Why am I a youth pastor?

Let's be real...If you have done ministry for any length of time whatsoever you have asked yourself this question.  Being in ministry is one of the hardest jobs there is out there. Watching kids you pour your life into just walk away from everything you taught them to go live a life that is not what God planned for them.  There are days when you drive out of the parking lot with a sense of purpose and knowing that this is what you were called to do.  While other nights you drive out of the parking lot believing by faith that someone got something that will change their life.  I can't tell you how many nights when I was first starting out in ministry I would turn out the lights after one of our student ministry nights I would whisper this question in my heart.

Every summer we do our high school internship.  We believe in ministry leadership and discipleship is caught more than taught.  So in the summer we give 7 weeks to pour into teenagers.  They spend nearly every waking moment doing what we do.  By the end of the summer it is amazing how much they change and develop as Christians and even more as leaders in their generation.  The passion that me and Bryan have becomes their passion and their view of the church and life changes drastically.

Still the question often remains....Why am I a youth pastor?

This Tuesday our high school interns each preached a message.  It was so powerful.  As I watched them preach I began to realize this is why we do what we do....

Ministry really is not about lights, games, events or retreats.  It isn't about being trendy, edgy or crazy.  It is about only two things:
1.  Giving them roots
2. Giving them wings

So many times as a youth pastor I have never truly gotten it.  I thought it was about being the best out there or making sure it was fun.  I more convinced than ever that it is about providing a place where they get roots.  Where they find out what they believe and why they believe it.  We as a church must be sure that we aren't preaching good ideas but that they are learning what the Word of God says about their life.  I want them to know not what I think, but what God thinks about them and their life.  That is what makes all the difference.  It is the truth you believe that liberates and sets you free.  To establish good roots we must have an environment of love.  I am old school enough to believe that you can change any persons life by loving them where they are.  Everyone already knows what they aren't.  They knew their short comings before walking into a church.  They need us to remind them WHO they ARE in CHRIST.  When they realize this their roots will begin to grow.
Ephesians 3:17 Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God's love and keep you strong

Secondly we must be a place that we let them have wings.  Let them do what God has called them to do.  A leader once equipped if they aren't released into their purpose becomes frustrated.  We must provide an environment where they are able to do what God has called them to do.  Whatever that may look like my job as their pastor is to facilitate that and encourage them in their gifting.  I love what my Pastor has always taught me: "Leadership is easy it is providing an environment where people believe nothing is impossible and that they can do anything.  It is also providing a place that if they do fail we help them get back up again."  Jesus has called us not to be just hearers only but also doers of the word.  For that to happen I have to make sure they have wings as well as roots.  I love the story in the Bible in Mark 6 where Jesus sent them out and the Bible tells us that many came back telling of all that happened.  Make sure in your church that you teach the word, but that you also are sending them out to do what God has called them to do.

Last night I watched them preach and my heart was so full.  Success in ministry IS NOT big numbers.  It isn't having great events.  It isn't being well known.  It is watching your students go from sitting in a pew and learning to now being able to teach what they themselves know to be the truth.  This is why I am a youth pastor.....To watch a generation answer a call that has been sent to them sense the foundations of the earth.  To watch them rise to their God given potential.

IF/THEN

To find out our "then" in life we first have to act on the "if".

God's Government

Today we will be looking at Matthew 4:23(msg)

From there he went all over Galilee. He used synagogues for meeting places and taught people the truth of God. God's kingdom was his theme—that beginning right now they were under God's government, a good government! He also healed people of their diseases and of the bad effects of their bad lives.

I hope you enjoy this first video blog :)

Success is a choice.

You can only hear someone’s voice if they are close enough to you. So many times we keep people close to us that are our enemies. We feel discouraged and defeated because we are listening to the wrong voice.

So much of our decisions we make are determined by the voices that we listen to. One voice echoes that we won’t make it. One says that you are more than able.

Success is a choice.

So is defeat….

You can stop doing what you are doing, but that means the enemy wins.

I love the story of the woman caught in adultery (John 8). Jesus told the people that were against her that he who is without sin cast the first stone. No one threw a stone…in fact we know the story they all began to walk away one by one. Yet she still stood there before Him.

Until it was just her…and the maker of the Universe…Jesus.

God’s love for you will outlast your accusers. She never defended herself, not one time. She just continued to stand and let Jesus speak for her.

Let me tell you something. God’s word will outlast the people that say you can’t make it. God’s word will out last your failures. You don’t have to have all the answers. All you have to do to win is just stand, and let Jesus come to your defense. Before you know it all the people that were against you will be gone.

Some might say the woman caught in adultery got lucky that day, but she received the Grace because she stood. She stood when others told her to run away. In life there is no such thing as luck. What the world calls luck is when preparation meets opportunity.

Just keep standing.

Success is a choice…..Not a right.

LOVE MULTIPLIES CHALLENGE

Our church has been raising money for our parking lot for two years. Little by little we have been paving our parking lot as we have the money come in. We are about to pave the LAST of THREE phases. In that a couple in our church challenged us today to use the talents that we have to finish the final things that needed to be done, and gave us $5.00 each to go multiply our seed. Our church is calling this LOVE MULTIPLIES CHALLENGE.

Talent....We are born with it right?

Well some of us were born with it any ways. I was sitting there thinking of what I could do and my mind was blank. Then it hit me.... CLOTHES! I LOVE CLOTHES

We all have that time in the morning staring in a closet that looks full of clothes yet we still can't find anything to wear right?!

This is my favorite part of my day is putting together outfits. Taking what I have and using it in different ways. So with that said for the LOVE MULTIPLIES challenge at our church I am going to people's homes and helping them take what they have and put it together in different ways then they would have usually done.

I will keep you all posted on how much money I raise for our church. I have two weeks from today and I am believing that my $5.00 that was given to me will turn into at least $500.

Makes you think what talent do YOU have that you just overlook. The widow in Kings was asked by the prophet...WHAT DO YOU HAVE? He didn't ask her what she WISHED she had. What she would ONE DAY have. He asked her what she had at that moment. She then told him that she had some oil. With that little bit of oil she filled lots of jars.

So now I am CHALLENGING you with our LOVE MULTIPLIES challenge. What do YOU have in YOUR house that you can give to God and watch God multiply over the next few weeks? Let's start a LOVE REVOLUTION with people using what God has given them to impact others... If you do rise to the challenge let me know and blog about it so I can see your progress along the way!

Key to Multiplication

No matter who you are the New Year always brings a time of reflection...Looking inward and thinking about all the things we would have done differently....Thinking about things we are glad we did.....Thinking about what we would like to see in the year to come.

In Matthew 25:14-30 there is a popular story of the parable of the talents. Here Jesus tells us about a Man who was going on a journey so he entrusted all his wealth to three men each according to their ability. Sometime later the Bible tells us the first two brought back their earnings having doubled what was given to them. The third however came to the master calling him hard and reveals that he was afraid of him therefore he didn't do anything with what he had been given. The master was then disappointed with him.

I find it interesting that here we see three men all given an opportunity and all given something that they didn't necessarily earn. They all three had encountered the Man at the same time yet one had a skewed view of who He was.

A lot of us as we begin this new year we begin to take inventory of what all we have to make success happen. We begin to count things that really don't even matter as to weather we will be successful or not. For example we count the prestige of our jobs to see if we are successful. The amount of money we have in our checkbooks tells us if we are going to make it another year. The number the scale tells us if we are pretty or not. All of these things when counted will not bring forth any multiplication of what we desire.

The two men in that text in the Bible saw increase in their life because they saw the man (Jesus) for who He was. When you begin to see Jesus for who He is you begin to multiply in every area of your life. This time of year people are buying self help books, gym memberships, and listening to motivational speakers. All those things are good, but they will bring no real change.

What will bring change is just to find out who Jesus is in your life, and that will change the way you use everything you have. The two men that multiplied what they had did so because they knew the Person that gave it was loving forgiving and merciful. Where you know you are loved there begins to be a freedom to take risks that ordinarily you would have never taken. They knew the Man had given them something that cost Him everything, because they realized the price the Man paid for them to receive that chance they were willing to act on it.....

The final man received a rebuke from the Man (Jesus) in this text. He received rebuke because he had potential for increase, but didn't do anything about it. God has entrusted each of us with talents gifts and abilities. Those things are not ours to do what we want with. They were given for us to go and multiply what was begun in us. However there will be no multiplication until you see Jesus for who He is.

So I end this blog with a statement that has pierced my heart the last few days....

"Every area that is experiencing lack in your life is under the influence of a lie."-Pastor Lawrence Neisant.

The lack we see in our life really comes down to us not seeing Jesus who He is. So who is Jesus to you this 2012 year? Is He a hard man? Is He loving? How you see Him is how you will increase...It all starts with your vision of who He is.

Miracles Today

I was sitting in service last night as altar ministry was going on and the Lord spoke to my heart "The reason why people don't pray for the sick is because they don't believe that I heal."

I was somewhat taken back at what the Lord had spoken to my heart. Then I began to think of all of the times that I felt like I should/could pray for someone to be healed, but in the back of my mind always remained a question...."What if I pray and nothing happens? I don't want to make God look bad." So instead of bringing solution to the problem (which is what we are called to do as Christ followers) I in turn just tell them how to deal with the situation.

Now don't get me wrong I have seen many miracles since being in ministry. I have with my eyes seen cancerous tumors shrivel before my eyes as prayer was taking place. I have seen the look of joy come upon the face of a person that just heard noise for the first time. Even with seeing all of this I know that the power of God is real and for today....yet why do we hesitate to pray for the sick?

Unbelief.

Pastor Thomas Kudjoe is my Pastor's Son in the faith. Pastor Thomas lives in Ghana Africa and he has seen three people raised from the dead, kids totally healed of autism in services and many more miracles. I asked him why does he think he sees those miracles and so many Americans have never seen those things happen. His response was easy. "We believe the Bible. We know that Jesus Words are true. We don't read the Bible for information we read it for a revelation."

I sat there listening to Pastor Thomas words and I felt so convicted in my heart of how many times I have let the Word of God only be information that I know in my head but not a revelation out of my heart that spurs action.

The Word of God is solid about healing from the Old Testament all the way through the New. God loves to see His people healed. I know what you are thinking: "Yes Crystal God does heal but only if it is His will." Let's look at that shall we?

Matthew 6:9-13

Our Father in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
¹⁰ Your kingdom come.
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
¹¹ Give us this day our daily bread.
¹² And forgive us our debts,
As we forgive our debtors.
¹³ And do not lead us into temptation,
But deliver us from the evil one.
For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.

We all know this prayer right? Let's look at verse ten Your Kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Let's just think for just a second what they are saying is that we are going to have an invasion of heaven on earth. God's will is what is happening in heaven wouldn't you agree? Now think with me is there sickness in heaven? Is there cancer in heaven? Is there lack of money in heaven? You are thinking: "Of course not because it is heaven!" Wait a minute Jesus gave us this prayer so we can see an invasion of heaven on earth. So that means that whatever is happening in heaven WE are to enforce that principal on earth and it shall be done.

Psalm 103:3 Who forgives ALL your sins and heals ALL your diseases

Let's define ALL:

* the whole amount, quantity, or extent of

* as much as possible

* the whole number or sum of

So do you believe Jesus has forgiven ALL your sins? If you believe that we must believe the second part of this verse as well. Just as he forgives ALL your sins, He has also healed ALL your diseases. God is able.

I know there are a lot of people that don't believe that healing is for today. Truth is we try to make excuses for why we haven't seen it instead of confronting the unbelief that is within our hearts. God's will is to heal every time no matter what....Why don't we always see the fullness of that...That is for God to reveal to us one day in heaven, but for right now I am to do what he has told us todo and that is to lay hands on the sick and see them recover.

Now back to the service last night when the Lord spoke to me.... I opened my eyes and one of our students was standing there. He is an all-star athlete for our high school football team. I asked him what did he need. He replied "I need prayer for my back to be healed." I layer hands on his back and could feel the power of God go into his back and knew that he received his healing. I finished praying for him and then asked him if he felt any better then when he had asked for prayer. He replied and said "Well it only hurts when I do certain things." I then told him "Well do the certain things." He gave me a puzzled look and reluctantly said "ok".

He did the first thing that would have normally brought great pain and had a look of shock as there was NO PAIN....Then from doing that I told him do something else...He bent over and touched his toes. He comes up with watery eyes and says "There is NO PAIN!" He begins to tell me how he injured his back during football season and was going to have to go thru extensive physical rehab to get his back well. In that he would miss the sport that he loved most and that is baseball. This isn't the first healing I have seen like this. There has been so many more. Each one moves my heart to think that we serve a God that cares about everything that we need. He is so faithful. He loves to heal His people.

God is faithful every time...All we have to do is respond to the opportunities that are presented to us.