Setting the Pace

I love it when people "get it". Usually it seems to be the young people I get to work with. I'll brag about my daughter Bekah and her friend Marissa as examples. Someone left our church who was overseeing the nursery. No one was stepping forward to say they would be willing to take on this ministry need. Well, along come two 15 year olds who said, "Why don't we?" It has been fantastic to watch them in their excitement organize and communicate with adults and other teens in the church. So a church of 400+ has two 15 year olds organizing the nursery ministry. You go girls!

The other aspect I have appreciated is that they were given permission by church leaders AND they are being mentored in this process by a mom in our church with five children. Talk about the older generation training up the younger generation.

And practically? We've found it down-right humorous that when adults are asked if they would be willing to serve in the nursery--they have a hard time saying "no" to two teenagers who are just staring to drive and are taking on major responsibility!

Loving God and serving others. Really fun when people get it. And my experience is that I am personally challenged when 15 year olds are leading the way.

Good Discussion in Freshman Foundations

One of the ways that I have chosen to be better connected with youth ministry and other college students this year is through leading a "break out" group for the Freshman Foundations class at Grace College that all new students must take during their first semester. Todd, a TNI student who is a junior, asked if I would be the faculty mentor and he would be the student mentor. Even though it has only been two weeks, it has been very positive to work with 17 freshman--and especially with Todd. One of the complains from last year's freshman is that the student mentors were not used enough. First thing I did was inform Todd that was not even going to be a possibility because he was going to work harder than I did... So far, so good.

Today's break out group discussion related to the first 9 chapters of Andy Stanley's book The Best Question Ever. Todd took the first part of the book and my discussion questions related to the concept of redeeming the time. Our group was great and we walked away with one vital concept: there are only two things that last forever--The Word of God and people. Those are the most important things. And when the "pressing " things come into our lives--and they always do--we need to be sure we do not neglect the most important for what is urgent.

Great words to live by. And today is a new opportunity for me to apply them over the busy-ness of what this day holds.

He supplies our needs

It has been a whirlwind weekend. This is the weekend that all the students come to Grace College to start the fall semester--and I'm involved because of my responsibilities in leading the youth ministry major (The National Institute) that CE National and Grace College partner together to run.

Lots of new people and lots of opportunity to train people in minsitry. I'm looking forward to sharing this one thought with students that I learned anew this past week:

I just sent out our quarterly support letter to our teammates. Dana and I raise our own personal prayer and financial support to be connected with the ministry of CE National. In these updates I list what God has been doing and what the plans are for the next three months. One of the last paragraphs I wrote in my fall letter mentions that as we approach the end of the fiscal year (Sept 30 at CE National) we were about $4000 behind in our annual support.

Now I know there are a lot of people who are really sweating as it relates to finances. Some situations for some of our friends have been challenging and down-right difficult. And because of that , some of our teammates have let us know that at this point they just cannot continue to financially partner with us in the same way they have been. I appreciate their teamwork and also their willingness to communicate. They will always be key parts of our ministry team--whether finances are involved or not.

But the other reality is that we are behind about $4000. We know that God supplies our needs. Not always the wants--but I have seen the Lord come through so many times--I believe he takes care of a lot of "wants" along the way too! After I sent the letter out, I get a voice mail from some dear friends. The sweet voice on the other end tells me, "the Lord has blessed us and we love you and believe in what you are doing. There is a check on its way to CE National right now for $1000 and we will see that the other monies are sent in the coming weeks."

While I know God supplies our every need, it sure is fun to see it unfold before our very eyes. and I also beleive that God used the prayers of his children to help move the hearts of these friends who had the where-with-all to help meet this need. So here is just another example of how everyone is important in the body of Christ! He used some to pray and some to give to meet the need. Again.