- This is not the I was hoping to start the MLB season #BoSox #
- Tied at 5, that's what I'm talking about. #BoSox #
- Forgot to cancel emusic free trial and paid for a month of downloads. Atleast I get some new music out of it. But it def not worth keeping. #
- @lilkup sorry about your Cubs. Not the opening day you were hoping for, huh? #
- Soccer practice without chairs is misery #
- @lilkup That is a great article in the SYM email today on Identity. Everbody should go check it out. http://bit.ly/ctDVJr #
- Why did I feel so good during Lent and now it's feels likes it's all down hill? #
Most of us have something inside of us that desires to do hard things that produce great results. Unfortunately as adults we don’t even know where to begin sometimes, let alone teenagers that have these desire and lack the encouragement from adults to do great things.
In 2008 Alex and Brett Harris wrote Do Hard Things: A Teenage Rebellion Against Low Expectations and followed up this year with Start Here, a kind of how to guide chock full of stories of teenagers all across the world who have decided to step up and do hard things. Having worked in youth ministry and working hard to instill a passion for doing these kinds of things and finding myself questioning where to start, Start Here is an amazing book that has tons of insight not just for teen readers but for adults as well. God is using these twin boys to lead the charge in a rebolution (a term they coined to describe the rebellion against low expectations set upon teenagers today) and inspire their peers and all who will listen to step up and do hard.
I really enjoyed the way the authors shared personal stories and insight the Harris brothers had from the projects they have taken on, stories from other rebolutionaries and practical helps from people across of a wide spectrum fields.
This book is a must read for all teenagers whether for a particular gift or just because. I am going to keep this book in a special place just some my children will be able to read when they are ready.
DISCLOSURE OF MATERIAL CONNECTION: http://cmp.ly/1/if7sqc
- Getting on the road, headed to perform a wedding for a girl that was in my youth ministry 8 yrs ago. #fb #
- RT @flowerdust Please RT to media @CNN @andersoncooper @foxnews etc – This tent city needs food/meds 5k+ people http://flic.kr/p/7CYFZe #
- @drewpowell congratulation Drew that's great news, we'll be praying for you and the girls in reply to drewpowell #
- At our neighbors for a picnic. First we had oysters and now we are moving on to burgers and hotdogs. Happy Presidents Day! #
- I just entered to win a Free Nexus One. Follow @YouVersion, retweet and register here~> http://bit.ly/c2hY76 #fb #nexusone #
- If you aren't seeing God move, invite a lost friend to church and watch God move in mighty ways in your own life #
- @dannyschaffner that's awesome in reply to dannyschaffner #
- @chrisbrogan welcome to FL in reply to chrisbrogan #
- @chrisbrogan treat me right all the time in reply to chrisbrogan #
- RT @PastorMark: 1.5 million people on loveline radio tonight. Hope I don't duff it. // praying for Marl #
- Judah's class Valentines Party http://twitpic.com/12m0ci #
- My daughter holding hands with a boy today. He told he loved her since Kintergarden, or what we call last year. Man boys learn early. # fb #
- @crowderband I promise in reply to crowderband #
- RT @RELEVANTMag: RT @cameronstrang: Hey Mac users, we now have a RELEVANT.fm Mac desktop application! Check it out here: http://RELEVANT.fm #
- Took my wife out for a Valentines Lunch & if the rain clears taking my daughter 2 the Nascar Truck Race tonight 4 some daddy & daughter time #
- http://twitvid.com/22872 RT @matkearney I just got the new video we shot in Nashville for All I Have. I wanted you to see it first. #
- At the Truck Race, it's raining. Might be awhile before it starts. #fb http://twitpic.com/12vkwa #
- Race got rained out, so we headed to Krispy Kreme for hot doughnuts and now we're home and the kids are in bed #fb #
- Watching Community Christian Church @livestream http://bit.ly/4Lw5Mv // Brian Welsh's "I am Second" video is powerful #
- Judah got his hair cut. Only time I can get him to look right at the camera is when he is asleep #fb http://twitpic.com/130ytp #
- RT @ShaunKing: 1 of the most DESPICABLE decisions n r lifetime was made. http://bit.ly/cTfnqL // unfortunatley Vodoo has such a strong grip #
- @flowerdust I have felt the same way ever since my first trip to Haiti. It's like my thorn in the flesh. in reply to flowerdust #
- Taxes are done! #
- @richann awesome in reply to richann #
- RT: @BibleSEO BibleWebApp.com: http://biblewebapp.com/study/ // what a great tool, definitely going to have to use this regularly in reply to BibleSEO #
- @tattood1 right there with you bro in reply to tattood1 #
- Win an iPad to use w/ free @Logos Bible Software app for iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad! Details: http://bit.ly/L4ipad #
- @timweston no in reply to timweston #
- @michaelmcminn can you pass along some info to where I can check that out, too? in reply to michaelmcminn #
- "If there is a life not worth living then we have no good news" Frank Shaeffer http://read.ly/Ps139.13.NLT #
- @aaronmonts that's awesome to hear in reply to aaronmonts #
- @cruciformity Google Voice Does An End Run Around Apple And Shows Up In The iPhone’s Browser http://bit.ly/6HjKWz (via @spidercam) #
- @cruciformity now I don't have to wait #
- @ShawnGrant lastpass.com, I use it it's great! in reply to ShawnGrant #
- @ShawnGrant I use both and 1Password has upgrade prices and LastPass only charges for the Pro features, so I went with LastPass in reply to ShawnGrant #
- @lilkup I say that to myself all the time in reply to lilkup #
- @terracecrawford Bill Hull's "The Complete Book of Disciplship" in reply to terracecrawford #
- @ShaunKing you know it in reply to ShaunKing #
- RT @Neil_Cole: When a child receives the Lord s/he doesn’t receive a Jr.-sized Holy Spirit and a Jesus action figure. #Church3.0 // awesome #
- Partying down at Chloe's class birthday party #fb http://twitpic.com/10c8m0 #
- I watched Fireproof with my wife tonight, I highly recommend it! #
- RT @ChristieSays: French RT @brucewagner: What language do they speak in Haiti? // Creole w/ French, Spanish & English #
- @human3rror me too in reply to human3rror #
- @scotthodge the port is ruined, the road is buckled almost 5 ft up leading to it, no ships or trucks to get them to the boats in reply to scotthodge #
- To be a Christian without prayer is no more possible than to be alive without breathing. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. #
- Hey @tomokachristian, Publix has 10 for $10 items till Wed, which are great items to donate to Haiti #
- The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience,… #
- but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. #
- An individual has not started living until he can rise above the narrow confines of his individualistic concerns… #
- to the broader concerns of all humanity. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. #
- Every man must decide whether he will walk in the light of creative altruism… #
- or the darkness of destructive selfishness. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. #
- Life's most persistent and urgent question is, 'What are you doing for others?' Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. #
- Faith is taking the first step even when you don't see the whole staircase. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. #
- Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. #
- I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin… #
- but by the content of their character. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. #
- If a man hasn't discovered something that he will die for, he isn't fit to live. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. #
- I just want to do God's will. And he's allowed me to go to the mountain. And I've looked over, and I've seen the promised land!… #
- I may not get there with you, but I want you to know tonight that we as a people will get to the promised land. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. #
- that all reality hinges on moral foundations and that all reality has spiritual control. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. #
- If we are to go forward, we must go back and rediscover those precious values -… #
- @sermonfire break em, be yourself, do you know of @manchildmega, @Djdust or any of the DeepSpace5 crew? in reply to sermonfire #
- @human3rror when you pay taxes in reply to human3rror #
- @RichStearns I noticed the cross a couple days ago in some pictures on Time Magazine's website, really surreal in reply to RichStearns #
- RT @RejectApathy: U think u know disaster relief, but u have no idea. @WorldVisionUSA busts some myths here: http://bit.ly/85mr8r #
- @ChristieSays these are pretty typical late Jan and all of Feb storms for our area, they spawned a terrible tornado n 2007 from Dland to NSB in reply to ChristieSays #
- @MarketerMikeE if you are asking, @cruciformity is doing some great things w/ FB pages in reply to MarketerMikeE #
- @cruciformity Happy Birthday Chris! #
- Trying… http://twitpic.com/xl0on #
- @loswhit if you're asking it's @manchildmega, if not do share #
- @aaronmonts I know, I have performed 2 weddings for past YM kids and will do a third next month. But I would have placed you much over 30. in reply to aaronmonts #
- RT @GuyKawasaki: 5 English slangs everyone should know http://om.ly/dzPt // this is really good laugh or the dog's bollocks #
- Just got off the phone @TonyTSheng, so greatful for our friendship #
- @problogger collect letters from thr children that you support thru orgs like in reply to problogger #
- @problogger collect letters from the children that you support thru orgs like @compassion & @WorldVision in reply to problogger #
- @mcleodj I need to drop you an email or give you a call in reply to mcleodj #
- @brianmoll please share your results, interested to see different church planters results. Do you know what your Myers-Briggs results are? in reply to brianmoll #
- RT @ArronChambers: "roses are red, violets are blue, Lane Kiffin's a low-class money-grubbing loser"….the end. // that's sweet #
- I've carried a Haitian Goud in my wallet since '02 to remind myself 2 pray 4 Haiti, please keep #praying4haiti #fb http://twitpic.com/y5ass #
- Reading in Luke 13 this morn, Jesus talks about tragedy not being tied to sin, it offers some comfort this morning #
- A good friends of our's mother went to he with the Lord tonight. Please say a prayer for the Ashton family tonight. #fb #
- So you see it everyday, changing your desktop image to something abt Haiti, I found a great 1 on Electricurrent.com http://bit.ly/8GCsHN #fb #
Everybody needs a reminder. We write things on our calendars, set reminders on our computers, leave posted notes all over our offices all to remind ourselves of the important things we have to do any given day of the year. In “Primal”, Mark Batterson reminds us off the most important thing as a Christian, “Love the Lord your God with all of your heart, soul, mind and strength”. In the fast paced information age that we live in it is easy to lose sight of the Great Commandment. With Twitter and Facebook status updates from all our friends, news being blasted at us on TV, New Papers (the few that still exist), Magazines and Online it takes no time for our focus to shift to the endless stream of information from where our focus should be.
What I loved about Primal and all of Mark’s books is that it’s not just easy to read information but a challenge to get right with God and use our time and energy doing what we have been created to do, Love God. Primal breaks down the “love to the fourth power” into amazing descriptions of what it means to love God through compassion, wonder, curiosity and energy. We never break down the passage of scripture to really think about what it means to love God in these ways.
In chapter 2, I love how when talking about loving God with our heart do we every ask ourselves “Does our heart break for the things that breaks God’s?”. What a great question. As we look around our homes, neighborhoods, cities, county and the world there are hurting, lonely people who need real relationships and friends, they need resources to pick themselves up out of their situations or to provided the things they cannot. When talking about loving God with our soul, Mark talked about hiking the Grand Canyon and afterward flying over it and U2’s Beautiful Day playing in the helicopter and the wonder of God’s amazing creation coming over him. How often do we take time to thank God for the beautiful earth that He created? Every speck of sand, every rock, every layer of dirt it took to create the Grand Canyon God put into place. Some where along the way from adolescent to adult we lose that sense of wonder and really lose a big part of life because don’t stop to smell the roses, or let our jaw drop and the colors God painted in the sky to create the sun set.
Albert Einstein once said, “The important thing is to not stop questioning. Curiosity has it’s own reason for existence. One cannot help but be in awe when he contemplates the mysteries of eternity, of life, of the marvelous structure of reality. It is enough if one tries merely to comprehend a little of this mystery every day. Never lose a holy curiostiy.” While doctrines are set in stone, how we do them shouldn’t be. Throughout history what else could be has driven our faith as we have reached different generations, composed new music and written libraries of books. None of these would have come if we didn’t allow creativity though loving God with all our mind. I loved the chapter called “One God Idea”. We forget that it’s not our own effort that always pop ideas in to our head. The work of the Holy Spirit is to influence our thoughts. If we are honest with ourselves we have all asked why him or her, how did they come up with that great idea, or how do they have so many great ideas. Mark would argue having a system in place to capture the ideas that God sends us and not let them get a way. What if God sent you a great idea but you weren’t prepared for it. Having some way to capture the idea: a notepad in your back pocket, a moleskin in your bag or typing a note into your phone.
The last but not the least way to love God is with your strength. Mark says, “pray like it depends on God, work like it depends on you”, I would slightly modify it to say pray because it depends on God and work like it depends on you. In the book of James in the New Testament, he (James) said “show me your faith and I’ll show you my works, faith with out deeds in dead”. Obviously it was a problem in the early church but unfortunately is still a problem in the church today. Comfort out weights our biblical call in American Christianity to the tune of irrelevance in our communities. We have no more time to waste, loving God with all our strength is the last key to fullfil the Great Commission, Go!
To say this a great book would be an understatement. While kicking off the New Year with a Bible Reading Plan is of utmost importance, Primal should be the first non-biblical book you read in 2010!
DISCLOSURE OF MATERIAL CONNECTION: http://cmp.ly/1/if7sqc
The other day I saw a youth minister on Twitter ask what should he do with an immature Christian who wanted to be apart of his ministry. Now of course, there is always more to the story and this is no way a stab at him or the decision that he has to make in the best interest of his ministry. This problem comes up plenty in all of our ministries and though they may never approach us, when we are short on volunteers we face it as we discount people who just aren’t there.
So the dilemma is finding the right volunteers, the right amount of volunteers and creating a pipeline of volunteers for the future that already understand your DNA and culture.
So what are the options?
-Do nothing
This is where most ministries find themselves as they hustle at the last minute to plug warm bodies in to holes in our programs. I’ve been here. It’s not a pretty or healthy place to find yourself year after year. People are people, so we will always have times where we have to plug people in at the last minute. But this is not the right option.
-Search & Destroy
Every year we have ministry fairs and display our ministry goods seeking new volunteers or suckers that don’t what our ministry is really like. We ask people to sign up and then go through the list and talk with those we think fit in our ministry and ignore the rest. Maybe they aren’t right but how many in all actuality just aren’t there yet. For the record I was a sucker for youth ministry and fell head of heals in love with ministering to youth.
-Apprenticeships
Apprenticeships is ultimately a better option. To many times people come to our ministries who aren’t ready to be a lead volunteer. A lot of times we just place them in that lead role (warm bodies) and some succeed but others fail and miss the opportunity to serve. So people will click and some people aren’t gifted for your ministry and need to be encouraged and have help finding a place to serve with the gifts God gave them. Some people who see something in you, your ministry, or who you are ministering to and want to be a part of it but just aren’t ready. Why dismiss these people when we can mentor them into the volunteers we need and ultimately the Kingdom needs. Apprenticeships are great opportunities to create a leadership/ volunteer pipeline who are trained the way that you would like them to be trained, have spent time being taught and understanding your ministry’s DNA and culture. This takes that immature volunteers and gives you an opportunity to dangle the carrot in their face and here is where you want to be and this is what it is going to take to get there all while building in accountability.
What if every small group leader had an apprentice? Every ministry leader had an apprentices? What if you had an apprentice? How better off would your ministry be, how prepared you ministry be for the future and just think of the Kingdom workers you would have prepared whether they stay in your ministry or move away to another.
I’ve done the first two and believe me it was not fun. But today is a new day and 2010 is a week away. Why not start the year off with a new plan for developing new leaders through apprenticeships ?
