needy

I went to water street the other day to meet with Norm, see what he does and get a tour of the remodeling. Right when I walk in he is meeting with a guy who is leaving the program on not so good terms. I was able to sit and listen with Norm and this guy.

This was unique. As I was listening I couldn't help but make application in my own life and ministry. Specifically as I meet with and listen to parents/students who don't want to stay consistently involved in our ministry. This man was making excuses why he thought he should not be involved and Norm without hesitation calls his bluff. He quickly identified that this supposed issues was a mere smoke screen to the real problems, a problem of the heart.

Over the past four years I have had countless conversations with families about their reasons for leaving the church or disconnecting from the youth ministry. And never once have I called them out on the carpet to say that they may need to consider that it is not us (not that we are perfect or anything). Maybe there is something else going on in their heart that needs to be addressed before moving on.

I don't know about you but I often can't interpret life with wisdom and discernment until I've faced my current heart reality. If at the core Jesus is not center and we are secretly rebellious in areas, I think one of the best ways to hide from true intimacy with Christ and freedom from our sin is by jumping ship on our communities in search of something 'better'. We can so quickly assume that it is our circumstances that are messing with us, when it is actually the Holy Spirit.

How do we help ourselves and our fellow brothers and sisters through these tricky waters? We must see the big picture. We are jacked up and need Christ to save us and to change our hearts. This process of sanctification happens in the church community through worship celebrations, group praying, fellowship, discipleship relationships, sacrificial giving and learning the Word of God. The same habits found all through out the scriptures.

In many respects we are like a addiction recovery program for teenagers. We are addicted to sin and need to learn the habits, beliefs and self death that was modeled in Jesus. Like addicts we must lead others into the knowledge that they are the problem and that they can't fix themselves. Jesus is the one who provides freedom from our slavery to sin. He provides freedom from keeping ourselves in the center of our lives and leads us to live Christ centered lives that are committed to serving the needs of others.

Youth group is no perfect place, we are all in process. But I can't think of a better place for a recovering sin addict to be then the church. Teenagers today must not simply come to church cause they want to. We must lead them to see that they need to. ( By coming to church I mean participation in the faith community through honest life sharing relationships, not just entering the building)

And when we move from making want based choices to need based choices I think we see more and more the power of God transforming lives through the gospel.

I guess I could write more, or go back and clarify parts, but I have to go. Let me know if you have any thoughts.